Italian Easter Bread

3 cups all-purpose flour

1/4 cup sugar

1 pkg. active dry yeast

1 tsp. salt

2/3 cup warm milk (120-130°F)

2 tbsp. butter, softened

7 eggs

1/2 cup mixed candied fruit, chopped

1/4 cup blanched almonds, chopped

1/2 tsp. anise seed

Vegetable oil

In a mixing bowl, combine 1 cup flour, sugar, yeast and salt. Add milk and butter; beat 2 minutes on medium. Add 2 eggs and 1/2 cup flour; beat 2 minutes on high. Stir in fruit, nuts and anise seed; mix well. Stir in enough remaining flour to form a soft dough.

Turn onto a lightly floured board; knead until smooth, 6-8 minutes. Place in a greased bowl; turn once. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled; about 1 hour.

If desired, dye remaining eggs (Leave the uncooked); lightly rub with oil.

Punch dough down. Divide in half; roll each piece into a 24 rope. Loosely twist ropes together; place on a greased baking sheet and form into a ring. Pinch ends together. Gently split ropes and tuck eggs into openings. Cover and let rise until doubled, about 30 minutes. Bake at 350°F for 30-35 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from pan; cool on a wire rack.

Best Ever Waffle's

2 Eggs
2 Tablespoons Sugar
1 Teaspoon Salt
1/2 Cup Oil
1 Package Active Dry Yeast
1/2 Cup Warm Water
2 Cups Milk
3 Cups Flour

Dissolve yeast in 1/2 cup warm water. Scald milk and cool.

In a large mixing bowl, beat eggs well, then add other ingredients. Stirring until mixture is blended. Then beat until the batter is smooth.

The batter may be stored in a large fruit juice container so that it does not rise over the top.
This will keep in refrigerator for a long time.

Ham Waffles

Ham Waffles

2 Cups Flour -- sifted
1/4 Teaspoon Baking Soda
2 Teaspoons Baking Powder
1/2 Teaspoon Salt
1 Tablespoon Sugar
2 Egg Yolks -- well beaten
1 3/4 Cups Sour Milk
1/3 Cup Butter -- melted
2 Egg Whites -- stiffly beaten
1 Cup Smoked Ham -- uncooked, diced

Sift flour once, measure, add soda, baking powder, salt, and sugar, and sift again.
Combine egg yolks, milk, and butter. Add to flour, beating until smooth. Fold in egg whites.
Bake on hot waffle iron. Sprinkling 1/4 cup ham over batter of each waffle just before closing iron. Serve soft scrambled eggs on each waffle.

Makes four 4-section waffles.

Chocolate Cheese Bars

1 Devil's Food Cake Mix (with or without pudding in it)
8 oz Cream cheese, softened
1/3 c Oil
3 Eggs (divided use)
1/4 c Sugar
6 oz Semi-sweet chocolate chips
1/2 c Walnuts or pecans, chopped (optional)


Mix dry cake mix, 2 eggs, and 1/3 cup oil until crumbly; reserve 1 cup.

Pat remaining mixture lightly in an ungreased 13x9x2 inch pan. Bake
for 15 minutes at 350 degrees. Remove and sprinkle top with
chocolate chips and walnuts.

Beat cream cheese, sugar and remaining egg until light and smooth.
Spread over chocolate chips and walnuts. Sprinkle with reserved
crumb mixture. Return to oven and bake for 15 minutes longer. Cool
and cut into bars. Makes 16 servings.

Baked Scrambled Egg Casserole

2 tablespoons margarine
1 1/2 cups cooked ham -- chopped
1/2 cup green onions -- sliced
1 can cream of mushroom soup
12 eggs
4 ounces cheddar cheese -- shredded
1/2 cup half & half

Heat oven to 250~. Grease 2-qt casserole. In large skillet, melt margarine. Saute onions until crisp tender. In large bowl, beat eggs; stir in half & half and ham. Pour egg mixture into skillet with onions; mix well. Cook over medium heat. As mixture begins to set, gently lift cooked portions with spatula so that thin uncooked portions can flow to bottom. Avoid constant stirring.

Cook until eggs are thickened throughout; spoon into prepared casserole dish. Pour soup evenly over top. Bake at 250~ for 30 minutes; sprinkle with cheddar cheese and bake 10-15 minutes longer.

Rachael Ray 3.5-qt. Enameled Cast Iron Round Covered Casserole, Green In fewer than five years, Rachael Ray has radically changed the way America cooks dinner. Her perky-girl-next-door swagger, her catchphrases for techniques, and her dinner ideology of simpler, less expensive and just in time have sold billions of books and placed her at the top of the talent heap of food television personalities. Designed to perform on the stove or in the oven, this covered casserole features a large cooking surface to brown meats with room to add ingredients for a one-dish meal. The lid fits snugly to lock in moisture and flavors, making this pan perfect for the long, slow braising of a tender pot roast. Large handles make it easy to transfer dinner from the stovetop or oven to the table. Cast iron construction provides even heating and excellent heat retention. The enamel finish means you don't have to pre-season (or re-season) your cookware

Ingredient Substitutions

Here is a fantastic list of ingredient substitutions! I have it in a .doc format for you to click on as it is a very long (5 pages) in Word, this way you can open it and print it out to keep handy!

Ingredient Substitutions

Lemon Angel Food Cake

12 egg whites
1 tsp cream of tartar
1/4 tsp salt

Beat at high speed until foamy. The whites are beaten enough when they start to slip when you tip the bowl.

Add 3/4 cup sifted powdered sugar, 1 T at a time until stiff peaks form. Fold in 1 T lemon rind, 3 T fresh lemon juice and 1/4 tsp vanilla.

Combine 1/2 cup powdered and 1 cup sifted cake flour, gradually fold in the egg white mixture. Spoon batter into a 10" tube pan. (Do not grease the pan!!)

Bake 375 degrees for 35-40 minutes. Invert pan onto the neck of a bottle or funnel until cooled.

Amish Macaroni Salad

1/2 lb macaroni or shell pasta, cooked and drained

1/4 cup finely chopped celery

1/4 cup finely grated or chopped carrots

1/8 cup finely chopped onion

3 hard boiled eggs, cooled and chopped

Once the macaroni is cooked and cooled, mix with all the above except the eggs. Set eggs aside until ready to add dressing.

Dressing:

1 cup miracle whip salad dressing (not mayonaise)

1 T brown mustard

1/3 cup sugar

Blend dressing well and fold into macaroni along with chopped eggs.

Cover and refrigerate until well chilled. Line a pretty glass bowl with curly lettuce leaves and spoon salad in, garnish with sliced eggs or parsley. Sprinkle a gentle amount of paprika on top.

Wrap It Up!

Gotta love soft tortilla shells for wrapping up a quick snack or meal.

You can pretty much wrap anything in these versitile shells. They come in 8" and approximatly 10" sizes.

Once you have placed your filling on the center, fold up one side about 1/8 of the way, this is the 'bottom', then roll from the side and voila! You have a wrap.

Some ideas of what to wrap:

~ Hot white chicken breast (cooked), drizzle ranch dressing and grated
cheese, 2-3 slices crispy bacon and wrap.

~ Any favorite chicken or tuna salad normally in a sandwich, spread on the
tortilla, fold and roll.

~ Peanut butter and Jelly for the kids!

~ Pizza wrap - 3 T pizza sauce, small handful of grated cheese, 6 pepperoni
slices. Fold end and roll. Microwave for 20 seconds or until hot. Do not over
heat as the edges will dry out.

~ Sprinkle grated cheese on the tortilla, spread on hot freshly scrambled
eggs, add chopped ham or crumbled cooked bacon and fold and roll.

~ Smores Wrap - Spread a thin layer of chocolate syrup or sauce on the
center, about 2" from the edges, sprinkle mini marshmallows and 1/8 cup crushed
graham crackers, fold and roll.

See what I mean? There are endless possibilities with a flour tortilla
shell! Let your imagination go wild!

If you have any other idea's for wraps please leave me comments with your ideas!