CRAVING CASSEROLE

Do these cooler, rainy days make you want to prepare something warm and filling for supper? Obviously, that’s what I’m thinking!  This is a favorite go-to recipe.  My mother-in-law Kathy Schroeder who also happened to be one of the nicest people to come into my life, gave this recipe to me! I am ever so grateful she was part of the package when I married Joel.  Ok, back to this recipe!

My old, abused recipe.

It is quick and easy. It can be made as a skillet dinner or put it in a casserole dish to microwave or bake.  Which ever way you prefer, it will turn out delicious!

Since this is a hand-me-down recipe, there are not exact measurements.  You can use a cup or two of leftover ham or cube a ham steak. You can gauge how much ham and macaroni your family will eat in a meal and adjust your ingredients accordingly.

Boil macaroni according to package directions, drain and set aside.

Saute onion, bell pepper and ham 

Sauté onion and pepper in a tablespoon or two of butter.  Stir in chopped ham and heat thoroughly.  Mix in cream of mushroom soup, milk, a tablespoon of corn starch and  the Velveeta.  I usually cube about 1/3 to 1/2 pound of cheese (not 1/3 of the whole block). Stir until the cheese is melted. Add drained macaroni and stir. At this point, it is a skillet dinner and once all the ingredients are heated thoroughly it can be served.  If you prefer, you can transfer everything to a casserole dish and melt the cheese by placing the dish in the oven  for about 30 minutes or however long it takes your family to gathered around the table.  This casserole is a delicious make and take dish.

Ready for supper!

To round out the meal, we enjoy green beans, crunchy carrots, and garlic toast on the side. 

I'd love to hear from you if you try any recipes you find on my blog.  

Enjoy! Let me know what you think of this delicious casserole.

TIME WARP

To attend a reunion or not?  Why do we go? Just to have fun and to reconnect!

Southwest High School

I spent a great deal of time with some of these people; my formative years through elementary school, junior high and then through high school.  I learned who I wanted to be and who I did not want to be. I learned a lot about myself while I was being educated through the school system. I had fun with my friends back then and I have had fun with the reunion committee these days.

I'm not the person I was as a child and teen. But, I'm also not the person I'm going to be as I get much older. However, it has been interesting to see who I have become so I would love to see who my classmates have become too.

Back then, I was so shy; I had zero self-confidence. That has changed a little.  Sometimes I have confidence, but I am still quite shy in a large group or until I get to know you.

The reunion committee members have talked about the regrets we have in the way we dealt with a classmate. I would like to think that I was a friend and not a tormentor. I know in my elementary school years I wasn’t as kind as I should have been. Lesson learned.

In school, I had my first crush and my first heartbreak. I learned who I could trust, who I wanted to hang with and who wanted to hang with me. I experimented with a few things, which would be a big surprise to some people today. I had so many questions when I graduated. I still do not have the answers. 

I look at my yearbook and some of the things my friends wrote. Oh, my!  What some people wrote in my yearbook! Was I actually there? I forgot I used to work in the office at school. How could I forget that? I forgot faces that went with the names and the names with faces until I looked at the yearbook. 

Fun, wet, field trip. Sue didn't think it was so fun, did she?
Where are you Sue Hill Plaxco?

Some foggy memories of fun times I shared with some of my classmates are coming back into view. Little flickers come to mind. I hope that I can share some happy memories with my classmates when we get together at the Southwest High School class of 1974 reunion!

Here's the link for all the details. If you haven't signed up to attend, it's not too late!

http://sw74reunion.com

IT'S THAT TIME OF YEAR!

We can hardly wait for the first tomatoes and peppers to ripen so we can make salsa! A couple of my friends have requested this recipe, so that must mean it is that time of year NOW!

Dayna and I made salsa today and it is so delicious with a little smokey kick!

We followed the recipe exactly, except she wanted smoked tomato salsa. So we experimented by adding 3 ½ tablespoons of liquid smoke because today was not conducive to staying outside smoking tomatoes and then making salsa. 

We always follow the recipe EXACTLY - NOT!

Using the food processor makes our chopping chore easy.

First onions, then jalapenos to make our eyes water!

 

"Are you finished with those jalapenos yet?"

If you want to make some, here is the original post with the recipe for my salsa. 

Enjoy!

SCOTCH CHOCOLATE CAKE

Most people love chocolate and I am one of those people! This cake is a treat that has been handed down to me from my dear, sweet mother-in-law Kathy Schroeder. She taught me so many good things through her loving example. She was one of those do-as-I-do people that I was blessed to know and love! 

Back to the cake...Joel requested that I take this to the cousin family reunion we recently attended.  So if you would like to try this recipe, here it is!

The well-loved and often-used original recipe card.

I measure out all my ingredients and then mix them in the order listed above. You'll notice I use Saco powdered buttermilk. I keep it on hand in the refrigerator for baking all kinds of things. (Did you read my blog about buttermilk cookies?)

Measure out the ingredients you will need.

Bring the first ingredients to a boil over medium heat.

Place the first four ingredients in a saucepan over medium heat. Stir and bring to a boil. Remove from heat and add the flour and sugar. I use my small electric mixer at this stage. Stir in the buttermilk and soda, then add the salt, eggs, and vanilla and beat well. Pour into a greased and sugared baking pan. Yes, I said sugared! When I bake cakes and sweet breads I always dust the pans with sugar instead of flour. Guess I have a sweet tooth! 

Grease and sugar the baking pan. Yes, this is the original Ware-Ever No. 918 baking pan I was blessed to inherit.

Bake for 30 minutes at 350 degrees. A toothpick inserted in the middle should come out clean.  My pan is 15x11, but you can bake this in a 9x13 pan. Check for doneness as it will probably take a bit longer to bake in a smaller pan. Remove from oven and then prepare this frosting:

Place the margarine, cocoa and milk in a saucepan and bring to a boil over medium heat. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla and then the powdered sugar. Mix until no lumps of sugar remain. Pour this mixture over the warm cake. Let it all cool and and then ENJOY sharing with your family and friends!

By the way, I will bake for you on request...if you ask nicely!

TORNADO POOP

If  my brain is traumatized by viewing the miles of devastation left behind by the tornadoes, those who are in the midst of it must be reeling! Imagining what it will take to clean up that tornado destroyed scene, leaves me dumbfounded by the enormity of the task. 

Praying for for those recovering from this disaster and the families and friends who have lost their loved ones. Possessions can be replaced, people cannot.  All that debris represents peoples lives. Their belongings have been chopped, shredded, mixed with dirt and spit out as a miles of #tornadopoop.

And this is just the beginning of tornado season!

BANANA BREAD

Banana Bread

This smell fills the house and makes my mouth water! Don't you just love to smell fresh-baked anything? Guess who woke up and said, "Something smells good!" And the commercial says the best part of waking up is coffee. Really?

This is my tried and true, handed-down-from-my-mom recipe for banana bread. 

As you can see I've made a few notes over the years to make sure I get consistent results. 

The baking times vary depending on the size of loaf pans I use. 

I use the single loaf size if we aren't planning to share a loaf.

You may notice this inverted loaf is gently coated in sugar. Instead of greasing and flouring a loaf pan, try grease and then lightly sugar it instead. I do this when I bake cakes too. You'll note this came out of the pan smoothly.

These two are a nice size to use when I want to make one and then take a fresh-baked loaf to a neighbor (sorry I didn't do that this morning Dayna)!

These Pampered Chef loaf pans are what I use when making mini loaves for bake sales or special little gifts for the holidays.

Here's the easy part:

Preheat the oven to 350.

Measure carefully and stir together the dry ingredients in a mixing bowl.

In the blender put the eggs, ripe bananas, sugar, and lastly the butter.  

(I cut the butter into 4 chunks.  It seems to blend easier that way.)

Pour the banana mixture over the dry and mix them together.

Pour into the prepared pan or pans and bake!

My large loaf took 50 minutes today because the bananas were a bit large.  So always test your loaf with a toothpick to make sure it's thoroughly baked. The toothpick should come out clean when inserted in the middle.

Invert the loaf pan onto a cooling rack and let that melted sugar soak into the bread for about 5 minutes.

Slice and enjoy! 

I make this bread often and keep it on hand for JoPapa's breakfasts.  I haven't tried shipping this, but if you ask me nicely, I might be convinced to send or bring one to you...for the right price of course.

:-)

Or, you might try baking it yourself so your house will smell as yummy as mine!  Your family will love it too!

FRUITY MUFFINS

These have to be healthy! They are filled with so much yummy goodness! Even though the original recipe says not to freeze them, I always do.  They are delicious once they are re-warmed.

The original recipe also calls for margarine, but I've switched to using butter. Have you noticed how weird margarine is these days? Recipes don't turn out the way I expect when I cook using margarine for some reason. Can you say "hydrogenated"? If you have read any of my posts you know I ALWAYS follow recipes exactly. Not! Tweaking a recipe is a sign of my creativity!

Let me know what you think of these sweet, healthy muffins when you make them! Or...for the right price, I can bake a dozen and send (or deliver) them to you! Enjoy!