Gooey Turtle Cake

This cake is just as sinful as the picture shows. It is so rich and moist and amazing that a small piece will do ya. I couldn't help but pick at is as I prepared the icing and tried not to eat all the pecans before they made it onto the cake.  I love pecans. I can crack all day in the hopes of finding that one with the perfect flavor and consistency. And it is so satisfying to crack one and pull out two perfect halves. That doesn't happen often, usually I am digging pieces of shell out of pieces of pecan and drop most of the good stuff on the floor.

Anyways, back to the cake.  Don't bake this if you are on a diet. Don't bake this if you aren't planning to go into a diabetic coma after dessert. Do bake this if you want to know what heaven tastes like.

Ingredients

Cake
1 box devil's food cake with eggs, oil, and water called for on box
1 14 oz bag caramels
1/2 c evaporated milk
1 c chopped pecans
1 c semisweet chocolate chips

Icing
1 c semisweet chocolate chips
1 1.4 c heavy cream
1 Tbsp light corn syrup
Caramel for drizzling (I used ice cream topping)
Pecans


Directions

Cake
1. Heat oven to 350 (325 for dark or nonstick pans). Grease a 13 x 9 pan.

2. Make the cake batter as directed on the box. Pour half into the pan and refrigerate the unused portion. Bake for 20 minutes.

3. In a small saucepan, melt the caramels and evaporated milk. Pour over warm cake. Sprinkle on pecans and chocolate chips.

4. Spread remaining batter on top. Bake for 25-30 minutes, until a toothpick inserted comes out clean of cake.

5. Allow to completely cool. Run a knife around the edges and turn onto a baking sheet to ice.

Icing
1. Place chocolate chips in a medium bowl.

2. Bring cream and syrup to a simmer on medium heat. Pour over chocolate and allow to sit for 1 minute.

3. Stir until smooth and shiny. Pour over cooled cake and spread to cover.

4. Drizzle on caramel sauce and top with pecans.

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Slow Cooker Shrimp and Sausage Gumbo

I love gumbo. Especially when it has sausage AND shrimp in it. It is filling, cheap, and so tasty. I know it is a Cajun dish by nature, but it is so prevalent in Texas cooking that it always reminds me of my home state.  We had friends over for dinner tonight and one (a native Texan) had never had this wonderful dish before! By the end of the meal, he was grilling me on the techniques and ingredients used.

I was hesitant about this recipe before I made it.  It didn't call for okra (whoever heard of gumbo without okra?!), had an odd way of making roux that I had never tried, and has minimal spices.  I was completely wrong to judge! The flavors were perfect and blended together so well.  This is a crock pot recipe but only takes 4.5-5 hours on low since the sausage is precooked and the shrimp takes very little time to be done. The majority of the time is spent softening in the okra and letting the flavors meld together.

Ingredients

1 can fire roasted diced tomatoes with juice
1 1/4 c chicken broth
1/4 c flour
2 Tbsp olive oil
3/4 lb smoked sausage (I used andouille), cut into small pieces
1 lb shrimp, raw (peeled and deveined)
1/2 onion, diced
1 green pepper, diced
2 tsp oregano
2 tsp thyme
1/8 tsp cayenne, to taste
hot cooked rice

Directions

1. Combine tomatoes and broth in slow cooker.

2. Heat flour in a dry skillet on high until flour begins to brown.  Stir to completely brown and slowly add in oil while whisking.  Add enough oil to create a smooth , thick roux. Stir into tomato mixture in crock pot.

3. Add sausage, onion, pepper, and spices. Stir and cook on low for 3.5 hours.

4. Add shrimp and cook 1 hour.

5. Serve over rice.

Do you agree with me? Is okra a necessity for good gumbo? Or do you find the vegetable to be too slimy for your liking?

Baked Cheeseburger Macaroni

I love Hamburger Helper. I know, I know, it is full of unhealthy chemicals and unrecognizable ingredients. I don't care, I still think it tastes yummy. This Baked Cheeseburger Macaroni blows boxed Hamburger Helper out of the water. No, you can't have it on the table in 30 minutes, unfortunately. However, you can serve up a delicious meal that you know exactly what is in it and can customize to your family's taste.

The inspiration for this meal came from the Pioneer Woman, like many of my other recipes it seems.  I broke down and finally purchased her cookbook titled The Pioneer Woman Cooks; Recipes from an Accidental Country Girl.  On page 96, there is a delicious recipe for macaroni and cheese. It is a bit time consuming (around an hour) and is worth every minute of impatiently waiting by the oven.  I took her basic recipe and added in my own fixings to create this meal.  My darling little boy cleaned his plate and I have had the leftovers for lunch and dinner again.  Beware: this recipe makes A TON. The book says it serves 8. 8 extremely hungry people. If you don't want to be eating macaroni for the next week, cut the ingredients in half.

What special ingredients do you like to see in your cheeseburger macaroni?

Ingredients

1 lb hamburger, browned
4 c dry macaroni (16 oz box)
1 egg
1/4 c butter
1/4 c flour
2 1/2 c milk
2 tsp dry mustard, heaping
1 lb shredded cheddar cheese
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp seasoned salt
1 tsp black pepper
1 c fire roasted diced tomatoes, drained
1 c diced green chiles, drained

Directions

1. Cook the macaroni until firm. It should not be soft enough to eat straight from the pot.

2. Beat the egg in a small bowl.

3. Preheat the oven to 350 and butter a large baking dish.

4. Melt the butter over medium-low heat and add in the flour. Whisk together for 5 minutes.

5. Add in the milk slowly, whisking constantly, to make the sauce. Stir in the mustard.

6. Temper the egg by slowly pouring in 1/4c of the sauce while whisking constantly to keep the egg from cooking. This warms the eggs up and keeps them from scrambling when added to the mix.

7. Whisk the egg mixture into the sauce. Add all except 1/2 c of the cheese, salt, and pepper. Stir until the cheese is melted. Adjust the seasonings if needed.

8. Mix in the macaroni, hamburger, tomatoes, and chiles. Pour into greased baking dish.

9. Top with remaining cheese and bake for 20-25 minutes, until the cheese is bubbly and golden.

Tomato Soup

Don't ever buy another can of condensed tomato soup again. This recipe is quick, delicious, and extremely easy.  Husband said it is the best tomato soup he has ever had.  I don't care for canned tomato soups and I had 2 bowls of this for dinner tonight.

I credit the Pioneer Woman with this concoction. This recipe is found in her cookbook titled The Pioneer Woman Cooks.  She adds in 1 cup of sherry at the same time as the heavy cream. Husband is currently on some heavy duty pain pills so we opted out of this add-on tonight. Also, the recipe calls for 3-6 T of sugar.  The sugar is to balance out the acidity of the tomatoes, so start with 3 T and adjust as you see fit.

A batch of this wonderful soup and a grilled cheese sandwich make the perfect combination on a cool rainy evening.

What are your favorite toppings for tomato soup?

Ingredients

1 medium onion diced, white or yellow
6 T butter
2 14.5 oz canned diced tomatoes (preferably fire roasted)
1 46 oz bottle/can tomato juice
3-6 T sugar
1-2 T chicken base or 3 chicken bouillon cubes
Black pepper to taste
1 1/2 c heavy cream
1/4 chopped parsley
1/4 chopped basil

Directions

1. Melt the butter in a large pot. Add in the onion and cook until translucent.

2. Throw in the diced tomatoes, tomato juice, and sugar. Taste and adjust sugar.

3. Add chicken base and pepper. Bring to a low boil and turn off the heat.

4. Stir in the heavy cream, sherry if desired, basil, parsley, and more pepper to taste. Serve warm.

Chicken Lasagna

A couple of years ago, Husband invited several guys from his company over for dinner. I threw together a simple chicken lasagna for them and it was a huge success. I haven't made it since until tonight.  I know that this isn't the exact same as last time, but it was still pretty darn good.

 Feel free to take any liberties you want with it and don't use all of the ingredients if you won't want.  I have put in the ingredients 1 jar of alfredo sauce. I didn't use quite the whole jar. You may use 2- adjust to your family's taste.  This lasagna would also do well with broccoli, sugar snap peas, and green beans as vegetable substitutes. Don't go too crazy though, keep it simple.

Ingredients

1/2 box lasagna pasta
4 chicken thighs, cooked and shredded (or equivalent of leftover chicken)
1 squash, quartered and sliced
1 bunch asparagus, chopped
1/2 bag mozzarella cheese
1 cup Parmesan
1 jar alfredo sauce




Directions

1. Cook lasagna noodles according to package directions.

2. While lasagna cooks, heat 2 Tbsp oil in a skillet over medium heat.  Saute squash and asparagus until tender. Season with salt and pepper.

3. Grease an 8" x 11" casserole dish.  Spread a thin layer of alfredo sauce on the bottom.  Layer the lasagna in the following order: pasta, sauce, chicken and vegetables, lasagna, sauce, half of the mozzarella and parmesan, lasagna, sauce, chicken and vegetables, remaining cheese.

4. Grease a sheet of foil and cover lasagna. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes. Remove the foil and bake another 15-20 minutes, until cheese begins to brown.

Liz's Ranch Pork Chops

These wonderful pork chops are my sister's creation. She combined several recipes she has seen roaming around Pinterest and created an amazing cold weather dish. The gravy is perfect on mashed potatoes and the pork was excellently  seasoned and tender.

There are no specific spices that you have to use for this recipe. Open up the cabinet and throw in whatever floats your boat.  I used Kenny's All Purpose Seasoning.  It is a mix of sugar, salt, pepper, lemon pepper, paprika, and garlic. If you are lucky enough to live in one of the places that sells this spice mix, grab it up! The owner is from my husband's hometown and we try to buy local as often as we can.  Plain salt and pepper would also work if you aren't too wild about adding other spices.

Ingredients

4 bone-in pork chops (the bone falls off when you remove the finished product)
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 can cream of mushroom soup with roasted garlic
1 cup ranch dressing
4 Tbsp spices

Directions

1. Rub 1 Tbsp of spice on each pork chop front and back and place chops in crockpot.

2. Combine cream of  chicken soup, cream of mushroom soup, and ranch dressing and pour over pork chops.

3. Set crockpot on High and cook for 4-6 hours.

Old-Fashioned Pancakes

Finally! A meal worth sharing! These past few weeks have been torture.  Any meals I have made have been mediocre and I didn't feel that it would be right for me to share them with the world until I have had a chance to tweak them. 

That being said, I LOVE THESE PANCAKES. I make them almost every weekend. They are made from scratch (no bisquick), are light, fluffy, and completely customizable.  I like them plain, sometimes with some food coloring to make them festive.  Husband and Son like bananas added or diced apples and a dash of cinnamon.  You can create to your heart's content.  Also, I always cook my pancakes on a griddle- each pancake comes out perfect, no sacrifices.  I have never used a pan and wouldn't know where to start.  I have heard that you start on a medium-low flame and don't use a lot of oil.  I read that you put in a very small amount and use a paper towel to wipe down the inside of the pan and soak up the excess.  There is a decent amount of oil in these already so you may not have to use oil in the pan. Maybe someone can give some tips in the comment section who has more knowledge than I do.

This recipe comes from one of Mom's cookbooks: Better Homes and Garden I believe. It is a huge, brown book with recipes for everything you could ever imagine.  People are always requesting this recipe if Mom makes them for a gathering. If you don't manage to eat the whole batch in one sitting (this makes a good amount of 1/4c pancakes), the leftovers freeze well and make a quick breakfast on weekday mornings.  They only need about 30 seconds in the microwave, flipped over, and another 30 seconds. Be careful though because they dry out quickly and become hard.

What are your favorite pancakes? Original? Blueberry? Something completely off the wall like chicken and olive?

Ingredients

2 c flour
1/3 c sugar
3 Tbsp baking powder
1 Tbsp salt
2 c milk
1/3 c oil
2 eggs

Directions

1. In a medium sized bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Separately, whisk together the milk, oil, and eggs. Pour the wet ingredients into the flour mixture and whisk until all lumps are gone.

2. Heat a nonstick griddle to 350. Using a 1/4c measuring cup, laddle batter onto the pan in small batches. My griddle will hold 4 pancakes, sometimes 5. Allow the batter to cook until it begins to bubble. Once the bubbles start popping and there are open "pores" all over the pancake, flip over. The pancake should have a golden brown color. After another minute, flip over again to check that the bottom is cooked. Remove and serve with butter and syrup.




A few tips:
  Do not press down on the pancake while it cooks! This will not make it cook any faster and will cause it to lose fluffiness. Same with grilling hamburgers- you lose all the yumminess and come out with a dry, nasty disk.
  If your skillet temperature is too high, the pancakes will be tough and chewy. Too low of a temp and they will be dry.
  Don't add to many extras into the batter or it will fall apart while cooking.