Cheese Spaghetti al Katy

This is my Grandma Katy's recipe. I rememer her making it for Caitlyn and I when we were little and we'd visit her. I liked it then and I like it now.

What you need:

1/2 box angel hair spaghetti pasta

about 1.5 inches cut off a Velveeta block, cubed

3 cubes chicken bullion

1/2 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp butter

milk (i forgot to measure ... maybe about a cup or two?)

salt/pepper

What you do:

Prepare pasta. drain. Return to pan. Pour milk into pasta, just under the pasta level (more if you like it soupier, less if you like it thicker). Add Velveeta, chicken bullion, garlic powder and butter. Mix well, and heat on low. When Velveeta is melted, taste and add salt/pepper as needed. eat.

As part of the recipe, I'm plugging Dakota Growers Pasta Co. pasta. Aside from how great it tastes (super good) it's made right here in North Dakota (Carrington, ND to be exact). Anytime we make something with pasta we try to use this kind. Doesn't that look like Corey and I workin' the field, harvesting wheat?

No you say?

Well I think it does.

Peanut clusters

Believe it or not, but I actually got this recipe from a bathroom stall. Let me explain ... at the university where I work, a student organization posts health tips called "toilet talk" on the backs of the bathroom doors. The winter posting featured this recipe as a healthy alternative to cookies. They are so tasty it's hard to believe they are healthier than cookies - and so much easier! Corey and his junk food loving friends even like them – bonus!

stuff:

10 oz peanut butter chips

1/2 cup dry roasted, unsalted peanuts

1/2 cup regular oats, uncooked

1/2 cup raisins

1 tsp cinnamon

what to do with the stuff:

Microwave chips in bowl until melted, stir a few times while melting every 30 seconds or so ... or they will burn ... not good. Add remaining ingredients, mix thoroughly. Wash your hands. Firmly roll into 1 inch balls. Let cool on wax paper (makes about 20 clusters). Eat. Write me a comment and let me know how you like them :)

Pecan topped sweet potatoes

Mix
3 cups sweet potatoes, peeled & mashed (or two cans)
1 cups white sugar
½ cups softened butter
2 eggs slightly beaten
1 tsp. Vanilla
Place this mixture in a 2 qt. Greased baking dish

Mix
1/3 cups flour
1/3 cup melted butter
1 cup brown sugar
Sprinkle this mixture on top of the potato

Sprinkle 1 cup chopped pecans on top and bake at 350 for 40 minutes.

Major yum. 

This is one of my new favorites!

Pumpkin spice chocolate chip muffins

These are so easy.

What you need:
1 - 15 oz can of un-spiced pumpkin (or the equivalent of fresh pureed pumpkin)
1 box of spice cake mix
3/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Compine pumpkin and spice cake mix in bowl (do NOT add anything else ... no eggs, no milk, no oil). Mix the pumpkin and spice cake mix together. Add chocolate chips. mix. Spoon into muffin tin (I use liners). Makes 12 muffins.

Bake for 15-20 minutes at 350.

eat.

Pesto

My garden has turned into a basil factory - who knew it re-seeded itself?! The stuff is multiplying like crazy. I used up a good share of it with this tasty recipe from my mom. I definitely wasn’t going to use it all - so I froze it by spooning the pesto into a cupcake tray. Once frozen, I put the pesto cubes into a freezer safe bag for use later.

Thank mom!

What you need:
3 - 5 Cups fresh basil leaves
2 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped
1/4 Cup pine nuts
2/3 Cup olive oil
salt and ground pepper
3/4 cup fresh grated parmesan cheese (do not add if you will be freezing - it can be added when it is prepared)

Wash basil and drop into boiling water, drain immediately, rinse with cold water and pat completely dry. (Cooking the basil briefly helps pesto keep its green color. You can skip this step, but your pesto will darken a bit). Combine with garlic, nuts in food processor. Pour oil in while processing. Process until smooth. If pesto is too thick, add oil to thin. Freeze small portions or add cheese and use immediately.

Toss with pasta, spread on sandwich, stir into vegetable soup, mix with mayo for a vegetable dip or stir into mashed potatoes.

Enjoy!

Caitlyn's Banana Bread

What you’ll need:
1/2 cup shortening
1 cup sugar
2 eggs, beaten
1/2 cup milk (sour w/ vinegar)
2 cups flour
1 tsp. baking soda
pinch of salt
3 ripe bananas
nuts (optional) ... I put in about 1 cup of chopped walnuts

What to do:
Cream the shortening and sugar (I used my stand mixer). Add the remaining ingredients. Mix. Pour mixture into a greased loaf pan. Bake in a 350* oven for about 50 minutes. I’d recommend setting the timer for 40 and checking the bread every five minutes. When it’s done (stick in a knife, when it comes out clean it’s done) remove from oven. Let cool in the pan. Remove from pan and slice. enjoy!

Apple Cake

This is Corey’s favorite dessert.

Short funny story about the famous apple cake: Last fall I had just refilled the plug-in air freshener in our living room with a new “autumn” scent of apples and cinnamon. Corey arrived home a shot while later and said something like “Oh, you made my mom’s apple cake, my favorite” ... I must have had the strangest look in my face “um, no, I didn’t cook at all ...” Well as it turns out, this apple cake smells just like the apple and cinnamon air freshener, but tastes a lot better than air freshener!

Apple Cake & Caramel Topping

What you need for the cake:
2 cups sugar
1/2 cup butter
2 eggs
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp basking soda
2 tsp cinnamon
2 cups flour
1 cup chopped nuts
5 cups apple (peeled, cored and diced)

Combine and mix all ingredients except apples and nuts. Add apples and nuts and mix. Batter will be stiff. Spread in 9x13 pan and bake for 40-50 minutes at 350*

What you'll need for the caramel:
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup whipping cream
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
splash of vanilla

I double this recipe because you can never have too much caramel :)
Combine and heat on stove on low until mixed well, thickened, and sugar is dissolved.
Scoop apple cake and top with caramel.

Thanks to Andrea for the recipe!