Tried and true recipes, new twists on old favorites, and new dishes to expand my family's palate.
When I was cleaning my bedroom the other day I came across a book I had forgotten I bought. Last year my son’s school had a book fair and I picked up Taste of Home’s “Fast Fixes with Mixes”.
I sat looking through it that night and found several easy and tasty looking recipes I wanted to try. I knew exactly which one I would try first and that was their version of Cornbread Casserole.
It took about 5 minutes to throw together and about another 25 to bake. Everyone in my house loved it except, of course, my 8-year-old son. He loves cornbread but was upset that there was real corn in this recipe. Go figure. My oldest tore through it. I served it with my Taco Soup and it was an easy meal on a busy night.
Mix everything together in one bowl!
Pour into greased baking dish.
Bake, scoop and eat!
Cornbread Casserole:
From Taste of Home “Fast Fixes with Mixes”
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
In a mixing bowl, mix all ingredients together well.
The recipe calls for a 11 x 7 x 2 baking dish. I have a CorningWare dish that is right around that size so I used that. Grease the baking dish and pour in the mixture. Spread the mixture with a spatula until level.
Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until just slightly brown on the top. You aren’t looking for a deep golden brown because you want this to remain moist. Mine took 25 minutes exactly on the middle rack.
Serve while hot. This is moist, rich and sweet, just like I like my cornbread.
Enjoy!
If you have ever been to a Pampered Chef party you have probably eaten this simple but delicious dish. The first time I ever had it was at my sister in law’s house one Christmas a few year’s back. Not long after that I attended a Pampered Chef party my friend had and enjoyed it once again.
If you have never tried it than you must. It’s great as an appetizer or as a meal in itself. Not to mention, it’s an easy way to get broccoli into your children without them complaining. Even my husband who hates broccoli will eat this and not complain.
And don’t let the presentation intimidate you. I’m far from artistic and even I can throw this together in a matter of minutes and have it look pretty.
Begin by mixing up all the ingredients in a large mixing bowl.
Set this to the side. On a large cookie sheet, or better yet, a baking stone, unroll the first package of crescent rolls. Placing them with the widest part across the top of the cookie sheet. 
Open the second roll of crescent rolls and roll them out the same way, placing them directly under the first roll and pinching the seams together. Roll out with a rolling-pin until all seams are sealed together and you have a large rectangle. You can use your hands to shape this out better once you have rolled it together.
Using a sharp paring knife, begin slicing 1 1/2″ – 2″ wide by 3″ long strips down each side of the dough giving you 8 slits on each side. This should leave you approximately 6″ of solid space down the center of the dough. Place your filling in this center spot and shape into a rectangle.
Now begin your braiding from the top down. At the very top you should have a small piece of dough in the center. Take this and fold it up to the top of the filling. Then take a strip from the left and cross it over to the right. Take the strip on the right, and cross it over to the left, overlapping the first strip.
Continue this pattern until you have reached the bottom and have crossed all your side strips of dough over one another.
Once you reach the bottom, fold the bottom flap of dough up to the top and press together to form a seam.
When done, your loaf should look like this. Or something like it anyway.
Beat 1 egg and brush along entire surface and sides of the dough. Place in the oven and bake until golden brown.
BROCCOLI, CHICKEN & CHEESE BRAID:
Recipe from Pampered Chef
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.. Chop chicken, broccoli and bell pepper and add to a large mixing bowl. Add all remaining ingredients, except for the egg and the almonds. Mix together well.
Unroll 1 package of crescent dough; do not separate. Arrange longest sides of dough across width of 12″ x 15″ rectangle baking stone or cookie sheet. Repeat with remaining package of dough. Using roller, roll dough to seal perforations. On longest sides of baking stone, cut dough into strips 1 1/2 inches apart, 3 inches deep using a paring knife.. Spread filling evenly over middle of dough. To braid, lift strips of dough across mixture to meet in center, twisting each strip on turn. Continue alternating strips to form a braid. Tuck ends under to seal at end of braid. Brush egg over dough using pastry brush. Sprinkle with almonds. Bake 25-28 minutes or until deep golden brown.
Remove from oven and allow to cool for about 10 minutes. Using a thin spatula, gently run it along the bottom of the loaf on the pan to loosen. Place on a cutting board. Allow to rest for another 5 minutes. Slice into pieces using a serrated knife.
Enjoy!
Back in 1993, the year I was married, I received a little holiday recipe booklet put out by Jello-O, Baker’s Chocolate and Diamond Walnuts. I have that booklet to this day and it’s falling apart. It has so many wonderful and decadent desserts in it and I think I’ve made all but two of them over the years. One recipe I’ve made over and over is their Two-Layer Pumpkin Pie. It’s easy, no bake and a perfect pie to make when someone says they don’t like pumpkin pie. I’ve had many people say that, try this pie, and change their mind. It’s not your traditional pumpkin pie – which I love just as much as this one – but is instead a creamy version that I’ve never had a complaint over.
When I decided to post this recipe I looked at the Kraft Recipes site to see if they had it listed and sure enough they did. The odd part is they’ve changed the recipe a bit and although I haven’t made the newer version of this, I have to wonder how it would work. The original recipe calls for 4 oz. of cream cheese and 1 1/2 cups of cool whip added to the mix and layered in a 6 oz. graham cracker pie crust. The new version uses 8 oz. cream cheese and 1 tub of Cool Whip. I know from making the original version so many times that the two layers just fit into the 6 oz. pie crust, so I’m not sure how the additional amounts would work in that same size crust.
So please take note that the recipe I share here with you today is the original version of this. I’m thinking next time I’ll just make the newer version posted at Kraft and then not have an ounce of guilt for eating half the filling before filling the pie shell. Works for me!
TWO-LAYER PUMPKIN PIE
Recipe from Kraft
Mix cream cheese, 1 tablespoon milk and sugar in a large bowl with electric mixer set to low until smooth. Gently stir in the whipped topping until well combined. Spread evenly on the bottom of pie crust.
Pour 1 cup milk into bowl. Add pudding mix. Using a wire whist beat pudding mix for 1 to 2 minutes or until well blended. The mixture will be thick.
Stir in the pumpkin and spices with the wire whisk and mix well. Spoon the pumpkin mixture over the top of the cream mixture in the pie shell and gently spread to evenly cover the cream bottom. Chill well for a minimum of 3 hours or overnight.
Serve with some extra cool whip. Enjoy!
