Crock-Pot Bean Soup

2 C. dry navy beans, washed (can soak overnight if desired - not necessary though)
4 med. potatoes, peeled and diced
1 sweet potato or a few carrots, peeled and diced
1 tsp Dried onions or 1 diced onion
1-2 Tb Parsley, dried
Salt (to taste - can use plain, Lawry's, or Zender's chicken seasoning (my fave))
Pepper to taste (I'm generous with this:))
Water

-Mix all together in crock-pot ( I use a 3 Qt crock-pot). Cover with water to one inch below lid.
-Cook on high until softened (~4 hours), then low until soft enough to mash a bit. Continue on low until mushy soft!
-Mash with potato masher. Add more water if needed. Also may cook on low for ~8 hours.

Yumm-o on a rainy day with some fresh warm bread! This is a variation of my Mom's Bean Soup, which is great! Her recipe calls for celery and carrots rather than sweet potato. I've also tried half navy/half red beans and liked that.

Tremendous Tomato Soup

I love learning from others how to make great food...and this one was a majorly exciting find for me. If you're at all interested in canning tomato soup - check it out. So easy, so good. I use it in chili, goulash, spaghetti sauce....yum!

Heavenly Homemakers Tomato Soup

Pretty Beef Stew

1 lb beef stew cubes, slightly thawed or thawed
1 Tb butter
1 onion, diced
1/4 C gr pepper, diced
1 C hot water

4 med potatoes, peeled & chunked
1 sweet potato, peeled & diced
1 C tomato, diced (canned or fresh)
2 carrots, diced
salt
pepper
Lawry's seasoning salt
1 pinch of Parsley
2 C hot water

1/2 C cold water
2 Tb flour

-Melt butter in pressure cooker over med/high heat and brown beef, onions and gr pepper.
-Add 1 C water and close cover securely. Place pressure regulator on vent pipe (I use a Presto 8Qt Cooker), and cook 8 (thawed) or 13 (partially thawed) minutes with pressure regulator rocking slowly.
-Cool cooker at once by running cold water over it (it will make strange noises that are a little scary, but really, this is what the company recommends and my mother-in-law has done for years and years - don't be frightened:)).
-Add hot water, potatoes, tomatoes, carrots, pepper and salts (to taste - go easy...can always add more later). Place pressure regulator on vent pipe and cook 5 minutes once regulator rocks.
-Cool cooker at once.
-Mix flour in cold water well. Stir into stew, and stir until thickens.

Recipe adapted from Presto's Instruction manual.

Y: 4-6 servings

I really like the sweet potato in this and the color the stew turns out...so pretty! Add any veggies you have sitting around...as a friend in Africa called it...anything that must go you can turn into "Mustgo" Soup. :)

Auntie J's Breakfast Cake

I love this versatile recipe from a dear friend and mom in Guinea. It offers a wonderful way to use up leftovers, add interesting nutrition to breakfast, and gives plenty of options based on what ingreds you have available!!

1/2 C oil or butter
1 C sugar (or less if using a sweet **fruit/veggie below)
4 eggs
2 C mashed **banana, pumpkin, leftover oatmeal, applesauce, carrots, sw potatoes, potatoes...can also include graded stale leftover muffins, cake, etc.
1 tsp vanilla
1 C flour
1 C whole wheat flour
1/2 C quick oats or oat flour
1/2 ground flax seed
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon and 1/2 tsp nutmeg, if no topping used
1 C milk with 1 Tb bk powder
or
1 C yogurt with 1 tsp bk soda
1 handful dried fruit - craisins & golden raisins (our fave) or dr blueberries, raisins, etc

Topping (we halve this):
4 Tb butter, softened
2/3-3/4 C oats
1/2 C br sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp cloves (we omit)
1/2 tsp ginger (we omit)

-Mix oil & sugar well
-Mix in eggs
-Add **ingred. and vanilla
-Mix dry ingreds in separate bowl, including bk powder or soda
-Add to wet ingreds along with milk
-Stir in dried fruit
-Pour into greased 9x13 pan
-Mix topping ingreds, if desired, and sprinkle with topping
-Bake at 350 for 30-45min, until golden brown


We generally use the first ingred listed in any of the items above with an "or," such as milk instead of yogurt. I've also used stale, grated coconut bread and just added extra milk one time, when I didn't have extra produce to use up. My rating, mmm 10/10 !!

Homemade Cottage Cheese

Upon returning home from Guinea this spring I was inspired to use milk for more than just baking. The mother I cooked with in Guinea made yogurt from milk powder...surely we should be doing that - and more with the resources we've been blessed with! So I went looking for a simple cottage cheese recipe. This is what I found, and we love it!! So easy, so squeaky good! The original recipe can be found at The Cooking Inn. I adapted it just a little as follows:

1 Gallon Whole Milk (may skim cream off if desired if using raw)
1/2 C Vinegar
Salt to taste

-Heat milk on medium heat in large covered pot, stirring occasionally (more toward end), until it reaches an almost boil (180-190 degrees).
-Take off heat and stir in vinegar.
-Stir until curds separate, approx. 20 seconds!
-Allow to cool a bit, then pour contents into a strainer to drain the whey.
-Add salt to taste to the curds.
Yummy!!

-We actually like this warm (and squeaky!) or cold (with fruit...mmmmm:)). It is also good in pasta dishes. Add a little milk or cream if desired.


Visit Tammy's Recipes for more dairy ideas!

Here's a little video...what a great science project!

Pepparkakor -Guest Baker Melissa

1/3 C Dark Corn Syrup
1/3 C Heavy Cream
1 C Sugar
1/2 lb Butter or Margarine, softened

3 1/2 C Flour
2 tsp Cloves
2 tsp Ginger
2 tsp Cinnamon
2 tsp Bk Soda

-Stir first set of ingredients.
-Sift dry ingreds, then mix with first set.
-Refrigerate 1+hrs, then roll out dough onto lightly floured board to 1/8in thickness.
-Bake at 375 for 4 minutes, or until golden brown.

Buttercream Frosting
6 Tb Butter, soft
4 C Powdered Sugar
3 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp salt
Cream, as needed

- Beat together til desired consistency.

Auntie Mel whipped up this cute little army of cookie men over Christmas, and their flavor (and scent!) was so good!

Y: The batch made three cookie sheets, packed full. Mmmmmm!

Chunky Chocolate Chip Cookies

3 1/2 C flour
1 C whole wheat flour
1 C quick oats
2 tsp salt
2 tsp bk soda

1 1/2 C br sugar
1 1/2 C sugar
1 C butter, softened
1 C shortening
4 eggs
2 tsp real vanilla
1 C semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 1/2 C mini milk chocolate chips
1 1/2 C m & ms

-Mix first set of ingreds together well.
-In separate bowl cream sugars, butter, and shortening.
-Mix eggs lightly in a separate bowl, then add to sugar mix with vanilla until creamy.
-Add in dry ingreds and start to add in chips and m&ms once dry ingreds are mostly mixed, but not totally worked in.
-Chill dough at least one hour in fridge.
-Chill baking sheets or make sure they are not hot anymore before placing dough on sheets.
-Scoop and drop big tablespoons full onto pans and bake at 400 for 7-8 min, until lightly golden brown (might look underdone).
-Let sit on pan ~ 1 min and remove.
-Do not overbake or leave on pan too long, or cookies won't be as thick.

Y: 6 dozen

Note: These are probably the best chocolate chip cookies I've ever had turn out. Often mine are thin and crispy, which I don't care for. I'm kind of a cc cookie lover and am always looking for a great recipe. This one will definitely be a keeper...lots of chunks, nice thickness and chewy...ahhh 10/10!:) Recipe adapted from here...

The Best Neighborhood Chocolate Chip Cookies

Our sweet neighbors brought these cookies over after we had Abraham...yummy!

2 1/4 C flour
1/2 C quick oats
1 tsp salt
1 tsp bk soda

3/4 C br sugar
3/4 C sugar
1/2 C butter, softened
1/2 C shortening
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
2 C chocolate chips (Ghiradelli's recommended) plus a little more if desired
1 C walnuts (optional)

-Mix first set of ingreds together well.
-In separate bowl mix sugars, butter, shortening...then add eggs and vanilla until creamy.
-Add in dry ingreds.
-Add in chips and nuts (Connie recommends Ghiradelli chips and leaving walnuts whole and letting your mixer break them up a bit).
-Chill dough at least one hour in fridge.
-Bake at 375 for 10-11 min on baking stone.

Y: 3 doz

Notes from the Baker...Use a scoop to make cookies uniform in size (hers is ~ 4tsp). Do not overbake. Adapt for your oven.

Notes from Angela...I really like these cookies and found cooking them a shorter time at 400 works best in my oven (7-8 min). That makes them thicker and chewy. I tried 350 and 375 temps and ended up with flatter, crispy cookies. I don't add nuts, and have experimented adding various chips. My absolute favorite recipe I just figured out today:). Check it out here...

Pretty Lil' Dipped Apricots

1 1/2 C dried apricots (~60)
1 square unsweetened baking chocolate
1 C semisweet chocolate chips

-Mix chocolate and melt in microwave, stirring frequently.
-Dip half of apricot in chocolate and place on wax paper-lined tray.
-Store in fridge.
-Once hardened may drizzle with white chocolate, if desired.

Y:60

A pretty (addictive:)) little treat! Recipe courtesy of Nicole! Rated 10/10

Round Steak Sandwiches

2 round steaks
~1/4 C Worcestershire Sauce
Pepper
Dried onions
Mini-sub buns
Cheese (flavor of choice)


Cut each steak into two pieces. Lay in 9x13 pan (will overlap each other). Sprinkle with dried onions to taste. Splash worc. sauce over meat. Add 1/4-1/2 in. water to bottom of pan, pouring a little over steaks to spread out sauce, but not to rinse it off. Sprinkle with pepper. Cover with foil, bake at 350 for 2 hours.

Break meat up with a fork into shredded pieces/chunks. Serve on mini-sub buns (we like wheat) with desired cheese of choice on top!

Y: Approx 12 mini-subs

We have recently been using this recipe to eat up our round steak and really like it! Very simple and really softens the tough steak. Of note, I can't eat cheese right now, so I crushed a few potato chips into the sandwich and enjoyed the crunchy variety! My vote 8/10 for simple, filling, tasty food.

Lasagna

1 lb hamburger, fried with a little salt/pepper
24 oz cottage cheese
2 1/2 C mozzarella cheese, shredded and divided
1/2 C parmesan cheese, divided
2-3 Tb dried parsley
26 oz can spaghetti sauce
1 C water
12 lasagna noodles, uncooked

-Let cottage cheese sit in strainer to drain juices some.
-Mix cottage cheese, 1 1/4 C mozzarella cheese, 1/4 C. parmesan cheese and parsley. Set aside.
-Mix hamburger and spaghetti sauce. Add water to empty sauce jar and shake well. Add to meat mixture and blend well.
-Spread 1 C sauce mix to bottom of 9x13pan; top with 3 noodles; top with 1/3 cot cheese mix and 1 C sauce. Repeat twice. Top with 3 remaining noodles and remaining sauce.
-Sprinkle with 1 1/4 C moz cheese and 1/4 C parmesan cheese. Cover with greased foil.
-Bake 45 min at 350. Remove foil. Bake additional 5-15 minutes, until heated through and cheeses lightly browned. Let sit 5min or so before cutting.

Yield: 12 large servings

Recipe adapted from Allrecipes.com Pretty good, especially since I don't like runny lasagna - this was on the drier side. 7/10
*Note to self, do not skimp on water or recipe will be too dry. Cot cheese amount increased a little from original recipe. Cheese got too hard after foil removed - would not leave in full 15 minutes.

Golden Potato Soup

9 C peeled and cubed ( I chunk them) potatoes
3/4 C chopped celery
1 diced onion
Chicken seasoning - MSG free (to taste)
3 C water
1 Tb dried parsley (or to taste)
pepper to taste
2 heaping Tb flour
4 1/2 C milk
12 oz shredded cheese (I mixed cheddar and colby-jack)


-In large pot add potatoes, celery, onion, water and parsley. Season with pepper and simmer until veggies are tender.
-Whisk flour and 1 C. milk in a small bowl until well blended. Add to soup with other milk and cook until soup thickens, stirring frequently.
-Stir in cheese and simmer until cheese is melted.

Yield: 7 servings (for hungry guys:))

Recipe adapted from one found at Allrecipes.com . Very good! 9/10