Pumpkin Bread

My Grandma Douglas's recipe for pumpkin bread is one of my all-time favorite foods. My kids down it too. This recipe will yield 2- 9x5x3 loaves + 1- 8 1/2 x 4 1/2 x2 loaf OR 4 - 8 1/2 x 4 1/2 loaves <---what I always do


4 cups sugar
1 1/2 cups oil
4 eggs, slightly beaten
3 cups pumpkin pie filling (30 oz can) (I just use the 100% pure pumpkin)
4 1/2 cups flour
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cloves
1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon


1. Mix sugar and oil well.
2. Beat in eggs and pumpkin.
3. Blend in sifted dry ingredients.
4. Pour into greased and floured loaf pans.
5. Bake at 325 for 1 hour or until done
6. Cool 15 minutes, then remove from pans

*Be sure to check your bread before actually calling it done. I bake the 4 smaller loaves and find that an hour PLUS 15 minutes of cooking time usually works out best for me. Otherwise you risk the center being inedible.

No-Bake Chocolate Pie

warning: this is super sweet but super tasty! It's like eating smores.

7 milk chocolate candy bars (1.55 oz each), chopped
20 large marshmallows
1/2 c. milk
2 c. whipped topping
1 graham cracker crust (9 inches)
Additional whipped topping, optional

In a large, heavy saucepan, combine the candy bars, marshmallows and milk.
Cook and stir over low heat until smooth.
Remove from the heat; cool.
Fold in whipped topping; pour into crust.
Cover and refrigerate 4 hours or overnight.
Garnish with additional whipped topping if desired.

Butter Horn Rolls

My favorite rolls ever. I love getting to make them for Thanksgiving. This is my grandma Smelser's recipe.



Butter Horn Rolls makes 32

1 pkg yeast

1/2 c warm water

1 c lukewarm milk

1/3 c melted butter

1/2 c sugar

3 eggs, well-beaten

3/4 tsp salt

4 1/2 to 4 3/4 c sifted flour



Dissolve yeast in warm water.

Add all other ingredients to yeast mixture.

Mix well. Mixture will be sticky.

Cover bowl with saran wrap or tupperware bowl with lid. Let raise 3 hours in warm place.

Dump out on flour board.

Divide dough in half and roll each half into a large 16" circle.

Brush with melted butter. Cut like a pie into 16 pieces.

Roll from large end and place on cookie sheets.

*The rest is from memory because apparently the other half of the recipe ran away. I'm making them right now though and I'll change it if it doesn't turn out right*
Cover with towel and let raise another 45 minutes or until double in size.
Bake at 350 for 15 minutes.

Pumpkin Pie

(from the Libby's can)



3/4 c. sugar

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp ground ginger

1/4 tsp ground cloves

2 large eggs

1 can (15 oz) Libby's pure pumpkin

1 can (12 oz) evaporated milk

1 unbaked 9-inch deep dish pie shell



Mix sugar, salt, cinnamon, ginger, and cloves in small bowl.

Beat eggs in large bowl.

Stir in pumpkin and sugar-spice mixture.

Gradually stir in evaporated milk.

Pour into pie shell.

Bake in preheated 425 oven for 15 minutes. Reduce temperature to 350 and bake 40-50 minutes or until knife inserted near center comes out clean.

Cool on wire rack for 2 hours.

Serve immediately or refrigerate.

Apple Pie

Pam's Flaky Pie Crust (my mom's- Pam Alger)
Makes a 9" or 10" double crust pie

2 c. sifted flour
1 tsp. salt
2/3 c. shortening
6-7 Tbsp. cold water

Sift together flour and salt. Cut in shortening with pastry blender till pieces are the size of small peas. Add water, a tablespoon at a time, and mix with fork. Split dough in half and roll out to make two crusts.

Apple Pie from Grandma Dottie Douglas
4 c. prepared apples (4 or 5 apples, peeled and sliced)
3/4 to 1 c. sugar (amount depends on tartness of apples)
1 Tbsp. flour
dash salt
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
2 Tbsp. butter

Prepare pastry and apples. Sprinkle some sugar on bottom pastry. Add apple slices. Mix sugar, flour, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Sprinkle over apples then dot with butter. Put top crust on, moistening edge of bottom crust with water to seal edges. Flute edges, trim, and cut slits in top crust. Bake at 450 for 15 minutes, then decrease to 350 and bake for 30 minutes.

Yams & Apples

Kathy Mitchell's recipe (from my mom's recipe collection). If memory serves, this is my brother Jimmy's very most favorite version of yams. I'm personally not a fan but I actually think these aren't half bad (probably because Kathy makes them)


6 to 8 cans yams
6 to 8 apples, peeled and sliced
Combine:
3/4 teaspoon salt
4 Tablespoons cornstarch
1 cup sugar
Add:
2 cups water
1/2 cup margarine
1 Tablespoon sugar (plus a little)


1. Cook until thickened.
2. Pour over top of yams and apples in baking dish.
3. Bake at 350 for 20-30 minutes

Cookie Salad

This recipe is actually from my stepmom Christy. I make it for most gatherings and never fail to get rave reviews. It's especially great because it's so easy!


2 packages instant vanilla (3.4 ounce) pudding mix
2 cups buttermilk
12 ounces frozen whipped topping, thawed
1 can pineapple chunks (20 ounce), drained
2 cans mandarin oranges (11 ounce), drained
1/2 package fudge stripe (11.5 ounce) cookies


In a large bowl, mix together the pudding mix and the buttermilk.
Fold in the whipped topping.
Mix in the pineapple chunks and mandarin oranges.
Chill until ready to serve.
Crush cookies and mix in just before serving.

I don't usually have buttermilk on hand so I pretty much always use powdered buttermilk substitute (found usually on the top shelf in the baking aisle). Seems like I usually add some sliced bananas just before serving too.

Best Macaroni

Okay, so I have never contributed to this blog but my friend made this recipe that I thought was so good. Since she just emailed it to me I thought it would be great to copy and paste it onto here finally contributing something for everyone else to enjoy.


14 oz Elbow Macaroni
1/2 cup Butter
16 oz Soft Cream Cheese
4 cups Sharp Cheddar Cheese (cubed 1/2 inch)
6 Tbs Flour
4 cups Milk
1 Tsp Salt
1 Tsp Pepper

Heat oven to 400 degrees. Cook Macaroni according to package and drain. In a saucepan, melt butter; stir in flour. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally until smooth and bubbly. Stir in milk, cream cheese, salt and pepper. Continue cooking, stirring occasionally until sauce is thickened. Stir together macaroni, sauce, and cheddar cheese. Pour into casserole dish and bake 15-20 minutes. Cheddar cheese will melt in the oven.

Carrot Cake

This is Billy's birthday cake. The recipe is from his mom and he gets it every year. I don't use walnuts ever but it is always a huge hit.

4 eggs

1 1/4 c. oil

1 tsp. vanilla

2 c. sugar

2 c. flour

2 tsp baking soda

2 tsp cinammon

3 cups carrots, grated

pinch of salt

Beat together eggs, oil, vanilla. Mix in separate bowl the sugar, soda, and cinammon. Add to oil mixture and blend. Mix in carrots and a pinch of salt.

Bake at 350 for 40 minutes.

Let cool before frosting.

Cream Cheese Frosting

1 package cream cheese, softened

1 cube margarine, softened

1 box powdered sugar

(optional walnuts)

Cream together cream cheese and margarine. Add in powdered sugar and walnuts until well-blended. Frost on cooled cake.