Southern Peach Cobbler

This is the best recipe for cobbler that I have been able to find. With fresh Georgia peaches and vanilla ice cream it is so delightful!

Peach Cobbler
 

1/2 cup unsalted butter

1 cup all-purpose flour

2 cups sugar, divided

1 tablespoon baking powder

Pinch of salt

1 cup milk

4 cups fresh peach slices

1 tablespoon lemon juice

Ground cinnamon or nutmeg (optional)

Preparation

Melt butter in a 13- x 9-inch baking dish. Combine flour, 1 cup sugar, baking powder, and salt; add milk, stirring just until dry ingredients are moistened. Pour batter over butter (do not stir). Bring remaining 1 cup sugar, peach slices, and lemon juice to a boil over high heat, stirring constantly; pour over batter (do not stir). Sprinkle with cinnamon, if desired.

Bake at 375° for 40 to 45 minutes or until golden brown. Serve cobbler warm or cool.

From Southern Living

Adam's Favorite Peanut Butter and Chocolate Chip Cookies

Adam can't get enough of these cookies. He LOVES them. Even though his favorite thing is the combination of peanut butter and chocolate, these are absolutely wonderful cookies and dangerous to have around the house if you are watching what you eat. Just one is never enough!

Peanut Butter and Chocolate Chip Cookies

1 ¼ cup flour
¾ tsp baking soda
½ tsp baking powder
¼ salt
½ cup butter, softened
1 cup peanut butter
¾ cup sugar
½ cup firmly packed light brown sugar
1 large egg
1 Tbsp milk
1 tsp vanilla
½ cup peanut butter chips
½ cup chocolate chips
Sugar in a bowl for dipping

Preheat oven 350 degrees

In a large bowl, combine the flour, the baking soda, and the baking powder, and the salt. Set aside.
In a large bowl, beat the butter and the peanut butter together until fluffy. Add the sugars and beat until smooth. Add the egg and mix well. Add the milk and the vanilla. Add the flour mixture and beat thoroughly. Stir in the peanut butter chips and chocolate chips. Drop Tbsp size rounded cookie dough into bowl of sugar to coat. Place on ungreased cookie sheet leaving several inches between for expansion. Slightly flatten cookies with back of spatula. Bake for 10-12 minutes. The cookies will look underdone. Cool for 1 minute on pan then remove to a rack to cool completely.

Recipe from thesisterscafe.com

Growing Green Onions

I saw a woman online who grew her own green onions in a mason jar and she never had to buy them again. So I tried it out and came to find that it works! All you have to do is take some green onions that you buy from the store and place them in a jar with some water. I only had one green onion on hand when I did this, and I wish I would have taken a before and after picture because it has changed quite a bit. My green onion only had one shoot coming out of it when I started and now it has four, plus I have snipped and used two others in my cooking. It's just an easy way to save some money, and I now always have fresh green onion.  I just have to change out the water every once in a while.

And that's my basil plant next to it. Mmmm.. I love basil!

Crock Pot Hot and Sour Soup

 

Crock Pot Hot and Sour Soup

2 cans chicken broth

1 cup chopped cooked pork

4 oz fresh mushroom caps, thinly sliced

1/2 cup sliced bamboo shoots, cut into thin strips

3 tbsp rice wine vinegar

2 tbsp soy sauce

1/4- 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper

4 oz firm tofu, well drained and cut into 1/2 in pieces

2 tsp sesame oil

2 tbsp cornstarch

2 tbsp cold water

Chopped cilantro or sliced green onions

1. Combine broth, pork, mushrooms, bamboo shoots, vinegar, soy sauce and chili paste in Crock-Pot slow cooker. Cover; cook on LOW 3 to 4 hours or on HIGH 2 to 3 hours, or until done. 

2. Stir in tofu and sesame oil. Combine cornstarch with water; mix well. Add to soup and mix in well. Cover; cook on HIGH 10 minutes or until soup has thickened. To serve, sprinkle cilantro or green onions.

Halloween Mud Float

Halloween is my favorite holiday and Adam got me a Betty Crocker Halloween cook book. I tried my first recipe from it, and this was it. To my surprise, it was really yummy!

Mud Float

Servings: 8

4 cups chocolate milk
4 cups root beer
1 pint chocolate ice cream
Gummy worms (optional)

Directions:

1. In a class, pour 1/2 cup milk and 1/2 cup root beer and stir. 

2. Add a scoop of ice cream on top like a root beer float. Add gummy worms for fun!

Hot and Sour Soup

Thanks for the recipe Amber. It was delicious!

Hot and Sour Soup

sliced mushrooms (as many as you like)

2 tablespoons canola oil

1-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and grated

1/2 tsp cayenne

1/2 cup canned bamboo shoots, sliced

1/4 pound barbecued pork, shredded

1/4 cup soy sauce

1/4 cup rice vinegar

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon ground white pepper

1 tbsp sugar

2 quarts Chicken Stock

1 square firm tofu, drained and sliced in 1/4-inch strips

3 tablespoons cornstarch mixed with 1/4 cup water

1 large egg, lightly beaten

Chopped green onions, for garnish

Directions:

Heat the oil in a wok or large pot over medium-high flame. Add the ginger, cayenne, mushrooms, bamboo shoots, and pork; cook and stir for 1 minute to infuse the flavor. Combine the soy sauce, vinegar, salt, pepper, and sugar in a small bowl, pour it into the wok and toss everything together - it should smell really fragrant. Pour in the Chicken Stock, bring the soup to a boil, and simmer for 10 minutes. Add the tofu and cook for 3 minutes.

Dissolve the cornstarch in the water and stir until smooth. Mix the slurry into the soup and continue to simmer until the soup thickens. Remove the soup from the heat and stir in 1 direction to get a current going, then stop stirring. Slowly pour in the beaten eggs in a steady stream and watch it spin around and feather in the broth (it should be cooked almost immediately.) Garnish the hot and sour soup with chopped green onions before serving.

Coconut Shrimp with Curried Apricot Sauce

This was my first time making shrimp. Adam hates shrimp with a passion and refuses to be around it, so I had to make this for lunch while he was at work so he wouldn't have to smell it. Oh silly husband. But I still love him! That curry apricot sauce is oh so yummy!

Coconut Shrimp with Curried Apricot Sauce

6 servings

24 fresh or frozen shrimp
1 cup mayonnaise
3 tbsp apricot preserves
1 tsp curry powder
2 tbsp cooking oil
1 1/2 cups shredded unsweetened coconut, toasted (I toasted mine on the stove, but you can do it in the oven too)
1/4 cup cornstarch
1 tbsp sugar
1/2 tsp salt
3 egg whites, slightly beaten

1. Thaw shrimp, if frozen. Peel and devain, leaving tails intact. Rinse shrimp; pat dry with paper towels. Set aside.

2. For sauce, in a small bowl stir together mayonnaise, apricot preserves, and curry powder. Cover and chill until ready to serve.

3. Spread oil on bottom of a 15x10x1 inch baking sheet. Set pan aside. In a shallow dish combine coconut, cornstarch, sugar, and salt. Place the egg whites in a small shallow dish. Dip shrimp into the egg whites; coat shrimp with coconut mixture, pressing the mixture firmly onto the shrimp. Arrange shrimp in the prepared pan. Bake in a 400 degree F oven about 10 minutes or until shrimp is opaque and coconut is golden, turning once. Serve with sauce.

Lawn Mower Cupcakes

For Adam's 26th birthday, I made him lawn mower cupcakes.

Treasures chocolates
M&Ms
String licorice

Easy Crock-Pot Honey Whole-Grain Bread

This recipe is perfect if you are in a hurry and don't want to have to wait around the house to let bread dough rise and re-rise. And it was so delicious! Way easy!

Crock-Pot Honey Whole-Grain Bread

3 cups whole-wheat breat flour, divided
2 cups warm whole milk
3/4 to 1 cup all-purpose flour, divided
1/4 cup honey
2 tbsp vegetable oil
1 pkg active dry yeast
3/4 tsp salt

1. Line crock pot with foil and spray with cooking spray.

2. Combine 1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour,milk, 1/2 cup all-purpose flour, honey, oil, yeast and salt in large bowl. Beat with electric mixer at medium speed 2 minutes. Add remaining 1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour and 1/4 cup to 1/2 cup all-purpose flour until dough is no longer sticky. (You can mix with wooden spoon.) Transfer to prepared crock-pot.

3. Cover; cook on HIGH 3 hours or unti edges are browned.

4. Take out and let cool for 5 minutes, then transfer to a cooling rack.