Spaghetti & Meatballs - Family Favorites

1 lb ground beef

¼ teaspoon Italian seasoning

¼ teaspoon black pepper

¼ teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon onion powder

½ teaspoon dried oregano leaves

1 jar Prego Italian Sausage & Garlic Tomato Sauce (or desired sauce)

1 lb pasta of choice (such as Mostaccioli)

Boil enough water to cook pasta. Thoroughly mix seasonings in large bowl with ground beef. Form meatballs to desires size. Cook meatballs in large skillet on low heat until no longer pink in the center. Cook pasta in boiling water, according to package directions. Add tomato sauce to meatballs and mix. Let simmer for 10-15 minutes. When pasta is cooked, drain pasta and serve with meatballs and sauce on top. If desired, sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.

Serves 4

Southern Pecan Pie Bars - Family Favorites

Crust…

2 cups flour

⅓ cup white sugar OR ½ cup confectioners sugar

1 cup salted butter

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine crust ingredients and knead until dough forms. Press dough into 9x13” pan. Bake 15-20 minutes until very light brown.

Filling…

3 eggs, slightly beaten

½ cup granulated sugar

1 cup light corn syrup

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 Tablespoon butter, melted

Pinch of salt

2 cups pecans

Mix eggs, sugar, corn syrup, vanilla, salt and butter. Stir in pecans. Pour filling into crust. Bake an additional 30-35 minutes or until just set; test by inserting toothpick in the middle of pan and it should come out clean. Do not over bake. Store leftovers in refrigerator. Makes 24 bars.

https://addapinch.com/southern-pecan-pie-bars/

Pumpkin Sheet Cake - Family Favorites

1 can (16 oz.) pumpkin

2 cups sugar

1 cup vegetable oil

4 eggs, lightly beaten

2 cups all-purpose flour

2 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. ground cinnamon

½ tsp. salt

Frosting

1 package (3 oz.) cream cheese, softened

5 TBSP butter or margarine, softened

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1 ¾ cups confectioner’s sugar

3 to 4 tsp. milk

Chopped nuts (optional)

In a mixing bowl, beat pumpkin, sugar and oil.  Add eggs; mix well. Combine flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt.  Add to pumpkin mixture and beat until well blended. Pour into a greased 15” x 10” x 1” baking pan.  Bake at 350 degrees for 25 to 30 minutes or until cake test done. Cool completely. For frosting, beat the cream cheese, butter and vanilla in a mixing bowl until smooth.  Gradually add sugar; mix well. Add milk until frosting reaches desired spreading consistency. Frost cake. Sprinkle with nuts if desired.

This cake is exceptionally moist and the icing is light.

Pineapple Drop Cookies

1 cup packed brown sugar

1 egg

½ cup butter, room temperature

¾ cup crushed pineapple

2 cups flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon salt

½ cup chopped nuts (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 F. Cream butter, egg and sugar. Add pineapple and mix thoroughly. Sift together flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Add dry ingredients to wet mixture and mix. Add nuts if desired. Drop teaspoonfuls of dough onto cookie sheet (use parchment paper for no-stick and easy cookie removal). Bake cookies 10-12 minutes and cool on wire racks. Serve warm or cooled.

Pepper Ham Bread & Chocolate Bread - Family Favorites

1 loaf frozen bread dough

Mrs. Dash seasoning

Ham, chopped into bite size pieces

Shredded cheese (of your choice)

Defrost dough and roll out to ½ inch thick. Sprinkle seasoning over rolled dough. Sprinkle on ham and cheese of your choice. Roll dough up and place in buttered loaf pan. Let rise for 1 to 2 hours and bake at 350 degree oven for 40 minutes or until dough is cooked through.

Top picture features the ham and cheese version. The bottom picture features a chocolate variation using cocoa powder and butter on the bread.

Lemon Fingers

For pie crust...

½ cup powdered sugar

2 cups flour

2 sticks margarine

Preheat oven to 350 F. Mix together and pat in bottom of greased 9x13” pan. Bake for 25 minutes.

For lemon topping, mix together…

4 eggs, beaten

2 cups granulated sugar

½ cup lemon juice

4 Tablespoons flour

Mix together and pour over crust and bake an additional 15 minutes. Cool 3-5 minutes then cut into squares and dust with powdered sugar.

Lemon Cake

1 box Duncan Hines Lemon Supreme cake mix

1 box Lemon Jello instant pudding & pie filling mix

4 eggs

⅓ cup Crisco

1 cup water

Preheat oven to 350 F. Mix all ingredients together until well blended (2 minutes if using electric mixer). Pour into well greased bundt pan and bake 45 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center of cake comes out clean.

Herb Roasted Sweet Potatoes - Family Favorites

4 medium sweet potatoes, peeled, sliced into 1 ½ inch rounds/pieces

3 tablespoons of olive oil

1 tablespoon of Italian seasoning or herbs de provence (fresh herbs would be better)

2 small cloves of garlic minced (I used the minced in olive oil - jar version)

1 teaspoon of coarse salt/sea salt

Preheat oven to 400 degrees

In medium bowl, toss sweet potato pieces in olive oil and seasoning.  Transfer to a rimmed baking sheet and place in oven. Roast until tender and starting to brown, approx 40 to 45 minutes.  Transfer to platter and serve.

Green Bean Casserole - Family Favorites

3 cups fresh green beans

½ onion, chopped

1 Tablespoon garlic

2 cans mushrooms

1 can cream of mushroom soup

1 cup crispy onion rings

Preheat oven to 350 F. Steam green beans. Meanwhile, saute onions, garlic and mushrooms until just cooked through. Combine vegetables and remaining ingredients. Top with crispy onions and bake for 30 minutes until heated through and onions are golden brown.

Broccoli Corn Casserole - Family Favorites

1 ½ cups crushed cornflakes, divided

1 ¼ cups soft bread crumbs (about 2 slices), divided

⅓ cup butter, melted and divided

1 can (14 ¾ ounces) cream-style corn

3 cups frozen chopped broccoli, thawed

2 eggs

2 Tablespoons chopped onion

Salt & pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a small bowl, combine ¼ cup of corn flakes crumbs and ⅓ cup bread crumbs. Drizzle with 2 Tablespoons butter and toss to coat; set aside. In a large bowl, combine the corn, broccoli, eggs, onion, salt pepper and remaining corn flakes, bread crumbs and butter.

Transfer vegetable mixture to a greased 1 ½ quart baking dish. Sprinkle with reserved crumb mixture. Bake, uncovered for 45 minutes or until a thermometer reads 160 degrees.

Big Ol’ Mess - Family Favorites

1 lb smoked sausage, cut into chunks

3 jalapeno peppers, sliced

1 green pepper, cut into bite-sized chunks

1 sweet onion, cut into bite-sized chunks

¼ cup Tabasco sauce

1 10 ounce jar sweet and sour sauce

1 foil cooking bag

Place sausage, peppers and onion in foil bag. In small bowl, mix Tabasco sauce with sweet and sour sauce and pour into foil bag; seal edges tightly. Place foil bag on grill and cook about 45 minutes; turn bag once every 15 minutes. Set open and serve right from foil bag. Makes 6-8 appetizer servings or 4 main course servings.

This is great as an appetizer or main dish. To serve, use skewers or load onto chunks of crusty bread.

Hobo Stew

1 lb ground beef
1 cup celery, chopped
1 package frozen pearl onions
1/2 package baby carrots, chopped
1 package frozen corn
1 package frozen mixed vegetables
2-3 Idaho potatoes, peeled and chopped
1 can beef or chicken broth (use whatever is on hand)
2 cans diced tomatoes with juice
20 ounces V-8 juice (about half of a large container)
Splash of Worcestershire sauce
Sprinkle of black pepper
Dash of hot sauce
Sprinkle or two of Cajun seasoning
2 Tablespoons flour (optional)

Variations
Use chopped onion instead of frozen
Add vegetables you have laying around
Add more potatoes, carrots or celery
Add different spices

In skillet over medium-high heat, brown ground beef with celery until thoroughly cooked. Drain ground beef and add beef/celery to slow cooker. Add remaining ingredients to slow cooker and stir. Cook on  low 8-9 hours, stirring a few times to mix. This makes a hearty soup. If you want a more stew-like consistency, add the flour to thicken the broth.

This is perfect for days that you will be home all day or you will be busy and want to come home to a ready-made dinner. It is great for using up bits of vegetables that you have lying around. It also makes at least enough for 6 people so you can expect leftovers.

Simple Sausage Jambalaya

1 Andouille sausage link, chopped
1 can french onion soup
1 can diced tomatoes
1 can black-eyed peas
1 Tablespoon creole seasoning
1 teaspoon ground black pepper

2 cups cooked rice of your choice (Basmati is a favorite of mine so that is what I used)

Add sausage, soup, tomatoes, peas and both seasonings to slow cooker. Set to low for 7-9 hours. When ready to eat, mix in rice of choice. It will absorb the liquid in the slow cooker and blends perfectly.

Last night I made this recipe and both my husband and I loved it. Perfect for a cold day when you will be out of the house and returning late. This recipe easily feeds 4 or will feed 2 with leftovers for lunch the next day.

Easy Seasoned Baked Potatoes

3 pounds red or white potatoes

¼ cup olive oil

1 ½ teaspoons salt

1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

2 Tablespoons minced fresh parsley

2 Tablespoons minced garlic

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Cut potatoes to ½ or ¼ inches and toss with oil, salt, garlic and pepper. Layer potatoes in baking dish and bake for 45-60 minutes or until potatoes are well cooked. Flip twice with spatula during cooking process. Top with fresh parsley.

This recipe came into the library today written on a scrap piece of paper. I typed it up for a patron and will post a picture of it as soon as I have the chance to make it.