Caramel Apple Dump Cake

Good evening my favorite people!  I hope this finds you all enjoying some nice fall weather and pretty colored trees!  It is definitely getting chilly here in the Midwest and I could NOT be happier if I am honest.  I am not a heat girl.  I like hot weather for a week or so, and then I am ready to not sweat and get dirty.  I prefer getting my dirty on in the.........KITCHEN.

So this cake, which may be familiar to some of you, was not, to me.  My friend "Coop", who btw, is an amazing singer.  If you are in Ohio, and you haven't driven to hear her sing at any number of Opry Houses or the like, you should.  Ask her to sing you some Patsy Cline.  You can check her out on Facebook!

You won't find a harder working, honest, mother, wife, grandmom or woman around.  She has been a friend for years, though we have never met in person we "met" on a step-parenting website probably 12 or 13 years ago!  Anyway, she had posted that her and her son, Chad were making this cake one evening.  She had me at "caramel apple".  I mean seriously, nothing can be bad if it contains those 2 ingredients.  I made her send me the recipe, and have made it twice...BUT, so have my kids, so, I don't feel so bad.

This is definitely a shortcut cake.  It uses apple pie filling and a box cake mix.  No judgement, just listen to me this time and do it.  I need to make it again, (haha, right) and dump a spoonful on top of some ice cream.  Oh yeah!  Now I was directed to dot the butter on top, but I found melting it and drizzling it on worked better for me AND, I used more than I was supposed to.  You are going to FREAK when you see the amount of butter I used but I only did it, after my son said he did it and I felt like I had to try it because, well, I mean, he can't make it better than me.  NOT going to happen.  Read me?  So freak out, if you want, you can even leave me freak out comment on my social media, I won't care because I know the joy this baby brings to her family and how good a spoonful is when you wake up in the middle of the night hungry.  I mean, IF that happens to you.  Again no judging.  HA!

Heeeere we go!

2 cans of apple pie filling
1 jar of caramel ice cream topping (I used more of this as well so about 1 cup)
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 yellow cake mix
2 sticks or 1/2 cup butter, melted

Preheat your oven to 350.  I sprayed my 9x13 pan with some nonstick cooking spray.  Dump in both cans of apple pie filling and if you are like me the entire jar of caramel sauce and cinnamon.  Mix it right in the cake pan.  Now sprinkle the yellow cake mix over the top and then carefully drizzle the butter on top of that, covering every bit of it you can.  The original called for 1 and 1/2 sticks of butter and to dot it on top.  I found melting it, just made it better for me.  Now bake for 55-60 minutes, I went a full 60 because The Real Housewives was on and I wasn't missing the last 5 minutes to grab the cake.  Priorities people.  The caramel will bubble up through the top in some places and it will be hotter than the sun, so please let it sit a good 15 minutes before you even consider how good it might be warm. 

I am not responsible for the burning off of tongue or mouth skin if you don't follow my directions.

ENJOY!

Chicken and Biscuits

Hello again!  I have been so busy, working on crafting for a couple of big shows coming up and not spending as much time in the kitchen as I need or like to.  That will be changing soon!  I promise!

I was at my son and daughter in laws the other day and decided I would test a new recipe on them.  It was a hit and among the moans and groans my grandson blurts out, "NONNA, dat mell dood"!  It was priceless.  I can't believe he and his sister will soon be 2.  I don't know where the time goes!  Wait, yes I do, it has OBVIOUSLY been walking all over my face, because what else would be leaving all of these new lines?

ANYWAY.... with the arrival of fall, is the arrival of comfort food.  It is almost like that fact that it is fall makes it OK to indulge regularly.  At least semi-regularly.  No excuse needed, it is just fall, it is what is done in the fall.  The gym?  No, that is for spring and summer.  Fall is for comfort food!

Enjoy this as much as my family did and I hope someone in your life hollers at you and says, "MMMM, da melll DOOD"!

1 T olive oil
1 T butter
3 lg chicken breasts, cubed. uncooked
1/4 tsp poultry seasoning
1/2 tsp onion powder
1 tsp salt
2 cups diced carrot
2 cups chopped celery
1 cup finely chopped onion
2 1/2 cups chicken stock
1/4 cup flour
1/2 cup half and half or heavy cream
1 can of 8 over sized buttermilk biscuits

In a large pot add in your butter and oil.  When the butter has melted add in the chicken, poultry seasoning, onion powder and salt.  Stir often and cook until chicken is cooked all the way through.  This will depend on the size of your chunks of chicken but I would guess 5-7 minutes.  When it is done, remove from the pot, leaving all of the liquid behind.

Now add in your carrots, celery and onion.  Saute for about 4-5 minutes, until they are tender crisp.  We aren't going for mush, we want a little bite to them veggies, but we want to cook them so they are a bit more tender.

When they are at your desired level of tender crisp, add in flour, and stir, coating the veggies for about 1 minute.  Now add in chicken stock and cream/or half and half.  Stir to get the flour dissolved, add the chicken back in,  and bring to a boil, let simmer heavily until your mixture begins to thicken.

Pour into a greased or sprayed 9x13 pan and place your refrigerator biscuits on top.  Bake according to biscuit directions.  Let sit 5 minutes before serving.

ENJOY!

Brownie Chews

OK, let's be honest with each other.  Some recipes are made from the best mistakes ever.  Some mistakes, turn into beautiful, chewy, decadent, better than s...well a lot of things, brownie chews.  Some recipes just do that.  Here is my story....

Many of you know we just went through a horrible life situation and while my son was in the hospital, I took a walk and found myself in the hospital gift shop.  Do hospital gift shops have the CUTEST stuff or is it just me?  I find myself actually excited to visit someone so I can go to the gift shop.  Sad.  But true.  Anyway, I needed some chocolate and FINALLY was able to pick up a bag of Sheila G's Brownie Brittle.  As it turned out I got 2 pieces while my son finished off the bag.  Undeniably, they are awesome,  really.  And while I am not a "crunchy edges" kind of girl, they were just the bomb.  (I am the chewy stuff inside girl)  So I set out to make my own version.  I didn't want to use a box brownie mix, (pats self on the back).  I found a recipe for it at www.babble.com.  I tried this recipe, and it burned.  So the second time I tried it, I decided to experiment.  Lord help us all, because it worked.  I decided instead of double baking them, I was going to bake them one time.  Their recipe calls for putting them in the oven a second time and I just didn't feel like I wanted to do that.  So I didn't.  Just thank me now if you want.  If you are the chewy stuff in the middle kind of person, just THANK ME NOW!

So while these ingredients are the same as the recipe, the method is very different and outcome is even better, I think, that you can imagine.  Let me share with you my happy experiment, wait, or was it an accident?

You will need:

1/2 cup melted butter
1 cup granulated sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 egg white
1/3 cup flour
3 tbsp. cocoa powder
 3/4 tsp. baking soda
pinch of salt
mini chocolate chips

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.  Prepare a standard size cookie sheet, by spraying with nonstick cooking spray, laying a piece of parchment over it and then spraying again with nonstick cooking spray.  OR, use a silicone mat.   (SILPAT people feel free to send me a nice one)

I melted my butter right in my mixing bowl in the micro, then add sugar and vanilla, mix until combined.  Add in your egg white, flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and pinch of salt, whisk until smooth and whisk lickable.

Now pour on to your prepared pan.  Spread it out a LITTLE bit, maybe 8x11 maybe 10x12, no bigger, remember it will spread in the hot oven.

Bake for 14 minutes, remove from the oven, sprinkle with mini chocolate chips, any amount you deem acceptable and let cool completely.  You can cut with a knife or use kitchen shears like I did.  They will be chewy, and perfect.  I have no more to say, just make them, please.

ENJOY!

Grandma Smith's Meatloaf

I call her mom (OK sometimes Ethel or...OK, maybe even pirate hooker once or twice), everyone else calls her Grandma, Mema, Nana Moo, and "ama".  Let me tell you a bit about my mom.  She grew up in the town they still live in, her father the county attorney and her mother a stay home mother.  She had 2 sisters and 2 brothers, all of whom have sadly passed away.  She had a cow.  She milked it AND rode it around town.  Yes, they lived in town with a cow.  And people shake their heads at society today?!? HA!  (had to mom)  She went to school, and college, she was a ....you ready for this?  Lingerie model for a few years, can you say HOTTIE?  Or should it be more like "scandalous"?  She fell in love with a tall, dark, handsome soldier from a foreign land, Philadelphia.  He was her boyfriends roomie in the hospital! WHAAAT?  He was stationed at the Army-Air Force base in Lincoln, NE.  She was a teacher, she intended to be a lawyer, but, life had other things in store.  Ten "other" things to be exact.  During her 82 years of life, and probably most of that as a mother, she became famous for her meatloaf.  Seriously though, I should call and make sure she isn't pregnant, the woman obviously doesn't know how it happens, and I want my info to be accurate....

Anyway, a fun little briefing on my mom.  Marlene is her name.  Actually, her name is Mary.  There was a typo on her birth certificate, and so, she is Marlene who was supposed to be Mary.  Her stripper name.......oh nvm, I forgot I wasn't going to tell that part.

Btw for anyone who is going to tell me that last comment was disrespectful, has NO idea the relationship I have with my mom.  She would shake her head and say "CAH-RIS" yes in 2 syllables and then just laugh..  So no worries.  My mom and I butt heads on a regular basis, but at the mature age of 83, even on the phone I can tell when she wants to say something, but just knows to zip up.  I do the same.  ALTHOUGH I am a bit more persistent, hopefully by the time I am her age, I will have matured.  I love her with all of my heart, and I will embarrass her, make her laugh, make her wonder if I was really switched at birth and her biological child is out there somewhere, and hug her and did I mention love her, forever!

As a kid and young adult I hated meatloaf.  I swear, if it wasn't meatloaf it was roast beast  every Sunday.  And God bless you mom but those roasts, were so dry, even the poor bay leaf on top was screaming for a drink.  Her recipe doesn't call for ketchup but I was sure she always used to put it on top.  I also think she used to triple this recipe because there is no way one loaf pan of meatloaf would cover 12 mouths!  One of my sisters, #3, had her write her recipe out and  then gave each of us kids, a towel she had the recipe printed on.  How cool??!?!

This meatloaf has only a few ingredients, and it may be close to some of your recipes, or seem like it would be a little blah, but it has great flavor and even if it didn't, it is my moms, you better love it too!  My brother Jimmy,  dreams about this stuff, he is coming next weekend and I think I will surprise him with a meatloaf!

Easy as it is, here it is!

2 lbs ground beef (I use VERY lean since the sausage has a lot of fat) ALSO her recipe says 3lbs, she has corrected it to 2.
1 lb pork sausage
1 cup finely chopped onion
2 eggs
1 cup milk
2 cups saltine cracker crumbs
salt and pepper to taste

 

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F.  She says to basically mix it all together, being careful not to over mix, making the meat mixture tough.  I say saute your onions first, you do what you want.  Toss it all in a bowl, and get your hands in there, just like my mom did.  Mix to combine, place in a loaf pan and bake 1 hour.  I actually think mine took about 20 extra minutes.  Like I said I swear she used to put ketchup on top but, it isn't in the recipe.

So, from my mom's 7X10 kitchen to yours.................enjoy this special recipe that she nourished us with for years and years.  Love you ma!

ENJOY!

PS. Phone verification, yes, she did put ketchup on top.  I KNEW it!  I don't like it that way so, no harm over there!