27 year old wedding cake!

This wedding cake is 27 years old as June 26 is our 27th anniversary!

No actual recipe, just a shot of two young loves on their big Day.



I had just graduated high school! To read more about our "young love" story, you can click here.

Fried Eggs on the Sidewalk

YOU WILL NEED:

1 egg
1 sidewalk

Directions.

Heat sidewalk to above 100 degrees for best results. Place broken egg on sidewalk and let it sizzle for a few minutes. Remove from heat. (Translated: Go inside to the air conditioning and don't come out until the heat wave has passed.)

Sorry folks, this is all I can offer you today as I don't wanna' cook anything! The Heat and humidity is draining the life from me.

From my Cookbook Collection: "Olive Garden Spaghetti Sauce"

Some of my very favorite cookbooks are those that  the church ladies publish.

 Come on, there's just no better cookin' than a bunch of ladies who love to be in the kitchen, and regularly "compete" for the title of Best Cook in their local fellowship.

My church, Whittington Church, has a cookbook that was given (for free) to all new members and of course I have nearly worn it out!

This particular recipe is one of my favorites and is very easy to prepare. It's  delicious and has a surprising unique flavor and I can't get enough of it!

It was submitted by Joyce Rath

OLIVE GARDEN SPAGHETTI SAUCE




YOU WILL NEED:

2 lbs. ground round
2 T. Oil
14 oz. can stewed tomatoes, cut up.
6 oz. V8 juice
1 lb. can Prego spaghetti sauce
1 envelope dry onion soup mix
1/2 cup grape jelly

Brown meat. Add remaining ingredients, stirring often, 15- 20 minutes or until jelly melts.
Add to hot pasta. Serve with a salad and garlic bread.

~~~~~~~
DID YOU KNOW...

There’s a whole lot of twirling going on – with pasta that is. According to a recent survey commissioned by Olive Garden and conducted by Harris Interactive®, 77 percent of U.S. adult pasta eaters, twirl, rather than cut, long noodle pasta, and 58 percent of Americans(1) use their plate, rather than a spoon, to twirl it.

The survey also found that more than 50 percent of respondents are eating pasta at least once a week and most frequently as a family meal (41 percent). From among a selection of 20 pastas, spaghetti is America’s favorite and tomato, or marinara, the preferred sauce(2). First and second runners up included lasagna and fettuccine for pasta preference and Alfredo and Bolognese, came in second and third respectively for favorite sauce.

And, with all this twirling going on, almost two-thirds of Americans (63 percent)(3) say they end up with a little sauce on themselves or their clothing, while enjoying their pasta.

CARMELIZED VIDALIA ONIONS and a special request...

Normally, I do my FAST AND FURIOUS recipes on Friday, but today I am posting a recipe sent to me by my dear friend. She sent it a couple of weeks ago, right after she thought she had a mini stroke. Upon further testing, they found that she had lung cancer that has spread to her brain.

I love this lady and her friendship has been of great help to me in my times of need, so I am asking a favor from anyone that will help me.

WOULD YOU BE WILLING TO SEND HER SOME WORDS OF ENCOURAGEMENT, SCRIPTURE, LINKS TO UPLIFTING SITES, ETC.?

YOU CAN EMAIL THEM TO ME AT ASMURPHY@CLEARWAVE.COM

I will forward them on to her, and print them out and take them to her as well.

She would love this, and trust me, she would do it for you if the tables were turned.

So, here's her recipe, and PLEASE pray for her and send her a little encouragement.

Would you?



Caramelized Onions



M A K E S A B O UT 4 C U P S

6 to 8 Vidalia onions, about 2 1/2 pounds,

thinly sliced

1 10-ounce can chicken or vegetable broth

Garlic cloves to taste, optional

Place all in slow cooker. Cover

and cook on low 12 to 24 hours

or until onions are golden

brown. Add to recipes calling

for onions.

[ T IME S A V E R ]

This recipe can be frozen

for use later.

__________________________

THREE INGREDIENT THURSDAY-Virgin Pina Colada

I had many inquiries about the drink in my photo yesterday, as it was on both of my blog sites. I even received emails!

It was a virgin Pina Colada that was delicious and really hit the spot while beach side.

Obviously many of you might prefer the drink with alcohol, but this one could be served to kids, or for breakfast or just enjoyed when a "kick" is not necessary!

Very simple to make:

7 oz pineapple juice
2 oz coconut cream
1 cup crushed ice



Add the pineapple juice, coconut cream and crushed ice to a blender; blend at high speed. Pour into a Collins glass. Garnish with a maraschino cherry, a pineapple wedge, and serve.

You gotta' find these little umbrellas for the full beach affect.
Then go lay by the pool, or the hot tub, the lake, pond, fountain or bath tub ,if that's all you have. Play some soothing music and pretend you're on the beach.

Chicken Etouffee

I'm BACK! I enjoyed a wonderful vacation in Fort Walton Beach, Florida,and I figured I would share one of the Coastal dishes I tried while dining at the beach.

I realize that most people would order fresh seafood while seaside, however, try as I might, I am NOT a lover of seafood, so I tried to go with another dish that the beach combers love. I chose Chicken Etouffee ,a cajun dish. Etouffee is actually French soul food meaning Smothered Chicken.

The above photo is right before I dug in, and enjoyed a wonderful meal with great friends while enjoying this view...



Really, I could have eaten a baloney sandwich on soggy bread at this point and I still would have thought I was in heaven!

I found this recipe that seems VERY close to the dish I enjoyed, but I have not made this one.

Just thought I'd share it anyway.

Go ahead, give it a try and let me know what you think!




CHICKEN ETOUFFEE

YOU WILL NEED:
Ingredients:

4 Cups chicken broth

1 tsp dried thyme

1 tsp dried basil

1 bay leaf

⅓ Cup Butter, divided

½ Cup all-purpose flour

Cooking spray

1½ Cups chopped onion

⅔ Cup diced celery

½ Cup chopped red bell pepper

½ Cup chopped green bell pepper

¾ Cup water

¼ tomato paste

1 tsp salt-free Cajun seasoning

1½ tsp minced garlic

¼ tsp salt

¼ tsp black pepper

¼ tsp ground red pepper

1 tsp worcestershire sauce

½ Cup chopped green onions

½ Cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley, divided

A Boneless, skinless chicken, cut into strips

4 Cups hot cooked long-grain rice



Directions:

Combine the first four ingredients in a small saucepan over medium heat. Bring the contents of the saucepan to a simmer, cover, and remove from heat. Meanwhile, melt ¼ cup of butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add flour to pan whisking to combine. Cook for 1-2 minutes. Add 1 cup of broth mixture to pan and whisk until smooth. Add remaining 3 cups broth mixture, whisking until smooth. Set aside

Melt remaining butter in a large dutch oven coated with cooking spray over medium-high heat. Add onion, celery, and bell peppers to the pan. Cook 10 minutes or until vegetables are tender and onion is golden brown, stirring occasionally. Stir in water, scraping pan to loosen brown bits. Add tomato paste, Cajun seasoning, garlic, salt, black pepper, and red pepper. Cook 1 minute stirring constantly. Add reserved broth-flour mixture and Worcestershire sauce to pan, stirring well to combine, bring to a simmer. Cook 10 minutes stirring occasionally. Add green onions, ¼ cup parsley, and chicken. Cook until chicken is no longer pink. Discard the bay leaf. Serve over rice and sprinkle with remaining parsley.

I'll leave you with a couple of more of my photos to enjoy to put you in the seaside mood.



This was the view from right outside my hotel room.


The pier where we spent alot of time.

THREE INGREDIENT THURSDAY-"Lindsey's Lemonade"

My "Aunt" Gayla Lindsey gave me this recipe years ago, and it is also featured in the COAL COUNTRY COOKIN' VOLUME II COOKBOOK that I am helping to sell for our Old King Coal Festival Fundraiser. Click here to order the cookbook filled with delicious home town cookin' recipes and you will also be helping to keep a small town festival and tradition alive.

This recipe is so tasty and usually I also add some orange wedges to the pitcher, and squeeze a bit of that juice in there too, and it tastes just like a Lemon Shake- Up at the fair.

I was out of oranges when I made it this time, but it was still delicious, and I love the cute little lemon glasses I found at THE DOLLAR TREE to serve my lemonade in. Feels so summery.

For this recipe you will need:

1 1/4 c. white sugar
8 cups water
1 1/2 c. freshly squeezed lemon juice
(from about 10 large lemons, seeds removed)

In small saucepan, combine sugar and 1 cup water. Bring to a boil and stir until sugar is dissolved. Allow syrup mixture to cool at room temperature, then cover and refrigerate until chilled. In pitcher, stir together chilled syrup, lemon juice and remaining 7 cups water. Chill thoroughly before serving.

Makes 10 servings.

From My Cookbook Collection...THE GRACE OF PATTI'S -Crispy Baked Chicken

Each Monday I share a recipe from one of my cookbooks from my ever growing cookbook collection.
You'll love this one.



This cookbook was a Christmas Gift from my neighbor and good friend, Diana.

She knows I love to cook, and my favorite cookbooks are the tried and true recipes. This book highlights some wonderful family recipes from the owners of Patti's 1880s Settlement, in Grand Rivers, Kentucky. Big AL and I have eaten in their wonderful restaurant and shopped in the gift shoppe after enjoying a relaxing game of goofy golf. I'm leaving a link for you here, so you can see this place for yourself. It's worth the trip if you're within driving distance.

Arielle's Crispy Baked Chicken



YOU WILL NEED:

1/2 cup cornmeal
1/2 cup all purpose flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1 1/2 tsp. chili powder
1/2 tsp. dried oregano
1/4 tsp. pepper
3 1/2 lbs. chicken (or chicken strips)
1/3 cup butter
Bar-BQ sauce for dipping

Combine first 6 ingredients. Dip chicken in milk, then roll in dry mixture. Place in greased 13x9-inch pan. Drizzle with butter. Bake uncovered at 375 degrees for 55 minutes. If using strips, only 25- 30 minutes baking time.

The chicken has a very subltle flavor that is enhanced, but not at all overwhelmed by the chili powder. It is great dipped in BBQ sauce, but honey mustard would be good too. Or skip the dipping altogether. It is very good alone.

Enjoy!

Vidalia Onion Pie

You've probably noticed that I use LOTS of vidalia onions in my recipes.

I love them. Oddly, I'm not an onion lover, just a lover of the sweeter vidalia variey.

My friend Tonya gave me this recipe to try and I loved it!

Even if you're not a big onion fan, you still need to try this. It tastes like one of those breakfast casseroles, but I served it as a side dish to Salmon patties and mashed potatoes for supper.


YOU WILL NEED:

1 cup Ritz crackers, crumbled fine
1/2 stick butter, melted
2 cups Vidalia onions, diced (or thinly sliced. ) I diced mine.
1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese (or Mozzarella)
1 T. butter
2 eggs
3/4 c. milk
3/4 tsp. salt

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix cracker crumbs with 1/2 stick butter and press into bottom of pie plate. Saute onions in 1 T. butter till translucent, not brown.
Spoon into pie plate. Beat eggs and milk with salt; pour over onions. SPrinkle with cheese. Bake for 30 minutes or until knife comes out clean (it took 40 minutes for me. I covered top with foil for those last ten minutes.)


Then end result is amazing!

Three Ingredient Thursday- Peanut Butter Cookies

Cheap, easy and quick!

These are a tasty, crunchy peanut butter cookie.
I was told these were the original cookies the young girl scouts would learn to make.  Not sure if that's true but this would be a great starter cookie for a child to learn.

1 cup peanut butter
1 cup sugar
1 egg

Mix all together and drop onto an ungreased cookie sheet by rounded tablespoonfuls. Press down with a fork in a crisscrossed pattern and bake at 350 degrees until golden brown. Cool on wire rack.

Grab yourself a glass of milk enjoy!