'BOO'-nana Puddin'

It's 'BOO'-nana puddin' time! Rednexx Man loves his 'nana puddin' & when a friend mentioned they haven't had mine in a long time, I thought it was a good enough reason to get in the kitchen this morning. One container for Rednexx Man to take to work tonight, one for the house & one to share....yep, I do believe we have some happy campers!

I adapted the recipe from Paula Deen's version, which I tried years ago and absolutely loved. But I will warn you ahead of time....this is a very rich recipe, so be prepared to be indulged by it's creamy heavenly-ness. 

'BOO'-nana Puddin'
1 box Nilla wafer cookies; set aside 5-10 cookies

4 very ripe bananas; sliced moderately thin & separated
4 cups milk
2 (6.8 oz) boxes banana cream instant pudding mix
2 (8 oz) packages cream cheese, softened & cut into cubes
2 (12 oz) cans sweetened condensed milk
1 large family size container cool whip; semi thawed

In a large mixing bowl combine milk, pudding mix, cream cheese and condensed milk. Mix until well blended & smooth. Fold the cool whip into the pudding mixture. Set aside.

Place a layer of cookies in the bottom of a large round casserole dish, bowl or other type serving container. Next layer some of the sliced bananas atop the cookies. Spoon a good amount of pudding mix over the bananas. Spread evenly. Repeat layers ending with a final layer of pudding. Garnish with wafer cookies that have been set aside. Cover and place in refrigerator to chill until ready to serve.

This makes a large amount so you will need to use either a very large, deep container or divide it amongst a few containers as shown in the photo. 

Click HERE for printable recipe

**Recipe adapted from Paula Deen

Tennessee Apple Cake

Several months ago I printed out a recipe that Gooseberry Patch had posted on their Facebook page for an apple cake. I had the recipe pinned to the icebox so it would be readily available when I finally decided to try it. Well, today was the day I thought I'd give it a whirl. The original recipe did not call for an icing but I thought a quick vanilla glaze would go perfectly atop it.

Tennessee Apple Cake
2 c. flour
2 c. sugar
2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
2 tsp cinnamon
21-oz can apple pie filling
2 eggs, beaten
1/2 c canola oil
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 c chopped pecans

Preheat oven to 350* Grease & flour a 9' x 13' baking pan; set aside. Combine all ingredients in a large mixing bowl. Mix lightly. Pour batter into prepared pan; spread batter evenly. Bake for 30-35 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Serves 12.

Glaze: 1/4 c. powdered sugar, 1 tsp. vanilla extract, 3 Tblsp. milk
             Stir all ingredients together in a small bowl until well mixed. Add milk as      
             needed for desired consistency.
Click HERE for printable recipe

 * source: Gooseberry Patch facebook page

 

Smells Like Spaghetti-O's

We had some errands to run this afternoon and I hadn't even thought about what to fix for dinner, so I made a quick run down of the pantry and freezer to see what I could throw together. I pulled out my trusty crockpot, dumped my ingredients in & said a quick prayer hoping that it would turn out ok. A few hours later we arrived back home and my bofriend says, "Man it smells like spaghetti-o's in here..." Since I really didn't have a name for my dinner creation, I just ran with it. LOL  I have to say, the LORD does answer prayer because it tasted pretty dang good too!

1 lb pasta noodles of your choice
1-12 oz package frozen prepared meatballs
1 jar three cheese alfredo pasta sauce (a little bit of milk to rinse sauce from jar that remains)
1 (10 3/4 oz) can Campbell's Harvest Orange Tomato soup
1 1/4 soup cans full of milk
1 Tblsp Italian seasoning
1/4 tsp garlic powder
pinch of black pepper

Add all ingredients, except pasta to your crock pot and stir to combine well. Cover with lid and place on LOW setting for 3 hours. About 15 minutes or so before meatball & sauce is ready, prepare pasta according to package directions. Drain. Spoon meatballs and sauce over pasta & serve.
 
Click HERE for printable recipe

Pumpkin Snickerdoodles

I have been so ready for the Fall season now that I actually started decorating the inside of the house with all of my Autumn flair. With that, a friend sent me the link to a recipe for Pumpkin Snickerdoodles from the RecipeGirl blog.  She thought I would enjoy them as they seem to have all the tastes of Fall rolled into one. 

After a trip to the local dairy to pick up some fresh raw milk, I decided to give the recipe a try. It definitely smelled like Autumnal Heaven in the house & boy did they taste awesome! They're more of a cake like texture instead of a crispy cookie but add a glass of milk to it and yum! Here's the recipe as sourced from Recipe Girl.

Pumpkin Snickerdoodles

COOKIES:
1 cup (2 sticks) salted butter, at room temperature
1 cup granulated white sugar
1/2 cup light brown sugar
3/4 cup pure unsweetened pumpkin puree
1 large egg
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
3 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

In a large bowl, use an electric mixer to cream the butter until fluffy. Add sugars and pumpkin puree and beat well. Mix in egg and vanilla, scraping down sides of the bowl to incorporate all of the ingredients.
In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, salt and ground cinnamon. Beat flour mixture into liquid mixture a little at a time just until incorporated. Cover dough with plastic and chill at least an hour, or until dough becomes slightly firm. When ready to bake, preheat oven to 350°F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper (or spray with nonstick spray).

ROLLING SUGAR:
1/2 cup granulated white sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon allspice

 

 

Mix rolling sugar ingredients in a small bowl. Remove cookie dough from refrigerator. Use a medium cookie scoop (1 1/2 Tablespoons) or a large spoon to scoop out dough and roll into balls. Use your hands to roll the balls in the cinnamon sugar and make sure they're coated really well.** Place 2 inches apart on the prepared baking sheets. Use a glass with a nice, flat bottom to dip in sugar and flatten the balls. Bake at 350°F. for 10 to 14 minutes, or until they are slightly firm to the touch. Let cool on baking sheets for 5 minutes or so, then remove them to a wire rack to cool completely.

** My personal tip: When you get to the point of rolling the dough into a ball, make sure you lightly sugar your hands. I tried flour but it helped keep the sugar mixture from sticking as much. When I used sugar it not only kept the dough from sticking to my hands it made for better coverage when rolling it in the topping.

Click HERE for printable recipe  

Brownie Cookie Layer Bake

This is a super easy, oh so yummy desert that's great any day of the week. With only 3 ingredients needed (not including the egg & oil needed to prepare the brownie mix) it makes this one of my favorite "go to" deserts when I need a last minute sweet treat.

Brownie Cookie Layer Bake 

1 roll of pre-packaged refrigerated chocolate chip cookie dough
1 pkg Nutter Butter cookies
1 box brownie mix (prepared as directed on box)  

Preheat oven to 350* Grease a 13" x 9" baking pan.

Remove cookie dough from package and press evenly into bottom of prepared pan. Place a layer of Nutter Butters atop the cookie dough. Pour brownie mix over cookie layer & spread evenly. Bake according to brownie mix directions. (The brand I used had a cook time of 28-30 minutes.) Remove from oven & allow to cool slightly before serving.


Click HERE for printable recipe

 

Boudin Pie

1 pkg double crust uncooked pie crust
1 - 8oz pkg cream cheese, cubed
2-1/2 lbs boudin, casing removed & crumbled
Chicken broth
1 tsp Old Bay seasoning
1 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
1/4 c grated cheese

Preheat oven to 350*

Layer first pie crust in a well greased deep dish pie plate. Set aside.

In a medium size mixing bowl, combine cream cheese & boudin. Stir to mix well. Add in chicken broth a little at a time to just moisten mixture. You don't want a wet soggy filling, just moist. Sprinkle in Old Bay, worcestershire & grated cheese. Stir well.

Transfer to pie plate and spread evenly into pie crust. Top with second pie crust & seal edges.

 Cut small slits in the top of the crust to vent. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until pie crust is golden. Serve warm.

Click HERE for printable recipe

 

Crockpot Taco Soup

Today I thought I'd make dinner easy on myself. So, naturally I pulled out my trust kitchen companion...my crockpot. It's still hot outside but that doesn't mean we can't enjoy a good bowl of soup. One of my favorites is Taco Soup, so when I found an easy recipe years ago for it in my "Fix-It and Forget-It" cookbook, I knew it was a must try. I did ad my own touches to it though, but as a base for a recipe to start with, it's wonderful!

Crockpot Taco Soup

1-lb ground beef
1 large onion, chopped
3 (14-oz) cans pinto beans (I use black beans as that is my favorite)
14-oz can tomatoes w/ chilies (I used my homemade mexican style version)
14-1/2 oz can petite diced tomatoes
15-oz can tomato paste
1 pkg dry ranch dressing mix
15-1/4 oz can whole kernel corn, drained
2 c water

Brown beef & onion in a medium size skillet. Cook until meat is no longer pink & onions are translucent. Drain grease. Combine meat & onion with remaining ingredients in a 4-6qt crockpot. Cover and cook on LOW for about 4 hours or until ingredients are heated through. Serve with tortilla chips if desired.

Click HERE for printable recipe

 

It's just peachy!

The other day my Dad & I stopped by the farmers market bought a small bucket of fresh Georgia peaches. We were able to take a sample taste while there & boy howdy were they not only delicious, they were so juicy that it ran down your hand with each bite! Although I like a good peach cobbler, I thought I'd set aside a few to make a quick sweet bread for tonight's dessert.

Taking a basic quick bread recipe & adding a little tweeking, I came up with the following yummy recipe.

                                          Fresh Peach Bread with Vanilla Glaze
Bread:
2 c. flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
4 c. diced fresh peaches
1-3/4 c. sugar
1/2 c. butter or margarine
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla extract

Glaze:
1/2 c. powdered sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract
3 Tblsp. milk

Preheat oven to 325*. Grease & flour 2 bread loaf pans (I prefer to use Bakers Secret spray.)

In a small bowl, sift together flour, soda, powder salt & cinnamon. Set aside.

In a larger bowl cream together sugar & butter.

Add in eggs & vanilla; mix well to incorporate.

Slowly add 1/2 of the dry ingredients to wet mixture. Mix to combine, then add remaining dry ingredients. Mix just until all dry ingredients are well moistened.

With a wooden spoon, stir in diced peaches just until evenly distributed.

Divide batter evenly between your prepared loaf pans. Bake in preheated oven for 1 hour or until knife inserted in center comes out clean.

Allow bread to cool in pans for about 10 minutes before turning out onto cooling rack.

Drizzle with vanilla glaze.

To make the glaze:


Combine powdered sugar, vanilla & milk in small bowl. Stir until well blended.

Yield: 2 loaves


Click HERE for printable recipe