The World Is Too Connected

I'm pretty sure when current events and lifestyles become a part of history, it will say that we were too connected, but not connected enough.

We have social media that allows us to see things from all over the world in real time. We can spread our views in seconds.

We can share the good and the bad and the downright awful.

We can share knowledge and stupidity at record speeds.

We show the world our best and ultimately our worst.

Social media causes depression, because well...the grass is always greener and when we see those greener pastures everyday and our pastures look a bit brown, well, it isn't all that fun.

It allows for bullying 24/7....or in the case of our current POS POTUS at least at 3 am.

And while we're at it, so much of everything has to be about making money. Now don't get me wrong, I still dream of the day one of my cats finally goes viral and gets fame and fortune, so that they can buy their own kibble.

But god when your blog is so bogged down with ads that you can't find the content it becomes maddening.

Case in point the food blog where I found this recipe for Pumpkin Cream Cheese Swirl Muffins

INGREDIENTS

MUFFIN:

• 1 tablespoon pumpkin spice
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 (15 oz) can pumpkin (pure pumpkin puree)
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 1 3/4 cups all purpose flour
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract

CREAM CHEESE SWIRL:

• 8 oz cream cheese
• 1/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1 large egg yolk
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 375°F. Place paper baking cups into muffin pan. Set aside.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk flour, pumpkin spice, baking soda and salt until well combined. Set aside.
3. In large bowl, whisk together pumpkin, sugar and brown sugar.
4. Beat in eggs, vegetable oil and vanilla extract. Slowly whisk in the flour mixture, until there are no lumps. Fill muffin tins 3/4 full.
5. In a medium bowl, beat cream cheese until smooth. Add in sugar, egg yolk and vanilla extract and beat until well combined.
6. Top each muffin with about 1 tablespoon of cream cheese mixture and use a toothpick to swirl it into the batter. This will not look smooth, but it will bake up much prettier. (You can see exactly how I did this in the video above.)
7. Bake muffins for 18-20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
8. I liked these best at room temperature or even slightly chilled! Store in an airtight container in the fridge.

Mom's Birthday Cake

Mom would have been ok with a Pepperidge Farm cake, but I found one of her old cookbooks and there was a fabulous recipe for a Mandarin Orange Cake..

Isn't it stunning.

It was also very simple

Trying new things

I've been making a lot of new recipes.

I found a recipe for overnight oats here  I've got that in a bowl in the fridge for breakfast tomorrow. I had to make a few changes to the recipe. I only had french vanilla creamer and vanilla yogurt, but from what I could tell when I sampled the mixture, it is going to be delish.

The other thing I'm planning on making is a coconut-peach crisp that I found in a cookbook I have to review.

The cookbook is called Signs & Seasons; An Astrology cookbook.

Most of the recipes are a bit more involved and with pricey ingredients, but this one looked delicious. I wouldn't mind trying the frittata caprese which has relatively easy to find ingredients.

I'll keep you posted as to how they turned out.

Christmas Cookie?

A friend shared this recipe on Facebook..and really...I didn't want to lose it because I may make them for Christmas if I have a working stove.

Cos right now my oven is tripping the breaker and I don't know whether to call an electrician or someone to come and look at the oven.

BUCKEYE BROWNIE COOKIES

Print
makes 24 cookies
INGREDIENTS
• 1 box (18-19 oz) Brownie mix
• ¼ cup butter, melted
• ½ cup cream cheese, room temperature
• 1 egg
• ¾ cup peanut butter
• ¾ cup powdered sugar
• ¾ cup chocolate frosting
INSTRUCTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 350°
2. Line baking sheet with parchment paper.
3. In a medium bowl combine brownie mix, butter, cream cheese and egg. Stir until dough comes together, it will be very thick and sticky. I used my hands.
4. Form rounded tablespoons sized portions of dough into balls, placing on baking sheet about 2 inches apart, making an indentation with your thumb in the center of each.
5. In another bowl stir together peanut butter and powdered sugar. Form peanut butter into teaspoon sized balls and press into the indentations in the brownie cookies.
6. Press peanut butter down slightly because the peanut butter won't spread and you don't want the cookies to be too tall.
7. Bake for 10-12 minutes until edges are set.
8. Transfer to wire rack to cool.
9. When cooled top each cookie with about a tablespoon of chocolate frosting.
NOTES
Use a fudge frosting....or a can of frosting also works......

Adapted from Pillsbury

Pennywise Goulash

I'm trying to revive the blog and I found a page with writing prompts, one of them is "A food that reminds you of your youth."

Pennywise Goulash was something my mom made all the time. It was made with stew meat, tomatoes, ketchup, onions, mushrooms and bow tie pasta. I think it was something my grandmother made before

I've made it many times since I started cooking but something wasn't the same.

It was the bow tie noodles. They aren't the same. When my mom made this dish when I was a little girl those bow ties were huge and round. Now they aren't even really called bow ties, they are called farfalle and they are getting smaller and smaller.

The dish is still fabulous and one of my favorites, but I still love it.

Here's the recipe for anyone interested

Pennywise Goulash

3/4 lb lean beef
1/4 cup butter or margarine
1 med onion sliced
1 small can mushrooms
1/4 cup ketchup
1 1/2 cup canned tomatoes
1/2 tsp salt
1/8 tsp pepper
1 package farfalle noodles


Cut meat in very small pieces (or use stew meat that's already cut)
Melt butter in skillet and brown meat slowly for 10 minutes
Add onion and brown 5 minutes longer.
Add remaining ingredients and simmer gently for 45 minutes
Serve over cooked noodles.

We prefer to mix the sauce and meat mixture with the noodles. My mom made her's with fresh tomatoes from the garden so this was usually a summer dis for our family.

My Favorite Comfort Food

I love rice casserole. It is a wonderful dish for a cool fall or winter day. It has very few ingredients and most are ones you have on hand in your pantry.

Its one of the casseroles that mom always made and its one that I really love and most everyone that has it enjoys too.

Ingredients
1/2 c chopped onion
1 lb ground meat
1 can cream of mushroom
2 cans of chicken noodle
3/4 c of uncooked rice
water

Directions

Brown ground meat with chopped onion.
Drain excess fat
Add 1/2 cup of water and the rice and cook for about 5 minutes
Transfer to a 2 qt baking dish and mix with the soups. I would also add another 1/2 cup of water to help the rice cook
bake at 350 for 45 minutes or until bubbly and rice is done.

* Check periodically stirring and adding water if necessary.

Serve with your favorite veggie and cranberry sauce (OK that's just my preference but I love it)

A New Favorite Recipe

If you like cajun seasoning and alfredo, I've got a great recipe for you. I apologize for no pictures, but it was so good, we just kept right on eating.

It is super simple and super reasonable and will feed at least 4 people (who like to go back for seconds)

Cajun Sausage Alfredo

Ingredients
1 ring of smoked sausage
1 package of frozen onion and pepper mix (I used bird's eye)
2 jars of Alfredo sauce (I used the Walmart brand, but use your favorite basic sauce or make your own if you are so inspired)
1 package of rigatoni or any other similar pasta
2 tsp Cajun seasoning

Directions

Prepare your pasta according to package direction

Cut sausage into rings and toss into pot at medium to heat through, then add frozen veggies.
(If your veggies aren't thawed drain liquid once they soften)

Add sauce and then the spices. I would add a tsp at a time and taste. I'm sure I used more than the 2 tsp in mine, but it all depends on how much kick you want your sauce to have.

Add pasta and serve.

This is a meal that doesn't take much time to prepare and one you can easily feed 4-5 people with for under $10 bucks.

Its definitely a winner in my book and the same with the rest of my family.

Salsa Chicken & Rice

I came up with this recipe after hunting down other recipes for Salsa Chicken.

Ingredients

1lb of chicken tenders (approximately 10 tenders)
2 jars of your favorite salsa
1 can of either pinto beans or black beans
1 cup chicken broth
1 tsp chili powder
1 tsp cumin
1/2 cup taco sauce
1 cup of uncooked rice
2 cups of mexican cheese blend

Directions
Preheat oven to 375 and grease a 9 x 13 pan.

In a bowl combine rice, salsa, sauce, broth, chili powder, and cumin

Pour into the pan and add beans and chicken tenders.

Cover with foil and cook for 1 hour (longer if you use unthawed tenders)

If the rice is done add cheese and continue to bake until cheese has melted.

I found that with frozen tenders this recipe took about 1 hour and 15 minutes.

A Very Expensive Casserole

Yesterday was St. Patrick's Day..and I always make a corned beef recipe....

Here is my rather pricey Reuben Casserole Recipe

1 can 27 oz sauerkraut drained
1 lb chipped corned beef
1 stick of butter melted
1 package 12 oz swiss cheese slices
8 oz of Thousand Island dressing
12 slices of rye bread (I like marbled rye) cut into 1 inch cubes

350 degree oven

In a 9 x 13 pan, layer kraut, corned beef, dressing then cheese.

Place bread cubes in a bowl and pour the melted butter over them and toss to coat, then layer over the cheese and press them down.

Bake for 30 - 35 minutes

Black Forest Brownies

We have a standard chocolate cherry sheet cake that we make for almost every occasion, sometimes we frost it, sometimes we don't.

Lately we haven't been frosting it, which got me thinking that there had to be a way to make this cake into a brownie...

Well I searched  the net and found this recipe..

Black Forest Brownies

1 box Brownie mix for 9 x 13 pan
1 can cherry pie filler (I prefer the kind from Save A Lot or Aldi) Seriously folks the cheaper brands have more cherries! And that's what this recipe is all about.
2 eggs
1/4 cup of oil
1 1/4 cup of semi sweet morsels

Directions

Preheat oven to 350

Spray a 9 x 13 with Baker's Joy

Combine the brownie mix, eggs, oil and most of the pie filler. (Cherries but not all of the filling because it can make the brownie a little too ooey gooey....unless that's how you like them)

Bake 35 minutes or until a knife inserted comes out clean

Sprinkle morsels on top and smooth as they melt.

Cheesy Spinach Artichoke Dip

1 package of frozen spinach thawed and drained
1 can of artichoke hearts in water drained and then chopped
1 cup of grated Parmesan
1 cup mayo
4-6 squirts of hot sauce
1 cup Italian Cheese Blend (Or more depending on how cheesy you like it)

Preheat the oven to 350

Combine the first 5 ingredients in a food processor and combine on high for about 1-2 minutes, stopping occasionally to scrap down the edges.

Spoon into a shallow 1 - 1 1/2 quart baking dish

Cover with Italian Cheese Blend

Bake 20 minutes or until bubbly

Easy Dinner

Chili Dog Casserole

Ingredients

2 cans of chili with beans
1 bag of 8 inch tortillas
1 package of your favorite hot dogs (I love Nathan's when they are on sale...but hell the 99 cent kind at Save A Lot are great too)
As much Cheddar as your little heart desires or can handle without going into cardiac arrest.

Directions

1. Spread one can of beans on the bottom of a 9 x 13 pan.
2. Roll hot dogs in tortillas and place seam side down on the pan.
3. Cover with second can of chili and top with cheese
4. Bake at 425 for about 25- 30 minutes


These are great with tater tots or seasoned fries!

Stuffed Beef Bundles

This is one of my favorite recipes. Mini Meatloaves.

Great comfort food, and even better when accompanied by roasted potatoes and cauliflower

The recipe comes from a 1973 Better Homes and Gardens cookbook.

I cut the meatloaf recipe in half to make it for 4, but kept the gravy and added a jar of mushrooms

List of Ingredients

2 cups packaged herb-seasoned stuffing mix (Stove Top Stuffing)

1-3/4 lb. ground round or ground sirloin

1/3 cup milk

1/2 cup quick-cook oats

1 egg

2 12-oz. jars Kroger Home Style beef gravy

Recipe

Prepare stuffing according to package directions.

In a separate bowl combine meat, milk, egg and oats. Mix well. Divide into 8 patties on wax paper; pat into a 4-6 inch circle. Put 1/8 to 1/4 cup prepared stuffing in center of each meat patty. Draw meat over stuffing and seal. Place beef bundles into greased 4-quart baking dish.

Pour gravy over meat. Bake, uncovered, at 350 degrees for 90 minutes (1 1/2 hours).

Makes 6-8 servings.

Valentine's Day Brownies

I saw the recipe in the Sunday paper along with a coupon for Nestle morsels

1 package family size brownie mix and the ingredients needed to make it (eggs, water, oil)
1 carton of strawberry whipped icing
1 package of Valentine's Day morsel's.


Instructions:

1. Prepare brownie mix according to package directions.

2. Sprinkle half the bag of morsels on top of the brownies and bake as directed

When they are finished the brownies should look like this:

Let the brownies cool and then frost with the strawberry frosting and decorate with remaining morsels

Everything But The Kitchen Sink Chili

Here's my simple, easy recipe for chili. 1/2 cup green pepper chopped (I like frozen) 1/3 cup onion chopped (again frozen) 1.5 lb ground meat 1 can diced tomatoes w/or w/out chilis 1 small jar of mild or medium salsa 1 can tomato soup chili powder to taste cumin to taste 1 can of each: dark or light kidney beands, northern beans, pinto beans, black beans. Brown ground meat in a pot with onion and green pepper until meat is no longer pink. Drain. Add tomatoes, soup and salsa simmer for 5-10 minutes Add beans and continue to simmer for about 20 minutes

Tamale Pie

I was dejunking the other day when I found a box of cards that had a half written recipe on it.

ARGH!

It is for Tamale Pie and it came from Florence Henderson's old cooking show Country Kitchen that was on in the 90s, I think.

Ingredients

2lb ground meat
Chili Sauce
1 large onion
green pepper
1 stalk celery
8 oz tomato sauce
1 can evaporated milk
Corn muffin mix
Sharp Cheddar

I'm going to take a guess that this might be how its done.

Its brown the ground meat with the onion, pepper and celery.
Drain.
Add tomato sauce, chili sauce and milk

put in baking dish.

Prepare muffin mix according to directions and then spoon on top of the meat mixture.

Sprinkle with cheese.

Bake 400 for 25 minutes.

Recipe! Chocolate Cherry Cordial Cookies!

Chocolate Cherry Cordials...care of Parade Magazine

INGREDIENTS:
For Cookies:
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 cup sugar
1 egg 1 tsp rum extract
1 1/2 cups flour
1/3 cup cocoa powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp baking powder
30 maraschino cherries, drained and patted dry with paper towels
2 Tbsp sugar, for coating
For Glaze:
1 cup confectioners' sugar
1 tsp rum extract
4 tsp maraschino cherry juice
 DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to 350°F. In a large bowl, beat butter, sugar, egg, and rum extract until light and fluffy. Add flour, cocoa, salt, baking soda, and baking powder. Beat well.

2. Flatten about 1 Tbsp dough. Place a cherry on top; mold dough around it. Roll in sugar. Repeat with remaining dough.

3. Place cookies 2 inches apart on an ungreased baking sheet. Bake 8 minutes. Cool on a rack.

4. For glaze, whisk ingredients; spoon over cookies.

1st Christmas Cookie Of The Year

Angie Dzurinko's Mini Choco Balls

These cookies are essentially Russian Tea Cookies with chocolate chips in them.

Yum!

When making these, don't be afraid to get your hands in the dough or you won't get a good cookie. This is one that a mixer won't really help you on.

iMini Choc Chip Balls
3 sticks marg or butter.
3/4c Powdered sugar
1tbls vanilla
3c Flour
2c(12oz) Mini choc morsels

Beat butter and sugar tog Add remaining ingredients. Make into 1" balls

Bake 375 10-12 mins on lighty sprayed pans

Let cool and sprinkle lightly with powdered sugar!

Comfort Food: Chocolate Chip Crunches

Let's face it, comfort food is not always meatloaf and mac and cheese.

Chocolate Chip Cookies are my comfort food!

I made these before Easter. The recipe is from the book in the picture.

Chocolate Chip Crunches

Preheat oven to 375

1 c butter melted (this is why the cookies are so good)

1 c white sugar

1 c brown sugar

1 tsp salt

2 tsp vanilla

2 beaten eggs

2 1/2 cups of flour

2 cups crushed corn flakes

2 cups chocolate chips

1. Melt butter add the sugars and stir. Then add soda, salt, vanilla and beaten eggs. Mix well. Then add the flour and stir it in. Next add the corn flakes and chips. Stir in thoroughly.

2. Form dough into walnut size balls and place on a well greased cookie sheet (or one lined with parchment)

3. Bake 8-10 minutes at 375

Who's Comin' For Breakfast

I found this recipe on Cooks.com, I think I'm going to try it tomorrow morning...or Sunday.


4 slices bread (your choice)
1 lb. sausage
1 c. sharp Cheddar cheese, grated
6 eggs (Egg Beaters may be used)
2 c. milk
1 tsp. mustard dry (optional)
1 tsp. salt
Dash of pepper

Tear bread in pieces and place in greased baking dish (13 x 9). Brown and drain sausage, spoon over bread. Sprinkle grated cheese over all. Beat eggs, milk, dry mustard, salt and pepper together and pour over bread and sausage.

Bake at 350 degrees for 35 to 40 minutes. The cheese will rise to the top during baking. Can be prepared the night before and refrigerated.