Slow Cooker Smothered steak

Recipe and pic courtesy of: Lynnette Franciscus
(from Cook's Country April/May 2012)

Ingredients:

1 3/4 lb. onions, halved and sliced 1/4 inch thick
1 1/2 T packed dark brown sugar
3 T soy sauce
salt & pepper6
(6-8 oz.) blade steaks, 3/4 - 1 inch thick, trimmed
3 T cornstarch
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 t dried thyme

Directions:

Toss onions, sugar, 1 T soy sauce, and 1/4 t salt in large bowl and let sit for 30 minutes. Combine steaks, remaining 2 T soy sauce, and 1 1/4 t salt in large zipper-lock bag and let sit for 30 minutes, turning once.

Microwave onion mixture until onions are softened and beginning to dry around edges, about 10 minutes, stirring halfway through cooking. Drain in colander, shaking to release moisture. Transfer onion mixture to slow cooker and stir in 2 T cornstarch, garlic, thyme, and 1 t pepper.

Pat steaks dry with paper towels and rub one side with remaining 1 T cornstarch. Arrange steaks, cornstarch side up, in single layer over onions. Cover and cook on high until steaks are completely tender, 5 to 6 hours (or 7 to 8 hours on low).Transfer steaks to platter, tent loosely with aluminum foil, and let rest for 5 to 10 minutes.

Pour contents of slow cooker through fine-mesh strainer into fat separator; reserve onions. Defat sauce and top steaks with onions and 1/2 C sauce. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve with remaining sauce.

Alexandria's Southern Banana Pudding

Recipe and Pic courtesy of Alexandria Czaruk Clark


I start by lining a baking dish with Nilla wafers, then I make 2 boxes of the banana cream pudding to pour over the top. Pour the pudding, then place a layer of sliced bananas evenly over the top. I then make another 2 boxes of banana pudding and pour over the layer of bananas. Then you top if off with cool whip(I like to use a mixture of half cool whip and half homemade whipped cream) then decorate as you desire! Hope you all enjoy : )

Peter's Stuffed Fresno Peppers

Photo and recipe courtesy of Peter Battaglia

Stuffed with cheese, parsley, Italian pork sausage, fresh oregano, garlic, sauteed diced jalapeno, fresnos and onions, olive oil, breadcrumbs, diced provolone, a little white wine...then drizzled in olive oil, baked, skinned, then a little more olive oil, garlic and fresh oregano....

Baked Ziti with Eggplant and Sausage

I saw two variations of this recipe on 2 Italian cooking shows within one week. It’s a combination of Eggplant Parmesan and baked Ziti with the sausage added in for good measure. It all looked so good, I just had to make it for the family. Here is my version:

Ingredients:

1 large Eggplant
1 box ziti (or any other pasta of choice)
1 lb sweet or hot Italian sausage
16 oz shredded Mozzarella
2-3 cups of prepared marinara tomato sauce
1 cup Italian style bread crumbs
1 egg, beaten with 2 TBS water
1 Tablespoon fresh or dried parsley, salt, pepper, oregano

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Boil whole sausage links until just cooked and firm, drain and set aside to cool. When cooled, slice them up into thin slices.

Boil Ziti in a large pot of salted water until just al dente. Drain well. Pour into a large bake dish brushed with olive oil.

Peel and cut eggplant into large cubes. Put the breadcrumbs into a pie dish. Toss the eggplant in small batches into the egg mixture drain, then roll them around in the bread crumbs. Shake off the excess. Place on a cookie sheet brushed with olive oil and drizzle a little more over them. Baked at 400 degrees for 15-20 minutes, turn and cook another 5-10 minutes until they’re browned.

Lower the oven temp to 375 degrees.

Pour the marinara over the Ziti. Add in the eggplant, sausage, Oregano, salt and pepper to taste. Mix well, make sure to add enough sauce to cover all. Top with mozzarella and fresh parsley. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until cheese just starts to get brown and bubbly.

Teriyaki Sauce

Ingredients

2/3 cup Japanese rice wine (Mirin)
1 cup soy sauce
4 1/2 teaspoons rice vinegar
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1/3 cup white sugar
7 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger
1 dash red pepper flakes
black pepper to taste
　
Directions

Bring rice wine to a boil in a saucepan over high heat. Reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer for 10 minutes. Pour in soy sauce, rice vinegar, sesame oil, and sugar. Season with garlic, ginger, pepper flakes, and black pepper; simmer an additional 5 minutes. Simmer with chicken or seafood and your choice of any combination of vegetables. Leftover sauce stores in a tightly sealed container in the refrigerator.

Jessica's Strawberry Cheesecake Bites

Recipe courtesy of: Jessica McCoy

Ingredients:

1 lb large strawberries

8 oz. cream cheese, softened (can use 1/3 less fat)

3-4 tbsp powdered sugar (4 tbsp for a sweeter filling)

1 tsp vanilla extract

graham cracker crumbs

Directions:

Rinse strawberries and cut around the top of the strawberry. Remove the top and clean out with a paring knife, if necessary (some may already be hollow inside). Prep all strawberries and set aside.

In a mixing bowl, beat cream cheese, powdered sugar, and vanilla until creamy. Add cream cheese mix to a piping bag or ziploc with the corner snipped off. Fill strawberries with cheesecake mixture. Once strawberries are filled, dip the top in graham cracker crumbs. If not serving immediately, refrigerate until serving.

Chicken (or Pork) Scarpiello

Ingredients

6 boneless chicken cutlets
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 teaspoons butter
1 egg, beaten with 2 TBS water
3 cloves garlic, sliced
1 cup chicken stock
1/2 cup white wine
½ cup sliced black olives
1 cup whole tomatoes, chopped
1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary, crushed
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 pinch ground black pepper

2 tsp fresh or dried parsley

Directions

Season the flour with paprika, salt and pepper. Dip cutlets in egg, then dredge into the flour, shake off excess.

In 10 inch skillet, heat oil and butter. Add chicken. Cook, turning occasionally, until lightly browned on all sides (3 to 4 minutes). Using tongs, remove chicken from skillet. Set aside and keep warm.

To same skillet, add garlic. Sauté until softened (1 minute). Add water, wine, broth mix, and seasonings. Mix well. Cook, stirring frequently, until liquid is reduced by 1/2 (4-5 minutes).

Return chicken to skillet, add in tomatoes and olives, cook until sauce is thick and chicken is heated through (2 to 3 minutes) toss in the parsley and serve over thin spaghetti.

LuAnn's Peach Cake

Recipe and Pictures courtesy of: LuAnn Beal


Ingredients:


1 can (15 ¼ ounces) sliced peaches, undrained

1 package( 18 ¼ ounce) yellow cake mix

1/3 cup vegetable oil

3 large eggs

1 carton (8 ounce cool) whip, thawed

¾ cup (6 ounce peach yogurt

Additional drained diced peaches, if desired Drain peaches, reserving juice.




Directions:

Add enough water to juice to measure 1 ¼ cups. Cut peaches into 1 inch pieces; set aside.

In a large bowl, beat the cake mix, peach juice mixture, oil and eggs on low speed for 30 seconds. Beat on med for 2 minutes. Pour into two greased and floured 9 inch round baking pans.

Bake at 350 degrees for 28-32 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pans for 10 minutes before removing to wire rack. Cool completely.

In a bowl, combine the cool whip and yogurt; fold in reserved peaches. Spread topping between layers and over top of cake. Garnish with additional diced peaches if desired. Store in refrigerator about an hour.

Grandma Dugan's Pistachio Cake

This was an award winning "Jell-O" recipe! Recipe and photos courtesy of Donna Hawkins
Love this photo of the actual hand written recipe!

Donna Hawkins: "One thing I left off the recipe: dust with powder sugar."

Karen's Refrigerator Cake

Refrigerator Cake
Recipe and picture courtesy of Karen Dirgins-Graves

aka the easiest cake to make in the history of cake making:
What you need--1 package of Nabisco Famous Chocolate Wafers1 bowl of whipped cream (you can use Cool Whip, but it doesn't turn out as good)

Directions:
Sandwich the cookies with the whipped cream to make a cookie log, then ice the whole thing with whipped cream. Refrigerate overnight for the cookies get a chance to soft.

Whipped Cream: 1 pint heavy whipping cream, 2 tbsp. confectioners sugar, 1 tsp. vanilla. Beat with a electric mixer until soft peaks form.

Karen's Tadals or Anise Drop Cookies

Picture and Recipe courtesy of Karen Dirgins-Graves

Cookies:

6 eggs
3/4 cup melted butter
1 cup sugar
2 tsp. anise flavoring
2 tbsp. baking powder
4 cups flour
1/2 tsp. salt

Icing:

3 cups confectioner's sugar
1/2 hot milk

pinch of anise flavoring

Cream together eggs, butter, and sugar. Add anise.
Mix dry ingredients together. Add to creamed mixture.

Drop by teaspoonful onto a nonstick cookie sheet.

Bake at 350, 8-15 minutes. Allow to cool before icing and add sprinkles.

Valerie's Shephard's Pie

Recipe courtesy of: Valerie Alava Ross

Ingredients:

1 lb ground beef
1 small onion, chopped
Couple cloves crushed garlic
3/4 cup chopped carrots
Small can corn
1 Can beef gravy
Mash potatoes
Shredded cheese
Browned ground beef in garlic.

Directions:

Drain meat. Sauté onion and carrots in meat till soft. Add corn and gravy and mix well. Transfer to greased baking dish. Top with mashed potatoes and shredded cheese.

Bake @ 350 for 25 to 30 minutes or till bubbly.

Swedish Glog (mulled wine)

Ingredients:

2 cups water
12 cardamom seeds
2 whole cloves
1/2 orange, zested
1 cup white sugar
1 cup raisins
1 cup blanched almonds
4 cups Muscatel wine, or orange Muscat
4 cups port wine (or Burgundy)
2 cups brandy

Directions:

Bring water to a boil with cardamom, cinnamon, cloves, and orange zest; stir in sugar until dissolved. Remove from heat, and allow to steep overnight.
Place the raisins and almonds into a large saucepan. Strain the sugar water into the raisins, then pour in Muscatel, port, and brandy. Place over medium-high heat, and cook until hot but not simmering.
Serve warm in a mug with some fruit and almonds in each cup.

Our Family's Thanksgiving Stuffing

Ingredients:

This recipe serves 4. For Thanksgiving we double the recipe.

6 Tbs Butter
1 cup chopped onions
1 cup chopped celery
2 tsps chopped fresh Sage or 1 tsp dried
1  1/2 cups chicken broth
8 cups cubed bread crumbs of prepared stuffing in bag
*optional* 1/2 cup cooked crumbled sausage and/or dried cranberries

Directions:

Melt butter in saucepan over medium hight heat. Add celery and onions and cook for 4-5 min.
Remove from heat.

Add broth to stuffing in a large bowl and mix lightly.
Place into turkey or in a casserole dish covered.

Jessica's Lasagna Cupcakes

Recipe courtesy of: Jessica McCoy

Ingredients

... 1 cup marinara sauce

3/4 pound ground beef

12 wonton wrappers

8 ounces shredded mozzarella

3 ounces Parmesan cheese

4 ounces Ricotta cheese

(optional) basil for garnish

Directions

1)Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Spray muffin tin with cooking spray.

2)Brown beef and season with salt and pepper. Drain.

3)Cut wonton wrappers into circle shapes using a biscuit cutter or using the top of a drinking glass. You can cut several at a time.

4)Reserve 6 tablespoons Parmesan cheese and 6 tablespoon mozzarella for the top of you cupcakes. Start layering your lasagna cupcakes. Begin with a wonton wrapper and press it into the bottom of each muffin tin. Sprinkle a little Parmesan cheese, Ricotta cheese, and mozzarella cheese. Top with a little meat and marinara sauce. Use around 1-2 teaspoons of all the ingredients depending on your personal preference.

5)Repeat layers ending with marinara sauce. Top with reserved Parmesan and mozzarella cheese.

6)Bake for 18-20 minutes or until edges are brown. Remove from oven and let cool for 5 minutes. To remove use a knife to loosen the edges then pop each lasagna out.

7)Garnish with basil and serve.