Fruit Dip

1 (9 oz.) jar marshmallow fluff
8 oz. cream cheese, softened

1 Tbs pure vanilla extract

Combine marshmallow fluff, vanilla and cream cheese in bowl; blend well with an electric mixer. Chill in refrigerator. Serve with pineapple chunks, mandarin orange sections, strawberries, grapes, bananas and apple wedges.  Also good with cookies!

Country Style Steak & Gravy

I am not very good with measuring when I am cooking and I never actually measure anything out unless I am baking which needs to be precise.  I can tell by looking most of the time and therefore I don't measure when I cook so it makes it difficult for me to share recipes exactly by the measurements.  Here is the idea of how I do this.

Ingredients

• 6 to 8 Cube Steaks
• 1 cup flour
• Black Pepper - I use a lot
• Mortons Nature's Seasons Seasoning Blend - to taste (it has salt already in it)
• Butter
• Vegetable Oil
• 1 Medium Onion sliced really thin - sometimes I do this and sometimes I don't.
• 1 Large Family Size Cream of Mushroom Soup - depending on how much I am making - we like a bunch of gravy. 

Directions
Mix flour, pepper, and seasoning blend together making sure your flour is well seasoned (I find it takes a lot to season flour).  Coat both sides of cube steak in flour mixture until well coated.  Heat oil and butter together in a skillet and brown steak.  Place the browned steak in a crock pot on low.  Put thinly sliced onions on top of the cube steak.  Mix soup and about 3/4 cup water (guessing on this) with steak drippings and whisk until it comes to a boil (I don't get it too thin at this point because in the crock pot it tends to get thinner).  At this point I add more pepper to make sure the gravy is seasoned well also.  Pour gravy over steak and onions in crock pot.  Cook on low for at least 6 hours. 

This recipe was given to me by a friend at Church and I modified it some and this is what I do.  I hope you will enjoy it as much as my family.  This is my Daddy's favorite.  It is always good and it's really easy to make.

The next day I like to put it on a bun and it eat for lunch.

Red Velvet Cupcakes

These are so good!!!

The Cake

• 1 box red velvet cake mix
• 1 small box of chocolate instant pudding
• 1 1/4 cups of water
• 3 large eggs
• 1/3 cup vegetable oil
• 1 tsp. of  pure vanilla extract

The Icing

• 1 package of cream cheese
• 1/2 stick of butter
• 1 tbs. pure vanilla extract
• 4 to 5 cups powdered sugar

PREPARE cake batter and bake as directed on package for 24 cupcakes, blending dry pudding mix into dry cake mix.

BEAT cream cheese and butter in large bowl with mixer until well blended. Gradually beat in sugar.  Spoon 1-1/2 cups into small freezer-weight resealable plastic bag; seal bag. Cut small corner off bottom of bag. Insert tip of bag into top of each cupcake to pipe about 1 Tbsp. frosting into center of cupcake.

FROST cupcakes with remaining frosting. Keep refrigerated.

Vanilla Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting

Ingredients
Makes 24
FOR THE CUPCAKES
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
8 ounces (2 sticks) unsalted butter
2 cups sugar
4 large eggs
Finely grated zest of 1 orange
1 cup milk
FOR THE ICING
8 ounces cream cheese (not whipped)
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
3/4 cup confectioners' sugar
1 tablespoon milk
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees with racks in top and bottom thirds. Line twenty-four muffin cups (1-cup capacity) with paper or foil liners, and set aside. Whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl, and set aside.
Combine butter and sugar in a large bowl; beat until pale and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Add orange zest. Beat in flour mixture and milk in three alternating batches, beginning and ending with flour mixture. After each addition, beat until just combined, scraping down sides and bottom of bowl as necessary.
Fill prepared muffin cups with about 1/4 cup batter. Bake, rotating pans once, until cupcakes are just golden brown and spring back to the touch, 18 to 20 minutes. Let cupcakes cool in tins, about 5 minutes, then turn them out onto wire racks. Repeat with any remaining batter. Let cool completely.

Beat cream cheese, butter, and sugar in a small bowl until just smooth. Add milk and vanilla; beat frosting until combined. Use immediately

Daniel's Birthday Cake

Ingredients
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for pans
2 cups sugar
3/4 cups cocoa powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon
1 cup buttermilk, shaken
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 extra-large eggs, at room temperature
1 teaspoon pure vanilla Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter 2 (8-inch) round cake pans. Line with parchment paper, then butter and flour the pans.
Sift together the flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder, and kosher salt into the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment and mix on low speed until combined. In another bowl, combine the buttermilk, oil, eggs, and vanilla. With the mixer on low speed, slowly add the wet ingredients to the dry. Pour the batter into the prepared pans and bake for 35 to 40 minutes, until a cake tester comes out clean. Cool in the pans for 30 minutes, then turn them out onto a cooling rack and cool completely.  I made chocolate cream cheese frosting for this cake!  Yummy!

kosher salt

Sharp Cheddar Lasagna Casserole

Ingredients:
1 pkg. (14 oz.) KRAFT Deluxe Macaroni & Sharp Cheddar Cheese
1 lb. ground beef
1 jar (14 oz.) spaghetti sauce
1 cup KRAFT Shredded Mozzarella Cheese

Directions:
HEAT oven to 375°F.
PREPARE Macaroni as directed on package. Meanwhile, brown meat in large skillet; drain. Stir in spaghetti sauce.
LAYER the meat mixture, macaroni and mozzarella cheese in a casserole dish.  Repeat layers and top with mozzarella cheese. Bake for 15 minutes or until heated through.