Joyce's Banana Cream Pie

From Joyce S.  She has taught classes twice that I can remember to the ward of how to make her Famous Banana Cream Pie.  Here is the recipe...

One Crust Pie
8 or 9 inch

1 C. Gold Medal Flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1/3 C. plus 1 T shortening or 1/3 C. lard
2 to 3 T. cold water

blend dry ingredients.  Cut in shortening.  Add Cold water.  Roll out.  Place in pie tin.  Cook for 12-15 minutes at 475 degrees.

Banana Cream Pie filling
3/4 C. sugar
3 T. corn starch
1/4 tsp salt
2 C. half and half
3 slightly beaten egg yolks
2 T. butter
1 tsp. vanilla

In saucepan combine sugar, cornstarch and salt.  Gradually stir in half and half.  Cook and stir 2 minutes on medium high heat.  Remove from heat.  Stir moderate amount of hot mixture into egg yolks to warm them up. Immediately return egg yolks (with the hot mixture you added to them) to the hot mixture still in the pan.  Cook for 2 more minutes stirring constantly.  Remove from heat.  Add butter and vanilla.  Allow to cool (before placing filling in pie shell).

Slice 2 bananas into pie shell.  Add cool filling on top.  Slice 1 banana on top of filling.

Top with 1/2 pint whipped cream (beaten in whipped cream).  Refrigerate until ready to serve.

While visiting Utah recently, I sampled a yummy crockpot lasagna from my favorite Grocery store of all times.... MACEYS. (I sure miss Western Family products!!)

Check out my RECIPE BLOG to find the recipe that

captured my heart and what I'm making right now for dinner tonight!

Carmel Syrup

This is a really yummy carmel syrup recipe from Jacque.

1 cube butter
1/2 C. buttermilk (from store, or make by mixing 1 T. lemon juice into milk and let sit for a few minutes until it curdles)
2T. Karo Syrup
1C. Sugar

Bring to a boil and stir constantly for 3-4 minutes.  Remove from heat and add...

1 tsp. baking soda
1 T. vanilla

Homemade Syrup

Twice as much white sugar as water.  (For example 2 C. sugar and 1 C. water...but you can do less or more)
Boil until the sugar dissolves and liquid becomes clear.  Add a splash of mapeline (maybe 1 tsp-1 T.).

I store my syrup in the fridge, but don't know if you have to or not.  This syrup is runny unlike store-bought.  I like it better that way because then it absorbs into the pancakes better!

Pancake Mix

These are fluffy and absorb a lot of syrup!  I will do a separate post for my homemade syrup recipe.

Here is the mix (obviously this makes a lot)
12 C. flour
1/2 C. baking powder
4 tsp. salt
3/4 C. sugar
4 C. powdered milk

To make the pancakes...
1 C. mix (from above)
1 T. oil
1 egg
1/2 - 3/4 C. water
This made 4-5 medium sized pancakes (I measured each pancake batter out with a 1/4 measuring cup and it made 4-5 pancakes)

Here is a smaller version of the mix if you want to try it first (this is a fourth of the total mix)
3 C. flour
1/8 C. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
3 T. sugar
1 C. powdered milk

Cheesy potato soup

I was looking through the blog posts and realized that Mikael is having way too much fun and decided to get in on the action.  ;)

Since it's been rainy the last couple of days, it puts me in the mood for soup.  My husband loves this one because, unlike other soups, this one is filling. 

Cheesy Potato Soup

5-6 chopped potatoes (you won't mash them, so make them bite size)

6 chicken bouillon cubes

1/2 onion (optional)

3 cups milk

1/2 cup flour

1 stick margarine/butter

2-3 cups grated cheese

Put in enough water to just cover the chopped potatoes (you don't drain it, so don't overdo the water).  Cook until soft.  In a bowl, melt the margarine, whisk with 1/2 cup flour and 1/2 cup milk.  Stir into softened potatoes and water, stirring constantly.  Add 2 1/2 cups milk, & then salt, pepper, and garlic salt to taste.  Add 2-3 cups grated cheese.  Enjoy!

 I also serve with a green salad and homemade rolls or bread.  I'll post some easy recipes for those later.  :D 

-Loretta

Strawberry Freezer Jam

So for the last few years I have wanted to make strawberry jam.  My two good friends Chris and Amy always make such yummy yummy strawberry jam that I wanted some for myself.  It seems like the strawberry season slips by me and I never do it.  This year I swore I was going to do it.  Then I could never really find a good price on strawberries so I kept putting it off and putting it off.  Then one day while I was at my Mom's her neighbor came by and asked if she wanted any of her strawberries off her plants.  So lo and behold I got strawberries.  That means I was really committed.  I was scared.  (of what I'm not sure---I guess failure).  Any way I did it today...my first attempt at strawberry freezer jam.

This is the pectin I used...thanks to my good friend Amy!  Thanks Amy!

It was an instant pectin (I didn't even know there was such a thing!!!).  You didn't have to cook the fruit at all.  Just mix a pkg of the pectin and 1 & 1/2 C. sugar and 4 C. of crushed strawberries.  Stir for 3 minutes.  Then place in clean containers.  Freeze for up to 1 year. (These are just the instructions from the pkg...I didn't do anything special).  It was really quite easy.  It did take a few hours.  I had two big popcorn bowls full and it made a little over 12 C. of crushed strawberries.  So I needed 3 pkgs of pectin and 4 & 1/2 C. sugar.  Then I got 9 containers worth.  The pkg says that each pkg makes 5 pints.

I'll have to let you know how it tastes!  I am way excited and really proud of myself!

Do any of you have any canning or jam experiences or advice for the rest of us?!?!?!  For example I am wondering if you can put the freezer jam in other containers?  Such as cottage cheese containers?

One of those days...

Did you ever have one of those days where you have to scrape off the top layer of your casserole because it got burnt?  Yeah...it was one of those days!!!!

Baked Beans

Ok...so this is not a BBQ recipe...but if you are going to a BBQ this is one of my favorite dishes.  These are my Mom's baked beans.

3 (15 oz each) cans of Van Camps Baked beans (remove small piece of fat from each can)
1/4 bottle BBQ sauce (any brand and any flavor)
1 lb. Jimmy Dean Hot sausage (comes in a tube)
1 large chopped onion
1/2 C. brown sugar
1/2 C. green pepper (chopped) (optional---I usually use, my Mom doesn't---good either way)
2 T. worchestershire sauce
2 T. mustard
1 C. apples (2 apples) (great way to use apples that are a little mushy)

Sometimes my mom adds in hamburger also I usually don't, but either way is good.  Brown sausage and onions (also hamburger and green pepper if using).  Mix remaining ingredients in a large oven safe pot.  Bake covered at 325 for 1 hour.  Refrigerate overnight.  Then reheat before serving.  You can freeze and reheat also.  These are 200% better if you will let them cool completely and then reheat.  So make a day ahead for best taste.  These are a little runny, so if you are taking to a party or something you might want to bring cups or bowls for people to put them in separately.  We love these so I always make a double batch.  We can eat these as a meal in and of themselves.

Erika...I need a ringing endorsement on these!  Post a glowing comment!

BBQ recipes!

Calling for all of your favorite BBQ recipes!!!  Summer is fantastic for grilling...what do you like to make?  Or what do you want to try?

Peach Puree

Whenever my family made cheese grilled sandwiches we always had peach puree.

Take 1 bottle of homemade peaches (I have done it with canned and it is OK---but not quite as good).  Pour into a blender (Juice and peaches).  Blend until smooth.  Add ice and blend until no large chunks of ice.

Yum!  You don't have to add sugar or anything because there is already sugar in the juice/syrup.

Cheese grilled sandwiches and tomato soup

Tuesday we had good old cheese grilled sandwiches and tomato soup.  And I never thought about it...but I could so that for one of my Meatless Mondays!!!

(I know there are different levels of vegetarians...some that don't eat cheese, dairy, eggs, etc...but we are going strictly for no meat for our Meatless Mondays)!!!

BBQ chicken

I was going to make fried chicken tonight.  But the house was a little warm and I didn't feel like warming up the kitchen any more than it already was.  So we went for BBQ chicken.

Here's what I did...

 Thaw chicken if frozen.  Do not thaw in microwave it dries them out...instead place frozen chicken in baggie (or if it was frozen in baggie leave it there) and place in a bowl of hot tap water.  Replace water every so often with more hot tap water.  Obviously don't leave the chicken out all day.  It thaws pretty fast...maybe a half hour or so.

Trim fat off chicken breasts.

Place on grill on low (my grill cooks really hot---so maybe yours is different).  Put chicken breasts on grill.  Cook for 5 minutes.  Flip over.  If one spot on the grill is cooking hotter, switch and put a different chicken breast there now.  Cook for 5 more minutes.  Flip them again.  Pour quite a bit of BBQ sauce (any kind) on top.  Spread with a spoon.  Let cook for 4 minutes.  Flip.  Repeat BBQ sauce on 2nd side.  Cook for 4 more minutes.  Serve with that same side up (If you flip them again the bottom doesn't look as nice because some of the sauce will have dripped off).  Check for doneness by removing one breast onto a plate and cutting open to see if still pink.  (or use meat thermometer.)

I only serve each person 1/2 of a breast because 1 serving of meat is 3 oz which is about the size of the palm of your hand.  My family grumbled a little at first, but now we have been doing it for years, they are OK with it.

I also made mashed potatoes.  I think I posted those directions earlier, but if not I will do a separate post here.  And yes, the lettuce is not quite as green as it should be to look pretty in a picture.  (Oh well).