What's Cooking?

Old Fashioned Pound Cake

From my Kitchenaid Cookbook:

3 cups all purpose flour

2 cups sugar

3 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. salt

2 c. butter, softened

1/2 cup low-fat milk

1 tsp. vanilla

1 tsp. almond extract

6 eggs

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Combine dry ingredients in mixer bowl.  Add butter, milk, vanilla an almond extract.  Attach bowl and flat beater to mixer.  Turn to Stir Speed (lowest speed) and mix about 1 minute.  Stop and scrape bowl.  Turn to Speed 6 (highest speed) and beat about 2 minutes.  Stop and scrape bowl.

Turn to Speed 2 (low) and add eggs, one at a time, mixing about 15 seconds after each addition.  Turn to Speed 4 (medium high) and beat about 30 seconds.  

Pour batter into greased and floured 10 inch tube pan (I use bundt pan).  Bake at 350 for 1 hour 15 minutes, or until toothpick inserted comes out clean.  I begin checking at about 50 minutes--this is so much better if it's not overbaked.  :)  Cool completely on wire rack.  Remove cake from pan.  

Yield 16 servings.  

Mom's Homemade Scottish Shortbread

1 cup butter

1/4 tsp. salt

1/2 c. powdered sugar

2 cups unbleached all purpose flour

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Soften butter.  Add salt, sugar and flour and mix with fork until dough forms.  Press into  9x9 or round 9 inch cake pan and prick about every 1/2 inch with fork.  Place in preheated oven (425) for about 25-35 minutes (until slightly brown).  Let cool and enjoy.

Janet's Kings Ranch Burgers

An old recipe from my friend, Janet, who is a naturally gifted cook, thus the recipe is a bit free-flowing, but I think I can make them...I still remember how lovely these tasted.  I made Janet scribble down her "recipe" at least 3 years ago...I am trying to transcribe recipes for my new binder...perhaps now I will make these yummy burgers.

Hamburger (1-2 lbs)

Onions/Mushroom--chop goodly amount to taste and use some of mixture to stuff in hamburgers (optional).

Brown hamburgers in deep-frying pan.  Toss in extra mushroom/onion.  Mix cream of mushroom soup with 1 cup of cream and some grated swiss cheese (optional).

Pour sauce over burgers and simmer covered 20 minutes.  If no swiss cheese in sauce, put slices on finished burgers.

Serve on buns or without.  Enjoy.

Baked Ziti with Sausage and Spinach

Baked Ziti with Sausage and Spinach

2 lbs. ground Italian sausage
1 onion, chopped
1 T. garlic, minced
2 26-ounce jars prepared marinara sauce
salt and pepper to taste
16 oz. ziti pasta
3 c. shredded mozzarella cheese
1 lb. fresh spinach
3/4 c. Parmesan cheese


Cook sausage over medium-high heat.  Add the
onion and saute for 5 minutes, stirring frequently.
Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute.  Add the
marinara sauce and simmer for 10 minutes  Add salt and
pepper.

Cook pasta 10 minutes and drain well.  Spray
9x12 baking dish with cooking spray.  In large
bowl, mix pasta, sauce, mozzarella and spinach
well.  Pour in baking dish and sprinkle with 
Parmesan cheese.  Bake for 30 minutes or 
until casserole begins to bubble and cheese
is browned.

For meatless Fridays, you could just leave out the sausage!  :)

(serves 8)

Ruth's Bean Enchilada Soup

Bean Enchilada Soup

1 can black beans, rinsed

1 can northern beans, rinsed

1 can red kidney beans, rinsed

1 can Basil and Garlic pasta sauce

1 can Enchilada sauce

Mix all ingredients in large stock pot. Simmer on medium heat for 20 minutes. Top with sour cream, shredded cheddar cheese and crushed tortilla chips.

Ruth has a ton of wonderful meatless Lenten recipes.  

Meal and Recipe Planning

I have a very organized friend, who keeps her recipes in a three ring binder with page protectors to keep the recipes neat and clean while she cooks.  I can't tell you how often I plan to cook and spend way too long searching for the recipe or looking online for a comparable one to prepare.  I have most of my recipes marked in my favorite cookbooks but I don't have room to store all my cookbooks for easy reference.  This binder method will help me immensely--I will keep it close at hand in my kitchen and it will have our family favorite recipes at my fingertips.  

Of course, there will be a bit of work involved as I will need to copy/keyboard recipes from recipe cards, cookbooks and online sources.    I hope to get my big girls to keyboard recipes into the computer and then print them out and file them in my binder by type (appetizers, main courses, desserts, etc.).  

 Obviously, with Lent just a few days away, I have been thinking of more austere meals.  Holy Mother Church only requires the faithful to abstain from meat on Ash Wednesday and Fridays during Lent.  Fasting is only required on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday.  Our family will be meatless one more day during Lent (Wednesdays).  

The recipes below are some of our "staple" meals.  I will attempt to link more as I have time.  This post was just started as a way to "think out loud."  Now, if I can just make it to Office Max to get my binder...;)

Meatless:

Potato Soup with Dill

Basil Pesto 

Cheese Enchiladas 

Bean Enchilada Soup

Brown Rice with Veggies

Frozen Cheese Ravioli with Marinara

Cuban Beans and Rice

Breakfast for Dinner (Pancakes or French Toast)

Spinach Lasagna

Baked Potatoes 

Vegetarian Baked Ziti

Salmon Patties 

Meat:

Hamburgers

Pork Ribs 

Homemade Spaghetti Sauce 

Roast Chicken 

Chopped BBQ on buns

Pot Roast

Beef Stew

Chicken and Dumplings

Pork Chops

Honey-Baked Ham