Pumpkin Flan

Pumpkin Flan Recipe

3/4 to 1 cup of sugar for caramel   1 8.5 oz. can of pumpkin 1 can of evaporated milk   1 can of condensed milk   4 eggs   1 tsp of cinnamon   1/4 tsp of ginger   1/4 tsp of cloves   1/4 tsp of nutmeg   Directions:   Preheat oven at 350 degrees F.   Put sugar in a pot and melt the sugar at medium to high flame. The sugar will begin to liquify. Stir the sugar when it begins to melt. Sugar burns quickly so you must watch the pot - the color of the caramel should be a light to medium brown. If it's dark brown and smells burnt, start over. When the sugar is completely liquid, immediately remove from the stove and pour into the bottom of your baking dish and move around to spread along the bottom. Melted sugar is very hot so be careful not to touch it.   In a blender, mix all the rest of the ingredients. Pour the mixture into the baking dish which has the hardened caramel on the bottom.   Place baking dish into a bigger baking dish. Fill the bigger baking dish with water so that your flan bakes in a water bath. Make sure the water only comes up to about 1/4 inch from the top of the baking dish which contains the flan. The water will bubble so you don't want it to overflow into your flan.   Bake for 1 hour and 15 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool completely before refrigerating. When you are ready to serve you can invert the flan onto a serving plate so that the caramel coat is at the top. 1 8.5 oz. can of pumpkin

Best Bread Machine Bread (Half White/Half Wheat)

1 cup warm water (110 degrees F/45 degrees C)
2 tablespoons white sugar
2 1/4 teaspoons yeast
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 1/2 cups white flour
1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
1 1/2 teaspoons salt

Place the water, sugar and yeast in the pan of the bread machine. Let the yeast dissolve and foam for 10 minutes. (Seriously, do it!)

Add the oil, flour and salt to the yeast. Select Basic or White Bread setting, and press Start.

This produces bread with a softer crust. SO great!

Sweet & Sour Meatballs

Meatballs:
2 lb lean ground beef/ground turkey
1 C rolled oats
2 eggs, slightly beaten
2/3 C onion, finely chopped (or 1/4 C dehydrated onion)
1 1/4 tsp salt
few grains pepper
1 1/2 tsp worcestershire sauce
2/3 C milk

Sauce:
1.5 C brown sugar
3/4 C vinegar
3 tsp prepared mustard
3/4 C bbq sauce
3 tsp worcestershire sauce

Combine meatball ingredients and form into balls about 1 1/2 inches in diameter. Place in 9x13 dish in a single layer. In a bowl combine the sauce ingredients, mix, then pour over the meatballs. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 min. Serve over rice.

Freezes well in bags for future meals.

Worcestershire

I was cooking with a few friends the other day and we couldn't all agree on how to say this. We had a lot of fun with it!

Worchestershire= WUUS-tur-shur

http://mw4.merriam-webster.com/cgi-bin/audio.pl?ggworc02.wav=Worcestershire

Fruit Rolls Ups/Leather

2..5- 3 cups ripe fruit OR defrosted frozen fruit (I've only used thawed frozen strawberry so far)
2 tsp lemon juice
sweetener to taste: honey, sugar, agave etc.
dash of cinnamon, vanilla, extracts or other seasonings as desired (optional)

Preheat oven to lowest temperature (140°- 170°).  Puree all ingredients in a food processor until smooth.  Pour onto a baking sheet lined with plastic wrap, or a silicone baking mat (don’t use foil, parchment, or waxed paper), and spread to 1/8″ thick.  Place in oven and bake for 6-8 hours, until center is not tacky anymore.  Remove from oven and peel off of baking sheet.  Cut into strips and roll in parchment or plastic.  Store in airtight container or freeze.

Ranchero Beans (Homemade Refried Beans)

3 cans pinto beans and 1-3 cups water OR 5 cups water + 2 cups dry pinto beans

1 onion, peeled and quartered OR 1 Tbls minced onion
1 clove garlic, peeled
1 carrot, peeled and cut into chunks
1/2 jalapeno (optional)
Sprinkle of cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp ginger
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp honey
1 cup salsa or taco sauce

Bend 1cup of water, onion, garlic, jalapeno and carrot until finely chopped. Place blended veggies and all other ingredients in crock pot on low for 4-8 hours. Mash with potato masher.

These are great thrown in a tortilla with some cheese and chicken.