The Housewife Cooks

S'mores Pizza

2012-02-07T02:00:00.000-08:00

Remember my chocolate chip pizza? Anyone? Humm? Oh come on, someone has to remember it! *glares around the room* Anyway, This is the same recipes with the addition of crushed graham crackers. And marshmallows.

The Details:

Take 1/2 of a boxed cake mix. (I've used white and yellow, and for this one actually used a pound cake mix.) Mix in 1/2 cup melted butter. Spread evenly over your favorite pizza crust. (I use the same recipe I used for my homemade pizza.) Sprinkle with 1 cup of mini chocolate chips and 1 cup crushed graham crackers(about 6 squares). Bake for 15 to 20. Add one cup mini marshmallows and bake 5 more minutes.

You can add more of the marshmallows. Or the graham crackers. Or the chocolate chips. Yeah, more chocolate is always good

. . .

what was I saying?

Happy Cooking!

Hard Candy

2012-02-03T02:00:00.000-08:00

My computer decided to continue working! You know, minus all personal files I had saved on it and all . . . Anyway, continuing on!

This candy has to be pretty good, because when I asked my little sister what she wanted for Christmas she requested more of this candy. I'll let you make it and see for yourself! Now, today's candy uses concentrated oil flavoring. (Or whatever you call it. I use LorAnn brand flavoring.) There are recipes that just use extracts (vanilla, orange, ect.), but that's not what we're going to be using today.

The Details:

2 cups sugar

2/3 cup light corn syrup

3/4 cup water

1 dram (1 teaspoon) flavoring

1/2 teaspoon liquid food coloring

powdered sugar

Combine sugar, corn syrup, and water in sauce pan. Stir over medium heat until sugar dissolves. Bring mixture to a boil without stirring. When syrup reaches 260 degrees, add color. Do not stir; boiling action will incorporate color. Remove from heat at 300 degrees. When boiling action stops, stir in flavoring. Pour into lightly oiled candy molds or greased cookie sheet and score with knife to form bite-sized pieces. When cool, break into pieces and dust with powdered sugar to prevent sticking. Store in airtight container.

These pieces were made with simple rectangle shaped hard candy molds. If you are going to be making this quite often, I would suggest getting some molds. Its easier, and turns out better, than just pouring it on a cooking sheet. You can also get lollipop molds as well. It all tastes the same though, so don't use the excuse of not having molds to not make this candy!

If you do decide to buy some molds, make sure they are HARD CANDY molds, not just chocolate or soap molds. The hard candy molds are designed to handle the higher temperature of the syrup. They are white plastic whereas the chocolate molds are usually clear.

The flavoring comes in 1 dram bottles, usually two to the package, and comes in any variety of flavors. If you don't have the flavoring, you can use an extract, but you will have to use more.

Also, in order to get the color as I got in this batch, I used LorAnn liquid food coloring. I don't think you'd get the same intensity of color using coloring that comes in those little 4 packs at the grocery store.

Happy Cooking!

We interrupt this broadcast . . .

2012-02-02T09:30:00.001-08:00

Due to technical difficulties (My computer decided to go on strike), today's post has been moved to tomorrow (Assuming my computer decides to start working at some point today). Until then, why don't you go on over and like our Facebook page!

Buttermilk Waffles

2012-01-31T02:00:00.000-08:00

I love these. I use no other waffle recipe anymore. As you can see, I also love them drenched in butter and syrup. Don't judge me!

The Details:

2 cups flour

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

3 Tablespoons sugar

3 eggs

1/4 cup butter

2 cups buttermilk, room temperature

Combine flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and sugar. Beat eggs and butter in separate bowl. Slowly whisk in buttermilk. Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and stir until combined. Let rest for 5 minutes. Cook according to waffle iron's directions.

Do not over mix the batter. It is supposed to be lumpy. I have discovered that an ice cream scoop works great to put the batter on the iron. For my waffle iron, it takes two scoops.

If you're not going to be eating the waffles right away, (You know, like if you have to wait for the rest of the waffles to cook because you need to feed the rest of the family at the same time. Or you could just claim Cook's Right and eat the first of come off the iron while they're still hot enough to scorch your fingers and leave everyone else to fend for themselves. Or you know, whatever.) you can place them in a oven preheated to 200 degrees. I place a piece of foil over them to keep them crispy.

If you don't eat all the waffles in one sitting, you can place them in the freezer in freezer zip bags. Just pop them in the toaster for a quick treat. I like to grab some when I'm in a hurry in the morning. (Which is basically always.) The batter will also keep in the refrigerator overnight.

The only thing that makes these taste better is a side of bacon.

Happy Cooking!

Marinated Beef Short Ribs

2012-01-26T02:00:00.000-08:00

Ok, so the pictures didn't turn out that good, but it tasted a lot better than it looks! Beef in a simple marinade bake in the oven.

The Details:

1/4 cup vinegar

1/4 cup barbecue sauce

1 cup water

3 Tablespoons brown sugar

1/1 teaspoon garlic

salt and pepper to taste

Combine all ingredients. Place 4 to 6 beef short ribs in pan. Pour marinade over meat and cover. Refrigerate for 30 minutes to overnight, turning meat over at least once. Bake in marinade at 350 degrees until desired temperature is reached, 30 to 45 minutes.

This piece was cooked to medium, 145 degrees. If you don't have enough time to let it sit in the marinade for too long, go ahead and pop in the the oven right away. It still tastes good that way too.

Happy Cooking!

Baked Parmesan Chicken

2012-01-24T02:00:00.000-08:00

Baked chicken with a Parmesan cheese breading.

The Details:

4 to 6 boneless skinless chicken breasts

1/2 cup bread crumbs

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
1 egg
milk

Combine bread crumbs, cheese, and seasoning. Beat egg and add a splash of milk. Dip chicken breasts in egg, and then in bread crumb mixture in coat. Place chicken in 13x9 inch pan and bake at 350 degrees for 35 to 45 minutes until chicken is done.

I cut my chicken breasts in half before coating them because I had extra people over and wanted to be able to give some to everyone. I personally don't like the Italian seasoning, and will probably just use some garlic and parsley next time, but everyone else loved it. Of course, they also said it reminded them of sausage, so go figure.

Happy Cooking!

Baked Potato Wedges

2012-01-19T02:00:00.000-08:00

Tired of those same old frozen fries? Looking for something new and fresh? Try these delicious, oven baked, tender, well seasoned, juicy . . . wait, can potatoes really get juicy? Anyway, these things are pretty good. And easy to make! And

The Details:

4 baking potatoes

1 Tablespoon olive oil

1/4 teaspoon garlic

1/4 seasoned salt

1/4 teaspoon parsley

Slice each potatoes into 8 wedges. Place in plastic bag. Add remaining ingredients and shake well to coat potatoes. Line a large cookie sheet with foil and spray with non-stick spray. Arrange potatoes in single layer on pan. Bake at 425 degrees for 15 to 20 minutes. Turn potatoes. Bake another 15 to 20 minutes.

See? Nice and simple and mouth-wateringly tasty. And it easy to vary the seasonings to fit your meal or tastes!

Happy Cooking!

Fried Chicken Tenders

2012-01-17T02:00:00.000-08:00

Ok, these are very similar to the chicken tenders I made here, but with some differences. I deep fried them instead on pay-frying, and used straight flour instead of bread crumbs.

The Details:

6 to 8 chicken tenders

2 eggs

milk

1 cup flour

salt and pepper to taste

Heat deep fryer to 350 degrees. Beat eggs in bowl. Whisk in a splash or two of milk. Place four and salt and pepper in plastic bag. Coat chicken in flour, dunk in egg, and then coat in flour again. Fry in hot oil until chicken reaches 180 degrees, approximately 7 to 8 minutes. Drain on paper towels.

The deep fryer really does make a lot of difference here. It just makes it so much more crispy and juicy.

Happy Cooking!

2012-01-10T02:00:00.000-08:00

Due to the death of my father, there will be no posts this week.

Posts should resume next week.

Thank you.

Fried Cinnamon Sugar and Powdered Sugar Tortillas

2012-01-05T02:00:00.000-08:00

These are quick, easy, and oh so delicious. I haven't worked up to making my own tortillas yet, but I'm sure they would work great for this. And you can make as many or as few as you want.

The Details:

Heat a half inch of vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Place powder sugar in small bowl or plastic bag. Mix together one cup of granular sugar and 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon and place in separate bowl or plastic bag. Cut tortillas in to strips or triangles. Drop into hot oil. When tortilla starts to bubble up and bottom side is lightly browned (5 to 10 seconds), flip over and fry other side the same about the same amount of time. Remove and drain on paper towels. Place in either powdered sugar or cinnamon and sugar and coat evenly. Tap lightly to shake off excess sugar. Serve.

Or course you don't have to do both the cinnamon and sugar, and the powdered sugar. You can pick just one. I prefer the cinnamon but I like to give a variety when I'm having others over.

Happy Cooking!

Fudge

2012-01-03T02:00:00.000-08:00

Who wouldn't love to sink their teeth into one of these succulent, chocolaty, morsels? And if there is someone who wouldn't, don't speak to me. I'm not talking about those who are trying to eat healthier or whatnot, just those who just don't like chocolate. *collective gasp* I know. I refuse to believe that any such person exists too.

The Details.

3 cups sugar

3/4 cup butter

1 (5oz) can evaporated milk

3 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

1 1/2 cup (or 1 (7oz) jar) marshmallow cream

1 cup pecans

1 teaspoon vanilla

Grease 13" x 9" pan, or line with foil so the foil sticks over edge. Place sugar, butter, and evaporated milk in large sauce pan over medium heat heat. Bring to roiling boil, stirring constantly. Boil for 4 minutes, or to a temperature of 237 degrees on a candy thermometer. Remove from heat and add chocolate and marshmallow cream, stirring until completely melted. Stir in pecans and vanilla, mixing well. Poor into prepared pan, spreading to form an even layer. Let sit at room temperature until completely cooled, about 4 hours. Cut into 1 inch squares and store in sealed container at room temperature.

You can substitute 12 squares (1 1/2 packages) of chopped semi-sweet chocolate for the chocolate chips. You can also use your own choice of nuts, such as walnuts, instead of pecans. While I prefer thinner fudge, hence my use of a 13" x 9" pan, you can also use a square 9" pan with the recipe as well. I like to double the batch, using a 12 oz can of evaporated milk and a 13 oz jar of marshmallow cream, and just doubling the rest of the ingredients.

Happy Cooking!

Fried Garlic Pork Tenderloin

2011-12-29T02:00:00.000-08:00

If you like garlic, you'll love this recipe. The pork is coated in a garlic mixture and then fried.

The Details:

Heat 1/2 inch of oil in skillet. Mix together 1/4 cup garlic, 1 teaspoon parsley, and salt and pepper to taste. Rub well into 2 pork tenderloin chops. Fry until done, about 7 minutes on each side, or to 170 degrees internal temperature. Drain on paper towels.

Quick and easy. You can vary the amount of garlic used to taste.

Happy Cooking!

Mike's Burgers

2011-12-27T02:00:00.000-08:00

So, one of my posts featured Mike's Beef Tips, and they were called that because I tailored them to my husband's liking. Mike himself actually is the one who makes these burgers. Well, he at least mixes them up. And might put the on the grill. I usually end up flipping them and taking them off. But I'll still give my hubby the credit. *big smile*

The Details:

1 lb ground hamburger meat

1/4 to 1/2 cup Dale's sauce

2 Tablespoons garlic powder

2 Tablespoon creole seasoning

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon pepper

Place meat in bowl. Add Dale's sauce and seasonings. Mix well. Form 4 to 6 patties. Grill over medium heat, cooking each side approximately 7 minutes.

How much Dale's sauce you use depends on how strong you want the taste. And all the measurements are just estimates, because nothing ever actually gets measured. A lot of our recipes seem to be that way.

Happy Cooking!

Merry Christmas

2011-12-25T02:00:00.000-08:00

Remember today the true reason we are celebrating.

Merry Christmas.

"And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.
For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord."

Luke 2:10-11

Beef, Mac, and Cheese Casserole

2011-12-22T02:00:00.000-08:00

I like to call this my 'Cheater's Lasagna.' What? I'm all about convenience! Don't judge me!!

Anyway, it's basically the same thing, but with elbow noodles and not so many different cheeses.

The Details:

2 cups elbow noodles, cooked

1 lb ground beef

1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese

1 1/2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

1 (16 oz) can tomato sauce

Seasonings to taste

1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

Brown ground beef in large skillet. Add cheddar cheese, 1 1/2 cups mozzarella cheese, tomato sauce, and seasonings to beef. Simmer for 15 minutes. Combine with elbow noodles and spread into 9'x13' pan. Sprinkle remaining mozzarella cheese on top. Cover with foil and bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes. Remove foil and bake another 15 minutes.

For my seasonings, I used garlic, parsley, and oregano, but you can use whatever you prefer.

And another really nice thing about this recipe is you can refrigerate or freeze it and simply warm it back up in the oven. Make it ahead of time or save the leftovers for later!

Happy Cooking!

Barbecued Country Style Ribblets

2011-12-20T02:00:00.000-08:00

Ok, so 'ribblets' might not be a real word, but it sounds good! I think it describes these small, barbecued, pieces of pork ribs quite well. And makes them sound cute.

The Details:

Cut county style pork rib meat off the bone and into bite sized pieces. Place folded aluminum foil or aluminum pan on hot grill. Place meat on foil and coat in favorite barbecue sauce. Turn meat after a few minutes, and coat with barbecue sauce again. Continue turning, using basting/pastry brush to reapply barbecue sauce each time, until cooked through.

Quick and easy. Could be served as the main dish, or as an appetizer. The day I made these I was needing something more to serve with the rest of the food I was cooking, but needed something smaller than the ribs. So I cut the meat up and threw it on the grill!

Happy Cooking!

Cornbread

2011-12-15T02:00:00.001-08:00

Ok, so I left this one in a little bit longer than intended, but it still looks pretty good! And please not, this recipe is for unsweetened cornbread. If you add sugar, I will come to your house and feed you raw liver. *evil smile* But I know no one would ever do that.

The Details:

1 cup yellow cornmeal

1cup flour

4 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

1 cup milk

1 beaten egg

1/4 cup vegetable oil

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Place 10" cast iron skillet in oven with 1 tablespoon of oil. Combine corn meal, flour, baking powder, and salt in large mixing bowl. Add milk, egg, and oil, also adding heated oil from skillet. Mix until mostly smooth. Poor into heated skillet, and bake for 25 minutes, or until golden brown. Overturn onto plate and slice.

If you don't have a cast iron skillet, you can use a greased square pan, but I can guarantee it will turn out right. Ok, so I don't really guarantee any of my dishes will turn out right, but I have at least tried the others. But I'm sure either way would turn out fine.

Happy Cooking!

Cloverleaf Rolls, Take Two

2011-12-13T02:00:00.000-08:00

I made some cloverleaf rolls here, but this time I used a different recipe. As you can see in the picture, I made both regular rolls, and the cloverleaf, using the same dough.

The Details:

2 1/2 cups milk

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup butter

2 teaspoons salt

4 teaspoons yeast

2 eggs

7 cups flour

melted butter

Combine milk, sugar, butter, and salt in saucepan and heat until butter is melted. Cool to 115 degrees. Dissolve yeast in mixture and wait until foamy. Beat eggs and stir into yeast mixture. Combine with flour. Knead on floured surface for about 8 minutes. Place in greased bowl, turning once to grease top, and cover. Let rise until doubled and punch down. Repeat two more times. Divide dough into 24 equal pieces. Divide each of those into three pieces. Roll into balls and place three pieces into each hole in two muffin tins. Let rise until doubled. Bake at 400 degrees for 10 to 15 minutes.

To make regular rolls, simple cut dough into 24 pieces and form a tight ball. Let rise and bake!

Happy Cooking!

Pecan Pie

2011-12-08T02:00:00.000-08:00

My first time baking a pecan pie, and I used this recipe. For the crust I used this recipe. The only thing I had to change was it needed to cook a little longer. I ended up cooking it about 75 minutes. I also cooked it ahead of time and then froze it. Just popped it in the oven for about 20 minutes and it was ready to go!!

Don't it look good?

Happy Cooking!

Baked Mac and Cheese

2011-12-06T02:00:00.000-08:00

I think this is one of my more popular dishes, or at least it is requested every time I give people an option as to what they want. Some have even told me they would be happy with just this, so it must not be too bad. The cracker topping gives it a crunch.

The Details:

4 cups milk

1 lb (4 cups) shredded cheddar cheese

1/2 cup butter

1/4 cup flour

1 teaspoon salt

2 1/2 cups elbow noodles, cooked

1 sleeve round butter crackers, crushed

1/2 cup melted butter

Combine milk, cheese, butter, flour, and salt in pot over medium high heat until butter and cheese is melted. Continue cooking until mixture starts to thicken. Add cooked noodles and place in 13'x9' pan. Mix together crushed crackers and melted butter and sprinkle over top. Cook at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

I've found that if you started the cheese and milk mixture and then start the noodles boiling, the cheese mix should be about done when the noodles are. I dump the crackers in a plastic storage bag and use a rolling pin to make sure they're good and crushed. And you might not need to use the full 1/2 cup of melted butter in the crackers. Just add enough to moisten the cracker crumbs, not to make them soggy.

Happy Cooking!

Collard Greens

2011-12-01T02:00:00.000-08:00

Ok, so they don't look that appetizing, and I personally don't care for them, but I cooked 'em and by golly I'm gonna tell you how I did it!

The Details:

Wash fresh collard greens and strip from central stalk. Cut greens and place in pot. Cover with water and bring to boil. Add bacon or bacon grease for flavor. Simmer for several hours until greens are tender.

You can add ham hocks, or other chunks of pork, instead of the bacon, but I didn't have any this time. I made these for a friend and he said they were pretty good for my first time, so I'm happy with them.

And for those of you who still have no idea what collard greens are, it's a southern thang so don't worry about it.

Happy Cooking!

Hickory Smoked Turkey

2011-11-29T02:00:00.000-08:00

So, this year we decided to smoke our Thanksgiving turkey. There's several ways to do this, but I'm just going to explain how we did it this year. And any mistakes we made. Not that we made any. I would never make any mistake.

. . .

Quit laughing.

The Details:

Soak hickory chips in water for a few hours before cooking. Fill smoker pan with charcoal and saturate with lighter fluid. Wait a few minutes to let the lighter fluid soak in and then light. While that is burning down, remove all giblets from thawed turkey and rinse with cold water. Season with salt, pepper, garlic, and seasoning salt, rubbing into skin and into body cavity. When charcoal has burned down, add some of the hickory chips to the coals. Combine 1/2 cup barbecue sauce and 1/2 cup Dale's sauce with enough water to fill water pan and place in smoker. Place turkey on rack. Close lid. Remember to check the water level often and add more water when needed. Add more coals and hickory chips as needed to keep the smoker at its ideal temperature according to its manufacture's instructions. Turkey is done when it reaches an internal temperature of 180 degrees, about 8 to 12 hours.

We have this smoker, is case you were wondering. The mistake I mention? We weren't able to keep the smoker at its ideal temperature the whole time, and as a result had to stick the turkey in the oven the last hour to get it done in time. I think it would have gone better if we had a charcoal starter to start the charcoal before adding to the smoker while cooking. Or at least removing the turkey halfway through and restarting the coals. But either way it tasted great and we will be doing it again. Might try injecting the bird with some marinade next time. And keeping it hot enough, of course.

Happy Cooking!

The Feast

2011-11-24T20:51:00.001-08:00

As promised, our Thanksgiving meal!

Turkey

We smoked our Turkey this year, and it turned out great! I will be sharing exactly what I did in a later post.

Baked Mac and Cheese

Cornbread

Rolls

I did two different types of rolls, but used the same recipe. The cloverleaf ones are similar to the ones I made here, but I used a different recipe, which I will share later on.

Collard Greens

Mashed Potatoes

Lima Beans

Black-eyed Peas

Pecan Pie

Will have recipes up starting next week! Hope everyone enjoyed their Thanksgiving!

Happy Cooking!

2011-11-24T02:00:00.000-08:00

Enter his gates with thanksgiving

and his courts with praise;

give thanks to him and praise his name.

Psalms 100:4 NIV

I will have pictures of our meal up later today, along with recipes to all of the dishes in the following weeks. Until then, here's a turkey!!

Can you really go eat turkey after seeing that?

Happy Eating!

Mini Party Pizza

2011-11-22T02:00:00.000-08:00

I've started making these and freezing them to pop in the oven for a quick snack for the kids.

The Details:

Divide dough for one pizza crust into 8 pieces. Roll each into a ball and flatten. Top with sauce and toppings. Grease pan and sprinkle with cornmeal. Place mini pizzas on pan and bake at 350 degrees for about 10 minutes.

Ready to eat

To freeze, place pan in freezer until pizzas are frozen. Place pizzas in bags and leave in freezer until ready to cook. To cook, place on pan and cook at 350 degrees for 15 to 20 minutes.

Ready to freeze

Simple and easy. I used the same crust and sauce I used here. If you use that recipe, it will make a total of 16 mini pizzas. You can make these ahead of time and use for parties, appetizers, or just about anything.

You can also make the crust and let everyone add their own topping before you bake them!

Happy Cooking!