Dr. Pepper Chocolate Sheet Cake

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 cups sugar
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup buttermilk
• 2 large eggs
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 2 sticks butter
• 4 heaping Tbsp cocoa powder
• 1 cup Dr. Pepper

In a saucepan, combine butter, cocoa, and Dr. Pepper. Bring to a rolling boil. While this heats, combine, flour, sugar, soda and salt. Add to saucepan and remove from heat. Carefully add eggs, vanilla and buttermilk. Mix well. Pour into a greased pan. (You can use a jellyroll size pan for a thinner cake, a 9 x 13 pan for a thicker cake or pour some into a 9 x 13 pan and the rest into a round cake pan and share with a friend! Bake at 350 for 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.

As soon as you remove the cake from the oven, make the icing.

Icing

• 1 stick butter
• 1/3 cup milk
• 1/4 heaping cup cocoa powder
• 4 cups powdered sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla

In a saucepan, combine butter, milk and cocoa powder. Bring to a rolling boil. Remove from heat and add powdered sugar and vanilla.  Pour over partially cooled cake. The icing will be on the thin side so you probably won't be able to really spread it after you pour it on like other icings. But, it's so yummy no one will care if it doesn't look perfect!

Recipe from my wonderful mother-in-law, Jill

Homemade Sausage Biscuits

• 1 lb sausage, browned and drained
• 2 2/3 cup flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup shortening
• 1 pkg yeast
• 1/4 cup warm water
• 1 Tbsp sugar
• 1 cup buttermilk

Mix dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, salt). Cut in shortening. Mix water, yeast and sugar. Add yeast mixture and buttermilk to dry mixture. Mix well. Add in sausage. Pat out to appox. 3/4 inch think. Using a biscuit cutter, cut individual biscuits. Bake 10 minutes at 425.

If you want to freeze these, instead of baking them right away, place wax paper on a cookie sheet and lay them it. Place in freezer until completely frozen and then move into a ziploc bag or other container. When ready to eat, bake at 425 for 20 minutes.

Servings depends on the size of biscuit cutter and how thick you like them.

Recipe from my Aunt Beth

Miss Mary Bobo's Boarding House Meatloaf

• 1.5 lbs ground beef
• 3/4 cup uncooked oatmeal
• 1 Tbsp salt
• 1/4 cup chopped onions
• 1/4 cup chopped bell peppers
• 1/4 cup ketchup
• 2 eggs, beaten

Grease a 9" x 3" pan. In a large bowl, combine all of the ingredients above. Form into a loaf. Place in pan and bake at 350 for 1 hour. Carefully pour off excess juice. Cover with sauce (below) and bake 10 more minutes. Cover if it starts to brown too much.

Meatloaf Sauce

• 3/4 cup ketchup
• 2 Tbsp chopped onion
• 2 Tbsp chopped bell pepper
• 1/4 cup brown sugar, firmly packed

In a small saucepan, simmer over low heat until onions and peppers are tender.

Delicious with mashed potatoes!

Serves 4

Recipe courtesy of my dear friend, Kim

Twice Baked Potatoes

• 4 baking potatoes
• Canola oil
• 4 slices bacon, cooked and chopped
• 1 stick butter
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 1/4 cup milk
• 1/4 tsp seasoning salt
• 1/4 tsp black pepper
• 1 cup grated cheese (I prefer cheddar or colby jack)
• 1 green onion, thinly sliced or 1/4 tsp onion powder (I've made these using both, depending on what's in my fridge and I think they are delicious either way!)

Wash potatoes thoroughly and dry well. Coat with canola oil and bake at 400 for 45 minutes or until potatoes are tender. Remove and let cool slightly (10-15 minutes.) Slice potatoes in half length-wise and scoop out the middle, leaving a shell around the outside. Mix the scooped out potato with the bacon, butter, sour cream, milk, seasoning salt, pepper and onion (or onion powder) using a potato masher. Mix in 1/2 cup of cheese. Fill the potato shells with the mixture and top with remaining cheese. Bake at 300 for 10 - 15 minutes or until the cheese is melted.

Serves 4

Recipe from The Pioneer Woman

Apricot Glazed Pork Tenderloin

• 1 pork tenderloin (or 2 smaller ones) approx 1.5 lbs
• 10 slices of bacon
• Garlic Pepper
• Salt
• 1 cup (give or take) apricot preserves

Prepare the pork tenderloin by slicing it into 2 pieces lengthwise (if using one large one). Sprinkle liberally with salt and garlic pepper. Wrap in bacon, making sure the ends of the bacon are tucked under. Place in a pan or casserole dish that is lined with Release Foil or lined with regular foil and sprayed with non-stick cooking spray. Cook 30 to 35 minutes. Spoon the apricot preserves over the top and bake 15-20 more minutes. Remove from oven and let rest before cutting and serving. Serve with Apricot Sauce, below.

Apricot Sauce:

• 2/3 cup Apricot preserves
  
• 4 Tbsp butter
  
• 2 Tbsp soy sauce
• 3 Tbsp Water
• 1 tsp Garlic Pepper

Combine all of the ingredients in a sauce pan and bring to a low boil. Simmer for 3-4 minutes. Serve with the tenderloin.

Serves 5-6.

Recipe adapted from Wanda DeLoach's Isn't Life Delicious cookbook

Beef Enchiladas

• 1 lb ground beef,
• 1/4 of a white onion, diced
• Salt & Pepper to taste
• Lawry's Enchilada Sauce seasoning packet
• 1 15 oz can tomato sauce
• 2 2/3 cup water
• 15-18 corn tortillas
• Canola oil
• Shredded Cheese

Sauce: Pour water and tomato sauce into a sauce pan. Whisk in seasoning packet until mixed thoroughly. Bring to a boil. Reduce and simmer 15-20 minutes, stirring regularly.

Meat: Brown onion and ground beef in a skillet. Season liberally with salt and pepper. Drain excess grease and remove from skillet.

Tortillas: Add just enough oil to coat the bottom of the skillet. When oil is hot, place tortillas in for 3-4 seconds on each side. Remove and place on a plate lined with paper towels. Let cool a few minutes. Blot excess oil off of the tortillas.

Enchiladas: Pour a little bit of the sauce into the bottom of a 9x13 pan, just covering the bottom of the pan. Place a small amount of ground beef in the tortilla, roll and place in the pan. Repeat until all tortillas are rolled. Add any leftover meat into the remaining sauce. Pour the sauce over the rolled enchiladas as evenly as possible. Top with as much cheddar cheese as you like. Bake at 375 for 20-30 minutes or until nice and bubbly. You may want to cover with foil to prevent excess browning.

Serve with beans, rice, chips and guacamole, and a tomato and lettuce salad, for a full Tex-Mex meal.

Serves 4-6 people.

Recipe adapted from Wanda DeLoach's Isn't Life Delicious cookbook

Basil Balsamic Vinagrette

• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 1/3 cup balsamic vinegar
• 12 basil leaves
• 1 tsp kosher salt
• 2-3 garlic cloves

Stack basil leaves and roll length-wise to create a log. Slice very thinly to create a chiffonade (long skinny strips). Chop garlic cloves into very small pieces, almost minced. Pour all ingredients into a bowl or a salad shaker. Mix thoroughly before serving. Makes approx. 1 1/4 cups

Recipe from The Pioneer Woman

Chocolate Chip Cookies

• 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
• 1 cup butter-flavored Crisco
• 2 cups brown sugar
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 2 Tbsp vanilla
• 1/4 cup milk
• 2 eggs
• 3 1/2 cups flour
• 2 tsp salt
• 1 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 3 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Using an electric hand mixer, beat Crisco, butter, brown sugar, white sugar, milk and vanilla. Add eggs and beat until nice and fluffy. Combine flour, salt and baking soda. Stir into sugar mixture just until combined. Gently stir in chocolate chips. Drop rounded teaspoonfuls onto cookie sheet lined with a silpat mat. Bake for 8 minutes or until lightly browned. Don't over bake! Move to wax paper immediately after removing from the oven.

Serve with ice cream or a tall glass of milk!

Makes 5-6 dozen cookies.

Recipe adapted from the Isn't Life Delicious cookbook by Wanda DeLoach

Dirt Cake

• 1.5 lbs Oreos
• 2 small instant vanilla pudding mixes
• 2 2/3 cup milk
• 8 oz softened cream cheese (It's very important to soften this a bit!)
• 1 stick butter
• 1/2 cup powdered sugar
• 8-9 oz Cool-Whip
• Gummy worms, flowers, or other decorations (optional)

Use food processor to crush cookies and set aside. Mix pudding mix with milk.With a mixer blend in cream cheese, butter and powdered sugar. Add in cool whip. In a large container (a clean flower pot or deep dish) layer cookies and filling. End with a layer of oreos. Add gummy worms or a flower or other decoration, if desired. Be creative and enjoy!

Hint - if you use a flower pot (or something with solid sides), it won't matter as much if your layers are exactly equal. But, it makes a really pretty dessert in a trifle bowl, individually in parfait glasses, or in any clear sided bowl; you just become a lot more aware of your layers! Either way, the end result is worth it!

Recipe from my dear friend Kim, who ate it a lot growing up and had it served at her wedding! Thanks for sharing!

Dutch Apple Pie

• 1 deep dish pie crust (frozen or refrigerated is just fine!)
• 2 cups sliced, peeled apples (or enough to fill the pie crust almost to the top)
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 2 tsp cinnamon
• 1 cup flour
• 1 stick butter, softened
• 1/2 cup brown sugar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix apples with sugar and cinnamon. Place in unbaked crust. Mix flour, butter and brown sugar into a crumbly topping. Pack the topping over the apples in the crust. Bake for 55-60 minutes. (Put foil under pie plate to catch any drippings!)

Serve with Ice Cream! It's super easy and very tasty!

Recipe from my Aunt Joy Schuster

Carnitas (aka Spicy Pulled Pork)

• 5-7 lb pork shoulder (I've never found any this big. Usually they are are between 4 and 5 lbs.)
• 1 whole onion, quartered
• 1 Tbsp chili powder
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 4 garlic cloves, peeled
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• 2 tsp ground cumin
• 1-2 Tbsp salt
• 1/2 Tbsp black pepper
• 3 Tbsp olive oil
• 2 Tbsp vinegar (I've used white vinegar and rice wine vinegar and both worked fine)

Preheat oven 300 degrees. Mix onion, chili powder, brown sugar, garlic, oregano, cumin, salt, pepper, olive oil and vinegar in a food processor until thoroughly combined. Rub all over the pork. Place in a roasting pan and pour 2 cups of water around it. Cover and roast for 6 to 7 hours, turning once every hour or so. (I usually roast it for closer to 5-6 hours, because I use a smaller piece of meat. Also, I usually forget to turn it, so no worries if you are putting this in and will be gone all day. Toward the end of cooking, if done right, it will basically fall apart when you try to turn it so it won't matter anyway!) Once it's fork-tender, turn the oven up to 425 degrees and roast, uncovered for 20 minutes, to get the skin crispy and to thicken the juice. (I've left it covered and let it roast an extra 5 -10 minutes because it does splatter everywhere!) Remove and let rest for 15 minutes. Shred with a fork. Serve with the following toppings...

• Tortillas (corn or flour)
• Grated Cheese
• Lime Wedges
• Cilantro
• Sour Cream
• Guacamole
• Salsa

I love to serve this with black beans and then tortilla chips, of course!

FYI...A 4.5 lb roast served about 7 people. A 3.5 lb roast served 4. So you can do the math of about what you think a larger or smaller roast would serve.

Recipe from The Pioneer Woman....love her!

Cookie Pie

• 1 unbaked 9" deep dish pie crust (Refrigerated or frozen & completely thawed works just fine!)
• 2 large eggs
• 1/2 cup flour
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup brown sugar, packed
• 3/4 cup butter, softened
• 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 1 cup chopped pecans (optional)

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Beat eggs on high until foamy. Add flour, sugar and brown sugar. Beat in butter. Stir in chocolate chips and nuts. (If you don't add the nuts, a few more chocolate chips won't hurt!) Pour into pie crust. Place pie pan on a baking sheet to catch any drippings. Bake 50-60 minutes. Serve warm with ice cream!

Yummy! I love this recipe because I almost always have the ingredients on hand to throw this together as a last minute dessert.

Recipe originally found on http://www.bakerella.com/

Caramel Corn

• 2 sticks butter
• 2 cups brown sugar
• 1/2 cups light corn syrup
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 6 qts popped popcorn (1 cup unpopped popcorn)

Place popped popcorn into a brown paper bag. Preheat oven to 250 degrees. Melt butter in saucepan over medium/medium-high heat. Add the corn syrup, brown sugar and salt. Stir continually until mixture boils. Boil for approximately 5 minutes without stirring. Remove from heat. Add baking soda and vanilla. (Be careful when pouring the vanilla into the hot sugar mixture!) Stir well. Pour over popcorn and mix well. Bake for 1  hour, stirring well every 15 minutes. Let cool and break apart, if needed.

Enjoy!

Recipe from my wonderful Aunt Chloie Jan, via my mother!