Carla's Kitchen

Rochelle's Cabbage Soup

2010-11-17T15:04:00.000-08:00

The first time I ate this soup was at the family beach house 15 years ago. It is the perfect soup for those cold days. Jason's grandma usually makes a double batch because she says it tastes even better the second day.

Ingredients:

1# ground beef

2 Tbs. butter

1 small onion (or to taste)

1/2 stalk celery (diced)

1 can stewed tomatoes

2 C. water

1 can kidney beans

1 tsp. ea. salt, pepper, chili powder (or to taste) we like a lot of chili pdr.

1/2 head cabbage (shredded)

Brown meat (drain grease), add butter (this is optional too), saute, add other ingredients and cook 1/2 hour, then add cabbage, cook until done.

Lion House Banana Bread

2010-09-21T18:17:00.000-07:00

Lion House Banana Bread

½ cup margarine (I use butter)
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 cup bananas, mashed
1/4 cup milk
1 tsp lemon juice
2 cups flour
1 ½ tsp baking powder
½ tsp baking soda
¼ tsp salt
½ cup chopped nuts, optional ( I never use )

Cream sugar and margarine. Beat in eggs one at a time. Add bananas, milk, and lemon juice. Sift dry ingredients and add to wet mixture. Add nuts. Grease 1 loaf pan. Pour mix into pan and bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour.

Chocolate Covered OREO Cookie Cake

2010-06-07T08:56:00.000-07:00

Thanks Heidi for introducing me to this delicious thing!

Ingredients:

1 pkg. (2-layer size) devil's food chocolate cake mix

4 squares BAKER'S Semi-Sweet Chocolate

1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter

1 pkg. (8 oz.) PHILADELPHIA Cream Cheese, softened

1/2 cup sugar

2 cups thawed COOL WHIP Whipped Topping

12 OREO Cookies, coarsely crushed

Directions:

HEAT oven to 350ºF.

PREPARE cake batter and bake in 2 (9-inch) round pans as directed on package. Cool cakes in pans 10 min. Invert cakes onto wire racks; gently remove pans. Cool cakes completely.

MICROWAVE chocolate and butter in small microwaveable bowl on HIGH 2 min. or until butter is melted. Stir until chocolate is completely melted. Cool 5 min.

MEANWHILE, beat cream cheese and sugar in large bowl with mixer until blended. Gently stir in COOL WHIP and crushed cookies. Stack cake layers on plate, spreading cream cheese mixture between layers. Spread top with chocolate glaze; let stand until firm. Keep refrigerated.

Triple Fudge Cake

2010-05-05T08:32:00.000-07:00

This recipe is used at Jason's work by the owners mother June. She makes one of these cakes for every employees birthday. This is so simple, the easiest cake you will ever make, perfect for any get together.

Ingredients:
1 package chocolate pudding mix (3 oz), cook as directed
2 cups milk
1 package chocolate cake mix
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Directions:

Cook pudding as directed on package. Blend dry cake mix into hot pudding. Mixture will be quite thick and spongy. Pour into greased and floured 9"x13" pan. Sprinkle with chocolate chips. Bake at 350º for 30 minutes.

Chocolate Peanut Butter No Bake Cookies

2010-04-13T11:16:00.000-07:00

My absolute favorite cookie. I could seriously eat the whole batch myself, well maybe not but I would give it a good try. Love them!

No-Bake Chocolate, Peanut Butter & Oatmeal Cookies

½ cup (1 stick) butter
2 cups granulated sugar
½ cup milk
4 tablespoons cocoa powder
½ cup peanut butter
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
3 cups quick-cooking oats

1. Add the first four ingredients in a 4-quart saucepan.

2. Bring to a rolling boil and let boil for 1 minute.

3. Remove from heat.

4. Stir in the peanut butter and vanilla until smooth, then stir in the oats.

5. Drop by heaping tablespoons onto wax paper-lined baking sheets.

6. Let cool until set.

Macaroni Salad

2010-04-12T17:44:00.000-07:00

MACARONI SALAD

1 lb box of ditalini macaroni
1/2 bunch of green onions - chopped
1/2 tsp salt (or more to taste)
4 hard boiled eggs (3 chopped, 1 sliced)
3 tbsp dijon mustard
1 can sliced olives
2 cups Best Foods Mayonnaise
celery salt

Cook Macaroni in salted water. Drain noodles.

While noodles are still hot, mix in mustard and mayonnaise in large bowl.

Mixture should be wet, but not creamy. Stir in Onions, olives and chopped eggs and salt. Mix well.

Taste for salt and mayonnaise content. Add more if needed. Coat top of salad with a sprinkling of celery salt and stir in.

Add sliced eggs to top.

Cover and refrigerate a few hours.

Serve cold.

Chocolate Spice Pound Cake

2010-04-12T17:04:00.000-07:00

1 box Devils Food Cake Mix
4 eggs
1 c. water
1/2 c. vegetable oil
1 c. sour cream
1 package pumpkin spice pudding mix

Preheat oven to 350

Mix all ingredients with electric mixer and pour into bundt pan.

Cook for 50- 60 minutes.

Let cool and sprinkle with powdered sugar.

Broccoli Salad

2010-04-12T16:38:00.000-07:00

2 bunches broccoli flowerets (about 1 lb)
1 medium red onion, chopped
1 c. grated cheddar cheese
6 strips bacon, cooked and crumbled
1/2 c. sunflower seeds
1 recipe of Broccoli Salad Dressing

In a large Tupperware bowl combine broccoli, onion, and cheese. Refrigerate. Just before serving add dressing, bacon and sunflower seeds. Stir briefly and serve.

Broccoli Salad Dressing
1 c. Best Foods Mayonnaise
2 tbsp. red wine vinegar
1/2 c. sugar
1/2 tsp. salt

Mix all ingredients. Refrigerate at least one hour before tossing with salad.

Homemade Pizza

2010-03-07T14:03:00.000-08:00

A few weeks ago we made homemade pizzas in mutual. My good friend Michelle made her recipe for dough and sauce so I thought I would try this with my kids. It was delicious and the kids had a blast.

Breadsticks & Pizza Dough
Recipe from OurBestBites.com

1 1/2 c. warm (105-115 degrees) water
1 Tbsp. sugar
1 Tbsp. yeast
1/2 tsp. salt
3-4 1/2 c. flour

In a large bowl (the bowl of your mixer, if you have one), combine water, sugar, and yeast. Let stand for 10 minutes or until yeast is bubbly.

Add salt and stir. Add 1 1/2 c. flour and mix well. Gradually add more flour (usually between 3-4 cups, depending on your elevation and your humidity) until dough starts to pull away from the sides of the bowl and it barely sticks to your finger.

Spray a glass or metal bowl with cooking spray and place dough in the bowl. Cover and allow to rise for 45 minutes or until doubled in bulk.

Remove from bowl and place on a lightly-floured surface. Spray a baking sheet with cooking spray. Roll into a rectangle and cut into 12 strips with a pizza cutter.

Roll out each piece of dough into a snake and then drape over your forefinger and twist the dough. Place on baking sheet and repeat with remaining 11 pieces of dough. Try to space them evenly, but it's okay if they're close; pulling apart hot bread is one of life's greatest pleasures!

Cover pan and allow dough to rise for another 30 minutes. When there's about 15 minutes to go, preheat your oven to 425. When done rising, bake for 10-12 minutes or until golden brown. Rub some butter on top of the breadsticks (just put a ziploc bag on your hand, grab some softened butter, and have at it) and sprinkle with garlic bread seasoning or the powdery Parmesan cheese in a can and garlic salt. Or you could sprinkle them with cinnamon sugar.

Pizza Sauce
Recipe from OurBestBItes.com

Pizza Sauce

1 6-oz. can tomato paste
6 oz. water (just use the empty tomato paste can)
3 Tbsp. garlic bread seasoning*
1 Tbsp. sugar or honey (I usually use sugar because it's easier and hey, I think we've established here that if there's an easy road or a hard road, I usually take the easy road...)
3/4 tsp. onion powder
1/4 tsp. red pepper flakes (optional)

Empty tomato paste into a bowl and add water a few tablespoons at a time, stirring constantly until combined. Add remaining ingredients, stir to combine, and allow to stand until ready to use. Covers two average-sized pizza; freezes extremely well.

*Garlic Bread Seasoning:

combine the following ingredients

1/2 c. powdered Parmesan cheese
2 tsp. Kosher salt
2 Tbsp. garlic powder
2 tsp. oregano
2 tsp. basil
2 tsp. marjoram
2 tsp. parsley

Valentine's Day Strawberry Pancakes

2010-02-14T08:27:00.001-08:00

photo by Yunhee Kim

Gabriel requested pancakes for Valentine's Day so I decided to make them a little more special. Everyone really enjoyed them except Gabriel. He didn't like the strawberries, go figure. Jason really liked how light and fluffy they were compared to other recipes. Definitely a winner in our house.

Recipe Courtesy of Leah Holzel on Everyday With Rachael Ray

Strawberry Pancakes

Ingredients:

* 1-1/4 cups all-purpose flour
* 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
* 2 teaspoons baking powder
* 1/2 teaspoon salt
* 1 large egg
* 1 cup milk
* 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
* 1 tablespoon unsalted butter, melted, plus more for serving
* 2 cups sliced strawberries
* Pure maple syrup, for serving

Directions:

1.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. In a small bowl, whisk together the egg, milk and vanilla. Preheat a nonstick griddle over medium heat.
2.

Whisk the wet ingredients into the dry. Stir in the melted butter. The batter should be thick and smooth. Fold in the strawberries.
3.

Spoon the batter onto the griddle 1/4 cup at a time. Cook the pancakes until set and thoroughly bubbly, about 3 minutes. Flip them with a spatula and cook until golden brown, about 2 minutes more. Serve with butter and maple syrup.

Muddy Buddies

2010-02-05T18:07:00.000-08:00

This is my absolute favorite family treat to make. I will usually make this for any party or get together I go to and it is always the first to be eaten. Yum, everyone loves it. So here is the recipe straight off the Chex cereal box.

Chex® Muddy Buddies®

Another popular name for this favorite mix is "puppy chow". Chow down; it's doggone good!

Prep Time:15 min
Start to Finish:15 min
Makes:18 servings (1/2 cup each)

Ingredients
9 cups Corn Chex®, Rice Chex®, Wheat Chex® or Chocolate Chex® cereal (or combination)
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup peanut butter
1/4 cup butter or margarine
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar

Preparation Directions
1. Into large bowl, measure cereal; set aside.
2. In 1-quart microwavable bowl, microwave chocolate chips, peanut butter and butter uncovered on High 1 minute; stir. Microwave about 30 seconds longer or until mixture can be stirred smooth. Stir in vanilla. Pour mixture over cereal, stirring until evenly coated. Pour into 2-gallon resealable food-storage plastic bag.
3. Add powdered sugar. Seal bag; shake until well coated. Spread on waxed paper to cool. Store in airtight container in refrigerator.

Meatloaf and Mashers

2010-02-05T08:37:00.000-08:00

Grandma Kim's Meat Loaf

Ingredients:
3-4 lbs. ground beef
2 pkgs of Lipton Onion Soup
1 1/2 c. bread crumbs
2-3 eggs
garlic salt
small bag of french fried onions

Mix together all ingredients and bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour

Red Garlic Mashed Potatoes
Serves 8
Ingredients:
* 8 medium red potatoes, cubed
* 2 teaspoons crushed garlic
* 1/2 cup butter or margarine
* 1/4 cup half-and-half cream
* 2 tablespoons white sugar
* 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

Directions

1. Place the potatoes into a large pot, and fill with enough water to cover. Add 1 teaspoon of the crushed garlic to the water for flavor. Bring to a boil, and cook for about 10 minutes, or until easily pierced with a fork.
2. Drain the potatoes, and add the butter. Mash until the butter is melted. Mix in the half-and-half, sugar, garlic powder and remaining garlic. Mix potatoes with an electric mixer until smooth.

California Avocado Salsa

2010-01-24T14:11:00.000-08:00

We LOVE salsa in our house so as I was making this the kids were standing over me waiting for it to be done. It is really delicious and is a meal in itself for my family. The sweet red pepper adds alot which most salsa recipes don't have in it. I found this to be the perfect thing for a football Sunday in my house. Enjoy!

Recipe Courtesy of AllRecipes.com

Recipe Yield 20 servings
Ingredients

* 3 large ripe avocado, peeled and cubed
* 3 medium tomatoes, seeded and chopped
* 1 1/2 cups chopped sweet red pepper
* 1 small onion, chopped
* 1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and chopped*
* 3 tablespoons minced fresh cilantro or parsley
* 1/4 cup lime juice
* salt to taste
* Tortilla chips

Directions

1. In a bowl, combine the first eight ingredients; mix well. Serve immediately with chips.

Grandma Pryce's Spaghetti Sauce

2010-01-19T14:48:00.000-08:00

This is Jason's absolute favorite thing to eat. Not spaghetti itself but his grandma's sauce. I have tried to imitate it over the years but it never tastes the same so now that I have her exact recipe it has to taste the same, right?

Spaghetti Sauce (use a big pot - makes approx. 8-10 quarts - freeze leftovers in meal portions) or you can half the recipe if you don't want to make so much.

3-4 pounds lean ground beef
1 large onion (diced)
1 large can (6#10oz) S&W tomato sauce (I get at Costco)
3-4 cans (15 oz ea.) S&W tomato sauce (to fill pot)
1-2 Tbl. garlic (I use the jar minced)
1 cup burgundy wine
2 Tbl. Italian seasoning
Salt & Pepper to taste

Brown ground beef in large pot, drain grease from meat when done, return to pot, add onions, garlic, and saute for a few minutes, then add tomato sauce (rinse cans with approximately 2 cups water total) and spices. Simmer 5 or 6 hours. Can freeze remainder of sauce. I use glass quart jars. Cool jars in refrigerator overnight before freezing. Don't tighten lids when freezing because the liquid expands and could crack jars. Tighten lids after frozen.

One thing I have learned from cooking which may be common sense for other but not me, is that you have to use the same brands in order to get the right outcome. His grandma is specific about the brands she cooks with so that has probably been my problem before.

One more thing I cut this recipe in half (because I didn't have a big enough pot) It fed my family of 6 and I was able to freeze three jars.

Cafe Rio

2010-01-10T23:46:00.001-08:00

What do we miss most from Utah? Simple answer Cafe Rio. It was a staple restaurant for us at least once a week. Well luckily there is one in Vegas and we ate there twice this weekend. Yum! Which made me want to put their sweet pork recipe on my blog as my first recipe. There are a few different versions but this is my families favorite. It tastes almost identical and is super easy. Perfect for a Sunday afternoon meal.

Recipe courtesy of recipezaar.com

Cafe Rio Pork
serves 8-10

Ingredients:
3-4 lbs pork roast or pork loin
1/4 teaspoon oregano
1/4 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 onion
2 garlic cloves
water, to cover

Sauce:
1 (14 ounce) can enchilada sauce
3/4 cup Coca-Cola or Dr. Pepper cola
1 cup brown sugar

Directions
1. Cut pork in large chunks. Put in large crock pot and add water just to cover. Add seasonings. Cut onion in 4 large pieces, crush garlic and add to water. Cook pork on low all day or on high for 3 to 4 hours, or until tender and pork pulls apart easily. Drain water and remove onions and garlic. Pull pork and return to crock pot.

2. In a separate container mix enchilada sauce, soda and sugar. Add to pork in the crock pot. Cook 1 hour longer. (Can cook less if you don't have time.).

Cafe Rio Tomatillo Salad Dressing
4 1/2 cups

Ingredients:
2 cups mayonnaise
2 cups sour cream
10 sprigs cilantro
3 tomatillos, chopped
2 green onions (I used a little red onion)
2 garlic cloves
1 jalapeno pepper (seeds and all)
1 lime, juice of
1-2 teaspoon salt

Directions:
1.Place all ingredients in blender and blend until smooth.
2.Dressing lasts 2 weeks in frig.