In Memory....

My mom was the biggest influence on what is now my home kitchen. She taught me how to cook and bake from scratch, how to organize my kitchen setup, how to preserve foods by canning, and that the best seasoning was love.  She even encouraged me and joined me in taking a Wilton cake decorating class when I was 17.

My mom left this earth unexpectedly on September 6, 2019. One way that her legacy will live on is through "her" recipes.

(not my picture)

My mom's most used cookbook, the 1961 Betty Crocker New Picture Cook Book. It's full of from-scratch recipes, recipes that she taught me and that I still use and share today. One of my adult sons even searched for and bought his own copy to use for himself.

This is still one of my favorite meals from my childhood. Mom made it at least twice a month.

Family Beef Roast Dinner

3 to 4 lb. Beef roast

1 pkt. Onion soup mix (dry mix)

4 to 6 potatoes, peeled and cut in half if large potatoes

6 large carrots, peeled and cut into 4 to 6 inch lengths

Sear roast on all sides in hot butter. Place in electric skillet or crock pot and top with onion soup mix; add vegetables. Add water to electric skillet (not needed for crock pot) and cook 2 to 3 hours in electric skillet or 8 hours on low in crock pot. Keep an eye on the water level in the electric skillet and add more as needed.

I have no idea where Mom found this recipe, but it quickly became a family favorite. My kids can easily polish it off in one sitting.

PARTY CHEESE BALL

• 2 8 oz. pkg. cream cheese
• 2 c. shredded Cheddar cheese
• 1 Tbsp. chopped pimento
• 1 Tbsp. finely chopped green pepper
• 1 Tbsp. finely chopped onion
• 2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tsp. lemon juice

Beat together the cheeses until well blended. Add rest of ingredients and mix well. Shape into a ball or spoon into a small bowl. Store in refrigerator
You may also opt to roll the cheese ball in grated or finely chopped nuts!
Serve with Triscuits, Ritz crackers or any other appetizer cracker!

My mom claimed that she could barely boil water when she married my dad, but she had a couple of "secret" recipes that she learned quickly and they became Dad's favorites.

Dad's Favorite Buttermilk Chocolate Cake

• 1/2 c. cocoa
• 2 tsp. soda
• 1/2 c. water
• 1 1/2 c. white sugar
• 1/2 c. margarine or butter
• 2 eggs
• 1 c. buttermilk
• 2 c. flour
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1 tsp. vanilla

Mix together cocoa, soda, and water and let stand. Cream together sugar and shortening and add eggs and beat well. Mix flour and salt and add the flour mixture alternately with the milk. Add the vanilla and the chocolate mixture and beat well with mixer. Pour into a greased and floured 9 x 13 inch cake pan or two 8 or 9 inch layer pans. Bake at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes or until cake tests done. Let layers cool about 10 minutes before removing from pans.

Creamy Chocolate Frosting

• 1/3 c. margarine or butter
• 1/2 c. cocoa
• 1 lb. powdered sugar
• Warm coffee or milk
• 1 tsp. vanilla

Melt margarine or butter and add cocoa and powdered sugar. Then add enough warm coffee or milk to make it spreading consistency. Add the vanilla and mix well.

Mom's Apple Pie

• 1/4 c. brown sugar
• 1/2 c. white sugar
• 2 Tbsp. flour
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 3/4 tsp. cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp. nutmeg
• 5 to 6 cups peeled, cored and sliced baking apples

Combine all ingredients and stir carefully. Put in an unbaked pie shell and dot with 2 Tbsp. butter cut into small pieces. Top with top crust, seal edges and cut slits in the top crust. Brush with milk and sprinkle with a bit of white sugar. Bake at 425 degrees for 40 to 45 minutes. Cover edges of the crust with foil if they begin to get too dark.

This is one of Mom's recipes, handed down to me. My kids absolutely LOVE this frugal yet tasty dessert! It is a bit time consuming but well worth the effort.

Raisin Rice Pudding (custard style)

• 1/2 c. long grain white rice
• 4 c. milk, divided
• 1/2 c. seedless raisins
• 1/3 c. butter
• 3 eggs, beaten
• 1/2 c. white sugar
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• cinnamon or nutmeg

Mix rice with 2 c. milk in top of double boiler; cook over boiling water until tender, about 40 - 45 minutes. Add raisins and butter and stir until butter melts and is mixed in.

Combine eggs, sugar, vanilla, salt, and remaining 2 c. milk. Stir together with hot rice mixture and pour into a greased 1 1/2 quart baking dish. Sprinkle with cinnamon or nutmeg.

Set baking dish in a pan half full of warm water. Bake in 325° (I have to use 350°) oven for 30 minutes or until set (knife inserted near middle comes out clean with no liquid custard on it.) Best to serve warm, not hot, but it's good cold, too.

A Christmas tradition that my mom started and that I carry on with my own family is Christmas morning cinnamon rolls.

60 MINUTE CINNAMON ROLLS

• 4 1/2 tsp (2 pkt) yeast
• 1/4 c. warm water
• 1 Tbsp. sugar
• 2 c. warm milk
• 1/2 c. butter
• 1/4 c. sugar
• 1 tsp. salt
• 6 c. flour

Dissolve yeast in 1/4 c. warm water with sugar, in a small bowl. Pour warm milk over butter, sugar and salt. Cool a little. Add 6 cups flour and yeast mixture. Knead in bowl for 5 minutes. Let stand for 15 minutes in a warm place. Roll out into large rectangle with rolling pin or your hands.
Mix: 1 1/2 c. sugar, 4 tsp. cinnamon and 1 c. raisins (optional) Brush dough with a bit of melted margarine and sprinkle with sugar mixture. Roll up, starting with long edge and seal edge. Using dental floss or a very sharp serrated bread knife, cut into slices. Place slices in greased pan(s) and let stand in warm place for 15 minutes. Bake at 375 degrees for 25 minutes. When done, top with powdered sugar glaze while still warm.

Powdered sugar glaze:

• 1 Tbsp. butter, soft
• 1 c. powdered sugar
• milk, a tsp. at a time

Work the powdered sugar into the butter. To be honest, it won't look like anything resembling a glaze yet. Add milk until spreading/drizzling consistency. You may have to add a bit more powdered sugar. Drizzle/spread over slightly warm cinnamon rolls.

Fork Cake

This will be a fond funny memory of my mom for as long as we live.

Mom lost her sight several years ago and the loss greatly affected her cooking and baking ability. However, she realized that she could still measure by feel, and a box cake was very easy to make. She could measure the few ingredients into a bowl by feel, add the mix, and beat with a fork (using the mixer while blind added a danger factor).

On one of her birthdays she made a strawberry cake using this method. She was fretting when we arrived for dinner because she couldn't find her favorite mixing fork and thought that dad had thrown it out by mistake when cleaning up. No luck finding it.

The first cut into the birthday cake revealed where the fork was hiding.

Fork Cake.

Sausage Gravy

I thought that I had already shared this recipe, but a quick search didn't show it.  We all enjoy this once in a while, so I want to leave it here to find the next time we need it.  

Traditionally served over hot biscuits, this gravy also is good over scrambled eggs or an omelet, and I've used it as a base sauce for breakfast pizza or in breakfast hot pockets.  We typically double it for our family.  Leftovers refrigerate well, but they don't last long around here.

Sausage Gravy

• 1/4 lb. bulk pork sausage
• 1/4 c. flour
• 2 c. milk
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1/4 tsp. ground pepper

Cook sausage until browned and crumbled.  Drain off all fat except 2 Tbsp.  Stir in flour, stirring constantly until golden brown and bubbly, no more than a minute.  Gradually whisk in milk, whisking well after each bit added, then salt and pepper.  Cook, stirring constantly, until thickened and bubbly, about 5 minutes.  

Note:  if there's less than 1 Tbsp. fat in the browned sausage, add a Tbsp. of butter and melt with the sausage before adding flour and the rest of the ingredients.

Paprika Pork Roast

This recipe adds flavor to pork roasts.  I love the fact that I can make it in the oven or crock pot! 

Saved from a very old Taste of Home magazine.

Paprika Pork Roast

• 2 teaspoons garlic salt
• 1 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 teaspoon paprika
• 1 boneless pork loin roast (3 to 4 1/2 pounds)
• 1 -2 medium onions, sliced
• 1 cup water
  

Combine garlic salt, ginger, pepper and paprika; rub over the entire roast.  Place roast with fat side side up on a greased rack in a roasting pan.  Top with onion.  Pour water into pan.  Bake uncovered at 325°F for 2 - 2 1/2 hours until a meat thermometer reads 160° - 170°.  Let stand for 10 - 15 minutes before slicing.

You can also put this in the crock pot but reduce water to 1/4 cup.  Cover and cook on low for 7 to 9 hours.

Low Carb Chicken Spaghetti

Here's another recipe for low carb deliciousness!  I recommend prepping first unless you're a great multi-tasker, but the goodness is worth the effort.  Not my recipe so I'm providing a link.

Low Carb Chicken Spaghetti

(not my photo)

Big Mac Sloppy Joes

Wow!  We tried this last night and it was good!  It's a change of pace from "regular" sloppy joes, and quick to make.  While the site says "not diet food", it could easily be made part of a low carb diet by skipping the bun and eating as is or atop riced cauliflower or lettuce or a low carb bun.

Big Mac Sloppy Joes



(not my picture)

Creamy Spinach Stuffed Chicken (link)

This is not my recipe, but I want to share it.  Low-carb, quick to fix, and delicious!  Everyone loved it!

https://myrecipes.gaco.work/creamy-spinach-stuffed-chicken/

Willie's Dawgs Red Onion Sauce

I'm not sure how authentic this is, but it is GOOD on grilled (or any other method of cooking) hot dogs!

(bringing this back from a much older post)

Willie's Dawgs Red Onion Sauce:

2 Tbsp. vegetable oil

3 onions, sliced

3 cloves minced garlic

2 Tbsp. tomato paste

2 Tbsp. white vinegar

1 1/2 tsp. paprika

3/4 c. water

2 Tbsp. sugar

1 tsp. hot sauce

1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. black pepper

In a medium-sized pot, heat the vegetable oil over medium heat and cook and onion and garlic for about 5 minutes. Add tomato paste and cook for another 2 minutes, stirring frequently. Add remaining ingredients and bring to a boil, reduce heat to low and simmer, uncovered. for about 40 minutes. Serve over hot dogs.

"Instant Pot" Whole Roasted Chicken

Someone gave me some whole chickens, smaller than our home grown birds.  I'd been hearing that I can make a roast chicken in my electric pressure cooker, so I thought I'd give it a try!

Folks, if you have an Instant Pot or equivalent, you have to try this!

First, I used my favorite seasoning rub on the bird:  1 Tbsp. salt, 2 tsp. paprika, 1 tsp. onion powder, 1 tsp. dried thyme, 1/2 tsp. black pepper, and 1/4 tsp. garlic powder.  I left out the cayenne pepper, and probably could have used twice the garlic powder.  The result was still tasty.

Put a small amount of olive oil in the pressure cooker, and heat it a bit before browning the neck end of the chicken in it.  Then, turn the chicken on its back or as best you can fit it in the pressure cooker, add 1 c. chicken broth, cover and seal.  Set timer to cook for 25 minutes, then allow for a natural release.  Remove and serve!

Chicken Taco Soup (link)

We enjoy this meal!  Last night I made it in the pressure cooker (Instant Pot style) instead, using 2 large cans of chicken instead of chicken breasts and cooking for 5 minutes with a quick release.  Delicious! 

I have used the beer recommended in the recipe, and I have subbed 2 c. chicken broth for it, too.  Either way.  We have one family member that doesn't like beer taste.

Slow Cooker Chicken Taco Soup

(not my image)

Old-Fashioned Custard Pie

Nothing fancy, just tasty and smooth.

Custard Pie 

• 9 inch unbaked pie shell 
• 4 eggs 
• 2/3 c. sugar 
• 1/2 tsp. salt 
• 1/4 tsp. nutmeg 
• 2 2/3 c. scalded hot milk (use part heavy whipping cream for an extra rich pie) 
• 1 tsp. vanilla 

Heat oven to 450°F.  Beat eggs slightly, then beat in rest of ingredients.  Pour into pastry-lined pan.  Bake 15 minutes, then (without opening oven door) reduce heat to 350°F and bake 10 - 15 minutes more, until a knife inserted into the filling 1" from side comes out clean.   The center may still look soft but will set later.  TOO LONG baking time makes the custard "weepy" or watery-looking.  Serve slightly warm, or cold. 

Note:  can also bake at 425°F for 25 - 30 minutes instead of switching temps.

60 Minute Cinnamon Rolls

Cinnamon rolls are a delicious compliment to your hot beverage on a cold morning.  These actually take a little longer than 60 minutes to make, but they're worth it!  I let them rise a little longer than the recipe says, and carefully watch them in the oven so they don't get too dark.

60 Minute Cinnamon Rolls

• 4 1/2 tsp (2 pkt) yeast
• 1/4 c. warm water
• 1 Tbsp. sugar
• 2 c. warm milk
• 1/2 c. butter
• 1/4 c. sugar
• 1 tsp. salt
• 6 c. flour

Dissolve yeast in 1/4 c. warm water with sugar, in a small bowl. Pour warm milk over butter, sugar and salt. Cool a little. Add 6 cups flour and yeast mixture. Knead in bowl for 5 minutes. Let stand for 15 minutes in a warm place. Roll out into large rectangle with rolling pin or your hands.
Mix: 1 1/2 c. sugar, 4 tsp. cinnamon and 1 c. raisins (optional) Brush dough with a bit of melted margarine and sprinkle with sugar mixture. Roll up, starting with long edge and seal edge. Using dental floss or a very sharp serrated bread knife, cut into slices. Place slices in greased pan(s) and let stand in warm place for 15 minutes. Bake at 375 degrees for 25 minutes. When done, top with powdered sugar glaze while still warm.

Powdered sugar glaze:

• 1 Tbsp. butter, soft
• 1 c. powdered sugar
• milk, a tsp. at a time

Work the powdered sugar into the butter.  To be honest, it won't look like anything resembling a glaze yet.  Add milk until spreading/drizzling consistency.  You may have to add a bit more powdered sugar.  Drizzle/spread over slightly warm cinnamon rolls.

Substitutions in the kitchen

There comes a time in every kitchen when an ingredient for a recipe isn't on hand.  What can you do?  Make your own substitute!

1 c. sour milk or buttermilk:  use 1 tsp. lemon juice or vinegar in a measuring cup, then add milk to equal 1 cup.

1 square unsweetened chocolate:  3 Tbsp. cocoa powder stirred into 1 Tbsp. melted butter

1 c. honey:  1 1/4 c. sugar plus 1/4 c. water

1 tsp. baking powder:  use 1/4 tsp. baking soda plus 1/2 tsp. cream of tartar

1 c. self-rising flour:  use 1 c. all purpose flour, 1/2 tsp. salt, and 1 tsp. baking powder

1 Tbsp. fresh herbs:  use 1 tsp. dried herbs

1 small fresh onion, diced:  use 1 Tbsp. instant onion (can rehydrate)

1 c. brown sugar:  use 1 c. granulated (white) sugar with 2 to 4 Tbsp. molasses

1 c. powdered sugar:  use 1 c. granulated sugar plus 1 tsp. cornstarch

1 c. tomato juice:  use 1/2 c. tomato sauce plus 1/2 c. water

1 tsp. dry mustard:  use 1 Tbsp. prepared yellow mustard

Delicious Soft Meatloaf

Ah, meatloaf.  There are sooo many ways to make it, and this is one that we've found to have a soft texture good for little ones and those that can't chew easily.  We think it has good flavor, too!


Delicious Soft Meatloaf
2 lb. ground beef
1 c. Ritz crackers (plain works fine, but the roasted vegetable flavored crackers are good in this recipe!)
1 c. milk
1/2 c. ketchup
1/3 c. chopped onion
1 egg
1 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
1/2 tsp. ground black pepper

Mix all ingredients together and form any loaf shape you like; place in any baking dish that you prefer.  Bake at 350°F for an hour.  I recommend testing the loaf with a meat thermometer inserted into the center of the loaf, and you want it to read at least 160°F.  Remove from oven.

Slice and serve.

Note: you can also top with your choice of sauce/ketchup about 45 minutes into baking.

Delicious Cornbread

Cornbread.  Everyone's mother makes it their own way, I'm sure.  I don't know if my mom just didn't know how to make cornbread or what, but I never liked it.  Cornbread was dry and gritty and just...ugh.  

Then one of my adult sons made his own version of cornbread, using a Jiffy mix.  DELICIOUS!  I'm sure there are many other recipes for this kind of cornbread, but this is one that we put together and enjoyed!

I made it again yesterday to accompany gumbo.  My 1 year old granddaughter decided to make the cornbread her dinner, turning up her nose at chicken & gravy.  She had 3 pieces with her milk!

I didn't really follow a recipe.  My son gave vague instructions, and here is what I did.

Delicious Cornbread
2 boxes Jiffy corn muffin mix
1 can cream corn (whole corn will work, too)
2 Tbsp. granulated sugar
2 eggs
2/3 c. milk

Mix all together.  Pour into greased 9 x 13 pan.  Bake at 400°F for 22 - 24 minutes.  

Note: recipe can be halved