Cooking with KP

Old Fashioned Southern Summer Squash Pudding

My grandmother and mother would always make squash pudding in the summer. It was delicious and I loved eating a bowl full. Unfortunately, I didn't get their recipes, but I found several online that I think, based on their ingredients and tastes, are similar to theirs. I worked through a few and combined some elements and have this recipe to share with you. It is simple, delectable, and comforting. Perfect for those extra yellow summer squash from the garden. You can also use white squash too.

4 medium yellow squash or 5 medium white sauce.
3/4 stick butter, softened at room temperature
1 cup granulated sugar
2 Tablespoons vanilla extract

½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
4 eggs, lightly beaten
12 oz. can evaporated milk

Wash and slice squash into thin rounds. If the squash have large seeds, you will want to remove them, but it is not necessary. Place in a large sauce pot and cover with water and a dash of salt. Boil for 10-15 minutes. You want the squash to be very soft. Drain well.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

In a large, deep mixing bowl, puree cooked squash. Slice softened butter into about 10 slices (this will help butter to blend well). Add sliced butter, sugar and beaten eggs. Mix for about 2 minutes. Add flour, nutmeg, vanilla and milk. Continue to mix until well blended. Pour into greased 9x13 pan. Bake for 1 hour. Insert knife in middle to check for doneness. Knife should come out clean if done. Once done, remove from oven and let cool. Serve with whipped cream or cool whip on top and a dash of nutmeg.

Refrigerate leftovers.

Peanut Butter and Banana Cake with Chocolate Frosting

I wish I could claim this cake as my own, but I found it online and I can't remember where! The frosting is another recipe I got from a friend years and years ago. I just put the cake with the frosting and call it mine and DELICIOUS!

CAKE:

1 cup butter, softened

1 cup sugar

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla

½ cup buttermilk (or just regular milk with a splash of vinegar)

3 medium very ripe bananas, mashed

½ cup peanut butter

2 cups flour

1 ½ teaspoons baking soda

½ teaspoon cinnamon

¼ teaspoon salt

1 cup semi-sweet dark chocolate chip morsels

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In the large bowl , beat together the sugar and butter until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs, vanilla, peanut butter.

In a separate bowl (or your mixing cup if you don’t want to dirty another bowl), combine the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt.

Add flour and buttermilk alternately to the batter. Stir in bananas. When well-blended, stir in chocolate chips.

Pour batter into a greased 9×13 pan and bake for 30-35 minutes or until a tester comes out clean.

FROSTING:

⅓ cup milk

⅓ cup butter

1¼ cups sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 cup semi-sweet dark chocolate chip morsels

Combine butter, milk and sugar in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium high heat and let boil for 45 seconds. Remove from heat and whisk in vanilla & chocolate chips until smooth and shiny. Immediately pour over cooled cake. (This is great over brownies too!) Let cool completely to set.

Sprinkle chopped peanuts or chopped banana chips on top of cake before serving

Chicken Lasagna Roll Ups

This recipe is the result of combining three recipes I found online and then added the KP touch to. It is super easy and super delicious. It is great for potluck dinners. It is a wonderful comfort food. Serve it with steamed vegetables and a salad. Enjoy!

3 cups shredded rotisserie lemon pepper chicken, shredded

1 ½ cups shredded mozzarella cheese

½ cup shredded Parmesan cheese

1 can cream of mushroom or cream of chicken soup

1 Tablespoon Italian seasoning blend

½ teaspoon pepper

10 lasagna noodles

1-2 jars Alfredo sauce (I use the 15 ounce Bertolli sauce and use two because we like a lot of sauce)

1 ½ cups shredded Italian blend cheese

½ teaspoon paprika

Parsley flakes

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Boil lasagna noodles. While noodles are boiling, in a large bowl, mix chicken, mozzarella, Parmesan, canned soup, seasoning blend and pepper. When lasagna is cooked and slightly cooled, lay one noodle on a cutting board and spread some of the chicken mixture on top. Roll. Continue until all lasagna noddles are rolled. Lightly spray a large baking pan with cooking spray. Pour about ½ cup of Alfredo sauce in the bottom of a large baking pan. Sprinkle ¼ cup of Italian blend cheese on top of sauce. Place rolled lasagna noodles seam side down on top of sauce and cheese in baking pan. Pour remaining Alfredo sauce on top. Sprinkle 1 ¼ cup of Italian blend shredded cheese on top. Sprinkle paprika on top. Bake for 25-30 minutes until sauce is bubbly and top cheese is lightly browned. Sprinkle with parsley flakes and serve.

Note: For a different taste, fry to almost done 6 strips of bacon in ½ inch pieces. Add 2 Tablespoons of dry ranch dressing mix instead of Italian seasonings to chicken mixture. Once rolls are placed in pan, sprinkle with bacon pieces and then top with sauce and cheese for bacon ranch flavor.

Braised Pork Chops

I wish I could claim this recipe as my own, but I can't. I recently watched an episode of Martha Stewart Cooking, and she had the world famous Biscuit Lady Carol Faye from Loveless Cafe in Memphis, TN. She shared her recipe for braised pork chops. I have made a slight change or two from the recipe which is online at https://www.lovelesscafe.com/recipes/braised-pork-chops. Here is my version of the recipe. It is amazing.

4 bone-in ½” thick pork chops or 6 boneless center cut chops, trim excessive fat

Salt and pepper

2 Tablespoons of olive oil

1 Tablespoon Dijon mustard

1 Tablespoon red wine or apple cider vinegar (I prefer apple cider vinegar

1 Tablespoon garlic powder (not salt)

1 Tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

2 Tablespoons dark brown sugar

1/3 cup of water

Pour olive oil into a skillet large enough to hold all the chops. Heat to medium high. Lightly season both sides of the chops with salt and pepper. Brown chops for 3 minutes on each side. While chops are browning, combine mustard, vinegar, garlic powder, Worcestershire sauce, brown sugar, and water. Pour over chops and reduce heat to low. Cover skillet and let chops cook for at least one hour. Transfer chops to serving platter and increase heat to medium high and cook sauce to thicken, about 5 minutes. Pour over chops and serve.

Mikey P's Sensational Sloppy Joes

I have never been a huge sloppy joe fan, but my husband Mikey P. makes some the best sloppy joes you ever want to eat. Here is his recipe. Try them and let us know what you think.

2 Tablespoons butter

2 ½ pounds lean ground beef

½ large onion, diced

1 medium green bell pepper, diced

5 cloves/toes garlic, finely minced

1 ½ cup ketchup

1 cup water

3 Tablespoons dark brown sugar

2 teaspoons chili powder

1 teaspoon dry mustard/ground mustard

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

2 Tablespoons Worcestershire sauce

3 Tablespoons tomato paste

2 dashes Tabasco sauce (optional)

½ teaspoon seasoned salt

Your favorite rolls. We like Kaiser or large Hawaiian rolls

Butter

Add butter to a large skillet over medium high heat. Add ground beef and cook until brown. Drain most of the fat and discard.

Add onions, green pepper, and garlic. Cook for a few minutes, or until vegetables begin to get soft.

Add ketchup, brown sugar, chili pepper, dry mustard, salt, pepper, and water. Stir to combine and simmer for 15 minutes, adding salt and pepper to taste. Also add tomato paste, Worcestershire, and Tabasco (if desired).

Spread rolls with butter and brown on a griddle or skillet. Spoon meat mixture over the rolls. We like to add a few slices of dill pickles and/or pickled thinly sliced red onions.

Big Momma's Simple But Delicious Baked Beans

My father loved baked beans and I do, too. I have never made them from scratch by cooking the navy beans. I have always used canned pork and beans. Lately, I have used Bush's Original Baked Beans instead of pork and beans. The flavor and thickness is better, but this recipe is my origin recipe. I promise they are great. Try them and let me know what you think.

6-8 slices of thick cut bacon
1 medium onion, diced
1 small green bell pepper or half of a large one, diced
2 Tablespoons parsley flakes
3 cans of pork and beans (28 ounces each) or use Bush's Original Baked Beans
3/4 cup of Kraft's Honey Barbecue sauce
3/4 cup dark brown sugar
2 Tablespoons of yellow mustard
1 teaspoon of white vinegar
1 teaspoon black pepper
2 teaspoons garlic powder

Preheat oven 350 degrees. Cut bacon into 1/2 inch pieces. Use a skillet large enough to hold all ingredients. If you have a large cast iron skillet or Dutch oven, these work very well. Fry bacon until partially done and releasing at least 2 tablespoons of grease/fat. Add onions, bell pepper and parsley flakes. Saute over medium to low heat for 4-5 minutes or until onions are nearly translucent. Add all other ingredients and simmer on stove top for 10 minutes to make sure all flavors are well blended. Place in oven and bake for at 90 minutes. When I have time, I cook them 2 1/2 hours. Beans will be thick and continue to thicken as they sit out of the oven.
Note: You could fry 3-5 more whole slices of bacon and lay them on top of the beans before baking.

If you don't have a skillet large enough to hold all the beans, cook the bacon, onions, bell peppers and parsley. Then add them to a large mixing bowl with the other ingredients. Stir well and then pour into a baking pan.

Additional item: I have added one pound of thinly slice Conecuh hickory smoked
sausage to the bacon when I add the onions and bell peppers.

Oven Fried Pepper Jelly Chicken

I adapted this recipe from one I found on thespruceeats.com. They used ground stuffing mix to bread their chicken thighs, but I found that too salty, so I changed it to this recipe below. Also, the recipe calls for using just chicken thighs, but you could use any piece of chicken; you will just have to adjust the cooking time a bit.

10-12 chicken thighs with skin and bones
3/4 cup hot pepper jelly
2 Tablespoons butter
1 teaspoon Dijon or other gourmet mustard (I like grainy Creole mustard best)
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1 1/2 cups of Italian Seasoned bread crumbs
1/2 cup of Panko crumbs

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cover a baking pan with aluminum foil and either butter or spray it very well. You can also use a cooking rack to help keep chicken from sticking. Place cooking rack on top of foil line baking pan. Spray cooking rack very well.
In a small saucepan, heat jelly, butter, and mustard until jelly is melted. Remove from heat and let cool for about 5 minutes.
While sauce is cooling, rinse chicken in cool water and remove excessive fat and skin. (You could remove all the skin, but the chicken will not be as crispy). Pat dry with paper towel.
In a large platter or bowl, hand mix bread crumbs, Panko, garlic powder and pepper.
Once jelly mixture is cool to touch, dip chicken piece into jelly or brush all sides of chicken with the jelly. Roll in bread crumb mixture and place on baking pan/cooking rack.
Bake for 50-60 minutes or until meat registers 170 on meat thermometer and there are no pink juices.

Cheaper Cuts of Beef Don't Have To Be Tough

Most people avoid the cheaper cuts of beef because they tend to be tough. With 8 children and three adults in our home, my mother had to find ways to tenderize the cheaper cuts of beef. One way to cook "down", as my mother used to say, a tough cut of beef steak is to season both sides of the steak with garlic powder, seasoned salt and pepper. Lightly brown the steak in a large skillet and on top add a diced green bell pepper, medium onion, a bay leaf, parsley flakes, a few dashes of Worchestershire sauce, and a can of diced tomatoes. Cover with lid. Let the steak simmer for 30-50 minutes. Remove lid and thicken juices by cooking 5-10 more minutes. You can also do the same with a cheap beef roast in a crock pot. Add all the ingredients in crock pot and cook on low for 6-8 hours. The flavor is simple, amazing and great with mashed potatoes.

Fall Vegetables for a Healthy You

As the fall approaches, we will all start to stay indoors more hours. This will lessen our vitamins, such as vitamin A, D, and K, which are enhanced by sunlight. Below are a few vegetables you might want to increase in your diet as the fall and later winter days approach. Besides, they are very tasty. In fact, in the next few weeks, I will be posting recipes that incorporate many of these delicious veggies.

Sweet potatoes and yams are very rich in carotenoids, vitamins A, B6, C, potassium, iron and fiber and are delicious when baked and eaten plain (without butter) or used in soups, casseroles or stir-fries.

Bell peppers are great sources of potassium, manganese, fiber and vitamins A, B, C and K. These sweet peppers are flavorful additions to salads and healthy stir-fries. You can choose from a rainbow of colors, including: green peppers,yellow peppers, orange peppers,and red peppers.

Summer and winter squash are rich in carotenoids, vitamins A and C, potassium, magnesium and fiber and can be served alone or added to many dishes.

Just a few tips for you...

Spray your Tupperware with nonstick cooking spray before pouring in tomato- based sauces. No more stains!

Use lifesavers candy to hold candles in place on your next birthday cake! Kids love them.

Stuff a miniature marshmallow in the bottom of a sugarcone to prevent ice cream drips!

Zap garlic cloves in the microwave for 15 seconds and the skins slip right off!

If your celery begins to wilt in the fridge, fill a large cup half full of water and place celery in the cup. Put back in the fridge for two hours--it will be crisp. (Learned this from my mother).

Cooking Myth Busted

A Potato Can Save a Salty Soup or Stew. True or False? False. "This is an attractive idea, but it doesn't work because potatoes are not particularly absorbent," says Wolke, who conducted his own soup-and-potato experiment for his Cooking Myth Busters book. "There is no reason they would attract salt." If you remove the raw potato from the soup, the potato will taste salty, but so would a sponge — it has simply soaked up some of the salty liquid. Still, there is hope for salty stews: Adding a bit of vinegar or sugar can "cancel out" the saltiness by giving your taste buds competing flavors.

Super Moist Turkey

If you are looking for a way to get a moist turkey, you might try one of these family hints:

1--bake the turkey upside down--breast down for the first half of the cooking time. It will help the darker meat cook more thoroughly and the fatty juices of the darker meat will drip down to the breast and add moistness. Use a deep roasting pan for this.

2--bake the turkey with the breast up, but rub it with butter, garlic powder and pepper only. Do not salt the skin. Instead, mix salt in a cup of warm water and pour that cup of salted warm-not hot-water inside the cavity of the turkey. The salt water will steam up into the turkey, making it very moist.

3. bake the turkey with the breast up and slice two lemons and one orange in halves. Place the halves inside the seasoned turkey and the juices will steam into the meat, adding moisture and flavor.

Hint of the Week

Here is something I learned from my wonderful Mother, the greatest cook I have ever known. When you have just a small serving of cooked vegetables leftover from dinner, don't throw them away. Keep a large plastic container in the freezer and put the vegetables in the container. Mix them--carrots, corn, green beans, broccoli, etc. When the container is full make a pot of soup or stew. Also, if a recipe calls for 1/2 a chopped onion, chop the whole onion and add the half to the freezer container. My mother made the best vegetable soups from this idea.

Hint for the Week

With Fourth of July quickly approaching, you might be thinking of making Deviled Eggs. If you want perfectly boiled eggs, place eggs in a large pot and completely cover with cold water. Do not layer eggs on top of one another. Bring water to a rapid boil for 2 minutes, reduce to simmer and let eggs simmer 8 minutes, return to boil for 2 minutes. Remove from heat and empty hot water and fill pot with cold water. Let sit for 5 minutes. To peel easily, slightly crush shell in your fist and roll on counter with a firm grip. Of course, you don't want to push through the egg, but by making the shell crack in many small pieces, it is easier to peel. My father saw this on a cooking show years ago and taught me this. It truly works.