Cherry Dump Cake

I was asked today for my Dump Cake recipe. I’ve seen all kinds of variations, from blackberry to blueberry and even peach, I even have an old friend Maxine’s on the blog, only because she loves rhubarb. Me, I actually prefer the plain old cobbler that every woman from church makes. I’ve eaten it for as long as I can remember; it’s just to easy to make. So here it is, hope you all enjoy it.

INGREDIENTS:
1 (20 ounces) can crushed pineapple, undrained
1 (21 ounces) can prepared more fruit cherry pie filling
1 (18.25 ounces) box yellow or white cake mix
2 sticks (1 cup or 16 Tablespoons) of butter or margarine, each cut into 12 slices
1/4 cup chopped nuts (I use pecans or walnuts, but you can use your favorite)

DIRECTIONS:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (325 for glass baking dish).
Dump undrained pineapple into a 9x13x2 baking dish and spread it out evenly.
Using a spoon, dump globs of cherry pie filling evenly on top of the pineapple.
Sprinkle the cake mix evenly over the cherry and pineapple layers.
Cut butter into slices with a butter knife and place slices evenly over cake mix.
Sprinkle nuts on top if you’re using them.
Bake for one hour.
To serve, scoop cake out with a large spoon like a cobbler and add a  scoop of vanilla ice cream. Serve warm or cold.

Yield: about 10 to 12 servings

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Many people miss their share of happiness not because they never found it but because they didn’t stop to enjoy it.

 

Mid-Week Meal

MENU

Sliced Ham
*Lorraine Potatoes
Fried Okra
Creamy Sautéed Tomatoes
Pickled eggs, cut in half lengthwise
Rolls/Butter
Soft Sugar Cookies
served warm w/ strawberries or blueberries & whip cream
Beverages and coffee or warm tea w/ dessert.

Lorraine Potatoes

INGREDIENTS
5 cups sliced unpeeled potatoes
4 ounces bacon, cut into small pieces, partially cooked
1/2 cup chopped green onions
1/8 teaspoon onion powder
1/8 teaspoon garlic powder
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
3 cups shredded Gruyère cheese, (substitute Emmenthal or Swiss if you can’t get Gruyère).

DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 350ºF. Grease a 9 × 9-inch baking dish.
2. Layer half the potatoes, bacon, green onions, onion powder, garlic powder, salt and black pepper in prepared baking dish. Sprinkle half the Gruyère on top of the potatoes. Repeat layers.
3. Cover with foil. Bake until potatoes are tender and cheese is melted, about 1 hour.
4. Remove foil. Bake for 10 minutes longer. Cut into squares to serve.

Ring out the old, ring in the new, Ring, happy bells, across the snow: The year is going, let him go; Ring out the false, ring in the true. ~ Alfred Lord Tennyson “Ring Out, Wild Bells” 1850

 

Oven Baked Cheese Dream

INGREDIENTS
Butter or margarine (optional)
4 slices pumpernickel bread, toasted
8 slices tomato
8 ounces leftover turkey, ham or both, sliced thin
Cheddar Cheese Sauce (see recipe)
4 slices bacon, cooked
4 spears asparagus or broccoli, precooked
4 slices Swiss cheese

DIRECTIONS

1. Butter (if desired) the toasted bread slices and arrange them in the bottom of a shallow casserole. Top each bread slice with 2 slices of tomato and two ounces of sliced meat. Cover with the Cheddar Cheese Sauce.
2. Heat casserole in 400-degree oven until the cheese begins to bubble. Add bacon slices, asparagus or broccoli and 1 slice of Swiss cheese  to each meat-topped bread slice. Return to the oven. Heat until the ingredients are melted together. Serve hot.

CHEDDAR CHEESE SAUCE
INGREDIENTS
3 Tbsp butter or margarine, melted
4 Tbsp all-purpose flour
2 1/2 cups milk
1 cup shredded or coarsely grated white Cheddar cheese
1/2 tsp salt
Dash of white pepper

DIRECTIONS

1. Melt the butter in saucepan. Add the flour and stir for 2 minutes over low heat. Add the milk and stir until it is well combined and the sauce is thick and smooth.
2. Stir in the shredded or grated cheese, salt and pepper. Continue to stir over low heat until the cheese is melted.
3. Make just before serving. (If allowed to stand, they could become soggy, losing their fresh-cooked taste).

Serves 4.

Serve with chips, bean salad, tangy pickles and fresh fruit. Use green olives as a garnish.

Experiment with spicy or flavored mustard’s, such as Dijon or tarragon. Try such cheeses as Gruyère or farmhouse cheese.

Note: For those of you that know me, you know that I always add a shot of Tabasco or hot sauce to my cheese sauce while the cheese is melting. It just gives it a little kick. And I hate asparagus, so you know I’m go with the broccoli. (sh)

Success is the ability to go from failure to failure without losing your enthusiasm. ~ Winston Churchill

 

Teriyaki Steak

Time for a mid-week meal update – what are you making for dinner tonight? Do you have a regular Wednesday meal that makes the week’s halfway point easier to handle? Are you making it today, or did you make it earlier in the week?

As you know, I love to eat… and to cook… (cleaning, not so much). You know I love Asian inspired foods (with the exception of sushi). I LOVE Teriyaki… I put it on too many things. Stir-fry’s, sausage stuffed mushrooms, steak, you name it. Rice pudding & custard are my two favorite desserts. Quick & easy.

This is a quick and easy meal.

Teriyaki Steak
Butter Noodles
Boiled Cabbage
Crescent Rolls
Rice Pudding
Beverages

INGREDIENTS
1 8-oz can tomato sauce
1 tablespoon Soy Sauce
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon minced onion flakes
1 4-oz can sliced mushrooms
2 dashes Worcestershire sauce
1/4 teaspoon minced garlic
1 lb London broil (flank steak)

Mix together all ingredients in a large Ziploc bag, except steak. Mix well with your fingers & place the steak in the bag. Shake bag to cover completely with marinade. Marinate in mixture for 2 hours. Turning bag over, every half hour. Grill, bake or broil (George Foreman – like me) to your liking. Let rest for at least 5 to 10 minutes before slicing.  Serve over a hearty bed of buttered noodles.  Serve cabbage in a soup bowl sprinkled with *cornbread croutons.

*Cornbread croutons: Heat 2 TBSP of bacon grease in a cast iron skillet over medium high heat. Cube some leftover corn bread into 1 inch squares. Toss into skillet. Stir occasionally, making sure not to break up the bread. About 5 minutes. Toss on top of cabbage just before serving.

There’s no reason to be the richest man in the cemetery. You can’t do any business from there. ~ Colonel Harlan Sanders

 

Buttermilk Cornbread

INGREDIENTS
1 1/2 cups yellow cornmeal
1 teaspoon salt
2 eggs, separated
3/4 teaspoons soda
1 1/3 cups buttermilk
2 tablespoons melted shortening

DIRECTIONS
Lift the cornmeal by spoonfuls into the measuring cup, then level off. Sift cornmeal and salt together. Beat egg yolks thoroughly, add soda and buttermilk and beat until completely mixed. Add to cornmeal mixture and stir until ingredients are blended. *Add hot melted shortening, beat again (work quickly so it doesn’t fry) and fold in the stiffly beaten egg whites. Turn immediately into a piping hot greased 10 inch heavy skillet and bake in a hot oven (450 degrees F.) for 30 minutes. Serve at once with melted butter.

Yield: 5 servings.

* Preheat the oven to temperature with the skillet in the oven. Pull out right just before time to bake. Add 3 tbsp tablespoons of shortening and swirl around until it covers the bottom and sides of the skillet. Dump 2 tbsp of the melted shortening into the batter.

That’s the way my mom always coated her skillet. My oldest sister Shirley only uses white cornmeal and adds 2 tbsp of sugar to the mix. She makes everything sweet.

I hope that everyone has a huge assortment of iron skillets, I know I do. Just make sure as soon as you wash them, to place them on top of the burner or back in the oven to dry out. When pan is completely dry, season the skillet (wipe inside & out with a cooking oil on a paper towel).

My dad’s favorite food was always cornbread and buttermilk. Sometimes he’d use crackers instead of the cornbread in his buttermilk. My kids would have staged a protest if I had served them, buttermilk with anything. I still use it in the occasional biscuit or cake. They don’t know the difference. sh

I remember as a kid being cold a lot, and hungry sometimes. We’d go to bed with just cornbread and milk, and I remember wearing shoes with holes in the bottom. I remember having twine for shoestrings. ~ Buck Owens

 

Hot Rice

INGREDIENTS
1 cup rice, uncooked
1 pint sour cream
1 (4 oz) can green chile peppers, diced
1 (10 oz or 12 oz) pkg jack or sharp Cheddar cheese
House Seasoning (garlic, pepper, salt), to taste

DIRECTIONS
Cook rice according to directions on the package. Mix with sour cream and chile mixture; season. In 2 qt greased casserole dish, layer half of the rice mixture, 1/2 cheese, sliced, remaining rice mixture, and top with remaining cheese, grated. Bake uncovered for 30 to 35 minutes at 350 degrees. Serves 6.

Note: For a milder flavor, substitute banana peppers for the green chile peppers.

The essence of being human is being able to direct your own life. ~ Stephen R Covey