Taco Beef Soup

 

We love to eat tacos, but sometimes I like to serve them in a completely different way.  When the weather is turning colder, I start making more soups.  Taco Beef Soup has the great taste of tacos, but served in a bowl. 

Ingredients

1 lb. ground beef
1 onion, diced
1 or 2 jalapeno peppers, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tsp. cumin
2 tsp. chili powder
1 tsp. paprika
1 tsp. crushed red pepper
3 1/2 c. crushed tomatoes or 2 (14 oz.) cans crushed tomatoes with chilies
1 3/4 c. beef broth
salt and pepper to taste
1 (28 oz.) can black beans or chili beans
1 c. whole kernel corn

Directions

In a Dutch Oven, add ground beef, onion, jalapeno peppers, and garlic. Cook until beef is no longer pink. This takes about 5 to 7 minutes. Drain off excess grease.

Add cumin, chili powder, paprika, and crushed red pepper flakes. Mix well.

Stir in the crushed tomatoes and beef broth.  Cover and simmer for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.  

Stir in black beans and corn.  Cover and simmer for a couple of minutes, or until everything is bubbling and heated through.

Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Serve.  Top with tortilla chips, sour cream, or shredded cheddar cheese.

Coconut Raspberry Drops

 The holiday season is here and it is time to start baking some delicious treats.  These coconut cookies are tender with flavorful raspberry preserves in the center.  They are easy to make and will disappear just as fast.

Ingredients

1/3 c. butter, softened
3 oz. cream cheese
3/4 c. brown sugar
1 egg
2 tsp. orange juice
1 tsp. almond extract
1 tsp. vanilla
1 1/4 c. flour
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
3 3/4 c. sweetened shredded coconut, divided
1 c. raspberry preserves

Directions

Set oven to 350°.  Get 1 or 2 ungreased cookie sheets. 

In a mixing bowl, combine butter, cream cheese, and sugar. Cream until light and fluffy.

Beat in egg, orange juice, almond and vanilla extract. 

Gradually mix in baking powder, salt and flour. 

Stir in 3 cups coconut. Mix well.

Cover the bowl with a sheet of plastic wrap.  Place in the refrigerator until the mixture is easy to handle. This takes about 30 minutes or so. 

Take a tablespoonful of cookie dough and form into a 1-inch ball between the palms of your hands.   Roll the balls in the remaining coconut. 

Place the balls on a cookie sheet. Using your finger, or the handle of a wooden spoon, make a deep indention in the center of each dough ball. 

Bake for 8 to 10 minutes, or until the cookie edges start to turn a light brown color.  Cool 60 seconds. If the indention has closed or become smaller, use the wooden spoon handle to gently make the indention big again. 

Remove cookies to a wire rack.  Fill the indention with raspberry preserves, strawberry jam, or the flavor you like best in preserves or jam.  Cool completely.

Bacon Baked Beans

Happy Thanksgiving Day!  Today is a day to give thanks to God for all that you have.  Be thankful for  family and friends, the food you have to eat and the home in which you live.

We love baked beans and adding bacon to the mixture is just an added treat to some tasty goodness. This is a quick and easy side dish perfect to go with any meal.

Ingredients

6 slices bacon
2 (16 oz.) cans  pork and beans
1 onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1 c. brown sugar
3/4 c. ketchup
1/4 c. yellow mustard
1 to 2 Tbs. molasses

Directions

Preheat oven to 350°.

Cut up the bacon into small  pieces.  

In a large cast iron skillet, cook bacon until most of the grease renders out, but the bacon is still flexible. 

Remove the excess grease from the skillet.  Add the pork and beans, onion, brown sugar, ketchup, yellow mustard and molasses.  Stir until thoroughly combined.

Bake uncovered for 45 minutes.  

Notes

You can use cans of baked beans instead of pork and beans. However, reduce the amount of brown sugar or do not add any.  Taste for sweetness first.  If it is needed, then add brown sugar. You don't want this dish that sweet.  

You can use half ketchup and half BBQ sauce for a unique blend of tastes.

If presentation is an issue, transfer everything to a baking dish and place in the oven. We usually leave ours in the cast iron skillet to save on washing dishes.

Candied Sweet Potatoes

This recipe is my mother's, and everyone always raved about how delicious her candied sweet potatoes were. This is a dish she made for every holiday dinner. It is a tradition I carry on with my family.

Ingredients

6 sweet potatoes
1/2 c. butter
1 c. brown sugar
1/2 c. water
1 tsp. salt

Directions

Fill the bottom of a saucepan with about 2-inches of water, or until it reaches just below the bottom of the steaming basket. Bring the water to a boil.

Place the sweet potatoes in the steaming basket. Cover and cook until tender. This takes about 30 minutes.  Drain and allow the sweet potatoes to cool.

Peel the sweet potatoes when cool enough to handle.  Cut lengthwise into 1/2 inch slices. 

In a cast iron skillet over medium heat, melt butter.  Stir in brown sugar, water, and salt.  Cook and stir until sauce is bubbling, and the sugar has completely dissolved.  Add the sliced sweet potatoes carefully into the syrup.  

Cook over low heat for 60 minutes or more until the syrup is thick. Baste the sweet potatoes with the brown sugar syrup occasionally and carefully turn the sweet potatoes over. 

You can also bake this in the oven at 350° for one hour.  Occasionally baste the sweet potatoes with the syrup.

Simple Crispy Baked Chicken Recipe

Delicious, moist and juicy chicken with a crispy outside. Quick and easy to make.

Ingredients

10 pieces of chicken
salt and pepper
1 c. melted butter or 2 eggs beaten
2 c. potato flakes
1/4 c. Parmesan cheese
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. pepper

Directions

Preheat oven to 400°. One 13 x 9-inch baking pan.

Pour the melted butter or eggs into a shallow bowl or pan.

Place the potato flakes and Parmesan cheese in another shallow bowl or pan. 

Season the chicken with salt and pepper.

Dip the chicken pieces in the melted butter.  Allow the excess butter to drain off.

Roll the chicken pieces in the potato flakes.

Place the chicken onto a baking pan, leaving spaces between the chicken pieces so it can brown on all sides.  

Bake for 60 minutes, or until the internal temperature of the chicken registers 165°.  Turn the chicken over halfway through the baking time.

Notes

You can use flavored potato flakes for more flavor. 

Cranberry Fluff

If you want a quick and easy salad to serve with your Thanksgiving Day meal, then this Cranberry Fluff is perfect. It is the perfect balance of sweet and tart served in one bowl.  This salad literally takes no time at all to put together!

Ingredients

1 (14-oz) can whole cranberry sauce
1 (20-oz.) can crushed pineapple, drained
8 oz. whipped topping
3 c. mini marshmallows

Directions

In a large bowl, combine the can of cranberry sauce, and crushed pineapple.

Gently fold in whipped topping.

Stir in mini marshmallows.

Cover the bowl with a sheet of plastic wrap. Chill for at least 2 hours before serving.

Crescent Rolls

 These crescent rolls are easy to make, but look like you spent hours doing. They are sweet, fluffy and light with the delicious taste of butter.

Ingredients

2 pkg. yeast
1 Tbs. sugar
1/2 c. very warm tap water (110°)
1/2 c. sugar
1/2 c. warm milk (110°)
2 eggs
1 tsp. salt
1/2 c. butter, softened, divided
4 c. flour
1/4 c. butter

Directions

Set oven to 375°. Grease a baking sheet.

In a large bowl, combine yeast, sugar and warm tap water.  Place in a warm location for about 10 minutes to bloom.  This shows that the yeast is alive and active.

Add the remaining sugar, eggs, salt, butter and 2 cups flour.  Mix or beat with a wooden spoon until smooth.  

Mix in the remaining flour until the dough becomes too stiff to mix with a spoon. Turn out onto a lightly floured surface. Knead the dough, adding more flour as needed, for 8 to 10 minutes or until it is smooth. The dough should be slightly sticky, but not sticking to you or the surface.  

Place the dough in a lightly greased bowl and cover with a sheet of plastic wrap or a tea towel. Place in a warm location until the dough is doubled in size. About 90 minutes.

Punch the dough down and divide in half. Roll each half into a 12-inch circle.   Spread half of the butter over the top of each circle.  Cut the circle into 10 or 15 wedges, just like you are cutting a pie. Starting with the outside perimeter of the dough wedge, begin to roll up the wedges one at a time. With the point underneath each roll, place the crescents on a greased baking sheet.  Curve the ends to make a crescent shape. Repeat with the other half of the dough. Cover and let rise until doubled in size, or about 30 minutes.

Bake for 12 to 15 minutes or until golden brown.  Run a stick of butter over the hot tops of the crescent rolls.