Recipe #6: Mexican Stuffed Shells

I got this recipe from my friend, Jodi. She had posted the recipe on Facebook. The night she made it for her, her husband, and her brother-in-law, she was posting comments about how good it smelled and how delicious it was. She was right. It was very delicious!

Ingredients:

1 pound ground beef
1 package taco seasoning
8 ounces cream cheese
20 jumbo pasta shells
1 1/2 cups salsa
1 cup taco sauce
1 cup Cheddar cheese
1 cup Monterey Jack cheese

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a pan, brown the ground beef; add taco seasoning and prepare according to package directions. Add cream cheese, cover and simmer until cheese is melted. Stir together and mix well. Set aside and cool completely.

While ground beef is cooking, cook pasta shells according to package directions; drain. set shells out individually on cutting board or baking sheet so they don't stick together. Pour salsa on bottom of a 9 x 13 baking dish. Stuff each shell with 1-2 tablespoons of meat mixture. Place shells in pan open side up. Evenly cover shells with taco sauce. Cover dish with foil and bake for 30 minutes. Add shredded cheese and bake for 10-15 minutes more with foil removed.

Recipe #5: Peachy Fruit Salad

This recipe is super easy. Would be great for brunches, picnics, or even an afternoon snack. My mom and other family members have made this many times over the years for family get gatherings.

Ingredients:

1 can (21 ounces) peach pie filling
1 can (20 ounces) pineapple chunks, drained
1 can (11 ounces) mandarin oranges, drained
2 medium firm bananas, sliced
1 cup green grapes
1 cup mini marshmallows

In a bowl, combine all ingredients; stir gently. Refrigerate until serving.

Serves 6-8

Recipe #4: Coconut Poppy Seed Cake

I got this recipe from my mom. This is one of my favorites. This weekend, it is getting used for my step-dad's birthday cake.

Ingredients:
1 package (18 1/4 ounces) white cake mix
1/4 cup poppy seeds*
3 1/2 cups cold milk
2 packages (3.4 ounces each) instant coconut cream pudding mix**
1 carton (8 ounces) frozen whipped topping, thawed

*When making this, we've never put the full 1/4 cup poppy seeds in. We pour in enough to spread through the cake mix.

**If you or someone in your family does not like coconut, you could probably substitute the coconut pudding for vanilla or banana.

Prepare the cake according to package directions, adding poppy seeds to batter. Pour into greased 9x13 inch pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes or until inserted toothpick comes out clean. Cool completely.

In a mixing bowl, beat milk and pudding mix on low speed for 2 minutes. Spread over cake.

Spread with whipped topping.

20-24 Servings

Recipe #3: Jalapeno Poppers

There is a nice lady at work who brings in produce that either her husband or her brother grows. It is usually what there is too much of for them to use. Today, I got the email of what she had with her. She had jalapenos today. She gave me all of what she had. Just a few days ago, I had been looking at recipes for jalapeno poppers and had found a few. I ended up using a recipe out of one of my favorite cookbooks, "The Pioneer Woman Cooks: Recipes from an Accidental Country Girl". The poppers turned out deliciously! I know both of my brothers like jalapenos and the poppers, so I invited them over to share this wonderful treat with them. If you are interested in finding the recipe, check out Ree's site. thepioneerwoman.com

For the Love of Food and Family

I grew up around many wonderful cooks. Both of my grandmothers were farmers wives who also grew up on farms themselves before marrying their farmer husbands. I found both of them to be fabulous cooks. I think my parents are pretty terrific cooks as well.

When I was a child, I remember spending a lot of time in my grandma Rose's kitchen. Playing with the items in her drawers, checking out what she had stored in the pantry, watching her cook many delicious foods (apple cake, banana bread, spaghetti), or sitting on the counter top with my siblings pouring ingredients into the mixer to make chocolate chip cookies. That was one of my favorite memories (among many). I remember trying to sneak tastes of the cookie dough when she wasn't looking, even though she knew we were doing it.

In her backyard, chickens wandered around. She would go out to gather eggs, and then come into the kitchen to clean them off with water and vinegar. I remember getting to "help" a few times as long as I was careful.

Every year at Christmas, grandma Rose made Oyster Stew and either chili or chicken noodle soup. It's one tradition I hope to share with my future children and grandchildren. Last fall, I felt lucky to receive the Oyster Stew recipe of my grandma's.

I don't remember my grandma Irene in the kitchen as much except making bread. I enjoyed waking up to the smell of it. I know she cooked a lot though. There were many mouths to feed. Every holiday, there was always so much food to choose from. A person could easily get stuffed trying to try each dish.

As I've grown older, I've wanted to be like both of my grandmothers. To be the farmer or rancher's wife, to have a houseful of children, and to be able to cook like them. Although I'm not married yet and I don't have any children yet either, I already see both of them in me in many different ways.

I feel like I have a love affair with food and cooking because of these two women. I feel lucky and blessed to have been able to watch them prepared wonderful dishes to serve to their families.

For grandma Rose and grandma Irene: I love you both!

Food Traditions

While looking through my cookbooks recently trying to get menu ideas, I came across a recipe how to make tongue (yes, as in cow tongue). I immediately thought, "Gross!" and wanted to gag. In September of 2012, my friend Hendrik's parents and sister visited for a month from South Africa. While they were here, a cow tongue was made one evening for supper. Even though I knew what it was, I still tried it. I personally thought it was the most disgusting thing I had ever tasted. While eating supper that night, Hendrik's dad said that at Christmas time in South Africa, cow tongue was a treat. As much as I was not fond of the dish, I found this very interesting. I guess in every culture and family, there is some sort of food that becomes part of our traditions. For as long as I can remember, my paternal grandma has made Oyster Stew for Christmas supper. I know some people who would think the same about that as I did about eating the cow tongue. I come from a blended family and each kid has their own things they are picky about. Mine is cucumbers and watermelon. My mom found one recipe we all liked and has started making that the last few years for Christmas when we're all together. That recipe is Huntington Chicken. Someday, after I've married and started a family, I'd like to start my own "food traditions". Maybe even carry on the traditions started by my own family or that I've heard of from my friends. Except for eating cow tongue at Christmas that is....

Recipe #2: Goulash

I remember my mom making this recipe a lot when I was a child. It was one of my favorite things to eat (next to spaghetti and macaroni and cheese). It's also very simple to make. It took about 15-20 minutes to put this together. Ingredients: 1-2 cups macaroni 1 can tomatoes (petite diced work good) 1/2 to 1 pound hamburger (browned) chili powder and ketchup (to taste)

Cook macaroni, drain.

Brown hamburger, drain.

Mix together and add tomatoes, chili powder, and ketchup.

Enjoy!

Cooking Adventures....Recipe #1

The first recipe I made on my way to cooking through all of my recipes was one I'd made before. The recipe, Cake Mix Cookies, is a recipe I got from my mom. They are the easiest cookies to make and they are so moist!

The ingredients are 1 stick of margarine, 2 eggs, and 1 box of cake mix (any flavor).

Melt one stick of margarine. I melted mine in the microwave. You can also melt it on the stove.

Remove from heat and add 2 eggs.

Mix and add 1 cake mix (any flavor).

Drop by spoonful onto cookie sheet. Bake 8-9 minutes at 350 degrees.

Moist, yummy cookies! I hope you enjoy these.

Who Says Kansas is Flat?

I know people who come to Kansas thinking that it's all flat. Anyone who says that has never been to Northern Kansas. Recently on a trip up to my grandma's house for a family reunion, I took some photos of what I call "Kansas Hills". (I do apologize ahead of time if my photography skills aren't great at showing these so called hills).

There are some hills that if you aren't ready for it, your stomach will either drop to your toes, or go up in your throat.

I always enjoy the scenery of the drive to see my family. In the fall, there are many trees that have leaves changing colors.

Adventures in Cooking

Just recently, I was looking through some of my recipe cards. I got to thinking I haven't tried hardly any of them. My bright (or dumb, depending on who you ask) idea? To cook my way through my recipe cards and cook books. This might take me the next 5 or 10 years, or maybe the rest of my life. Inspiration came from the movie "Julie & Julia". Where as she had one cookbook and one year to cook her way through the recipes, I've got about 10-12 various cookbooks and about 100-200 (or more) recipe cards. Like true Julie style from the movie, I'm going to try writing about each recipe I make. What I liked or didn't like about it; if I invited family or friends over to enjoy it with me. As I go along, I'm going to try posting a few recipes here and there. Maybe you can try some of them too.

Saddle Pictures

Here are some pictures of the saddle I received from my step dad. I still have yet to do anything with it. I can't afford to repair or fix it up, let alone have someone else do it. I need to the research to see what I could be able to do on my own. I know that it is already in bad shape, but I don't want to do more harm than good. If you have suggestions, I would be glad to hear them!