Sarah Sam's Beef Stew

There is no doubt that are some pretty awesome cooks in churches all over the country, but I had the opportunity to know one fabulous one, Sarah Sams.  Her and her sweet husband (senior minister for 20+ years at our church) have been an influence and mentors in our lives: marriage, to parenting, and of course spiritual matters.  I always loved going to their home or just talking to them. She has this sweet southern drawl, gives the best hugs, listens and really let you know that the stuff you're going through... you'll live.  Wanna know a funny thing about Sarah?  She  is known for feeding those sweet babies things FAR sooner than they should (chocolate cake, etc).  Everyone knew to keep an eye on her if she was holding your baby...  Makes me laugh and cry just thinking  about her.  Sure have missed them since they moved. 

I don't remember if Sarah brought her stew to church one Wednesday for Meal Service or where I was privileged to taste it, but I immediately asked her for the recipe and it has been a favorite of our family's ever since.


 Sarah Sam's Beef Stew

1 lb Cooked ground beef
1 onion
potatoes - diced
2-3 cans mixed veggies - don't dump out the juice
1 can tomato juice
2/3 Tablespoons sugar
1 can diced tomatoes
salt and pepper
left over green beans and corn
A wooden spoonful of Worcestershire sauce

Put in a crock pot and let it do it's magic!  Sarah says: "The key to great stew - add a little sugar."


** Now, I have always believe that recipes are suggestions, so I usually add: carrots and celery, and a can of red kidney beans.  Because I don't do a lot of ground beef, I'll use stew meat or deer meat.  I'll braise the stew meat in a skillet with some olive oil, and save back the juices, adding a cup of good red wine and let it glaze a bit before adding it to the stew pot. I usually end up adding some extra beef broth to the stew because I add in fresh veggies instead of canned. 

Pup'kin Dog Biscuits

Today I branched out and made some doggy biscuits.  We had a sweet friend (they have three schnauzers)  whom cared for Lady, our German, and Midnight, our cat.  I wanted to do something for them, plus try this recipe out.  In an October issue of EveryDay with Rachael Ray, (they have recipes just for dogs) they had Pup'kin dog biscuits ***by Sarah Zorn. If you go to RR Mag Pet Friendly section, they have many more recipes just for our furry friends.

  Ingredients

• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup canned pure pumpkin puree
• 2 tbsp. dry milk powder
• 2 1/2 cups white or whole wheat flour** (please see note below about using brown rice flour)

Directions:

1. 

   2" diameter biscuit cutter

   Preheat the oven to 350°. In a bowl, stir together the eggs, pumpkin puree, milk powder and flour; add 2 tsp. water, or enough so that the dough just comes together.
2. On a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough 1/2 inch thick. Cut into shapes with 1-inch cookie cutters. Gather the scraps, combine, roll and form more biscuits; repeat until all the dough is used.
3. Place the biscuits 1 inch apart on an ungreased baking sheet. Bake for 20 minutes, then turn over and bake until hardened, another 20 minutes. Let cool on the pan for 5 minutes.

cut the treats into fourths

When the dog treats are completely done, they will be hard, dry and crisp.   They will be hard for you to break in your hands--and better for your dog's teeth.

 It's supposed to make about 3 dozen, but I used a 2" diameter biscuit cutter, cut those into fourths and have manageable bite size pieces (easier for smaller dogs), easy to store and not too filling. 

Pup'kin Biscuit Treats

You can store these pumpkin dog treats for a month or so at room temperature.

* I doubled the recipe because I didn't want to waste 1/2 a can of canned pumpkin, and thus did not use as much flour as they stated.  When I rolled it out and kneaded it some, some of that flour was used.  Because I have so many, I'll freeze some and give some to another friend who has a has a small dog.

Lady and Duke's (my friend's schnauzer) assessment:  They ate them easily and begged for more!  Next time, I think I'm going to try Jessica Gorman's Olive Oil and Bacon Truffles.

Lady begging for more!

 According to Fido Dog Treats
As simple as it sounds, pumpkin is not beef, corn, wheat gluten or any other ingredient that is well known for causing allergic conditions in dogs. In most all instances, these dog treats are vegetarian. This reason alone makes pumpkin a tempting alternative for many pet owners (although the ingredients list of any treat should be double-checked should your dog suffer from these or other food allergies). In addition to the absence of these ingredients, pumpkin based dog treats tend to be made with many other natural, nutritious items that dogs find hard to resist. Pumpkin is known to be quite palatable and widely accepted by even the most hard to please canine palettes. 

**Some dogs are not able to tolerate Wheat or cornmeal. Brown Rice Flour is a great substitute to use as it gives a crunch and helps with digestion
as Marilyn from Simmer til Done noted in this post.

 

*** Pumpkin dog treats are also considered to be a great choice for dogs that tend to suffer from an upset stomach or the varying forms of motion sickness. It is said to benefit dogs with issues related to diarrhea and vomiting although it is highly recommend that you consult with your veterinarian should your pet have issues with these ailments. 

Four-Cheese Baked Ziti

Photo Credit

I spotted this simple recipe for Four-Cheese Baked Ziti in a Fall issue of Taste of Home magazine and I'm so glad I tried it!  It was an instant hit with my cheese loving family.  My sour-cream disliking husband had no idea it was even in there.  You could even add a bit of grilled chicken to make it a main dish and it would be even more delicious!   I take no credit for this yummy delight, but it's too good not to share!

This pasta dish, made with Alfredo sauce, is deliciously different from typical tomato-based recipes. Extra cheesy, it goes together quickly and is always popular at potlucks.

• 8 Servings
• Prep: 20 min. Bake: 30 min.

Ingredients

• 1 package (16 ounces) ziti or small tube pasta
• 2 cartons (10 ounces each) refrigerated Alfredo sauce
• 1 cup (8 ounces) sour cream
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten
• 1 carton (15 ounces) ricotta cheese
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese, divided
• 1/4 cup grated Romano cheese
• 1/4 cup minced fresh parsley
• 1-3/4 cups shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese

Directions

• Cook ziti according to package directions; drain and return to the pan. Stir in Alfredo sauce and sour cream. Spoon half into a lightly greased 3-qt. baking dish.
• In a small bowl, combine the eggs, ricotta cheese, 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, Romano cheese and parsley; spread over pasta. Top with remaining pasta mixture; sprinkle with mozzarella and remaining Parmesan.
• Cover and bake at 350° for 25 minutes or until a thermometer reads 160°. Uncover; bake 5-10 minutes longer or until bubbly. Yield: 8 servings.

Nutrition Facts: 1.333 cups equals 667 calories, 39 g fat (20 g saturated fat), 145 mg cholesterol, 1,037 mg sodium, 50 g carbohydrate, 2 g fiber, 29 g protein.

Originally published as Four-Cheese Baked Ziti in Country Woman February/March 2008, p25

Marilyn's Whiskey Pumpkin Pie

Honey and I both grew up with our moms fixing Libby's Pumpkin Pies for Thanksgiving dessert, but when I tasted my friend Marilyn's pie a few years ago and I just HAD to get the recipe! She said it was the pie her mom fixed when she was growing up and naturally fixed it for her family.  While my family generally doesn't like change, they did like this one. 

In doing some research, I've found a few similar recipes with the secret ingredient, whiskey, which I've seen is based off a Mennonite recipe, but Marilyn's only has a tsp of whiskey, while most of the other recipes has a 1/2 - 1 cup of it.  I am no expert on whiskey or liquor, people usually give us the whiskey or I have someone else buy it for me.  Most of the time I use Crown Royal or Jack Daniels, though I'm open to just about anything.

• Boozy Pumpkin Pie        
• Pumpkin cake with Whiskey Whipped Cream - Pioneer Woman              
• Whiskey Pumpkin Pie  

Ingredients: 

2 cups cooked pumpkin
1 cup sugar
4 eggs, separated
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/3 cup cream or evaporated milk
1/4 cup butter, melted
1/2 cup whiskey
1 tablespoon cornstarch

 Pie Crust Shell - Here is the recipe I love to use

 Combine the pumpkin, the sugar, egg yolks (slightly beaten), and cinnamon and beat for several minutes. Quickly add the cream, butter and whiskey, mix well.

Beat the egg whites until they form stiff peaks, then sprinkle the cornstarch over the beaten egg whites and fold into the first mixture.

Pour into a 9 inch pastry lined pie pan  and bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour in a 375 degree oven. Let it cool.

 Top with regular or Whiskey Whipped Cream (recipe below)


WHISKEY WHIPPED CREAM:   from Pioneer Woman      

• 1 cup Heavy Cream, Very Cold
• 2 Tablespoons (to 3 Tablespoons) Sugar
• 2 Tablespoons Whiskey

Combine ingredients and begin mixing immediately on high speed until stiff, about 4 minutes. Spoon over cooled cake.  A little whiskey goes a long way on making this and the alcohol makes whipping the cream more difficult.  A harder process, but worth it.  

Eat extra cream with a spoon, if desired. Ree Drummond

 

Mini Cheese Meatloaves

Mini Cheese Meatloaves



There are a few things that I love to "collect" - books and cookbooks.  What I love even more are FREE books, which I sometimes get on my Kindle device on my phone. When I saw that a Gooseberry Patch Cookbook Circle of Friends Cookbook Meatloaf Recipes was offered for free, I had to download it  (it is no longer free).  While my meatloaf has been so-so, I really was looking for one that really made my family excited when I fixed it.  They were so VERY excited to taste my latest trial and LOVED it!  Here is the yummy meatloaf recipe that we fell in love with a few months ago.  I'd post a picture, but they ate it all!  


Ingredients:

1 egg, beaten
3/4 C. milk
1 C. Shredded Cheese (I use Monterrey Jack)
1/2 C. quick-cooking oats, uncooked
1/2 C. onion, finely chopped
1 tsp. salt
1 lb. lean ground beef

Sauce for top
2/3 C. catsup
1/4 C. brown sugar, packed
1 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
2 tsp. lemon juice

1.  In a large bowl, whish together egg and milk. Stir in cheese, oats, onion and salt.

2.  Add beef and mix well.

3.  Form into 8 greased mini loaves (I use muffin tins or just put it in the crock pot for a big loaf).  I like to take the left over mini loaves, freeze them, and use them whenever I'm in a pinch for something to fix.   

4.  Combine remaining ingredients for the sauce and spoon over the mini loaves.  Bake at 350º for 45 minutes.  I like to put this in the crockpot in the summer and save on heating up the kitchen.

Homemade Pizza Dough

Crust

• 3 cups  Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 Teaspoon sugar
• 1 tablespoon active dry yeast
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 cup lukewarm water

Making and rising the dough:



1.  Pour the water into a mixing bowl and dissolve the sugar and yeast.  Let the yeast and water sit at room temperature for 5 minutes, until the mixture has bubbled and expanded. If you're using instant yeast, you can skip this step.

2. Add the oil and salt, mix well then stir in 1 cup of the flour.  Add the rest of the flour, a cup of flour at a time, mixing well.  

3.  Turn it out onto a floured surface, knead and let rise until doubled in size in a bowl, covered with a towel. (this helps keep the cool air off and allows it to rise properly).  —till you've made a soft, smooth dough.    ** If you're in a pinch and are making pizza at the last minute, it will still work without rising, but the texture may be different.



4.  While the dough is rising, ready your 14" deep-dish pizza pan. Grease it with non-stick vegetable oil spray

5.  When the dough has doubled in size, punch it down with your fist (it will appear to deflate).  Turn the dough out on a floured surface and roll out thinly (remember the dough will rise slightly while baking.   Stretch the dough to make as large a circle as you can. I use a rolling pin but you can simply stretch the dough in your hands.

6.  Lay the dough in the pan, and stretch it towards the edges till it starts to shrink back. Cover, and let it rest for 15 minutes. Start preheating the oven to 425°F while the dough rests.   Many times I don't have time to let the crust rest in the pan for 15 minutes and it works wonderfully if you don't. 


Make sure you preheat your oven to 400º. 

Making the pizza:  On the prepared dough, add a thin layer of sauce, shredded mozzarella or Monterrey Jack cheese, your topping(s) of choice, and top with a sprinkling of cheese. 



Here is the link for my homemade pizza sauce

Fake Febreeze

Lady, our big stinky dog

 I love saving money, especially when it's for a pricey cleaning product.  We love Febreeze at our house - two stinky boys and a big stinky dog call for extra means to make it smell better. 

When I came across this awesome idea to Make Your Own Febreeze over Fake-It Frugal, who found it at Homemade Mamas, and I just had to it out. I used an old Zout spray bottle and found it worked just as well.  Here is how Heather at  Fake-It Frugal did it. 


I changed their recipe up a bit to Refill my already existing 32 oz Febreeze Spray Bottle:

1/8 Cup of Your Favorite Fabric Softener
2 Tablespoons Baking Soda
Hot Tap Water - To Fill the Bottle to the Top

Shake it up in your Spray Bottle and you're ready to go and fight those Stinky Dog Odors!

I found that Fake Febreeze actually has a bit more "staying power" than regular Febreeze, too!


Fake-It Yourself Breakdown:

Fake Febreeze ($0.15 or less for 1 oz Fabric Softener)

Total Fake-It Cost: $0.15 Each

Compare to Actual Febreeze ($5.59 Each, seriously?)

Total Fake-It Savings:  $5.44 Each*

*Let's say you purchase 1 Bottle of Febreeze per month, that's a Savings of $65.28 per year!

PS - If you've never visited Homemade Mamas before, go check out their incredible catalog of DIY household and beauty products, among all of their other great tutorials!



I hope you have a chance to try this! Thanks for stopping by!