Broccoli Cheese Soup

With the coming on of fall, a nice hot bowl of soup was being called for.  Papa Bear is spending all his time in the fields which left me eating this whole batch all by myself!  (oink oink oink)  This recipe is quite simple to whip up and put in the crock pot leaving only some stirring while it cooks.

Broccoli/cauliflower soup

1/2 C. onion, chopped
2 Tbls butter or margarine
1 (10 oz) can cream of chicken soup
1 (10 oz) bag frozen chopped broccoli
1 1/2 C. Milk

Saute onion in butter.  Combine all the ingredients on low in crock pot for 3-4 hours.  You do NOT want to add salt to this recipe.  For a thinner soup, add additional milk one cup at a time.  I usually end up adding at least two cups.  I don't like the big chunks so I throw just the veggies for a quick spin in the food processor.  

This recipe could be used with just broccoli, just cauliflower or just whatever veggie you would like to use.  it pares very well with a nice thick slice of homemade bread. 

Cowboy Candy

Year after year I plant a garden with all the best intentions of canning up the fruits (and vegetables) of my labor only to get about half way through the summer and lose momentum.  The weeds take over, I get overwhelmed and that is about the end of it.  Not this year!  Wowzers, my garden did well and I did well too!  Weeds were kept down, watering was kept up and the Lord blessed me with so much bounty I was begging people to come over and pick my garden for their use while I was away on vacation.

Among other crazy growers this year were my jalapeno plants.  Who knew those things would produce SO much?  I cut up and froze  them by the cookie sheet to then be stored in freezer bags.  I canned them in half pieces to be used for stuffed jalapenos.  I even tried something new for Papa Bear since he is such a lover of hot things: Cowboy Candy.  I am NOT a lover of hot things, but I gave it the old college try and took one bite...too hot for me, but Papa Bear absolutely loves them.  I ended up with a total of twelve 1/2 pints of them canned up, and I'm thinking I'm going to have to hide them in the pantry to make them last until next garden.

Cowboy Candy

Recipe says it yields 4 half pints, but I got 6 both times.

*3 pounds firm, fresh jalapeno peppers, washed and sliced into 1/4 slices WEAR GLOVES
*2 C. cider vinegar
*6 C. white granulated sugar
*1/2 tsp. turmeric
*1/2 tsp celery seed
*3 tsp. granulated garlic (I used garlic salt)
*1 tsp. ground cayenne pepper (I didn't have any so I used crushed red pepper flakes)

In a large saucepan, bring all ingredients except peppers to a boil over medium-high heat.  Reduce heat and simmer 5 minutes. Add peppers, careful not to splash, and simmer 4 minutes.  Using a slotted spoon, ladle peppers into hot jars leaving 1/4 inch head space.  Turn heat up on syrup and bring to a full, rolling boil.  Boil hard for 6 minutes.  Ladle syrup into jars leaving 1/4 inch head space.  Remove air bubbles and adjust head space again if necessary.. Wipe rims down, center lids and tighten bands to fingertip resistance.  Place jars canner and process in boiling water bath 10 minutes for 1/2 pints and 15 minutes for pints.

* After processing, remove lid from canner and leave jars in for another 5 minutes.  Slowly remove jars and place on a towel in a draft free area for at least 12 hours. Removing jars immediately after canning can cause hissing and loss of liquid.

You may want to be in a well ventilated room while making this as the smell from the syrup is quite potent.  Both times making this, my sinuses got a good clearing out.  

Stewed tomatoes for canning

'Tis the season for canning up what the garden has brought forth.  I've spent the last few days on corn, with still more to go, but decided to take a break and throw in a batch of stewed tomatoes.  MmMmMm...my house is smelling yummy!  I thought I would use the recipe from Ball Blue Book, but it just didn't seem to have enough flavor.  What is a girl to do but turn to Google.  After looking at different recipes, I kind of concocted one for myself. 

Stewed Tomatoes

4 qt. chopped tomato (I did not take the skin off)
1 C. chopped celery
1 C. chopped onion
1 C. chopped green pepper
2 T. sugar
2 tsp. salt
4 T. minced garlic
1 T. Italian seasoning

Combine all ingredients in a large saucepot.  Cover and bring to a boil, stirring prevent sticking.  Boil for 10 minutes.  Ladle into hot pint jars, leaving 1 inch headspace.  Process 15 minutes at 10 pounds pressure.

This gave me 6 pints with a bit left over, which will be going over some noodles later.  I think next time I will add 1 can of tomato paste to help thicken it up.


**Make sure to follow all safety measures and instructions when canning any type of food**

Tortilla chips and Avocado dip

I am a big fan of all things junk food.  However, I am getting no younger and my old body can no longer tolerate all the junk.  That being said, my taste buds are still wanting it.  It's a constant battle between the two of them.  One that I am caught in the middle of. 

I have been doing my best to try and make both of them happy.  The following recipes for chips and dip hit the nail square on the head.  My body is happy~my taste buds are happy~life is good!

Baked Tortilla Chips

As you can see, there are very few ingredients necessary for these chips. 
Soft flour tortilla shells
Non-stick spray
Seasoning of your choice

Preheat oven to 450*
Cut tortillas into 8 triangles.
Spray with cooking spray.
Sprinkle with seasoning.

Arrange triangles on cookie sheet or baking stone and bake for 10 minutes or until crisp.  You may need to turn triangles if they are not done at 10 minutes.

While chips are cooking, you can take a couple of minutes and make the:

Spicy Avocado Dip

2 Avocados
3/4 C. Salsa
juice of Lime or lemon
1/2 C. Sour cream

Scoop out and mash avocado.  Add rest of ingredients and mix well.  Serve with tortilla chips.

Chicken and Broccoli Pie

 

 

I just can't seem to get enough of my Betty Crocker's Bisquick Cookbook these days.  I have gobs of sticky notes marking pages for recipes I still want to try.  One thing that seems to be consistent with the recipes already tried is needing to add extra seasoning.  By following the recipes as they are written, the end result seems to be a bit bland for the taste of Papa Bear and I.  That is an easy fix though, so I'm not too concerned about it.

Last night I made chicken and broccoli pie.  Outside of needing a bit more seasoning, it was very good.  It is getting marked as a keeper for future use.  There recipe calls for making it in a 9" pie pan, however, I don't see any reason it could not be made in a casserole dish.  I will give you the recipe as it is written and you can tweak it to fit your own individual taste.

Chicken and Broccoli Pie

1 10oz package frozen broccoli, thawed, drained and chopped
1 1/2 C. shredded cheddar cheese (6oz)
1 C cut up chicken
1 medium onion, chopped
1/2 C. Bisquick
1 C. milk
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
2 eggs

1. Heat oven to 400*.  Grease  9" pie plate.  Put broccoli, onion, chicken and 1 cup of cheese in pie plate.

2. Stir remaining ingredients (except cheese) until blended.  Pour into pie plate. 

3. Bake 30-35 minutes or until knife inserted in center comes out clean.  Sprinkle with remaining 1/2 cup cheese.  Bake 1-2 minutes or until cheese is melted.  Let stand 5 minutes before serving.

Next time I make this, I might try using some cream of mushroom soup in place of the milk for a bit more flavor.  I may also add a bit of dill to the wet mixture. 

Crab Cakes

I've had a Betty Crocker's Bisquick Cookbook for several years sitting on the shelf with all the other cookbooks.  I was feeling a bit adventurous and decided to plan my menu around this cookbook for a week.  Oh my goodness!  I have been having such a wonderful time trying new recipes out on Papa Bear.  He really is a great guinea pig for me.  The other night I tried the Crab Cakes recipe and it is so darn good I had to share it with all of you.  I will tell you, the recipe below is not exactly the same as I made it...I did a bit of tweaking to it.  Also, I used imitation lobster instead of the crab as that is what I had in the freezer.

Crab Cakes
1 T. margarine or butter
1/3 C. each finely chopped onion, green pepper and celery.
1 C. soft bread crumbs (I used crunched up crackers)
1/2 C. Bisquick
2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
1/4 tsp. pepper
1/4 tsp. salt
2 eggs, slightly beaten
1 14oz package imitation crab flakes, chopped

I also added 1/2 T. horseradish and 1/2 tsp. seasoning salt to give the patties more flavor.

1. Heat oven to 400*. Generously grease 2 cookie sheets.  Melt margarine in 10" skillet over medium heat.  Cook onion, celery and green pepper in margarine about 3 minutes, stirring occasionally. 

2. Mix vegetable mixture and remaining ingredients.  Shape mixture into 1 1/2" patties.  Place on cookie sheets.

3. Bake about 12 minutes, turning once, until golden brown.  Serve with cocktail sauce.

Instead of baking these, I heated vegetable oil in the skillet over medium-high heat and cooked the patties 4-5 minutes, turning them over once.  They will reach a beautiful golden brown.

Papa Bear liked these so much he gave me permission to make them again!   I want to add, these are just as good heated up the next day in the microwave for about 45-60 seconds.

Italian Raisin Pasta Salad

Last night I stood in my pantry with my hands on my hips trying to figure out what I wanted to go with the spicy oven fried chicken I was making. It was a tad warm out so I didn't want anything hot and heavy.

Still standing there looking.


Still standing there looking.


I spotted the pasta shelf and decided I would go that route, but didn't want the same old same olds that I normally make. I guess I was feeling a bit adventurous as I decided to come up with my own recipe. Because I couldn't come up with anything more exciting in the name department, I'm just gonna go with Italian Raisin Pasta Salad. Yeah, no creative juices were flowing when I came up with that one.

Italian Raisin Pasta Salad

4 C. pasta noodles cooked, rinsed and cooled. (I used bowtie noodles)
1 1/2-2 C. Italian dressing
1/2 avocado~chopped
3 T. banana peppers~finely chopped
1 T. spicy brown mustard
2 1.5oz boxes of raisins
1 C. cucumber~chopped
1/2 C blue cheese crumbles
big handful of spinach~coarsely chopped
1 small tomato~chopped

Mix all of this together. Pour over noodles and mix well. Refrigerate until cold.

This would also be good as a main meal with some grilled chicken on top.

I served this with spicy oven fried chicken and home canned cinnamon pineapple.

Circa 21 Salad Recipe

Last Sunday afternoon I was enjoying the company of ten other ladies as we left town heading west to the Quad Cities. Our destination was Circa 21 Dinner Theater. There are a group of us ladies who make this trip two or three times a year. It seems our numbers grow with each adventure (word must be getting out about the crazy ladies!).

On this particular trip, the dinner salad was so awesome I vowed to find the dressing to be able to make it at home. This incredible dressing was a cinnamon apple dressing, one I had never had before. In my searching for this recipe, I was fortunate enough to come across the exact salad!

This will not only make a wonderful addition to a meal, I'm also thinking it will be great as the meal all by itself on the hot days of summer.

Give this a try and I hope you find it as enjoyable as I did.

Egg Bread Recipe

I grew up on cheap white bread, to this day, it is what I prefer. I've been trying to do better about eating whole grains, I'm just not developing a real love for whole grain bread though. Oh, I suffer through and eat it because it's good for me, but it is definitely not my first choice in bread...cheap white bread is.

As I looked through my bread recipes yesterday, I came across one my friend Karyn from The Teakettle Corner gave me several years ago. I had completely forgotten about this little jewel. It's as close to cheap white bread as any homemade bread I have made. I teased Papa Bear with the smell of it, then teased him more as I explained how very light the loaf was, but he couldn't eat any of it yet as it needed to cool. When he was finally allowed to dive into it, he asked if I was going to make another loaf tomorrow! Believe me, this is really something coming from a die-hard wheat bread eater. I'm thinking next time I make it, I'll put the flour as 1/2 white and 1/2 wheat and see how it turns out. Who knows, if whole wheat bread can be as soft as white bread, I may just learn to eat it.

Egg Bread

1/2 C. water
2 C. white bread flour (I used regular white flour)
1 T. sugar
1 tsp. salt
2 1/2 T. butter
1 egg
1 egg yolk (reserve white for later)
either 3/4 tsp fast rise yeast or 1 1/2 tsp active yeast

Place all ingredients as recommended into your bread machine and bake with light crust setting.

What I did is:
Place all the ingredients into the bread machine on the dough cycle. When this was complete, I turned it out onto the floured counter and kneaded it a few times. I then made it into a loaf shape and placed it into a greased loaf pan to rise (about and hour). I then brushed the top with the egg white left over from the extra egg yolk. Bake at 375* for 20-25 minutes.

This is so incredibly yummy, your Papa Bear will be begging for more too!

MmMmMm...yummy banana bread

My kitchen is smelling all kinds of scrumptious this morning. As I sit here and type, there are exactly 34 minutes left on the timer until the yummy banana bread can be taken out of the convection oven. After that, I will force myself to wait the required 5 minutes for the bread to start cooling.

Watch out though, once that time is done, the bread will be sliced and butter slathered on it. I will then sit down with said buttery bread and a nice hot cup of my fake coffee and enjoy a little bit of me time.



*Sigh*

How can 34 minutes move so slow??

Betty Crocker's Banana Bread

1 C. sugar
1/3 C. margarine or butter, softened
2 eggs
1 1/2 C. mashed bananas
1/3 C. water
1 2/3 C flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. baking powder
I do not add nuts but I do add 1 tsp. cinnamon

Heat oven to 350*. Grease bottom only of loaf pan.
Mix sugar and margarine in 2 1/2 quart bowl.
Stir in eggs until blended.
Add bananas and water (beat 30 seconds)
Stir in remaining ingredients just until moistened.
Pour into pan.
Bake 55-60 minutes until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean.
Cool 5 minutes (this is SO hard for me!)
Remove from pan and cool completely before slicing (as you read above, I skip this part).

Beer Bread

When Little Bear was just a cub, he loved my beer bread. Of course, we called it 'dense bread' as I didn't want him running around saying he got to have beer. In the summer, we would make a tray up with sliced cheese, deer salami, fresh fruit and veggies and slices of dense bread w/butter. This was a regular summer supper for us.

The bread itself is very simple to make. It takes a couple of minutes to make and an hour to cook...presto!

Beer bread

3 C. self rising flour**
3 T. sugar
1 12oz. can of beer @ room temperature

Mix all ingredients. Put into greased loaf pan. With wet fingers, smooth out top.

Pre-heat oven (very important) to 325*. Bake 45-60 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool slightly then remove from pan.

**Self rising flour**
1 C. flour
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt

Whisk together well. Be sure to adjust for 3 cups needed in recipe

Sprite or 7UP can be used instead of the beer, it just isn't quite as good in my opinion.

This bread is best eaten the same day. It's also a perfect bread for adding flavorings too. I like to do a heavy sprinkle of cinnamon and sugar to the top and make toast. Italian spices can be mixed in for eating with spaghetti or lasagna. Horseradish and ground black pepper is tasty for eating with cheese. Use your imagination!

Since this is a very dense bread, it is great to also eat with soups and stews in the cold weather time.

Bean and Bacon Soup

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After my burnt bacon fiasco of the other day, can you believe I actually used bacon again already? I'm safe there though as I don't have to fry it for this tasty recipe.

I love a good ham and bean soup. Problem is, I have tried to make many recipes only to have them be not quite what I was looking for. I put a request out on a recipe site I'm on with Face Book and was pleased to get a reply. I didn't quite use the recipe exactly, the following is what I ended up with. You will notice I used bacon instead of a ham hock, mainly because I didn't have one.

2 C. dry navy beans (could use Northern beans)
6 C. water
Water for soaking
2 carrots finely chopped
1 C. celery finely chopped (about 2 stalks)
1 onion chopped
2 potatoes diced small
4 chicken bouillon cubes
1/2 package maple flavored bacon cut into small pieces
1 T. Nature's Seasoning salt

Sort and wash beans. Cover with water and bring to a boil. Remove from heat and let stand covered for 1 hour. Drain.

Place all ingredients in a 5 qt. crock pot. Cover and cook on high 4-5 hours. Mash about 1 C of beans if soup seems a bit thin.

I ended up putting this in a pot on the stove at about 4 hours as I was hungry! I brought it to a boil and then simmered it for about 1/2 hour. I did need to add extra water.

I will be trying this out again just to make sure it wasn't a fluke, but if all goes well, this will be my new bean soup recipe! I'm also thinking I'll be making a huge pot of this and canning it to put in the pantry.

This is a very inexpensive, frugal meal.

*FYI...do not eat this if you are going to be in a crowd later on.

Easy Potato Soup

We enjoyed a yummy soup for supper last night that was so incredibaly easy to make, I thought I would share it with you all.

6 cups water
8 chicken boullion cubes
4 medium potatoes-diced
1 small onion-chopped small
2 stalks celery-sliced
1 carrot-diced small
1 C. instant potato flakes

Place all ingrediants except the potato flakes into a pot, bringing to a boil. Turn down and simmer about 1/2 hour or so until veggies are tender, stirring occasionally. Once veggies are cooked to your liking, turn the heat off and add instant potato flakes. Let sit about 5 minutes uncovered for flakes to absorb some liquid.

This is wonderful served with hot creseant rolls.

Baked Pumpkin Seeds

Halloween is over and you now have several pumpkins in your yard needing some attention. Before deciding to discard the lovely orange decorations, why not decide to eat them? Well, maybe not the whole thing, but who can resist those scrumptious seeds hiding inside? Mmmmmm. Just thinking about it brings back childhood memories of my mom making up this delicious snack for us (of course, us kids had to separate the seeds first from all the pumpkin guts).

Here is a recipe I have been enjoying for quite some time:

Baked pumpkin seeds

1 1/2 tablespoons margarine, melted
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon garlic salt
2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
2 cups raw whole pumpkin seeds

1.Preheat oven to 275 degrees F (135 degrees C).
2.Combine the margarine, salt, garlic salt, Worcestershire sauce and pumpkin seeds. Mix thoroughly and place in shallow baking dish.
3.Bake for 1 hour, stirring occasionally.

I have been using olive oil instead of the butter for a healthier snack, however, I must admit I like the butter flavor better.

Pan fried Tilapia

I'm not a big fan of eating fish, it's something I have been learning to do since it is good for me (why can't everything that is good for me taste like chocolate??). I usually bake my fish with butter and seasoning. Not bad, but I get a bit tired of that. So...last night I decided to make my own recipe! I've quite telling Papa Bear when I've done this as it's hard not to laugh when I see the look of fear on his face. The poor man, he is such a sweetie to always eat whatever it is, he just politely asks me not to make it again.

This fish though, he requested it again! Yippee! I'll share the recipe with you, as long as you don't laugh at my secret ingredient...homemade teriyaki sauce.

Pan fried Tilapia
mix together beaten egg and teriyaki sauce
mix together whole wheat flour and cornmeal
mix together garlic-pepper, onion powder and a bit of chili seasoning

Dip thawed Tilapia in wet mixture, then cover well in dry mixture. Place in heavy pan (I use cast iron) with 1/4 inch hot oil, sprinkle generously with spice mixture. Cook over medium heat until brown. Carefully turn fish over, careful not to splash the hot oil. Generously sprinkle spice mixture on this side. Cook until done...usually about 10 minutes total time. Remove from pan to paper towel before serving.



I served this with butternut squash risotto and steamed asparagus.

I know the frying kind of defeats the purpose of healthy, but hey, just gotta live on the edge sometimes.

Blue Cheese Burger

I've had a request for my Blue Cheese Burger recipe so thought I would share it with you all. As many of you know, I am not a complicated cook by any means...short, sweet and simple is how I like to go.

I start by mixing some crunched up crackers and a little of my favorite BBQ sauce (of course, only Main Street BBQ Sweet n' Sassy Sauce will do around here) in with the burger. Once this is done, I divide the meat out into burger size portions. Each portion is divided in half. I make a ball and flatten out one half and then sprinkle some dry blue cheese crumbles on it.



I make a ball and flatten the other half, laying it on top the first part, crimping the edges and making it the shape I want for the grill.



Presto!

Near the end of cooking, I like to spread just a touch of BBQ sauce on top the burger and let it cook in. We also top this with creamy blue cheese dressing on the bun. MmMmMm...enjoy!

Banana Boat

While at Boy Scout camp, one of the incredible staff members stopped by for a visit and to share in our dutch oven banana bread. She shared a recipe with me for Banana Boats and I think I have fallen in love! This is so simple that it can be done even in the house in the oven.

1 banana
tin foil to wrap it
stuffers of your choice

Leave peal on banana and make a slice from one end to the other, careful not to slice all the way through. Insert into this slit your stuffers (small pieces of chocolate, marshmallow, caramel...etc.). Wrap banana in tin foil and place on hot coals. Remove after about 5 minutes. Open foil, grab your spoon and eat all the yummy goodness waiting for you inside that banana peal!

Baked Oatmeal

Oh my goodness, do I ever have something to make your taste buds happy. I found these two recipes over at The Meal Consultant. Very simple to make and the daycare children loved it!

Baked Applesauce Oatmeal
½ c. applesauce
⅓ to ½ c. sugar
1 large egg
½ c. water
2 T. butter, room temperature
1½ c. oatmeal
4 T. dry milk powder
1 tsp. baking powder
¼ tsp. salt
up to 1 tsp. cinnamon

Preheat oven to 350º. Grease (or oil) a square pan. Mix apple-sauce, sugar, egg, water. Add butter, oats, dry milk, baking powder, salt, cinnamon; stir thoroughly. Pour into prepared pan. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes. Makes up to 6 servings.

I'm sure you could add pieces of fruit to this also. I think next time I make it I'll be adding raisins.

I then topped the oatmeal squares with:

Applesauce Syrup
1 c. applesauce
2 T. brown sugar
½ tsp. cinnamon
¼ tsp. nutmeg
¼ to ½ c. water
(amount of water will depend upon how thick you want syrup, I ended up using almost a full cup)

Place all ingredients in a small saucepan. Mix well. Heat slowly on low, and serve warm.

Did I happen to mention how happy your taste buds are going to be?!

Chicken Rice Soup recipe

I made such a yummy soup last night, I just had to come on here and share it will all of you. It started all because I had one lonely little chicken breast in the fridge needing to be used up for supper. I cruised around some of my favorite recipe sites for ideas. What follows is what I finally came up with.

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
2 medium carrots, cut into thin slices
2 celery ribs, sliced
1/4 teaspoon thyme
2 quarts chicken stock or broth
2 cups white rice
1 chicken breast

Cut the chicken breast into smaller pieces (bigger than bite-size). Put this into pot containing 2 quarts water and 10 chicken bouillon cubes (this makes the broth called for). Cover and bring to boil, continuing boiling about 8 minutes). While this is cooking, place another pot over medium heat and add the olive oil. Add the onion, carrots, celery, and thyme. Cook and stir for about 6 minutes, until the vegetables are softened but not browned.

Remove chicken pieces to cool. Add vegetables to the broth, bringing it back to a boil. Chop chicken into smaller pieces and add back to broth. Add 2 cups white rice to broth, cover, remove from heat and let set 5 minutes or until rice has finished cooking. Stir well and enjoy!

*I did let this sit a bit before eating and found I needed to had 1 cup of water to it as it had thickened quite a bit.

BBQ Country Style Pork Ribs

Dear friends, you are in for a treat here. I made this recipe on Tuesday and it was such a hit with my guys! I did double it as I was making lots of extra meat to help get me started on my new quest for freezer cooking, but that is for another post at a later time.

1/2 C. cooking oil
3/4 C. chopped onion
3/4 C. ketchup
1/3 C. water
1/3 C. lemon juice
3 T. sugar
2 T. Worcestershire sauce
2 T. French's prepared mustard
1 T. liquid smoke
2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. black pepper

I also added to the doubled recipe a big old glop of horseradish.

Cook onion in oil until soft. Add remaining ingredients. Simmer 15 minutes.

Place rib inlarge baking pan that has a lid. Pour auce over ribs. Cover. Bake in 350* oven for 2 hours or until tender.

This went very well with a baked potato and homemade applesauce.

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