Mar 25, 2008

Banana Cream Pie

You may know that for Lent this year I gave up sweets. Over the 40 days, I kept thinking about what dessert I wanted to eat on Easter Sunday. I decided on banana cream pie. This recipe comes from The Little Pie Company in the Big Apple. I made it on Easter while visiting Lane and James in Austin. It was delicious. The recipe it a good one because it gives detailed instructions for how to make an excellent cream filling. Follow it carefully and your pie will set beautifully. Bon Appetit!


½ cup sugar

4 tablespoons cornstarch

½ teaspoon salt

4 egg yolks, lightly beaten

2 ½ cups cold milk

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

2 ½ teaspoons pure vanilla extract

2 large, just-ripe bananas (I think 2 1/2 or 3 might be better)

1 baked and cooled 9” pie shell

Sweetened whipped cream

1. In a heavy-bottomed saucepan off the heat, stir the sugar, cornstarch, and salt until well blended.

2. In a medium bowl, stir together the egg yolks and milk and add them to the sugar mixture; stir until combined, then scrape the bottom and sides of the pan with a rubber spatula to make sure that every last bit of sugar is mixed in.

3. Cook the mixture over medium heat, stirring constantly, until it thickens and boils. Reduce the heat to medium-low and continue to cook the pudding, stirring, for 1 minute.

4. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the butter and vanilla until blended. Cover with wax paper and let the filling cool for about 30 minutes.

5. Slice bananas ¼ inch thick and arrange them over the bottom and sides of the prebaked shell. Spoon the filling over the bananas and smooth it with the back of the spoon.

6. Let the pie cool to room temperature. Then refrigerate until thoroughly chilled, about 2 hours. Cover only after the pie is thoroughly chilled.

Serve with sweetened whipped cream.

Mar 20, 2008

Butterfinger Cookies

1/2 c butter or margarine
3/4 c sugar
2/3 c brown sugar
2 egg whites
1 1/4 c chunky peanut butter
1 1/2 t vanilla
1 c flour
1/2 t baking soda
1/4 t salt
5 Butterfinger candy bars (2.1 oz each) coarsely chopped

Cream together the butter and sugars. Add egg whites. Beat well. Blend in peanut butter and vanilla. Combine flour, baking soda and salt. Add to creamed mixture and mix well. Stir in candy bars. Shape into 1 1/2 inch balls and place on greased baking sheets. Bake at 350 for 8-9 minutes or until golden brown, set around the edges but soft in the middle. Cool on wire racks.

Usually peanut butter cookies come out kind of dry and you can't eat them without a tall glass of milk. Not so with these babies; they are the best peanut butter cookies I have ever tasted. I have just barely procured the recipe, happily for all of YOU!

Mar 17, 2008

Pat Weed's Honeyed Chicken

1/2 c butter
1 c honey
1/2 c prepared mustard
1 t salt
1 t curry
4 chicken breasts

Heat oven to 375. Melt butter in saucepan. Stir in honey, mustard, salt and curry. Roll chicken in honey mixture and arrange in baking dish. Pour remaining mixture over chicken. Bake about 1 hour or until fork tender. Cover for first half of cooking time.

The best part about this recipe is the way it SMELLS!! I like to serve this over rice.

Mom's Spare Ribs

Put Country Style Spare Ribs (Don't get expensive good ribs for this. Just use cheap ribs! You need the fat!) in your crockpot.
Mix in a bowl 1 c BBQ sauce and 1/2 c brown sugar. Pour this over your spare ribs. Cook on low for 10 hours.

I like to make rice to serve with this. Sometimes I drain a can of black beans and put them in with the meat. Then all you need is a salad and you have a square meal!

Grandma Stauffer's Barbeque

Brown 4 lb lean ground beef with 1 1/4 medium onion, chopped.
Then add:
2 T salt
1/8 t pepper
1/4 c brown sugar
1/4 c vinegar
2 c ketchup
(Grandma's recipe calls for 3/4 c water, but I think there ends up being too much liquid if you do. You decide)
2 Tbsp chopped green pepper
1/8 t sage
3 T mustard
Bring to a boil. Boil gently 8-10 minutes.

This was Grandma's secret recipe that she made at home and took to the Drugstore to sell on sandwiches.

Oatmeal Coconut Cookies

1 c white sugar
1 c brown sugar
1 c shortening
2 eggs
2 t vanilla
2 C flour
1/2 t salt
1 t baking powder
1 t baking soda
1 c coconut
2 c oatmeal
2 c cornflakes
butterscotch chips

Bake at 375 for 9 minutes. Makes 4 dozen with the Pampered Chef medium scoop.

I love this recipe. I used to make these with Grandma Cheney. I can remember her teaching me how to measure shortening with the water displacement method once when we were making this recipe. I'm sure I was wearing pants I pegged myself and too much eye-liner, and yet she helped me make these delicious cookies. They are so chewy and full of good stuff.

Aunt LeAnn's Cheddar Chowder

2 c boiling water
2 c cubed potatoes
1/2 c chopped carrots
1/2 c sliced celery
1 c chopped ham
1/4 c butter
1/4 c flour
2 c milk (I use 1/2 &1/2)
1/4 t pepper
1 1/2 t salt
2 c shredded cheese

Cook veggies in water 10 minutes. Don't drain. Set aside.
In a large pot, melt butter; add flour. Stir till smooth. Add milk. Stir till thick. Add Cheese. Stir till melted. Add ham, seasonings, and undrained vegetables. Heat through.

You can substitute other vegetables such as broccoli. I always use butter instead of margarine and 1/2 & 1/2 instead of milk. People love this and then I always tell them it is low fat and they look amazed. I'm sure it is NOT low fat. I don't like eating anything low fat. Life is too short to limit your fat intake.

Curried Chicken Divan

1 lb cooked broccoli
1 can cream of chicken soup
2/3 c mayo
1/3 milk
1 c cheese, grated
1 t lemon juice
1 t curry
4 chicken breasts: boiled, boned, cut up

Mix it all up and throw it in a casserole dish! Put croutons or bread crumbs on top.
Bake at 350 for 1/2 hour-45 minutes.

This was always my birthday dinner until I married a mayonnaise hater. I love this dish.

Hale Oatmeal Cookies

1 1/2 c shortening
2 c sugar
3 eggs
1 lb raisins, boiled (reserve 1 1/2 c water from this process!)
1 1/2 c water from boiled raisins
1 1/2 c nuts chopped
chocolate chips
4 c flour
2 tsp cinnamon
2 tsp soda
2 tsp salt
2 tsp nutmeg
2 t vanilla
4 c oatmeal

Boil raisins 5 minutes. Cool before using. Bake cookies at 375 for 10 minutes.

These are the BEST raisin cookies ever. I use a chunky multi-grain oatmeal when I bake these. Since the raisins are boiled, they are soft, and the water that you add to the cookies makes them really soft, and makes the chocolate chips delicious and melty. So you end up with a chewy, moist, spicy (but not too spicy) chocolaty cookie. They are an old family recipe.

Ebleskiver

Separate 6 eggs.
Beat whites till stiff with 1/2 tsp cream of tartar.
Beat yolks with 2 Tbsp sugar.
Add alternately 2 c flour and 1 1/2 c milk + 1 t salt.
Fold in egg whites.

Cook in greased ebleskiver pan on medium heat. Turn with a fondue fork or a long 2-pronged meat fork or a BBQ skewer.

Taco Soup

1 lb hamburger, browned
1/2 c onion, chopped and cooked with meat.
1 quart tomatoes
2 cans beans (any kind), rinsed and drained
3 c water
1 package taco seasoning
1 15-oz can tomato sauce

Simmer 30 minutes. Garnish with cheese, sour cream, and corn chips.

I love this dinner because it is fast and easy. You just dump in the canned stuff after you brown your meat and dinner is ready! I also like adding a can of corn to this one.

Grandma Cheney's Sweet Potatoes

1 1/4 lb sweet potatoes
Steam in pot till tender. Slice 1st layer in casserole dish. Layer with 1 lb apples and whole pecans.

Sauce:
3/4 c sugar
1 tsp salt
4 Tbsp cornstarch
2 c water or apple juice
1/4 c water
Cook till clear. Spoon over sweet potatoes. Bake at 350 for 45 minutes to 1 hour or till apples are tender.

I love this recipe! I never liked sweet potatoes until I tasted this recipe. In my opinion, pineapple and marshmallows do NOT belong on the Thanksgiving table. I love this traditional recipe that tastes of fall. However, I always end up with a plate of apples and pecans with a bite or two of sweet potatoes on the side. The apples and pecans are just divine.

Mar 16, 2008

Chicken Kung Po

This is super easy and yummy

Chopped chicken
celery
Any color pepper
peanuts
onion
Kung po sauce( Brand LEE KUM KEE KUNG PAO STIR FRY SAUCE)
We found ours at albertsons

Heat up chicken and chopped onions in a frying pan. Then add chopped peppers and celery. Keep them a little crisp. Add kung po sauce and peanuts. Add a little water with sauce. Serve over rice.

Mar 14, 2008

Chicken salad picture


Chicken Velvet soup

Chicken Velvet Soup

1 package California Blend frozen veg.
3-4 celery sticks chopped
2 cups chicken broth
1/2 cup onion chopped
1/2 cup butter and 1/2 cup flour
1 can evaporated milk
1lb velveta cheese
2 cups chicken

Melt butter add flour and evaporated milk to make white sauce add chicken broth and veg add cheese stir until cheese is melted and add chicken, salt, pepper to taste good if simmered in crock pot for some time let it simmer for several hours

Mar 8, 2008

Sweet-and-Sour Pork


2 T. butter
2 T. olive oil
3 pounds lean pork, cut into strips
1/4 cup cornstarch
2 t. salt
1 t. pepper
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup vinegar
2 (20 ounce) cans pineapple tidbits, drained with juice reserved
2 T. soy sauce
1 1/2 cups red and/or green bell pepper, cut into strips
1/2 cup thinly sliced onions
Rice for 4-6 people

Melt butter in a large skillet; add olive oil. Stir-fry pork strips until browned, about 7 minutes. Cover and simmer on low for about 15-20 minutes. Drain and set aside.
In same skillet, combine cornstarch, salt, pepper, brown sugar, vinegar, 2 cups of the reserved pineapple juice, and soy sauce. Cook and stir until mixture comes to a boil. Reduce heat. Stir and cook 2 minutes. Add hot pork, peppers, sliced onion, and pineapple tidbits. Cook 3-5 minutes longer over medium heat. Serve over rice.

Mar 7, 2008

Chicken Crescent Pockets


I got this recipe from a friend and they turned out to be pretty tasty!

You will need:

1 can of chicken (or cook and shred chicken breast, but the canned chicken is a bit easier)
1 pkg of crescent roll dough (the pkg that makes 8 rolls; usually found on the biscuit isle)
1/2 pkg (4oz) of cream cheese (softened)
Melted butter
Crushed Ritz crackers
1 can Cream of chicken soup


Mix softened cream cheese and chicken together;
Separate and flatten crescent dough on pan (grease pan or cover with tinfoil);
Scoop a spoonful or more of chicken onto 4 of the laid out pieces of dough;
Place other 4 pieces of dough (the ones without any chicken on them) on top and flatten and seal all the edges;Dip uncooked crescent pockets in melted butter and then sprinkle or dip into crushed crackers.

Bake @ 350 for 25-30 minutes.

While that is cooking, mix cream of chicken soup with water (3/4 can water). Bring to a boil.

When crescent pockets are done baking, drizzle soup over them and enjoy!

Makes 4...easily double recipe to make 8!

Mar 3, 2008

Oriental Cabbage Chicken Salad

I chopped head of cabbage
2-4 cooked and chopped chicken
1 package slivered almonds Toasted and brown in a pan
2 packages Oriental flavored top toasted in the oven (keep the flavoring for the dressing)
break into pieces
Toasted sesame seeds (opt.)
1 small green onion bunch chopped

Dressing:
2 Oriental ramen flavor packets
1/3 cup sugar
3 Tb soy sauce
2 Tb white vinegar
1/4 cup rice vinegar
2 Tb sesame oil
1 cup canola oil
salt pepper to taste

Creamy Chicken Casserole

Creamy Chicken Casserole
Prep time 5 min
Cooking time 30 min

3 cups cooked chicken
2 -10 oz cans chicken soup
1 carton sour cream
1/2 cup crushed round buttery crackers
1/2 cup butter, Melted

combine first 4 ingredients, spoon into lightly greased 11/17 baking dish combined crushed crackers and butter, and sprinkle over combined mixture. Bake uncover @350 for 30 min or until crackers are light brown.

Mar 2, 2008

Turkey Burgers


This is a recipe I just made up, but it turned out to be pretty tasty.

Ingredients:
1 lb ground turkey (or hamburger)
1/4 c chopped green pepper
1/4 c chopped yellow onion
Black pepper or season-all (optional)

Mix all ingredients together.
Form 4- 1/4 lb patties.
Sprinkle black pepper or season-all on top of patties (optional)
Cook as desired...grill/BBQ, George Forman, fry, etc.

Once burgers are fully cooked, place on bun and dress burger up however you prefer.
We never have any good toppings, so we usually just use ketchup and mayo.