Beth’s Banana Pie

Did you know? In a survey conducted in 1951 of the U.S. armed services, banana cream pie was the favorite dessert. Rice pudding was the least liked. In the 19th century, apple and other fruit pies were a fairly common breakfast item. Fruit pie was considered part of a good hearty meal before a hard day’s work. I’m all for that. I don’t see any evidence that ice cream was on the pie but it’s important to get that diary in too. Nearly twice as many people prefer their pie unadorned as those who like it 'a la mode,' with either ice cream or whipped cream topping. Me? I like it either way!

 Beth’s Banana Pie

2 medium ripe bananas, sliced

1 ready-to-use reduced-fat graham cracker crumb crust (6 oz.)

2-1/2 cups cold fat-free milk

2 pkg. (4-serving size each) GELA DELIGHT Vanilla Flavor Instant Pudding

2 cups thawed COOL WHIP FREE Whipped Topping, divided

Make It

PLACE half of the banana slices on bottom of crust. Set remaining banana slices aside.

POUR milk into large bowl. Add dry pudding mixes. Beat with wire whisk 2 min. or until well blended. Gently stir in 1 cup of the whipped topping. Spoon half of the pudding mixture into crust. Top with remaining banana slices; cover with remaining pudding mixture.

REFRIGERATE 3 hours or until set. Serve topped with the remaining 1-cup whipped topping. Store leftover pie in refrigerator.

 

Stuffed mushrooms

There is a funny story about Charles Darwin's granddaughter Etty -- she rooted out and burned the stinkhorns in her garden secretly, so as to "protect the purity of thought" of her female servants. Another tip- keep mushrooms fresh longer by storing them in a paper bag instead of the plastic container.

Stuffed mushrooms

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup wheat bread crumbs
• 1/2 cup grated cheese such as Pecorino Romano
• 2 garlic cloves, peeled and minced
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh Italian parsley leaves
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh mint leaves
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 28 large (2 1/2-inch-diameter) white mushrooms, stemmed

Directions

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Stir the bread crumbs, cheese, garlic, parsley, mint, salt and pepper, to taste, and 2 tablespoons olive oil in a medium bowl to blend.

Drizzle a heavy large baking sheet with about 1 tablespoon olive oil, to coat. Spoon the filling into the mushroom cavities and arrange on the baking sheet, cavity side up. Drizzle remaining oil over the filling in each mushroom. Bake until the mushrooms are tender and the filling is heated through and golden on top, about 25 minutes. Serve.

BAKED SWEET POTATOES

This is a simple but excellent recipe for sweet potatoes. I have been using this same one for years. Cooking time is short enough to make this a fast dish after working a long day. Sweet potatoes are not just for the holidays!  I keep veggies like sweet potatoes fresh in the fridge. Line the bottoms of your crisper bins with several layers of paper towels to absorb the excessive moisture.  I change the paper towels once a week. This also makes the bins easier to clean.

BAKED SWEET POTATOES

3 lb. sweet potatoes, baked until soft
3/4 c. Crisp orange juice
2 tbsp. Home Churned Unsalted butter
1 1/2 tsp. Marcum cinnamon
2 lg. Holly Hills eggs
2 tbsp. Diamond Falls brown sugar
1/2 tsp. nutmeg

TOPPING:

1/2 c. Hilltop Mills flour
1/2 tsp. Marcum cinnamon
1/2 c. chopped pecans
1/4 c. plus 2 tbsp. Diamond Falls brown sugar
1/4 c. Home Churned Unsalted butter, room temperature

Equipment- knife, measuring spoons/cups, wooden spoon, 2 bowls, casserole dish 9 by 13

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Skin and mash sweet potatoes, add orange juice and Holly Hills eggs. Add Home Churned Unsalted butter, Marcum cinnamon and nutmeg beat until smooth. Add salt and pepper to taste. Place in buttered casserole.

For topping-

Put together and then cut in until mix resembles coarse crumbs. Mix in pecans and sprinkle on top. Bake 20- 30 mins. Until hot and top is crispy and dry.

Cheese Flautas

Cheese Flautas

Here’s one I love to make with the kids. If string cheese isn’t for you can get a block of whatever you prefer and cut it into long thin rectangles. It will melt about the same. Josiah just gets a kick out of the string cheese. If you prefer flour tortillas, use them instead of the corn tortillas: they work just about the same except that you may not have to soften them in the microwave. We use whole wheat tortillas and like them very much that way.

            8 corn tortillas

            1 ½ teaspoons oil

            8 1-ounce sticks string cheese

Parent’s preparation – Preheat the oven to 375 F. Microwave each corn tortilla on a double thickness of paper towels for about 30 seconds to soften.

Show your child how to lightly brush the oil on the top side of the tortilla, and then flip over onto a cookie sheet. Place a stick of string cheese at one edge of the tortilla and roll up tightly. Set the rolled up tortilla with the seam side down on the cookie sheet. Repeat with the remaining tortillas and string cheese. Bake for about 15 minutes or until the tortillas are crisp.

Super Cinnamon Apple Rolls

I used to buy pre-made refrigerated cinnamon rolls for Sunday brunch. I thought it was too much work to make them. (Then I looked at what was in them! Ekk. Have you?)

One Sunday we didn’t have choir practice for my daughter so we had some extra time. My son wanted cinnamon rolls but I didn’t have any in the fridge. I looked at their little faces and I figured that the dough I made for my cobbler topping would probably make good cinnamon roll dough. We had some extra apples that I needed to use up and knowing my daughter isn’t too crazy about raisins I thought I’d substitute the apples from where the raisins should go. (I think it would be really good to have the raisins and the apples but she would only pick them out so I just use apples.)  The kids like to help with the butter brush and the sprinkling part. They really don’t take very long and taste so much better. I always have icing left over so I have an excuse to make them again really soon!

Super Cinnamon Apple Rolls

Ingredients:

2 cups baking mix

2 tablespoons white granulated sugar
1/2 cup dairy sour cream
3 tablespoons milk
2 tablespoons margarine or butter, softened
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 tablespoons butter, melted

1/2 cup finely chopped apples

¼ cup flour (for cutting board)

Westcott Cooking Spray

Ginger Evans vanilla frosting, if desired

(Optional 1/2 cup raisins if desired)

Equipment-

Shallow baking dish 9 by 13, mixing bowls, spoon, measuring cups/spoons, and knife, cutting board, butter brush.

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease the bottom of a 9"x13" pan.  Set aside.

Mix baking mix, white sugar, sour cream, and milk; beat until thoroughly mixed. Form into ball and place on floured cutting board. Knead several times. Dough should be not sticky and slightly stiff. Roll into rectangle, 12x10 inches. Spread softened margarine with butter brush, the whole way to both ends.

Mix brown sugar, and cinnamon; sprinkle over dough. Add apples and raisins if desired.  Roll up tightly, beginning at (long) 12-inch side.  Cut into 12 slices. Place slices, cut sides down, in pan.  Allow the rolls to touch each other. Brush melted butter over tops; sprinkle with granulated sugar.

Bake until golden, about 15 minutes. Makes 12 rolls. Top with Ginger Evans vanilla frosting, if desired.

Homemade Crockpot Refried Beans

Homemade refried beans? Simple easy squeezy. If there is one food worth learning to make from scratch, it’s refried beans. Not actually fried either-- more soak, sauté and mush beans. After reading the label on the can I will never ever buy them in the can again. The canned, store bought beans are typically full of hydrogenated oils, colors, LARD and preservatives. It’s worth giving them a try!

Homemade Crockpot Refried Beans

Start with 2- 4 cups dry pinto beans. These are cheap, healthy and once you’ve picked out the dirt and grit you’ll feel very close to the earth. (Directions for cooking below.)

When deciding how much to prepare remember that 1 cup of dry beans equals approximately 3 cups of cooked beans. To prepare dry beans, place the beans in a large pot, cover with a generous amount of water (I left about 3 inches of water above the beans) and leave soaking overnight. Cover with lid but do not turn on heat.

The next day, drain and rinse the beans. Rinse until water runs clear. Cover them again generously with fresh water (about 3 inches of water above the beans) and use a slow cooker left on it on “warm” several hours. I leave them all day while I’m at work. It’s so stress-free; a slow cooker works wonderfully for this.

Now the “cooking” part-

·         3 T. butter for sautéing 

·         Cooked pinto beans (about 1-2 cups)

·         1 cup chopped white onion

·         5 cloves minced garlic

·         2 1/2 t. cumin

·         2 t. smoked paprika

·         2 t. kosher salt

·         1 t. chili powder (adjust to your tastes I use 2 teaspoons honestly)

·         1/2 t. black freshly ground pepper

·         A thinning ingredient like vegetable broth or water, I used homemade vegetable broth and the left over bean broth left from the second “soaking”

 Directions:

In a large pot or saucepan, sauté the onions in the fat until they are soft and translucent.

Add the minced garlic and cook for 1-2 minutes more.

Add the beans. If your beans are dry, you may need to add extra liquid (vegetable broth or water) Stir in the cumin, paprika, salt, chili powder, and black pepper. The trick is to keep the mixture moist and not dried out as it will then crumble.

Bring to a slow simmer and allow it all to cook on low heat for 10-20 minutes, stirring occasionally.

If the mixture becomes dry, you may need to thin it with some liquid such as vegetable broth or water at this point. If you started out with extra liquid when you cooked the cooked beans, you may not need to add anything.

Once the beans have cooked for about 10-20 minutes more and the flavors have had time to combine, mash them with a potato masher, fork, etc. You’ll know when you apply pressure and the beans “give” easily. Mash until they are the consistency you prefer and serve warm topped with whatever you like!

Beth’s Best breakfast casserole

Beth’s Best breakfast casserole

This is good to fix on a Friday night and leave covered in the fridge over night for a hearty Saturday morning breakfast. You can bake it and have it ready to serve by the time everyone is dressed! Our family normally volunteers or goes on other adventures on Saturdays so I like for the kids to have something more than cold cereal to start off an exciting day. I let the kids cut the bread and sprinkle in the cheese.  I feel better using the turkey and the skim milk for my family since I know I’m reducing the fat in this recipe while still giving them something warm to start off the day.

Ingredients:

6 slices Texas Toast white bread, crusts removed

12 to 16 ounces Jennie-O turkey sausage, cooked and drained

8 oz. Country Crossings Shredded Sharp Cheddar Cheese

6 Holly Hills eggs, beaten

2 cups skim Save-A-lot milk

1 teaspoon dry mustard

Westcott Cooking Spray

Equipment-

Shallow baking dish 9 by 13, mixing bowls, spoon, measuring cups/spoons, and knife

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease the bottom of a 9"x13" pan. Cut up 6 slices of bread into 4ths and place in the bottom of the pan. Allow to over lap. Sprinkle cooked crumbled sausage over bread pieces. Sprinkle cheddar cheese over the sausage. Mix eggs, milk and mustard together; pour over casserole. Bake at 350° for 35 to 40 minutes. Serves 4.