Mom's Tuna Noodle Casserole

This is my mom's recipe, with a twist from me. I thought I had blogged about it long ago, but there it was in a draft, 1 lonely old photo and nothing else. I added some seasonings to this and used a butter and cracker topping, that was just so good!!

1 pound pasta cooked al dente, drained (such as rotini or elbow)

2 cans chunk white tuna, drained

3 cans low sodium cream of mushroom soup

salt

pepper

garlic powder

onion powder

8 oz cheddar cheese, shredded
1 stick butter, melted

1 sleeve butter crackers such as Ritz, crushed about 1 1/2-2 C (I used Wild Harvest Organics)

parsley

Preheat oven to 350', spray 9x13 baking dish.

Combine tuna and soup then toss in pasta and cheese to coat. Season to taste. Place in baking dish, top with cheese. Mix melted butter with cracker crumbs and parsley, sprinkle over cheese. Bake for 30 minutes. If topping is not yet brown, set under the broiler for a few minutes.

oh my! this is my old photo.


enjoy,

Mom's Sloppy Joes

Very simple and much much better than that canned stuff. Yes, I did try it once, when my Husband did the shopping that week. He knows not to buy it again. I make a double batch (posted below) for my family of 5 and it'll give us leftovers for lunch the next day.

2 lbs ground beef or ground turkey (or mix both, I did)

2 TBL each of:

white vinegar

water

mustard

Worcestershire sauce
granulated sugar

24 oz. bottle of ketchup

Brown meat and drain. Mix with remaining ingredients and simmer for 15 minutes. Serve on buns.

Mom's Fudge Brownies

These are my #1 brownie recipe.

3/4 Cup Unsweetened cocoa (can also use Dutch cocoa )
1/2 tsp. baking soda
2/3 Cup vegetable oil, divided
2 Cups granulated sugar
2 eggs
1/2 Cup boiling water
1 tsp. vanilla
1 1/3 Cup flour
1/4 tsp. salt

Mix cocoa, and baking soda in a mixer on low speed. Add half of the oil, mix. Add boiling water and mix on low until it becomes thick. Add in sugar, eggs, vanilla and the last of the oil, Mix until smooth. Sift the flour and salt together, add to the wet ingredients. Mix well. Pour into a greased 9x13 baking pan and bake at 350' for 30 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.

~I claim these to be my mom's "recipe" because these I grew up on, and my copy is hand written. I have since found the exact recipe online but am not sure of the original author.

~my side note:
For my bake sale, I made mine in a foil lined 8x8 square pan and bake at 325' for 40-50 minutes or until a toothpick came out clean. After they've cooled, remove from pan with foil, and cut. These gave me 9 thick brownies which I dusted with powdered sugar.

-Try them with a ganache topping too! So so so good! I think these were my fave.



-Another variation of this recipe I am baking right now is for a single recipe in a 9x13 pan, and to clean out some overstock. I used 1/3 C. almond meal in place of 1/3 C. flour, sprinkled in some chopped pecans, chocolate chips, chopped chocolate almond bar, chopped heath toffee bar, and call these loaded brownies!

Mom's Egg Rolls

updated 1/31/15

Mom's Egg Rolls

1-2 packages won ton wrappers/ clear spring roll wrappers if gluten free

1 Lb. ground beef

2 Cups shredded cabbage

2 Cups shredded carrots

4 stalks of celery, shredded

1 onion shredded

1/4 Cup soy sauce/tamari if gluten free

salt

pepper

garlic
(you may also add in: chopped water chestnuts, a splash of sesame oil, grated fresh ginger, splash of shaoxing wine, garlic)

Brown meat lightly, season with salt, pepper and garlic. Stir in vegetables and soy sauce. Add spoonful size amount of mixture (may have to squeeze of any excess liquid so they aren't soggy) to won ton, and brush edges with egg, roll up to seal edges. Fry in oil.

~my side note:

The original recipe didn't have measurements for the vegetables, but it's about 2 C. of cabbage and carrots. I used my food processor to grate all the veggies. I use the large size won tons (21 wraps), but you could use the small size too. There will be lots of filling, so maybe get 2 packages, or cut down the amounts.

TO MAKE GLUTEN FREE:
Use the clear spring roll wrappers, soak in hot water until pliable, add a small amount of drained mixture, roll up and place on a parchment lined baking sheet, spray tops with nonstick spray. Bake 400' for 30 minutes.

making a big one!

gluten free egg rolls in spring roll wrappers (below), ready to bake

ready to fry

regular egg roll wrappers

my gluten free egg rolls with pineapple rice

Mom's No Bake Peanut Butter Cornflake Yummies

1 Cup granulated sugar
1 Cup light corn syrup
1 Cup creamy peanut butter
6 Cups cornflakes cereal

Heat in small pan, sugar and syrup until sugar dissolves, do not boil. Remove from heat and stir in peanut butter. In a large bowl, pour mixture over cornflakes. Gently mix until all is coated. Drop by bite size pieces (or bigger) onto wax paper. Let cool and set up for a few mintues. Store in a covered container in single layers, at room temp. or in the fridge.

Mom's Fudge Pudding Cake

1 Cup flour

2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt

3/4 Cup granulated sugar
2 Tbl cocoa powder

1/2 Cup milk

2 Tbl vegetable oil

1 Cup chopped nuts (optional)

1 Cup brown sugar

1/4 Cup cocoa powder

1 3/4 Cup HOT water

Using a fork or whisk, combine first 5 ingredients in a round casserole baking dish. Then stir in milk, oil & nuts to make a batter. In a separate small bowl, combine the brown sugar and cocoa, sprinkle over batter. Pour the hot water over all (do not stir!). Bake 350' for 30-40 minutes. Serve warm or cold.

Mom's Spaghetti Bolognese Sauce

{updated photo}

Mom's Spaghetti Bolognese Sauce

1 lb ground beef
1/2 onion, diced

8 oz sliced mushrooms

2 TBL chopped garlic

2 large cans (28 oz ea.) crushed tomatoes
1 14 oz can diced tomatoes
1 4 oz can tomato paste
1 Tbl granulated sugar (or 1 freshly grated carrot)
1 tsp. dried oregano
1 tsp. dried basil
1/4 tsp. black pepper
3 bay leaves

Brown ground beef, onion and mushrooms in a medium skillet. Drain off grease. Add in remaining ingredients, bring to boil. Simmer 1 hour, discard bay leafs before serving. Serve over pasta with parmesan cheese.

Mom's Chicken Broccoli Casserole

4-6 boneless chicken breasts
2 cans cream of chicken soup
1 Cup mayonnaise
1 tsp lemon juice
1 16 oz bag frozen broccoli spears
1 Cup bread crumbs
Cook chicken breasts as you like, then cut into bite size pieces. Steam cook broccoli. In a 9x13 pan, combine chicken and broccoli. Mix soup, mayo, and lemon juice, then spread this over the meat mixture. Sprinkle with bread crumbs. Bake at 350' for 1/2 hour or until bubbly.

~Mom

Mom's Tuna Gravy on Toast

4 cans tuna, drained
1/2 Cup butter
4 Cups milk
1/2 Cup flour
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp onion powder
Melt butter in large skillet, gradually add flour, cook 1 minute, wisk in milk and seasoning. When thickened, add tuna. Serve over broken toast.

~Mom

Mom's Holiday Frosted Cookies

1 Cup shortening
2 Cups granulated sugar
2 eggs
1 Cup milk + 2 Tbl vinegar, combined = sour milk
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp baking soda
4 tsp baking powder
4 1/2-6 Cups flour

Cream together shortening, sugar and eggs. Add in sour milk, vanilla, baking soda, baking powder, and gradually add in enough flour until it forms a nice dough. Chill 1/2 hour. Roll out 1/4 " thick with cookie cutters (I use 5" shape cutters). Bake 350' for 8 minuets. Frost and decorate when cool. Makes about 3 dozen 5" cookies.

Frosting:

2 lb powdered sugar
1/4 Cup shortening
3 tsp vanilla
1/2 Cup milk
Food coloring

Combine all, adding in enough milk for desired consistency. Seperate enough in each bowl and mix with desired food colors. Frost cookies.

~Mom

Mom's Cinnamon Rolls & The Best Icing

2 pkgs active dry yeast
2 Cups warm water (110'-115')
1/3 Cup granulated sugar
1/3 Cup vegetable oil
3 eggs, beaten
1 tsp salt
7-71/2 Cups flour
1/2 Cup margarine, softened
1 Cup brown sugar
2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 Cup nuts
1/2 Cup raisins

In a large mixing bowl soften yeat in warm water. Add in granulated sugar, oil, eggs, salt, and 2 Cups flour. Mix on high speed for 3 minutes. Stir in as much remaining flour as you can with a spoon.
Turn dough out on lightly floured surface. Knead in the rest of the flour to make a soft dough that is smooth and elastic (6-8 minutes).
Place dough in a greased bowl. Cover with a clean dish towel and let rise in a warm area for 1 hour 15 minutes.
Punch dough down. Divide dough in 1/2. Cover and let it rest for 10 minutes.
On a lightly floured surface, 1/2 of dough into a 8x11" rectangle. Spread dough with 1/2 of margarine and brown sugar, cinnamon, raisins and nuts. Roll up from short end, pinch ends closed. Slice dough in 8 pieces.
Place rolls cut sides down in 9x13 pan. Repeat with other 1/2 of dough. Cover again and let rise until nearly double, 30 minuets. Bake 350' for 20-25 minutes. When cooled, frost.

Cinnamon Bun Icing

1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup margarine, softened
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 cups confectioners' sugar
1 tablespoon milk
1 tsp ground cinnamon

In a large bowl, combine cream cheese, margarine, vanilla extract, confectioners' sugar, milk and cinnamon. Beat until creamy.

*mom, and allrecipes

Mom's Homemade Lasagna

1 pound ground beef

1 white onion diced

28 oz can crushed tomatoes

12 oz can tomato paste

8 oz tomato sauce (14 oz can Hunt's fire roasted diced toms. w/garlic)

1 Tbl white sugar

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp pepper

1/2 tsp oregano

1 Tbl crushed garlic *

1 bay leaf

box of lasagna noodles (uses about 12)

2 eggs

15 oz ricotta cheese

1/4 C parmesan

parsely

crushed garlic

16 oz shredded mozzarella cheese

Brown beef & onion and drain. Add tomatoes and next 8 ingredients to meat. Bring to a boil, cover and simmer 30 minuets, stirring occasionally. Remove bay leaf. Cook noodles. In a small bowl, combine eggs, ricotta, parmesan, parsely and garlic. Layer noodles in a 9x13 pan with ricotta, mozzarella, and meat sauce. Repeat layers. Bake 45 minuets in 325' oven, then uncovered for 15 minuets at 350' to brown top. Allow to sit for a little, so the filling doesn't spill out when sliced.

*mom's recipe

The red ingredients are what I added to this recipe.

Mom's Ham, Potato & Carrot Casserole

2 lbs sliced ham
1 onion diced
1 cup peeled sliced carrots
3 cups sliced potatoes
1 can cream of mushroom soup
2 1/4 tsp flour
1 cup milk
sprinkle of salt
sprinkle of pepper

Brown ham and onion in a greased frying pan. Remove from pan, add flour, soup and milk, heating until it boils. Arrange carrots, potatoes, ham, onion, salt & pepper in a 9x13 pan. Pour sauce over top. Cover and bake 350' for 1 hour. Uncover for 15 minuets more to brown potatoes.

*mom's recipe