German Chocolate Cake

Here's the top secret Clayson family chocolate cake recipe--

German Chocolate Cake

1 3/4 c. sugar

1/2 c. shortening

3 eggs

1/2 c. milk

1tsp vanilla

3 Tbls cocoa

1 tsp soda

1 tsp salt

2 1/4 c flour

1 c boiling water

Cream sugar, shortening, and eggs. Mix in milk, vanilla, cocoa, soda, salt, and flour.   Slowly add water. Mix till smooth.  Pour into a greased and floured 9x13 inch pan or two 9 inch rounds. Bake at 375 degrees for 25 min or until a toothpick comes out clean. 

Banana Cookies

Got this recipe out of Clark Ward Cookbook from 2007.  Brad says these are in the top 3 for his favorite cookies :)

Banana Cookies
3/4 c. shortening
1 c. sugar
1 egg
1 1/2 c. flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp nutmeg
3/4 tsp cinnamon
1 cup ripe bananas, mashed
1 3/4 c. rolled oats
1 pkg chocolate chips (I just put in 1 1/2 cups and it was tons.... next time I might just put a rounded cup)

Bake at 400 for 14-15 minutes.

Grandma Nulph's Chocolate Chip Cookies

1 cube butter (1/2 cup) (don't melt)

1 1/2 c shortening

1 1/2 c sugar

1 1/2 c brown sugar

4 eggs

2 tsp salt

2 tsp baking soda

2 tsp vanilla (Watkins is the best)

1 tsp water

4 1/2 c flour

Pkg of chocolate chips

Walnuts (opt)

Cream butter, shortening and sugars. Add eggs and mix one at a time.  Mix in dry ingredients.  Add water. Stir in chocolate chips. Bake @ 350 for 10 to 20 min. 

They cook perfectly in my oven for 11 min. But at the cabin it was 10. 

Cake Mix Cinnamon Rolls

Ingredients

• 2 (.25 ounce) packages active dry yeast (1 Tbls + 1 ½ tsp)
• 2 cups warm water (110 degrees F/45 degrees C)
• 1 (18 ounce) package yellow cake mix
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 4 cups all-purpose flour

• 2/3 cup butter, softened
• 2 cups brown sugar
• 2-3 Tbls ground cinnamon

• 3 cups confectioners' sugar
• 1/3 cup butter, softened
• 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 tablespoons milk

Directions

1. In a large bowl (I used my KitchenAid), dissolve yeast in warm water. Let stand until creamy, about 5 minutes.
2. Combine the yeast mixture with the cake mix, salt and vanilla; stir well to combine. Stir in the flour; kneed until all flour is incorporated into the dough. The dough will be a little sticky. Cover bowl and let rise in a warm place for 1 hour.
3. In a bowl, cream butter, brown sugar and cinnamon.  Deflate dough and turn it out onto a well-floured surface. Roll dough out into a large rectangle. Sprinkle/spread with cinnamon filling. Roll up dough and cut into 3/4 inch thick rolls. Place rolls in a sheet cake pan. Cover and let rise until doubled, about 45 minutes.
4. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
5. Bake rolls in preheated oven for 15 to 20 minutes. While rolls are baking, prepare the frosting. In a medium bowl, stir together confectioners' sugar, 1/3 cup butter, vanilla and milk. Let rolls cool slightly then spread with frosting.

I just put the ingredients in my KitchenAid and let it do all the mixing and kneading. I did steps 1, 2, and 3 last night and then put them in the refrigerator.  The cinnamon filling mix is one I got from another cinnamon roll recipe that I really like- but it's really cinnamony.  So if you don't like to much cinnamon then cut it way back. This morning I took them out and let rise for about 1 hr.  Then I baked them about 20 min.

Paul Bunyan Burgers

A little twist on what my mom used to make when we were kids.  They're bigger and juicier and really yummy.

Paul Bunyan Burgers

1 lb ground beef
1 egg
1 Tbl Worcestershire sauce
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp garlic salt
Dash of pepper

Ketchup
1-2 Tbls diced pickles
1-2 Tbls diced onion
Cubed or sliced cheese

Mix first 6 ingredients well.  Divide into desired portions.  (I divided in half.)  Pat each portion out on wax paper into a big circle- about 6 - 8 inch across.  Spread with abt a tablespoon of ketchup.

On half of circle sprinkle pickles, onion, and cheese. Lifting wax paper, fold the uncovered half on top of filled half.  Press edges together- make sure they are still pretty thick.

Grill over low heat or broil for 5-10 minutes to desired doneness. Serve bunless with ketchup.

Makes 2- 1/2 lb burgers.

Sloppy Joes

Made these for FHE last night-- super easy and yummy!

Sloppy Joes

Recipe adopted from Rachael Ray

Serves: 4 super sloppy sandwiches

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon oil
1 pound ground beef
1/4 cup brown sugar
2 teaspoons steak seasoning blend, such as McCormick brand Montreal Seasoning (I actually had some of this in my cupboard.)
1/2 large onion, diced
1/2 med red bell pepper, chopped
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
1 to 2 tablespoons mustard
2 cups tomato sauce
2 tablespoons tomato paste
4 crusty rolls, split, toasted, and lightly buttered

Directions:
Heat a large skillet over medium high heat. Add oil and meat to the pan. Spread the meat around the pan and begin to break it up. Combine brown sugar and steak seasoning. Add sugar and spice mixture to the skillet and combine. When the meat has browned, add onion and red peppers to the skillet. Reduce heat to medium and cook onions, peppers, mustard and Worcestershire sauce with meat for 5 minutes. Add tomato sauce and paste to pan. Stir to combine. Reduce heat to simmer and cook Sloppy Joe mixture 15 minutes.

Using a large spoon or ice cream scoop, pile sloppy meat onto toasted, buttered bun bottoms and cover with bun tops. Have plenty of napkins on hand!

Baked Oatmeal

I wanted to start eating oatmeal more so I thought I'd try something new.  This recipe from MyRecipes sounded good so I decided to try it.  It didn't disappoint!

Baked Oatmeal

Try baked oatmeal for a unexpected morning treat. It's a mix between an oatmeal bar and traditional creamy breakfast oatmeal.

Photo by: Photo: Becky Luigart-Stayner; Styling: Jan Gautro, Laura Martin

• YIELD: 5 servings (serving size: 2/3 cup)
• COURSE: Breakfast/Brunch

Ingredients

• 2 cups uncooked quick-cooking oats
• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/3 cup raisins (or chopped apples, blueberries, huckleberries- any fruit really)
• 1 tablespoon chopped walnuts or slivered almonds
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 1/2 cups fat-free milk
• 1/2 cup applesauce
• 2 tablespoons butter, melted
• 1 large egg, beaten
• Cooking spray

Preparation

Preheat oven to 375°.
Combine the first 5 ingredients in a medium bowl. Combine the milk, applesauce, butter, and egg. Add milk mixture to oat mixture; stir well. Pour oat mixture into an 8-inch square baking dish coated with cooking spray. Bake at 375° for 20 minutes. Serve warm.

Nutritional Information

Amount per serving

• Calories: 281
• Calories from fat: 24%
• Fat: 7.6g
• Saturated fat: 2.8g
• Monounsaturated fat: 1.5g
• Polyunsaturated fat: 0.9g
• Protein: 7g
• Carbohydrate: 48.8g
• Fiber: 3.4g
• Cholesterol: 47mg
• Iron: 0.8mg
• Sodium: 171mg
• Calcium: 148mg

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Cinnamon Burst Bread

Cinnamon Burst Bread

1 Tbls yeast
2 Tbls sugar
1 cup very warm water
1 egg, slightly beaten
1 Tbls oil
1 tsp salt
1/2 c cinnamon chips
3 1/2 - 4 cups flour

Combine in mixing bowl 1 cup flour, yeast, and sugar. Add water, egg, and oil. Beat well to “cake batter” stage. Stir in salt, cinnamon bites, and 2 more cups flour to make bread-dough consistency. Let mixer knead it to the right texture (add more flour if needed).

Place dough in greased bowl, cover, and let rise for 1 hour. Shape dough into loaf.

Let rise for another hour or until doubled. Bake at 375 degrees for about 30 minutes. Slice thick and serve warm with butter, or toast slices in the toaster, or make slices into French Toast. Yummy!

Easy Wheat Bread

I got this recipe from here.  The website is really helpful with some great videos.

EZ Wheat Bread recipe
1 1/4 cup warm water
1 Tblsp active dry yeast
1/4 cup honey or 1/3 cup brown sugar
2 3/4 cups whole wheat flour (or whatever combination white/wheat you like..I use 100% hard white wheat. To learn more about the different types of wheat, download my wheat handout)
1/4 cup wheat gluten
1 tsp salt
2 Tblsp nonfat non instant dry milk
1 Tblsp butter/margarine/oil
1 Tblsp vinegar
1/4 cup potato flakes (NOT potato pearls)
Mix ingredients in order listed in mixing bowl of mixer with dough hook attachment (like kitchen-aid) for 12-15 minutes. Let rise until double, 1- 1 1/2 hours. Punch down, and shape into loaf or rolls. Let rise again until double and bake 375 degrees for 20-30 minutes until golden brown and sounds hollow when lightly tapped.  (If baking in a glass pan, bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.)
If you are making this recipe in a bread machine, follow your bread machine’s directions for wheat or whole grain selection and add the ingredients in the order listed for their recommendations. (only one loaf will fit in a bread maker)

EZ White Bread
1 1/8 cups warm water
1 3/4 – 2 tsp active dry yeast
2 Tblsp sugar (you can use a little more sugar if you like your dough a little sweeter)
3 cups flour
1 Tblsp vital wheat gluten (remember you don’t need as much gluten if you’re not using whole wheat flour)
1 tsp salt
2 Tblsp nonfat dry milk
1 1/2 Tblsp butter/margarine or oil
1/4 cup potato flakes
(you don’t really need vinegar for white bread, remember the dough enhancers are primarily needed for whole wheat bread)
Add the ingredients in the order listed into a mixer bowl (like a kitchen-aid) with a dough hook attachment and mix on low for 10-12 minutes. Or mix it on the dough cycle in your bread machine.
After all the mixing is complete, if the dough still seems too gooey and you are unable to handle it, add 1 Tblsp flour at a time, and mix after each addition until the dough is manageable with your hands.

Let rise 45 mins -1 hour, punch down and use to make bread, cinnamon rolls, cookie sheet pizza, rolls, or anything else you can think of! Let rise after you have made your creation and bake according to the direction of the recipe you are making.

If you are making it into bread, form into a loaf at this time, place in a loaf pan, let rise in a warm place 45 min -1 hour and bake 375 degrees for 20-25 minutes until golden brown and sounds hollow when lightly tapped.