Simply Oven Baked Pork Chops and Rice

Ingredients

• 1 (10 3/4 ounce) cans cream of mushroom soup
• 1 1/2 cups water
• 1 cup long grain rice ( uncooked)
• 1/4 onions, sliced
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• 3 -4 pork chops
• salt and pepper ( to taste)

Directions

1. Stir together soup, water, rice and 1/4 teaspoons pepper in a 3 quart casserole.
2. Add onions.
3. Salt and pepper chops and place on top of rice.
4. Cover and bake at 350* for 1 1/4 hours or until meat is done and liquid is absorbed.
5. Remove from oven and let rest 5 minutes.

Peanut Butter Banana Oatmeal Treats

• 2 ripe bananas
• ½ cup chunky peanut butter (approx.)
• 1 egg
• ¼ cup honey
• ¼ cup water
• ½ tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 Tbs cinnamon
• ¼ cup dry powdered milk
• ¼ cup canola oil (or other vegetable oil)
• 1 cup whole wheat flour
• ½ cup dry oatmeal
• 2 cups flour (approx.)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350° F (180° C).

Combine peeled bananas, peanut butter, egg, honey, water and baking soda in food processor (or mixing bowl). Blend well. Add baking powder, cinnamon, dry milk, and oil. Blend well again. Add whole wheat flour and oatmeal. Blend well again. Add bread flour a little at a time, blending after each addition, until it's the consistency of bread dough. Knead for a few minutes. (You could also make the dough in a bread machine using the dough cycle.)

Let the dough sit, covered under a bowl for about 15 minutes, then roll out to about ¼ to ½ inch thick on a floured board. Cut into shapes with cookie cutters or cut into small 1 to 2 inch squares using a pizza-cutter.

Spray cookie sheets with nonstick spray, place dough on sheets, and bake on middle rack in for 30 minutes, until bottom of cookies are golden brown. Turn oven off and leave cookies in oven for eight to twelve hours to harden.

Makes about five dozen, depending cookie size.

Peanut Butter Banana Oatmeal Cookies

1 cup all purpose flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar
2 tbsp butter, room temperature
1 large egg
1/2 cup peanut butter
1/4 cup mashed banana (from 1 sm/med)
1 1/2 cups quick-cooking rolled oats (not instant)
(I doubled the recipe and added a bag of chocolate & peanut butter chips!)

Preheat oven to 350F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
In a large bowl, cream together sugars and butter. Beat in egg until smooth, then mix in the peanut butter and mashed banana. Working by hand or with a mixer on low speed, blend dry ingredients into the peanut butter mixture. Stir in the oats.

Shape dough into tablespoons and place on baking sheet, flattening each slightly with your fingers.
Bake for 10-12 minutes, until cookies just begin to turn golden around the edges.
Cool on a wire rack.

Strawberry Shortcake

4 cups fresh strawberries, rinsed, hulled, and sliced
4 – 6 tablespoons sugar (adjust to suit your own taste)
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
4 tablespoons sugar
1/3 cup cold butter, cut into small pieces
1/2 cup cold milk
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
whipped cream (I prefer the real thing)

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

In a medium bowl, stir together the strawberries and sugar. Set strawberries aside to macerate while you prepare the shortcakes. In a separate bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and sugar. Using a pastry blender or your fingertips, and working quickly, cut or rub the butter into the flour until it resembles coarse crumbs. Add milk and vanilla all at once to flour mixture and stir until just combined.

Using a large spoon, drop mixture into four equal piles on an ungreased baking sheet. Bake 12 – 15 minutes at 425 degrees. Remove biscuits to a rack and let cool for a few minutes. To serve, split a warm biscuit in two, spoon 1/4 of the berry mixture over the bottom half (make sure you include lots of the juice), top with whipped cream and the other half of the biscuit.

Crock Pot Banana Bread

My students LOVED this!!!!

Ingredients

2 Eggs

1/2 Cup Butter (softened stick, or melted in microwave)

1 Cup Sugar

2 Cup Flour

1 Teasponn Baking Powder

1/2 Teaspoon Baking Soda

1/2 Teaspoon Salt

3 Medium Bananas Mashed

Additional ingredients if you choose:

1 Cup Chocolate Chips

1 Cup Chopped Walnuts

Instructions

1. In a bowl, combine butter, eggs and sugar. Mix well.
2. Add in baking powder, baking soda, salt and 1 cup flour. Mix well.
3. Add in last cup of flour. Mixture should be thick.
4. Mash Bananas well and then add to mixture. Mix well.
5. If you chose to add in the extra ingredients, do so now.
6. Butter small crock dish and pour mixture in.
7. Cook in 6 quart crock pot for 4 hours on low. Top should be slightly brown. Bread will bounce back to the touch.

Cake Mix Cookies

Ingredients:

1 Yellow Cake Mix

1/3 cup water

1/3 cup butter, melted

1 egg

candy sprinkles (optional)

Directions: Mix eggs, water, oil, and cake mix. After well mixed, add sprinkles. Roll into balls and place on greased cookie sheet or cookie sheet covered in parchment paper. Place about 2 inches apart. Bake at 350 degrees for about 15 minutes. (Makes 2 dozen cookies)

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Shortbread Cookies

1 stick, (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, room temp
1/3 cup creamy peanut butter
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/4 cup all purpose flour
1/4 cup confectioner's sugar
scant 1/2 tsp sea salt
3/4 cup milk chocolate chips

• Cream the butter and the peanut butter together in a stand mixer, with a hand mixer, or a wooden spoon. Beat in the vanilla.
• Whisk the dry ingredients together and add to the butter mixture. Mix until the dough comes together.
• Stir in the chips, and turn the dough out onto a piece of waxed paper. Gently pull the dough together and form it into a log. If it is still crumbly, work it with your hands until it holds together smoothly. Roll it up in the paper, smoothing the shape as you go. Twist the ends securely and refrigerate for at least a couple of hours.
• Slice the log into slices with a sharp knife. Not too thick, not too thin, about 1/3 inch. If a slice crumbles a bit, just smoosh the dough back together. These don't have to be perfect disks.
• Bake on a parchment or silpat lined baking sheet at 325 for about 12-14 minutes. The cookies will not be browned, and they may look undone, but don't over bake. One of the joys of shortbread cookies is that they fall apart and melt in your mouth.
• Let the cookies cool on the pan for 5 minutes before transferring to a rack.

Ranch Porch Chops

1. Ranch Dressing In A Bottle.
2. 3 Cups Fine Dry Italian Bread Crumbs.
3. 1 Small Package Dry Italian Dressing Mix.
4. 2 Tablespoons Fresh Grated Parmesan Cheese.
5. 1 Tablespoon Dry Powdered Garlic.
6. 6 Large Loin Pork Chops.

You will want to mix ingredients 2 - 5 in a large bowl and mix together very well. Now pour a layer of ranch dressing out into a plate. Take one pork chop at a time and coat it on the plate with ranch dressing and then put the pork chop with the ranch dressing on it into the large bowl with the bread crumbs and coat it well on all sides. Add more ranch dressing to the plate if you need to.
Have your tin foil lined baking pan setting there ready. Spray the tinfoil with vegetable cooking spray. Place your breaded pork chops onto the tinfoil covered pan and once you have all your pork chops on the pan place it into the oven and bake for 45 minutes or until the thick part of your pork chops reach an internal temperature of 160 degrees. As soon as your pork chops are done remove from the pan and serve as soon as possible.

Yogurt Rice

Ingredients

• 1 cup jasmine rice
• 2 cups water
• 1 tablespoon ghee (clarified butter)
• 1 dried red chile pepper, broken in half (optional)
• 1 teaspoon black mustard seeds
• 1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
• 4 fresh curry leaves
• 1 pinch asafoetida powder (optional)
• 1/4 cup milk
• 1 cup plain yogurt
• salt to taste

Directions

1. Bring rice and water to a boil in a saucepan over high heat. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer until the rice is tender, 20 to 25 minutes.
2. Heat the ghee in a small skillet over medium heat. Add the broken chile pepper, and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir in the black mustard seeds, and cook until they begin to pop, about 30 seconds more. Remove from the heat, and stir in the turmeric, curry leaves, and asafoetida powder.
3. Whisk the milk, yogurt, and spice ghee together in a large bowl until smooth. Fold in the rice until well mixed. Season to taste with salt, then allow to cool to room temperature before serving.

Quinoa Mac N’ Cheese

Ingredients

• 2 tsp olive oil
• 1 med. leek white and pale green parts halved and sliced (1 cup)-OR chives are fine too
• 1/2 cup diced tomato, or red/green pepper
• 1 1/2 cups quinoa, rinsed and drained
• good pinch of salt
• a few grinds of seasoning salt
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 large eggs
• 1 cup soy milk, non-fat milk, or milk of choice
• 1 1/2 cups grated Cheddar cheese, more for sprinkling
• Optional- Crushed Red Pepper, Panko Bread crumbs for topping
• Toppings (optional)- salsa, hot sauce, sour cream, scallions (you get the picture)

Directions

1. Heat oil in med. saucepan over med. heat. Add leek and tomatoes (or bell peppers-or any veggies you want really); cover and cook 5 mins or until tender. Stir in quinoa and garlic, and cook, uncovered, 3-4 mins, or until grains start to turn opaque. (They will not fully be cooked yet.)
2. Add 3 cups water and season with salt and the Seasoning Salt (I like Lawry's or Everyday Seasoning). Cover and reduce heat to med-low and simmer 5-10 more, or until most liquid has been absorbed. Remove from heat and let stand 5 mins.
3. Preheat oven to 350 F. Coat 13x9 inch dish with cooking spray. Whisk together eggs and milk in large bowl. Fold in quinoa mixture and cheese. Stir very well and let some of the cheese melt. Transfer to prepared baking dish and if using Panko Crumbs or Bread crumbs add now and bake 30-35 mins, (or until browned around edges.)
4. Now you can toss with many toppings, some ideas: salsa, scallions, sour cream, and hot sauce! I serve with a side of steamed broccoli or a salad and a nice slice of good hearty bread.