Pepperoni Pizza Pasta

2 cups uncooked pasta

1 (14 oz.) jar pizza sauce

3/4 cup sliced pepperoni, halved or quartered

1/4 cup finely chopped green bell pepper

1/4 cup Parmesan cheese

1/2 tsp. dried oregano

1/8 tsp. garlic powder

1 cup mozzarella cheese

Heat oven to 375 degrees. Spray 8 inch square (or 2 qt.) baking dish. Cook pasta to desired doneness. Drain. In a large bowl, combine pasta, pizza sauce, pepperoni, bell pepper, Parmesan cheese, oregano, and garlic powder. Mix well. Spoon into baking dish, sprinkle with mozzarella cheese. Cover with foil. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes or until mixture is heated through and cheese is melted.

I substituted Italian seasoning for the oregano. I also omitted the Parmesan cheese and mozzarella. I added a little mozzarella to mine and Isabella's portions after it was out of the oven. For anyone who can't have dairy, this is great without any cheese!

Bubba's Beer Biscuits

These are courtesy Ms. Paula Deen. And they are the best beer bread recipe I've found and super easy and quick. You can even do these in a loaf but the biscuits are nice for soups and stews. We had them with our Beef Stew last night!

4 cups biscuit mix (recommended: Bisquick)
1/4 to 1/2 cup sugar
1 (12-ounce) can of beer 2 tablespoons butter, melted

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Mix all ingredients well, adjusting the sugar according to how sweet a biscuit you prefer. Pour into well-greased muffin tins. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes. Serve with honey butter.

Slow Cooker Beef Stew

This is a great meal for a cool fall day! It takes a little prep work but comes out beautifully. You can also doctor it up any way you want. For example, I omitted the onions and added corn. You can also add some red wine for richer flavor.

INGREDIENTS:
2 pounds beef stew meat, cut
into 1 inch cubes
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black
pepper
1 clove garlic, minced
1 bay leaf
1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon Worcestershire
1 onion, chopped
1 1/2 cups beef broth or chicken (I used chicken and it was just as yummy)
3 potatoes, diced
4 carrots, sliced
1 stalk celery, chopped
DIRECTIONS:
1.
Place meat in slow cooker. In a small bowl mix together the flour, salt, and pepper; pour over meat, and stir to coat meat with flour mixture. Stir in the garlic, bay leaf, paprika, Worcestershire sauce, onion, beef broth, potatoes, carrots, and celery.
2.
Cover, and cook on Low setting for 10 to 12 hours, or on High setting for 4 to 6 hours.

Veggie Chicken Casserole

3 cups cubed, cooked turkey or chicken

4 cups frozen mixed vegetables

1 can cream of chicken soup

1 can cream of mushroom soup

1/2 cup chopped onion

1/4 tsp. garlic powder

1/4 tsp. celery seed

In a large bowl, combine all ingredients. Transfer to greased baking dish. Bake, uncovered, at 350 degrees for 35 minutes or until heated through. Stir before serving.

I was looking for something quick and easy for supper tonight, and found this recipe. It was really good, and I can't believe how quick it was! I made a half batch (using one can of cream of celery soup) and it was more than enough for our little family.

"War time" Spice Cake with Caramel Frosting

This is a very autumnal recipe that we made to celebrate the Virgin Mary's birthday yesterday. My mom found the recipe and passed it on to me, knowing that I am always looking for eggless recipes. It not only accommodated the women who wanted to bake despite the rations during the war, but it also accommodates those with milk and egg allergies. Mine came out a bit dense, but I think I also overcooked it. (The frosting contains milk, but perhaps one could substitute for that.)

Spice Cake:

In a large saucepan, mix together and boil, gently, for 5 minutes:

2 cups brown sugar

2 cups hot water

2 tsp shortening

1/2 to 3/4 cup raisins or chopped dates (I left these out)

1 tsp salt

1 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp cloves

Cool completely - very important.

When cool, add:

3 cups flour

1 tsp baking soda dissolved in a couple teaspoons hot water.

Mix well, pour into greased and floured bundt pan. Bake at 350 for 1 hour. Cool in pan about 10 minutes and remove.

Caramel Frosting: (from Taste of Home Aug/Sept 1997)

1 cup packed brown sugar

1/2 cup butter

1/4 cup milk

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 1/2 to 2 cups (or more) powdered sugar

Combine brown sugar, butter, and milk in a saucepan; bring to a boil over medium heat. Cook and stir for 2 minutes. Remove from the heat; stir in vanilla. Cool to lukewarm. Gradually beat in powdered sugar until frosting reaches spreading consistency. Frost cake.

French Silk Chocolate Pie

A while back, Monte was talking about one of the things he missed the most since he found out he couldn't have dairy over 5 years ago - chocolate pie. It's one of those things I just didn't think would be that great if I substituted dairy free milk, I thought it probably wouldn't set properly. I was SO excited when I found this recipe yesterday that doesn't even have milk in it. It got great reviews on allrecipes.com, and we agree, it is unbelievable!! Quite possibly the best thing I've ever eaten! It does have raw eggs in it, which freaked me out a little, but not enough to keep me from enjoying it. :)

1/2 cup butter or margarine, room temperature

3/4 cup white sugar

2 (1 oz.) squares unsweetened baking chocolate, melted and cooled

1 tsp. vanilla extract

2 eggs

1 pie crust *

Cream butter, gradually beat in the sugar with an electric mixer until light colored and well blended. Stir in the cooled chocolate, and vanilla. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating 5 minutes on medium speed after each addition. (You must beat them for the full 5 minutes each.) Spoon the chocolate filling into a cooled, baked pie shell. Top with whipped topping and garnish with grated chocolate if desired.

*I used the following recipe for my crust.

1 and 1/2 cups crushed graham crackers

1/4 cup sugar.

1/3 cup butter or margarine, melted

Press into 9 inch pie plate, bake at 375 degrees for 8-10 minutes. Cool completely. (You can also buy pre-made graham cracker crusts, and they're really good too.)