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There are five things in my life about which I
am not the least bit humble. My children are
fantastic, interesting, very cool people. My
husband is handsome, smart, funny, romantic
and extremely loving. My Soap Site absolutely
kicks ass, thanks largely to the efforts of
some fabulous women on my staff, fabulous fans
and a fabulous web designing son of mine. I
am a great public speaker and lastly, I have a
reputation of being an incredible cook.
When I was six, I remember my mom jumping me
up onto the three-legged stool that sat by our
old massive electric stove and telling me,
"You ain't much to look at, girl, so we've got
to teach you to cook." Getting away from the
damage THAT did for a while (I really was a
very cute little girl, actually), it marked
the beginning of a lifelong interest in and
enjoyment of cooking. The fact that I
actually did snag my favorite husband by
cooking for him should not in anyway reflect
disparagement on my looks. When I was ten, my
mom started a series of rotations in and out
of the hospital and I had to cook full time
for my dad and two brothers. They were my
guinea pigs and I learned many new things as I
experimented on the themes mom had taught me.
The secret is that none of the stuff that I
cook that hear people raving about is all that
difficult. I have a knack for coming upon
recipes that are easy and taste great, like
you've spent hours in the kitchen. I have
enjoyed preparing these and watching people
enjoy them for a long time and want to share
them with my cyber pals. I hope you find use
for some of them. Thanks to two husbands in
the military, I have been blessed with living
in many different regions (Western Ky, Guam,
New Mexico, England, Idaho and California) and
have found wonderful recipes where ever I have
gone. Let me know how it goes if you give
any of these a try. I'm certainly not
claiming any of these as original and many are
simply redirects to some really great products
that have helped me in the past (nope, I don't
get kickbacks, but I should). If these are
popular, I'll add more later.
This page was originally started for my sons
as they were leaving home so that they could
have some of the foods they enjoyed from my
cooking. If any of this sounds like I'm
talking down to you, it's because my sons had
little experience cooking and wanted to know
how to duplicate the things I make at home.
So when I say, "Pancakes: Buy Bisquick," it's
not that I think you're stupid and don't know
about Bisquick, it was just to tell the guys
how to make "mom's" pancakes! Let me
know if there are any recipes here you
particularly enjoy.
SLOPPY NOODLES
2 C SELF RISING
FLOUR 1 EGG
1/4 C MILK
CHICKEN BOUILLON
Start water
boiling, add bouillon when boiling to make
about 12 cups. Mix all ingredients together.
Dough will be very stiff. When thoroughly
mixed, turn dough out onto floured surface.
Roll out to about 1/4” thick, 6” wide.
Placing the dough so that the short sides are
to your right and left, roll up the flattened
dough like a jelly roll into a kind of
spiraled log. Cut noodles about 1/2 - 1”
wide. Unroll and drop into boiling bouillon.
Cook on medium heat until done throughout. Do
not burn. These are soft noodles, kind of
like dumplings, that have a rich sauce form
around them.
FUDGE
Buy
Kraft
Marshmallow Creme and use the recipe
for Fantasy Fudge on the jar. It’s really
wonderful.
If you want peanut
butter fudge, leave out the chocolate chips
and put in about 1/2 cup of peanut butter
instead. You can also buy peanut butter chips
to use the same as chocolate chips.
PORK CHOPS
Buy SHAKE AND BAKE
FOR PORK and follow the instructions. Trim
the fat off the chips before shaking or trim
the fat off, roll the chops (with or without
bone) in crushed crackers with a little salt &
pepper, then fry in a skillet with about 1/4”
Crisco Oil that has been heated over med-high
heat until hot. Reduce heat to medium and
turn as needed. ALWAYS COOK PORK ALL THE WAY
THROUGH OR YOU’LL DIE OF TRICHINOSIS.
FRIED
CHICKEN
My family doesn't
care for dark meat, so I use the frozen split
breasts that come in the big pack. Regardless
of what it says on the pack about being able
to use them frozen, always thaw the meat for
fried chicken. Trust me, not them.
Roll the thawed
chicken in a mixture of 1c self rising flour,
1t pepper and 1/2 t salt. Have your skillet
with about 1/4” of Crisco oil heating on med
high heat while you prep the chicken. Roll
the floured chicken in hot oil WITH THE SIDE
WITH THE MOST SKIN DOWN.
Open a window
or turn on the stove fan or your kitchen will
get all greasy. Keep an eye on it or it will
burn (the chicken, not the kitchen, well,
maybe the kitchen, but hopefully not). Turn
the chicken over when it is brown on the
bottom and cook the other side. Turn the
chicken again when that side is done and let
it cook until it’s done all through. Use a
fork or knife and see if the meat is tender
and there’s no blood.
CHOCOLATE CHIP
COOKIES
The best recipe is
on the
Nestle Toll House Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips
bag, which you will need to make the cookies
anyway. Their milk chocolate chips are also
great. Take the cookies out about 1 minute
earlier than the bag says and they’ll be
really chewy. Use butter flavored Crisco
shortening instead of butter or margarine and
the flavor seems to be better.
RICE KRISPIE
BARS
The recipe is on
almost every box of
Rice
Krispies (fake or original) or bag of
marshmallows sold in America. You can also
put a layer of chocolate chips in the bottom
of the pan and melt them in the oven for a few
minutes before spreading out your
cereal/marshmallow mixture for a nice
variation.
POTATO CANDY
1 BAG OF POWDERED
(CONFECTIONER’S) SUGAR
1 SMALL JAR OF PEANUT BUTTER
1 MEDIUM SIZED POTATO
1t VANILLA FLAVORING
Boil potato until
it is soft. Drain off water and put potato
into mixing bowl. Pour 1/2 the bag of
powdered sugar into bowl and mix with potato.
The mixture will get very runny, don’t panic.
It's just the enzymes in the potato breaking
down the powdered sugar. Keep adding powdered
sugar until it’s firmer and manageable. When
it is, add the vanilla and more powdered sugar
if needed. Turn out onto a surface floured
with powdered sugar. Knead the mixture for a
few minutes, then, using lots of powdered
sugar to keep it from getting sticky, roll it
out flat. Spread peanut butter over mixture,
then roll up like like a jelly roll into a
log. Cut into slices. Keep refrigerated.
PANCAKES
Buy BISQUICK,
follow their recipe; you can’t go wrong.
 BISCUITS
The very best
biscuits you can possibly ever make come from
a packet in the grocery store called "Bisquick
Complete." It's very, very different
from Bisquick in a box and you cannot go wrong
with them. You only add water, mix and
stir, but they taste better than any biscuits
I've ever had that ANYONE made from scratch.
BUT
If you have time
and really want to make some biscuits walk and
talk, follow this one:
2 c self rising
flour (self rising flour is your friend)
1/4 c shortening
2/3 c milk
Measure the flour
out into a big mixing bowl. Throw in the
shortening and with either a pastry blender
(don't ask) or your potato masher (easiest),
"cut" the shortening into the flour. This
means that you hop the potato masher up and
down on the shortening over and over, blending
it into the flour until it looks like really
thick flour. When it's all mixed in, make a
well in the middle and add your milk. Blend
all this together into a sticky dough, then
turn it out onto a floured surface. Don't
knead this. Gently pat the dough flat until
it's about 2-3" thick or half the depth your
want your biscuits to be after they're
cooked. Use the top of a glass to cut the
biscuits and put them into an ungreased cake
pan or cookie sheet, sides touching if you
want soft edges or apart if you want crust all
around. Bake at 450 degrees until they have
golden tops, about 12-15 minutes.
OR
If you get really
froggy, you can make these, which are really
yummy:
ANGEL BISCUITS
2 c milk
4 T white vinegar
1 pkg powdered yeast (check the date to be
sure it isn't expired)
3 t warm (not hot) water
1/2 c sugar
1/2 c melted shortening
4-5c self rising flour
Warm the milk to
room temperature and add the vinegar to sour
it.
Thoroughly
dissolve the pack of yeast in the warm water
in a big (BIG) mixing bowl.
Add the warm,
soured milk to the yeast and water, gently
mixing them together. Next add the sugar for
the yeast to eat, then the melted shortening.
Mix well, then add the flour, a cup at a time,
till you have a formed, but sticky dough.
Cover and put in the refrigerator for at least
an hour.
Remove dough from
refrigerator and roll out as with regular
biscuits above. Brush tops with melted butter
before baking at 450 degrees until golden
brown. Be careful because the bottoms of
these are desperately wanting to burn. I
finish mine browning under the broiler once
the biscuits are basically cooked rather than
complete the browning in the oven. Use real
butter and be prepared to eat about 10 or so
in a sitting. Yum
PIZZA
Ragu Pizza Quick
Sauce, Traditional (CAN ALSO USE THEIR
SPAGHETTI SAUCE OR PREGGO)
Any Pizza Dough Mix
Any toppings you want
SHREDDED MOZZARELLA (Kraft or Sargento’s is
best)
Make dough
according to directions. Turn on your oven to
preheat according to pizza dough instructions
and let the dough rise on the back of the
stove. Spread dough onto GREASED cookie sheet
or pizza pan. Spread sauce thinly over
dough. Add toppings, they scatter lightly
with cheese. Cook for about 8 minutes.
Scissors will cut pizza better than a pizza
cutter. Get a pair of scissors to use as
“kitchen scissors” and you’ll use them for
everything.
CAKE
SUPERMOIST IS THE
BEST CAKE MIX. FOLLOW INSTRUCTIONS. FROST
WITH CANNED FROSTING OR USE:
BUTTERCREAM
FROSTING
1 LB BAG OF
POWDERED SUGAR
1 t VANILLA
1/2 CUP MILK
1/2 CUP BUTTERED FLAVORED CRISCO
Start with 1/2 bag
powdered sugar. Add Crisco, vanilla and 1/2
the milk. Mix with mixer. Add extra milk or
powdered sugar as needed.
Can add 1/2 cup
cocoa with powdered sugar for chocolate
frosting.
CHICKEN
STIR-FRY FOR TWO
3 SPLIT CHICKEN
BREASTS OR BONELESS SKINLESS BREASTS
1 PACKAGE FROZEN JAPANESE VEGETABLES
1/4 CUP PINEAPPLE TIDBITS
2 RAW CARROTS, SLICED INTO THIN COINS
1 PKG STIR-FRY SEASONING (SUN BIRD OR OTHER)
PREPARED AS PER DIRECTIONS
SOY SAUCE
SMALL AMOUNT OF CRISCO OIL
1 T ONION FLAKES
ALMOND SLIVERS IF DESIRED
Skin and bone
chicken breast; cut filets into small slices.
Heat enough oil
to cover the bottom of the skillet or wok.
When a drop of water will pop in the oil,
stir-fry chicken and onion until done. Mix
constantly (hence STIR-fry). When chicken is
almost done, dump in frozen veggies &
carrots. Mix together, then pour Stir-Fry
seasoning onto mixture. It won’t look like
enough, but it will be. Mix well until the
food is coated. Add pineapple and mix again.
Lower heat and let simmer for about 10
minutes, stirring often. Most people like
this served on or with rice.
LASAGNA FOR 4
1 PKG GROUND BEEF
(1.5 LBS) 1 BOX NOODLES
1 LARGE JAR OF PREGO SAUCE 3 T
ONION
1 SM COTTAGE CHEESE (OPTIONAL, I DON'T USE IT)
3 CUPS SHREDDED MOZZARELLA
1 BOX EXTRA WIDE LASAGNA NOODLES
Cook lasagna
noodles according to directions on box, but
for only 1/2 of the time given, then drain.
Brown the ground beef with onion. When done,
drain the grease and rinse the beef in a
strainer. Pour Ragu into beef and mix well.
Spread a little of the sauce mixture on the
bottom of a 13x9” baking pan. Layer beginning
with the 1/2 done noodles, then sauce, cottage
cheese, mozzarella, then noodles again. When
you get to the top of the pan, end the
layering with the last of your sauce and a
little sprinkle of mozzarella. Sprinkle with
parmesan cheese if you want. Bake at 350
degrees for about 45 minutes. When the
lasagna doesn’t seem watery any more and the
cheese is melted and slightly brown, it is
done. Let is set for about 15-20 minutes to
cool before cutting. This will keep almost
forever if you wrap it individually in foil
(if you use a regular oven for heating) or
plastic wrap (for microwave) and freeze it.
STEAK
Buy sirloin tip,
London broil or round tip. T-Bone and
Porterhouse are great, but expensive.
Marinade steaks according to instructions on
the package. My favorite marinade is the
McCormick pack that just says ominously "Meat
Marinade." It uses a combo of Crisco oil and
white vinegar. Poke holes in steaks for
increased tenderness. Grill or broil. Start
out at about 8 min on each side for medium
rare. Cook to choice from there.
FRENCH TOAST
2
EGGS
4-5 SLICES OF WHITE BREAD
1 T
MILK
1 t VANILLA
1 t
SUGAR
SM AMOUNT OF BUTTER FLAVORED CRISCO
Mix eggs, milk,
sugar and vanilla thoroughly in mixing bowl.
Heat skillet on med high heat with enough
melted buttered flavored Crisco to cover
bottom lightly. When Crisco is hot, dip
slices of bread into egg mixture until
completely covered. Fry until bottom is
golden brown, turn and fry other side. Remove
from skillet. Can sprinkle with powdered
sugar if you like. Serve with syrup.
HOMEMADE BREAD,
SORT OF
I use BRIDGEFORD
or RICH’S frozen bread dough. Follow
instructions on the package. Spray pans with
butter flavored Pam or rub with butter
flavored Crisco. Don't use real butter or it
will burn.
SCRAMBLED
EGGS
2-3 EGGS
2 T MILK (OR 2 “BLOOPS”)
SALT & PEPPER TO TASTE
Mix all
ingredients completely. Cook on med high heat
in preheated skillet with a little bacon
grease. Continuously mix with spatula until
eggs are cooked as desired.
HAM
Any ham that has
NOT been previously seasoned can be glazed
with either straight honey dumped all over it
or a glaze of 1/2 cup brown sugar mixed with
a little water or pineapple juice. Just pour
over ham & cook. Most hams come with cooking
instructions included.
BBQ CHICKEN OR
RIBS OR PORK ROAST
Pour your favorite
BBQ sauce over the meat and cook at 350
degrees until done. Chicken and Ribs are
about 40 minutes (turn 1/2 way through), Pork
Roast is about an hour. Any of the above will
taste awesome of you soak them in a couple
cans of beer before cooking. Just drain off
the beer before dumping on the sauce.65
BAKED CHICKEN
Put chicken in
13x9” cake pan or cookie sheet, Lightly coat
chicken with meat tenderizer and dot with
Butter Flavored Crisco. Dust with salt and
pepper. Cook at 350 degrees for about 45
minutes. Turn half way through. You can also
squirt it down with lemon juice before cooking
for a lemon pepper effect.
MEAT LOAF
1 PKG GROUND BEEF
(ABOUT 1 1/2 LBS)
2 EGGS
1/2 C DRY OATMEAL
1/8 C ONION FLAKES
1 T SALT
1 t
PEPPER
KETCHUP
A-1 Sauce (optional)
Mix everything
together with potato masher or hands. Add a
good sized squirt of ketchup and a bloop of
A-1 (optional). When it is completely mixed,
pat into a 9x13” cake pan in a meatloafy
shape. Cover lightly with ketchup. Bake at
350 degrees until done (about 30 minutes). I
like to line the pan with foil for easy clean
up.
CHICKEN FRIED
STEAK
BEEF
ROUND/SIRLOIN, TENDERIZED (this is when it's
"cubed" or beaten well with one of those
little hammers with the points)
1 CUP SELF RISING FLOUR
1 T SALT
1T PEPPER
A LITTLE CRISCO OIL
Combine flour,
salt and pepper well. Coat tenderized cutlets
in flour mixture. Fry in oil heated in
skillet on Med High heat until water will
pop. When brown on both sides, reduce to
medium heat and cook to desired doneness.
Serve with mashed potatoes, pouring brown
gravy made according to package instructions
over everything.
BEEF STEW
Buy beef stew
meat in the meat section of the grocery or cut
up either a thick round steak or a beef
roast. Flour pieces as you would for chicken
fried steak. Fry the floured beef in oil with
about 1/4 c onion flakes until browned all
over. Dump the browned, floured meat into a
big Dutch oven or crock pot. Add water to
about 6” over meat. Throw in a couples of
sliced up carrots, about 4 potatoes peeled and
cut into chunks and cook for about 2 hours. I
recommend using a packaged Beef Stew Seasoning
mix (like Durkee) if you want. If too watery,
mix about 1/4 cup flour with cool water until
dissolved & add to stew.
BEEF ROAST
Oooooh. This is
tough. Buy a rump roast, pot roast, or
anything else that looks like a roast. Dump
it into a Dutch oven or crock pot. Add about
1/4 cup onion flakes, 1 T salt and 1 t
pepper. Cook it all together for about 2
hours in a Dutch oven or 4 hours or longer in
a crock pot. After it's done, add a couple of
peeled, chopped carrots and 4 potatoes peeled
and chunked. Cook til veggies are tender.
FRENCH FRIES
Buy a bottle of
Crisco Oil that you don’t use for anything but
french fries. Dump it into a Dutch Oven and
heat on high. Wash potatoes well and cut into
french fry shapes. Rinse with cold water to
clean again. When a fry dropped into the oil
sizzles & floats to the top, dump enough fries
into the oil so that they can still move
independently. Fry until done BUT remember
that with new oil, your fries won’t brown
until they are too done, so pull them out when
they are still light. Remove and drain.
If oil gets too
hot, remove from burner & let cool slightly.
Can use for frozen fries too, but oil will not
need to heat as long. When oil cools
completely, pour back into the Crisco bottle
to use next time.
BAKED POTATOES
MICROWAVE: Poke a
few holes in the potatoes and wrap in Saran
Wrap. Microwave for about 20 minutes (if 4
potatoes). One potatoe will get done much
faster. Check and microwave longer if needed.
OVEN: Cover with
butter & wrap in aluminum foil. Bake at 350
degrees for about 1 1/2 hours. Check after 1
hour.
TWICE BAKED
POTATOES
Bake 4 potatoes as
above. After they are cooked and have cooled,
scoop out the insides, leaving a thin potato
lining inside the hopefully intact potato
skin. Take all of the potato innards and put
them together into a mixing bowl. Add 3T of
butter, about 1/2 t of salt and 1/4 t of
pepper. Mash well. Add about 2T of milk and
remash. Spoon the mashed potatoes into the
potato skins. Sprinkle with shredded cheddar
cheese, chives, bacon bits, etc and bake under
a broiler until crispy and golden. These are
soooo yummy. Top with sour cream if desired.
BUTTERED
POTATOES
Wash, peel and cut
potatoes into 1" chunks. Boil in water until
VERY soft, about 30 minutes. Drain and add
about 1/2 cup butter. Mix well, salt & pepper
to taste & serve. These will be like lumpy
mashed potatoes.
MASHED POTATOES
Cook as above.
Instead of mixing, add about 1/4 cup milk,
salt & pepper (to taste) and mash well.
POTATO SKINS
Microwave half the
number of potatoes as the number of potato
skins you want until they are no longer firm,
but not yet super soft. Cut each one in
half lengthwise and allow them to cool.
Dig out the "meat" of the potato and save in a
bowl (mash as aboveif you like, it's still
good stuff). You an leave as much or as
little meat on the skin as you prefer.
Deep fry the skins in hot oil until they are
very light golden brown. Remove from the
oil and place on a heavy cookie sheet or
broiler pain. Sprinkle sugar lightly
over the fried skins. Repeat with salt
(lightly!). Load down the skins with
cheddar-jack cheese, real bacon bits (not
those hard things) and cut up green onions.
Place under a hot broiler until the cheese
melts and starts to brown a bit.
Serve those puppies up.
OATMEAL COOKIES
Use the oatmeal
cookie recipe on the oatmeal box.
HARDBOILED EGGS
Use a needle and
poke a hole in the end of each egg. Put eggs
in pan and cover with about 4” cool water.
Bring to a boil and boil for about 10
minutes. Cool completely before peeling.
DIVINITY
2 C
SUGAR
1 C WATER
1/8 t SALT
1/4 C CORN SYRUP
2 EGG WHITES
1 t VANILLA
(optional) 1 1/2 C CHOPPED WALNUTS OR 1 1/2 C
PECAN HALVES
Heat sugar, water, corn syrup, and salt,
stirring constantly until sugar has completely
dissolved. Continue to cook without stirring
until syrup reaches hard ball stage (250
degrees).
Beat egg whites
until stiff peaks form. (Heh, heh, hmmh heh ,
huh, huh, “I said ‘stiff peaks’”) Slowly pour
syrup into egg whites in a thin stream, mixing
continuously. Continue mixing until mixture
holds a stiff shape. Add nuts and vanilla.
Drop onto waxed paper & let cool.
STAINED GLASS
WINDOW CANDY
2 C
SUGAR
2/3 C CORN SYRUP
1 C WATER
1/2 t FLAVORING (Lemon, Cherry, Strawberry,
etc)
FEW DROPS OF FOOD COLORING.
Cook sugar, corn
syrup and water over med heat, stirring
constantly until sugar completely dissolves.
Continue cooking until without stirring until
syrup forms a brittle ball when dropped in
cold water (310 degrees). Wrap a very wet
paper towel around a fork and wipe crystals
from sides of pan.
Grease a cookie
sheet with real butter. At 310 degrees
(brittle ball stage) add the flavoring and
color to the mixture and stir it in fast.
Pour mixture onto greased cookie sheet and let
it harden. When solid, smash the candy with a
butter knife. Keep in the refrigerator.
PEANUT BUTTER
BALLS
1 1/2 c peanut
butter
1/2 c soft butter
1 t vanilla
2 cups powdered sugar
1 12 oz package of MILK CHOCOLATE chips
2 tsp shortening
Line a cookie
sheet with waxed paper. In a large bowl, mix
the first three ingredients until smooth. Add
powdered sugar slowly. Refrigerate for at
least an hour.
Melt chocolate
chips in microwave or double boiler. Form
balls from chilled mixture and put a toothpick
in each. Dip into chocolate mixture and place
on the wax papered cookie sheet. Freeze. Keep
refrigerated or frozen after initial freezing.
POPCORN BALLS
1 T butter
1 c sugar
1 c dark molasses
1/2 t salt
1 gallon of popped popcorn
1 can of peanuts, NOT dry roasted, the regular
oily kind
Melt butter in
large pan. Add sugar, molasses, salt and boil
to 260 degrees (hard ball) over medium heat.
Dump popcorn into extra large mixing bowl or
other container (I actually totally scrub out
my kitchen sink, put in the stopper and grease
the sides and bottom with butter flavored
Crisco, but I also make a double batch. Make
sure sink is dry before you throw in the
popcorn. Pour the syrup mixture over the
popcorn, scattering it evenly over kernels.
Throw on the peanuts. As soon as it cools
enough to handle without serious injury,
butter your hands and start forming popcorn
balls FAST. Peanuts will want to keep sinking
to the bottom, so keep turning the mess.
NO-BAKE COOKIES
2 c sugar
1/2 c butter
1/2 c milk
Combine these in a
large sauce pan and bring to a boil. Boil for
3 minutes, stirring constantly, and not a
second longer.
Remove from heat
and add:
2 c oatmeal
1 t vanilla
3 T peanut butter
3 T cocoa if you want chocolate instead of
peanut butter, still add peanut butter, tho!
Mix well and drop
by spoonfuls onto waxed paper.
Cool and eat.
PLAY-DOH
This is the best
toddler on up occupier known to man. After
you make it and let it cool, whip out the
cookie cutters, spoons, jar lids, straws,
anything that they can create with and watch
the magic unfold! Because it's oily, it will
even polish your wood table. Keep in a gallon
sized zip lock bag or other airtight
container. Keeps a loooong time.
1 c all purpose
flour (do NOT use self rising, abysmal
failure)
1/4 c salt
2 T Cream of Tartar
1 c cold water
1 T Crisco oil
2 t any food coloring (or leave white)
Combine everything
into a 2 quart sauce pan. Cook over med heat,
stirring with a wooden spoon, for several
minutes. You'll think you did something wrong
and that it could never work out, but you'll
start to see rubbery looking parts forming and
soon, it's rolling up into a softball sized
ball in the pan. Once it forms a decent ball,
turn off the heat. Plop it out onto the
counter and knead it a bit. If it's too
sticky, cook a bit longer. Do not overcook or
it'll be dry.
The next two are
the most pain in the ass foods you'll ever
make, but soooo worth it. Yum!!!
OUTBACK BREAD
Named for the
steakhouse and the bread they serve. This is
a dark, sweet bread that is great with soft
butter.
1 1/2 c warm water
2 T soften butter
1/2 c honey
2 c bread flour
1 2/3 c wheat flour
1 T cocoa
1 T sugar
2 t instant coffee
1 t salt
2 1/2t (1 pkg) yeast
cornmeal for dusting
Combine all
flours, cocoa, sugar, coffee & salt in a large
bowl. Make a well and pour in the warm water,
then the butter, honey and yeast. Slowly mix
with spoon, drawing dry ingredients into wet.
When you can handle the dough, begin to
combine by hand*, kneading thoroughly for at
least 10 minutes, until very smooth with a
consistent color. Let it sit in a covered
bowl in a warm place and rise for an hour.
When dough is
double in size, punch it down and divide it
into 8 portions. Form these portions into
tube shaped loaves about 8" long and 2" wide.
Sprinkle each loaf with cornmeal and place on
a cookie sheet or 2. Cover with waxed paper
and let rise 1 hour.
Preheat oven to
350 degrees. Uncover dough and bake for 20-25
minutes. Loaves will darken slightly on top.
*dough is tacky
and thin. You may need to add flour as you
work with it. Just keep adding flour until it
feel like bread dough.
FLAUTAS
3 16 oz cans of
stewed tomatoes (I use the Mexican flavored)
7 cans of diced green chilies
about 7-8 med size potatoes
1 large white onion
a good sized rump roast
garlic powder, salt, pepper
4 packages fajita-sized white flour tortillas
Crisco oil
shredded cheddar cheese
Dice potatoes and
onion into 1/2" cubes. (yes, it's a pain, but
just do it) Cook together until the potatoes
are soft. Boil the roast until it is totally
falling apart. Drain and add the tomatoes and
cooked potato/onion mix. Mix it up well and
cook until most of the liquid is off the
mixture. Add chilies and mix well, then
simmer about 15-20 minutes as more of the
liquid evaporates. Season to taste with
garlic powder, salt and pepper.
Once the liquid is
down, put about 2-3 T of mixture into a
tortilla. Add cheddar cheese if desired.
Fold the bottom of the tortilla up around the
mixture, then fold the sides in to the
middle. Roll the tortilla the rest of the way
up.* Fry in hot oil until golden brown on all
sides (about 3 minutes). Great with salsa or
alone. Mixture freezes wonderfully in a
gallon ziploc bag for use later. It will feed
an army.
*sad flauta
folding illustration:
GREEN CHILI
CHICKEN ENCHILADA CASSEROLE
1 Chicken boiled and boned or 5-6 chicken breasts boiled until falling off bones
1 stick of butter, margarine or butter flavored Crisco (equals 1/2 cup)
1 medium onion (chopped small)
1 4oz. can chopped green chilies
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 can cream of mushroom Soup
1 cup of broth chicken was cooked in OR 1 can of chicken broth if using breasts
1 pkg. corn tortillas, cut into fourths
Grated cheddar cheese, at least 8 oz
Sauté onion in butter. Add soups, chilies and broth and stir until smooth. Add chicken broken into pieces.
Spray casserole with Pam. Layer tortillas, soup mixture and cheese. Continue layering until you hit the top
of the pan, ending with cheese.
Bake 45 minutes to 1 hour at 350 degrees or until bubbly.
HOMEMADE CHICKEN
NOODLE SOUP
A bunch of chicken
(I use about 3 chicken legs or thighs and 4
breasts)
chicken bouillon
2 carrots, chopped
2 stalks of celery, chopped
1/2 bag of medium egg noodles (dry)
1 tsp of thyme
2 bay leaves
2 T dried onion flakes or 1/2 medium onion
salt and pepper to taste
Boil chicken off
the bones and remove bones, gristle and skin.
Reserve water chicken was boiled in for soup
stock, adding more water if necessary. When
chicken is down to meat only, return to stock
and add all other ingredients except bullion
and noodles. Bring to a boil. Add bouillon
to taste (about 1/4 cup) and allow to simmer
on low, covered, for 15-20 minutes. When
carrots and celery are cooked, REMOVE BAY
LEAVES and add noodles. Cook according to
directions on noodle package and serve. Keeps
very well in the fridge and reheats
wonderfully.
7-LAYER DIP
Frito Lay Bean Dip
- 1 can
2-3 ripe avocados, smashed up - add a dash of
garlic salt and lemon juice
16 oz of sour cream mixed with 1 package of
taco mix
1 bunch of green onions all chopped up
1 medium tomato, all chopped up
1 small can of sliced black olives
8 oz (or more) of cheddar jack or just cheddar
cheese
I use a glass pie
plate to hold mine. Start with the bean
dip, lining the bottom nicely, then add the
mashed avocados, then the onions and so on, in
the order above. Let it sit in the
refrigerator for an hour or so to marry up the
flavors (cover with plastic wrap) and serve
with corn chips.
EASY YUMMY
TILAPIA
Line a
baking fan with heavy foil, spray with butter
flavored nonstick spray and add fish, skin
side down. Spray the fish with the
butter spray, then dump about a half cup of
cooking vermouth over it. Then dump some
lemon juice onto it. Sprinkle lightly
with pepper, salt and a little dash of thyme.
Roll the foil down onto the fish to make a
little fish packet and bake in a PREHEATED
(yes, it matters) 400 degree oven for
around 20-25 minutes. Take it out when
it's flaky and don't overcook it or it will be
rubbery.
HEAVENLY
PECAN BARS
1 18.25
ounce yellow cake mix
---save out 2/3 cup of it dry and put aside
1/2 cup margarine, soft
1 egg
then 3 eggs
1 running over teaspoon of vanilla
1 1/2 c dark corn syrup
1/2c packed brown sugar
1 c chopped up pecans or lots more than that
Preheat the
oven to 350 degrees while you're doing all the
next bit.
Grease a
9x13" cake pan with butter. Mix up the
big part of the cake mix (minus the 2/3 c you
saved out), the soft margarine and the 1 egg.
After you've blended it up well, mash it out
into the bottom of the buttered pan.
Bake it in the 350 degree oven until it's
golden brown, about 15-20 minutes. While
that's happening, beat together the next 3
eggs, the vanilla, the 2/3 cup of dry cake
mix, corn syrup and brown sugar. When
the cake part is baked, pull it out and then
pour the syrupy mix on top of it.
Sprinkle the top with as many pecans and let
it cool if you can stand to, then just sit
down in the middle of the floor with the pan
and a spoon and eat the whole damned thing
yourself.
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