Apple Cinnamon Cake

I got this recipe off of a Betty Crocker newsletter. It came out so much better then it seemed! I hope you enjoy! 

Ingredients

1

box spice cake mix

1

can (21 oz) apple pie filling

3

eggs

3

tablespoons sugar

2        teaspoons pumpkin pie spice

Frozen whipped topping, thawed, if desired

Directions

• 1Heat oven to 350°F (325°F for dark or nonstick pan). Grease or spray bottom only of 13x9-inch pan.
• 2In large bowl, beat dry cake mix, pie filling and eggs with electric mixer on low speed 2 minutes. Batter will be thick. Spread half of the batter in pan. Mix sugar and cinnamon; sprinkle half of the mixture over batter in pan. Spread remaining batter in pan; sprinkle with remaining sugar-cinnamon mixture.
• 3Bake 32 to 40 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean; cool completely. Serve with whipped topping. Store loosely covered.

Pork Chile Verde Chili

I have a friend of mine, Jacqueline, who made this chili that won her 1st place at a chili cook off, so of course, I had to go and try it out. I was AMAZED at how simple and delicious it was! I asked her for the recipe just so you fellow bloggers and followers can enjoy this prize winning recipe at home. Here is what she sent me:

Ingredients and Directions:

Pork Shoulder or pork Butt, cut into bite size pieces. LEAVE THE FAT ON! Bring to a boil and then cook on low for about 1/2 hour.

I used canned tomatillos and grind up with finely chopped Mayan onions ( sweet ) and green chiles and chopped cilantro to make the verde sauce. I always add one bottle of the la Victoria thick n chunky green salsa for extra juice... If you like it spicy also add jalapeños.



I sprinkle chicken boullion (big yellow label jar with green lid in the hispanic aisle) all over the pork pieces to lightly coat and sprinkle coarse pepper on the pork as well. I put it all in a pressure cooker and add water to cover right above the pork.

Pressure cook for like an hour or until the pork is super tender... This helps the boullion infuse the meat as well so it is super flavorful ...

Scoop out pork from broth in pressure cooker (save broth) and brown in another fry pan... I did it in two batches... This is to brown the meat for color and I think it helps with taste... Then transfer into a pot... Add the verde sauce and like 1-2 ladles full of the broth the pork was cooked in (depending how thick or juicy you want the chile). Add white beans, canelli beans (white kidney) and then I used Ranch Style Pinto with Jalapeños... Pretty much any 3 cans of your favorite beans...

Add 2 tsp of ground cumin and a tblspoon of chili powder... Judge to taste/

Enjoy!

PS- It is amazing over a bowl of white rice with some fresh tortillas on the side!

No Bake Pumpkin Cheesecake

I made this amazingly simple cheesecake in about 15 minutes the night before Thanksgiving this year. It was so easy to throw it all together and forget about it in the fridge until it was time to eat it. I love serving with macadamia nuts or walnuts crumbled on the top, just for an extra crunch! If you prefer chocolate instead of caramel, try drizzling white chocolate or chocolate mocha over it. So delicious!



INGREDIENTS:

1 package of cream cheese, softened

1 cup of canned pumpkin

1/2 cup of sugar

1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice (which is just cinnamon, ginger, cloves, allspice and nutmeg)

1 8 oz tub of cool whip

1 graham-cracker or gingersnap crust (I make mine homemade, which is just graham cracker crumbs, melted butter, brown sugar and a pinch of pumpkin pie spice)




DIRECTIONS:


Beat the cream cheese until smooth. Add the pumpkin, sugar and pie spice until well blended. Stir 2 1/2 cups of the whipped cream. Put the rest of the whipped cream aside for later.


Spoon the mixture into the pie crust.


Refrigerate at least 3 hours. (I do mine the night before, so it had time to set overnight.) Serve with the rest of the whipped cream on top and caramel drizzled over it.


Enjoy!

Gumbo

Gumbo

Gumbo is a type of spicy stew typical of Louisiana and South Carolina cuisines, but also consumed frequently on the Gulf of Mexico. The hearty dish consists basically of two ingredients: broth and rice. While this may sound boring and limited, gumbo is actually a dish with an extremely large variety of flavors and consistencies, depending on how the broth is made.


The main varieties of gumbo broth include seafood, chicken, red meats (including sausages), and pork. A vegetarian variety also exists, and it was created for consumption primarily during Lent. Instead of meat, vegetarian gumbo is made using mashed greens that have been thickened with a roux, a mixture of butter and wheat flour.



INGREDIENTS
2 tablespoons butter 
3 cloves garlic, minced 
2 cups chopped onion 
3/4 cup chopped celery 
1 pound okra, chopped (optional; use for thicker Gumbo)
1/4 cup butter 
1/4 cup all-purpose flour 
1/2 pound cubed beef stew meat (optional) 
4 cups water 
4 cups dark beer
1 (16 ounce) can whole tomatoes, undrained and chopped 
1 1/2 teaspoons white sugar 
1 1/2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley 
1 sprig fresh thyme 
2 bay leaves 
1 pinch salt 
1/2 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper 
1 pinch ground black pepper 
1 pound andouille sausage, cut into 1/2 inch pieces 
1 Crab, cut in half
1 pound medium shrimp - peeled and deveined 
1 teaspoon hot pepper sauce 
1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce 
1/2 lemon 


Direction:
In a large pan cook, onions, celery and okra, stirring constantly until golden brown. Add garlic last as it will burn and taste bad. Set aside. 
In a large heavy bottomed stock pot over medium-high heat, combine 1/4 cup of butter and flour. Cook, stirring constantly, until the roux becomes chocolate brown. Stir in the vegetable mixture, and stew meat. Cook, stirring, until vegetables are tender, and meat is evenly brown. Mix in Beer, water, tomatoes and sugar. Season with parsley, thyme, bay leaves, salt, cayenne pepper and black pepper. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer for 2 1/2 hours, stirring occasionally. 
Add shrimp, crab and andouille to stock pot. Stir in hot pepper sauce and Worcestershire sauce. Remove seeds from lemon and squeeze juice into stock pot. Simmer an additional 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove bay leaves, sprinkle with file powder, and serve with white rice.

Basic White Bread

Basic White Bread

I love bread. Especially when I have spent all day making it. It just builds the anticipation. I love the way that the house smells when I bake bread. I can not wait to get that oven open and slice a little piece of Heaven. 


Are you the same way? Homemade bread just taste so much better than the stuff you buy at the store and even if the process is a little bit time consuming, it is totally worth it.


This is a basic recipe for making simple white bread that you can use as it is or integrate it with other ingredients and make different kinds/flavors of bread like cinnamon bread or chocolate chips bread. Just have fun with it!




Ingredients:


2 cup bread flour (VERY important that you have the right flour!!)
1 package of instant yeast
3/4 cup lukewarm water
1/4 cup milk
1- 1/2 tbsp sugar
1 tsp salt
1- 1/2 tbsp butter


Directions:
In a bowl of your electric mixer place yeast and dissolve it in 3/4 cup lukewarm (not hot because you will scorch the yeast; not cold, it will not activate the yeast) water. Let is sit for about 5-10 min. (This is HIGHLY important, because if the yeast does not dissolve completely, your bread WILL NOT RISE). In a sauce pan combine salt, sugar and butter. Add milk and heat over low heat until butter melts and sugar dissolve. Cool to lukewarm. Add milk/yeast mixture to the yeast and water. Add in flour. Turn your electric mixer to low speed and with the dough hook mix for about 5-6 min or until you get a soft and sticky dough. (If you don’t have a mixer just knead the dough by hand) Placed dough in a greased bowl, cover with a warm towel (get a towel wet, ring it out, microwave about 30-40 seconds) and let rise for about 2 hours or until doubled in size. (I usually set it above the fridge). Now punch dough down and on a slightly floured surface roll it out into a long rectangular. Starting at a short side, roll the dough all the way to the other side. Place roll in a greased loaf pan. Cover again with a warm towel and let rise in a warm place for about 1 hour, or until doubled in size. Bake at 200 C for about 30 min.


Remove from pan immediatelly and let it cool down before slicing it. Enjoy with fresh homemade butter.