Western Burgers/Homemade French Fries/Fry Sauce

About a month ago, I was teaching a class at church and one of the students mentioned they had eaten Western Burgers the night before but their mom had forgotten the bacon...so it reminded to make these hamburgers:

1 lb. ground hamburger
1/4 cup chopped onion
1/4 cup BBQ sauce
salt and pepper
Mix ingredients together and make patties. I've cooked these on the grill and that's the yummiest but you can always cook them in a pan on the stovetop. Put hamburger on a bun and then add any of these toppings:
Cheddar Cheese
Cooked Bacon
Lettuce
Ketchup
Mustard
Mayo

I served them with homemade fries...cut up potatoes lengthwise and slice. Deep fry in oil until golden brown. Remove from oil and sprinkle with salt.

French Fries aren't complete without fry sauce. I mix 3/4 cup mayo with 1 cup ketchup. Stir. We keep a jar of fry sauce in our refrigerate so I mix a big batch, fill the jar, and then refill as needed. Definitely not the healthiest meal but it's so yummy!!!

Chicken Rollups

From: My Grandma R...Happy Birthday today :)


2 pkgs crescent rolls
1-8 oz pkg cream cheese
Diced chicken or turkey (leftovers are best!)
Fine dry bread crumbs (I use dry stove top stuffing)
1 can cream of chicken soup
¼ cup butter

Separate rolls. Mix meat in cream cheese (you must really mix together or it just doesn't taste right...I mix mine in my Kitchen Aid). Put a spoonful on wide part of roll. Tuck sides in and roll up. Dip in melted butter and crumbs. Put in a baking pan and bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes. Heat soup adding enough milk to make like gravy and serve over the rollups. I usually serve this with mashed potatoes and the rest of the Stove Top Stuffing made. I must admit that these are not the rest of my family's favorite...but since I like them so much I have to add them to the menu every now and again.

Ribbon Salad

From: Marsha Ward

Layers (for each buy 1 (3 oz) pkg Jell-O)**:

1. Black Cherry
2. Concord Grape
3. Wild Strawberry
4. Orange
5. Lemon
6. Lime

Dissolve package of Jell-O in 1 cup boiling water. Divide exactly in half. To one half add ¼ cup sour cream. To the other half add ¼ cup cold water. Put the sour cream layer in the bottom of a glass 9 x 13 pan. Refrigerate until sour cream layer is fully set. (Be sure dish is level.) Then cover sour cream layer with clear half of Jell-O. Let set until firm. Repeat with all 6 Jell-O flavors. Cut and turn on side to serve.

**Can use 6 oz pkgs of Jell-O…choose 3 flavors and make the following changes: boil 2 cups water, add ½ cup sour cream to one half, and add ½ cup cold water to other half.**

Chicken and Dressing Casserole

This has to be one of the easiest and yummiest casseroles that's out there.

2 chicken breasts cooked and chopped (I usually just boil the chicken breasts and then chop them with my Pampered Chef food chopper (definitely a MUST in my kitchen))
1 carrot, chopped (w/ food chopper)
1/4 onion, chopped (w/ food chopper)
2 TBL margarine
1 cup sour cream
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 package of Stove Top Stuffing (prepared...I always make mine using the microwave instructions)

Prepare chicken. Saute chopped carrots and onions in margarine. In a bowl, mix sour cream, cream of chicken soup, chopped chicken, and sauted carrots & onions. Mix well. In a 9 x 13 pan, spread half of made Stove Top Stuffing on the bottom of the pan. Pour mixture over stuffing. Add the rest of the stuffing to the top of the mixture. Cook at 350 degrees for 45 minutes.

During the summer, I go meatless w/ this recipe and use zucchini instead. To prepare the zucchini, I peel, remove the seeds, and cut the zucchini into bite-size pieces. Boil them for about 10 minutes or until they are "soft"...add the carrots and onions to the zucchini and saute. Then do the same layers.

Another change that sometimes I do is leave out about 1/2 cup of stuffing before you make it. Then used the "prepared" stuffing as the bottom layer, the mixture next, and then the "dry" stuffing on top. It adds a nice "crunch" to this casserole.

One Bowl Brownies

4 squares Unsweetened Chocolate
¾ cup margarine
2 cups sugar
3 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup flour
1 cup chopped nuts (optional)


Microwave chocolate and margarine in large microwable bowl at HIGH 2 minutes or until margarine is melted. STIR UNTIL CHOCOLATE IS COMPLETELY MELTED. (I NEVER have the squares so I always use the cocoa powder...on the box it says 3 TBL cocoa and 1 TBL oil equal one square..this is what I use, although I usually only do what equals 3 squares...too much chocolate for the hubby otherwise.) Stir in sugar until well blended. Add eggs and vanilla; mix well. Stir in flour and nuts until well mixed. (I've added chocolate chips or white chocolate chips which adds just a bit more flavor but it's definitely NOT needed)...the pic was taken w/ white chocolate chips added.)Spread in greased 13x9-inch pan. Bake at 350 degreed for 35 minutes or until wooden toothpick inserted in center comes out almost clean. Do not overbake. Cool; cut into squares. Makes 24. For cakelike brownies: Stir in ½ cup milk with eggs and vanilla. Increase flour to 1 ½ cups.

Cheese Chowder

This recipe came from the restaurant owner I worked for one summer. It's very yummy!!!

4 cups cubed potatoes
2 cups chopped celery
2 cups diced carrots
1/2 cup mince onion

Add all above ingredients to 2 tsp salt and 4 cups water. Cook for 20 minutes. Add 1 10 oz. pkg frozen broccoli (and/or other veggies you prefer), 3 TBL chicken base, and 3 1/2 cups milk. Simmer for 5 minutes.

In a separate pan, melt 1/2 cup margarine, 1/2 cup flour, and 1 TBL dry mustard. Add to soup. Stir until thick. Add chopped ham (cooked), if desired.  Add 1 lb. cubed Velvetta (slowly). Heat slowly, never boil.

Twice-Baked Potatoes

This is a nice variation from mashed potatoes or baked potatoes.

Bake 4 potatoes (do more if you need to) at 350 degrees for one hour. Cut potatoes in half and scoop out insides into a mixing bowl. Save skins on baking sheet. Add 1/4 cup margarine, 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese (more if you like), 1/2 cup sour cream (I don't always add this), 2 TBL milk, dash of salt & pepper. Mash potatoes and add-ons together. Spoon potato mixture back into the potato skins. Put in oven for about 20 minutes to reheat and "brown" the tops of the potatoes.

Perfectly Easy Dinner Rolls

1 cup warm water
4 ½ tsp active dry yeast
½ cup butter, melted
½ cup sugar
3 eggs
tsp salt
4 – 4 ½ cups flour
Additional melted butter (optional)

Combine the warm water and yeast in a large bowl. Let the mixture stand until yeast is foamy, about 5 minutes. Stir in butter, sugar, eggs, and salt. Beat in flour, 1 cup at a time, until dough is too stiff to mix (some flour may not be needed). Cover and refrigerate 2 hours or up to 4 days. Grease a 13x9-inch baking pan. Turn the chilled dough out onto a lightly floured board. Divide dough into 24 equal-size pieces. Roll each piece into a smooth round ball; place balls in even rows in the prepared pan. Cover and let dough balls rise until double in volume, about 1 hour. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Bake until rolls are golden brown, 15-20 minutes. Brush warm rolls with melted butter, if desired. Break rolls apart to serve.

Monster Cookies

These are our family's FAVORITE cookies. If you asked us to bring dessert to something, you probably received these. I seriously could just eat the cookie dough to these cookies but the cookies are just as tasty! The recipe is originally from the school that my mom works at.

2 cubes margarine
1 ½ cups creamy peanut butter
1 ¼ cup brown sugar
1 cup granulated sugar
¾ tsp corn syrup
¾ tsp vanilla
2 tsp baking soda
3 eggs
1 cup M&Ms
1 cup chocolate chips
5 cups oatmeal
pinch of salt

Mix ingredients together. Drop by spoonful onto slightly greased cookie sheet. Bake at 350 degrees for 9-12 minutes. Let cookies cool slightly on cookie sheet before cooling completely on cookie rack. These cookies tend to stick together if they're not all the way cool so be sure they are completely cool before stacking.

Key Lime Pie

From: My friend Cula brought us a pie about a month ago and my husband LOVED it so I got her recipe so we have something to make with all of the limes our lime tree is producing.

1 pastry shell
3 eggs
1 14 oz. can of sweetened condensed milk
1/2 c. lime juice
2 TBL water
green food coloring if desired

Line pastry shell with foil and bake at 450 degrees for 8 minutes.

Separate egg yolks from whites. Place yolks in mixing bowl. Whisk in sweetened condensed milk, lime juice, and water. Add food coloring. Whisk until mixture thickens. Spoon filling into pastry shell and bake at 325 degrees for 15-20 minutes. Cool and serve. My friend uses cool whip for the top but you could use the egg whites to create a meringue.

Chicken Stir-Fry

From: My mom...this is absolutely one of my favorite dishes.

Cut up chicken into chunks. Roll each chunk in cornstarch and then in an egg (beaten). Cook chicken in a pan that has been preheated with oil. Mix the following sauce:

2 tsp soy sauce
2 tsp corn starch
2 tsp sugar

Pour sauce over meat and cook. Take meat out of pan. Add veggies to hot pan. (Broccoli, fresh mushrooms, celery, carrots, etc....whatever you can find fresh in your fridge/garden or frozen in the freezer) Cook veggies and then mix this sauce...I usually triple the sauce so I can use the whole 2 cups of chicken broth from the can:

1 TBL corn starch
1 TBL sugar
1 TBL soy sauce
2/3 cup chicken broth

Pour sauce over veggies. Add chicken and heat thoroughly. It will thicken as it cooks. Serve over rice. Yummy!! Yummy!!

Syrup

As most of you know, I've been making a lot of jam and jelly this year. Last week, I made another batch of grape jelly. I ended up with 2 cups leftover grape juice so I called my mom and asked her what I should do. She suggested I make grape syrup...yummy, yummy!

Fruit syrup is easy, easy!!! It's one part juice to one part sugar...so for my batch I used 2 cups grape juice and 2 cups sugar. Mix together and boil. After it boils if you want it thicker, add a bit of Karol syrup to thicken it up. Pour into jars, seal lids, and boil in boiling water for 5 minutes. Remove from boiling water and jars should seal.

Here's what my shelves look like after the past 6 months....strawberry jam, apricot jam, raspberry jam (thanks, MOM!!!!), grape jelly, and grape syrup. Have I mentioned that my kids refuse to eat store bought jam now?! :)

Spanish Rice

I learned this recipe one night at a church activity from a Spanish sister.

In a saucepan with a tsp. of oil, fry one cup rice with chopped onions. Fry until rice is brown. Add ¼ cup of tomato sauce (until most of the rice is red) and mix. Add two cup of water and a little chicken bouillon (OR 2 cups of chicken broth). Put lid on and boil. When water is almost gone, turn off the stove top and finish cooking rice with the lid on.

Carmel Brownies

From: My aunt, Kathleen...these brownies are served EVERY holiday that I can remember :)

For the Carmel you will need to mix:
2 cups brown sugar
1 cup Karol syrup
1 square margarine

Bring mixture to a boil. Add 1 can of eagle brand milk and boil for 4 minutes. Set aside. **You will only use half of the caramel mixture for each pan of brownies you make—so if you want to use all the caramel at once, you will need to make the brownie mix TWICE. I usually just put the other "batch" of caramel in a tupperware in the fridge and save it for the next batch OR to dip apples or make carmel popcorn with it****

For the Brownies you will need to mix:
1 German Chocolate Cake Mix
¾ cup melted margarine
1/3 cup evaporated milk
1 cup chopped nuts (optional)

Stir this mixture well. Grease and flour a 9x13 pan. Press half of mixture into a pan. Bake for 6 minutes at 350. Remove from oven and sprinkle with about 6 oz of chocolate chips. Then spread half of the caramel mixture on top. Sprinkle remaining cake mix over top. Bake 15 minutes at 350. Cool, refrigerate for awhile before cutting. If you have "extras", these brownies easily freeze and are just as tasty when you take them out of the freezer.

White Chicken Pizza

From: My CIL, Annie

2-3 cooked chicken breasts (cubed)
1/4 cup chopped onion
1/4 cup butter (SPLIT)
2 TBL flour
1/2 - 2 cups milk (start with a 1/2 cup and then add more as it thickens...just add a little at a time)
3 TBL celery
3 TBL broccoli (fresh or frozen works)
1 1/2 cups shredded mozz. cheese
salt, pepper, and garlic salt to taste
Italian seasoning sprinkled on top.

Saute onion in half of butter and then add the chicken. Cook until done. In another sauce pan, make white sauce with other half of butter, flour, milk, salt, pepper, and garlic salt to taste. Add veggies and cook until soft. Add veggie-white sauce mixture with chicken. Set aside. Roll pizza dough onto pizza stone. Cook dough for 6 minutes at 400 degrees. Take out and spread mixture on top. Spread evenly and cover with cheese. Sprinkle italian seasoning on top. Bake at 400 degrees for 15-20 minutes. (The picture was taken before it was put in the oven to cook.)

October Menu!

As I was planning out my monthly menu for October, I decided that it would be quite simple to just post my recipes in a blog. Then I can add to it frequently. So...my Bake-n-Cooking blog begins :) The posts so far are all things that are on the menu for October. As most of you know that really know me, I keep my recipes on the computer so I'll keep adding recipes from my recipe file as I have time, AND I'll add new recipes as I try them (hopefully I'll remember to take pics of the foods before they get served so you can see if it's something you might like to cook :). If you have a recipe to share, I would LOVE to give it a try. Happy Cooking!

Chicken Noodle Soup

1 3-4 lb chicken, cut up (You could also just use chicken breasts)
8 cups water
½ bay leaf (if desired)
1 onion, chopped
salt and pepper to taste

Place cut up chicken in a large cooking pan. Add water, onion, and seasonings, cover and bring to boil. Cook until chicken is tender and will come off from bones easily, about 2 hours. Remove chicken from broth—remove skin and meat from bones. Discard bones and skin. Strain broth.

Add to broth:
1 cup celery, cut into pieces
½ tsp seasoning salt
2 -3 carrots, peeled & sliced or cut into chunks
½ tsp poultry seasoning (optional)
Meat of the chicken
salt and pepper to taste
1 small onion, chopped

Add prepared vegetables to chicken broth, adding more water if needed. Bring to boil and cook about 15 minutes. Add 2 cups of uncooked pasta noodles. Bring to a boil and cook 20 minutes. I love this soup because the broth is as good as the noodles, chicken, and veggies. I usually always serve it with some type of bread so you can "soak" up the juice...although, honestly, I could just drink it :) This particular night it was served with garlic bread.

Meatloaf

Crumble hamburger. Salt and pepper. Add one chopped onion. Crumble in 8-10 saltine crackers or add ½ to 1 cup bread crumbs. Mix together and add one egg. Add 1 can tomato sauce. (For less of a tomato taste, you can add about ¾ cup of ketchup. I also add a bit of Italian seasoning for taste—Dave likes a lot of seasoning.) Spray a bread loaf pan (or line with foil) and shape meatloaf to fit pan. Bake for 1 hour at 350.

Cheesy Chicken Wings/Strips

16 chicken wings (or strips of chicken)
1 tsp dried basil leaves
2 TBL butter or margarine
½ tsp dried oregano leaves
¾ cup crumbled crackers or fine bread crumbs
½ tsp garlic salt
¾ cup Parmesan cheese
Fresh basil or parsley for garnish

Wash chicken wings; pat dry. In a bowl, combine the crumbs, herbs, and parmesan cheese. Add seasonings and mix well to blend. Melt butter. Dip chicken wings first in melted butter, then into crumb coating. Arrange chicken wings in lightly oiled baking dish. Bake chicken wings at 375 for 30 minutes. This is one of our favorite meals!!!! I usually always serve it with a baked potato.

Breadsticks

1 TBL yeast
1 ½ cups warm water
1 TBL malted milk powder (optional...I honestly don't think I've ever added this)
1 TBL honey
1 tsp salt
4 cups flour (or a little more)

Dissolve yeast in water. Add malted milk powder, honey, and salt. Add flour gradually until dough forms a ball. Knead a few times, be careful not to over knead. Do not let rise. Meanwhile have ½ cup butter or margarine melted in a 10 x 15 pan (cookie sheet). Roll dough out to measure of pan. Cut into sticks with knife or pizza cutter. Coat both sides of dough with butter and line in pan. Sprinkle top with Season All salt. Let rise to top of pan edge (approximately 1 hour). Bake at 400 for 12-15 minutes.

Lasagna

Layer the following in a 9x13 pan:
Spaghetti sauce
lasagna noodles (cooked)
1 lb. hamburger (cooked)
grated cheese

Bake at 350 for about 45-60 minutes.  The secret to lasagna is to let it sit after it has cooked at least 10 minutes before cutting into it.

Make and freeze.  If frozen, you'll need to defrost and then cook OR cook for 2 hours, covered.

Hawiian Haystacks

Hawaiian Haystacks

2 (10 ¾ oz) cans cream of chicken soup
2 cups diced chicken, cooked
1cup chicken broth
½ cup chopped green pepper
1 cup chopped celery
1 20 oz can pineapple chunks, drained
4 cups cooked rice
1 cup grated cheese
1 can chow mien noodles
½ cup slivered almonds
3 medium tomatoes, sliced
½ cup coconut
1 can olives, sliced
1 small onion, chopped

Combine soup and broth in a saucepan to make gravy. Stir to blend and simmer about 8-10 minutes, until heated through. Layer all ingredients. First stack rice, chow mien noodles, chicken, and gravy. Add other ingredients as desired.

Baked Potato Soup

Baked Potato Soup
From: My CIL, Annie

Bake 3-5 potatoes in the oven for however long and whatever temperature you usually do. When they're done, slice them in half and scoop out the meat into a bowl. Discard peels. Add 2 tsp chicken boullion and 1 c water and beat with beaters until kind of smooth, but slightly lumpy. Melt 1 -2 TB butter in a large saucepan and add 1 TBS flour. Stir until pasty. Add 1 c milk, salt and freshly ground pepper to taste. Stir until bubbly and then add the potato mixture to saucepan. Add the dill weed, and whatever other herbs and spices you'd like. If it's too thick, add a little more milk. Wait till it starts to bubble and then take it off the heat. Add 1 c sour cream. Serve topped with bacon, broccoli or cheese.

Fried Chicken aka Chicken Bones

Yes, my kids affectionally call this meal "Chicken Bones"...I guess because this is the only time I don't use boneless, skinless chicken :)

Heat about 1 TBL of shortening in a skillet. I personally always use my electric skillet. Add 1 cup flour and a sprinkle of salt and pepper to a gallon size ziplock baggie. Shake mixture to mix. Rinse of chicken piece and shake in ziplock baggie. Add chicken to hot skillet. Cook until brown. I usually put the lid on, prepare other things, turn chicken, and repeat several times. Be sure to check the center of the chicken (right next to the bone) to make sure it's really done. When the chicken is cooked, remove chicken from skillet and pour in about 2 cups of milk. Stir with a whisk. Mix about 2 TBL of cornstarch w/ about 1/4 cup of milk in a separate cup. When milk in skillet begins to boil, add cornstarch milk mixture whisking constantly. This will make yummy chicken gravy that you can serve over mashed potatoes.

Sloppy Joes

Sloppy Joes

3 lbs hamburger (can decrease if you're cookin' for a smaller crowd)
1 onion, chopped
1 green pepper, chopped
2 cans tomato soup (or use ketchup instead)
dash garlic
dash celery salt
dash onion salt
½ cup brown sugar
2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp mustard (dry or liquid)
1 tsp vinegar

Brown hamburger with onion and green pepper. Add other ingredients and simmer for 30 minutes. Serve on a bun or between two slices of bread.

Baked Pasta

1 package (16 oz) pasta (spaghetti noodles or any shaped pasta will work)
1 lb. hamburger (could go meatless if you want)
2-3 cups spaghetti sauce
1-2 cups grated cheese
1 cup parmesan cheese

Cook noodles as directed on package. Drain water. Brown hamburger. Add spaghetti sauce to browned hamburger. Add noodles and cheeses. Stir and pour in 9x13 pan. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes.

Fiesta Stack

1 can refried beans
2 TBL plus ¼ cup sour cream
1 TBL plus ½ tsp taco seasoning
2 cups cooked chicken, chopped
1 medium red or green bell pepper, chopped
½ cup thinly sliced green onions
¾ cup sliced olives
5 (10-in) flour tortillas
2 cups cheddar cheese, shredded
Salsa
Vegetable oil
2 tomatoes, seeded and chopped

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Combine refried beans, 2 TBL sour cream, and 1 TBL taco seasoning; mix well. In another bowl, combine chopped chicken and chopped peppers. Add sliced green onions and ½ cup of the olive slices; mix gently. Place one tortilla on Pizza Stone. Spread bean mixture on top. Add about 1 cup of chicken mixture. Top with salsa and shredded cheese. Repeat layers approximately 3 more times. Top with remaining tortilla. Spray top tortilla with Pam vegetable oil. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until top is golden brown. Mix the remaining ¼ cup sour cream with the remaining ½ tsp taco seasoning; spread evenly over top of warm tortilla stack. Sprinkle with tomato and remaining olive slices. Cut into wedges; serve with salsa, if desired.

Hobo Dinners

Tear off enough sheets of foil for each dinner you are making. Place a hamburger patty (or chicken breast) in the center of each foil. Cut onion into rings. Peel and dice potatoes. Peel and chop carrots into sticks. Add onion rings, potato chunks, and carrot sticks to each hamburger patty. Top with salt, pepper, and season-all salt. Seal up each foil dinner individually. Place on a cookie sheet. Bake at 350 for about 1 hour. Also, great in the coals of your campfire…just be sure to turn it regularly!

Fried Fish

Fish

Add 1 cup flour, sprinkle of salt, 1/2 tsp pepper, and a sprinkle of garlic to a ziplock gallon bag. Shake mixture to mix. Rinse off fish and trimmed as you like to eat your fish. Heat 1 tsp of margarine in a hot skillet. Coat fish in flour mixture and add to pan. Brown each side of the fish (approx. a total of 10 minutes). Serve with a side of lemon.

Crustless Quiche

Crustless Quiche

4 eggs
3/4 cup milk
3/4 cup heavy cream (I just use milk)
1 Tablespoon flour
2 Tablespoons melted butter
Pinch of salt
Pinch of nutmeg Method
1 cup Cheddar cheese (grated)
1 cup Swiss cheese (grated)

Beat all the ingredients together with a whisk until blended. Butter (or ‘Pam’) a pie dish and scatter a mixture of grated Cheddar and Swiss cheese over the bottom of the pie dish. Pour egg mixture over top. Sprinkle nutmeg. Bake at 375 degrees for 40 minutes until the custard is firm, puffy & slightly brown.
Hint: You can add fried crumbled bacon, fried mushrooms, peppers etc. Just scatter these in with the cheese before you pour the custard over the top.