Stephanie's Kitchen

Amish Oven Fried Chicken

2011-06-19T12:52:00.000-07:00

Amish Oven Fried Chicken

1/3 c. vegetable oil
1/3 c. butter
1 c. all-purpose flour
1 tsp. salt
2 tsp. black pepper
2 tsp. paprika
1 tsp. garlic salt
1 tsp. dried marjoram
8 or 9 pieces chicken

Place oil and butter in a shallow cooking pan and place in 375 degree oven to melt butter, set aside. In a large paper sack combine dry ingredients. Roll the chicken pieces 3 at a time in butter and oil then drop into a sack and shake to cover. Place on a plate until all pieces are coated. Leave any excess butter and oil in pan. Place chicken in the pan skin side down or its just as good if you remove all the skin first. Bake at 375 degrees for 45 minutes with spatula, turn chicken pieces over and bake 5 to 10 minutes longer or until crust begins to bubble.

Spaghetti with Meat Sauce

2011-02-02T10:18:00.000-08:00

I found this recipe online several years ago. It quickly became my favorite spaghetti sauce and is better than just plain canned and is quick and easy to whip up. The recipe calls for 2 pounds of ground beef, but I've used 1 pound with great results.

Spaghetti with Meat Sauce

2 pounds ground round (or 1 lb. ground beef + 1 lb. ground Italian Sausage)
1 (14 ounce) can stewed tomatoes, cut up (I put them in the blender)
6 ounces V-8 juice
1 (16 ounce) jar Prego Traditional spaghetti sauce
1 envelope onion soup mix (I use 1/2 pkg.)
1/2 cup grape jelly (I use about 3/4 cup)

In a large skillet, brown meat until pink color disappears.* Drain off liquid and crumble with fork or potato masher. Stir in tomatoes, V-9 juice, Prego, soup mix and grape jelly. Bring mixture to a boil, then turn heat down and simmer for 15-20 mins or until piping hot and to the desired thickness of sauce you like.

Yields enough sauce for 6 to 8 servings.

*I prefer to boil my ground beef. To do this, put about an inch or so of water in your skillet. Add ground beef and crumble. I also like to add about 1/4 of an onion, chopped, pepper, salt, and a bit of garlic powder. Bring to a boil and continue to break meat into small chunks. Boil on low heat until meat is done. Drain off water and rinse meat in a colander to further remove any excess grease. Place back into skillet and proceed with recipe.

Honeybun Cake

2010-12-25T15:56:00.000-08:00

This is the most delicious cake I've tasted in a long time! I baked one a couple of days ago and took it to work. The empty pan came home with me that same night. I've never taken anything that disappeared so quickly!! You won't be disappointed with this cake, I can tell you that!

Honeybun Cake
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Cake mixture:
1 yellow cake mix
4 eggs
1 C sour cream
3/4 C vegetable oil
1/4 t cinnamon (approximately)
1/2 C sugar

Filling mixture:
1 C brown sugar (I used 1 C sugar + 1 T molasses and mixed well)
3 t (heaping) cinnamon
1 C chopped nuts (I used walnuts)

Icing mixture:
6 T milk
2 C powdered sugar
1 t vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 325º. Grease (very, very well) a 13" x 9" cake pan.

In a mixing bowl, combine by hand the cake mix, eggs, sour cream, vegetable oil, sugar, and cinnamon. Mix well. If you have lumps, that's okay. Mix the filling mixture in a small bowl and set aside.

Spread half of the cake mixture in the bottom of the cake pan. Sprinkle half the filling mixture over the cake mixture. Make sure you get mixture over the entire cake. Then, place the rest of the cake mixture in the cake pan and top with the remaining filling mixture. Using a knife, swirl the cake mixtures until they're well blended.

Bake at 325º for 45-50 minutes or until toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Approximately 5 minutes before cake is finished, mix the icing mixture together in a small bowl. Immediately upon removing cake from oven, pour icing over the hot cake. In order to cover the whole cake, you might need to tilt the cake. Let cool and eat warm or cold. It's supposedly better the next day, but I've yet to make one and have any left to eat the next day!

Mom's Baked Macaroni and Cheese

2010-12-05T10:01:00.000-08:00

This is, was, and will always be a staple at every family holiday gathering. Amen.

This was one of my mom's best recipes ever and most requested dishes for family get togethers. I have no idea where the recipe came from, but I do know it's awesome! When I was younger, we'd always take 2 big casserole dishes of this to the family Thanksgiving get together at my grandmother's because my uncle (my mom's younger brother) and his kids could easily polish off half of one dish by themselves leaving hardly any for the rest of the family! Every once in awhile, I make it "just cuz"....just 'cuz I've got a hankering for it! Besides that, the husband loves it and it's SOOOOOOOOOOO good warmed up later or the next day.

It's best to use a clear glass baking dish for this, but if you don't have one, don't sweat it. The size of baking dish will determine how much macaroni you'll need, but sometimes the amount of macaroni you've cooked determines the size dish you'll need. Unfortunately, I've never measured the ingredients, so you'll have to forgive me for that.

Here we go! You'll need: a baking dish of your choice, elbow ronis, cheddar cheese (grated), a little bit of milk, BUTTER, and salt. Don't forget the butter!

In a large pot, bring salted water to boil. Pour in 6-8 (or more) CUPS of dry ronis and cook until slightly soft (al dente) as they'll bake a bit more in the oven. Or, you could be like me and just pour them in until you think you have enough. Drain & rinse ronis. When thoroughly rinsed and drained, and add about a tablespoon of olive oil to them to keep from sticking together and stir.

Decide what size baking dish you'll need. Take a stick of butter (margarine will work, too) and peel off half the wrapper. Holding onto the wrapped end and using the unwrapped end like a brush, liberally butter the bottom, corners, and sides of your baking dish.

Cover the bottom of your dish with a layer of ronis. Sprinkle salt over the top. Dot with butter. (Cut a pat of butter off the stick, then cut into fourths to make dots.)

Sprinkle grated cheese over the top. (Liberally)

Repeat layers finishing with cheese on top.

Carefully pour milk (anything from skim to whole milk works) over the top of the dish until it comes about 1/8"-1/4" up the side of the dish. Don't wait to stop pouring until you notice the milk level rising. Stop periodically and let the milk settle to the bottom before adding more. If you aren't using a see-through dish, take a knife and stick it down the side of the dish and gently pull back on the ronis until you can see the milk level. Too little milk and it'll be too dry. Too much milk and it won't all cook out before the top burns. It's a delicate balance.

Here's mine ready to go into the oven.

Bake at 350º on the middle rack in your oven until the milk has evaporated, everything's bubbling, and the top is lightly browned. Usually it's about 30-45 mins. If you're in a hurry, you can bake it at 425º, but keep an eye on it so that it doesn't get too brown on top and bottom. You can also assemble the night before, leave out the milk, and store covered in the refrigerator. Before popping it in the oven, add the milk and bake as normal.

Enjoy and don't blame me for the added pounds!

Skillet Chicken Fajitas

2010-08-18T08:07:00.000-07:00

This is a simple, quick, easy way to prepare fajitas without needing to marinate or stand outside in the hot sun grilling. I don't have a strict recipe I follow, so forgive me for that.

To warm tortillas, place in a foil, sprinkle with water, and place in a 200º oven while you cook your meal. You can turn off the oven about 5 mins before the meat is finished cooking.

Chicken Ingredients:
Boneless skinless chicken breasts, cleaned, rinsed, and cut into thin strips
1/2 onion, sliced thinly and divided into rings
1 or 2 garlic cloves, minced
Paprika
Salt
Pepper
Oregano
Ground Cumin
Cayenne (Crushed Red Pepper Flakes)
Olive Oil

Place about 4 tablespoons of olive oil in the skillet to warm. Add half the onions and half the garlic. Allow to start cooking. Place a layer of chicken strips in the skillet and sprinkle with seasonings to your taste. A little cumin, cayenne, and oregano go a long way! You can also add some jalapenos if you like it hot. Cook on one side til all the pink is gone from the meat, turn, and cook on the other side until brown. It takes only a few minutes. Repeat with remaining chicken, adding the second half of the onions and garlic and re-seasoning about half-way through.

Veggies:
1-1 1/2 onion, thinly sliced
1 whole red bell pepper, deseeded and sliced
1 yellow or orange bell pepper, deseeded and sliced
1-2 cloves garlic, minced
Jalapenos (if you like it hot)

Throw the veggies into the skillet after you've cooked all your meat. Stir and cook until the veggies are crisp-tender and heated throughout. Add the meat back into the skillet, stir and mix together until the meat is warm. Serve on hot tortillas with your choice of toppings.

Toppings:
Grated cheese
Lettuce
Tomatoes
Diced Onions
Salsa
Guacamole
Jalapenos
Pico de Gallo
Sour Cream

Amish Chicken and Skillet Scalloped Potatoes

2010-03-31T16:18:00.001-07:00

The Amish Chicken is a keeper and so is the Skillet Scalloped Potato recipe. I already knew the potato recipe was awesome, but didn't know about the chicken recipe. They're both fairly easy and made with lots of butter.

Amish Chicken
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
1/2 C flour
2 t paprika
1 t pepper
1/4 t dry mustard
1 t salt
1 cut up broiler or parts of chicken (I used boneless skinless chicken breasts.)
1 stick (1/2 C) butter

Heat oven to 350º. Place butter in a 9"x13" casserole dish and place in oven while heating up to melt. Mix dry ingredients in a gallon size plastic bag. Clean chicken and pat mostly dry. Place chicken in bag with dry ingredients and coat chicken well. Remove casserole dish from oven. Place chicken in pan. Bake 1 1/2-2 hours for chicken pieces or 25-35 mins (or until juices run clear) for boneless skinless breasts.

Skillet Scalloped Potatoes

- serves 4 -
Ingredients

1 tablespoon butter
1 1/4 pounds russet potatoes, peeled and sliced 1/8th inch thick
1/2 medium onion, minced
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 tablespoon fresh thyme, chopped
1/2 cup chicken broth
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 bay leaf
2 ounces grated cheddar cheese
Salt and pepper
Procedure

1. Preheat the oven to 425ºF. Heat a large iron skillet over medium-high heat. Add the butter. When melted, add the onion. Cook for 4 minutes, or until soft.

2. Toss in the garlic and thyme, and cook for 30 seconds or until fragrant. Add a pinch of salt and pepper. Dump in the potatoes, chicken broth, cream, and bay leaf. Bring to a simmer and then cover, reduce heat to medium-low, and cook for 10 minutes.

3. Remove the cover, sprinkle the cheese on top, and place the iron skillet in the oven. Cook for 15 minutes, or until the cheese is bubbling and slightly browned. Let rest for 5-10 minutes before serving. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Weekly Menu 3/28-4/3

2010-03-28T06:25:00.000-07:00

I have been in a cooking slump lately. Not sure why, but I have been. Maybe I should blame it on the changing of the seasons. You know, the time's changed (back to daylight saving time), the days have gotten longer, the temps are getting warmer and it's actually pleasant outside, and I long to spend more time outside working in my garden and playing in the dirt. It's time to move from the heavy, stick-to-your-ribs meals of winter to the lighter, less labor intensive, less heat in the kitchen producing meals.

The Husband (God bless him!) has been doing most of the cooking and that's getting really old...fast! I've been tinkering with the idea of a weekly menu, but I'll be the first to admit, I'm not good at sticking to any kind of plan. This morning while emptying the dishwasher and putting away the rest of the groceries from yesterday's trip to Sam's and the grocery store that The Husband made, I decided on a few meals I'd like to cook this week. Maybe if I write them down and post them, it'll actually happen!

Here's my plan for this week. Some of these recipes are new, so if they pass muster, I'll post them for you to all enjoy.

Sunday~Amish Chicken, some kind of green beans, and either rice or some kind of potato dish. Peach cobbler for dessert.

Monday~Grilled hamburgers w/ fixins and pork & beans

Tuesday~Leftovers (working the closing shift)

Wednesday~Crock Pot Roast w/ veggies

Thursday~Chalupas

Friday~??

Saturday~Beef soup/stew with leftover roast

There you have it folks! We'll see if I stick to it!

:>)

Praline Grahams

2009-12-22T09:05:00.000-08:00

Another easy recipe! I'm all about easy recipes!

Praline Grahams

1 C. butter
1 1/2 C. packed brown sugar
2 C. chopped pecans
1 sleeve of graham crackers+

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line 10x15 cookie sheet with heavy duty foil. place graham crackers in the pan, break into squares. In saucepan, combine butter, sugar and pecans. Melt and bring to boil and boil for 2 minutes. Stir the boiling sugar mixture constantly. Spread over the crackers and bake for 10 minutes. Let cool completely and use a spatula to lift off.

Rolo Pretzel Treats

2009-12-22T08:42:00.000-08:00

This is so easy and such a wonderful little snack!

Rolo Pretzel Treats
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
1 bag of Pretzels (twisted or squares)
Rolo Candies
Pecan or Walnut halves OR M&Ms

Preheat oven to 300º

Line cookie sheet with parchment paper. Place pretzels on cookie sheet. Place unwrapped Rolo on the pretzel. Place in oven for 3-4 mins. Remove from oven and place pecan half or M&M on top of soft Rolo candy and press down. Let sit to cool.

I removed the cookie sheet from under the parchment paper and allowed them to cool on a cooling rack on top of the parchment paper.

DO NOT REMOVE the Rolo covered pretzels from the parchment paper prior to the candies setting! (Can you say HUGE mess?!?)

Aunt Carol's No-Fail Pie Crust Recipe

2009-08-08T07:05:00.000-07:00

My mother made the BEST pies EVER!! Her crust was always light and flaky, melt-in-your-mouth, good-to-the-last-bite wonderful. I cannot tell you how many pie crusts I watched my mother make and how many pies my mother baked in her lifetime, but every single time, the crust was pure perfection!! Try as I may, I've never been able to master the art of the pie crust until a woman on a cross stitch message board shared her secret recipe. I've made this a couple of times, and every single crust has been wonderful. Not quite as light and tasty as Mom's but it's a close second.

AuntCarol’s Pie Crust-Never-Fail Type

This pie crust recipe is one that SUPER easy to roll out – one that never gets soggy – leaving that last piece of pie as good as the first – it’s the only pie crust recipe I’ll ever use – it’s the BEST –

Ingredients

1 egg
¾ teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon WHITE vinegar
7 tablespoons water
1 cup shortening (CRISCO)
3 cups flour

BEAT egg.

ADD salt, vinegar, and water.

ADD CRISCO. BLEND with fork, while ADDING flour, about a cup at a time.

FORM into one big dough ball. THEN DIVIDE into 3 equal-sized dough balls (or you can divide it into 2 equal-sized dough balls like I did just today).

ROLL OUT thin on a lightly floured surface and then PLACE into pan of your choice.

Note: Prepared pie shell should be put into the refrigerator 30 minutes before filling – and REMEMBER all fruit pies must be baked on the lowest rack in your oven –

ENJOY -

After you've put your crust into the pie plate, trimmed and fluted it, take all the little leftover pieces and roll them into a ball. Roll out with a rolling pin, cut out shapes with cookie cutters, if you like, or cut into strips, then put onto a piece of foil. Prick the crust with a fork (to allow steam to escape) and sprinkle sugar and cinnamon on the top. Cook at 350º (or whatever temperature your pie recipe calls for) until nice and brown. Some of my fondest memories are when Mom would let us use her cookie cutters and make "pie dough cookies". She also allowed us to decorate the tops however we wanted, with sprinkles, colored sugar, and all those fun baking toppings we didn't use often!!

Chocolate Mayonnaise Cake

2009-08-07T10:16:00.000-07:00

As a rule in our house, we're not mayonnaise eaters. We're Miracle Whip kinda people, so if I have to have mayonnaise for a recipe, I try to use it up or else it'll sit in the fridge til it's past its "use by" date. Since money is tight right now, I went looking for some creative, yet tasty uses for the mayo I currently have on hand. (I had used some of it in a pasta salad, but had more than half a jar left.) This is what I found, and it was perfect for just the 2 of us.

This cake comes from a time in American life when eggs and sugar were rationed and any kind of dish including them was a treat. The mayonnaise takes the place of oil and eggs and makes the cake moist and tasty.

Chocolate Mayonnaise Cake
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
3/4 C mayonnaise
1 C sugar
1 t vanilla extract
2 C all-purpose flour
1/4 C baking cocoa
2 t baking soda
1/2 t salt
1 C water

Frosting:
2 T butter, softened to room temperature
1-1/2 C powdered sugar
2 T baking cocoa
2 T warm milk
1 t vanilla extract
pinch salt

In a large bowl, beat mayonnaise, sugar and vanilla until smooth. Combine the flour, cocoa, baking soda, and salt; add to mayonnaise mixture alternately with water, beating well after each addition.

Pour into a greased 9" square baking pan. Bake at 350º for 25-30 mins or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Cool on a wire rack.

Frosting: In a small bowl, beat butter until light and fluffy. Gradually beat in the powdered sugar, cocoa, milk, vanilla, and salt. Frost cake. Store in the refrigerator.

As you can see, I sprinkled some chopped nuts on top of my finished product because it looked too plain without them!

Cowboy Cookies

2009-08-04T10:15:00.001-07:00

Cowboy Cookies
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
1/2 C butter (1 stick), softened
1/2 C light brown sugar, packed
1/4 C granulated sugar
1 egg
1 t vanilla
1 C flour
2 T unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 t baking powder
1/4 t baking soda
1 C rolled oats (I used Quick Oats, what I had on hand)
1 C (6 oz.) semisweet chocolate chips
1/2 C raisins
1/2 C chopped nuts (I used walnuts)

Preheat oven to 375º. Lightly grease cookie sheets or line with parchment paper.

Beat butter with sugars in large bowl until well blended. Add egg and vanilla; beat until fluffy. Combine flour, cocoa, baking powder and baking soda in small bowl; stir into butter mixture. Add oats, chocolate chips, raisins, and nuts. Drop by rounded teaspoonfuls 2" apart onto prepared cookie sheets.

Bake 10-12 mins or until lightly browned around edges. Remove to wire rack to cool.

Makes about 4 doz. cookies

Absolutely delish!! You can't eat just one! LOL

Homemade Flour Tortillas

2009-08-03T10:02:00.000-07:00

I found this relatively easy recipe for flour tortillas online at the Pioneer Woman's new recipe website/community, Tasty Kitchen. I decided to give it a go since we love flour tortillas. I have very fond memories of going to my grandmother's house and eating fresh tortillas slathered with butter, then dipped in syrup. My mom never could master the art of making flour tortillas, but my great-grandmother was a pro! I think it helped that she was of Mexican decent and made them her entire life. The rolling pin she used is now in my dad's possession. I think the next time I go visit, I'm going to bring it back with me!

A couple of notes before I post the recipe. Make sure your surface is very well floured, as well as your hands, and your rolling pin. You don't want it to be overly floured, but you don't want the tortillas to stick to the rolling pin or the surface. Also, make sure that your griddle or skillet (preferably cast iron) is nice and hot when you start. If you have too much flour on your tortillas when you throw them on the griddle, the flour will burn and you'll end up with little black flecks of flour on your tortillas. (As seen in the pic above! LOL) Do NOT add all the water at once!! You probably won't need all the water, so add slowly and then mix to the proper consistency. It shouldn't be too wet or 'stringy' when you pull it. It also shouldn't stick to your hands. If it does, add more flour. Because I added all the water, I had to add a lot of flour to get it to the desired consistency. I had approx. 2 dozen tortillas of various shapes and sizes.

Flour Tortillas

* 3 cups White Flour (I used All-purpose)
* 2 teaspoons Baking Powder
* 1 teaspoon Salt
* 5 tablespoons Cold Butter, Shortening, Or Lard (I used butter, of course!)
* 1-¼ cup Warm Water

Preparation Instructions

Combine flour, baking powder, and salt. Add shortening/butter and either combine in food processor or cut into dry ingredients until mixture is crumbly. Add warm water 1/2 cup at a time until mixture is a soft dough. Add more flour a tablespoon at a time until dough is soft and slightly sticky, but not wet.

Shape dough into 12-15 balls, about the circumference of a silver dollar/50pence. Roll the dough out on a well-floured surface until dough is about 1/4inch thick.

(It works really well to have one person rolling out tortillas while another one cooks them).

Heat a frying pan or griddle until water dances on the surface. Place one tortilla in the pan and cook for about 30 seconds, or until edges start to pull away from the pan and small air pockets start to form. Flip tortilla over and repeat on the other side. Tortillas will have some parts which are more brown.

Repeat for all tortillas. Serve warm, or package in airtight container once cooled. Use within a week, or up to a month if frozen.

My Favorite Summer Drink

2009-06-03T13:59:00.000-07:00

There's just something about lemonade and summertime that go together. Nothing like cold lemonade to quench your thirst during the long, dry, hot days of summer.

Several years ago, I found this incredibly simple recipe for homemade lemonade in the back of a Beverly Lewis book. I make it frequently during the summer. (I even make it in the winter when I get the urge for something different.) It's crisp and refreshing.

Here's what you'll need:

3 Lemons
1/2 C sugar
1 qt. water (4 Cups)

Wash lemons and cut in half.

Squeeze juice from lemons into a large pitcher.

(I cheat and use my electric mini juicer. It's the best $5 investment I've made!)

Add sugar.

Fill pitcher with 1 qt water.

Chop rinds into 8-10 pieces and let soak in lemonade. Stir well until juice gets syrupy. (I don't know what this means, but I just stir it till the sugar's melted.)

Let sit for awhile, then strain rinds out of juice and refrigerate. Drink within a couple of days.

Old-Time Lemonade
3 Lemons, rinsed
1/2 C sugar
1 qt (4 C) water

Wash lemons and cut in half. Squeeze juice from lemons into a large pitcher. Add sugar; fill pitcher with 1 qt. water. Chop rinds into 8-10 pieces and let soak in lemonade. Stir well until juice gets syrupy. Strain rinds out of juice and refrigerate.

Alfredo Sauce

2009-03-28T08:13:00.000-07:00

I don't know where I got this recipe, but it's absolutely delicious! Don't ruin it by using too much garlic and invest in real parmesan cheese so it's not grainy. Don't skimp on the butter, either. Been there, done that and it's not good. Believe me!!

Alfredo Sauce
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
INGREDIENTS
¾ cup butter
2 tablespoons cream cheese (optiona, but I use it)
1-¾ cup Parmesan cheese
1-½ cups heavy cream (go for the good stuff!)
3 cloves garlic minced (2 large cloves or 3 small cloves)
salt and pepper to taste
INSTRUCTIONS
In a saucepan, melt butter add heavy cream and cream cheese. Simmer
this until melted and stir until well blended. Add Parmesan and garlic
powder. Simmer for about 15 minutes on low add salt and pepper. Serve
immediately with your favorite pasta.
1 cup of chopped cooked chicken or turkey can be added. 1 small onion
finely chopped can be added when melting butter and sautéed until
transparent.

I usually serve this without meat over fettuccine noodles with Garlic Bread and a salad. Very yummy!! It's best to prepare your pasta first, drain it, then put it back in the pot with a bit of olive oil mixed in so the pasta doesn't stick together. Add the entire batch of sauce to the pasta and you're good to go.

Mexican Chicken (or turkey)

2009-02-22T07:14:00.001-08:00

I make this whenever I have leftover chicken from cooking a whole chicken. You can also use turkey when you have leftovers at Thanksgiving or Christmas. You can use both white and dark meat. Personally, I think the dark meat tastes better in this particular recipe. This is one of those dishes that tastes better the next day, after it's had time to marinate overnight in the fridge. Serve with a nice salad and you've got a great, easy, one-pot meal.

Mexican Chicken (or Turkey)
---------------------------
1 pkg corn tortillas (about 8 or 10)
4 C turkey or chicken, cut or torn
1 lg. onion, chopped
1 t garlic salt
8 oz. cheddar cheese, grated
1 can (10 oz) Rotel tomatoes (any speed)
2 cans (10 3/4 oz) cream of chicken soup
1 t chili powder

Line an 8" square baking dish with some of the tortillas (4 or 5). In
a large bowl, mix the turkey pieces, onion, cheese, and garlic salt.
Add the remaining ingredients. Pour into baking dish on top of
tortillas. Cut several tortillas into fourths and push them down into
the mix. Top with more cheese. Bake for 30 mins at 350º.

*I always dip the corn tortillas I'm going to put on the bottom of my dish in hot oil to make them more pliable and not stick to the bottom of the dish. I don't dip in hot oil the ones I put on the top. I also have made it both with the chili powder and without. It tastes great both ways.

Daddy's Fruit Salad

2009-02-15T10:11:00.000-08:00

My daddy used to make this for Christmas, but Mark & I make it all the time now. This is an excellent way to use up excess fruit you have on hand. It's also great to take for church pot lucks and family get-togethers. It's so easy, all-natural, and good for you to boot!

Ingredients:
1-2 Ruby Red Grapefruit (esp. the red Texas variety)
2-3 Apples (We use Gala, but any will do)
2 Oranges (seedless)
2-3 Tangerines or Clementines
Grapes (red or green)
Bananas
Fresh Pineapple chunks, optional
Chopped Nuts, optional
Coconut, optional

Rinse the fruit. Peel the oranges, tangerines, and/or clementines and remove all excess rind and that white stuff on the outside of the fruit.

The first step is the messiest but the outcome is so worth it! After peeling your grapefruit, be sure you work over a large bowl so you catch the juice as it dribbles down your hands and arms.

Peel and skin the grapefruit. You only want the flesh of the fruit, not any of the white stuff that's part of the rind. Then pull open the skin of each section and get the fruit out. (The skin and white stuff from the rind is really what makes the grapefruit bitter.) Crumble the grapefruit sections up into a large bowl.

Peel and chop up the remaining fruit. Mix it all together. Add nuts and coconut, if desired.

Cover and store in fridge. Best when left overnight or all day to marinate.

Sunday's Best Oven Fried Chicken

2009-01-25T05:39:00.000-08:00

Lest you thought we existed on only desserts and snacks, here's a great tried & true chicken recipe for you. This chicken really isn't fried; it's baked in the oven. However, it does have that fried chicken taste. Once you get the hang of this recipe, it's fairly easy to make. The original recipe makes enough to feed a small army, so I cut the recipe in half. Feel free to use the original amounts, half it, or double it to suit your needs.

Sunday's Best Oven-Fried Chicken
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
3-1/2 to 4 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts
1/2 C all purpose flour
1 t celery seeds
2 t onion powder
1 t paprika
2 T lemon pepper
1 T salt
1 T fresh chopped thyme
2 lg. eggs, room temperature
3/4 C buttermilk (I use plain skim milk w/ 1 T vinegar added)
One 16 oz. package seasoned bread stuffing mix, crushed (I put it in a large ziplock and whacked it with the rolling pin or the bottom of a heavy glass, but I think bread crumbs would work well, too)
1/2 C (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted

Adjust the baking rack to the center of the oven and preheat to 400ºF.

1. Rinse the chickens thoroughly under COLD water and pat dry with paper towels.
2. In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, celery seeds, onion powder, paprika, lemon pepper, salt and thyme. Set aside.
3. Whisk the eggs and buttermilk together thoroughly. Pour into a shallow bowl.
4. Pour the crushed stuffing mix into a separate shallow bowl or large paper plate.
5. Pour the melted butter onto a baking sheet.
6. Dredge the chicken pieces in the seasoned flour mixture, then in the buttermilk mixture; thoroughly coat in the crushed stuffing mix.
7. Transfer chicken to the baking sheet and gently roll the pieces in the melted butter until lightly coated. (I use a 9" X 13" casserole dish)
8. Bake for 25-35 mins OR when the juices flow clear after a knife is inserted into the thickest part of the breast.
9. When the chicken is fully cooked, transfer the pieces to a platter lined with paper towels. Serve. Allow to cool to room temp before storing in fridge.

I use the Pepperidge Farm stuffing that comes in the large bag. This time I got sage and it tasted too much like turkey stuffing, so I might go with something different next time or try seasoned bread crumbs.

These taste great the next day, too!

If you use chicken tenders or smaller chicken breasts, cut your cooking time and check for doneness.

Don't skip the butter! This really does make the coating nice and crispy. Plus, who doesn't like the added taste the butter gives the finished product?!?

Chunky Monkey Muffins

2009-01-21T11:58:00.000-08:00

This is another one of those recipes you can use if you have ripe bananas sitting on your counter. They don't taste like banana muffins, though. They are very easy to throw together and VERY good!

Chunky Monkey Muffins (Makes 12)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 cup mashed bananas (approx. 2 or 3 bananas)
1/2 cup sour cream
3/4 cup chocolate chips
1/2 cup chopped nuts
2 eggs
2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla

Grease bottom of muffin pans or use paper muffin liners. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine butter and sugar. Beat until light and fluffy. Add mashed bananas, sour cream, eggs and vanilla. Blend well. Stir in flour, baking soda and salt. Fold in chips and chopped nuts. Fill muffin cups full. Bake 20 - 25 minutes.

**I ended up with 18 muffins, but I didn't over-fill my muffin cups. I also used regular sized muffin tins and not the jumbo sized muffin tins.

Dinner Plans

2009-01-13T07:32:00.000-08:00

In an effort to use the food in the pantry and in the fridge, I've made a dinner menu for the next week or so. In the past when I've ventured to make a menu, I never stuck to it and changed it when I wanted to. This time, I've written it down for all the world to see and am kind of looking forward to sticking with it! I just do dinner because I work and don't get up and cook breakfast and because lunch usually consists of leftovers from the night before. Also, I usually only cook every other day since it's just me and DH. Otherwise, we'd be overrun with food!

Week One: 1/11-1/17
Sunday~Sunday's Best Oven Fried Chicken, mashed potatoes, corn, cranberry fluff, cottage cheese

Monday~leftovers since I work the late shift

Tuesday 1/13~DH's making Egg in the Holes for breakfast!! Dinner will once again be leftovers from Sunday since I'm working the late shift.

Wednesday~Chalupas and salsa/chips

Thursday~DH's night to cook! (woohoo!)

Friday~Marlboro Man's Favorite Sandwiches (from the PW Cooks site) and oven fries

Week Two-11/18-11/24
Sunday~Hamburgers, cottage fries, pork 'n beans

Monday~Spaghetti, Garlic Bread, salad

Wednesday~Chicken Veggie Stir Fry & rice

Thursday~DH's Night to cook!

Friday~Crockpot Rotisserie Chicken, veggies

Saturday/Sunday~Chicken soup

We'll see how it all goes down, but maybe by posting it on here I'll stick to it!

(c:

Hawaiian Banana Nut Bread

2009-01-11T14:55:00.000-08:00

Sometimes, I end up with bananas that look like this on my kitchen counter. Not very often, but occasionally.

I know that for some of you, these bananas may be just the right speed for your tastes, but for me, they're well past their prime for eating. Not wanting them to go to waste, and having time last weekend to actually do something with them other than toss them into the freezer, I made banana bread.

This bread is always so moist and delicious! The recipe makes 2 loaves, so I usually keep one at home and take the other one to work.

Hawaiian Banana Nut Bread
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Makes 2 9"x5" loaves

Ingredients:
3 cups flour
¾ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 cups sugar
2 teaspoons cinnamon (can try 1 t)
1 cup chopped pecans or walnuts (or macadamia nuts)
1/2 C grated coconut (optional)
3 eggs, beaten
1 cup vegetable oil
2 cups mashed ripe bananas (approx. 5-6 medium)
1 8-ounce can crushed pineapple, drained
3 teaspoons vanilla (can try 2 t)

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour 2 9"x5" loaf pans.

Combine first 5 ingredients and stir in nuts. Combine wet ingredients. Add wet ingredients to dry and combine until just moistened. Divide batter between the 2 loaf pans.

Bake at 350° for 1 hour 10 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.

Note: Good with grated carrots substituted for the pineapple.

Enjoy!

(c:

My Momma's Cornbread

2009-01-06T07:02:00.000-08:00

This is my momma's recipe and is perfect every time! Make sure you set your eggs and milk out to get room temp, about an hour before beginning. Here's what you need to know about cornbread.

Use this kind of cornmeal to promote the economy in San Antonio. That's why my mom used this brand exclusively, since we lived in San Antonio. If I try to buy a different brand, I hear my mother speaking to me from beyond the grave!!

Even though my mom swore by Clabber Girl baking powder, I use Rumford. It has no aluminum in the mixture and doesn't leave an aftertaste. Believe me, you'll want to spend the few extra pennies on the Rumford brand. It really makes your baked goods taste better. Besides that, it comes in a pretty red can!

Stephanie's Mom's Cornbread
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Sift together:
1 C flour
3 t baking powder
1 t salt
2 T sugar

Add: 1 C cornmeal

Combine:
2 eggs, slightly beaten
1 C milk
1/4 C vegetable oil

Add liquid to dry ingredients, mixing only until all flour is dampened. Pour into well-greased 8"x8"x2" pan. Bake for 30 mins. Do NOT over bake.

Commentary

This is the most important thing you need to know so that your cornbread has a nice, crispy crust on the sides & bottom and so that it won't stick to the pan. When you turn your oven on to preheat, pour about a tablespoon (or so...I usually end up with "or so") in your 8" x 8" square pan. Then, POP THAT BABY IN THE OVEN WHILE YOUR OVEN IS HEATING. Your pan should look something like this, minus the scratches and well-used look.

I usually pour my milk into a 2-cup measuring cup, then I add the eggs and oil and mix it all together. Don't use olive oil! It really tastes gross. Don't ask me how I know.

Here's what your mix should look like when dampened. It's okay if a bit, like in this pic, isn't totally wet.

If you want to swirl the mix around to get those little pieces wet, that's fine. Also, as you're mixing, make sure you tilt your bowl and rake your fork across the bottom of the bowl to get the dry stuff that's stuck down there on the bottom.

When ready to pour your mix into the pan, remove the hot pan from the oven and very, very gently, swirl the liquid oil around. Don't get too excited and burn yourself, though.

When you pour your batter into the pan, the oil will be displaced along the sides and into the corners of the pan. During baking, this is what creates the crispy crust. You may even hear a little sizzle. Good!

Seriously, do NOT over bake the bread. If your oven cooks hot, start checking it at about 25 mins. You'll be able to smell it baking, and it will smell heavenly! You want it nicely browned, not too pale and definitely not too brown.

When your cornbread is finished, it nicely makes 9 pieces of bread if you make 3 cuts each direction. If you have a family of 4, that's 2 pieces each, then you fight over the last piece. The center piece is the most coveted, be warned. Again, don't ask me how I know this.

Here's a side and bottom view of the finished product.

And a pic of the inside.

Served with the taco soup from my previous post.

Taco Soup

2009-01-06T05:35:00.000-08:00

The weather turned cold on Sunday and I had some hamburger meat to use up, so I made taco soup. And in my house, you can't have taco soup without cornbread, so I whipped some of that up as well.

Taco Soup
~~~~~~~~
1 lb. ground beef, browned
1/4 medium onion, diced
salt & pepper

1 tablespoon chili powder
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon onion powder
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
2 cans pinto beans, drained & rinsed
1 can whole kernel corn (you could use frozen)
1 can diced tomatoes

Optional toppings:
cheese, grated
avocado
sour cream
cilantro sprigs

1. Brown the ground beef. I dice about 1/4 of an onion and throw it in with the beef as well as adding salt & pepper. Drain any grease.
2. Add the other ingredients. If you don't have all the seasonings, you can substitute taco seasoning. I find taco seasoning too salty for my tastes so I use the seasonings so I can control the salt content as well as the hotness level.

3. Add enough water to cover, and stir.
4. Cover with lid, turn heat to medium, and bring to a boil.
5. Once boiling, tilt lid so it's covering most of the soup but the steam can escape (this keeps it boiling), reduce heat to half and continue to boil, stirring occasionally.

If you're making cornbread to go with your soup, remove the lid from the soup and turn it to simmer when you put your cornbread in the oven.

When ready to serve, top with cheese and/or your choice of toppings. I used cheddar cheese and a sprig of cilantro. That cilantro really gave the soup a nice flavor!! Slurp!

Cornbread recipe coming in the next post!

Lemon Pound Cake

2009-01-04T07:31:00.000-08:00

My husband LOVES lemon cake. If he had a choice between lemon and chocolate, he'd take lemon. Don't know what's wrong with that boy, but I love him anyway! For the past several years, I've been on the hunt for a light, lemony cake for him. I think I've finally found the perfect cake.

LEMON POUND CAKE
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
1 (16-oz.) box Betty Crocker or Pillsbury lemon or yellow cake mix
1 (3-oz.) box instant lemon pudding
4 large eggs
1 cup sour cream
2 tsp. lemon extract (optional) –or- juice of 1 lemon
1 lemon, zest of or 1 tsp. lemon zest spice
1/2 cup oil

Glaze:
1 cup powdered sugar
1 T. milk
1 T. butter, melted
1 tsp. lemon extract or juice of 1 lemon

Preheat oven to 350°. Mix all ingredients and bake for 35-40 minutes in a greased and floured bundt or tube pan. Prepare glaze and pour over hot cake.

Here are some notes:

>Zest-the rind of the fruit and only the rind.

>I used fresh lemons since I actually had some on hand. If you don't have one of those fancy schmancy zester grater things, you can use your regular cheese grater, but use one of the sides with the teeny tiny holes. If you have a toothbrush or a pasty brush, you'll need that to get the zest out of said teeny tiny holes. It really makes a big mess, but it'll do in a pinch. You can also peel the rind (not the white icky tasting pith or membrane) then finely chop it with a knife. Next time, I think I'm going to thoroughly clean and sanitize one of the files my husband uses out in the garage and use that. (That's what a zester sorta looks like!)

>Let the cake sit for about 10 minutes before turning out onto a plate. If you need help learning how to turn out a cake, please let me know and I'll take step-by-step pics for you. :) During this time, prepare your glaze.

>Prior to glazing, I poked some holes in the top of the cake so that the cake could absorb some of the glaze.

>The glaze recipe makes a TON of glaze. Too much really, for this cake. I'd cut the recipe in half unless you want to eat what you don't pour on the cake.

>If you use sugar to coat your pan instead of flour, you'll get a nicely crunchy outside to your cake.

Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm!!

How to Dice an Onion

2008-12-31T12:20:00.000-08:00

My dad showed me this really easy way to dice an onion and I now do it this way all the time.

After peeling your onion, slice off a few slices to your desired thickness. I was making pico de gallo, so I didn't need them too thin.

Next, stack 'em up.

Then slice the stack in half.

Move one stack out of the way.

With the stack remaining, start cutting on the edge away from your hand.

As you cut, turn the onion so you always have a pointy side to cut off (more or less).

Voila! Diced onion!

:)

Foil Dinners

2008-12-28T07:26:00.000-08:00

The other night, I had 2 packages of stew meat in the fridge, but it was too warm for stew, so I decided to try something different. I made foil dinners!! Being a Girl Scout for 20 years or so, I've eaten my fair share of foil dinners, but I've never thought of making them at home.

My foil dinners had onions, sliced potatoes, carrots, green beans, very thinly sliced celery (for seasoning), and very thinly sliced bell pepper in them. I made a total of 5 packets and some I topped with salt, pepper and garlic powder. Others I used seasoned salt, and on 1 I sprinkled some Italian salad dressing mix on. Cooked them at 450º for 50 mins and they were delish!!

While I used beef stew meat, you could use chicken breasts, round steak, or cubed steak. You could even marinate the meat overnight for a different flavor. Also, you can pretty much use any kind of veggies you have on hand, or some partially frozen veggies if that's all you have.

Give 'em a try!! You'll like 'em!

Make. These. TODAY!

2008-12-28T07:21:00.000-08:00

I "found" this recipe while I was digging through my recipe file. I have a bazillion loose recipes I've collected over the years in a blue file folder and every once in a while I have to go digging through them to find a long-lost recipe. It's a horrible job, but if I don't do it, we'd go hungry at my home. DH won't even cook by a recipe, much less go hunting for one in my folder! It was orginally a gift-in-a-jar recipe, but I've never given it as a gift. I just made it, and boy howdy! I found a winner!!

Oatmeal-Chip Cookie Mix In a Jar (makes about 2 doz)

2/3 C all-purpose flour
1/2 t baking soda
1/2 t ground cinnamon (I use Saigon Cinnamon)
1/4 t salt
1/3 C packed brown sugar
1/3 C granulated sugar
3/4 C semi-sweet chocolate chips
1.5 C quick or old-fashioned oats
1/2 C chopped nuts

Combine flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt in a small bowl. Place flour mixture in 1-qt jar. Layer remaining ingredients in order listed above, pressing firmly after each layer. Seal with lid and decorate with fabric and ribbon.

Recipe to attach:

Beat 1/2 C (1 stick) butter or margarine (no substitutes), 1 lg. egg, and 1/2 t vanilla extract in large mixer bowl until blended. Add cookie mix; mix well, breaking up clumps. Drop by rounded tablespoon onto ungreased baking sheets.

Bake in preheated 375ºF oven for 8-10 mins. Cool on baking sheet for 2 mins; remove to wire rack.

Your friends and family will thank you!!

**Please remember not to eat too many. You know what oatmeal does to the digestive tract!!

Sour Cream Blueberry Muffins

2008-12-28T07:19:00.000-08:00

These are my favorite, quick to bake, taste so good, warm in your tummy muffins. As my friend Jan says, they're "easy peasy"!!

Sour Cream Blueberry Muffins
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
2 C biscuit/baking mix (Bisquick)
3/4 C plus 2 T sugar, divided
2 eggs
1 C (8 oz.) sour cream
1 C fresh or frozen blueberries*

In a large mixing bowl, combine the biscuit mix and 3/4 C sugar. In a small mixing bowl, combine eggs and sour cream; stir into the dry mixture just until combined. Fold in the blueberries. Fill greased muffin cups (or cheat and use paper liners like I do) three-fourths full. Sprinkle with remaining (2 T) sugar. Bake at 375º for 20-25 mins, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool for 5 mins. before removing from pan to wire rack.

*If using frozen blueberries, do NOT thaw before adding to batter.

You can also use any combination of berries to equal the 1 cup measurement. I sometimes use a combination of blueberries and raspberries and they're great!

Enjoy!

Brownies!

2008-12-28T07:16:00.000-08:00

Yesterday morning, I woke up craving brownies. Not just any out-of-the-box kind of brownies, but my own homemade, from scratch brownies. We just LOVE these and between me and my husband, we can eat the whole pan in a day. They're great for breakfast, morning snack time, lunch, an afternoon perk-me-up snack, dinner, and a before bedtime snack. So, quickly, before I left for work (I worked the later shift.), I whipped a pan of these delectable treats. Here they are, right out of the oven. (Please disregard the baked on dough on the sides of the pan. Really, who cooks neatly and tidy?)

Just before leaving for work, I cut them to take one to work & to snap a pic of...seriously! But since I had to snap a pic of it, I couldn't leave it on the plate and I definitely couldn't leave it out for the husband!!! So I just had to eat it. And it was absolutely yummy!!

Please note that the chocolate chips had not "set" yet when I took this picture. See them slightly melted???? Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm!! They were still just a tad warm and absolutely delish!!

Thanks for letting me share. We even have some left, but if you want some, get here quick because they'll be gone by the end of the day, I'm sure!

Oh! You want the recipe??? Of course you do! Just because I'm being nice today, here it is. It's actually one of those gift-in-a-jar recipes, so you can even whip up the mix and give it as a Christmas gift.

Sand Art Brownies

Contents of Jar (Brownie Mix)
1/3 cup cocoa
2/3 cup sugar
1 cup Holiday M&Ms (red & green)
2/3 cup brown sugar
1 1/8 cup flour
½ cup chopped pecans
½ tsp. salt

Additional Ingredients Needed:
1 tsp. vanilla
2/3 cup vegetable oil
3 eggs

Empty contents of jar and add vanilla, oil, and eggs in a mixing bowl. Stir until well blended. Pour into a greased 9 X 9 pan and bake for 20-30 minutes at 350º.
Enjoy with a glass of cold milk!!

If using as a gift, mix cocoa and sugar, & salt together. Pour into glass jar. Layer each additional item. Attach recipe to the jar with a ribbon and you're good to go!

Beef Stew

2008-12-28T07:11:00.000-08:00

This was originally posted on my cross stitching blog on 12/5/08.

I have very fond memories of beef stew since my mom would make this often during the winter when I was growing up. She would let it simmer all afternoon and it smelled heavenly. I'm not as patient as my mom was and I had a starving husband to cook for after I got home from work, so I did the speedy stew method.

I actually prefer picking out the meat and potatoes, then eating them separately. I generally don't like to eat mixed veggies or my food all mixed up, not to mention that I'm not a big soup eater. (I also don't like hot drinks, except hot chocolate once it's cooled a bit and hot tea with lots of sugar in it when I'm sick.) Anyway, I like to mash my stew potatoes and smother them with lots of butter. Because I wouldn't eat my stew like a normal person, I'd have to fix myself some kind of veggie to go with my meat, taters, and cottage cheese. Fast forward to tonight's dinner of beef stew.

Doesn't that look good?? It was!! And I ate it out of the bowl! My mom would be so proud of me. LOL For the first time in my life, I ate my stew as it was meant to be eaten and it was really, really good! I'm still tempted to pick out the meat and potatoes, but I shall overcome that urge. When I asked my husband what he thought about it, he told me it needed a bit more pepper and maybe some okra (ick!). Don't get me wrong, I like okra, but not in my stew. I guess it was good; he ate 3 bowls of the stuff! :)

I don't have a "real" recipe, but I'll share how I made it tonight. This is what I used for just the 2 of us. If you have a larger family, use more of the beef & veggies.

Beef Stew
~~~~~~~~~
1 lb. lean stew meat
1-2 T vegetable oil
4 or 5 normal size potatoes, peeled & cut into chunks
1/2 - 1 med. onion, cut into chunks
2 or 3 carrots (cooked separately-boiled until crisp tender then mixed in once stew was done)
Frozen Corn (however much you want, 1-2 cups)
Frozen Cut Green Beans (same as above)
1-3 ribs celery, sliced
1 clove garlic, minced
Salt & pepper to taste
1 can (15 oz.) diced tomatoes
1 can (6 oz.) tomato paste

Brown the meat in oil over medium heat in a large skillet or stew pot/dutch oven until no longer pink. If you want, brown the meat, onions, and garlic together. (I didn't do that this time, but I will next time.)
Add everything else (except the carrots) and mix together. If you didn't add the onions and garlic with your meat, add those now, too.
Season to taste.
Add enough water to cover.
Cover with a tight-fitting lid and bring to a boil. Once boiling, tilt lid, reduce heat a bit and simmer until the potatoes are fork tender (about 20 mins or so). Stir occasionally.

BTW, fork tender means that when you stick a fork in the potatoes it should go in easily and come out just as easily. If you have to stab the potato really hard, then it's not done. If you can't get your fork out, the potatoes aren't done either.

While the stew is cooking, slice carrots and place in a small pot. Cover with water and lid, and bring to a boil over medium heat. Reduce heat and cook until crisp tender, about 10 mins. Remove from heat, cover, and set aside. When the rest of the stew is done, (potatoes fork tender and it's thickened up a bit), drain the water from the carrots & stir them in the stew. Cooking the carrots separately will keep the carrots from turning into mush. (Mark doesn't like mushy carrots and I gotta keep the husband happy ya' know!)

Serve with crackers or your favorite bread. Whatever you do, enjoy it!!

Note: You can add whatever veggies you want. If you want a vegetable soup, omit the meat. If you like mushy carrots or you're lazy, just throw them in when you add the rest of the veggies to the meat. You can also add all kinds of different spices to liven it up. We're pretty plain folks, so we don't go "all out" with seasoning.

:o)

Some Christmas Creations

2008-12-28T06:27:00.000-08:00

This was originally posted on my cross stitching blog on December 21, 2008.

This past week was the official Christmas baking week at my house. I love to bake, especially during the holidays. Since I don't have family over to enjoy these tasty treats, I pawn them off on the people at work. They don't seem to mind....

First off, we had Chocolate Chip cookies. Who doesn't like Chocolate Chips??? It's my all-time favorite cookie. I could eat the entire bowl of raw cookie dough (& not share ANY!!!), but I decided not to since I'd probably end up spending my entire night and the next day in the bathroom. My boss probably wouldn't appreciate that, so I was a good girl. Mostly anyway! LOL

We went from this heavenly creation...

to this...

and this...

and finally these!!

Oh my gosh! They were so absolutely delicious, especially just warm from the oven. I think I'm going to have to make some more!! LOL

Then, I made my annual batch of Crockpot Candy. This stuff is absolutely DIVINE and makes a boatload of candy. I didn't take pictures this year of all the candy just after dipping, but here's a pic from a couple of Christmases ago when we made it with my dad.

This is the tray I took to work yesterday for us to munch on throughout the day.

And a closer view, just to make you drool!! LOL

Mom's Chocolate Chippers
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Preheat oven to 375º.

Combine:
4 1/2 C flour
2 t baking soda
2 t salt (or 1 if you're cutting back on salt)

Blend:
2 C vegetable shortening-Crisco(if you're using the Crisco sticks, add about 1/8 C more flour so cookies aren't paper thin)
1 1/2 C sugar
1 1/2 C firmly packed brown sugar
2 t vanilla extract
1 t water
4 eggs, room temperature

Add:
2 C chocolate chips
1 1/2 C chopped nuts (pecans or walnuts)

In medium bowl, combine the dry ingredients and set aside. In large mixing bowl, blend the shortening, sugar, and brown sugar until well mixed. Add vanilla, water, and eggs, one at a time until fluffy. Gradually add the dry ingredients, mixing well after each addition. Scrape down sides of bowl with rubber spatula. Mix until well blended. Stir in chocolate chips & nuts. (I use my mixer to stir them in.)

Drop by well-rounded teaspoons onto greased cookie sheet. Bake 10-12 minutes or until nicely browned. Remove to cooling racks to cool, if they last that long.

Notes:
I'm able to get them 5 across and 5 rows on my cookie sheets, which I've never greased before using.

If you're cookies spread too much, you don't want them flat as a pancake, but nicely rounded, add a bit more flour.

Chill dough for a couple of hours before cooking for better cookie results.

If using the Crisco sticks, add about 1/8 C more flour or your cookies will be flatter than a pancake and crispy critters.

You can also use this recipe, only cut in half to make a pan cookie or cookie bars. When I do this, I use 1 C nuts and 2 C chocolate chips. Bake at 375º for 20-25 mins.

Crockpot Candy
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
16 oz can salted peanuts or mixed nuts
16 oz dry roasted peanuts
1 large bag (24 oz) semi sweet chocolate chips
2 pkgs white almond bark
1 German chocolate bar

Combine all ingredients in large crock pot and cook on LOW. Forget it for 2 hours. Stir to blend and dip out into pieces onto waxed paper to cool. Makes a big bunch.

Welcome to My Kitchen

2008-12-27T10:55:00.000-08:00

I realized that I was posting a lot of baking stuff on my stitching website , so I decided to start a food blog to share my food posts. My plan is to post recipes and pictures, maybe even step-by-step pics if I have time.

I'm not a professional cook or baker, but I do enjoy cooking and baking for me and my husband. I belong to a couple of recipe groups, subscribe to a couple of cooking magazines, and have several food blogs and websites bookmarked. I often share my baked goods with my co-workers since it's just me and the husband here at home. I've been cooking most of my life, starting at my mom's elbow when I was just a young girl. I remember standing on the kitchen stool to "help" my mom bake and cook. By the time I was in high school, I could bake and cook independently.

I'm so glad my parents took the time to cook good meals and teach both me and my brother how to cook. My brother is an amazing cook and baker. My dad makes a mean from-scratch German Chocolate cake as well as many other foods such as biscuits and pancakes. His Italian Cream Cake isn't so bad either!! My mom excelled in cookies, cakes, and pies. Her pie crust was flaky every single time. I miss her pies, but I miss her cookies even more.

Most of the things I make are from scratch. I didn't grow up in a time where everything came in a box ready to prepare, so I seldom use those things. Usually, I find boxed mixes too salty and lacking any real flavor. Often, it's just as easy and less expensive to use the individual ingredients and do it myself. It's also usually a bit healthier, and the older I get the more important that becomes.

I'll leave this post with a link to one of my favorite cooking sites, The Pioneer Woman Cooks! Enjoy perusing Ree's site.