Texas Sheet Cake

 

(I used too much powdered sugar, so the icing is a little thick, yours will be lots smoother, I promise!)

Make the icing 5 minutes before taking the cake out of the oven, and spread it on the hot cake.

Southern Living JANUARY 2003

Yield: Makes 12 to 15 servings

Ingredients

2 cups sugar

2 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 cup butter or margarine

1/2 cup shortening

1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa

1 cup water

1/2 cup buttermilk

2 large eggs, lightly beaten

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon vanilla

Preparation

Sift together sugar and flour in a large bowl; set aside. Combine butter and next 3 ingredients in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly, until butter and shortening melt. Remove from heat, and pour over sugar mixture, stirring until dissolved. Cool slightly. Stir in buttermilk and next 3 ingredients. Pour into a greased and lightly floured 15- x 10-inch jellyroll pan. Bake at 400° for 20 minutes. (Cake will have a fudgelike texture.) Spread warm cake with Chocolate Icing.

Chocolate Icing
1/2 cup butter or margarine

1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa

1/3 cup milk

1 (16-ounce) package powdered sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 cup chopped pecans (optional)

Preparation

Combine butter, cocoa, and milk in medium saucepan. Cook over low heat 5 minutes or until margarine melts. Bring to a boil over medium heat. Remove from heat, and stir in sugar, vanilla, and pecans. Beat at medium speed with an electric mixer until smooth and sugar dissolves.

Crispy Chicken with Creamy Italian Sauce and Bowtie Pasta

Crispy Chicken with Creamy Italian Sauce and Bowtie Pasta

Yield: 6 servings

2-3 large chicken breasts

5 C corn flakes crushed finely
3/4 C flour
dash of red pepper
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 C milk
6 T olive oil
1 12 oz package bowtie noodles (farfalle)

Sauce:

1 10 oz container Philadelphia Cooking Cream (Italian Cheese and Herb Flavor)
1 can cream of chicken soup 
1 C chicken broth {I used a whole can because I can't stand to waste part of one}
1/2 C milk
fresh parsley, chopped (optional)

Flatten out your chicken with your meat tenderizer. Cut the chicken up in strips. Dredge in flour, dip in milk, and roll in corn flakes. Put in hot skillet and brown both sides after sprinkling just a tad of red pepper to add a kick to it. While chicken is cooking, begin to cook your noodles. After cooking all chicken, make your sauce. Mix everything together and let simmer for three minutes or so.

After everything is done, serve up with salad and green beans. 

This recipe was modified by Brittany, but you are welcome to check out the original recipe on my Pinterest board.

{Original Recipe via Brittany's Pinterest Board}

Hashbrown Casserole

This is one of my easy dishes I am able to whip up in no time. I remember making this for an impromptu birthday party this fall for my sister. I literally came home at lunch and whipped this up and dropped it off with her to take to my parents house to bake since she would be there earlier than I would after work. Here is my recipe and pictures of the final product. The Huntsville Friendship Club Cookbook is my favorite cook book ever. It has some amazing recipes from amazing ladies in my hometown. My mom even has some recipes in there since she was a part of the friendship club years ago.

Hashbrown Casserole (from the Huntsville Friendship Club Cookbook)

1-32 oz pkg hash browns, thawed

2 c cheddar cheese, grated

1 1/2 c sour cream

1 can mushroom soup

1/2 c chopped onion

1 tsp. salt

1 tsp. pepper

2 c crushed corn flakes

1 stick butter or margarine

Place hash browns in a buttered {I spray mine with pam} casserole dish. Combine cheese, sour cream, soup, onion, salt and pepper. Spread mixture on top of hash browns. Sprinkle corn flakes on top of sour cream mixture. Pour metled margarine over top of corn flakes. Bake at 350 degrees for one hour.

The trick to getting some finely chopped onions is my Pampered Chef Food Chopper. I hate chopping onions and this takes care of it in no time!

Hienes White Bean Soup

This is a soup my mom used to make and I love!

2 cups white beans
12 cups water
4 pieces of bacon
1 c each chopped onions, celery, carrots
2 cloves garlic crushed
2 bay leaves
1 cup mashed potatoes instant
1/2 c half & half or whipping cream

Add everything except mashed potatoes and cream. Cover and cook for two hours. Add salt and pepper, potatoes and cover. Simmer for one hour. Add cream and cook twenty more minutes. Add water if too thick. Enjoy!

Beef Bread Bowl Dip

I recently bought a Junior League cookbook "Add Another Place Setting" and in it they had a Beef Bread Bowl Dip and I tried it for my Premier Jewelry Party, and everyone ate it up.

Here is the recipe:
2 oz jar dried beef, chopped
8 oz cream cheese, softened
1 c sour cream
4 oz can chopped green chilies
2 c shredded sharp cheddar cheese
1 round loaf Hawaiian bread or sourdough bread

Combine the beef, cream cheese, sour cream, green chilies, and cheese in a bowl and mix well. Cut the top of the bread and reserve. Hollow out the bread to make a bowl, reserving the bread chunks. Spoon the beef mixture in the bread bowl and replace the top. Place on a baking sheet and bake at 325 degrees for one hour. Serve the reserved bread with the dip.

It was pretty easy to make up the night before and cover it in a bowl. The following day of the party, I threw it in the bread bowl and baked it!

I hope you enjoy it, and this is the cookbook it came from! If you don't have one, you should get one!

Spaghetti and Meatballs

I made the meatballs for my small group to have as an appetizer. They are pretty good to serve like this and sometimes I serve them with sliced french bread pieces. I make just the meatball portion of this recipe and grab a jar of my favorite canned sauce to serve over them. I have gotten lots of rave reviews (even though it is the quick and easy way to make them). I usually make them the night before, and drain the grease, and put them back in the serving dish, pour the sauce over them, and all I have to do is pop them back in the oven until they are warm and ready to serve.

It is well worth it to make the sauce for a dinner for a special someone!

Ingredients

• 1 pound spaghetti (or any other noodle you prefer)
• Salt, for pasta water

Meatballs:

• 1 1/4 pounds ground hamburger meat
• 2 teaspoons worcestershire, eyeball it
• 1 egg, beaten
• 1/2 cup italian breadcrumbs
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan (this has to be fresh for the best)
• 4 cloves garlic, chopped (we love garlic in this household)
• Salt and pepper

Sauce:

• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, 2 turns of the pan
• 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
• 6 cloves garlic, crushed or chopped
• 1 small onion, finely chopped
• 1 cup beef stock, available on soup aisle in market in small paper boxes
• 1 (28-ounce) can crushed tomatoes
• A handful chopped flat-leaf parsley
• A tablespoon of basil (you could also use fresh, but I rarely have it on hand)
• A tablespoon of sugar to sweeten the sauce

Directions

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.

Place a large pot of water on to boil for spaghetti. When it boils, add salt and pasta and cook to aldente.

Mix beef and Worcestershire, egg, bread crumbs, cheese, garlic, salt and pepper. Roll meat into 1 1/2 inch medium-sized meatballs and place on nonstick cookie sheet or a cookie sheet greased with extra-virgin olive oil. Bake balls 10 to 12 minutes, until no longer pink.

Heat a deep skillet or medium pot over moderate heat. Add oil, crushed pepper, garlic and finely chopped onion. Saute 5 to 7 minutes, until onion bits are soft. Add beef stock, crushed tomatoes, and herbs. Bring to a simmer and cook for about 10 minutes.

Toss hot, drained pasta with a few ladles of the sauce and grated cheese. Turn meatballs in remaining sauce. Place pasta on dinner plates and top with meatballs and sauce and extra grated cheese. Serve with bread or garlic bread. Enjoy!

Bacon Wrapped Jalapeno Appetizer

Why recreate the wheel when one of my favorite people have already done a fantastic job at it. I love to make these. I didn't get the recipe from her, I think someone at work gave it to me. It requires three ingredients and even the men can make them. Actually, the man of our house does make them because I have had bad experiences with fresh jalapenoes on my hand, so it is Denver's duty to make them. When we get together with friends, you can also count on my best friend, Tanner whipping up a batch (or three) since they are so easy! When asking him what he wanted for our small group fellowship, he said he could make these. For one, it is another easy thing to prep ahead of time, and they always go over well in a group, even the ones who say they don't like spicy things. The seeds come out and that is where the majority of the heat is at.

So I borrowed this post from the Pioneer Woman becuase she is fantastic, and I wouldn't ever take the time to take all the amazing pictures like she does. Enjoy!

Ingredients

• 20 whole Fresh Jalapenos, 2-3 Inches In Size
• 2 cubes Cream Cheese, softened
• 1 pound Thin(regular) Bacon, Sliced Into Thirds

Preparation Instructions

If you have them, slip on some latex gloves for the pepper prep… Cut jalapenos in half, length-wise. With a spoon, remove the seeds and white membrane (the source of the heat; leave a little if you like things HOT). Smear softened cream cheese into each jalapeno half. Wrap jalapeno with bacon pieces (1/3 slice). Secure by sticking toothpick through the middle.

Bake on a pan with a rack in a 375-degree oven for 20-25 minutes. You don’t want the bacon to shrink so much it starts to the squeeze the jalapeno. If, after 20 minutes, the bacon doesn’t look brown enough, just turn on the broiler for a couple of minutes to finish it off. These are best when the jalapeno still has a bit of bite to it.

Serve immediately, or they’re also great at room temperature.

You’ll love these so much, you’re gonna come out of your skin. Or something like that.