Decorating inside too! One can never have too many seasonal decorations.
Autumn in the Country
Autumn in the country! Love decorating this huge front porch .
EZ Mac and Cheese with Corn
1 box Velveeta Shells and Cheese
1 can corn, drained
1 can Rotel, drained
1 large spoonful of sour cream
1 large spoonful of butter
handful of Velveeta shreds
sprinkle of sugar
Prepare shells per box instructions, returning to same pan when finished.
Add all other ingredients and stir until butter, cheese and sour cream are melted.
Quick and delicious!
BBQ Baked Beans
6 slices bacon
1 onion, chopped
1/2 cup frozen bell peppers
2 cans pork and beans
1/2 cup bbq sauce
1/4 cup molasses
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 TB Worcestershire
1 tsp mustard
Pan fry bacon until half way browned.
Remove fried bacon from pan and reserve.
Saute onions and peppers in pan with remaining bacon grease until soft and done.
Stir all ingredients except fried bacon together.
Pour into baking dish and top with fried bacon.
Bake at 325 for 2 hours.
Potato Pepper Nachos
2 large potatoes, scrubbed clean and sliced into 1/4 inch rounds
Vegetable oil, enough to coat potato rounds
About 2 cups frozen bell peppers, sauteed in butter until soft
About 1 1/2 cups grated cheese (I used Velveeta)
Preheat oven to 400.
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Spray baking sheet with vegetable oil spray.
Place potato rounds in bowl, drizzle with vegetable oil and coat evenly.
Layer rounds on baking sheet in single layer.
Top with favorite seasonings (I used McCormick Perfect Pinch Roasted Garlic and Bell Pepper)
Bake at 400 for 40 minutes, flipping over halfway through.
Turn off oven and remove baking sheet.
Top rounds with shredded cheese and sauteed bell peppers and return to oven for a few minutes to melt cheese.
I did not measure anything exactly, this is a very forgiving recipe. You can add/take away ingredients to your hearts content!
Mushroom Gratin
about 1 lb of leftover slowcooker mushrooms
(many versions online, I used the one at Plain Chicken but subbed 1/2 cup reg bottled Italian dressing instead of powdered)
1 cup cottage cheese
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
Preheat oven to 350.
Chop mushrooms very fine in food processor.
Mix in cottage cheese and cheese, reserving enough cheese to sprinkle on top.
Pour into pie plate and sprinkle reserved cheese on top.
Bake at 350 for 30 minutes.
Doesn’t look very pretty, but tastes wonderful!
French Coconut Pie
Found this recipe on Very Culinary who found it on Tasty Kitchen. Easy and delicious!!
Ingredients
• 3 eggs, beaten
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 1 cup flaked coconut
• 1 stick butter, melted ( I used salted)
• 1 tablespoon white vinegar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• pinch of salt
• 1 (9 inch) Pillsbury refrigerated pie shell (used Kroger brand)
Directions
Mix filling ingredients well and pour into the pie shell.
Bake at 350F for 1 hour.
Let cool and set before slicing.
Spicy Porkchops
This is one of Janet’s Appalachian Kitchen recipes that I changed a bit. She uses soy sauce, but I only had Worcestershire and it worked just fine.
I shortened the marination time, and chops still came out tender and juicy. Husband said it was a keeper 🙂
Check her out on Facebook, she has some wonderful down home recipes!
| 3 boneless pork chops (½” thick
¼ C. Worcestershire sauce 1 T. all purpose seasoning (2 T. smoked paprika, 1 T. brown sugar, 1 T. salt, 1 T. Adobo, 1 tsp. black pepper…combine together and store in an airtight container) |
Place the pork chops in a Ziploc bag.
Whisk together the sauce and the seasoning and pour over the chops.
Seal and place in the fridge for 1 1/2 to 2 hours.
Remove and place the chops on a baking sheet lined with tin foil. (I sprayed the foil with kitchen spray also)
Bake in a 375 degree oven for 20 minutes.
Remove and let rest 5 minutes before serving.
Veggie Patties
(similar to Broccoli Patties from That’s My Home but with mixed Steamer veggies)
1 cup frozen mixed bell peppers, thawed
1/4 onion, chopped
1 tsp minced garlic
Margarine (large heaping spoonful)
1 package of Steamer cauliflower, broccoli and carrots (steamed and cooled, patted dry)
2 eggs, beaten
1 cup Italian bread crumbs
1 cup Italian mix cheese shreds
1/4 cup Parmesan dried cheese
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Saute onion, garlic and peppers in margarine until translucent and thick.
Combine onion mixture with steamed vegetables and mince/chop into small pieces in large bowl.
(I used my Cuisinart stick blender. Use a food processor or hand chop if you want bigger chunks of vegetables.)
Mix eggs, bread crumbs and both kinds of cheese in large bowl.
Combine both bowls of ingredients, mixing well.
Form into patties and flatten out on well-oiled cookie sheet.
DO NOT use cooking spray. Use actual oil.
Cook on each side for 12-15 minutes.
Drain on paper towels and serve warm. Top with sour cream or your favorite sauce.
Another Roll Up Recipe
16 oz whipped cream cheese
1 packet dry Ranch Dressing
1 cup mixed frozen bell peppers, thawed and patted dry
1/2 can black olives chopped
3 green onions, chopped
4 flour tortillas
Mix all ingredients completely and spread over tortillas.
Roll up and wrap in Saran Wrap.
Refrigerate several hours or overnight.
Cut into one inch slices and serve. Mine never look like the nice round shapes you see online but they taste really good!
Bajillions of variations but we like this one. Another basic recipe that can be personalized in so many ways!
Twice Baked Potatoes
4 medium to large potatoes
1 heaping TB sour cream
2 heaping TBs margarine
1 heaping TB whipped cream cheese
1 1/2 cups grated cheese (I use Kraft Three Cheese w/Touch of Philly)
smoked paprika, for garnish
Prick the potatoes after washing.
Oil and salt the outside.
Place potatoes on foil lined baking sheet.
Bake at 400 for 60-70 minutes, until done.
Cut in half and scoop out, leaving a thin wall of potato next to the skin.
Mix scooped out potatoes with all other ingredients, tasting as you go and increasing amounts, if needed.
Spoon potato mixture back into potato shells and return to baking sheet.
Top with smoked paprika.
Bake for 20 minutes at 350.
“Heaping TB” means I used a large tablespoon (not the measuring kind) and scooped out a heaping amount.
This recipe is so easy to adapt to your own tastes. Add meats, cottage cheese, onions- the possibilities are endless!
Veggie Cheesy Chowder
1/2 head of cauliflower
2 broccoli heads
5 smallish potatoes, peeled
small bag of shredded carrots
1-2 cups milk
1 stick margarine
8 oz shredded cheese ( I use Touch of Philadelphia Shredded Three Cheese)
1/2 large block of Velveeta
Cut into small pieces and boil first 4 ingredients in large pot.
When vegetables are tender add milk, margarine and cheeses (do not drain off water first)
Stir over low heat until blended.
Remove cup of hot liquid (no veggies) and add couple of large spoonfuls of flour or cornstarch, mixing well.
Return to pot and simmer until thick. Season with salt or favorite seasoning mix.
Country Life At Gray Gables 