Makin' Waffles...Belgian Style

So on the Monday before Christmas the male cook in the household declared he wanted to make Belgian Waffles. It was an interesting change to our dinner menu.

I picked up some whipped cream and sliced strawberries to decorate our waffles, and, of course, what's a waffle without a little syrup and some sausage.

It was interesting to see how everyone presented their waffles.

Here is the Dad's plate:


Here is Dear Daughter enjoying her waffles...

Her plate....it was quite apalling:

Another shot:


and finally.....my plate:

Macaroni and Cheese

1 (8 oz) package elbow macaroni (sometimes I use Penne)
This measures out to be about 2 cups
2 cups milk
¼ cup all-purpose flour
1 t. onion salt
2 (10 oz) blocks shredded Cheddar cheese (4 ½ cups, divided)
1 cup soft bread crumbs
¼ cup butter/margine, melted

Cook macaroni according to package directions. Set aside.

Place milk, flour, and onion salt in a jar. Cover tightly and shake vigorously one minute.

Stir together flour mixture, 3 ½ cups cheese, and macaroni.

Pour macaroni mixture into lightly greased 13 x 9 inch dish. Sprinkle with breadcrumbs and remaining 1 cup cheese. Drizzle with melted butter.

Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes or until brown.

8 servings

Hash Brown Casserole

What great comfort food this casserole can be! It’s great for a holiday meal with family or it’s rather good for breakfast too.

Recently I made this dish for my family’s Easter Dinner.

1 cup onion, chopped
¼ lb. (1 stick) butter, melted
1 (8 oz.) sour cream
1 (8 oz.) sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
1 can Cream of Chicken soup, undiluted
1 (2 lb.) bag frozen hash brown potatos, thawed
½-1 cup Corn Flakes

Stir together onion, sour cream, cheese, butter, Cream of Chicken soup, Add hash browns. Mix well.

Top with Corn Flakes. I usually melt another two T. butter and drizzle over the Corn Flakes.

Bake at 350 degrees until bubbly around the edges and topping is brown.

8-12 servings

Dump Cake

This recipe brings back fond memories of my mother and some of the interesting things she would cook for us back in the 1970s. This was a popular recipe in my mother’s circle of friends, and it’s one of the first things she allowed me to try by myself.

I’m one of those cooks that always has to leave a little raw cake batter aside to savor later. While you don’t mix up the cake mix in this recipe I was in love with the taste of the butter as it mixed with the cake mix. Mother’s Dump Cake always ended up with holes in it because I would look for the sections that had the highest content of butter and cake mix.

Preheat over to 350 degrees. Use an oblong cake pan (13 x 9 x 2)---Do not grease. Each of the ingredients should be distributed evenly one on top of the other.

DO NOT MIX.

Pour 1 can crushed pineapple with juice into the pan. You can also use a can of cherry pie filling as seen in the image.

Sprinkle with 1 box dry yellow cake mix.

Slice 1 ½ sticks margarine and arrange evenly on top of cake mix.

Push 1 cup pecan pieces into mix almost covering nuts.

Bake 45 minutes or till golden brown.

Dump Cake is best served warm and is great served with ice cream!

Ham and Tomato Pie

I took this recipe from Southern Living (April, 2007). It really is a great way to use leftover ham after Easter, or any other time you have ham. While it would be real easy to use deli ham to make this dish the magazine states that since the moisture content is very high in deli ham it won’t work out right.

This is always a hit around here. I serve with a salad as you can see in the picture.

Unfortunately the salad overpowers the quiche in this picture. You can see it a little better below.

1 (8 oz.) pkg. sliced cooked ham
½ cup sliced green onions (about 4 onions)
1 (9-inch) frozen unbaked pie shell (you don’t have to thaw it beforehand)
1 T. Dijon mustard
1 cup (4 oz.) shredded Mozzerella cheese, divided
2 medium plum tomatoes, sliced
1 large egg
1/3 cup half-and-half
1 T. chopped fresh basil
1/8 t. pepper
Garnish with basil sprigs and tomato slices

Saute ham and green onion in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat for five minutes or until ham is brown and any liquid evaporates.

Brush bottom of pie shell evenly with mustard; spring with ½ cup mozzerella cheese. Spoon ham mixture evenly over the cheese, and top with single layer of sliced tomatoes.

Beat egg and half-and-half with a fork until blended; pour over tomatoes. Sprinkle evenly with basil, pepper, and remaining ½ cup cheese.

Bake on lowest oven rack at 425 degrees for 20-23 minutes or until lightly browned and set. Cool on a wire rack 20 minutes. Cut into wedges to serve; garnish, if desired.

Pink Stuff

I was introduced to this recipe by my mother-in-law when she served it for holiday family dinners….particularly Easter dinner. When I asked about the name of the recipe my husband’s mother couldn’t remember and had long ago thrown away the receipe, so I simply began to call it “The Pink Stuff”. I obtained the recipe from her and I generally prepare it for my Easter dinner as well. My kids rarely eat it, my husband might take one serving, so I’m usually left to clean it up. :)

Of course, low-fat versions of Cool Whip and buttermilk can be used and pineapple with no sugar added can be used as well if you are worried about calories.

1 large peach jello
1 (10 oz.) crushed pineapple
2 t. sugar

Boil these three ingredients together until sugar dissolves. I allow it to cool a bit.

Mix together in a separate bowl---
2 c. buttermilk
1 large Cool Whip
1 c. chopped pecans

Add the peach jello mixture to the Cool Whip mixture. Stir together well and pour into serving container.

Chill until set (usually overnight).

Parmesan Chicken

I prepared this chicken recipe for dinner one night. It was easy to prepare and I loved the fact that the ingredients were minimal. I served the chicken with buttered egg noodles and green peas.

A very basic meal.

4 small boneless skinless chicken breast halves (1 lb.)
¼ cup Kraft Light Zesty Italian Reduced Fat Dressing
¼ cup Kraft Grated Parmesan Cheese

Place all ingredients in a large resealable plastic bag; seal bag. Turn bag over several times to evenly coat chicken with remaining ingredients. Lay flat so chicken does not overlap.

Refrigerate chicken 30 minutes to marinate. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Remove chicken from marinade; discard bag and marinade. Arrange chicken on a foil-covered baking sheet. Bake chicken 20 minutes or until cooked through (165 degrees).

You can also freeze the uncooked chicken mixture up to 3 months. When you are ready to cook remove the chicken from the bag and place on a foil lined baking dish. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Bake the chicken 1 hour or until cooked through (165 degrees)

4 servings

Blackberry Dumpling Cobbler

This is basically an all purpose cobbler because you can use frozen peaches or cherries as well. This looks great served in a bowl with a dollop of whipped cream and a mint sprig.

2 (16 oz.) packages frozen blackberries
2 cups sugar, divided
¼ cup butter
3 (8 oz.) packages cream cheese, softened
2/3 cup milk
2 ¼ cups all-purpose baking mix
¾ cup uncooked oats

Bring blackberries, 1 1/3 cups sugar, and butter to a boil in a large saucepan over medium heat, stirring gently until butter is melted and sugar dissolves; remove blackberry mixture from heat.

Beat cream cheese and remaining 2/3 cup sugar at medium speed with an electric mixer until fluffy; add 2/3 cup milk, and beat until smooth. Stir in baking mix and uncooked oats.

Spread two-thirds of the cream cheese mixture (about 3 cups) onto bottom of a lightly greased 13 x 9 inch baking dish; spoon blackberry mixture evenly over cream cheese mixture.

Dollop remaining cream cheese mixture evenly over blackberry mixture.

Bake at 350 degrees for 35 minutes or until golden brown.

12 Servings

Chicken Pie

I made this Chicken Pie one afternoon before my son headed back to college. By the time he was gone there was very little of the casserole left. I served it with a green salad. It was all we needed since the recipe makes a nice cakelike crust.

3 cups cooked chopped chicken
1 (10 ¾ oz.) can mixed vegetables (carrots, peas, potatos),drained
1 (10 ¾ oz.) can cream of chicken soup, undiluted
1 ½ cups chicken broth
2 T. cornstarch
1 ½ cups self-rising flour
1 cup buttermilk
½ cup butter, melted

Place chopped chicken in a lightly greased 12 x 8 inch baking dish. Whisk together soup, drained vegetables, broth, and cornstarch; pour mixture evenly over chicken.

Whisk together flour, buttermilk, and butter; spoon batter evenly over chicken mixture.

Bake at 400 degrees for 40 minutes or until crust is golden brown.

8 servings

Baked French Toast Casserole with Maple Syrup

This is a recipe my husband snagged from Paula Deen when he was looking for something different to carry to the once-a-month breakfast our Sunday school department holds. Everyone brings a dish, we eat, visit, and have our Sunday School lesson together rather than breaking up into various groups.

I cooked this dish for the first time earlier this month when my husband and I hosted a group of teenagers from our church for a DNow weekend. There was just a small section of the casserole left as the girls headed off to worship at a nearby church and complete a service project.

Serve the casserole with some sausage links or patties on the side.

1 loaf French Bread (13 to 16 oz.)
8 large eggs
2 cups half-and-half
1 cup milk
2 T. granulated sugar
1 t. vanilla extract
1/4 t. ground cinnamon
1/4 t. ground nutmeg
dash salt
Praline Topping (recipe follows)
Maple Syrup

Slice French bread into 20 slices, 1-inch each. Arrange slices in a generously buttered 9 by 13-inch flat baking dish in 2 rows, overlapping the slices. In a large bowl, combine the eggs, half-and-half, milk, sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt and beat with a rotary beater or whisk until well blended but not too bubbly. Pour mixture over the bread slices, making sure all are covered evenly with the mik-egg mixture. Spoon some of the mixture in between the slices. Cover with foil and refrigerate overnight.

The next day, preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Spread Praline Topping over the bread and bake for 40 minutes, until puffed and lightly golden. Serve with maple syrup.

Praline Topping:

1/2 pound (2 sticks) butter
1 cup packed light brown sugar
1 cup chopped pecans
2 T. light corn syrup
1/2 t. ground cinnamon
1/2 t. ground nutmeg

Combine all ingredients in a medium bowl and blend well. Makes enough for Baked French Toast Casserole.

6-8 Servings

Sausage Cheese Muffins

Sausage Balls made with cheddar cheese, Bisquick, and sausage were always a staple around my house growing up especially during the Christmas season. These muffins are like having a huge sausage ball. They taste good and take less time than forming all of those little balls.

I tried this receipe for the first time when my daughter had a group over from church for the weekend.....six teenage girls and two adult leaders. Every muffin was gone in ten minutes!

1 (1-lb.) package ground pork sausage

3 cups all-purpose baking mix ( I used Bisquick)

1 1/2 cups (6 oz.) shredded Cheddar Cheese

1 (10 3/4-oz.) can condensed cheese soup

3/4 cup water

Cook sausage in a large skillet, stirring until it crumbles and is no longer pink. Drain and cool.

Combine sausage, baking mix, and shredded cheese in a large bowl; make a well in the center of mixture.

Stir together soup and 3/4 cup water; add to sausage mixture, stirring until dry ingredients are moistened.

Spoon into lightly greased muffin pans, filling to top of cups.

Bake at 375 degrees for 20-25 minutes or until lightly browned.

Makes 15 muffins