Tuesday, July 19, 2011

Happiness Cake

hmm...we all need more of these ingredients in our lives....

Recipe taken from – Heritage Cookbook (1975)

First, the ingredients:

1 c good thoughts
1 c kind deeds
1 c consideration for others
2 c sacrifice
2 c well beaten faults
3 c forgiveness

Mix well.  Add tears of joy, sorrow and sympathy.  Flavor with love and kindly service.  Fold in 4 C prayer and faith.  After pouring all this into your daily life, bake well with the heat of human kindness in daily life.  Serve with a smile, any time, and it will satisfy the hunger of starved souls.

Friday, July 15, 2011

Baby Meatloaf

You have to make these today!  These were a childhood favorite of mine.  They were probably the second favorite dish my mom made.  Second, only to yummy chicken fried steak!  We would eat with baked potatoes and glazed carrots.  Oh so so good.  I still make them to this day and my hubby loves them as much as I do and our son enjoys them too!  Anyone any of my family members have made these for has also loved them.  They are so quick and easy that you’ll have plenty of time to spare.

Recipe taken from – My Mom

1 lb hamburger meat (some of my family use turkey meat)
1 small onion, chopped
1 small can evaporated milk
1 egg
¾ c oatmeal
Salt
Pepper

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Combine above ingredients.  Mix well.  Make into balls the size of your fist.  (usually makes 4-5)  Put into greased 9x13 dish.  Combine sauce ingredients.  Put equal amounts on baby meat loaves before placing into oven.  Cook approximately 45 minutes.

Sauce: *
*Bear with me because I guesstimate when making this so I do not know the accurate measurements. One time I cooked them I tried to measure it out and this is what I came up with me….sorry if it’s more than needed!

4 Tbsp Catsup
2 tsp Mustard
4 Tbsp Brown Sugar

If you make no other recipe on this blog PLEASE at least give these a try.  I promise they won’t disappoint!

Wednesday, July 13, 2011

Oatmeal Crispy Cookies

I finally got a new hand mixer after having been without one for a year and a half and what better way to break it in than by making some cookies!  I tagged this recipe when going through my cookbooks because I thought it sounded similar to my favorite cookies and I’m a sucker for oatmeal.  Well it turns out it’s one ingredient shy of my favorite cookies!  They turned out very yummy as usual and I could eat probably a dozen in one day.  Trust me they are that good!  I really have eaten six in one day, what can I say I was nursing and needed the extra calories.  Hmmm…I think I could still eat that many and am not nursing any longer.  Houston we have a problem!!  Our son loved them too!  He wouldn't take a second bite of daddy's chocolate chip cookies but has fits for mine!!:)

I use half old fashioned oats and half quick cooking oats for different texture.  I also only used ½ c of pecans and no raisins.  This was my first time to use pecans and they were a good addition.  But if you don’t have any trust me they are just as good without.  I roll into logs on wax paper and store half in the fridge and half in the freezer to be a quick indulgent snack every now and then or maybe every other day!

Recipe taken from - W.M.U Centennial Cookbook (1988)

1 c Crisco
1 c brown sugar, packed
1 c white sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1 ½ c flour
1 tsp salt
3 c uncooked oats
1 c pecans and/or raisins

Mix first 5 ingredients.  Add dry ingredients, one at a time, mixing well after each addition.  Bake at 350 for about 12 minutes.

Please give these yummy cookies a try.  Either this version or my favorite cookie version!

Tuesday, July 12, 2011

How to Preserve Children

Oh, only if this was more common these days the world would be a better place I believe.

Recipe taken from – Texas State Foster Parents (1989)

1 large field
½ doz children
2 or 3 dogs
Pinch of brook
Handful of small pebbles
1 hot sun
Deep blue sky
Assorted flowers

Mix the children and dogs well together and put them in the field stirring constantly.  Pour brook over the pebbles, sprinkle the field with flowers, spread over a deep blue sky and bake in hot sun.  When thoroughly browned remove and set to cool in a bath tub.

Monday, July 11, 2011

Chicken With A Twist

Another crock-pot meal…yay!  This was super easy to throw together.  I served it with potatoes, bread, and corn.  It turned out good.  I would make it again for sure.  It screamed of something Mexican for leftovers so I made some tacos for lunch.  I had flour tortillas, sour cream, cheese, tomatoes, and corn.  I wish I would have had an avocado!  It was yummy like that too.  And best of all the little monster liked it too which is always a plus!

I used 3 boneless skinless breasts (2lbs) instead of buying bone in with skin.  Everything else I kept the same.  I cooked mine for approx 8.5 hours, I think 7 would probably work.

Recipe taken from – W.M.U Centennial Cookbook (1988)

4 to 6 chicken breast, skinned
¼ c chopped onion
2 Tbsp butter
Juice of 1 lemon
½ tsp salt
¼ tsp thyme
¼ tsp paprika
Garlic powder to taste
Salt to taste
Pepper to taste

Place chicken in crock-pot.  Add all the other ingredients, letting them fall in and around chicken.  Cover and cook on LOW for 8 to 10 hours.  Good company recipe.

Tired of the same old chicken recipes then give this a go and use your imagination on how to serve it up!

Friday, July 8, 2011

Dirt Cake



Yep, it looks like dirt!  I would never have tried this if not for one our good friends making it for a small group gathering awhile back.  I do not like chocolate pudding or Oreos but it works here.  I know, don’t even try to figure out my weird dislikes that I like in other forms…it makes no sense!  I love cool-whip (my hubby says I could eat a whole container plain!) and I guess with that addition and the cream cheese it just works for me!

The only change I made was splitting the recipe in half because there would only be 3.5 (.5 = toddler) people enjoying it and then I didn’t want the temptation to eat it all later.  It still made quite a lot so if you don’t have a big crowd I’d half it.  I put probably three quarters of the Oreos on the bottom and the rest on the top.  I also softened my cream cheese and butter.

Here’s what I found on sweet milk.  I love the internet….sometimes!

Recipe taken from – W.M.U Centennial Cookbook (1988)

1 large pkg. Oreo cookies
1 (8 oz) pkg. cream cheese
1 stick oleo
1 c powdered sugar
1 large ctn. Whipped topping
2 boxes or 7 oz Instant Jello-O pudding mix
3 c sweet milk
1 tsp vanilla

Crush cookies and put into 9x13 inch pan.  Save a handful of cookies for topping.  Mix cheese and butter together until smooth with electric mixer.  Mix in powdered sugar.  Fold in whipped topping.  In a large bowl, mix pudding with milk and vanilla.  Fold cream cheese in pudding and mix well.  Spread the saved cookies on top of mixture.  This may be frozen.

This would make a fun little boys birthday party treat or a fun pot luck dessert!

Inspirational Quotes

Inspiration taken from – Thalian Society’s Cookbook

~  It is when we forget ourselves that we do things which are remembered.

~  Good judgment comes from experience.  Experience comes from bad judgment.

~  The only exercise some people get is jumping to conclusions.

Thursday, July 7, 2011

Sharon's Salad

We love black beans and salsa so this sounded like it’d be a winner.  We went over to a friend’s house to swim and visit so what a great opportunity to make something new!  This was great!  We ate it as an appetizer with chips but it could just as easily be a side dish to a meal.  It made a lot and yes, we ate nearly all of it.  We can be piggies when something is good and this fit the bill.  

I didn’t make any changes.  It was easy to make it just took a bit longer than expected because of all the chopping.  Oh, we let it marinade overnight.  I would say that the avocados and tomatoes at the end are optional.  Yes, they are good in it but it was just as good without them too.

Recipe taken form – Wish Cookbook*

2 cans black beans, drained and rinsed
2 c frozen kernel corn
½ c cilantro chopped
½ c picante sauce
1 large red bell pepper, diced small
1 large red onion, diced small

Dressing:
Juice of one lime
¾ c Italian dressing
2 cloves garlic minced

Mix dressing and toss with other ingredients and chill for several hours.  Add just before serving 1 large tomato chopped and 2 avocados.

This is from the Make-A-Wish Foundation.  This is an amazing organization that was established to grant wishes of children between the ages of 2 ½ and 18 who have life threatening or terminal illness.  My family benefited through this amazing organization and we will be forever grateful.  If you ever are in need of a charity to donate to please keep them in mind as they help kids dreams come true.

Try this one soon it delivers for sure!