Frosted Pumpkin Bars

These bars mix up quickly. They are moist and delicious with a wonderful cream cheese frosting. They are especially good when chilled in the refrigerator before serving.

Ingredients

Bars:

• 1 (29 ounce) can solid pack pumpkin

• 2 ½ cups white sugar 

• 1 ½ cups vegetable oil

• 5 eaches eggs

• 3 cups all-purpose flour

• 1 tablespoon baking powder

• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

• 2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice

• 1 ½ teaspoons baking soda

• 1 ½ teaspoons salt

Frosting:

• 2 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, softened

• ½ cup butter, softened

• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

• 2 cups sifted confectioners' sugar

Directions

• Step 1

  Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly grease a jelly roll pan.

• Step 2

  Beat pumpkin, white sugar, vegetable oil, and eggs together in a large mixing bowl. Combine flour, baking powder, cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice, baking soda, and salt in a sifter; sift into the pumpkin mixture and mix well; pour into the prepared pan.

• Step 3

  Bake in preheated oven until center springs back when lightly touched, 35 to 40 minutes. Cool completely before frosting.

• Step 4

  Beat cream cheese and butter together in a bowl until smooth; add vanilla extract and beat. Gradually beat confectioners' sugar into the frosting, adding in small amounts and assuring each batch is incorporated before introducing the next. Spread over the pumpkin bars.

Eggs Benedict Casserole

Overnight Eggs Benedict! Easy to make ahead, perfect for brunch or a special occasion or overnight house guests.

Ingredients

• cooking spray

• 8 large eggs

• 2 cups milk

• 3 medium (4-1/8" long)s green onions, chopped

• 1 teaspoon onion powder

• 1 teaspoon salt

• ¾ pound Canadian bacon, cut into 1/2-inch dice

• 6 English muffins, cut into 1/2-inch dice

• ½ teaspoon paprika

• 1 (.9 ounce) package hollandaise sauce mix

• 1 cup milk

• ¼ cup margarine

Directions

• Step 1

  Spray 9x13-inch baking dish with cooking spray.

• Step 2

  Whisk eggs, 2 cups milk, green onions, onion powder, and salt together in a large bowl until well mixed.

• Step 3

  Layer half the Canadian bacon in the prepared baking dish. Spread English muffins over meat and top with remaining Canadian bacon. Pour egg mixture over casserole. Cover baking dish with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.

• Step 4

  Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).

• Step 5

  Sprinkle casserole with paprika; cover with aluminum foil.

• Step 6

  Bake in preheated oven until eggs are nearly set, about 30 minutes; remove foil. Continue baking until eggs are completely set, about 15 more minutes.

• Step 7

  Whisk hollandaise sauce mix with 1 cup milk in a saucepan. Add margarine and bring to a boil, stirring frequently. Reduce heat to medium-low, simmer, and stir until thickened, about 1 minute. Drizzle sauce over casserole to serve.

Butter Swim Biscuits

These biscuits are literally swimming in butter prior to baking, hence the name. No need to butter them since they are buttery and fluffy. Perfect for breakfast or for dinner.

Ingredients

• ½ cup unsalted butter

• 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour

• 4 teaspoons baking powder

• 4 teaspoons white sugar 

• 1 teaspoon salt

• 1 ¾ cups buttermilk

Directions

• Step 1

  Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F (230 degrees C).

• Step 2

  Place butter in an 8x8-inch glass or ceramic baking dish. Microwave for 1 minute. Stir butter and keep microwaving at 20-second intervals until butter is fully melted.

• Step 3

  Sift flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt into a bowl. Add buttermilk and stir until combined. Pour over melted butter and spread over the melted butter. Use a bench scraper to cut dough into 9 equal pieces.

• Step 4

  Bake in the preheated oven until biscuit tops start to brown, 20 to 25 minutes.

Baked Chicken Schnitzel

This dish is oven-friendly using less oil, and an easier cleanup. This dish tastes great with potato salad, or mashed potatoes and a nice crisp salad.

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon olive oil, or as desired

• 6 chicken breasts, cut in half lengthwise (butterflied)

• salt and ground black pepper to taste

• ¾ cup all-purpose flour

• 1 tablespoon paprika

• 2 large eggs eggs, beaten

• 2 cups seasoned bread crumbs

• 1 large lemon, zested 

Directions

• Step 1

  Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C). Line a large baking sheet with aluminum foil and drizzle olive oil over foil. Place baking sheet in preheated oven.

• Step 2

  Flatten chicken breasts so they are all about 1/4-inch thick. Season chicken with salt and pepper.

• Step 3

  Mix flour and paprika together on a large plate. Beat eggs with salt and pepper in a shallow bowl. Mix bread crumbs and lemon zest together on a separate large plate. Dredge each chicken piece in flour mixture, then egg, and then bread crumbs mixture and set aside in 1 layer on a clean plate. Repeat with remaining chicken.

• Step 4

  Remove baking sheet from oven and arrange chicken in 1 layer on the sheet. Drizzle more olive oil over each piece of coated chicken.

• Step 5

  Bake in the preheated oven for 5 to 6 minutes. Flip chicken and continue baking until no longer pink in the center and the breading is lightly browned, 5 to 6 minutes more. An instant-read thermometer inserted into the center should read at least 165 degrees F (74 degrees C).

Boilermaker Tailgate Chili

This is the chili recipe for football games. I always prep and cook the chili the night before and then reheat the next day. This is a combination of many different tomato-based chili recipes. Good luck and enjoy.

Ingredients

• 2 pounds ground beef chuck

• 1 pound bulk Italian sausage

• 3 (15 ounce) cans chili beans, drained

• 1 (15 ounce) can chili beans in spicy sauce

• 2 (28 ounce) cans diced tomatoes with juice

• 1 (6 ounce) can tomato paste

• 1 large yellow onion, chopped

• 3 stalks celery, chopped

• 1 green bell pepper, seeded and chopped

• 1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped

• 2 peppers green chili peppers, seeded and chopped

• 1 tablespoon bacon bits

• 4 cubes beef bouillon

• ½ cup beer

• ¼ cup chili powder

• 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

• 1 tablespoon minced garlic

• 1 tablespoon dried oregano

• 2 teaspoons ground cumin

• 2 teaspoons hot pepper sauce (e.g. Tabasco™)

• 1 teaspoon dried basil

• 1 teaspoon salt

• 1 teaspoon ground black pepper

• 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper

• 1 teaspoon paprika

• 1 teaspoon white sugar 

• 1 (10.5 ounce) bag corn chips such as Fritos®

• 1 (8 ounce) package shredded Cheddar cheese

Directions

• Step 1

  Heat a large stock pot over medium-high heat. Crumble the ground chuck and sausage into the hot pan, and cook until evenly browned. Drain off excess grease.

• Step 2

  Pour in the chili beans, spicy chili beans, diced tomatoes and tomato paste. Add the onion, celery, green and red bell peppers, chili peppers, bacon bits, bouillon, and beer. Season with chili powder, Worcestershire sauce, garlic, oregano, cumin, hot pepper sauce, basil, salt, pepper, cayenne, paprika, and sugar. Stir to blend, then cover and simmer over low heat for at least 2 hours, stirring occasionally.

• Step 3

  After 2 hours, taste, and adjust salt, pepper, and chili powder if necessary. The longer the chili simmers, the better it will taste. Remove from heat and serve, or refrigerate, and serve the next day.

• Step 4

  To serve, ladle into bowls, and top with corn chips and shredded Cheddar cheese.

Peach Jam Coffee Cake

This coffee cake gets a double hit of peach flavor from using both jam and fresh fruit. For best results, use a good- quality peach jam (preferably homemade, if you have it). Make sure to cool this cake completely before slicing.

Ingredients

• 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

• 3/4 cup white sugar

• 1 teaspoon baking powder

• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

• 1 teaspoon ground cardamom

• 1/2 teaspoon salt

• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda

• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

• 3/4 cup unsalted butter, softened

• 1 cup plain whole-milk Greek yogurt

• 1 large egg, at room temperature

• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

• 1/2 teaspoon almond extract

• 1 cup peach jam

• 2 small fresh peaches - peeled, pitted, and sliced

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 F. Lightly grease a 9-inch springform pan.

2. Mix flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, cardamom, salt, baking soda, and nutmeg in a large bowl until thoroughly combined. Cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Reserve 1 cup of the crumb mixture for the topping. Add yogurt, egg, vanilla, and almond extracts to the remaining mixture. Mix until thoroughly combined.

3. Pour batter into the prepared pan, and press evenly into the bottom and 1 inch up the sides of the pan. Spread peach jam into an even layer in the center of the batter. Top jam with an even layer of peach slices. Sprinkle reserved crumb topping evenly over the peaches.

4. Bake in the preheated oven until cake is golden brown, 45 to 50 minutes. Allow cake to cool for 20 minutes before gently running a knife around the edges of the pan and removing the sides. Cool cake completely before serving.