Ada's Banana Pudding
1 cup sugar
½ cup all-purpose flour
½ tsp salt
2 cups milk
1 tsp vanilla
1 tbsp butter
4 egg yolks
1 box vanilla wafers
4-5 ripe bananas
1. Layer ½ box of wafers and ½ bananas (sliced) in bottom of 9X13 baking dish.
2. Combine sugar, flour, salt and mix well.
3. In saucepan, beat egg yolks well. Start over med-high heat.
4. Add dry mix and milk. Stir constantly.
5. When mix reaches pudding consistency (takes 10-15 minutes), remove from heat and add butter and vanilla.
6. Pour half on wafer/bananas. Layer with remaining wafers and sliced bananas. Pour remaining pudding on top.
Darcy’s Chicken and Dumplings
Southern style chicken and dumplings are easier than you think and great for weeknight dinners. Kid and hungry, single hero approved.
2 celery ribs, diced
3 carrots, diced
~5 cups chicken broth (of course, Darcy makes her own, but store bought is fine tooJ)
1 tsp Poultry seasoning
½ tsp pepper
3 cups chopped cooked chicken (for a quick weeknight dinner use a ready-made Rotisserie)
Dumplings:
1 ⅔ cups of baking mix (Bisquick or Darcy prefers Formula L Biscuit Mix by Southern Biscuit)
⅔ cup milk or buttermilk
1. Sauté celery and carrots in large Dutch oven coated in cooking spray or teaspoon of oil for ~6 minutes or until tender.
2. Stir in broth, poultry seasoning, and pepper, bringing it to a boil.
3. Stir together baking mix and milk/buttermilk until blended. Turn out onto floured surface. Roll dough to ~1/8 in thickness. Cut into strips. Drop strips into broth.
4. Stir in chicken. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 8 minutes.
Logan’s Skillet Blackberry Cobbler
Any fruit can be substituted in this iron skillet cobbler.
¾ cup brown sugar
1 stick of butter/margarine + 2 tbsp for top
2 piecrusts (can be storebought or homemade)
Blackberries (or other fresh fruit)
¾ cup white sugar
1. In large iron skillet, melt butter and combine with brown sugar.
2. Lay one piecrust over sugar/butter mixture.
3. Fill with fruit. (Can be fresh blackberries, raspberries, etc. Or, thinly sliced apples or peaches.)
4. Top with white sugar.
5. Cover with piecrust and dot top with butter.
6. Cook at 350 for thirty minutes.
PS. Logan recommends putting a cookie under skillet to catch any drips.
Logan’s Basil-Bacon Macaroni and Cheese
Note: Logan sometimes goes crazy and uses cavatelli pasta.
8 oz. (½ pound or about 1 ¾ cups) macaroni
3 tbsp butter
¼ cup all-purpose flour
½ tsp salt
½ tsp dry mustard
¼ tsp pepper
2 ½ cup milk
3 cups grated sharp cheddar cheese
3-4 slices bacon
2 tbsp fresh basil, chopped
Directions:
Wilted Bacon Salad
While fresh-picked straight out the the garden lettuce works best, you can substitute a mixed greens or buttercrunch lettuce
6-8 cups lettuce
Dressing:
4 slices bacon
1/4 cup water
1T sugar
2-3T vinegar
Cook bacon, crumble. Remove, but retain grease. Turn off stove. Sprinkle in sugar. Add vinegar. Add water. Toss with lettuce and crumbled bacon. Add toppings of choice. Serve immediately. Can be a side or meal.
Broccoli Salad
My go-to potluck take-along...plus I make it every holiday. Basically whenever I can get away with it, because it is SO good.
2 bunches of broccoli, chopped
1/2 lbs cooked bacon, crumbled (I use the pouches of bacon bit to avoid the mess of cooking bacon)
1/2 med red onion, diced
1/2 cup golden or brown raisins
1/4 cup sunflower seeds
1/2 cup Mozzarella cheese, grated
1 cup Mayo (Duke's, of course:)
2T white vinegar
1/4-1/2 cup white sugar
Mix together broccoli, onion, raisins, sunflower seeds. In a small bowl, whisk together mayo, vinegar, and sugar and pour over salad. Mix gently. Chill for several hours or overnight to blend flavors. (This isn't mandatory, but does improve the taste). Just before serving, add bacon and cheese.
1 cup sugar
½ cup all-purpose flour
½ tsp salt
2 cups milk
1 tsp vanilla
1 tbsp butter
4 egg yolks
1 box vanilla wafers
4-5 ripe bananas
1. Layer ½ box of wafers and ½ bananas (sliced) in bottom of 9X13 baking dish.
2. Combine sugar, flour, salt and mix well.
3. In saucepan, beat egg yolks well. Start over med-high heat.
4. Add dry mix and milk. Stir constantly.
5. When mix reaches pudding consistency (takes 10-15 minutes), remove from heat and add butter and vanilla.
6. Pour half on wafer/bananas. Layer with remaining wafers and sliced bananas. Pour remaining pudding on top.
Darcy’s Chicken and Dumplings
Southern style chicken and dumplings are easier than you think and great for weeknight dinners. Kid and hungry, single hero approved.
2 celery ribs, diced
3 carrots, diced
~5 cups chicken broth (of course, Darcy makes her own, but store bought is fine tooJ)
1 tsp Poultry seasoning
½ tsp pepper
3 cups chopped cooked chicken (for a quick weeknight dinner use a ready-made Rotisserie)
Dumplings:
1 ⅔ cups of baking mix (Bisquick or Darcy prefers Formula L Biscuit Mix by Southern Biscuit)
⅔ cup milk or buttermilk
1. Sauté celery and carrots in large Dutch oven coated in cooking spray or teaspoon of oil for ~6 minutes or until tender.
2. Stir in broth, poultry seasoning, and pepper, bringing it to a boil.
3. Stir together baking mix and milk/buttermilk until blended. Turn out onto floured surface. Roll dough to ~1/8 in thickness. Cut into strips. Drop strips into broth.
4. Stir in chicken. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 8 minutes.
Logan’s Skillet Blackberry Cobbler
Any fruit can be substituted in this iron skillet cobbler.
¾ cup brown sugar
1 stick of butter/margarine + 2 tbsp for top
2 piecrusts (can be storebought or homemade)
Blackberries (or other fresh fruit)
¾ cup white sugar
1. In large iron skillet, melt butter and combine with brown sugar.
2. Lay one piecrust over sugar/butter mixture.
3. Fill with fruit. (Can be fresh blackberries, raspberries, etc. Or, thinly sliced apples or peaches.)
4. Top with white sugar.
5. Cover with piecrust and dot top with butter.
6. Cook at 350 for thirty minutes.
PS. Logan recommends putting a cookie under skillet to catch any drips.
Logan’s Basil-Bacon Macaroni and Cheese
Note: Logan sometimes goes crazy and uses cavatelli pasta.
8 oz. (½ pound or about 1 ¾ cups) macaroni
3 tbsp butter
¼ cup all-purpose flour
½ tsp salt
½ tsp dry mustard
¼ tsp pepper
2 ½ cup milk
3 cups grated sharp cheddar cheese
3-4 slices bacon
2 tbsp fresh basil, chopped
Directions:
- Preheat the oven to 375.
- Boil the pasta until al dente.
- Cook bacon, crumble.
- In a pan over medium heat, melt the butter.
- Add flour, salt, dry mustard, and pepper. Whisk constantly for three minutes forming a roux.
- Add the milk in a thin stream, stirring constantly with a whisk. Continue to stir until the sauce thickens, about 10 minutes.
- Remove from heat and add 2 cups of the cheese, stirring until melted. Pour the cheese sauce over the cooked pasta. Add crumbled bacon and toss.
- Add half the pasta to a two-quart casserole dish Sprinkle on half of remaining cheese. Add the rest of the pasta. Sprinkle on basil and the rest of the cheese.
- Bake for 25 minutes, until the mac and cheese starts getting a brown on top.
Wilted Bacon Salad
While fresh-picked straight out the the garden lettuce works best, you can substitute a mixed greens or buttercrunch lettuce
6-8 cups lettuce
Dressing:
4 slices bacon
1/4 cup water
1T sugar
2-3T vinegar
Cook bacon, crumble. Remove, but retain grease. Turn off stove. Sprinkle in sugar. Add vinegar. Add water. Toss with lettuce and crumbled bacon. Add toppings of choice. Serve immediately. Can be a side or meal.
Broccoli Salad
My go-to potluck take-along...plus I make it every holiday. Basically whenever I can get away with it, because it is SO good.
2 bunches of broccoli, chopped
1/2 lbs cooked bacon, crumbled (I use the pouches of bacon bit to avoid the mess of cooking bacon)
1/2 med red onion, diced
1/2 cup golden or brown raisins
1/4 cup sunflower seeds
1/2 cup Mozzarella cheese, grated
1 cup Mayo (Duke's, of course:)
2T white vinegar
1/4-1/2 cup white sugar
Mix together broccoli, onion, raisins, sunflower seeds. In a small bowl, whisk together mayo, vinegar, and sugar and pour over salad. Mix gently. Chill for several hours or overnight to blend flavors. (This isn't mandatory, but does improve the taste). Just before serving, add bacon and cheese.