Pork Pot Pie Filling

I had a cooked pork chop in cream of
mushroom soup that I diced up and
used with some fresh vegetables to
make a really good tasting soup.
This would make a good pie filling
for making a creamy pork pot pie.

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 celery stalk, chopped
1 carrot, peeled and diced
1 cooked white potato with peel on
1 hanful of frozen corn
1 handful of frozen peas
1 cooked pork chop, diced
6 ounces cream of mushroom soup
1 cup water
ground black pepper to taste

Directions:
Cook potato in microwave until tender.
Heat olive oil in a saucepan on high heat,
add in chopped onion, celery and carrots.
Saute stirring occationally until tender.
Chop potato into saucepan and add in the
frozen corn and peas to heat through.
When vegrtables start to stick to the pan,
stir in the water to deglaze the pan.
Add in the diced pork and cream soup.
Bring to a boil and remove from heat.
Serve warm.

Baked Oatmeal with Bananas and Chocolate Covered Blueberries

I had some chocolate covered blueberries and
decided to throw this oatmeal dish together.
This was so good tasting, even the next day!
It has no nuts inside for those allergic,
but you can add some chopped nuts if desired.

Ingredients:
Cooking spray
2 ripe bananas
cinnamon sugar for sprinkling
1/4 cup chocolate covered blueberries
1 large egg
1 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 cup honey
dash of salt
1 cup rolled oats

Directions:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
Spray bottom of a 8x13" baking dish
with cooking spray and arrange the
sliced bananas on the bottom of dish.
Sprinkle bananas with cinnamon sugar.
Scatter the chocolate covered blueberries
all around the banana slices in dish.
Cover with foil and bake 15 minutes.
Meanwhile in a mixing bowl combine the
egg, milk, honey,vanilla, baking powder and salt.
Remove the baking dish from oven and pour
the oatmeal mixture all over the bananas.
Bake uncovered for about 30 minutes until done.
Serve warm.

Baked Oatmeal with Blueberries

This blueberry oatmeal is just the thing
to warm you up on a cold winter morning.
I like to make this the day before and
simply re-heat it in the microwave oven.

Ingredients:

1 cup rolled oats
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/8 teaspoon salt or to taste
1/2 cup milk
1 large egg, beaten
1/8 cup melted butter
1 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/4 cup dried blueberries

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
In a large bowl, mix together oats,
sugar, cinnamon, baking powder, and salt.
Add in with a wooden spoon the milk,
egg, melted butter and vanilla extract.
Stir in dried blueberries.
Spread into a 9x13' glass baking dish.
Bake in preheated oven for 40 minutes.

Egg on Butter Toast

A sunny side up egg on buttered toast.
Make the yolk runny for the best flavor.
I make this using a toaster oven for a
simply good tasting comfort food.
Add some cheese and it's even better.

Ingredients:
1 slice of white bread
1 large egg
1 tablespoon butter
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
Place a slice of white bread
onto foil lined toaster oven tray.
Crack an egg into the center of bread.
Spread butter on bread all around egg.
Place in toaster oven and cook until
toast is browned and egg is cooked.

Chicken Sweet Potato Soup

Warm chicken soup with sweet potatoes.
Easy to prepare and the combination
of the flavors taste great together.

Ingredients:
1 can chicken with rice soup
1 sweet potato
Directions:
Wash sweet potato and place it in a bowl,
microwave to cook for about 5 minutes.
Open chicken soup and place in a serving bowl,
cover and microwave soup for about 2 minutes
or until soup is heated through.
Cut up potato in chicken soup to serve.

Best Baked Pork Ribs

Pork ribs that are fall off the bone good.
The oven does all the work and the BBQ sauce
is lip smacking, finger licking good.
Ingredients:
1 rack of baby back pork ribs

2 cups cheap balsamic vinegar
1/2 cup clover honey
2 cups prepared ketchup
12 ounces beer
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 red onion,peeled and diced
1/2 cup dark brown sugar
1 tablespoon dark molasses
1/4 cup whole grain mustard
2 teaspoons hot pepper sauce
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1/2 cup cold water

Directions:
Preheat oven to 250 degrees F.
Place ribs on a square of aluminum foil.
Sprinkle the ribs generously with salt,
add thyme and then wrap foil up well.
Place the ribs on a cookie sheet
and bake for 3 to 4 hours,
until the ribs are extremely tender.
Allow the ribs to cool slightly
in their packets before opening.

Combine all the BBQ sauce ingredients
in a large pot on medium-low heat.
Allow to simmer, stirring every so often,
for a two hours, until the sauce is thick.

Taco Bell Meat Sauce

This is my recipe for making
that yummy fast food stuff.
It's got the right spices and can be used
in tacos, borritos and enchiladas.
I also like this stuff on a taco salad!
Heck, it's good tasting by the spoonful.

Ingredients:
2 pounds ground beef 85/15
1 tablespoon dark brown sugar
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon onion powder
2 tablespoons corn meal
4 teaspoons red chili powder
1 teaspoon sweet smoked paprika
2 teaspoons ground cumin powder
1/4 teaspoon dried musturd powder

Directions
Preheat a big old skillet on medium,
Mix all of the seasonings with meat.
Saute until meat is all browned up.
Place meat mixture in a food processor
and pulse until you get your desired mixture.

Peanut Butter and Sugar

When I was a youngster I used to take
a teaspoon of creamy peanut butter,
dipped it in some granulated sugar.
It's a kid thing I guess but it's yummy!
Today, once in awhile I still do it.

Apple Sauce Custard Pie

I only had four small apples and wanted
to make an apple pie or tart with them.
Seeing recipes for apple sauce pies
I made a apple sauce egg custard and poured
it over the sliced apples in the crust.
The result was a creamy custard like pie
with chunks of tasty apple that taste great. Easy to make, a good looking and tasting pie.

Ingredients:
1 premade pie crust
4 apples, peeled and sliced
1/4 cup granulated sugar
2 tablespoons all purpose flour
2 tablespoons ground cinnamon
2 large eggs
1 1/2 cups milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup prepared apple sauce
Cinnamon sugar for sprinkling

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Bring prepared pie crust to room temp.
Peel and slice apples and put into
a mixing bowl along with the flour,
granulated sugar and cinnamon, mix
to coat the apples sices all over.
In a seperate bowl whip the eggs,
milk prepared apple sauce and vanilla.
Place pie crust in a 9" pie plate and
using your fingers crimp all aroud the edge.
Place apple slices into pie crust and then
pour the egg mixture into center of pie.
Sprinkle top with cinnamon sugar and bake
for about 1 hour or until done.

Pork Chops in Mushroom Soup

My Grandmother used to make this,
I think she got the recipe from the
Campbell's soup company recipe file.
Although she probably came up with using
pancake mix to coat the pork chops.
The chops come out nice and tender.

Ingredients:
4 pork loin chops
sprinkle of salt
sprinkle of ground pepper
1/4 cup pancake mix.
1/4 cup olive oil
1 can cream of mushroom soup

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Preheat oil in a saute pan,
season the pork chops and
drege in pancake mix.
Place chops in saute pan and
brown on both sides.
Place pork chops in a baking dish
and spread the soup over them.
Cover baking dish, place in oven
and bake for 1 hour or until done.

Roasted Fresh Cabbage

This is easy to prepare and
tastes great as a side dish.
Cabbage, Olive oil and seasonings.

Ingredients:
1 head fresh cabbage
1/4 cup olive oil
sprinkle of salt
sprinkle of ground pepper

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Remove outer leaves from cabbage.
Cut cabbage in quarters around core.
Place cabbage in roasting pan and
season with salt and pepper to taste.
Drizzle olive oil all over cabbage.
Cover and bake for 1 hour or until done.

Pasta and Bean Soup

There are more recipes for making pasta e fagioli
than there are regions in Italy.
This is a good one, but you can make it your own.
Some times I use cooked ham instead of beef.
You can use any dried pasta you have on hand.

Ingredients:
1 pound dry ditolini pasta
1 onion, peeled and chopped
1 pound lean ground beef 85/15
2 (26 ounce) jars red tomato sauce
6 ounces provolone cheese, sliced
1 1/2 cups sour cream
6 ounces mozzarella cheese, shredded
1 (15 ounce ) can white or red kidney beans
2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
dried Italian seasonings to taste

Directions:
Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil.
Add pasta, and cook about 8 minutes; drain.
In a large skillet, on medium heat brown onion and beef.
Add red tomato sauce, and simmer 15 minutes.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Butter a 9x13 inch baking dish, add seasonings to taste.
Layer 1/2 of the pasta, the beans, Provolone cheese,
sour cream, 1/2 sauce mixture, remaining pasta,
mozzarella cheese and remaining sauce mixture.
Top with grated Parmesan cheese.
Bake for 30 minutes in the preheated oven,
or until cheeses are melted.

Toasted White Bread Cereal

This stuff is really good tasting.
Simple to make on a cold winter day.
Really good comfort food at it's best.
Try this I think you'll like it!
This recipe is from my cookbook.

Ingredients:
2 or 3 slices fresh white bread
2 or 3 cups fresh whole milk
2 or 3 teaspoons white sugar

Directions:
Toast the slices of bread to golden brown.
Break up the toasted bread into bite size.
Place bread into a cereal bowl and add some
white granulated sugar in the bowl to taste.
Pour cold milk on this and sit down to enjoy.
This is even good when you heat the milk up.

Sweet Potato & Peanut Butter

This recipe was a surprise for me,
I never would have thought of pairing
peanut butter with sweet potatoes.
Easy to make using a microwave oven.

Ingredients:
1 sweet potato
1/4 cup water
1 tablespoon peanut butter

Directions:
Place water in a glass measuring cup
and place potato in the cup, cover and
microwave on high power for 6 minutes.
Remove potato to cool before slicing and
serving with a spoon of peanut butter.

Southwest Stuffed Bell Peppers

I used red bell peppers to make a good tasting
spicy beef and rice stuffed pepper meal.
You can use green or any color bell pepper.
The secret is in making the stuffing ahead
and letting the flavors blend in the refrigerator.

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 yellow onions, peeled and diced
1 garlic clove, peeled and minced
1/2 cup cold water
1 teaspoon brown gravy sauce
1 pound lean ground beef 85/15
6 cups cold water
2 cups cooked white rice
1 can (6 ounce)condensed tomato soup
2 tablespoons worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon red chili powder
Salt and ground black pepper to taste.
4 red bell peppers

Directions:
In a large saute pan add olive oil,
onions and garlic to just start to brown.
Add in the 1/2 cup cold water and let
simmer until the onions are tender.
Remove onions, garlic to a mixing bowl.
Add the ground beef to the saute pan,
salt and pepper to taste.
Add in 1/2 cup cold water and cook
just until ground beef is no longer pink.
Drain and add beef to mixing bowl with onions.
Add in cooked white rice and seasonings.
Cut peppers in half and remove seeds.
Stuff with meat mixture and place in a baking dish.
Bake in a preheated oven for about 45 minutes.

Baked Whole Acorn Squash

This is easy and tasty around the Holidays.
You cut open an Acorn squash and bake it.
Sometimes I add in some apricot or orange jam.
Creamy good and you can spice it up if desired.

Ingredients:
1 whole acorn squash
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 teaspoons brown sugar
salt to taste

Directions:
Use a large chefs knife cut the squash in half.
Use a spoon to scoop out the seeds.
Place squash cut side up in a baking dish.
Place the butter, and brown sugar in the squash.
Sprinkle with salt to taste and bake for 1 hour.

Easy Coconut Custard Pie

Simply take the ingredients and
blend them together and pour
it into a 9" pie plate and bake.
It creates it's own crust and doesn't
get much easier to make than this.

Ingredients:
4 large eggs
1/2 cup all purpose flour
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup flaked coconut
1/2 cup sugar

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Grease and flour a 9" pie plate
Mix well all ingredients but coconut.
Mix until it is blended.
Add the coconut and mix it in.
Pour the mixture into the pie plate
and bake for 1 hour or until set.

Best Baking Powder Biscuits

My Grandmothers simple recipe
makes light and flacky biscuits.
Perfect to enjoy with butter or jam.

Ingredients:
3 cups all purpose flour
1/4 cup vegetable shortening
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt

Directions:
Combine in a mixing bowl the
flour, baking powder and salt.
Mix in the shortening to form a dough.
Do not over mix for that makes for
hard and tough baking powder biscuits.
Divide the dough into 1/4 cup sized balls.
Flatten the balls on a baking sheet and
Bake for 12 minutes or until nice and golden.

Turkey Giblet Dressing

This is one of thse foods that
you either love it or hate the stuff.
My Father used to make this every
Thanksgiving and I liked it a lot.

Ingredients:
giblets from whole turkey
3 cups cold water
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 garlic cloves, peeled and smashed
15 ounces dry bread crumbs
15 ounces grated parmesan cheese
1 large egg, beaten
Directions:
Remove giblets from turkey and
place them in a pan with the cold water.
Bring to a boil then a simmer for 10 minutes.
Remove giblets and when cool enough to handle,
place them through a food grinder or processor.
They should be small bits but not pureed.
In a saute pan place olive oil and the garlic,
saute for a minute then add the chopped giblets.
Saute until browned a minute or two.
Place giblets and garlic along with any oil
in a mixing bowl with bread crumbs, cheese and egg.
Mix well and use this mixture to stuff the bird.
I make this in a seperate caserole dish, covered.

Processor Pie Crust Dough

This recipe makes one 9" pie crust.
Easy to make using a food processor.

In a food processor,
pulse for a few times 1 1/4 cups flour
with 1/2 teaspoon each salt and white sugar.
Add in one stick chilled unsalted butter, Pulse until mixture is just crumbly.
Add in up to 4 tablespoons ice water,
pulse in processor until dough forms.
Do not overmix.
Turn out onto a floured work surface
knead once or twice, until dough comes together.
Seal with plastic wrap and Chill dough for 30 minutes.
Roll out on a floured surface into a circle to make crust.

V8 Juice Cabbage Soup

I'm not going to exlain how to prepare this one,
just throw everything together in a soup pot.
Bring to a boil and then a simmer until done.
Ingredients:
2 large sweet onions, peeled and sliced
1 green bell pepper, diced
1 (16 ounce)can diced tomatoes
2 celery stalks, sliced
1/2 head cabbage, chopped
1 package Onion Soup Mix
1 48 oz. can V8 Juice
Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Thanksgiving Day Stuffing

Nothing says Happy Thanksgiving like
a good warm comforting bread stuffing.
This is an old stand bye recipe that
I've made many times over the years.

Ingredients:
3/4 cup unsalted butter
1 pound day-old white bread, torn
2 1/2 cups chopped yellow onions
1 1/2 cups 1/4-inch slices celery
1/2 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley
2 tablespoons chopped fresh sage
1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary
1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 1/2 cups low-sodium chicken broth, divided
2 large eggs

Directions:
Preheat oven to 250 degrees F.
Butter a 13x9x2-inch baking dish and set aside.
Scatter bread on a rimmed baking sheet.
Bake until dried out, about 1 hour.
Let cool; transfer to a very large bowl.
Meanwhile, melt 3/4 cup butter in a
large skillet over medium-high heat;
add in onions and celery.
Stir often until just beginning to brown,
about 10 minutes. Add to bowl with bread;
stir in herbs, salt, and pepper.
Drizzle in broth and toss gently. Let cool.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Whisk 1 1/4 cups broth and eggs in a bowl.
Add to bread mixture; fold gently until combined.
Transfer to prepared dish, cover with foil,
and bake for about 40 minutes.

Black Bean Sprout Burgers

Made with no meat what so ever.
These vegetarian grilled burgers
have good flavor and texture.
A secret ingredient is bean sprouts.
Yup, a drained can of bean sprouts
provides the correct burger texture.

Ingredients:
1 can (16 ounce) black beans, drained
1 green bell pepper, small dice
1/2 onion, peeled and chopped
1 can (8 ounce) bean sprouts, drained
3 cloves garlic, peeled
1 large egg
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 tablespoon cumin powder
1 teaspoon hot pepper sauce
1/2 cup dried bread crumbs
4 hamburger buns, toasted
vegetable oil for grill grates

Directions:
Preheat an outdoor grill for high heat.
Open cans of beans and sprouts in a colender,
drain and rinse well in cold water.
In a food processor seperatly chop pepper,
onion, garlic and then black beans and sprouts,
placing the ingredients into a mixing bowl.
In another mixing bowl, stir together egg,
chili powder, cumin, and hot pepper sauce.
Add and combine the egg mixture with beans.
Mix in bread crumbs then divide into four burgers.
Using a towel or brush oil the grill grates.
Place burgers on hot grill for about 6 minutes
on each side or until grill marks appear.
Remove and serve on toasted hamburger buns,
with your favorite hamburger condiments.

Beer & Butter Braised Brats

Brats are first braised then grilled.
A good tasting tail gate recipe.
Toast or grill the rolls if desired.

Ingredients:
8 bratwurst links
1/4 pound unsalted butter
1 yellow onion, thinly sliced
1 pound prepared sauerkraut
2 bottles dark beer
spicy barbeque sauce
8 soft potato rolls
spicy brown mustard

Directions:
Preheat grill to high heat.
In a large saucepan add sauerkraut,
beer, butter, brats and sliced onions.
Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer
for about 10 minutes.
When brats are parboiled, use tongs to
remove them to preheated grill.
Spread on some barbeque sauce and cook brats on grill to achieve grill marks.
Turning and basting with barbeque sauce.
Strain the saurkraut in a colander.
To serve, spread mustard on a roll.
Top with a brat and saurkraut.

Chocolate & Cheese Box Cake

With no eggs in the cheese mixture,
the cheese is so light and creamy.
Easy to make using a box cake mix,
adding in the cheese is the secret
in making a gourmet dessert cake.

Ingredients:
1 box cake mix
2 large eggs
1 cup water
1/4 cup vegetable oil
2 packages cream cheese
3/4 cup ricotta cheese
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon almond extract

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Prepare a 9" springform pan with
grease and dust with flour, set aside.
Prepare box cake mix as directed.
Crack open eggs into a mixing bowl,
add in cold water and oil, blend well.
Add the box cake mix in the bowl and
mix on medium speed for 2 minutes.
Pour 1/2 of the cake batter in the pan.
Blend together the cheeses and salt
with the vanilla and almond extracts.
Mix on high speed for 2 minutes.
Pour cheese mixture on top of batter in pan
spread out to 1" of the edge and then pour
the remaining cake batter over cheese mixture.
Bake for about 90 minutes or until done.

Creamy Rice Mushroom Soup

This soup is loaded with creamy cooked rice,
that tastes like like you cooked it all day.
Easy to make because of a secret ingredient.
Adding in frozen green peas is a time saver.
This also could be a base for a yummy casserole
adding in cooked chicken or even a can of tuna.

Ingredients:
4 cups cold water
1 cup uncooked rice
1 pint sliced mushrooms
1 onion, peeled and sliced
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 can of chicken chow mein

Directions:
In a sauce pan bring water to a boil,
add in rice and simmer until just done.
In a saute pan that you add in the
olive oil and butter on medium heat,
brown the sliced mushrooms and onions.
Add the mushrooms and onions to cooked rice.
Stir in a can of chicken chow mein.
Serve as you would a thickened soup.

Spritz Cookies Crispy and Buttery

These are crispy butter cookies.
As the Holidays are upon us,
it's time to make some cookies.
I remember making Spritz cookies
with my Grandmother every year.
I added some brown sugar into the mix.
These are realy good Spitz cookies.
Some how I just can't get the cookies
I press out of the cookie press to
look or taste as good as the Spritz
cookies my Gramma pressed out.

Ingredients:
3 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt or to taste
8 tablesponns unsalted butter, melted
1/2 cup confectioners sugar
1/2 cup light brown sugar
2 large egg yolks
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
Sift together the flour and salt; set aside.
In a medium bowl, cream together butter and sugar.
Stir in the egg yolks, almond and vanilla extracts.
Gradually blend in the sifted ingredients.
Fill a cookie press with dough and shoot cookies
1 1/2 inches apart onto an ungreased cookie sheet.
Bake for 6 to 8 minutes or until lightly browned.

Grilled Fresh Pineapple Rings

Grilled pineapple makes for a great dessert.
You could use the pineapple rings that
come in a can but try a fresh pineapple.
The sweet and tart flavors are fantasic,
smokey from the grill and all marked up.

Ingredients:
olive oil for coating grill grates.
8 fresh pineapple rings
1 tablespoon clover honey
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Dash of chili powder or to taste

Instructions:
Preheat grill and lightly coat with olive oil,
Place pineapple slices on grill and cook
for about 3 minutes per side or until
heated through and grill marks appear.
Serve alone or with vanilla ice cream.

Cremini Mushooms and Onions

These sauteed Cremini mushrooms and onions
make for a killer of a sandwich or grinder,
add on a slice or two of provelone cheese.
And a couple slices of roasted red pepper.
Man I think I just drooled on my keyboard!

Ingredients:
12 ounces of sliced mushrooms
1 onion, peeled and sliced
2 tablespoons olive oil
dash of garlic powder
dash of dried oregano
dash of white sugar
dash of salt or to taste
Deli sliced provelone cheese

Directions:
Preheat a large saute pan on medium heat.
Add in the olive oil and then the mushrooms.
Season with garlic powder, oregano and sugar.
Saute for about 10 minutes stirring a bit.
The mushrooms should get dark but not burnt.
Season with salt and remove mushrooms from pan.
Place a little more olive oil in pan and add in
the sliced onions, saute until onions are just
turning brown on the edges, about 10 minutes.
Remove onions and combine with sauteed mushrooms.
Use to make a great tasting grinder with cheese.

Roast Vegetables with Sausages

Root vegetables roast up to intense flavors.
Adding in a few Italian sausages makes this
a one pot meal and it's fantastic tasting.

Ingredients:
6 Italian sausages
1 onion, peeled and quartered
1 whole beet, rinsed clean
2 carrots, cut in serving pieces
2 celery stalks, in serving pieces
2 white potatoes, quartered
2 sweet potatoes, quartered
4 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon salt or to taste

Directions:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
Use a fork to prick the skins of the
Italian sausages a few times and place in pan.
Place prepared vegetables in roasting pan,
drizzle with oil ansd season with salt.
Cover pan and place in oven for 1 hour.
Remove pan and serve right out of the pan.

Pan Fried Flour Tortillas

Sauteed in butter to a golden brown
these are still soft making it easy
to use them in making wrap sandwiches.

Ingredients:
flour tortillas
unsalted butter
salt to taste

Directions:
Preheat a saute pan on medium heat.
Place in1 teaspoon butter to melt.
Place in flour tortilla and cook for
about 4 minutes until bottom is brown.
Turn over tortilla, cover pan, remove from heat.
Let pan sit for 4 minutes and serve tortilla.
Salt to taste and make a wrap if desired.

Baked Sweet Potato Fries

So easy to make and they taste great!
Drizzel on top some maple syrup for a treat.

Ingredients:
2 sweet potatoes
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons olive oil
salt for seasoning to taste

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
In a microwave melt butter with oil.
Wash and pat dry potatoes,
then cut potatoes into finger sized fries.
Place sliced potatoes in a mixing bowl
and add in buttered oil to coat all over.
Place on a shallow baking sheet to cook,
until crisy and brown an mighty good.
Season with salt to taste.

Shredded Wheat and Oatmeal Meatloaf

Now that the cold weather is upon us
I like to serve meatloaf of all types.
Here is a recipe that adds in some
shredded wheat cereal and oatmeal
in with a bell pepper ground beef mixture.
The meatloaf is tasty, juicy and holds
together well for making sandwiches.

Ingredients:
2 large eggs

1 cup milk

2 pounds ground beef 85/15

1 cup crushed shredded wheat cereal
1/4 cup oatmeal (not instant oatmeal)

1 (8 oz.) can stewed tomatoes, with juice

1 sweet onion, peeled and chopped

1/4 cup chopped green bell pepper
1/4 cup chopped red bell pepper

2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon prepared brown mustard

1 teaspoon salt or to taste

1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/2 cup prepared ketchup
4 tablespoons brown sugar

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
In a large bowl whisk together eggs,
worcestershire sauce, mustard and milk.
Add in ground beef, shredded wheat cereal,
oats, bell peppers, salt and ground pepper,  mixing well.
Shape meat mixture into oval loaf in shallow baking pan.
Pour ketchup on top and spread over entire meatloaf.
Sprinkle top with brown sugar.
Bake 1 hour or until cooked to 160 degrees F.
Remove and let rest for 10 minutes before serrving.

Mushrooms over Egg Noodles

You can make this into a casserole
by putting it in a baking dish and
topping with some crushed potato chips.
I like this as a side dish with a pork chop.

Ingredients:
4 ounces mushrooms, cleaned and sliced
half of a small onion, peeled and diced
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons olive oil
salt to taste
ground black pepper to taste
2 tablespoons flour
1 (14.5 ounce) can low sodium beef broth
1/4 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
small handful fresh parsley, chopped
1 pound of Egg Noodles, cooked

Directions:
Clean the mushrooms and slice.
Dice the onions and chop the parsley.
Heat a non-stick skillet over medium heat.
Add butter and olive oil to warm pan, melt butter.
Add onions and mushrooms, salt and pepper.
Saute until mushrooms for about 10 minutes.
Sprinkle on flour, stir around to combine.
Add beef broth and gently stir until the flour
combines in the liquid.
Add a few dashes of Worcestershire,
and bring to a slow boil, stirring constantly,
until gravy thickens to desired consistency.
Taste and season with salt and pepper to taste.
Stir in parsley. Spoon over noodles and serve.

Sauteed Mushrooms in Garlic

These mushrooms are good alone on a roll,
or served as a side dish along side meatloaf.
It's also good along side a roast chicken.

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 tablespoon olive oil

1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar

1 clove garlic,peeled and minced

1/8 teaspoon dried oregano

1 pound cremini mushrooms, sliced

Directions:

Melt butter with oil in a large skillet over medium heat.

Stir in balsamic vinegar, garlic, oregano, and mushrooms.

Saute for 20 minutes over medium heat until tender.

Wheat Blueberry Muffins

My Grandmother used to make tasty muffins
using All-Bran cereal and seeing how I have
a box of mini shredded wheat cereal on hand,
I figured I'd give it a go in making some muffins.

Imgredients:
1 1/2 cups flour
1/2 cup sugar
3 teaspoon baking powder
1 1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup crushed shredded wheat
1 egg, slightly beaten
3/4 cup milk
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup blueberries
1 tablespoon lemon juice

Directions:

Sift together flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt.
Stir in cereal. Add egg, milk, and oil.
Stir just until dry ingredients are moistened.
Fold in blueberries and lemon juice.
Fill greased 2 1/2 x 1 1/2 inch muffin tins about 2/3 full.
Bake at 400 degrees F. until done and browned, 18 minutes.

Mushroom Soup

I had a package of mushrooms in the refrigerator
and decided to make a good for you and tasty soup.

Ingredients:
6 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 onion, peeled and thinly sliced
12 ounces mushrooms, sliced
4 cups low sodium chicken stock
1/2 teaspoon dried parsley
2 ounces dry sherry
salt to taste
ground black pepper to taste


Directions:

Over medium heat, melt two tablespoons of the butter in a saucepan.
Toss in the onion and cook until soft but not browned.
Toss in the remaining butter and then add the mushrooms.
Saute on medium heat for about 8 minutes.
Pour in the chicken stock, add the parsley, and bring to a boil.
Reduce to a simmer and cook for an hour.
Puree soup with an immersion blender.
Pour in the sherry, and season with salt and pepper.

Chinese Sweet & Sour Sauce

This is a good sauce to use on fried chicken fingers.
Not to sweet or too sour for that matter.

Ingredients:
1 cup chicken stock
1/4 cup white sugar
1/4 cup prepared ketchup
3 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
2 teaspoons low sodium soy sauce
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon red cayanne pepper
3 tablespoons cornstarch
1 tablespoon cold water
1/4 teaspoon salt or to taste

Directions:
In a mixing bowl combine chicken stock
with sugar, ketchup, vinegar, soy sauce,
sesame oil, garlic powder and cayenne pepper
Place in a saucepan on medium heat to a simmer.
In a small bowl combine cold water and cornstarch.
Stir cornstarch mixture into saucepan thicken sauce.
Season sweet and sour sauce with salt to taste.

Honey Mustard Roast Chicken

Roasting a whole chicken isn't difficult to do.
Rubbing on some prepared mustard gives
the bird a clean spicy aromatic flavor.
I place vegetables on the bottom of the
roasting pan that serve as a roasting rack.
The vegetables take on the juices from
the bird as they cook to perfection.

Ingredients:
2 carrots, peeled
2 celery stalks
1 white onion, peeled and quartered
1 whole roasting chicken
1 whole fresh orange
2 tablespoons prepared spicy brown mustard
2 tablespoons clover honey
1 teaspoon olive oil
1/2 teaspoon salt
ground black pepper, optional

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Wash whole chicken inside and out,
pat dry with paper towels, set aside.
Prepare vegetables as desired, peel and
cut into serving pieces or leave whole.
Place vegetables on the bottom of roasting pan.
Drizzle vegetables with olive oil, season with salt.
Also season with ground black pepper if desired.
In a mixing bowl combine the mustard,
honey and soy sauce to make a paste.
Prepare chicken by using your hands to seperate
some of the skin from the body of the bird.
Place musturd mixture under the skin.
Use a fork to make holes in fresh orange
and put the orange inside the chicken.
Place prepared chicken on top of vegetables
in roasting pan, cover and cook for 70 minutes.
Remove roasting pan from oven and let rest for
10 minutes before uncovering and serving.

Buckwheat Pancakes or Ployes

These Buckwheat Pancakes or Ployes,
are served as a breakfast pancake.
They are not turned while on the grill,
browned on the bottom as air bubbles
appear on the top cooked to perfection.
I like these with a copious amount of butter.

Ingredients:
1 cup buckwheat flour
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup cold water
2 cups boiling water
1 tablespoons maple syrup
Unsalted butter for serving

Directions:
In a mixing bowl combine buckwheat flour
with the white flour, baking soda, sugar and salt.
Add and stir in the cold water and maple syrup.
Cover and let mixture sit for 30 minutes or so.
Preheat a flat griddle to medium heat.
Add boiling water to flour mixture, stir well.
Ladle buckwheat pancake batter into griddle,
let cook until air bubbles appear on top.
Remove pancake to a warming plate.
Repeat until all batter is used up.
Serve with butter and/or maple syrup.

Carmalized Onion Meatballs

These meatballs are great to serve as appetizers,
with spaghetti or any pasta for that matter.
Caramelizing the onions and toasting the spices
makes for a nice flavorful taste sensation.

Ingredients:
1 pound ground beef 85/15
1 pound ground pork
1 large egg, beaten
1 cup Italian flavored breadcrumbs
1/2 cup Pecorino Romano cheese, grated
2 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped
1/2 teaspoon salt or to taste
1 cup caramelized onions
1/2 teaspoon cumin seed
1/2 teaspoon coriander seed
1/2 teaspoon fennel seed
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1/2 teaspoon sweet smoked paprika
In a dry pan toast cumin, coriander
and fennel seeds over high heat.
As they start to get nice and aromatic
toss in red pepper flakes and continue
to toast for about 45 seconds to a minute.
Finely grind cumin seed, coriander seed,
fennel seed and red pepper flakes .
Mix ground spices with the smoked paprika.
In a mixing bowl thoroughly mix ground spices
with the ground beef, pork, egg, and bread crumbs.
Portion out and roll into meat balls.
Pan saute or bake the meatballs.

Honey Crisp Apple Pie

This is a one crust upside down apple pie.
You see I only had one prepared pie crust
and I didn't have time to make another.
So I simply filled the pie crust as you would
for making a pie and inverted the pie into
another pie plate so the bottom crust was
now the top crust, pretty cool huh?

Ingredients:
6 Honey Crisp apples
1/4 cup sugar
2 tablespoons cinnamon
dash of salt or to taste
1 tablespoon minute tapioca
2 tablespoon unsalted butter
1( 6 inch) flour tortilla
butter flavored cooking spray
sprinkle of salt to top pie crust

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Place into a large mixing bowl,
the sugar, cinnamon and dash of salt.
Peel apples and slice into mixing bowl.
Stir to coat apple slices all over with sugar.
Place pie crust in a pie plate and arrange
prepared apple slices on top of crust.
Dot apples with butter and fold the crust
from the outside of the pie inward.
Place the flour tortilla on center of the pie.
Spray butter flavored cooking spray
 in the bottom of anotherempty pie plate.
Place empty pie plate over apple pie and flip
upside down so that the bottom is now the top.
Bake pie for about 50 minutes or until top is
golden brown and apples start to bubble over.
Remove pie from oven, sprinkle salt on top.
Let pie cool before slicing and serving.

McDonald's Special Sauce

I'm sure you remember the advertisment jingle...
Two all beef patties, Special Sauce, lettuce, cheese,
pickles, onions on a sesame seed bun.
Here is a recipe I came up with for the special sauce.

Ingredients:
For one cup of sauce:
1 tablespoon white vinegar
1 cup Real mayonaise
1 tablepoon sweet pickle relish
1 teaspoon prepared yellow mustard
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon sweet paprika
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt

Directions:
Combine all ingredients in a mixing bowl.
Refrigerate covered until ready to serve.

Italian Lasagna Meat Sauce

I make this tomato based meat sauce the day
before I intend to put together a baked lasagna.
Letting it sit overnight in the refrigerator seems
to let the flavors combine together well.
It makes for the best tasting Italian Lasagna.

Ingredients:
1 green bell pepper, small dice
2 garlic cloves, peeled and minced
1 onion, peeled and small dice
dash of salt to taste
2 tablespoon olive oil for saute
1 pound ground sirloin
1 (15 ounce) can crushed tomatoes
1 tablespoon Worcestirshire sauce
dash of brown gravy sauce
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
dash of salt to taste

Directions:
Put oil in a large saute pan along with the
garlic, onion and green bell peppers.
Saute vegetables on high heat until softened,
lower heat. (Do not let them brown.)
Remove vegetables from pan then add in pan
the ground beef breaking it up with a spoon.
Add salt to the ground beef to taste.
Remove cooked beef from pan and drain the fat
from the pan then add back in beef and vegetables.
Stir to combine and add in the canned crushed tomatoes.
Season with salt, ground pepper and oregano to taste.
Bring to a boil and then turn off heat, cover pan.
let pan sit on stove for 1 hour or until cool enough to
place meatsauce in a covered container for refrigerator.

Peaches and Pears for Dessert

This is so simple to make and a good way
to finish a dinner with a light dessert.

Ingredients:
1 (12 ounce) canned sliced  peaches in heavy syrup
1 (12 ounce) canned sliced pears in light syrup
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes

Directions:
Open can of cling peaches, drain syrup and place
sliced peaches in a serving bowl.
Open can of pears and do not drain
and add pears with juice into serving bowl.
Season with salt and red pepper flakes to taste.

Sausage and Pepper Casserole

Made with Italian sausage and green bell pepper
this is a good casserole to serve on a cold day.
You can use any small pasta or even white rice.
This tastes like an Italian sausage and pepper
grinder with pasta in place of the bread.

Ingredients:
4 hot Italian sausage links
2 green bell pepper, diced
1 cup uncooked orzo pasta

1 (14 ounce) can low sodium beef stock
1 (8 ounce) can  crushed tomato sauce
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
Olive oil for coating bottom of dish

Directions:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

Coat bottom of a 11x7-inch baking dish.

Cut each sausage link into 1/2"  pieces.

Place sausage in a 12-inch nonstick skillet,

brown sausage over medium heat 10  minutes,

stirring until no longer pink. remove sausage

and place in prepared baking dish then add

in the remaining ingredients except cheese.

Cover baking dish with aluminum foil.

Bake 45 minutes. Uncover and stir well.

Sprinkle top of casserole with shredded cheese.

Bake uncovered about 10 minutes to melt cheese.

Rice Crispy Scrambled Eggs

Rice Crispy cereal adds a little crunchy sweetness
to scrambled eggs that the kids get a kick out of.
Try this recipe and take credit for inventing it.

Ingredients:
For each serving:
1 large egg, beaten
1 teaspoon cold water
1/2 teaspoon unsalted butter
1/4 cup Rice Crispy cereal

Directions:
Melt butter in a saute pan,
crack open egg in a measuring cup
and beat with the water until blended.
Place egg in pan and cook until almost set,
sprinkle in cereal and stir to combine.
Remove scrambled egg to a serving plate.

Perfect Tasting TeaUsing a Keurig Brewer

Make a good tasting cup of tea
with a Keurig coffee brewer.
The water is the correct temperature
and in one minute you can enjoy it.
I like a little sweet in my tea,
so I add in some sugar in the cup.

Ingredients:
For one cup of tea:
1 tea bag of choice
1/2 teaspoon sugar
8 ounces water

Directions:
Place sugar in coffee mug and set on brewer.
Preheat Keurig brewer and when ready,
open top and place the tea where you
would insert a K-cup to brew coffee.
Close top and press appropriate button
to brew the best tasting cup of hot tea.

Stovetop Stuffing Meatballs

Using Stovetop Chicken flavored stuffing mix
in these meatballs is an easy way to season
them and the meatballs stay moist and tender.
Also these meatballs are baked not fried in oil.

Ingredients:
1 pound ground beef 85/15
1 (6 ounce) Stovetop chicken stuffing
1 cup cold water
1 large egg, beaten
Cooking spray

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil.
Lightly spray foil with cooking spray.
In a mixing bowl combine ground beef
with stuffing mix, water, and egg.
Using your hands shape meat mixture
into one inch sized balls.
Place meatballs onto prepared pan.
Bake for about 15 minutes or until done.

Bite Size Wheat Snacks

Coated with chocolate and peanut butter,
these tasty wheat snacks are easy to make.

Ingredients:
6 cups shredded wheat cereal,
(frosted bite sized)
6 ounces chocolate chips
1/4 cup peanut butter, creamy
1 cup powdered sugar

Directions:
Place 6 cups bite-sized frosted shredded
wheat cereal in a large mixing bowl.
Place chocolate chips and peanut butter
in a microwave safe bowl, heat on high
setting until melted, stir to mix together.
Pour peanut butter mixture over cereal
and stir with a wooden spoon to coat all over.
Let mixture cool for ten minutes and then
stir in powdered sugar until snacks are coated.
Store in an air tight container.

Egg Nog French Toast

This time of year in the grocery stores
sitting next to the milk is egg nog.
Egg nog makes for a gourmet french toast.
People that taste this are speachless.
Serve up a batch of these with some
fresh berries and some whipped cream,
Priceless!

Ingredients:
1 quart prepared egg nog
6 thick slices white bread
Butter for browning
Whipped cream on the side
Fresh berries on the side

Directions:
Soak bread slices in egg nog,
grill in butter until browned.
Garnish as desired.

Preasure Cooker Chicken

KFC like cooked chicken is easy to make.
It tastes almost like the restaurant's.
Keep the cooked chicken warm in a oven
until all chicken pieces are cooked.
Ingredients:
16 pieces cut up chicken, marinated
6 cups Crisco shortening
1 egg, well beaten
2 cups buttermilk
2 cups flour
2 teaspoons ground pepper
3 Tablespoons salt
1 teaspoon msg
1/8 teaspoon garlic powder
1 dash paprika

Directions:
Place shortening into pressure cooker and heat
over medium heat until it reaches 400 degrees F.
In a small bowl, combine the egg and milk.
In a separate bowl, combine the flour,
pepper, msg, garlic powder and paprika.
Dip each piece of chicken into the milk.
Roll the moistened chicken in the flour mixture
until well coated. In groups of four or five,
drop the coated chicken pieces into
preasure cooker with shortening, lock the lid.
When pressure builds up cook for 10 minutes.
Release the lid, remove chicken,
drain chicken on paper towels and
keep chicken warm in a 250 degree F. oven
until all chicken is preasure cooked.
Serve chicken warm with a side of cole slaw.

Quick Chipotle Sauce

Chipotle sauce is served with tacos
and all kinds of great Mexican dishes.
Here is an easy to make recipe for
a good all around chipotle sauce.

Ingredients:
1/2 cup Real mayonnaise
1/3 cup plain Greek yogurt
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon dried dill
1 chipotle chile in adobo sauce
Salt to taste

Directions:
In a mixing bowl combine mayonaise,
with yogurt, oregano, cumin, dill
chopped chile in adobo sauce.
Add in some salt to taste.
Refrigerate until ready to use.

Cottage Cheese Lasagna

Using cottage cheese in place of ricotta
makes for a creamy and good tasting lasagna.
Ingredients:
cold water to cook noodles in
9 regular lasagna noodles
1 pound ground beef 85/15
36 ounces tomato sauce
16 ounces cottage cheese
2 large eggs, beaten
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
8 ounces mozzarella cheese, shredded
1/2-1 cup grated parmesan cheese

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Place a large pot on stove with water
bring to boil and cook the noodles.
In a saute pan, brown ground beef,
drain excess fat, add tomato sauce.
In a mixing bowl combine cottage cheese,
eggs, oregano, garlic, and black pepper.
When noodles are done,rinse with cold water.
Prepare lasagna by first placings some sauce
in the bottom of a 9×13 lasagna pan.
Top sauce with 3 cooked noodles,
then some cottage cheese mixture,
mozzarella and parmesan cheese.
Put in some of the drained ground beef.
Repeat until all ingredients are used.
Making sure to spread tomto sauce on top
of noodles to keep them from drying out.
Bake, uncovered, for 60 minutes.
Let cool for 15 minutes before serving.

Simple Fried Onion Rings

If you like onions you must try this.
Simply sliced and floured onion rings,
deep fried to crispy and tasty perfection.
So simple, so easy and so good tasting!
Don't forget to salt them while warm.

Ingredients:
4 white or yellow onions
4 cups all purpose flour
Corn oil for deep frying
Salt to taste for serving

Directions:
Preheat deep frying oil to 360 degrees F.
Peel onions and slice into really thin rings.
Place sliced onion rings into a mixing bowl,
add in flour and mix well to coat onions.
Shake off excess flour and place onion rings
in batches into hot oil until golden brown.
Season with salt before serving.

Mushrooms with Bread Stuffing

I use my bread stuffing for shrimp
to fill a dozen cremini mushrooms
and make a great tasting appetizer.
The secret is in using real butter.

12 cremini mushrooms, cleaned
1 cup flavored dried bread crumbs
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 teaspoon sugar
grated parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
In a food processor pulse together
the bread crumbs, butter and sugar.
Stuff the mushrooms with this mixture.
Sprinkle top of stuffed mushroom with cheese.
Place stuffed mushrooms on a foil line baking sheet.
Bake for about 20 minutes or until done.

White Rice for Stir Fry

This is an easy recipe to make white rice
that is perfectly cooked for a stir fry.

Ingredients:
4 cups cold water
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 cups dried rice

Directions:
Bring water to a boil in a uncovered saucepan.
Stir in rice and then turn off heat.
let the rice sit in thecooking water 10 minutes.
Raise heat to high and bring to a boil again,
turn off heat and allow to sit another 10 minutes.
Use a slotted spoon to remove rice from pan.
Place cooked rice in a container with a cover,
refrigerate overnight befrore using in a stir fry.

Green Potato Salad

Microwaved fresh Kale is pared with
horseradish spiced crispy potatoes.
This is an easy to make side dish.

Ingredients:
8 cups kale leaves, torn
2 tablespoons prepared horseradish
1 medium shallot, minced
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon salt or to taste
2 cups shredded potatoes, cooked
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

Directions:
Place torn kale in a large microwave-safe bowl,
cover and microwave on high setting until wilted.
Drain water from kale, then finely chop.
In a mixing bowl combine prepared horseradish,
shallot, ground black pepper and salt.
Add the chopped kale and potatoes.
Heat oil in a large saute pan over medium heat.
Add the kale mixture and cook stirring occationally.
Until potatoes begin to turn golden brown and crisp.
Remove green potato salad to a serving platter.

Fire Placed Sweet Potatoes

Got a fireplace and a nice hot fire?
Cook sweet potatoes for a taste treat.
It's easy to do and is amazing tasting.
The skin of the potato gets crispy brown,
the potato is all creamy and smokey good.
If you have a fire, do this it's very good.

Ingredients:
For each sweet potato

1 fresh whole sweet potato
1 teaspoon olive oil
1 teaspoon brown sugar
Dash of salt or to taste

Directions:
Make a wood fueled fire in fireplace.
Rinse potato and dry with paper towel.
Use your hands to completly coat
skin of potato with olive oil.
Place potato on a piece of aluminum foil
that is large enough to wrap it up in.
Sprinkle oil coated potato with salt
and also a sprinkle of brown sugar.
Wrap potato up inside aluminum foil.
Place aluminum foil wrapped potato on
another large piece of aluminum foil.
Wrap foil around potato and seal tightly.
Place foil sealed potato in fireplace.
Let cook for 60 minutes, turning a few times
to keep all sides of the potato near the coals.
Using metal tongs remove cooked potato from fire.
Open aluminum foil and cut potato in half,
serve with unsalted butter if desired.