Mommy modified from a recipe in Best of Country Slow Cooker Recipes
Originally called Beefy Au Gratin Potatoes
1 pkg. Au Gratin potatoes
Double of Cream of Whatever Soup (or two cans of cream of chicken soup)
2/3 C. milk
1 C. water
1 lb. ground beef
2 TB. dried, minced onion- rejuvenated
1 C. shredded cheddar cheese
Open package of Au Gratin potatoes, setting sauce mix aside. Place potatoes in bottom of the crock pot.
In a large mixing bowl, combine soup, milk, water, and powdered sauce mix; stir well to combine. Pour a third of the mixture over the potatoes.
In a skillet, cook the beef and onion over medium heat until the meat is no longer pink. Drain beef. Transfer beef and onion to the crock pot.
Top with remaining sauce mixture. Do not stir. Cover and cook on low for 4 hours or until potatoes are tender. Stir well and sprinkle with cheese. Cook a few minutes longer until cheese is melted.
Mommy first tried this recipe a long time ago when we lived in Utah. Daddy really liked it. He asked if we could call it "That New Meal". I said sure and asked why. He said, "So when you ask if we can have that new meal for dinner I can say 'yes' and not have to try something different!" :) Mr. Adventure when it comes to food is not a title Daddy wears. :) I usually double this recipe but still only used 1 lb. of beef to take to church lunches. It is a big hit. We all really enjoy this one. All of you children really like this one as well.
Love Always,
Mommy
Saturday, August 6, 2011
Strawberry Whip Cream Frosting
A recipe from our friend, Rebecca Mastin
1 C. heavy cream
1 tsp. vanilla
1 TB sugar
1 lb. strawberries, sliced and sprinkled with sugar then pureed
Whip cream, vanilla, and sugar until fluffy whip cream. Stir in pureed strawberries. Frost a white cake. Yum!
Rebecca is a dear friend from Veritas Baptist Church. Robert and she came over with their 3 children to spend the day with us. Rebecca brought a white cake frosted with this yummy frosting! It was so good! Robert and Rebecca are sweet friends that the Lord has brought to our family. We are blessed because they are in our lives.
Love Always,
Mommy
Friday, August 5, 2011
Strawberry Jello Poke Cake
Our dear friend Jen Everhart's recipe
1 White Cake Mix
ingredients to make the cake
1 large package of strawberry Jello
water to make jello
8 oz. tub of Cool Whip
whole Strawberries
1. Bake the cake according to the directions on the back of the box.
2. Cool cake completely.
3. Poke the top of the cake with a fork. Cake top will crumble!
4. Make 1 large box of jello according to the directions, skipping the refrigerated time.
5. Pour jello over the poked cake until cake is saturated with jello and top of the cake is red. Usually have a little jello left over.
6. Place cake in refrigerator for several hours or overnight.
7. Frost cake with Cool Whip.
8. Layer whole strawberries on top.
9. O yum!!!!
This is so incredibly yummy! Jen brought this to church for dessert on the 4th of July. She used blueberries for the stars and strawberries for the stripes. It was adorable AND delicious!!! :) It was so incredible that Daddy went back for seconds. The jello makes is so moist! Don't slice the strawberries or they will "bleed" all over the cake.
Daddy called me today and said, "You know what we need?" I said, "No, what?" He said, "That strawberry cake!". So, I just called Jen to get the recipe and here I go making the strawberry cake. We will definitely need to keep all the ingredients on hand so we can make this when Daddy calls and says, "You know what we need?" :)
Love Always,
Mommy
This is so incredibly yummy! Jen brought this to church for dessert on the 4th of July. She used blueberries for the stars and strawberries for the stripes. It was adorable AND delicious!!! :) It was so incredible that Daddy went back for seconds. The jello makes is so moist! Don't slice the strawberries or they will "bleed" all over the cake.
Daddy called me today and said, "You know what we need?" I said, "No, what?" He said, "That strawberry cake!". So, I just called Jen to get the recipe and here I go making the strawberry cake. We will definitely need to keep all the ingredients on hand so we can make this when Daddy calls and says, "You know what we need?" :)
Love Always,
Mommy
Monday, August 1, 2011
Frozen Pudding Pops
From Heavenly Homemakers
Make a batch (or two or three) of pudding. This is an excellent homemade pudding to use.
Pour the pudding into popsicle containers or 3 ounce sized bathroom cups. Each batch of pudding made about 12 Pudding Pop cups. I found it easiest to put all the cups on a large cookie sheet for easier transport the freezer.
Allow the pudding to cool and set up (about 45 minutes). Place a popsicle stick in each cup.
Put the Pudding Pops into the freezer for at least 4 hours. I was surprised that it took quite a while for these to be frozen through and through.
Mommy made these the other day for the first time and they were awesome! I only made a single batch to test the recipe out. Next time I will definitely make a double or triple batch! Even Daddy liked these! We used the paper Dixie cups and found out that the paper stuck to the pudding pops! A little hot water run on the outside of the cup loosen it right up and we were able to slip it off without any cup still stuck to our pop. We found 1,000 popsicle sticks at Michael's Craft Store for under $5. That's a lot of pudding pops! :) These aren't super sweet but they are so good.
Love Always,
Mommy
Make a batch (or two or three) of pudding. This is an excellent homemade pudding to use.
Pour the pudding into popsicle containers or 3 ounce sized bathroom cups. Each batch of pudding made about 12 Pudding Pop cups. I found it easiest to put all the cups on a large cookie sheet for easier transport the freezer.
Allow the pudding to cool and set up (about 45 minutes). Place a popsicle stick in each cup.
Put the Pudding Pops into the freezer for at least 4 hours. I was surprised that it took quite a while for these to be frozen through and through.
Mommy made these the other day for the first time and they were awesome! I only made a single batch to test the recipe out. Next time I will definitely make a double or triple batch! Even Daddy liked these! We used the paper Dixie cups and found out that the paper stuck to the pudding pops! A little hot water run on the outside of the cup loosen it right up and we were able to slip it off without any cup still stuck to our pop. We found 1,000 popsicle sticks at Michael's Craft Store for under $5. That's a lot of pudding pops! :) These aren't super sweet but they are so good.
Love Always,
Mommy
Creamy Pudding
Another great one from Heavenly Homemakers
Creamy Vanilla Pudding
2 1/2 cups milk
3 egg yolks
1/2 cup real maple syrup (grade B is best for you) or honey
1/4 cup arrowroot powder
1/4 t. sea salt
1 T. butter
1 t. vanilla
2 1/2 cups milk
3 egg yolks
1/2 cup real maple syrup (grade B is best for you) or honey
1/4 cup arrowroot powder
1/4 t. sea salt
1 T. butter
1 t. vanilla
In a medium saucepan, whisk together milk, egg yolks, maple syrup, arrowroot powder and salt. Cook over medium heat, stirring CONSTANTLY until pudding begins to thicken. Stir over the heat for about 15 more seconds. Remove immediately from the heat, and continue to stir until pudding is creamy. (I use my whisk the whole time for stirring and find this works great!) Add butter and vanilla and continue to stir until mixed. Pour into serving dishes and serve warm, or chill for two hours and serve cold.
Chocolate Creamy Pudding
2 1/2 cups milk
3 egg yolks
1/2 cup real maple syrup
1/4 cup cocoa powder
1/4 cup arrowroot powder
1/4 t. sea salt
3 T. butter
1 t. vanilla
In a medium saucepan, whisk together milk, egg yolks, sucanat or maple syrup, cocoa, arrowroot powder and salt. Cook over medium heat, stirring CONSTANTLY until pudding begins to thicken. Remove immediately from the heat, and continue to stir until pudding is creamy. Add butter and vanilla and continue to stir until mixed. Pour into serving dishes and serve warm, or chill for two hours and serve cold.
Mommy has only made this to make Pudding Pops but boy is it good! Even Daddy liked the Pudding Pops and they are much healthier than anything you could buy at the grocery store. Yum!
Love Always,
Mommy
Chocolate Creamy Pudding
2 1/2 cups milk
3 egg yolks
1/2 cup real maple syrup
1/4 cup cocoa powder
1/4 cup arrowroot powder
1/4 t. sea salt
3 T. butter
1 t. vanilla
In a medium saucepan, whisk together milk, egg yolks, sucanat or maple syrup, cocoa, arrowroot powder and salt. Cook over medium heat, stirring CONSTANTLY until pudding begins to thicken. Remove immediately from the heat, and continue to stir until pudding is creamy. Add butter and vanilla and continue to stir until mixed. Pour into serving dishes and serve warm, or chill for two hours and serve cold.
Mommy has only made this to make Pudding Pops but boy is it good! Even Daddy liked the Pudding Pops and they are much healthier than anything you could buy at the grocery store. Yum!
Love Always,
Mommy
Dump Cake
Recipe from Donna Howard
2 cans pie filling
1 white or yellow cake mix
1/2 C. butter, sliced
Grease 8 1/2x11 inch pan. Dump in pie filling. Sprinkle cake mix on top. Place sliced butter on top of cake mix.
Bake at 350 degrees for 45-60 minutes.
This is so delicious and comes together super fast. I love this dessert. My favorites are peach or strawberry. Donna brought this to church and graciously shared her recipe with me. I believe I first has this dessert in Turkey when Michele Nolan made it. Everyone in our family loves this one!
Love Always,
Mommy
2 cans pie filling
1 white or yellow cake mix
1/2 C. butter, sliced
Grease 8 1/2x11 inch pan. Dump in pie filling. Sprinkle cake mix on top. Place sliced butter on top of cake mix.
Bake at 350 degrees for 45-60 minutes.
This is so delicious and comes together super fast. I love this dessert. My favorites are peach or strawberry. Donna brought this to church and graciously shared her recipe with me. I believe I first has this dessert in Turkey when Michele Nolan made it. Everyone in our family loves this one!
Love Always,
Mommy
Homemade Chocolate Syrup
I found this recipe over and Heavenly Homemaker.
1 cup evaporated cane juice sugar
1/2 cup baking cocoa
dash of sea salt
1 cup water
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup baking cocoa
dash of sea salt
1 cup water
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Mix sugar, baking cocoa, sea salt and water in a medium sauce pan. Whisk ingredients together and cook on medium-high heat until the mixture begins to boil. Boil for one minute. Remove from heat. Allow mixture to cool for just a few minutes. Stir in vanilla extract.
This is a wonderful chocolate syrup. I like to make chocolate milk and mocha frapps with this syrup. I looked at the ingredients on the Hershey's chocolate syrup and about fell over. That stuff is awful for you! This is a much better alternative to all the additives and junk in the commercial brands. When Mommy was pregnant with Jonathan she craved so much chocolate milk that Jonathan may have been made from it! :) Mommy always made the chocolate milk with this homemade syrup.
Love Always,
Mommy
Mommy Mocha Frapp
Mommy Creation
3/4 C. milk
2 TB baking cocoa
2 TB organic sugar
1 tsp. instant decaf coffee
1/4 C. chocolate syrup (homemade preferable)
2 C. ice
Put all ingredients except for ice in the VitaMix. Blend to combine. Add ice and blend until smooth. Enjoy with a straw!
Chocolate Covered Strawberry Mocha Frapp
Add 3-5 large fresh or frozen strawberries, stems removed
This is so yummy!!! Mommy loves this. I like Starbucks Frappuccinos but they are expensive. This is a great way to curb my Starbucks "wanter" for a whole less money. :) The homemade chocolate syrup is much better for you than the Hershey's syrup and it tastes awesome.
Love Always,
Mommy
3/4 C. milk
2 TB baking cocoa
2 TB organic sugar
1 tsp. instant decaf coffee
1/4 C. chocolate syrup (homemade preferable)
2 C. ice
Put all ingredients except for ice in the VitaMix. Blend to combine. Add ice and blend until smooth. Enjoy with a straw!
Chocolate Covered Strawberry Mocha Frapp
Add 3-5 large fresh or frozen strawberries, stems removed
This is so yummy!!! Mommy loves this. I like Starbucks Frappuccinos but they are expensive. This is a great way to curb my Starbucks "wanter" for a whole less money. :) The homemade chocolate syrup is much better for you than the Hershey's syrup and it tastes awesome.
Love Always,
Mommy
Raw Milk Yogurt
Mommy modified this recipe that was originally from the Nourishing Traditions book..
6 3/4 C. raw milk
3/4 C. powdered milk
2/3 C. whole milk yogurt, plain
Heat milk and dry milk in a double boiler to 110 degrees. Add 2 TB of the warm milk plus 1 TB starter yogurt into each quart jar.
Stir or shake to combine. Pour the remaining warm milk into the two quart jars and add an additional 3 TB of yogurt per jar. Leave the lids off and incubate in the dehydrator at 95 degrees for 8 1/2 to 9 hours.
This yields 2 quarts of yogurt.
Raw milk yogurt is my favorite for flavor and nutritional value. I am still experimenting with this recipe to perfect it. I would like to try leaving the lids off and incubating it at 100 or 105 degrees to speed up the process and reduce tartness. The recipe as written isn't very tart and is about a medium thickness. Keeping the raw milk below 110 degrees insures that all the live enzymes are still alive. This is so very good for you and it's yummy too! Mommy has found the Nourishing Traditions book to be helpful although I am not convinced that everything proposed is exactly correct health-wise. As with everything, if you choose to read the book, ask God to give you wisdom and glean what you can from it. Don't worry about the rest! :)
Love Always,
Mommy
6 3/4 C. raw milk
3/4 C. powdered milk
2/3 C. whole milk yogurt, plain
Heat milk and dry milk in a double boiler to 110 degrees. Add 2 TB of the warm milk plus 1 TB starter yogurt into each quart jar.
Stir or shake to combine. Pour the remaining warm milk into the two quart jars and add an additional 3 TB of yogurt per jar. Leave the lids off and incubate in the dehydrator at 95 degrees for 8 1/2 to 9 hours.
This yields 2 quarts of yogurt.
Raw milk yogurt is my favorite for flavor and nutritional value. I am still experimenting with this recipe to perfect it. I would like to try leaving the lids off and incubating it at 100 or 105 degrees to speed up the process and reduce tartness. The recipe as written isn't very tart and is about a medium thickness. Keeping the raw milk below 110 degrees insures that all the live enzymes are still alive. This is so very good for you and it's yummy too! Mommy has found the Nourishing Traditions book to be helpful although I am not convinced that everything proposed is exactly correct health-wise. As with everything, if you choose to read the book, ask God to give you wisdom and glean what you can from it. Don't worry about the rest! :)
Love Always,
Mommy
Yogurt- Dehydrator Incubated
Mommy created from several different recipes
2 qts. of milk
2/3 C. powdered milk
1/3 C. whole milk yogurt with live cultures, unflavored
Combine the milk and powdered milk in a large saucepan. Heat over medium heat to 180 degrees, stirring almost constantly. (This takes awhile- 15-20 minutes or so.)
Pour hot mixture into a pitcher and let it cool to 115 degrees. The quickest way to cool this down is to put the pitcher in some ice water.
Remove 1/3 C. warm milk mixture and combine it in a small bowl with the yogurt starter. Stir until smooth and yogurt is dissolved. Combine mixture with warm milk in the pitcher.
Pour into two 1 qt. mason jars. Leave the lids off and incubate in the dehydrator at 115 degrees for 3 1/2-4 hours. Put the lids on and refrigerator overnight to thicken.
Flavor individual servings with dried fruit, granola, pure maple syrup, fruit syrup, pureed fruit, honey, or all fruit jam.
I have found that it is much easier to flavor the individual servings of yogurt than to try and flavor a whole quart at a time. Sometimes the flavoring will thin the yogurt, but that doesn't seem to happen when we flavor our individual servings. Yogurt is very good for you. It is something we should be consuming on a regular basis. Mommy would really like to be better about having either yogurt or kefir a couple times a week. I am so glad all of my children enjoy homemade yogurt so much. It is good stuff!
Love Always,
Mommy
2 qts. of milk
2/3 C. powdered milk
1/3 C. whole milk yogurt with live cultures, unflavored
Combine the milk and powdered milk in a large saucepan. Heat over medium heat to 180 degrees, stirring almost constantly. (This takes awhile- 15-20 minutes or so.)
Pour hot mixture into a pitcher and let it cool to 115 degrees. The quickest way to cool this down is to put the pitcher in some ice water.
Remove 1/3 C. warm milk mixture and combine it in a small bowl with the yogurt starter. Stir until smooth and yogurt is dissolved. Combine mixture with warm milk in the pitcher.
Pour into two 1 qt. mason jars. Leave the lids off and incubate in the dehydrator at 115 degrees for 3 1/2-4 hours. Put the lids on and refrigerator overnight to thicken.
Flavor individual servings with dried fruit, granola, pure maple syrup, fruit syrup, pureed fruit, honey, or all fruit jam.
I have found that it is much easier to flavor the individual servings of yogurt than to try and flavor a whole quart at a time. Sometimes the flavoring will thin the yogurt, but that doesn't seem to happen when we flavor our individual servings. Yogurt is very good for you. It is something we should be consuming on a regular basis. Mommy would really like to be better about having either yogurt or kefir a couple times a week. I am so glad all of my children enjoy homemade yogurt so much. It is good stuff!
Love Always,
Mommy
Crock Pot Yogurt
A fellow MOMYS posted this and I modified it a bit.
INGREDIENTS:
-1/3 cup of store bought, natural, active/live culture, full fat (not low fat or fat free) plain yogurt. (This will be your starter. After your first batch of yogurt, you can use 1/2 cup of some of your homemade yogurt as a starter instead.)
-2 quarts of whole milk. Pasteurized and Homogenized is fine, but do not use ultra-pasteurized.
2/3 C. powdered milk
-1/3 cup of store bought, natural, active/live culture, full fat (not low fat or fat free) plain yogurt. (This will be your starter. After your first batch of yogurt, you can use 1/2 cup of some of your homemade yogurt as a starter instead.)
-2 quarts of whole milk. Pasteurized and Homogenized is fine, but do not use ultra-pasteurized.
2/3 C. powdered milk
1. Pour the milk into the crock pot and turn the crock pot on low. Cook on low for 2 1/2 hours.
2. Turn the crock pot off, leave the cover on, and let the milk sit for 3 hours.
3. Take a cup or two of the warm milk from the crock pot, and put it in a small mixing bowl. Mix in 1/3 cup of store-bought yogurt, or 1/2 cup of homemade yogurt as your starter. Mix in powdered milk.
3. Take a cup or two of the warm milk from the crock pot, and put it in a small mixing bowl. Mix in 1/3 cup of store-bought yogurt, or 1/2 cup of homemade yogurt as your starter. Mix in powdered milk.
4. Mix the yogurt/warm milk mixture into the milk that's sitting in your crock pot.
5. Put the lid on the crock pot, then fold and put a heavy bath towel over the crock pot to insulate the leftover heat (leave the crock pot turned off), and go to bed.
6. The next morning, you'll have yogurt waiting for you in the crock pot. :-) Home made yogurt is thinner than store-bought.
7. Pour the yogurt into a container, cover it, and put it into the fridge. Let the yogurt fully cool down to the fridge temp.
8. Then, if you'd like to add fruit to your yogurt, put a few cups of chopped fruit (of your choice) into a blender, and blend. Then mix the blended fruit into the yogurt and return to the fridge to cool it some more.
5. Put the lid on the crock pot, then fold and put a heavy bath towel over the crock pot to insulate the leftover heat (leave the crock pot turned off), and go to bed.
6. The next morning, you'll have yogurt waiting for you in the crock pot. :-) Home made yogurt is thinner than store-bought.
7. Pour the yogurt into a container, cover it, and put it into the fridge. Let the yogurt fully cool down to the fridge temp.
8. Then, if you'd like to add fruit to your yogurt, put a few cups of chopped fruit (of your choice) into a blender, and blend. Then mix the blended fruit into the yogurt and return to the fridge to cool it some more.
More add in ideas:
Honey, cut fruit, jam, maple syrup, or granola are all nice additions as well.
This is an easy yogurt that turns out well without a big failure rate. This is a good one to use when first learning how to make yogurt. I always add powered milk to my yogurt to thicken it up. Enjoy!
Love Always,
Mommy
Love Always,
Mommy
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)