Bread & Milk

One of the things I grew up on, that other people find as disgusting, was bread and milk. I'm not quite sure what the origins of this concoction are, but I like to think that it comes from hundreds of years ago, back when this nation was being settled and even earlier! But now-a-days, it's not something people eat - except for people in my family. We LOVE it!!

It's basically like cold cereal, only you use homemade bread instead of cereal. And there are different ways to eat it. Many in my family like it with honey drizzled over. Others like it with strawberry jam dabbed on. And some of us like it with honey or jam AND cheese broken into it.

This recipe isn't something I expect many people to be interested in trying, but it's one of my favorite meals and I wanted to add this to my collection of favorite recipes.

Here's what you'll need:

Two slices of homemade bread (only homemade - NOT store bought)

Two slices of cheese

Honey or Jam

Milk

All you'll need to do is break up the bread into bite-sized pieces. Do the same with the cheese. Then drizzle honey over everything or drop little dabs of jam on the broken bread and cheese. Finally pour milk over it all, like cold cereal, and enjoy!

Honey Butter

One of the BEST things to put on a fresh, warm slice of homeade bread, in my opinion, is honey butter. I love how it melts into the bread and tastes so sweet and buttery. Mmmmmmmm!! You just can't beat that!

The recipe for today has a secret ingredient that makes the honey butter stay so beautiful and fluffy, and it won't separate. It's really pretty great!

Here's what you'll need:

1 lb (4 cubes) butter

3/4 C. honey

1 (7 oz) jar marshmallow cream

Set the butter on the counter for 20 minutes to slightly soften it. You won't want it at room temperature, otherwise it won't whip up as fluffy as it should be. But you don't want to use it right out of the fridge either. Then you'll end up with chunks of butter. So 20 minutes on the counter will be just right!

Whip together butter and honey, then add marshmallow cream.

Mix well.

Store in covered container in refrigerator.

Try this out with my yummy potato bread - right out of the oven! You won't be dissapointed!!

Potato Bread

My mom is a wonderful bread maker. She even won first place in the County Fair for her bread when she was a child (yes, she's been making it that long)! She has tried teaching me how to do it since I was in high school and I just was never able to get it. I especially did not like doing everything by hand, which is how my mom has always done it. So when it came to bread, I just bought it at the store.

A few years ago, my wonderful mother-in-law (who is also a great bread maker) bought all of her daughters-in-law and daughter their own Bosch for Christmas gifts. Lucky me, huh?! I was much more excited to use that to make bread, but still wasn't quite sure how to do it. So I took a class from a neighbor on how to use a Bosch to make bread. It is SOOOOOOOOOOOO EASY!!!

Now that bread making is so easy to do, I've been trying TONS of recipes to find one that I like best. After many, many, MANY tries, I ended up making my own. I wanted something that was still moist and tender after the first day and wasn't crumbly. This is what I came up with that fulfills those components...

Here's what you'll need:

2 T. instant yeast (I like to use saf-instant. When you use instant, you don't have to let it soak and bubble in warm water.)

1 T. salt

2/3 C. sugar

2/3 C. oil

1 C. powdered milk

3 C. warm water

1 C. dry potato flakes

1 egg

8 C. flour

Mix together yeast, warm water, sugar, oil, and egg. Then add powdered milk, potato flakes, salt, and flour. Mix on High with your Bosch to knead for 10 minutes (an no, Mom, this is NOT cheating!).

Look at how beautiful that is!!

If you don't have a Bosch, just knead it with your hands, then let it rise until doubled, about 45-60 minutes. Punch down. If you are using a Bosch, you don't have to let it rise the first time, so you can skip that step.

Grease and flour 4 loaf pans. Shape dough into 4 loaves and let rise until loaves come just above the loaf pans (they'll rise more in the oven).

When I do my loaves, I don't really make them into nice and pretty loaves. I just divide the dough into four sections and press each section ito a loaf pan. They aren't the most gorgeous loaves, but that's quick and easy and they look just fine!

Bake in a pre-heated oven at 350 degrees for about 25-30 minutes. Cool on wire racks. Cool completely before storing in bread bags.

Look at how nicely this cuts!! Hardly any crumbs!

Before the bread cools, and this is VERY important, you MUST cut a few slices to eat straight from the oven with butter and jam or homemade honey butter (which is coming this week!)!!

Oh my YUM! It's really good!!

Pizza

My kids LOVE pizza! No joke, they seriously love it. So I thought it would be fun to make some pizzas tonight - one for each of them to make it their own. I immediately turned to a recipe I found on allrecipes.com for the pizza crust. The rest was just canned pizza sauce, and toppings from the store. The only effort I put into this was in the crust. The rest was so fun to put together and eat with the kids! I HIGHLY recommend doing this with kids or grandkids. They'll get to feel like they're the chef for the night.

Here's what you'll need for the crust:

2 1/4 t. yeast

1/2 t. brown sugar

1 1/2 C. warm water

1 t. salt

2 T. oil

3 1/4 C. flour

In a large bowl, dissolve the yeast and brown sugar in the water and let sit for 10 minutes.

Stir the salt and oil into the yeast solution. Mix in the flour and knead 2-3 minutes.

Cover dough and let rise until double.

Punch down the dough, forming a tight ball.

Allow the dough to relax for 5-10 minutes before rolling out.

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. If you are baking the dough on a pizza stone, you may place your topping on the dough and bake immediately. If you are baking your pizza in a pan, oil the pan. You can dust the stone or pan with cornmeal before adding the dough.

Let the dough rise for 15-20 minutes before topping.

Top as desired.

Bake pizza until the cheese melts and the crust is golden brown, about 15-20 minutes.

I baked my pizzas in four 9 inch cake pans to make fun sized pizzas for everyone to top as they wanted. Give it a try and have FUN with it!!!

Pork Chops & Creamy Potatoes

Have you ever seen a purple potato? Not the red-skinned ones, but PURPLE. Purple skin, purple flesh? I hadn't until a couple of weeks ago when my mother-in-law gave some to me. They are so cool! And I've learned that they have TONS of anti-oxidants in them. Neat, huh?

One year, in my garden, we grew purple beans. They were purple uncooked, but when you cooked them, they turned green. Crazy! Every year I've looked for them since, but have never found them. Anyway, back to the purple potatoes...

I decided to use them in one of my mother's recipes, Pork Chops & Potatoes. I just changed it up a little. Now, just so you know, this takes a while to cook - easy to prepare, but a while to cook. So make sure to give yourself some time.

Here's what you'll need:

4 C. thinly sliced potatoes, about 4 large potatoes
1 can cream of mushroom soup
2/3 C. evaporated milk
2 T. dried minced onion or 1 onion thinly sliced into rings
Salt & Pepper

For the potatoes, grease a 9x13 inch baking dish and put the sliced potatoes in it. I used a variety of potatoes, but you can use one of any kind. And I once again doubled this to feed several extras.

Aren't these pretty?!

Top the taters with onion rings (or if using dried onion, add that to the soup mixture) and salt and pepper everything. Combine the soup and milk and pour it over the potatoes and onions.

Cover with foil and bake at 375 degrees for 1 hour and 15 minutes or until potatoes are tender.

Just before the potatoes are done, season 4 pork chops with Cajun seasoning. I know it sounds a little strange, but it is so very good! It's the only way I'll cook pork chops anymore. Try it!! Pan fry (or griddle fry) until cooked through. Serve with potatoes.

If you wanted, you could put the seasoned, uncooked pork chops on top of the uncooked creamy potatoes, cover with aluminum foil, and bake the same way, just to get it all done at once. But your pork chops won't look as pretty as these. That's alright, it'll be a little easier. Let me know what you think!

Cheesy Scrambled Egg Sandwiches

Scrambled eggs used to be something that I would just throw together and never really considered using a recipe for. That was until I came across an actual recipe for scrambled eggs. I though I'd try it, so I did. Now, I LOVE that recipe! It's what I use every time I make scrambled eggs.

After I got married, I would ask my hubby what he wanted for breakfast, and often times he would suggest egg sandwiches. Now it's something we, and our kids, love to eat. It's quick and easy, and warm - the perfect thing for a busy Saturday morning.

Here's what you'll need:

8 eggs

1/4 C. half and half or milk or cream

1/2 t. salt

1/8 t. pepper

1 T. butter

Whisk together the eggs, half and half, salt, and pepper. Melt the butter in a 10 inch skillet over medium-high heat, coating the pan. Add the eggs and cook while gently pushing, lifting, and folding them from one side of the pan to the other until they are nicely clumped, shiny and wet, about 2 minutes. You'll want them to be slightly wet since they will continue to cook when covered. Remove the cooked eggs from the pan quickly. Top with shredded cheese and cover with aluminum foil. This will keep the heat in and melt the cheese. It will also give you the time you'll need to toast and butter your bread. When your toast is ready, scoop some cheesy eggs on one slice and top with another. I happened to use some day-old buns I made with the breadstick recipe I posted last, but you can use any bread you may have on hand. This egg recipe is a perfect companion to pancakes, waffles, muffins, and so on. Yummmmmmm, give them a try!!!

Breadsticks

I love this recipe! My oldest sister gave it to me several years ago and I have used it so often since. I even took these breadsticks to a recipe exchange and everyone LOVED them. And now I always hear about it when my friends make them. This recipe is really easy! All you have to do is mix, form, rise, and bake. It's GREAT!

Here's what you'll need:

3 1/2 C. warm water

4 T. yeast

1 C. oil
3/4 C. sugar

Combine these ingredients and set aside for 15 minutes.

After 15 minutes, this will be super bubbly. Then you'll add:

3 slightly beaten eggs

1 T. salt
10 C. flour

Mix until well combined. You DON'T have to knead this dough! (Great, huh?!)

The dough will be REALLY sticky. Grease and flour 2 large jelly roll pans (about a 12"x18" pan).

Spray your hands with cooking spray then divide the dough in half, or use all of the dough for super thick breadsticks, and press into a pan until the pan is filled. Then pre-cut your breadsticks, this will make it easy to break apart once they are baked. I use a pizza cutter and just finish the edges with a knife or kitchen shears.

Pre-heat your oven to 425 degrees and let dough rise for a good 5-10 minutes, then bake until golden brown, about 15-20 minutes. Brush with butter just after you take them out of the oven. Then this is what you'll get...

You can also use this recipe to make buns or rolls. Instead of pressing the dough into the pan, to make buns, roll out the dough to about 1 inch thick and cut with a buiscit cutter or anything in a large circular shape and place on a greased pan.

Let rise 15 minutes and bake 15-25 minutes at 425 degrees. Brush the tops with butter and this is what you'll get...

Yum!

Chili

The cooler weather is starting to set in. Fall is definitely here. Whenever this time of year comes around, I LOVE to make food that warms and fills you up. Today's recipe is one that I got from one of my sisters-in-law. It is so easy and really good! So one of these chilly days, you have got to try this super easy chili!

Here's what you'll need:

2 lbs. hamburger
1-2 T. dried onion
Salt & Pepper
2 Cans tomato sauce
2 cans pork & beans
1 pkg. chili seasoning

Brown the hamburger with the dried onion and salt and pepper. Mix all other ingredients together in a pot or a crockpot.

Add the cooked hamburger and cook on Medium-High until bubbly, then simmer until ready to eat. (The longer it simmers, the better the flavors combine. I would let it simmer for a good 30 to 45 mins.) Or if cooking in a crockpot, cook on low for 6 hours or high for 3 hours. Eat with shredded cheese and saltine crackers, french bread, or breadsticks. YUM!!

Do you see that breadstick? That's coming up next. Be very excited!!

Ham Cordon Bleu Sandwiches

I'm so sorry I haven't posted for so long! I've been out of town visiting family (eating wonderful food, as always with them!); but I am back and I've got another quick and easy recipe I really like to make.

These sandwiches originally came from the Kraft Food and Family magazine, but my son was so excited to have created this in his head before we tried the recipe from the magazine. (And, yes, my kids LOVE to be like chefs and come up with new food ideas themselves. I'm so proud!)

Here's what you'll need:

Multi Grain Bread
Ham shaved deli meat
Turkey shaved deli meat
Sliced Swiss cheese
Miracle Whip
Tomato

I really don't use an exact recipe for this, but you just toast your bread, spread Miracle Whip on both slices. Then add three slices of ham and three slices of turkey and top it with swiss cheese. Microwave until cheese is melty (about 30 seconds in my microwave). Put two thick slices of tomato on it and top it with other piece of toast. Then enjoy!

It really doesn't get much easier than that, my friends!!