Sorry Mike,.....

I should have made this for our family reunion this weekend but I didn't even think about it...you should have said something... but here's my recipe...enjoy.

Pimento Cheese
1  lge bag  shredded Co-Jack cheese

1  lb  Very Sharp cheddar cheese shredded

1  lb   Rat Cheese shredded
8 oz  cream cheese at room temp
12 oz  Rotel Tomatoes  chopped drained (maybe 2 if you like the heat)
1- 4 oz  Green chilies chopped drained
Garlic cloves 2-4 finely chopped/grated
1 or 2  4 oz jars  Pimentos' chopped drained
Mayonnaise lots, buy a qt. jar just for this.
Optional items:
1-2 Green onion finely chopped optional
Scotch bonnet, serrano or jalapeno peppers (be careful  with  these, use just a little and wear gloves to seed and devaine) 

• I always start with a large bag of the shredded cheddar/Jack cheese, after that stroll the cheese isle looking for what sound good. All cheeses should be cold when you grate them, then allow to come to room temp before making the pimento cheese.  
• Mix all the ingredients together adding the mayo as you stir.  Use a little more mayo than you think is necessary, cause the cheese soaks it up and it will stiffen,  making it difficult to spread to spread after sitting in the fridge.  I think this is one of those recipes that "ripens" with  a little age, but anytime your ready, get out the Fritos and start dippin'.  Try it on a Ham sandwich or make a grill cheese or Panini....

My Favorite Chicken Dinner

James aka Chipper

Chipper and Mari Ann 1979

This has been a favorite at our home for many years, my mother made it first years before I had my son James, aka Chipper.  This recipe was a favorite of his, when he was a child and still is.


Quick Chicken and Rice
4        T   margarine
1/4    C   Chives (or green onion tops)
1/4    C   bell pepper -- chopped
1        sm can Mushrooms 
          curry powder -- to taste (I use about a 1/2 t)
1        C   rice

1        can  cream of chicken and Mushroom soup

1        can  chicken bouillon

1        chicken -- cut-up

           lemon pepper       

         

• Sauté chives, mushrooms and peppers in butter/oleo till tender, stir in curry powder

• Add rice Cook apx. 5 min. stirring often. 

• Add soup and stock mix well
• Pour into 9X13 prepared pan

• Sprinkle chicken pieces with lemon pepper and place on top of rice

• Cover and bake at 350* 30 min. uncover and continue to bake 30 min. more

Today, I tried to do it from memory, this is what I did:
Quick Chicken and Rice II

This is all that was left....

1 stick butter/oleo
 1/4 C Chives
1/4 C chopped bell pepper
1/2 C canned mushrooms stems and pieces or 1 C fresh sliced
1 1/3 C uncooked long grain rice
1/2 t curry powder
2 C chicken stock
1 can crm. of chicken Soup
Lemon Pepper
                                                     8-10 of your favorite chicken pieces
Same as original except do not cover, bake apx 1 1/2 hours.

                                                    

I also made these this weekend: Once again I found this recipe on the Tasty Kitchen web site, it is a version of Oatmeal Whoopie Pies, by The Pioneer Woman, Ree Drummond.  Allison and Sara Ann love'em.
Oatmeal Sandwich Cookies
2 cups Brown Sugar
½ cups Butter, Softened
¼ cups Shortening (Crisco)
2 whole Eggs
1/2 t vanilla
1/2 t maple flavoring (optional)
½ teaspoons Salt
1 teaspoon Ground Cinnamon
1 teaspoon Baking Powder
3 Tablespoons Boiling Water
1 teaspoon Baking Soda
2-½ cups Flour                                                                                      2 cups Quick Oats
                                                                                       18 Marshmallows

Preparation Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Cream brown sugar, butter, and shortening. Add eggs and mix. Add salt, flavorings, and baking powder, mix. Mix baking soda and boiling water, then add to the bowl, mix. Add flour and oatmeal,  mix well.

Using small ice cream scoop for uniformity, scoop dough onto lightly greased cookie sheet. Bake for 10-12 minutes, being careful not to burn. Remove from oven, place 1/2 of them on a cooling rack, flip the other 1/2 over on the cookie sheet, top with a marshmallow, return to the oven for 1-2 minutes, just enough to soften the marshmallow, remove from the oven top with another cookie, twisting slightly as you sandwich them together. transfer to a cooling rack, and let the cookies cool completely.  Makes 3 dozen cookies or 18 sandwiches.

Wednesday. . . again. . .

Can't believe it 2, Wednesdays in a row and I'm cookin' supper.  Tonight Mari Ann and the girls were here and naturally the subject matter of our conversation turned to food and what we were going to eat/fed the girls.  Mari Ann suggested Chili dogs and spaghetti, neither sounded that good to me.  The Sara suggested pizza.  I started to consider that suggestion, as I mental strolled through my pantry and freezer looking to see if I had all the necessary ingredients, and by george I did.  So, here are a few pictures and the recipes.  The dough recipe makes enough crust for a LARGE single pizza (depending on how thin/thick you like your crust), tonight I divided the dough into 4 equal parts and everyone made their on pizza with the toppings they like best.  We used 9 inch round cake pans.
I have no idea where I got this recipe from, but it's been in my computer cookbook forever and I found it years before I had a computer cookbook. 

Pizza Dough

• 1 1/2 C warm water
• 1 t  yeast
• Stir together and let sit about 5 minutes until yeast bubbles up
• In a stand mixer with a dough hook, mix together
• 4 C flour



This feels funny...

• 1 T salt, (yes tablespoon)

And yeast mixture on low speed.  Slowly add 4 t olive oil until dough comes together about 5 minutes.  (Alternatively, stir together in a large bowl and knead with hands)  Cover bowl with plastic wrap let rise until double in bulk about 1 1/2 hours.  Punch dough down and shape into a ball, use immediately, or rub down with 1 T oil, place in a plastic bag and refrigerate up to 24 hrs.

I just put the sauce recipe together tonight, just tossing in what I thought would taste good.

Pizza Sauce

Is she watching... maybe I can slip on one more...

• 3 T olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic minced or grated
• 1 t dried minced onion
• 1 T Italian seasoning
• 1 t dried minced parsley
• 1 14 oz. can diced tomatoes ( I use the petite diced)
• 1 8 oz. can tomato sauce
• 1/4 - 1 t Red pepper flakes (how spicy do you like it?)

Heat oil in a sauce pan, add garlic, onion, till lightly brown.  Stir in Italian seasoning, parsley, canned tomatoes, tomato sauce and red pepper flakes.   Allow to simmer until sauce thickens about 10 minutes.  At this point you can use it  as is, if you like the sauce a little chunky or you can blend it to you hearts content for a smooth sauce.  Depending on how much sauce you like on your pizza this will make enough for 3 large pizzas.  I freeze the leftovers in about 2,  6 oz. cups for future use.

Aaaah, time to eat....

Sunday Cookin'

Good Sunday morning everyone! On the menu for today is a Crock Pot Stroganoff, (a combination of several recipes), noodles or mashed potatoes (I'm leaning toward the potatoes) some kind of veggie, not sure what yet and Black and White Cupcakes.

Pat's Crock Pot Stroganoff

1 lb Stew meat cubed/bite size pieces

2  t  ketchup or tomato paste
1 t  mustard -- dry or wet
1/2 C  beef broth (actually a 1/2 c total of broth/wine/water is probably plenty)
1/2  C  red wine or water or more broth
1 T cornstarch
1 cube beef bouillon
salt and Pepper
1  lb  mushrooms sliced

2  medium  onion -- sliced
1  C  sour cream

• Set crock pot on high, add meat, catsup, mustard and beef bouillon cube.  mix broth, wine/water and cornstarch together stir together and add to crock pot, mix well.  Cook on high about 2 hours. 
• Turn crackpot down to low, add sliced onions, cook for another hour,  Add sliced mushrooms Cook low, till time to eat.
• Turn off heat stir in sour cream serve immediately over noodles, mashed potatoes or rice.

I made the cupcakes cause I had 2 half boxes of cake mix, one white and one
chocolate. I used the Cream Cheese Frosting below that I got from the Tasty Kitchen web site. I did make a couple of small changes though, I added a dash of salt, creamed the cheese and the butter well added the vanilla whipped it a little more, then I added the powdered sugar a little at a time, first on low speed, then gradually increasing the speed as the sugar became blended. When it reach my desired consistency I removed about 1/2 (perhaps a little less than half cause my family is really into chocolate), set it aside. Then I added 3 heaping tablespoons of cocoa powder mixed it into the remaining frosting. Then I frosted the cooled cupcakes. 

Sara likes my cupcakes....

Sara told me that she sits at a table in the cafeteria with 3 little boys. She said they get so jealous when she opens her lunch kit and it has one of my cupcakes in it. She said they "just drool with jealousy they want a bite so bad", but in the second grade they don't allow them to share or trade their lunches. I don't think Sara wants to share anyway and I love helping her torment the little boys....

Allison and the long arm of the law...aka Daddy

Cream Cheese Frosting

Ingredients

• 8 ounces, weight Cream Cheese, softened
• ½ cups Butter, Softened
• dash Salt
• 1-½ teaspoon Vanilla Extract
• 3-½ cups Sifted Powdered Sugar (or More Depending On Desired Consistency)

• See Variations Below For Chocolate OR Flavored Cream Cheese Frosting

Preparation Instructions

1. Cream together cream cheese, vanilla and butter until fluffy.
2. Sift or whisk powdered sugar to aerate it.
3. Stir powdered sugar into cream cheese mixture, 1 cup at a time, until well blended.
4. Makes enough to generously frost a 13 x 9 x 2-inch pan, 24 cupcakes, or an 8-inch layer cake.

Notes:
- This makes a medium consistency frosting.
- For a stiff decorator frosting: add more powdered sugar, ½ cup at a time, until desired consistency.
- For a thinner consistency to fill cupcakes or sandwich cookies, add about ½ cup less powdered sugar.
- For chocolate cream cheese frosting: sift ¼ cup unsweetened cocoa powder to the powdered sugar before adding it to the cream cheese mixture.
- For flavored cream cheese frosting: Substitute the flavored extract of your choice. Maple, lemon, or orange are wonderful.

Cooking on Wednesday? ! ? ! ?

My grandgirls . . . and I were wanting something on the Italian side tonight so I decides to make a version of the Three Cheese Stuffed Shells from the Tasty Kitchen site.  I have made this before and believe it or not followed the recipe pretty close to exact,  but this time I wanted to make only a half recipe and as it sometimes works out I didn't have everything I needed in my pantry tonight, so here's what I did:

My Stuffed Shells

• 1/2 a box of large shells
• 22 oz Ricotta cheese give or take
• 1/4 C Parmesan grated/shredded + some to sprinkle on top
• 1 C Mozzarella grated/shredded + some to sprinkle on top
• 1/2 - 1 egg beaten
• 1/2 a can spinach as much moisture squeezed out as you can without making it mushy.  I know fresh or frozen would probably work better.
• Parsley, Basil and garlic powder to taste
• 1 jar of your favorite Marinara Sauce

Cook shells as directed on package.  Mix everything together in a bowl except for the marinara sauce.  Spray  pan with a non-stick cooking spray, pour about a cup of the sauce into the pan, Preheat oven to 350 degrees.   Then put you cheese mixture into a zip-lock bag, snip one bottom corner of the bag and proceed to fill the shells,  When all shells are filled top with remaining sauce, sprinkle more of the parmesan and mozzarella cheese  on top, then bake for about 30 min or until hot and bubbly.

Hope you are having a Blessed Easter...

Sorry about the chipped plate, my husband has chipped all but a couple,
 of these, he's so rough with with stuff

Here's what was on my menu for Easter Sunday.  It is a meal that I hope will show my thanksgiving for this day.  I put a lot of thought and work into it and I hope everyone enjoys the fruits of my labor and love.  There is Orange Glazed Pork Roast, Potatoes Romanoff, Green Beans, Legendary Lion House Rolls (the ones I froze last Sunday) and for desert Lemon Buttermilk Pie and a Chocolate Buttermilk Pie.  All of these recipes I found on the Tasty Kitchen web site except for the Lemon Buttermilk Pie which is a recipe I got from my mother, so many years ago.  I also made a couple of changes in the Potatoes Romanoff  and the Green Bean recipes from the links above, (I found out to late that I was short a couple of ingredients).  If you haven't checked out this site you really need to it's got all kinds of recipes which lead to inspiration in you own kitchen.


Potatoes Romanoff II

Ingredients

• 4 whole Large Russet Potatoes, Unpeeled

• 2 teaspoons salt (kosher or sea)
• ¾ cups Minced Shallots

• 1 - 8 oz, pkg. (2 cups) Triple Cheddar Cheese grated/shredded

• ¼ teaspoons Freshly Ground Pepper

• 1 stick 1/2 C butter melted

• 1 cup Sour Cream
• 1 Cup ricotta Cheese
• 1/2 C grated cheddar cheese

Preparation Instructions

Step 1:  1-2 days before serving:  Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

Scrub and dry potatoes removing all dirt and sprouts if any, drizzle with oil I prefer Olive oil, and sprinkle with Kosher or sea salt. Place on baking sheet and bake at 45min. - 1 hour, till done.  Let cool to room temperature, then put potatoes on a plate, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate overnight.

Step 2: day of serving or day before serving:  Dice the chilled potatoes, including skins into approx.. 1/4 inch cubes, place into a large bowl, sprinkle in the shallots, grated cheese, and pepper. Then pour in the melted butter and fold in sour cream and ricotta.

Transfer mixture to a greased 2 quart gratin dish, making sure that you don’t pack it in the dish! Allow it to fall into the dish, then spread it evenly in the dish without pressing it down.  Covered with plastic wrap and refrigerate till needed.

Step 3: day of serving:  Bake at 350 degrees F until the top is golden brown, about 45 minutes.  Remove from oven, sprinkle the remaining cheese on top return to oven till melted.  Serves 8.


And since I can't not for the life of me leave a recipe alone here's how I did the green beans.


Maple Wrapped Green Beans II
Ingredients

• 1 pound frozen Whole Green Beans thawed
• Dashes Of Salt And Pepper
• 8 strips Bacon 
• 1 TablespoonButter
• 1-½ teaspoonBrown Sugar
• 1 TablespoonMaple Syrup

Preparation Instructions

Grease a cookie sheet with cooking spray. Preheat oven to 375ºF.

Sprinkle the bacon with the pepper.  Grab 6-10 beans and group them together.

Wrap the cluster with a piece of bacon in a spiral fashion covering as much of the beans as you can and place them, seam side down, on a greased baking sheet. Repeat with the rest of the beans.

In a small saucepan over medium heat, heat butter, brown sugar and maple syrup until melted. Using a brush, liberally apply the butter mixture over the green bean bundles until covered.

Bake for 45-60 minutes until the bacon is crispy and brown.


Oh darn, I forgot to put the glaze on the beans, but the girls still loved them, bet they would have liked them even better with the glaze...Oh well, maybe next time I won't forget.

a little too brown...but not burned

 Lemon Buttermilk Pie

  1        Stick  Oleo -- room temp.

  2        T  Lemon Juice

  2        C  Sugar

  1        t  Vanilla

  3        T  Flour

  5        Eggs -- added one at a time

  1        C  Buttermilk

  1        t.  Lemon Peel -- grated

• Mix ingredients in order given.  Beat well after each egg.  Stir in butter milk

• Pour into 9 inch unbaked pie shell.  Opt: sprinkle top of pie with grated lemon peel

• Bake at 425 for 10 min. lower heat to 325* Cook until firm, approx. 30-45 min.  Center should "jiggle" a little. DO NOT OVER BAKE.  Cover with foil, shiny side up, if the pie begins to get too brown.  I almost didn't cover mine in time.

The Lemon Buttermilk Pie is a recipe handed down to me by my mother, have no idea where she got it from.  This pie is a must for all holiday fares and one of my husband's favorites.

The Chocolate Buttermilk  is a brand new recipe and it will become a new must have at all family holidays and gatherings. Very rich and sweet, with a little bit of tart from the buttermilk.  Soooo good.  Especially with a dab of whipped cream on top, or maybe even some ice cream, oooh you could nuke it for a minute and then but some ice cream on it...ooooh that is soooo wrong.

And the frozen rolls were just as good as they were last weekend.  I pulled them out of the freezer, put them in a pan before I left for Church at about 6am this morning, giving them plenty of time to thaw and rise before noon.  I like the potatoes this weekend better than last, next time, unless I'm feeding Shawn or my son Chipper, I'm cutting that recipe by at least a third, maybe even half.

Remembering my Granddaddy.....

Oh, so many knew him as Capt'n Joe a tall, big, stern looking, soft spoken, (when he spoke and that that wasn't often) and lover of flowers.  He was a warden for the Texas prison system for as long as I knew him.   He planted flowers behind "the Walls" and cleaned up the prison cemetery, with the help of a few inmates.  The prison system tried to retire him several times, but he'd tell them to prove how old he was and he would continue to work.  He died at work, he would have had it no other way.  He was the only prison employee who when he died, the inmates asked to have a memorial service for, inside the prison walls, and they asked the family to attend, which we did and the large church was packed to capacity.  I remember him with great fondness as I tormented my brothers by asking him for a dollar, he'd give me a five and say keep the change, then my brothers would ask, he'd give them a dime and tell them to save it.  He loved a Lemon Jello Cake, I made when I was first starting to cook, back in the early 60's.  I made it for him almost weekly and he almost always gave me 5 or 10 dollars for my trouble.  This is the recipe he liked, but he preferred it without the glaze.

Lemon Jello Cake

1 Yellow cake mix

1 pkg lemon Jello
3/4 C Oil
4 eggs

3/4 C water

Mix all ingredients together well, pour into a greased and floured tube pan. Bake at 300* for 1 hour.

Glaze:

1 small can frozen lemonade thawed

3/4  C Sugar

The is the recipe I just con-cocked because I did not have a cake mix: 

Lemon Jello Cake from Scratch

2 1/4 C Flour

1 1/2 C sugar

3 t baking powder

1/2 t salt

1 small pkg lemon jello

1/2 butter flavor Crisco

4 eggs

1 C milk

1 t vanilla

1/2 t lemon extract

1 t or T poppy seed optional

On low speed with your mixer mix the dry ingredients and the Crisco until the Crisco is in very small pieces. 

Add 1 egg at a time mixing well after each addition

Slowly add milk the flavorings

Pour into a greased and floured tube or Bundt pan bake at 300* for 1 hour

Notes:

You could use any flavor of jello

Fold in some fresh blueberries in the lemon