Gorditas, Anyone?

This is made similarly to my Stovetop Pizza (see post below). I made flatbread on the stove for lunch the other day and Alex commented that it reminded him of Taco Bell's gorditas. That sounded really delicious to me so a couple nights later I made it again, along with all the taco fixings. It turned out delicious, if I do say so myself :). Bread:
1 1/2 cups warm water
! Tbs sugar
1 Tbs yeast
1 tsp salt
4 cups flour

Either pile ingredients in your bread machine OR stir together water, yeast, and sugar. Let sit about 5 minutes, then stir in salt and flour. I mixed it in my Kitchenaid and used it right away without any rising time. Just smoosh it out flat, cook in frying pan over med-low heat until lightly browning on one side. Flip and cook on other side. Pile on taco toppings and gobble it all up. Hope y'all enjoy!!

Pizza Variation & What To Do On Friday Night When Your Oven Is Broken

As you may have guessed from the title, our oven has been out of order. Fortunately the part we needed arrived in today's mail and it is fixed, thus freeing me to make Becky's PB filled brownies! I will let you all know how they are tomorrow, hopefully. Anyway, back to the no oven problem: Friday night is pizza night around here (at least in our house!) and we really stick to that tradition. So I reverted back to Stovetop Pizza, a solution I discovered the last time our oven broke. Basically you smoosh out your favorite pizza crust dough approximately the size of your frying pan. Use enough oil to keep it from sticking and plop it right on in there. Turn the heat on... about medium-lowish. When it is cooked and browning on one side, flip it over, pile on your toppings, pop the lid on and cook until the cheese is melty or you smell something burning. YUM!! This particular pizza flavor variation is my new favorite: cheeseburger pizza! You need:
Ketchup
Mustard
Cooked ground beef
Bacon bits
Dill pickles
Cheddar Cheese

Optional:
Lettuce
Diced tomato
Onion (chopped)
Anything else that sounds good on a burger!

Squirt your ketchup & mustard on the crust and mix together as you spread them around. Pile on other toppings (except lettuce) and bake. I think the pickles make this pizza really stand out, so try not to forget them! YUM! This pizza is the Bomb! :)

The Invincible Rolls

These are nice and fluffy rolls! Last night my oven decided not to heat up, so as a last resort I plopped them in a lightly greased frying pan, threw on a lid and cooked them on low heat, turning them once. They still turned out delicious!!! We also have greatly enjoyed them baked... and its a LOT less stressful to bake them, so I would encourage you all to try the baked version if you have the opportunity and resources necessary :D! Buttery Rolls 1/2 cup warm milk 1/4 cup softened butter 2 Tbs sugar 1 egg 3/4 tsp salt 2 cups flour 1 tsp yeast Place all ingredients in bread machine and run the dough setting. When cycle is done, divide into 12 portions, shape into balls, and place in a greased 8x8 baking dish. Let rise in a warm place for 15 minutes, then bake at 375* for 13-16 minutes or until golden brown. Note: this is technically only a half recipe, so I can promise it will double easily!

Months of Menus

Anybody want to know what we are eating for the next month or two? Mom and Abby said they were curious, so...
In September I started doing menus a month or 2 at a time. I'm flexible, I don't always do what's written down, but it gives me an idea to start from. Just know that if you show up thinking you'll be joining us for beans and sow belly, the menu may have changed!
I printed calendar pages and then filled them in during a 4 hour internet session. These things take time. But it's done now!
OK, Thursdays night James and I usually go out, so those nights I/the kids serve easy kid food.
Friday nights are pizza night. 52 nights a year. Year in and year out. We have quite a list of "interesting" pizza variations, and we scatter them throughout.
Planning easy, fast, quick clean-up Sunday meals is something new I'm working on.
And last but not least, holidays make us eat differently. You know, I'm trying not to serve a lot of chicken right before Thanksgiving. We also eat more beef that many people because we buy 1/2 a cow from the Wakemans, and it is not only available, but some of the cleanest, most nutritious food I have available.
OK, I know I said "last", but I also have to explain that I "rediscovered" RealMomKitchen in planning these menus, so they are kinda heavy that direction, but she does a lot of our kind of cooking, so I like her. Normally we are heavy Pioneer Woman, Our Best Bites and Southern Plate eaters. Oh yeah, I tend to change recipes a lot: cheaper, homemade-ier, healthier, and what I have on hand.

November:
Mon. 1- Teriyaki Chicken, rice
Tues. 2- Josh's birthday
Wed. 3- *Tostadas
Thurs. 4- Tacos (night out)
Fri. 5- ?Pizza?
Sat. 6- ?anniversary trip?
Sun.7- Grilled chicken and Cheesy Hashbrown Casserole
Mon. 8- *Rueben Casserole
Tues. 9- *Green Chili Quiche, *Sour cream Coffee Cake, Sausage
Wed. 10- PW Chicken Sandwiches
Thurs. 11- Sloppy Joes (night out)
Fri. 12- Pizza
Sat. 13- "Torquitos"
Sun. 14- *Creamy Chicken & Rice Soup or *this one
Mon. 15- Burgers, Fries
Tues. 16- Mexican Cornbread
Wed. 17- Roast beef and mashed potatoes
Thurs. 18- Leftover beef, noodles (night out)
Fri. 19- Pizza
Sat. 20- Chicken Bacon Pizza Rolls
Sun. 21- Steak Tips over Rice
Mon. 22- *Baked Potato Soup
Tues. 23- Meatloaf or *meatloaf, noodles
Wed. 24- Tacos
Thurs. 25- Turkey with Abby
Fri. 26- Quite possibly more turkey, otherwise pizza
Sat. 27- Baked Sandwich
Sun. 28- *Rustic Beef Stew
Mon. 29- *Open Face Texas Burgers
Tues. 30- Chicken, Pasta with Tomato Cream Sauce

December:
Wed. 1- *Chicken and Homemade Noodles
Thurs. 2-Pancakes (night out)
Fri. 3-Pizza
Sat. 4-Premade meatball subs wrapped in foil and ready to throw in the oven to heat.
Sun. 5- *Cheesy Chicken and Rice
Mon. 6- Biscuits and Gravy, Scrambled Eggs
Tues. 7- *Fried Burritos
Wed. 8- *Garlic Butter Burgers
Thurs. 9- Bread sticks and dips (night out)
Fri. 10- Pizza
Sat. 11- ______
Sun. 12- Bama Steak Sandwiches
Mon. 13- Navajo Tacos
Tues. 14- Chicken (grilled/pan cooked), *Potato Slabs
Wed. 15- *Cheesy Salsa Mini Meatloaves - in bread shells
Thurs. 16- Pizza soup, muffins (night out)
Fri. 17- Pizza
Sat. 18- Bread sticks, dip
Sun. 19- Ultimate Beef Stroganoff
Mon. 20- Roast Beef with *Yorkshire Pudding
Tues. 21- Ham, *Au-gratin Potatoes (with recipe alterations)
Wed. 22- Beef Taco Bake, rice
Thurs. 23- Pizza?
Fri. 24- ???
Sat. 25-???
Sun. 26- ???
Mon. 27- Chicken Bacon Pizza Rolls
Tues. 28- Roast Beef Casserole
Wed. 29- Bacon Cheeseburger Pasta
Thurs. 30- Pigs in blankets
Fri. 31- ???- (church thingy)

* New untested recipe

Cloud Biscuits

This is Mom's famous biscuit recipe. We were "raised" on these, right guys? Well, Abby doesn't have the recipe!!! Or she didn't before this anyway. These are great biscuits, dumplings for your (Southern Plate) chicken and dumplings, etc. and so on.

2 c flour
4 t baking powder
1/2 t salt
1-2 T sugar
1/2 c shortening, (I now use butter or solid coconut oil)
2/3 c milk
1 egg

Mix dry ingredients. Cut fat in until mixture is course crumbs. Combine egg and milk (I start with 1/2 c milk and add more later if it comes out dry), add to flour, stir until just combined (Mom always had us use a fork for this step. I distinctly remember that. Yes, I still do it too.). Knead lightly 5 or so times to form a ball. Roll on floured surface, to 3/4 inch thick. Cut and bake at 450 degrees for 10-12 minutes. Serve. Win friends and influence people. Just give your mom some credit.

Peanut Butter Filled Brownies

Tragedy nearly struck yesterday. We did not have enough ice cream for our traditional "Sunday night supper". BUT... I realized it in time. Close one.
So I decided to make brownies so we could have brownie sundaes and stretch our remaining ice cream. I developed a sudden need for a peanut butter filled brownie. I spent the next 40ish minutes doing in-depth internet research. No beans. Every single recipe was described as . . . . . (I can hardly bring myself to say it) . . . ."cakey". If I want cake, I eat cake. I do not normally want cake.
I was scared, but it was time to go out on a limb. Someone needed to invent a REAL P.B. filled brownie. But who wants to ruin a perfectly good batch of brownies by messing around with crazy ideas?!? Folks, they weren't ruined.
I think these are the closest we will come on this earth, to the brownies we will be eating in heaven.
James said they were perfect. If James does not like something, he feels no need (whatsoever) to conceal the fact. He then said "You need to put these on your blog thingy." I think it was a command. Then he said he was taking them to work for his chili cook-off on Friday.
This is big. See, there's this lady at work, who makes "the best" caramel filled brownies. She always brings them to every food-bringing thing. Everyone falls all over those brownies. If James brings these brownies, he is going up against a...standard. But he thinks it will go over. I was honored.

So, the brownies (Think brownie meets Reese's cup):


Let's go for an 9x13 pan recipe, O.K.? Halve everything for an 8x8. These things are the real deal. If you don't have a crowd to feed them to, do the 8x8!

1 9x13 size batch of brownie batter, a mix, your favorite recipe, or mine:
1 c butter
2 c sugar
1 c cocoa powder
4 eggs (3 if they come from your own chickens and are huge)
1 1/3 c flour
1 t baking powder
1/2 t salt
2 t vanilla

In large sauce pan cook together butter, cocoa, and sugar until butter is all melted. Throw in your eggs and vanilla, stir. Add flour, baking powder and salt. Whew, that's done.

Filling:
1 c peanut butter, (I used creamy)
1/4 c butter
1 1/2 c powdered sugar
1-2 T, more or less milk or cream (I used cream because I had it)

In a sauce pan combine P.B. and butter. Stir in sugar. Add milk until you get a frosting/soft playdough texture. I'm not sure how to describe it, but it shouldn't be pourable (by a long shot!!!), yet it shouldn't be dry, crumbly, or really stiff.

In a greased 9x13, spread 1/3-1/2 of the brownie batter. Take spoonfuls of the P.B. mix, pat them flat and lay on the brownie layer. There is enough P.B. to make a nice thick layer, so if you wanted, you could only make 2/3 of the batch or so, and have a thinner layer. I wanted it good and thick though, so this was perfect for us. When you have all the P.B. on there, pour the remaining brownie on top, and spread to cover the filling. This is where my brownies being more of a batter than a dough is rather helpful.

Bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes. I checked rather often, as I had no idea how long these would bake. I started checking at 18 minutes. Bake until they are still a little soft, but aren't pouring out of the pan when you tip it a little. My toothpick came out chocolaty, but not raw-brownie-gooey. I let mine cool completely while we went to church, before cutting. Perfect.

Chocolate Banana Stuff

I'm putting this recipe here just for Andrea. My girls and I made this on the Hansen camping trip. Matthew talked Andrea into trying some, and to her surprise, she like it. I think her actual words were something like "Wow, this is actually good." And she got some herself after that, so we know it was good!

O.K. Andrea! I want you to make this for your family! You need:

2-4 bananas
1 box of chocolate pudding mix (3ish oz)
2 c mini marshmallows
8 oz whipped topping or whipped cream
1 1/2 - 2 c milk
a pink bowl : )

Pour the pudding mix in the bowl.

Measure the marshmallows. You should eat one too.

Dump them on the pudding mix.

Scoop in the whipped cream.

Uh-oh! DON'T lick your fingers!!!

But if you did you need to wash your hands. Especially if your mom saw you do it!

Peel those bananas. You can use as many as you want. Within reason, of course.

Slice the bananas up on a cutting board or a plate...

...and throw them in the pink bowl!

Pour in most of the milk, you can use the rest of it later if it is too thick.

Time to stir it all up! Boy this is fun!

Everyone wants to take a turn stirring!

It's DONE!

And we are hungry. Cooking is fun, but it's work too. So we scoop it into some pretty bowls...

and DIG IN!

YUM!! It's delicious!

So, try this out, Andrea, and let us know how it goes. Don't forget to take a picture!!!