Our Holiday: Part 2

Another post so soon?--I told ya I was back!

I have a confession for you...

I


hate


cooking.

It's true. I can cook, I do cook, but I never want to cook. Anyone else with me? The only time I enjoy cooking is when we have company. I know this makes my husband sad because I should find joy cooking for him, but...I don't always see it that way. 

While Adam's family visited Lynchburg for two weeks and stayed at his mom's house, something came over me: A strong desire to cook! Maybe deep down inside I wanted to simply impress my in-laws but regardless, I found myself..dare I say..excited to be in the kitchen.

My biggest "struggle" is knowing what to cook or bake. Well, I am proud to say I had a light bulb moment..

Call


Mom.

And that's exactly what I did! I asked her about recipes I remembered eating as a child during family get togethers and what would be best to feed a lot of people..13 to be exact. My mom then sent me a message on facebook, oh yea she's hip, with recipes and exact measurements instead of her usual "a shake or two..a pinch..a shlupe..a dab"  --it was incredible! Adam and I then set out to the store and bought a whole mess of groceries and I became fired up for my cooking and baking tasks.

I do not have photos for everything I made because when food is ready and served I only think about one thing: My stomach.

Here are a few baking goodies we remembered to capture using my mother's recipes.

Pineapple Bake

Ingredients:

- 20 oz can of Crushed Pineapples

- 4 Eggs

- 1/2 cup of Sugar

- 1 tbsp or 1 tsp of Vanilla Extract 

- 1 loaf of White Bread

- 1 stick of Butter

Drain can of crushed pineapples. Beat eggs and stir in sugar and vanilla extract. Blend well and stir crushed pineapples into egg mixture. Spray casserole dish and spread mixture inside. Cut off the crusts on 8 pieces of white bread. Cut or pull apart with fingers the crusts into small pieces. Cover egg mixture with crust pieces. Add more cut up crusts to casserole dish if needed to cover entire egg mixture. Melt butter in microwave and pour onto crust pieces making sure all are covered. Bake at 350 for 45 to 50 minutes. 

Enjoy!

 Egg Bake

Ingredients:

- 16 slices of Bread

- 1 box of Corn Flakes

- Canadian bacon, Ham, Sausage, whatever you like and as much as you like

- 8 oz Sharp Cheddar Cheese

- 6 Eggs

- 1/2 tsp of Salt and Pepper

- 1/4 cup of Minced Onions

- 1/4 cup of Green Peppers

- 1 to 2 tsp of Worcheshire Sauce

- 3 cups of Whole Milk

- 1 stick of Butter

Remove crusts from bread. (If you make the pineapple bake first, use leftover bread or save crusts from the egg bake to make the pineapple bake later!) Spray a 9x13 pan and lay slices of bread on bottom to line entire pan. Add meat, cheese, onions, and peppers on top of bread. Cover again with bread slices creating a meat, cheese, onion, and pepper sandwich. Mix together eggs, salt and pepper, whole milk, and worcheshire sauce and pour over bread layer. Cover and place in fridge overnight. In morning, cover the entire dish with corn flakes. Melt butter in microwave and pour over corn flakes. Bake at 350 for 1 hour. Egg bake will puff up while baking.

*Feel free to take out or add ingredients to your liking. I have made this egg bake twice using ham and then sausage, both amazing!*

French Toast Casserole

Ingredients:

- 16 oz loaf of Italian Bread (no seeds)

- 12 Eggs

- 2 cups of Milk

- 1 cup of Maple Syrup

- Cinnamon (to your liking)

Cut bread into bite size pieces. Spray a 9x13 pan and lay bread pieces in pan. (I had two full layers of bite size bread pieces.) Mix together eggs, milk, and syrup. Pour mixture over bread layers. Turn bread if needed to make sure it is fully covered with egg mixture. Cover and place in fridge overnight. In morning, sprinkle cinnamon on top. Bake at 350 for 1 hour. Casserole will puff up while baking. Add more syrup when dished out.

Yum!

My confidence is slowly increasing as well as my enjoyment in the kitchen. Like I said earlier, I do cook and can cook it's just finding joy in it. I guess I have to listen to my own blog title for this one..little things bring smiles!


What are some family recipes you made over the holidays?

P.S. I was not able to eat any of the featured recipes because of my gluten intolerance but I remembered how delicious everything tasted from years of eating them and knew they smelled and looked exactly as they should!