Banana Pudding

Let me be perfectly honest, I've never been a big banana pudding fan. I like it okay, but it's not my go to dessert. However, I have a dear friend that makes the world's BEST banana pudding. I really can't get enough of it! So, I finally asked her for her recipe and she kindly obliged. I thought I'd share it with y'all because seriously, you've not had banana pudding until you try this!

Ingredients:

1 1/2 c. sugar
3 TBSP corn starch
1 small can pet milk
2 c milk
4 eggs, separated
dash salt
1/2 stick oleo
1 tsp. vanilla
Bananas
Vanilla wafers

Directions:

Mix dry ingredients. Mix eggs and milks. Mix into dry ingredients and cook on medium heat until thick. Add 1/2 stick oleo and 1 tsp. vanilla. Put some of the wafers in the bottom of the dish, add pudding and bananas. Put rest of cookies on top. Keep refrigerated until ready to serve.

Recipe Credit: Erma Hendrix~Holub Crossing, AR

Cheesburger Pie

This is one of my all-time favorite suppers! It is so easy to make and super delicious :) I don't have a pic, because I haven't made it in a while...I might need to remedy that soon! Anywho, here's the recipe for my super easy Cheeseburger Pie:

Ingredients:

1 lb. ground beef (I use ground turkey)
1 1/2 c. chopped onion
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
1 1/2 c. milk
3/4 c. Bisquick baking mix (DO NOT SUBSTITUTE)
3 eggs
2 tomatoes, sliced
1 c. grated Cheddar Cheese

Directions:

Heat oven to 400F. Grease pie plate. Brown beef and onion. Drain. Stir in salt and pepper. Spread in plate. Beat milk, baking mix, and egg until smooth (15 seconds in a blender on high or 1 minute with a hand mixer). Pour into pie plate. Bake 25 minutes. Top with tomatoes and sprinkle with cheese. Bake an additional 5 to 8 minutes. Cool for 5 minutes.

Makes 6 to 8 servings

Cowboy Cookies (a.k.a. THE Potty Training Incentive!)

So, my youngest is now in full potty training mode. I decided I needed a good potty training incentive to help her along. Since she is my little cookie monster, I figured I'd go with one of my favorite cookie recipes to encourage her in her endeavors ;) Without further ado, here's the recipe for my Cowboy Cookies!

Ingredients:

1 c. shortening
3/4 c. brown sugar
3/4 c. granulated sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla (I prefer maple extract)
2 c. self-rising flour
1 1/2 c. quick cooking oatmeal
1/2 c. chopped nuts (I use pecans)
6 oz. chocolate chips
1 c. raisins

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350F. Cream shortening and add sugars. Beat well. Add eggs one at a time, mixing well after each. Add vanilla. Stir to blend well. Add flour a little at a time. Mix to blend thoroughly. Last, stir in oatmeal, nuts, chocolate chips, and raisins. Mix well. Drop by teaspoonfuls on cookie sheet and bake for 13 to 15 minutes. 
BONUS: This dough freezes really well. Simply roll leftover dough into a log and wrap with plastic wrap. If your going to be freezing it for more than a couple of days, put the wrapped log into a freezer bag. When ready to bake, simply unwrap, slice off cookies, and bake.

Makes 4 dozen large cookies.

Crock-Pot Chili

This super easy chili recipe is so good on a cold day. We've been battling icy weather here in Arkansas (thankfully the power has stayed on), so I figured today would be a great day to make this. Enjoy!



Ingredients:
1 lb. ground beef (or ground turkey)
2 cans chili beans (undrained)
1 can diced tomatoes (I prefer the petit diced)
1 batch seasoning mix:

• 1 tsp. paprika
• 2 tsp. ground cumin
• 1 tsp. cayenne pepper
• 1 tsp. oregano
• 2 tsp. garlic powder (I use minced garlic)

Place uncooked beef in the bottom of crock-pot. Sprinkle on half of seasoning mix. Stir. Add in beans and tomatoes. Sprinkle on remaining half on seasoning mix. Stir. Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours or high for 4-6 hours. Makes 4-6 servings. This recipe can easily be doubled to serve more. 

You can easily add any other ingredients you may enjoy. Also, resist the urge to "check" on the chili while it's cooking. Every time you open that lid all the steam escapes and it adds to your cooking time. Let it do it's business while you do yours. I'll add a picture when mine finishes cooking!

Easy Recipe Conversion

I found this little gem on facebook. I couldn't find the original post to link to, so I'll just post the picture here:

Chocolate Dumplins

So, this is a recipe that I created out of necessity. We were having a fellowship dinner at church and I had half of the ingredients for apple dumplins and half the ingredients for chocolate/peanut butter rolls. I figure, two halves make a whole so why not go for it! It must have been good, because I came home with an empty dish :)

Ingredients:
1 stick butter
1 cup sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
1 bag chocolate chips
1 can crescent rolls
powdered sugar or chocolate syrup (for topping)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 375°. Unroll crescent roll dough into 8 triangles. Fill each triangle with 1 TBSP chocolate chips. Roll up and pinch ends shut so chips don't fall out. Place in a 13x9 baking dish. In a saucepan combine sugar and butter on medium heat. When butter is melted, add vanilla. Pour mixture over dumplins. Bake for 12-15 minutes or until brown. Top with powdered sugar or chocolate syrup.


Tips: I used 1 and a half tubes of crescent rolls to make sure I had enough for everyone. I used Ghiradelli chocolate chips

Super Easy Stew

So our lovely Arkansas Weather has decided to through us a curve ball and revert to winter in May. Since it's freezing outside I had to decide what warm meal to make for supper. I decided on stew. I used to hate making stew because it was so labor intensive. However, I have found a way to make stew that is virtually effortless.

Ingredients:
Stew meat
flour
14 oz. can of diced tomatoes (undrained)
2 c. water
4 medium sized red potatoes
1 lb. bag baby carrots
1 onion (optional)

Directions:
Wash and dice potatoes. Place in bottom of crock pot. Coat stew meat in flour. Place on top of potatoes. Cover in carrots. Add onions if desired. Pour tomatoes over all and add 2 c. water. Cover and cook on low 7-8 hours or until meat and potatoes are tender.

This is a fantastic meal for cold days. Enjoy :)