Tami's Southwest Rice and Bean Salad

from My Kitchen Cafe
5 cups cooked rice, warm or at room temperature
2 teaspoons salt
1 (16-oz.) can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 (16-oz.) can pinto beans, drained and rinsed
2 cups cooked, cubed chicken
1 (12-oz.) can corn, drained
4 green onions, chopped

Dressing:
1/4 cup fresh lime juice
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
2 tablespoons packed brown sugar
2/3 cup canola oil
4 pickled jalepeno pepper rounds (found in the glass jars next to the olives, usually)
2 teaspoons chili powder
1 teaspoon cumin

Combine all of the salad ingredients together in a large bowl. Combine dressing ingredients in blender until peppers are finely minced. Toss with salad. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Creamy Cilantro Lime Dressing

from Angela B. posted on My kitchen cafe

3 fresh tomatillos, quartered
1 package dry Ranch buttermilk dressing
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup sour cream
2/3 cup buttermilk
1 cup fresh cilantro
2 cloves garlic, crushed
juice of 1 lime

Combine all ingredients in a blender and process until smooth. Refrigerate at least one hour prior to serving.

Goes well served on a green salad with black beans, corn, and tomatoes.

Toasted Pumpkin Seeds

from Our Best Bites

I've never been much of a pumpkin seed-toaster, but I figure if you're going to the effort of cooking your own pumpkin, you may as well use every last part of it! In my little 2-lb. pumpkin, I got 1/2 C seeds.

1/2 C pumpkin seeds, clean and dry
1/2 T butter
1/4 t olive oil
1/4 t celery salt
1/4 t onion
1/8 garlic
1/8 paprika
pinch cayenne
Kosher salt


Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Melt butter and add olive oil to it. Place seeds in a small bowl and toss with butter and seasonings (except kosher salt). Lay in a single layer on a foil-lined baking sheet. (You can, of course, use any seasoning mix you want--be creative!)


Bake for 15-20 minutes or until golden brown. Give one a try and sprinkle on kosher salt if needed.

Homemade Pumpkin Puree

From Our Best Bites

The best pumpkins for making your own pumpkin puree are Sugar pumpkins. You should be able to find them in the produce section of most grocery stores right now and they're pretty inexpensive. They're almost too cute to eat! Almost...

Step 1: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Slice pumpkin in half and remove stem. You can cut it in quarters if you want, or just leave it halved. It doesn't really matter.


Step 2: Using a spoon, scrape out all of the stringy stuff and the seeds. If you want to toast the seeds, make sure to save them.


Step 3: Spray a foil-lined baking sheet with non-stick spray. Place your pumpkin cut-side down on the sheet. Also, during this step, I would recommend covering the pumpkin with another piece of foil.

Step 4: Cook pumpkin in your 350 degree oven for 50-60 minutes or until it's tender when pierced with a fork. When done, remove from oven and let cool on the baking sheet.

Step 5: Use a spoon to scrape out the flesh and discard the skin/rind. It should be super soft and easy to scoop right out, kind of like scooping out an avocado.


Step 6: Place pumpkin pulp in a food processor and process until smooth. (Or you can just mash it with a fork or potato masher) You can add a little water at this point to get the consistency you want. My pumpkin was a bit dry and I was aiming for the consistency of canned pumpkin so I slowly drizzled in about 1/4 cup of water until it had the right feel.

At this point you can use it in any recipe that calls for pumpkin puree or canned pumpkin.

FYI: I used a 2-lb. pumpkin and it yielded 1 3/4 C puree

Peanut Butter Cinnamon Cookies

posted on Mmmm cafe

1 1/2 cups flour
1/1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. salt
1 cup butter
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup peanut butter
1 egg
1 tsp. vanilla
milk chocolate chips


Cream butter, sugars, peanut butter, egg and vanilla. Blend in flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. Stir in chocolate chips.
Bake at 375 degrees for 9-11 minutes.


Makes about 40 cookies.

Pizza Sauce& Garlic bread seasoning

1 6-oz. can tomato paste
6 oz. water (just use the empty tomato paste can)
3 Tbsp. garlic bread seasoning
1 Tbsp. sugar or honey (I usually use sugar because it's easier and hey, I think we've established here that if there's an easy road or a hard road, I usually take the easy road...)
3/4 tsp. onion powder
1/4 tsp. red pepper flakes (optional)

Empty tomato paste into a bowl and add water a few tablespoons at a time, stirring constantly until combined. Add remaining ingredients, stir to combine, and allow to stand until ready to use. Covers two average-sized pizza; freezes extremely well.



Garlic Bread Seasoning

1/2 c. powdered Parmesan cheese
2 tsp. Kosher salt
2 Tbsp. garlic powder
2 tsp. oregano
2 tsp. basil
2 tsp. marjoram
2 tsp. parsley

Combine ingredients in a jar (preferably one with a sprinkle top) and shake. Well, don't shake until you've put the lid on, but I assume most of you are smart enough to figure that out! :)

Sprinkle on top of breadsticks or combine 1 1/2 Tbsp. seasoning with 1/2 c. of softened real butter and spread on a loaf of French bread (cut in 1/2 lengthwise). Wrap in foil and bake at 375 until butter's melted. If you want, you could also pop it open-faced under the broiler for a few minutes so it gets brownish and crispy.

pork tenderloin

(ours was 2.5 lbs and I cut the seasoning in half, but still put 1 c. water in)
Ingredients:
5 pounds pork tenderloin
1 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon garlic salt
1/8 teaspoon seasoning salt
dash black pepper
1/2 teaspoon rosemary
1 cup water

Directions:
Place pork in roasting pan. Make seasoning by mixing together salt, garlic salt, seasoning salt, pepper and rosemary. Lightly sprinkle seasoning mixture over pork. Cook in preheated oven at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes or until brown, then add 1 cup water. Cover with foil and cook for another 1 1/2 hours at 225 degrees. Pull out of oven and let sit about 10 minutes before slicing.

To make gravy, drain meat juices into pot. In a bowl, mix together 1/2 cup water and cornstarch until smooth. Slowly add to pork juices, stirring constantly over medium-low heat. To thicken gravy, add more cornstarch mixture until gravy reaches desired consistency.

Oatmeal Pancake Mix

From My Kitchen Cafe (www.mykitchencafe.blogspot.com)
*Makes 10 cups of dry mix

3 1/2 cups rolled (quick) oats
3 cups whole wheat flour
2 cups all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons sugar
3 tablespoons baking powder
1 tablespoon salt
1 tablespoon baking soda
1 cup vegetable oil

Mix all the dry ingredients together in a mixer with a paddle (or by hand). With mixer on slow speed (or gently by hand), drizzle the vegetable oil into the bowl slowly while the mixer is running. When all the oil has been added, stop the mixer and squeeze a clump of mix in your hand. If it stays together, it is just right. If it is still crumbly, add another tablespoon of oil at a time until the consistency is correct (I've never had to add additional oil). Store in an airtight container for up to two weeks at room temperature or indefinitely in the refrigerator or freezer.

To make the pancakes: whisk together 1 cup of mix, 1 cup buttermilk (a combination of half plain yogurt and half milk will also work), and 1 egg. The mixture may seem thin at first but the oats will soak up the milk as it stands while the griddle preheats. Heat a griddle and drop the batter onto it. When the edges look dry and bubbles come to the surface and don't break, turn the pancake over to finish cooking on the second side. As a sidenote, buttermilk can be frozen indefinitely for future batches of pancakes, so it's worth keeping it around!

*1 cup of mix will make about 6-7 4-inch pancakes.

Cream-Filled Pumpkin Cupcakes

FROM REAL MOM KITCHEN

2 cups sugar
3/4 cup vegetable oil (I used canola)
1 can (15 ounces) solid-pack pumpkin
4 eggs
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
FILLING:
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1 cup milk (I used skim milk)
1/2 cup shortening
1/4 cup butter, softened
2 cups confectioners' sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract, optional (I used this)

In a large mixing bowl, combine the sugar, oil, pumpkin and eggs. Combine the flour, baking soda, salt, baking powder and cinnamon; add to pumpkin mixture and beat until well mixed. Fill paper-lined muffin cups two-thirds full. Bake at 350° for 18-22 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks to cool completely.
For filling, combine cornstarch and milk in a small saucepan until smooth. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Remove from the heat; cool to room temperature. In a large mixing bowl, cream shortening, butter and confectioners' sugar. Beat in vanilla if desired. Gradually add the cornstarch mixture, beating until light and fluffy. Using a sharp knife, cut a 1-in. circle 1 in. deep in the top of each cupcake. Carefully remove tops and set aside. Spoon or pipe filling into cupcakes. Replace tops. Yield: about 1-3/4 dozen (I got 2 dozen with no problem)

Pumpkin Cookies

from real mom kitchen

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip (or Cinnamon Chip) Cookies

½ cup shortening
1 ½ cup sugar
1 egg
1 cup pumpkin
2 ½ cups flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon nutmeg
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 (12 oz) bag chocolate chips (or 10 oz bag of cinnamon chips)

Cream shortening and sugar. Mix in egg and pumpkin. Add remaining ingredients. Drop on greased cookie sheet. Bake for 10 minutes at 400 degrees. Makes about 2 ½-3 dozen

Sour Cream Chocolate Icing

from HTEAC &"Sky High: Irresistible Triple-Layer Cakes."

12 ounces bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
1 stick unsalted butter
2 tablespoons light corn syrup
1/4 cup half-and-half, at room temperature
1/2 cup sour cream, at room temperature

Melt chocolate with butter and corn syrup in a double boiler over barely simmering water or in a heavy pan over very low heat. Remove from heat and whisk until smooth. Whisk in half-and-half and sour cream. Use while soft. (If icing is runny, let it cool completely to room temperature.)

Quick and Easy Homemade Spanish Rice

from Jenny @ picky plate

3 Tablespoons vegetable oil

1 medium white onion, diced

4 Cloves fresh garlic, minced

2 Cups steamed white rice

1 small can of tomato sauce

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

1/4 teaspoon fresh cracked black pepper

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1. Heat oil into a large skillet over medium heat. Saute onion until softened. Add garlic; cook for 1 minute then add steamed rice. Stir to combine flavors then add tomato sauce, salt, pepper and cumin. Stir to combine. Keep on warm until serving. Can mixed in cooked shredded chicken, corn, black olives and cilantro for a main dish as well.

All-American Burgers

from real mom and family circle

6 whole wheat hamburger buns (I chose onion buns)
1 1/2 pounds ground sirloin or ground round (I just used ground beef)
1 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp dried Italian seasoning
1/4 tsp ground black pepper
6 2% American cheese slices (I just used regular)
1 red onion, thinly sliced
2 medium tomatoes, cored and sliced
ketchup and mustard (Optional, I also used mayo)

In a mixing bowl combine beef, Worcestershire, garlic powder, salt, Italian seasoning, and paper. Shape into 6 patties and grill until cooked through. Top with cheese slices to melt cheese and remove from grill. Transfer patties to buns and top with onion and tomato. Serve with ketchup, mustard, and mayo if desired

fresh tomato sausage pasta

from cooking light Sep.2009

Ingredients
8 ounces uncooked penne
8 ounces sweet Italian sausage
2 teaspoons olive oil
1 cup vertically sliced onion
2 teaspoons minced garlic
1 1/4 pounds tomatoes, chopped
6 tablespoons grated fresh pecorino Romano cheese, divided
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 cup torn fresh basil leaves
Preparation
1. Cook pasta according to package directions, omitting salt and fat; drain.

2. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Remove casings from sausage. Add oil to pan; swirl to coat. Add sausage and onion to pan; cook 4 minutes, stirring to crumble sausage. Add garlic; cook 2 minutes. Stir in tomatoes; cook 2 minutes. Remove from heat; stir in pasta, 2 tablespoons cheese, salt, and pepper. Sprinkle with remaining 1/4 cup cheese and basil.

Crock Pot Chops and Gravy

Yum, I want to try this ASAP. Thanks real moms kitchen!

4 lean pork chops
4 T soy sauce
1/2 C sliced mushrooms (I never add this since my family opposes mushrooms)
1/2 tsp pepper (I never measure my pepper, I always just do what I feel looks good)

2 T Worcestershire sauce
2 can cream of mushroom soup
1 medium onion, sliced or diced

1 tsp garlic salt
1 tsp parsley


Place pork chops crock pot (or in baking dish for oven). Lay onion slices (I chopped mine but you could do rings also) over pork chops. Mix the rest of ingredients in a bowl and pour over pork chops. Cook on low in crock pot for 5-6 hours (or in oven on 350 for 1 hour). Note: After baking I remove the chops and strain the gravy. This way I have a smooth gravy and I reserve the onions (and mushrooms if you use them) for those who like them to put them on their chops.