Tuna Casserole from Scratch

3 Tb butter
3 Tb flour
2 C milk
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp season salt (i.e. Lawry's)
3 C. cooked elbow noodles
2 5-oz cans tuna in water, drained
1 C frozen peas
bread crumbs

-Melt butter in saucepan on medium heat. Sprinkle flour over and whisk together until well blended.
-Slowly pour in milk and add salts.
-Continue to cook on medium, stirring often at first and continually at end until mixture thickens and begins to bubble. Remove from heat.
-Taste...if it seems too bland, add in some more salt to taste. I like to start low on salt and then add to taste, so I don't end up with a salt lick by accident!:)
-Mix with noodles, peas and tuna in a greased, ovenproof bowl (2.5-3qt) or pan (8x10).
-Top with bread crumbs. Bake at 350 for ~25 minutes.

Y: 4 lg servings

I used to be very intimidated by making the idea of making white sauces by scratch. After being in Guinea, coming back and trying it a few times I look back and feel silly! It's very easy and very cheap! Do try it if you never have. No need to have cream of mush/chx soup on hand if you have a lil' bit of flour, butter, salt and milk!:) Spice it up as you like!

Baked Oatmeal

1/2 C oil
1/2 C brown sugar
3 eggs
1 Tb baking powder
1 tsp salt
6 C quick oats
3 C milk (may substitute with milk powder/water or water if unable to have dairy)
cinnamon/sugar

-Mix oil and br sugar.
-Mix eggs in until well blended.
-Sprinkle over bk powder and mix with fork or whisk until no lumps remain.
-Stir in oats, then milk until blended.
-Pour into buttered 9x13 pan.
-Sprinkle with cinnamon/sugar.
-Bake at 350 for ~30-35 minutes, til golden, lightly browned.
-Serve warm and top with fruit (canned peaches are sooo yummy) and yogurt (homemade plain is the way we roll) or milk, and sprinkle with a little bit more cinnamon/sugar, honey or maple syrup as desired.

Y: This would depend on your family appetite:)...it usually lasts our family of 3 three breakfasts. Cover and refrigerate between servings.

After much trial and error using three different starter baked oatmeal recipes, I'm sticking with this one. We love it. The base is from my friend Auntie J in Guinea. Interestingly, Africa is where we first had baked oatmeal. It is such a filling, fiber and protein-rich breakfast. I've seen many variations now of sugar/oil content. I appreciate leaving the sugar low. I prefer it less sweet and enjoy just sprinkling a little sugar on top if needed. Hope you enjoy!!

Aunt Kathie's Monster Cookies

Full Size Batch               1/4 Batch (Modified - less sugar)
1 lb butter, softened        (1/2 C)
4 C white sugar               (3/4 C)
5 C brown sugar (2 lb)    (3/4 C)
1 Tb vanilla                     (1 tsp)
1 dozen eggs                   (3 eggs)
8 tsp bk soda                   (2 tsp)
6 C (3lb)natural peanut butter (1 1/2 C) Smooth PB is our pick
~20 C quick oats             (5 C)
M&Ms, raisins, and Mini Semi-Sweet Chocolate chips:
1 lb each                          (1 C or handful each)  This is our favorite combo. If it looks skimpy, add a handful more of your favorite. The mini-chips stretch much further than big chips. Nestle makes good ones.

-Cream butter and sugars and vanilla in very large bowl (standard sized bowls will not work - split recipe in half if you don't have a massive bowl).
-Mix in eggs one at a time.
-Sprinkle in bk soda.
-Mix in peanut butter, then slowly add oats.
-Stir in the "bits," as they say in New Zealand.
-Add more oatmeal if recipe seems too gooey ( I think we added 1-2 more cups last time).
-Drop by tablespoons on cookie sheets and bake at 375 or 170C until golden brown for approx 7-9 min.




Yield: Approx 18-20 dozen / 4-5 dozen
These freeze super well and hardly need any thawing to enjoy out of the freezer.