Thursday, March 17, 2016

Miss Cindy's Homemade Meatloaf Seasoning

Miss Cindy's Homemade Meatloaf Seasoning

Miss Cindy's Homemade Meatloaf Seasoning

Ingredients: (enough for 2 lbs. ground beef)
2 tsp. paprika
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. dried thyme
1 tsp. dried basil
1 tsp. black pepper
2 tsp. garlic powder
2 tsp. onion powder
Instructions:
Combine all the ingredients in a small bowl. Set aside.
Ingredients for the meatloaf:
2 lbs. ground beef
2 eggs, slightly beaten
1 cup oats
1 cup ketchup or tomato sauce
meatloaf seasoning
1 small onion, chopped
1 small bell pepper, chopped
Instructions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place ground beef, eggs, oats, ketchup, meatloaf seasoning, peppers and onions in a large bowl. Mix well with clean hands. Form into a loaf. Place in a baking pan and bake for 1 hour. Remove from oven, and spread ketchup all over the top and bake an additional 15 minutes.

Wednesday, March 16, 2016

Mini Pineapple Upside down cakes

Mini Pineapple Upside Down Cakes

These are so amazing! I was a bit worried that these would fall apart after removing them from the muffin pans...but they came right out and looked beautiful! The pineapple, buttery brown sugar with cherries....and in cute little individual cakes! Your family will LOVE these!

Pineapple Upside Down Cupcakes

Ingredients:
2 cans (20 oz) sliced pineapple, drained (reserve 1 cup of the juice)
1 box yellow cake mix ( I used Betty Crocker Super Moist)
1/2 cup vegetable oil
3 eggs
1/3 cup melted butter
2/3 cup brown sugar
12 maraschino cherries, halved
Instructions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray 24 regular-sized muffin pans with cooking spray.
Cut each pineapple slice into 4 even pieces. Set aside. In a large bowl, beat cake mix, oil, eggs, and reserved pineapple juice with electric mixer on low speed 30 seconds. Beat on medium speed 2 minutes, scraping bowl occasionally.
In a small bowl, stir together melted butter and brown sugar. Spoon 1 1/2 teaspoons brown sugar mixture into each of the muffin cups. Spread evenly.
Top each with 3 pineapple pieces. (depending on the size of muffin pans)
Place half a cherry, cut side up, in the center of pineapple pieces.
Spoon 1/4 cup batter into each cup. Bake 20 to 25 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 5 minutes.
Run knife around edge of cupcakes to loosen. Turn over onto cookie sheet. Serve warm.

Tuesday, March 15, 2016

Miss Cindy's Chicken Cordon Bleu

Miss Cindy's Chicken Cordon Bleu
"Cordon Bleu" is a French term, meaning "blue ribbon" which originally referred to an award for culinary excellence! This is one of my favorites. I've been making this for years and my family loves it! Ham and Swiss cheese rolled up in a pounded chicken breast, dredged in bread crumbs and baked. So delicious!
Start by placing plastic wrap or waxed paper over the chicken breast and pound them til they are about 1/4 thick.
Dip the breasts in 1/4 cup chicken broth, 2 tablespoons melted butter and 1 garlic clove minced.
Shake off excess and place a slice of Swiss cheese on top of chicken.
place a slice of ham on top of cheese and chicken.
roll up the breast jelly-roll fashioned then dredge in bread crumbs.
Place chicken in a greased baking dish, salt and pepper to taste. Sprinkle a little paprika on the top and bake for 45 minutes in a 350 degree oven.
Serve with a Hollandaise sauce. (I love the Knorr packaged sauces, you'll find them in the packaged gravy section of the grocery store.) I'm not brave enough yet to make a homemade Hollandaise sauce! Someday I'll try when I get a food processor!
It's such a nice presentation!

Chicken Cordon Bleu

Ingredients:
1/4 cup chicken broth
2 tablespoons butter, melted
1 garlic clove, minced
1/2 cup dried breadcrumbs
paprika
salt
pepper
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
4 slices ham (I used black forest ham from the deli)
4 slices Swiss cheese
cooking spray
Instructions:
Place broth in a small microwave-safe bowl and microwave on high for 15 or 20 seconds, or until warm. Stir in garlic and butter. Pour bread crumbs on a plate or shallow bowl. Set aside.
Place each chicken breast between 2 sheets of waxed paper or plastic wrap and pound each to 1/4 inch thickness using a meat mallet or rolling pin. Dip each breast into butter/broth mixture, then top each breast with 1 slice of cheese then 1 slice of ham. Roll up each breast jelly-roll fashion. Place rolls, seam side down in baking dish coated with cooking spray. Sprinkle with salt, pepper and paprika. Pour remaining broth/butter over chicken. Bake at 350 degrees for about 40-45 minutes or until juices run clear and tops are golden. Serve with Knorr Hollandaise Sauce if desired.
 50 

Monday, March 14, 2016

Guinness Irish Beef Stew

Guinness Irish Beef Stew
Here's a perfect stew to prepare for all of your St. Patrick's Day festivities! SO GOOD!!! Traditional Irish stew as any Irish person will tell you, lamb is the preferred meat for a good for a good Irish stew... But here in the states we eat a lot more beef than lamb, so when we want to make a stew to celebrate all things Irish, its usually done with beef. This stew has all of the classic trimmings of a good stew meat, stock, plenty of root vegetables with the addition of some Guinness extra stout, for its malty flavor and some Irish authenticity.
I started out by chopping beef up into bite sized pieces. Making sure to cut off some of the fat.
Brown the beef in a little bit of olive oil. Season beef with salt, pepper.
After the meat is browned, add garlic and onion. Cook until onion is tender.
Add 2 cups of beef broth and 1 cup of Guinness extra Stout, Worcestershire sauce, bay leaves, brown sugar, thyme, paprika and a dash of ground cloves (or allspice)
Cover and simmer the beef mixture cook for about 45 minutes. Remove bay leaves. Add celery.
Add chopped carrots and chopped potatoes.
Cover and cook about 45 minutes more. If the mixture is too thin, remove the lid and cook for a few more minutes until liquid is reduced. (Don't mind my dirty stove top, I'm just a messy cook!)
Guinness Irish Stew
Ingredients:
2 lbs. stew meat
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
2 teaspoons dried thyme
1 medium onion, coarsely chopped
1 clove of garlic, minced
2 cups beef broth
1 cup Guinness extra stout
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 or 2 bay leaves
1/2 teaspoon brown sugar
dash of ground cloves or allspice
3 large carrots, sliced
3 ribs celery, chopped
2 large potatoes, peeled and chopped into bite sized pieces
Instructions:
Heat oil in a large skillet or dutch oven. Season beef with salt, pepper. Brown meat in hot oil. After meat has browned, add garlic and onion, cook until onion is tender. Add beef broth, Guinness extra stout, Worcestershire sauce, bay leaves, brown sugar, paprika, thyme and ground cloves. Cover and cook on low heat for 45 minutes. Remove bay leaves. Add celery, carrots and potatoes. Cover and cook for 45 minutes longer. If you desire the sauce to be thicker, take lid off and cook for another 10-15 minutes or until desired consistency.

Thursday, March 10, 2016

Reuben Crescent Bake

Reuben Crescent Bake

This is one of my all time favorite...this recipe is so wonderful because of the crescent roll dough, it's makes it so delicious because of the light flaky crust!
I ADORE Reuben sandwiches...it's my all time favorite...this recipe is so wonderful because of the crescent roll dough, it's makes it so delicious because of the light flaky crust!
First unroll 1 tube of (8 oz) refrigerated crescent dough into one long rectangle, sealing seams and perforations.


Press onto the bottom of a lightly greased 13x9 inch baking dish. Use a fork to pierce dough. Bake at 375 for 10-15 minutes until a golden brown.

Layer with half the cheese and all of corned beef.
Combine 1 can (14 oz) sauerkraut and 2/3 cup of Thousand Island salad dressing

Spread the mixture over the corned beef
Top with remaining cheese

On a lightly floured surface, roll out the other tube of crescent dough into a 13x9 inch rectangle.
Seal seams and perforations. Place over the cheese and seal the edges together.
Brush the top with lighty beaten egg white. Sprinkle with about 3 teaspoons caraway seeds.

Bake 12-16 minutes or until heated through and the crust is golden brown.
Let is stand about 5 minutes before serving.
Serve with a side salad. It's so delicious!
I hope you enjoy this as much as my family did!

Reuben Crescent Bake

2 tubes (8 oz) refrigerated crescent rolls
1 lb sliced swiss cheese
1 1/4 lbs. sliced deli corned beef
1 can (14 oz) sauerkraut, rinsed and drained well
2/3 cup Thousand Island salad dressing
1 egg white, lightly beated
3 teaspoons caraway seeds
Directions:
Unroll one tube of crescent dough into one long rectangle, seal seams and perforations. Press into a lightly greased 13x9 inch baking dish. Use a fork to poke small holes into botton of dough. Bake at 375 degrees for 8-10 minutes until crust is a nice golden brown.
Layer with half of the cheese and all of the corned beef. Combine sauerkraut and Thousand Island dressing, spead over beef. Top with remaining cheese. On a lightly floured surface, press or roll second tube of crescent dough into a 13x9 inch rectangle, sealing seams and perforations. Place over cheese, sealing edges and sides. Brush egg white over the top and sprinkle caraway seeds. Bake for 12-16 minutes, or until heated through and crust is golden brown. Let it stand for 5 minutes before cutting.
Makes 8 servings.
 

Wednesday, March 9, 2016

Broccoli Salad

Broccoli Salad

Broccoli Salad

Ingredients:
8 slices bacon
2 heads fresh broccoli, chopped
1 1/2 cups sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
1/2 large red onion, chopped
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1/8 cup sugar
2 teaspoons fresh ground pepper
1 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup mayonnaise
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
Instructions: Place bacon in a large skillet and cook over medium heat until evenly brown. Drain, and crumble.
In a large bowl, combine broccoli, cheese, bacon and onion.
Prepare the dressing in a small bowl by whisking together the red wine vinegar, sugar, pepper, salt, mayonnaise and lemon juice. Combine dressing with salad. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.
 

Miss Cindy's Corned Beef and Cabbage

Miss Cindy's Corned Beef And Cabbage

Miss Cindy's Corned Beef And Cabbage

INGREDIENTS:
1 corned beef brisket with spice packet (they are usually inside the package)
1 small head of cabbage, coarsely chopped
1 lb. new potatoes or red potatoes, quartered
12 oz. baby carrots
1 onion, coarsely chopped
4 cups water
2 tablespoons minced garlic
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon pepper
INSTRUCTIONS:
Pour water into a slow cooker. Add garlic, vinegar, sugar and pepper. Stir. Add onions and carrots. Place the corned beef brisket on top of vegetables. Sprinkle the spices from the packet over the top of brisket. Cover and cook on high for 7 hours. Add chopped cabbage. Cook another hour.
When it's done, remove and slice against the grain and serve with vegetables.
YUM!!!!!!