Chocolate Cake

Taste Like Liquid Almond Joy Hot Chocolate

8 ounces Blue Diamond unsweetened Almond Coconut Milk, one tablespoon of Lopez Coconut Milk, liquid Hershey syrup to your liking.  Heat in the microwave for one minute or more depending on your microwave or tenderness to heat.  Stir!  It will warm the cockles of your heart! 💗

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How To Prepare Butternut Squash

This is a video on how to prepare butternut squash.  Devin Godbey was our Program Director for Culinary Arts on location at The University of Charleston Beckley campus .  Unfortunately, we no longer have a Culinary Arts Program however, Devin is preparing for her next big step.  She is receiving her Masters and who knows what is next for her.  I hope this video for preparing Butternut squash is helpful https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I-vFTlAYk9g Also check out the article in our local Register-Herald Newspaper http://www.register-herald.com/features/x1782774093/A-taste-embrace/?state=taberU

Buffalo Chicken Dip

This is another one of my sister's recent recipes.  I missed out on getting to try it during the Super Bowl Party that she had but my husband said it was very good!  My sister said that my husband had a pile of it and kept coming back for more!  I asked her for this recipe just for the blog.
We have been in the middle of an on going and prolonged move.  I am back and forth between Tennessee and West Virginia often and despite my usual lag in posting something new this has truly been a bit CrAzY to say the least! I am easily sidetrack to begin with so adding a move to my organized disorganization really messes me up!
My husband just took a job as the Regional President for The University of Charleston/Beckley and Martinsburg campuses.  I am very excited to help him rebuild these two campuses in anyway that I can assist him.  And I am especially excited to get involved with our Culinary Arts Program, which by the way has an  amazing facility!  To check out information about what the UC/ Beckley Culinary Arts Program offers check out http://www.ucwv.edu/content.aspx?id=3160&terms=culinary%20arts With this excitement in mind and looking forward into the year I hope to have some great recipes and news to share as the program begins to grow!

No-Bake Peanut Butter Cheesecake

Makes 10 servings

prep time: 10 minutes plus refrigeration

1-  8 oz pkg..cream cheese Greek yogurt (new!)

1- 14 oz. can of condensed milk

1 1/4 cup COOL WHIP whipped topping (it doesn't have to be thawed)

1 cup peanut butter

1 OREO Pie Crust (6oz)

SPOON all four pie filling ingredients into a large bowl.  Use hand-mixer or power mixer and beat on med-high until well blended, smooth and fluffy.  About 2-3 minutes.  

POUR into pie crust.

REFRIGERATE 3-4 hours or until set.  Garnish with fruit, whip topping and/or cookie crumbs.  Store leftover pie in the refrigerator.

Super easy, full of protein and yummy!

*I found my Greek yogurt at Kroger's.  It was hard to find elsewhere.  Larger cities will not have difficulty, I imagine!

Party Meatballs

In the spirit and on this Super Bowl Sunday, I thought that it would be fitting to share my sister's "Party Meatball" recipe!  As I have mentioned in the past, she is an amazing cook!  On a day of common interest in sports, possibly not in the same team; nevertheless, it gives us a chance to engage in the simple pleasure of social communion!  Have a blast!

                                   

Sour Cream Pound Cake (Crusty Top)

In honor of my husband's birthday I will post his favorite cake and the cake that he requests every year on this day. He is a plain Jane kind of a guy. But this is a great pound cake recipe if you like heavy, crusty top pound cake! ;0)

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Savannah, GA Inspired Pralines!

I'm from the South...I'm totally SOUTHERN...so I say "ˈpräw-ˌlēen" some up north say....präy-lēn.   After two days of visiting last week in Savannah, GA and the feeling of southern comforts, I was reminded of my maternal grandmother's gift of candy making and baking the finest creamy goodies that I have ever tasted, bar none!
As we bopped in the Savannah Candy Store and were offered a warm praline sample, I was immediately reminded of my grandmother's amazing talents, candy making and baking.  I called my mom to get her old recipe. The recipe is part of the magic but mastering candy making is something else!

Brick Oven Pizza On A Grill! (My sister's recipe)

Dough

2 c flour

1tbs olive oil

1Tbs sugar or Splenda

1 tsp salt

1 cup warm water ( mix this with your package of yeast)

1 pack quick rise yeast

Mix all four ingredients then add water and yeast mixture. Knead dough adding flour as necessary until soft and pliable but not sticky. Let the dough rise about 1 hour.



Sauce

1/4 c chopped onion

2 cloves garlic crushed

1Tbs olive oil

1 small 6 ounce tomato paste

1 small 14.5 ounce can tomato sauce no salt added

2 cans of water (use sauce can)

2 tsp sugar or Splenda

salt and pepper to taste

(about 1/2 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp pepper)

Sauté onion, garlic and olive oil (dash of salt and pepper) on low heat until tender. Stir in sauce, paste, water, sugar, salt and pepper increase heat until bubbles then turn down to low and simmer about 20 minutess. (or more)
Pat the dough out on a pizza pan or cookie sheet with cornmeal mix so that it won't stick. Make it as thin as you like it. Top with sauce, cheese and toppings of your choice, whatever you like...but roasted peppers are a must! ;0)
Heat the grill with 8 bricks lined up close together in two rows, matching end on end. Set the thermostat on high for 15-20 min. Then slide the pizza onto the bricks and cook on about 500 for 10 min.
Remove with a spatula or a wooden pizza paddle onto a pizza pan or serving dish. Cut, eat and keep eating!

My sister emailed me this recipe earlier this week after she shared it with me during a phone conversation. We had talked about this pizza place and Irish pub in Cocoa Beach, Florida that she had told us about.  We went and boy the pizza was excellent!!!  She was talking about how she was craving some pizza like that and it must have inspired her to try the grill out!   I told her that she needed to do a blog. She chuckled and said no, “I’ll send you the recipe and you can blog!”  My sister enjoys cooking and is excellent at it.  She stays abreast of new and innovative ways to cook and experiments often.  She rarely ever follows a recipe, I cook a lot like that too and my mom and grandparents were the same way.  I’m hoping that I can get my sister to share several of her best recipe ideas since she often cooks with a diabetic in mind.  That is why she often will say that you can use Splenda in place of sugar.   I’m guessing that this would be better for all of us!    

*Click on the recipe to view in a larger format and feel free to print a copy for your use.

Lemon Chess Pie

Lemony, buttery goodness...need I say more? Yummy! It seems like every time I make this pie it has a slightly different texture but it always taste so good!

*Click on the recipe to view in a larger format and you may print these recipes for your uses.





Holiday Sweet Potatoes

It is that time of year so I thought I would post this yummy recipe. It is great for Thanksgiving and I serve it as a main dish. It is good and sweet enough to be a dessert! We just had it tonight for dinner. I joked that it was a trial run for Thanksgiving. We had everything but the dressing and cranberries!

Quick And Easy Chocolate Ice Cream Syrup

There have been many times when I have whipped up a batch of this chocolate syrup. Nick, my son-in-law has become a big fan of my ice cream sundaes. When I cannot think of anything quick and chocolate that I want for dessert, I turn to this for fast satisfying results.   I'll give a shout... "Who wants an ice cream sundae?" And usually everyone replys, "ME"! All you need is the vanilla ice cream and some bananas!






Southern Pecan Pie

This is my favorite pecan pie recipe. It is extremely easy to whip up! I truly have a terrible time walking past it if I bake one. I end up being the one to consume most of the pie! It is an excellent choice for the Fall or anytime that you can find good fresh pecans! If you find that your oven is browning the pie more than you like, rotate it half way through the baking time and cover with aluminum foil (make sure you tent the foil so that it is lifted away from the pie filling). You might even try the release (non-stick foil to avoid the filling rising and sticking to your foil tent )

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*Click on the recipe  to view in a larger format and you may print these recipes for your uses.


Strawberry Pie

This is a great summer pie to make when strawberries are fresh and tasty. I always have lots of questions on how to make it when I take it to a cookout with friends and it is the easiest thing to make. My mother came up with the filling recipe instead of the store bought filling and somewhere along the way we decided that it would be good to add cream cheese in the bottom of the pie crust. We all agreed that the cream cheese makes the pie extra yummy!

 *Click your mouse on the recipe to open the larger image for viewing or printing.

Angel Kissed Apple Pecan Cake

In 2005 I came up with this recipe while making cakes to give away as a thank you or gift. Then the next thing I knew I had people asking me to bake fairly often. I don't have a commercial kitchen so I only do that sort of thing as a favor.

Our Family's Seafood Gumbo Recipe

I was born in Mississippi and grew up playing along the bayou. As young children my cousins, siblings and I learned to spear fish, flounder, crab and fish with a pole too. At night we would get our gas lamps ready and head for the beach or the bayou front at low tide and wade through the water to spear a catch. We always kept crab traps out for routine checking during the day from the dock. And when we caught these bayou treasures it meant cleaning and storage or cooking. I think I have known how to clean and prepare a crab since I was about 5 years old. I never enjoyed the fish cleaning process! And I have beheaded thousands of shrimp for cooking or freezing for later use. A nasty job indeed!
We also had several ponds on our family's property, one was our swimming hole and an interesting spot to fish. The water was brackish due to its close proximity to the bayou and a culvert that ran under the road, which allowed the exchange and mixture of waters. We had an interesting mix of both saltwater and fresh water fish. And we were only minutes from the local dock where fresh shrimp and other seafood were sold, not quite a market…but fresh off the boats!
For almost every special occasion year around, we had gumbo at family gatherings. I have fond memories of family gatherings that usually added up to twenty five or more of us in the large dining room that faced the bayou. And all of our meals ended up with someone playing the grand piano. Unfortunately the old family home place was lost in Katrina. But those memories are always as sweet as ever when I begin a big pot of gumbo! I hope that you will enjoy the recipe. LEFT CLICK YOUR MOUSE OVER THE RECIPES AND IT SHOULD ENLARGE FOR PRINTING AND READING PURPOSE.

 

Corn Casserole

This is a newer recipe for our family. Our daughter-in-law Christina started making this in 2006. It has become one of our family's favorites. It is easy to make ahead and great for a large group. You can simply double the ingredients and feed 12 or more. You will need to allow for a little longer cooking time. Sometimes if the sides are browning fast I stir the mixture and smooth it back out in order for the center to cook faster. Left click recipe to view:

Chicken Spaghetti

This is one our family's all time favorite meals. It takes some time to cook down but it is well worth the wait. I also find that using a mini chopper/food processor speeds up the preparation time!

Banana Nut Bread

This is Laura's (our daughter) favorite muffin. When she was pregnant she craved them often!

Chocolate Chip Cookies

I've been baking these cookies for years. My family and friends seem to enjoy them. I started using the parchment paper on my baking sheet for optimal results.  I hope that you will enjoy this recipe too.