My English Toffee!!

My English Toffee

1 stick of butter plus 6 T. of butter
1 cup sugar
2 tablespoons cold water
1/2 c. pecans or almonds in a plastic bag using rolling pin!
1 t. vanilla extract
Dash salt
1 (6 oz.) bag semisweet chocolate chips or thin chocolate bars

Generously butter a cookie sheet.
Put butter, sugar, and water in a heavy pan or skillet over medium-high heat
Bring to a bubbling boil, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon, about 10 minutes.
Remove spoon from pan, and cook to a very brittle stage (300 degrees to 310 degrees F on a candy thermometer).
Or, make a cold water test: candy will separate into hard, brittle threads when dropped in cold water. Remove from heat and add nuts to mixture.
Add vanilla
Pour onto prepared cookie sheet and spread to 1/4-inch thickness.
Cool slightly, top with chocolate chips or chocolate bars, and spread as it melts.
Cool completely and break into pieces. Store in an airtight container.
very easy to make and its goes fast, so have everything ready!

Very Good Pot Roast!!!!!

Pot Roast w/ Mushrooms
i found this on foodnetwork site, its very good in crock or oven.
6 servings

1 (3-pound) boneless chuck roast
1 1/2 teaspoons House seasoning, recipe follows
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 onion, thinly sliced
3 bay leaves
3 or 4 beef bouillon cubes, crushed
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 (10 3/4-ounce) can condensed cream of mushroom soup( can also make mushroom sauce.)
1/2 cup Chardonnay(I use other wine if I don’t have chardonnay or leave it out)
Sprinkle roast on all sides with house seasoning. Using a skillet over high heat, sear roast until brown in oil. Place roast in a slow cooker, and layer onions, bay leaves, crushed bouillon cubes, garlic, and cream of mushroom soup. Add the Chardonnay and cover with enough water to cover all of the ingredients. Cook on the low setting for 8 hours.
Note: I also just cook it in the oven for about 3 hours depending on size of roast.

House Seasoning:
1 cup salt
1/4 cup black pepper
1/4 cup garlic powder
Mix ingredients together and store in an airtight container for up to 6 months

Pumpkin Bisque

Pumpkin Bisque

1/4 cup butter
4 scallions (separate the bulbs and greens)
3 cups pumpkin puree
1/4 cup honey 1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp cinnamon 1 cup light cream/evaporated milk (I used just raw milk)
1/4 tsp allspice

In a saucepan, melt butter and lightly cook the chopped
scallion bulbs over low heat. Add the pumpkin, honey,
chopped scallion greens and seasonings. Simmer for 10
minutes, stirring often. Stir in cream and continue
stirring until bisque is hot, but do not allow soup to boil.
Serve immediately with a handful of chopped toasted pumpkin
seeds or almonds sprinkled on top of each serving.

Pumpkin Pancakes!!!!

Pumpkin Pancakes

Its time for pumpkins now, there almost like having zucchini!!
abundance! i found this recipe at http://missourifamilies.org/features/nutritionarticles/harvesttohealth/pumpkin.htm

1/2 cup regular, uncooked oats
1 cup buttermilk
2 eggs
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1/2 cup pureed pumpkin
1/3 cup low-fat or skim milk
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons wheat germ
1 tablespoon sugar

Combine oats and buttermilk and let stand for 15 minutes to soften. Mix eggs, oil, pumpkin, and milk and blend well. Combine dry ingredients and mix with the egg mixture. Add oats and buttermilk and blend until batter is fairly smooth. Add extra milk if batter is too thick. Bake on lightly greased griddle.Makes: 4 servings.

Making Pear Sauce my Way!!!

Making Pear Sauce my way!
I dump a whole lota pears , skins and all in a large water bath canner, with enough water to just cover bottom of pot.
Turn the fire on med low and let soften for a while, check and try to stir every once in a while.
After about an hour or so they are soft enough to run through the food mill
Taste to see if you need any honey or sugar, or anything else you like to put in pear sauce.
Gather all your canning stuff!!! Well really you should have it all ready to go!
I use pear sauce the same as i do apple sauce.
prcess pints for 20 minutes.

*pear sauce is also good dried in a food dyhydrator as fruit leather.
When down drying, roll it up in Saran Wrap and store in ziplocs.

Basic Cheese Strata!!!

Basic Cheese Strata
This is a good comfort food! So nice and cheesy!!!

6 slices white bread flour
3 cups shredded mild cheddar
3 eggs
2 cups milk
1/4 teaspoon seasoned salt
1 teaspoon dry mustard
1 4 ounces can diced green chiles

Cut bread into small cubes. Layer bread and cheese
in a buttered 6- or 7- x 10-in. baking dish. Beat
together eggs, milk, salt and mustard. Pour over
cheese and bread. Cover and refrigerate overnight.
Bake uncovered in a preheated 350ºF for 45 minutes
or until light and fluffy. Serve immediately.
6 servings.
*also good with vegetables and sauage in it

My Shish Kobobs!!

This is how I make my Shish Kabobs!

I start out by marinating the meat for a day. For this recipe I used a chuck roast and chicken breasts and cut
them up in squares. Tossed them in a Ziploc bag with homemade bbq sauce for the beef and homemade teriyaki sauce for the chicken!

The next day i cut up Vegetables, mushrooms, garlic, red and green peppers, cherry tomatoes, limes, red onions, and a pineapple(leaving the skin on). The vegetables are from my garden, so the meal wont be costing very much!! If you want, you can also marinate the vegetables for an hour or so, any longer they seem to break down and get soft.

Soak the skewers for a few hours if you remember!!

When everything is all ready and assembled on your counter start kabobing!

After everything is skewered i run my sauce brush over the meat and vegetable with some of the marinade!

Now you can either grill the kabobs or cook them in the oven. My grill is broke(dh says i used it to much! hahah!) so i had to cook mine in the oven and our smoker. For the oven i cooked at 35o degrees for 25-30 minutes, and put it on broil at the end to get it crispy and carmelized looking for about 5 min. watching carefully!

*During the cooking time I spread some marinade over the kabobs a couple more times as they were cooking.
Gee i just realized I forgot to take a done picture!!hahahah next time!!

debbie