Texas Sheet Cake

We have a lot of family in town, so we end up at serveral different houses on Thanksgiving. Therefore, I don't end up cooking a big feast at my house, but usually make a side dish or dessert to take where we go. This year I made a Texas Sheet Cake to take for dessert at my parents house. It was yummy! Here's the recipe...


* 1 cup butter
* 1 cup water
* 1/4 cup cocoa
* 2 cups sugar
* 2 cups flour
* 1/8 teaspoon salt
* 2 eggs
* 1 teaspoon baking soda
* 1/2 cup sour cream
* 1 teaspoon vanilla
* Frosting, below
* chopped pecans

Frosting

* 1/2 cup butter
* 1/4 cup cocoa
* 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons milk
* 1 box (1 pound) confectioners' sugar, sifted (4 1/4 cups sifted)
* 1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Cake: Combine butter, water, and cocoa in saucepan over medium heat; heat until butter melts. Add sugar, flour, salt, eggs, soda, sour cream, and vanilla; mix well. Pour into a 15x10x1-inch jelly roll pan. Bake at 350° for 20 minutes. Spread frosting over hot cake and sprinkle with chopped pecans.

For frosting, combine butter, cocoa, and milk in a saucepan; bring to a boil. Add remaining ingredients and mix well with electric mixer. Spread over the hot sheet cake then sprinkle with chopped pecans.

Lovey's Mac-n-Cheese

Looking for an easy and super yummy mac-n-cheese. Well, here's the recipe for you. My mom has made this for years and it is a HUGE hit every time she makes it. It has pretty much become a staple for family functions. So here it is...

1 16 oz. box elbow macaroni cooked and drained
2 cans cream of mushroom
1c. mayonnaise
16oz. shredded cheddar

You can also add onions, pimentos and/or mushrooms for a more "grown up" version. But, we like it plain. I also like to add some shredded cheese to the top. In my book you can't have too much cheese.=)

Mix all ingredients. Poor in a 9x13 baking dish. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes. Voila! You are going to love it!=)

Lemon Bunt Cake

Here's a yummy treat if you're looking for something easy to make for company of just for you and your family.

1 box yellow cake mix
1 3.4oz lemon instant pudding
1/2c. sugar
3/4c. water
3/4c. oil
4 eggs
1c. sour cream

Mix dry ingredients. Add wet ingredients one at a time. Poor into a greased bunt pan.

Bake at 325 for 1 hour. Let cool for a few minutes. ENJOY!

Crock Pot Chicken

So...I have been intimidated for a long time to attempt cooking a WHOLE chicken. But, last week in talking with my Cousin, I discovered you can cook a whole chicken in the crock pot and it's super easy! So, today I attempted it and it turned out very well. Here's a super easy way to cook a chicken that everyone should try.

1 whole chicken (take out the insides)
your favorite dry rub ( I used Emeril's dry rub for chicken)
I also added some chopped, dried onion

Cover the chicken with dry rub, place in crock pot. Sprinkle dried onions on top. Cook on low for 8 hours.

And that's all there is to it. It was falling off the bone. I served it with some brown rice, green beans, fruit and rolls. Yummy!=)

Corn and Sausage Chowder

My sister in law Katie introduced me to this recipe. I couldn't find her exact recipe, but this is very similar to her recipe if not the same. It is a very hearty soup. We have been eating off of it all week. It is also a good soup to double the recipe with and share with company. Enjoy it as the cooler weather is rolling in!=)

1 lb. bulk pork sausage
1 c. onions, chopped
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. dried marjoram, crushed
1/8 tsp. pepper
2 c. water
2 (15 oz.) cans diced potatoes drained
1 (17 oz.) can cream style corn
1 (17 oz.) can whole kernel corn drained
1 (12 oz.) can evaporated milk

Brown sausage with onions, salt, pepper and marjoram. Add the rest of the ingredients and bring to a boil for about 15 minutes. Enjoy!=)

Layered Mexican Salad

This recipe goes very well with any Mexican dish you are serving. I first had this when I went on a scrap booking retreat back in the Spring with my cousin. I have since kind of just made up my own recipe and it changes each time I make it depending upon what I have in the pantry. So here's how I generally make it...

Salad:
1-2 bags Shredded lettuce
1 can Nibblet corn drained
1 can Ranch beans drained
1 or 2 Diced red pepper
1 can Diced olives drained
1c. Diced green onion
2 Avocados sliced
1 c. Shredded cheese
2 cups Fritos

Layer all ingredients in a bowl. The Fritos on top really make it so yummy! Then top it with the dressing below to give it the finishing touch.

Dressing:
Equal parts ranch dressing and salsa
I like to use the Naturally Fresh Lite Ranch and any salsa works fine.

Honey Lime Chicken Enchiladas

My good friend Julie made these yummy enchiladas for us a couple of weeks ago when we went to their house for dinner. I made them on Tuesday night and we enjoyed them yesterday as well. Here's the yummy recipe:

Honey Lime Chicken Enchiladas
from Brittany at The Sisters' Cafe

6 tablespoons honey
5 tablespoons lime juice (1 large lime)
1 tablespoons chili powder
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1 pound chicken, cooked and shredded (I used 3 small chicken breasts)
8-10 flour tortillas
1 pound monterey jack cheese, shredded
16 ounces green enchilada sauce
1 cup heavy cream (to lighten them up, I have substituted sour cream with good results)

Mix the first four ingredients and toss with shredded chicken. Let it marinate for at least 1/2 hour (I tossed mine together in a ziploc bag in the morning and let it sit in the refrigerator all day). Pour about 1/2 cup enchilada sauce on the bottom of a 9X13 baking pan. Fill flour tortillas with chicken and shredded cheese, saving about 1 cup of cheese to sprinkle on top of enchiladas. Mix the remaining enchilada sauce with the cream and leftover marinade. Pour sauce on top of the enchiladas and sprinkle with cheese. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes until brown and crispy on top.

What We've Been Munching On This Weekend...

Nuts and Bolts (my version) =)

8c. cheerios
8c.cheese its
8c. pretzels
2c. cashews
2c. pecans
4 sticks of butter
2T. worcestershire
2t. salt
2t. garlic salt

Mix together cheerios, cheese its, pretzels and nuts. Melt butter, worcestershire, salt and garlic salt together. Pour over other mixture. Cook in a big roasting pan @ 250 for 2 hours. Stir every 15 minutes. Let cool and store in an airtight container for a couple weeks(if you can make it last that long!!!) Enjoy =)

Here's What We Had For Dinner....

Trying to figure out what to make this weekend? Here's a yummy fall meal.

The Best Chili Ever!(this is a sweet chili not spicy)

1lb. ground beef browned and drained
1/2c. brown sugar
2T. mustard
1(14oz.)cans red kidney beans, drained
4c. tomato juice
1/2t. salt
1/4t. pepper
1T chili powder

Mix all ingredients in a slow cooker. Cook on low for 3-4 hours.

This recipe is yummy along with the chili...

Corn Casserole

1(16oz.)can of cream style corn
1(16oz.)can whole kernel corn drained
1c. sour cream
1 Box Jiffy corn bread mix
1 stick of butter melted

Combine all ingredients and pour into a greased 9x13 dish. Bake at 350 for 50-55 minutes or until center is firm.

Looking For a Yummy Treat??? Try these...

Candied Pecans

1/2c. granulated sugar
2t. cinnamon
1/2t. salt
1 egg white
4c. pecans

Combine sugar, cinnamon and salt in a bowl. Beat the egg white in separate bowl until foamy. Add pecans to egg white until well coated. Add sugar mixture and toss until well coated. Spread in a single layer on a cookie sheet. Bake at 325 for 20 minutes. Turning them over after the first 10 minutes. Turn over again once they are done baking. Let cool then enjoy. Makes a great gift also!=)

Today's Experiment...

Broccoli cheese soup in the crock pot. I tried it for the first time today and needless to say am going to play with it a little before I post the recipe. But, rest assured I will tweak it until I get it right and then I will share it with you!=)
But, no fears, I did cook something yummy today! What? You ask... Chocolate Chip Cookie Brittle and the recipe follows:

Chocolate Chip Cookie Brittle

2 sticks of butter melted
1 c. sugar
1 1/2t. vanilla extract
1t. salt
2c. all-purpose flour
1c. plain m&m's
1c. semisweet choc. chips

Beat butter, sugar, vanilla and salt in a mixing bowl. Gradually add flour. Stir in m&m's and chocolate chips. Press onto a pizza pan or cookie sheet. Bake at 375 for 20-25 minutes until golden brown and set. Cool in pan. Break into pieces like peanut brittle and enjoy!=)

Tater Tot Casserole

1 lb. ground beef browned and drained
1 bag of frozen tater tots
1 can cream of mushroom
1 can cream of chicken
1 can evaporated milk
1-2 c. of shredded cheese

Poor the ground beef on the bottom of a 9x13 pan. Poor frozen tater tots on top. Mix the soups and milk together and poor on top of the tater tots. Cook at 350 for 50 minutes. Pull it out and put the cheese on top and bake for another 10 minutes.

Double Choclate Banana Bread

This is my no fail banana bread recipe that I added some cocoa and chocolate chips to to spice it up a little.

Banana Bread:
2 eggs
1 stick of butter softened
1 T. vanilla extract
1 c. sugar
1 1/2 c. flour
1t. baking soda
1/2t. salt
3 ripe bananas mashed

To Make it Double Chocolate Banana Bread add:

1/2c. unsweetened baking cocoa
1 c. semisweet chocolate chips

Mix all ingredients. Grease a loaf pan. Bake at 350 for 1 hour.

A blog Makeover

So, it has been suggested by several people that I start a blog with my recipes on it. So I am going to use my old blog to do just that and if you're lucky you may get a few family photos once in a while.=)

I've Gotten Behind...

So I'm just posting some pics to catch everyone up on our lives.=)

They Are Growing Up!!!

I know it has been too long...BUT...here are few of the latest pics I have taken of the girls around the house.=)

Hannah Is a Big Girl

Hannah is eating "solid" foods now. She is doing such a good job and is a little piggy.=)

I think she likes it!=)

Haley's First Haircut

Mommy decided it was time for Haley to have a haircut. It was a little tricky, but we managed to get it done. It turned out really cute and it is much easier for Mommy to manage. The finished product.

The cut in process.

How long it was before we cut it off.

Mommies Helper

I have been letting Haley help me do a little baking. She loves to help...for now.=) If you look closely you can see our new purple kitchen also.=)

Happy Hannah

Hannah is growing so fast. She is 3 and a half months old now! She is such a sweet baby and so much fun.=)