Grandpa's Pumpkin Pie

I won't be making pies until next week, so I don't have a picture to add with this post (yet!) However, if any of you are looking for an AWESOME pumpkin pie recipe for Thanksgiving...look no further!

Grandpa's Pumpkin Pie

8 eggs slightly beaten

1 large can (29 oz.) Libby's** solid pack pumpkin (equals about 3 1/2 cups)

1 1/2 cups sugar

1 tsp salt

2 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp ground ginger

1/2 tsp ground cloves

2 cans evaporated milk

4-5 dashes nutmeg

4-5 dashes allspice

Mix filling ingredients in order given. Stir by hand...DO NOT USE A MIXER! Pour into unbaked pie crusts (for an easy, fantastic pie crust recipe, click here.) Bake at 425 for 20 minutes. Reduce temperature to 350 and continue baking for 45 minutes or until knife inserted in center of pie comes out clean.

**I am not usually a name brand snob when it comes to most foods, but don't go generic on the pumpkin...Libby's is the best! Also, make sure to not get the Libby's Pumpkin Pie filling...just get the straight pumpkin.

Chicken Cordon Bleu Pasta

Having guests for dinner? Whip up this delicious pasta, pair it with a yummy salad and some garlic bread or rolls and you've got a meal that tastes like you've slaved all day in the kitchen...A big hit with kids and adults alike!

Chicken Cordon Bleu Pasta

16 oz Mostaccioli Pasta, cooked as directed.

1 jar White Ragu Classic Alfredo pasta sauce (mixed with 1/2 cup water)

8-12 oz Swiss Cheese, shredded

1/2 cup diced ham or candian bacon

2 cups cooked chicken, diced (about 1 1/2 lbs frozen chicken)

3/4 cup cooked and crumbled bacon (1/2 lb)

3 bunches green onions, chopped

8 oz package fresh mushrooms, sliced

1 small can sliced olives

Mix together and put in greased 9X13 pan. Sprinkle with parmesan cheese. Cover with tin foil. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes.

Taffy Apple Pizza

This is a new recipe that my mom and I just tried while she was visiting a couple of weekends ago. It was fun for fall and deliciously unique. {Note: Be careful not to overcook the cookie dough crust or it will be crunchy rather than soft.}

Taffy Apple Pizza

1 1/2 packages pre-packaged sugar cookie dough

8 oz cream cheese

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup peanut butter

1/2 tsp vanilla

2 med Granny Smith apples

cinnamon

caramel sauce

1/2 cup chopped peanuts

Roll out cookie dough into a large cookie sheet. Bake at 350 for 16-18 minutes. ( Do not overcook.) Let cool completely.

Mix together cream cheese, brown sugar, peanut butter, and vanilla. Spread over cooled crust. Peel, slice and dice apples and spread over cream cheese mixture. Drizzle caramel sauce, sprinkle cinnamon and spread chopped peanuts on top.

Chocolate Drop Cookies

Chocolate Drop Cookies

Cream: 1/2 cup shortening

1 cup brown sugar

1 egg

Add and mix well:

2 squares melted baking chocolate

1/2 tsp vanilla

Blend in:

2 cups flour

1/2 tsp soda

1/2 cup buttermilk

Drop on greased cookie sheet and bake for 10 minutes at 350. Frost when cool.

Frosting:

1/4 cup softened butter

1 1/3 cup powdered sugar

2 Tbsp cocoa

1/4 cup canned milk

1/2 tsp vanilla

Beat at high speed until thick.

Dinner in a Pumpkin

This has been a tradition in our home since we were little girls...A favorite for Halloween! I have posted pictures of our last two years...You can be creative with how you'd like to serve your festive dinner...In a carved Jack-O-Lantern, with the front cut out of a pumpkin or just with the lid cut off, the pumpkin cleaned out and used like a bowl...

This is so fun for Halloween.

Dinner In a Pumpkin

(clean out a pumpkin to cook the dinner in...)

1 Tbsp minced onion

2 Tbsp vegetable oil

1 1/2 lbs. ground beef

1 can Cream of Chicken soup

1-8 oz can sliced water chestnuts (optional)

2 Tbsp. Soy Sauce

2 Tbsp. brown sugar

1-4 oz can sliced mushrooms

1 1/2 cups cooked rice

In a large frying pan, saute onion until tender. Add meat and brown. Drain. Add soy sauce, brown sugar, mushrooms and soup. Simmer 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add cooked rice and water chestnuts. Pour mixture into pumpkin and bake at 350 for one hour. (Place pumpkin on a cookie sheet when cooking....)

(The pumpkin is yummy too....like squash! Fun to serve with "mummy fingers" (pigs in a blanket) or other spooky side dishes...)

(Note: If you don't have time to bake it in the pumpkin, you can bake at 350 for 15 minutes in a casserole dish and then scoop it into the pumpkin to serve.)

Enjoy!!

Kandi's Stew

This healthy and hearty meal has few ingredients, is quick to put together and because it cooks all day in the crockpot...Your house smells fabulous and dinner is ready when you are with little effort!

In high school, my brother's friends would head straight to our house every Friday afternoon after school for "Stew Crew," their energy meal prior to that night's football game. So, it's a favorite among teenage athletes and the whole family! {The LHS football team barely lost in the state championship game that year...They were full of talent and if I'm being honest...played as well as they did all because of the stew!}

Stew

Brown stew meat in 1/3 cup margarine. Layer:

Potatoes (I use 4-6 potatoes for my family of 5)

Carrots (I bag baby carrots)

Onion (1, sliced)

Use a slotted spoon to transfer meat to top of crockpot. Leave juice in pan. Add 1 cup water and 1 Tbsp. flour. Cook until thick like gravy. Add 1 tsp salt, 1 tsp parsley, and 1 tsp thyme (optional.) Pour gravy on top. Cook on low 8-9 hours or on low for 4 hours.

Serve with some yummy rolls for a delicious meal!

Winning Banana Bread

I am sorry that I have been MIA...it isn't just this blog, but my personal one as well. Life got a little crazy and some things got neglected. Baking was not one of those things. As it gets colder, yummy breads are always at the top of my list of favorite things.

I know there are a MILLION banana bread recipes out there, but this is so moist and yummy. Even if you have a recipe you like, give this one a try and see if you don't love it! This recipe is awesome!

Banana Bread

1 cup shortening or butter

2 cups white sugar

2 eggs

2 Tbsp. mayonnaise

6 ripe bananas, mashed (the riper, the better)

3 cups flour

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp baking powder

2 tsp. baking soda

1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips (optional, but you would be crazy to not add them!)

1/2 cup chopped walnuts (optional...we are nut free at our house, so i haven't tried the bread with the nuts))

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350. Lightly grease (with shortening or butter) two 9x5 loaf pans and then coat pan with light sprinkle of cinnamon and sugar.

2. In a large bowl, cream shortening and sugar until fluffy and light. Stir in the eggs in one at a time, beating well with each addition. Stir in mayonnaise and bananas. In a seperate bowl, stir together flour, salt, baking powder, and baking soda. Mix dry ingredients into banana mixture...stir just enough to evenly combine. Fold in chocolate chips and walnuts.

3. Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center of the loaf comes out clean (depending on the over, between 50 and 75 minutes.) Cool for 20 minutes in the pan before removing to wire rack to cool completely.

**This recipe works just as good cut in half if you only have 3 ripe bananas.**