For this recipe, you will need:

1 15 oz. can pumpkin
1 can evaporated milk
4 eggs
1 tsp. nutmeg
1/2 tsp. ginger
2 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. salt
3/4 c. sugar
1 box yellow cake mix
1/2 lb. melted butter
1 c. chopped walnuts (optional)

Mix first 8 ingredients together and pour into greased 9x13 inch pan. Sprinkle 1 box yellow cake mix over pumpkin mixture, then 1 cup chopped walnuts over cake mix. Drizzle 2 sticks (1/2 pound) melted butter evenly over nuts and cake mix. (this makes the crunchy topping)  Bake at 350 degrees for 50 to 60 minutes. Serve as is with pumpkin on bottom and cake on top.

ENJOY!

Ok, today I want to brag on Kiddo for abit.  He has done a wonderful job with his schoolwork and chores this morning and without having to be nagged coaxed hardly at all.  He got his own breakfast, fed Paws and the cats, and unloaded the silverware and put it away. He has helpe me with the laundry although he still insists that he SHOULDN'T have to clean his room because no one should be in it anyway! LOL  He has been a pleasant young man to be around today and for that I am truly thankful.

1 lb ground beef

1 onion, chopped

3/4 cup water

1 pkg.  taco seasoning

1-15 oz. can tomato sauce

1 large can of stewed, diced tomatoes, undrained

1-26 1/2 oz. can tomato sauce ( I used green pepper and mushroom)

1 pkg. (8 oz.) uncooked mararoni (I used shells)

1-1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese

Brown ground beef and onion in skillet.  Drain fat.  Add water, taco seasoning, and tomato sauce; mix.  Transfer to crockpot.  Stir in macaroni.

Cover and cook on high 2 1/2 hours. In the last 30 minutes of cooking, top with cheddar cheese. Serves 4-6.

You know, sometimes we take for granted all the little things in life and don't realize how truly blessed we are. Today was a wonderful reminder to me, just how much of a blessing my sweet, precious son can be.

Thank you, Kiddo for such a delicious dinner!

I  YOU!

My DH Skippy, is a LOVER of coffee cake, especially the one from Entenmann's with all those HUGE crumbs on top.  YUMMMM!  Well, were out grocery shopping on Sunday when we came upon a display with all of their goodies; donuts, chocolate cake, cheesecake danish, and many other glorious treats.  Then, out of the corner of his eye......he finds it.  The look in his eyes was so sad and the pout on his lips was too much for my poor heart to bear.  He looked at me with those puppy dog eyes.  "Honey,"  I said shaking me head, 'We can't get that,"  "I know," he said, as he turned and walked away with his head down.  Awww.....my .

Well, I wanted to do something extra special for Skippy today, so I decided to make him some coffee cake.  However, he won't get to eat it until he gets home from work because it took a little longer to bake than I had anticipated, which is fine, because he doesn't like to eat it warm anyway.

So, what do you think? Doesn't it look ScRuMpTiOuS?

So, for Cowgirl Coffee Cake you will need:

2 1/2 cups flour
2 cups brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup butter
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 cup sour milk (just add 1 tablespoon white vinegar to sour the milk)
2 beaten eggs

In a large bowl, combine flour, brown sugar, and salt. Cut the butter into flour mixture until even in texture, reserving 1/2 cup for topping.

To your mixture, add baking powder, baking soda, nutmeg, and cinnamon. Now add your milk and beaten eggs and mix well.

Pour into greased and floured 9x13 pan. Sprinkle on your reserved topping. Bake at 350* for approximately 25-35 minutes, as oven temperatures may vary.

I think the next time I make this coffe cake, I will add extra cinnamon, nuts, and reserve a little more than 1/2 cup for the topping.

ENJOY!

Blessings~
Laura

Taste and see that the LORD is good; blessed are those who take refuge in him.  

Psalm 34:8

This is a recipe I make for biscuits that Bean says taste like the ones you get from KFC.  COOL!  I double this recipe, add extra salt, roll them out thicker and use a wide mouth glass to cut my biscuits.  I just like them like that.  

For this recipe you will need:

2 cups allppurpose flour
1 tbsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/3 cup shortening
3/4 cup milk (or you can substitute buttermilk if desired)

In a mixing bowl, throughly stir together the flour, baking powder and salt.   Mix well to evenly distribute the leavening (baking powder) and salt

Cut shortening into flour mixture till mixture resembles course crumbs.  Be sure to use solid shortening instead of ocooking oil or melted butter.  The best utensils to use for cutting in shortening are a pastry blender or a blend-ing fork.  Mixing by hand tends to soften the shortening, making a sticky, difficult-to-handle dough.

After cutting in the shortening, the mixture should resemble coarse crumbs.  Avoid usinga liquid shortening.  This will produce a mealy biscuit rather than the flaky, tender ones which are more desirable.

Gently push the flour-shortening mixture against the edges of the bowl, making a well in the center.  Add the milk all at once, pouring it into the well.

Using a fork, stir the mixture quickly.  Stir just till the dough follows the fork around the bolw and forms a soft dough.  Too much mixing may result in biscuits that are tough and not as light as desired.

Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surgace.  Knead gently 10-12 strokes.   This helps develop the biscuit's structure and evenly distributes the moisture to make the biscuits more flaky.  For ease in kneading, curve your fingers over the dough, pull it toward you, then push it down and away tfrom you with the heel fo your hand.  Give dough a quarter turn, fold toward you, and push it down again. 

On the lightly floured surface pat the dough to 1/2 inch thickness (or use a lighly floured rolling pin, if desired).  Add a little flour to the surface of the dough if necessary to keep the dough from sticking.

cut dough with a 2 1/2 inch biscuit cutter.  Dip cutter in flour between cuts to prevent sticking.  Press the cutter straight down to get straight-sided, evenly shaped biscuits.  Be especially careful not to twist the cutter or flatten the cut biscuit edges.  If you do not have a biscuit cutter, a glass with the edges dipped in flour works just as good.

Using a metal spatula, carefully transfer the cut biscuits to an ungreased baking sheet.  For crusty-sided biscuits, place about 1 inch apart.  For sof-sided biscuits, place biscuits close together in an ingreased baking pan.  Reroll scraps of dough and cut into buscuit shapes. 

Bake biscuits in 450* oven for 10-12 minutes or until biscuits are golden.  They should have doubled in size during baking.  Serve immediately.    If desired, bake biscuits halfway through the freeze.  Bake later at 450* until golden brown.

Do you have a favorite biscuit recipe that you would like to share? 

Blessings~
Laura 

I made Chicken Wing Appy tonight and I needed BBQ sauce to go with it so I used a recipe that I found in our church cookbook that Skippy bought me a few weeks ago.  My friend, F. submitted it and she is an AMAZING cook so I knew it HAD to be good.  Frances did not disappoint me.  It was WONDERFUL, even though had to make two changes out of necessity.  The first was I omitted the lemon juice because we didn't have any and the second was I added soy sauce by mistake after grabbing that instead of the Worcestershire sauce.  Thankfully I realized it after I had only added 1 tsp.   Even with those two changes, it was delicious!

For this recipe you will need:

• 2 tbsp butter
• 1/2 cup water
• 2 tbsp vinegar
• 2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tsp mustard
• 1/2 cup finely chopped onions
• 1 cup ketchup
• 2 tbsp lemon juice
• 2 tbsp brown sugar