Grandma's White bread

2 (.25 ounce) packages active dry yeast

2 cups warm water (110 degrees to 115 degrees)

1/2 cup sugar

1 tablespoon salt

2 eggs, beaten

1/4 cup vegetable oil

6 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

In a bowl mix yeast and water stir let sit for 10 minutes. In another bowl add sugar, flour and salt. In another bowl beat eggs and add oil stir into yeast mixture than add flour mixture blend until smooth.Add enough of remaining flour to make a soft dough(will be sticky). Turn out onto a floured surface and knead for about 6-8 minutes until you have a smooth ball. Add to a large greased bowl cover with plastic wrap for 1hour. Turn out on to floured surface and cut in half shape in 2 loaf shapes and add to loaf pans and cover with plastic wrap, let rise for 1 hour. Bake at 375 for 25-30 minutes until golden brown. Cool on wire rack for at least a half hour before slicing.

Raisin Bread:

Make like above recipe but before second rise roll out flat add melted butter cinnamon and sugar add raisins that have soaked in warm water; roll up and tuck in ends place in loaf pan and let rise for the second time. Bake the same temperature and time.

Chicken and cheese stuffed shells with alfredo sauce

1 box big shell pasta
1 jar favorite alfredo sauce
1 lb chicken breast
3 cups ricotta cheese
1 cup parmesan cheese plus some for topping
1 lemon juced and zested
1 tbs garlic powder
salt and pepper
lemon rosemary rub(I use Pampered chefs blend)

preheat oven to 350 boil pasta just until softened. In a large skillet saute' chicken in olive oil and season with garlic powder,salt,pepper,and lemon rosemary rub. Brown and set aside. In a medium bowl add ricotta and 1cup parmesan cheese,salt, pepper, lemon zest and juice mix to combine. When shells are done stuff with cheese then chicken put in a 13by 9 inch pan cover with alfredo sauce and top with parmesan cheese, cover with foil and bake 30-35  minutes until cooked thru and bubbly.

Pesto Cream Sauce Lasagna

I made this receipe up one night we had friends over and I ran out of spaghettil sauce. Everybody liked this one better. You can make the lasagna and cover with plastic wrap and foil then freeze(defrost before baking), or you can make the night before and put it in the fridge.


1 1/2 pound of chopped turkey(or meat of choice) I used left over thanksgiving turkey that I froze
1 cup mozzarella cheese
no bake flat rolled lasagna noodles(I used Barilla brand)
3 tbs pesto
4 cups ricotta cheese
1 cup defrosted spinach
1/4 cup parmesan cheese
2 cups half and half(or heavy cream or milk whatever you have)
2 cups turkey stock(or whatever you have on hand)
4 tbs butter
4 tbs flour
salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 375*

Chop turkey meat and reserve in a bowl. Mix together ricotta, spinach 1/8 cup parmesan cheese, 1/4 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp pepper stir and set aside.
Melt butter in large sauce pan add flour, and cook 1-2 minutes. Add half and half and stock, whisk to combine and make sure there are no lumps cook on medium heat until thickend. Add the pesto and stir take off heat.
In a 13/9 baking dish add a little of sauce to bottom of pan and start to layer ingredients like a normal lasagna. Finish top layer with the sauce and mozzarella cheese and the rest of the pamesan cheese.
Bake for 1 hour covered. Remove foil and bake for another 10 minutes until brown and bubbly

Raspberry Pecan Tuna Wrap

2 cans tuna fish
1/4 cup chopped pecans
1/4 cupcherry flavored dried cranberrys
1/2 rib celery
1/4 chopped avocado
1/4 chopped tomatoe
1/2 chopped and peeled apple
1tbls raspberry pecan dressing
2tbls mayonnaise
1 teaspoon dijon mustard
1 teaspoon yellow mustard
1 tbls honey
salt and pepper to taste

In a small saute' pan add pecans and honey. Cook until honey is melted and you can slightly smell pecans, add cranberrys remove from heat. In medium bowl add tuna and pecan mixture, stir to combine and break up tuna. Add the rest of the fruit stir. Add mayo, both mustards, dressing salt and pepper stir and serve in a flour tortilla or butter lettuce to make for a lighter version.

You can substitute the tuna for a can of chicken and I cut the raspberry dressing out of that one

CARROT MUFFINS

1 cup raisins

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 tablespoon baking powder

2 teaspoons baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

4 eggs

1 cup vegetable oil

3/4 cup brown sugar

4  shredded medium carrots

1 large Gala apple peeled and finely chopped

1/2 teaspoon fresh ground nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon cloves

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease 12 cup muffin pan. In large bowl add raisins, and chopped apple and carrots add cinnamon,nutmeg,and cloves. In another bowl add flour, baking soda, salt.and baking powder stir to combine. In a small bowl cream sugar and eggs, add oil. Combine egg mixture into flour mixture. Fold in the fruit mixture until just combined don't over mix or the muffins will be tuff. Use a medium scoop or tablespoon to fill cups. Bake until toothpick comes out clean 20-30 minutes. Let cool and serve or frost with a cream cheese frosting.

Christmas Dinner

What a wonderful time for cooking and being in a warm kitchen with family and friends. The setting this Christmas was North Lake Tahoe in my mother-in-laws home with my husband and son. The sounds are the Disney Christmas parade in the background, kevin and michele(mom-in-law) playing outside in the snow. The scene my husband poring some honey turkey bourbon over the ham, I'm cutting up veggies for the leek and potatoe soup. Tyler put the cherries and pineapple on the ham and set it in the oven. I proceed to cook all afternoon making homeade green bean casserole with real fried onions and fresh mushrooms and green beans. Some mashed sweet potatoes with a maple syrup topping, and a very tart (to me) cranberry sauce. It was just the four of us this Christmas usually it's a whole crew and then some but I'm happy to cook for any amount of people.

Green Bean Casserole ala'Scratch

Fresh green beans cut into 1/2" pieces

Fresh chopped mushrooms(your favorite)

1 pint heavy cream

2 cups milk

2 tbs butter plus tbls for saute'

2 tbs flour

salt and pepper to taste

fried onions

extra virgin olive oil

Melt 1 tbls butter and 1 tbls olive oil in large saute' pan over medium heat, add chopped mushrooms and about 1 tsp of salt and pepper. Cook until softend about 20 minutes. Add the flour and stir, mixture gets kinda gummy. Cook for 1-2 minutes to get rid of flour flavor. Add milk and heavy cream stir to prevent clumps add some more salt and pepper to taste. Cook over medium heat until thickend. In the meantime cook green beans in boiling water for 3-5 minutes then trasnfer to an ice bath(water and ice in a bowl). When the mushroom mixture is thickend add to a bowl with green beans and stir to combine, add 1 cup of fried onions. put this mixture into a baking dish cook at 350* for 15 minutes add the rest of the onions to the top and cook until golden brown and bubbly.