Check out the welcome post on the right side bar for what this is all about. Be sure to send your photos to therecipeproject@live.com

Tuesday, January 31, 2012

Sour Cream Cookies

Recipe from Sheryll Meldrum

Valentine's Day is coming up and these are the perfect cookies to send to your valentines.  One year Maryn and I made these and gave one to a boy in her church class and when she gave him the cookie he spun around with a smile on his face.  It was cute!  I love these cookies and they taste really good with cream cheese frosting on top.  The other thing I like about this recipe is you don't have to refrigerate the dough.  If you have trouble with the cookie cutters sticking have a little bowl of flour handy to dip the cutter in before you cut out the cookies.  The secret ingredient that makes these cookies so flavorful is nutmeg.

Sour Cream Cookies

1 cup sugar
¼ cup shortening
¼ cup butter or margarine-softened
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 egg
2 2/3 cup flour
½ cups sour cream
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon nutmeg

Mix sugar, shortening, margarine, vanilla and egg.  Stir in remaining ingredients.  Divide dough into three equal parts.  Roll each ¼ on lightly floured board.  Cut with 2 inch cookie cutter.  Sprinkle with sugar put on un-greased cookie sheet.  Bake until no indentation remains when touched.

Baking time 6 minutes at 425°  

Tuesday, January 24, 2012

Sausage Egg Casserole

                                Photos by Bri L.

Recipe from allrecipes.com

I get on binges where I have to find certain types of recipes and I really wanted a breakfast casserole that was chucked full of sausage, cheese, eggs and yumminess.  After making about 10 different casseroles this one by far is the best.  There are others that are good in a pinch and I'll throw those on here a bit later.  The thing I love about this is the texture of the little biscuit type pieces in the casserole.  If you don't have Monterey Jack Cheese just use cheddar.  I've always wanted to try it with Pepper Jack...maybe in the future.  My kids will eat the mushrooms but for those of you who are against eating fungus just leave them out.  I have used canned mushrooms when I don't have time to buy them fresh.  I just skip the part of cooking them and throw them in the egg mix along with the onions.  One last note, it calls for 3/4 sausage...just throw whole thing in there unless you have plans for the other 1/4 that you didn't use.  I highly recommend to follow the directions in letting it sit over night.  It won't taste the same if you make it the morning of.


Sausage Egg Casserole


Prep Time: 20 Minutes
Cook Time: 1 Hour 20 Minutes
Ready In: 9 Hours 40 Minutes
Servings: 12


INGREDIENTS:
3/4 pound ground pork sausage
1 tablespoon butter
4 green onions, chopped
1/2 pound fresh mushrooms, sliced
10 eggs, beaten
1 (16 ounce) container low -fat cottage
cheese
1 pound Monterey Jack cheese,
shredded
2 (4 ounce) cans diced green chile
peppers, drained
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking pow der
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup butter, melted


DIRECTIONS:
1. Place sausage in a large, deep skillet. Cook over medium-high heat until evenly brown.
Drain, and set aside. Melt butter in skillet, and cook and stir the green onions and
mushrooms until tender.
2. In a large bow l, mix the eggs, cottage cheese, Monterey Jack cheese, and chiles. Stir
in the sausage, green onions, and mushrooms. Cover, and refrigerate overnight.
3. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly grease a 9x13 inch baking
dish.
4. In a bow l, sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Blend in the melted butter.
Stir the flour mixture into the egg mixture. Pour into the prepared baking dish.
5. Bake 40 to 50 minutes in the preheated oven, or until lightly brown. Let stand 10
minutes before serving.






Wednesday, January 18, 2012

Grandmother's Buttermilk Cornbread

               Photo by Joy N.

Recipe from allrecipes.com

I'm always on the search for the perfect recipe.  I needed a killer cornbread recipe and this fit the bill.  Buttermilk can be a little expensive so the next best thing is to use sour milk.  To do this the ratio is 1 cup of milk to 1 Tbl of lemon juice and let it sit for a few minutes.  The milk will start to curdle and that's okay.  I believe some people use white vinegar also.  This is just what I've always done.  I have to substitute other milk sources a lot and Rice Milk soured works well in this recipe.  I also use the microwave to melt the butter and use the same bowl to mix the remaining of the ingredients.

Grandmother's Buttermilk Cornbread


Prep Time: 15 Minutes
Cook Time: 40 Minutes
Ready In: 55 Minutes
Servings: 9


INGREDIENTS:
1/2 cup butter
2/3 cup w hite sugar
2 eggs
1 cup buttermilk
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup cornmeal
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt


DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease an 8 inch square pan.
2. Melt butter in large skillet. Remove from heat and stir in sugar. Quickly add eggs and
beat until w ell blended. Combine buttermilk w ith baking soda and stir into mixture in
pan. Stir in cornmeal, flour, and salt until w ell blended and few lumps remain. Pour
batter into the prepared pan.
3. Bake in the preheated oven for 30 to 40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the
center comes out clean.

Saturday, January 14, 2012

Mountain Dew Salad

Recipe from Mom Murdock

This recipe is from my mother-in-laws collection.  Sylvia was one of the best cooks I've ever come across.  A long time ago when we were up for the weekend I scoured her recipes looking for some of my favorites.  I'll post the original recipe and I'll post the way Mom makes it.  The directions are very vague so I'll try to fill in the blanks in mom's version.

Mountain Dew Salad


1 6 oz. Package lemon gelatin
1 ½ c. boiling water
10 oz mountain dew (cold)

Chill until syrupy
Make 1- 3oz pkg instant lemon pudding according to the box directions
Mix into jello mixture. Whip in 1 medium container cool whip.
Add in
1 can crushed pineapple
1 cup marshmallows

Mom's Directions

1 6oz package lemon gelatin
1 ½ c boiling water
1 can mountain dew (chilled)
1 small can crushed pineapple(drain)
1 3 oz. package lemon pudding
1 cup marshmallows
1 medium container cool whip

Mix lemon gelatin, boiling water and can of mountain dew together. Chill until mixture is syrupy. Mix in package of pudding. Whip medium container of cool whip. Fold in crushed pineapple and marshmallows. Put in refrigerator until fluffy.

Mom's version just has a little extra kick because she's doesn't make the pudding and stir it in. I've made either way and both taste great.   

Rice with Summer Squash

Recipe from Tasteofhome.com

This side dish is probably more suited for summer but it's so delicious I would eat it anytime.  I'm not too fond of summer squash but I'll make an exception for this.  I like the fact that there is still a bit of a crunch to the squash and zucchini.


Rice with Summer Squash

4 Servings Prep: 15 min. Cook: 25 min.


Ingredients

  • 1 cup chopped carrots
  • 1/2 cup chopped onion
  • 1 tablespoon butter
  • 1 cup reduced-sodium chicken broth or vegetable broth
  • 1/3 cup uncooked long grain rice
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon pepper
  • 1 medium yellow summer squash, chopped
  • 1 medium zucchini, chopped

Directions

  • In a large saucepan coated with cooking spray, cook carrots and onion
  • in butter until tender. Stir in the broth, rice, salt and pepper.
  • Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 13 minutes.
  • Stir in yellow squash and zucchini. Cover and simmer 6-10 minutes
  • longer or until rice and vegetables are tender. Yield: 4 servings.
Nutrition Facts: 3/4 cup equals 123 calories, 3 g fat (2 g saturated fat), 8 mg cholesterol, 346 mg sodium, 21 g carbohydrate, 3 g fiber, 4 g protein. Diabetic Exchanges: 1 starch, 1 vegetable, 1/2 fat.
sodium, 21 g carbohydrate, 3 g fiber, 4 g protein. 

Tuesday, January 10, 2012

Phyllo Crab Cups

Found on tasteofhome.com
I would love to host a party every week if I didn't stress about the food coming out perfect.  These little appetizers however are so yummy every time I have ever cooked them for family gatherings they are gone within a matter of seconds.  And it's not the grown ups that usually get to them first.  Just don't tell the kiddos there is horseradish in them. They work up really fast too.  My hubby is in love with worcestershire sauce and put some dashes in when I wasn't looking one time and it worked.  I've used imitation crab meat and the real stuff.  So much better if you can get fresh cooked crab.  I was also thinking if you have any leftover salmon that might work too.  If anyone happens to try this let me know how it turns out.  I'm curious now!  You can find the phyllo tart shells in the frozen food section.  Don't make the same mistake I did and get the sheets.  It wasn't a total waste.  I ended up using it to make Baklava which was divine.


Phyllo Crab Cups

Ingredients
  • 1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese, softened
  • 2 to 3 tablespoons horseradish sauce
  • 3/4 cup chopped imitation crabmeat
  • 1 tablespoon chopped green onion
  • 2 packages (1.9 ounces each) frozen miniature phyllo tart shells
  • Paprika

Directions

  • In a small bowl, beat cream cheese and horseradish until smooth. Stir in crab and onion. Spoon 2-3 teaspoonfuls into each tart shell; sprinkle with paprika.
  • Place on a baking sheet. Bake at 350° for 16-18 minutes or until tops begin to brown. Yield: 2-1/2 dozen.

Monday, January 9, 2012

A Recipe Book

I got the most wonderful gift for Christmas to say thank you for all the time I had put into for the Christmas Program.  And it is nothing short of just amazing.  I received the most awesome recipe book.

It's called Our Best Bites by Sara Wells and Kate Jones.  Maybe I like them so much because one of them has connections to the Seattle area and Boise.  Anyway, if you click on the title of the recipe book it will go to their blog.   One of the problem with recipe books usually there are only a handful of recipes that I even want to try and the rest are not worth my time.  This book is different you will want to try all of them.  The photos are fantastic and the collection of recipes are definitely a staple in any cooking crazy kind of ladies home.  I've only had the book for a few weeks and have managed to get through a good amount of recipes.  I know I'm little obsessed.

Check them out you won't be disappointed.  Also, for this week I'm going to try to hit the side dishes and appetizers hard.  Mmmm....comfort food!

Still no pics from anyone.  I will hold out hope though!  Don't forget to send the pics to therecipeproject@live.com

Friday, January 6, 2012

Southwest Soup

I think every recipe in my collection has a bit of story connected to it.  When I pull that recipe out I'm reminded why or what was happening at the time.

I'm usually really prepared throughout the week having all my meals planned out.  This one particular Sunday we had a really rough week and I was sitting there wondering what on earth to cook.  For me not wanting to cook is pretty serious.  I think we ended up making cheese sandwiches and canned soup.  This is a very rare occurrence in our house.  For some reason I went to go outside and there was a little basket with food in it to cook this delicious soup.  I was so thankful by the thoughtfulness of the person who anonymously dropped off the food and was cursing myself for not going out there sooner because we could have had such a tastier dinner then toasted cheese sandwiches.  If you notice this is a meatless soup.  It tastes good just the way it is.  However, when I made it a second time I added shredded chicken and it was just as good.  I also cut way back on the butter and have also sauteed the onions in olive oil.  Enjoy!

Southwest Soup   

1/2 butter
2 c. chopped onion
1 tsp. garlic
3-4 tsp. cumin
2 qts. water
4 cubes chicken bouillon
3 cubes beef bouillon
2 cans kidney beans
2 cans corn
2 cans tomatoes and chilies
6 oz tomato paste
2 cans green beans
corn tortillas
shredded cheese

Saute onions with butter in large pot.  Add water and spices.  Add canned ingredients and simmer 30 minutes.  Slice tortillas into strips.  Cook in oil until crispy.  Top soup with tortillas and cheese.