BREAK

I had taken a much needed break from the posting here on my blog. I let life get a little crazy and had to get things settled back down. I am coming back full force starting next week with more wonderful recipes. I hope you have enjoyed the ones I have shared so far and look forward to getting your feed back from the others. I am not going to promise recipe a week but I will do my best. :)

Chicken Noodle Soup

My chicken noodle soup has been said to cure the worst of colds and stomach bugs; rumor has it that it might just heal broke bones as well. I originally copied this recipe from Rachel Ray but I have tweaked it and made it my own as I do with most all great things that come out of my kitchen.
What will ya need?
12oz boneless skinless chicken breast
2 med size white or yellow onions
2 garlic cloves (crushed)
3 med size carrots (peeled and sliced)
4 small celery stalks (chopped)
1 qt chicken stock
1/3 lb wide egg noodles
4 scallions (thinly sliced)
1/4 cup finely chopped parsley (this is optional)
1/4 cup fresh chopped dill
2tbl spoons extra virgin olive oil

What ya gonna do?
Place the chicken, one onion cut in half, garlic and enough water to cover in a pot. Bring to a boil then simmer for 15-20 minutes.
In a soup pot or Dutch oven, heat Olive oil and add chopped onion, carrots celery, season with salt and pepper and cover. Cook until veggies are soft.
Add the chicken stock to the veggies and bring to a boil.
Remove the poached chicken from the liquid and add 2 cups of the liquid poured through a strainer to the soup pot.
Dice the poached chicken then stir in the egg noodles and add chicken simmer about 5 minutes.
Turn off the heat stir in scallions, parsley and dill.
Season with salt and pepper to taste.

There is my famous soup recipe. Ok so maybe it isn't too famous but around my house it's pretty popular. Hope you enjoy it as much as my family does.

Spaghetti sauce from scratch

This sauce is by far the best I have ever made or had. My daughter refuses to eat jar sauces now.

What do you need?
1lb hamburger meat
1 minced bell pepper
1 minced onion
1 tbls of garlic salt
1 14.5 oz can of petite diced tomatoes
1 15oz can of tomato sauce
Fresh basil is optional but I am adding about 5 leaves chopped for flavor since I just got my first basil plant.

Brown hamburger meat and drain grease off.
Add all other ingredients together then add drained meat.
Simmer until the veggies are a little tender.
Pour over pasta and serve.

This recipe came from my husbands grandmothers cookbook it was one of her personal recipes.

Credit to Mrs. Ava Havard Persons

Meat Pie

This is one of my own. I made it a few years ago, although it isn't "homemade" all the way through it was a big winner with the family.
Preheat oven to 350f
What will you need?
1 package of stew meat
1 can of corn drained or 1 cup of frozen corn
1 can of peas drained or 1 cup of frozen peas
1 can of chopped carrots or 1 cup of frozen carrots
1 jar of brown gravy (unless you are good at making gravy then you can make a batch to use)
1 pack of pie crusts (the ones you find in the premade ready bake cookie section of the store) (you can also make these if you wish to do so

1. Cook stew meat all the way through
2. Place 1 of the pie crusts in the bottom of the pie pan
3. Add cooked meat, veggies and gravy
4. Place second pie crust on the top pressing it down on the edges and cutting off edges and putting 4 cuts in the center of the pie so it can breath while in oven
5. Place in oven and bake on 350 until golden brown on the top
6. Serve and enjoy

Porcupine

I never understood why my grandmother called them Porcupines and I still don't. They are more like small balls of meatloaf...
(Preheat over to 350f)
What are you going to need?
1lb of ground beef
1 minced onion
1 minced bellpepper
1/2 tbs of black pepper
1/2 tbs of garlic salt
1/2 cup of rice (recomend minute rice or parboil the rice before using)
1 reg size can of tomoato soup
1/2 cup of water

Combine the meat, onion, bellpepper, black pepper, garlic salt and rice together. Form the mixture into balls whatever size you wish to use just remember the larger you make them the longer they may take to cook all the way through. Place in a dish with a lid mix tomato soup with 1/2 cup of water and pour over the top. Cook with lid on in oven for 1 hour or until the meat is golden brown and the rice has popped. (cut one all the way through to insure they are cooked all the way)

This will serve 4 usually. You can double the ingredients to meet whatever needs you have. Thanks and hope you enjoy this I know the guys at the office did :)

Meat Loaf with a Bacon Top

The main ingredient in any true southern meal starts withMEAT. That makes meatloaf a real southern treat and again a recipe that mostwomen would keep under lock and key. I found a recipe in the books but Itweaked it a little to make it my own and I hope you will do the same.

3lbs of Ground Chuck (I have found that ground chuck is thebest meat to use for this)
1 Green Bell Pepper diced
1 med size white onion diced
1tbl spoon onion powder
1tbl spoon garlic powder
1tbl spoon of oregano
2 cups of bread crumbs
1 large egg
1 pack of thick cut smoked bacon
Preheat oven to 400F

Combine all of the ingredients except the bacon into a largebowl mix well using your hands until the mixture is blended well.  Place mixture into a large baking pan (I usedan average size cake pan for mine) you want it to fit in the pan without goingover the top. Once in the pan place bacon strips over the top of the dish untilit is well covered. (I weaved the bacon across the top)

Cook for 1 hour until crispy and brown all the way through.Drain grease that has accumulated on the sides. Cut and serve.

Hummingbird cake

I was always told I had to eat my dinner to get any dessert, you knew dessert was a good thing because everyone kept their fork or spoon around after the meal so they would waste no time getting their tastebuds on the delicious treat. I am going to start this blog off with dessert first, simply because here in the south things are always sweeter. I hope you enjoy this first recipe as much as I enjoyed making and sampling it.


Hummingbird Cake (no birds were harmed in the making of this cake)


3 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3 large eggs, beaten
1 cup of vegtable oil
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 8oz can crushed pineapple, undrained
1 cup chopped pecans
2 chopped bananas

cream cheese frosting (made from scratch recipe below)
1/2 cup chopped pecans

Combine first 2 ingredients in a large bowl' add eggs and oil, stirring until dry ingredients are moistened (do not beat) Stir in vanilla, pineapple, 1 cup pecans, and bananas.

Pour batter into greeased and floured 9" round cake pans. Bake on 350* for 25 to 30 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool in pans on wire rack for 10 minutes remove from pans and cool completely on wire racks.

Spread Cream Cheese Frosting between layers, on top, and on sides of cake, sprinlke with 1/2 cup chopped pecans on top. Store in refrigerator.

CREAM CHEESE ICING
(you can use store bought if you like)
2 16oz containers of Cream Cheese (I prefer whipped)
1 Cup confectioners sugar
1/2 stick of butter
1 Tablespoon vanilla extract
Combine all ingredients and blend with a mixer or by hand until well mixed and smooth in texture.