Oh How I Miss My Aunt Phyllis

 Aunt Phyllis Sinkers!

   

2 cups all-purpose flour

• 1 tsp salt
• 4 large eggs
• 1/3 + cup milk, (or water)

INSTRUCTIONS

• In a bowl, whisk together the flour, eggs, milk, and salt. Stir until the batter is well combined and develops bubbles. You can also use a mixer. The batter should neither be too thin nor too thick or it will be difficult to make the sinkers with your sinker maker. Let the batter sit for 5-10 min.
• Put a colander into a bowl to drain the sinkers once cooked and bring a large pot of water over high heat to a boil, add about 1 Tbsp of salt to the water, and reduce temperature to a simmer.
• Press batter through a sinker maker, a large holed sieve or a colander into the simmering water.
• Work in batches, after using about 1/3 of the batter stop adding new sinkers and let them cook for about 2-3 minutes, or until they float to the top. Stir occasionally. Use a slotted spoon to transfer the sinkers to the colander so that excess water can drip off.
• Serve the sinkers immediately or sinkers them in butter to crisp them up a little. If you don't serve or saute them right away, add 1 or 2 Tbsp of butter to the hot sinkers to prevent them from sticking together.

 

 

Memories of Younger Years - Mom's Sloppy Joes

 Yesterday K2 came home from school telling me about how great school lunch was.  Sloppy Joe's....with a huge smile on her face.  So I told her, "You know what they are one of my favorites because Grandma Buffo always made them when I had sleepovers with my friends.  

So today I made a batch from her recipe:

Ingredients:

1 onion finely minced and sauteed

2 T butter

1 1/2 pounds of ground beef

1 can tomato sauce

1/2 cup ketchup

1 T Worcestershire sauce

1/2 cup brown sugar

1 bay leaf

Directions:

Sautee minced onion in butter, set aside

Brown ground beef and return sauteed onion to the pan.  Mix in tomato sauce, ketchup, Worcestershire sauce, and brown sugar.  Bring to a simmer and add bay leaf.   Let simmer until ready to serve.  I usually put it in the crockpot on warm and let it keep all day until the littles come home!

 

Ali's Wedding Lemon Dessert

Ingredients

Crust

• ¼ cup finely chopped walnuts
• ½ cup all-purpose flour
• 1 Tablespoon brown sugar packed
• 4 Tablespoon butter melted

Filling

• 8 oz cream cheese softened
• 1 cup confectioners sugar
• 8 oz cool whip thawed (Divided)
• 2 boxes of instant lemon pudding 3.4 oz each
• 3 cups milk
• 2 Tablespoons additional chopped nuts for garnish...totally optional   

Instructions

• Set out 12 OUI  yogurt cups
• In a food processor combine all ingredients for the crust (walnuts, flour, brown sugar, and melted butter)
• Pulse until well combined.
• Press about 1 tsp into the bottom of each shot glass.
• In a stand mixer, beat cream cheese.
• Slowly add confectioners sugar, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.
• Add 1 cup Cool Whip, mixing until all ingredients are well combined
• Transfer filling to a quart-sized Ziploc bag and cut a 1" hole in the corner of the bag.
• Evenly distribute filling among shot glasses, piping on top of the crust
• In a large bowl, combine instant pudding mix and milk, whisking for about 3 minutes (until mixture thickens).
• Evenly distribute pudding among shot glass, piping on top of the first layer.
• Transfer the remaining Cool Whip to a quart-sized Ziploc bag and cut a 1" hole in one corner of the bag.
• Pipe Cool Whip on top of the pudding layer.
• Sprinkle with additional nuts if desired.
• Keep refrigerated.

Notes

This recipe will fill 24 2 oz shot-size cups.   I have so many OUI yogurt glasses they worked out perfect for a 4 oz serving of 12!

Creamy Cucumber Salad

Ceamy Cucumber Salad -- not everyone in our family loves cucumbers, but the health benefits outweigh the complaints.  So here we go with one of my favorites! This classic recipe is made with fresh cucumbers, red onions, fresh dill, and a handful of other ingredients for a side dish that everyone (did I just say everyone?)     will love! Well maybe!

It’s light, creamy, and incredibly easy to make. The perfect salad for picnics, pot lucks, or summer grilling.

Whether you grew up on it or are trying it for the first time, you’re sure to LOVE the flavor in this easy cucumber salad!  The best part --- it takes less than 10 minutes to prepare but does require some chill time in the fridge to bring the flavors together. 

There’s something nostalgic about it – it’s a recipe that’s been around forever and a dish that most of us have probably enjoyed at family get-togethers at one point or another.

I love it because it’s such a simple salad, yet it’s packed with so much flavor.

Between the crunchy cucumbers, the creamy sauce, and the fresh dill, this salad truly is no-fuss in every way. It’s easy to make, perfect for prepping in advance, and it stores well in the fridge.

Here is the ingredients list:

• 1-2 cucumbers
• ¼ red onion
• ½ cup mayonnaise
• ⅓ cup milk
• 2 tbsp white vinegar
• 2 tbsp granulated sugar
• 2 tbsp chopped fresh dill
• ¼ tsp kosher salt
• ⅛ tsp black pepper
• Wash the cucumber and peel 
• Use a sharp knife or a mandoline to thinly slice the cucumber. I'm lucky to have a super Sous Chef who knows how to slice and dice perfectly.  
• Thinly slice the onion
• In a large bowl, whisk the mayonnaise with the milk, vinegar, sugar, dill, salt, and black pepper until combined.
• Add the cucumber and onion to the dressing and stir until combined.
• Cover the bowl and refrigerate it for 2 hours.
• Serve and enjoy

Creamy Hawaiian Macaroni Salad

 Creamy Hawaiian Macaroni Salad is served on every plate for lunch at L&L Hawaiian Barbecue.  This Hawaiian Macaroni Salad is so good, it's addictive and the bowl was gone completely.   It was easy to make, it fed 8 of us, and it tastes awesome. 

Here is how it comes together:

1/2 lb dry elbow macaroni

1/4 cup red onion, minced

1 carrot shredded

1 cup real, whole mayo

1/4 cup green onion, thinly sliced

1/2 tsp white pepper

1 tsp kosher salt

Instructions:

Bring a large pot of well-salted water to boil.  Cook macaroni until tender, about 8 minutes. 

NEXT UP -

Creamy Cucumber Salad   

 

Fresh Summer Salsa - Oh We Miss You Grandpa Buffo

 Woo-hoo! I don’t know about your family but salsa is a staple in our family!  Grandpa had a garden that was the envy of the town.    We are trying our best to keep the tradition going.  

Salsa tastes amazing on everything or simply by itself. There is no shame in standing in front of the fridge with the doors open and sneaking a spoonful of salsa.  Salsa is like a magic potion that can transform the worst dishes into something spectacular. So let's get right to Grandpa Buffo's recipe!

4-5 medium ripe tomatoes, diced

1 medium onion, diced - I like red but whatever you have on hand works!

1 green pepper, diced

1/4 cup parsley, chopped 

1 clove of garlic, minced 

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon pepper

1/8 teaspoon ground cumin

1 squeeze of lime

Combine all ingredients and refrigerate.

Ripe tomatoes are absolutely key to making this garden fresh salsa.  Roma tomatoes are a very good choice since they are less watery.  Core the tomatoes and remove the seeds before chopping.  Use every last bit of the red tomato flesh inside!   

Voila!  

Zucchini and Tomato Gratin Bake

And they just keep coming....so tender, so delicious, and so HEALTHY????

This dish is made with thinly sliced zucchini, tomatoes, onion, garlic, parmesan cheese, and fresh oregano from the garden!

Ingredients:

1 zucchini, thinly sliced

3 Roma tomatoes, thinly sliced

1 onion chopped

1 clove of garlic, minced

shredded parmesan cheese to cover the top

minced oregano 

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 F.

2. Saute onion until translucent.  Add minced garlic and saute for 30 seconds.  Transfer 1/2 of the mixture to the bottom of a medium round tart dish.

3. Layer the tomatoes and zucchini in a circle by alternating a layer of 2 zucchini slices and 1 tomato slice until the dish is full.

4. Top with remaining onion-garlic mixture.  Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt, pepper, oregano to taste.  Top with the shredded Parmesan cheese.

5. Bake the Parmesan zucchini and tomato gratin in a preheated oven for about 35 minutes, or until lightly browned.   

 

Party Chicken

I’m sure most everyone has had the classic “Company Chicken” recipe that calls for lining the baking dish with chipped beef, right? Well, when I  started making that recipe only to find at the last minute that I had no chipped beef on hand.  So off to the store and I decided to use sliced roast beef instead!  Loved the difference! In this simple recipe chicken thighs are baked in a casserole with bacon, roast beef, and creamy sour cream/soup sauce.   It is perfect for a busy day and keeps well if you want some leftovers.  

A dish as hearty as this needs little else to make it great, but hot cooked rice, pasta, or mashed potatoes work well and soak up the flavorful juices.  On the side, I loved to serve up Peanut Cucumber Salad and some steamed broccoli.  

 

Party Chicken 

8 boneless chicken thighs 

8 slices roast beef - chopped

8 strips of bacon

16 oz. sour cream

1 can cream of chicken/ 1 can cream of mushroom

Lightly grease 9×13 glass casserole dish and line with chopped beef.

Wrap bacon around the chicken and lay them on top of the beef

Mix sour cream and soups together.
Pour over chicken

Cook for 45 minutes at 350 degrees or until tender.

The sauce thins as it cooks but you can also add water to create a thinner sauce.

Oh What do you do in the Zucchini Patch?

 Zucchini Brownies are rich and oh so chocolately!  With zucchini abundance here is what we made this afternoon.  

Zucchini Brownies 

Ingredients:

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1 1/2 cups white sugar

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 egg

2 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 cup cocoa powder

2 teaspoons baking soda

2 1/2 cups grated zucchini undrained

Frosting:

1/3 cup milk 

1/3 cup butter

1 1/2 cup white sugar

1 cup chocolate chips

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degreets

2. Grease and flour a 9 x 13 pan

3. Combine oil, sugar, egg, and vanilla.  In a separate bowl, combine flour, cocoa, and baking soda.  Ad the flour mixture to the sugar mixture and stir well.  It will appear quite dry.  Gently stir in the zucchini mixing until fulling incorporated.  Spread the mixture into your prepared pan.  

4. Bake 25- 30 minutes

Frosting:

While the cake is cooling, combine butter, milk, and sugar in a small pan.  Bring to a boil over medium heat.  Allow it to boil vigorously for 30 seconds.  Remove from heat and stir in chocolate chips. Pour over warm brownies.  Let cool completely before cutting.  

Next up ---- Air Fryer Zucchini Fries!

May Your Mother's Day Be....

Filled with good memories

of delicious food...

beautiful bouquets

splashes of sunshine fruit....and salmon bowl

homemade gifts from the littlies....

Let’s be honest, mothers are superheroes and deserve to be showered with love all year round — but there’s no denying they deserve it a little bit more on Mother’s Day. So we enjoyed our day in Park City at The Harvest!

 

• Thank you for all the hugs, words of encouragement, and patience through the years.