Stuffed Shells

So i had already started supper when Sara came into the kitchen...starving as usual! when i said we are having stuffed shells she jumped for joy!....well not literally but her face showed jumping with joy on the inside, so i grabbed my camera and decided, why not? lets post it.

I decided on stuffed shells because i had a lot of cottage cheese that needed to be used, normally i use ricotta cheese but i hate to waste things so cottage cheese stuffed shells it was... but then i thought....why couldn't i put my eggs and cottage cheese in the vita-mix to make it smoother? so thats what i did and OH WOW, it looked like vanilla pudding, AWESOME! then i added the parmesan cheese, parsley, salt, pepper and oregano, LOVELY!! (Note: it is a little bit thinner when you blend it,  (you could use one less egg and that might make it a bit thicker)

I like to sneak in some veggies when i fry up the ground beef, i also added some onion, garlic and seasonings, you can't hardly even find the carrots when its all said and done,    ( wonder if they are even beneficial if you can't see them....hmmm)

nope its not pudding! its 3 eggs and about 2 cups cottage cheese, sorry i didn't measure.

to the egg mixture i added parmesan cheese, sorry again didn't measure....parsley, salt & pepper, oregano & basil.

all set up and ready to assemble.

all done and ready to devour!



RECIPE:
18 large shells, cooked
1# ground beef
onion, garlic, basil, salt & pepper, oregano, 
shredded veggies and of your choice (optional)
approx. 24 oz. pasta sauce
3 eggs
2 cups ricotta or cottage cheese
approx. 1 cup parmesan cheese
basil, oregano, parsley, salt & pepper
2 cups mozzarella cheese

cook & drain pasta shells, cook ground beef, drain and add veg & seasonings, add pasta sauce, set aside, mix or blend eggs & cottage cheese, then add parmesan cheese & seasonings.
grease a 9x13 pan, spread some of the meat sauce in bottom, stuff your shells with egg/cheese mixture, and place in pan, top with rest of meat sauce, sprinkle mozzarella cheese over all and bake at 350 for approx. 30 min. or till hot and cheese is melted.

NOTE: stuffing the shells can be a bit messy, i have seen where people put the egg/cheese mixture in a bag, cut off the tip and squeeze it into the shells, kinda like a frosting tube, i have not tried that but it sounds like it should work, i just get messy, i would rather wash my hands than extra utensils, but thats just me :)


ENJOY!
Rose

Fresh Peach Crumb Pie

have you ever cut into a peach and it was like a piece of foam? I have! and it really annoys me when that happens! I probably paid good money for the peaches and now i may as well have put my money down the garbage disposal, I DO NOT like to waste things....or money...or peaches.

BUT give me a beautiful, juicy just right ripe peach and ....OH MY LOVE LOVE! nothing says summer quite like a fresh juicy peach.

so i had these really nice peaches and i remembered this pie my mom used to make, i don't think she ever used a recipe, she just used a bit of this and a bit of that, so i had to call her today a get some better instructions, so i guessed a little, tweaked a little, improved a little (Mom said to use milk or 1/2 and 1/2...i used heavy cream..of course! Mom said if you want it to look nice you can add some crumbs, i said obviously i want it to look NICE! plus crumbs are yummy! I say if your gonna make a pie...... make a GOOD PIE!  so this i what i came up with......I called it Peach Crumb Pie but it could be called Peach Custard Pie too....cause its kinda custardy.
is that even a word?  

RECIPE:
1 unbaked pie crust
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup flour
pinch of salt
3 large peaches
heavy whipping cream (shoot i forgot to measure) maybe like 1 cup...ish...sorry

CRUMBS:
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup flour
3 TLBS butter, melted

combine brown sugar, flour & salt and put in bottom of your unbaked crust, slice peaches on top, pour your whipping cream over peaches.
combine all crumb ingredients and crumble on top, bake at 375 for 30 minutes, cool completely.

 combine flour, brown sugar & salt

 Yes i cheat and buy refrigerated pie crusts, so easy and i like that i can use my own pans.

 flour, sugar & salt mixture in the pan

   i forgot to measure the cream, so you can see in the picture about how much to add :)

ready for the oven

I was writing this post as the pie was cooling in the fridge and i had a piece just now....Oh my goodness it was delectable! i don't want to toot my own horn, but.......it was very good! i will leave it at that.

ENJOY
Rose

Fruit Pizza

This in one of those foods that does not last very long at this house, my hubby loves fruit! like he eats ALOT of fruit at one time....he will dig into a dish like this at least 2 or 3 times in one day. Although i love sweets ....and i will eat a little  bit of this, i could totally leave this alone and not be tempted by it, I probably shouldn't blog something i don't really like but I do enjoy making it and its fun to make things that are eaten up in no time.

grease and flour your pan

 I found it was easiest to use my "floured" hands to press the crust into the pan.

without the glaze on top, looks prettier but the bananas and peaches would turn brown if we didn't add the glaze, if you are using fruit that does not turn brown you could skip the glaze. (or you could dip the bananas in orange juice before putting it on the fruit pizza that would work too) i might do that next time.

RECIPE:
crust
1/2 cup butter
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 egg
1 1/4 cup flour
1/2 tsp. baking soda

soften or melt butter, add rest of ingredients and press into 12 or 14" pizza  pan, bake at 350 for about 15 min or till done.

filling
8 oz cream cheese
1 cup powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup cool whip

combine all filling ingredients and spread on top of cooled crust

arrange fruit of your choice on top of filling, i used strawberries, peaches, bananas, grapes & blackberries. 

glaze
1 cup fruit juice, thicken with a little clear jel or dry vanilla instant pudding. drizzle on top.


ENJOY!

Rose

Chicken Rotel

This is one of our favorite dishes, well my daughter is not a big fan but everyone else LOVES it, kinda spicy, noodlely, cheesy, its kinda casserole, kinda soup, whatever it is...its yummy!!

I remember when my mom first made this, our neighbor gave us the recipe and it was a different type of dish for us, but my dad loved it, so it became a regular dish at our house.

I have simplified the recipe over the years, the original recipe called for a uncooked whole chicken, (and sometimes i still do that when they are on sale) and when you cook it you have your broth ....so thats nice....but sometimes time is just not that readily available....so i usually use a Rotisserie chicken (from Sam's 4.99) can't really beat that, much easier and quicker, or if you really want to make it simple you could use a can of chicken pieces, but i like the nice big chunks of chicken in this.

before deboning

After deboning
sorry not a great picture but i like to cut down on dirty dishes so i use stuff thats already dirty (that sounds bad) 

 so colorful

so yummy 


RECIPE:

6 cups chicken broth, use your own if you cooked the chicken
8 oz. spaghetti noodles
1/4 cup butter
1 pepper
1 onion
1 can mushrooms
1 can Rotel tomatoes
1 cup peas
2 TLBS worchestershire sauce
1 chicken
16 oz. Velveeta cheese
salt, pepper, basil & parsley to taste, sorry i never measure this stuff


If using whole uncooked chicken: 
cover with enough water to cover and cook till tender, let cool and debone, measure your broth so you have 6 cups, you can add some water if its not enough.

if using already cooked chicken start here:
in a large pot or dutch oven, combine cut up pepper and onion and sauté with 1/4 cup butter for about 10 min. add broth and bring to a boil, add spaghetti and cook till done (don't overcook) add rotel, mushrooms, peas and worchestershire sauce, bring back to a boil, turn heat down and add cheese, chicken and spices, heat till cheese is melted.

ENJOY!

ROSE

Corn Roast

What food can make you travel approx. 1100 miles for? well in my case it was roasted corn, its a family tradition to have a corn roast in the summer when the sweet corn is sweet and incredibly delicious!

As a kid i didn't like to eat sweet corn on the cob, i didn't like how it would stick in my teeth, but at some point in my adult life i developed a liking for corn on the cob, ( there are always toothpicks...right?) 
SO once a year we gather the whole family together and build a BIG fire and have a corn roast!

WARNING:  there will be butter dripping off your chin and elbows and your fingers will be buttery & salty and sticky....YES its that kind of meal....
but so worth it!

Start with a boat load of corn, always get some extra for those that get lost or burned up in the fire,
leave the corn in the husk and soak in cold water for at least a couple hours and up to 6 hours.

This is one piece of equipment needed, definitely not what i usually use for cooking but hey THIS is not your normal kind of cooking experience.

More equipment....or more like man toys!

 The guys made this big grate thing, hooked it onto the Gradall so they can lower it onto the fire.

unhook the grate thing and use the bucket to completely cover the corn with the hot ashes, oh men and their toys........

Note from Merle: You want to make sure the corn is completely covered, if it is exposed at all it will burn.

 Stand back and admire your handiwork :)

 ....About 45 min and the corn was ready!!

hook the grate back up to the Gradall, and lift the corn and dump :)

It may not look that great here but underneath the husk is perfectly roasted sweet corn.

We melt the butter and brush it on with a pastry brush, works great!

Some have some burnt areas, those are my favorites! great smoky flavor with or without the burnt spots.

 Way too cute!!

And this concludes another corn roast for the Miller/Weaver family.

This could totally be done on a smaller scale, but in this family we don't really like to do things in a small way :)

My nephew was watching all the guys with all their tractors and equipment, turns to me and says, "all this just for corn?" but the smile on his face above says....all is good!

Rose