Salisbury Steak Bake

This is a quick and easy recipe to feed a hungry family.  My boys all love it!

 2 Pounds Ground Beef

1 Can Cream of Mushroom

1 Can of Water

1 Pkg. Brown Gravy Mix

1 Pkg. Lipton Onion Soup Mix

8 Ounces, Sliced Baby Bella Mushrooms (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Form 6 hamburger patties out of the ground meat.  Place the 6 patties in a 13x9 casserole dish. In a small pot, combine cream of mushroom, water, gravy mix and Lipton Onion Soup Mix. Heat on medium low and stir until gravy is formed. Pour gravy mix over patties. Top with sliced mushrooms. Bake uncovered for 45 mins or until patties are cooked to desired temperature.  Serve over mashed potatoes.

Praline Chex Mix

 

I made these for the boys one day for after school snack.  Delicious!

 

3 c. Corn Chex cereal

3 c. Rice Chex cereal
3 c. Crispix cereal
2 c. pretzels
2 c. pecan halves
1 c. unsalted butter
1 c. light brown sugar
1/2 tsp. salt

In a large mixing bowl, combine Corn Chex, Rice Chex, Crispix, pretzels, and pecan halves. Toss gently to mix.
In a saucepan, bring butter, brown sugar, and salt to a boil over medium heat. Pour over cereal mixture and toss gently to coat.
Spread onto a rimmed baking sheet. Bake at 250℉ for 10 minutes. Remove from oven and stir.
Return pan to oven; bake for 45 minutes more, stirring twice.
Cool completely. Store in an airtight container.
 

NOTE: If you omit the pecan halves, do not add extra cereal or pretzels to replace them. The cereal and pretzels "soak up" more of the butter/brown sugar mixture than the pecans do, and you won't end up with a nice sugary coating on all of the party mix pieces.

M&M Chocolate Bars

I made these for an after-school snack one day for the boys.  They've been a favorite ever since.  So yummy!

1 1/2 Cups Flour

1 1/2 Cups Quick-Cooking Rolled Oats

1 Cup Packed Light Brown Sugar

1 Tsp. Salt

1 Cup plus 2 T unsalted butter softened (divided)

1 (14 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk

1 (11.5 ounce) bag milk chocolate chips

1 Cup plain M&M's

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease 9x13 pan. Set aside.

In a large bowl, mix flour, oats, brown sugar, salt and 1 cup butter with a spoon. Remove 1 cup of the mixture and set aside.

Press remaining mixture into the bottom of the prepared baking dish.

In a medium pot, combine condensed milk, chocolate chips and remaining 2 tablespoons butter over medium-low heat. Stir constantly until chips are melted and everything is mixed well.

Pour chocolate mixture over oat layer and spread evenly. Sprinkle reserved oat mixture over the chocolate.

Top with M&M's and bake 25-30 minutes. Let cool completely in the pan before cutting.

De Leche Rice Krispie Bars

These Rice Krispie Treats are the best our family has ever had.  They are amazing and you won't be able to have just one!  Enjoy!

5 T. Butter

1/4 Tsp. Vanilla

10 Cups Mini Marshmallows (Divided)

6 Cups Rice Krispie Cereal

1/3 Cup Sugar + 1 T Cinnamon (mixed together)

1/2 Tsp. Sea Salt

1/2 Can Dulce de Leche

Spray a 9×9-inch pan with non-stick spray. Place a large pot on the stove over medium heat, add your butter and let it melt and then brown the butter.   

Note: Browning butter: Place a light colored pan over medium heat and add room temperature butter. Stir it gently as it melts. It will begin to foam and sizzle and then you will see little brown fleck forming on the bottom of the pan. As soon as you see those flecks, remove the pan from the heat.\

 

 Once the butter is browned, remove from the heat and add the salt (1/2 tsp) and mini marshmallows (8 cups). Stir until everything is completely melted and smooth. If you need to put it back on the heat to finish melting the marshmallows, that is fine. You just don't want the browned butter to burn.

 

Once it is smooth, add vanilla (1/4 Tsp) and stir again.  Measure out the rice krispies (6 cups) cereal in a large bowl. Pour the melted marshmallows over the rice krispies and the cinnamon sugar mixture and mix well.  
Add in the remaining marshmallows while still warm. Lightly press about half of the rice krispies mixture into your prepared pan. Flatten it down so it is even in the pan and then spread the dulce de leche (1/2 can) all over the rice krispies in an even layer.  Top with the rest of the rice krispies mixture and lightly press it around until it is evenly spread into the pan. Let it set at room temperature until cooled.  Rice Krispie treats can be stored in an airtight container, at room temperature, for 2-3 days. Or they can be frozen for up to 6 weeks.

Sweet Potato Casserole

A favorite dish for our family at Thanksgiving time has always been Sweet Potato Casserole for as long as I can remember.  Every year I've tried a different recipe and it's been good but just didn't quite hit the spot.  This year we found the recipe that is our favorite and is a keeper. 

 

2 Cans (29 oz. each) Sugary Sam Cut Sweet Potatoes (drained)

2 Eggs

1/2 Cup Milk

3/4 Cup Brown Sugar (divided)

1 Tsp. Vanilla

1 Tsp. Salt

1/2 Tsp.Cinnamon

1/4 Cup Butter (melted)

1/2 Cup Flour

1 Cup Chopped Pecans

1 Bag of Marshmallows

Heat oven to 375 F. Grease a 13x9 inch baking dish.  Pour sweet potatoes into pan. In a mixing bowl, add eggs, milk, 3/4 cup of the brown sugar, vanilla, salt and cinnamon.  Mix well. Spread over the sweet potatoes. In a medium bowl, combine butter, flour and remaining 3/4 cup brown sugar; stir in pecans.  Sprinkle evenly over sweet potato mixture. Bake 30 to 35 minutes or until topping is browned. Add marshmallows on top and put back in oven until the marshmallows are golden brown.

Pineapple Slushy Punch

I'm always trying to come up with some new and fun foods for my boys.  This past week I tried a new punch recipe for Wild Wednesday.  It was a hit!  My boys said it is the BEST punch I've ever made.  It is so easy too and took 5 minutes to put together. 

2 packets of Koo-laid (I used Very Berry)

2 Cups of Sugar

1 46 oz. Can of Pineapple Juice

1 bottle of Lemon Lime Juice (99cents at Karl's)

Mix all the above together in big container and put in freezer 4-6 hours before serving.  

Right before serving take out of freezer and stir in one 1/2 Gallon container of Pineapple Sherbet Ice Cream. Use a potato masher to get all the lumps out if needed.  IT IS SO YUMMY! 

You can re-freeze the left overs and right before serving add more Lemon Lime to it to make it punch consistency again.  It's just as good the second time!

Mom’s Sunday Pot-roast

 

Almost every Sunday growing up, we would come home from church and in the oven was pot-roast. When I got married I said I never wanted to have roast again. Well, things have changed, I’ve developed a hunger again for my moms roast. Also, my boys think it’s the best roast ever. So, I asked my mom for her recipe the other day and we had Sunday Roast last week. Yum! 

1 pork or beef roast

Drizzle Worcestershire sauce all over roast

Pour a packet of onion soup packet all over roast. 

Season with a little garlic salt and season salt if you wish. 

Add carrots and cut up potatoes too if you like. 

Put into oven pot or crock pot. 

Put about an inch of water into pan. Cake covered for 20 minutes on 350. Turn oven down to 250 and your roast will be ready when you come home from church or if you’re wanting for supper, mom said to turn oven down to 225. 

Enjoy! 

Sweet Pea’s Winner Hamburger Steak

I decided to make hamburger steaks the other evening for supper. I experimented and changed them up a bit and my boys loved them! They were so moist and tender. 

2 lbs. Ground Hamburger (used 80/20)

1 Cup Garlic Bread Crumbs

1 egg

1 packet Montreal Grill Mates Marinade Packet

1 T. Worcestershire Sauce 

Mix all together and form into patties and place on cookie sheet. Bake in oven at 350 for 20-30 minutes or however long till they appear to be cooked through. Enjoy! 

Snicker Rice Krispie Bars

These are incredible. I tried them for the first time one day for an after school snack and they were a big hit with my boys.  Each time I've made them since, they are always a hit.  You can't just have one.  I tweaked the original recipe some to make it more yummy.

1/4 cup butter
5 cups mini marshmallows
5 1/2 cups rice krispie cereal
1/2 cup salted peanuts
16 oz. 1 1/2 11 oz. bags caramels (I use the caramel bites)
3 TBS Heavy Cream
4 cups chocolate chips
2/3 cup Peanut Butter

1.  Melt your butter or margarine over medium low heat in a large sauce pan.
2.  Add in marshmallows and still together till marshmallows are completely melted.
3.  Pour in your rice krispie cereal and stir together till cereal is completely coated.
4.  Pour cereal in to a bar pan and press down evenly (don't squish too much).
5.  Sprinkle peanuts evenly over the top of the rice krispie treats.
6.  In a medium sized sauce pan combine caramels and heavy cream over medium heat.
7.  Stir until caramel is melted and smooth.
8.  Pour caramel evenly over the top of rice krispie treats.
9.  Melt chocolate chips along with peanut butter in microwave.  Stir until smooth.
10. Pour chocolate mixture over the carmel layer and spread evenly.
11. Let chocolate set completely and cut into little squares.  Enjoy!

Lazy Lasagna or "Busy Mom's Lasagna"

Our family loves lasagna but I don’t make very often because I’ve always felt like it was so time consuming.  Well, I found this recipe last week on Pinterest and it’s my type of recipe.  It’s FAST, QUICK AND EASY and the boys all LOVED it.  I served it to their friends and it was a hit with them all too.  So, it’s a keeper for sure around here.  I added meat to mine as the original recipe didn’t call for any meat.

• 1- 24 oz. jar Spaghetti sauce
• 1/2 Pound Cooked Ground Pork or Beef
• 1- 25 oz. bag Frozen Ravioli (I use the cheese stuffed kind)
• 2 Cups Mozzarella Cheese
• 1/3 Cup Parmesan Cheese (optional)
• Preheat oven to 400 degrees and grease a 9x13 baking dish.

Cook the ground meat.  Spread about 3/4 cup of your marinara sauce into the bottom of your baking dish. Then spread the cooked meat over the sauce.
Arrange half of the frozen ravioli in a single layer over the sauce.  Top with remaining sauce and half of the mozzarella cheese. Repeat the layers starting with what's left of the frozen ravioli.  Finish by topping with the remainder of the sauce and mozzarella. Sprinkle with Parmesan if you’d like.

Cover the baking dish with aluminum foil and bake for 30 minutes.  Remove the foil and continue baking for about 15 more minutes or until the cheese is bubbly and starting to brown.

Let it cook for 5-10 minutes, and then serve alone or with garlic bread, salad, or veggies.  ENJOY!!!

Chester’s Puff Corn (aka Sin Crunch)

This stuff is so dangerous left around our home!  LOL! I can not stay out of it!  It’s so addicting!  It is incredibly delicious! The recipe is from the Holdeman Mennonite Cookbook (Prairie Range” that was submitted by Renee Schmidt.  

2 Bags Chester’s Puff Corn
1 Cup Butter
1 Cup Brown Sugar
1/2 Cup Light Corn Syrup
1 Tsp. Baking Soda
1 Pkg. Almond Bark

Combine butter, brown sugar, and syrup in pan.  Bring to boil.  Reduce temperature and stir for 7 minutes.  Stir in baking soda.  Put puff corn in a large stainless steel bowl or roaster and pour mixture over, stirring to coat.  Bake at 250 degrees for 1 hour stirring every 15 minutes.  Lay out flat on wax paper.  Melt almond bark and drizzle over puff corn with slotted spoon.  Let harden and then put in closed container and keep sealed for freshness.

Coffee Punch

This punch has become a New Year’s Eve tradition for our family.  It is so yummy and has enough caffeine in it to keep us all awake playing games until Midnight to watch the New Year come in.  LOL! 

1 Quart Triple Strength Coffee Brewed (Approximately 3 cups water and 2 heaping tablespoons coffee)
1/2 Cup sugar
Stir to dissolve and chill.
1/2 Pint Heavy Cream
1 1/2 T. Vanilla Extract
1/2 Gallon Chocolate Ice Cream
1/2 Gallon Vanilla Ice Cream

Combine everything but the ice cream and refrigerate until ready to make the punch. 

When ready to serve or just 30 minutes before hand, add the ice cream to a punch bowl and pour the coffee mixture over it and mix or mash with potato masher and leave a little lumpy.  Sometimes you will need more liquid and you can add milk or more brewed coffee.  We also like to drizzle chocolate syrup on top too.

You can freeze the leftovers and thaw an hour or so before serving time again.  Delicious!  Like my Mom says, It tastes like STARBUCKS!

New Year’s Cookies

When I was growing up, Mom would make these each day on New Year’s Day.  They were also a big treat when we’d attend the Annual MCC Sale that was held here at Fairview.  About 3 years ago I was craving them so bad and Mom hadn’t been able to make them for several years due to her health so I decided to try and make them myself. for the first time.  I’ve always been leery about trying anything with yeast in it but decided to give it a try. They turned out surprisingly really good and my family loved them as much as I did and have requested them since then every year.  We now make a double batch each New Years' Day and deliver them to all our neighbors too to wish them a Happy New Year!  It’s become a fun tasty tradition! 

I’ve tried a couple different recipes I’ve found but my Mom uses the one from Lillian Nickel in the MB Church Cookbook and I’ve used that one too and it seems to always turn out the best.
 
2 1/2 T. dry granular yeast
1/2 c. warm water
2 c. milk, scalded
3 eggs (beaten)
1/3 c. cooking oil
2/3 c. sugar
1 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. nutmeg (optional)
About 5 c. flour (maybe a little more if needed)
2-3 cups raisins

Mix the yeast in the warm water and let it soften while you beat the eggs and measure out the rest of the ingredients.  Then mix all ingredients into the yeast mixture, using enough flour to make it a very soft, spoonable dough.  Let rise until double in bulk, then fry by spoonfuls in hot oil or shortening until as brown as desired and cooked through.  Drain (I put mine on paper towels to soak up the grease) and then roll in granulated sugar.  They are so YUMMY and best eaten warm. 

Avalanche Cookies

I first made these over a year ago for the concession stand of one of Hunter’s Football Games.  They are so easy and quick to make and were a big hit.  My boys have asked for them several times since then and they are gluten free too, which is a plus in our family.

1 Pkg. White Almond Bark
2 Cups Rice Krispies Cereal
3/4 Cup Peanut Butter
1 Cup Mini Chocolate Chips
1 Cup Mini-Marshmallows

First put your mini-chocolate chips in the freezer, while you prepare the rest.  Melt the Almond Bark in microwave.  Stir in the peanut butter and the rice Krispy cereal.  Stir in the marshmallows too and lastly put the chocolate chips from the freezer in.  Note:  Make sure the mixture isn’t too warm or the chocolate chips will all melt, which is still good but doesn’t look as pretty.  Take a cookie scoop and drop by spoonfuls on wax paper.  Wait about 30 minutes to an hour before they set up .  Enjoy!

Puppy Chow

I remember when my Mom discovered this recipe when we were kids.  We made a bunch of it and took it to our school (Progressive) for all our classmates and put it in bags with the Purina chow emblem on it.  I remember it being a big hit with everyone.  We’ve never stopped making it.  I just made a bunch of it this week for the all the boys that come over here each Wednesday after school.  It’s so yummy and such a simple snack to make. 

1 Cup Peanut Butter
1 Cup Chocolate Chips
1/2 Cup Butter
8 Cups Chex Mix Cereal (corn or rice)
1 1/2 Cups Powdered Sugar

Put the Chex mix in a container you have a lid for and one you can close and shake. 
Put the peanut butter, chocolate chips and butter all in a microwavable dish and melt.  Stir and pour over the check mix cereal.  Put the lid on and shake so all Chex mix is covered in the chocolate mixture.  Then take your powdered sugar and pour it on top.  Again close lid and shake until all is covered.  Sometimes I have to add more powdered sugar to get them all covered good.  You can add candy for some color and to make it festive or eat plain.  Enjoy!

Aunt Kay Kay’s Cranberry Jello Salad

Every year for Thanksgiving, Aunt Kay Kay brings this dish to our Thanksgiving gathering.  We all love it and I finally remembered to ask her for the recipe.  It’s delicious and easy and would make a great salad for a Christmas gathering too. 

2 Small Pkg. Raspberry Jell-O
1 Can Crushed Pineapple
1 Can Whole Canned Cranberries

Boil 2 Cups Water (include the juice from the pineapple as part of your 2 cups).  Pour over the raspberry Jell-O.  Stir well and make sure Jell-O is all dissolved.  Add 4 cups ice.  Stir well until all ice has melted.  Add crushed pineapple and cranberries.  Stir and put in refrigerator to set up several hours before serving. 

Enjoy!

Peanut Butter Sauce for Ice Cream

We recently celebrated my Mother-in-law’s 75th Birthday with a surprise party where we served homemade ice cream to the guests. I was wanting to have several toppings available so I looked up toppings on Pinterest and came across this one.  I LOVE PEANUT BUTTER so was so excited to run across it and excited to try it.  IT WAS A BIG HIT!  YUM! YUM! 

1 Cup Sweetened Condensed Milk (one can)
1 Cup Peanut butter
10 T. Water

Heat peanut butter and sweetened condensed milk on low heat in a pan on stove top.  Once it is all soft and stirred together, add the water and stir again until smooth. Serve warm.  You can keep refrigerated and just microwave a few seconds to serve again in future.

Ranch Pinwheels

I made these recently for a family party we had at our home.  They were a big hit and Brad said later that evening, "those pinwheels were the best ones you've ever made."  So, I thought I better record the recipe so I have for the future.  YUM!

8 oz. pkg. Cream Cheese (softened)
1/2 Cup Mayonnaise
1 pkt. of Hidden Valley Ranch Dips Mix
1/2 tsp. Garlic Salt
1 Cup Sharp Cheddar Cheese
4 oz. diced green chilies
2.25 oz. can sliced black olives
1 small onion chopped
1/3 to 1/2 cup red bell pepper chopped
1/3 to 1/2 cup green bell pepper chopped
8 flour tortillas

Mix all ingredients and spread some on each tortilla.  Roll up each tortilla and wrap in saran wrap and refrigerator for 3-4 hours.  Take out of saran wrap and slice into 1 inch slices and arrange on a serving plate.  Keep refrigerated until time to serve.  Enjoy! 

Red Velvet Surprise Cupcakes

I was looking for something festive to make for our annual “Happy Birthday, Jesus” party coming up.  The boys had said they wanted cupcakes this year instead of a cake so I saw the Red Velvet Cake mix at the grocery store and picked up a box.  Then while making them I remembered the cupcakes my Mom used to make all the time that had cream cheese and chocolate chips in the middle and thought that would go great with these too.  So, I added that part and then topped them some homemade cream cheese frosting.  YUM!  I also made these for Hunter’s 9th Birthday Party at school.  We called them “Boomer Sooner” cupcakes to fit his football birthday theme this year. LOL!  They were loved by all.  They would be a perfect dessert for Valentines day too. 

Ingredients:
Red Velvet Cake Mix prepared as box says

Fill each cupcake tin with batter as box directs, but don’t bake yet.  

Surprise part or filling:
8 oz. cream cheese (softened)
1/3 cup sugar
1 egg
1/8 tsp. salt
1 cup mini semi-sweet chocolate chips

Mix all together and drop a spoonful of filling mixture into the middle of each cupcake batter. 
Bake at 350 degrees for 14 minutes.  

Cream Cheese Frosting:
2 – 8 oz. cream cheese (softened)
1/2 cup butter, softened
2 pounds confectioners sugar (or however much to make it the consistency you want)
2 teaspoon vanilla

Cream together cream cheese and butter. Beat in vanilla.  On low speed, add confectioners sugar a little at a time.  Once all sugar has been added increase to medium speed until frosting is creamy.  

Frost your cooled off cupcakes and ENJOY!!!

Broccoli, Potato Cheddar Soup

This soup is DELICIOUS!  Perfect for Fall or Winter.  It can easily be made gluten free too, just by substituting rice flour for the regular flour, which is what I do to make it eatable for Brad. 

• 2 - 14.5 oz. cans chicken broth
• 2-3 large carrots, peeled and diced
• 4 medium potatoes, peeled and cubed into small pieces
• 1 tsp. onion powder
• 2 small heads broccoli (washed and diced small)
• 3 TB butter
• ⅓ cup flour
• 3½ cups milk
• 4 cups shredded cheddar cheese
• 1 tsp. salt
• ½ tsp. garlic pepper
• 6 slices bacon, cooked and chopped (I use a package of real bacon bits, which is much quicker)

Instructions

1. In a large pot combine chicken broth, carrots potatoes and onion powder.
2. Bring to a boil, cover and simmer for about 10 minutes.
3. Add broccoli, cover and simmer for an additional 10 minutes.
4. While simmering, melt butter in a large sauce pan. Whisk in the flour and cook for another minute (or until golden brown). Whisk in milk and cook for an additional 5 minutes until the sauce thickens.
5. Add cheese and stir until it is all melted. Add salt and garlic pepper.
6. Pour cheese sauce into the large pot and stir until well combined.
7. Add more milk for a thinner consistency and add any additional salt and pepper needed. Top with bacon pieces.
8. Serve warm.