Karen’s Pancakes

Here is another wonderful pancake recipe I enjoy making. When my husband and I got married, my cousin Brooke put together a family and friend’s recipe box. In this recipe box, my special friends and family submitted their most favorite recipes and a note for Matt and I to have. In the box, I discovered this delicious pancake recipe from a parent on my high school cross country team. This pancake recipe has been passed down through the generations, and is a family favorite. Enjoy!!

Karen’s Pancakes
Ingredients
1 1/4 cups flour
2 1/2 tsp baking powder
dash of salt
3 tbsp sugar
1 egg
1 cup milk
3 tbsp melted butter

Directions
1. Whisk all ingredients together in a large bowl.
2. Heat pan or griddle (do NOT add butter to pan or spray to pan; your butter is in the batter). If cooking on an electric stove, heat pan about 15 minutes on medium low setting. Pour batter into hot pan. When bubbles form, flip pancakes over. Cook until golden brown.

Oatmeal Dreams

These Oatmeal “Dream” cookies are another recipe out of Linda J. Amendt’s wonderful cookbook, “400 Sensational Cookies”. I made her Chocolate Chip Dream cookies, which were amazing, and these Oatmeal Dreams are just as delicious. They are called “Dream” cookies, because of the instant pudding mix, which gives these cookies their chewy, extremely soft and perfect texture. You’ll never make another cookie again that is not a “Dream” cookie, trust me! Enjoy!!!

Oatmeal Dreams
Ingredients
1 2/3 cups all-purpose flour
1 package (3.4 oz or 102 g) instant vanilla pudding mix
1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup vegetable shortening
1 cup packed dark brown sugar
2 eggs
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
3 1/4 cups quick-cooking rolled oats

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Line cookie sheets with parchment paper.
2. In a bowl, whisk together flour, pudding mix, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda and salt until well combined. Set aside.
3. In a large bowl, using an electric mixer on medium speed, cream butter, shortening and brown sugar until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in vanilla. Scrape down sides of bowl. On low speed or using a wooden spoon, gradually add flour mixture, beating until just blended. Gradually stir in oats.
4. Using a cookie scoop or spoons, drop tablespoonfuls (15 mL) of dough about 2 inches apart on prepared cookie sheets. Bake one sheet at a time in preheated oven for 8 to 10 minutes or until edges start to turn lightly golden.
5. Immediately slide parchment paper onto a wire cooling rack. Cool cookies for 5 minutes, then transfer from parchment paper to cooling rack and cool completely.

Yield: 3 1/2 dozen cookies
“400 Sensational Cookies”by Linda J. Amendt

Homemade Loaf Bread

This is my mom’s famous homemade loaf bread. A perfect combination of honey, oats, this chewy and soft bread is a recipe my family raves over! The bread is wonderful dipped in olive oil, or smeared in butter, and served with delicious spaghetti and meatballs! It makes 3 loaves and freezes very nicely. Make it today, and save the leftovers for later. Enjoy!

Homemade Loaf Bread

Yield: 3 loaves

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups milk
1 1/2 cups water
1/3 cup honey
1/2 stick butter
2 cups oats
7 cups bread flour, divided
2 packages rapid rise yeast
1 1/2 tsp salt
2 eggs

Instructions

Mix together the milk, water, honey, and butter and heat to 130 degrees.
Whisk together oats, 5 cups bread flour, yeast, and salt. Pour into bowl of electric mixer
In an electric mixer with a bread hook, pour hot mixture over dry ingredients and mix.
Add eggs. Knead with mixer until firm. Add 2 more cups of bread flour (you want a soft, but firm dough).
Place dough in a large, buttered bowl. Let rise in a warm place until double in size, about 20 to 30 minutes. If using regular yeast, allow 45 minutes to 1 hour.
Divide dough into 3 loaves (rounds or long loaves). Place in lightly buttered pans.
Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes.

Notes

Bread freezes nicely.

Flour’s Famous Banana Bread

Okay…I know I already have like 5 banana bread recipes on my blog, but one is our favorite of all time, and I am not just saying that!!!

The ground cinnamon addition adds a delectable flavor to this bread that is absolutely spectacular! My mom made this bread at her house and I had a slice three days later and it was still the moistest banana bread I have ever tasted. I insist you try this banana bread recipe and add it to your favorites!

The recipe comes from Joanne Chang’s cookbook called, “Flour: Spectacular Recipes from Boston’s Flour Bakery + Cafe”. Enjoy!

Flour’s Famous Banana Bread

Serves: 1 loaf

Recipe from “Flour: Spectacular Recipes from Boston’s Flour Bakery + Cafe” by Joanne Chang

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup plus 2 tbsp sugar
2 eggs
1/2 cup canola oil
3 1/2 bananas, very ripe, mashed
2 tbsp sour cream
1 tsp vanilla extract
3/4 cup walnuts, toasted and chopped

Instructions

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Butter a 9 x 5 inch pan.
Sift together dry ingredients.
Using a stand mixer fitted with the whip attachment, beat together the sugar and eggs on medium speed for 5 minutes.
On low speed slowly drizzle in the oil. Don’t pour the oil in all at once. Add it slowly so it has time to incorporate into the eggs and doesn’t deflate the air you have just beaten into the batter. Adding it should take about 1 minute. Add the bananas, sour cream, and vanilla and continue to mix on low speed until just combined.
Using a rubber spatula, fold in the flour mixture and the nuts just until thoroughly combined. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top.
Bake for 1 to 1 hour and 15 minutes or until golden brown on top and the center springs back when you press it. Let it cool in the pan on a wire rack for at least 30 minutes, and then pop it out of the pan to finish cooling.

Hot Chocolate Cakes (Molten Lava Cakes)

These Hot Chocolate Cakes, also known as Molten Lava Cakes, not only look fancy, but they taste like you have just eaten at an expensive 5-star restaurant. They are extremely easy to make, and pretty quick to make, start to finish, as well! The recipe come from one of my favorite places on the earth…you guessed it…Neiman Marcus! I strongly recommend that you buy “The Neiman Marcus Cookbook” by Kevin Garvin; it is wonderful! I made these Hot Chocolate Cakes this past weekend for my husband and two friends and they were a hit! The boys loved them and were in awe with how the inside was like pudding and the outside was like a brownie.

When you cut into these cakes, expect to be amazed when “chocolate lava”, or chocolate pudding consistency, pours out of the chocolate cake. When you make these, allow the cakes to “set up” just a little before you invert them on plates…otherwise, you’ll have a runny, pudding mess! The set up time allows for the cakes to maintain its brownie-like exterior, and pudding-like interior. Sprinkle them with powdered sugar and top with fresh raspberries. A scoop of vanilla ice cream melts wonderfully with the hot chocolate cakes!

If you happen to have leftovers, refrigerate the cakes, and the next day they taste just like fudge! I probably gained 5 pounds this weekend just on molten lava cakes! They are so delicious! Enjoy!

Hot Chocolate Cakes (Molten Lava Cakes)
Ingredients
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter
7 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped
2 Tbsp. Amaretto liqueur (I didn’t have)
4 large eggs
4 large egg yolks
3/4 cup flour
1 1/2 cups confectioner’s sugar
8 tsp. butter, for preparing dessert molds
8 tsp. granulated sugar, for preparing dessert molds

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Melt butter and chocolate and add Amaretto. Remove from double boiler and add eggs and egg yokes. Using a wire whisk, temper the yolks and chocolate while whisking to combine; the mixture will be very thick.
3. In a large bowl, sift together flour and confectioner’s sugar and then stir into chocolate mixture.
4. Spoon about 1/2 cup of mixture into each of the 8 buttered and sugar-sprinkled dessert molds with a diameter of 2 1/2 inches. Place molds on cookie sheet in oven.
5. Bake for 8-10 minutes (mine took about 10-15 minutes), until cakes are set on the outside. They will look like finished brownies on the outside, and will be soft like pudding in the inside.
6. Remove the cakes from the molds and serve immediately.

Yield: 8 individual molten cakes
Neiman Marcus Cookbook

Baked Macaroni and Cheese

Lately, every recipe I have posted has been my “favorite of all-time”. Well, this mac and cheese recipe is no exception. It is called “Baked Macaroni and Cheese” and is a recipe from the famous Food Network star, Alton Brown. My husband has complained in the past that my homemade macaroni and cheese is dry and not cheesy enough. I’ve even curdled the milk and cheese before, so it made the dish grainy. Well, this recipe is an exception…my husband LOVED Alton Brown’s mac and cheese and did not even mind the crispy panko bread crumb topping (he usually hates breadcrumbs on his macaroni). He had three servings and loved how saucy, cheesy, and flavorful this was.

Alton Brown is one of my favorite Food Network Chefs. Since I fell in love with his Vanilla Ice Cream recipe, I thought he might have a good mac and cheese recipe… he sure does! Alton Brown is scientific in his baking, and knows precisely what the correct ingredients are, the amounts, and how to bring out the best flavors in each dish. Baked Macaroni and Cheese is a winner, and I definitely recommend trying it! Enjoy!

Baked Macaroni and Cheese

Serves: 6-8

Ingredients

1/2 pound elbow macaroni
6 tbsp butter, divided
3 tbsp flour
1 tbsp powdered mustard
3 cups milk (I used 2 cups whole milk, and 1 cup skim milk)
1/2 cup yellow onion, finely diced
1 bay leaf (I omitted)
1/2 tsp paprika
1 large egg
12 ounces sharp cheddar, shredded
1 tsp kosher salt
Fresh black pepper
3 tbsp butter
1 cup panko bread crumbs

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
In a large pot of boiling, salted water cook the pasta to al dente.
While the pasta is cooking, in a separate pot, melt 3 tablespoons of butter. Whisk in the flour and mustard and keep it moving for about 5 minutes. Make sure it’s free of lumps. Stir in the milk, onion, bay leaf, and paprika. Simmer 10 minutes and remove bay leaf.
Temper in the egg. Stir in 3/4 of the cheese. Season with salt and pepper. Fold the macaroni into the mix and pour into a 2-quart casserole dish. Top with remaining cheese.
Melt remaining 3 tablespoons of butter in a saute pan and toss the bread crumbs to coat. Top the macaroni with the bread crumbs.
Bake for 30 minutes. Remove from oven and rest for 5 minutes before serving.

Notes

Source: Alton Brown

Chocolate Chip Dreams

All I can say about these, is that they are the best chocolate chip cookie in the whole entire world! There is a secret ingredient…instant vanilla pudding mix, that makes these cookies extremely moist, chewy and cake-like. To me, these cookies taste like the inside of giant $2.50 Neiman Marcus chocolate chip cookie you can buy. The only difference is that the Neimans’ cookie has coffee powder in them.

They are called Chocolate Chip “Dream” cookies in Linda J. Amendt’s “400 Sensational Cookbook”. Amendt writes in her cookbook, “Dream cookies are a unique type of drop cookie… rich, moist, tender and chewy and loaded with flavor. The secret to creating these wonderful cookies is the instant pudding mix added to the cookie dough. It not only adds flavor but gives the cookies their special texture and helps keep them moist…Because the instant pudding in the dough adds to the structure of the cookies, the dough doesn’t need to be chilled before baking…these cookies turn out better if you don’t chill the dough. They need to go in the oven before the pudding sets, which is what will happen if you chill the dough”.

Amendt also notes that if you slightly under-bake the cookies, they will be chewy and delightfully gooey. If baked tad bit longer, they will have a moist, cake-like texture.

*Please note… DO NOT use cook-and-serve pudding mix or sugar-free instant pudding mix, as they will significantly alter the flavor and texture of the cookies. The sugar-free pudding mix will make the cookies tough, flat, and will easily burn.

Again, I LOVED these cookies and definitely plan on making more…. you will see! Enjoy!

Chocolate Chip Dreams
Ingredients
2 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
1 package (3.4 oz of 102 g) instant vanilla pudding mix
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup vegetable shortening
2/3 cup packed light brown sugar
1/3 cup granulated sugar
2 eggs
2 tsp vanilla extract
2 cups chopped semisweet chocolate or semisweet chocolate chips
1 cup chopped walnuts

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Prepare cookie sheets lined with parchment paper.
2. In a bowl, whisk together flour, pudding mix, baking powder, baking soda and salt until well combined. Set aside.
3. In a large bowl, using an electric mixer on medium speed, cream butter, shortening, brown sugar and granulated sugar until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in the vanilla. Scrape down sides of bowl. On low speed or using a wooden spoon, gradually add flour mixture, beating just until blended. By hand, fold in chocolate and walnuts.
4. Using a cookie scoop or spoons, drop tablespoonfuls (15 mL) of dough about 2 inches (5 cm) apart on prepared cookie sheets. Bake one sheet at a time in preheated oven for 8 to 10 minutes or until edges start to turn lightly golden.
5. Immediately slide parchment paper onto a wire cooling rack. Cool cookies for 5 minutes, then transfer from parchment paper to cooling rack and cool completely.

“400 Sensational Cookies” by Linda J. Amendt

Yield: 3 1/2 dozen cookies

Buttery Buttermilk Biscuits

Wow! These buttermilk biscuits are amazing and my all-time favorite! They are so buttery, flakey, and moist! Perfect for jam or honey and a great side with grilled chicken, pork chops, or steaks! This recipe comes from former executive pastry chef, Nick Malgieri’s cookbook, “Bake! Essential Techniques for Perfect Baking”. These are actually a modification of “Sourdough Biscuits” in Malgieri’s cookbook; the only difference is that these biscuits use buttermilk instead of whole milk, and baking soda is added to the recipe. Enjoy!

Buttery Buttermilk Biscuits
Ingredients
3 cups all-purpose flour
2 tbsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
14 tbsp (1 3/4 sticks) unsalted butter, cold and cut into 12 pieces
1 1/4 cups buttermilk

Directions
1. Set a rack in the middle level of the oven and preheat to 425 degrees.
2. Combine the flour baking powder, soda, and salt in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the metal blade and pulse several times to mix.
3. Add the butter and pulse again repeatedly until no visible pieces of butter remain and the mixture is still cool and powdery, but not pasty.
4. Invert to a mixing bowl and carefully remove the blade. Add the buttermilk and use a rubber spatula to scrape upward from the bottom of the bowl and moisten the dough as evenly as possible.
5. Invert the contents of the bowl to a floured work surface. Press the dough into a 6- to 7- inch square, then fold it in three: Fold the bottom third of the dough closest to you up over the middle third, then fold the top third down over that. Press it out again a little longer in the length and repeat the folding into thirds, this time from the short ends. Press the dough back out into a 6- to 7- inch square.
6. Use a 2- to 2 1/2- inch plain round cutter, flouring it before each cut, to cut out the biscuits. Cut straight down and don’t twist the cutter or the biscuits won’t bake straight-sided. Cut them close together to avoid generating too many scraps.
7. Press the scraps together into a rectangle only as wide as your cutter and three times as long. Cut out three more biscuits and discard the remaining scraps.
8. Arrange the biscuits about 1 inch apart on the prepared pans. For advance preparation, cover the pans with plastic wrap and chill the biscuits for up to 2 hours before baking, then bake them straight from the refrigerator, without returning them to room temperature. If you intend to prepare the biscuits in advance, preheat the oven only about 20 minutes before baking.
9. Bake the biscuits until they are deep golden and well risen, 15 to 20 minutes. Let the baked biscuits cool for a couple of minutes on the pan before serving.

Yield: 12 biscuits

“Bake! Essential Techniques for Perfect Baking” by Nick Malgieri

Cold Banana Pudding

I love banana pudding! I know this is a “summer dessert”, but I recently got sick and when I’m sick, I crave pudding. So… here is a recipe for my mother-in-law’s “Cold Banana Pudding”. It is different from traditional banana pudding because there are no eggs. The only ingredients you’ll need are instant pudding mix, skim milk, Eagle Brand milk, Cool Whip, bananas, and Nilla wafers! You don’t need a stove or an oven!

My mother-in-law, Paula, is famous in our family for her Cold Banana Pudding. She makes it every time we go to the lake house… I’d say it has become a lake house tradition! I think in two days, our family cleaned this entire pan! I love it cold…hence the name, “Cold” Banana Pudding. Try it today and see what you think!

Paula and I use instant vanilla pudding, but you can use the instant banana flavored mix for that extra “banana” taste. Enjoy!

Layer a 9 x 13 inch pan with Nilla wafers and sliced bananas.

Combine pudding mix with 2 1/2 cup cold skim milk. Stir constantly for 2 minutes, or until pudding thickens.

Pour in sweetened condensed milk, then fold in cool whip. Mix until smooth.

Cold Banana Pudding

Prep time: 10 mins

Total time: 10 mins

Serves: 12

Ingredients

1 large package (6 oz) instant vanilla pudding mix
2 1/2 cups cold skim milk
1 can (14 oz) Eagle Brand sweetened condensed milk
8 ounce Cool Whip
Nilla Wafers
3 sliced bananas

Instructions

Line the bottom of a 9 x 13 inch pan with Nilla wafers and sliced bananas.
Mix together the instant pudding and milk. Add Eagle Brand milk. Fold in cool whip. Combine until smooth.
Pour the mixture over the wafers and bananas. Garnish with crushed wafers.
Chill until ready to serve. Store leftovers in refrigerator.

Great Pumpkin Bread

I have yet to make a pumpkin bread recipe on my own, but I thought I would share with you a delicious and homemade pumpkin bread recipe that a wonderful parent made for me at my school. The recipe is called “Great Pumpkin Bread”, and comes out of the Waco Junior League Cookbook. (Junior League Cookbooks always have great recipes!)

My student’s parent says that “this is delicious thinly sliced and spread with a mixture of cream cheese and orange or pineapple marmalade”. She likes it best with strawberry cream cheese. I did not have cream cheese, and since I love Stonewall Kitchen’s Maple Pumpkin Butter, that is what I put on my pumpkin bread!

Great Pumpkin Bread

Yield: 2 (9×5-inch) loaves

Ingredients

1 cups plus 2 tbsp oil
3 cups sugar
3 eggs
1 tbsp vanilla
3 cups flour
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp each of cloves, ginger, and nutmeg
1 tsp salt
2 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
1 (16 ounce) can pumpkin
1 cup pecans, chopped

Instructions

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Grease and flour 2 (9 x 5) inch loaf pans.
Blend together oil, sugar, eggs, and vanilla. Set aside.
Mix dry ingredients together and add to mixture.
Add pumpkin and pecans and mix well.
Bake for approximately 1 hour.

Notes

Recipe from: Waco Jr. League Cookbook