Momma and Daddy's Cornbread Dressing

1 5-6 pound Hen for broth
6-8 eggs, boiled
4-5 pans cornbread (made the day before)
3-4 onions, chopped
1 bunch celery, chopped
sage to taste
salt and pepper to taste

To make broth, take hen, including neck and giblets and boil on stove top covered until chicken is tender. This will make the broth you will need to add to the dressing once its assembled.  Reserve neck and giblets for gravy. 

Chop celery and onions by hand, a food processor chops them too fine.  Crumble the cornbread by hand into a large roasting pan.  Salt and pepper.  Add chopped celery and onions.  Add as much sage as desired over the top of the mixture.  Using a cup, pour broth over mixture until moist.  Stir all together well.  Keep adding broth as needed.  You want the dressing moist but not wet and soggy.  Taste often and add more sage, salt and pepper if needed.  Daddy is the official taster in our family!
Cook at 325-350 for about 1 hour.

Giblet Gravy:  Take the remaining broth, add canned broth if needed.  Heat and add cut up giblets from the hen and chopped boiled eggs.  Thicken with cornstarch to consistency you want.  Salt and pepper to taste.  Add parsley flakes and a few drops of yellow food color to  make it rich looking.  You can also chop and add some of the hen if desired. 

Every Thanksgiving and Christmas since I can remember, the aromas of this dressing cooking in the background at our house has always been apart of our holiday traditions.  My mother and daddy would get in the kitchen together and assemble this dressing each year and as I said before, Daddy was the official taster.  He knew just when and how much sage, salt and pepper to add.  He never missed his mark, it was always perfect.  This Christmas they set out to see if they still had their touch, both in their 80s, and there is no doubt that they still do!  The dressing this year was perfection!  Walking in the house and smelling it cooking brought back wonderful childhood memories! 

Merry Christmas Pretzels

2 packages of pretzel rods

1 package each of milk chocolate and white chocolate melting chocolate (almond bark)

Assorted colored sugars, sprinkles, cookie decorations, etc..

Melt one of the chocolates in a microwavable safe bowl.  Use 40 second intervals, stirring after each, until chocolate is melted and easy to stir.   Prepare a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper for pretzel rods to cool on.  You’ll also need a paper plate to catch excess sprinkles that fall off as you go.  Using one pretzel rod at a time, coat the pretzel leaving about an inch and a half at the end where you are holding it.  Once the rod is coated, swirl the rod around in a circle and shake excess chocolate off of pretzel rod so that it is evenly coated and not globed on.  Use any one color or multiple colors of sprinkles to coat over the chocolate.  Place rod on parchment paper lined cookie sheet to cool.  Continue until all of the first chocolate is gone then melt the second batch of chocolate and repeat directions with it.  You’ll find that the lighter colored  sprinkles will show up better on the dark chocolate and the dark colored sprinkles will show up better on the white chocolate.  Hold the pretzel rods over a paper plate as you shake sprinkles and then when you have accumulated enough, use what is on the plate to decorate a few of the pretzels.  This will give you a few eclectic ones!  This is a good sweet/savory snack that looks pretty, fun to make and nice to give as gifts. 

Cracker Snack

1 cup vegetable oil

4 tbsp. dill weed

1 package Hidden Valley salad dressing mix (not buttermilk)

1 24-ounce package oyster crackers

Mix all together, drain on paper towels and store in covered container.

Okay, first of all, don’t wait until the weekend before Christmas to make these because you will not find an oyster cracker within 30 miles of town.  I went to every store we have and all of the oyster crackers were gone.  Apparently I’m not the only person in town who likes to make this snack at Christmas time.  I started thinking about what I could use in place of the oyster cracker and it occurred to me that it’s just a little cracker so I figured the regular flavor goldfish would probably work as a substitute.  While I was coloring outside the lines I also thought it would be cool to use the Spicy Hidden Valley Ranch dressing mix instead of the regular just to give the crackers a little extra kick.  So here is how I put this all together…..

I used a 30 ounce box of goldfish crackers, the box looks like a giant milk carton.  Pour all of the goldfish into a large plastic bowl.  Open and sprinkle 2 packages of Spicy Hidden Valley Ranch Dressing mix all over the goldfish.  (2 because there are more goldfish in this box than oyster crackers that come in the 24 ounce bag)  Next sprinkle 5 tablespoons of dill weed (again, more because there are more goldfish) over the crackers.  Mix all of this together thoroughly and then slowly add the cup of oil.  Mix/fold, mix/fold, mix/fold to coat the goldfish completely.  Place two paper towels on two cooking sheets and spread the goldfish out evenly on both trays.  I don’t like my crackers greasy so I baked them at 350 degrees for about 10 minutes, just to dry up the oil a little.  Remove the paper towels and let goldfish cool.  Store in air tight containers. 

Corn Chowder

4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) butter
1 whole onion, chopped
3 slices bacon, cut into pieces
3 whole bell peppers, finely diced (red, yellow, orange)
5 ears corn, kernels sliced off
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
3 cups chicken stock or broth
2 cups half-and-half
1 heaping cup grated Monterey Jack
1 heaping cup grated pepper Jack
1/3 cup sliced green onions
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
In a large pot, melt the butter over medium-high heat. Add the onions and cook for a couple of minutes. Add the bacon and cook for another minute or so, and then add the bell peppers and cook for a couple of minutes. Finally, add the corn and cook for a minute.  (I took a short cut here and used two cans of whole kernel sweet corn, drained) Sprinkle the flour evenly over the top and stir to combine. Pour in the chicken stock and stir well. Allow this to thicken for 3 or 4 minutes, and then reduce the heat to low. Stir in the half-and-half, and then cover and allow to simmer and thicken for 15 minutes or so.

Stir in the cheeses and green onions. When the cheese is melted and the soup is hot, check seasonings. Add salt and pepper as needed.

Exactly one week to the day of me turning the big 5-0, I wound up laying in bed sick.  So much for turning older gracefully!  But, being the resourceful, efficient person that I am I decided that while I was laying there sick I could at least catch up on my programs recorded on the DVR.  I opened up the folder of several past shows from The Pioneer Woman and found this recipe.  She was having a Chocolate Day on the farm and to balance things out she made this corn chowder.  It looked so good and easy to make and I guess soup just looked good to me at the time since I was under the weather.  This is a very easy soup to make (aside from having to chop up all the veggies first) and it makes a pot full!  It is very tasty and is going to be a side dish tonight to the BBQ chicken that my sweet Momma has fixed and sent down to help me out.  I just love it when my mom takes care of me!  Makes me feel like a little girl again! 

Mummy Dogs

1 8 oz can refrigerated crescent dinner rolls
2 1/2 slices cheese, quartered
10 large hot dogs
cooking spray

mustard

Heat oven to 375°F. Unroll dough; separate at perforations, creating 4 rectangles.  Press perforations to seal. With a knife or kitchen scissors, cut each rectangle lengthwise into 10 pieces, making a total of 40 pieces of dough.  Slice cheese slices into quarters (1/2 slice cheese cut in half).  Wrap 4 pieces of dough around each hot dog and 1/4 slice of cheese to look like bandages, stretching dough slightly to completely over hot dog.  About 1/2 inch from one end of each hot dog separate bandages so hot dog shows through for the face.  On ungreased large cookie sheet place wrapped hot dogs (cheese side down); spray dough lightly with cooking spray. Bake 13 to 17 minutes or until dough is light golden brown and hot dogs are hot.  Use mustard dots for eyes and also mustard for dipping. (recipe and photo provided by Pillsbury)

 

I've made these before just for a Saturday night snack.  I just wrapped the crescent roll triangle around the dog with a 1/2 slice of cheese added.  The difference here is that you have to get creative and cut the crescent roll dough and layer it on to look mummified.  Cute, fun and delicious!!!

Howlapeno Cornbread

2 - 8.5 packages of corn bread mix
2 eggs
2/3 cups milk
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1/4 cup chopped jalapenos (from a jar)
1 tbsp sugar
1/2 tsp Cajun seasoning spice
1 tbsp canola oil

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Pour canola oil into large baking pan (9x9 or 13 x 9) and preheat in the oven.  Mix all ingredients together and pour over heated canola oil.  Bake for 20 minutes or until golden brown. 

Frightening Fingers

1 cup butter, softened
1 cup confectioners' sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp almond extract
2 3/4 cup all purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
Red decorating gel
1/2 cup sliced almonds

In a mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar.  Beat in the egg and extracts.  Combine the flour, baking powder and salt; gradually add to the creamed mixture.  Divide dough into fourths.  Cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes or until easy to handle.  Working with one piece of dough at a time, roll into 1 inch balls.  Shape balls into 3 inch x 1/2 inch fingers.  Using the flat tip of a table knife, make an indentation on one end of each finger for the fingernail.  With a knife, make three slashes in the middle of each finger for the knuckle. Place 2 inches apart on lightly greased baking sheet.  Bake at 325 degrees for 20-25 minutes or until lightly browned.  Cool for 3 minutes.  Squeeze a small amount of red gel on nail bed; press a sliced almond over gel for nail, allowing gel to ooze around nail.  Remove to wire racks to cool.  Makes about 5 dozen cookies. 

Who doesn't love finger foods?!!!!!  Ha Ha!! I cheated on this recipe and used a cookie pan that has finger shaped molds.  All I had to do is press the dough into the finger molds and bake.  I only baked them for about 12-14 minutes too so you might just want to watch the first batch to figure out how long you need to bake them depending on your method, shaping yourself or using a mold.

These are tasty little cookies.  Not too sweet and the dough holds up well to make the finger shape.  Last year I tried a finger cookie recipe and they turned out more like Sasquatch toes.  Go ahead and give this fingers a try! 

Hearty Tuscan Beef and Red Wine Stew

4 ounces pancetta, cut into 1/4 inch dice

4 tbsps. extra virgin olive oil, divided

3 pounds boneless beef chuck, trimmed and cut into 2 inch pieces

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 medium yellow onion peeled and cut into 1/2 inch dice

2 large carrots, peeled and cut into 1/2 inch dice

2 large celery ribs, trimmed and cut into 1/2 inch dice

4 cloves garlic, peeled and minced

2 tbsps. minced fresh rosemary leaves

2 tbsps. all purpose flour

3 tbsps. tomato paste

1 bottle fruity, dry red wine, such as Chianti or Merlot

2 cups low sodium beef broth, plus more as needed

1 28 ounce can diced Italian plum tomatoes

2 dried bay leaves

6 tbsps. minced fresh Italian flat lea parsley, divided

Place pancetta in a large Dutch oven and heat over medium heat.  Cook, stirring occasionally until fat is rendered and pancetta is crispy, about 6 to 8 minutes.  Using a slotted spoon or spider, transfer pancetta to paper towel lined plate.  Set aside.

Add 2 tablespoons oil to Dutch oven and heat over medium high heat until hot but not smoking.  Season beef generously on all sides with salt and pepper.  Place in Dutch oven and cook, stirring occasionally, until beef is well browned on all sides, about 7 to 9 minutes.  Using a slotted spoon or spider, transfer beef to a medium mixing bowl, set aside.

Add remaining 2 tablespoons oil to Dutch oven.  Add onion, carrot and celery and cook stirring occasionally until vegetables are golden brown about 8 to 10 minutes.  Add garlic and rosemary and cook, stirring often for 2 to 3 minutes.   Sprinkle vegetables with flour and cook, stirring often for 1 to 2 minutes.  Add tomato paste and cook, stirring often for another 2 to 3 minutes.  Add wine, beef broth, tomatoes, bay leaves, 3 tablespoons parsley and meat, stirring well to combine.  Reduce heat to medium low, partially cover Dutch oven and simmer until meat is tender, about 2 1/2 to 3 hours adding 1/4 cups of additional beef broth if stew becomes dry.  To serve, divide stew between 8 shallow serving bowls.  Top with reserved pancetta, remaining 3 tablespoons chopped parsley and serve immediately. 

This is a recipe I got from Sur La Table cooking class.  I need to have a talk with the chef about all of these “stir often 1-2, 2-3, etc. minutes).  I love to cook with wine and this stew has a whole bottle in it.  I think maybe I could have use 3/4 of the bottle as mine turned out pretty strong on the wine taste.  It cooked down some after the 3 hours of cooking time but I don’t remember it having this strong of a taste in the class.  It’s a good, savory stew and the meat turns out really tender.  When the stew was finished cooking I added about 2 tablespoons of sugar to balance out the acid from the tomatoes, wine and salt.  This tamed it down a bit.  Sometimes you have to do that when there is tomatoes and tomato paste involved in your dish.  I fell in love with this stew at the cooking class.  Serve it with some good crusty bread and a green salad this fall!  Yum!!!!

Chicken and Herb Dumpling Soup

6 tbsps. unsalted butter

1 cup diced onion

1/2 cup diced celery

6 tbsps. plus 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour, divided

6 cups low-sodium chicken broth

1/2 cup peeled and diced carrot

1 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil

10 ounces button mushrooms, trimmed and cut into 1/4 inch dice

1 pound cooked chicken meat, diced (can use roasted chicken)

1 cup frozen peas

6 tbsps. chopped fresh chives, divided

4 tbsps. finely chopped fresh Italian parsley, divided

3 tsp. finely chopped fresh thyme leaves, divided

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

 

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour

2 tsps. baking powder

1/2 cup course ground yellow cornmeal

1 tbsp. sugar

1 tsp. kosher salt

1 3/4 cup heavy cream

To prepare the soup, melt butter over medium heat in a medium Dutch oven.  Add onion and celery and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened about 5 to 7 minutes.  Remove Dutch oven from heat and add 6 tablespoons flour, whisking vigorously to blend with vegetables and butter.  Return to medium heat and cook, whisking for 2 to 3 minutes without letting the flour brown.  Remove pan from heat.   Add 1 cup of chicken broth and whisk until mixture is smooth and paste like.  Once paste is smooth, whisk in the remaining stock.  Add the carrot.  Reduce the heat and simmer for 5 minutes.  Remove from heat. 

Heat the olive oil in a medium skillet over medium high heat.  Add the mushrooms and cook, stirring occasionally, until deep golden brown, about 10 to 12 minutes.  Add mushrooms to soup along with chicken, peas, 2 tablespoons chives, 2 tablespoons parsley and 1 tablespoon thyme.  Taste and season with salt and pepper.  Simmer soup until thickened and vegetables are tender for about 30 to 40 minutes

While soup simmers, prepare dumpling dough.  Place remaining 1 1/2 cups flour, baking powder, cornmeal, remaining chopped chives, 2 tablespoons parsley, remaining 2 tablespoons chopped thyme, sugar and salt in a large mixing bowl, whisking to combine.  Slowly pour cream into dry ingredients and stir just until combined with a wooden spoon.  Cover with plastic wrap and set aside.

Taste soup and season again with salt an pepper as needed.  Drop heaping tablespoons full of dumpling dough onto surface of soup.  Cover Dutch oven and simmer until dumplings are firm, about 20 to 25 minutes. (I only added about 5 dumplings per person, didn’t want to over do it)

To serve, divide soup and dumplings between 8 shallow serving bowls.  Sprinkle each with remaining 2 tablespoons chopped parsley and serve immediately. 

I got this recipe from Sur La Table when I took a cooking class last week with my sister.  We made four different soups and stews and this was one of my favorites.  I was hoping it would be more like traditional chicken and dumplings so that I could make it for my dad but it’s more of a soup and has lots of veggies in it so I’m pretty sure it got the thumbs down sign when he tasted.  At least he did try it though and I’m glad that he at least gave it a chance.  This soup taste like my grandmother’s homemade chicken noodle soup she use to make.  It’s loaded with flavor and the cornmeal added into the dumpling dough gives them a completely new texture than what you might be use to.  My mother doesn’t like “doughy” foods at all.  She does, however, like these cornmeal dumplings.  I love them anyway they come.  I don’t mind the dough.  I had to wait until I was grown and married before I could have a burrito from Taco Bell.  Mom said the tortilla was too “doughy” when I was younger and never let me have one.  She’d have a fit if she knew how many Taco Casa burritos I’ve had since they moved into town! 

Heaven

1 carton of frozen strawberries, thawed
1 can peach pie filling
1 can sliced peaches, do not drain
2-3 sliced bananas

In a large bowl combine strawberries, peach pie filling and sliced peaches.  Slice bananas and fold into the strawberry/peach mixture.  Serve as is, chill or spoon over angel food cake or ice cream.

If you have ever been to Wyatt's Cafeteria and seen this on their salad choices it's pretty much the same thing.  I got this recipe from a friend at school and when I made it at home my family fell in love with it, especially my youngest son.  We didn't know what to call it and one day my son said it tasted like "Heaven" so that is what we have been calling it ever since.  It is so delicious and it makes a lot so it's great if you have a crowd or need something to take for a pot luck dinner.

Spicy Chicken and Cheese Potatoes

1 pound of frozen chicken tenderloins or 3-4 frozen chicken breast, skinless and boneless
1 package of dry taco seasoning mix
1 can of rotel tomatoes
1 stick of butter
4-6 large baking potatoes
3/4 of a block of Velveeta Cheese (from a 16 oz block)
4 chopped green onions
2-3 tbsp milk

      


Prepare chicken first.  In a large crock pot, place the frozen chicken breast in the bottom of the pot.  Yes, frozen, it works best this way.  Pour the can of rotel tomatoes over the chicken and then sprinkle on the package of taco seasoning.  Place the stick of butter on top and cover.  Set crock pot on high and cook for 3 1/2 to 4 hours.  When chicken is done it should be fork tender.  You simply shred the chicken and mix all ingredients together to finish this part of the dish.

About an hour and a half before the chicken is done, place the baking potatoes in a 400 degree oven and bake 1 1/2 to 2 hours until done.

Once the chicken and potatoes are done, on the stove in a sauce pan, melt together the Velveeta cheese, 2 -3 tablespoons of milk and the chopped green onions until smooth. 

To assemble the potato, split the potato open and add butter, salt and pepper to taste.  Ladle a serving of the chicken mixture into the potato and top with cheese sauce.

I got the recipe for this chicken off of a news program during a cooking segment.  They called it Baseball Chicken because the lady preparing it said she would put this chicken in the crock pot before they left for baseball games and then when they returned home it was ready.  I just call it Spicy Chicken now, my baseball player is away at college and instead of playing baseball he is now a Rock Hound (geologist).  I guess I could call it Rock Chicken.   :)  Actually, my oldest son is crazy about this dish so I should call it Aggie Chicken!  Anyway, on the news program this lady said you could top a baked potato with it or put the meat mixture between flour tortillas and make soft taco with it which I have not tried but sounds good too. When I saw this recipe I got to thinking that it would be good with the cheese sauce we make for our potatoes.  This recipe came from my Daddy.  Any time we had baked potatoes growing up he wanted this cheese sauce to go on top.  It is so simple and really makes the potatoes extra yummy.  I put the two together the first time I made this and it was an instant hit at my house.  It makes a complete meal, all you need is maybe some salad and bread.  This would also be a great dish if you needed to fix for a crowd.  You could pop all the potatoes you need in the oven ahead of time, double the batch of spicy chicken if needed as well as the cheese sauce and you won't have to slave over a hot stove all day to feed a large group.  I hope you will try this one because it is Mmmmm good!

Cajun Style Smothered Steak

2 pounds of tenderized cube steak (about 6 large pieces)
2 packages of Zataran’s Cajun Brown Gravy Mix
3/4 cup flour
salt and pepper to taste
2/3 cups vegetable oil
1 medium size onion, sliced
Heat a large, deep skillet and add vegetable oil.  Salt and pepper steak pieces then coat with a thin layer of flour.  Brown meat in oil on medium-high heat until most of the juices run clear but do not cook completely.  Transfer meat to a preheated crock pot set on high.  Sprinkle meat with the two packages of brown gravy mix making sure all pieces have some of the gravy mix on them.  Measure 4 cups of water but only add enough to come to the top of the meat.  Saute onion in remaining hot oil until they start to turn brown.  Drain onions from the oil and layer over the top of the meat mixture.  Place lid on crock pot and cook on high for 3-4 hours.  Meat should be fork tender when done.  Serve with mashed potatoes or noodles. 


This dish is so easy to make and oh so good.  I learn to make smothered steak from my mom and being able to add it to a crockpot and let it cook while you do something else makes this dish a hit at my house.  The meat is so tender and the flavor is amazing.  I normally make it with regular brown gravy mix but I happen to have this cajun flavored mix so I figured why not.  Really tasty either way.  This is a quick, stick to your ribs meal that you can prepare in the afternoon, rush off to take the kids to soccer practice, boy scouts, cheerleading, chess club, whatever, and by the time you get home your main course is ready to go! (No, my boys were not in the chess club) (NO, they weren't cheerleaders either) LOL

Homemade Meat Sauce for Spaghetti

one pound of ground beef, Italian sausage or half of each

medium onion, diced

3-4 cloves of garlic, diced

two 28-ounce cans whole peeled tomatoes

1/2 cup to 3/4 cup red wine

1 can tomato paste

salt and pepper to taste

1 tsp oregano

1 tsp basil

1 tsp red pepper flakes

3-4 tbsp sugar

Heat a large, deep skillet and add about 2 tbsp of olive oil.  Crumble meat in skillet and brown, dice onions and garlic and add to browned meat stirring occasionally until onions and garlic are tender.  Deglaze pan with the red wine.  Add the two cans of whole tomatoes and let simmer for about 10 minutes.  Break tomatoes up with a large wooden spoon, add tomato paste and seasonings.  Add the sugar a small amount at a time until you get the desired taste.  I like mine sauce to be tangy, sweet and with a small amount of heat.  Simmer on low for about 30 minutes.  Serve over fresh cooked pasta.

German Chocolate Pie

1 refrigerated pie crust

1 (4 ounce) sweet baking chocolate bar

3 tbsp butter

1/2 cup sugar

1 cup dark corn syrup

1 tsp vanilla extract

3 large eggs

1 1/2 cups chopped pecans

1 cup sweet flaked coconut

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  On a lightly floured surface, unroll pie crust and roll into a 12 in circle.  Press crust into a 9 inch pie plate, crimping edges, if desired.  In a microwave safe large bowl, microwave chocolate and butter on high in 30 second intervals, stirring after each until chocolate is melted and smooth.  Let cool 10 minutes.  Add sugar, corn syrup and vanilla, whisking to combine.  Whisk in eggs.  Stir in pecans and coconut.  Pour into prepared crust.  Bake for 55 to 60 minutes or until center is set, covering pie with heavy-duty aluminum foil to prevent excessive browning if necessary.  Cool completely. 

This recipe came from August issue of Paula Deen’s Chocolate Celebration magazine.  (a special collector’s issue) 

I love anything that contains the words German Chocolate in it so naturally this recipe jumped right out at me.  I had it baking in the oven one evening while I finished cooking dinner so that we could have it with coffee out on our patio later that evening.  It says to bake it for 55-60 minutes.  After this amount of time the pie looked great on the outside but when I cut into it, it was still oozing and gooey inside.  Back in the oven it went for 10 more minutes.  Still, oozing and gooey.  Ten more minutes.  Still oozing and gooey only this time it was beginning to get too brown on the top.  Ten more minutes then I was going to give up.  We finally dove into it about 10 minutes before bedtime and must say that we were very disappointed.  It was too done on the top and too hot to eat the inside.  It didn’t even really seem to have a German Chocolate taste, just goo and pecans.  The next day I had a taste of it and it was actually better, minus the burnt top.  Maybe you guys can have better luck with this one and I guess the key to it is to place foil on the top while you let it cook for 2 hours.  And, don’t serve it until the next day, it will be better and cool enough to eat.  This one will not be repeated again in my kitchen. 

Chocolate-Orange Angel Food Cake

12 egg whites (at room temperature)

1 tsp cream of tartar

1/4 tsp salt

3/4 cup granulated sugar

1 1/2 tsp orange zest

1/4 tsp orange extract

1 1/2 cups confectioners’ sugar

1 cup cake flour

3 tbsp Dutch-processed cocoa

Sweet Orange Glaze (recipe follows)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  In a large bowl, beat egg whites, cream of tartar and salt at high speed with a mixer until foamy.  Gradually add granulated sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time, beating until stiff peaks form.  Fold in orange zest and orange extract.  In a small bowl, sift together confectioners’ sugar, flour and cocoa; gradually fold into egg white mixture.  Spoon batter into an ungreased 10 inch tube pan.  Bake for 30 – 32 minutes or until lightly browned.  Invert cake onto the small end of a large funnel; let cool completely.  Gently run a knife around edge of cake to release sides.  Remove from pan, drizzle with Sweet Orange Glaze.

Sweet Orange Glaze:

1 1/2 cups confectioners’ sugar

2 tbsp cream cheese, softened

1 tbsp milk

1 tsp orange extract

In a small bowl, combine sugar, cream cheese, milk and orange extract.  Beat at low speed with a mixer until smooth.

This recipe came from the special collector’s issue from the August 2012 Paula Deen’s Chocolate Celebration magazine.

Strike two for Paula.  My family couldn’t wait to hack into this cake after dinner tonight.  The first couple of minutes there was nothing but silence.  Then came the sarcastic remarks.  “What kind of cake is this?”  “It taste like an orange peel!”  “This cake sucks!”  Shall I go on????  It had the consistency of a sink sponge!  No taste, except for the glaze which, I’m sorry to tell you, did taste like an orange peel.  We did have to tell Mr. Little Bob several times that he couldn’t have any more after giving him a few bites.  He seemed to be the only one in the house who liked it.  The bad new here is that these recipes are from a brand new magazine I just bought, I’ve only tried two and both were awful.  My husband said that I should let him pick out the next recipe to try.  I guess it can’t hurt but I don’t think there are any chocolate recipes with beer and meat in it!

Citrus Chicken Kabobs

1 pound fresh broccoli, broken into florets
2 large navel oranges
1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut into 1 inch cubes
4 plum tomatoes, quartered
1 large onion, cut into wedges
Glaze:  1/4 cup barbecue sauce
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons honey
Place 1 inch of water in a large saucepan; add broccoli.  Bring to a boil.  Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 3-4 minutes or until crisp/tender.  Drain.  Cut each orange into eight wedges.  On eight metal or soaked wooden skewers, alternately thread chicken, vegetables and oranges.  In a small bowl, combine the glaze ingredients. 
Coat grill rack with nonstick cooking spray before starting the grill.  Grill kabobs, uncovered, over medium heat for 5-7 minutes on each side or until chicken juices run clear, turning once.  Brush frequently with glaze.  4 servings

These chicken kabobs were a winner!  The sauce you make to go over them is really good.  This is a good dish to grill out in the summertime.  The recipe called for the broccoli florets to be cooked crisp/tender and then you layer them on the skewers but it didn't work for me.  The broccoli was too tender and just fell apart.  I think I will just leave them raw next time and they should soften up a bit after they have been on the grill while the chicken is cooking.  Another thing I would do is double the sauce because I think it would be nice to brush on a bit more right after you have taken them off the grill and before you serve them.  This dish went well with the Strawberry and Orange Pasta Salad that I made today.  The Citrus Chicken Kabob recipe is from the Taste of Home Grilling Cookbook.  Enjoy!

Strawberry-Orange Pasta Salad

2 cups farfalle (bow tie pasta)
1/3 cup Kraft Creamy Poppy seed Dressing
1/4 cup Kraft Real Mayonnaise
4 green onions, sliced
1 can (11 ounces) mandarin oranges, drained
1 cup sliced fresh strawberries
Cook pasta as directed on package, omitting salt, drain, cool.
Mix dressing and mayo in medium bowl.  Add pasta and onions, toss to coat.  Gently stir in fruit.
Refrigerate 1 hour before serving.

Ok ladies, your gonna love this one!   This is a great cold pasta salad for summertime!  It is refreshing, sweet and light.  Very easy to make and colorful on top of that!  I LOVE poppy seed dressing on fruit of any kind so this recipe really appealed to me when I saw that it called for it.  I love mandarin oranges and strawberries too so this was a win win for me!  Now here is the shocking part so call Ripley's cuz you ain't gonna believe this...... my husband LOVED it!  He ate three helpings.  Poppy seed dressing on a cold pasta salad with fruit.  Yep, he lapped it right up.   This recipe came from a Kraft food magazine, not the grilling cookbook. 

Grilled Pork Chops with Basil-Garlic Rub

4 pork bone-in rib shops 3/4 inch thick
2 garlic cloves, peeled
1 cup fresh basil leaves, packed
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon course salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
With machine running, drop garlic through feed tube of food processor to mince.  Stop, add fresh basil and process until chopped.  Add lemon juice, oil, salt and pepper; process to make thin wet rub.  Spread both sides of pork chops with basil mixture.  Let stand 15 to 30 minutes.
Prepare medium hot fire in grill.  Brush grate clean and oil the grate.  Grill chops over direct heat, turning once, to medium rare doneness, 5 to 6 minutes per side or until internal temperature reaches 145 degrees followed by 3 minutes rest.  Serves 4

Nice tasty pork chop, easy to prepare and had good flavor.  It would have been nice if I could have cooked mine out on the grill but halfway through the cooking the grill ran out of gas.  (Story of my life!)  I finished them under the broiler which didn't affect the flavor but they were missing that grilled out taste.  I used fresh basil that I grow out on my patio which was kind of a pain to chop up because the leaves don't strip off the stem as easy as say rosemary.  It also takes a lot of basil so I added some I had in a jar in the spice cabinet.  Anyway, the rub was easy to make in a food chopper/processor and you just apply it to both sides of the chops and grill.  Easy, pretty and yummy!  Oh, this recipe didn't come out of the Taste of Home Grilling Cookbook.  I found it in the pile of recipes that I tear out of magazines before I discard them so I am sorry to report that I cannot tell you where the recipe came from but don't hold that against me!

Crowd Pleasing Scalloped Potatoes

1 tub (8 ounces) Philadelphia Chive and Onion Cream Cheese Spread
2 cups fat-free, reduced sodium chicken broth
1 cup milk
10 slices Oscar Mayer Bacon, cooked, crumbled and divided
4 1/2 lb. Yukon gold potatoes (about 12), cut into 1/4 inch thick slices
1 onion, thinly sliced
1 cup Kraft 2% Milk Shredded Colby and Monterrey Jack Cheeses
Heat oven to 400 degrees.  Cook first 3 ingredients in saucepan on medium heat until cream cheese spread is melted and mixture comes to boil, stirring constantly with whisk.
Reserve 2 tablespoons bacon.  Layer half each of the potatoes, onions and remaining bacon in 13X9 inch baking dish; repeat layers.  Add cream cheese sauce; cover.  Bake 1 1/2 hours or until potatoes are tender and top is golden brown, uncovering and topping with shredded cheese and reserved bacon for the last 10 minutes. 

This dish made the house smell so good while it was cooking.  It also makes a huge amount too so if you are having a "crowd" this would be a perfect dish.  It was easy to prepare and was a pleaser at my house.  Who doesn't love scalloped potatoes!  On a scale of 1-10 I'd give it a 9.5! This recipe came from a Kraft recipe magazine, not the Taste of Home Grilling Cookbook.

Jalapeno Grilled Chicken

4 to 8 jalapeno peppers, seeded and chopped or 1 can (4 ounces) chopped green chilies
2/3 cup lemon juice, divided
1/4 cup minced fresh parsley or 1 tablespoon dried parsley flakes
6 to 10 garlic cloves, minced
2 teaspoons dried rosemary, crushed
2 teaspoons dried thyme
8 bone-in chicken breast halves
2/3 cup chicken broth
2 teaspoons pepper
1/2 teaspoon grated lemon peel
In a bowl, combine the peppers, 1/3 cup lemon juice, parsley, garlic, rosemary and thyme.  Gently stuff pepper mixture under the skin of each chicken breast.  Place in a greased 13 X 9 X 2 baking dish.  Combine the broth, pepper, lemon peel and remaining lemon juice; pour over chicken.  Cover and refrigerate for at least 6 hours.  Drain and discard marinade.  Place the chicken skin side up on grill.  Grill, covered, over medium heat for 45 minutes or until the juices run clear, turning once.  8 servings. 

This recipe looked impressive during the marinating process and the grilling process but I have to say that when we dove into it it was just a good piece of grilled chicken.  I really didn't get a huge jalapeno flavor in every bit like I thought I would.  You could see all of the jalapeno mixture stuffed under the skin so you would expect the flavors to come through in the meat.  I'm stumped here because there was a lot of ingredients going in to this dish and it was marinated for over 6 hours.  In the past, when I have baked chicken with a rub under the skin, it called for a lot of butter.  (Must have been a Paula Deen recipe).  I think that these ingredients, together with some butter, would help marry the flavors so that you would get a tasty, delicious bite every time.  I would be willing to try this recipe again but I think next time I would like to try it with a whole chicken and roast it in the oven with butter added to the jalapeno stuffing.  Also, this recipe didn't call for any salt which I added to the chicken before it was grilled so if I was going to bake this chicken it would definitely need to be salted before going into the oven.  I grilled six large chicken breast to make this dish and they were very juicy and tender, I just wish that the jalapeno flavor would have made more of a statement. 

This week’s featured cookbook: Taste of Home–Backyard Grilling

This week I will be chewing and reviewing a few recipes from this great grilling cookbook.  My son Marshall gave me this book for Mother’s Day and it has some really great looking recipes in it.  I just wish he was home this week to help me try them out!  He is still at school taking summer classes.  So proud of my little rockhound!

Tacos on a Stick

1 envelope taco seasoning
1 cup tomato  juice
2 to 4 tbsp. vegetable oil
2 pounds boneless beef top sirloin, cut into 1 inch cubes
1 medium green pepper, cut into chunks
1 medium sweet red pepper, cut into chunks
1 large onion, cut into wedges
16 cherry tomatoes
In a large resealable plastic bag, combine the taco seasoning, tomato juice and oil; mix well.  Remove 1/2 cup for basting; refrigerate.  Add beef to the bag; seal and turn to coat.  Refrigerate for at least 5 hours. 

Drain and discard marinade from beef.  On metal or soaked wooden skewers, alternately thread beef, peppers, onion and tomatoes.  Grill, uncovered, over medium heat for 3 minutes on each side.  Baste with reserved marinade.  Continue turning and basting for 8-10 minutes or until meat reaches desired doneness.  6 servings

                                                                                        

I think that the next time I make this dish I will use the mild or spicy taco seasoning instead of the regular.  It was good but the meat could have used just a scosh more spice for my taste.  This was super easy to prepare.  It is pretty much your typical shish kabob but with a Mexican twist.  I served it with Spanish rice, guacamole and a spicy side salad made with mixed field greens, pico de gallo, a sprinkling of taco flavored shredded cheese, crumbled tortilla chips (for croutons) and spicy ranch dressing.  Yummmm!

Grilled Jerk Chicken

4 tsp curry powder
4 tsp ground cumin
4 tsp paprika
3 tsp ground ginger
3 tsp ground allspice
1 tsp salt
1 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tsp coarsely ground pepper
4 bone-in chicken breast halves with skin (8 ounces each)
4 chicken thighs with skin (4 ounces each)
               
In a small bowl, combine the first eight  ingredients; rub over the chicken pieces.  Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour.  Grill the chicken, covered, over indirect medium heat for 30 – 40 minutes or until juices run clear.  Yield:  4 servings

Normally I cook with boneless, skinless chicken but this recipe called for bone-in with skin.  I removed the skin anyway because we have just gotten use to eating our chicken that way and plus it's healthier.  Now this recipe has a LOT of spices but I have to say that I didn't really taste all of them once it was done.  To me, it could have used a little more salt.  It smelled good while it was cooking and looked really delicious and it was, you just need to either salt it at the table or maybe and another 1/2 tsp to the rub.  It was easy to prepare and you didn't have to make a mess in the kitchen to put it together and clean up was a snap!

Special Grilled Veggies

1/2 cup red wine vinegar
1/4 cup olive oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 tsp dried basil
1/2 tsp dried thyme
1/2 tsp lemon-pepper seasoning
1 pound fresh asparagus, trimmed (I used fresh green beans)
1 large red onion, sliced and separated into rings
1 large sweet red pepper, cut into strips
1 large sweet yellow pepper, cut into strips
In a large resealable plastic bag, combine the first six ingredients; mix well.  Add the vegetables and turn to coat.  Seal and refrigerate for 1 hour or overnight, turning once. 
Drain and reserve marinade.  Place vegetables in a grill basket or disposable foil pan with slits cut in the bottom.  Grill, uncovered, over medium-high heat for 5 minutes.  Turn; baste with reserved marinade.  Grill 5-8 minutes longer or until the vegetables are tender.  4-6 servings

Here is another easy to prepare and clean up dish.  You add all the ingredients to a large zip lock bag and I just cooked it on foil on the grill so there wasn't anything to clean up.  I substituted green beans for asparagus because I am not a fan of asparagus.  (there is a story there but I won't go into it right now :)  This would make a great side dish next to anything you cook on the grill.  Fresh, tasty and healthy. 

Plum Good Summer!

Well readers, if you have been keeping up with me on Facebook you are aware of the bumper crop of plums I’ve had this year.  I have harvested 138 pounds of fresh, juicy, sweet delicious plums from just one tree.  It’s been about four years since we have had a good crop of plums and in all the years I’ve had the tree we have never had a crop this good.  One of the first things I wanted to plant when we moved to the country was a plum tree.  When I was a little girl, my grandmother had a plum tree right outside her back porch door.  Every year she would make the best plum jelly you ever ate.  I wanted to be just like her in many ways and so I planted the plum tree with the intentions of making jelly for my family just like she had made for hers.

		2012 Plums VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

My freezer is now stocked with 7 gallons of juice ready to be made into jelly.  It takes four cups of juice to make a batch so my dad and I figured that there is enough to make at least 56 pints of jelly.  Needless to say, everyone in the family, everyone that’s a friend of the family and maybe even a few strangers will be getting a jar of jelly from the Davis kitchen this fall. 

My niece and I were joking around the other day about how I could greet people with a jar of jelly.  A jelly for any occasion if you will.

“Merry Christmas, have some jelly"

“Congratulations on the job promotion, have some jelly”

“Past your exam, have some jelly”

“Having a bad hair day, have some jelly”

“Happy Anniversary, have some jelly”

“Sink clogged, have some jelly”

Well, you get the picture.  I could start an ‘any occasion jelly’ business.  Celebratory Jelly, Sympathy Jelly, New Baby Jelly, Bon Voyage Jelly.  Jelly for all your special needs.

I will begin the jelly making process as soon as my new Ball Jam and Jelly making machine arrives in the mail.  Just ordered one today thanks to a link sent to me by my sister in law who is also expecting her supply of jelly in the near future.  As soon as the machine arrives and I make a trip to Sam's for 100 pounds of sugar, those jelly jars will start rolling off the assembly line real soon.  Stay tuned for pictures and recipes!

Devil’s Food Fudge Cookies

1 package Duncan Hines Moist Deluxe Devil’s Food Cake Mix

2 large eggs

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

1/2 cup chopped walnuts or pecans

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Combine cake mix, eggs and oil in large bowl.  Stir until thoroughly blended.  Stir in chocolate chips and walnuts or pecans.  Mixture will be stiff.  Shape dough into balls and place 2 inches apart on cookie sheet.  Bake for 10 – 11 minutes.

 

Chicken Marsala

1 package of Lawry’s Tuscan Style Chicken Marsala Seasoning

1 pound of chicken breast cutlets (thin) I used two packages

1 1/2 pounds of sliced, fresh mushrooms

1/2 cup red wine

1 cup water

2 tbs butter

Olive Oil

Follow basic directions on the seasoning packet to prepare chicken and mushrooms.  (I seasoned my chicken with salt and pepper before adding to the pan.)  Brown chicken in oil and set aside.  Sauté mushrooms in remaining oil (add 1-2 tbsp more if needed)  and cook for 3 minutes.  (I added a tbsp of butter here.)  Add the seasoning packet and 1 1/2 cups water. (Here is where I changed it, I added 1/2 cup red wine and 1 cup of water) stir sauce to combine then let simmer.  (I added another tbsp of butter to the sauce to make it a bit richer and thicker)  When sauce is ready add chicken back to the pan and simmer.  Can be served with pasta, rice or potatoes.

This is the first time I have tried this season packet and I have to say that it is the shortest short cut from another regular chicken dish to OMG! GOOD chicken dish!  I had a dish similar to this at a restaurant called Brio, they called it Chicken Under A Brick (cuz it was flattened that way) and it had Marsala sauce on it just like this!  When I first opened the seasoning packet I stuck my finger in to taste the mix before I added the water.  I wanted to see if it was going to have the same flavor base as the Brio dish I had had and it did so that is when I decided that it would be better made with red wine instead of just water.  Who am I kidding, everything is better when it’s made with wine!  Anyway, for a quick, impressive, flavorful one dish dinner you can’t loose with this one.  I’m serving mine with garlic mashed potatoes and a field green salad with raspberry vinaigrette! 

Lindy’s Banana Nut Bread or Muffins

1 1/2 sticks butter

1 1/2 cups sugar

3 eggs, separated

4 large ripe bananas, mashed

1/2 cup milk

1/2 cup sour cream

3 cups flour

1 1/2 tsp baking soda

3/4 tsp salt

1 tsp cinnamon

3/4 cups chopped pecans

1 tsp vanilla

Grease and flour 4 small loaf pans or two 9x5 loaf pans or 12 muffin cups.  (I just sprayed them with Pam and they didn’t stick at all.)  Cream butter and sugar.  Add egg yolks, mixing well.  Mix in mashed bananas.  Measure 1/2 cup milk then add enough sour cream to make one full cup.  (about 1/2 cup sour cream, maybe more)  Sift together flour, soda, salt and cinnamon.  Add the flour mixture and the milk mixture alternately to the banana mixture till combined.  Mix in pecans. 

Beat egg whites until stiff and fold into batter.  Bake at 300 degrees for 45 – 60 minutes if using loaf pans.  Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes if making muffins.  Bake until golden brown and done in the center.  Makes 2 large loafs 4 small loafs or 24 muffins.

This is my sister’s recipe and it is really good.  To me, they are not too sweet, just right and super moist.  I use to think that this recipe took all day to make, that was before I started improving my cooking skills.  Now, these muffins can be whipped up in no time and if you make them into muffins that cuts down on the cooking time too.  When I have baked goods in the oven the quicker I can get them on the table into waiting paws of hungry men, the better!  I used walnuts in mine instead of pecans and they worked just fine. 

This recipe came from a little cookbook my sister put together after my Grandmother passed away that was a collection of a lot of her recipes along with some of the other women in our family.  Just like the “little tin box” of recipes that I have, it’s filled mostly with recipes for sweets and desserts!  Grandmother had her priorities!

Chicken Parmesan

1/2 cup all purpose flour

1/2 tsp salt plus more to taste

1/2 tsp black pepper plus more to taste

6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, pounded to uniform thinness

2 tbsp butter

1/2 cup olive oil

1 medium onion, chopped

4 garlic cloves, minced

3/4 cup wine (white or red)

three 14.5 ounce cans crushed tomatoes

2 tbsp sugar

1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley, plus more for sprinkling

1 1/2 cups freshly grated Parmesan cheese

1 lb thin linguine or other pasta cooked al dente

Mix the four sand and pepper on a large plate.  Season the flattened chicken breasts on both sides with salt and pepper then dredge them in the flour mixture.  Set them aside.

In a large skillet over medium high heat, melt the butter in the olive oil until sizzling.  Fry the chicken breasts until nice and golden brown, 2 to 3 minutes on each side.  Remove the chicken from the skillet and keep warm.  Without cleaning the skillet, add the onion and garlic and sauté for 2 minutes or until the onions start to brown.  Pour in the wine and scrape the bottom of the pan, getting all the flavorful bits off the bottom.  Allow wine to cook down until reduced by half, about 3 minutes.  Pour in the crushed tomatoes and stir to combine.  Add the sugar, salt and pepper to taste.  Stir, reduce the heat to low and simmer for 30 minutes so the flavors can marry.  Add the chopped parsley and the 1/2 cup grated Parmesan, stir to combine.  Carefully lay the chicken breasts on top of the sauce and completely cover them with the remaining 1 cup grated Parmesan.  Cover the skillet and simmer until the cheese is melted and the chicken is heated through, about 5 minutes.  Place the cooked pasta in pasta bowls or on plates, then cover it with sauce.  Lay a chicken breast on top of each serving and sprinkle with more parsley.  Serve immediately.

Well, we finally had a hit this week!  the men folk at the house gave this one a thumbs up.  My husband said anything was better than the “leather” we had a couple of nights ago.  I won’t go there right now!  This dish made a huge portion and it was very filling and tasty.  I served it with a side of Pasta Ala Vodka and garlic toast.   Yummy!  I did make a few slight changes as I let the chicken simmer in the sauce first and then when I assembled the dish I added the grated Parm on top last, sprinkled with parsley and then microwaved to melt the cheese about 30 seconds.  My group was hungry and there wasn’t time to add the cheese first, in the dish and let it melt that way.  Another thing that I would change about this recipe is, instead of turning the chicken in just flour, I would turn it in Italian breadcrumbs instead to give the chicken a little more flavor. 

I saw Pioneer Woman make this dish on her Saturday morning cooking show and I wondered how she could call it Parmesan chicken when I hardly saw her put anything in it to make it taste that way.  Using Italian breadcrumbs, to me, would bring out more flavor.  I would make this dish again, especially for my Bearkat who is away at school.  He loves Chicken Parmesan but is busy at school playing with rocks.  I’ll make it for him the next time he comes home! 

Tangy Tomato Brisket

one 5-8 lb beef brisket, trimmed of all fat          

one 24-ounce bottle of ketchup

1 package dry onion soup mix

Preheat oven to 275 degrees.  Place the brisket in an oven safe pan.  Combine the ketchup and soup mix in a bowl and stir to mix.  Pour in 1 cup of water and stir again.  Pour the sauce all over the brisket, then flip the brisket over to coat the other side.  Now just cover the pan with foil and roast in the oven for 6 to 7 hours.  Remove the pan from the oven and test the brisket to make sure its fork tender.  Slice the brisket into thin strips.  Return meat to sauce and cover until ready to serve.

Sorry Pioneer Woman, but your brisket cannot hold a candle to my husband’s brisket.  Not just a candle but a lit match, blow torch, campfire or any other kind of open flame.  This dish was easy to make but it tasted like a barbequed roast.  It wouldn’t slice up like a brisket, it didn’t even taste like it was meant to be brisket.  It tasted like a roast that had a lot of tangy sauce on it.  It is tasty but in no way shape or form do we consider this brisket in our state.  Probably because Pioneer girl lives in Oklahoma and we all are from TEXAS and TEXAS knows how to do brisket.  There’s only two kinds of people in Oklahoma…..Neil Diamond fans and Members Only members. 

Corn Casserole with Peppers

8 ears of corn, husked, kernels shaved off the cob

1 red bell pepper, seeded and diced

2 fresh jalapenos, seeded and diced

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, melted

1 cup heavy cream

1/2 cup whole milk

salt and pepper to taste

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.  Combine the corn, bell pepper and jalapenos in a bowl.  Add the butter, cream, milk and salt and pepper.  Pour into a buttered baking dish and bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until hot and bubbly.  Give it a stir before serving in order to coat all the corn in the cream/butter mixture.

Confession, I used can corn instead of fresh ears.  It would have cost me 8 dollars just for corn to make this dish and to me that is a little extreme just for a bowl of corn.  I don’t think it really had much of an affect on the outcome of the dish.  Corn is corn unless you are roasting it.  That’s a whole different story in my book.  I could eat roasted corn till I pass out!  Anyway, I used a large and one regular size can of Libby corn in this recipe.  It looked to be about the same amount of corn I would have gotten off of 8 ears.  I have to say, however, that after combining all the ingredients to this dish it was extremely soupy!  I think a cup of cream is way too much and you don’t even need the 1/2 cup of milk.  To me it would have been way less soupy and the flavors of the butter and cream would have really stuck to the corn if you had less liquid.  The corn/bell pepper/jalapeno taste was good so I am not dissing the dish but I was disappointed in the sauce that was supposed to make it so buttery good.  If you make it and it turns out soupy then just serve it with a slotted spoon. 

Beef and Bean Burritos

2 pounds ground beef

1 medium onion, diced

1/2 tsp ground cumin

1/4 tsp ground oregano

1/4 tsp chili powder

1/4 tsp salt

two 7-ounce cans Mexican tomato sauce or enchilada sauce

one 28-ounce can refried beans

3/4 cup grated Cheddar cheese plus extra for sprinkling

12 burrito size flour tortillas

In a large skillet over medium heat, cook the ground beef and onions until the beef is cooked through.  Add the cumin, oregano, chili powder and salt and stir to combine.  Pour 1 can of the sauce into the  meat and simmer over low heat for 5 minutes.  Add a little water if mixture looks dry.  Meanwhile, heat the refried beans in a saucepan over medium low heat.  Add the grated Cheddar cheese.  Stir until cheese is melted.  Heat the tortillas in the microwave for 1 minute, spread a small amount of beans on each tortilla, add a small amount of the meat mixture, fold the ends over and roll tortilla up.  Place 2 burritos on a microwave safe place.  Drizzle some sauce from the second can over the burritos and sprinkle with extra Cheddar cheese.  Microwave for 1 minute or until cheese is melted.  Repeat with the rest of the burritos.

One thing I’ve learned about cooking from the Pioneer Woman’s cookbooks is that she cooks for a crowd and these recipes are sometimes way too big for my family.  I’m usually only feeding 3-4 people where she is feeding anywhere from 6 to a herd!  I made seven burritos for the 3 of us and had enough stuff left over for seven more.  Leftovers don’t really fly well at my house unless I announce out loud that it’s “Left Over Night” and it’s “Take It Or Leave It” too.  These burritos were easy to make but were pretty basic.  You can add other toppings into the burrito before you roll it up but I wanted to be able to taste the beef/bean combination so I didn’t want to fancy it up too much.  I did have to add extra seasoning to the beef as the spices and amounts the recipe called for left it tasting a little bland for me.  I added a little more heat and a little more salt.  This is something easy that you can throw together in about 20 minutes and will most likely fill you up.  I served along side the corn dish and chips and hot sauce.  Not bad.