Tasty Tuesday - Homemade No-Bake Cheesecake

Some people ONLY like baked cheesecake. Some ONLY like what I prefer to call cream cheese pie - which is technically unbaked cheesecake. I happen to be a fan of both. But there is one particular restaurant who has a cheesecake that I just absolutely LOVE. Fortunately for my figure, the restaurant is located where my parents live and not here in Indy. Nevertheless, I've been wondering for years what sort of recipe they use for their cheesecake.

While browsing cheesecake recipes the other day (why yes, that is my idea of fun), I discovered this one.

Oh. My. Goodness.

This is almost identical to the restaurant cheesecake that I love so dearly except for one tiny discrepancy. I think this one is actually a little bit better. Yes, better!

It's easy, it's delicious, and it's oh so fattening! So give it a try. I bet you'll love it! (Even my husband who doesn't care much for unbaked cheesecake thought this stuff was amazing.)

10-lb Cheesecake

• 2 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 1/2 cup melted butter
• 3 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, softened
• 2 (14 ounce) cans sweetened condensed milk
• 1/2 cup lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 (12 ounce) container frozen whipped topping, thawed

1. Stir together graham cracker crumbs, sugar, and melted butter. Press into a 9x13 inch baking dish.
2. Use an electric mixer to beat the cream cheese until smooth. Beat in the sweetened condensed milk, lemon juice, and vanilla extract until well blended and smooth. Fold in whipped topping. Pour filling into crust and smooth the top.
3. Refrigerate until firm, 2 to 3 hours.

Once this baby is firm (or before that, if you prefer), top it with fruit if you'd like. Personally, I like it just the way it is, but I may try some raspberry mixture and whipped cream next time. (They have this variation at the restaurant I spoke of earlier and it is DEEE-LISH!)

Man, now I really wish I had some cream cheese in the house....

Tasty Tuesday - The BEST Cinnamon Rolls On Earth

It was really funny that Gretchen just posted this exact recipe on her other blog just a few days ago when I was already planning to post it here today, but...oh well.

Plus, I have a picture. So there. =P

Seriously though, these cinnamon rolls are AHH-mazing. And I'm not just saying that because I'm pregnant! I know some non-pregnant people who happen to think they are amazing as well! :)

The recipe is entitled "Clone of a Cinnabon", but I wouldn't let that fool you. Personally, I don't think these taste much like a Cinnabon at all. But I digress.

This recipe is for a breadmaker, but there are easy alterations (can I even use that word when referring to cooking?) to be had for non-breadmaker-ers.

INGREDIENTS (Nutrition)

• 1 cup warm milk (110 degrees F/45 degrees C)
• 2 eggs, room temperature
• 1/3 cup margarine, melted
• 4 1/2 cups bread flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 2 1/2 teaspoons bread machine yeast

• 1 cup brown sugar, packed
• 2 1/2 tablespoons ground cinnamon
• 1/3 cup butter, softened

• 1 (3 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
  
• 1/4 cup butter, softened
• 1 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/8 teaspoon salt

DIRECTIONS

1. Place ingredients in the pan of the bread machine in the order recommended by the manufacturer. Select dough cycle; press Start.
2. After the dough has doubled in size turn it out onto a lightly floured surface, cover and let rest for 10 minutes. In a small bowl, combine brown sugar and cinnamon.
3. Roll dough into a 16x21 inch rectangle. Spread dough with 1/3 cup butter and sprinkle evenly with sugar/cinnamon mixture. Roll up dough and cut into 12 rolls. Place rolls in a lightly greased 9x13 inch baking pan. Cover and let rise until nearly doubled, about 30 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
4. Bake rolls in preheated oven until golden brown, about 15 minutes. While rolls are baking, beat together cream cheese, 1/4 cup butter, confectioners' sugar, vanilla extract and salt. Spread frosting on warm rolls before serving.

Now, I don't really care for cream cheese in my icing, so I just skipped the cream cheese and added enough milk to make the consistency I was looking for. But if you like cream cheese icing, please...be my guest.

If you don't believe me when I say that these are the best things on earth, you can click here to go to the recipe link where you can read reader reviews! :)

Mmmmm! I might just have to go eat one now!

Tasty Tuesday - Chicken and Stuffing, Round 2

Several months ago, I posted a crockpot recipe for chicken and stuffing. While it was pretty delicious, it had a few flaws.

1. The recipe called for stuffing crumbs, which didn't exactly turn into stuffing - more like a really thick gravy. Once the recipe had become leftovers the next day, THEN there was stuffing. But you know, I like my recipes to turn out the way they're supposed to before a 24-hr period has passed.

2. (And this isn't really a flaw to most people, but...) it's a crockpot recipe. And while I love crockpot recipes....sometimes, I'm kinda bad at planning ahead. I typically prepare dinner during the afternoon hours when my kids are napping and, well, crockpot recipes don't really work if they aren't started until 2pm.

So last week I tried an oven version of this dinner, using my head knowledge of cooking (which is pretty little) and whatever ingredients I had on hand. I like my recipes to be flexible, so using what I have on hand rather than running to the store all the time is really helpful when it comes to saving money.

Over the past few months, I have become a stalker of two cooking blogs that I absolutely LOVE. One thing that their readers often express appreciation for is their PILE of pictures in each blog post. I admit, it does help to be able to see what the cook is doing. Plus, I really like taking pictures. (I guess that goes with the photographer territory?) So, in an attempt to be as cool as this blog and this blog, I have several pictures for you today!

I know you're jumping for joy on the other side of that screen. Don't even try to deny it.

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Modified Chicken and Stuffing

6 chicken breast halves
4-ish cups bread cubes
2 cans cream of chicken
1 cup chicken broth
thyme, parsley, salt, and pepper (sorry, I don't measure)
4 T. melted butter or margerine

1. Grease 9x13 inch pan.

2. Chop bread into cubes. I used hot dog buns because the "best by" date had already come and gone and I had no hot dogs in the fridge.

3. Spread bread cubes into greased pan.

4. Mix chicken broth, cream of chicken, and seasonings.

5. Melt butter and pour over bread crumbs. (And let me just tell you...taking a picture while pouring is...um....a lot harder than it might appear.)

6. Pour 3/4 of the creamy chicken mixture over bread cubes.

7. Wash and dry chicken. Cut each breast in half. (This is not actually necessary, but since it probably cooks a little faster, I generally do it this way.)

8. Place chicken pieces on top of bread crumbs in pan. Add remaining creamy chicken mixture to the tops of the chicken pieces.

9. Cover and bake in 400 degree oven for 1 hr or until done.

10. Eat. This time around, I wound up with quite a bit of soggy goodness at the bottom and then more "gravy". I'm not sure what it is about this recipe, but apparently it still needs tweaked. I just cut up some more bread cubes and put the gravy on top w/ the chicken. It worked out okay, but I will keep perfecting it. My husband suggested trying it with dried bread cubes and I think that might work better.

Tasty Tuesday - Strawberry Shortcake Parfait

For the past few days, I've been visiting with my family in WI. Yesterday we enjoyed Easter dinner complete with this new dessert recipe that I threw together. Since I firmly believe that "secret recipes" are totally lame and, in all honesty, a pretty arrogant way of raising yourself to a level you don't deserve, I will share it with you, because...well....this dessert was pretty darn good. And of course, I'd be a hypocrite if I didn't share it.

The idea for the Strawberry Shortcake Parfait came from this super easy and DELICIOUS recipe that I made last summer. Ok, so the rough measurements for your ingredients are:

1 angel food cake, baked and cooled
2-4 lbs stawberries, each strawberry cut into fourths
1-2 tubs of cool whip
2 small packages of vanilla instant pudding

I realize those measurements are absolutely non-standard, but that's because I have no idea what size bowl, dish, cups, etc. you will be putting this in. I personally LOVE to make little individual desserts in glasses, but wasn't able to do that yesterday, so mine was made in this "vase":

When you make this dessert depends on how soggy you mind your angel food cake being. I made it a day in advance and it was, ehhh, pretty soggy. But delicious. I think I would have liked it better if I had made it JUST before eating time, but oh well.

Tip #1: If you want juicier strawberries, cut them up, put them in a bowl, and throw about 1/2 cup of sugar on top. Let sit for 30 minutes or more before layering.

Tip #2: Make sure you're READY to layer once you starting mixing the pudding. You'll have to whisk it for 2 minutes and as soon as you're done, it starts to set. So be sure you're ready when you get to that step.

Alright, so break your angel food cake into 1-inchish size pieces. Then layer your food in the following order:

1. Angel food pieces
2. Pudding
3. Strawberries
4. Cool whip

I layered this twice in the "vase" I was using, but again, how you do it will depend on what you're using. Obviously you'd probably not layer those things more than once for individual cups.

Garnish the top with a few leftover strawberries and you're set! Yummmm!

(The relatively ugly, half eaten-version of Strawberry Shortcake Parfait is below.)

(Sorry.)

Tasty Tuesday - Recipes From My Freezer Cooking Spree

First of all.....HAPPY ST. PATRICK'S DAY! I admit I have no idea who the man was, but it feels odd not to wish you a happy St. Patrick's Day, so there ya go. (Are you wearing green today?)

I apologize for the delay in posting these recipes, but you see....at the time I did the freezer cooking, we knew I was pregnant and would soon be too sick to cook, but we weren't quite ready to share that news with all of you. Two days after I finished my freezer cooking spree, I began my bout with morning sickness....and I'm still sick.

Several of you asked for the recipes of the items that I made and froze. A few more of you expressed that you had interest in freezer cooking but weren't sure which foods could be frozen and how. While I'm certainly no pro at freezer cooking, I do have a bit of experience so I'll share what I know.

I'm relatively confident when I say this: Most foods can be frozen. Some foods, like vegetables, require blanching before being frozen while other foods, like meats, can be directly put into the freezer. There is a list of freezer cooking resources at the bottom of this post that you will find very helpful in your quest to begin learning about freezer cooking. I'd also encourage you to check out Gretchen's other blog. She regularly posts about Once-A-Month-Cooking and usually posts all of her recipes for those meals as well.

Now, onto my recipes....

alfredo sauce

English muffin pizzas - Slice each English muffin in half, add a tablespoon of tomato sauce (or pizza sauce), sprinkle on some pizza seasoning and add mozzerella cheese (and other toppings, if desired). When ready to bake, just pop in the oven til cheese is melted!

turkey soup - Boil down a turkey carcass (or make chicken or turkey broth w/ bouillon), slice up carrots, celery, and onions; add turkey and any kind of noodle; boil for 10 minutes; serve w/ homemade bread - YUM!

waffles

2 lg eggs
2 c. flour
1 3/4 c. milk
1/2 c. vegetable oil
1 T. sugar
4 t. baking powder
1/4 t. salt

Beat eggs until fluffy. Add remaining ingredients and beat just until smooth. Pour into waffle maker and cook to desired doneness.

pancakes

1 1/4 c. flour
1 egg
1 1/4 c. buttermilk
1/4 c. sugar
1 heaping t. of baking powder
1 t. baking soda
1/4 c. oil
pinch of salt

Mix with mixer until smooth. Let sit 10 minutes before cooking on griddle at 325 degrees.

pumpkin muffins

chicken pot pie, biscuits, and a loaf of french toast (all three recipes are in the same post)

calzones

Crust:

5-6 c. flour
2 T. sugar
2 t. salt
4 1/2 t. yeast (2 pkgs)
6 T. oil
2 c. very warm water (120-130 degrees)

Mix 2 c. flour, sugar, salt, and yeast. Add oil and water. Beat at medium speed for 3 minutes, scraping bowl. Stir in enough flour until dough leaves sides of bowl. Knead 5-8 minutes on floured surface until smooth and springy. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and let rest 30 minutes. Then prepare crusts into 10-inch circles).

Insides:

Place any combination of veggies, meats, and cheeses (I prefer mozzerella and ricotta) inside, fold over, and seal. Brush with egg and bake for 25 minutes at 375 degrees.

oatmeal chocolate chip breakfast cookies - Okay, I honestly have no idea what I put in these. I have a basic recipe that I completely altered to make my cookies. I know there was oatmeal, flour, sugar, banana, peanut butter, chocolate chips, and probably all other normal baking ingredients (i.e. baking soda or powder, salt, etc.). If I ever come up with an ACTUAL recipe, I'll be sure to post it. :)

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For further information on freezer cooking, I highly recommend checking out the following books:

Once a Month Cooking


The Best Freezer Cookbook


Freezer Cooking Manual


.....and the website 30daygourmet.

Tasty Tuesday - Meals I Love

My mom's not much of a cook. She doesn't like cooking, so I don't think she'll be offended by that. What she does make, she makes amazingly well, but again....she doesn't really like to do it. But since I happen to like cooking, oftentimes when I visit my parents I want to do a little bit of that while I'm there.

HOWEVER.....

It never fails that I don't have the right recipe on my blog and then have to call my husband and have him relay the recipe to me over the phone. Not only is this dangerous (you know how things can be misconstrued on the phone), but it's also slow since my husband is usually at work when I think of the recipe I want.

So, I've decided to post a few of the recipes that I love and that I may decide to make while I'm visiting my parents this weekend. It's possible that one or more of these recipes have been posted before, but you can just skip over that one/those. :) This post is more for me than for anyone else, but it never fails that if I tell someone about a recipe, they want me to post it here. So this time, I can say, "I'm way ahead of ya!" I'm including the links to the original recipes if available, although I have altered some of these.

Ok, these are a few of my favorite things......*insert music here*.......

Baked Oatmeal - I just tried this recipe for the first time a few weeks ago. It. Is. Awesome. Normally I hate oatmeal - and I do mean HATE - but this stuff is amazing.

Grease 8x8 pan. Mix together the following, adding milk last:

1/2 c. oil
1/2 c. sugar
2 eggs
3 c. oats
2 t. baking powder
1/2 t. salt
1/2 t. cinnamon
1 c. milk

Pour into pan. Bake @ 375 degrees for 30-40 minutes, until lightly browned. For a double batch, bake in 9x13 pan.


Really Easy Breakfast Casserole

6-8 slices of bread
1 lb. of sausage, cooked and drained
1 dozen eggs
8 - 12 oz. grated cheddar cheese
salt and pepper to taste

Spray casserole dish with non-stick cooking spray. Layer bread in the bottom of pan. Sprinkle the bread with sausage. Pour beaten eggs over sausage. Sprinkle cheese over eggs. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.


Biscuits Supreme

2 c. flour
1 T. baking powder
2 t. sugar
1/2 t. cream of tarter
1/4 t. salt
1/2 c. shortening
2/3 c. milk

Mix together dry ingredients. Cut in shortening. Make a well in center of mixture and add milk. Stir til moistened. On floured surface, knead dough 10-12 times. Pat to 1/2 inch thickness and cut into biscuits. Bake @ 450 degrees for 10-12 minutes.


Chicken Pot Pie

4 chicken breasts, cooked and cubed
8 oz. sour cream
2 cans cream of chicken soup
1 box frozen peas and carrots
Pillsbury pie crust (or make your own)

Mix together sour cream and soup. Mix chicken with veggies. (Add a little water if it's too thick.) Pour into unbaked pie shell. Cover with another pie crust and seal. Bake @ 350 degrees for 50 minutes or until golden brown.


French Toast

2 eggs, beaten
1/2 c. milk
1/4 t. salt
1 1/2 t. vanilla
1/4 c. sugar
dash of cinnamon
6 slices bread

Mix all but milk and bread together. Add milk. Dip bread into milk to cover both sides. If desired, sprinkle with cinnamon/sugar mixture. Cook over medium-high heat on a greased griddle until browned.


Meatloaf/Meatball -I don't really have definite measurements for these. If someone asks for the recipe, I usually just make them up, which is what I'm going to do here. :)

1 lb. ground beef
2-3 c. bread crumbs
1/2 - 1 chopped onion (we like onion!)
1-2 eggs
1 T. mustard
1/4 t. chili powder
1 T. Worcestershire
salt and pepper to taste

Meatballs: Form ball. Baked on greased cookie sheet (with sides!) @ 400 degrees for 20-25 minutes.

Meatloaf: Form into log. Bake on broiler rack @ 350 degrees for 1 hour or until meat thermometer reaches 160 degrees.

Tasty Tuesday - Pumpkin Muffins

It's fall outside and pumpkin muffins are the perfect addition to any table at this time of year!

This recipe came out of my Bible study book "No Other Gods" by Kelly Minter and it is yum YUM. The only thing I changed in this recipe is the amount of sugar. (They suggested 2 cups, but that seemed like an awful lot to me, so I cut it in half and they were delicious!)

These are SUUUUUPER easy and seriously dee-lish! And my favorite thing about them is that they are made from ingredients that I keep around the house, so I don't have to make a special trip to the store just to make them. (Well okay, and I kind of like that they're somewhat healthy too!)
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Pumpkin Muffins

1 c. sugar
1 c. oil (I'm going to substitute half with applesauce next time to make them even healthier!)
4 eggs
2 c. pumpkin (NOT pumpkin pie filling)
2 c. flour
2 t. baking powder
1 t. cinnamon
1/8 t. ground cloves
1/8 t. nutmeg
1 t. baking soda
1 t. vanilla

Mix ingredients together in a large bowl. Put into greased muffin tins and bake 20-25 minutes at 350 degrees. Makes 24 muffins.
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I actually made these in mini muffin tins. I think I baked them for about 12-15 minutes, but don't quote me on that. :)

Tasty Tuesday - Crockpot Chicken and Stuffing

I made this recipe for the first time yesterday for about 9 people. I don't really recommend trying things out for the first time on large groups of people, but it worked out okay.

HOWEVER....

This recipe is supposed to make stuffing, but it turned out more like thick gravy. Of course, I did cook it on HIGH for about 4 hours instead of on LOW for 6-7 hours. But anyway, it was VERY flavorful and tasty. (And the leftovers turned into stuffing.) When I realized there was not going to be any stuffing but rather only gravy, I threw some rice on the stove and it turned out great!

Bla bla bla....here's the recipe! (Sorry, no picture today!)


CROCKPOT HERBED STUFFED CHICKEN

This easy chicken recipe is quick to prepare with cream of chicken and celery soups, chicken breasts, stuffing crumbs, and seasonings. Serve this chicken meal with your favorite side vegetables or a tossed green salad.

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 can (10 1/2 ounces) cream of chicken with herbs soup
• 1 can (10 1/2 ounces) cream of celery or cream of chicken soup
• 1/2 cup dry white wine or chicken broth
• 1 teaspoon dried parsley flakes
• 1 teaspoon dried leaf thyme, crumbled
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• Dash black pepper
• 6 to 8 boneless chicken breast halves, without skin
• 2 to 2 1/2 cups seasoned stuffing crumbs, about 6 ounces
• 4 tablespoons butter

PREPARATION:

Combine the soups, wine or broth, parsley, thyme, salt, and pepper. Wash chicken and pat dry.

Lightly grease a 5 to 7-quart slow cooker. Sprinkle about 1/2 cup of the stuffing crumbs over the bottom of the cooker and drizzle with about 1 tablespoon of the butter. Top with half of the chicken, then half of the remaining stuffing crumbs. Drizzle with half of the remaining butter and spoon half of the soup mixture over that. Repeat with remaining chicken, stuffing crumbs, butter, and soup mixture. Cover and cook on LOW for 5 to 7 hours, or until chicken is cooked through.

Serves 6 to 8.

Tasty Tuesday - Chicken and Rice

This has to be one of my favorite recipes. It's SUPER easy and tastes great too!

Chicken and Rice

4 boneless skinless chicken breasts (we usually use two)
3/4 c. rice
1 1/4 c. water
1 can cream of chicken soup
salt, pepper, and paprika to taste

Mix everything except chicken together in baking dish. Top with chicken and sprinkle with salt, pepper, and paprika.

Bake at 375 degrees for 1 hour or until rice is cooked through.

Easy and Yummo!

Tasty Tuesday - Chicken and Rice Bake

This is one of my favorite meals for two reasons:

1. It's very tasty.
2. It's very easy.

I'm all about tasty and easy. :) Unfortunately, I don't think I have a picture of this one...

Chicken and Rice Bake

1 can cream of chicken soup
1 1/4 c. water
3/4 c. uncooked rice
1/4 t. paprika
1/4 t. pepper
4 boneless skinless chicken breast halves (we actually use two)

Mix all but chicken in any size baking dish. Top with chicken and season with salt and pepper. Cover w/ foil. Bake @ 375 degrees for 1 hour of until chicken is done and rice is fully cooked throughout.

Yummo!!!

Tasty Tuesday - Biscuits!

I LOVE homemade biscuits! They are so delicious and so easy to make! When I found that my favorite cookbook has two very similar recipes, I had to try them both! I've decided that the "Supreme Biscuits" are better, so here's the recipe for you:

Supreme Biscuits

4 c. flour
2 T baking powder
4 t. sugar
1 t. cream of tarter
1/2 t. salt

1 c. shortening

1 1/3 c. milk


Mix dry ingredients together. Cut in shortening until mixture resembles fine crumbs. Make a well in the center and pour in milk all at once. Stir just until moistened.

On a floured surface, roll or press dough flat until about 1/2 inch thick. Cut with floured biscuit cutter (I use a glass) and place on ungreased pan.

Bake @ 450 degrees for 10-12 minutes. Yields approx. 20 biscuits.

**Margarine or butter can be substituted for the shortening.

***I don't recommend wheat flour as the biscuits will not rise at much.

P.S. I know I have a picture of these somewhere, but I'm still searching....

Tasty Tuesday - Homemade Tortillas!

Sorry about my failure to post yesterday. I've been enthralled with my brand new camera and completely spaced posting anything. Well, that's not entirely true. At one point during the day, I did consider posting the menu for this week but...well...that apparently got pushed to the wayside because here we are, nearing the end of Tuesday and my menu never got posted.

Anyway, on to today...

Last week I enjoyed a visit from my sister-in-law and two nephews. I love that my sister-in-law is on maternity leave right now because she lives up the road from us and is a great source of entertainment without having to drive across town! :) While she was here, I decided to make tortillas. I had seen a tortilla recipe on Gretchen's blog and thought I'd give it a try. While mine didn't turn out quite as thin as they were supposed to, I think I actually preferred them that way. And my kids loved them too! We ate ours "chicken taco" style and they were DEEE-LISH!

(I actually used part whole wheat flour in mine to beef them up and make them a bit healthier.)

Here they are! Ole'!

Tasty Tuesday - Tacos!

Ok, I'm sure you all know how to make tacos so I'm not going to post a recipe. I just wanted to add a suggestion for tacos.

When we have taco night, we make rice - LOTS of rice, and about 1/2 lb of ground beef (there are 2 adults and 2 toddlers eating in our home). Then we throw in some shredded cheddar cheese, lettuce, tomato, and whatever else we have lying around that looks like it might work in a taco. But the point is the rice. Rice is one of the cheapest things you can buy and it is a GREAT filler for tacos! In fact, since I started using rice in my tacos, I hardly find one appealing without rice!

This has really helped our budget since 2 lbs of meat is quite a bit more expensive than 1/2 lb of meat. It's healthier, because we're not eating as much fat. And, like I may have mentioned, it's delicious! :)

We've considered trying out "rice tacos" - that is, seasoning the rice with taco seasonings and skipping the meat all together. Has anyone tried that?? I've considered corn as well, but have not yet given that a whirl.

What things do you put in your tacos to stretch the meat?

Tasty Tuesday - Crockpot Cooking

I don't know about you, but I LOVE my crockpot. Well, crockpots I should say. I have three. I go through phases with them, I think mostly because I don't have a TON of crockpot recipes, but there are a few things that I just love to cook in a crockpot.

I know many people who love their crockpot because they can throw in the food in the morning and it's perfectly cooked when they get home from work. I don't work outside the home, but my mornings are sure a lot less hectic than my late afternoons, so any help I can get with dinner is always greatly appreciated!

I've compiled a list of crockpot websites if you are interested in learning about crockpot cooking, a beginner at crockpot cooking, or are an experienced crockpot chef!

Crockpot 101

Secrets To Successful Slow Cooking

Seven Tips For Successful Crockpot Creations

Crockpot Recipes (699 to be exact)

More Crockpot Recipes (1400 categorized recipes)

Crockpot Cooking For Diabetics

Healthy Crockpot Recipes

Crockpot Dessert Recipes

Crockpot Beverages

Well, that should be enough to get you started! :) How often do you use your crockpot? Have you found any great crockpot cookbooks or do you just throw things together?

Tasty Tuesday - Puppy Chow

WARNING: This is not actually dog food.

I realize that most of you already know that the recipe for puppy chow is on the back of the Crispix box.

HOWEVER....

My husband and I tend to improvise on recipes. So if you're a peanut butter lover, here is OUR recipe:

Puppy Chow

7 cups Crispix (NOT Chex)
1 heaping cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
3/4 cup peanut butter
powdered sugar

Put peanut butter and chocolate chips in a bowl and place in the microwave. Check often and stir until melted together.

Pour melted mixture over large bowl of Crispix and gently stir. Refrigerate 20 minutes.

Pour 1/4 cup powdered sugar into a large clean bag. (We use a 13-gallon garbage bag and then save it for the next time we need a new garbage bag). Shake bag to coat with sugar.

Add refrigerated coated cereal and shake. Add more sugar if desired.

Enjoy!

Tasty Tuesday - Funnel Cakes!

My husband and I occasionally suffer from GHAFC disorder. (For any of you who may be unaware of this disease, it's full name is Gotta Have A Funnel Cake). We LOVE funnel cakes but can hardly stomach the $6 they charge at the local fair and amusement parks. A few years ago, we decided to try out a few recipes and see if we could find one that worked at home. Today I am posting our favorite funnel cake recipe. (We use a deep fryer, so I'm not sure exactly what setting you would use if you were to do this on the stovetop).

Funnel Cakes

2 eggs

1 1/2 c. milk

2 c. flour

1/2 t. salt

1 t. baking powder

oil for frying

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Heat oil in fryer to 360 degrees.

Mix all ingredients together (except oil). Pour or spoon batter into a large ziploc bag. Seal out as much air as possible. Snip about 1/2 inch off the end of one of the corners. "Pipe" batter into hot oil in a swirling manner until desired full cake size is formed. Allow batter to fry for 3 mins. Flip over and fry 1 more minute. Carefully remove from oil and place of paper towel to drain. Dust (or as we prefer, COVER) with powdered sugar. Enjoy!

Tasty Tuesday - Meatloaf!

I used to think I didn't like meatloaf. But when I got old enough to make it myself, I realized that it wasn't the meatloaf I didn't like - it was the pieces of cracker in the meatloaf. When I decided to try my own meatloaf, I went with bread crumbs instead. I now love meatloaf and probably make it too regularly.

A few people have asked me for my meatball/meatloaf recipe. I happen to think it's the best one ever, but then again...I'm probably a bit partial. Anyway, I'm killing two birds with one stone by posting it here because I'm all about saving time. :)

I have to admit I don't really measure the things I put in my meatloaf, so I will try to give the best estimates possible. All in all, meatloaf is pretty hard to mess up, so just throw in what you have and it will probably turn out great!

Meatballs/Meatloaf

1 1/2 lb ground beef (extra lean)
1 cup dry breadcrumbs
1/2 c. chopped onion
1 large egg OR 2 large egg whites
1 T. mustard
1 1/2 t. chili powder
1 t. garlic powder
1/2 t. salt
1/2 t. pepper
1-2 t. worcestershire sauce

For meatloaf: Shape meat into a 9" x 5" loaf. Place on broiler pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour 15 mins or until thermometer read 160 degrees. Let stand 10 minutes before slicing. Makes 1 loaf.

For meatballs: Shape into 1 1/2 inch balls. Place on cookie sheet and bake at 400 degrees for 20-25 minutes. Makes approximately 30-40 meatballs.

Both the meatloaf and the meatballs also freeze well. I usually make several loaves and meatballs and freeze them at the beginning of the month. Pull meatloaf out and place in fridge two days before use. Meatballs may go directly from the freezer to the oven - just add a few more minutes to the bake time.

Tasty Tuesdays - Blue Ribbon Dessert!

Well, first off, I have to apologize in advance for the formatting of this blog. Apparently inserting the picture screwed everything up, so just pretend it looks as beautiful as normal! :)

Every year our church has a picnic with a contest for the best dessert. I had not pariticipated in the past but this year I decided I wanted to bring something that was knock-your-socks-off good. I searched online for the most delicious-looking dessert I could find. I found one that was very aesthetically pleasing but I didn't care much for the ingredients. So I switched a few things up and came up with one of the easiest, most beautiful and DELICIOUS desserts I have ever made!

I call it...Heidi's Blue Ribbon Pudding Thing! Lol. Alright, not really. But I never did come up with a name for it, so call it whatever you like. For today, I will refer to it as Oreo Deliciousness. :)

Oreo Deliciousness

(This is not an exact picture of the one I make, but very similar).

Ingredients:

1 box brownie mix

1 large package instant chocolate fudge pudding

1 large container whipped topping, thawed

25 Oreo cookies

Directions:

Prepare brownie mix according to package directions and cool completely. Cut into 1-inch squares.

Crush 20 Oreo cookies. Save remaining 5 cookies for top.

Place half of the brownie chunks into the bottom of a trifle bowl or glass serving dish. Prepare pudding* according to package and pour half of the pudding over the the brownie chunks. Add half of the Oreo cookie crumbs. On top of that, layer half of the whipped topping. Repeat brownie chunks, pudding, Oreo cookie crumbs, and whipped topping. Arrange the remaining 5 Oreo cookies on top.

Cool at least 8 hours to allow pudding to soften brownie chunks.

*Be sure to have everything ready before you start your pudding because it will begin to set immediately and you want it to flow into all the spaces between the brownie chunks.

Please let me know if you try this! I would love to know if other people enjoy it as much as my family does!

Oh, and by the way, I did win the best dessert contest! Hands down! :)

Tasty Tuesday - Honey Wheat Bread

I have to apologize in advance for this recipe (and any other bread recipes that I may post in the future) - I am not familiar with bread machines and therefore have no recipes that use one. However, I'm sure any avid bread machine user would easily be able to convert this recipe to bread machine "format".

This is my favorite bread!

Honey Wheat Bread

2 c. warm water (110 degrees)
2 c. whole wheat flour
1 T. yeast
1 t. salt
2/3 c. honey
1/3 c. oil
5 c. all-purpose flour

Dissolve yeast in warm water. Add honey and stir well. Mix in whole wheat flour, salt, and oil. Work into dough. Turn onto floured surface and knead in remaining flour 10-15 minutes, until smooth and elastic. Coat dough lightly with oil and place in oiled bowl. Cover with damp cloth.

Let rise until dough has doubled in size. Punch down dough. Shape into 2 loaves and place in 2 bread pans. Let rise until 1 inch above edges of pans.

Bake for 25-30 minutes at 375 degrees.

Another variation for this recipe is to make sub rolls instead of regular bread loaves. (They make EXCELLENT sandwiches!) Just place the sub rolls on a cookie sheet instead of a loan pan for baking. Make sure you leave room for them to expand during the 2nd rising before they go into the oven.

Have a recipe to share? Email me!

Tasty Tuesday - Chocolate Chip Cookies

My mother's old faded red cookbook has always been my favorite cookbook. In it, I discovered the BEST chocolate chip cookie recipe in the whole world! I'm positive I have made these cookies at least a hundred times in my 23 years of life. I am not lying when I say that these cookies are, WITHOUT A DOUBT, the best chocolate chip cookies ever! I have never met anyone who doesn't like them.

So today, for my first Tasty Tuesday blog, I will share with you this cherished recipe. Seriously, these are amazing!

The BEST Chocolate Chip Cookies In The World

3 1/4 c. flour (approximately)
1 c. sugar
1 c. brown sugar
2 eggs
2/3 c. margerine (softened - NOT melted)
2/3 c. shortening
1 t. vanilla
1 t. salt
1 t. baking soda
12 oz. semi-sweet chocolate chips

Combine all ingredients except flour and chocolate chips. Beat together with mixer. Add flour one cup at a time and mix together after each cup. If, after 3 cups, your dough pulls away from the bowl when stirred, your dough is perfect! If it still sticks to the sides of the bowl, add a bit more flour a few tablespoons at a time until dough pulls away from sides. Stir in chocolate chips.

Place cookie dough balls on an airbake cookie sheet and back at 350 degrees for 8-13 minutes or until very lightly browned. Let cookies cool on pan 3 minutes before removing and placing on cooling rack.

This recipe makes 4 dozen 2 1/2 inch cookies. That is, unless you eat half the dough while you're making them!

(Hint: For perfectly round cookies, use a cookie scoop)!

After you try them, leave me a comment and let me know what you think!