Alfredo Sauce

1 cup Butter
1/2 teaspoon Garlic salt, or 1 garlic clove
2 1/2 cups Parmesan Cheese
2 cups Whipping Cream
Salt and Pepper to taste

Melt butter, add garlic, salt and pepper. Add cheese, stir until melted. Whisk in whipping cream. Cook until heated through. Servover over noodles with additional grated Parmesan cheese.
~Enjoy!

This Week's Menu

Hello All!! So I've kept my promise and have been collecting pictures all week, and have a huge list of recipes I want to post over the next few weeks!



Monday
Dinner - Ham and Pea Alfredo over angel hair
Tuesday
Dinner - Steak Sandwiches



Wednesday
Lunch
Dinner - Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup and Cheddar Scones
Dessert - Honey Snaps
Seth came down with a nasty cold or virus so I made him a good wholesome soup, and his favorite cookies. I'll be posting both of these recipes soon!


Thursday
Breakfast - Banana Bread, eggs, and tea
Lunch - Chicken Salad Sandwiches on Whole Wheat bread
Dinner - Grilled Cheese sandwiches on Sourdough and Left-over Chicken noodle soup

Friday
Breakfast - Sourdough Toast, tea and eggs
Lunch - Sandwiches on sourdough and whole wheat. We each had a different sandwich, Mom had scrambled eggs on wholewheat, I had a turkey sandwich on sourdough, and Seth had PB&J on sourdough.
Dinner - Dad and mom had dinner out and Seth and I ate Meatballs and barbecue sauce
Dessert - All Natural Ice Cream - Friday is our day for indulging in this cold treat!

Here's the Menu for tomorrow and Sunday.

Saturday
Breakfast - Texas Breakfast Casserole
Lunch - Sandwiches with fruit salad
Dinner - Spaghetti with salad and sourdough french bread

Sunday
Breakfast - Eggs and ham
Lunch - leftovers
Dinner - Leftovers

Tea Cakes

So how often is it that a recipe turns out *exactly* like the picture in the cookbook or magazine? Since most of the time those pictures are not actually real, it rarely happens.
When I pulled these beauties out of the oven for the first time I was honestly astonished. They looked exactly - or even prettier, than the picture. These are such perfect little dainties. Deceptively simple, light and airy, yet an oh so subtle crispiness when you first bite into them. The Cream of Tarter gives them a special twist. These are a favorite with everyone. My little brother adores them, and if I make them around the time dad comes home, they're gone in minutes. I just sprinkle them lightly with powdered sugar, and that's the way we like them best, but I have also tried vanilla sugar which was quite tasty, and I imagine cinnamon and sugar would be yummy too.

Tea Cakes

1 cup of sugar
1 cup of butter, softened
1 cup oil
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
4 1/2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon cream of tarter
Powdered Sugar

In a large mixing bowl, combine the sugar butter, oil, and eggs. Cream well. Add the vanilla.

In a medium bowl, combine the flour, soda, baking powder, and cream of tartar. Add to the creamed mixture, mixing well.

Drop dough by rounded teaspoon fulls (I use a large cookie scoop) onto ungreased cookie sheets. (I line mine with parchment)

Bake in a preheated 325* oven for 15 to 18 minutes or until the edges of the cakes are brown. While teacakes are warm, sprinkle with powdered sugar.


Perfect with a cup of Earl Grey!

If you make these, I'd love to hear your thoughts. Enjoy!!

~Elissa

An update

Okay, so mom brought to my attention that it had been over a years since we've posted here. We've accumulated quite a following considering that fact, so I'm really going to try and post more regularly. I'm thinking of weekly posting recipes I made throughout the week, along with our menus from each day, or something along those lines. If there are any particular requests you'd like to make, or questions, feel free to ask! Tomorrow is baking day, so I'll be sure to get lots of pictures and some recipes to share with you!
We've drastically changed our cooking habits recently, almost completely eliminating processed foods, such as boxed mixes, shortening, and things like that, so I am in the process of going through some of our older posts, and cleaning up some of the post that are entirely composed of these ingredients, and changing some of them, like our Chocolate chip cookie recipe, which we now just use butter instead of shortening. I will also be cleaning up some of the posts, changing pictures, and editing out some typos, and changing the format. I'll try to do something with the layout soon as well!!

~Elissa

Creamy Cheesy Butter Pasta Sauce

My mom made this recipe up the other night, and I wanted to make it for lunch today, so I had her walk me through how she made it, so I could write down an actual recipe :).

This would be scrumptious with grilled chicken cut up in it! YUMMO!

I hope y'all enjoy!

~Elissa

Creamy Cheesy Butter Pasta Sauce

Melt 1 stick of butter in sauce pan. Whisk in 1/2 cup of flour, add salt, pepper and garlic salt to taste. Stir until thickened. Pour in 3 cups milk and stir until smooth. Add about 1 cup and 1/2 grated Parmesan cheese. Stir. Add dried parsley for a bit of color, if desired. Stir occasionally until all the cheese is melted, and the sauce is smooth and thick.
Pour over your favorite pasta, and enjoy!

Mushroom Turnovers

Mushroom Turnovers:

Cream 1/2 cup softened butter with 9 ounces softened cream cheese. Blend in 1 1/2 cups flour to make a soft dough. Foll in waxed paper and refrigerate for 1 hour.

Chop 1/2 pound fresh mushrooms fine and 1/2 cup plus 2 Tablespoons onions. Saute in 3 Tablespoons butter for 5 minutes. Blend in 2 Tablespoons flour, 1 teaspoon salt, 2 dashes of pepper and 1/4 teaspoon Thyme. Stir in 1/4 cup sour cream and remove from heat. Roll dough thin and cut in 3" circles. Place a tiny amount of filling in the center of each circle. Wet edge before sealing. Fold over and press edges shut with fork. ( I used a Pampered Chef turnover maker that I found at a yard sale for 10 cents.) Beat 1 egg and lightly brush over tops. Prick top once with fork and place on cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake 12 minutes at 450 degrees. These can be frozen, thawed and reheated.

~Heather

Spinach Dip

Spinach Dip:

1 10 oz. package frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained

1 16 oz. container of sour cream

1 cup mayonnaise

1 package Knorr Vegetable Soup Mix

1 can water chestnuts, chopped

Combine all ingredients and chill overnight. Serve with veggies and crackers.

1 bunch green onions, chopped

Triple Chip Cookies

This is one of our favorite cookie recipes:

Triple Chip Cookies:

4 cups unbleached flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 1/2 cups butter, softened

1 1/4 cups sugar

1 1/4 cups packed brown sugar

2 large eggs

1 Tablespoon vanilla

1 cup white Chocolate Chips

1 cup Milk Chocolate Chips

1/2 cup Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Combine flour, baking powder and baking soda in medium bowl. Beat butter and sugars in large mixing bowl until creamy. Beat in eggs and vanilla. Gradually beat in flour mixture. Stir in chips. Drop by tablespoons onto an ungreased baking sheet. Bake for 12-14 minutes or until golden brown. Cool on baking sheets for 2 minutes; remove to wire racks to cool completely.

Holiday Potatoes

This recipe is one that we make at every holiday dinner. Hence the name holiday potatoes. ;o)

Holiday Potatoes:

2lbs. frozen cubed hash brown potatoes (I buy the bag that has onions and peppers in it)

1 can cream of celery soup

1 can cream of potato soup

1 cup sour cream

chopped onions to taste

chopped green peppers to taste

Salt and pepper

Mix well, put in greased 9x13 pan. Sprinkle with paprika and parsley flakes. Bake at 300 degrees uncovered for 1 1/4 hours.

Can mix together and put in freezer for later use.

Chicken Tetrazzini

Chicken Tetrazzini

1 large frying chicken
4 cups spaghetti (broke into pieces)
1 large chopped onion
1 large chopped green pepper
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 small jar of mushrooms
1 stick of butter
1 pound Velveeta cheese, cubed
1 package shredded mozzarella cheese
Salt, pepper, garlic powder, and oregano

Boil chicken, seasoned with salt, pepper, 1 teaspoon oregano, and a touch of garlic powder, in a large pot.
Cook until tender. Remove chicken and boil spaghetti in broth. Debone chicken and cut into small bits. Saute onions and green peppers in butter. Add mushrooms. Mix sautéed stuff, Velveeta cheese and chicken. Add soup. Pour into greased casserole dish. ( I use 11x15) Top with shredded mozzarella. Bake for 30 to 45 minutes at 350°.