'Powdered' Fries

A few weeks ago I came across a 'new to me' blog called 'Simply Sandra's' and I found a recipe she called 'Powdered Fries'. Well Wendell and I do like seasoned fries and these looked yummy, so I decided to try them.

The recipe is really super simple and only takes a few ingredients:

4 large - Potatoes, cut into 'skinny' fries
1/2 cup - self-rising flour
1 Tbsp. - Your favorite seasonings (I used an All-Purpose Seasoning)

Put the flour and seasoning into a large Ziploc bag or bowl with a lid. Add your potatoes and shake well until they are all covered with the flour/seasoning mixture.

Carefully drop into hot grease (I use lard) and let fry until golden brown

To help preserve the crispiness of the fries, I put them on a foil lined sheet and leave in my oven set at 200 degrees while the rest are frying.

These turned out great and we will be using this recipe again for sure.

Enjoy!,

Debbie

Crab Stuffed Mushrooms

These are from a copy-cat recipe for the wonderful mushrooms I have gotten at Red Lobster. I tweaked a little because the original recipe just seemed to make more stuffing than what I needed for the mushrooms it called for.

Crab Stuffed Mushrooms

INGREDIENTS:

1 lb. fresh Button Mushrooms
1/4 cup - Celery, finely chopped
2 Tbsp. - Onions, finely chopped
2 Tbsp. - Green Bell Pepper, finely chopped
6 oz. - Crab Meat, canned
1 cup - Bread Crumbs, unseasoned
1/2 cup - Cheddar Cheese, shredded
1/4 tsp. - Garlic Powder
1/2 tsp. - Old Bay Seasoning
1/4 tsp. - Black Pepper
1/4 tsp. - Salt
1 - Egg
1/2 cup - Water
6 slices - White Cheddar Cheese
4 Tbsp. - Butter or Margarine for saute

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees F.

Wash mushrooms and remove stems. Set caps aside, and chop half of the stems fine.

Saute chopped mushroom stems, celery, onions and pepper in butter for 2 minutes.

Add all of the rest of the ingredients into saute pan with vegetables except for the 6 slices of cheese, and mix well.

Spoon 1 teaspoon of stuffing into each mushroom cap and place into a sprayed or buttered baking dish.

Cover with the slices of cheese and bake for 12 to 15 minutes until the cheese is lightly brown.

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I did not have the sliced cheese and had to substitute more shredded cheddar but they still came out delicious! Enjoy!!

Peanut Butter Eggs

Just in time for Easter... One of my favorite recipes. If you enjoy Reese's Peanut Butter Eggs, I think you will love these too!

Peanut Butter Easter Eggs

I found this recipe in 'Taste of Home' Simple and Delicious magazine.

INGREDIENTS:

1/2 cup - Butter, softened
2 1/3 cups - Confectioners' Sugar
1 cup - Graham Cracker Crumbs
1/2 cup - Creamy Peanut Butter
1/2 tsp. - Vanilla Extract
1 1/2 cups - Dark Chocolate Chips
2 Tbsps. - Shortening
Pastel Sprinkles

In a large bowl, cream the butter; gradually add the confectioners' sugar, cracker crumbs, peanut butter and vanilla.

Shape into 16 eggs; place on a waxed paper lined baking sheet, then refrigerate for 30 minutes or until firm.

In a microwave, melt the chocolate chips and shortening; stir until smooth.

Dip the eggs in the chocolate; allow excess to drip off. Decorate with sprinkles. Return eggs to waxed paper. Chill until set.

Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

*Instead of the chocolate chips and shortening, I substituted chocolate almond bark.

Enjoy! and Happy Easter!

Debbie

Irish Potato Casserole

If I had been a good blogger... I would of posted this for St. Patrick's Day but I did not want to post something I had not tried yet. I fixed this potato casserole last night for supper and it turned out pretty good. Definitely something we will try again.

Irish Potato Casserole

Ingredients:

2 cups - peeled and shredded Potatoes

1/2 cup - Butter, melted

2 - Eggs, beaten

1 teaspoon - Minced Onion

1 teaspoon - Salt

1/2 cup - Milk

1/2 cup - Shredded Cheddar Cheese

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Butter a 1.5 quart baking dish.

In a medium bowl, combine the potatoes, butter, eggs, onion and salt

Place potato mixture into the prepared baking dish and pour the milk over the top. Bake in the preheated oven for 40 minutes. Sprinkle the top with the cheese, then return to the oven and bake until the cheese melts and is slightly browned.

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*Special Notes: I did not have a grater to shred my potatoes, so I used my potato peeler and did them into thin strips. I also did the cheese a little different. I took the 1/2 cup of cheese and mixed it with the other ingredients. I let it bake for the 40 minutes then put about another 1/2 cup over the top.

If your family loves cheese, they will love this. Enjoy!

Vegetable Pizza

I previously posted this on my other blog but wanted to be sure to post it here for those of you that need an idea for something 'meatless' and different. Vegetable pizza is one of my husband's favorite meals. To think he use to turn up his nose at the mention of broccoli.

Vegetable Pizza

Ingredients:

2 packages - Crescent Rolls

2 - 8 oz. packages - Cream Cheese

1 Cup - Mayonnaise

1 Tbsp. - Dill Weed

1 Tbsp. - Minced Onion

1 Cup each - Assorted Vegetables (chopped/sliced/diced)

Broccoli

Cauliflower

Carrots

Tomatoes

1/2 Cup - Assorted Extras

Green Onion

Black Olives

1 - 8 oz. package - Shredded Cheddar Cheese

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Press crescent rolls flat onto an ungreased baking sheet and bake for 10 minutes, until golden brown. While this is baking, mix together the cream cheese, mayonnaise, dill weed and minced onion.

Once crust is out of the oven and cooled, spread the cream cheese mixture over the crust evenly. Next top with the assorted vegetables and shredded cheese.

Slice and enjoy!

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This would be a great dish to serve over the lent holiday when it can be so hard to come up with a 'meatless' meal or even a great appetizer for a party. Hope you enjoy!

Happy Cooking!

Debbie

Cheesy Tuna Noodle Casserole

Seeing that yesterday was Ash Wednesday and that I am happily married to a Catholic boy I needed to come up with something I could make with tuna fish for supper. Normally I am guilty of grabbing a box of Tuna Helper but since I have not been grocery shopping in a month I had to do something up from scratch. Here is what I came up with.

Cheesy Tuna Noodle Casserole

Ingredients:

1 Bag (12 oz) - Wide Egg Noodles

2 cans (5 oz) - Tuna Fish, in water and drained

2 cans (10.5 oz) - Cream of Mushroom Condensed Soup

1/2 cup - Milk

4 Tbsp - Butter
1/2 cup - Frozen Peas

1/2 cup - Frozen Carrots

1/2 to 3/4 cup - Shredded Cheddar Cheese

Salt and Pepper to taste

Prepare Egg Noodles per package directions.

Over medium heat, combine and mix well in a large skillet the butter, mushroom soup, milk, salt and pepper.

Next add the tuna, peas, carrots and noodles (cooked and drained). Mix well, cover and let simmer for about 10 to 15 minutes stirring occasionally.

Turn off the heat and sprinkle cheddar cheese over the top. Replace the cover till the cheese has melted, then serve.

Enjoy!

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Now to just come up with six more weeks of fish meals! *laughing* If you have one that you think we might enjoy, please share with us at cmdarlin@hotmail.com and I will be happy to post it for all of us to share.

Take Care,

Debbie

Chicken Scampi and for dessert.... Cinnamon Roll Cookies...

Since money has been almost non-existent this month I had to make a few changes in my Valentine's Day menu. Instead of the steak my husband loves, and the Red Lobster Crab Stuffed Mushrooms I had hoped to fix him, I sorted through the freezer and found 2 chicken breast and a half of a sirloin steak I had cut in two from a previous meal. He still got a little bit of steak and I got to try a new chicken recipe! It turned out yummy!

p>Chicken Scampi

Ingredients:

4 - Skinless Chicken Breast, cubed into bite-size pieces

3/4 cup - Butter or Margarine

2 Tbsp. - Olive Oil

3 cloves - Garlic, minced

1/2 tsp. - Dried Oregano

1/2 tsp. - Dried Parsley

Salt and Pepper to taste

In a skillet, heat the butter and oil over medium-high heat until the butter melts.

Add the chicken chunks, garlic, salt and pepper then saute until white. Lower the heat, and add the oregano and parsley. Let cook for about 10 to 15 minutes to be sure the chicken is cooked. Additional butter can be added, if needed.

Can be served over rice or noodles

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Early last week I found this recipe for Cinnamon Roll Cookies over at the Picky Palate. Jenny has a great recipe blog over there that you should really check out if you love to cook like I do.

Cinnamon Roll Cookies

p>Ingredients:

2 Cups - Sugar

1 Cup - Butter, softened

3 - Eggs

1 tsp - Vanilla

1 Cup - Sour Cream

6 Cups - Flour

2 tsp - Baking Powder

2 tsp - Baking Soda

1/4 tsp - Salt

12 Tbsp. - Butter, softened

1 1/2 Cups - Light Brown Sugar, packed

1 1/2 Tbsp. - Ground Cinnamon

Frosting

8 oz. - Cream Cheese, softened

1/2 cup - Powdered Sugar

2 to 4 Tbsp. - Milk, to thin icing

In an electric or stand mixer, cream the sugar and butter. Add eggs, vanilla and sour cream until well combined. Slowly add in the flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt until well mixed.

In 2 batches, place in plastic wrap in a disc shape and chill for at least 2 hours for best results.

WARNING: This is where I changed things up because her recipe seemed a little too technical to get the same results.

I took the dough out of the refrigerator and let sit for a little while so I was able to roll it into 6-inch by 12-inch rectangle. It was about 1/4-inch thick. I spread on the softened butter, then sprinkled with brown sugar and cinnamon.

Next I started to roll the dough, by the small end, and cut it into 12, half inch rounds using a sharp knife. Place them onto a parchment lined baking sheet and bake at 350 degree F for 9 to 11 minutes. Remove and let cool for 5 minutes before removing from the baking sheet.

To prepare the frosting, beat the cream cheese until soft and smooth, slowly add the powdered sugar and milk until you get the desired consistency. Frost cookies then place in the refrigerator until ready to serve.

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Both recipes got a thumbs up, especially the cookies. Needless to say, Wendell has a sweet tooth. We will definitely be using both of these again. I hope you like them too! Anytime you use a recipe I would love hearing from you and what you thought, or if you added something.

Happy Eating!

Debbie