Preserving the Good Life

This is one of those recipes that I rarely pull out of the archives, usually only for special occasions.  My grandmother made this for family gathering, reunions and special occasions.  Since it was a family favorite, I try to make it either on my Daddy’s birthday, Father’s Day or the 4th of July.

• 1 box of yellow cake mix, made per the box instructions
• 2 (5 oz) boxes of instant vanilla pudding mix
• 6 cups of milk
• 6 bananas, sliced
• 2 (21 oz) cans of cherry (or strawberry) pie filling
• 2 (20 oz) cans of crushed pineapple, drained
• 1 (16 oz) container of Coolwhip, thawed
• 1/4 cup of chopped pecans, optional, for decoration topping
• Maraschino cherries for decoration

Bake the cake as directed.  Let it cool.  Make the pudding and put it in the refrigerator to cool.  Cut up the cake into chunks and set aside.

Layer in the punch bowl:

1. Half of the cake
2. Half of the pudding
3. Half the bananas
4. Half of the pineapple
5. Half of the cherry pie filling
6. Coolwhip
7. REPEAT

Garnish with maraschino cherries. It does seem to taste better if you refrigerate it over night before serving. This dessert is amazing, it’s a mix between banana pudding and banana split – only better.  We’ve even made this in a black forest variation, get creative and enjoy.

Ok, so I decided to test this recipe on a large group of friends at our Saturday Night Taco Bar.  And I have to warn you right from the start – this is not diet friendly!  Now that we have that behind us….. I needed a dip of sorts, some sort of appetizer to go along with the salsa and guacamole.  With a guest list of 50, I figured that I had better make a double batch.  I knew right away that it was a hit!  So for all of those that asked for the recipe, here you go!

The ingredients below are for an 8×8 pan.  I actually doubled the recipe when I made it and it filled up the 9×13 perfectly.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray 8-inch square baking dish with non-stick cooking spray.  In a large bowl, mix together cream cheese, sour cream, salt, chili powder, cumin and jalapeño (if desired).

Fold in tomatoes and onions.

Then add the spinach and cheddar.

Mix until well combined.  Spray the baking dish with cooking spray, (you’ll thank me later).  Pour mixture into prepared baking dish.

At this point, I knew I was in trouble!  The moment I sampled the spoon before it went into the dish water, I texted a friend and warned her that this was going to be insanely delicious.

Bake 25-30 minutes, or until the edges are bubbling and golden brown. Serve with tortilla chips.

Often times, at Easter we try to have the non-traditional meal but when we decide to have ham it is truly delicious.  It never fails, we forget year to year how to make it and which ham produces the best meal so we call on our dear friend Angel to keep us straight.  So here we’re giving credit where credit is due…we took her advice and the outcome was simply delicious!

• 7-10 lb ham (butt not shank)
• 2 cups of water
• Juice from 29 oz can of peach halves in heavy syrup
• 1/4 cup brown sugar

Pour the water into a roasting pan with the ham and place in the oven for 2 hours at 275 degrees.  Since the ham is precooked, it simply needs to be warmed thoroughly.

Pour the juice out of a can of peach halves and mix with the brown sugar.  As you slice the ham, slowly pour the syrup over the ham.  Place back in the warm oven until ready to serve.

This is not your typical banana pudding for a couple of reasons but mainly because it doesn’t have to be baked!  Let’s be real a minute….who doesn’t love banana pudding…… This is truly a treat at our house as we do not indulge in full fledged banana pudding very often, just on special occasions.

So here goes….

• 8 ounces sour cream
• 2 of the 3.4 ounce packages instant french vanilla pudding mix
• 2 cups milk
• 8 ounce container frozen Cool Whip whipped topping, thawed
• 16 ounce package vanilla wafer cookies
• 7 bananas, peeled and sliced

In large bowl combine sour cream, pudding mix and milk. Stir well with a mixer. Fold in the whipped topping.

Layer in a baking dish or trifle bowl a layer of cookies, a layer of bananas and a layer of pudding mixture.

Repeat until all ingredients are used or your bowl becomes full.  Save a few cookies for decoration.  Refrigerate until serving.  Makes about 8-10 servings.

People shake their heads at me when I say I can squash…..but when you love a recipe like squash casserole, you’ll figure out a way to preserve the summer harvest so you can have this delicious dish year round!  This is another one of my grandma’s recipes that the family enjoys….

• 3 cups of cooked squash drained (I use what I canned over the summer.)
• 1 medium onion chopped
• 1/4 cup of butter
• 1 egg beaten
• 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Cook onions in the butter until tender.

Combine the squash, cooked onions, shredded cheese and beaten egg in a greased casserole dish.

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.  (This temperature really surprises me, if you knew my grandmother, you know that she cooked everything on HIGH and 350 degrees).

Combine the topping and sprinkle over the top of the casserole.

Topping:

• 1 1/2 cup herb stuffing mix
• 1/2 stick of butter, melted

Bake at 325 for 35-40 minutes.  Enjoy!

As Easter approaches I begin reminiscing of years past, family dinners, egg hunts and Grandma’s kitchen.  I miss that lady….she was truly one of a kind.   My grandma used to make this on a regular basis, especially during the holidays.  Some call it corn casserole, she always called it scalloped corn.  So when we want to take a walk down memory lane and feel like we have a part of her with us on special occasions we bring out our Grandma Marshall cookbook and begin cooking, baking and working in the kitchen.  She was happiest in the kitchen feeding others and I would like to think that others view my kitchen the same…..

This recipe serves 5-6.  So for crowds, I recommend that you double it.  Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

• 2 cups corn
• 1 cup milk
• 2 eggs beaten
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 tablespoon butter
• 2 tablespoon self rising flour
• 2 tablespoon sugar
• 1/8 teaspoon pepper

Combine all ingredients.  Pour into a sprayed baking dish.

Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

Enjoy!!!

It never fails when I need Cream of Chicken or Cream of Mushroom Soup I never have any on hand.  I decided that I would do some digging and find a recipe for a soup base so I could make my own as I needed it.  After I read the ingredients on the last can of soup that I bought at the supermarket, I cringed.  There’s so many hidden ingredients in processed foods.   At least now, I’m one step closer to knowing what’s in it.  This is super easy to make.

Add all the ingredients to a large mixing bowl.  Whisk the ingredients together really well.

• 2 cups dry milk powder
• ¾ cup cornstarch
• 1 teaspoon onion powder
• ½ teaspoon garlic powder
• ½ teaspoon dried basil
• ½ teaspoon dried parsley
• ¼ teaspoon black pepper

Using a funnel, pour the mixture into an airtight container.

Label the jar with the directions and measurements to make the soup base.

To make into 1 can of condensed cream of soup:

1. Combine 1/3 cup dry mix with 1 ¼ cups water or broth of choice in a small saucepan. Whisk until smooth.
2. On medium heat, bring to a boil.
3. Cook and stir for 2 minutes, until thick. Cool.

Cream of Chicken Soup: use 1 ¼ cups chicken broth instead of water.

Cream of Celery Soup: use water, add ¼ cup diced, cooked celery to the thickened soup.

Cream of Mushroom Soup:  use water; add ¼ cup diced, cooked mushrooms to the thickened soup.

Enjoy!