Carmel!!!!!

Ok so I tried this and it works :) Believe It Or Not

Ingredients

1 Can of Sweetened condensed milk
1 crockpot
water to cover can in crockpot
8 hrs

or it's really this easy...

put the can in the crockpot ... if you don't want a rust ring in the bottom of the crockpot you can put a bowl or even a wash cloth under it... don't open the can ... just put it in there!
cover it with water.. all the way to the top!
leave it on low for 8 hrs
let cool
open can
Voila! carmel :)

@;-- if you need pictures This website has step by step

@;-- if you don't have sweetened condensed milk you can make your own with Paula Deen's recipe or  the Everyday food storage recipe (1 C. dry powdered milk, 1 C. sugar, 1/2 C. hot water, 1 T. Butter-blend in blender very well) and put it in a canning jar that will fit in your crockpot...I used half pints. When they were finished they actually sealed! Not sure if this would happen every time but I thought it was super cool!

@:-- I have used both home made versions and they work.. Haven't tried them yet so I'm not sure which tastes better (I'll let you know ;)

Rice Custard

Rice Custard

Ingredients:

1/4 C Butter or margarine

4 Eggs

3/4 C white sugar

1 pinch salt

2 C milk

2 tsp Vanilla

about 2 C leftover rice

1-2 tsp Cinnamon (optional)

Directions:

Mix together everything except Rice

Add rice mix just to combine

Pour in pan (depending on how thick you want your peices to be... you can use anything from 8x8 to 9x13)

Bake at 350 degrees for 45 min

@;-- I like adding chocolate chips too .... Sooo good!

Cinnamon Roll Cake

Cinnamon Roll Cake

Ingredients:

Cake:

3 C Flour

1/4 tsp salt

1 C white sugar

4 tsp baking powder

2 eggs

2 tsp vanilla extract

1 1/2 C milk

1/2 C butter (melted)

Cinnamon Filling:

1/2 C butter (room temp)

1 C packed brown sugar

2 Tbsp. flour

1 Tbsp Cinnamon

Glaze:

2 C powdered sugar

5 Tbsp milk

1 tsp vanilla extract

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

spray 9x13 pan with cooking spray

In large bowl combine all cake ingredients except the melted butter

Stir until mixed (don't over mix)

While mixer is running add melted butter

Mix until combined

Spread in baking dish

Make the filling

Mix all ingredients together

Drop in spoonfuls ontop of cake batter

Use a butter knife and swirl (marble effect)

Drag in the cinnamon and the cake batter

Bake 35-40 min until a toothpick or knife inserted in the middle comes out clean

While cake is baking make glaze

Whisk ingredients together

Pour over warm cake

Got recipe from thecountrycook.net

Cookies and Cream Cookies

I promised my sister in law that I would post these cookies but I'm lazy and don't want to type the whole recipe when someone else already has .... so this is where I got the recipe from ...

http://www.sixsistersstuff.com/2011/08/cookies-and-cream-cookies.html

Sheets

I know I don't post many non food items but this was so cool and easy I had to pass it on

http://www.imperfecthomemaking.com/2011/09/4-ways-to-fold-bedsheets.html

this is an awesome way to keep your sheets and pillow cases in sets (I always have to search for the matching pillow cases)

Hot milk sponge cake

http://www.thecountrycook.net/2011/03/hot-milk-sponge-cake-and-losing-teeth.html

this is my new favorite way to make strawberry short cake!!!!

My daughter has started cooking deserts (with help) and this is one of our favorites!

I'm being lazy because I got the recipe from someone else so I'm just posting the link

@;-- there are ALOT of other yummy things there too :)

Chicken Pot pie

This really is a chicken POT pie because it's in a crockpot :P

I love my crockpot!!!!

1 1/2 C chicken (cooked)season as desired
2 C potatos
3 - 4 C vegetables (anything you like in your pot pie) frozen or canned
1-2 packages chicken or turkey gravy
1 pkg of 8 poppin' biscuts

I cooked my chicken and boiled my potatos just so I knew they were cooked. I only cooked the pot pie in the crockpot for about 2 hours.... longer and I would probably suggest not cooking the potatos, or not cooking them compleatly done, because they would turn to mush!
Make gravy according to the package

put all ingredients except the biscuts in the crockpot.

Depending on how much cooking you already did...i.e. are the potatos cooked, is the chicken cooked.... you can cook 2-8 hours. I usually don't remeber (oh yeah I wanted to do something in the crockpot for dinner) till about 3 or 4 in the afternoon so I cook my chicken and boil my potatos then it only takes a couple hours.

about 30 min before serving place bicuts on top and put into a preheated oven till the bicuts are brown on top. (follow biscut package directions for temp and time to cook)

@;-- it took my biscuts a couple min extra.

@;-- you could also top with mashed potatos.

@;-- or do bicuts on the side if you don't like them kinda soggy on the bottom.

@;-- if using frozen vegitables thaw first.

@;-- drain all vegitables you do not want the extra liquid.

homemade mozzarella cheese

Mozzarella Cheese

1 gallon milk (I use goats milk)
1 1/2 t. citric acid dissolved in 1 c. non clorinated water
1/4 t. rennet dissolved in 1/4 c. non clorinated water
1 t. non iodized salt

Pour citric acid solution in large stainless steel stock pot (You should sterilize or wash the pot in a dishwasher that has a heat dry cycle.)
Add the milk--the pouring of the milk should stir the acid mixture in very well, but if you are in doubt, stir GENTLY with a slotted spoon.
Place the spoon in a small bowl of cool water to keep it clean and prevent the milk from drying on the spoon while your milk heats up.
Place a good quality thermometer in the milk... I have a digital one that works really well, and I have seen some that clip on to the side of the pan and extend out toward the middle of the pan..
Heat the milk slowly (about medium heat) until it reaches 88 degrees.
I stir a couple of times GENTLY during the heating process so that I know it is heating uniformly.
When it reaches 88 degrees, remove from heat and add the rennet water solution..  Pour  it through the slotted spoon to get a more even distribution.  Stir GENTLY with an up and down motion for about 30 seconds or until you are pretty sure it has completely mixed.
Set aside (out of drafts) I put the lid on the pan if the thermometer will let you...  Allow the rennet to 'work' for 15 minutes or until a solid curd has formed. It needs to stay as close to 88 degrees through this time as you can get it to. The whey will be almost clear around the edges of the pan.  When you cut a small cut in the curd it should separate cleanly.
With a long thin knife cut the curd into 1-1 1/2 inch cuts--Kind of like a checker board.  Be sure to cut to the bottom of the pan.
Allow the curds to "rest" for about 10 minutes.
These curds will be VERY fragile!  Heat gradually until they reach 100 to 105 degrees.  Turn the curds over with your slotted spoon so that they can heat on all sides.  I usually end up with my hands in the pan turning the curds and forming them into a ball as they heat.  It just seems to work better than the spoon. 
When you can get the curds to stay together and kind of mold, lift them out of the whey and mold--kind of like mixing dough--until most of the whey is worked out.
Put the ball in a clean glass bowl and add salt.  Mix it in just like bread dough.  Mine always starts to get crumbly at this point.
Microwave on high about 20 seconds.  Take out and knead like bread dough until it starts to get cool.  Microwave again for 10 seconds and knead again.  If it is looking and feeling really smooth and "stretchy" you may be about done.  I sometimes have to microwave again for another 10 seconds and knead again.
When it is smooth and shiny, put it in a bowl full of COLD water for about 5 min. to stop the cooking and then store in the refrigerator in an air tight container.  That is if you don't eat it before you get it into the cold water or into the fridge.

chicken enchiladas

I love these.

1 8oz package Cream Cheese
1 can cream of ........ soup
1 C cut up chicken
1 can stokes green chile sauce with pork
2 C instant rice
1/4+ C grated cheese
1 package of Soft taco shells (you need atleast 10)

Combine the cream cheese and the cream soup in a mixer.

remove about 1/4 C to put on the top

Add chicken, rice and Chile sauce to the remainder (the bigger part) of the cream cheese mixture.

@;-- now you can roll the taco shells up (taco style) or layer everything flat (Lasangna style)

@;-- I layer things flat in a round cassarole pan so there aren't any corners that get missed

layer a taco shell first

then a bout 1/4 cup of the mixture(the one that has the most ingredients in it)

then add a small amount of cheese (optional)

then another taco shell

layer till all the mixture is gone.

put one more taco shell on top

top with reserved cream cheese and cream soup mix

put 1/4 C cheese on top

Bake at 350 till it's golden on top and bubbleing (about 20 min)

this is what it looks like
you can find it by the refried beans

Yogurt smoothies

I love those drinkable yogurts that you buy at the store but hate the price... so now I make my own :)

1 can of fruit in heavy syrup (any kind)
2 cups homemade yogurt
1 single serving package of carnation breakfast essentials (vanilla)

in a blender put the can of fruit syrup and all (this is also the sugar for the yogurt) and mix
@;--if you want peices of fruit in the final drink put the fruit in last
add the carnation breakfast essentials
mix well
add the yogurt and mix again till blended

makes about 4 cups

if you want bananas probably add milk
if not using the carnation breakfast -- add vanilla

Frozen Ravioli Lasagna

I saw this on Studio 5 a couple of years ago and then forgot about it...

Last night when I was trying to decide what to make for dinner while freezing in frount of the open freezer I remebered this recipe... Then I went looking for it on studio 5 and couldn't find it so I had to just wing it.

My favorite thing about this recipe is the fact that I don't have to worry about the cottage cheese...
the ravioli is the cheese filling and it's in the freezer so it's always good when I get ready to make it.

this is really the easiest recipe in the world

1 25 oz frozen Ravioli (any kind would work I guess but I used cheese)
meat (sausage, ham, chicken) you get the idea
sauce (red or white)
grated cheese

put a little sauce in the bottom of the pan (whatever size is the right size for your family) cool thing   number 2 you can make as much or as little as you want

lay ravioli's flat on top of sauce, just one layer, no need to squish

add more sauce

add meat ( think ahead to how many layers you want and divided accordingly)

add cheese

then start over with the ravioli

I did 3 layers of ravioli and only 2 layers of meat

make sure to put sauce on top of the last ravioli

bake at 375 for 20-30 min

@;-- when putting this together the ravioli should still be frozen or as close to frozen as they can get and still get them appart.

Homemade yogurt!!!!

Yes I made it..... and it worked :p

This was one of those things that I wanted to try just to say that I did it! now that I have tried it .... not sure I can go back to the old store bought stuff... it's just too good!

I used this recipe http://everydayfoodstorage.net/food-storage-yogurt-with-powdered-milk There is a free printable hand-out that is awesome!

I just happen to have a mother, (yes i know shocking) that has a goat that she is milking so I used goats milk for the initial 2 quarts (8cups) of milk but I did add the powdered milk and continued the recipe from there like it is on the website.

I did exactly like the recipe until it came time to add the culture and let sit... I was worried about keeping my yogurt at the right temp. so I tweeked (thats what I do best) from there.

After I put the culture in I bottled it in the  half pint bottles that I wanted to use... I didn't wait for it to set up first. ( I got 10 and 1/2 half pints)

I then used a cooler ( a small one with no spout at the bottom) I put the bottles (lids very tight) in the cooler then added 113 degree water (I checked it with a thermomiter) just to the bottom of the rims...
added the thermomiter probe and let it be. the cooler took some of the heat out of the water so the end temp was 111 :)

It's important to leave the yogurt alone while it's setting up... it needs to be "quiet"

Mine was finished in about 3 hours. Hot water was added once because the temp. got below 110

The closer the water temp can get and stay toward the 110 mark the milder the end flavor.... the closer to 115 the sharper the flavor.

DON'T LET IT GET OVER 115 DEGREES

Also a thermomiter with the long cord so you can put the probe in the oven and keep the rest of the unit out... is your best friend!

I hope I got everything in that you needed to know
feel free to contact me with questions :)

@;--

Odds and ends tips

Keep checking back because I'll keep adding to this

@;-- Buy Hamburger in "bulk"
    try to find packages that are either 3bs or 4 lbs maybe a little over but close enough to devide fairly evenly. Now here comes the crazy part... if you plan to use it in recipes where it needs to just be browned hamburger (tacos, hamburger helper, ect.), brown the whole thing at once.... then devide it into what would be one pound amounts... remeber they aren't going to be one pound each. so if the original amount was 3 lbs then devide the cooked hamburger into 3 equal parts. Lable and freeze. when you want to use it it only needs thawed out enough to get out of the container and in the pan... when making tacos I put the seasoning in while it's still frozen in the middle... it makes it alot easier to work with :)
@;-- If your going to use hamburger for other things where it needs to be raw when you start.... still buy in bulk but devide, shape (for something like hamburgers), then freeze... it just makes things easier when you get ready to cook.

The easiest way to melt butter or margarine
put in a jar...like a canning jar (pint) cover with a paper towel and secure with a rubber band then microwave as normal.  The paper towel keeps splatters down and the rubber band wont react in the microwave but keeps the napkin from falling off.

Super Yummy pancakes

I found this recipe on Everyday Food Storage. The cool thing about it is you can make it one batch at a time or make it into a "mix" 4 batches at a time :)

http://everydayfoodstorage.net/2012/03/13/best-ever-homemade-pancake-mix/food-storage-recipes

Mock Lava Cake ... So good!!!

This was another of my happy accidents :)

My hubby wanted a chocolate cake for desert tonight so I used My cream cheese cupcake recipe and used a chocolate cake mix (triple chocolate fudge to be precise)  instead of white. the whole time it baked I worried about frosting it because I knew we needed to eat it fairly quickly and I wouldn't have time to let it cool enough for a traditional butter cream.

so then I pulled out my favorite cupcake magazine/cookbook and found Ganache but it called for heavy cream and I didn't have any..... so then I got thinking and went on line in search of a recipe that used evaporated milk :)

http://eatlovecook.com/2009/12/evaporated-chocolate-ganache/

@;-- I used this recipe but if you double it it will use a whole can of evaporated milk :)
@;--I also added more chocolate chips because it says that if it has more chocolate chips it's thicker and I wanted thicker
@;-- I used milk chocolate instead of semi-sweet just because I'm not that fond of semi-sweet

when the ganache was about room temp it looked kind of like chocolaate syrup so we decided to just pour it over the cut peices of cake and put cool whip on them and wha laa! it looked really pretty but it tasted just like hot lava cake like you make in a crock pot! I don't think I'll ever worry abaout making the crockpot version again this was too easy :)

@;-- Enjoy :)

Food Storage

http://everydayfoodstorage.net/

need I say more :)

Philly Cheese Steak .... Kinda.....

I have been rolling this recipe over in my head for months and finally decided to make it a reality. :)

5 lb roast cut very thin (my meat counter did it for me)
2 Cans Cream of Mushroom Soup
1 Can water
1 Can of Mushrooms
1 package Ah Jus (dry)
1 Sweet onion
2 Green Peppers
hoggy buns
sliced cheese

Sear the meat in a skillet with a little oil
Dump the meat in a crock pot
add Mushroom Soup, water, mushrooms, and Ah Jus Pack
stir and cook on Low 4-6 hours
Saute onion and green peppers cut in small peices until they start to carmelize
(this can be done at the same time as when you sear the meat or just before you eat)

to "plate" toast buns in the oven with cheese on it (only a few minutes make sure to watch it ) if you carmelized the onions and green peppers when you started the meat you might want to put it on the buns before toasting them so that they warm up too. If you decide to do that put the cheese on top of the onions and green peppers to "hold them" in place.
take them out and top with the meat

Enjoy :)

Orange Teriyaki Sauce or Marinade

I love this with the Kalua Pork but it would be good with chicken too.

Marinade
2 C Water
1 C Orange Juice
1/4 C Rice Vinegar
4 Cloves of Garlic
1/2 C soy Sauce
1 C Sugar

Sauce
1 T Cornstarch
1 T Cold Water
1/2 C Sugar
1/4 C Soy Sauce
1/2 C Orange Juice
1/8 C Rice Vinegar
2 Cloves of Garlic

In a small saucepan, whisk together the Cornstarch and cold water until smooth and no lumps. Then, whisk in sugar, soy sauce, orange juice, vinegar, and garlic

bring to a boil over medium heat then reduce it and simmer until thickens

Remove from heat. You'll end with about 1 Cup of sauce

serve over rice or on buns :)

Kalua Pork

Kalua Pork

5-7 lb Pork Butt or pork roast
about 1 T Kosher Salt
1-2 T Liquid Smoke

put pork in crackpot and poke liberally with knife
pour on salt and rub it all over
pour liqiud smoke over pork

let cook in the slow cooker up to 16 hours it should FALL APART :)

I like to eat this with bbq sauce on buns (kinda like sloppy joes)

I only mix bbq sauce with the pork that will be eaten that night

Leftovers can be frozen

Cream Cheese Cake Mix Cookies

I got this off of Justapinch.com the original post was by Sherry Symmonds
I made these yesterday and they were so go I had to share :)

1 box cake mix
8 oz cream cheese
1/4 c butter
1 egg
1 t vanilla
1 C add ins

Pre heat oven to 375 degreese
cream together cream cheese and butter
add egg and vanilla
mix in cake mix
add "add-ins"

bake for 10 min on a greesed cookie sheet

@;-- the flavor for the cake mix changes the flavor of the cookie
@;-- I used about 2 cups of "add-ins" (it was actually a bag of chocolate chips)

Yes it does taste like Wingers!!!!

I tried this last night because the hubby was craving Wingers and it tastes good enough to appease the master pallet :P

1/3 C Brown Sugar
1/3 C Worcestershire sauce
1/3 C Ketchup
1-2 T Honey
2     t Hot Sauce
2     t Apple Cider Vinegar

mix together on stove top on low
pour over cooked breaded chicken and shake

@;-- if you want them "stickier" spread out sauce covered chicken on a cookie sheet and bake at 350 for 5-7 min

@;-- the only difference I could tell between this and the original is that it doesn't have as much heat... to make it as "hot" as the oringinal you would probably need to double the hot sauce but I would taste it to make sure.

@;-- I have also found that you can mix this (equal parts) with KC Masterpeice BBQ sauce .... it makes a very good BBQ sauce

Key Lime Pie!!!!

I am always on the lookout for an Awesome Key Lime Pie! The closer to Red Lobster's the better. I have finally found one that I'm happy with atleast for a substitute :)

9 inch premade graham cracker pie shell
1 14oz can sweetened condensed milk
3 egg yokes
1/2 cup key lime juice
     @;-- you can buy it pre squeezed ;) by the lemon juice in the store

mix together the milk, egg yokes, and lime juice in the mixer or blender.
pour in the pie crust and bake at 350 degreese for 15 min.
allow stand 10 min before refrigerating

Now this is really good and tastes like Red Lobster but I also like the Ben and Jerry's Key lime ice cream. If you put this topping on it. It tastes like the ice cream :)

1/2 package of cream cheese (4oz)
1/2 C powdered sugar
1/4 package of cool whip (approx. 2 oz)---by weight
 
mix together cheese and sugar until smooth add coolwhip.
spread over cooled key lime pie.

put in refrigerator for atleast 2-4 hours until it's set up

Enjoy :)