Chicken fried Steak with Onion Gravy

Ingredients:

1  1/2 cups, plus 2 tablespoons All purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
8 (4-ounce) Cubed steaks
3/4 cup vegetable oil
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
3 cups hot water
1 teaspoon  Emeril's Essence spice
1 large  yellow onion, sliced

Directions :

Combine 1 1/2 cups flour and 1/4 teaspoon of pepper in a small bowl. Sprinkle 1 side of the meat with the Emeril`s  essence spice and then  place the steak in the flour mixture and coat the meat. Heat 1/2 cup oil in a large heavy skillet over medium-high heat. Add 2 or 4 of the steaks to the hot oil, and  fry until browned, about 5-6 minutes per side. Remove each steak to a paper towel-lined plate to drain.  Repeat with the remaining steaks, adding up to 1/4 cup more oil, as needed.
Make the gravy  by adding the 2 tablespoons remaining flour to the pan drippings scraping the bottom with a wooden spoon. Stir in the remaining 1/4 teaspoon pepper, and the salt and the  water. Reduce the heat to medium and cook, stirring frequently, until the flour is medium brown and the mixture is bubbly.   Add water if the  gravy  looks too thick and stir in. Place  the steaks to the skillet  in the gravy and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce the heat to low, and place the onions on top of the steaks. Cover the pan, and let  simmer for 30 minutes.
Serve over white  rice.

Guacamole Deviled Eggs

Ingredients:

6 large eggs, hard boiled
1 medium Haas avocado
2-3 tsp fresh lime juice
1 tsp red onion, minced
1 tbsp minced jalapeno
1 tbsp fresh cilantro, chopped
kosher salt and fresh ground pepper, to taste
1 tbsp diced tomato
Directions:

Peel the cooled hard boiled eggs.
Cut the eggs in half horizontally, and set the yolks aside.
In a bowl, mash the avocado and 2 whole egg yolks; discard the rest. Mix in lime juice, red onion, Jalapeño, cilantro, salt and pepper and adjust to taste. Gently fold in tomato.
Scoop heaping spoonfuls of the guacamole into the 12 halved eggs. Arrange on a platter and serve

Stuffed Bell Peppers With Manwich

Ingredients

4-6 bell peppers

1 pound ground beef

1 can Manwich

thick sliced Cheddar cheese

1 med. yellow diced

Directions:

Stand each bell pepper up and place knife by the stem and cut it in half , remove insides and set in glass 8x8 baking dish and set aside.

In a skillet sautee the diced onions and add the ground meat and brown and drain off the fat and stir in the manwich and simmer for about 10 min.

Fill eat bell pepper with meat mixture, almost to full but do not overfill.

Place bell peppers in oven at 350° for 40-45 minutes.

About 10 min. before peppers are done, top each with a slice of cheese. Remove from oven when cheese is melted.

Christmas Wreath Salad with Lemon Poppyseed dressing

  You  can make this wreath anyway  you like.  You  just need a large round platter.  I used mixed  greens, red and green apples and strawberries and blueberries, feta cheese , grapes and  nuts if you like.
* noted, If you take this salad to a party make sure to  put a little lemon juice on the apples to keep them  from turning brown and cover with  plastic wrap.
Lemon Poppyseed Dressing ingredients:
1/2 cup lemon juice
1/2 cup honey
1 Tbsp diced fresh onion
1 tsp dijon mustard
1 Tbsp poppy seeds
2/3 cup olive oil
Wisk together and put in a small bowl and place in the center of your wreath and serve.

7 up cake

 Ingredients :
1 box yellow cake mix
3 eggs
1 1/4 cup  7 up ( Sierra Mist works also)
3/4 cup vegetable oil ( I used  melted coconut oil)
Combine all ingredients and mix well with mixer.  Spray 2 (8 inch) cake pans and divide batter.  Bake in preheated 350 degree oven for 35-40 minutes testing for doneness.  Let cool and frost.
Pineapple Filling for 7-Up Cake
1 (20 ounce) can crushed pineapple, undrained
1 stick butter or margarine or 8 tablespoons or 1/2 cup
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups coconut
Mix pineapple, butter, sugar, eggs and flour together.  Cook on medium heat until thickens, stirring  often.   Remove and add coconut.  Let cool and spread between cooled cake layers and on top.  Keep cake  refrigerated.

Ultimate Breakfast Strata

You'll need:
1- 16 oz  Potato  bread loaf
1 lb fully cooked ham, cubed (  I used Turkey ham)
1 1/2 cups shredded Swiss
For the custard:
6 large eggs
1 cups whole milk
1 1/2 cup low fat half & half
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp salt
1/4-1/2 tsp black pepper
 maple syrup
4 slices of stick  butter
Directions:
Butter the bottom and sides of a 9 x 13 inch baking dish.   Slice the potato bread into 3/4 inch slices.  Cut each slice through the middle then into bite size cubes.
Layer half of the cubes in the bottom of the baking dish.  Arrange the cubed ham over the bread.
Sprinkle  shredded Swiss cheese over the cubed ham layer, and arrange the top layer of  bread cubes over the cheese.
Take the sliced butter and cut into little pieces and dot over the bread cubes.
Custard:
In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together 1 cup of whole milk, 1 1/2 cups of low fat half & half, 6 large eggs, 1 tsp salt,  1/4 tsp black pepper and 1 teaspoon  cinnamon Pour the custard evenly over the layers of bread cubes, ham and cheese.
Using a spoon, gently press the bread cubes into the custard, then cover tightly with plastic wrap.  Place the dish into the refrigerator to chill overnight.
Bake:
Preheat oven to 350 and remove plastic wrap , lightly cover with  foil and bake for 30 min.  then remove foil and drizzle strata with maple syrup and bake for another 20 min.  Serve with maple syrup.  serves 12

Honey Barbecue Brisket

Slow cooker recipe

Total Time: 12 Hours


INGREDIENTS

1 brisket, 5 lbs.

Salt and pepper

1 tsp onion powder

1/2 tsp garlic powder

1/2 tsp smoked paprika (optional)

1/2 tsp cumin

1/4 tsp cayenne pepper (use 1/2 tsp for more heat)

1 1/2 cups honey barbecue sauce

1/3 cup brown sugar

1/2 tbsp cornstarch


YOU WILL ALSO NEED

Large slow cooker, 6-7 quart capacity

Sprinkle brisket with salt and pepper. Mix the onion powder, garlic powder, smoked paprika, cumin, and cayenne pepper together in a small bowl. Dry rub both sides of the brisket with the seasoning mixture. Stir together the honey barbecue sauce and brown sugar. Pour half of the sauce into the bottom of your slow cooker. Place the seasoned brisket, fatty side up, into the slow cooker. Don't worry if it's a little big for the cooker, the brisket will shrink as it cooks. Cover the top o the brisket with the remaining sauce. Cover the slow cooker and set heat to low for 9 hours, or until fork tender. When the brisket is cooked, remove it carefully from the slow cooker and place it on a cutting board. Pour the sauce from the slow cooker into a large bowl and let it cool. Slice off the fat cap from the top of the brisket and discard. Flip the brisket over so the leaner side faces upward. You'll be able to see the direction of the meat grain better on this side. Slice the brisket against the grain, at a slight diagonal, creating thin slices of meat. Skim the fat that has risen to the top of the sauce in the large bowl. It will appear lighter in color than the sauce, like droplets of oil on the surface. Skim as much fat as you can. In a small bowl, stir together cornstarch and 1 tbsp of water till completely smooth. Pour the cornstarch mixture into the bowl of sauce and stir to combine. Pour half of the sauce back into the slow cooker. Layer the slices of brisket meat on top of the sauce. Pour the remaining sauce over the brisket. Turn slow cooker to high for about 1 hour, till the meat and sauce are heated through and the sauce begins to bubble and thicken. Keep on warm setting till ready to serve. Note: the longer you cook this brisket, the more it will take on the texture of shredded or "chipped" beef. If you'd like for the meat to retain its sliced shape, no need to return the meat to the slow cooker. You can reduce the sauce quickly in a saucepan on the stovetop, then pour it over the slices in a casserole dish before serving. The leftovers make great BBQ beef sandwiches.