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Pumpkin Pound Cake with Buttermilk Glaze
Ingredients

Cake:

Cooking spray

* 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
* 1 (15-ounce) can pumpkin
* 3/4 cup granulated sugar
* 3/4 cup packed dark brown sugar
* 1/2 cup butter, softened
* 4 large eggs
* 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
* 3 cups all-purpose flour (about 13 1/2 ounces)
* 1 1/2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
* 1 teaspoon baking powder
* 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
* 1/2 teaspoon salt
* 3/4 cup fat-free buttermilk
*

Glaze:
* 1/3 cup fat-free buttermilk
* 1/4 cup granulated sugar
* 2 tablespoons butter
* 2 teaspoons cornstarch
* 1/8 teaspoon baking soda

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350°.

To prepare the cake, lightly coat a 10-inch tube pan with cooking spray; dust with 1 tablespoon flour. Spread pumpkin over 2 layers of paper towels; cover with 2 additional layers of paper towels. Let stand about 10 minutes. Scrape drained pumpkin into a bowl.

Place 3/4 cup granulated sugar, brown sugar, and 1/2 cup butter in a large bowl; beat with a mixer at medium speed 3 minutes or until well blended. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in pumpkin and vanilla. Lightly spoon 3 cups flour into dry measuring cups, and level with a knife. Combine flour and next 4 ingredients (through salt) in a bowl, stirring well with a whisk. Add flour mixture and 3/4 cup buttermilk alternately to sugar mixture, beginning and ending with flour mixture.

Spoon batter into prepared pan. Bake at 350° for 55 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pan 10 minutes on a wire rack. Remove from pan, and cool completely on wire rack.

To prepare glaze, combine 1/3 cup buttermilk and remaining ingredients in a small saucepan over medium heat; bring to a boil. Cook 1 minute or until thick, stirring constantly; remove from heat. Drizzle cake with glaze.

Oatmeal Toffee Cookies
Ingredients

* 3.4 ounces all-purpose flour (about 3/4 cup)
* 1 cup old-fashioned rolled oats
* 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
* 1/4 teaspoon salt
* 3/4 cup packed brown sugar
* 1/4 cup butter, softened
* 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
* 1 large egg
* 1/3 cup almond toffee bits
* Cooking spray

Preparation
1. Preheat oven to 350°.

2. Weigh or lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine flour, oats, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl; stir with a whisk. Place sugar and butter in a large bowl; beat with a mixer at medium speed until well blended (about 5 minutes). Add vanilla and egg; beat well. Add flour mixture; beat just until combined. Stir in toffee bits.

3. Drop dough by tablespoonfuls 2 inches apart on 2 baking sheets coated with cooking spray. Bake at 350° for 11 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool on pans 1 minute. Remove cookies from pans; cool completely on wire racks.

Cheese Crackers

Ingredients

2 cups fresh ground hard wheat

1/2 cup parmesan

1/2 cups cheddar cheese

1 tsp salt

3 tsp sugar

3 Tbsp olive oil

1 cup Cream or half and half

Mix all the ingredients together until a soft dough forms. Seperate it in to 3 or 4 small portions. Roll each ball out on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper until it is 1/8” thick. Cut it into squares with a pizza roller and bake at 350 for 15-20 minutes or longer until golden brown. Remove the edge pieces before they burn.

Our family loved these. You can experiment with the ingredients. We made a second batch without the cheese, but added poppy seeds, flax seed, sesame seeds and a salad seasoning mix - very healthy tasting.

I made this awesome, fairly healthy cake Easter Sunday and everyone in our family loved it and have asked for me to make it again. Hope your family enjoys it too.
Old-Fashioned Oatmeal Honey Apple Cake
Ingredients

Cake:
1 cup quick-cooking oats
1 cup hot water
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour (about 6 3/4 ounces)
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/3 cups packed light brown sugar
3/4 cup chunky applesauce
1/3 cup honey
2 large eggs
Cooking spray

Frosting:
1/4 cup butter
1/3 cup packed light brown sugar
1/4 cup honey
1/2 cup coarsely chopped almonds, toasted

Remaining ingredients:
1 cup frozen fat-free whipped topping, thawed
Ground cinnamon (optional)
Preparation
1. Preheat oven to 350°.

2. To prepare cake, combine oats and 1 cup hot water in a small bowl; set aside.

3. Lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine flour, 2 teaspoons cinnamon, baking soda, and salt. Combine 1 1/3 cups sugar, applesauce, 1/3 cup honey, and eggs in a large bowl; beat with a mixer at high speed 1 minute. Add oat mixture; beat at low speed until well blended. Add half of flour mixture to sugar mixture; beat well. Add remaining flour mixture; beat well. Spoon batter into an 11 x 7–inch baking dish coated with cooking spray. Bake at 350° for 48 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Place dish on a wire rack.

4. To prepare frosting, melt butter in a small heavy saucepan over medium heat. Add 1/3 cup sugar and 1/4 cup honey; cook 2 minutes or until bubbly, stirring constantly. Stir in almonds. Quickly pour frosting over cake; spread evenly using a rubber spatula.

5. Preheat broiler.

6. Broil cake 1 minute or until frosting is bubbly and golden. Cool completely on a wire rack. Serve with whipped topping; sprinkle with ground cinnamon, if desired.

We eat a lot of yogurt at our house, so I was determined to learn how to make it. After trying several recipes I found, I’ve discovered a method of yogurt making that works best for us. I did discover that whole milk makes a much creamier, thicher yogurt than does reduced fat milk.

Yogurt

8 cups whole milk, not ultra pasteurized

1 small container of whole milk, plain yogurt

Heat milk in a crock pot on low for 2.5 hrs. Turn it off and let it set for 3 hrs. Wisk in the yogurt and pour into 2 glass quart jars with lids. Heat oven up to 100F, then turn it off and turn oven light on. Put the jars in the center of the oven and close door, leaving them in over night - with oven light on. In the morning, put jars in the refrigerator for a few hours before enjoying. I usually then add 2 TBLs brown sugar and 1 Tbls of Vanilla to my jar. Then next time you make yogurt, you can use 1/2 cup of your homemade yogurt for the starter instead of buying a small container of yogurt.

I’d love to hear how others make their yogurt.

[added this 6 months later]

A quick update on making yogurt. I’ve discovered a way recently to make my yogurt thicker and taste more like store bought yogurt. I add 1 cup of sugar to a 1/2 gallon of milk when I am adding the yogurt starter and vanilla, before I put it in jars to put in the oven. See my earlier post on how to make yogurt. I know it adds cost and calories to the yogurt, but it does get my kiddos to eat it better - it’s not as tangy and sour - so overall, I feel like it’s the way to go for us and yogurt making. Thought I’d post this for anyone else looking to thicken up their yogurt.

Saving on Groceries

We have decided to start keeping a better budget. Usually we practice the art of “as long as we can pay the credit card off each month, we’re doing alright.” Then we imported all the credit card info into a computer budget program and were floored at how much we spend each month on groceries! We’ve decided to stop buying as many of the convience items as we can. The biggie to go are most of the snack items that we can make at home. We’ve also cut the grocery store trips to once every 2 weeks and Costco just once a month. If we run out of an item, we just make do with what we have until it’s time for another grocery trip. I’ve found cutting coupons isn’t helpful because the coupons aren’t usually for anything we “need.” We eat homemade meals most of the time as it is, but we’re trying to cut down on the times we go out to eat. It’s really not a lot of fun most times anyways witha 2 yr old. I try to put dinners away in the freezer too, but we really need a deep freeze to have room for too many. We do have an extra refrig and freezer combo. We bought a grain mill and are making our own bread now, which saves a lot and keeps us healthier. I noticed I’d been buying a lot of chicken stock, so I learned how to make that this week too. The recipe is below. I’m also watching the meals I choose to make, that they aren’t pricey even to make at home. We’ve also been using less meat - ssssh don’t tell my hubby. Half as much chicken in a soup or casserole isn’t all that noticeable if you increase the amount of veggies. I’m sure there are a few other cost saving ideas we’ve incorporated the past little while which I’m forgetting about. I’d appreciate anyone elses good ideas on the matter too.

Below is a recipe for granola bars my son and I made last Sunday.

Granola Bars

These are great-tasting and good for you, and make an excellent breakfast, dessert, or quick snack on the go.

* 2 cups oats
* 1 cup flour
* 3/4 cup brown sugar
* 3/4 cup raisins
* 1/2 cup wheat germ
* 1/2 teaspoon salt
* 1 teaspoon cinnamon
* 1/2 cup coconut oil - I use olive oil
* 1/2 cup honey
* 1 egg
* 2 teaspoons vanilla
* optional: a handful of nuts, chocolate chips, dried fruit (like cranberries, bananas, or blueberries), flax seeds, etc.

Preheat oven to 350°. Line a 9x13 pan with foil or parchment paper then coat with a little oil. Combine dry ingredients in a bowl: oats, flour, brown sugar, raisins, wheat germ, salt and cinnamon (and any of the optional ingredients). In another bowl mix wet ingredients: oil, honey, egg and vanilla. Pour the wet mixture into dry mixture and stir by hand until blended. Press evenly into the pan. Bake 25-30 minutes. Let cool completely then turn out onto a cutting board. Remove the foil/paper and cut into bars. Wrap individually in foil or plastic wrap.

Chicken Stock

Remove the “insides” of your chicken, wash it out and remove the wings and all the skin. Put it in a crock pot and cover with water. Add a handful of carrots and celery, and a tblsp of apple cider vinegar. Bring to a boil on high, then cook on low for 8 hrs. Remove the chicken, take off the meat and return the bones to the crock pot. Continue to cook for 4 more hours. Let it cool off, then pour the stock through a colander into a large bowl. Cool in the frig over night. In the morning scrape off the layer of fat on the top. Put the stock into individual containers, marking how much is in each and the date. This process makes the house smell so good as well as giving you “free” chicken stock and chicken for a few meals.

http://homemakingdreams.blogspot.com/search/label/Recipes

Now that I have tested and approved the recipe I will make a double batch next time for freezing purposes.

Here is the recipe which I received in a Denise Austin Diet and Exercise Newsletter:

Double-A Applesauce Muffins

Ingredients:

1 3/4 cups whole-wheat flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup fat-free plain yogurt
1 large egg
3 tablespoons brown sugar
2 tablespoons canola oil (I used regular vegetable oil)
2 medium Golden Delicious apples, grated
3/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
1/2 cup currants or other dried fruit in small pieces (I used golden raisins)

Preparation:
Preheat the oven to 375. Coat an 18-cup muffin tray with cooking spray. (don’t use paper liners). In a large bowl, stir together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. In a medium bowl, whisk together the yogurt, egg, brown sugar, and oil until smooth. Stir in the apples, applesauce and dried fruit.

Pour the apple mixture into the dry ingredients and stir until just blended. Spoon the batter evenly into the prepared cups, filling them nearly to the top. Bake for 20to 25 minutes, or until springy to the touch and lightly browned. Turn out onto a wire rack to cool. Makes 18 muffins.

Per muffin: 100 calories, 19 g carbohydrates, 2 g protein, 2 g total fat, 10 mg cholesterol, 3 g dietary fiber

So to sum up my kitchen tip for this week:

1. Start out small with freezer cooking
2. Test the recipe first before making large batches for the freezer

If you’ve never had a banana sandwich before, I urge you to use good old fashioned very fresh, soft white bread and real mayo the first time, so you can get the real deal. After that, if you want to, you can use the more healthy whole wheat bread and low fat mayo.

All you do is put mayo on your two pieces of bread, slice the bananas on there and eat! Another variation I love is to put peanut butter on one of the slices! Yum!

Being the frugal husband that he is, he noticed that pecans were falling from the huge old trees in the yard of his office and that people were just driving on them and ruining them. So he asked the owner if he could pick them up “on halves”. In the country that means that the land owner lets him pick them up and she gets half of what he picks up. We have a pecan pick up tool and he has been leaving for work a few mintues early to get the nuts before they are driven over.

In the grocery store pecans are about $8.00 a pound, if they are already shelled. The picture above shows some pecans my husband has cracked and will now pick out of the shells while watching football.

If you have access to some inexpensive or free pecans, this is a recipe for roasted pecans that is one of the best things I ever make, especially around Thanksgiving and Christmas. When we have a good pecan year I like to roast them and give them as gifts. One year I bought pint jars with ring lids. I cut Christmas fabric into circles which fits under the lid and makes a pretty and tasty gift. These were a hit with the people who received them.

ROASTED PECANS

Melt one stick of butter or margarine in a saucepan. Add one pound (3 or 4 cups) of shelled pecan halves and swirl them until they are well coated. Spread out on a baking sheet and bake at 250 degrees for 30 minutes or until the nuts begin to toast through and turn a darker shade of brown. Drain on paper towels. When they have cooled a bit sprinkle with salt to taste and when thoroughly cooled, store in tightly covered jars or tins.

I have plenty of pint jars and have saved some pretty Christmas tins from years gone by to store my roasted pecans in. Can’t wait to get that first batch done!

Chicken Crunch Bake

3 boneless chicken breasts (about 2 or 2 1/2 lbs)
1 can of cream of chicken soup
8 oz sour cream (mine is low fat)
1/2 regular size can or 1 small can of sweet peas (aka garden peas here in NC)
1 sleeve of saltine crackers
1 stick margarine or butter, melted
Small amount of cooking oil
8 oz of pasta (we used shells)
salt and pepper to taste

Cut the chicken into bite size pieces and cook them in a frying pan in a small amount of cooking oil just until done. I sprinkled a little salt and pepper around. Remove and place in a baking dish. Combine the soup, sour cream and garden peas in a bowl and then pour over the chicken in the baking dish. Crush the sleeve of crackers and swirl them around in the melted margarine. Scatter this all over the top of the dish. Bake in the oven, uncovered, 350 degrees for about 30 minutes. Cook the pasta according to the directions on the box. Serve the chicken crunch bake over the pasta.

Butterscotch Brownies

1/4 cup shortening
1 cup packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 large egg
3/4 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup chopped nuts (I threw in a small packet of peanuts we had laying around)
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt

(If using self rising flour, omit the baking powder and salt)

Heat oven to 350. Grease bottom and sides of square pan, 8 X 8 X 2 inches, with shortening. Melt shortening in 1 1/2 quart saucepan over low heat. Remove from heat. Stir in brown sugar, vanilla and egg. Stir in remaining ingredients. Spread in pan. Bake 25 minutes. Cool slightly in pan on wire rack. Cut into about 2 inch squares while warm.

(Note to MLJW, is the same recipe that you call Blondies?)

Dilled Salmon Pasta Salad

Ingredients
1.5 cup tricolored spiral pasta
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup sour cream
1/4 cup chopped green pepper
1/4 cup chopped sweet red pepper
2 Tablespoons chopped onion
2 Tablespoons minced fresh dill or 2 teaspoons dill weed
7.1 oz. Chicken of the Sea® Premium Skinless & Boneless Pink Salmon Pouch
Mixed salad greens

Directions
Cook pasta according to package directions. Meanwhile, combine the sour cream, mayonnaise, green peppers, red peppers, onions and fresh dill in a bowl. Drain and rinse pasta in cold water; add to sour cream mixture. Stir in salmon. Cover and refrigerate. Serve over salad greens.

Preparation Time: 10

1.5 cups of the pasta didn’t seem like enough to me so I used 2 and it was perfect. I think even 2.5 would work. Also, I didn’t have fresh dill, so I used the bottled dill weed, which I already had on hand. We are still getting some green pepper from our plants, so I used all green pepper. I also used light sour cream. You could also use light mayo, but we use regular old fashioned “Dukes” Mayo.

This dish was even better left over the next day and very good for you.

Honey Wheat Bread (for bread machine)

Ingredients:
1 1/8 cups water
2 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
1/2 cup regular flour
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/3 cup honey
1 tablespoon dry milk powder
1 1/2 tablespoons butter
1 1/2 teaspoons active dry yeast

Place ingredients in bread machine pan in the order suggested by the manufacturer. Select Whole Wheat setting, Light Crust, and press Start.

Chicken Thief Stew
For dinner today we had a variation of “Ernest T. Bass’s Chicken Thief Stew”. That’s a recipe from my “Aunt Bee’s Mayberry Cookbook”. The original recipe is much more trouble than the way I made it. Here’s how I made it.

1 whole chicken. 3 to 3 1/2 pounds
1 28 oz can crushed tomatoes
1 cup of water
salt to taste (you won’t need much)
1 tbs Worcestershire sauce
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
2 tsp sugar
1/2 medium onion cut into slices, separated
1 14.75 oz can whole kernel corn
1 14.5 oz can cut green beans
1 29 oz can whole potatoes

I bought a whole chicken on sale for .69 per pound and cut it up. You could use any kind of chicken you want. I put the chicken pieces (2 breasts, 2 leg quarters and 2 wings) in my crock pot, sprinkled a little salt and pepper and poured the can of crushed tomatoes on top. Add 1 cup of water. I cooked this on high for one hour and then turned it on low until I got back from church.

If your crock pot cooks as hot as mine, 4 hours on low should be long enough for the chicken to be tender. I usually turn the pot on high for the first hour and then turn it down to low before leaving the house at 8:00. Remove the chicken onto a plate to cool so you can remove the meat from the bones. While the chicken is cooling add the 3 cans of veggies and all other ingredients. Recover and turn crock pot on high so it can be getting hot again. As soon as the chicken is cool enough to handle, remove the meat from the bones, tear into pieces and return to the crock pot.

Let this cook for about an hour and serve. We put ours in soup mugs and had saltine crackers. Corn muffins would be great or home made bread! YUM. I wasn’t quite that smart today!!!

I didn’t want to waste any of the chicken, so I put the remainder of the chicken, the back and any pieces of fat, in a stock pot on the stove and boiled it for about an hour to make broth. I removed the chicken parts, picked off any meat and returned this to the broth. There is some good white meat on the back! I will refrigerate this and add noodles to it later or make some chicken soup.

http://www.tammysrecipes.com/homemade_wheat_bread

Homemade Wheat Bread
Picture: Homemade Wheat Bread
Get original file (26KB)
Description:

A slightly sweet, healthy half-whole-wheat bread (also includes instructions for making this a 100% whole wheat loaf!)
Yield: 1 loaf
Ingredients:

1 cup warm water (110-115 degrees F)
1 tablespoon milk
2 tablespoons oil
2 tablespoons honey
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour (see additional notes for a 100% whole wheat version)
1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
2 teaspoons instant active dry yeast
Instructions:

1. *Combine first 6 ingredients in a large mixing bowl; stir.

2. Add flours and yeast, and knead until dough is smooth and elastic, about 10-15 minutes. Place dough in a greased bowl, turning once to grease top. Cover with a clean towel and let rise until doubled, about 40 minutes.

3. Punch dough down; knead for a few minutes until smooth and then form into a loaf. Place in greased loaf pan and cover. Let rise in a warm place until almost doubled in size, about 30 minutes.

4. Bake at 350 degrees for 30-35 minutes. If loaf starts browning too soon, lightly lay a piece of foil on top of the loaf to prevent too much darkening.

5. Remove bread from oven and allow to rest in pan for a few minutes. Remove to a wire rack and cover with a cloth. Slice and enjoy while still warm! Leftover bread can be stored in an airtight bag or frozen until needed.
Homemade Wheat Bread

Hot fresh loaves
Additional Notes:

*If you have a bread maker, you can use the dough setting to knead it for you. Just put ingredients in according to order listed.
100% whole wheat bread

This recipe also makes very delicious 100% whole wheat bread. The bread in this picture was made with Prairie Gold hard white wheat.

If you would like your whole wheat bread to have a softer and better texture, you can add these dough conditioning ingredients to this recipe:

* 3 tablespoons vital wheat gluten (replace 3 tablespoons of the flour called for in the recipe with this)

* 1/2 teaspoon soy lecithin (we use granules of lecithin, and add it to the water at the beginning)

* a pinch of citric acid (use sparingly!!)

* a sprinkling of ginger

You could also purchase pre-mixed dough conditioners, which contain some of these ingredients but are more costly. We found our citric acid, soy lecithin, and wheat gluten at a bulk foods store. A little goes a long way!
Homemade wheat bread

Since purchasing a grain mill, we have been making this recipe with 100% whole wheat flour, using the additional ingredients mentioned here in the notes. We have given away many loaves and received many compliments — this is a really fabulous recipe — one we use weekly!! :)

Check out this article for more information about why we like to use dough conditioners!

100% whole wheat bread

Update: After moving from Ohio to Seattle, I had difficulty with this recipe. Read more about my experimentation with it, and what worked for me. The (slightly revised) ingredient list I’m now using here in Seattle is as follows:

1 cup warm water
1 tablespoon milk
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons brown sugar
2 tablespoons oil or softened butter
2 tablespoons honey
a sprinkle of ground ginger
a pinch of citric acid (can use ascorbic acid instead)
2 teaspoons granulated lecithin
4 tablespoons (1/4 cup) vital wheat gluten/gluten flour (75% protein)
3 cups whole wheat flour (I use Prairie Gold hard white wheat; any whole wheat bread flour would work.)
2 teaspoons instant active dry yeast

I put the ingredients in my bread machine in the order listed above, and run the dough cycle. When dough cycle is complete, gently deflate dough, shape into a loaf, and place in a greased loaf pan. Grease the top of the loaf. Cover and let rise in a warm place until nearly double in size. Bake in a pre-heated 350-375*F oven for 30 minutes. (Tent loosely with foil after 20-25 minutes if loaf is browning too quickly.) When bread is done, remove from pan, place on a cooling rack, and cover until cool. Seal in a bag or container after cooled.
Preparation Time: 30 minutes + rising time
Cooking Time: 30-35 minutes
Tammy’s Review:

This is my standard wheat bread recipe because it turns out consistently good! This recipe was given to me by our friend Judy F. As with most any homemade yeast bread, this bread is best fresh, and will get drier after a day or so. It has a slightly sweet flavor and is an excellent dinner bread. My rating: 10/10.

out of 10

HANDS DOWN THE BEST BREAD EVER!
In the past 24hrs I have used this recipe 3x’s! I made it with the molasses instead of honey & when halvies with the flours...just fabulous! Even my 7yr old ate the crust! A selling point on it’s own! I sent a loaf to my husband’s office & received RAVE reviews from his employees...also passed along the website, so you will new additions to your member list soon. JUST THE BEST!

by Princess Vuitton

out of 10

Whole Wheat Bread - slightly modified
I made the original first and was fast, easy and very tasty. I then made another and added 1/2 cup or so of Quick Oats and 1/4 cup of sunflower seeds. Making another loaf like that as I write this. Thanks Tammy for a great wheat bread recipe. My next attempt is adding apricots, raisens and some spices.

by tbcornell