Homemade Ice Cream!

When I think of summer, one of the first things that comes to mind is homemade ice cream. It's a tradition that I've grown up with and enjoy a lot. Probably too much. But we won't go there. Below are a couple of different recipes that I've tried. Both are delicious!

**Recipes are written for a four quart freezer. Adjust accordingly.

This one is a family favorite and usually our go-to recipe when we're making ice cream:

Homemade Banana Ice Cream

Ingredients:
6 bananas, mashed
2 Quarts half and half
2 c sugar
3 tbsp vanilla
3/8 tsp salt
Milk to fill container (not always needed)

What to do:
Mix all ingredients together. Put into ice cream freezer. Follow instructions on your freezer. Serve immediately for soft serve ice cream or freeze for two hours for more firm ice cream.

Homemade Strawberry Ice Cream

Ingredients:

2 quarts half and half
2 cans Eagle brand milk
1 small box vanilla instant pudding
2 small packages frozen strawberries, slightly thawed
Milk to fill container (not always needed)

What to do:

Mix all ingredients together. Put into freezer. Freeze according to instructions on your machine. Serve immediately for soft serve or freeze for two hours to firm up.
**This one works will with lots of different mix-ins. You can substitute peaches, candy, etc in places of the strawberries.

Better than Anything Cake

Whew, it's been a while since I've posted! It's good to get back to it. Here's a recipe for a cake that is absolutely, drool on yourself wonderful. Here it is!

Ingredients:
1 box chocolate cake mix (+ items needed to bake cake according to box)
1 can Eagle Brand milk
1 jar caramel icecream topping
1 large tub Cool Whip
8 fun size Butterfinger bars

What to do:
1. Bake cake according to directions on the box in a 13x9 dish.
2. While cake is still warm, poke holes in it with a fork. Drizzle the Eagle Brand milk and caramel over the cake.
3. Crumble 4 of the Butterfinger bars, sprinkle over the cake.
4. Allow to cool completely in refrigerator.
5. Top with Cool Whip. Crumble the other 4 Butterfinger bars over top. Refrigerate until ready to eat! Keep all leftovers in the refrigerator.

Beef and Broccoli Lo Mein

This is a recipe that I borrow from Lisa Burns because it is delicious!! It turned out great when I made it a couple of weeks ago. Leftovers were just as yummy as the first go around!

Ingredients:
4 C hot cooked spaghetti (8oz uncooked pasta)
1 tsp dark sesame oil
1 Tbsp peanut oil
1 Tbsp minced peeled ginger
4 garlic cloves, minced
3 C chopped broccoli
1 1/2 C vertically sliced onions
2 Tbsp brown sugar
1 Tbsp oyster sauce
1 lb flank steak, trimmed and cut across the grain into long, thin strips
1 Tbsp chili paste

What to do:
1. Cook pasta according to pasta directions, omitting salt and fat; drain. Combine pasta and sesame oil, tossing well to coat.

2. While pasta cooks, heat peanut oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add the ginger and garlic, saute 30 seconds. Add broccoli and onion, saute 3 minutes. Add steak and saute 5 minutes or until done. Add pasta mixture, soy sauce, and remaining ingredients; cook 1 minute or until lo mein is thoroughly heated, stirring constantly.

**The grocery store was out of ginger when I made this, so I had to leave it out. It still turned out great! I also used olive oil instead of peanut oil because it's what I had. To get the authentic taste, do NOT omit the sesame oil or the oyster sauce. They are the key!

Grilled Cajun Salmon

Today was a beautiful day! The perfect day to grill out. I happened to have some salmon in the freezer that I had bought on sale a while back, and we decided to throw it on the grill for dinner tonight. It turned out great!! Here's how we cooked it...

Ingredients:
2 salmon fillets
1/2 tbsp paprika
1/2 tbsp cayenne pepper
1/4 tbsp black pepper
a bit of minced garlic
1/2 tbsp dried oregano
olive oil for drizzling

Instructions:
1. Mix together all ingredients except salmon and oil.
2. Spread the rub over over the salmon fillets, coating both sides well. Let sit for 1-2 hours to enhance flavor.
3. Heat grill on low-medium low heat. Drizzle olive oil over each side of the salmon.
4. Grill 5 minutes on each side until fish flakes easily with a fork.

Enjoy! We had it with parmesan rice and steamed vegetables. Yum!

Maw Maw's Lasagna

In late honor of my birthday (it was on the 6th), I'm posting one of the traditional birthday dishes from growing up. My grandma would make this for dinner a lot for birthdays because it was one of everyone's favorites! I hope you enjoy it as much as we do!!

Ingredients:
1 box lasagna noodles, cooked according to package
8oz shredded mozzarella cheese
8 oz shredded parmesan cheese
butter

Sauce Ingredients:
1 lb lean ground beef
4-5 slices deli ham
2 cans tomato paste+ 2 cans water
1 tsp Oregano
1/2 tsp Curry
1 tsp Cumin
1 tsp Thyme
pinch salt
pepper to taste
1 green pepper, chopped and cooked (optional)
1 onion chopped and cooked (optional-you know I hate onion, so of course I leave it out)

**Maw Maw did not use these last two ingredients in her dish once us picky grandchildren were born....and it tastes better without it.**
**The original copy of the recipe does not have measurements for the seasonings. I guessed at it for those of you that like to have numbers, but you'll have to taste and add more if needed. You'll want to go lighter on the curry than anything else because of it's strong flavor**

Gravy Ingredients:
2 tbsp butter
2 tbsp flour
a splash of milk
salt

Making the sauce:
1. Brown and drain your beef.
2. Add tomato paste and 2 cans of water. Mix well.
3. Add seasonings to taste. Add onions and peppers if desired.
4. Allow to simmer to mix flavors while preparing the rest.
*Sauce could be made ahead of time to give the flavors time to really blend well. It could also be a time saver for when you're throwing the dish together after work for dinner.

Making the gravy:
1. Melt 2 tbsp of butter in the microwave or on the stovetop.
2. Mix 2 tbsp flour in with the butter until no lumps are visible.
3. Add just a touch of milk, stir well.
4. Either microwave for 1 minute or heat over medium heat stirring constantly. (Careful not to scald it!)
5. Stir well, repeat microwave step 1 minute at a time until a thick gravy-like consistency is reached. If using the stove, stir constantly until mixture thickens.

Making the dish:
1. Preheat oven to 350°. Spray your 13x9 dish.
2. Layer noodles in the bottom of the dish, covering entire bottom.
3. Layer 1/3 of the meat sauce on top of the noodles.
4. Tear ham into small pieces. Layer on top of meat sauce.
5. Spread 1/3 of gravy on top of ham.
6. Sprinkle 1/3 of mozz. cheese and parm cheese over the gravy.
7. Repeat layers until materials are gone, ending with cheese on top.
8. Melt 1 tbsp butter. Pour over dish.
9. Bake at 350° for 45 min-1 hourm until golden brown and bubbly.

Serve with salad and garlic bread for a complete birthday (or anytime!) dinner!

Maw Maw's Banana Pudding

Banana pudding is an essential at any southern gathering. It can be made many different ways, anything from being baked in the oven to being served cold. Below I decided to post BOTH of grandma's recipes for banana pudding and let YOU decide which one you like best!! They're both served cold, no oven necessary, which is my favorite way to eat banana pudding. Try them both and let me know which one you like better!!

Maw Maw Franklin's Banana Pudding
Ingredients:
3 3oz boxes instant vanilla pudding
5 c milk **(see note below)**
1 tsp vanilla
16 oz fat free cream cheese
12 oz tub Cool Whip, divided
4-5 ripe bananas
1 box Nilla wafers

What to do:
1. Mix dry pudding mixes with milk. Whisk well until pudding thickens. Add vanilla.
2. In a separate bowl, beat cream cheese and 8 oz of Cool Whip until smooth.
3. Combine bowl one with bowl two until well blended.
4. Layer pudding mixture in a large bowl with bananas and Nilla wafers.
5. Top with 8 oz of Cool Whip.
6. Crush a few Nilla wafers and sprinkle over the top of the Cool Whip.
7. Refrigerate for a couple of hours until serving.

**Note**: Instant pudding will not set up when made with soy milk. I learned this the hard way! It's best to use real milk. The higher the %, the thicker the pudding will be.

Maw Maw Swanson's Banana Pudding

Ingredients:
2 large boxes instant vanilla pudding
5 c milk
1 8oz container sour cream
4-5 bananas
1 box Nilla wafers
1 8oz tub Cool Whip

What to do:
1. Mix pudding mixes with 5 c milk.
2. Stir sour cream into pudding mixture.
3. Layer Nilla wafers, pudding mixture, and bananas in a bowl.
4. Cover with Cool Whip. Crush a few Nilla wafers and sprinkle over the top of the dish.
5. Refrigerate two hours before serving.

Chopped BBQ Chicken

This one is for all of you BBQ lovers out there...and for those of you (like me) that don't like NC BBQ too!

Jeremy and I ate this for dinner a couple of nights this week and it was really yummy!

Ingredients:
3-6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 bottle BBQ sauce
1/2 c Italian dressing
1/4 c brown sugar
Sandwich buns for serving

What to do...
1. Place chicken into crockpot.
2. Mix together BBQ sauce, Italian dressing, and brown sugar into a bowl.
3. Pour over chicken, covering completely.
4. Cook on high for 2 hours or low for 4 hours.
5. Remove chicken, shred/chop into bite sized pieces.
6. Stir back into sauce and mix well. Continue to cook for 2 additional hours on high or 3-4 on low.
7. Serve as a sandwich or on a plate.