Slow Cooker Sweet Mustard Roast

This is another very simple recipe. The flavor was excellent. I asked Corey on a scale of 1 to 5 how did it rate, he gave it a 6. I served it with some potatoes that I diced and made a packet with foil, added some butter and Italian seasoning, and set it on top of the roast in the cooker. I let it cook a couple hours then sliced it so that I could submerge it into the juices.

Slow Cooker Sweet Mustard Roast

3 Lb beef or pork roast
1/3 cup molasses
1/3 cup Dijon mustard
1 tsp garlic powder
2 tsp vinegar, white or apple cider

Put roast in cooker. Add all ingredients. Use tongs to flip meat, covering all sides. For a 4 quart cooker, cook on low 6 to 8 hours or high 4 hours. For a 6 quart cooker, cook on low 5 hours.

**I have a 6 quart cooker. I cooked mine for about 5 1/2 hours. My cooker has a 4 and 6 hour timer, so I set it for six but kept an eye on the clock.

Pound Cake

Corey has asked several times over the years for me pick up a pound cake when I go to the store. I decided to search this machine that is at my fingertips for a recipe. Well, I found one. Of course I should call my a Half a Pound Cake. I cut the recipe in half for us. This was the first time I had ever made one. It turned out really good. You could taste the hint of almond. It would be perfect with a dollop of whip cream and some berries.

Pound Cake

3 cups sugar
1 Lb margarine
6 eggs
3/4 cup milk
4 cups flour, unsifted
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp almond

Cream the butter and sugar. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each. Add flour and milk, 1/3 at a time, mixing well after each addition. Add vanilla and almond. Bake at 300 degrees for 1 hour and 35 minutes. Start checking around 1 hour 10 minutes.

**I cooked mine in a 350 degree oven for about an hour and 5 minutes.

Teriyaki Grilled Pork Chops

This is another very simple marinate and grill recipe. It was found at annieseats.com. Corey and I both liked it. He said it had a slight sweetness but was good. I served it with some broccoli and cauliflower. It was a good combination. I didn't not use pork chops, I used small pork loins.

Teriyaki Grilled Pork Chops

2/3 cup soy sauce
1/3 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
1/3 cup water
1/4 cup rice vinegar
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
2 inch piece of ginger, peeled, finely chopped (or 1 1/2 tsp dried ginger)
4 to 6 pork chops

Combine all but meat in sauce pan. Bring to a boil, stir until sugar is dissolved. Cool completely. Put in resealable plastic bag, pour marinade over meat. Seal, press out excess air. Marinate at least 6 hours up to overnight, turning bag once or twice. Pour marinade into sauce pan and boil five minutes. Grill chops on an oiled rack 7 to 8 minutes per side, or until done. Baste with marinade during last five minutes.

Broiled Salmon with Spice Pomade

This recipe comes from foodnetwork.com, it is an Alton Brown recipe. It does have several spices. Some are things I don't keep on hand so had to purchase. The only one I couldn't find at any of the stores close to me was star anise pods. I searched online for a substitution. I used 1/2 tsp anise seeds instead. I also didn't use salmon, I used white fish. Corey said it was very good.

Broiled Salmon with Spice Pomade

1/3 cup canola oil, plus 2 tsp for sheet pan
1 side of salmon (app 3 Lbs) pins bones removed
1 1/2 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp fresh ground black pepper
1 tsp whole coriander toasted
1 Tbsp whole fennel seed, toasted
1 tsp whole cumin seed, toasted
1 whole star anise pod
2 tsp onion powder
1 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper

Rub sheet pan with 2 tsp of oil and place side of salmon in pan. Salt and pepper salmon, set aside. Add coriander, fennel, cumin, anise, onion powder, garlic powder and cayenne to blender. Turn blender on high and process until whole spices become powder. With blender on high pour in 1/3 cup canola oil and blend until well combined. Stop blender to brush down sides if necessary. Brush salmon with spice mixture. Allow salmon to sit at room temperature 30 minutes. Preheat oven to high broiler setting. Place salmon in oven 6 inches from broiler. Cook until reaches 131 degrees, about 15 minutes. Remove and rest 10 minutes.

Carne Guisada

This is another recipe that I found online. It is a one pan meal. It does take about an hour and a half from prep to done. I chopped everything and had it ready to go before I started. It made it much easier for me. As for the flavor, very good. When it was almost done I tasted it. I did put a pinch more cumin into the pan. I served it with some mixed vegetables. But it does have green pepper and potatoes in it, so a vegetable on the side isn't necessary. Corey just like lots of vegetables. However, if you wanted some extra vegetables I think some corn would go nicely stirred in.

Carne Guisada

2 Tbsp vegetable oil
2 Lbs sirloin tips, trim off fat and gristle, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
1 cup green bell pepper, chopped
1 cup onion, chopped
1 Lb small red potatoes, peeled, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 serrano chili, minced (or jalapeno)
1/2 cup tomatoes, chopped
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 cup tomato sauce
1 Tbsp flour

Heat oil in large skillet over high heat. Add meat, brown 10 minutes. DO NOT DRAIN. Add bell pepper, onion, potatoes, garlic, chili and tomatoes, cook 10 minutes. Add spices, tomato sauce and 2 cups water. Reduce heat to low, cover and simmer 1 hour or until meat is tender. Add water as needed. Season to taste. In small cup combine 3 Tbsp cooking liquid and flour. Stir to remove lumps. Add back to pan and mix well until evenly thickened.

Frozen Cherry Fluff

One of the ladies that used to work with Corey made cherry fluff. She gave him the recipe, and he wrote it down. Of course his shorthand makes no sense. Even to him it made no sense. So I looked online to try to find a recipe to compare what I could decipher with. But found this one instead. I just mixed everything in the bowl I was going to freeze it in. However, it was kind of hard to get out. So if I do make this again, I will do it in small paper cups. Maybe even put in a stick to make it like a popsicle.

Frozen Cherry Fluff

1 can (19 oz or close) cherry pie filling
1 can (14 oz or close) crushed pineapples, drained
1 can sweetened condensed milk
3 Tbsp lemon juice
1/2 tsp almond flavoring
2 cups whipping cream

Mix all but whipping cream. Whip cream to stiff peaks and fold into mixture. Spoon into paper cups, in muffin tin or 9x9 glass pan and freeze.

**I did not use whipping cream, just thawed whip cream.

Robusto Chicken

This recipe was being discussed on a forum I read. Several ladies had tried it and liked it. It was a good meal. However my chicken was dry and overdone. So next time I will cut back on the time. I cooked it on low for 7 hours, next time I think I will start checking it at about five and a half hours.

Robusto Chicken

4 chicken breast halves
1 bottle 7 Seas Robusto Italian dressing
1 Lb bag egg noodles, cooked and drained
4 oz sour cream
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, grated

Place chicken breasts in crock pot. Pour Italian dressing over top. Cover and cook on low 7 hours or high 3 1/2 hours. Remove chicken from crock and leave crock turned on. Add half the sour cream and stir until dissolved. Add remaining sour cream and the Parmesan cheese to the noodles and mix until dissolved. Serve the chicken over the noodles. Pour the warm dressing over top. Sprinkle with Parmesan to taste.

**I did not use 7 Seas Robusto, I used a zesty Italian that I had on hand.

Chinese Chicken and Broccoli

This recipe was found at annieseats.com. Corey thought it was spicy. I didn't think it was spicy, just a different flavor then we are used to. It is a quick stir fry type recipe. Therefore, prep all your ingredients before turn on your pan. A couple of the ingredients are unusual for my pantry, so I got them after finding a few recipes that I could use them in so they wouldn't get wasted. The recipe calls for broccoli florets, I used chopped broccoli instead. In case you are not familiar with the difference, florets are a larger cut. Chopped is a fairly tiny cut. Don't think you need a wok for this recipe, a large skillet works fine.

Chinese Chicken and Broccoli

1 Tbsp peanut oil
1 1/2 tsp sesame oil
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite sized pieces
4 cloves garlic, finely minced
1 tsp grated fresh ginger
1/4 to 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
4 cups broccoli florets
6 Tbsp chicken broth
2 Tbsp oyster sauce
1 Tbsp hoisin sauce
4 Tbsp soy sauce
1 1/2 tsp cornstarch
3 scallions, chopped
sesame seeds for garnish (optional)

Heat half the peanut oil and sesame oil in large skillet or wok over medium heat. Add chicken and saute until golden brown and cooked through. Transfer to a bowl using slotted spoon and cover with foil to keep warm. Add remaining oil to pan. Add garlic and ginger, saute until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add red pepper flakes and broccoli. Pour in about half the chicken broth, it should steam and boil quickly. Cook until broccoli is tender. Add the oyster and hoisin sauces. In a small bowl whisk soy sauce and cornstarch, add to pan. Stir in rest of chicken broth. Put chicken back in pan. Cook about 2 to 3 minutes. Remove from heat, stir in scallions.

**I did not have scallions. I used about half a small onion, chopped pretty small. I added it when I added the garlic and ginger.

Lemon Raspberry Cupcakes

So, what do you do when you have a failure with your baking? In this case I just turned it upside down and ate it anyway. I have never made cupcakes that I have to put the "surprise" in before baking. I followed all the directions and all seemed good. Until I had to take the cupcakes out of the silicone cups. All the jam fell to the bottom. Corey said just make another batch and don't worry about it. I didn't want to make another batch. Besides I had to buy a couple items that I don't keep on hand, so couldn't make more unless I wanted to go to the store. I just stared at them for a couple minutes. I read the instructions again. Yes, I followed the directions. Why didn't they turn out right. Oh well, I was gonna move on and not be upset by it. I left the kitchen for a while. Then I told Corey I was just gonna turn them upside down. So that is what I did. So now the jam was sitting on top of the cupcake. But now I had to deal with the frosting. So I just put a dollop right on top of the jam. I split one with Corey. We both loved the flavor. I will for sure make them again.

After searching online a bit, I found some photos of step by step for filling cupcakes. All of them seemed to fill the cups about half full before putting in the filling. So next time I will put more batter in the bottom before the jam.

Lemon Raspberry Cupcakes

Cupcakes
3/4 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
3 tsp grated lemon zest
2 large eggs
1 1/4 cups self rising flour
1/4 cup buttermilk
2 Tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
12 tsp seedless raspberry jam

Frosting
1 cup unsalted butter
1/2 cup seedless raspberry jam
3 to 4 cups powdered sugar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line 12 muffin tins with paper liners. Using an electric mixer, beat butter, powdered sugar and lemon zest in a large bowl until fluffy and well blended. Add eggs, beating to blend. Beat in half the flour, then buttermilk and lemon juice, then the remaining flour. Drop a spoonful of the cupcake batter into the bottom of each muffin cup. Spoon 1 tsp of raspberry jam on the top of the batter of each muffin cup. Divide remaining batter among muffin cups to top the jam. Bake 18 to 22 minutes, until toothpick inserted into the center of the cupcake comes out clean. Cool cupcakes completely before frosting.
Prepare the frosting, in a large mixing bowl, beat butter and raspberry jam together until will mixed and smooth. Add powdered sugar, a cup at a time, until you reach a consistency that you desire.

**This recipe was found at recipegirl.com

Sweet Potato Pie

I posted a recipe a few days ago for Old Fashioned Sweet Potato Pie. I still had plenty sweet potatoes left to make some more pies. So I went back to the recipe that I know I like.

Sweet Potato Pie

2 (9inch) deep dish crusts
3 eggs
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 stick melted butter
1 1/4 cups sweet potatoes puree
1 (5oz) can evaporated milk, chilled
1 tsp vanilla
3/4 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg

Mix all ingredients until well blended. Pour into crusts and bake at 300 degrees for 1 hour.

**I also use this recipe for pumpkin pies. Just substitute pumpkin puree in place of the potatoes. Everything else I leave the same.