Overnight Creme Brulee French Toast Bake

This recipe came from sixsistersstuff.com. I put it together this morning before work and we had it for dinner. It was a huge hit at our house. My picky eater wondered why I can't make French Toast like this all of the time. The other two children talked about switching their birthday meals (I always cook their favorite meal on their birthday) to have this. The smart one in the group said how I can make this for breakfast on his birthday and he would come up with something else for dinner. :) It was a win for me because there wasn't a whole lot of prep to this meal.

Ingredients:
1/2 Cup Butter
1 Cup Packed Brown Sugar
2 Tablespoons Corn Surup
12 Slices Texas Toast or Thickly Sliced Bread -- Day-old or stale bread is recommended
5 Eggs
1 1/2 Cups Half-and-Half
1/4 Teaspoon Salt
1 Teaspoon Vanilla
Dash of Cinnamon
Fresh Berries (Strawberries, Raspberries, Blackberries, and Blueberries)(I am sure you could use the frozen berry mixture. I just opted for fresh because they are in season)
Whipped Cream in the Can

Directions:
In a small saucepan, melt butter, brown sugar and corn syrup over medium heat until smooth, stirring occasionally. Pour mixture onto a large greased jelly roll pan (18x13x1"). Spread around to cover the surface

Place 12 slices of bread in a single layer to cover pan. I had to cut some in half to get them to fit. I also didn't set the bread out the night before and so I put it under the broiler to dry it out a little bit before placing them on the pan and sauce.

Mix together eggs, cream, salt, vanilla, and cinnamon. Spoon mixture over each piece of bread. (I didn't end up using all of the sauce. There was probably about a fourth, I did not use.) Cover and refrigerate overnight.

Bake uncovered at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes. Remove from pan and serve.

I made vanilla syrup (recipe also found on this blog). I cut up fresh berries and put them together. Spoon over toast and add a little whipped cream. YUMMY!

If you are not serving immediately, turn each slice of bread over (this will prevent bread from sticking on the bottom of the pan.

Wednesday Chili

My sister, Lori, received this recipe while living in Nevada. It is very easy to prepare and very tasty!

2 pounds Lean Ground Beef
10 oz. Can French Onion Soup
1 Tablespoons Chili Powder
2 Teaspoons Cumin
1/2 Teaspoon Black Pepper
Few Drops of Tabasco Sauce (to your taste)
21 oz. Can Red Kidney Beans, Undrained
6 oz. Can Tomato Paste
8 oz. Can Tomato Sauce

Brown ground beef and drain. Puree soup in the blender. Pour over meat and heat until it is the consistency of rice. Stir in spices, add beans, tomato paste, tomato sauce. Stir until well combined. Heat over low heat at least 20 minutes. Great frozen and warmed for later meals.

Slow Cooker Creamy Chicken Tacos

1 1/2 Pounds Chicken Breasts
15 oz. Jar of Salsa
1 Packet of Taco Seasoning
1/2 - 1 Package of Cream Cheese

This version of Slow Cooker Chicken Tacos is so yummy in either a taco salad, hard or soft shell tacos, or to make enchiladas .

Combine the chicken breasts, salsa, taco seasoning, and cream cheese in the slow cooker. Cover and cook on high for 3-4 hours or low for 5-6 hours. Once cooked, remove chicken from the crockpot and shred using two forks. Place shredded chicken back in the crockpot and stir to combine in sauce before serving. The serving options are endless -- over salad, in taco shells, over rice, use as enchilada filling, etc.

Minestrone Soup

1 Cup Onion, Chopped
1 Cup Celery, Diced
2 Garlic Cloves, Minced
1/4 Cup Vegetable Oil
10 Cups Beef Broth*
2 Cans Diced Tomatoes
1 29 Oz. Can Hunt's Pasta Sauce
1 Cup Carrots, Sliced
2 Teaspoons Dried Basil
1/2 Teaspoon Salt
1 1/2 Pounds Ground Beef, Cooked
1 1/2 Cups Zucchini, Sliced
1 Can Kidney Beans, Rinsed and Drained
1 Can Garbanzo Beans, Rinsed and Drained
2 Cups Uncooked Ditalini Pasta

In a large stock pot, saute onions, celery and garlic in oil until tender. Stir in the broth, tomatoes, pasta sauce, carrots, basil and salt. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 45-60 minutes. Then add zucchini beans, ground beef and pasta. Cover and simmer for 20-30 minutes or until pasta is tender. Remove from heat.

* * I like to use an actual beef base paste instead of buillon as it has more flavor. I am a little more generous in my measurements so that it is a little more concentrated (more flavor).

Crockpot Kalua Pork -- Cooks 16 Hours

Kalua pig is a popular at Hawaiian lluaus where a whole pig is smoked in a sand pit with sea salt, banana leaves and wood. This simple corckpot method mimics the smoked flavor of using natural liquid smoke and the results are an easy, mouth-watering juicy pork recipe anyone can make at home.

You can serve this over rice or serve on hamburger buns as a sandwich. Make sure to make the Pineapple Brown Sugar BBQ Sauce recipe also found on this blog.

Coarse Red Hawaiian Sea Salt can be found at Trader Joes. Make sure to use boneless pork shoulder blade roast, as it is leaner than the pork shoulder picnic. A pork loin roast would also work, although it's a bit leaner and therefore drier. This slow cooks in your crockpot for about 16 hours.

2-3 Pounds Trimmed Pork Shoulder Blade Roast
1 Tablespoon Liquid Smoke
Coarse Red Hawaiian Sea Salt

Place prok in the crockpot. Stab it all over with the tip of a knife. Rub sea salt all over pork. Drizzle the liquid smoke all over and set crockpot to low and cook for 16 hours.

Remove from crockpot and place on a large platter. Remove any fat you may have missed. Shred pork with a fork.

Pineapple Brown Sugar BBQ Sauce

I found this recipe on The Recipe Rebel's website. This sauce is delicious. I make it and serve it over the Kalua Pork recipe here on my blog.

200 ml of Pineapple Juice
3/4 Cup Brown Sugar
1/2 Teaspoon Garlic
2 Tablespoons Worcestershire Sauce
3/4 Cups Ketchup
1 Pinch Red Pepper Flakes (More if you like it spicy)
1/2 Teaspoon Onion Powder
1 Pinch Salt
1-2 Tablespoons Cornstarch
1-2 Tabelspoons Water

1. Add all the ingredients except the cornstarch and water to a medium-size pot.
2. Bring to a boil and reduce to medium low, simmering for 10-15 minutes, until flavors come together.
3. Mix equal parts cornstarch and water. Slowly add to sauce and stir until you reach your desired consistency.
4. Serve with pork, chicken or beef.

Chili's Copycat Salsa

This is a family favorite at our house. I love this recipe because you can make it anytime of the year and just not during tomato season.

2 (14.5 oz) Cans Whole Tomatoes, Drained
1/4 Cup Onion, Chopped
1 Teaspoon Garlic Salt
1 Teaspoon Salt
1 Teaspoon Cumin
1 Teaspoon Sugar
1 Teaspoon Lime Juice
1 (4 oz)Can Diced Jalapenos (I only use about half a can. You can decide on how much heat you like.)
2 Roma Tomatoes, Diced

Place all ingredients together in a blender and blend until smooth.

Orange Glazed Pork Loin

Pork isn't something we have a lot at our house. I think the main reason we don't, is I just don't have a lot of pork recipes. Yesterday I went on a search for a recipe to try. I made it for dinner tonight. It was a hit! The sauce really completes this meal. I served it with mashed potatoes and pork gravy, green salad and a cranberry salad. Yum!!

1 Teaspoon Salt
1 Clove Garlic, Minced
1/4 Teaspoon Dried Thyme Leaves
1/4 Teaspoon Ground Ginger
1/4 Teaspoon Pepper
5 Pound Pork Loin Roast

Preheat the oven to 350. Combine salt, garlic, thyme, ginger, and pepper. Create a rub and rub over roast. Place fat side up on a rack in a shallow baking pan. I placed a baking rack in a 9x13 pan. Bake, uncovered, for 1 hours.

Sauce:
1 Cup Orange Juice
1/4 Cup Brown Sugar
1 Tablespoon Dijon Mustard
1/3 Cup Water
1 Tablespoon Cornstarch

While the roast is cooking, in a saucepan over medium heat, combine orange juice, brown sugar and Dijon mustard. In a small bowl, mix the cornstarch and water until smooth. Add to the orange juice mixture. Bring to a boil. Cook and stir for 2 minutes. Reserve 1 cup of the mixture. When the roast has cooked for one hour, remove from the oven and baste with the left-over mixture. Return to oven and cook for another 20-40 minutes. Brush occasionally with glaze. Let stand 10 minutes before slicing. I put the remaining sauce on the table, and we drizzled it over our meat. It was delicious!

Pumpkin Roll

Ingredients:
3 Eggs
1 Cup Sugar
2/3 Cup Canned Pumpkin
1 Teaspoon Lemon Juice
3/4 Cup All-Purpose Flour
2 Teaspoons Ground Cinnamon
1 Teaspoon Baking Powder
1/2 Teaspoon Salt
1/4 Teaspoon Ground Nutmeg
1 Cup Walnuts, Finely Chopped (Optional)

Filling:
8 Ounces Cream Cheese
1 Cup Powdered Sugar
1/4 Cup Butter, Softened
1/2 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract
Additional Powdered Sugar

Directions:
1. In a large bowl, beat eggs on high for 5 minutes. Gradually beat in sugar until thick and lemon-colored. Add pumpkin and lemon juice. Combine the flour, cinnamon, baking powder, salt and nutmeg; fold into the pumpkin mixture.

2. Grease a 15-in. x 10-in. x 1-in. baking pan and line with waxed paper. Grease and flour the paper. Spread batter into pan; sprinkle with walnuts, if desired. Bake at 375° for 15 minutes or until cake springs back when lightly touched.

3. Immediately turn out onto a clean dish towel dusted with confectioners' sugar. Peel off paper and roll cake up in towel, starting with a short end. Cool.

4. Meanwhile, in a large bowl, beat the cream cheese, sugar, butter and vanilla until fluffy. Carefully unroll the cooled cake. Spread filling over cake to within 1 in. of edges. Roll up again. Cover and chill until serving. Dust with confectioners' sugar.

Yield: 8-10 servings.

Cream of Broccoli Soup

This recipe is my sister-in-laws. It is delicious.

3 Cups Broccoli, Chopped and Steamed Well
1 1/2 Cups Chicken Broth
2 Tablespoons Flour
2 Tablespoons Butter
1 Teaspoon Salt
3/4 Cup Cream
3/4 Cup Half and Half
Optional: 1/2 Cup Onion and 2 Cloves Garlic

In a blender, puree broccoli and 3/4 cup of chicken broth. (I add dried minced garlic and dried onions to this.) In a saucepan, melt margarine and stir in flour and salt; cook and stir until bubbly. Add cream and half and half. Cook until thick and bubbly, then cook about 1 minute longer. Stir in remaining chicken broth and pureed broccoli mixture. Stir in other seasonings to taste (such as garlic salt, more onion, etc.) If not thick enough, add a little milk to about 2-3 tablespoons cornstarch and pour in slowly while stirring constantly. Return to slow boil to check thickness.

My sister-in-law likes to add fresh chopped onion (about 1/2 cup) to the butter and cook several minutes before adding the flour. Garlic is great added too. Need to use 4 Tablespoons butter.

Chunky Cinnamon Applesauce

8 Medium Tart Apples, Peeled and Quartered
1 Cup Water
1 Cup Sugar
1/4 Cup Red-Hot Candies

Place apples and water in a 5-quart sauce-pan. Cover and cook over medium-low heat for 20 minutes or until tender. Mash the apples. Add sugar and candies. Cook, uncovered, until sugar and candies are dissolved. Remove from the heat; cool. Refrigerate until serving.

Makes: 6 Cups

We like this served with City Chicken.

The Best Pork Chop Marinade

I came across this recipe from Six Sisters. We tried it for dinner tonight and it was delicious. Everyone in our family really liked it. That doesn't happen very often.

1/2 Cup Soy Sauce
1/4 Cup Chili Sauce
1/4 Cup Honey
2 Tablespoons Vegetable Oil
2 Tablespoons Green Onion, Finely Chopped
1 Teaspoon Curry Powder
1 1/2 Pounds Boneless Skinless Pork Chops (about 4-6 chops)

In a gallon-sized resealable bag, add the soy sauce, chili sauce, honey, vegetable oil, green onion, and curry powder and mix until completely combined. Add in the pork chops, then seal the bag. Place in the fridge for 6-8 hours (or overnight). Remove bag from fridge, place pork chops on grill over medium high heat. Brush some of the left-over marinade on the pork chops while grilling. Grill for 6-8 minutes on each side or until the insides of the pork chops are no longer pink. Serve! Yumm!!

Blender Banana Bread

This is the recipe my mom used for banana bread growing up. It is still the one I use when making banana bread.

In a Blender Combine:
2 Eggs
1/2 Cup Vegetable Oil
1 1/2 Tablespoons Milk
1 Teaspoon Lemon Juice
1 Cup Sugar
3 Ripe Bananas
1/4 Teaspoons Salt

In a Bowl Combine:
2 Cups Flour
1 1/2 Teaspoon Baking Powder
1/2 Teaspoon Baking Soda
Nuts (Optional)

Mix ingredients in a blender well. Once blended pour over bowl ingredients. Mix with an electric hand mixer until well combined. Pour into a large loaf pan. Bake at 350 degrees for one hour.

Pumpkin Bread

Our family loves pumpkin bread. I made this one year for neighborhood gifts and have been told it is just as good as Great Harvest's Pumpkin Bread. This morning I looked in two different recipe books before finding the recipe I always use. I decided to post it here so I have it for future reference.

2 Cups Sugar
1 Cup Salad Oil
3 Eggs
2 Cups Canned Pumpkin
3 Cups Flour
1/2 Teaspoon Salt
1/2 Teaspoon Baking Powder
1/2 Teaspoon Baking Soda
1 Teaspoon Cloves
1 Teaspoon Cinnamon
1 Teaspoon Nutmeg
Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips

Mix oil and sugar together. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add dry ingredients and chocolate chips. Mix until combined. Pour into two greased loaf pans. Bake at 325 for 1 hour.

Yellow Zucchini Relish

This relish is delicious on hot dogs.

The night before:
10 Cups Zucchini, Ground
4 Cups Onion, Ground
5 Tablespoons Salt

Combine in a large bowl. Let stand overnight.
** To ground the zucchini and onions I put them in a food processor and pulsated it until it was chopped pretty fine (but not a liquid).

The next morning:
Drain and rinse the zucchini mixture.

In a big pot add:
2 1/4 Cups Vinegar
4 1/2 Cups Sugar
2 Teaspoons Celery Seed
2 Teaspoons Nutmeg
2 Teaspoons Dry Mustard
2 Teaspoons Turmeric
1 Tablespoon Cornstarch
1 Red Pepper, Ground
1 Green Pepper, Ground
Drained Zucchini Mixture

Cook slowly for 30 minutes.Put in hot jars and process in a water bath for 10 minutes.

Coconut Syrup

Small Batch
1 Cube Real Butter
1/2 Cup Sugar
1/2 Cup Buttermilk

Combine in a saucepan. Boil for 2 minutes. Remove from heat and add:
1/2 Teaspoon Baking Soda
1/2 Teaspoon Coconut Extract


Large Batch
4 Cubes Real Butter
2 Cups Sugar
2 Cups Buttermilk

Combine in saucepan. Boil for 2 minutes. Remove from heat and add:
2 Teaspoons Baking Soda
2 Teaspoons Coconut Extract

Cranberry Relish

This has become a Thanksgiving tradition in our house.

1 Package Fresh Cranberries
3 Medium Red Apples, Peeled and Grated
1 Small Can Crushed Pineapple
1 Small Package Cherry Jell-O
1/2 Cup Sugar
Grate the Rind from 2 Oranges
Juice from 2 Oranges

Place the cranberries in a food processor. Turn the food processor on and off until the cranberries have been ground to a medium texture. Place the cranberries in a medium-sized bowl. Peel the apples, great them and place them in the bowl with the cranberries. Add the untrained,crushed pineapple,Jell-O, sugar,orange rind and orange juice. Mix well. Refrigerate. Serve.  

Bottled Spaghetti Sauce

This post is for my sister-in-law, Alicia. This recipe is one that my mom used to bottle spaghetti sauce. My mom swears that it is just as cheap to buy the spaghetti sauce from the store. I believe her but it just isn't as good.

30 Cups Tomatoes, Peeled and Quartered
6 Buds Garlic, Ground
2 Cups Celery, Ground
3 Bay Leaves (Remove before bottling)
2 Tablespoons Dried Parsley
2 Red Peppers, Ground
4 Large Onions, Ground
2 Cups Green Peppers, Ground

* When it says ground, I would suggest placing it in a food processor and pulsing it until it is finely chopped.

Cook the above ingredients for 2 hours or until thick.

Add:
6 Cans Tomato Paste
2 Tablespoons Salt
2 Teaspoons Basil Leaves
3 Tablespoons Chili Powder
1/2 Cup Sugar
3 Teaspoons Oregano Leaves
2 Teaspoons Black Pepper
1/2 Teaspoon Cayenne Pepper
1 1/2 Teaspoon Cumin Seed

Add to above ingredients. Cook until thick. Put in jars. Process 25 minutes in hot water bath.

Rhubarb Crunch

This is my mom's recipe. It is one of my favorites.

6 Cups Fresh Rhubarb Pieces
3 Tablespoons Flour
1 1/2 Cups Sugar
3 Tablespoons Butter

Mix ingredients and place in a 9x13 pan. Let stand while mixing the following:

1 Cup Sugar
1 Teaspoon Baking Powder
1 Egg, Beaten
1 Cup Flour
1/4 Teaspoon Salt
1/2 Cup Oatmeal
1/4 Cup Butter, Melted

Mix until crumbly. Sprinkle on top of mixture in 9x13 pan. Shake pan to work some of the crunch down into the rhubarb mixture. Bake at 375 degrees for 30-40 minutes.

Baked Tacos

My mother-in-law made these one night for Bryon and Sam while they were down there for dinner. Sam couldn't stop talking about these. I decided to give them a try. My mom made them for my family one weekend while she was up helping me. They lived up to their reputation! They were a hit for everyone in my family.

Serves: 8-10

2 Pounds Ground Beef
4 Teaspoons Dry Minced Onion
2 Teaspoons Chili Powder
1 Teaspoon Cornstarch
1 Teaspoon Garlic Powder
1 Teaspoon Ground Cumin
1/2 Teaspoon Dried Oregano
1/8 Teaspoon Cayenne Pepper
1 (8 Ounce) Can Tomato Sauce
1 (16 Ounce) Can Refried Beans
2 Cups Colby Jack Cheese, Shredded
18-20 Hard Taco Shells

Toppings:
Shredded Lettuce
Diced Tomatoes
Salsa
Guacamole

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. In a small bowl combine minced onion, chili powder, cornstarch, garlic powder, cumin, oregano, and cayenne pepper. Mix well and set aside.

In a large skillet, brown ground beef over medium-high heat. Drain off any excess liquid. Add refried beans, tomato sauce and bowl of seasonings. Mix well.

Spoon the taco meat mixture into the taco shells. Place in a 9x13 baking dish, standing up. Sprinkle cheese over the top of the taco meat in each shell. Place into the 400 degree oven and bake for 10-12 minutes or until the cheese is melted and the tacos are heating through. Remove from the oven and garnish with toppings.

If you are short on time or seasonings, you can replace all the above seasonings for a package of taco seasoning.