Serve this casserole with any meal...so good!

(Photo from Food Network website)

So, yesterday was Easter and I decided to be brave (on a holiday) and try a new veggie recipe...actually, it's not really a good idea, but I was totally bored with the same old green beans or corn. You know what I mean? 

Anyway, thanks to the Food Network site, I discovered this delicious casserole using frozen broccoli, cauliflower, carrots and flavored with Cream of Mushroom soup, sour cream, swiss cheese and fried onions. 

We had a table full of food so, of course, I forgot to take pictures of my latest find. But, as you can see from the pic on the Food Network site, it's just so colorful and appetizing.

It took less than 5 minutes to prepare and is the quickest casserole I have made! You have to love anything that's quick and easy in the kitchen...especially on a holiday! 

Ingredients:

1 can (10 3/4 ounces) Condensed Cream of Mushroom Soup

1/3 cup sour cream

1/4 tsp. ground black pepper

1 bag (16 ounces) frozen vegetable combination, thawed (broccoli, cauliflower, carrots) 

1 can (2.8 ounces) French's Fried Onions (divided) (1 1/3 cups)

1/2 cup shredded Swiss cheese (2 ounces)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350'F. Spray a 2-quart casserole dish with cooking spray.

Stir soup, sour cream, black pepper, vegetables, 2/3 cup onions and 1/4 cup cheese in a 2-quart casserole. Cover the casserole with lid or aluminum foil.

Bake for 40 minutes or until the vegetables are tender, then stir them.

Top with remaining onions and cheese. Bake 5 minutes or until the cheese is melted.

Be encouraged!

"God's love for us will never change...He will love us forever!"

Pumpkin Dump Cake

For the love of Fall!

The first time I had this delicious dessert was at my neighbor's house during a fun, fall, neighborhood get-together. It was amazing!

This quick and easy dump cake has all the warm and fuzzy fall flavors we crave during that time of year. In fact, you may just want to skip the Pumpkin Pie at your Thanksgiving feast and serve this delicious dump cake. I'm thinking that's a plan this year. 

Ingredients:

15 oz. can pumpkin puree

12 oz. evaporated milk

3 large eggs

3/4 cup light brown sugar (lightly packed)

2 tsp. pumpkin pie spice

1/2 tsp. salt

15.25 box yellow cake mix (dry)

1 cup pecans (coarsely chopped)

1 cup unsalted butter (melted)

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 350'F. Prepare the inside of a 9x13" baking pan with nonstick cooking spray.

Whisk together the pumpkin, milk, eggs, brown sugar, pumpkin pie spice and salt to a large bowl. Pour into prepared pan.

Sprinkle the dry cake mix evenly across the top, then sprinkle on the chopped pecans.

Drizzle the melted butter on the top, being careful not to leave dry patches of cake mix.

Bake at 350'F. for 45-60 minutes or until set in the center and golden brown on top. (If it's starting to get too brown before fully baked, cover the top with a foil tent.)

Let sit for about 15 minutes before serving. You can cut into squares or use a large spoon and scoop it out. 

Top with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream. 

A Tip from Grammy:

-Be sure to use pumpkin puree and NOT pumpkin pie filling.

-Spice cake mix can be substituted for the yellow cake mix.

-The pecans can be substituted with walnuts, if desired. Don't like nuts? Just leave them out entirely.

-Refrigerate leftovers up to 3 days in a tightly covered container

-Prepare, bake, cool and chill covered cake in the refrigerator a day in advance. 

Pineapple Filled Cookies

One of Mom's best!

I just found my mom's Pineapple Filled Cookie recipe in her old wooden recipe box! I don't know how I missed this for all these years, but I couldn't be happier right now! 

These are one of the holiday cookies that we enjoyed along with so many others that my mom and aunts would bake and share amongst family and friends every year.  So many precious memories go hand-in-hand with holiday cookie baking, and it makes me realize how blessed I was with a childhood that was filled with family and so much love!

Ingredients:

Dough:

Cream together:

1/4 cup shortening

1/4 cup brown sugar

Beat in with the above mixture:

1 egg

1 tsp. vanilla

3 Tbsp. milk

Sift together, then add to above mixture:

2 cups flour

1 tsp. baking powder

1/4 tsp. salt

Make a soft dough and chill 3-4 hours or until firm enough to roll.

Filling:

1 1/2 cup crushed pineapple (drained)

1/4 cup sugar

2 Tbsp. cornstarch

1/2 tsp grated lemon peel

1 Tbsp. butter

Combine ingredients, place over low heat. Stir until thickened, about 15 minutes.

Cool completely.

Roll chilled dough into oblong, cut into 2 1/2" squares.

Place 1 heaping teaspoon of filling on each square, bring opposite corners together, pinch to seal.

Bake at 400'F. for 10 minutes.

Cool on racks. Sprinkle with confectioner's sugar.

Be encouraged!

Rejoice always! - 1 Thessalonians 5:16

 

Pig Pickin' Cake

The cake with many names!

(photo from Pinterest)

DISCLAIMER: No pigs have been harmed in the making of this cake, I promise!

LOL!  

Pig Pickin' Cake has a number of other names, including pig cake, sunshine cake, summer cake, pea pickin' cake, pic eatin' cake, orange-pineapple cake, and the most common alternative, mandarin orange cake. 

This summery, delicious cake was the go-to dessert for cookouts that served an entire pig roasted on a spit. The dinner-and-dessert combination was so common that this nameless cake soon became known, not for its own flavors, but for the main course the locals felt it paired so well with.

This traditional southern dessert is made with yellow cake infused with whole or chopped mandarin orange slices and topped with a Cool Whip frosting that’s laced with shredded pineapple. It’s either served plain or garnished with reserved mandarin orange slice, maraschino cherries, chopped pecans, or shredded coconut. It’s still a popular southern dessert for potlucks, picnics, and barbecues.

Cake Ingredients:

1 box (yellow cake mix)

1/2 cup butter, softened (1 stick) or vegetable oil (your choice)

14 oz. can Mandarin oranges (drain and reserve 1/2 cup juice)

4 eggs

1 tsp. vanilla

Preheat oven to 350'F.

Combine cake mix, softened butter, 1/2 cup reserved Mandarin orange juice, eggs and vanilla. Beat four minutes on medium-high.

Add drained oranges and beat again until the pieces are broken up and small.

Pour batter into greased and floured 9x13" baking pan or 2 8" round cake pans and bake for 25-30 minutes or until golden brown and set.

Remove from oven and let cool for 10 minutes, then turn onto cake rack and cool completely. 

Topping:

20 oz. can crushed pineapple (reserve 3/4 cup juice and drain the rest really well)

3/4 cup juice from the crushed pineapple

4 oz. box vanilla instant pudding mix

1/2 cup confectioner's sugar

8 oz. Cool Whip

 

Once cake is cool, blend juice from drained pineapples with the vanilla pudding mix. Add confectioner's sugar and mix, then fold in whipped topping.

Stir in drained pineapple and spread on cooled cake.

Refrigerate several hours, and refrigerate any leftovers.

Serve cut cake squares and top each square with a mandarin orange slice. (So pretty.)

A Tip from Grammy:

-Buy an extra small can of mandarin oranges for garnishing, if desired

-Refrigerate at least an hour before serving to set up the frosting.

-Make this cake in 2 (8") round pans and bake for 17-21 minutes or until toothpic inserted comes out clean.

Be encouraged!

How good and pleasant it is when God's people live together in unity.  -Psalm 133:1

Homemade Maple Syrup (EASY)

Just 5 simple ingredients!

Photo from "Iheartnaptime"

Since I was posting my favorite pancake recipe this morning, I thought I'd look up a recipe for Maple Syrup. This one from "I Heart Naptime" caught my eye. It got 5 stars and the word "easy" was all in caps! Haha, that's for me, then! Check out this blog, it looks like there are a lot of yummy recipes there!

It sounds delicious and I'm looking forward to making it after a short trip to the store to get some maple extract. But, for now, I'm going to share it, just because it got so many good comments. Everything from "perfect" to "delish" and "won't buy store bought again". 

Ingredients:

2 cups granulated sugar
1 cup light brown sugar

1/4 cup honey or corn syrup

1 1/2 cups hot water

1 tsp. maple extract

1 tsp. vanilla extract

Combine the sugar, honey and water in a large sauce pan over medium heat. Bring to a boil. Turn heat to medium-low and continue to simmer for 8-10 minutes, stirring frequently.

Remove from heat and let sit for 5 minutes. Then stir in the maple and vanilla extract. Serve over pancakes or allow to cool and then place in jars. 

Store in a covered jar in the refrigerator 1-2 months. 

Yields: 3 cups

A Tip from Grammy: 

-If using honey, the consistency will be a little thinner.

Be encouraged!

"For where two or three are gathered in my name, there, am I among them."  -Matthew 18:20

Lemon Cheesecake Crescent Rolls

Bursting with delicious lemony flavor!

I decided to check out Pinterest today, looking for a sweet baby afghan pattern for my granddaughter's first baby. Unfortunately, I didn't find the afghan pattern, but I did find a recipe for what looks like a delicious breakfast/brunch recipe! It stopped me in my tracks and I knew I had to share it with you all.

It took me to a website called "Lemon Tree Dwelling" and I'm probably going to check out more of her recipes because they looked wonderful!

Okay now, back to the crescent rolls. They're filled with a lemon flavored cheesecake and topped with a sweet lemon glaze...they have to be good, right?

I just had a thought! I might add a scant teaspoon of raspberry jam on top of the cheese cake filling before I roll them up, or maybe that delicious blueberry filling I made last week. Doesn't that sound good too? 

Ingredients:

1 pkg. crescent rolls

4 oz. cream cheese, cold

2 Tbsp. granulated sugar

1/4 tsp. lemon extract

Zest from 1/2 fresh lemon

Glaze:

1 cup confectioner's sugar

1 1/2 Tbsp. lemon juice

Zest from 1/2 fresh lemon

Instructions:

In a medium mixing bowl, combine cream cheese, granulated sugar, lemon extract and lemon zest.

Beat on medium-high speed until mixture comes together.

Unroll crescent roll dough into triangles; spoon cream cheese filling onto wider end of each triangle.

Gently roll the dough, starting at the wide end and tucking the corners, into crescent shapes.

Place 2 inches apart on a lightly greased or parchment lined baking sheet.

Bake at 375'F. for 12-14 minutes or until golden brown.

Let rolls cool on a wire rack.

Once cool, prepare glaze by combining all ingredients until smooth.

Drizzle glaze evenly over rolls.

Be encouraged!

Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. -Hebrews 11:1

Richmond Chocolate Frosting

Even better than your regular frosting!

I'm having such a good time going through old recipes, some from my husband's grandmother!  That's where I found this amazing chocolate frosting. 

This frosting is not just an ordinary chocolate frosting. It's thick and glossy, almost like a pudding and perfect for your favorite chocolate cake! It's also quick and easy...gotta love those kinds of recipes! Haha!

Ingredients:

1 cup granulated sugar

3 Tbsp. cornstarch

2 (1 oz.) squares unsweetened chocolate, grated or pre-melted envelope

Pinch of salt

1 cup boiling water

3 Tbsp. butter

1 tsp. vanilla extract

Mix sugar and cornstarch; whisk in grated chocolate and salt.

Stir above mixture into boiling water; cook until it's thick enough to spread.

Remove from heat; add butter and vanilla extract. 
 

Spread on cake while hot for a glossy frosting which remains soft and smooth.

A Tip from Grammy:

-You can do this in the microwave, but watch it carefully and stir often.

-Also great over a Boston Cream Pie.

Be encouraged!

For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened. -Matthew 7:8