Poppy Seed Chicken

This is one of those recipes that never lasts long at our house.  It's super easy to make and super tasty!

Cooking Time:  45 Minutes
Yields:  6 Servings

Ingredients

5 cups cooked chicken, shredded
1 can condensed cream of chicken soup
1 cup sour cream
1/2 cups crushed buttery round crackers
1 tsp poppy seeds
1/2 cup butter, melted

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees
2. Place the chicken in a 9 x 13 baking dish.
3. In a medium bowl, combine the soup and sour cream.  Pour over the chicken.
4. In a separate bowl, combine the crackers, poppy seeds, and melted butter.  Sprinkle over the chicken and sauce.
5. Bake for 30 minutes, until the sauce is bubbly.

From AllRecipes.com

Thanksgiving Menu

I am hosting my first Thanksgiving this year, but thankfully I'm not having to make ALL the dishes.  However, I thought I would share our menu with you!

Fruit Tray - Being made by my sister in law

Stuffed Eggs - I'm attempting these for the first time by my Grandma's "recipe".  Ever notice how our grandparents don't really have recipes, but they just make everything by sight and taste!

Captain Rodney's Dip - Being made by my sister in law

Fried Turkey - Jarod fries one of the best turkey's I've ever eaten!

Chicken Dressing - Being made by my mother in law

Marinated Vegetables - Being made by my mother in law

Mashed Potatoes - Jarod's cousin was supposed to make these, but they aren't coming due to the stomach flu...guess I will be going with some instant ones this year

Corn Souffle - Being made by Jarod's Aunt

Cornbread Dressing - I'm using my Grandma's recipe

Egg Gravy - Attempting my Grandma's "recipe"


Hashbrown Casserole - Click on the link for the recipe

Green Bean Casserole - Jarod's Aunt is making

Sweet Potato Casserole - Jarod's Aunt is making

Rolls - I'm going to easy route and buying Sister Schubert's

Red Velvet Cake - click on the link for the recipe

Chocolate Eclair - Using my Mom's recipe

Chocolate Chess Pie - Being made by my mother in law

Pistachio Pudding - Being made by Jarod's Aunt

Kentucky Derby Pie - Being made by my sister in law

We are definitely going to have a feast!  At this point we have 14 adults and 3 kids and 1 baby coming to eat with us.  I think with that feast above we'll be able to feed the entire town though!

Shrimp and Crabmeat Loaf

I actually made this recipe as a dip and served it with some melba toast, but I will be trying it as a loaf next time as I think that would be just as delicious!

Cooking Time:  30 Minutes
Yields:  8 Servings

Ingredients

1 (6 oz) can small shrimp, drained
1 (6 oz) can crab meat, drained and flaked
1/2 cup mayonnaise
2 green onions, thinly sliced
1/4 cup celery
1 (8 oz) pkg shredded mozzarella cheese
1/8 tsp salt
1/8 tsp ground black pepper
1 loaf French bread, halved horizontally

Directions

1. In a bowl, combine well the shrimp, crab, mayonnaise, green onions, celery, cheese, salt, and pepper.
2. Spread the shrimp mixture on the bottom half of bread and replace the top half.
3. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Wrap the loaf in aluminum foil.  Bake for 20 minutes or until heated through.  Cut into 8 pieces.

This can also be served cold or as a dip.

From AllRecipes.com

Garlic Herb Grilled Pork Tenderloin

"This is the best pork loin I've ever eaten!"  Those are the words I heard from more than one person when I fixed this recipe.  My husband has pretty much requested that we never fix pork tenderloin any other way.  It was a very simple recipe, but it is sure to impress your guests!

Cooking Time: 45 Minutes
Yields: 6 Servings

Ingredients

3 lb pork tenderloin
1/4 cup olive oil
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1/2 tsp thyme
1/2 TBSP rosemary
1 TBSP salt
2 TBSP ground black pepper

Directions

1. Cut a horizontal slit in the pork tenderloin, leaving the halves attached.  Rub tenderloin with olive oil.
2. Insert garlic into the slit and onto the fatty part of pork.  Press thyme and rosemary into slit.  Sprinkle tenderloin with salt and pepper.
3. Wrap tenderloin in foil and place on grill on medium-high heat.  Cook approximately 30 minutes, turning half way through until a minimum internal temperature of 160 degrees.

From AllRecipes.com

Spinach and Artichoke Dip

This dip was delicious and a huge hit.  I served it with the Pita Chips and they went together really well.

Cooking Time:  30 Minutes
Yields:  16 Servings

Ingredients

1 (10 oz) pkg frozen chopped spinach - thawed, drained and squeezed dry
1 (14 oz) can artichoke hearts, drained and chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup mayonnaise
2 (8 oz) pkg cream cheese, softened
2 tbsp lemon juice
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Lightly grease a 7 x 11 inch baking dish.
2. In a medium bowl, mix together the mayonnaise and cream cheese until smooth.  Mix in the artichoke hearts, spinach, and Parmesan cheese.  Season with garlic and lemon juice.  Spread evenly into the prepared baking dish.
3. Bake covered for 20 minutes.  Remove the cover and let the dish bake uncovered for 5 more minutes, or until the surface is lightly browned.

From AllRecipes.com

Pita Chips

These are wonderful to serve with some dip.  They have a wonderful flavor to them.

Cooking Time:  20 Minutes
Yields:  24 Servings

Ingredients

12 pita bread pockets
1/4 cup olive oil
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
1 tsp garlic salt
1/2 dried basil

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Cut each pita bread into 8 triangles.  Place triangles on lined cookie sheet.
3. In a small bowl, combine the oil, pepper, garlic salt, and basil.  Brush each triangle with oil mixture.
4. Bake in the preheated oven for about 10 minutes, or until lightly browned and crispy.  Watch carefully, as they tend to burn easily!

From AllRecipes.com

Buffalo Style Chicken Pizza

One of the local restaurants serves a pizza very similar to this that I always order.  I'm so excited to have found a recipe for it.  The only thing different between this recipe and my local restaurant's recipe is that they serve theirs on a flatbread.  Unfortunately, I don't have a good recipe for a flatbread crust yet.  If you have one, please pass it on!  To me, this is better served on a thin crust.

Cooking Time: 20 Minutes
Yields: 6 Servings

Ingredients

3 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves - cooked and cubed
2 TBSP butter, melted
1/2 (2 oz) bottle hot sauce
1 (8 oz) bottle ranch salad dressing
1 cup celery, chopped
1 (16 inch) prepared pizza crust
1 (8 oz) mozzarella cheese, shredded

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
2. In a medium bowl, combine the cubed chicken, melted butter, hot sauce, and celery.  Mix well.  Spread salad dressing over crust, then top with chicken mixture and sprinkle with shredded cheese.
3. Bake in preheated oven until crust is golden brown and cheese is bubbly, about 5 to 10 minutes.  Let set a few minutes before slicing and serve.

From AllRecipes.com

Cheesecake

Who doesn't like cheesecake?!  It's one of those things like chocolate that most women love to indulge themselves in.  I am one of those women that loves cheesecake, so I wanted to find a recipe for one so I could have it whenever I want.  This recipe was absolutely delicious!

Cooking Time: 7 Hours
Yields: 12 Servings (9 inch springform pan)

Ingredients

15 graham crackers, crushed
1/4 cup butter, melted
4 pkgs cream cheese
1 1/2 cup sugar
3/4 cup milk
4 eggs
1 cup sour cream
1 TBSP vanilla extract
1/4 cup all-purpose flour

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Grease a 9 inch springform pan. (I didn't have a springform pan so I used a 9 inch non-stick pan and just served it out of that.  I also wasn't able to use all the cheesecake mixture due to the pan not being big enough, but it worked well.)
2. In a medium bowl, mix graham cracker crumbs with melted butter.  Press onto bottom of springform pan.
3. In a large bowl, mix cream cheese with sugar until smooth.  Blend in milk, and then mix in the eggs one at a time, mixing just enough to incorporate.  Mix in sour cream, vanilla and flour until smooth.  Pour filling into prepared crust.
4. Bake in preheated oven for 1 hour.  Turn the oven off, and let cake cool in oven with the door closed for 5 to 6 hours; this prevents cracking. (Mine still cracked some)  Chill in refrigerator until serving.

From AllRecipes.com

Roast and Gravy

One of my favorite Sunday afternoon meals is to have Roast, Rice, and Gravy.  I love that you can throw it in the crock pot and it be ready when you get home.  It's also the meal I grew up eating most Sunday afternoons.  I've had several people lately ask me how we fix our roast, so I thought I'd share.

Cook Time: 8 hrs
Yields: 6 servings

Ingredients

3 lb Chuck Roast*
Pepper
Seasoned Salt
Flour
2 TBSP Olive Oil
3 cans Cream of Mushroom Soup
Potatoes (optional)
Carrots (optional)

Directions

1. Trim roast if it needs trimming.  Coat all sides in pepper, seasoned salt, and then flour.
2. Heat olive oil in a large skillet (use enough olive oil to cover the bottom of the skillet).  Brown roast on all sides to a golden brown, about 5 min per side.
3. Place roast in crock pot.  Add soup (use more cans if you want more gravy), potatoes, carrots, and anything else you want.  (I do not add potatoes or carrots to mine since Jarod and I don't really eat vegetables, and I absolutely despise the taste of carrots.  However, my Dad does add potatoes and carrots, so feel free if that's your thing!)
4. Cook on Low for 8 hrs.

* Please note the type of roast is EXTREMELY important.  People always ask why their roast is so tough and mine is so tender...it's all due to the type of roast, so make sure you get a Chuck Roast!

I normally throw this in the crock pot on Saturday night so it will be ready when we get home from church on Sunday afternoon.  My crock pot automatically switches to warm after the set amount of time, but it's not going to hurt it much to cook longer than 8 hrs, should just make it that much more tender.

From Katie's Kitchen

A Look Around My Kitchen

Ok, so you may be wondering why I'm so excited about cooking in my new kitchen.  It's because I'm kind of obsessed with it.  It is my favorite room in our new house.  Since Kelly is doing a Kitchen Tour today, I thought I would show you around my kitchen.  (Some of you may have already seen it on my personal blog, Amos Adventures)

Here is a look at the kitchen and breakfast area from the dining room.  We will eventually (once we have the money) buy a bar height square kitchen table to go there.  I also plan on buying some baskets to go in the spots under the bench so I can store my stuff without it looking cluttered.  We will also be buying some new curtains once we have the money, as these just aren't really our taste, but they work for now!  Please ignore any blue tape you may see in these pictures as it is my way of marking the areas that need to be touched up or something the dealer needs to fix!

This next picture is taken from the end of our kitchen where the sliding glass door leading out to the backyard is.

This is our induction cooktop, which was added at the request of the hubby, and I'm loving so far  :)  The cabinets were originally solid wood, but I had them add the fluted glass to give it a little more character.  I want to replace the canisters with some silver canisters or some decorative ones, but have not been able to find any ANYWHERE!  For now these tuperware ones will do.

This next picture shows two of my favorite things about my kitchen...the double oven and my refrigerator!  It is crazy how much room my fridge has, which comes in handy when I go on my cooking sprees and have tons of food to store, but most of the time it just stores lots of drinks, ha!  I'm super excited about my double ovens, especially with the upcoming holidays, as I hope to be hosting Thanksgiving and/or Christmas at my house this year.

The microwave was originally where the double oven is, but I was determined to have a double oven, so it got moved to the island.  I'm still not sure how I feel about the microwave being lower, but I'm sure I will get used to it, and I'm even told once we have kids who are old enough to microwave their own snack, I will love that it is at their level.  Time will tell...  The doorway to the left of the oven leads to my laundry room which also has my pantry in it.  The doorway on the far left of the picture leads back to the dining room which is where I took the first picture, so I guess we've come full circle :)

Now if I only had more time at home to cook all those recipes I want to try!

Roasted Okra

I saw this recipe for Roasted Okra and thought it would be a healthy alternative to the fried okra I normally fix.  Okra is one of the only vegetables I like, so I've gotten to where I try to fix them once every week or two.  I'm glad I now have another way to fix them.

Cook Time: 20 Minutes
Yields:  6 Servings

Ingredients

36 fresh okra pods, sliced 1/3 inch thick
2 Tbsp olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
2. Combine okra, olive oil, salt and pepper in a ziplock bag and shake to coat.
3. Arrange okra on a foil lined cookie sheet and bake for 10 to 15 min.

Recipe from AllRecipes.com

Lemon Meringue Pie

I saw this recipe and thought it sounded great, so I of course filed it away to try one day when we were having people over to help us out.  I honestly don't think I've ever had any kind of lemon pie, so I wasn't really sure if I'd like it or not.  Let's just say it was good, but I doubt I will make it for myself again.  I found out I'm not a huge lemon fan, however my guests thoroughly enjoyed it and commented on how good it was, so it's not the recipe, it's just my taste buds!

Cook Time: 40 Minutes
Yields: 8 Servings

Ingredients

1 cup white sugar
2 TBSP all-purpose flour
3 TBSP cornstarch
1/4 tsp salt
1 1/2 cups water
2 lemons, juiced and zested
2 TBSP butter
4 egg yolks, beaten
1 (9 inch) pie crust, baked
4 egg whites
6 TBSP white sugar

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. To Make Lemon Filling:  In a medium sauce pan, whisk together 1 cup sugar, flour, cornstarch, and salt.  Stir in water, lemon juice and lemon zest.  Cook over medium-high heat, stirring frequently, until mixture comes to a boil.  Stir in butter.
3. Place egg yolks in a small bowl and gradually whisk in 1/2 cup of hot sugar mixture.  Whisk egg yolk mixture back into remaining sugar mixture.  Bring to a boil and continue to cook while stirring constantly until thick, about 12 minutes.  Remove from heat.  
4. Pour filling into baked pie shell.
5. To Make Meringue:  In a large glass or metal bowl, whip eggs with a hand mixer until foamy.  Gradually add sugar, continuing to whip until stiff peaks form.
6. Spread meringue over pie, sealing the edges at the crust.
7. Bake in preheated oven for 10 minutes, or until meringue is golden brown.

From AllRecipes.com

I'm Back!

We've finally moved into our new house and are starting to get settled.  I unpacked most of the kitchen last night, so I'm ready to start cooking and trying new recipes again!  I promise to post pictures of my new kitchen once we get everything put away and cleaned up.  For now, I thought I would give everyone an idea of the recipes I'm excited about fixing during the upcoming week in my new kitchen!

Sunday, October 3


Appetizer:  Cheese Ball
Main Dish:  Roast
Side Dishes:  Rice, Gravy, Roasted Okra, and Rolls
Dessert:  Lemon Meringue Pie


Monday, October 4


We have our Women's and Men's Ministry meetings at church so I won't be cooking


Tuesday, October 5


Main Dish:  Buffalo Style Chicken Pizza


Wednesday, October 6


We eat at church on Wednesday nights


Thursday, October 7


Main Dish:  Hamburgers
Side Dish:  Rotel & Chips


Friday, October 8


Neither of us like to "cook" on Fridays, so we'll just throw some frozen chicken fingers or pizza in the oven


Saturday, October 9


Breakfast:  Traditional Breakfast of eggs, bacon, grits, and biscuits
Appetizer:  Artichoke Dip served with Pita Chips
Main Dish:  Garlic Herb Grilled Pork Tenderloin
Side Dish:  Macaroni Casserole


Is your mouth watering as much as mine is?  I'm so excited about cooking again and trying out new recipes.  Most of all, I'm excited about trying out our new induction cooktop and double oven!  If you are interested in any of those recipes, I will be posting them in the next couple of weeks, after we try them and I know they are worth keeping.

Chocolate Trifle

Sorry it's been so long since I've posted any new recipes!  We're still in between houses, so I haven't been trying as many new things.  We will hopefully be in our new home in about a month and I will have a MUCH NICER kitchen than I am used to to be able to try out new recipes in.

I did try a new dessert recipe this weekend though and it was a BIG hit.  I'm not a huge chocolate fan (GASP!), but even I loved this recipe.  It is very rich though!

Cook Time: 1 Hour
Yields: 12 Servings

Ingredients

1 package brownie mix
1 package instant chocolate pudding mix
1/2 cup water
1 can sweetened condensed milk
2 (8 oz) containers cool whip, thawed
1 bar chocolate candy

Directions

1. Prepare brownie mix according to package directions and cool completely.
2. In a large bowl, combine pudding mix, water, and sweetened condensed milk.  Mix until smooth, then fold in 8 oz cool whip until no streaks remain.
3. In a trifle bowl layer half the brownies (crumbled), half the pudding mixture, half the remaining 8 oz cool whip.  Repeat layers.  Shave chocolate candy onto top layer for garnish.  Refrigerate 8 hours before serving.

From AllRecipes.com

Herb Roasted Pork Loin and Potatoes

This recipe was absolutely wonderful!  The pork was very flavorful and moist!  I'd prefer cooking my Roasted Potatoes recipe by itself instead of adding the potatoes in with the pork, but they were still very tasty as well.

(We were in such a hurry to eat that I forgot to take a picture!)

Cook Time:  2 Hours
Yields:  8 Servings

Ingredients

6 medium potatoes, peeled and quartered
2 Tbsp olive oil
1/2 tsp dried thyme
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1 1/2 tsp chopped fresh chives
salt and pepper to taste
1 (4 lb) boneless pork loin roast
1 tsp dried thyme
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp onion powder
salt and pepper to taste

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. In a pot with enough water to cover, boil potatoes for about 10 minutes.  Drain, cool, place in a bowl.  Toss with olive oil, 1/2 tsp thyme, 1/2 tsp garlic powder, chives, salt, and pepper.
3. Rub the pork loin roast with 1 tsp thyme, 1 tsp garlic powder, and onion powder.  Sprinkle with salt and pepper.
4. Place roast in a shallow roasting pan and cook 50 minutes in the preheated oven.  Arrange potatoes around the roast, and continue cooking another 50 minutes, to an internal temperature of 160 degrees.  Remove from heat, cover with foil, and let sit 15 minutes before slicing.

This recipe may seem like it's not worth the effort due to the cook time, but let me assure you it is well worth the time to cook!  We will be making this a regular recipe around our house.

From AllRecipes.com

Chicken Scampi

I knew I wanted to try this recipe as soon as I saw it.  It was absolutely DELICIOUS!  Everyone in the family loved it, including my 2 year old niece!

Cook Time:  25 Minutes
Yields:  4 Servings


Ingredients

1/2 cup butter
1/4 cup olive oil
1 tsp dried parsley
1 tsp dried basil
1/4 tsp dried oregano
3 cloves garlic, minced
3/4 tsp salt
1 Tbsp lemon juice
4 boneless skinless chicken breast halves, sliced lengthwise into thirds

Directions

1. In a skillet heat the butter and oil over medium high heat until the butter melts.  Add parsely, basil, oregano, garlic, and salt and mix together in the skillet.  Stir in lemon juice.
2. Add chicken and saute for about three minutes or until white.  Lower the heat and cook for about 10 to 15 minutes or until chicken is cooked through and the juices run clear.  More butter can be added if needed.

This recipe suggested serving over noodles or rice, but we just had the chicken by itself and it was delicious.  Next time I will probably try it over some noodles as I'm sure that would be tasty as well.

From AllRecipes.com

Fresh Strawberry Upside Down Cake

I have yet to try this recipe, but my mom made it and says it is absolutely scrumptious!  I look forward to buying some strawberries and giving this recipe a try in the very near future.  If you make it, please take a picture and e-mail it to me so I can show everyone just how delicious this cake is!

Cook Time:  45 minutes
Yields:  18 servings (this is a guesstimate)

Ingredients

2 cups crushed fresh strawberries (slice most and crush some)
1 (6 ounce) package strawberry flavored gelatin mix
3 cups miniature marshmallows
1 (18 ounce) package yellow cake mix, batter prepared as directed on package - yellow butter cake mix works well

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
2. Spread sliced and crushed strawberries on bottom of a 9 x 13 inch baking pan.
3. Evenly sprinkle strawberries with dry gelatin powder and top with mini marshmallows.
4. Prepare the cake mix as directed on the package and pour on top of the marshmallows.  Bake in preheated oven until a toothpick inserted into center comes out clean, about 40 to 50 minutes.  Cool in the pan for 15 minutes.  Run a knife around the pan to loosen the sides and turn the cake out onto a serving tray.  Best for tray to have sides because some of the topping will run to the sides.  Store cake in the refrigerator.  When ready to serve, cut into pieces, place on serving dish and top with Cool Whip.

From Lynn's Kitchen

Cajun Chicken Pasta

This is another favorite around my house.  My husband loves spicy foods and we both love chicken and pasta!  Don't worry, this one isn't too spicy...just enough to give it a great flavor!

Cook Time:  30 Minutes
Yields:  4 Servings

Ingredients

1/2 lb linguine pasta
4 boneless, skinless, chicken breast halves, sliced into thin strips
1 Tbsp and 1 tsp Cajun seasoning
1/4 cup butter
2 green bell pepper, chopped
1 red bell pepper, chopped
2 green onion
3/4 cup heavy cream
1/2 tsp dried basil
1/2 tsp lemon pepper
1/4 tsp garlic powder

Directions

1. Cook pasta and drain.
2. Meanwhile, place chicken and cajun seasoning in a bowl and toss to coat.
3. In a large skillet over medium heat, saute chicken in butter until no longer pink and juices run clear.  Add green and red bell peppers and green onions; cook for 2 to 3 min.  Reduce heat and stir in heavy cream.  Season the sauce with basil, lemon pepper, and garlic powder and heat through.
4. Toss linguine with sauce and sprinkle with parmesan cheese.

I normally only use one green bell pepper as we are not huge vegetable people, so two green and one red bell pepper were a little much for us.

From Allrecipes.com

Poppy Seed Ham Rolls

My mom made these when I was growing up and I always loved them.  I tried several different recipes trying to find one that tasted like hers, until I finally convinced her to give me her recipe.  I actually combined her original recipe and some of the recipes I tried, to make a great recipe even better!

Cook Time:  30 Minutes
Yields:  6 Servings

Ingredients

2 pkg party rolls
8 oz thinly sliced ham
6 oz swiss cheese, sliced
1 stick butter, melted
1 Tbsp poppy seeds
1 1/2 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
1/2 Tbsp yellow mustard
1 tsp onion flakes
1/2 Tbsp honey

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Slice rolls in half.  Layer ham and cheese on bottom section of rolls and replace top section.
3. Mix remaining ingredients together and pour over rolls.  Let set long enough to soak up liquid.
4. Cover with foil and bake for about 20 minutes.

These are very delicious reheated as well.  We eat them pretty regularly for our supper with some chips, but they would be great for parties as well!

From Katie's Kitchen

Hashbrown Casserole

This was always one of my favorite recipes growing up.  Whenever I fix it for company, they always ask for the recipe!

Cook Time:  45 Minutes
Yields:  8 Servings

Ingredients

32 oz Ore Ida Southern Style Hash Browns
1 cup butter, divided
1 can cream of chicken soup
8 oz sour cream
1 tsp salt
1/2 onion, chopped fine
16 oz Velveeta, cubed
2 cups corn flakes, crushed

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Mix 1/2 cup butter, soup, sour cream, salt, onion and cheese in large boiler and heat over low heat.  Once cheese melts, mix in potatoes.
3. Pour mixture into a lightly greased 9" x 12" pan.  Top with corn flakes.  Melt another 1/2 cup butter and pour over corn flakes.
4. Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes or until bubbly and topping is brown.

From Katie's Kitchen

MIA

Sorry I've been MIA for a bit.  We are in the process of moving at my house.  I will post new recipes when I can, but as I'm sure you all know, life can get a little hectic when you are moving  :)  My mom did give me copies of ALL of her recipes for my birthday, so hopefully once we get settled I will have plenty of new and yummy recipes to share with y'all!

Valentine's Day Recipe Exchange: Red Velvet Cake

I receive so many compliments about how moist this cake is every time I fix it.  The icing has such a good flavor to it and really compliments the cake!

Ingredients

2 eggs
2 cups Crisco oil
1 1/2 cup sugar
2 1/2 cup flour
1 tsp baking soda
2 tsp cocoa
1 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla
1 oz red food coloring
1 cup buttermilk
1 tsp vinegar

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Mix oil, sugar, and eggs.  Sift in dry ingredients.  Add rest of ingredients.
3. Bake at 350 for 45 minutes.
   

Icing

Ingredients

1 box confectioners sugar
8 oz cream cheese, softened
1 stick margarine, softened
1 tsp vanilla

Directions

1. Mix all ingredients together.

Knock You Nakeds

This is a recipe that is so good it will "knock you naked."  My mom submitted this for the Valentine's Day Recipe Exchange (she may or may not have had a little prodding from me).

Cook Time:  30 Minutes
Yields:  20 Servings

Ingredients

1 pkg German chocolate cake mix
1 cup nuts, chopped (optional)
3/4 cup butter, melted
1/3 cup evaporated milk
1 pkg caramel candy
1/2 cup evaporated milk
1 cup chocolate chips

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Combine cake mix, nuts, 1/3 cup evaporated milk and butter and mix well.
3. Press half of mixture into bottom of a greased 9" x 13" baking dish.
4. Bake at 350 degrees for 8 minutes.
5. Melt caramel candy in top of double boiler* with 1/2 cup evaporated milk.
6. When caramel mixture is well melted and mixed, gently pour over baked mixture.
7. Cover with chocolate chips and take small amounts of reserved chocolate mixture and pat out thin in hands and lay over top of chips.
8. Bake for 18 minutes at 350 degrees.
9. Cool before slicing

*If you are like me and don't have a double boiler, you can make one by placing a bowl over boiling water in pot.  Make sure bowl is not touching water.  Or you can use a heavy pot and cook on medium low heat, stirring constantly until melted and well blended.

From Lynn's Kitchen

Chicken With Bouillon

This is a quick and easy recipe to throw together!

Cook Time:  20 Minutes
Yields:  4 Servings

Ingredients

4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
4 Tbsp margerine
2 Tbsp chicken bouillon granules

Directions

1. Melt margerine over medium heat.  Stir in bouillon granules.  When melted together add chicken and brown, turning often.  If necessary add a little more margerine or bouillon.  Cook until juices run clear.

If you need to add more of anything, I would add more margerine and not more bouillon as this dish has a tendency to become a little salty.

From Allrecipes.com

Shelf Life

I received a link to this site in an e-mail and thought it was worth passing along.  This site will let you know what the shelf life of most any product you could imagine is.  It also shows you the difference in shelf life of something that is refrigerated vs something that is kept in a pantry.  I hope you find this site as helpful as I have.  Visit StillTasty to find out what the shelf life of your favorite product is!

Deer Roast

We usually have some deer meat in our freezer and I'm always trying to come up with new ways to fix it.  I found this recipe and decided to try it and everyone loved it.  It had such a wonderful flavor and went great with the Roasted New Potatoes we fixed as a side.

 

Cook Time:  5 Hours

Yields:  4 Servings

Ingredients

1 Tbsp olive oil

1/2 onion, diced

2 tsp minced garlic

1 lb boneless venison roast

1/2 cup ketchup

1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce

1/4 cup soy sauce

1/4 cup chile-garlic sauce*

1/4 tsp liquid smoke

1/3 cup water

2 tsp salt

1 Tbsp pepper

Directions

1. Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium heat.  Stir in onion and cook until softened.  Stir in garlic and cook until softened.
2. Place venison roast into a slow cooker, and sprinkle with onion mixture.
3. Stir together remaining ingredients.  Pour over the venison.
4. Cover and cook on Low until tender and no longer pink, 4 to 5 hours.

* I could not find chile-garlic sauce, so I just used plain chile sauce and it still turned out wonderful.

From AllRecipes.com

Roasted New Potatoes

We made these as a side to a Deer Roast and both dishes were gobbled up.  These potatoes had such a good flavor that wasn't too strong.  Such an easy dish to prepare!

 

Cook Time:  45 Minutes

Yields:  4-6 Servings

Ingredients

1 1/2 lb new potatoes, quartered

2 Tbsp olive oil or vegetable oil

2 garlic cloves, minced

1/2 tsp dried rosemary

1/2 tsp dried thyme

1/2 tsp salt

1/8 tsp pepper

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
2. Combine all ingredients in a plastic bag; toss to coat.
3. Pour into an ungreased 9 x 13 baking pan.
4. Bake uncovered for 35 minutes or until potatoes are tender.

From AllRecipes.com

Macaroni Casserole

If you've ever had Picadilly's macaroni, this recipe tastes almost identical!  Such a yummy side that almost everyone will eat.

Cook Time:  45 Minutes
Yields:  6 Servings


Ingredients

1 (8 oz) pkg elbow macaroni
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 (8 oz) carton sour cream
1 (8 oz) pkg shredded cheddar cheese

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Cook macaroni in salted water.  Drain.
3. Add soup, sour cream and cheese.  Place in a greased 9" x 13" dish.
4. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

I make this up and put it in two smaller dishes (like pictured above) so that I can freeze one and serve one as I am normally only cooking for two.

From Tastes for All Seasons - Department of Human Services Mississippi Association of County & Regional Directors 2004 - pg 78

Tasty Chicken Fingers

This is something my mom threw together one night and the husband and I LOVED it.  We eat chicken way too often, so we're always looking for new ways to fix it.  We finally sat down and made a recipe for this tasty dish so we could share it with you.  This is commonly referred to as "Mom's Chicken" around our house, but I gave it the name "Tasty Chicken Fingers" so I could share it.

 

Doesn't that just look YUMMY!

Cook Time: 10 Minutes

Yields:  2 Servings

Ingredients

3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

1 Tbsp milk

1 1/2 tsp season salt

1/8 tsp garlic powder

1/8 tsp pepper

5 Tbsp flour

Vegetable Oil

Directions

1. Cut chicken into strips.
2. Pour milk over chicken.
3. Coat with season salt, garlic powder, and pepper.  Mix well.
4. Pour flour over chicken and mix so that all chicken is coated.  Add more flour if necessary.
5. Heat oil in skillet on medium to medium-high heat and fry until golden brown.  (Can also be done in a deep fryer on 375 degrees).

From Katie's Kitchen

Valentine's Day Recipe Exchange

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While I'm sure a lot of us go out to eat for Valentine's Day, there are always some who prefer to stay at home and have a home cooked meal, which is actually what my husband and I have done the past couple of years.  If you are planning to have a romantic candle lit home cooked meal, then you might be looking for some new recipes to try.  In an attempt to help you (and me) attain some new recipes to fix for that Valentine's meal, we're going to be hosting another Recipe Exchange!  The Valentine's Day Recipe Exchange will take place on February 12, 2010!

Here's what you do:

• Grab the button above and post it on your blog to help advertise the Recipe Exchange, after all the more people that know about it the more recipes we all get!
• Type your recipe(s) up into a blog post.
• If you do not have a blog you can e-mail me your recipes and I will host them on my blog and make sure they get linked up for the recipe exchange.  You can e-mail them to katiessouthernkitchen@gmail.com
  
• Come back here on February 12th.  At that time you will find my Recipe and at the bottom of that recipe will be a place for you to enter your Permalink for your recipe.
• This way everyone's recipes will be in linked in one spot so they are easy for everyone else to find!
• If you've never participated in a linky party, they are lots of fun!  You get to check out other peoples blogs and most importantly, you get LOTS of new recipes to try!

We're On Twitter

We've jumped on the bandwagon and have a Twitter account now.  Please follow us on Twitter and spread the word to friends who might want to follow us as well!  Our home page is:  https://twitter.com/Katies_Kitchen  You will also see a button in the left hand column that you can click and it will take you to our Twitter page as well!

Cajun Chicken Pasta

I absolutely love this dish.  It has so much flavor and is a fairly simple dish to make.  With chicken and pasta, what more could you ask for?

Cook Time: 30 Minutes
Yields:  4 Servings

Ingredients

1/2 lb linguine pasta
4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves, sliced into thin strips
1 Tbsp and 1 tsp cajun seasoning
1/4 cup butter
2 green bell peppers, chopped
1 red bell pepper, chopped
2 green onion, chopped
3/4 cup heavy cream
1/2 tsp dried basil
1/2 tsp lemon pepper
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
parmesean cheese

Directions

1. Cook pasta.
2. Meanwhile, place chicken and cajun seasoning in a bowl and toss to coat.
3. In a large skillet over medium heat, saute chicken in butter until no longer pink and juices run clear.  Add green and red bell peppers and green onions; cook for 2 to 3 min.  Reduce heat, and stir in heavy cream.  Season the sauce with basil, lemon pepper, and garlic powder and heat through.
4. Toss linguine with sauce and sprinkle with parmesean cheese.

From AllRecipes.com

Super Bowl Recipe Exchange: Cheese Ball

I'd always wanted a cheese ball recipe, but the ones I found always had ingredients that my husband and I don't really care for (we're incredibly picky), then I came across this one.  It's easy and it's fabulous!

Ingredients

2 pkg cream cheese, softened
1 jar dried beef, finely chopped
1 bunch green onions, finely chopped
1 cup mayonnaise
dash of garlic powder and Worcestershire sauce

Directions

1. Cream mayonnaise and cream cheese together.  Add onions and 1 tablespoon of dried beef and remaining ingredients and mix well.
2. Refrigerate at least one hour.
3. Form into a ball.  Coat ball in remaining dried beef.

*Serve with crackers

I actually made two smaller balls out of this recipe when I made it, or you could make one larger recipe.  You can also put nuts on the outside, but I don't care for nuts so I chose not to do that.

From Tastes for All Seasons - Department of Human Services Mississippi Association of County & Regional Directors 2004 - pg 7

To participate, just add the permalink to your blog post below!  Also, don't forget if you're not already a follower of Katie's Southern Kitchen to become one by looking for the link in the right hand column.  This will help you stay up to date with all our future Recipe Exchanges/Linky Parties!

Taffy Apple Dip

This is a great dip if you are wanting something a little bit healthier (although I'm not really sure how much healthier it really is with all that sugar, but at least it's served with apples!).  I will admit, this was not one of my favorite recipes, but it was still a keeper.  I used Granny Smith Apples with it when I made it which made for a great sweet and sour combination.

Ingredients

8 oz cream cheese
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 tsp vanilla

Directions

1. Mix all ingredients together until creamy.

*Serve with slices of your favorite apple

From Tastes For All Seasons Cookbook - Department of Human Services Mississippi Association of County & Regional Directors 2004 - pg 8

Oyster Crackers

Do oyster crackers even need an introduction?  When I was growing up, these were a staple item during the holiday season, but they are great to have around at any time.  I love that these can just be thrown in a tin or a zip-lock bag and you can snack on them whenever you want...my jeans may not love that fact quite as much though!

(I cannot take credit for this picture.  I found it on the web.)

Ingredients

1 box unsalted oyster crackers
1/3 cup Wesson oil
1/2 tsp seasoned salt
1/2 tsp dill weed
1/2 tsp lemon pepper
1 pkg dry Hidden Valley Ranch seasoning


Directions

1. Mix all together and serve

I generally put the oyster crackers in a zip lock bag, mix together the other ingredients, pour that mixture over the crackers and shake.  Also, these tend to be better after they've sat for a day, but you can eat them immediately if you just can't resist!

From Katie's Kitchen

Onion Souffle

Don't let the name of this recipe fool you.  It is a very delicious dip.  My husband saw the name of it and turned his nose up at it refusing to try any...until it came out of the oven and he smelled it.  Of course he let me try it first and since I did not spit it back out, he decided he'd try some.  This is now one of his favorite dips.  He ended up eating it for his entire meal instead of just as an appetizer!

Ingredients

1 pkg cream cheese
1/6 cup mayonnaise
1/3 can (8 oz) parmesan cheese
1/3 onion, chopped

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. Mix together and bake for 20 to 30 min.

*Serve with corn chips

From Tastes For All Seasons Cookbook - Department of Human Services Mississippi Association of County & Regional Directors 2004 - pg 10

Layered Crab Dip

This is another recipe that I inherited.  A co-worker brought it one day and it was renamed "The Crack Dip" by my other co-workers who just could not get enough of this dip.  It's very simple and easy to make and is sure to be a HUGE hit!

Ingredients

8 oz sour cream
8 oz cream cheese
8 oz Pace Picante sauce
1 pkg ham, finely chopped
1 pkg crab meat, finely chopped

Directions

1. Mix sour cream and cream cheese together.  Spread in bottom of dish.
2. Pour Pace Picante sauce over bottom layer.  Next add ham, then crab meat.

*Serve with wheat thins

From Elizabeth's Kitchen

Cheese Dip in a Bread Bowl

I inherited this recipe from a friend.  I admit so far I've only cooked it once, not because it's not good (it is VERY good), but because I have recipes for dips that are a little easier to fix.  Even then, this recipe is not terribly hard to fix as the hardest part is hollowing out the bread bowl.  However, if you are not in a huge rush, this is a FABULOUS recipe.

Ingredients

16 oz cream cheese
16 oz sour cream
3 cups sharp cheese, shredded and divided
2 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
1 small jar Armour chip beef
1 round bread loaf

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Hollow bread loaf.
3. Mix cream cheese, sour cream, 2 cups cheese, Worcestershire sauce, and beef.
4. Pour mixture into bread bowl and sprinkle top with remaining 1 cup cheese (may add more cheese to top if necessary).
5. Bake at 350 for 35 to 45 min.

*Serve with corn chips

If I remember correctly, I had to add some more cheese to the top to make sure there was a good coating.  We LOVE cheese at our house!

From Anna's Kitchen

Olive Cheese Ball

A friend of mine's Aunt sent me this recipe to post for the Super Bowl Recipe Exchange.

Ingredients

24 oz cream cheese
1 jar dried beef
1 small jar olives
1 small jar mushrooms
green onions to taste
3 tsp accent
parsley flakes

Directions

1. Chop and shred beef, olives, mushrooms, and onions.  (You can use food processor or food chopper.)
2. Mix into softened cream cheese.
3. Add accent.
4. Form into a ball and roll in parsley flakes.
5. Chill overnight.
   

Spicy Tailgate Dip

My mom sent me this recipe to post up for the Super Bowl Recipe Exchange.  She doesn't have a blog to be able to post it herself, so I'm posting it for her on my site.  If you ever want to participate in the recipe exchanges, but are like my mom and don't have a blog to post the recipes to, just e-mail them to me at katiessouthernkitchen@gmail.com and I'll get them posted on here for everyone to use.

This is a great variation to the traditional Ro-Tel Cheese Dip.

Ingredients

1 lb pork sausage, browned and drained
2 (8 oz) pkgs cream cheese, cubed
1 (10 oz) can Ro-Tel

Directions

1. Combine all ingredients in slow cooker.
2. Cover and cook on low for 1 to 2 hours, until heated through and cream cheese is melted, stirring several times.
3. Stir good to mix and serve with corn or tortilla chips.

From Lynn's Kitchen

Chex Mix

This is another classic at our house, especially during the holidays.

Ingredients

4 cups rice chex
4 cups corn chex
1 cup pecans
1 cup pretzels
6 Tbsp margarine
2 tsp seasoned salt
7 tsp Worcestershire sauce

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 250 degrees.
   
2. Melt margarine.  Combine margarine, seasoned salt, and Worchestershire sauce.
3. Mix sauce with chex.
4. Bake at 250 for 1 hour, stirring every 15 minutes.

Make sure you use margarine and not butter...butter leaves a greasy residue.  I always use a glass measuring bowl and melt the margarine on the stove top.  I just throw the stick of margarine, seasoned salt, and Worcestershire sauce all in the measuring cup, turn the burner on about 3 (Med-Low) stirring occasionally until the margarine is melted.  I throw the chex and the sauce all in a big zip lock bag and shake, then pour into a metal baking pan and bake making sure to stir every 15 minutes.

From Katie's Kitchen

Caramelized Sweet Potatoes

My husband's Aunt showed us this quick recipe and we have fallen in love with it.  It's great as a snack, side, or even dessert.  In fact, it's probably a little better as a dessert as it can be pretty sweet.  We ate this along with garlic chicken and Rice-A-Roni the other night and it was DELICIOUS!

 

Cook Time:  10 Minutes
Yields:  2 Servings

Ingredients

2 sweet potatoes
1 Tbsp butter
1 cup brown sugar
(I completely estimated on the measurements as it is all by taste really)

Directions

1. Wash the sweet potatoes.  Take a fork and poke holes in the potatoes.
2. Microwave the potatoes on high for 10 minutes.
3. Cut potatoes in half.  Add butter and brown sugar to taste.
4. Mix together and eat!

From Donna's Kitchen

Garlic Chicken

This is a recipe that's great to throw together when you need to go to the grocery store...at least that's what I do a lot!  We almost always have frozen chicken tenders and all the seasonings so this works great for us.  We had this with Rice-A-Roni (yes, it's true, some things I fix do come out of a box) and caramelized sweet potatoes.

 

Cook Time:  10 Minutes
Yields:  4 Servings

Ingredients

3 Tbsp butter
4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
2 tsps garlic powder
1 tsp seasoning salt
1 tsp onion powder

Directions

1. Melt butter in a large skillet over medium high heat.
2. Add chicken and sprinkle with garlic powder, seasoning salt and onion powder.  (I always use half per side)
3. Saute about 10 to 15 minutes on each side, or until juices run clear.

From AllRecipes.com

Chicken Spaghetti

This is such a quick and easy recipe, but is extremely tasty.  You can even freeze a portion of it to save for later!

Cook Time:  30 Minutes

Yields: 4 Servings

Ingredients

3 skinless, boneless chicken breasts

1 (8 ounce) pkg spaghetti

1 can condensed cream of chicken soup

1 can Ro-Tel

1 lb processed cheese

1 pinch garlic powder

Directions

1. Boil chicken in a large pot of salted water.  When chicken is done, remove from pot, keeping water/broth at a boil.  Shred chicken and set aside.  Put spaghetti in boiling chicken broth and cook for 8 to 10 minutes, until done.  When done, drain broth.
2. Return pot with cooked spaghetti to stove, put over low heat.  Add shredded chicken, soup, Ro-Tel and cheese.  Season with salt, pepper and garlic powder to taste.  When cheese is melted, dinner is ready!

I generally dip half of this up into a freezer/oven safe dish and freeze it.  To reheat, set out the dish and let it get to room temperature.  Cook in a 350 degree oven for about 30 minutes until hot and bubbly.

From Katie's Kitchen

Super Bowl Recipe Exchange

Just a reminder that we will be hosting a Super Bowl Recipe exchange NEXT FRIDAY, January 15th!!!  If you haven't done so already, please grab the button below and post it on your blog somewhere to let others know you will be participating, and hopefully they will decide to participate as well.  The more the merrier and the more that participate, the more recipes we get to try!  You can view a link to the original post about the Super Bowl Recipe Exchange HERE.  On that post, you will find exact instructions on how to participate.

Also, for those of you who do not have blogs to post your recipes on, but would still like to participate in the recipe exchange...  Please e-mail your recipe to KatiesSouthernKitchen@gmail.com and I will host those recipes here on my blog so that everyone will still get to enjoy your recipe.

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Slow Cooker Lasagna

Ingredients

1 lb ground chuck
1 tsp dried Italian seasoning
1 (28 oz) jar spaghetti sauce
1/3 cup water
8 lasagna noodles, uncooked
1 (4 1/2 oz) jar mushrooms
1 (15 oz) carton ricotta cheese
2 cups shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese, divided

Directions

1. Cook beef and Italian seasoning in a large skillet over medium-high heat, stirring until beef crumbles; drain.
2. Combine spaghetti sauce and water in a small bowl.
3. Place 4 uncooked noodles in bottom of lightly greased 5-quart electric slow cooker.  Layer with half each of beef mixture, spaghetti sauce mixture, and mushrooms.
4. Spread ricotta cheese over mushrooms.  Sprinkle with 1 cup mozzarella cheese.
5. Layer with remaining noodles, meat, sauce mixture, mushrooms and mozzarella cheese.
6. Cover and cook on High setting for 1 hour; reduce heat and cook on Low setting for 5 hours.

I have a 1.5 quart slow cooker so I put foil in the slow cooker, make the lasagna and put in freezer, reserving half of the sauce.  When frozen, I take out and vacuum seal and then make second serving in crock pot and set to cook.  Then when I want to have it again, I take out of freezer, unwrap and put in crock pot insert the night before and place in fridge.  Next morning, I take out of fridge and cook.

From Lynn's Kitchen

Sausage Casserole

My mother-in-law introduced me to this recipe as she cooked it for us one morning while we were visiting.  I woke up craving this very recipe this morning and thought I'd share it with everyone.

Cook Time:  15 Minutes
Yields:  8 Servings


Ingredients

1 lb pork sausage
1 (8 oz) pkg cream cheese, softened
2 (8 oz) cans crescent rolls

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Grease bottom of a 9 x 13 inch baking dish.
3. Brown sausage in skillet and drain.  Stir cream cheese into cooked sausage.
4. Roll the dough from one can of crescent rolls into bottom of baking dish.  Bake for 5 minutes.
5. Spread sausage mixture over the baked crescent rolls.  Top the sausage mixture with the remaining can of crescent rolls.  Bake until the top layer is golden brown; about 8 minutes.

From Judy's Kitchen