Friday, December 30, 2011

Hawaiian Chicken






I'm sure I have told you many times that my husband is a seriously picky eater.  I know you are NOT going to believe this, but this is one of his favorite meals!  I do not remember how I got him to try it.  But, we love it.  I realize there are no VEGETABLES on this plate.  This is my husband's ideal - white plate food (carbs). (My mother would croak.  She liked a colorful plate of food. LOL.)  But, I didn't have any broccoli, peppers, etc. and definitely I wasn't going to the store when I got home.  Also, we had leftover corn in the fridge from Christmas dinner so that was a re-heat.


The Hawaiian Chicken is a recipe I got from my sister-in-law.  Its really yummy!  This is how I do Hawaiian Chicken AT HOME MY WAY:


Hawaiian Chicken


Ingredients You Need to Make This:

  • (6-8) Boneless, Skinless Breast Chicken Tenders (or breasts) 
  • 1 to 1 1/2 cup (app) Pancake mix, flour, biscuit mix (I had some waffle mix I was needing to get rid of so I used that)
  • 2-3 T. Oil (just a little to keep the meat from sticking in the skillet)
  • 3 cans or 3 cups Pineapple Juice (I keep juice from cans of pineapple in my freezer and thaw, or buy the small cans)
  • 9 T. Teriyaki sauce or Soy Sauce (we like Teriyaki the best) (My guide is 3 T per can/ 1 cup juice)
  • 9 T. Honey (I love it when I have some from the girls in the hives outside, but we got no honey from them this year... sad) (again, my guide is 3 Tablespoons per can / 1 cup of pineapple juice)
Instructions

Put about 1 cup of pancake mix/biscuick/waffle mix/flour on a plate.  Dredge the chicken in it, making sure all sides are coated.

Put about 3 Tablespoons oil (brush around to coat) in a skillet.  Bring to medium heat.  Add coated chicken pieces.  Brown on both sides (chicken does not need to cook all the way - just brown both sides of the chicken).  

In a separate bowl (small/med) combine:

Pineapple juice, Honey, and Teriyaki Sauce.  To each can or one cup of pineapple juice I add 3 Tablespoons honey (spray spoon with cooking spray for easy release) plus 3 Tablespoons teriyaki / soy sauce.  Stir well to blend the honey completely (I heat my honey a little in the microwave to make it thinner).  Pour over the browned pieces of chicken in the skillet.  We like lots of sauce so I used 3 little cans (6 oz?) of pineapple juice, plus 9 Tablespoons honey and 9 Tablespoons Teriyaki (crazy... I know, that's just the way I do it).  

Cook 20-30 minutes, occasionally turning the chicken pieces until the sauce is thick and rich.

Serve with cooked rice and vegetables (normally peppers, broccoli & carrots)  / egg rolls.  

I made my favorite baked egg rolls.  I used a very easy method this time.  Pictures of cooking the Hawaiian Chicken and of making the Egg Rolls below:

Ingredients for making Hawaiian Chicken

Browning the chicken in a little bit of oil.

Mixing the pineapple juice/teriyaki/honey,

The juice cooking looks thin, but gets thick and rich!

I serve with rice.  Hubby likes EVERYTHING with mashed potatoes (eek!).


Below is how I made the easy Baked Egg Rolls:

Easy Baked Egg Rolls

  • Cabbage
  • Onion or Green Onion
  • Soy Sauce or Teriyaki Sauce
  • Stir Fry Sauce (optional)
I thinly sliced and chopped one-half head of green cabbage.
I chopped one green onion and grated about 3 carrots.

I added this to a skillet with 1 teaspoon soy sauce plus 1 teaspoon stir fry sauce.


As this was cooking, it got very dry on the bottom so I added about 1/8 cup of water to deglaze the pan before spooning into the eggroll wrappers.

Spray a cookie sheet with cooking spray.

Lay an eggroll wrapper on the cookie sheet.  Spoon on some filling.  With the wrapper shaped like a diamond fold over one corner.  Fold in the two sides and roll like for a burrito.  Place the egg roll on the cookie sheet seam side down.  Do the remaining egg rolls the same way.  

Spray them with cooking spray.

Bake in preheated 375 oven until golden brown (app. 15 minutes).

These keep well in the freezer for reheating.  They won't be crunchy but I love them for lunch or breakfast on the go.

Here they are:

Thursday, December 29, 2011

Countdown - Main Dish Favorites




One of my favorite blogs (Finding Joy in My Kitchen) is having a Countdown to 2012 - Main Dish Favorites.  I'm just catching the tail end of this countdown but I do have a few main dish favorites for 2011. 

I made a terrific discovery in 2011.  I discovered that I can BAKE spaghetti sauce.  Yep!  It can be done.  It bakes in the oven like roast & potatoes.  Turns out thick and rich, and the best part?  No toiling at the stove.




#2 Nachos for a Crowd (recipe from Homemaking on the Homestead)


I tried a new recipe which would be a great addition to any potluck. To us, it is very similar to Nachos Bell Grande at Taco Bell. Very yummy! I use my own precooked pinto beans (frozen) but it could be made with canned refried beans or any canned bean you prefer.


#3 Best Homemade Pizza Crust Ever!  Homemade Pizza Rocks!




I make my pizza crust using the 5 Minute a Day Bread recipe.  I learned of this recipe from an article in Mother Earth News.  But, the authors have several terrific books.  I make everything from hot pockets to crusty bread, and even english muffins with this easy, simple recipe for dough that I can keep in the fridge up to two weeks!  Supper is never far away with pizza dough in the fridge.

I have made lots of other yummy meals in 2011.  Actually, it was quite fun seeing them all.  I made new and old recipes like:
Many thanks to Finding Joy in My Kitchen for leading me in this journey!  Definitely my cooking has improved!  Lots of good meals were eaten at my house this year and I shall keep on cookin'!

Friday, December 16, 2011

Another Way to Make Baked "Fried" Fish

I tried a new way to make Baked "Fried" Fish last night and it turned out REALLY, REALLY good! I told my husband, "I don't know why we don't have this more often, because its just delicious!" In this post, I posted how to make Baked "Fried" Fish by baking fish with fish coating (a packet of "Fish Fry") on it, which turns out really good also, AND On this post, I posted how to make Baked "Fried" Chicken. Well, last night my husband had the BRILLIANT idea to bake the fish using the same coating/method that I had used on the chicken. The results were "fabulous" (as spoken by Fabio LOL). 


 I'm not going to repost the entire recipe. Just use the Baked "Fried" Chicken Recipe BUT replace the chicken with thawed tilapia filets (I get the bag of frozen filets from Aldi) . 


One note: you have to be very careful when flipping the fish because fish is so flaky. I used a big flat spatula to do this. 


To round out our supper, we had baked french fries, pinto beans (I cook a big batch of beans and then freeze in smaller batches so I just had to warm those up), also our favorite Homemade Sweetened Cornbread. I would have loved to have made THIS SUPER EASY COLE SLAW but didn't have any cabbage and certainly didn't want to make a stop by the store on my way home. 


I love this recipe for three reasons: 


 1. ITS SUPER YUMMY; 
2. BIG DADDY LIKES IT AS MUCH AS I DO; and 
3. I DIDN'T HAVE TO BUY A SPECIAL "MIX" FOR MAKING BAKED FISH (saving moolah!) 


 Try it! You will be as thrilled as we were with your supper!

Thursday, December 15, 2011

Favorite Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe

Our younger daughter is coming home from college for Christmas tomorrow and last night I was feeling particularly guilty that I don't have anything yummy waiting for her so while I was cooking supper, I whipped up a batch of my favorite chocolate chip cookies.

I'm REALLY picky about chocolate chip cookies. I love the butter flavor by using real butter BUT I prefer thick and chewy cookies and not thin crispy ones. I haven't figured out how to get thick/chewy with the real thing. I don't usually buy Crisco but for chocolate chip cookies, I just haven't found another recipe I like as well. This recipe came from the little cardboard labels in the butter flavor Crisco sticks AND they don't print this recipe anymore in the packags.

I love to smash tiny M&M's on top of these cookies for a "special" look but last night I just used Aldi chocolate chips, which was actually perfect because they are a cross between minis and regulars and I loved that about them.

OK, confession: Last night I only had a portion of the shortening I needed for these cookies so I added in some real butter to fill up the gap. The first batch was FLAT, THIN, and ALL WRONG (but I still ate some LOL)! So, in the rest of the batter (yes, all mixed with the chocolate chips and everything, I dumped about 1/8 cup of flour and stirred really well). The result wasn't as perfect as this recipe usually is, but it helped the thin/flat factor and still left me with a chewy (not cakey) cookie. Good enough! I used dark brown sugar in my cookies last night because that's what I had and they turned out a deep rich color.

I think my daughter will be thrilled to see them when she walks in the door (if there's any left) ;)

Here's how I make my favorite Chocolate Chip Cookies AT HOME MYWAY:

Chocolate Chip Cookies

3/4 cup Butter Flavor Crisco (plain works fine too) (= to 3/4 stick if using the Crisco sticks)
1 1/4 cup brown sugar
2 Tablespoons milk
1 Tablespoon vanilla
1 egg
1 3/4 cup AP flour
1 teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup chocolate chips
1 cup chopped pecans (optional) (if nuts are omitted, add 1/2 cup additional chocolate chips)

1. Heat oven to 375.
2. Combine Crisco, brown sugar, milk and vanilla in a large bowl. Beat until well combined. Beat egg in.
3. Add salt, baking soda. Stir well. Add flour. Stir well.
4. Drop by rounded scoops onto sprayed cookie sheet.
5. Bake at 375 degrees (fully preheated) 11 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool 2 minutes and remove to cooling racks to cool completely.

Wednesday, December 14, 2011

Baked "Fried" Chicken

I posted that last Sunday I made baked "fried" chicken strips and wanted to make a quick post about how I did this. It is super easy and the only downside would be the wait time (for the chicken to bake). But, definitely it beats slaving over a skillet of hot grease, right?

This chicken is terrific! My husband thought it was the best "fried" chicken I had ever made. It will be crispy and the meat will be juicy! Amazing that it works so well!

You could use chicken pieces (with the bone) (I remove the skin from mine) or boneless skinless breasts/tenders, whichever you prefer.


Here's how I made Baked "Fried" Chicken AT HOME MY WAY:




Baked "Fried" Chicken



  • 6-8 Boneless Skinless Breast Tenders or small-ish pieces of chicken (fully thawed)

  • 1 1/2 cup AP flour

  • 1 teaspoon season salt

  • 1/2 teaspoon pepper

  • 1/2 teaspoon paprika (these seasonings are entirely optional, just season as you like.)

  • 1/2 to 1 stick margarine (I only used 1/2 stick but more chicken obviously would require more.) (Remember 1/2 stick is only 1/4 cup which is considerably less than the large VAT OF FAT that you usually fry chicken in.)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix the flour and seasonings in a shallow wide bowl or pie plate. Dredge the moist but drained completely thawed chicken in the flour and lay each piece not touching on a sprayed cookie sheet. (I use tongs and a fork to bury each piece of chicken and flip it to cover both sides so that each piece is thickly coated with the flour mixture... and I don't like to touch the chicken LOL.) Melt the margarine and pour in a stream over the chicken pieces (down the length of the strip). Use it all. If there are "margarine puddles" on the chicken, feel free to sprinkle a little flour over the chicken (the margarine will absorb it). Place in preheated 350 degree oven and bake 15-20 minutes (depending on whether you used bone in or boneless chicken). The bottom of the chicken should be browning (the side laying on the cookie sheet.) If it is, gently, using a fork to scoop the chicken (including the crispy goodness underneath to keep it from sticking to the pan) and turn the chicken. Bake another 15-20 minutes until golden brown.


ITS READY! Now, gobble it down and remind yourself that you will never fry chicken over a spattering skillet again!


This would also be a great solution for making lots of "fried" chicken for big families or gatherings. You could easily have two cookie sheets of chicken in the oven instead of frying several batches of chicken. Plus, its all ready and hot at the same time - when you take it out of the oven!

Monday, December 12, 2011

Busy Day Cake (Snack Size Yellow Cake)

(my camera has died - maybe Santa will bring me one - HINT)

Last night I made a terrific supper.  We've been eating lots of leftovers and trying to eat up what's in our freezer but we wanted some real comfort food for our Sunday Supper so I kind of went "all out."  I made baked "fried" chicken strips (this is our favorite way to make fried chicken - will post this soon), mashed potatoes, homemade sweet cornbread, and veges.  I had some sweetened strawberries from my friend's garden in my freezer so I also made a little cake (the Busy Day Cake) to go with the berries.

At first I was going to make garlic cheddar biscuits and sugar cookies instead of cornbread and the cake. But, after seeing that my flour supply had taken a serious hit when I made Homemade Sandwich Bread , I figured I could instead make the cornbread (it uses only 1 cup of flour) and this terrific Busy Day Cake recipe that my mom used to make for us all the time.  This cake recipe only uses 1 1/3 cup of flour!  That method pretty much encompasses my AT HOME MY WAY style in the kitchen!  Not having enough of something usually never stops me from cooking (oh NO!)  I just find something else to make with what I have.   This recipe has a topping that is very delicious.  I just didn't need it for strawberry short cake so I left it off. 

Here's how I made Busy Day Cake AT HOME MY WAY with the optional broiled coconut topping.

BUSY DAY CAKE



  • 1 1/3 cup flour
  • 2/3 cup sugar
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/4 cup butter or margarine (soft)
  • 2/3 cup milk
  • 1 egg
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • Topping (optional) Broiled Coconut Topping (I made it without a topping since we were having strawberry shortcake.)
Instructions:  Spray an 8 x 8 or round cake pan (or grease). In a bowl combine flour, baking powder, sugar. Add milk, butter, egg and vanilla. Beat on low speed until combined (app 1 minute) (I just beat it with a spoon til smooth about 1 minute). Pour batter into prepared pan.

Bake in preheated 350 oven for 25-30 minutes.


Optional: BROILED COCONUT TOPPING: Blend 1/4 cup packed brown sugar and 2 Tablespoons softened butter/margarine. Stir in 1 Tablespoon milk. Stir in ½ cup flaked coconut and 1/4 cup chopped nuts (optional). Place this topping over warm cake. Broil about 3-4 minutes or until golden.

Tuesday, December 6, 2011

Cinnamon Sugar Pull-Apart Bread


Surely there is something wrong with a person who gets so EXCITED over a loaf of bread!  Ha-ha. ....  I made this loaf of sweet bread over the weekend.  It was beautiful AND delicious!  I will have to take some pics of the process, but for now here is the recipe and some written instructions for how I made Cinnamon Sugar Pull-Apart Bread AT HOME MY WAY.

I used my recipe for Schoolhouse rolls found here as the "basis" for my recipe.  The only addition in the dough itself was a beaten egg.  Most of my favorite recipes are used as a basis for something and then I create a variation to make something else.  That's what I did with this bread.  Ok, here's how I did it:

In a 2-cup measuring cup (warmed with hot/warm water first), mix (hint:  hot but no hurt): 
  • 1 1/3 cup very warm water
  • 2 1/2 teaspoons yeast (1 packet)
  • 1/4 cup white sugar
Mix well. Set a timer for 10 minutes for this mixture to "proof".
Add:

  • 1/4 cup oil to the measuring cup of this "proofed" mixture.  Then, after proofed, add:
  • 1 beaten egg to this mixture (scramble it first in a small dish, then pour in to the yeast mixture).  Give it a gently stir to incorporate the egg in the yeast/water/sugar/oil mixture.

In a large bowl, measure:
  • 4 cups flour (more flour may need to be added.  See instructions below in bold.)
  • 1 teaspoon salt 
Stir with wooden spoon to mix well. 

Dump the liquids (proofed yeast/water/sugar/oil & egg) on top of the flour/salt in the bowl. Stir well with the wooden spoon. When its too stiff to stir, start kneading in the bowl, twisting and pushing until the dough forms a ball.   Since you added an egg to this mixture, you might need to knead in an additional 1/2 to 1 cup flour to get this kneadable.


Set a timer and knead it for 5 minutes.

(This is a ONE RISE RECIPE.  I do not raise this dough before forming the loaf, rolls, cinnamon rolls, etc.  The only rise time is after the loaf is formed.)The dough will be smooth and "spankable".


Roll out on floured surface into a large rectangle.  Spread with softened margarine/butter.  (I used probably 1/2 stick).

Sprinkle with brown sugar, spread around.  Sprinkle with cinnamon... just shake some on like you are salting something heavy.



Cut long strips in the dough about 5 inches wide.  I used a pizza cutter.  Then cut across to equal the depth of your loaf pan to make rectangles.


Spray loaf pan with cooking spray.  Stack some rectangles and "file" the dough rectangles in the loafpan (like a drawer with files).  I didn't use a small section of my rectangles because I was afraid my loaf would be too dense.  You want them to stand up but not to be all squished together.  They do need to rise so allow some room for that.  I cut my extra squares even smaller and put them in a muffin tin for some monkey bread.


Spray the loaf of dough with cooking spray or cover with a warm, damp cloth.  Place in oven with light on to rise for 1 hour (or in another warm place).


After it has risen at least one hour, PREHEAT oven to 350 degrees.  Bake 30-32 minutes or until brown.


Rest only a couple of minutes after it comes out because the carmelized sugar will keep the loaf in the pan.  Gently remove from pan (loosen with a knife along the edges).  After it is out, cool on a rack using the pan to wedge the layers together until they cool (they tend to fall out when hot).  Two mugs sitting at both ends or something like that will also work.


Am I making any sense here?  Anyway, this loaf tastes like monkey bread and it was a huge success.  I'm going to give a few loaves as gifts this Christmas.  It was terrific leftover and so PRETTY.

Friday, December 2, 2011

Meatloaf Seasoned Round Steak

Our Thanksgiving leftovers were divine, but I craved something a little different and yet still was in the mood for comfort food last weekend.  I ran across a terrific site called "Deep South Dish."  Every single one of her recipes looks like something I want on my dinner table!  When I copied this recipe down, I thought it would taste like BBQ round steak.  She has it named "Barbeque Round Steak", but really, this dish tasted like round steak turned into meatloaf (if you can imagine that).  This was a wonderful solution for me because my husband has never tried meatloaf (imagine that?) and never will.  He claims he doesn't want stuff all mixed together and that he likes his meat to taste like meat.  He's a little finicky to say the least.  So, I made this recipe (a version of it anyway) and told him (because I believed it to be so) that it was like homemade BBQ sauce on round steak.  It didn't taste like BBQ to me.  But it did taste like delicious meatloaf - just not with hamburger, bread crumbs, egg, etc.  My husband loved this dish and he said he will look forward to eating this again!  I was thrilled because I love me some meatloaf and this will fit the bill as far as I'm concerned!


This is how I made Meatloaf Seasoned Round Steak AT HOME MY WAY:


MEATLOAF SEASONED ROUND STEAK



  • 2-3 pounds Bottom Round Steak
  • 1/4 cup flour
  • 1/4 teaspoon season salt (like Lowrey's)
  • 2 Tablespoons bacon fat
  • 1 Tablespoon onion powder
  • 2/3 cup Ketchup
  • 1 cup Water
  • 2 Tablespoons brown sugar
  • 2 Tablespoons Worchestershire
  • 1/2 teaspoon Garlic Powder
  • 1/2 Tablespoon yellow Prepared Mustard
  • Splash Hot Sauce 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Put bacon grease in skillet to heat.  Combine flour & season salt.  Dredge meat in flour mixture.  Fry on each side until brown (not cooked all the way, you will be baking the meat in the oven).  Combine remaining ingredients in bowl.  Place meat in baking dish, cover with sauce mixture.  Bake 1 1/2 hour covered.  Check periodically to see if it is "cooking out".  If so, just pour in a little (like 1/2 cup) water.

We ate this with baked potatoes and a vege.  It was a feast!  I will be making this again FOR SURE!

Wednesday, November 30, 2011

Juicy Burgers


My husband and I got married pretty young compared to today's standards.  I was 18 and he was 20.  We had never lived away from our parents and moving "out" was a terrific experience.  We cooked all kinds of things (BBQ for breakfast???) and had a ball making up on our own "rules"  like eating in the living room ha-ha.  After 26 years of ups and downs, (more ups thankfully LOL), we are back to just the two of us... Our older daughter graduated from college, officially "moved out" and got a terrific job this summer.  Our younger daughter is a couple of hours away at college so for the most part, we're back to being "home alone".  


The juicy burgers supper I made last night was one of the first things I learned to cook.  My mother IS a terrific cook but she wasn't much into sharing her kitchen with a teenager, so I learned this "method" from a co-worker, who was just a couple of years older than me but who had already mastered some terrific cooking skills!  Basically you season cooked hamburger like you would baked beans.


Last night as my husband and I tried to decide (at 6PM) WHAT ON EARTH to have for supper, I remembered one of our favorite "newly wed" suppers, JUICY BURGERS!  It was cold outside last night and we sat in front of the television with TV trays just like our "good old days" (when we didn't own a table  LOL).


Here's how I make Juicy Burgers AT HOME MY WAY:


Juicy Burgers
  • 1 1/2 pound ground beef
  • 1 (8oz) can tomato sauce (not spaghetti sauce)
  • 1/4 cup brown sugar (I don't pack mine)
  • 1/4 cup ketchup
  • 1 teaspoon onion powder
  • 1 teaspoon prepared mustard
  • 1/4 cup water
  • Salt/Pepper as you like


Brown the ground beef in a skillet.  Drain.  Add remaining ingredients and stir, simmer about 15-20 minutes until thick and bubbly.  Serve on buns, sandwich bread, or whatever you like.  Toast the buns for an extra treat.

*I scoop leftovers on flour tortillas, individually wrap, and place in the freezer in a gallon ziploc bag for terrific lunches on the go.

Monday, November 21, 2011

Birthday Shrimp Boil and Fish Fry


This weekend we celebrated my Mom's birthday. We decided to have a shrimp boil and fish fry since we would be eating lots of comfort foods this week for Thanksgiving. It was so yummy! We used bags of large frozen uncooked shrimp that we got from Walmart (since we live in the midwest and fresh isn't an option for us), cooked in a big pot on my stove in "shrimp boil" seasonings with new potatoes and little corn cobs.

We started the water with the spices and the potatoes until they boiled (this took MUCH LONGER than we thought it would). Once it started to boil, we let the potatoes boil about 10 minutes, then added the corn (we had to use frozen so I had heated them in the microwave to take the chill off since we were about the starve to death.. LOL.)  We let the corn boil for about 3 minutes, then added the shrimp, which need to boil only a minute or two until it was pink and ready to serve! 

My sister-in-law even made her own cocktail sauce using ketchup and horseradish (I don't have the recipe for that YET, but I'm getting hold of that one!)  We also fried crappie that my dad caught this summer as well as my kids' favorite crinkle cut french fries. We used the fish fryer outside for the grease and boiled the shrimp, etc. in the house. I also served:
  • Pasta Salad, which is so DELICIOUS! Its sweet and the cucumbers and tomatoes, onions, and peppers, just make it a real treat. The recipe is HERE:





  • Easy Cole Slaw, and every time I make this I swear I will make it more often. This is super easy, uses few ingredients and turns out perfect. I used one bag of cole slaw mix with about 1/2 onion chopped small.  I made the dressing recipe found HERE: The secret is to dump on your dressing, stir well, and then let it "mesh" in the fridge for a few hours so that it gets all moist and juicy.  It is even good the next day... I'm having a fish taco for lunch today with a leftover piece of crunchy crappie and some of the slaw.
  • The grand finale for the birthday dinner was the BIRTHDAY CAKE that my sister-in-law made for my Mom. My sister-in-law has been taking cake decorating classes and I'm convinced she must be the star student! This cake was a scratch cake and it had the perfect crumb, texture, and taste! It was stellar! I don't know who was more excited about the cake, my Mom (the birthday girl) or me, because I just love birthday cake!  Here's a picture of the beautiful cake:



















































































































































Monday, November 14, 2011

No Pecans for Pie? Use Oatmeal!

I don't know about your area, but here in Mid Missouri, there are no nuts on the trees. I don't know what the poor squirrels are going to do! We live in the midst of a bunch of hickory trees and usually our yard is loaded, and I mean LOADED with hickory nuts! We have to shovel them or else our ground will be a mass of crushed hickory nut shells (the remnants left from the squirrels). Also our area usually has lots of pecans! Missouri pecans are so wonderful! But this year, not a single nut! The trees are strangely bare of pecans.

What is a person to do when she loves pecan pie more than any pie on the earth? Why, there is a solution! Use oatmeal! This recipe produces a wonderful pie which is super similar to pecan pie. And just think, substituting oatmeal makes this ALMOST a healthy dessert (oh yea... except for all that sugar and eggs). OK, its a smidgen healthier! I'll take it any day over paying big bucks for pecans!

Here is how I do a mock pecan pie, an Oatmeal Pie, AT HOME MY WAY:

Oatmeal Pie


  • 2 eggs

  • 2/3 cup white corn syrup (Karo or generic is fine)

  • 2/3 cup white sugar (granulated)

  • 2/3 cup margarine (melted)

  • 2/3 cup oatmeal (old fashioned oats)

  • 1 teaspoon vanilla

  • 1 unbaked pie crust

In a bowl, slightly beat the eggs. Add the sugar, syrup and vanilla. Add the melted margarine. Blend very well. Add the oats. Mix well again. Pour into unbaked pie crust. Bake in preheated 350 degree oven for 55-60 minutes or until a knife inserted comes out clean.

(Optional - you could add in some coconut and/or chocolate chips to make this pie over the top.) I also imagine you could use darker corn syrup for a darker more southern style pie.)

The reason I don't have a picture for this pie is that I made this pie over the weekend using an oil crust recipe. Something really flopped. I don't know if my measuring cup was wrong or I measured wrong (guessing the later) but the crust was too oily and it flopped BIG TIME. Never to waste a good pie filling, my mom and I scraped off the crust and ate two healthy helpings of the filling. It was divine and we both agreed we didn't miss the pecans a single bit!


I shared this recipe AT:
 

Monday, October 17, 2011

Baked Spaghetti Sauce with Meatballs













Saturday, my college daughter was home and we wanted to do a little shopping. My husband was home piddling around in the yard. My daughter had requested meatball sandwiches for supper but we really wanted to go shopping at some great thrift stores and she was on the lookout for a warm coat at Bass Pro Shop. I didn't really want to eat out, so I came up with the BEST WAY for making spaghetti sauce (this time, with meatballs) without having to stand at the stove stirring and watching the pot simmer. When we got home, we had such a delicious supper waiting for us in the oven.


It occurred to me that when I cook a roast or other things in the oven, that the gravy will be "juice" when I first start baking it, but the finished product is always thick and rich but I never have to stir it or anything. So, I thought, why not BAKE my spaghetti sauce?



It was perfect. I will probably always cook it this way (when its not blasting hot in summer, that is). I think I will probably even cook my chili this way. I used one of those enamel pots with a lid (like Le Creuset, but mine is a generic one from Sam's), but if you don't have one of those, a casserole dish (covered) would work fine as well.



For our meatballs sandwiches, we toasted some hotdog buns, ladled on the meatballs and sauce, and topped with some grated mozerella! It was a feast!



This is how I made BAKED spaghetti sauce with meatballs AT HOME MY WAY!



First, I should say that I don't really have a recipe for meatballs. I just toss some stuff in there, make little balls, place them on a plate, and microwave them until they're cooked. Then I drop them (along with the cooked crumbled hamburger in my pot) for the sauce. (I prefer both meatballs AND meat in my sauce! LOL).



Baked Spaghetti Sauce (with or without Meatballs)




Meatballs:

1 pound uncooked Hamburger

1 egg (blended)

1/2 teaspoon salt & 1/2 teaspoon pepper

1 teaspoon onion powder

1/4 cup seasoned bread crumbs

1/4 cup (or less) parmesan cheese (the canned stuff)

3 Tablespoons milk



Mix all of the ingredients together. Form into little balls the size of ping pong balls. Place them on a micro-safe plate. Cover (I used a PAPER plate), and cook approximately 4-5 minutes or until the meatballs are done.





Recipe for the Spaghetti Sauce



Ingredients:

1-2 pounds hamburger (If I make meatballs, I use 1 pound for meatballs, and 1 pound for the sauce)

2 teaspoons onion powder or 1/2 fresh onion chopped

salt & pepper

Other spices you need: garlic powder, dried basil, bay leaves

tomato sauce (one 15-oz can)

tomato paste (two-6-oz cans)

sugar (just 1 Tablespoon)



Directions for the sauce: Brown the hamburger (& real onion if using) in a large skillet or pot, stirring often (until onion is clear) and drain (if using onion powder, add after draining).



Sprinkle the cooked meat with:



1 teaspoon garlic powder and 1/2 teaspoon of dried basil. Stir.



Then add to the cooked meat in the pot:



1- 15 oz can of tomato sauce + 1 can of water

2- 6oz cans of tomato paste + 3 cans of water for each can (=6 cans water)

On med-high, heat and stir so that the tomato paste blends with the water.



Add spices again: 1 teaspoon salt & 1/2 teaspoon pepper

1 Tablespoon garlic powder

1/2 teaspoon basil

1 Tablespoon sugar

2 bay leaves (DO NOT EAT THESE - REMOVE BEFORE SERVING). Use large ones so you can find them when done.)



Drop in your meatballs (if you made some). Heat until this mixture dissolves well (the paste). Cover, and place in the oven, preheated, to 300 degrees for approximately 2 hours.



If not baking, just simmer this on the stove with a cracked lid for about one hour, stirring occasionally.

Friday, October 14, 2011

Wacky Cake - Pantry Cooking at its BEST!

Yesterday as I was reading over some of my favorite blogs I ran across a recipe for WACKY CAKE! Now, how can you read a name like "Wacky Cake" and not be intrigued?

One of the blogs I most like to read is Kim's Jabez Farm blog. I love to read the posts Kim writes about her farm and family. She lives in the Pacific Northwest (where I have never even visited), and is a homeschooling mama who has a wonderful menagerie of farm animals. I work in a law office all day, wishing I was home, and ONLY have one dog and some cats! Reading blogs is definitely a wonderful way to experience a different way of life and at times, it is a delightful reprieve from my sometimes dull existence!

I had heard about Wacky Cakes. My mom tells me she used to make them all the time, but I don't remember. Chocolate cake is CHOCOLATE CAKE when your mom bakes it for you, right? A win-win, whatever kind of recipe!

I believe the history is that this cake was popular during the depression when ingredients were hard to come by. I don't know about you, but it seems like we're sort of in a depression now and definitely sometimes ingredients are hard to come by - at least in my kitchen! I am always on the lookout for recipes that I can make when I am short on ingredients! Well, this recipe is a keeper FOR SURE! In fact, I liked it so well that it might just be my "go to" chocolate cake recipe - for cupcakes and any even layer cakes! It was light and moist. Just perfect really! Don't let the vinegar scare you off. I'm not a scientist. I have no idea really what vinegar does to this cake. There are no eggs, butter or milk. But whatever happens in there works because this is a perfect chocolate cake!

Here's how I made Kim's Wacky Cake AT HOME MY WAY.

(Of course, my camera was saying "lense error" and so I don't have a picture, but trust me when I say that this cake is really wonderful and looks dark and rich and, and, and.....!)


Wacky Cake



  • 3 cups All Purpose flour

  • 2 cups Sugar

  • 1 teaspoon salt

  • 2 teaspoons Baking soda

  • 1/2 cup baking cocoa

  • 1/2 cup oil

  • 2 Tablespoons white vinegar

  • 2 cups hot tap water

  • 1/2 cup chocolate chips (optional) I did not have any so did not use

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray or grease a 9 x 13 pan.


In a large bowl, mix together well the flour, sugar, salt, baking soda, and cocoa. Make 2 wells in the flour mixture. Pour the oil in one well and the vinegar in the other. Pour hot water over the entire mixture. Stir with a spoon until smooth. (This is a BEAUTIFUL batter!) Pour into the prepared pan. Sprinkle with chocolate chips (if using). Bake for 40 minutes or until springs back to the touch.


I just sprinkled mine with powdered sugar once completely cool and then ate a huge piece!






Monday, October 10, 2011

Baked Cheesy Fries




My husband and I are recent "empty nesters" and have been enjoying a little bit of new found freedom the last couple of weeks. We haven't ever been big restaurant eaters but we have a new affinity for Outback Steakhouse. It seems like the other restaurants have raised their prices to the point that we can now eat at Outback as cheaply as we can eat at one of our local diners. If we each have the Outback Special for around $10, and drink the ice water, its a pretty cheap date night. A few times we have splurged and bought a half order of the Cheese Fries. They are divine! And OF COURSE, I had to figure a way to make these AT HOME MY WAY! And boy oh boy did I have success! These are really good. My older daughter wants me to make them over and over in the same week. She just can't get enough of them.



I bought a 20 pound bag of potatoes (well... I bought two actually) for $1.98 each so this date-night splurge was really cheap to make at home. We NEVER fry anything any more unless we have the fish frier set up outside. So, these potatoes aren't as bad for you as they look. They are baked in very little oil with however much cheese you are brave enough to sprinkle on. This is how I did it.



Baked Cheesy Fries (Preheat oven to 400 degrees)


  • 6 Washed brown-skinned potatoes (however many you need for feeding your family) (leave the peeling on)

  • 2 cups grated Cheddar cheese / sharp, mild, medium, or colby (really any kind of cheese would be fine)

  • Seasonings I used: Season salt (generic Lowrys), onion powder, pepper

  • 3 T. Oil (olive, canola, or vegetable oil)

I used this awesome frenchfry cutter my husband got last Christmas (and we had never used) - it works magnificently. My Mom got it at Bass Pro. Its super worth it! We pushed the potatoes through the cutter with the peeling on. Super fast!


Place all the fries in a big bowl. Drizzle with the oil. Stir well to coat the fries in the oil.


Dump on lightly oiled or sprayed cookie sheet (actually I didn't remember to do this step and since my fries were lightly oiled, they didn't stick or anything). Try to get them in one layer with just a little crowding. If you have a bigger family, you may have to use two cookie sheets.

Sprinkle with the seasonings of your choice.

Bake uncovered in 400 degree oven until the fries are browning. I would guess 20-30 minutes. (I didn't remember to time them but you want them completely done before melting the cheese because that doesn't take but a minute).

Remove the pan from the oven and sprinkle with cheese. Return to the oven until the cheese melts (app. 1-2 minutes).

My daughter ate hers as "loaded" potatoes with a little sour cream. My husband and I just ate ours as cheesy fries! They would probably be great with a little leftover chili and cheese as well for a complete pig out dish!

We bought some inexpensive steaks and all three of us ate for less than $10.00. It was fun and delicious and we decided we will be making this often.

Thursday, September 22, 2011

Meat and Taters


My man is like most men. He prefers a "meat and taters" kind of dinner and I made him a terrific meal the other night. My only problem in cooking meals like that is that we don't walk in the door until after 5:35 every weeknight. But I figured a way to make a great meal and I probably had this terrific "home cooking" type meal (known by lots of different names, "chicken fried steak", "breaded cube steak") within about 30 minutes.

How did I do it?

Well.. one of the best things I have discovered is that baking potatoes in the crockpot is the ONLY WAY TO GO! So easy. So, I had potatoes in the crockpot, breaded the meat and fried it in a skillet with a teensy bit of bacon grease (shhhh!), opened a can of vegetables and dinner was served. With this particular meal, I used the leftover flour and milk from breading the meat to make gravy (very frugal) and it was just A FEAST. Even though I'm not a "meat and potatoes man" (woman), I have to agree that this was a very satisfying meal!

My mom shared with me her tips for making "breaded cube steak" (that's what we call it) (because hers is THE BEST as far as I'm concerned) and I had great success with her method. I call it the, "double dip" method.

Here's how I made "meat and taters" AT HOME MY WAY:


Before I left for work:

I washed my potatoes (I actually did this the night before to save the morning rush from becoming too crazy). Before I left for work that morning, I tossed them in the crockpot (peeling on - no foil... just drop them in the crockpot), placed on the lid, switched the crockpot to low and headed out the door. They need to cook 8 hours, but that is no problem for me ha-ha.

Once I got home - potatoes were READY!

To make the breaded cube steak (chicken fried steak):

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cup flour (or more, depending on how much meat you are cooking)
salt & pepper
1 1/2 cup milk
3-4 cube steaks
5 Tablespoons oil or bacon grease (being frugal, I save bacon grease and use that) you want enough to cover the bottom of a skillet, but not a deep puddle or anything ;)

Place flour, salt & pepper in a shallow bowl or pie pan. Stir throughout.

Place milk in a separate shallow bowl or pie pan.

First, open the meat, rinse if you wish to do that. Dredge the meat FIRST in flour. Then dip in milk (flip so both sides go in the milk), and AGAIN dredge in the flour (both sides). This double dipping is the key to my mother's delicious breaded cube steak.

Heat your skillet to medium. Once hot, place meat in the skillet. Let it cook a couple of minutes until brown on the underneath. Once brown, flip over to cook the other side. I continued cooking mine and flipping until the meat was done. You can see the juices running out if its not done yet. But, don't flip too early. You want that breading fully cooked to hold its shape and stay on the meat.


I made gravy. This is how I did it.

After all the meat was cooked, I turned up the skillet to heat the oil to hot. I stirred all the "drippings" to spread it all around good. Then, I dumped in the flour I used from breading the meat (approximately 1/2 cup). I stirred all around to absorb the flour in the grease (sorry... sounds gross, but its REALLY GOOD lol). Then I added the remaining milk that I had used from breading the meat (approximately 1/2 to 1 cup). Stir again to fully incorporate the flour into the liquid. Being the cheapo that I am, I did not want to add more milk and mine was pretty thick - too thick, so I added about 1/4 cup of water to this and kept stirring. I let it cook on medium and it became smooth and thick - GRAVY! YUM!


I remember eating this all the time when I was little. If we didn't have much meat, my mom cut the cube steaks into "steak fingers" and we were satisfied with a strip of meat, some gravy, and the potatoes, or we even sometimes just ate the gravy ladled over a slice of bread. This kind of meal really takes me back!


Tuesday, September 20, 2011

Nachos for a Crowd - Family Nacho's



It seems we are all looking for new ideas for supper. One of my favorite blogs is called "Homemaking on the Homestead" and I found this recipe for "Nachos for a Crowd" on Crystal's blog. My pickier daughter decided this SOUNDED GOOD to her so I added it to my meal plan for this week and made it last night. IT WAS WONDERFUL!

I had already cooked some pinto beans (we love those with everything from taco's to rice & cornbread) and put some in the freezer in med-size containers, so I had them ready to go. I imagine you could use canned pinto beans and even a combination of one can of pinto beans and one can of refried beans would be good, because the recipes calls for you to mash half of your cooked pinto beans as you add it to the cooked hamburger. Anything like that would work.

We both LOVED this recipe! We decided it would be great to take for potlucks, to have for a dip when you have friends or family over, and also to freeze ahead for later. My daughter ate her Family Nachos on a warmed tortilla. I had mine over a bed of tortilla chips, and sprinkled with lettuce and fresh tomatoes.

This was REALLY, REALLY good! If you have ever eaten Nachos Belle Grande at Taco Bell, this was a similar dish!

I don't have a crowd at my house very often, so I'm calling them "Family Nachos" Here's how I made Family Nacho's AT HOME MY WAY:

Family Nachos (originally "Nachos for a Crowd" by Crystal Miller at the Homemaking on the Homestead)
  • Cooked Pinto Beans: 3 cups dry pinto beans (soaked overnight) + 12 cups water+1 T salt - OR 3 cups cooked beans in juice (not drained) (OR 2 cans of pinto / refried beans)
  • 1 - 2 lbs. hamburger (I used 2 pounds because we really enjoy the meat.)
  • 1 ½ cups salsa
  • 2 cups sour cream
  • 1 packet taco seasoning (I only used half a packet and it was great.)
  • cheese, as desired (I used cheddar, and grated it myself, about 1 1/2 cups)
  • 1 can olives. sliced (I did not use) (optional)
  • lettuce and fresh tomatoes, as desired, chopped ,green onions, sliced (optional)
To cook the beans: Rinse, removing any stones from the beans, soak in a big bowl of water overnight (covered by at least 3 inches). Drain the beans, dump into a big pot, and refill with water (Crystal says to use 12 cups - I just make sure there is about 3 inches of water on top of the beans.) Add the salt. Start the beans in the afternoon or the day before.

Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 2 ½ to 3 hours or until beans are soft and cooked. Stir occasionally as they cook to loosen them up and keep them from sticking. Set pot of beans aside.

To make the dish: cook up hamburger in a large frying pan until done, drain any grease if necessary. Add salsa and mix. Now take a slotted spoon and begin scooping out the beans and adding them to the hamburger (I used approximately 3 cups of beans - with some juice). You want to have the beans a little bit soupy when you add them (but not too much). As you add the beans, mix and smash some of them. Dump this bean/hamburger/salsa mixture into an 9 x 13 pan.

In a small bowl mix the sour cream and taco seasoning together. Spread this over the top of the bean/hamburger mixture. I dropped it around and then spread like a frosting.

Sprinkle as much (or as little) grated cheese as you desire over the top of the sour cream.

Now sprinkle the olives, tomatoes and green onions on top of the cheese (I omitted this step as my daughter doesn't like the olives, tomatoes, or green onions. I saved the tomatoes, olives, and green onions to sprinkle on the top of the nachos at serving time.) Bake at 400 degrees for about 20 minutes or things are melted and bubbly.

Serve this with or over tortilla chips, on warmed tortillas, taco shells or over a big green salad, topped with the lettuce and tomatoes!

I think this would be a great dish to take to a friend. Most kids would love this!

Monday, September 19, 2011

Menu Plan for the week of 9/19 -

Monday:

Breakfast - Leftover HM pancakes with HM apple butter (will post soon)
Lunch - PB&J & fruit

To Do: Mix up dumplings before bed and freeze for dinner Tuesday.

Tuesday:

Breakfast - HM Apple/Oatmeal muffins using Plain Muffin recipe, (use 1/2 cup sugar, sub in 1 cup oatmeal for flour + 1 grated apple)
Lunch - Leftovers from Nachos (as taco salad)
Supper - Chicken & Dumplings (chicken in the crockpot, add dumplings once home)

Wednesday:

Breakfast - Leftover muffins
Lunch - PB&J, fruit
Supper - Leftovers

To do: Bake bread

Thursday:

Breakfast - Smoothies or oatmeal
Lunch - PB&J, fruit
Supper - Baked potatoes in crockpot, cube steak, green beans/corn

To Do: Bake chocolate chip cookies, assemble ingredients for soup


Friday:

Breakfast - Cinnamon toast / chocolate milk using HM chocolate syrup
Lunch - PB&J or steak sandwich from leftovers
Supper - Hamburger soup

Saturday:

Breakfast - Surprise muffins or blueberry muffins
Lunch - Hu Hot with fam!
Supper - Snacks - having a big lunch

Sunday:

Breakfast - Bacon or sausage, biscuits, hashbrowns
Lunch - Making early dinner - spaghetti - so college girl can leave in good time, french bread, make some pocket sandwiches or roll ups with one loaf of dough
Supper - Snacks - late lunch / early dinner

To Do: Mix up muffins or get smoothie ingredients ready for morning.


Friday, September 16, 2011

Best Brownies Ever!

I have a friend whose daughter recently was diagnosed with Celiac, which requires her to eat only a gluten free diet. This means she has to avoid all things made of flour! That encompasses quite a large variety of things. In all of my blog reading, I have been noting any GF (gluten free) recipes so that I can share them with my friend. Sometimes I try the recipe out and sometimes I don't, but I knew my friend would NEVER try this recipe unless I could vouch for it being a good one LOL!

I had long read of Black Bean Brownies and Pinto Bean Fudge, but really couldn't see why anyone would want to purposefully eat such a thing! That is... until I realized they were made without any flour. Ah-ha! Gluten free!

I made a recipe that I found at one of my very favorite blogs (Finding Joy in My Kitchen). She posts delicious recipes and she sure cooks up a great variety of stuff! I got the recipe for these cookies (Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies) on her blog and my younger daughter makes these for us ALL THE TIME!

But when I tried the BLACK BEAN BROWNIES? OH MY HEAVENLY DAYS! These brownies are so rich and silky. They have the consistency of Little Debbie brownies (eek - from the box), but they have only great, healthy ingredients. Lots of protein in these little babies. Being the lover of SECRET ingredients (remember my zucchini cobbler ahem'' (apple)?") I left these brownies on my kitchen counter and my daughter, who is 18, gobbled these down! When I had my mom try a bite, my daughter yelled out, "What is in those? What have I been eating?" She had no idea and let me tell you, they are so DELICIOUS that once she knew, that didn't stop her from finishing them off!

I realize that not everyone wants to be so adventurous in the kitchen, but make these black bean brownies. You will be so glad you did! They are dark, rich, and chocolate-y! Yum! And how can you go wrong when they are loaded with good protein and are GF.

Here's how I make Black Bean Brownies AT HOME MY WAY:

(Note that you will need a blender or food processor to make these brownies.)

Black Bean Brownie Recipe (I'll post a picture the next time I make them.)

1 can (15.5) black beans, DRAINED and RINSED (use a collander) (GENERIC IS FINE!)
2 eggs
3 Tablespoons oil (olive oil would be a healthy choice)
1/4 cup cocoa powder
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder (not baking soda)
1 teaspoon vanilla
3/4 cup white sugar
1/2 cup chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray an 8 x 8 inch pan well with cooking spray.

In a blender, combine beans,eggs and oil. Puree (my blender setting was "liquify") til smooth. Then add the cocoa, sugar, baking powder, pinch of salt and vanilla to the ingredients already in the blender and blend again until smooth. I used my highest setting so that they were be really smooth.

Pour the batter into the sprayed pan.

Sprinkle with chocolate chips over the top of the brownies.

Bake 30 minutes or until they spring back a little bit to the touch. You can slide in a knife or toothpick to see if it comes out clean. If it does, they are done. Cool. Then slice. Refrigerate if leftover beyond two days.

NOTE: If they are for a gluten free friend, be sure to check the ingredients on your beans, cocoa powder, and chocolate chips. Somtimes they sneak flour into these ingredients. My generic ingredients, however, did not have any gluten so they were good to go.


I shared this recipe at:
 


Friday, September 2, 2011

3 Ingredients - Super Easy Chili (can be Crockpot)

One of our daughters is Super Picky! But, I have to compliment her and say that at age 23, she is working hard to increase the variety of foods she likes. She doesn't like that she's so picky.

This is one of the recipes she found that she loves. I am a chili lover! I love all chili - no matter how bland, spicy, thick, thin, chunky, red, or brown. So it didn't matter to me which kind of chili she found that she liked, it was just nice to find a recipe that she did like because there are days that nothing satisfies like a big pot of chili!

A friend had us out for our now annual Christmas gathering and she made this terrific chili. It doesn't have any fancy ingredients, but its so good! If chili can taste silky - this does! My daughter went gaga over it and gobbled down two bowls. I could not believe it! So, definitely I started making this at home.

I cook hamburger and keep portions of about 1 1/2 pounds in my freezer for quick "meal starters" so dumping this in the crockpot before I left for work at 7:15AM took a total of about 5 minutes. And what a feast when I came home, even though it was 100+ degrees outside!

This is how I make Super Easy Chili (3 ingredients) AT HOME MY WAY:

Super Easy Chili - 3 Ingredients

Ingredients:


  • 1 1/2 pounds browned hamburger (drained)


  • 2 cans "chili beans" (I use generic or name brand. They're all good.) (not drained - dump in the whole can) (not kidney beans or pinto beans but the cans that say "chili beans"- I use ALDI)


  • 2 cans (15 oz each) tomato sauce (generic is fine here as well)


Dump all the ingredients in the pot or crockpot, give it a good stir. (If your meat is precooked and frozen, thaw in the microwave a few minutes so you can stir all the ingredients before it starts cooking.)You can cook this on top of the stove for 30 minutes to an hour, or cook in the crockpot on low however long you want (mine has to cook 8-10 hours) since all of the "ingredients" are already prepared and fully cooked.

*My friend adds a packet of chili mix to hers, but I like my chili a little more tomato-y and it works fine for me without, so I just don't use any. The "chili" beans have plenty of seasoning in them and the chili will still be seasoned and taste strongly of "chili".

**I think you could play with this recipe and add tomatoes, green pepper, salsa, or whatever you like to add to your favorite chili recipe.

(I tried to take a picture last night but had left my SD card at work. I'll get a picture posted once I take one.)


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