Brown Sugar Muffins

My kids love these muffins! There are a few modifications I have made to make them egg free. This is one recipe where I don't miss the eggs or milk if substituted!

1 c brown sugar
1/2 c crisco
1 egg (or 1/4 c applesauce ~ equivilant of 1 indidvidual cup)
1 tsp baking soda
1c milk (or water)
2 tsp vanilla
2 c flour

Cream together brown sugar and crisco. Add egg, or applesauce. Add vanilla and 1c flour. Dissolve baking soda in milk or water. Add to creamed mixture. Add remaining cup of flour and mix well. Spoon into well greased muffin tins.
Bake at 350 for 20min (if using applesauce cook about 25min). To see if they are done, slightly press down on top of muffin with finger. If it is firm to the touch, they are done. If it leaves an indent, allow to cook a few more minutes.
If making large muffins bake about 35min.
*This is good if using cinnamon applesauce too!*

Lion House Pie Dough

This post is for Tamina. She swears this is the best pie crust recipe ever. I have yet to try it, but I believe her!

1/4 c butter
1/3 c lard
1/4 c margarine
1/3 c shortening
1 Tbsp sugar
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1 Tbsp nonfat dry milk
1& 1/2 c pastry flour
1& 1/2 c bread flour
1/2 c + 1 Tbsp cold water

Preheat oven to 375.

In a mixer, cream together butter, lard, margarine & shortening. In a seperate bowl, whisk together sugar, baking powder, salt, & dry milk powder; add to creamed butter mixture and mix briefly. Add pastry flour and mix slightly. Pour in water and beat again just until water is blended.
Divide dough into 2-3 balls. Roll out each ball on a floured board. Line pie pan with dough and cut off excess dough. Flute edges. For recipes that call for baked pie crusts, prick holes in the bottom with fork. Bake empty pie shell at 375 for 12-15min, or until golden brown. Otherwise, fill unbaked pie shell and bake according to recipe. Makes 2-3, 9" pie shells.

*You can substitute 3 c all-purpose flour for the pastry and bread flour called for in the recipe. You can also make this dough by hand by cutting the fats into the dry ingredients.*

Lion House French Bread

I absolutely LOVE this french bread recipe. It makes 4 loaves (I whole cookie sheet). My kids love them too and better yet, it is egg and milk free!

2c hot water
2 Tbsp shortening
2 Tbsp sugar
4 tsp salt
2 pkgs yeast (1 use 2 Tbsp)
1c lukewarm water
7-8c flour

Combine 2c hot water, sugar, shortening, and salt in a large bowl. Stir to melt the shortening and dissolve the sugar and salt. Set aside to cool to lukewarm.
Dissolve yeast in 1c lukewarm water. Add to cooled shortening/sugar mix.
Mix in 4c flour and beat til well blended. Add the remaining flour to make a relatively stiff dough. Knead until well mixed.
Cover and let rise til doubled, apx 1hr
Punch down and divided into 4 balls.
pat each ball into a rectangle shape and roll up like a jelly roll. Place on greased cookie sheet. Score the top with a sharp knife (to make it look cool!)
Spray the top with cooking spray and allow to rise til double, apx 1 hr.
Bake at 400 degrees for 25min. Brush the top with melted butter.

(Rising time can be decreased by heating the oven to 125 then turning off. Place a shallow metal pan of water on the bottom rack and place bread dough in oven. They are usually ready for me to cook after about 20-30min. Remember to take them out before preheating the oven to 400)

Italian Chicken

This is another easy recipe that can be prepared in 10 minutes! It is also one that can be cooked in the crock pot if desired.

2-3 chicken breasts, cooked and shredded
1/2 cube butter
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 envelope Good Seasonings Italian Salad Dressing Mix
1/4-1/2 c water
6-8oz cream cheese

Combine sauce ingredients in a microwave safe bowl. (soup,salad dressing mix, & cream cheese). Microwave until cream cheese is melted, stirring often. Combine butter and chicken ina medium saucepan. Stir until butter is melted. Pour sauce over chicken. Heat over medium heat until sauce is hot. Stir in water until desired consistency is achieved. Serve over pasta, or rice.

To cook in crock pot place the chicken (not cooked), 2 cans cream of chicken soup, italian mix, and water. Cover and cook for 4-6 hours. 1 hour before serving add the cream cheese. (I prefer to serve this one with rice.) The last hour you can also add broccoli pieces.

Crock Pot Beef Stroganoff

This is a really easy version of stroganoff that the kids love. It makes a thick sauce which is great to serve with hearty noodles like penne.

To crock pot add:
1 & 1/2 -2 lbs stew beef (or roast, cut up)
1 can cream of mushroom, or cream of chicken soup
1 onion, chopped
1 c beef broth
salt and pepper
1-2 tsp garlic powder (to your taste)
1 can mushrooms (optional)

I stir all the ingredients together, cover and cook on low for 8-10hrs. One hour before serving, add 1 package of cream cheese (cut into chunks to allow to melt easier), or 1 cup sour cream. let cook for remaining hour. If you choose to cook it with cream of broccoli soup, then add fresh broccoli pieces the last hour of cooking also.

Pumpkin Pie Spice Substitute

Once again, we were making some pumpkin donuts and found out that we needed some pumpkin pie spice and we have never ever used that in our cooking before. So after a brief search, we found the following spices that can be used instead:

• 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger (scant) 

And of course, mix and store in an airtight container.

Heavy Cream Substitute

I seem to come across recipes that call for heavy cream but either I can't make it to the store or it will be too late to go to the store. So in my search for a substitute, I came across this that works for a substitute.

Take 1/3 Cup melted butter and mix it with 3/4 Cup Milk. Use this mixture in place of 1 Cup of Heavy Cream. This will not whip though, so you cannot use it for that purpose. I plan to use this for a fondue recipe I'm currently looking at. Enjoy!

I also found this site http://www.joyofbaking.com/IngredientSubstitution.html that has a very comprehensive list of substitutes.

Asian Sesame Dressing

We love salad and have one almost every day at dinner time so naturally we are always looking for more ways to enjoy them.

Ingredients:
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/3 cup white vinegar
1/3 cup water
¼ cup vegetable oil
¼ cup soy sauce
3 Tb honey
2 Tb sesame oil
1 Tb peeled and minced fresh ginger
½ teaspoon salt

Directions:

1. Combine all ingredients in a pint-size container with a tight-fitting lid. Shake well.
2. Remove lid and heat jar in microwave on High 1 minute just to dissolve honey. Cool and shake well before serving. Store, tightly covered, in refrigerator up to 2 months.

Sweet Pork

We love this on tacos or on salads.  It is like the Cafe Rio Sweet Pork.  It is a favorite of the kids.  We also like to have it with Brazilian Black Beans and rice. 

Ingredients:
3 lbs pork roast
1 12 oz bottle salsa
3 cups brown sugar (packed)

Directions:
Spray crock pot with vegetable oil/olive oil.  Put roast in crockpot.  Mix salsa and brown sugar in a bowl.  Pour over top of pork.  Cook on low 10-12 hours or high 6-8 hours.  Shred.  

Chocolate No Bake Cookies

Here are the cookies I used to make with my Aunt Lisa.  We had them Sunday evenings.  They are delicious and now my kiddos love them too!  :) Enjoy!

Ingredients:
1/2 c. milk
2 c. sugar
1 cube butter/margarine
1 tsp. vanilla
3 T. cocoa
3 c. oatmeal

Directions:
Mix milk, sugar, butter and cocoa in saucepan and bring to a boil. Add oatmeal and vanilla. Leave on heat long enough to stir in oatmeal and then remove from the heat. Drop by teaspoon full onto wax paper and let cool.

General Tsao’s Chicken

More commonly know at our house as "Daddy Chicken."  :)  Here is Jon's version as per everybody's requests.

Ingredients:
--- Sauce ---
1/4 cup cornstarch
1/4 cup water
1 1/2 teaspoons minced garlic
1 1/2 teaspoons minced fresh ginger root
3/4 cup white sugar
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup white wine vinegar
1/2 cup hot chicken broth
--- Chicken ---
3 pounds skinless, boneless chicken breast halves, cut into bite size pieces
2 Tbsp Olive Oil
1 Tsp Sesame Oil
1 teaspoon ground white pepper
Red Pepper Flakes (add for desired heat - approx. 1 tsp for very mild, kid friendly heat)

Directions:

1. To Make Sauce: In a large bowl combine cornstarch and water. Mix together. Add garlic, ginger, sugar, soy sauce and white wine vinegar. Then add chicken broth and stir all together until sugar dissolves. Refrigerate until needed.
2. To Prepare Chicken: In a Wok, add oils. While the pan is heating up, sprinkle on the white pepper and red pepper flakes. This helps release the heat from the red pepper. Don't let the red pepper cook too long or it will burn.  Allow to cook for only 30 seconds or so.  Add the chicken and mix around to coat the chicken in the oil mixture. Add a few dashes of soy sauce.  Cook until chicken is done. If there is any excess liquid, drain this out of the pan before continuing on to the next step.
3. To Make Mixture: Remove sauce from refrigerator and stir. Move the chicken to the sides of the wok and add sauce to wok. Cook until sauce thickens.  Serve with rice and steamed broccoli for our favorite full meal plan.

Sweet and Sour Meatballs

I like to 1 1/2 or even double the sauce because I think they are too dry otherwise.

Ingredients:
--- Meatballs ---
2lbs. ground beef
1 1/2 cups oats
2 eggs
1/2 cup onion
1/2 cup milk
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
--- Sauce ---
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
2 teaspoons mustard
1/2 cup BBQ sauce
dash Worcestershire sauce

Directions:
Preheat oven to 375.  For the Meatballs, combine all ingredients in bowl and shape into balls. Place in a greased 9x13 pan.  For sauce, mix all ingredients well. Pour over meatballs.  Bake uncovered for 45 mins.  Serve with rice.

You can also freeze it, just cover with heavy duty foil. Thaw in fridge overnight.

No Bake Cheese Cake

Ingredients:

1/2-1 c. powder sugar (depending on how sweet you like it)

8 oz. cream cheese (1 block)

8 oz. whipped topping (1 small tub)

1 tsp. vanilla

1 graham cracker pie crust

Directions:

 Mix powder sugar, cream cheese, vanilla.  Add in whipped topping mix until fluffy. Pour into pie crust. Chill in fridge. Serve plain or with fruit topping of choice. YUM!

Parker House Rolls

Ever popular "Tamina's Rolls"

Ingredients:
3 Tbs yeast
½ c warm water
1 c butter
2 c warm water
1 c sugar
5 eggs
2 tsp salt
9 ½ c flour

Directions:
Sprinkle yeast into ½ cup water. Let sit 5 min. Combine butter, water and sugar in microwave until butter is melted and sugar dissolved. Beat eggs and add to liquid mixture, add salt and 4 cups of flour. Beat until smooth. Stir in yeast. Add the rest of the flour, stir til smooth. (Dough will be sticky) Let rise til doubled, mix down. Sprinkle counter with flour and roll dough out. Melt ¼ cup butter. Cut the rolls in circles. (I use a jar ring) Dip in butter, fold in half and place on a greased baking sheet. Cover and let rise. Bake at 350 for 15 mins. Brush tops with butter. (Can be frozen and cooked later)

Banana Bread

We love this bread, especially with the chocolate chips.  :)

Ingredients:
½ c shortening
1 c sugar
2 eggs
2 c flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 c or 3 bananas
chocolate chips

Directions:
Cream together shortening and sugar. Add eggs. Add bananas and dry ingredients. Mix well. Stir in chocolate chips. Grease and flour pan. (Bundt pan works well) Bake at 325 for 45-60 mins. or until toothpick comes out clean. Makes 1 bundt pan.

Caramelized Green Beans

One of the best ways to eat green beans.

Ingredients:
1 lb. (actually, just a little bit more...maybe 1 1/8 lb.) fresh green beans
1/2 lb. bacon
1/2 red onion, sliced
3-4 cloves garlic, minced or pressed
olive oil
2 Tbsp. sugar
2 Tbsp. soy sauce
1/2 tsp. Kosher salt
Lots of freshly-ground pepper

Directions:

1. Begin frying the bacon in a large skillet. Start boiling a large pot of water. Place beans in a colander and rinse them well. Then snap the ends off and snap them in half.  Prepare the sauce by mixing sugar, soy sauce, and salt in a small bowl.  Make sure your onions are sliced, garlic is pressed (or minced).  Remove bacon from pan and drain on a paper towel. If you feel like it, you can crumble it now or wait until it's cooled off a little. Pour bacon drippings out of pan (I keep an empty tin can around for this very purpose). Use some bacon grease or olive oil and heat pan to medium-high heat. When the pan is hot...
2. Add onions and garlic. Give them a quick stir and then...
3. Add beans to boiling water. Place colander in a clean sink. Boil for one minute; you're not cooking them until they're done, just blanching them to take the edge off. Meanwhile, stir the onions and garlic so they don't scorch. After one minute, drain beans in the colander in the sink.
4. Once beans have been drained, add them to the onions and garlic. Stir fry 2-3 more minutes.
5. Give your sauce a quick stir and then pour on top of the beans. Keep stir-frying until the beans get kind of glazy. Do this for another 2 minutes.
6. Add crumbled bacon and lots of freshly-ground pepper to the beans. Keep stir frying until the sauce sticks to the beans and the bacon. Transfer to a serving dish and allow to stand a few minutes so the beans cool down a bit and the glaze thickens up a little.

German Pancakes

This is one of our kids favorite breakfast meals. Our oldest can eat most of the pan by himself so we usually end up 1-1/2 it or doubling it, depending on how "starving" he is. :)

Ingredients:

6 eggs

1 cube butter (I use 1/2 cube)

1 cup flour

1 cup milk

1 tsp salt

little vanilla

Directions:

Preheat oven to 450. Put butter in 9x13 pan and in heating oven. (So that butter will melt-check periodically to move around so it won't burn) Beat eggs until lemon yellow. Add flour, milk, salt and vanilla. Mix thoroughly. Pour batter into pan with melted butter. Cook 15-18 minutes at 450. Serve with syrup. ENJOY!

(I find it easy to mix it in the blender, rather than in a bowl.)