Pumpkin Pie Cake

My ultimate fall pumpkin dessert follows.  Just thinking of you all!

Pumpkin Pie Cake

Preheat oven to 350°.

Dump all these things in a blender and blend on low just until thoroughly mixed (or use mixer):

4 eggs

12oz. can evaporated milk

29oz.canned pumpkin (or two small 15oz. cans)

1 ¼ cup sugar

2 ½ tsp. cinnamon

1 tsp. ground nutmeg

1/8 tsp. ground ginger (optional)

1/8 tsp. ground cloves (optional)

Pour into ungreased 9x13 pan, preferably metal.

Sprinkle these 3 things on top of pumpkin mixture in this order:

-1 box yellow cake mix, dry (I sometimes use 1 ½ boxes when I make it for my husband…it’s his favorite part!).

-1 cup chopped pecans. Lightly pat down pecans so not sticking out above cake mix to prevent over-browning.

-¾ cup melted butter.

Bake in center of oven for 1 hour.

Cool to room temperature or serve cold from the refrigerator with a scoop of Cool Whip on top.  Store covered in fridge.

Snow Day EASY Peanut Butter Cookies Recipe

1 egg, beaten with fork
1 cup sugar
1 cup peanut butter

(That's right, 3 things, nothing else!)

Preheat: 350 degrees. Stir together. Put balls of dough on baking sheet, about 16. Press criss-cross with fork. Bake about 15 minutes or until cracked appearance and starting to brown.

I think it tastes like the inside of a Reese's Peanut Butter Cup.  Andrew and Linc love to make and eat these! So easy!

Baked Pork Chops

My mom gave me this recipe. It has quickly become a family favorite. Super easy & healthy! Tristan LOVES the pork chops, tonight he almost ate an entire one himself! :)

Ingredients:
*1.5 pounds pork chops (approx. 6-8 thin chops, doesn't have to be exact, just buy one package)
*1 medium white onion, cut into large strips or chunks
*1 green pepper (2 if small), cut into large strips or chunks
*1 can stewed tomatoes, drained

(what it looks like before baking)


Directions:
*Preheat oven to 350-375.
*Season pork chops with garlic powder & onion powder, small amount of salt and pepper if desired.
*Heat small amount of olive oil in skillet on med-high heat. Brown pork chops by cooking 2-3 min on each side. (I do this in 2 batches so I don't have to use a giant skillet)
*Place browned pork chops in bottom of 9x13 glass dish.
*Top with onions, green pepper, and tomatoes.
*Cover with foil & bake for 1 hour.

The finished product. We like to serve with some kind of potatoes. YUMMY!!!

Parmesan Zucchini

This is a Pioneer Woman recipe. It is one of our favorites right now!

* 1 whole Large Zucchini
* 1 Tablespoon Minced Garlic
* ½ cups (to 3/4 Cup) Breadcrumbs
* ½ cups 4-cheese Italian Blend (or Parmesan Or Romano)
* 2 whole Eggs
* Salt to Taste
* Freshly Ground Black Pepper, To Taste
* Olive Oil

Preparation Instructions

Wash and cut the end off of one large zucchini. Shred it using the large holes of a cheese grater. Squeeze the shredded zucchini inside of a clean towel until you’ve removed as much liquid as possible.

Place shredded zucchini into a medium sized bowl. Add minced garlic, breadcrumbs, cheese (shredded), eggs, salt and pepper to taste. Stir with a fork until well mixed.

Heat olive oil (about ¼ inch deep in bottom of skillet) to a medium heat. When the oil is hot enough drop a glob of zucchini batter into the skillet and flatten it a bit. After about two minutes, turn the cakes over ( they should be nice golden-brown) and cook on the other side until done (about 2-3 minutes).

Smoothies

½ banana
½ cup of frozen fruit
2 tablespoons of plain no fat yogurt
a splash of milk
½ scoop(that comes in the slimfast) of vanilla slimfast powder

Our frozen fruits of choice are peaches and pineapples.
This only makes enough for 1 smoothie. So you can double it if needed.

Salsa Soup

Salsa Soup

1 or 2 chicken breast(s)
¼ onion -diced
1 can of chicken stock
1 can of refried beans
1 can of black beans
2 cups salsa
optional:cilantro and lime juice

Brown chicken and onions in bottom of pot, or just buy a rotisserie chicken and shred it. Add chicken stock, refried beans, black beans, 2 cups of salsa, and a squirt of lime juice and a handful of cilantro.
Simmer for about 30 mins. We add sour cream and avocado to top

limeade

we love to make these at home only we don't add the cherry. They are so good and refreshing on a hot day!

Ingredients: Simple syrup: 1 cup of water 1 cup of sugar Juice of fresh limes grenadine/ marshino cherry juice club soda ice Directions: Bring water and sugar to a boil , let cool. Cut limes in half, use 1 lime per beverage, squeeze juice into glass leave lime in glass, put 1/4 cup of simple syrup, 2 tbls grenadine or cherry juice, shake or mix together, add ice and soda. christin