#7 Apple Cake

I clipped this recipe out of the Salt Lake Tribune years ago. One of my favorite cakes!

4 eggs
2 cups sugar
1 cup oil
2 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons vanilla
4 cups grated,pared apples
1 cup chopped nuts
4 teaspoons cinnamon
4 teaspoons brown sugar

Beat eggs until thick. Gradually add sugar and oil, beat until thoroughly blended. Add flour, salt, baking powder, and vanilla. Beat until well mixed. Fold in apples and nuts.

Mix cinnamon and brown sugar together in a small bowl.

Spread a third of the batter in a greased angel food or bundt pan. Sprinkle with half of the cinnamon mixture. Spread another third of the batter, and then sprinkle with remaining cinnamon mixture. Spread the remaining batter into pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 50 to 60 minutes, or until toothpick comes out clean. Cool before removing from pan.

Birthday Cake

I decided that I wanted to make a 5-Layer cake for my mom's and my birthdays. I just used two boxed cakes but it turned out delicious!!!

#6 Sweet & Sour Tofu Stir Fry

Two post in one day, how amazing!!! I know what you are thinking, "Tofu, Yuck!!!" Trust me. Matt is a meat guy but he loved it! Please just give it a try.

Ingredients:

3 oz pineapple juice
2 T soy sauce
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup ketchup
1 pkg Extra Firm, water packed Tofu
1 cup whole wheat flour (can substitute bread crumbs)
garlic salt & season-all to taste
1 pkg frozen stir fry veggies
cooked brown/white rice

Directions:

Tofu:
**1 pkg Extra Firm, water packed Tofu**
Freeze the tofu overnight. Then thaw it during the day or in a bowl of warm water. Then squeeze as much water out of it as possible. Break it into bite sized pieces.

Freezing is extremely important because it changes the texture of the tofu so when you squeeze the water out it doesn't mush.

Heat oven to 350 degrees.

To make the sauce, combine pineapple juice, soy sauce, sugar and ketchup together(a whisk or a fork work really well) and set aside.

Combine seasonings and flour. Coat the tofu chunks in the flour mixture and cook in hot oil in a skillet (medium-high heat). Make sure the tofu is crisy on all sides; it was hard to tell because it did not brown quite like chicken does so I tested it with my finger.

Put the breaded tofu chunks into a casserole dish. Cover with sauce and bake in the oven for 20-30 minutes. Periodically during the baking time spoon the sauce over the tofu. Unlike chicken, you don't have to cook it through, just get the sauce hot and bubbling.

Cook the stir fry veggies according to the package. Or I just used my colander and steamed them to keep all the good nutritional stuff and to keep them crunchy.

To serve put rice in bowls (or on plates) and cover with veggies, then add the tofu. Spoon the excess sauce on top.

I did not have a lot of sauce extra so you might want to double the sauce part. I don't like mine super saucy but Matt does so next time I will probably double it but only pour half the sauce on the tofu so it doesn't soggy.



This is a combination of about 3 different recipes. The tofu part is an anonymously post on the internet. I found once and the sauce comes from Peggy Pessetto.

#5 Ham & Potato Soup

Happy St. Patty's Day

We are going to try this for the first time tonight. I thought it sounded pretty St. Patricey. It also looks fast, easy and delicious!

Ingredients:

3 1/2 cups peeled & diced potatoes
1/3 cup diced celery
1/3 cup finely chopped onion
3/4 cup diced cooked ham
3 1/4 cups water
2 T chicken bouillon granules
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp ground pepper
5 T butter
5 T all-purpose flour
2 cups milk

Directions:

Combine the potatoes, celery, onion, ham & water in a stockpot. Bring to a boil, then cook over medium heat until potatoes are tender, about 10-15 minutes. Stir in the chicken bouillon, salt & pepper.

In a separate saucepan, melt butter over medium-low heat. Whisk in flour with a fork and cook, stirring constantly until thick, about 1 minute. Slowly stir in milk as not to allow lumps to form. Continue stirring over medium-low heat until thick, 4-5 minutes.

Stir the milk mixture into the stockpot and cook soup until heated through. Serve immediately.

Nutritional Info:

Makes 8 Servings.

196 Calories per serving, 10.4g fat, 30mg Cholesterol, 422mg Sodium, 19.9 total carbs, 6.1g protein.

This recipe came from Allrecipes.com.

#4 Chocolate Mousse

Ingredients:

1 tsp unflavored gelatin
1T cold water
1T boiling water
1/2 C Sugar
1/4 C Cocoa
1 tsp vanilla
1 C heavy cream (very cold!)

Directions:

Sprinkle gelatin over cold water in small bowl; stir and let stand 1 minute to soften. Add boiling water; stir until gelatin is completely dissolved (mixture must be clear) Stir together sugar and cocoa in small cold mixer bowl; add heavy cream and vanilla. Beat at a medium speed until stiff peaks form; pour in gelatin mixture and beat until well blended. Spoon into serving dishes. Chill about 1/2 hour. Makes 4 1/2 Cup servings.

Notes:

To double recipe use 1 envelope gelatin and double remaining ingredients.

Make sure the gelatin is COMPLETELY dissolved or your mousse will have a beady texture.

DO NOT over beat the heavy cream or it will not be as creamy (it gets more runny)



This recipe comes from Mom (Sylvia Lewis). And it is really easy and delicious!!! It is extremely rich so a small serving goes a long way! It is fabulous topped with raspberries.

#3 Mushroom Asparagus Quiche

1 tube (8 oz) refrigerated crescent rolls
2 teaspoons prepared mustard (I used spicy brown)
1-1/2 lbs fresh asparagus, trimmed and cut into 1/2 inch pieces
1 medium onion, chopped
1/2 cup sliced fresh mushrooms
1/4 cup butter
2 eggs, lightly beaten
2 cups (8 oz) shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese
1/4 cup minced fresh parsley (I used dried, and it worked just fine. Reduce the amount)
1/2 teaspoon each of salt and pepper
1/4 teaspoon each of garlic powder, dried basil, oregano and rubbed sage

Separate crescent dough into triangles; place in an ungreased 9-in pie plate with points toward the center. Press onto the bottom and sides; seal perforations. (I had to mush it into place, I used a 10-in glass pan) Spread with mustard; set aside.

In a large skillet, saute the asparagus, onion and mushrooms in butter until asparagus is tender-crisp. In a large bowl, combine remaining ingredients; stir in asparagus mixture. Pour into crust.

Bake at 375 degrees for 25-30 minutes or until a knife inserted near the edge comes out clean. Let stand for 5 minutes before cutting.

Yield: 6-8 servings

NOTE: I used a little bit of chopped ham, and it turned out well. We have had it both ways and it was very good.

From Taste of Home Magazine Feb/Mar 2008 issue

Rum Cake

Rum cake for dessert tonight! Yum!

#2 Rum Cake

1 cup chopped pecans or walnuts
1 yellow cake mix (with pudding in the mix)
3 eggs
1/2 cup cold water
1/3 cup oil
1/2 cup dark rum (can sub light rum if that is what you have on hand)

Grease a 10" tube or 12 cup Bundt pan. Sprinkle nuts over the bottom of the pan. Mix remaining ingredients together. Pour batter over nuts. Bake one hour at 325 degrees. Cool and invert on serving plate.

Glaze
1 stick butter (don't sub margarine)
1/4 cup water
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup dark rum

Melt butter. Stir in water and sugar. Boil 5 minutes, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Stir in rum.

Prick cake top and sides with a fork. Spoon and brush glaze evenly over the top and sides of cake. Allow the cake to absorb glaze. Repeat until all the glaze is used up.

This has been one of Paul's favorite cakes over the years. Especially good with whipped cream. Ok, I put whipped cream on all cakes. Reminds me of Sunday coffee time.

#1 Slow Cooker Tacos

This is a really easy and delicious taco recipe!

Ingredients:

1 Boneless chuck roast (4-4 1/2 lbs)
2 packets taco seasoning
1 medium onion sliced
Seasoned Salt to taste (optional)


Directions:

Place Roast in the slow cooker. Sprinkle with seasoning then add onion. Cover and cook on High for 4-6 hours or Low for 8-10 hours (I always use the Low temp. to prevent burning). Remove roast and shred with a fork. Return to slow cooker and stir in Seasoned Salt if you are using it. Serve in tacos, tortillas, on rolls or over rice.

I like to make them in soft tortillas with sour cream and salsa and cheese. Sometimes I make up a mix of black beans and rice to put in my tacos. Tomatoes and lettuce would be good too.

Per Serving:

341 Cal, 46 g protein, 6 g car, 0 g fiber, 13 g fat (5 g sat. fat), 34% cal from fat, 121 mg chol. 611 mg sodium.

Makes 8 servings

This recipe came from Woman's Day Magazine Vol. XVI, Nov. 2, 2006. It was a special Slow Cooker Edition.