Shepherd's Pie Shepherd's Pie If I were a shepherd watching my flocks by night, I'd want some of this to warm me up. Scrumptious home-cookin' for cold winter night suppers, and excellent as left-overs too. . . if there are any! This is one of our family favorites.
1 1/2 pounds potatoes, peeled and sliced
1/3 cup buttermilk
1/2 tsp. salt, divided
1/2 tsp. pepper, divided
1 pound ground round
1/2 cup chopped onion
1/3 cup chopped celery
1/4 cup shredded carrot
1/2 tsp. fennel seeds
1 tsp. minced garlic
1 (14 oz.) can crushed tomatoes
1/2 cup (2 oz.) shredded Cheddar cheese
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Boil potato slices until tender, drain, and return to pan. Add buttermilk, 1/4 tsp. salt, and 1/4 tsp. pepper; beat at medium speed of an electric mixer until smooth.
Cook meat until browned, stirring to crumble; drain. Return meat to skillet, add 1/4 tsp. salt, 1/4 tsp. pepper, onion, and next 4 ingredients; cook over medium heat 5 minutes until vegetables are crisp-tender, stirring frequently. Add tomatoes; simmer 10 more minutes at medium heat. Spoon meat mixture into an 8-inch square baking dish coated with cooking spray; spread potato mixture on top of meat mixture. Sprinkle with cheese, and bake, uncovered, at 375 degrees for 20 minutes or until thoroughly heated. Makes 4 servings.
Variation: For a dish with a little extra kick, substitute 1 1/2 cups salsa for the tomatoes.
Peanut Butter Mice Cookies Take a favorite peanut butter cookie, and change the shape into mice - how cute are these? Actually, we didn't have the recommended shoestring licorice for the long tails, so we just used the cookie sprinkles that are kind of long, and called them "hamsters" instead. Whatever you call them, they are cute, fun to make, and certainly fun to eat.
1 cup peanut butter
1/2 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1 egg
1 tsp. vanilla
1 1/2 cups flour
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 cup peanut or cashew halves
2 tablespoons miniature M&M baking pieces (we used the regular size and just cut them into smaller chunks)
4 tsp. miniature semisweet chocolate chips
red shoestring licorice (2 inches each) for tails, if desired, or substitute something else - like pretzel sticks, etc.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl, mix peanut butter, butter, and sugars. Beat in egg and vanilla, then add the flour and baking soda. The dough will be soft, so refrigerate for 1 hour or until easy to handle.
Roll into 1 inch balls. Place them 2 inches apart on ungreased baking sheets. Pinch each ball at one end to make the pointy nose of a mouse. Insert two peanut halves in the top center of the ball for ears. Add one M&M baking bit for the nose, and two chocolate chips for eyes.
Bake at 350 degrees for 8 - 10 minutes or until the cookies are set. Gently insert licorice (if used) into each warm cookie for the tail. Remove cookies to wire racks to cool completely. This recipe makes about 5 dozen cookies.
Maple-Cranberry MuffinsOh my goodness - these are so yummy! These muffins are wonderful with soup and salad, with your morning cup of coffee, or anytime of the day, for that manner. Quick and easy to make too!
2 cups flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
1 1/2 cups chopped fresh cranberries
1/2 cup butter, softened
2 eggs
1 cup sugar
2/3 cup buttermilk
2 tsp. maple flavoring
Preheat oven to 350 degrees, and spray muffin cups with nonstick cooking spray. Mix flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and walnuts in a large bowl. Stir in chopped cranberries. Then mix the butter, eggs, sugar, buttermilk, and maple flavoring together in a separate bowl, and then add to the dry ingredients. Mix until just moistened. Fill the muffin cups 2/3 full, and bake for 20 - 25 minutes. Makes about 12 muffins.
This is an excellent and moist honey cake - full of flavor - simply delicious. Reminiscent of gingerbread, this cake not only smells good, but will become a family favorite.
3 1/2 cups flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 teaspoons cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon cloves
1/2 teaspoon allspice
1 cup vegetable oil
1 cup honey
1 1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
3 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup warm coffee
3/4 cup orange juice
1/2 cup slivered or sliced almonds
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a tube pan, line bottom with lightly greased parchment paper. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and spices. Make a well in the center, and add the oil, honey, sugars, eggs, vanilla, coffee, and orange juice.
Using a strong wire whisk or electric mixer on slow speed, combine the ingredients well, making sure that no ingredients are stuck to the bottom of the bowl. This batter is rather thin after all the liquid ingredients are added.
Spoon the batter into the prepared pan and sprinkle the top of the cake evenly with the almonds. Place the cake pan on 2 baking sheets stacked together and bake until the cake springs back when you touch it gently in the center, about 60 - 70 minutes.
Let the cake stand for 15 minutes before removing it from the pan.
The cake may also be baked in a bundt cake pan, a 9X13 inch sheet pan, or three 8X4 1/2 inch loaf pans. Loaf pans will bake for 45 - 55 minutes, 9X13 cakes for 40 - 45 minutes. Adjust baking time according to your pan and oven.
Who cooks with fennel - you may ask? I didn't until this recipe from Rachael Ray caught my eye. All I can say is, "WOW!" Give it a try.
6 large carrots, peeled
2 large bulbs fennel
1 large onion
1 tsp. sugar
Salt
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
3 tablespoons chopped dill
3 tablespoons chopped chives
Slice the carrots in 1/2 inch thick slices on an angle.
Quater the fennel bulbs lengthwise, cut into bulb to remove core and thinly slice, or roughly chop. Reserve 1/4 cup chopped fennel fronds (the green tops).
Halve and slice the onion. Fill a skillet with 1/4 inch water. Add vegetables then sprinkle with sugar and salt and drizzle with 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil. Simmer covered 20 minutes, and uncovered for 5 minutes and adjust salt. Toss vegetables with fennel fronds, dill and chives. Makes 6 servings.
Pair this with the baised carrots and fennel (the recipe above) and you've got a spectacular meal for any special occasion. We had this at Christmas, but you could have this to celebrate anything. . . new job, graduation, back-to-school party, someone getting their braces off, you found your car keys, . . . whatever! Find something to celebrate and make this! This is another Rachael Ray recipe, from the Food Network.
6 hens, rinsed and pat dry
Coarse salt
Coarse black pepper
1 cup defrosted orange juice concentrate
1 cup aged balsamic vinegar (don't worry about the "aged" part if you can't find it)
3 to 4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
7 to 8 stems rosemary, chopped
Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.
Line 2 baking pans with foil for easier cleaning. Set a baking rack in each pan. Split hens and butterfly open and place 3 hens in each baking pan. Season the hens with salt and pepper liberally. Mix the orange concentrate, balsamic venigar and olve oil and pour evenly over the hens. Sprinkle with rosemary and roast 15 minutes at 425 degrees, then 30 minutes at 375 degrees.
Have you got any mexican vanilla? Use that in this recipe - Mmm Good!
Makes 4 quarts
3 eggs
1 can sweetened condensed milk
1/2 cup white corn syrup
1 cup sugar
1 t. vanilla
Mix the above ingredients. Pour into ice cream freezer, then fill the remainder of the freezer "can" with milk, up to about 3-4 inches from the top. You can use 2% milk, and it works just fine. Continue to make the ice cream according to the ice cream freezer manufacturer's instructions. Yummy variations include peach and strawberry. Add sliced fruit to the ice cream a few minutes before it is ready, then resume the freezing process. Other favorites include adding crushed Butterfinger or other candy.
Cranberries aren't what we normally think of in the summertime, but you can eat this any time of the year! Almond extract is the key to this yummy breakfast food. In the picture, the cake has been drizzled with a glaze, accented with whole cranberries. I never do the glaze - saves on the calories, and it is delicious without the added step.
1 cup butter
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp. almond extract
2 cups flour
3/4 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1 cup sour cream
1 cup (8 oz.) whole cranberry sauce
Cream butter and sugar until fluffy. Beat in eggs and extract. Combine flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Add to creamed mixture; add sour cream; mix well. Spread 1/2 batter into greased 10 inch tube pan, or a bundt pan. Spread cranberry sauce over batter. Top with remaining batter. Bake at 350 degrees for 55-60 minutes. or until lightly browned. Cool 10 min., remove from pan.
Yummy doughnuts you can make at home, using mashed potatoes in the dough. Hence, the name "spudnuts."
Dough
1/2 cup butter or margarine, softened
1/3 cup sugar
1 3/4 tsp. salt
1 cup prepared instant mashed potatoes, prepared according to package directions
*** ( if using regular potatoes, use only 1/2 cup mashed potatoes )
1 egg
1 cup scalded milk
1 package yeast dissolved in 1/4 cup lukewarm water
5 cups flour
Put butter, sugar, salt, and warm potatoes into a large bowl; stir well, add warm milk, and 1 cup flour - stir - add egg. If dough is cooled, add yeast mixture. Add remaining flour. Turn out and knead a bit, or use dough hooks in an electric mixer. Grease the mixing bowl and put dough back in bowl to rise. Allow to rise 2 hours.
Take half of dough - roll out and cut doughnuts with biscuit cutter repeat with remaining dough. Allow doughnuts to rise again for about 5 minutes. Heat oil in an electric skillet or other large skillet to 325 - 350 degrees. As soon as hot, test with a piece of dough. Cook a few doughnuts at a time, turning them over after a minute or two on each side. Drain on paper towels. Dip in glaze, allow to dry on cooling rack or cookie sheet. Makes about 4 dozen, plus a few doughnut "holes."
Glaze
1 box powdered sugar (about 3-4 cups)
1/2 tsp. vanilla
1/2 tsp. corn syrup
1/4 cup water
Mix well, and heat until warm. If it is too runny, add a little more sugar. If it is too thick, heat a little more, or ad a little more water. This recipe makes enough to glaze one recipe of doughnuts.
Simply Scrumptious
2 sticks of room temperature butter
2 cups of sugar
4 eggs
6 oz. of Hershey's Milk Chocolate melted
1/4 teaspoon of baking soda dissolved in 1 cup of Buttermilk
2 1/2 cups of flour
1/4 teaspoon of salt
2 teaspoons of vanilla
1 cup pecans; chopped
Cream butter and sugar; add eggs. Mix well. Stir in melted chocolate that has been cooled slightly. Add buttermilk mixture, flour, salt and vanilla; mix well. If using an electric mixer, mix on medium speed for 2-5 minutes to incorporate as much air as possible - results in a fluffier cake. Stir in pecans.
Bake in a 325 degree oven for about 1 to 1 1/2 hours - depending on size of pan. May be cooked in one greased angel food cake pan, or two loaf pans. Use toothpick to test that it is cooked through.
In the above picture, a "rose" bundt pan was used - it will not require all of the batter to bake it in one of those. If you do use a bundt pan, reserve some batter for cupcakes or something - I put a cookie sheet under the pan in the oven to catch the drips.
1 pound ground round
1 pkg. (10 oz.) frozen corn, thawed - or - 1 can whole kernel corn
1 can (14 1/2 oz.) diced tomatoes, undrained
1 can (4 oz.) sliced black olives, drained
1 pkg. (1 1/4 oz.) taco seasoning mix
1 pkg. (6 oz.) corn muffin or corn bread mix plus ingredients to prepare mix
1/4 cup (1 oz.) shredded Cheddar cheese - or - Mexican Blend Cheese
1 green onion, thinly sliced (for garnish, if desired)
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place meat in large skillet; cook over high heat until meat is no longer pink, breaking meat apart with wooden spoon. Pour off drippings. Add corn, tomatoes, olives and seasoning mix to meat. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring constantly. Pour into deep 9-inch pie plate; smooth top with spatula.
Prepare corn muffin mix according to package directions. Spread evenly over meat mixture. Bake 8 - 10 minutes or until golden brown. Sprinkle with cheese and onion slices. Let stand 10 minutes before serving. Garnish with green onion and/or tomatoe slices, if desired. We didn't garnish the dish when we made it ourselves, as you can see in the above picture!
2 cups sugar
2 1/4 cups Tang
3/4 cup instant tea
1 cup lemonade mix
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
Mix all these ingredients together well. Use about 2 tablespoons (1/8 cup) of mix for every cup of hot water. Store in an air-tight container.
This recipe is so yummy! It is a good way to use leftover rice. Kids love it. Leave off the nutmeg on the top if you'd like.
1/2 cup plain, cooked rice
3 eggs, beaten
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon grated lemon rind (opt.)
1/2 cup raisins
3 1/2 cups milk
ground nutmeg - to sprinkle on top
Combine all ingredients, except nutmeg. Pour mixture into a lightly-buttered shallow baking dish. Sprinkle with nutmeg. Place baking dish in a pan of hot water in the oven and bake at 300 degrees for about 1 1/2 hours, or until set. Insert a clean knife into the center to test for doneness (knife will come out with nothing clinging to it if the custard is ready). Serve warm or chilled.
One Sunday, we were watching a cooking show on television and saw Paula Deen make this macaroni and cheese. It looked so wonderful, we searched for her recipe, and left immediately to go get the sour cream to make this extra-cheesy, extra-yummy macaroni and cheese. It is well worth a special trip to the store. Give it a try!
4 cups cooked macaroni, drained
2 cups grated cheddar cheese
3 eggs, beaten
1/2 cup sour cream
4 tablespoons butter, cut into pieces
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup milk
While the cooked and drained macaroni is still hot, stir in the cheddar cheese. In a separate bowl, combine the remaining ingredients and add to the macaroni mixture. Pour the mac and cheese into a casserole dish and bake for 30-45 minutes at 350 degrees. Top with additional cheese if you would like (who doesn't)!
2 lb. fresh or 3 pkg. frozen squash
1 medium onion, chopped
1 can Rotel
1 can whole kernel corn
Cook squash with onion until tender. Drain, then add Rotel and corn.
Stir together these ingredients below:
2 beaten eggs
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
Salt and pepper to taste
Add these ingredients to the squash, Rotel, corn mixture. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. Serves 8.
With a recipe this good, and this easy, you can just make your own!
5 cups flour
3 tsp. salt
2 tsp. baking powder
3/4 cup shortening
1 1/3 cup hot water
Try these BBQ Beans for your next Potluck or BBQ Dinner. Bake in the oven, covered.
* 2 (16-oz) cans pork & beans or 1 (28-oz) can
* 4 slices cooked bacon, diced
* 2 tablespoons brown sugar
* 1 tsp. wet mustard
* 1/2 cup barbecue sauce
* 1 medium onion, chopped
* 1/2 green bell pepper, chopped
* 1/2 red bell pepper, chopped
PREPARATION:
Mix pork and beans, bacon, brown sugar, mustard and barbecue sauce. Add onions and peppers. Bake, covered, for about 1 hour at 350°.
2 1/2 c. cake flour
1 1/2 C. sugar
3 1/2 t. baking powder
1 t. salt
1/2 C. soft margarine
4 egg whites (1/2 c)
1 C. milk, divided
1 t. almond extract
3/4 to 1 c ground almonds (optional)
Measure flour, sugar, baking powder and salt into bowl; mix well. Add margarine, egg whites and 2/3 C milk. Blend until flour is moistened. Beat two minutes at medium speed of mixer Scrape bowl frequently. Add remaining ground almonds. Beat one minute longer.
Coat two 9-inch cake pans with margarine; line with wax paper and coat paper with margarine. Bake at 350° degrees 30 to 35 minutes until cake is golden brown. Cool 10 minutes; turn out of pans and cool completely. Fill with Strawberry Filling. Frost with Chiffon Frosting. Garnish with strawberries.
FILLING: Combine 1 1/2 c. sliced strawberries and 3/4 c sugar in saucepan. Stir over low heat until sugar dissolves. Increase heat and boil rapidly five minutes. Cool. Blend in 2 T. margarine.
FROSTING: Blend together 1/3 c. soft margarine, 1 box (1 lb.) confectioners sugar, 1 egg and 1 1/2 t. vanilla. If necessary, beat in 1 or more teaspoons of milk to make smooth.
8 cups finely chopped cabbage (about 1 head)
1/4 cup shredded carrot (1 medium carrot)
2 Tbsp minced onion
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1/8 tsp pepper
1/4 cup milk
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup buttermilk
1-1/2 Tbsp white vinegar
2-1/2 Tbsp lemon juice
Be sure cabbage and carrots are chopped up into very fine pieces (about the size of rice). Combine sugar, salt, pepper, milk, mayonnaise, buttermilk, vinegar, and lemon juice in a large bowl and beat until smooth.
Add cabbage, carrots, and onion; mix well.
Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours before serving.
Serves 10 to 12.
Great for the next Tailgating Party, BBQ Contest, or Backyard BBQ.
* 1/2 cup boiling water
* 1/4 cup shortening
* 1 cup granulated sugar
* 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
* 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon, optional
* 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
* 1/2 teaspoon salt
* 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
* 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
* 1 egg, beaten
* 1/2 cup sour cream
* 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
PREPARATION:
In a mixing bowl, combine boiling water, shortening, sugar, cocoa, and cinnamon, if using. Beat until sugar is dissolved. Add sifted dry ingredients alternately with the beaten egg, sour cream, and vanilla. Fill greased and lightly floured cupcake cups about half full. Bake at 350° for 25 minutes. Frost with your favorite frosting, homemade or purchased. Makes about 18 cupcakes.