Easy Spaghetti Sauce

This is a slightly changed family recipe. For one thing, the original recipe calls for lard to be added to the meat. Yes, you read that right. LARD! I have tweaked it here and there over the years to better match my taste. I CAN tell you that when I tell my family I'm making spaghetti with homemade sauce that I'm a hero! I once made this for company and one of the guests enjoyed it so much, that he wanted to drink the leftover sauce from his plate. Others at the dinner table got after him for "manners", but I was tickled that he enjoyed it so!

Ingredients:
1 lb. hamburger or Italian sausage
1 sm. chopped onion
2 lg. cans tomato sauce
1 lg. can tomato paste
1/2 to 1 cup water
1 tsp. minced garlic
1 tsp. thyme
1 tsp. chili powder
1 tbs. salt
2 tbs. sugar
1/2 tsp. pepper
1/8 to 1/4 tsp. allspice
1 bay leaf
2 tbs. dried parsley

Brown meat with chopped onion and drain. Put into a deep sauce pan and add remaining ingredients, stirring to blend well. Heat over medium low heat until it starts to bubble. Cover, reduce heat to low and simmer at least 40 minutes stirring occasionally. Remove bay leaf and serve.

SAUCY MEATBALLS

This is a terrific appetizer/snack/party food! This recipe is easy and delicious! Two things I absolutely love! The ingredients may make you go, huh? But trust me when I tell you that this is way big time yummy. And when people compliment you on it, it's fun to watch their faces when you tell them the ingredients! LOL

Ingredients:
Frozen meatballs (1 bag, 2 bags, or whatever your crockpot will hold)
equal parts chili sauce and grape jelly.

Place the frozen meatballs in the crockpot. Pour the chili sauce (you can find this in the condiments section of your grocery store. Usually next to the cocktail sauce) and the grape jelly over the meatballs and stir to coat. Cook on low for several hours until the meatballs are heated through and serve.

Lemon Bars

My longtime and best friend BJ gave me this recipe and I thank her for it EVERY single time I make it! Even if you are a committed chocoholic and cringe at the thought of a dessert that is NOT chocolate, you will LOVE this one! I'm telling you! I have never taken this dessert to a party, meeting or whatever where someone has not asked for this recipe and then given me a hug once I deliver it. The crust alone is heavenly! Then you add the lemon filling on top of that and then frost it with the homemade cream cheese frosting! I'm telling you! I am drooling just thinking about it. It is THAT good! So thank you again BJ for sharing this recipe with me!

Ingredients:

1 cup softened butter
2 cups flour
½ c. powdered sugar
Mix these together and press into an ungreased 9x13 pan or dish and bake at 350 for about 10-12 minutes.

Filling
Mix 4 eggs, 2 cups granulated sugar, ½ cup flour and 6 tablespoons of lemon juice. Pour over warm crust. Bake at 350 for 20 minutes. Frost when cool.

Frosting
6 oz. softened cream cheese
3 tablespoons melted butter
2 cups powdered sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
Mix well, till no lumps, spread over lemon bars.

Chicken Bog

For those who don't know what Chicken Bog is, it is chicken bogged down in rice. Get it? Paula Deen among others add in sausage and peppers and such. As for me? When it comes to Chicken Bog, I am a purist! Don't go gettin all fancy on me with this dish. The blended flavors of the chicken, rice, salt and pepper to me, are perfect just as they are. Chicken Bog with a side of homemade biscuits and I am SO there!

Ingredients:
1 whole chicken (3 to 4 lbs is what I usually use)
8 cups water (a little more or less depending on the size of your chicken and how much rice you want to cook with it.
4 cups long grain rice (does not HAVE to be long grain. Medium is fine also. Just follow the directions on the package as you might need to adjust the amount of water to it in)
2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp pepper

Directions:
Rinse your chicken and pull out the neck, heart, etc. Some people keep these and cook them up. I don't.:)
Place the chicken in a large stock pot. Add water, salt, pepper and bring to a boil. Turn down heat and let it gently boil for about an hour or until the meat easily comes off the bone using a fork.
Remove the chicken and set aside to let it cool down a bit.
Add rice to the broth and cook as directed on the package.
After rice is done. (I like to cook mine until it's sticky because I hate to have grains of rice fall through my fork!) De-bone the chicken and add to rice. Stir and serve! This is not particularly salty. I do this because everyone's salt preference is different.

Texas Sheet Cake

I love this cake! It's a moist chocolate cake, but no thicker than a brownie. That way, you don't feel near so guilty if you sneak back into the kitchen for an extra slice! This cake travels well and is a great dessert to take for a big family picnic. Now for ME, I love nuts! However, there are some members of my family who don't. So when I make the frosting, I don't add the nuts. Instead, I sprinkle the nuts on half of the cake and pour the frosting over.

Cake Ingredients:
2 cups flour
2 cups sugar
1 stick butter
1/2 cup oil
1 cup water
4 tbs. cocoa
2 eggs
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. vanilla
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 cup buttermilk (yes, the fake kind where you add a little vinegar to regular milk works well too)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix flour and sugar in a mixing bowl. In a med. size pot, bring butter, oil, water and cocoa to a boil. Pour over the flour mixture and blend well. I like to use my Kitchen Aid for this. Stir in eggs, cinnamon, vanilla, baking soda and buttermilk and blend well. Pour batter onto an ungreased cookie sheet WITH A RIM. Bake for 20 minutes or until done. 5 minutes before you take the cake out of the oven, start making the frosting.

Frosting Ingredients:
1 stick butter or margarine
4 tbs. cocoa
6 tbs. milk
1 lb. powdered sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
1/2 cup chopped walnuts, if desired

Combine butter, cocoa and milk in a sm. pot and bring to a boil, stirring so as not to stick. Combine the rest of the ingredients and mix well adding nuts. Pour over cake and spread to cover. Let cool, slice and serve.

Crock Pot Pork Chops and Stuffing

It might not look like much, but this is one of my family's all time favorites! It's easy, filling and most importantly, DELICIOUS.

Ingredients:
2 boxes of Stove Top Stuffing, cooked according to directions on the box.(It does not matter which flavor you use. When I cooked it this last time, I used one cornbread and one turkey mix and cooked them together. Yum Yum!)
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1/4 cup milk
6 pork chops (1/2 inch thick)


Make stuffing and set aside. Heat about a 1/2 inch of oil in a frying pan. Salt and pepper pork chops. Dredge in flour and fry for about 4 or 5 minutes on each side. Place pork chops in the bottom of the crock pot. Mix cream of mushroom soup with milk and pour over pork chops. Top with stuffing and cook on low for 4 hour or until tender.

Be careful when serving, because the meat will fall off the bone and the bones can hide a little too well in the stuffing. Unless of course you use boneless pork chops. If so, then no worries!

Stove Top Mac and Cheese

This recipe is pretty easy and SO much better than anything out of a box. So cheesy and creamy! I believe THIS is where the term "comfort food" got it's start. It feels like a hug from the inside.

Ingredients:
7 oz. of elbow macaroni
1/4 cup butter or margarine
1/4 cup flour
1 tsp. salt
1 dash of black pepper
1 dash of white pepper
2 cups milk
1 1/2 cups of shredded cheddar cheese
1/4 cup of shredded pepper-jack cheese

Cook macaroni according to package directions. Meanwhile, in a medium saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Stir in flour, salt and pepper, mixing well. Gradually add milk; cook and stir until thickened. Stir in cheese until melted. Drain macaroni and add to cheese sauce. Stir till it's well coated and serve.

LASAGNA!!

For the longest time, my oldest son would only eat the sausage out of the lasagna! I'm so glad that my son the carnivore has come around! I'm not too picky, but I have to admit that veggie lasagna holds no charm for me. If you're gonna omit meat, that's fine. But don't throw in vegetables and tell me "it's just like meat". Nope! As Jiminy Cricket says, "I'm No Fool! No Siree!" So don't try and pull one over on me when it comes to food!

Ingredients:
1 lb.ground mild or sweet Italian sausage
1 tsp.dried minced onion
1 tsp. minced garlic
1 (14.5 oz) can stewed tomatoes (I run this in the blender a few seconds just because I don't care for chunks of tomato)
1 (12 oz) can tomato paste
1 (8 oz.) can tomato sauce
2 tbs. Italian seasoning
2 tsp. sugar
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. chili powder (I once used chipotle chili powder and that was good too!)
12 lasagna noodles cooked till tender
2 cups cottage cheese
1/2 cup of parmesean cheese plus a little more to sprinkle on top
1 tbs. dried chopped parsley
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp. season salt
16 oz. shredded mozzarella

Directions:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Spray the bottom of a 9 X 13 inch casserole dish lightly with Pam.

In a large pan, over medium heat, brown sausage (if you can only find the links, then just slice and remove the skins). Make sure you break up the meat with a spoon really well. Drain off grease if there is any. Add stewed tomatoes, tomato sauce, tomato paste, onion, garlic, salt, sugar, chili powder and Italian seasoning. Stir well. If it looks too thick, just add a little water. No more than 1/4 cup though! Cover and simmer 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.

In a large bowl, whisk the eggs and add in cottage cheese, 1/2 cup parmesean cheese, season salt, pepper and parsley and stir.

Place one layer of 4 noodles in the bottom of the casserole dish, overlapping about 1/2 inch. Spread 1/3 of cottage cheese mixture over pasta. Sprinkle 1/3 of the mozzarella on top and then spread 1/3 of the sauce over the mozzarella. Repeat this and sprinkle a little more mozzarella on top along with a little more parmesean cheese. Cover with foil and bake for 20 minutes. Then remove the foil and bake for another 20 minutes. Let stand for at least 10 minutes before serving.

Chicken and Dumplings

I'm posting this recipe again, because I now have a picture to go with it.


Down south, it's called chicken and pastry. Out west, it's chicken and dumplings. Either way, it is delicious IF prepared correctly. Dumplings should never be too heavy.

Ingredients:

1 2-3lb. whole chicken
6 cups water
1 tbs. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
1 cup milk
2 tbs. margarine
1/3 cup shortening
2 cups sifted self-rising flour
1/2 cup water

Place chicken in a big enough pot and add 6 cups of water, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, cover, reduce heat and simmer 45 minutes to 1 hour or until very tender. Remove chicken from broth; let cool. Remove chicken from bones and dice or shred. Add milk and margarine to broth; bring to a simmer.

Cut shortening into flour using a pastry blender until mixture resembles course meal. Add 1/2 cup water and stir with a fork just until dough leaves side of bowl. If it's too dry, then add a little more water a tsp. at a time. For rolled dumplings, which I prefer, roll out dough to 1/8-inch thickness on a lightly floured surface; cut into 2 inch squares. For drop dumplings, pat dough to 1/2-inch thickness on a lightly floured surface; pinch off dough in 1 1/2-inch pieces. Gradually drop dumplings, one at a time, into boiling broth mixture. Cover, reduce heat, and boil gently for 15 minutes, or until dumplings are cooked. Stir occasionally to prevent sticking. Stir in chicken and heat through.

Sour Cream Green Enchilada Casserole

This recipe makes a big pan! If you have enough side dishes, you can get 2 meals out of it. It also takes a little bit of muscle to stir all of the ingredients together! I don't mind it though. It helps me to justify eating such a cheesy dish! This a recipe of my Grandma York's, who got it from her daughter, my Aunt Debbie.

Ingredients:

24 corn tortillas cut into square chunks
1 can of diced green chilies. I like to use a lg. can because I love the flavor!
2 cans of cream of chicken soup
1 24 oz. container of sour cream
1 sm. diced onion or 2 tbs. of dried minced onion
2 cups of shredded cheese plus a little more to put on top.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In a large mixing bowl coe, 1 medium onion diced, green chilies, cream of chicken soup, sour cream and corn tortillas. Mix all together, put in a 9 X 13 inch casserole dish top with cheese. Bake 30 minutes.

Simply Delicious Strawberry Cake!

This is a Paula Deen recipe, so you KNOW it's good!! When I made this, I couldn't find any strawberry extract. I used raspberry extract instead and it tasted great! This cake is really moist and the frosting rich. So make sure you drink a Diet Coke with it to balance it out! As for me? I CAN'T do the diet soda thing! I can gag down some Crystal Light lemonade. But my #1 diet drink of all time is WATER!! It's refreshing, calorie free, and unless you insist on bottled water, it CAN be absolutely free!! Proof once again that our God IS and Awesome God!

Ingredients

* 1 (18.25-ounce) box white cake mix
* 1 (3-ounce) box strawberry-flavored instant gelatin
* 1 (15-ounce) package frozen strawberries in syrup, thawed and pureed
* 4 large eggs
* 1/2 cup vegetable oil
* 1/4 cup water
* Strawberry cream cheese frosting, recipe follows
* Strawberry Cream Cheese Frosting
* 1/4 cup butter, softened
* 1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened
* 1 (10-ounce) package frozen strawberries in syrup, thawed and pureed
* 1/2 teaspoon strawberry extract
* 7 cups confectioners' sugar
* Freshly sliced strawberries, for garnish, optional

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease 2 (9-inch) round cake pans.

In a large bowl, combine cake mix and gelatin. Add pureed strawberries, eggs, oil, and water; beat at medium speed with an electric mixer until smooth. Pour into prepared pans, and bake for 20 minutes, or until a wooden pick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Let cool in pans for 10 minutes. Remove from pans, and cool completely on wire racks.
For the frosting:

In a large bowl, beat butter and cream cheese at medium speed with an electric mixer until creamy. Beat in 1/4 cup of the strawberry puree and the vanilla extract. (The rest of the puree is leftover but can be used in smoothies or on ice cream for a delicious treat.) Gradually add confectioners' sugar, beating until smooth.

Spread frosting in between layers and on top and sides of cake. Garnish with sliced fresh strawberries, if desired.

How To Cook A Roast

I'm telling You! Nothing gets the mouth watering like walking in and smelling a roast that has been cooking in the oven for several hours! Some people cook a roast in a roasting pan, some in a crock pot. I typically cook mine in my dutch oven. I don't build a fire and cook on coals in the backyard, because then you have to stay nearby and tend to it. I prefer to put my dutch oven right in the oven in my kitchen. I don't have a recipe written down for this. I learned from my Mom and she learned from my Dad's Mom (Grandma York). I used to say, "Roast is the easiest thing in the world to cook. You CAN'T ruin a roast." I went to dinner at someone's house where she had cooked a beef roast........I stood corrected. I went to cut into the meat and I swear I heard it say, "Do you MIND?! I'm grazing here!"

Ingredients:

1 beef roast
1 lg or 2 med. onions
3 to 4 lbs. potatoes scrubbed and cut into 2-3 inch chunks(russet, red, white, whatever you prefer)
2 lbs. carrots (baby or peeled and cut up lg. carrots)
2 bay leaves
1 pkg. Au jus seasoning
1-2 tsp. minced garlic
salt, pepper, Lawry's season salt
2-4 cups water

Preheat your oven to 300 degrees. Take a beef roast out of the package and rinse it off with cold water. I just buy whatever is on sale. The cut doesn't really matter to me. I believe it's ALL in the way you cook it. Heat either your dutch oven or lg. skillet on the stove and brown the roast on all sides. Remove from heat. Slice onions and place a layer on the bottom of your roasting pan or dutch oven. Put the other half of onion on top. Add bay leaves, potatoes and carrots. Sprinkle remaining ingredients on top of the roast. Add water, making sure to get enough on top of the roast so that the seasonings are not dry. Cover and bake at 300 degrees for about 3 1/2 to 4 hours. Take the roast out of the oven and pierce it with a cooking fork. That's the one that has 2 prongs that are extra long. I say this because there are some people who might not know what I'm talking about. If the fork goes straight to the bottom of the pot/pan like butter? Then it is DONE! Remove the roast onto a serving platter with the onions. Remove bay leaves and discard. Scoop out the potatoes and carrots into a serving dish and get ready to make gravy!

To make the gravy, heat the drippings to a boil. If you're using a dutch oven, you can cook the gravy in it, right on top of the stove. If not, pour drippings into a saucepan first. While you're waiting for the drippings to boil, make a mixture of 2-3 tbs. of cornstarch to about a 2/3 cup of COLD water and mix well. Whisk mixture into the boiling drippings and stir until it comes to a boil again. Remove from heat and gravy will continue to thicken as it cools. You can also use a brown gravy mix and add 1 cup of COLD water, mix well and whisk into the drippings if you prefer and bring to a boil. Both are tasty!

Serve this up with either homemade bread, biscuits or Pillsbury Grands biscuits and you've got an awesome meal!

Best Snickerdoodle Recipe EVER

A good snickerdoodle should be lightly crispy on the outside and soft and chewy on the inside. If I want a crunchy cookie, I'm not going to go to the trouble of baking it! There are shelves filled with crunchy cookies at the grocery store. My favorites are Oreos and Vienna Fingers. But enough of that! It took me trying out several recipes over the course of about a year before I came upon this recipe. Which in my opinion, is THE BEST!


Ingredients

* 1 cup shortening
* 1 1/2 cups white sugar
* 2 eggs
* 2 3/4 cups sifted all-purpose flour
* 1 teaspoon baking soda
* 2 teaspoons cream of tartar
* 1/4 teaspoon salt
* 2 tablespoons white sugar
* 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
2. In a large bowl, mix together the shortening and 1 1/2 cups of white sugar until smooth. Stir in the eggs one at a time, blending well after each. Combine the flour, baking soda, cream of tartar and salt; stir into the batter until blended.
3. Roll the dough into balls the size of small walnuts. Roll in a mixture of 2 tablespoons sugar and 2 teaspoons cinnamon. Place 2 inches apart on an ungreased cookie sheet.
4. Bake in the preheated oven for 8 to 10 minutes or until lightly browned, but still soft.

Becky's Salsa

This recipe fills up a BIG bowl. Great for get togethers and parties! Note: When slicing the jalapenos, make sure you wear either rubber gloves or plastic bags over your hands. It only took me one time of touching my eye after slicing the peppers to learn that lesson! Anyhow, when I go to the York family reunion each year, this is one of everyone's favorite treats!

Ingredients:

2 27 oz. cans whole tomatoes
3 cloves of garlic
2 avocados
5 fresh jalapenos sliced lengthwise with seeds removed. (If you want more of a kick, then leave the seeds from 1/2 of a jalapeno).
1 tsp. salt
1 small chopped onion
4 cubes chicken bouillon
1 rounded tsp. ground cumin
1 bunch cilantro

In a blender, put in 1 can of tomatoes, peppers, garlic, bouillon cubes and salt. Blend well and pour into lg. salsa bowl. Put 2nd can of tomatoes in blender with 1 avocado and blend for no more than 10 seconds and add to the salsa bowl. Chop 2nd avocado, onion, cilantro and stir. Sprinkle cumin on top, stir and enjoy with your favorite tortilla chips.

Vanilla Wafer Bundt Cake

Once when I made this cake, I used an older bundt pan and the cake SPLIT as I was I turning it out onto the plate! No problem! I cut it into chunks, placed the cake pieces in a crystal bowl and dusted with powdered sugar. Everyone raved about it and preferred scooping out the cake instead of slicing.

1 c. butter, softened 1 c. chopped pecans
2 c. sugar 1/2 c. milk
6 eggs 1 tsp. vanilla extract
12 oz. of Vanilla Wafers, crushed

Cream butter and sugar together. Add eggs one at a time, beating after each addition. Blend in vanilla wafers, pecans, milk and vanilla. Pour into a greased and floured Bundt pan. Bake at 325 degrees for 1 1/2 hours; let cook before removing from pan.

OK, Here it goes!

For those who know me, it is no secret that I LOVE to cook! I love to cook and to my good fortune, my family LOVES to eat! The title of this blog comes from my oldest son. He has been after me for years to open my own restaurant and call it "Mama's Fat Cookin". Opening a restaurant takes money. Something I do not have. It also takes a lot of time. Something I have even less of! In my attempt to stay "current", I have opted to go with Phat instead of Fat. On this blog, I will list recipes that are personal, family and friend favorites. I will never list a recipe that I haven't tried out myself and approve of. I have high standards, in that food must taste good! I say, why even bother eating something if it feels like a chore. Eating should be an enjoyable experience. Sometimes exciting, like an adventure. Sometimes comforting, like a warm hug from someone you care about. And sometimes.....sometimes, just plain JOYOUS! There are those that say food can't make you happy. I 100% disagree with this kind of thinking! However, I do believe that for food to be truly enjoyed, it must come with a healthy dose of love. When one of my kids has had a bad day. I never give them a homemade cookie without an arm around him or her and letting them know just how special they are. By the way, if you ever see a healthy recipe posted. It will be because it is delicious and NOT because it is healthy. Like I said, I'm all about flavor! Hope you enjoy!