Post Your Recipes!

Apple French Toast

2009-04-21T20:28:00.003-05:00

Apple French Toast

3 apples, pared and sliced thin

8 eggs, beaten slightly

3 cups milk - mix with eggs
1 Tblsp. vanilla - add to egg/milk mixture
1/4 cup sugar - add to above mixture
3 Tblsp. butter

Cinnamon to taste
1/2 cup sugar

1 large loaf of French bread - Slice 1-1/2" thick and lay slices flat into 9 x 13 buttered pan or glass baking dish. Squeeze the slices in an snug as possible!

Pour 1/2 of the egg mixture over the bread, spread apples evenly over the bread, then pour the other 1/2 of the egg mixture over the apples.

Top with cinnamon/sugar mixture, and dot with butter.

Bake at 350° (glass) or 400° (metal) for 50 minutes. You can also assemble this dish the night before, and put it in the fridge overnight. Get up a bit early and pop it in the oven. By the time everyone else is up and dressed, breakfast is ready!

Serve with fresh cream (whipped or unwhipped!)

Shortbread

2009-04-21T20:21:00.002-05:00

Shortbread
From Clara

4 oz sugar

8 oz butter

12 oz plain flour

Melt butter and combine all ingredients together.

Spread into a 6" x 12" pan

Bake at 350ºF for 30 minutes. Do not overcook or it will be crunchier. If it is cooked the right length of time, this shortbread will melt in your mouth!!

Sprinkle with sugar and allow shortbread to cool in the pan.

(Can be eaten warm, but we prefer it cold).

French Toast

2009-03-14T20:14:00.001-05:00

This is not really a recipe......I just throw it together, and it is easy to make as much or as little as you need!

For 6 people, I would use:

7 eggs - Put them in a bowl that is wide enough for a slice of bread at the bottom, and beat slightly.

Milk - It all depends on how eggy you like your French toast. If you are like me, you don't want too much of an egg flavor. I just pour milk in until the eggs "look right", which means I probably put in about 1 cup....like I said, it varies. Experiment! :-)

Sugar - I use probably 1/4 to 1/3 cup. Use more if you like your French toast sweeter. If you'd rather use honey, you're on your own, because I have never used it with French toast. Let me know it turns out with honey! :-)

Cinnamon - I love cinnamon. It's one of my favorite spices! I put in quite a bit, probably 1-1/2 tsp. If you don't like cinnamon, leave it out, but the toast won't taste the same! :-(

Mix all the above together well, then get your griddle heated up! Dip bread slices in the egg mix, and flip them quickly so the bread doesn't absorb too much liquid and distenigrate on you! Place the dipped bread slices on a moderately hot griddle and watch for the bread to dry out on the bottom edge that is touching the griddle. Make sure to brown it nicely on both sides.

Voila! There's your French toast :-)

Barbecue Sauce

2009-02-20T16:20:00.001-06:00

Barbecue Sauce
From Mary

1 C ketchup

2 Tbl. cider vinegar

3/4 C + 1 Tbl. packed brown sugar*

2 tsp. prepared mustard

1 tsp. salt

1 tsp. hot pepper sauce

1 bay leaf

1/2 tsp. onion powder

1/2 tsp garlic powder

1/2 C water

Combine all ingredients. Bring to a boil, stirring occasionally. Reduce heat; cover and simmer 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Discard bay leaf. Can be stored in fridge for 2-3 months.

*Use more or less sugar to your liking.

Hot Fudge Pudding

2009-01-22T22:20:00.004-06:00

Hot Fudge Pudding
From Mary.

Stir with a wire whisk:
1 Cup flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 Tablespoons cocoa powder
3/4 Cup sugar

Add and mix:
1/2 Cup milk
2 Tablespoons melted shortening

Add and mix:
1 Cup chopped nuts
Pour into a greased 9 inch square pan.
(Use 9 by 13 inch cake pan for double recipe.)

Mix:
1/4 Cup brown sugar
4 Tablespoons cocoa powder
1 3/4 Cups hot water
Pour carefully over the batter.
Bake at 350 degrees for 40- 45 minutes.

The layers will reverse during baking.

Serve warm or cooled. Good with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream on top.

Recipes?

2008-10-20T00:16:00.003-05:00

Well, I didn't want to hog this blog (hey, I rhymed!) with all my recipes, but I may have to after all. ;) Please email me with your recipes and I'll post them! I'll give credit to you with your first name, unless you want to be nicknamed "Anonymous." Hee hee!

I'll try to start posting some things more regularly! I realized some of my favorite recipes are right out of a cookbook, and those always say "no unauthorized copying." So what's a hungry person to do? I guess I'll have to go change a little something in all my favorite recipes so they aren't exactly the same as the book! :)

Recipes

2008-07-03T15:32:00.002-05:00

I'm sorry for not posting here more. Please send me your favorite recipes so I have something to post! ;) I haven't been doing much cooking lately, unfortunately.

Anytime Quiche

2008-06-21T21:53:00.004-05:00

Anytime Quiche
This is a quick and easy dish because you can add whatever veggies or meat you like.

No crust makes it a low-carb-but-still-yummy dinner!

Just use these ingredients to taste....add more or less of favorite meat or veggies.

This serves as many people as you want it to!

Ham or Bacon - cut in small cubes
Frozen spinach - thawed
Onions - chopped
Carrots - shredded
Broccoli - cut in small pieces
Tomatoes - canned or fresh, chopped (optional)
Eggs - 1 egg per person, plus 1
Milk and/or Cream - probably 1 cup total

Garlic - powder or fresh
Salt & Pepper

In large bowl, combine all ingredients. If desired, first saute the veggies with a bit of butter or olive oil to give extra flavor. Be sure ham and veggies are evenly coated with egg mixture.

Baking dish size depends on the amount of ingredients.

Bake at 350º-400º until the top is just barely brown, and the middle is just set.

Let it sit for about 5 minutes to allow settling.

Serve with whatever else you have!

Homemade Bread!

2008-06-10T23:03:00.003-05:00

This is my favorite recipe for homemade bread.

Makes 2 loaves.

In a saucepan combine:
-2 cups milk
-1 tblsp. salt
-4 tblsp. butter (1/2 stick. And it has to be real butter! I always use salted sweet cream)

Heat the milk, salt and butter in the pan until tiny bubbles form around the edge of the pan. Remove from heat and let cool to about 110°F.

In a large mixing bowl OR a 2-cup measuring cup add:
1/2 cup warm water (no warmer than 115°F, else it will kill the yeast.)
1 package active dry yeast
2 tblsp. sugar

Sprinkle the yeast over the warm water, then add the sugar. Stir well and set aside to "proof" the yeast. (If the yeast is alive, bubbly foam will quickly begin to form on the surface of the water!)

Pour the proofed yeast water into a large mixing bowl if needed. Add the milk/salt/butter mixture (make sure it's not too hot!) and mix well.

You will need approximately 5 cups of flour. I like to use 1/2 white flour and 1/2 whole wheat. If you're feeling very industrious, grind some fresh whole wheat flour to use! I've only used store-bought whole wheat flour myself, but I know fresh-ground would taste even better!

Begin stirring the flour into the liquid mixture. I just keep stirring it in until it's too stiff to stir, then I use my hands. Keep adding small amounts of flour as you carefully knead the dough in the bowl. If it's really humid outside, you might need more than 5 cups, but be careful. You can always add more flour, but you can't take it out if you add too much! Once you have the right amount of flour added, the dough will suddenly change consistency. It will become smooth and velvety! It will be a bit sticky, but not enough to stick to your hands. Dump it out on a lightly floured clean surface and knead until you think it's had enough. ;) The recipe I adapted this from says 10 minutes, but I don't think I've ever kneaded my bread that long! Kneading helps develop the gluten which makes for a nice texture, so if you want to knead for 10 minutes, go for it! :) My bread has an excellent texture (in my unbiased opinion) with 5 minutes of kneading.

Next, grease your (cleaned) large mixing bowl with butter or olive oil and plop the dough in the bottom. Roll it around to coat it with the grease. Cover the bowl with a towel and put it in a warm, slightly humid enclosure. I set mine in the microwave and put a big cup of very hot water in beside it, and close the door.

Let the dough rise until it has approximately doubled in size. It could take anywhere from 1-2 hours depending on how warm you keep it, and also the weather conditions.

When the dough is doubled in size, punch it down with your fist in the bowl. Turn out onto a clean surface and knead for a couple of minutes. You might need to sprinkle a tiny bit more flour in with it at this point.

After kneading for a few minutes, cut the dough in half. Form each piece into a ball and lay on the clean surface. Cover with a towel and let sit for 5 minutes.

After 5 minutes, roll each dough ball into a rectangle, with a rolling pin. Make the rectangles approximately 9"x 12". Roll the dough up from the short side as tightly as possible. Press the ends down to seal them, and turn the ends under.

Grease 2 bread pans with butter, and lay the rolled dough in the pans. Brush the dough with melted butter!

Cover the pans with a towel and let the dough rise as before, until doubled in size. This won't take as long as the first rising.

Preheat oven to 400°F. Bake the loaves until lightly browned. To check for doneness, dump a loaf out in your protected hand and thump the bottom. It should sound hollow.

If you can stand it, let the bread cool for about 10 minutes before slicing. Be sure to have plenty of butter and homemade preserves handy, and don't bother making supper for the kids. ;)

Mini Fudge Cupcakes

2008-05-16T16:48:00.002-05:00

AKA Blue Bonnet's Fudge Pie
From What's cooking at the Bluebonnet Cafe

(Be sure to read my notes at the bottom of the recipe!)

6ozs butter (1-1/2 sticks! Yes, I know that's a lot of butter! But it's worth it!)
3-1oz squares unsweetened chocolate

1/2 cup flour
3 eggs, beaten
1-1/2 cups sugar
2 tsp. vanilla
1/8 tsp. salt

Melt chocolate and butter together over low heat. Mix remaining ingredients together in a separate bowl. Gradually pour in the melted chocolate and butter while mixing. After mixture is well-beaten, **pour into an unbaked 9-inch pie shell.

Bake at 325° for 35-40 minutes.

**No matter what I did, this recipe just does not work well for me in pie form. I've tried both conventional and convection settings on my oven, and 35-40 minutes is just not long enough. The pie is still very "liquidy" after that amount of time. To get it cooked enough, I've had to turn up the temperature a lot higher and bake the pie nearly twice as long, which is rather time-consuming.

My solution was to make mini cupcakes! I happened to have 4 of the mini muffin tins on hand already, so I put papers in them and filled them up. (Using 2 large spoons for this part works well, because the batter tends to thicken very quickly after it cools.)

Bake these cupcakes at 325° for 15 minutes, and they are perfect! I put all 4 tins in the oven at once and it works out perfectly. If you try other methods for baking this batter, please let me know what works for you!

Cream Biscuits

2008-05-16T11:34:00.002-05:00

From the Homestead Cooking cookbook.

Cream Biscuits
Makes 10-12

2 cups pastry flour (we use regular flour)
3 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1 cup sweet cream (sweet cream simply means cream that isn't soured)

-Preheat oven to 450°.
-Grease 1 large or 2 medium-size cookie sheets and set aside.
-In a medium-size bowl, sift flour, baking powder and salt.
-Using a fork, stir in cream. Be careful not to overmix. Dough will be soft.
-Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead for about 30 seconds.
-Turn smooth side up and pat or roll out to 1/2-inch thickness. Dip a 2-inch biscuit cutter in flour and cut out biscuits.
-Place biscuits on greased cookie sheet and bake for 10-12 minutes.

MACQUICHE

2008-05-13T08:58:00.003-05:00

MACQUICHE
From Darlene

Serves 8 (Good for when you have an over-abundance of zucchini in your garden!)

MACQUICHE

4 cups whole-wheat macaroni
3 TBSP butter, divided
2 cups sliced carrots
2 cups diced zucchini
1/2 cup sliced green onions
1 large clove garlic, pressed or minced
1 cup diced ham
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 tsp salt
1 cup 2% milk
2 cups half-and-half
3 eggs
2 cups shredded sharp Cheddar cheese
2 cups shredded Mexican-blend cheese

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cook macaroni in unsalted water to al
dente. Drain and allow to cool to room temperature. Melt 1 1/2 TBSP
butter to medium-sized skillet over medium heat. Add carrots and saute
for 1 minute. Melt remaining butter in same skillet with carrots; add
zucchini and saute for another minute. Add green onions and garlic and
saute for another 30 seconds. (Veggies will be crisp-tender.) Stir in
ham, Parmesan and salt. In large bowl, combine veggie-ham mix with
macaroni and cups of Cheddar and Mexican cheeses (mixed together),
reserving the other cup for topping.

Spoon macaroni mixture into buttered 9 X 13 pan. Beat eggs and combine
with milk and half-and-half. Pour over macaroni mix. Bake 30 minutes
and sprinkle remaining cheese evenly over top of casserole. Bake until
knife blade inserted in center shows only a little thickened custard
(about 10 more minutes or so). Serves 6-8.

Recipes!

2008-05-12T20:26:00.002-05:00

Hi!
Welcome to my recipe blog. I love cooking, and I wanted to share my favorite recipes with everyone! I always love trying new recipes, so I'd like to have you contribute your favorite recipes so I can post them!

The only catch I have for posting your recipes is that you have to have tried them (and liked them!) yourself. :) Please don't send something you haven't tried first. I want to have all categories represented!

Meats, veggies, fruits, snacks, sweets...we love it all! I would also love recipes that cater to food allergies, such as gluten-free, egg, dairy, soy, wheat-free....anything like that.

Simply post your recipe in the comments section, and I will post it in the blog with the appropriate label so others can find it and enjoy it, too. :) If the recipe is too long to fit in the comments section, just email me at: psalm1002@gmail.com .

I will credit any recipes that aren't mine, unless you tell me otherwise. I'll use your first name only. :)