Krista's Steel Cut Oats

Krista and Patrick when Patrick got home from his mission and Krista surprised everyone by appearing at the airport.

1 C steel cut oats

4 1/2 C water

1/2 t. salt

1 t. vanilla

1 t. apple pie spice (or cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg)

1/2 C dried chopped fruit (raisins, apples)

2 T maple syrup

Cook in crock pot on low overnight (7-9 hrs.)                                            OR

Cook in rice cooker for abt an hour.

Mom's Prune Cake

"I have made this recipe since the early days of our marriage and it’s a favorite of Dad’s." - Tauna

1 C sugar                                   1/3 t. cloves

1 3/4 C flour                              7 1/2--8 oz. baby prunes

1 C oil                                            (3 jars)

2 t. baking powder                      2 eggs

1 t. soda                                     1/2 C nuts

1/2 t. salt  

                                                                    

Put dry ingredients in a bowl.  Make a well in center.  Pour in prunes, oil, and eggs, and mix well.  Add nuts and bake in 9x13 pan at 350 for 35-40 mins.

Mexican Red Rice

Tauna at Sundown Ranch in Northern Arizona 

This is Tauna's recipe.

1 1/2 T oil

1 1/2 C rice

1 C salsa

1 C chicken broth

salt

1 1/2 C frozen peas at end of cooking (opt.)

Brown rice in oil and then add with other ingreds. and cook in a rice cooker.

Martha Stewart's Meatloaf

This is Tauna's recipe.

2 1/2 lbs ground beef
1/2 C flat leaf parsley
1 T salt     
2 t. pepper           
2 t. dry mustard
2 cloves garlic
4 pieces bread
2 onions,minced
1/2 C catsup 
1-2 eggs

Form into a large loaf.  Top with barbecue sauce and bake at 375.

Kent Deaver's Little Smokies

Kent Deaver served in the Stake Presidency as one of Dad's counselors.  The Deaver family was in the Laurelwood ward for many years.  Susan Deaver used to bring this dish to our christmas party every year and they were a big hit.

Little Smokies sausages  (package from Costco)
Cut whole pound of bacon in half
Wrap sausages in bacon
Layer about a 1/2 inch of brown sugar on top of sausages

Bake 325 for 1 hr.  Turn half way thru baking.  Can be made ahead and then warmed up and served in crock pot

Jana's Cornbread

Stan and Cleo and kids.  Jana is the second from the left on the back row.

This is Jana Short's cornbread recipe.

Cream together:
     1 stick butter (soft)
     1 C sugar 
     2 eggs
Combine:
     1 C cornmeal                                    3/4 t. soda
     1 1/2 C flour                                     1/2 t. salt
     1 1/2--2 t. baking powder

1 1/2 C buttermilk

Alternately mix buttermilk and dry ingredients with creamed mixture.  (very lightly)  Bake 350 abt. 35 mins.

Nana's Strawberry Jello Salad

This was another Thanksgiving favorite.

1 lrg. pkg. strawberry Jello, dissolved in 3 C boiling water
1 pkg. frozen strawberries
3 mashed bananas
1 #2 can crushed pineapple

Mix all ingredients together.  Set 1/2 of jello mixture in the bottom of a 9x13’pan.  When set, spread with 1 lrg. carton (2 C) sour cream.  Pour remaining jello mixture over and set.

Krista's Stew

April, Krista, and Mom in Seattle at Pike's Place Market

2 Tbsp. butter or oil                        1 C carrots
2 onions chopped 1 C red Burgundy wine
1 lb. ground beef garlic
3 C (2 cans) beef stock 2 Tbsp. chopped parsley
6 C fresh tomatoes (or canned) 1/2 tsp. basil
2 C potatoes                                    1/4 tsp. thyme
1 C celery, diced 2 tsp. salt
1 C green beans (fresh or frozen)        1/2 tsp. pepper

Saute onion in oil.  Brown ground beef.  Add all ingredients except  potatoes, carrots, and green beans and cook for an hour.  Befor serving, add carrots, potatoes, and at the very end, the green beans.

Carrot Cake

(1) Sift into mixing bowl:
2 C flour
2 C sugar
3/4 tsp. salt
2 tsp. soda
1 tsp. cinnamon
(2) Add and mix well:
1 1/2 C salad oil
4 eggs, beaten in one at a time
(3) Add:
2 C grated carrots
1 C drained, crushed pineapple
1 C coarsly chopped nuts


Bake 350 for 45 mins. in 9x13”pan. 

Frost with following:   1 cube butter
         1 small pkg. cream cheese
    1 box powdered sugar
    a little milk

Tauna's Baked Mostaccioli

"This is typical of Mom’s recipes---easy to make." - Tauna 

1 12-oz. pkg. Mostacciolli, cooked
1 lb. Italian sausage or lean ground beef, cooked and drained
(can use sweet or hot Italian sausage or 1/2 and 1/2 etc)
2 26-oz jars of Pasta Sauce (one with olive and mushroom, & one with tomato/basil)
4 C shredded mozzerella cheese
chopped parsley(opt.)

Preheat oven to 350.

In a large bowl, combine cooked mostacciolli, cooked meat, pasta sauce,  and 2 C cheese.  Mix well.  Bake in 13x9” covered casserole (greased), 45 mins.  Uncover and top with remaining 2 C cheese and parsley and bake 10 minutes longer.

Aunt Katie's Pineapple Butter Cake

Mom (Cleo) always thought Aunt Katie, Uncle Boyd’s wife,  was the best cook in the family.

4 eggs

1 Duncan Hines Butter Cake

1 11-oz. can mandarin oranges & juice (cut oranges in half)

1/2 C oil

Beat together well.  Grease and flour 3 layer pans.  Bake 350 about 30 mins.

When cool, frost with:

1 tall can crushed pineapple

1 small Jello instant pudding (vanilla)

1 15-oz. container Cool Whip

Mix together and spread between layers and on top  Refrigerate.

Tauna's Teriyaki Flank Steak

This recipe has got to be one of the Lowe family's all time favorites!  It's so delicious!  Andrew especially loves this for his birthday and Sunday dinner with baked potatoes and Texas sheet cake.

1/2 C soy sauce
1 lrg. clove garlic, minced
1 tsp. ground ginger
2 Tbsp. firmly packed brown sugar
2 T. each, lemon juice and salad oil
1 Tbsp. instant minced onion
1/4 tsp. pepper
1 flank steak

Marinate steak in mixture 6-10 hr. in refrigerator, turning several times.  To BBQ, place steak on grill at about 4” above bed of hot, glowing coals.  Cook about 6 mins. on each side or until done to liking.  To serve, cut thin, slanting slices across grain.

Mom's Butter Rolls

INSTRUCTIONS:
2 yeast cakes dissolved in 1/4 C warm water.

Put in mixing bowl: 1/2 C sugar
1/2 C shortening
1 C warm water

Add 3 well beaten eggs and yeast.

Sift and add: 4 1/2 C flour
2 tsp. salt

Stir well.  Cover tight.  Put in fridge over night.  Roll out on a well-floured board 1/2 at a time, about as thick as pie crust.  Spread 1/2 cube of butter of dough.  Roll like a jelly roll.  Cut 1 1/2” thick.  Dip in melted butter.  Let raise in muffin tins for 2 hrs.  Bake 400 for 10 mins.

Myrna's Chocolate Chip Cookies

Myrna Skousen was a dear friend of Nana (Cleo) and this is her recipe.  Myrna Skousen, our good friend and neighbor, is the most fun---always makes us laugh!

5 cubes butter or margarine 2 tsp. soda
3 C brown sugar 2 tsp. salt
2 C white sugar 1-2 pkgs. chocolate chips
5 eggs           2 C nuts (or more)
5-6 C flour

Cream butter and sugars and add eggs then dry ingreds. and lastly, add choc. chips and nuts.

 Bake 350 about 10 mins.

This makes tons of cookies and it’s easiest to make these in a Bosch if possible.

Mom's Pie Crust

"Mom" here refers to Cleo Turley.  This is her pie crust recipe.  Tauna says that she can never get this recipe to turn out, but it's Nana's nonetheless so we will pass it on because we love Nana.

2/3 C lard
1/3 C boiling water

Pour boiling water over lard and whip with a fork until melted.

Add: 2 C flour
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. baking powder

Mix lightly and refrigerate in Saran Wrap  before rolling out.  Bake 350 ‘til golden.

"For Thanksgiving, Mom (Cleo) used to make small, individual pie crusts and let us fill our own with different cream fillings---vanilla and chocolate ,and top them with bananas or coconut, and whipped cream." - Tauna Lowe  

Cleo's Cheesecake

Mix and press into a large pie tin:

20 graham crackers (squares),crumbed

1/2 cube soft better

2 Tbsp. sugar

Filling: 2 eggs, beaten

1/2 C sugar

1 lrg. and 1 small cream cheese

1 tsp. vanilla

Mix and pour into crust.  Sprinkle with cinnamon.  Bake 350 for 15 mins.

 Cool and top with the following mixture:

1 pint sour cream

2 Tbsp. sugar

1 tsp. vanilla

Bake another 5 mins. at 350.

Berried Delight

This is Krista's recipe for Berried Delight.

2  C  graham cracker crumbs
1/3  C  sugar
1/2  C margarine, melted
1  8-oz. cream cheese,softened
1/4  C  sugar
2  Tbsp. milk
8-oz. Cool Whip
2  pints strawberries  (or any berries)
2  4-oz. pkgs. instant vanilla pudding

Make graham cracker crust using first 3 ingredients.  Pat into a 9x13 pan.  Chill.
Beat cream cheese w/ 1/4 C  sugar and milk until smooth.  Fold in half of Cool Whip.
Spread over crust.  Arrange berries in an even layer over cream cheese mix.  Make pudding as directed.  Pour over berries.  Chill.  After set, spread remaining Cool Whip over pudding.               

French Toast Bread Pudding and Vanilla Bean Buttermilk Syrup

This is the way we often use up leftover bread heels or day old bread that's gotten too hard or crusty.  Just soak it in the milk/egg mix and bake for a custardy french toast breakfast!

This bread pudding recipe comes from the Barefoot Contessa and we have just modified it a little.  It's more of a custardy bread pudding than french toast.   We also modified the buttermilk syrup recipe we've always used to add vanilla bean and it adds a delicious vanilla flavor to the syrup.  I like to slice up some strawberries to serve with this too. They are good on top drizzled with the syrup. 

Ingredients

• 1 challah loaf, torn into pieces (or any loaf of French bread type bread)
• 8 extra-large eggs
• 5 cups half-and-half or milk
• 3 tablespoons honey
• 1 tablespoon grated orange zest
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• Confectioners' sugar and vanilla bean buttermilk syrup, for serving

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Tear bread into large bite-sized chunks in a large bowl. Set aside.

In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, half-and-half, honey, orange zest, vanilla, and salt. Pour the mixture over the bread and press the bread down. Allow to soak for 10 minutes if bread is fresh and if bread is crustier or stale, soak an hour or up to overnight.

Pour the bread pudding mixture into a 9x13 casserole dish.  Place the 9x13 baking dish in a larger roasting pan and add enough very hot tap water to the roasting pan to come an inch up the side of the baking dish. Cover the roasting pan tightly with aluminum foil, tenting it so the foil doesn't touch the pudding. Make two slashes in the foil to allow steam to escape. Bake for 45 minutes, remove the aluminum foil, and bake for another 40 to 45 minutes, until the pudding puffs up and the custard is set. Remove from the oven and cool slightly.

With a small sieve, dust lightly with confectioners' sugar and serve hot in squares with vanilla bean buttermilk syrup on the side.

Vanilla Bean Buttermilk Syrup

1/2 c. butter

1/2 c. buttermilk

1 c. sugar

1 Tbsp. corn syrup

1 tsp. baking soda

1 vanilla bean or 1 tsp vanilla bean paste

In large saucepan, combine butter, buttermilk, sugar, and corn syrup.  Bring to a rolling boil.  Remove from heat and add vanilla beans and baking soda and stir.  It will foam up to about 3 times it's volume so make sure you are using a larger saucepan.  Serve hot over bread pudding.

• If you don't have a vanilla bean on hand, use the vanilla bean paste shown in the photo below.  Krista introduced us to this and we love it!!  It comes from Williams Sonoma and is a great way to get vanilla bean flavor without having to have the beans on hand. 
• We also use powdered buttermilk to make the buttermilk for the syrup if you don't have it on hand.  The powdered stuff works great in our syrup, waffles, and all the baking recipes we've tried it in. (see photo)

Salted Caramel Cheesecake Bars

This recipe was a pinterest find and we are in LOVE!!  We made this for dessert tonight and it is so good.  The missionaries were over for dinner, asked for seconds of this dessert, and had two 3 inch squares each!  I mix the cheesecake filling in a food processor but you can mix it any way.  I also found out that if you can't get the dulce de leche in the hispanic section of the grocery store, you can substitute it with sweetened condensed milk and it is still yummy.  Be prepared to be in salted caramel heaven!

Crust 

2 1/4 cups graham cracker or digestive biscuit crumbs (from about 17 whole graham crackers)

2 tablespoons sugar
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
10 tablespoons (142g) butter, melted

Filling

3 8-ounce packages Philadelphia-brand cream cheese, room temperature
1 cup (225g) sugar
3 large eggs
1/2 cup dulce de leche
2 teaspoons vanilla extract 

Glaze

2/3 cup dulce de leche
2-3 tablespoons heavy whipping cream

10 caramel chews
Fleur de sel*

1. Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C). Coat 13x9x2-inch metal baking pan coated with nonstick spray. Mix graham cracker crumbs, sugar, and cinnamon in medium bowl. Add melted butter; stir until coated. Transfer crumb mixture to pan. Press evenly onto bottom of pan. Bake until crust is light golden, about 10 minutes. Cool completely on rack.

2. Blend the cream cheese and sugar together until smooth and creamy, about 1 minute.  Add the eggs 1 at a time, blending for 3 to 5 seconds each time until incorporated.  Add in the dulce de leche and vanilla and blend until just mixed - about 10 seconds. Spread the batter evenly over the cooled crust and bake until the cheesecake mixture is just set in center and the edges are puffed and slightly cracked, about 38 minutes. Transfer to rack and cool completely.

3.  Once the cheesecake bar is cooled, pour 2/3 cup dulce de leche sauce and a the 3 tablespoons of whipping cream in a glass measuring cup.  Microwave at 10 second intervals stirring between each interval.  Do this until the mixture is smooth and combined.  Next, take about 10 caramel chews and heat them in the microwave for 15-20 seconds until just melted.  Quickly dump the melted caramel chews into the dulce de leche mixture and stir continuously until combined. The consistency should be pourable, but not too liquid.  You want the caramel topping to be soft and gooey, but not too runny that is pours down the side of your bar once you cut it.  Cover and chill until ready to serve.  

4. Lastly - (and this is the best part!) when you're ready to serve the bars sprinkle the caramel glaze lightly with some fleur de sel.  

*Fleur de sel is a light and flaky sea salt, with a less salty and bitter taste than regular table or sea salt.  

Special K Special

This is Mom's (Tauna) recipe.  A classic for sure!!

1 cube butter

1 cube margarine

¼ c. brown sugar

¾ c. white sugar

24 large marshmallows (3 ½ c. mini)

1 tsp. vanilla

2 c. nuts (pecans)

6 c. Special K cereal

Bring first 5 ingredients to a boil and boil for 5 minutes. Do not overcook.  Add vanilla.  Pour over Special K and nuts.  Mix well.  Pour onto waxed paper to cool.  

Blueberry Pudding Cake

Matthew's Grandma makes a delicious Blueberry Pudding Cake. I had it for the first time from Matthew and its become a favorite dessert for me. I've also used strawberries for this recipe and I like the crust so much that sometimes I double it!

Sharing is optional

                                                         
Start boiling up at least 1 cup of water.
While its warming up, follow the remaining instructions...

Toss and place in a greased pan:

2 Cups.....Fresh/Frozen Blueberries
1 Tsp.......Ground Cinnamon
1 Tsp........Lemon Juice

Stir and then spoon over blueberries:

1 Cup........All-Purpose Flour
3/4 Cup.....Sugar
1 Tsp.........Baking Powder
1/2 Cup.....Milk
3 Tbsp.......Butter

Topping (Crust):

Combine and sprinkle over batter
3/4 Cup....Sugar
1 tbsp.......Corn Starch

Pour water over all
1 Cup.......Boiling Water

BAKE! 350 F for 45-50 minutes.

Butterscotch Pumpkin Bundt Cake

This is a cake recipe I got out of a magazine or the Nestle website or something years ago and has become a fall staple for Halloween parties and fall get togethers and church parties.  The butterscotch sauce is super yummy and the pumpkin cake is really moist!  The most important thing here is the allow the eggs to warm to room temperature and butterscotch chips to cool to room temperature after melting. Otherwise you can get either a little "scrambled egg" in the mix or the butterscotch chips get too cool and don't incorporate well.  Wait the extra 10 or 15 minutes to mix the batter until they are room temp - it's worth it!

Ingredients:

1 2/3 c (11-oz pkg) Butterscotch Morsels

2 c. all-purpose flour

1 ¾ c. granulated sugar

1 Tbsp. baking powder

1 ½ tsp. ground cinnamon

1 tsp. salt

½ tsp. ground nutmeg

1 c. Pumpkin (Libby’s canned)

½ c. vegetable oil

3 large eggs, at room temperature

1 tsp. vanilla extract

Powdered sugar (optional) 

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350°.  Microwave 1 c morsels in small, microwave-safe bowl on medium-high power for 1 minute; stir.  Microwave at 10- to 20-second intervals, stirring until smooth. Cool to room temperature.  Combine flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, salt and nutmeg in medium bowl. Stir together melted morsels, pumpkin, vegetable oil, eggs and vanilla extract in large bowl with wire whisk. Stir in flour mixture. Spoon batter into bundt mold.  Bake 40- 50 min or until toothpick comes out clean. Cool in mold on wire rack. Turn out of mold and sprinkle with powdered sugar. Serve with Butterscotch Sauce. 

Butterscotch Sauce 

1/3 c Evaporated Milk

2/3 c butterscotch morsels 

Heat 1/3 c evaporated milk in saucepan over medium heat just to a boil; remove from heat. Add remaining morsels; stir until smooth. Return to heat. Stirring constantly, bring mixture just to a boil. Cool to room temperature. Stir before serving. 

Nordstrom’s Champagne Vinaigrette

I love all of the dressings in the Nordstrom Cafe and this is another good one!  

Ingredients:

1 shallot, quartered

1 small clove garlic

1 Tbsp. Dijon mustard

2 Tbsp. sugar

1/8 tsp. kosher salt

Dash of freshly ground white pepper

½ c. Champagne vinegar

1 ½ c. canola oil

Directions:

In a blender or food processor fitted with a metal blade, process the shallot and garlic until finely minced.  Add the mustard, sugar, salt, pepper, and vinegar.  Process to combine the ingredients thoroughly.  With the machine running, gradually add the oil in a thin, steady stream to form an emulsion.  Taste and adjust the seasoning.

Nordstrom’s Crème Brulee

This is another favorite recipe of ours.  We made this for Dad (Bryan) once and he talked about it for days!  It has simple ingredients and is not too difficult.  The vanilla beans add fantastic flavor and it is NOT the same with vanilla extract so splurge for the beans!

Ingredients: 

6 large egg yolks

¾ c. sugar, plus more for sprinkling

3 c. heavy whipping cream

1 vanilla bean, halved lengthwise

½ pint raspberries

3 Tbsp. shaved white chocolate

Directions: 

• Preheat oven to 300°.  Have ready six ¾-cup ovenproof custard cups or ramekins set in a baking pan large enough to hold them without crowding.  
• In a large bowl, whisk together egg yolks and ¾ cup sugar until pale yellow and fairly thick.  
• In a 2-quart saucepan over medium heat, combine the cream and vanilla bean and heat just until steam rises.  Cover the pan, remove from the heat, and let steep for 10 minutes.  
• Remove the vanilla bean, and with the flat side of a paring knife, scrape out the seeds.  Return the seeds to the cream and discard the pod.  
• Whisking constantly, gradually drizzle the cream into the egg yolk mixture, continuing to whisk until smooth and well blended.  (If the cream is too hot, the eggs will curdle.)  
• Divide the cream mixture evenly among the custard cups.  Pour hot water into the baking pan to reach halfway up the sides of the bowls / ramekins.  Bake the custards until they are just set – a little wobbly in the middle but definitely not runny when the baking pan is nudged – 25 to 30 minutes.  
• ***If your oven heats unevenly, you may need to rotate the pan 180 degrees at the halfway point.  Remove the ramekins from the water bath, let cool on wire racks, and then cover and refrigerate until the custards are chilled.  
• About 10 minutes before serving, adjust the oven rack so it’s 5 to 6 inches from the heat source and preheat the broiler, OR use a crème brulee torch.  Sprinkle about 1 teaspoon of sugar evenly over the top of each custard.  Place the custards under the broiler and, watching carefully, broil until the sugar is caramelized and a thin, glasslike coating forms on top, 1 to 2 minutes.  If using a crème brulee torch, torch each custard until you get the same result as using the broiler.  Serve at once, garnished with raspberries and white chocolate.  Makes 6 servings.

*This recipe often takes almost 50 minutes to bake.  Keep an eye on it and check it about every 5 minutes after 25 minutes.

Basil Cream Sauce Chicken

My neighbor Dilene gave me this recipe this week and we tried it and LOVED it!  It is so good and so easy!  We served it with medium shell pasta so the extra sauce went over the shells and the boys thought it was like gourmet mac and cheese.  This will definitely be a keeper at our house!

Ingredients

• 1 cup milk
• 1 cup Italian bread crumbs
• 4 chicken breasts cut into halves (8 pieces)
• 1/4 cup butter
• 1 cup chicken broth
• 2 cups whipping cream
• 1 tsp dried basil
• 1/8 tsp pepper
• 1 cup grated parmesan cheese

Instructions

• Optional: I like to pound and flatten the chicken out a little so it cooks evenly throughout.
• Place milk and bread crumbs in seperate shallow bowls. Dip chicken in milk, then coat with crumbs. In a skillet over medium heat cook chicken in butter until browned on both sides. Remove chicken from skillet and keep in a 9x13 pan in the oven on warm.
• Add chicken broth to skillet and stir to loosen up browned bits from pan. Stir in cream, basil, and pepper and bring to a boil. Turn heat to low and whisk in parmesan cheese. Pour sauce over the chicken and serve.