A popular saying around here regarding the weather is - "Just wait a bit and the weather will be changing". Last week it was in the low 90s but with the heat index it felt like 100+ degrees F. This week and next week (if the weatherman knows what he is talking about) the temperatures are going to be about 10 degrees below normal with upper 70s and low 80s for the highs. This week we are making up for the almost lack of rain in July. Yesterday is the first day I can remember in a long time of rain during the day. Next week is supposed to be dry.
Last week when I made this Ravioli Lasagna it was HOT in the kitchen and so I decided to make it in the slow cooker instead of the oven as dil Sara did when we visited with the family in CO weekend before last. Sara had shared her menu plans with me before we went but she just said lasagna so I was pleasantly surprised to see the cheese ravioli. If you decide to bake it in the oven, just use a 9 x 13 - inch pan and place the raviolis in two single layers and heat about 30 minutes in the oven at 350 degrees F.
RAVIOLI LASAGNA
1 lb of ground beef
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
1 14.5 ounce can diced tomatoes (with seasonings)
1 25 ounce jar of pasta sauce (with seasonings)
1 24 ounce bag of frozen cheese ravioli
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
Parmesan cheese
Spray slow cooker with non-stick cooking spray (for easy cleanup).
Brown beef in skillet and season with garlic powder and Italian seasoning. You can add onion if you like. Add diced tomatoes and pasta sauce and simmer for 5 minutes.
In slow cooker spread about 1 cup of sauce in the bottom of the cooker. Place half of the ravioli on top.
Cover with half of the sauce that is left.
Add the rest of the ravioli and
then cover with the rest of the sauce.
Sprinkle cheese on top and cook on low for four hours.
(I didn't have any shredded cheese so just cut several slices of swiss cheese into strips and top sauce.)
and cook on low for 4 hours.
Sprinkle serving with some parmesan cheese, add a tossed salad, and some garlic bread and enjoy! (Did you read in the narrative above how to make it in a 9 x 13 - inch pan and bake in the oven?)
With this heat last week it is hard to do much cooking in the kitchen because the house doesn't need to get any hotter. This week does look to be better - or I should say - forecasted to be better with rain chances all week and highs in the low 80s. Will see.
Anyway because of the heat I tried to rediscover my slow cooker and toaster oven. I will be sharing the main dish I made Friday in the slow cooker that Wayne and I are enjoying later this week. Today I am sharing the Apple Pudding I made yesterday afternoon in my toaster oven. I have been wanting to make it since finding the recipe from a newspaper in that file of Recipes to Try SOON that I collected in the 80s, maybe 90s.
I never baked many cakes in the toaster oven so it might not need to bake as long. The cake tasted great but it was a little dark on top. Love the cinnamon and nutmeg.
APPLE PUDDING
1 cup sugar (I used 1/2 cup stevia blend)
1/4 cup butter, room temperature
1 egg
1 cup flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 cup nuts, chopped (I used pecans)
1-2 teaspoons vanilla
4 apples, peeled and diced
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Cream sugar and butter.
Add egg.
Sift together flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and nutmeg.
Add flour mixture to creamed mixture.
Stir in nuts and vanilla and then stir in apples.
Stir to evenly distribute the mixture to the apples.
(There are more apples than batter.)
Spread into 8 - inch square pan.
Bake for 45 minutes. (I told you it got a little dark in the toaster oven. Didn't taste burned though.)
To serve, cut into squares, add whipped topping and top with a cherry.
Saturday night our Tasty Bunch decided to get together Saturday night for just dessert and some mask wearing and social distancing at Friends Carol and Keith's. The last time we met was March 16th, the night before we started our stay-at-home. We didn't go out to eat that night either, but Carol served us a light dinner and dessert.
It was so good getting together. The temperature was around 90 but it was pleasant on their deck that was completely shaded with big trees. The dessert was also quite yummy. Carol was prepared with a copy for me and even took a picture of it before she cut it for me. Love my friends!
MIDORI CAKE and GLAZE
1 box yellow cake mix
1 (3 - oz) box Jello Instant Pistachio Pudding
4 eggs
1/2 cup plain yogurt
1/2 cup oil
3/4 cup Midori Melon Liqueur
1/2 teaspoon coconut flavoring
GLAZE:
2 cups powdered sugar
1/4 cup Midori Melon Liqueur
1/4 cup cream cheese
1/4 teaspoon butter
1/4 teaspoon coconut flavoring
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease Bundt pan. Set aside.
Beat all ingredients for the cake adding the 4 eggs one at a time for 4 minutes.
Pour batter into pan and bake for 50 to 55 minutes.
Cool pan for 15 minutes and then turn out on cooling rack.
Glaze:
Mix and beat all ingredients at high speed until smooth and spreadable. Glaze cake while it is slightly warm.
I mentioned a few posts ago about going thru a file of Recipes to Try SOON that I compiled back in the 80s or 90s. Needless to say I didn't get around to them very quickly. But the other day I finally did. This recipe for Chocolate Carrot Cake caught my eye.
Our quilting canasta group has not been able to get together to play canasta since late February. Actually they probably played the first Thursday in March, but I was absent because we were still in CA. To keep in touch I formed a conversation group to text. One day Susan mentioned she was making a chocolate carrot cake. It was one of those days I wasn't feeling very sociable so I don't really remember much that was said. But when I saw the recipe, I knew I wanted to make it.
Yesterday seemed like the perfect day and I made it and then took it to the thrift shop for the volunteers. When the shop reopened after initially closing due to the pandemic, to protect the volunteers, management decided to not open the shop on Monday, but allow just the volunteers to come in and sort. The shop also doesn't open until 11 o'clock now Tuesday thru Saturday. I have not returned yet to volunteer but decided several weeks ago that I could at least make a dessert to take in each week.
I think they will like this cake. Well, except Daniel who doesn't like coconut in recipes. Sorry Daniel. The recipe was originally in the March 1987 issue, "All-New All-Chocolate Cookbook".
CHOCOLATE CARROT CAKE
2 cups flour
1-1/2 cups sugar
1/4 cup cocoa
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 cup oil
1/2 cup orange juice
1 teaspoon vanilla
4 eggs
2 cups shredded carrots (about 3 large)
1-1/2 cups (1 3-1/2 to 4 - ounce can) flaked or shredded coconut
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour a Bundt pan and set aside.
Measure the flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon into a large mixing bowl. Stir with a whisk.
Add oil, orange juice, vanilla, and eggs.
Stir on slowest mixer speed for 30 seconds to just combine the ingredients. Scrape the sides of the bowl.
Increase speed to medium and beat 2 minutes, occasionally scraping the sides of the bowl.
Stir in the carrots and coconut and
pour batter into pan.
Bake for 50 to 55 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean. Cool cake in pan in wire rack for 10 minutes.
Remove and cool completely. Sprinkle the top with powdered sugar or if you prefer prepare a simple cream cheese frosting and drizzle over the top.
Numbers are going wild in Florida and Texas especially. Reports from Missouri will show we are on the rise one day but then staying steady the next. Compared to other states and areas, the Kansas City area has not had a lot but then our mayor acted quickly back in the middle of March. Too bad some of the other areas didn't, also.
CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC NUMBERS, 7/13/2020
UNITED STATES
CONFIRMED CASES 3,414,105
RECOVERED CASES 1,517,560
DEATHS 137,787
GLOBAL
CONFIRMED CASES 13,041,695
RECOVERED CASES 7,612,389
DEATHS 571,660
Wayne loves gooseberry pie. I didn't know this until he ordered a piece at Roxanne's Cafe one time. Roxanne's mother Brenda makes it. She even gave me her recipe. I didn't use it this time because she uses canned gooseberries and I had fresh ones Friend Carla picked and gave us.
The recipe I used was in the Midwest Old Threshers Cookbook, 1989 - 40th Reunion Limited Edition. The hardest part of picking the stems off the berries. I ended up helping Wayne because it was taking him a long time. He decided it was harder for him because he didn't have long enough fingernails. Actually making the pie was super easy. Since I had never eaten gooseberry pie, Wayne insisted I try it. So I ate one gooseberry and decided it was just too tart for me. He loves it though so I guess since I made it for him, that's all that is important.
GOOSEBERRY PIE
Pastry for 2 crust pie
1 quart (4 cups) gooseberries
1 cup sugar
4 tablespoons flour
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 tablespoon butter
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Line an 8 - inch pie pan with one of the crust.
Spread the gooseberries over the pastry shell.
Combine the sugar, flour, and cinnamon and
sprinkle over the gooseberries.
Dot with butter.
Cover pie with the second crust.
Turn edges of top crust under the bottom crust and
crimp edges to seal.
Cut 6 slits in top of pie and
bake for 45 minutes.
Cool before serving.
Store in the refrigerator.
CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC NUMBERS, 7/9/2020
UNITED STATES
CONFIRMED CASES 3,159,375
RECOVERED CASES 1,393,256
DEATHS 134,883
GLOBAL
CONFIRMED CASES 12,198,375
RECOVERED CASES 7,095,636
DEATHS 552,785
BE SAFE! WEAR MASKS! SOCIAL DISTANCE! AND WASH YOUR HANDS
My husband Wayne keeps saying we need to clean out the garage so a week or so ago, (Who knows what day it is anymore with this pandemic? I certainly don't.) I decided to pull out a folder I made years ago (probably the 80s) and go through it.
Fortunately the folder, labeled "Recipes to try SOON", wasn't terribly thick. I brought it upstairs and sat down on my glider on the back porch and started going through the recipes. If I came across a recipe that I now don't think I would ever make, I laid it in the discard pile. If I thought I would like to try it soon, it went in another pile. The rest were returned to the file. Oh, come on! At least it's a start!
This recipe called The Golden State Cake had been on the back of a box of C & H Golden Brown Sugar. I can't remember the last time I bought brown sugar in a box. Well, the recipe sounded good. The only problem I had was it called for biscuit mix and I didn't have any. That meant I couldn't make it quite as soon as I hoped, but the next time we went to Aldi, I saw a box and bought it. At the time I couldn't remember what recipe I needed it for, but I did at least remember I need it for one.
Even though I have not returned to actually volunteer at Hillcrest, I started a few weeks ago making a dessert and surprising them with it. It is a little more relaxing since I can take it any day I want to. I can make it any day I like.
I made it Thursday evening and dropped it off Friday morning on my way to the Y. Wayne had cut him a piece while it was still warm and declared it as good. (He used a dinner knife and not a sharp knife.) It was after 7 pm and since I don't eat anything after 7, I had to wait until the next day. Several people ate a piece before I left and also said it was delicious. I finally ate my piece after I got home from the Y. I also thought it was good, but also thought it would taste great with some fresh fruit. I saved a piece for Friend Fran who sent me a message later saying how much she liked it.
THE GOLDEN STATE CAKE
3 cups biscuit mix
1-1/2 cups brown sugar, packed
1/2 cup flour
1/8 teaspoon salt
6 eggs
1 package (8-ounces) cream cheese, softened (or at room temperature) (I used 1/3 less fat)
3/4 cup butter, softened (or at room temperature)
1 teaspoon vanilla
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease or spray a 12 - cup Bundt pan or 10 - inch tube pan. Set aside.
Blend all ingredients in large mixer bowl on low speed for 1/2 minute, scraping bowl frequently.
(I blended the dry ingredients first before
adding the eggs, cream cheese, butter, and vanilla.)
Beat batter 4 minutes at medium speed. Scrape the sides of the bowl again.
Spoon batter into pan and bake 55 to 60 minutes or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool slightly on wire rack before removing from pan. (I ran a knife around the edges of the pan, especially the center.)
Before cutting dust with powdered sugar to finish it off. (Forgot to take a picture Friday morning before I took the cake to Hillcrest.)
CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC NUMBERS, 7/6/2020
UNITED STATES
CONFIRMED CASES 2,983,155
RECOVERED CASES 1,289,687
DEATHS 132,571
GLOBAL
CONFIRMED CASES 11,588,427
RECOVERED CASES 6,555,543
DEATHS 537,388
Spray slow cooker with non-stick cooking spray (for easy cleanup).
Brown beef in skillet and season with garlic powder and Italian seasoning. You can add onion if you like. Add diced tomatoes and pasta sauce and simmer for 5 minutes.
In slow cooker spread about 1 cup of sauce in the bottom of the cooker. Place half of the ravioli on top.
Cover with half of the sauce that is left.
Add the rest of the ravioli and
then cover with the rest of the sauce.
Sprinkle cheese on top and cook on low for four hours.
(I didn't have any shredded cheese so just cut several slices of swiss cheese into strips and top sauce.)
and cook on low for 4 hours.
