Recipes from my AOL Journal

Dark Cherry Clafouti
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2 cans dark cherries, drain juice and drink it

1 cup evaporated milk

3 eggs

1/2 cup flour

1/4 cup sugar

1 tbsp vanilla

bit of almond extract

Spray bottom of baking pan with Pam. Add cherries. Mix up everything else and whisk until smooth. Pour over cherries. Bake at 350 deg. for 45 to 60 minutes.

Dust thickly with confectioner’s sugar. Pig out!

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Green Pea Salad

1 lb. frozen green peas, steamed until “just” done

3 hard boiled eggs

1 bunch scallions, chopped up

1 small onion, chopped

the inner 5 or so small stalks of celery in a bunch, chopped (with leaves)

1 12 oz. jar roasted red peppers and garlic, diced

several globs of mayonnaise

a fling of horseradish

few dashes of crazy salt

Mix all up together in a bowl. Refrigerate before eating.

Remember….for me, cooking is a free-form thing. I look at several recipes, then invent my own version according to what is around. Always use your imagination

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Magnificent Pound Cake

1 lb. butter

2 1/4 cups sugar

9 eggs

4 cups flour

1 cup milk

1 Tbsp. vanilla

3 Tbsp. sherry

1 tsp. salt

1 Tbsp. baking soda

Beat butter and sugar together. Add eggs and beat some more. Add everything else and beat until smooth. I put my cake in a funnel pan. You can use a bundt pan, springform pan or 2 bread pans. Bake 45 minutes or maybe an hour. Turn upside down on plate. Eat it!

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15 Bean Stew

1 lb. mix 15 dry beans

4 Knorr chicken bouillon cubes

water to cover…add as you cook to desired thickness

4 stalks celery, chopped

2 onions, chopped

1 head garlic, peeled

1 tsp. oregano

salt and pepper to taste

1 lb. sausage, fried

1 lb. mixed frozen vegetables

Put all but frozen vegies in crockpot. Cook until beans are getting tender. Add frozen vegies and desired water, cook another hour or two. Supper’s on!

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Apple Spice Bread

3 eggs

1/2 cup peanut oil

1 tsp. vanilla

2 cups flour

1 Tbsp. baking powder

1 tsp. baking soda

1 cup sugar

1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. allspice

2 tsp. cinnamon

Throw it all in the bread machine. Bake on cake/quick bread. When it beeps, add 3 peeled and diced MacIntosh apples.

Otherwise, mix by hand and bake at 350 deg. until it looks good

Slice hot, slather with butter and pig out! (I am!)

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Salmon Sour Cream Pie

2 frozen pie crusts

2 onions

4 garlic cloves

1 pkg. fresh mushrooms

peanut oil

1 salmon filet

several scallions chopped up

1 cup sour cream

1/2 cup cream

8oz colby cheese plus 1 cup Swiss cheese

3 eggs

seasoning salt

pepper

few shakes dried dill weed

In a wok, stir fry onions and garlic. Add sliced mushrooms. Remove to bowl. Stir fry salmon cubes until done. Add back vegetable mix. Add scallions. Add spices. Stir up. In a bowl, whisk together cream, sour cream and eggs. In bottom of 2 pie crusts, put in Colby cheese. Divide salmon mixture between the two. Pour egg mixture over both. Grate Swiss cheese on each pie. Bake at 350 deg. for 45 minutes. Let sit 10 minutes. Chow down.

This is tonight’s supper

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People use RECIPES??!!!??????

I bought 2 Mrs. Smith’s pie shells. In my youth, I sold hundreds of pies at the farmer’s market. I HATE making pie crust now

For yesterday’s quiche, I opened a package of freshly shredded Parmesan cheese and put half in the bottom of each pie shell. I fried a pound of center cut bacon cut in pices, sauteed 2 sweet onions, added a half of a package of frozen broccoli together with all. This was about 3 cups per shell. I also added Crazy Mixed Up Salt and Pepper.

Took 4 eggs and about 3 to 4 cups milk and whisked them together. Poured half in each shell. I then used a handful of cherry tomatoes, cut in half, cut side up to decorate the top. I baked them at 375 deg until they looked done and the custard had solidified.

I never make quiches the same. Most have sauteed onions, but I might use Swiss chard, spinach, peppers, summer squashes, leeks, etc., etc. Basically whatever is hanging around or in season in the garden. I like using fresh herbs, too.

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Baby Ruth Bar Cookies

1 1/2 cups butter

2 cups brown sugar

1/3 cup corn syrup

8 cups oatmeal

1 Tbsp. vanilla

1/2 cup peanut butter

Melt butter, mix all together. Pat evenly into baking dish. Bake at 350 for 15 to 20 minutes.

Topping:

1 pkg. chocolate chips

1 pkg. butterscotch chips

1 cup peanut butter

2 cups nuts ( I used slivered almonds)

Melt together in saucepan. Spread over cookies. Let stand to solidify. Cut into bars and pig out!

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Pork and Asparagus Stir Fry
Susan had a freezer full of pork chops. I’m not real fond of eating hunks of meat…..except filet mignon! So, I cut up the pork chops into stir fry strips. Fried them in olive oil. When the pink was gone, I added a big bunch of asparagus, broken into pieces. Stir fry until asparagus is done. Add 3 chopped scallions and 4 cloves garlic. Add the guts of 2 honeybells and the juice from another, plus maybe a teaspoon of zest. Stir in a tablespoon of cornstarch mixed in a bit of cold water. Cook and stir to thicken. Season with salt, pepper, chopped ginger and soy sauce. Serve on Jasmine rice.

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Smoked Sausage and Cabbage
For supper tonight I made a very easy but filling and yummy dish. I found some country smoked sausage at WalMart. Fried it in a pan, cut in bite sized pieces. When it had released a bit of oil, I added 3 sliced sweet onions and kept stirring. When they were wilted, I added a bag of shredded cabbage and carrots…the stuff sold for coleslaw. I put a lid on the pan and stirred occasionally. I added salt and pepper to taste. Served over fluffy Jasmine rice with plenty of cider vinegar poured on top.

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I made bean burritos. There were 5 large flour tortillas left, so that’s how many burritos I made

Guacamole…2 avocadoes, mashed, 1/2 lime squeezed over. 1 small onion diced, 4 cloves garlic, finely chopped. 1/2 of a huge tomato, diced. Add chili powder, salt and pepper to taste.Dice up a handful of cilantro. Mix all together.

Filling…one can Rotelle salsa, other half huge tomato, 1 pkt. sugar, handful diced cilantro, some leftover fried onions and peppers, 1 small can sliced black olives, 1/2 wheel of Mexican melting cheese, shredded.

Spread a fifth of a can of refried beans in the middle of each tortilla. Add fifth of filling mixture. Put in baking pan greased with olive oil. Shred other half of cheese on top. Bake at 350 about half an hour, until cheese on top is bubbly.

Serve with guacamole. If I were energetic, I would have bought sour cream to go with it all

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I got out a box of Pad Thai for 2 Soak rice noodles in hot water. I scrambled 2 eggs in olive oil, put in a bowl. Saute a bunch of scallions and 4 cloves of garlic. Put in bowl. Stir fry a package of Thai style baked tofu, diced into bite sized pieces. Put in bowl. Drain a can of Chop Suey vegetables, warm in pan, put in bowl. Chop up a handful of cilantro, put in bowl.

Drain noodles. Stir fry in olive oil. Add Pad Thai sauce and stir fry until noodles taste good. Add ingredients from bowl, heat through. Serve in bowls with lime wedges.

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Paella is one of those dinners that’s a BIG deal! First you have to shop for the freshest ingredients. I went to Oakes farm Market and got shrimp, clams and a huge chicken breast. I also got a red and a green pepper, sweet onions, scallions, red ripe tomatoes, Milanese rice, parsley. Then I went to SuperWalMart for chorizo, saffron, cooking wine, frozen baby peas.

In a BIG frying pan, saute onions, garlic in olive oil. Add diced peppers and tomatoes, a few cut up scallions and a handful of fresh chopped parsley. Cook until it begins to smoosh together. Set aside in a bowl. Wash out frying pan. Cut up chicken breast into bite size pieces. Cook in some olive oil until no longer pink. Add a bunch of wine. Add in shrimp and clams.

I cooked the rice with saffron in another pot and put the steamer in to precook the chorizo, then the frozen peas. Rinse off a couple handfuls of artichoke hearts. I put everything in the pan with more saffron and salt and pepper to taste, stirred a bit and put it on medium low with a cover on. When the clams open, the paella is ready.

This is very messy and very tasty

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Mixed Up Huevos Rancheros for 2

Fry 4 corn tortillas in a bit of oil until somewhat crispy. Break into pieces. Set aside.

Saute a couple of onions in oil. When done, add 3 lightly scrambled eggs. Stir until lightly done. Set aside.

Put tortilla pieces in frying pan. Cover with eggs. Pour one can salsa over all. Cover with handful of chopped cilantro, 2 sliced scallions and about a cup of Mexican melting cheese. Put cover over pan. Heat through until cheese is melted.

Chop up 2 avocados, squeeze half a lime over it. Sprinkle on salt and pepper. Toss. Put on top of stuff in pan. Divide in half and pig out.

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Shrimp Curry

Make a pot of fluffy Basmati rice.

In a frying pan, saute onion and garlic in olive oil. Add a couple of tablespoons curry powder, some cumin and corriander. Heat a bit while stirring. Add 1 can coconut milk and about a cup of sweetened applesauce and salt to taste. Simmer. I put in about a pound of shrimp, a handful of chopped cilantro and maybe a tablespoon of minced ginger. Squeeze half a lime over all. As soon as just warmed through, serve over rice. Mmmmmmm……..

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I was in the mood for spinach artichoke dip….

Thaw 2 pkgs. spinach. Squeeze dry. Put in big bowl. Add 1/2 cup sour cream, 2/3 cup Parmesan, a couple of big handfuls of canned artichoke hearts, rinsed and cut up, pepper to taste, maybe a sprinkle of sugar. I squeezed half a lemon over all and added a bit of hot sauce.

In a frying pan, add olive oil and butter to equal about a quarter of a cup. Saute a good amount of diced onions and a few garlic cloves. Sprinkle about 1/4 cup of flour over all when done. Stir. Add a cup or two of cream and then chicken broth until roux is thick. Stir into bowl. Pour into oven dish. Cover with about a cup of shredded Monterey Jack cheese. Heat in 350 deg. oven for 20 to 30 minutes.

Serve hot. Use vegie sticks, Cuban bread or my favorite…Indian Naan bread for dipping. Like I said….VERY yummy

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Indian Naan Bread

* 2/3 cup warm water (110 degrees F/45 degrees C)
* 1 teaspoon active dry yeast
* 1 teaspoon white sugar
* 2 cups all-purpose flour
* 1 teaspoon salt
* 1/4 cup ghee
* 2 tablespoons plain yogurt
* 2 teaspoons kalonji (onion seed)

1. Whisk the warm water with the yeast and sugar until the yeast is dissolved. Cover and let stand in a warm place for 10 minutes.
2. Sift flour and salt three times into a large bowl add the yeast mixture, half of the ghee and all the yogurt. Mix into a soft dough then knead on a floured surface for about 5 minutes or until dough is smooth and elastic. Place the dough in a large greased bowl, cover and let stand in a warm place for 1 1/2 hours or until the dough is doubled in size .
3. Punch down dough then knead for 5 minutes. Divide dough into 6 pieces. Roll each piece out into 8 inch round naans.
4. Cover an oven tray with foil and grease the foil. Brush the naan with a little of the remaining ghee and sprinkle with some of the kalonji. Cook naan one at a time under a very hot grill for about 2 minutes on each side or until puffed and just browned.

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I cheated by going out to the van and getting a can of La Choy fried rice

In a hot pan, I stir fried onions, carrots, celery , pepper, garlic in some oil. Put that in a bowl. Hard scramble 2 eggs, break into small chunks. Add to bowl. Heat up can of stir fry vegies (bamboo shoots, water chestnuts, baby corn, bean sprouts). Add to bowl. Get pan really hot. Stir fry rice. Add everything together and stir fry. Season with sesame oil and soy sauce.

Susan told me not to make too much because she wasn’t that hungry. As she ate the first bowl, she had this look of ecstasy. When I brought her the second bowl and said that was it, she told me not to pay attention to her again when she said to make a small batch

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Mmmmmm….last night I made us shrimp quesadillas for supper. I ate 3/4’s and Susan had 5/4ths. I guess she liked those, too

I chopped up one juicy tomato and one avocado then squeezed half a lime over them in a bowl. Set aside.

I sauted half a sweet onion, a package of mushrooms and a third of a yellow pepper, then liberally added seasoned salt. Set aside. Chop up a handful of cilantro and set aside.

While the pan was still hot, I warmed up the precooked shrimp with the residual heat. Set aside.

Washed out the non-stick frying pan and heated up a tortilla. Flip over. Put shredded Mexican cheese on the hot tortilla. Arrange shrimp on that, then cilantro and vegie mix. Put another tortilla on top. Flip and brown. Cut into quarters. Everyone add their own tomatoes and avocado. I like mine with extra hot sauce

VERY yummy!!!!!

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Chicken and Apple Salad

Back on Monday I made a whole crockpot of chicken mole. On Wednesday I transformed the leftovers to chicken salad….

I rinsed off 4 chicken breast halves and diced them up. In a big bowl I added 2 big golden delicious apples, peeled and diced, 3 organic celery stalks, diced, a big handful of raisins. I squeezed half a lemon over all, added mayo to desired moistness and seasoned with salt and pepper.

Susan went nuts. I guess you could say she really liked it I always make this with leftover turkey after Thanksgiving. Yum!

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Stuffed Peppers

I decided to make stuffed peppers for supper on Friday and invited Susan’s sister Carolyn to come over to eat. Then I crawled back into bed and slept for 5 1/2 hours! Ooops.

I woke up and started cooking.

Brown one pound ground beef

Add cut up sweet onion and the tops of 4 peppers. Dump in a can of stewed tomatoes and I had a package of Uncle Ben’s ready rice, then salt and pepper to taste. I filled 4 hollow red and yellow peppers with the mixture, adding fresh mozarella to each pepper and covering the yops with lots more. Bake at 350 about an hour.

To go with it, I heated brown bread from my van stash and made strawberry parfaits.

For that…Make pudding

2 cans evaporated milk

1/2 cup flour

1 cup sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla

Heat milk. Mix flour and sugar in a bowl. Mix hot milk into flour. Keep cooking until bubbles form….stir contantly. Add hot mix to stirred eggs in bowl, put back on stove. Cook stirring constantly. Cool.

I let the pudding cool a while in the fridge. Got out the leftover sliced berries with sugar from yesterday. Put alternate globs of pudding and berries in a tall glass cup. Looks good, tastes good

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Roasted Asparagus Potato Salad

8 small creamer potatoes

1/4 large sweet onion

1/4 red pepper

1/4 yellow pepper

1 large bunch asparagus

olive oil

coarse salt

black pepper

equal parts olive oil, red wine vinegar and mayo, whisked together

Boil the potatoes until done. Cut up in bite sized pieces. Cut up asparagus 1 to 2″ long. Put in baking pan, drizzle with olive oil. Bake at 350 until just tender. Sprinkle with salt. Mix everything together in a big bowl. Season to taste.

I just had the leftovers for breakfat

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Enchilada Casserole

Fry up a pound of ground beef along with one huge sweet onion. Add 2 tablespoons chili powder. Drain grease.

Dice 2 tomatoes, add a can of salsa.

Open a can of pinto beans. Drain.

Shred a pound of Mexican cheese.

In a casserole dish, put in half of salsa mix. Rip up 3 or 4 corn tortillas and scatter on top. Add half of beef mixture, again cover with tortilla pieces. Put can of beans and half the cheese in. Repeat all layers. Bake at 350 deg. for 45 to 60 minutes. Serve with sour cream.

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Stuffed Shrooms

12 large Portobello mushrooms

1 stick butter

1 small onion

salt, pepper, garlic powder

several slices of good bread

Put olive oil in a baking pan or two. Take stems off caps, Put caps in pan. Mince onion and stems. Saute in butter. Add seasonings and minced bread. Stuff shrooms. Put a square of your favorite cheese on top. Bake at 350 until cheese is melted.

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Tempeh Reubens

Cut tempeh into 4 pieces. Toast rye bread. Fry up 4 onions in olive oil. Heat up a bunch of sauerkraut. Fry tempeh in olive oil. Sprinkle with soy sauce while cooking. Put tempeh on rye bread in a baking pan. Cover with onions then sauerkraut. Put lots of cheese on top. Swiss is yummy. Bake at 350 until cheese is melted and browning.

For sauce…dice tomatoes, add mayo and a bit of hot sauce. Make lots. Serve over and with reubens.

Rice pudding

Cook 2 cups basmati rice in 4 cups water. Let sit an hour or two. Add maybe half a cup of raisins, 1 can sweetened condensed milk, 1 can dulce de leche, 1 can crema media and 2 cans evaporated milk. Heat up. Beat 4 eggs. Slowly add some hot milk to eggs, stirring constantly. Add all to pot. Stir constantly until pudding thickens. Add tablespoon vanilla and nutmeg to taste. Pour into bowls.

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Chiles Rellenos Serves 4

8 Anaheim chile peppers

8 oz shredded monterey jack

8 oz shredded 4 cheese Mexican

3 eggs

1 can evaporated milk

1/2 cup flour

seasoned salt to taste

Toast chiles over open flame until skin is black and blistered. Cut off tops, take out seeds. Fill with cheese. Put in single layer in baking pan. Cover with remaining cheese.

Whisk together eggs, milk, flour and salt. Pour over chiles. Bake at 350 deg until top is light brown.

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We got five boxes of this gumbo mix for a dollar. I finally used two for supper. First I sauteed three chicken breasts that had been cut up, added a pound of smoked sausage and cooked. When it was all done, I added a pound of shrimp. Not bad.

To make Jesse happy, I used the last tub of tofu for tofu burgers. Mash up tofu, add a can of drained pintos, a couple of carrots whirled in the food processor, a handful of snipped chives, a can of toasted onions, some whole wheat flour, 2 eggs, seasoned salt and pepper and chili powder. This made 9 big burgers so there will be enough for lunches. He said they were good ;-p

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Banana Upside Down Cake
Picture from Hometown

We had six bananas hanging forlornly on their holder on the kitchen table. I kept thinking about that yummy dutch oven recipe. I decided to adapt it to a baking pan.

I used our big Corning-ware type cake pan and melted a stick of butter in it. Then I dumped in about a cup of brown sugar, stirred it around and nuked it for another minute. I then sliced the bananas into thirds and those into halfs and mixed with the butter and sugar. Pat down the bananas sort of even. Make a yellow cake with 2 cups flour, 1 Tbsp baking powder, 1 tsp salt, 1/2 cup softened butter, 1 cup sugar, 2 eggs, 3/4 cup milk and 1 tsp vanilla.

Spread over bananas and bake at 375 for about 40 minutes. Wicked rich!

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Better Than I Imagined Blueberry Stuff

This is incredibly easy and a zillion times tastier than I thought it would be

Grease bottom of big casserole pan. Dump in 4 pints of frozen blueberries. Sprinkle on 1 package of cake mix (dry). Melt a stick of butter and pour evenly all over top. Bake at 350 deg a half hour or more…until berries are bubbling and top is lightly browned.

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Summer Squash and Zucchini Casserole

3 onions

2 green peppers

olive oil

3 summer squash

3 zuchinni

box of grape tomatoes

I used a wok to saute the onions and peppers in oil. Put in a big bowl. Saute sliced squash. Add to bowl. Saute yellow grape tomatoes. Add to bowl with a big can of diced tomatoes and a pound of your favorite shredded cheese. Season with mixed Italian spices and extra basil, also salt and pepper to taste.

Spoon half of mixture into a casserole dish. Fry up a pound of Italian sweet sausage, add to remaining mixture. Spoon into another casserole. Bake at 350 deg. 30 to 45 minutes.

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Cast iron Cornbread

Mmmmmm……

Tonight I made really good cornbread! Preheat cast iron skillet in a 400 deg. oven. In a bowl mix up 1 cup cornmeal, 1 cup flour, 2 tsp. baking powder, 1/2 tsp baking soda, 1/2 tsp salt. In another bowl mix 3 tbsp. melted butter, 1 cup buttermilk, 1 egg. Mix both together. Fold in one can of corn kernels. Bake about 20 minutes…until top is lightly browned. Cut into 8 pieces.

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Onion Soup

In a big, heavy pot, splash in some olive oil. Cut half a dozen large yellow onions into fairly thick rings and cook until brown and carmelized. This takes longer than you think. Add about a cup of Vermouth to deglaze the pot. I then added 2 packages of sliced portabello mushrooms that were marked down cheap. Cook until they smell yummy.

Add a couple of big dollops of miso, some sea salt, lots of pepper, some thyme and a couple of tablespoons of dry mustard. Add water until you like the consistancy and heat.

Guaranteed to be really good!

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Mmmmm….YUMMY…..

For supper tonight I made grilled salmon with maple syrup glaze, foil packets of potatoes, steamed asparagus with Hollandaise and strawberry rhubarb pie.

I was anxious to use my new Grill2Go, so I did the salmon on it….along with Jesse’s veggie burger. I marinated the salmon for about an hour with a mix of fresh lemon juice and soy sauce. I grilled the salmon on each side until almost done, then put on the maple glaze. To make the glaze, I poured the left over marinade in a sauce pan with a few tablespoons of maple syrup and cooked until thick.

For the foil packets, I put out 4 pieces of aluminum foil on the table. Cut up 2 sweet potatoes into halves, then slice each half and put on foil. Slice one red potato for each packet. I cut up one bunching scallion with greens and half a new garlic bulb for each serving. Then sprinkle on seasoned salt and pepper. Pour olive oil on each pile of potatoes and seal up foil. Put packets on bbq grill about 15 minutes on each side.

The asparagus was easy. I snapped each stalk where it wanted to, discarding the tough part. Put on steamer in a pan and cooked until just tender. For Hollandaise I put in a stainless steel bowl….2 egg yolks, juice of 2 lemons and a stick of butter. Whisk until thickened. Add salt and a dash of hot sauce.

For strawberry rhubarb pie, I cheated and used a package of 2 rolled up pie crusts. Put one in deep dish. In a big bowl, I put in a big handful of rhubarb, diced, 2 boxes of strawberries, quartered, 1 1/2 cups sugar, a half cup flour, 3 Tbsp instant tapioca, freshly grated nutmeg, orange zest and some cinnamon. I put a crust on top of fruit in pie shell and brushed on a beaten egg. Baked about 45 minutes at 425 deg.

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Baby artichokes…

Steam 9 artichokes for at least half an hour. Make Hollandaise in stainless steel bowl in a pan of boiling water. Use 3 Tbsp butter, one egg yolk, juice of 1 lime and pinch of salt…stir until melted and beginning to thicken. Cut 3 more Tbsp of butter into 12 pieces. Add one piece at a time while stirring. Add a few drops hot sauce. Eat artichokes dipped in Hollandaise.

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Raspberry Trifle Cheesecake

I am trying to use up fruit in the freezer and odds and ends on the shelves…

2 pkgs cream cheese

vanilla

juice of one lime

confectioner’s sugar

2 pkgs Dream Whip

lemon poppy seed quick bread

2 bags of frozen raspberries

sugar

clear gel thickener

I made a pan of quick bread, crumbled it up on bottom of a big bowl. Whip up Dream Whip, set aside. Whip together cream cheese, juice of one lime, confectioner’s sugar and vanilla. Fold in Dream Whip. Pour raspberry juice in a pan. Add sugar and bring to a boil. Whisk in some clear gel. Turn off heat and add berries. Spoon berry mix over quick bread. Spoon cheesecake mix over berries. Chill. VERY rich!

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Pasta Salad

1/2 gallon jar of colored pasta spirals

1 sweet onion

1 green pepper

4 stalks celery

1 can small black olives

1 jar roasted red peppers

1/2 jar sweet cornichon pickles

3 hard boiled eggs

mayo

honey mustard

pepper and salt to taste

Cook pasta. Drain. Rinse with cold water. In a big bowl, mix up pasta and cut up vegies, eggs and the seasonings. Mix well. Chill.

I divided this in thirds…one for vegetarians, 1 with imitation crab and 1 with the crab and a bag of shrimp.

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Sour Cream and Chives Red Potato Salad

8 large red potaoes

1 pint sour cream

1 huge handful chives

Seasoned salt and pepper to taste

Wash potatoes. Boil in water until tender. Let cool. Cut into bite sized pieces. Mix in sour cream. Snip chives into bowl and stir all together. Add seasonings. Refrigerate.

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Rainbow Salad

Lately packages of rainbow salad mix have been on sale. I’ve become addicted

1 pkg rainbow salad mix (like cole slaw)

3 Gala apples, diced

1/2 cup each gold and regular raisins

1/2 cup diced dried apricot pieces

juice of one lime

1/4 cup brown sugar

pinch of salt

1 can crushed pineapple

1 can mandarin orange segments

1 dollop each mayo and sour cream

Mix all together in a big bowl. Chill and serve.

Extra sugary-crunchy pecans for topping salad

1 cup pecans

1 egg white

1 cup sugar

pinch of salt

Beat egg white. Add sugar and salt. Stir in pecans. Spray cookie sheet and spread out nut mix. Bake at 300 deg. After 20 minutes, stir and break up. Another 20 minutes take out and stir again. Let cool. Serve as wicked decadent topping on rainbow salad.

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Broccoli Cheese Casserole

Since I have had a couple of requests already, here is the recipe for broccoli cheese casserole…..

I had the meat loaf and sweet potatoes already in the oven when I decided to bake the broccoli. EVERYTHING I make is made up on the spot…even when I look in cookbooks first.

Sooooo…I opened a can of cream of celery soup and mixed an 8 oz. package of shredded cheddar cheese in. I sauteed two onions in olive oil, then added to the bowl. Sprinkled on some seasoned salt and 7 pepper blend. Then I beeped Heather on the intercom and asked her to bring in 2 pouches of Zatarain’s wild rice from the van (my camping stash), that is already cooked. I got a bag of frozen broccoli from the freezer and dumped enough in so it would fill a 9×13 oven dish. Baked it until it looked done

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Heather came back in from the garden with the first summer squash of the season…a gorgeous kuta. I sauteed some onions in olive oil, added the squash slices and seasoned. Then I put a pound of halibut in a baking pan with some fresh basil, ginger, garlic, fish sauce, coconut milk, lime juice, curry and pepper and baked about 20 minutes. YUMMY!!!!!!

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Fancy Banana Nut Muffins….

On one of my lists, a few southern women were talking about how good Martha White’s self rising flour is. I think it is made with a softer wheat so it develops less gluten, making tender biscuits. I decided to get some and try it in my muffins. YUMMY!!!!!!!!!

2 1/4 cup self rising flour

1 cup mashed banana

1/2 cup sugar

1 egg

1/3 cup oil

1/3 cup milk

1- 7oz.package toffee glazed walnuts (these are Emerald brand and were on sale for $1.76 at Winn-Dixie)

Mix all together just until moistened, spoon into a dozen muffin cups. I sprayed mine with the baker’s spray of oil and flour. Bake at 375 degrees for 25 minutes.

I usually make my banana muffins with a spoon of jam or preserves inside each muffin. WOW! Those are good!

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Minestrone

I haven’t been shopping all week. I usually go down the road to the fruit and vegetable stand for a few dollars worth of goodies, but I haven’t felt well.

Sooooo….time to dig into my food storage. It made some darn good soup!

2 cans beef broth
2 cans vegetable broth
about equal amount of water
big handful of dried celery
2 big handfuls of dried carrrots
2 big handfuls FD zucchini slices
maybe 1/4 cup dry fried garlic
about 1/2 cup toasted dry onions
1 can kidney beans
1 can black beans
1 pkg. Mexican star pasta
1 can diced tomatoes
1 can Rotelle tomatoes with chiles
1 small cabbage, sliced thin
a couple of glugs of olive oil
basil, rosemary, oregano, parsley to taste
a couple tablespoons of Sarah’s Sea Salt and Mediterranean Seasoning

Put in soup pot. simmer until done. Of course, you should use whatever is lurking on YOUR shelves! Very, very yummy…

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I have always liked the dough better than the cookies! So, here’s what I made today…..

CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIE DOUGH

2 cups King Arthur Flour

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

2/3 cup Cabot butter

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup brown sugar

1 egg

1 tsp (more like a heaping Tablespoon) Watkins double strength vanilla

1/2 bag milk chocolate chips

Cream together butter and sugars. Beat in egg and vanilla. Add flour, soda, salt. Stir up. Make into balls and eat cold. If you MUST, they can be baked at 375 for 8-10 minutes.

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Chile Rellenos Casserole

I bought 8 peppers for $2 days ago and knew it was use it or lose it time. I washed them, then broiled them on each side. When they had cooled a bit, I took out the seeds and put the rest in a plastic bag until cooler. This allowed the skins to loosen and I just peeled them right off. The outer skins look almost like plastic wrap.

Next, melt a stick of butter in a 9×13″ glass pan. Chop the peppers and layer over the buttered dish bottom. Brown a pound of ground pork. Crumble over peppers. Slice or shred half a pound each of Monterey Jack and cheddar cheeses. Arrange in pan.

In a bowl, mix up 6 eggs, 1 can evaporated milk, 1 tsp seasoned salt and 1 cup pancake mix. Whisk together and pour over casserole. Bake at 350 for maybe half an hour until browned on top. Serve to hungry people

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Crockpot Eggplant

I had various things “lying around” to cook with, so here’s what I made. I liked it and so do my friends.

In a crockpot, put in 1 tube of chorizo and a pound of bacon cut in pieces…cook on low overnight. Add 1 jar spaghetti sauce, 2 eggplants cut into cubes, a bunch of dried onion flakes and a few shakes of basil. Cook up about a pound and a half of ground sirloin on stove and add to mix. Slow cook for a few hours until eggplant is tender. Put a layer of Italian bread crumbs on the top and then 8 oz of shredded cheese…I used 4 cheese mix. Serve when melted.

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Now I know why they call them Funeral Potatoes!

I feel like I have died and gone to heaven Finally made my first batch of funeral potatoes….a Mormon staple.

MMMMMMMMMMmmmmmmmmmmm……

My directions ;-p

Boil up half a bag Yukon Gold Potatoes in their jackets. Pour into collander and let drain while you saute a diced up sweet onion with a lump of Cabot butter in the wok. When translucent, turn off heat and add in a can of cream of chicken soup, a half soup can evaporated milk, salt and pepper and lots of sour cream (a pint)! Pour over cut up potatoes that have been put in a greased casserole dish. Cover potatoes with sauce. Slice or grate a good amount of Cabot extra sharp cheddar over the top. Microwave a couple of tablespoons of Cabot butter. Stir in maybe a cup of bread crumbs. Sprinkle over top. Bake 20-30 minutes at a medium oven temp until brown and bubbling.

Prepare to die

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Slow Cooker Apple Toffee Crisp

These directions will drive Heather crazy

I had a basket of apples and some loose apples…at least a dozen. Peel, cut up into slices and put in crockpot.

In a big bowl mix in a cup or two of brown sugar, a cup or more whole wheat flour, an 8oz container whipped cream cheese (I would have used butter if I had any), a bag of Heath bar toffee brittle, a bag of chopped pecans and some cinnamon. Pack on top of apples. Put on lid. Cook about 5 hours on low, or maybe 3 hours on high.

Eat hot with plenty of vanilla ice cream

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The cupboard is less and less inspiring. This time I put a bag of Zatarain’s Black Beans and Rice mix in the crockpot and added a can of black beans, a can of water, a big can of cut up tomatoes, a few tablespoons of dried onion, the last 2 smoked sausages and 4 beef patties. Cooked it all night on low, added half a buch of cilantro and it was a good brunch

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Saturday morning waffles…

In a bowl, mix together 1 cup pancake mix, one cup milk, an egg and a glug of oil. Slice up strawberries and mix with sugar. Let sit. When waffles are cooked put on plate, smother with strawberries, glop sour cream all over and top with strawberry syrup.

ABSOLUTELY YUMMY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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Tonight’s Tamale Pie…

Brown 1 lb ground beef. Drain off most fat. Saute a diced onion and pepper with meat. Mix in 1 pkg chipotle taco seasoning. Add a diced fresh tomato. Pour into bottom of big baking dish. Layer on a can of black refried beans, then a layer of 1 cup sour cream, then a layer of 1 bottle of green taco sauce.

In a bowl mix together 1 cup sour cream, 1 stick melted butter, a can of cream corn, a can of whole kernel corn and a box of corn muffin mix. Layer over casserole. Bake about 40 minutes at 350. Cut into servings. Cover with white con queso salsa and avocado slices.

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Shrimp Jambalaya

I took my friend shopping this afternoon to buy a couple of outdoor chairs. While there I found shrimp on sale for $3.39/lb. I could not resist. Mmmmmm……

I already had a box of Zatarain’s Spanish Rice, so made that up with 2 cups of water, adding a cut up diced tomato at the end. In a wok, I stir fried a chopped sweet onion in peanut oil, then added a pound of raw shrimp, stirring until nicely pink. Then I added in the rice mix along with garlic salt and some pepper. Pure BLISS……

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Brazilian Black Bean Stew

onion
half head garlic
red pepper
oil
pound of ham, cut up
package of real bacon bits
can of diced tomatoes
can of sweet potatoes
can of black beans
Cajun seasoning
salt
mango, cut up
handful cilantro

Dice up onion, garlic and pepper. Saute in oil. Drain beans and sweet potatoes, add those and tomatoes, bacon and seasonings. Heat through. Add mango and cilantro. Serve. Mmmmmmmmmm………

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Rice Cooker Peanut Noodles

I invented lunch as I went…and it was super, extra good!!!! Pour water into rice cooker, start heating. Add half of a diced onion, a package of beef ramen noodles, pinch of parsley flakes, 2 oz of sliced and diced beef. Stir. When the noodles look done, stir in a glob of peanut butter, a few glugs of Chinese sweet chili sauce, 6 diced garlic cloves and the flavor packet. YUMMY!

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stuffed peppers…

Cut tops off half a dozen peppers. Blanch in boiling water for 5 minutes. Drain.

Fry up a pound of sausage, add a diced onion, the diced pepper tops, a package of sliced baby bella mushrooms, a handful of fresh diced tomatoes some seasoning salt, Bakon yeast smoked seasoning and freshly ground pepper.

Cut about a fourth of a loaf of sourdough French bread into cubes and put in big bowl. Stir in sausage mixture. Stuff into peppers.

Put in a baking dish with a can of roasted garlic chicken broth. Bake an hour or so on 350. Add cheese slices on top the last 5 minutes.

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Tonight I looked through what was on hand. I cooked 2 packages of ramen noodles in the rice cooker with dried celery. I fried a couple of onions in peanut oil and added 4 cloves of chopped garlic. Then added 2 cans of chicken chunks, a can of rotelle tomatoes, Italian herbs, dried tomato seasoning and the drained ramen noodles. Then I added chunks of cream cheese. It was YUMMY!

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Tonight I made beans and egg sandwiches
on whole wheat bread. It’s always fun to see what can be made from what’s in
the pantry
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Whole Wheat Egg Bread

2/3 cup water
2 eggs
3 cups ww flour
2 heaping Tbsp powdered milk
1 heaping tsp salt
2 Tbsp sugar
2 Tbsp butter
2 tsp yeast

Put in bread machine on whole wheat cycle, light crust.
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Mmmm…beans….

1 small can beanie weenies
1 can Cajun vienna sausages
1 can pork and beans
1 jar bacon bits
glug of maple syrup
pinch of dry mustard
2 packets Taco Bell sauce

Put in rice cooker. Heat up.
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Curried Egg Sandwiches

Hard boil 6 eggs. Peel and chop up. Add one can sliced black olives, some
mayo, curry powder, seasoned salt, dried green onion, ground celery seeds,
parsley. Mix up and put on thinly sliced homemade bread.
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Honey Oatmeal Bread

This is my favorite bread machine recipe…

1 cup water
3 Tbsp honey
2 1/4 cups flour
1 cup oats
2 Tbsp dry milk
1 1/4 tsp salt
2 Tbsp butter
2 tsp yeast

Put in bread machine on the regular cycle. I like it with the light crust.

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