Breakfast Casserole

 I made a Breakfast Casserole for our Sunday Midday Dinner this week and it was Scrumptious!!!

You might notice the cute little oval goodies on the table as well...

I put cinnamon roll dough (canned) in my waffle maker and then iced them. And I also put crescent roll Dough (canned) in the maker and added butter and jelly. I pulled apart the rolls and then gently formed a ball before putting them in the iron. Yum! And the canned doughs cook in about 1/3 the time when flattened in the waffle maker. There are really a gazillion (slight exaggeration ) things you can do with a Waffle Iron :-)

Here is the Recipe:

Breakfast, Casserole

Prep Time: 15 mins Cook Time: 35 mins Servings: 8 Source: karacreates.com 

INGREDIENTS

4 large croissants or 8 small croissants (baked and found in bakery section)

6 eggs

1/2 cup milk

1 packet Country Sausage Gravy Mix (makes 2 cups)

1 lb sausage, any flavor

1 cup cheese, shredded

salt and pepper

DIRECTIONS

Grease a 13×9 baking dish and preheat oven to 350.

Brown sausage in skillet and drain thoroughly.

Break croissants into 1 inch pieces and spread evenly in bottom of baking dish.

Layer cooked sausage over croissant pieces.

Sprinkle 1/2 cup shredded cheese over sausage.

Whisk eggs and milk, add salt and pepper and pour over sausage and cheese.

Prepare gravy according to instructions. Set 1/2 cup of sausage to the side and pour 1 1/2 cups over croissants, eggs, and cheese in baking dish.

Sprinkle remaining cheese over gravy.

Bake for 35-40 minutes or until eggs are cooked throughout.

Serve with extra gravy and enjoy!

NUTRITION

286 kcal
Calories: 286kcal Carbohydrates: 1g Protein: 17g Fat: 23g Saturated Fat: 9g
Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g Monounsaturated Fat: 9g Trans Fat: 1g Cholesterol: 180mg
Sodium: 502mg Potassium: 220mg Sugar: 1g Vitamin A: 387IU Vitamin C: 1mg
Calcium: 143mg Iron: 1mg

Welcome Back...it's been awhile!

Sorry I haven't posted lately... lots of things going on in the family... but there are plenty of great recipes and ideas throughout the blog that I know you'll like, especially if you've never been here before... just snoop around and enjoy! 

Homemade Red Enchilada Sauce

 Red Enchilada Sauce

Prep Time: 5 minutes  | Cook Time: 15 minutes  | Servings: Yield: 1 1/2 cups 

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons avocado oil or olive oil

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1/4 cup chili powder

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

1/4 teaspoon dried oregano

2 cups chicken or vegetable stock (I use chicken stock)

fine sea salt, to taste

Directions:

Cook the roux and spices: Heat oil in a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Add flour and cook for 1 minute, whisking constantly. Add in the chili powder, garlic powder, cumin and oregano and cook for 1 more minute, whisking constantly.

Simmer: Gradually pour in the stock, whisking constantly to combine until no lumps remain. Continue cooking until the sauce reaches a simmer. Then reduce heat to medium-low to maintain the simmer (the sauce should continue lightly bubbling) for about 10-15 minutes, uncovered, until the sauce has slightly thickened.

Season: Give the sauce a taste and season with salt, as needed. (I typically add 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt, but the saltiness of the sauce can vary depending on the brand of stock that you use. I usually have homemade stock with no added salt)

Cornbread and Black Bean Enchilada Bake

Cornbread and Black Bean Enchilada Bake  

This recipe feeds 4 to 6 hungry people but can be doubled or tripled for a larger group. 

Preheat over to 425 degrees

Enchilada Filling:

2 Tbs Avocado Oil (or other neutral tasting oil)
1 Cup Diced Onion (white or red)
1 Medium Diced Bell Pepper (red or orange)

2 Cans Black Beans (or 4 cups if you cook your own)

1 Cup Enchilada Sauce (I will add my homemade sauce recipe below)

Cornbread Topping:

1 Cup Cornmeal

1/4 Cup Flour

*If you use all purpose add 1 1/2 tsp baking powder and 1/2 tsp salt...

omit if you use self rising

2/3 Cup Buttermilk, White Milk or even Almond Milk (I like Buttermilk)

2 Tbs Avocado Oil or melted Butter

2-3 Tbs Maple Syrup (optional...I don't use it_

Heat the oil in a big skillet and sauce the onions until soft and starting to brown. Add the peppers and continue to sauce until all are lightly browned. Add the beans and enchilada sauce and turn off the heat. If not using an oven safe skillet pour into a baking dish for the oven. Mix the cornbread topping ingredients until just combined. If too thick add a bit of milk so the mixture is pourable. Pour over the bean mixture and bake for 20 minutes.

Serve hot with shredded cheese, sour cream, extra enchilada sauce, tortilla chips.

*****

Red Enchilada Sauce

Prep Time: 5 minutes  | Cook Time: 15 minutes  | Servings: Yield: 1 1/2 cups 

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons avocado oil or olive oil

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1/4 cup chili powder

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

1/4 teaspoon dried oregano

2 cups chicken or vegetable stock (I use chicken stock)

fine sea salt, to taste

Directions:

Cook the roux and spices: Heat oil in a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Add flour and cook for 1 minute, whisking constantly. Add in the chili powder, garlic powder, cumin and oregano and cook for 1 more minute, whisking constantly.

Simmer: Gradually pour in the stock, whisking constantly to combine until no lumps remain. Continue cooking until the sauce reaches a simmer. Then reduce heat to medium-low to maintain the simmer (the sauce should continue lightly bubbling) for about 10-15 minutes, uncovered, until the sauce has slightly thickened.

Season: Give the sauce a taste and season with salt, as needed. (I typically add 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt, but the saltiness of the sauce can vary depending on the brand of stock that you use. I usually have homemade stock with no added salt)

Soft, Buttery Home Made Yeast Rolls...YUM!!!

1-Hour Soft and Buttery Dinner Rolls

Prep Time: 45 minutes Cook Time: 15 minutes Servings: Yield: 15 servings 

Source: gimmesomeoven.com 

INGREDIENTS

1 cup water

2 tablespoons melted butter

1/2 cup milk

2 tablespoons honey

1 tablespoon active-dry yeast*

3 1/2 to 4 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon fine sea salt

extra melted butter, for brushing on top

DIRECTIONS

Prep your oven and baking dish. Heat the oven to 400°F. Grease a 9 x 13-inch baking dish with cooking spray, and set aside.

Heat the liquids. In a microwave-safe bowl or measuring cup, stir together the water and melted butter, then add in the milk and honey and stir until combined. Microwave the mixture for 1 minute and give it a stir. Continue microwaving the mixture in 15 second intervals, until it reaches 110°F (it will be warm but not hot to the touch) and the butter is completely melted.

Add yeast. Pour the liquid mixture into the large bowl of a stand mixer. Then sprinkle the yeast evenly on top, give it a quick stir with a fork to combine, and let the yeast activate for 5 minutes until it is foamy.

Add dry ingredients. Add in 3 1/2 cups of flour (not all of the flour) and the salt.

Mix. (See alternate instructions in the notes below for how to knead the dough by hand.) Use the dough-hook to mix in the dry ingredients on medium-low speed until combined. If the dough is sticking to the sides of the bowl, add in 1/4 cup more flour at a time until the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl and is only slightly sticky to the touch. (Only use up to 4 cups of flour total.) Continue mixing on low speed for 4-5 minutes until the dough is smooth. Then form the dough into a ball with your hands and transfer it to a greased bowl.

I use my old Bosch mixer...this baby is at least 15 plus years old and I LOVE it...you should see the new ones!!

Let the dough rise. Cover the bowl with a damp towel or paper towel, and let it rise briefly for 15 minutes.

Form the rolls. Gently punch the dough down and divide into 15 equal-sized pieces. Form each piece into a ball and place the dough balls in the greased baking dish. Cover the dish again with a damp towel or paper towel and let the dough balls rise for an additional 15-20 minutes.

See my note below...this is where I change up the recipe a bit...

Bake. Uncover and bake for 15 minutes, or until the rolls are lightly golden brown on top and cooked through.

Brush with more butter. Transfer the baking dish to a wire cooling rack and brush the tops of the rolls with melted butter.

Then serve warm and enjoy!

NOTE: Above is the original recipe...I follow it to the part where you cover the formed rolls for the 15-20 minutes rise...at this point I put the rolls in the fridge because I make them real early on the day I want to use them...I usually have too much going on at the last minute to be fooling with all this...Sooooo, I cover them loosely with plastic wrap and refrigerate until 2 hours before baking...take them out and they will continue to rise until they reach room temperature. Bake them for 15 minutes and enjoy. You can actually refrigerate them for up to 48 hours before you need them. I LOVE this recipe and so will you!!

Slow Cooker Chocolate-Covered Peanut Clusters

Slow Cooker Chocolate-Covered Peanut Clusters

These are SO Yummy!!

Prep Time: 5 minutes  | Servings: 28 servings 

Ingredients:

8 ounces unsalted peanuts

    (or dry roasted peanuts)

8 ounces

    salted cocktail peanuts

6 ounces

    semisweet chocolate chips

6 ounces

    milk chocolate chips

10 ounces

    peanut butter chips

1 pound

    white almond bark or vanilla candy melts

Directions:

Layer all of the ingredients in order in a 6-quart slow cooker. Cover and cook on low for up to 2 hours. NOTE: I stirred the ingredients every 15 minutes or so and they were melted in much less time...also, I was afraid they might burn if left unattended...

When completely melted, using a spoon or cookie scoop, scoop mounds of the clusters onto parchment-lined baking sheets. Allow to sit at room temperature until completely set, 1 to 2 hours. The clusters can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 1 month. They also freeze very well!

Nutrition:

CALORIES: 249KCAL FAT: 16G SATURATED FAT: 7G CHOLESTEROL: 3MG SODIUM: 67MG POTASSIUM: 150MG CARBOHYDRATES: 20G FIBER: 2G SUGAR: 14G PROTEIN: 6G VITAMIN A: 15% CALCIUM: 23% IRON: 1.1%

Source: https://www.browneyedbaker.com/slow-cooker-peanut-clusters/

Christmas (or any time) Fudge!

I cannot believe that I never shared my favorite EASY candy recipes here at "Mimi's House"...my sincere apologies!

These two fudge recipes are so super easy and fail proof as well. I love the old fashioned candy: cook, stir, stir, stir, test, stir :-) but this is almost as good and much faster and easier on the elbow...

I've made these candies for many years and promise you will love them!

*************

The Original Fantasy Fudge

Candy

Prep Time: 10 m  | Cook Time: 10 m  | Servings: 117 servings 

Ingredients:

3 cups white sugar

3/4 cup margarine

2/3 cup evaporated milk

1 (12 ounce) package semisweet chocolate chips

1 (7 ounce) jar marshmallow creme

1 cup chopped walnuts

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions:

Grease a 9x13-inch pan.

Mix sugar, margarine, and evaporated milk in a large, heavy saucepan over medium heat, stirring to dissolve sugar. Bring mixture to a full boil for 5 minutes, stirring constantly. 

Remove from heat and stir in chocolate chips until melted and thoroughly combined. Beat in marshmallow creme, walnuts, and vanilla extract. Transfer fudge to the prepared pan and let cool before cutting into squares. 

Notes:

To make in microwave (I've never done it this way), melt margarine in a 4-quart microwave-safe dish and mix sugar and milk into the margarine. Microwave mixture until it begins to boil, about 5 minutes on high, and stir after 3 minutes. Scrape bowl and continue to boil on high for 5 1/2 more minutes. Remove from microwave and stir in chocolate chips until melted, then stir in marshmallow creme, walnuts, and vanilla extract. Pour into prepared baking pan.

Nutrition:

Per Serving: 58 calories; 2.8 g fat; 8.6 g carbohydrates; 0.4 g protein; < 1 mg cholesterol; 17 mg sodium. Full nutrition

Source: https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/228782/the-original-fantasy-fudge/

*************

Easy Peanut Butter Fudge

Candy

Prep Time: 15 min  | Cook Time: prep: 15 min. + chilling  | Servings: 2 pounds (64 pieces) 

Ingredients:

2 teaspoons butter, softened

2 cups sugar

1/2 cup whole milk

1-1/3 cups peanut butter

1 jar (7 ounces) marshmallow creme

Directions:

Line an 8-in. square pan with foil; grease with butter.

In a heavy saucepan, combine sugar and milk; bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring constantly. Boil 3 minutes, stirring constantly. Remove from heat.

Stir in peanut butter and marshmallow creme until blended. Immediately spread into prepared pan; cool slightly.

Refrigerate until firm. Using foil, lift fudge out of pan. Remove foil; cut into squares. Store between layers of waxed paper in an airtight container.

Test Kitchen Tips

Drizzle individual fudge squares with melted chocolate to add some easy holiday glam.

Nutrition:

1 piece: 67 calories, 3g fat (1g saturated fat), 0 cholesterol, 28mg sodium, 10g carbohydrate (9g sugars, 0 fiber), 1g protein.

Source: https://www.tasteofhome.com/recipes/easy-peanut-butter-fudge/

Artisan Bread

My friend Wendy gave me a wonderful book... "The New Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day" by Jeff Hertzberg and Zoe Francois. I love baking bread but this is SO easy that I may never make bread any other way!! No kneading, no machine needed. Couldn't be easier.

You will have to get the book (or go to their web site, linked at the bottom of this post) to see the hundreds of variations, but I will share the Master Recipe here and probably, over time, share many of the other ones that I try.

All you need is a large plastic bucket (I bought a 6 quart rising bucket). Before I bought the rising container I used a one gallon plastic ice cream container and just halved the recipe.

Master Recipe

3 cups lukewarm water (under 100 degrees F)

1 Tbs Yeast

1-1 1/2 Tbs salt

6 1/2 cups All Purpose Flour

Add the yeast and salt to the warm water in the container. Don't worry about it dissolving. Add your flour and mix with a wooden spoon until it is all moist. If it gets difficult you can use your hand to mix it but do not knead it. This should only take a minute or two. The dough will be wet and loose.

Cover the container with the lid but not tightly... leave it loose on one side. Allow to rise at room temperature until it starts to collapse on top...two hours or so. Then refrigerate the dough up to two weeks to use as you will.

When ready to make your bread you simply flour your hands a little and scoop up a ball of dough. You can flour the surface a bit and even use kitchen scissors or a sharp knife to cut out the dough. 

Gently stretch the surface of the dough around to the bottom on all four sides. The bottom will be a bit messy like a bunch of loose ends but don't worry, that's fine. The entire process should take you less than a minute. Remember, you are not kneading, you are simply smoothing out the top with a gluten "cloak".

Now you can put your dough in a bread pan (lightly oil the pan) or free form. If you free form you can use a pizza peel and do it on a pizza stone or use a cookie sheet and parchment paper. 

Let your dough rest for about 40 minutes...longer if your kitchen is cool. Turn on your oven so it gets good and hot. 

When the rest time is over you will want to slash your bread so it can do the majority of rising in the oven as it bakes.

Bake your bread at 450 F for 35 to 40 minutes.

You can buy these buckets online...

Cambro 6 Quart Storage Container

The dough is quite wet and loose...

After a couple of hours your dough will be very high and airy...once it starts to flatten on the top it is ready to cover and refrigerate for up to two weeks...if it lasts that long! You will be baking a lot!! :-)

I took this photo right out of the book. The dough is sticky but easy to work with. Don't use a lot of flour, just enough to keep it from sticking to your hands.

I ordered this bread lame but if you have a very sharp serrated knife or even a razor blade (this lame utilized a sharp razor blade), you can slash your loaves.

As you can see, the bread is not fully risen when you slash it and put it in the oven...most of the rising occurs while baking.

If you want to see recipes and tips from this book please visit

BreadIn5.com 

Rendering Lard

 It's that time of year...time to render some lard. My friend Wendy gets the best fat at the Farmers Market and brought me 10 pounds this time. I made 9 pints of the prettiest, whitest, tastiest lard ever!

I love this fat...this farmer cuts it in just the right size for my grinder...

I use my giant Instant Pot...

...melt it all down..

..strain it, fill the jars, and

Voila!

Greeting from "Walden's Mountain" on Johnson Gap!!! Our new home!

Thanksgiving is upon us again...this year may be a bit different for a lot of people, but because so many of our family live up here on the mountain together we will probably have about the same family gathering that we always have....(for those of you that do not know: we now live on a 64 acre "farm" with my parents, my sister, and our oldest son Robbie and his wife Molly...our youngest son James and wife Tasha will come up when their daughter graduates HS, in the next couple years...go to our newest blog,  Johnson Gap Chronicles to learn about our growing Family Compound on "Walden's Mountain... many of our grandkids are also already planning to join us up here on the mountain in the not so distant future...).

I'll be posting our latest recipes and homemaking progress soon...we have been so busy moving in and building so many of the residences that we've had little time for anything else...but we still have chickens, have added horses and goats and see lots more farm animals in our future. It's going to be quite the adventure!!