Mother's Baked Beans...

For every family get together that we have my kids want me to make baked beans. In September, for Labor Day, I decided to surprise them by making a Crock Pot full of Great Northern beans. I love white beans. My grandmother used to make them and call me to come eat with her and take home the left-overs. She would always say nothing tasted good if she tried to make it for one person, so she would make a whole pot. Well, after Labor Day, to my surprise, the kids informed me that they wanted me to stick to the baked beans. Even my newest son-in-law requests the baked beans.
My husband's family is having their Christmas party tomorrow night, so in the morning I will get up and make baked beans. Sunday we are having Christmas at our oldest daughter's house, so Sunday morning I will get up and make another pot of baked beans.
When I first got married in 1975 my mother-in-law shared her recipes with me and this was one of her recipes. I call it Mother's Baked Beans. I get so many compliments on these beans that I thought I would share.

MOTHER'S BAKED BEANS

 

• 1 can of Van Camp Pork & Beans
• 2 ribs of celery, diced
• 1 small onion, diced
• 1/2 bell pepper, diced
• 2 T of prepared mustard
• 1/4 cup of brown sugar
• 2 slices of bacon, cut into small pieces 

Mix all ingredients together and pour into baking dish. Cook 3 hours at 250 degrees. The last two years I have used the Crock Pot to cook them. I put the pot on low and let it cook for about 6 hours. It works fine.

 

This is the original recipe. I have never made it using only one can. I use 6 cans and it fills my Crock Pot. If the beans have a lot of liquid in them I will partially drain because the Crock Pot seems to create it's own liquid. If you are using a baking dish you may not need to drain them. I don't care for too much celery, so I just guess at the celery, a couple of ribs may be all I use in the whole pot. When it comes to the onions I cut up two or three medium to large onions. I cut the bacon into 1 inch square pieces. It will seem like a lot of bacon, but when it cooks up it isn't too much. I follow the recipe x 6 for the rest of the ingredients.  

 

My mother-in-law with my kids in 1987. She was a good cook and we enjoyed many wonderful meals prepared in her kitchen.

 

Enjoy!!!

Have a nice weekend!

The Perfect Combination...

Sleet, Snow, & Chili...
The weather here is turning nasty. I went out this morning to feed the kitties, and if I didn't weigh so much I might have been blown away. It's 32 degrees now. The weatherman is predicting sleet and snow. We'll see, right? It's ok with me because I got up really early this morning and started a crock pot full of chili (4lbs), so the weather is actually playing right into my hands.

I will let it cook until about 5 o'clock and then add beans for half an hour or so. This is my favorite chili mix. It's called "Williams". I took it for Christmas at my dad's and 8 lbs. were quickly scarfed down with no complaints. I put a can of Rotel in today. I like it hot, with onions, jalapenos, grated cheese, and cornbread. The longer and slower you cook it the better. I think that might be the secret.

The house is starting to smell all chili-like. Ummm can't wait.

Stay safe and warm!!!

 

Food For A Fund-Raiser...



This week I made 20 pounds of chili for a library fund-raiser. The fund-raiser was a night with Judy Keel, widow of the late actor Howard Keel. Some of you may remember him from the musical Seven Brides for Seven Brothers and later in the soap opera Dallas. Dinner and an evening with Judy Keel for $10.  Dinner was Mexican Fiesta Stack-ups and Frozen Banana/Buttermilk Salad. The night was a success. I thought I would share the recipes. I didn't have a camera with me, so this picture is courtesy of the internet. It's not exact, but is similar.

Mexican Fiesta Stack-ups

Chips-Fritos/Tortilla Chips/Soft Tortillas*Chili*Beans*Rice*Grated Cheese*Lettuce*Tomatoes*Onions*Black Olives*Jalapenos*Sour Cream*Pecans*Coconut*Pineapple Chunks*Salsa

Set everything out and let guests stack it up on their plates. This combination really is good in spite of how it sounds.

Dessert:Frozen Banana/Buttermilk Salad

1 cup sugar*1 cup buttermilk*3 chopped bananas*1-15 oz. can of crushed pineapple, drained*12 oz. Cool Whip

Mix well and freeze in a 13x9 in baking dish. Remove from freezer and slice just before serving.

Enjoy!!!

Tacos And Guacamole...

Here's a link to my daughter's blog, My Daley Life. She has an interesting way of eating her taco's for all of us health conscious bloggers and dieters. She has also posted a recipe for guacamole. Yum!

Have a great day!

Easy Recipe for Wine Making...

I got up early this morning and decided before I left the house I was going to make a gallon of wine. A friend gave me a gallon and a half of fresh grape juice some time ago and I stored it in the freezer for this purpose. I couldn't find my favorite recipe, so used another recipe. I hope it turns out, but whether it does or it doesn't I now have a gallon of red, sweet, fermenting mixture in my pantry. It will be ready on February 27th.

1 glass gallon jar with small mouth. 4 cups sugar. 

Add 4 cups boiling water and stir with a long handled spoon.

Mix 1 1/2 teaspoons of dry yeast with 1 Tablespoon of warm water to make a smooth paste.

Add 3 quarts of grape juice and the yeast to the sugar mixture. Stir well.

Put a large ballon over the mouth of the jar. Secure tightly with string or rubber band.

The balloon will inflate. The wine will be ready when the balloon deflates. This should take about 24 days. Strain the wine several times before bottling.

Enjoy!!!

Crisp Peppernuts...

Today I started preparations for the holidays and part of those preparations include making Crisp Peppernuts. Peppernuts are wonderful little cookies about the size of a quarter. The recipe is similar to that of ginger snaps, but includes Anise. Anise has a licorice-like flavor, although if you don't like licorice you will still like these cookies.

 At the beginning of the holidays my youngest always calls me with this question, "Are you making those little cookies this year?" I call them buttons due to there tiny size. Give me a steaming mug of coffee and a handful of buttons and the holidays have begun.

  

Ingredients:

 1 1/2 cups of butter * 2 1/4 cups of sugar * 3 Tbs. of molasses * 3 eggs, beaten * 5 5/8 sifted flour *  3 tsp. soda * 1 1/2 tsp. cinnamon * 1 1/2 tsp. cloves * 1 1/2 tsp. ginger * 1 1/2 tsp. Anise oil

Cream butter and sugar. Add molasses and eggs. Add dry ingredients. Mix well. Let set in fridge over night. Roll in rope shape (about 1/2 inch round) slice and put on cookie sheet. Bake in 375 degree oven about 7-8 minutes.

 One Christmas I received these little cookies along with a coffee mug from Hubby's sister who lives in Kansas. She said some people put more Anise than others and some add nuts and other items. I have always followed the recipe, but you can adjust them to your own taste. Hubby thinks they would be good with lemon, so this time I divided the dough and added lemon extract. We'll see.

Enjoy and have a great day!!!

Pizza Quick...

I have a wee house guest this weekend. He arrived about 8:30 Friday night and will leave at 6:45 Sunday night. We made pizza for lunch today. This is a simple recipe. It's fun and easy to make with kids. If memory serves me it came from a Tupperware party in the 70's. I used it when my kids were growing up.



Crust:

1 cup of flour * 2 eggs * 2/3 cup of milk* 1 tsp. Italian Seasoning

Mix well.

Pour into pizza pan sprayed with Pam.

 Bake at 400 degrees for 15 minutes.
After 15 minutes remove from oven and put on your favorite toppings.
Return to oven and bake an additional 25 minutes.

While crust is cooking make the sauce.

Sauce:

16 oz. tomato sauce * 1 tsp. garlic powder * 2 tsp. Italian Seasoning

Spread on after crust is cooked, top with cheese and return to the oven for 5 minutes.

Enjoy!!!

Suggestion:

I've heard diet coke, Cheetos and

vanilla ice cream are tasty additions to this meal. 

 I think it was a success.

Have a great weekend!!!

Bread & Butter Jalapeno Peppers...

Ingredients:

 2 cups sugar, 2 teaspoons turmeric, 2 cups vinegar, 1 teaspoon dry mustard, 4 teaspoons celery seeds, 4 teaspoons mustard seeds, and lots and lots of jalapenos and onions.

Mix first six ingredients together and pour over the sliced jalapenos and onions.

Let boil 5 minutes before bottling.

Serve with chips or crackers.
I double this recipe when I make it. Makes 7 pints.

Enjoy!!!

Hot Sauce For A Crowd...

Today I made my families favorite hot sauce. I love the look of just filled canning jars sitting on the counter waiting to cool and be eaten or stored away for another day. 

Ingredients:

5-6 cans of diced tomatoes * 1 can of hot Rotel * 1 Tbs. Garlic Powder * 1 large onion, coarsely chopped * 5-6 jalapenos, chopped * 1/8 cup salt * 1/4 cup sugar (optional) * cilantro

 My food processor is not large enough to hold all of the tomatoes, so I put a couple of cans of tomatoes and the rest of the ingredients into the processor and pulse until it looks right. I don't like it pureed I like to see the vegetables, but not to the point of being chunky. 

When it is to your liking empty into a large bowl. Put the rest of the tomatoes in the processor and pulse. Add to vegetable mixture and stir well. Fill jars and store in refrigerator. I have on occasion boxed the jars and shipped them to my son. When I do this I heat the mixture in order to seal the jars. This hot sauce doesn't last long enough at our house to worry about it. Makes 7 pints.

I have modified this recipe over the years. I no longer add the sugar and we like it fine, I use a little less than the 1/8 cup of salt(this is a coffee scoop) and sometimes I use canned peppers. Tweek it to your liking and enjoy!!!

Have a great week!

Spicy Chicken Tortilla Soup...

I made some really good Spicy Chicken Soup last night at my daughter's house. It was too spicy for Tall Feathers and Fuzzy, so they had pigs-in-a-blanket and corn-on-the-cob. They were content and didn't seem to notice that we were sinfully indulging in possibly the best soup we'd ever had.

This recipe came from the blog Mennonite Girls Can Cook. If you haven't been to their site be sure to check it out.  They have a recipe today for Spice Cake that would go great with my morning cup of coffee. I may try it this weekend.

 The only change I made to the recipe was to use fat-free grated cheese, fat-free sour cream and salsa with no sugar. 

 We are having left-overs for lunch.

While eating we both decided-Mennonite girls can cook.

Have a Thrilling Thursday!!!

Easy Five Minute Candy...

This candy is so quick and easy to make you will want to keep the ingredients on hand for emergencies. An emergency might be:

1. I need a chocolate fix.
2. I need to take something somewhere with absolutely no time to go to the store.
3. I need to take something somewhere and absolutely don't want to go to the store.
4. Unexpected company is on the way.

Other reasons:

1. It looks so good people will think I bought it at a candy store, so why would I want to go to the store.
2. It looks so good people will think if I made it I must have slaved all day, so why would I want to slave all day.
3. It's really good.

Ingredients:

1. Bag of Rolos candy
2. Bag of Pretzels
3. Pecan halves or pieces

Turn oven on. Lay Rolo's in a single layer on a cookie sheet covered in wax paper.

Set cookie sheet in warm oven for a few seconds.

 Take cookie sheet from oven when Rolos are soft and glossy. Lay a pretzel on top of Rolo and press down.

 Press pecan half or pieces into the top (I didn't have any). Place cookie sheet in refrigerator until candy is hard.

 Place on plate to take to event or leave in fridge and eat one every time you pass by.

These are great inexpensive treats to make with the kids or grandkids.

Happy snacking!!!!  

Pineapple Angel Food Cake...

Here is a simple, simple recipe for a quick, quick dessert when you have unexpected company, are on a diet, or in my case I whipped it up while my husband was grilling outside. It's from Weight Watcher and has a value of two points when cut into twelve equal pieces.

Pineapple Angel Food Cake

1 box of Angel Food Cake Mix~~1 large can of Light Pineapple chunks(I cut these chunks in half.)

Directions:

Empty cake mix into large mixing bowl and pour in undrained can of pineapple.

 

Mix well with spoon.

Spray a 9x13 baking dish with non-stick cooking spray and pour batter into baking dish.

Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for 35-45 minutes.

 The cake will be golden brown and will fall in the middle as it cools.

 (This is O.K.)

 Let it cool and cut into 12 equal pieces. Enjoy!!!!