recipe
Halloween Chili
Every year I make chili for Halloween Night. Nothing better than a warm bowl of chili to fight the chill of the autumn night. Even more so now that we moved to the Midwest from California. Now, it does get cool in California where we lived, but not like Ohio. With all the festivities going on, chili in the crock pot makes for an easy way to serve dinner to your family and friends. Warm up, Be Safe and Enjoy the Night!
1 pound ground beef (or desired meat)
1 pound ground sausage
1 med onion, diced
1 med green pepper, diced
3 – 28 oz cans of crushed tomatoes
2 – 15 oz cans of beans (kidney or white northern)
2 T. chili powder
1 T. salt
1 t. pepper
1/4 t. white pepper
Note: Season to your personal taste, this may be too much, or not enough. Optional: Crushed Red Pepper or Cayenne Pepper or both!
Brown ground meat in skillet, add to large pot or crock pot; make 1/2 inch balls of ground sausage put in skillet, press down and cook till brown on both sides; add to pot; add diced onion and green pepper to the skillet, cover and cook till soft; add to pot
Add rest of ingredients to the crock pot and let cook on high 3-5 hours or low 7-8 hours. If not using a crock pot, bring to boil and simmer for 1-2 hours.
When browning the sausage in this way, it adds a nice surprise of flavor and richness to your chili.
Fall Season is Soup Season
What’s better in the fall but soup and comfort food? I kicked off this year’s soup making marathon with Kielbasa Stew. When I first saw the word stew my reaction was, nope. I have a bad memory of stew from my childhood. I buried that thought and gave it a try and was glad I did. If soup isn’t your thing, consider this hearty meal in a bowl, it is definitely on our favorite list.
Start with bacon…
Ingredients:
6 slices of bacon, cooked till crisp
1 medium onion, diced and sauteed
1 1/2 pounds of Kielbasa sausage, fully cooked, sliced thin and browned (turkey sausage is good too)
1 medium green pepper, diced
1 large carrot, sliced
2- 15 1/2 oz cans Great Northern beans
1- 16 oz can tomato sauce
4 oz can chopped green chilies
1/2 t. Italian seasoning
1/2 t. white pepper
1/2 t. black pepper
1-2 t. chili powder
1 t. garlic salt
After bacon, onion and sausage have been cooked and put in the crock pot, add the rest of the ingredients, stir and cook on low 8-10 hours.
I hope this becomes a fall favorite at your house too. Our friends have enjoyed it at our annual Operation Christmas Child box filling night as well. I would love to hear what your favorite fall soups are.
Enjoy!
Let’s start with Apples
Our family has a history of apple picking or visiting the apple orchard and buying a bushel or two. This year Pumpkin Spice Latte’s came out earlier than usual, normally I do not like to push the season, but it instantly put me in a fall mood. So much that we went to the apple orchard opening weekend, bought apples and made applesauce the next day. Thick, slightly chunky with cinnamon is my favorite way to make it.
To make 6 pints of applesauce, use about 17 medium apples (24 cups) I like to use a tart, slightly sweet apple like Braeburn or Honey Crisp.
An apple/corer/peeler/slicer is the best way to get the apples done quickly. After taking them off the prongs, cut them in half and they are ready to go in the pot. Turning the crank for the apples and eating the stringy skins is always my kids’ favorite part of making applesauce.
24 c. of cored, peeled and sliced apples
1 to 1 1/2 c. sugar (depending on how sweet you like your applesauce)
2 c. water
1-2 t. cinnamon
Combine ingredients, bring to boil, cover and simmer 8-10 minutes stirring often. Spoon into a food processor and process to the consistency you desire.
Eat warm and top with granola if you like! Happy Fall!!
Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies
Several years ago I was craving chocolate chip cookies but wanted something different. I decided to put chocolate chips in a peanut butter cookie recipe and “ta da” our favorite go-to cookie was born. It’s not difficult, it’s nothing fancy, it is just delectable, crispy on the outside, gooey on the inside, that’s how I like them.
Milk is the best compliment to these cookies, but straight out of the oven with a scoop of ice cream and chocolate syrup satisfies any sweet tooth. If you really like chocolate, my son Geoffrey likes to melt semi-sweet chocolate and a little shortening (so they set up without being too sticky) and dip them half way then let cool on wax paper. They immediately look like they could be seen in a bakery display case.
In the summer, they make great ice cream sandwiches. Put a scoop of ice cream on one cookie, top it with another of the same size and freeze. After the ice cream is firm, wrap with plastic wrap.
We host international students in our home and one of our Korean students said they didn’t like peanut butter and refused to try them. With a little coaxing she took a bite and it quickly became her favorite go-to cookie.
I hope you will give them a try and maybe they will be one of your favorite go-to cookies!
Recipe:
2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
1 ½ t. baking soda
½ t. salt
1 c. butter or margarine
1 c. peanut butter
1 c. sugar
1 c. packed brown sugar
2 eggs
1 t. vanilla
2 c. semi-sweet chocolate chips
Whisk together flour, soda, and salt. In a bowl, beat butter for 30 seconds. Add peanut butter and sugars till fluffy. Add egg and vanilla, beat well. Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients and beat till well combined. Fold in chocolate chips.
Bake 375 degrees for 8 minutes
Roasted Vegetable Salad – A Bounty of Flavors!
I have been really enjoying oven roasted vegetables lately and decided to create a salad that showcased them. Every Tuesday night we host a small group bible study and a few come over for dinner before it starts. I served this salad and my friend said it was a delicious “bounty of flavor” and I would have to agree. With the blue cheese and fresh tomatoes added to the grilled vegetables, it doesn’t need dressing (unless you can’t go without it.)
Our small group is like family, about eight or nine come every week. We talk, we share, we laugh and of course, we eat.
Roasted Vegetable Salad
Romaine or Leaf Lettuce (or a little of both)
Blue Cheese (I prefer the block of cheese better instead of crumbles but either one works) cut into chunks
Grape Tomatoes – 8-10 cut in half
Mini Sweet Peppers – red, yellow and orange – 2 of each
Green Bell Pepper – 1 medium
Purple Onion – ½ of a large
Broccoli – ½ to 1 head
Olive Oil – 2 to 3 Tablespoons
Salt and Pepper – to taste
Slice the peppers and onions into ¼ inch slices. Cut the flowerets off the broccoli head (leaving 2-3 inches of stem) and slice into pieces so they can lay flat on the sheet pan. Place the peppers, onions and broccoli in a sheet pan, drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle salt and pepper evenly over all.
Roast in a 450 degree oven for 10-15 minutes, turn vegetables over and roast for another 10-15 minutes until desired roasting perfection. I like them browned and soft but not flimsy.
Tear or cut lettuce and place on platter, arrange blue cheese and grape tomatoes over lettuce.
Place roasted vegetables on top and serve. Makes 4-6 servings
Strawberry Shortcake
I love making strawberry shortcake this time of year and it’s always been one of my non-chocolate favorite desserts. Though I have made it for years in a few different ways, I decided to make changes to the old recipe and came up with what I thought was the tastiest shortcake that has come out of my oven.
I told my husband of my discovery, he later told me his thoughts, shortcake is shortcake, how can it be any better? It took one bite to convince him. My son however says in such simple non-explicable terms, “its good mom.” (I guess I get more excited about food then he does!) My favorite way to eat this shortcake is in a bowl with milk, the milk soaks into the shortcake and mmm so good. Of course fresh cream with a little vanilla whipped in makes this dessert exquisite.
2 cup flour
2 T sugar
1 T baking powder
½ t salt
½ cup cold butter
1 beaten egg
½ cup heavy cream
Stir together flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. In kitchen aid mixer, if you have one, mix cold butter till mixture looks like small grainy pebbles.
Stir together egg and heavy cream.
Add all at once to dry ingredients and stir just till combined.
Knead gently together, pat down to a circle ½” in thickness. (I used the cookie sheet to save time and space.)
Cut into wedges space separately on ungreased baking sheet.
Sprinkle with sugar (brush with milk first for a crispier top)
Bake 450 degrees for 10 minutes.
Kitchen Lessons 