Fadedwords

    I took this recipe from The Lady and Sons Savannah Country Cookbook. I ate this at Paula’s restaurant while I was in Savannah, and immediately knew that I had to get the recipe. I lucked out when I bought one of her signed books, as it had this recipe. It’s quite cheesy and quite tasty.

• 4 cups cooked elbow macaroni, drained (approximately 2 cups uncooked)
• 2 cups grated cheddar cheese (I just put in a whole bag of pre shredded)
• 3 eggs, beaten
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) butter, cut into pieces
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup milk

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. After macaroni has been boiled and drained, add cheddar cheese while macaroni is still hot. Combine remaining ingredients and add to macaroni mixture. Pour into casserole dish and bake for 30-45 minutes. Top with additional cheese if desired.

*serves 6-8

I got this recipe from Paula Deen.  I was hesitant to try it, as I had never seen a picture and wasn’t exactly sure what I was trying to achieve.  I decided that the worst thing would be for it to be gross, and I got ice cream bars in case that happened.  Luckily, the exact opposite was the case.  It was amazing.  As a warning, it is extremely rich.  A little goes a long way.

Cake
1 (18.25-ounce) box yellow cake mix
1 egg
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, melted
Filling
1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened
2 eggs
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 (16-ounce) box confectioners’ sugar
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, melted

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a 13×9x2-inch baking pan.
In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine cake mix, egg, and butter and
mix well. Pat into the bottom of prepared pan and set aside.
Still using an electric mixer, beat cream cheese until smooth; add eggs
and vanilla. Dump in confectioners’ sugar and beat well. Reduce speed of
mixer and slowly pour in butter. Mix well.
Pour filling onto cake mixture and spread evenly. Bake for 40 to 50
minutes. Don’t be afraid to make a judgment call on the cooking time,
because oven temperatures can vary. You want the center to be a little
gooey, so don’t bake it past that point!
Remove from oven and allow to cool completely. Cut into squares.

Remember, they are REALLY rich.  A little goes a very long way, and I think just a tiny bit of vanilla ice cream on top would help cut that.  I highly recommend it though; it’s any easy recipe, yields a lot, and tastes fantastic.

The following recipe is something that Mom and Dad made while I was home.  I loved it so much that I decided I would try making it for Jake to see what he thought.  He loved it so much when I made it on Sunday, that he was asking me to make it again by Monday.

1 (8 oz) package pre-chopped green bell pepper,celery, and onion

1 teaspoon bottled minced garlic

1 (6 oz) package Italian flavored cooked chicken breast strips

2 (3.3 oz) links pesto flavored chicken-turkey sausage
we like the garlic and herb flavored better but any will do

1 ( 9 oz) package refrigerated fettuccine

2 (14.5 oz) cans dice tomatoes with italian herbs, undrained

1/4 cup ( 1 oz) fresh grated Parmesan cheese

Heat a large non stick coated with cooking spray over medium high heat. Add vegetable mixture and garlic, saute until tender. Remove into another bowl

Coat chicken breast strips and sausage with cooking spray; add to pan. Saute’ over medium high heat or until lightly brown.

while sausage cooks, cook pasta according to package directions

Return sauteed vegetables to pan add tomatoes simmer until pasta is done.

Add pasta to the above. Toss gently Sprinkle with cheese. and serve. More cheese at plate if you want.

You can also use hot Italian sausage instead of the turkey sausage. That’s what we’ve done, less because we didn’t want the turkey sausage but more because I couldn’t find turkey sausage. This is an amazing recipe either way, which I can attest to because I’ve had it both ways.

Jake and I have had this for dinner Sunday, Wednesday, Thursday and tonight.  I also had it for lunch on Thursday.  He calls it the ‘Big Pot O’ Goodness’.  It is incredibly tasty, and good for you if you avoid the hot sausage. 

One of my friends at school, Mrs. H, makes these amazing little snacks and she let me have her recipe.  They’re incredibly easy and are very tasty.

Ingredients:
1 sleeve of honey graham crackers
1  cup of butter
1 cup of brown sugar (firmly packed)
nuts and other toppings (your choice… see bottom!)

Directions:
-preheat oven to 350
-arrange graham crackers on a cookie sheet
-combine butter and brown sugar in a bowl.  microwave for 3-4 minutes, stirring halfway through.
-spread butter/sugar mixture over the graham crackers and bake for 5-6 minutes or until light brown and bubbly.
-add toppings and bake for 2 more minutes

You can use any flavor chips (chocolate, peanut butter, butterscotch).  You can put nuts on top (if you do this, put the nuts on before you bake for the 5 minutes).  You can use coconut.  You can use raisins or cranberries.  Really use your imagination.  I made a batch today with heath bar pieces and butterscotch chips.  Very yummy.

If I started writing about the extremely negative situation that has arisen since we got back, I might never stop… not to mention I’m at work and I try not to break down and cry here. 

So instead I will share Jake’s step-mom, Thelma’s, recipe for mashed potatoes.
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