Peaden Pumpkin Pie

For Thanksgiving Sue always makes the recipe on the back of the Libby pumpkin pie can. It's her favorite pumpkin pie recipe!

Pumpkin Pie

Source: Sue Peaden via Libby Canned Pumpkin

Ingredients: 
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
2 large eggs
1 can (15 ounces) LIBBY'S® 100% Pure Pumpkin
1 can (12 fluid ounces) NESTLÉ® CARNATION® Evaporated Milk
1 unbaked 9-inch (4-cup volume) deep-dish pie shell

Directions: 
Step 1 - Mix sugar, cinnamon, salt, ginger and cloves in small bowl. Beat eggs in large bowl. Stir in pumpkin and sugar-spice mixture. Gradually stir in evaporated milk.

Step 2 - Pour into pie shell.

Step 3 - Bake in preheated 425° F oven for 15 minutes. Reduce temperature to 350° F; bake for 40 minutes or until knife inserted near center comes out clean. Cool on wire rack for 2 hours. Serve immediately or refrigerate.

Meatloaf

I like meatloaf. My favorite recipe for meatloaf calls for ground beef, onions, ketchup, mustard, oats and a bunch of other yummy things. However, every time I make it David asks me if next time I could just make his mom's meatloaf. Finally after several times of just thinking that the recipe was close enough, I called up his mom to find out exactly how she makes her meatloaf. The following is her recipe, and is David's favorite meatloaf by far. 

Meatloaf
Source: Sue Peaden

Ingredients:
1 lb hamburger
1 egg
1 can tomato sauce
12-16 saltine crackers
Salt, pepper, onion salt, garlic salt (abt. 1/4-1/2 tsp each?)

Combine all ingredients and pat into an 8x8 pan. Bake at 350 for 1 hour.

David doesn't like any sauce on his, but I spread ketchup on the top of mine. Enjoy!

Scalloped Potatoes

I love scalloped potatoes but always made them from a box. David has asked me to make his mom's scalloped potatoes several times, and I'm pretty sure that I have - but I'm finally getting the recipe written down and saved. They are really very easy and extremely delicious. David loves to eat them with his mom's Meatloaf. 

Scalloped Potatoes
Source: Sue Peaden

Ingredients:
8 potatoes
2 cans cream of chicken soup
1 can milk
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
Salt
Pepper
Onion Salt
Garlic Salt
Cheese

Directions:
Peel and slice potatoes. You want them to be fairly evenly sized and at least 3-4 deep. Mix cream of chicken with milk and season with salt, pepper, onion salt, garlic salt and Worcestershire sauce. Top with ample amounts of cheese.

Bake at 350 for 1 hour and 15 minutes or until potatoes are soft and cheese is melted.

Triple Chocolate Bunt Cake

My mother-in-law makes this delicious bunt cake that she calls Death by Chocolate cake. It's always a crowd favorite and there is never anything more than crumbs left over. It comes out of this little paper recipe book that she has and we all love it. I finally got my act together and called her up to get the recipe for a party that I was hosting and I'm so glad that I did. I renamed it, because you use three different chocolate ingredients and I think that it rolls off the tongue nicely. 

Triple Chocolate Bunt Cake

Source: Sue Peaden 

Ingredients: 

1 chocolate cake mix

1 small instant chocolate pudding mix

3/4 cup sour cream

4 eggs

1/2 cup water

1/2 cup oil

1-2 cups of chocolate chips

Directions:

Grease and flour a bunt pan. (This cake will sometimes fall apart if you don't grease it well - so be generous). In a medium mixing bowl, combine eggs, sour cream, water, and oil. After mixed thoroughly, add pudding and cake mix. Stir in chocolate chips and pour into bunt pan. Bake for 45-55 minutes at 350 degrees. Remove from oven and let cool for no more than 5 minutes before flipping the bunt pan over to remove cake. Top with a light sprinkling of powdered sugar. Enjoy!

Sloppy Joes

Yum, yum. These seem to go hand-in-hand with summer picnics and parties. They are pretty simple to make and you can probably find all of the things that you need to make them in your cupboard. I love to serve them with a side of chips and corn on the cob, but they go well with lots of yummy sides (especially fresh fruit). I got this recipe from my sweet mother-in-law who has been pleasing crowds (mostly her many children) with this dish for years.

Sloppy Joes
Source: Sue Peaden

Ingredients:
1 can tomato sauce
1 lb ground beef
1 cap vinegar
2-3 cans water
1 tbsp brown sugar.
1 heaping tbsp yellow mustard
Salt and Pepper
Onion Salt
Garlic Salt

Directions:
Brown ground beef in a medium/large skillet. When cooked almost completely through season with salt, pepper, onion salt, and garlic salt (this is to taste, I usually just shake it out until there is a very light covering over the whole pan). Add tomato sauce, mustard, vinegar, and brown sugar. Mix through. Add 2-3 cans of water and simmer down for 20-30 minutes.

Once the water has simmered out and the consistency of the sauce has thickened, serve over hamburger buns with a side of delicious potato chips. (My family eats their sloppy joes open-faced, so with the meat sauce on both sides of the bun open on a plate. However, I realize that most people eat them like a sandwich like it is pictured above.)

* For a special treat add some cheddar cheese on top of the warm meat sauce. Or my personal favorite, add several potato chips between the layers of the buns and meat and enjoy a yummy crunch with your dinner.

Cheese Chip Cupcakes

If I had to say which Christmas goodie was the absolute most favorite at the Peaden household - I would say Cheese Chip Cupcakes without hesitation. These are kept frozen in little Christmas tins, and are best if you take them out of the freezer and let sit for just a couple of minutes. That way they are still cold, but not frozen anymore. They are super yummy and the perfect Christmas treat to snack on while playing a rousing game of Canasta.

Cheese Chip Cupcakes
Source: McAllister Family Cookbook; Sue Peaden

Ingredients:
3/4 cup finely chopped pecans
3/4 cup lightly packed brown sugar
8 oz cream cheese (softened)
1 egg
1/2 cup sugar
1 (6 oz) package chocolate chips
3 cups flour
2 cups sugar
1/2 cup cocoa
2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp  salt
1 1/2 cup water
2/3 cup vegetable oil
2 Tbs vinegar
2 tsp vanilla

Directions:
Mix together chopped pecans and brown sugar. Set aside.

Soften cream cheese in the microwave for 2 minutes on power level 3. Mix together cream cheese and 1/2 cup sugar. Add egg and beat to incorporate. Add chocolate chips. Set aside.

Mix remaining ingredients and beat until blended. Fill cups 1/3 full, add 1 heaping teaspoon of cream cheese mixture, sprinkle top with 1 teaspoon brown sugar and nut topping.

Bake at 350 for 20 minutes. When done, remove from pans (without disturbing the topping). After cooled, place in Christmas tins and freeze. Makes 2 1/2 dozen.

These cookies are best served just barely thawed.

Sugar Cookies

 These sugar cookies are soft and sweet and super delicious. They take some time to make but they are super delicious frozen. The best plan is to make a ton of them, put them in tins and freeze them. Then anytime you need a treat - head on over to the freezer and take out a tin. Let them sit out for a couple of minutes and you have a yummy treat.

Sugar Cookies
Source: Sue Peaden

Ingredients:
4 1/2 cups flour
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 tsp baking powder
1 cup milk (sour this with a tsp of lemon juice)
1 tsp vanilla
3/4 cup shortening
2 eggs
1/2 tsp salt

Directions:
Cream the sugar and shortening. Add eggs and beat to combine. Add baking powder, vanilla, and salt. Add flour and milk alternately until you get to a consisency that is still on the moist side but not too sticky.

Generously flour your countertop. Place 1/2 - 1/3 of the dough mixture on the counter and use the flour on the counter to pat the dough into a ball. (The goal is to add as little flour as possible, as this will make your cookies light and fluffy.) Use a rolling pin to roll out the dough (flouring the rolling pin as needed).

Frosting:

Richersweet Dough

David's mom is incredible in the kitchen. One of David's family Christmas traditions is a delicious treat called Christmas Roll. His mom makes several of them each holiday season and everyone looks forward to Christmas Eve and New Years Eve so they can enjoy some Christmas Roll. Sue also makes incredible dinner rolls that she serves with yummy meals (or just sets on the counter for people to snack on). Seriously they are so delicious, they are fought over and devoured like cookies. Fortunately, Sue agreed to teach me how to make them, and helped me write out the recipe below.

Richersweet Dough
(For rolls, cinnamons rolls, doughnuts, Christmas Roll...)
Source: Sue Peaden; Bates Book of Cookery, Blanch McAllister

Ingredients:
1 cup milk
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp salt
2 Tbs yeast
2 eggs
1/2 cup shortening
4 1/2 - 5 cups flour

Directions:
Dissolve yeast in 1/2 cup warm water until frothy and doubled in size. While waiting for yeast; scald milk (microwave for 2 minutes - to a boil). Mix shortening, sugar, salt, and scalded milk until shortening starts to melt. Start by putting in a little flour (1 cup-ish) and eggs. (This cools down the milk mixture because if you add the yeast to the hot milk mixture while the milk is too hot the yeast will die.) Add yeast to the bowl. Stir with spoon, flour a little bit at a time. When the mixture gets too hard to stir, use your hands to knead in the rest of the flour. You want the dough to be soft, but not sticky. (The least amount of flour to make it not sticky is best.)

Pull the dough out onto the counter and knead until elastic. Rinse mixing bowl, then grease with shortening. Place dough into bowl, pat with shortening, then cover with wax paper and a dish towel. Let rise until double in bulk. (45 minutes to 1 hour in a warm place.)

Roll into desired shape (see below) and let rise again for about 1 hour then bake at 350 until golden brown.

Dinner Rolls: Use a rolling pin to roll out dough onto a lightly floured countertop. (Dough should be about 1/4 inch thick.) Using a small round cutter, cut out small circles around the dough - keeping each circle as close as possible to the next to minimize wasted dough. Remove excess dough and set aside. Butter each circle with softened butter, then use the back of the butter knife to place a firm indent across the center of the circle. Fold each circle along indent and then place closely together on a baking sheet. Let rise for 1 hour. Bake at 350 for 12-15 minute or until golden brown. (To cool, flip rolls upside down on a clean counter or table. After the bottoms are cool, flip right side up to finish cooling. After rolls are completely cool, you may place them into a gallon ziplock single layer to freeze them. Then just set on the counter to thaw. Place in the oven right before serving for a warm delicious roll.)

Christmas Roll: Use a rolling pin to roll dough into a rectangle. (Dough should be between 1/4 - 3/8th of an inch.) Spread softened butter and sprinkle cinnamon sugar generously over the dough rectangle. Roll up like you are making a cinnamon roll, but before cutting - pinch the ends together to make a circle on the baking sheet. Every inch and a half, slice 2/3 of the way through the dough circle - leaving the centers connected together. Let rise for 1 hour. Bake at 350 for 18-20 minutes or until golden brown.

Doughnuts: Use a rolling pin to roll out and then cut according to desired shape. Let rise for 1 hour then deep fry until golden brown. (For doughnut balls, top of spice glass-type jar works well for cutter.


*As I was typing this recipe up, I was referencing and old cookbook that was typed up on a typewriter. The recipe is signed at the bottom by Blanche McAllister (David's grandma). I was also asking clarifying questions to Sue (David's mom) as I went - making sure that I included all of the tips and tricks. As I think about how many generations of women have used this recipe to make delicious rolls and Christmas treats, I am overcome with gratitude for their love, sacrifice, and hard work. I hope to be included in that line of strong, loving women someday.

Chip Bars

This is one of David's favorite treats. A super easy, yet crowd pleasing recipe. I swear these chip bars disappear like nobody's business around here.

Chip Bars

Ingredients:
1 sleeve (plus a couple) Graham Crackers
1/2 cup melted butter
Chocolate Chips
Butterscotch Chips
1 can sweetened condensed milk

Directions:
Crush graham crackers into small crumbs and spread evenly over bottom of a baking sheet. Drizzle melted butter overtop crumbs. Place chocolate and butterscotch chips over graham cracker crust covering completely. Pour sweetened condensed milk overtop as evenly as possible. Bake at 350 for 10-15 minutes or until chips and milk starts to brown. Let cool before cutting.

BBQ Pork Sandwiches

Have you noticed? Pork has been SO so affordable lately. I've been really trying to "pork" it up. (Which is word-for-word how I explained the recent pork influx to David earlier this afternoon.) I bought a pork roast for $3.84 and have been waiting for a yummy use for it. I decided that BBQ Pork Sandwiches fit the bill perfectly, and so I searched and searched for a recipe that I thought David would like. He asked what I was doing, and after I told him - he laughed and called his mom for her recipe. I don't know why I didn't think of that, but i'm so glad that he did.. because these sandwiches are easy and delicious!

BBQ Pork Sandwiches

Ingredients:
1 (2lb) pork roast
1 1/2 cups BBQ sauce
1/4 cup honey
1Tbs onion flakes

Directions:
Rinse pork roast (I did this because the ladies at Our Best Bites recommended it to prevent your roast from smelling like fish. I don't know if this is true, but I hate fish and so I couldn't risk it) and pat dry. Place in crockpot. Cover in honey, onion flakes, and 1 cup of BBQ sauce. Cook on low for 8-10 hours, or on high for 4-5 hours. Shred roast, add last 1/2 cup of BBQ sauce, and combine with all sauces in the crockpot. Cook for 30 more minutes in order for shredded pork to absorb more sauce. Serve warm on hard rolls or buns. Yum!

Sue's Homemade Macaroni and Cheese

This is one of David's family favorites. His mom's homemade mac and cheese. I'll be honest, this is such a simple recipe (in fact, Sue doesn't even use a recipe - she just eyeballs it) - but for some reason I ruined this dish every time I made it for the first several times because I kept trying to skip steps or add other ingredients.  However, this last time I made it I kept it simple and... success! Delicious success. Follow the instructions and you will be in delicious, warm, comfort food heaven.

Sue's Homemade Macaroni and Cheese
Source: Sue Peaden

Ingredients: 
Macaroni (6 cups cooked)
1/2 cup butter.
Flour
3 cups milk
Salt and Pepper
Onion Salt
5 cups grated cheddar cheese

Directions:
Melt butter in a pan. Add enough flour to make a roux. The consistency should be smooth and starting to thicken. You don't want it to get clumpy. Whisk in the 3 cups of milk. Salt, pepper, and onion salt to taste. Once the mixture starts to heat up, add 3-4 cups of grated cheddar cheese until the mixture starts to turn a light orange-ish color. (We like a lot of cheese, i'm sure you could cut this down). Stir the cheese in until melted.

Place cooked macaroni in a baking dish. Pour the mixture over-top and combine. Top with remaining cheese. Bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes. Enjoy!

Hot Salad

This is another Peaden family favorite from David's youth. It is fairly healthy, very filling, and definitely delicious. It has all the components of a taco salad, while maintaining it's own unique style and flavor. The best part is that it is so easy to make. The only hard part is that it doesn't make very good leftovers (and we are definitely leftover-lovin' people.)

Hot Salad
Source: Sue Peaden

Ingredients:
1/4 lb ground hamburger
Salt and Pepper (to taste)
Onion Salt and Garlic Salt (to taste) 
1 can chili con carne
1/2 cup salsa
Cheese (about 1 1/2 cups)
Tortilla Chips
Lettuce
Medium Mixing  Bowl

Directions:
Brown the ground beef in a skillet. When almost done, season with salt, pepper, onion salt, and garlic salt to taste. After ground beef is completely cooked through, add can of chili and 1/2 cup salsa. (Sometimes I add more salsa - it just depends on my mood.) Cook until heated through.

Wash and dry lettuce and place in the mixing bowl until it is about 2/3 the way full (it shrinks a lot before the meal is ready to serve). Crush up tortilla chips and mix with lettuce. How many tortilla chips is definitely personal preference - but we like a lot of chips. Grate cheddar cheese and add to chip/salad mixture.

Combine chip/salad/cheese mixture with meat/chili/salsa mixture and serve immediately. You could add toppings like olives, tomatoes, or sour cream - but we eat it like this and we love it.

(One things that we have tried recently is to make our own "hot salads" where you just mix the lettuce, chips, and cheese in a small bowl and then add on your topping. It works for us, where there are just two of us, and it makes for better leftovers. However, when you are feeding a lot of people - it's better to mix it all up before hand because then you don't run out of the meat mixture - it's all mixed up in the right ratios already. Thats just our two cents.)

*I would like to try this with corn in the meat/chili mixture. I think it would be yummy.

Enjoy!

Beef Stroganoff

This is one of the first meals I ever remember eating at my in-laws house. It's definitely a family favorite. It says to use round steak, but I use pretty much whatever steak is on sale (price-matching at Walmart is the key to getting a good deal.) Fry the meat, throw everything in the crockpot and enjoy!

Beef Stroganoff
Source: Sue Peaden

Ingredients:
1 lb round steak (thin)
3-4 cans cream of chicken soup
1/2 to 2/3 milk per can of soup
1/2 to 1 tub sour cream (to taste)
1 1/2 tsp worchestershire sauce
 Garlic Salt
Onion Salt
Salt
Pepper
Rice

Directions:
Combine cream of chicken soup, sour cream and Worcestershire sauce in large crock pot. (David combines it in a bowl, then transfers it to the crock pot.) Cut up steak into small pieces and brown in frying pan. Season with garlic salt, onion salt, salt and pepper to taste. Pour steak and all juices into crock pot with soup mixture. Cover and cook on low for 3 hours. (Sometimes we add a little bit of milk to make it a little more saucy.)

1/2 hour before stroganoff is done, cook rice. (We make 8 servings and then use this stroganoff for leftovers for the rest of the week.) Serve immediately.

Potato Supreme

This is David's very favorite meal. If you even compare it to another dish similar to it (i.e. funeral potatoes) he gets pretty grumpy. We have making it down to a two-part science. I love that we each have our own jobs and that we finish perfectly on time, every time. Try this out. It's warm, gooey, and delicious.

Potato Supreme
Source: Sue Peaden

Ingredients:
8-10 Medium Potatoes
1 Pint Sour Cream
2 Cans Cream of Chicken Soup
1 can of milk
2 tablespoons onion flakes
2 cups of corn flakes
3-5 cups of cheese
2 Tablespoons butter

Directions:
Boil potatoes 45 minutes until soft. Let cool. Peel and grate potatoes and put in 9X13 pan. In a medium size bowl mix sour cream and cream of chicken soup. Mix in 1 can of milk and then add cheese. In small frying pan saute onion flakes until brown and add to soup mix. Mix the majority of the soup mix with the potatoes. Use remaining soup mix to put a very thin layer of sauce on top of potato and soup mixture. Put the corn flakes in a ziplock baggie and crush into smaller pieces. Melt the butter, add to the baggie and mix together. Sprinkle corn flakes on the top. Cook at 350 degrees for 45 minutes. This meal can also be saved in the fridge and cooked the next day at 350 for 1 hour.

Creamy Italian Chicken

This is a Peaden Family Favorite. Warm, creamy, tasty, and oh-so easy! This is the perfect Sunday dinner and we really love it. 

Creamy Italian Chicken
Source: Sue Peaden

Ingredients:

3-4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
4 cans cream of chicken soup
1 pkg. dry italian dressing mix
1/4 c. water

1 pkg. cream cheese

1 c. milk (to consistency)

Directions:

Mix italian dressing with water. Place chicken in crock pot and cover with water/dressing mix. Cook on low for 3 hours. After those three hours are up, soften the cream cheese and mix with cream of chicken soup. Add milk to until you have reached a good consistency. (David and I like it a little thin - you don't have to add any milk if you don't want to.) Cook for one hour. Serve over rice.