Taco Hash Brown Casserole

 

This is my favorite Crock-Pot recipe. For a time, it was my only Crock-Pot recipe. I came to Crock-Pot cooking late in life. It was my husband’s specialty. I cooked and baked everything else.

 

Then came the season when I was craving this casserole and he kept making excuses. Anybody know what I’m talking about? So one day I just went into the kitchen and got it done. It tasted just like the one he made so I was hooked! But, many recipes later, this is still my favorite.

 

I did learn from my husband to ALWAYS use a plastic slow cooker liner in the Crock-Pot. And, yes, that’s the brand of slow cooker that we use. The liner makes cleanup quick and easy.

 

I get my ground beef at Wal-Mart. It’s 97 percent fat free. We’ve reached the age where that sort of thing matters.

 

I also use powdered garlic. It’s by McCormick. Just ¼ teaspoon per garlic and it’s so much easier than doing it the old-fashioned way. I’m all about easy and quick. I also use McCormick taco seasoning packets.

 

The Cheddar Cheese soup is by Campbell’s. The shredded hash browns are Wal-Mart’s Great Value brand. No need to thaw unless it's necessary to break the hash browns up so you can stir them into the other ingredients.

 

The shredded cheddar cheese – also a Wal-Mart brand – is a staple at our house.

 

I hope you enjoy this as much as we do. It’s quick, easy and yummy!

 

 

Taco Hash Brown Casserole

in the Crock-Pot

 

1 lb. ground beef

2 cloves garlic

1 taco seasoning packet (1 oz.)

1 can cheddar cheese soup (10.5 oz.)

1 bag frozen shredded hash browns (26 oz.)

2 cups shredded cheddar cheese

 

Brown the ground beef. Drain.

 

In a large bowl, mix ground beef with garlic, taco seasoning, cheddar cheese soup, frozen hash browns and 1 cup of the shredded cheese. Stir together and pour into the Crock-pot. Smooth until it’s evenly distributed. Sprinkle remaining shredded cheese on top.

 

Cook on HIGH for 2 hours.

 

Makes 4 generous servings.

Sausage Gravy

A Southern favorite, this recipe for sausage gravy pairs well with homemade biscuits. Just pop the biscuits in the oven, then make the gravy while they bake.

Serve as a breakfast side or as a meal.

 Sausage Gravy

1/4 cup plus 1/8 cup all-purpose flour

1 lb. bulk pork sausage

salt and pepper to taste

3 cups milk

biscuits

Brown the sausage and drain off any grease. Add salt and pepper to taste. Add flour and stir.

Slowly add the milk, stirring constantly until the gravy has thickened. This can take 10 minutes or so. Do not overcook.

Pour gravy over warm biscuits and serve.

Biscuits

 I have been searching for years to find a really good homemade biscuit recipe. I have tried more recipes than I care to admit. Some were okay. Some were destined for the garbage.

Then one day I combined ingredients from two different recipes and I was thrilled. The only challenge? I didn't write down exactly what I did.

So I did it again -- writing it all down as I went. This is that recipe. How many biscuits you get depends on the thickness of the dough. Plan for about 9-10. Pair the biscuits with sausage gravy or a homecooked Southern meal and you've got a winner.

               Biscuits

2 cups self-rising flour

1 cup buttermilk

1 teaspoon sugar

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

6 tablespoons Crisco shortening

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

Sift flour. Add baking power, baking soda and sugar. Stir. Cut in the shortening using a pastry cutter. Add buttermilk, stirring just until moistened.

Pour batter onto a well-floured cloth. Knead sparingly, until coated. Roll out thickly (3/4-1 inch thick) and cut with a biscuit cutter. 

Place in a well-greased cast iron skillet. I use shortening to grease the skillet. Bake 10-15 minutes or until lightly browned on top.

Serve.

Peach Cobbler

This recipe comes from Southern Living and has proven to be a winner in our house. It's quick, easy and never fails to draw people back for a second helping.

Peach Cobbler

1/2 cup butter

1 cup self-rising flour

2 cups sugar, divided

1 cup milk

4 cups fresh peaches, washed, peeled and cubed

Melt butter in a 13x9x2-inch Pyrex dish or something similar. I simply put the butter in the dish, place it in the oven and let it melt as the oven warms to 375 degrees.

In a separate bowl, combine the flour, 1 cup of sugar and the milk. Mix well. Set aside.

Place the peaches and remaining sugar in a boiler. Heat on the stove just until boiling.

To assemble, pour the flour mixture into the dish with the melted butter. Do NOT stir. Then spoon the peaches onto the top of that. Be sure to spoon it over the flour mixture. Pouring will cause it all to separate and your peaches will pool up in one place.

Bake at 375 degrees for 30 minutes or until browned.

Serve warm with Blue Bell Homemade Vanilla Ice Cream.

Bacon, Ranch and Cheese Pasta Bake

 I found this recipe online and then promptly set about tweaking it to fit my needs and my pantry. For example, I didn't want to take time to thaw, fry and crumble bacon. We use a wonderful type of Bacon Bits that look and taste like real bacon without the grease.  It's easy and quick. In fact, this casserole is easy and quick. That's my favorite kind on days that are sometimes way too busy.

Bacon, Ranch and Cheese Pasta Bake

8 ounces uncooked Penne Pasta

1 14.5-15 ounce jar Alfredo Sauce

4 tablespoons real Bacon Bits (or 4 slices cooked bacon, crumbled)

1/4 cup Ranch Dressing

1/2 cup shredded Cheddar Cheese

Cook and drain the Penne Pasta according to the package directions.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Stir the cooked Penne Pasta, Alfredo Sauce, Bacon Bits, 1/4 cup Cheddar Cheese and Ranch Dressing together. Spoon into an 8x8 baking dish. Sprinkle the remaining Cheddar Cheese on top.

Bake for  20 minutes.

Lemon Icebox Pie

 

This was Mother’s go-to dessert. It was quick and easy and everyone always loved it. She’d made it so many times that she didn’t need a recipe. Maybe one day I won’t need it either.

 

Lemon Icebox Pie

 

Nilla Wafers

½ cup Butter, softened

Juice from 3 lemons (about ¼ cups)

1 14-oz. can Eagle Brand Sweetened Condensed Milk

3 eggs, separated

4 tablespoons sugar

 

Crush 40 Nilla Wafers. I put then in a Ziplock bag, seal it and use a rolling pin. It’s okay to use a food processor.

Melt the butter and mix with the crushed Nilla Wafers. Press into the bottom of a glass pie plate. Place additional Nilla Wafers around the rim of the pie plate to create a crust.

Combine egg yolks, Eagle Brand Sweetened Condensed milk and lemon juice, mixing well. Pour into the crust.

Beat the egg whites on HIGH speed of a mixer until white and frothy. Add sugar, one tablespoon at a time, until stiff, white peaks form. Spread on top of the pie filling.

Bake at 325 degrees for 15 minutes or until the top begins to lightly brown.

Cool. Then Refrigerate.

Lemon Layer Cake

 

This has become my favorite cake. It began as a quest to find a wonderful Lemon Layer Cake recipe. I never found one. But I did find many recipes and out of that muddle I ended up with this. I love it.

 

Please be sure use real ingredients. Real butter. Crisco shortening. Cake flour. And freshly squeezed lemon juice. All those things do make a difference in how the final product tastes.

 

  Lemon Layer Cake

 

1 cup butter, softened

½ cup solid shortening

3 cups sugar

5 eggs, room temperature

2 ¾ cups + 1 tablespoon cake flour

¾ cup milk

¼ cup lemon juice

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 teaspoon lemon extract

¾ teaspoon baking powder

 

Cream together butter and shortening. Add sugar and continue to beat until completely smooth. Add eggs one at a time, beating after each one until well blended. Slowly add flour and milk, alternating between the two. the lemon juice, vanilla extract and lemon extract. Add baking powder last.

 

Line four cake pans with wax paper, using butter generously to coat the bottoms and sides. Divide batter evenly between the four pans. Bake at 350 degrees for 18-20 minutes or until a wood toothpick comes out clean. Remove from pans and let the layers cool.

 

Frosting

 

Two 8-ounce packages of cream cheese, softened

1 cup butter, softened

4 cups powdered sugar

¼ cup lemon juice

Yellow food coloring

 

Beat cream cheese and butter until well blended. Slowly add powdered sugar and lemon juice. Add yellow food coloring to the shade of yellow you prefer. It doesn’t take much.

 

Spread frosting between cake layers and on the top and sides of the cake. Serve immediately or refrigerate. This cake also freezes well.