Kathy's Eggplant Parmesan

2 medium eggplant, about 2 lbs, cut into 1/2" thick slices. 

2 eggs

2 c. Italian bread crumbs

1/2 t. salt

1/2 t. pepper

24-32 oz marinara sauce, depending on how much sauce you like

2 c. shredded mozzarella cheese

1/3 c. grated Parmesan cheese

Italian seasoning, optional

Sweat eggplant slices by placing on paper towels and lightly salting each side. Allow to set 30-60 minutes, turning over halfway so moisture is absorbed. (This will make the eggplant more flavorful. If you choose not to do this, you may want to add 1/2 t. salt to casserole before baking.) Preheat oven to 425. Line baking sheets with parchment paper. Beat eggs in a shallow bowl. Combine breadcrumbs and seasonings in another bowl. Dip eggplant slices in eggs & then breadcrumbs before placing on cookie sheets. Bake 25 minutes until eggplant is tender and crumbs are brown. (Flip them halfway through to brown bottom side.) DO NOT TURN OVEN OFF! Place 1/2 c. marinara sauce in bottom of sprayed 9x13 dish. Place 1/2 of eggplant slices on sauce. Top with marinara and 1 c. mozzarella and all of Parmesan cheese. Sprinkle with Italian seasoning. Repeat layers. Bake 20-30 minutes until cheese is melted and browned. Do not overbake as this will make the eggplant tough. 

Pictures: 1) eggplant before crisping 2) eggplant after crisping and on top of sauce 3) cheese topped casserole ready for the oven 4) ready to eat

Cheese Sauce for Steamed or Boiled Vegetables

 1 stick butter

1+ c. heavy cream or evaporated milk

1/4 c. wondra flour (mixes in without clumping)

2-3, 4 oz. Velveeta cheese blocks

salt and pepper, to taste

Melt butter in saucepan. Add flour and milk. Stir to combine. Remove from heat. Add cheese and continue to stir until cheese is all blended. Add more milk if needed for consistency. Serve with cooked broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, etc...

pictures: 1) boiled cabbage (placing a wooden spoon over the pan while cooking will keep it from boiling over. 2) cheese sauce ready to eat.

Pumpkin Coffee Cake

2 eggs, beaten

1 c. sugar

1 c. pure pumpkin, not pie filling

1/2 c. oil

4-5 t. pumpkin pie spice

1-2 t. vanilla

1 c. SR flour

1/2 c. pumpkin spice chips

chopped pecans, optional

Crumble Topping

3/4 c. SR flour

1/4 c. sugar

1/4 c. light brown sugar, packed

6 T. butter, melted

Glaze

3/4 c. confectioner's sugar

2-3 T. milk

1/4 c. toffee bits

Preheat oven to 350. Spray 8x8 pan. In a large bowl, add eggs, sugar, pumpkin, oil, pumpkin pie spice, vanilla, & flour. Do not overmix. Fold in pumpkin spice chips. Pour into sprayed pan and smooth out. In a medium bowl, add flour & sugars. Stir with a fork only. Stir in melted butter. Mix and fluff with fork to combine until small pebbles form.  If it seems too moist add 2-3 T. flour to dry it. Evenly sprinkle the crumble topping over the cake and bake for 45-50 minutes, until cake is done and toothpick inserted comes out clean. Set on wire rack and cool for 30 minutes. In a small bowl, combine confectioner's sugar and milk. Drizzle over cooled cake and top with toffee bits. Yummy!

*Recipe may be doubled for 9x13 dish.

Pictures: 1) cake batter 2) cake with crumble topping ready to be baked 3) baked cake, cooling 4) coffee cake with glaze and toffee bits 5) ready to eat

Crockpot John Wayne Casserole

32 oz. frozen tater tots, not thawed

2 lbs. ground chuck, browned, drained and rinsed

1/2 small yellow onion, diced, cooked with ground chuck

1 green pepper*, diced, cooked with ground chick

1/2 t. Montreal steak seasoning

1/2-2/3 c. water, added to rinsed and drained meat, peppers and onions

8 oz. sour cream

1 can cream of mushroom soup

1 can cream of celery soup

16 oz. shredded cheddar* cheese, divided

salt 

pepper

1/2 t. onion powder

8 oz. can mushrooms, drained

diced tomatoes, optional

Place liner in crockpot. Add tater tots in an even layer. Pour meat mixture over tater tots. Combine sour cream, soups, salt, pepper, onion powder, and half of the cheese. Spread this mixture over the meat mixture in the crockpot. Cover and cook on low for 4 1/2 hours, without opening lid. Add remaining cheese. Cover and cook another 5-10 minutes until melted. Serve with diced tomatoes, if desired. Enjoy!

*for a spicier version, use Monterey jack cheese and jalapeno pepper

This recipe can also be made in the oven for a crispier casserole. Make layers of ingredients, ending with tater tots on top. Bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes. Serve with additional cheese and sour cream if desired.

Pumpkin Snickerdoodles Cookies

1 1/2 c. SR flour

1 t. pumpkin pie spice

1/2 t. cinnamon

1/2 c. butter, softened

1/2 c. sugar

1/4 c. light brown sugar

1 egg yolk, room temperature

1 t. vanilla

1/4 c. pumpkin, not pie filling

pumpkin filled chips, optional**

Coating:

2 T. sugar

1 t. cinnamon*

Preheat oven to 350. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Mix together flour, pumpkin pie spice, & cinnamon. Set aside. Cream together butter, sugar, and brown sugar for 2 minutes or until combined.  Add egg yolk and vanilla. Add pumpkin. Scrape down sides of bowl as needed. Add flour mixture until just combined. Cover tightly and refrigerate for 30 minutes. Remove dough from refrigerator and using a 2 T. cookie scoop, place balls on sheets. **a few pumpkin filled chips may be added to rolled balls before coating if desired. Whisk together sugar and cinnamon for coating, *or use pumpkin pie spice and sugar instead, if desired. Roll balls in coating and place back on sheets. Cookies may be flattened a little before baking if desired, but it's not necessary. Bake 12-15 minutes until set. Remove from oven and cool 10 minutes. Makes 18 large cookies. Store in airtight container. Recipe may be doubled.

Cookie balls may be frozen. Roll in coating before baking. Do not need to be thawed first. May need to add 1-2 minutes if baking frozen cookie balls.

1st picture:pumpkin filled chips I added; 2nd picture:ready to bake; 3rd picture: ready to eat!

Apple Spice Poke Cake with Caramel

1 spice cake mix (yellow or white cake mix work well too)

1 T. apple pie spice

1/2 c. water

1/3 c. oil

3 eggs

2 t. vanilla

20 oz. can apple pie filling (I used caramel apple pie filling), chopped

1 c. caramel ice cream sauce (I used 1 can of Eaglebrand milk that had caramelized), warmed

8 oz. whipped topping

2/3 c. toffee bits

Preheat oven to 350. Spray a 9x13 glass* dish. Beat cake mix, apple pie spice, water, oil, eggs, and vanilla on medium for 2 minutes. Fold in the pie filling. Pour into sprayed dish. Bake 28-30 minutes until cake is done. Cool for 10 minutes. Using the handle of a wooden spoon, poke holes in cake. Pour and spread caramel over cake, making sure to fill every hole. Cool cake completely. Top with whipped topping and toffee bits. Cover and keep in refrigerator until ready to serve. So yummy!

*Be sure to use a glass dish for desserts that need to be refrigerated or the metal pans will cause the dessert to have a metal taste.

**If you don't want to use canned pie filling, cut up 5 apples and cook them in a frying pan with 1/4 c. butter and 1/4 c. sugar. Stir frequently until apples are tender and add to the recipe.

1st picture: poked baked cake; 2nd picture: poked baked cake with caramel sauce; 3rd picture: apple spice poke cake ready to serve.

Marbelized Pumpkin and Chocolate Cake

3/4 c. chocolate chips, I used milk chocolate

4 eggs

1 c. milk

1/4 c. oil

1 t. vanilla or pumpkin pie spice extract

15 oz. can pure pumpkin

1 1/2 c. sugar

3 c. SR flour

1 t. pumpkin pie spice

Preheat oven to 350. Spray a bundt or angel food cake pan. Place chocolate chips in a microwave safe bowl and heat for 30 seconds. Stir and heat another 30 seconds, stir. Repeat until fully melted. In a large bowl, add eggs, vanilla/pumpkin pie spice extract, and oil. Whisk together. Add pumpkin, milk, and pumpkin pie spice. Add the flour and sugar. Stir until lightly blended. Beat with hand mixer for 3 minutes. Scoop out 2 c. of pumpkin batter and add to melted chocolate. You'll need to do this quickly so the chocolate doesn't harden. Pour 1/3 of the pumpkin batter into the sprayed pan and jiggle it til it's even. Scoop 1/2 the chocolate batter onto the pumpkin batter in the pan. Repeat the layers, ending with pumpkin on top. Use a knife to swirl the chocolate layers into the pumpkin. Don't over mix. Jiggle again to spread evenly in pan. Bake 55-60 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean. Allow to cool for 10 minutes before inverting onto plate. I flipped it back again so that the pretty side was on top. *My daughter loves pumpkin and I fixed this for her birthday. She said it wasn't pumpkiny enough so next time I will probably add more pumpkin, but for those who don't like a strong pumpkiny taste, you'll love it! This made a pretty cake inside and out. (I served it warm with pecan caramel ice cream)

1st picture is out of the oven; 2nd picture is sliced and ready to eat; 3rd pic:  heart shaped pan (shallow); 4th pic: mini cakes; 5th pic: pumpkin pie spice extract

The next time I made it I used the pumpkin spice extract instead of vanilla and it definitely smelled more pumkiny. I made it in a shallow heart shaped pan and 12 silicone molds. Baked for 30 minutes and they turned out perfect. My daughter said it was much better pumpkin flavor.

Cinnamon Biscuits

 2 c. SR flour

1/4 c. butter, cubed

3/4 c. milk

1 t. vanilla

1/4 c. butter, softened

1/2 c. sugar

1 t. cinnamon

chopped pecans, optional

Glaze:

1 c. confectioners sugar

1-2 T. milk

1/4 t. vanilla

Combine flour with cubed butter. Cut in butter. Add milk and vanilla. Stir with fork just until dough leaves sides of bowl. Roll dough out, on lightly floured surface, into a 1/4" thick rectangle. Brush top with softened butter. Combine sugar and cinnamon. Sprinkle evenly over dough. Sprinkle with chopped pecans if using. Roll up, starting on the long side. Cut into 1/2" thick rounds. Place in sprayed 9" round pan with sides touching. Bake at 425 for 18-20 minutes, or until golden brown. Prepare glaze by combining ingredients until smooth, while biscuits are baking. Remove from oven and drizzle with glaze. Serve warm. 

*someone suggested using Rhodes frozen dough instead, but I have not tried it yet.

4 Ingredient Cinnamon Rolls

1 pkg. Pillsbury refrigerated pizza crust

1 stick butter, softened

1/2 c. sugar

2 T. cinnamon

Preheat oven to 350. Unroll pizza crust on flat surface. Spread evenly with butter, leaving 1/2" unbuttered on one long side. Combine sugar and cinnamon. Sprinkle evenly on top of butter. Roll dough up tightly & pinch unbuttered edge to seal. Slice into 9-12 sections. Place in sprayed 9" square pan. Some rolls may need to rolled tighter. Bake for 15-20 minutes until rolls are lightly browned and no longer doughy. I made a glaze to drizzle over these as soon as they came out of the oven. I combined 1/2 c. confectioners sugar and 1 1/2 T. milk until smooth. *Raisins and chopped nuts could also be added if desired before baking.

**May substitute splenda and omit glaze for a more sugar free version (There is some sugar in the crust)

1st picture: unrolled dough with butter and cinnamon sugar; 2nd picture: rolled up and ready to slice; 3rd picture: ready to bake; 4th picture: out of oven, glaze added, and ready to eat. Yum!

Marshmallow Brownies

4 oz. unsweetened chocolate, coarsely chopped; or 2/3 c. chocolate chips ( I used milk chocolate)

10 T. butter, cubed

2 c. sugar

4 eggs

1/2 t. kosher salt

1 c. SR flour

3 c. miniature marshmallows

Frosting:

1/2 c. butter

1/3 c. cocoa powder

1/3 c. milk

3 1/2 c. powdered sugar, sifted

Preheat oven to 350. Spray 9x13 pan. Combine chocolate and butter. Microwave on high for 30 second intervals, stirring well after each. Add sugar, eggs, salt and stir in the flour. Pour the batter in the pan and bake 30-35 minutes, until the center comes out clean. Immediately sprinkle marshmallows on top and return to oven for another 3-4 minutes, to allow marshmallows to puff up and become slightly browned. 

Frosting:

In a large saucepan, melt butter, add cocoa powder, and milk over medium heat. Stir until smooth. Remove from heat and whisk in powdered sugar until smooth and no lumps appear. Pour over marshmallow layer, making sure all are covered well. Store in airtight container.

1st picture: baked brownies with marshmallows and frosting.

2nd picture: serve with vanilla ice cream if desired.