A family favorite… Looks and tastes delicious!
CHEESECAKE:
Two (8-ounce) packages cream cheese, at room temperature
2/3 cup granulated white sugar
pinch of salt
2 large eggs Continue reading
Category Archives: basic ingredients
Grandma’s Banana Pudding
Growing up across the street from my grandparents was an experience you don’t soon forget. Grandma would make some fancy dessert and call to let us know she’d made it, I remember her saying, “Granddad and I won’t eat all of this, you might as well come join us.” Continue reading
Easy Pumpkin Pleasure
A little sugar – now and then, (OCCASIONALLY) never killed a cat, claimed responsibility for diabetes or created instant gray hair. At least, not that I recall. But…a lot of gray hair fills my mirror these days… Memory, gray hair…who knows for sure. But I digress.
A friend recently made this quick, yummy cookie recipe for me. For some odd reason, of which I have no logical explanation, the cookies had a ‘disappearing’ quality – the plate emptied quickly, and I’m sure it had nothing to do with me!
I then fed these cookie lovelies to my visiting friends last week. I substituted a fudge mix and added ½ C each, of raisins and applesauce. The same phenomenon occurred – the plate cleared off in no time.
So, be oh-so-careful when you make these – I am thinking there may be a peculiar chemical reaction that causes the mass to change to energy – or some such complex physics formula of which my gray hair has erased.
Pumpkin Cake Cookies
1 box spice cake mix (extra moist)
1 small can 100% pumpkin
Mix together these 2 ingredients well (I use my pastry cutter tool – it works for everything), and spoon onto a greased cookie sheet to your cookie size.
Bake at 350 degrees for about 12 to 18 minutes – depending on your altitude, oven, size of cookies and growling stomach.
Cool; eat. But eat quickly…chemistry with this particular recipe…is magical.
I’m thinking I might use the spice mix, grate up a big Granny Smith, add 1/2 C applesauce and raisins, for a grand-kids treat. The added fruit might just ease my conscience a little; I so hate to send the little tikes home to Mom – in a total state of ‘fizz’…
Let us know your take on this easy, quick snack – just perfect for those unexpected quests on a busy Saturday afternoon.
We’d enjoy hearing if your life…really improves through chemistry.
NOTES: There is a new tin foil available that incorporates a ‘non-stick’ side; quick and clean.
Grilled Chicken & Veggies
Occasionally, there’s a meal plan that comes together so well you just can’t resist sharing it… That would be this one – good enough for family, easy enough for almost any day and pretty enough for company. YUM!
Grilled Chicken & Veggies
Slice chicken breasts to 1/2 inch thickness and lay out on large platter.
Sprinkle with a healthy amount of Worcestershire sauce and allow to rest for about ten minutes.
Set grill to medium heat and chop vegetables to fit on skewers.
(We like peppers, broccoli, cauliflower, onion and celery on ours.)
Lightly season all with salt and pepper – lemon pepper is really good here.
Drizzle a bit of lemon juice over veggies and place on upper rack of grill.
Place chicken on lower rack, close grill for 7 minutes.
Flip chicken, close grill for 5 – 7 minutes.
Veggies will be tender crisp and chicken will be done. Serve with steamed rice if desired.
Prepare one skewer of veggies and a slice of chicken for each person, rice per serving needed.
We particularly love the veggies on skewers, because they’re fun to eat that way.
Irish Smashers
If you’re looking for a show stopper for Sunday noon, or a holiday dinner, I have one right here.
Irish Smashers
1 lb small red potatoes cut in half – put on to boil in just enough water to cover (about 15 minutes).
1 large red onion sliced thin and cut in quarters
6 cups or 1/2 head of cabbage finely sliced and slightly chopped
1/4 cup of butter
Melt butter in cast iron skillet, simmer onion until soft, add cabbage and cover. Continue cooking until cabbage is tender.
Add 1 cup milk, salt and pepper to taste, and continue simmering until cabbage is cooked.
In large bowl combine potatoes and cabbage mixture, mash with potato masher or large fork until desired consistency. May add a bit of fresh ground pepper to top for appearance.
This is a family favorite. We often include Irish Smashers at Thanksgiving, Christmas or New Years dinners, because there’s such a big pot of it. It feeds a crowd!
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Incredible Fish Nachos
I know everyone has heard of fish tacos by now, but these are even more amazing… YUM
For the longest time, I wasn’t really a fan of fish tacos, then we made them at home and I fell in love. Tonight, I didn’t have any taco shells so we had nachos and I needed extra sauce, so I mixed up a light dill and lemon sauce to go with them… YUM Delicious.
Pssst…. I get my fresh ground dill from Sage Hill Farms.
Fish – about 2 lbs of fish, scramble fried in very little oil. (I had ocean perch, but I’m sure about any kind would work well.)
Toss in about a tablespoon of fresh ground dill, 1/4 teaspoon of Cheyenne pepper, 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder.
Shred a half head of lettuce fine and toss lightly with a diced tomato and 1/2 onion diced.
Spread chips over a plate and layer on lettuce mixture, white shredded cheese and about 1/2 cup of fish.
Top with lemon/herb sauce (recipe below).
Serve with lime wedges and corn salsa on the side.
Lemon & Herb Sauce
1 cup mayo
1/2 cup lemon juice
1 tablespoon fresh ground dill
1/2 teaspoon cheyenne pepper
Drizzle over top of taco/nachos.
My kids (who don’t like fish) love this dish. Even the grandkids love this recipe.
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Chicken Diets — Oh My Gosh!
Okay – last week had to be the max. I’m always on a diet of one kind or another. Usually it’s a see food diet. I see food. I eat. But, I had decided to do the low cal diet in combination with a juice fast that was supposed to kick start my *NEW* weight loss program.
But, trust me, there comes a point where you don’t want juice, you don’t want “diet” anything, you want real, honest to goodness, chew food. Chicken is perfect for chew food, so says Oris George. So, there I was cooking up a quick meal of chicken for dinner.
It’s perfect. Low calorie. No fat. Great taste. And best of all, I could add hot sauce. And we all know how much I like hot sauce. Broiled chicken, or even grilled chicken on the George Foreman, is a favorite.
Two tablespoons of the ULTIMATE homemade hot sauce, guaranteed to let you know you’ve had flavor. Made with 1 Jalapeno pepper (seeded), 1/2 a tomato, 1/4 of an onion and a little salt and pepper to taste, this hot sauce offers a little bit of Zing, even when you’re not on a diet. But, this time, I wanted extra flavor so I included the seeds out of the pepper and a second whole Jalapeno Pepper. Toss it all in a small bullet blender and whir away your troubles.
The finished salsa looked more like tomato puree with Jalapeno seeds than anything else, and smelled hotter than an M-80 in a fox hole. But I really like hot food so, I spread a lethal dose of it over my chicken breast – perfectly cooked to tender and juicy, took a knife and fork out on the deck to the table with a glass of fresh squeezed lemon water (no sugar).
The first bite coaxed a little bit of a kick out of the salsa, but the chicken was delicious. I cut off another bite and loaded it up with salsa. My mouth burned a bit, but swallowing wasn’t a biggie, and I loved the feel of the salsa going down. Nice and cool with a kick.
By the third bite I was thinking I really liked the salsa on the chicken, and really added quite a lot more of it to the top of my little bite of the bird. I noticed there were a few more seeds in that bite, but it had been good so far… I took the bite. Followed it with the glass of lemon water and headed inside for more of something to cool the burn that had suddenly taken over my esophagus. I could feel it all the way down. But, still, there’s a sensation of eating something extra hot that I like so I went back for another bite or two. By the time I got to the last five bites of the chicken, I was out of salsa, so I went inside to get a little more.
I emptied the bottom of the blender bullet onto my chicken and liberally added more to each bite I took. The burn had pretty much ceased in my mouth and I didn’t feel the need to drink a lot of anything, but I decided a nice cool half of avocado would be great for dessert. So, I took my avocado half back to the porch. Over the next thirty minutes or so, I sipped another glass of lemon water and finished off my half of the avocado, while reading a book.
That’s when it started. In the pit of my tummy, I realized there was a burning sensation. It grew. I began to feel warm all over. I sat there on the deck reading and thinking about the meal I’d just enjoyed, wondering if I’d enjoyed too much of a good thing. My knees felt a little warm, my elbows were quite toasty, and when I looked down my toe nails were on fire.
Honest… That’s my story. And I’m sticking to it. That’s how my feet got burned on the chicken diet!
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The BEST Wraps – Done Right
We’ve been on a health kick recently. Looking for healthy ways to eat the best foods, with as much flavor as possible. These wraps came through last week, with shining raving color. We got a little adventurous as we added various ingredients.
The Reuben —
Shredded pork (replaced the corned beef)
Sauted onions and cabbage
Mustard
Wrapped up in a Green Spinach Wrap
The Chicken Taco Wrap —
Shredded or sliced chicken (super thin)
Taco sauce or salsa
Guacamole
Lettuce, cheese, tomato and onion
WRapped in a Jalepeno Wrap for kicks and flavor
Chicken Salad Wrap —
Shredded or chunked chicken
Yogurt (we like Greek)
Cranberries (craisins)
Onion
Cucumber
Dill seed for flavor
Wrap it all in a Spinach Wrap
The Stir Fry
Chicken chunks
Stir Fry veggie mix
Steamed Rice with cilantro
A little teriyaki sauce for flavor
Wrap it up in a Spinach Wrap
My favorite came as a surprise in a picnic lunch packed by my son.
Barbecue Wrap
Shredded beef
Shredded cheese
Barbecue sauce
pickles
Wrapped in a Jalepeno Wrap for Zesty appeal… Gotta love ‘em.
These wraps can be super healthy if you fill them up with fresh veggies and not much sauce. They really don’t need the sauce and the neatness factor requires you to go easy.
As my son says, “Almost anything can go in a wrap!”
Apricot Glazed Chicken and Rice Dinner
Here’s a family favorite, takes about twenty minutes to prepare from start to finish, and you’re sitting down to dinner.
Put water on for rice – enough for 4 – 5 servings. Bring to a boil while you start chicken. Once boiling, add rice, cover and remove from heat.
In a cast iron skillet, sizzle chicken strips 3/4 per person in about 1 tablespoon of olive oil until white through. Add 1 – 6 ounce jar Smuckers Apricot Preserves (unless you have homemade preserves – then use those). Toss lightly. (Less or more depending on how many you’re cooking for.)
Steam Broccoli Spears on top of stove while everything else is cooking.
If you’re having company, or just want to serve dessert, our favorite with this meal is a cherry pie or quick cherry compote with real whipped cream. You can always have one ready and in the freezer, or whip one up while you’re putting together the rest of the meal. Definitely worth waiting for is this Cherry Dessert!
Pasta Meal for Pot Luck
Everyone always asks what to take for a pot luck dinner at church, and this favorite keeps coming back year after year. We always enjoy revisiting the old favorites, because we know they are well loved.
Cook fresh pasta – any kind – a BIG Pot of it.
Add in all your favorite pasta veggies – chopped up bite size – fresh.
We add onion, bell pepper, tomato, corn (unusual – but delicious), grated carrots, celery, Zucchini, cucumber, chopped up chicken and some drained and rinsed black beans.
Drizzle on a bottle of Italian Salad dressing and toss lightly to coat all the pasta.
Season with salt and pepper if desired. Add in some fresh chopped basil and parsley and you’ve got a meal fit for a king!
Everyone at the pot luck is going to rave over this salad and it’s so easy, they’ll NEVER know, unless you tell them that you put it all together while the kids finished getting ready for church this morning. Talk about your soul saving, baptism type meal – this is it!