Crepes

Crepes


1 cup flour

3 eggs

2 Tbs sugar

1 ½ cup milk


Mix the first 3 and ½ cup of milk.

Stir until blended and then add the remaining milk. Let batter sit aside for 10 minutes to an hour. The longer it sits the stronger the crepe will be.

Turn on stove top to medium heat. Lightly grease a small 6-8 inch fry pan. Pour a thin layer of batter into pan and rotate pan around until batter evenly covers the bottom. When lightly browned flip and cook another minute.

Supe'd up Chocolate Cake

Yes because my husband insists on boxed cake.  Even though I love cooking.  He'd be fine with a simple box cake.  So we compromise on the supe'd up chocolate boxed cake ...

1 box devils food cake mix
1 small box instant chocolate pudding mix
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup oil
1 cup sour cream
3 eggs

350 for 40-45 minutes

Buttermilk Syrup

This goes especially great on pumpkin pancakes.  And pretty much everything else.

Melt together on low heat:
1/4 c butter
1 c sugar
1/2 c buttermilk
1 tsp corn syrup

Bring to a boil, then remove from heat. Add 1 tsp baking soda and 1tsp vanilla. Stir quickly until well mixed in and syrup fizzes up.

White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Cookies

Lisa made these for our ward conferences last year and I've been craving them ever since. So I finally asked for the recipe and made them this week. Oh they were as good as I remembered. She makes them with Coconut instead of macadamia nuts. Both are equally tasty.

White Chocolate-Coconut Cookies

Yield: about 30 cookies

1/2 C butter, softened

1 C brown sugar

1 egg

1 T milk

1 t vanilla

1 3/4 C flour

1/2 t baking soda

1 t baking powder

1/4 t salt

1 C white chocolate chips

1/2 C coconut, chopped up

1. Cream together the butter and sugar for about 3 minutes.

2. Add egg, milk & vanilla and mix for 2 more minutes.

3. Combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt.

4. Add the dry ingredients.

5. Add white chocolate chips and coconut (or macadamia nuts).

6. Roll into 1 1/2 inch balls and place on a sprayed cookie sheet.

Bake at 350 for 8 minutes.

Mac n' Cheese

Martha Stewart and Smitten Kitchen pulled through for this one. My kids needed to have REAL Mac n' Cheese. This was a hit.

Serves 12

8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, plus more for casserole
6 slices white bread, crusts removed, torn into 1/4- to l/2-inch pieces
5 1/2 cups milk
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
3 teaspoons coarse salt
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
4 1/2 cups (about 18 ounces) grated sharp white cheddar cheese
2 cups (about 8 ounces) grated Gruyère or 1 1/4 cups (about 5 ounces) grated Pecorino Romano cheese
1 pound elbow macaroni

1. Preheat oven to 375°F. Butter a 3-quart casserole dish; set aside. Place the bread in a medium bowl. In a small saucepan over medium heat, melt 2 tablespoons butter. Pour the melted butter into the bowl with the bread, and toss. Set the breadcrumbs aside.

2. Warm the milk in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Melt the remaining 6 tablespoons butter in a high-sided skillet over medium heat. When the butter bubbles, add the flour. Cook, stirring, 1 minute.

3. While whisking, slowly pour in the hot milk a little at a time to keep mixture smooth. Continue cooking, whisking constantly, until the mixture bubbles and becomes thick, 8 to 12 minutes.

4. Remove the pan from the heat. Stir in salt, nutmeg, black pepper, cayenne pepper, 3 cups cheddar cheese, and 1 1/2 cups Gruyère (or 1 cup Pecorino Romano); set the cheese sauce aside.

5. Cover a large pot of salted water, and bring to a boil. Cook the macaroni until the outside of pasta is cooked and the inside is underdone, 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer the macaroni to a colander, rinse under cold running water, and drain well. Stir the macaroni into the reserved cheese sauce.

6. Pour the mixture into the prepared dish. Sprinkle the remaining 1 1/2 cups cheddar cheese, 1/2 cup Gruyère (or 1/4 cup Pecorino Romano), and the breadcrumbs over the top. Bake until golden brown, about 30 minutes (though we needed a bit more time to get it brown, but your oven may vary). Transfer the dish to a wire rack for 5 minutes; serve.

My Spaghetti

I used to think that Spaghetti was just a matter of opening up a jar of your favorite sauce and boiling some noodles. But I have a hard time doing that any more b/c I can get so much flavor out of the most basic vegetables and herbs. So here is my favorite concoction.

Spaghetti Sauce

1 Large can of whole tomatoes
1-2 Tbs of Kosher Salt (or more if you desire)
3-6 leaves of fresh Basil
3-4 whole garlic cloves
1-2 Tbs olive oil

Dump into your blender and puree.

1 Tbs olive oil
1 bunch of scallions
1 zucchini
1 shredded carrot
1/2 red pepper
2+ TBS of fresh parsley and oregano
(Red pepper flakes if you're in the mood.)

ground beef
worchestershire sauce
garlic salt

Chop and sautee in the olive oil for about 10 minutes until nice and soft. Then add ground beef and cover with worchestershire sauce and garlic salt. Once it is cooked, add the tomato sauce.

Cook your favorite noodles and cover with sauce. Marshalls occasionally has some fun striped super long noodles. They make for an exciting kid meal.

Aunt Kaye's Waffles and Honey Butter

Some foods just remind you of home. My dad's famous awful waffles are on the top of that list. They are loaded with just about every kind of sugar you can dream of. And we like to use my Aunt Kaye's waffle recipe. Mmmmm mmmm!

Aunt Kaye's Waffles

* 2 eggs
* 2 cups buttermilk
* 1 tsp baking soda
* 2 cups flour
* 2 tsp baking powder
* 1/2 tsp salt
* 6 Tbs oil

Beat eggs well. Beat in the rest of the ingredients with a mixer until smooth.

Cook on my new cool Waring Pro Waffle Maker, courtesy of Lady Di and Granddad this Christmas so we can be just as cool as them making awful waffles, ... and enjoy!!!

AWFUL WAFFLE FAVORITES
Add butter, powdered sugar, homemade strawberry jam or homemade peach jam, whip cream and syrup if you really want to go all the way.


Aunt Kaye's Honey Butter

1/2 cube butter
1 cup butter
1 egg yolk
1/2 tsp vanilla

Whip fir 10 minutes and enjoy.

Christmas Morning Rolls

These have been a tradition in our home for years. My mom would labor away at these on Christmas Eve every year to hand out to our friends. And of course she'd save a batch for us to eat on Christmas morning. Mmmm, I couldn't wait.

In our home we've decided to make them on the 23rd so we're not so rushed on Christmas Eve. Still just as good and just as easy.

Christmas Morning Rolls

1 bag of frozen bread dough
1 small box of Butterscotch pudding mix
a few tablespoons of cinnamon
2 cups brown sugar
2 cups butter

Butter a pan. Place the frozen dough in it. When it thaws slightly cut it into 1 inch pieces. Sprinkle with pudding mix. Sprinkle cinnamon all over it.

Melt butter and brown sugar together and pour over rolls. Yes you need all that butter and sugar. The more the merrier. Cover with a dish rag and let rise several hours. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes. Be sure to put a pan underneath it with a silpat on it. If you've added the right amount of butter and sugar it will probably spill over and make a mess of your stove and then start to smoke and make your rolls taste not so good. Use a silpat to prevent burning. Life is so much easier!

Apple Pudding Cake

This could be one of my all time favorite easy desserts. Thanks to one of my dearest friends, Summer. I LOVE to make this cake for my child's birthday treat in class. I feel like the kids are getting something a bit more healthy than junk cake.

Apple Pudding Cake

2 c sugar

1/2 cup soft butter

2 egg

4 large peeled tart apples (4 cups)

2 cups whole wheat flour

2 tsp soda

2 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp nutmeg

1/2 tsp salt

Cream the butter and sugar. Add eggs and beat hard. Shred apples. Add at once to the creamed mixture. Stir in dry ingredients.

Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes. Cut in squares. Serve hot with whipped cream or butter sauce (which is oooooh so much better.)

Butter Sauce

1/2 c. butter

1 c sugar

1/2 c light cream or evaporated milk

1 1/2 t vanilla

Heat butter, sugar and milk at low heat for 10-25 minutes. Stir until blended and slightly thickened. Do not boil.

Chocolate Chip Goodness

Oh yeah baby ... These are by and far my favorite treat to make. Seriously. Chocolate Chip cookies and an ice cold glass of milk. What could be better?

A cookie may taste good but to me, but it has to look even better. I'm not a flat greasy cookie girl. I like them soft and chewy. There is only one secret in this recipe to make them look so good. And here it is .... CREAM THE BUTTER AND SUGARS for as looooong as you want. I often make dinner while I'm letting them cream. A good 5-10 minutes is nice. You'll see the color change a bit.

That's the secret. Now go bake, eat and enjoy your food hang over.

½ lb. butter

1 cup brown sugar (packed)

¾ cup white sugar

2 eggs

1 Tbs. vanilla

3 cups flour

¾ tsp. salt

¾ tsp. baking soda

1 package chocolate chips

Cream butter with sugars. Add the next 5 ingredients. Mix. Fold in chocolate chips. Bake at 350 for 8-10 minutes.