Days Gone By Pea Salad

1 (15 ounce) green peas, frozen thawed or can drained
4 ounces Cheddar cheese, shredded
1/2 cup finely chopped purple onion
1 tablespoon sugar
1/4 cup mayo
4 slices bacon fried crisp crumbled

Combine all ingredients together mix well. Chill 2 hours before serving.

Ricotta Casadelle

Ricotta Casadelle -

My friends and some family members who come from a Sicilian household, tell me they were a favorite.  If you visit Sicily,  you will see that they are made with ricotta from sheep's milk and they are amazing. They are still very popular in Sicily and most of the bakeries carry them.

Dough: 4 cups flour, 4 Tablespoons shortening, 1/2 water. Mix together to make a soft dough.
Filling: 2 lbs. ricotta, 4-6 Tablespoons sugar, cinnamon to taste. Mix well. Mini chocolate chips can be added.

Roll out the dough, cut into turnover shapes. Fill with ricotta filling. Seal edges and fry in hot oil. Can be dusted with powdered or granulated sugar.

Reuben Bake

 

Reuben Bake -- A Delicious Sandwich in a casserole dish! Easy and cheesy!! YUM! We are BIG Reuben fans and this just looks delicious!!

Reuben Crescent Bake

2 tubes (8 ounces each) refrigerated crescent rolls
1 pound sliced Swiss cheese
1-1/4 pounds sliced deli corned beef
1 can (14 ounces) sauerkraut, rinsed and well drained
2/3 cup Thousand Island salad dressing
1 egg white, lightly beaten
3 teaspoons caraway seeds

Unroll one tube of crescent dough into one long rectangle; seal seams and perforations. Press onto the bottom of a greased 13-in. x 9-in. baking dish. Bake at 375° for 8-10 minutes or until golden brown. Layer with half of the cheese and all of the corned beef. Combine sauerkraut and salad dressing; spread over beef. Top with remaining cheese. On a lightly floured surface, press or
roll second tube of crescent dough into a 13-in. x 9-in. rectangle, sealing seams and perforations. Place over cheese. Brush with egg white; sprinkle with caraway seeds. Bake for 12-16 minutes or until heated through and crust is golden brown. Let stand for 5 minutes before cutting.

ZEPPOLE

My favorite food from the Italian Feasts - easier to make than you think. 

ZEPPOLE
INGREDIENTS

3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 (2 1/4 teaspoon) package instant yeast
1 cup warm water
3 eggs
6 cups vegetable oil, for frying
powdered sugar, for dusting

Directions:

Mix the flour and salt in a large mixing bowl with a wooden spoon. In another large bowl, empty the yeast package, then slowly add the warm water, mixing with a fork to fully dissolve the yeast. When the yeast mixture forms some bubbles, add the mixture to the flour/salt, then add the three eggs. Mix the batter, then set the bowl on top of your refrigerator (or other warm place), cover with damp dish towel. After 20 minutes, check the dough for rising, mix again and let rise for another 20 minutes. In a saucepan, heat the oil to medium heat. Add the dough by the spoonful (about the size of 2 golf balls) Test the first batch to make sure the oil is not too hot. Remove when golden brown and place on paper bags to absorb the oil. Place warm Zeppoles in a paper bag with powdered sugar and SHAKE.You want them well covered with the powdered sugar.These are messy. If yours are not messy, you need more sugar on them.

Apple Pie Dumplings! (2 Ingredients!)

This delicious dessert takes only about 4 minutes to prepare and two ingredients! It doesn't get easier than that!

Serves: 4 servings

Ingredients

• 1 (21 oz) can of Apple Pie Filling
• 1 roll crescent rolls
• ½ teaspoon cinnamon (optional)

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2. Open crescent rolls and cut into 12 equal pieces. Roll each piece into a ball.
3. Mix in a bowl with Apple pie filling , cinnamon and crescent ball pieces.
4. Place in a sprayed baking dish making sure that crescent all pieces are on top. 
5.  Bake for 25 - 30 minutes…. until crescent roll balls are cooked (flipping crescent roll balls after 15 mins.)   Time various with this recipe…..
   

Herb Stuffing Muffins

•             

Cooking On the Side

On-the-Package Recipes R

This turned out to be an excellent way to prepare stuffing, for a few reasons. Foremost, it maximizes the crispy parts, which are my favorites. Also, the individual portions are easy to freeze – 

Did the muffins stay intact? Some yes, some no. I think I attempted to remove them while they were still a little too warm.   But they were still wonderful!!!

   

Herb Stuffing Muffins

Makes 14-16 muffins

INGREDIENTS:

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, plus more for greasing muffin tin

1 cup chopped celery

1/2 cup chopped onion

1 teaspoon dried thyme leaves

3/4 teaspoon poultry seasoning

1/2 teaspoon seasoned salt

1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

6 cups dry unseasoned bread cubes

2 cups chicken stock

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 375°F.

Melt butter in a large skillet on medium heat. Add celery and onion; cook and stir 5 minutes. Stir in thyme, poultry seasoning, seasoned salt and pepper.

Place bread cubes in a large bowl. Add celery mixture and broth; toss gently until well mixed. Spoon into generously greased muffin tins, pressing down so each cup is well-filled.

Bake for 25-30 minutes or until heated through and lightly browned
.

Simple little Blueberry Pies

If you love pie, then here’s a great recipe that you’ll want to try before pie month is over. These little pies are the perfect size for a quick sweet treat. And the best part about them is that you can customize them with any filling you’d like. Here’s how to make simple little blueberry pies…..

Here’s what you need:


-1/2 tbsp cornstarch

-2 cups blueberries, fresh or thawed from frozen

-2 tbsp granulated white sugar

-1/2 tbsp lemon juice

-1/8 tsp vanilla extract

-1/8 tsp salt

-1 package refrigerated Pillsbury Crescent Recipe Creations Seamless Dough Sheet

Here’s what you do:


1. Mix together 1/3 cup of cold water and cornstarch in a small, nonstick pot. Stir to dissolve.
2. Add in the blueberries, sugar, lemon juice, vanilla extract and salt.
3. Set the heat to medium and stir mixture frequently. Cook until the mixture about 16-18 (until it’s thick and gooey). The mixture will boil and that’s ok!
4. Transfer to a medium bowl and allow to cool completely for about an hour.
5. While mixture is cooling, preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 12-cup muffin pan with nonstick spray.
6. Lightly flour a cutting board. Then, roll out dough into a large rectangle of even thickness (about 12″ by 9″). Cut dough evenly into 12 squares and place each square into a muffin cup, pressing into the bottoms and up along the sides.
7. Bake dough in muffin tins until golden brown (about 10-12 minutes).
8. Let cool for about 15 minutes. Then divide the blueberry mixture among the dough cups.
9. Enjoy the fact that you don’t have to share your pie with anyone!