Amish Breakfast Casserole

This was the main dish at my Christmas Brunch. I found the recipe while browsing at www.allrecipes.com It can be easily altered to fit different (picky) tastes. I made one with just the basic ingredients and added tons of veggies to the other. I did all the prep work ahead of time and just tossed it together in the morning. It sounds heavy and filling, but was just right. Lemon Pull-Aparts and fresh fruit were the perfect side dish to this bacon-cheesy goodness. Enjoy!

Amish Breakfast Casserole

1 lb. sliced bacon, diced

1 medium sweet onion, chopped (Can be omitted)

6 eggs, (I added 2 more)

4 cups frozen shredded hash browns, thawed and dried

(Or boil and shred your own potatoes)

2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese

1 1/2 cups small curd cottage cheese

1 1/4 cup shredded Swiss cheese (I only used 3/4 cup)

salt, pepper and garlic powder to taste

Cook onion and bacon until bacon is crisp. Drain on paper towel. Combine the rest of the ingredients. Stir in onions and bacon. Transfer to a greased 9 by 13 pan. Bake, uncovered, at 350 degrees for 35 to 40 minutes or until center is set and bubbly. Let stand 10 minutes before cutting.

For the Veggie Casserole I sauteed onion, green peppers and mushrooms until tender and added them into the mixture. Green onions and red peppers would be good too. You could also use sausage or ham, but the bacon was so good that I don't think I'd change it.



Lemon Pull~Aparts

I love the zippy flavor of lemon! I made these for my Christmas Brunch this year and they were a hit! I definitely am going to add these to my "Keeper" pile. This is an EASY recipe that looks and tastes like you slaved over a hot oven for hours. For other recipes www.RhodesBread.com

Lemon Pull~Aparts

12 Rhodes Dinner Rolls, thawed but still cold

zest from 2 lemons

1/2 cup sugar

1/4 cup butter, melted

Citrus Glaze

1 cup powdered sugar

1 TB butter, melted

2 TB fresh lemon juice

Mix lemon zest with sugar. Cut rolls in half and place in a 9 by 13 dish sprayed baking pan. Drizzle 1/4 cup melted butter over rolls. (I dipped the rolls in butter and placed in pan and drizzled the remaining butter over top.) Sprinkle with zest/sugar mixture, reserving 1/2 of the mixture to sprinkle on just before baking. Cover with sprayed plastic wrap. Let rise until double in size. Remove wrap. Sprinkle with remaining mixture. Bake at 35o degrees for 20-25 minutes. Remove immediately from pan and place on cooling rack (with baking sheet underneath) Combine glaze ingredients and mix well. Drizzle over pull-aparts.



Christmas Eggs

My Aunt Karen shared this recipe and it quickly became tradition to have them on Christmas morning. These can be made ahead of time and refrigerated until you are ready to warm them up. You can use spicy or sage sausage for a little kick or maple sausage if you like things sweeter. Enjoy!

Christmas Eggs

1 dozen hard boiled eggs, peeled and sliced in 1/2 lengthwise

1 lb. sausage, brown and drain

1/4 cup shredded Cheddar cheese

2 Tb Worcestershire sauce

1/3 cup ketchup

sage, salt and pepper to taste

Ingredients for basic white sauce: butter, flour, milk, salt and pepper and 1/2 cup shredded cheese

Remove yolks from eggs. Stir together yolks, sausage, Worcestershire sauce, ketchup, cheese and seasonings. After you mix this well, return it by spoonful to egg whites (like deviled eggs). Place all eggs in a 9 by 13 pan. Make a white sauce and stir in cheese. Top eggs with sauce. Bake at 325 for 25-30 min or until warmed through and bubbly.



Spinach Artichoke Dip

Cheesy, gooey, yummy! (It has veggies, do you get to count this as a vegetable dip?) Serve warm with tortilla chips, crackers, or bread cubes.

Spinach Artichoke Dip

3 (8 oz.) packages cream cheese, softened

3/4 cup mayo

3/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

3 cloves of garlic, minced

1 TB basil

2 TB paprika

3 (14 oz.) cans artichoke hearts, drained and chopped

2 cups spinach (if using frozen, thaw and squeeze out extra moisture)

Put everything in a crock pot on low for one hour.

Baked French Toast Casserole

My Mom brought this for my Annual Christmas Brunch. It was sinful! Since this is a Paula Deen recipe it isn't quite healthy, unless 1/2 pound of butter is healthy. The Praline Topping was my favorite part, but it can be done without the nuts for the picky eaters too. Also, it is an overnight-in-the-fridge recipe so it was easy for Christmas morning. Enjoy!

Baked French Toast Casserole

1 loaf French bread

8 large eggs

2 cups half and half

1 cup milk

2 TB sugar

1 tsp vanilla

1/4 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp nutmeg

dash of salt

Slice French bread into 20 slices (1" each). Arrange slices in a generously buttered 9 by 13 flat baking dish in 2 rows, overlapping the slices. In a large bowl, combine eggs, 1/2 and 1/2, milk, sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt and beat until well blended. Pour mixture over the bread slices, making sure all are covered evenly with the egg mixture. Spoon some of the mixture in between the slices. Cover with foil and refrigerate overnight.

Praline Topping

1/2 pound butter (2 sticks)

1 cup brown sugar

1 cup chopped pecans

2 TB corn syrup

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp nutmeg

Combine in a medium bowl and blend well.

The next day, preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Spread Praline Topping evenly over the bread and bake for 40 minutes, until puffed and slightly golden Serve with maple syrup.



Pumpkin Crunch Cake

I found this picture on Pinterest.com (AKA: my new way to waste time!) and the recipe is from thepickyapple.comThe picture looked marvelous and it is so easy to make. I have not yet tried this, but it's on my list of things to make SOON. If you try it first, let me know if it is as good as it looks! Yumm!

Pumpkin Crunch Cake

1 yellow cake mix

1 can (15 oz.) pumpkin puree

1 can (12 oz.) evaporated milk

3 eggs

1 1/2 cups sugar

1 tsp cinnamon (I think I'd double this)

1/2 tsp salt

1 1/2 cups chopped pecans (Original recipe calls for 1/2 cup, so add to your liking)

1 cup butter, melted

Heat oven to 350. Mix pumpkin, milk, eggs, sugar, cinnamon and salt. Pour into greased 9 by 13 pan. Sprinkle with dry cake mix. Top with pecans. Drizzle with butter. Bake for 50 to 55 minutes or until toothpick tests clean.

Scalloped Carrots

This is another recipe from Nonnie's Cookbook. The girls and I like this a lot. I usually half the recipe so that I have enough for one meal, but this is the full recipe. Plus cheese makes eating veggies a little easier :)

Scalloped Carrots

2 lbs carrots (I just use the baby ones or you could peel and slice full size ones)

1/4 cup onion, diced

2 cups milk

1 tsp salt

2 cups cheese, shredded

1/4 cup butter

1/4 cup flour

1/4 tsp dry mustard

1/4 tsp celery salt

2 TB butter

1 cup soft bread crumbs (or premade from the can)

Cook carrots and drain. Melt butter and add the onions, flour, mustard and milk until smooth. Addsatl, celery salt (and pepper too). Stir in cheese until melted. Coat carrots with cheese sauce. Place in 8 by 8 dish. Crumb butter into bread crumbs and sprinkle on top. Bake at 350 for 20 minutes.

Chocolate Chip Pie

Seriously, who doesn't love chocolate? I love this warm, gooey, sweet pie. I think it is best accompanied by some really good vanilla ice cream so that the warmth of the pie causes the ice cream to melt just a little. Mmmm, totally daydreaming about eating this right now! Make this soon! You won't be sorry!

Chocolate Chip Pie

1 unbaked 9 inch deep-dish pie shell*

2 large eggs

1/2 cup flour

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup packed brown sugar

3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) butter, softened

1 cup semi-sweet chocolate morsels

1 cup chopped nuts

Sweetened whipped cream or ice cream

 *If using a frozen pie shell THAW completely. Bake on baking sheet; increase baking time slightly.

Preheat oven to 325. Beat eggs in a mixer bowl until foamy. Beat in flour and sugars. Beat in butter. Stir in chocolate chips and nuts. Spoon into pie shell. Bake for 55 to 60 minutes or until a knife inserted in center comes out clean. Cool on wire rack for 10 minutes. Serve warm with topping.



Chicken Enchiladas

I've been on a Mexican food kick lately, but it isn't a type of food I'm necessarily good at cooking. I wish I knew how to make real, authentic, SPICY Mexican food. I really liked this recipe. It was creamy without being soggy. There is no Cream of Chicken Soup, but it still has a yummy flavor from the broth. I definitely will be using this recipe again. I served it with fresh guacamole and salsa and some black beans (they didn't turn out as well, so I'm not posting that recipe.) If you have any super Mexican recipes, please send them my way!

Chicken Enchiladas

1 cup diced onion

1/2 cup diced green pepper

2 TB butter

2 cups cooked chicken (I think I'd up this to 3 cups next time)

1- 4 oz. can green chilies

3 TB butter

1/2 cup flour (or less)

1 tsp coriander (I didn't have any, and it was fine without)

3/4 tsp salt

2 1/2 cups chicken broth

1 cup sour cream

1 1/2 cups Monterey Jack cheese, shredded

12- 8 inch flour tortillas

Cook onion and green pepper (I added 1 TB minced garlic also) in butter until tender. Add this mixture to chopped chicken and green chilies. (I gave the veggies and chilies a quick run through the food processor after cooking to "incorporate" (Disguise) and then stirred this into the chicken.) Melt 3 TB butter and add flour and spices. Stir in broth. Stir and let thicken. Remove from heat; stir in sour cream and 1/2 cup cheese. Fill tortillas with 1/4 cup chicken mixture. Roll up and place seam side down in 9 by 13 dish. (I poured a little sauce in the bottom of the dish so the tortillas wouldn't stick.) Pour sauce over rolled enchiladas. Sprinkle with remaining cheese. Bake, uncovered, at 350 degrees for 25 minutes. Enjoy!

I also added a little chili powder and pepper to the sauce as I was going. A little bit of cumin would be a nice flavor too as would a spash of tabasco sauce.
FYI- I found this recipe on food.com under Chicken Enchilada Casserole

Corn Bread

I love corn bread. It is also one of the few things my kids REALLY like. I haven't found an out-of-this-world recipe yet, but this one is pretty good. If you have one to share, please email me. :D

Corn Bread

1 cup flour

3/4 cup cornmeal

2 to 3 TB sugar

2 1/2 tsp baking powder

3/4 tsp salt

1 TB butter

2 beaten eggs

1 cup milk

1/4 cup oil or melted butter

In a medium bowl stir together flour, cornmeal, sugar, baking powder and salt. In an 8 by 8 baking dish add the 1 TB butter. Place in a 400* oven  for about 3 minutes or until butter is melted. Remove pan from oven; swirl butter in pan to coat bottom and sides. Meanwhile, in a small bowl combine eggs, milk and oil. Add egg mixture all at once to flour mixture. Stir until JUST MOISTENED. Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake at 15 to 20 minutes or until toothpick tests done. Serve warm.

 (Serve with honeybutter and a dash of cinnamon. So good!)