Come on in and see what's on my menu for this week.

If you want to join in with your own menu or take a look at all the other ladies participating, head over to Laura's blog "I'm an Organizing Junkie".

There's nothing like biting into a buttery cookie that is filled with strawberry jam. While baking up cookies to fill up the cookie jar this weekend, I came across an old portuguese recipe for just plain cookies, nothing fancy about them.....but I had to give it a little kick, so I made sandwiches with strawberry jam oozing out from inside. YUM!

These are the kind of cookies I remember my greatgrandmother making at home.




3 cups of flour
2 tsp. of baking powder
3/4 cup of butter ( melted)
3 eggs
1 cup of sugar

Preheat oven to 350.
Melt the butter and put aside to cool off. Beat the eggs and sugar in a large bowl.
Add the flour and baking powder mix well. Add the butter slowly and knead. Let this sit for awhile to rest.

Flour pans then shape dough into small balls. Place them on a cookie sheet spaced around an inch apart. Press down gently with your fingers to make them into a disc.

Bake them about 15 minutes.

Another hit from the Gooseberry Patch Cookbooks.

This one reminds me a lot of a chicken recipe that I created back in South Africa, using green peppers and heavy cream. It's a slight different version but very similar and it's just comfort food at it's best.


Smothered Chicken

1 T. oil
1/4 c. onion, finely chopped
1/4 c. green pepper, finely chopped
1/4 c. celery, finely chopped
1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breasts or thighs
3/4-oz. pkg. mushroom gravy mix
12-oz. can evaporated milk

Heat oil in a skillet. Saute vegetables over medium-high heat for 2 minutes, or until crisp-tender.


Add chicken; cook for 6 to 7 minutes per side until golden.


Blend together gravy mix and milk; stir into skillet.


Bring to a boil; reduce heat, cover and simmer for 15 minutes, until chicken juices run clear.

To serve, spoon gravy from pan over chicken. Makes 4 servings.



NOTE: I cut my chicken breasts into bite size chunks to make it easier for the kids to eat, instead of leaving the full breasts as the recipe calls for.

Great recipe from the Gooseberry Patch Cookbook.




4 1/2 c. sugar
5-oz. can evaporated milk
3 6-oz. pkgs. chocolate chips
1 c. butter, melted
Optional: 1 c. chopped nuts
1 t. vanilla extract

In a large saucepan, bring sugar and milk to a boil; continue cooking for 7 minutes. Stir in remaining ingredients, except vanilla. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla.

Spread mixture into a greased 8"x8" pan; let cool. Makes about one pound.

This is a great meal, serve with some mashed potatoes and you got yourself a wonderful comfort food.


GARLIC SWISS STEAK

1/3 c. all-purpose flour
1 t. salt
1/2 t. pepper
1 1/2 lbs beef round steak, cut into serving-size portions
2 T. oil
14-oz. can stewed tomatoes
1/2 c. onion, chopped
1/2 green pepper, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced


Combine flour, salt and pepper; sprinkle over steak and pound into both sides.


In a large skillet, brown steak in oil over medium heat; transfer to a lightly greased 13"x9" baking pan.


Combine remaining ingredients; pour over steak. Cover and bake at 350 degrees for one to 1 1/2 hours, or until tender. Makes 6 servings.

I'm a huge fan of the Gooseberry Patch Cookbooks and as a matter of fact, I collect them. I know that I can always find a simple, quick but delicious recipe on there.

This is from the Autumn Cookbook and the kids love it.



1 lb. ground turkey sausage (I use maple sausage)
1/2 c. onion, chopped
1 1/2 c. sliced mushrooms (I use a small can, drained)
1 c. green pepper, chopped
14 1/2 oz. can chunky pizza sauce (I couldn't find it at the commissary so I used a 15 oz bottle of normal pizza sauce)
2 c. biscuit baking mix
1/4 c. milk
1 egg, beaten (I just add it whole)
2 T. grated Parmesan Cheese

Brown sausage and onion in a skillet over medium heat; drain. Stir in mushrooms, pepper and pizza sauce;


spoon into an ungreased 3-quart casserole dish and set aside.


Stir baking mix, milk, egg and cheese together until dough forms. Turn onto a floured surface; knead 10 times (I just kneaded mine in the bowl).Pat into a 9-inch circle; cut into 6 wedges.


Arrange wedges over sauce mixture.


Bake uncovered, at 400 degrees for about 30 minutes, until crust is golden.
Serves 6

There's days that you're too sick to fix a meal, nevermind a dessert.

I got it in an email about a year ago and deleted it without even trying LOL But I'm glad my friend Veronica resent it to me this past week.

5 MINUTE CHOCOLATE MUG CAKE

4 tablespoons cake flour (That's plain flour, not self-rising.)
4 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons baking cocoa
1 egg
3 tablespoons milk
3 tablespoons oil
3 tablespoons chocolate chips (optional)
A small splash of vanilla essence
1 coffee mug

Add dry ingredients to mug and mix well.

Add the egg and mix thoroughly.

Pour in the milk and oil and mix well.
Add the chocolate chips (if using) and vanilla essence and mix again.

Put your mug in the microwave and cook for 3 minutes at 1000 watts. The cake will rise over the top of the mug, but don't be alarmed!

Allow to cool a little, and tip out onto a plate if desired.

Come on in and see what's on my menu for this week, Laura asked us to focus on family favorites, so let's see what I come up with.

If you want to join in with your own menu or take a look at all the other ladies participating, head over to Laura's blog "I'm an Organizing Junkie".

There's days that as much as I love cooking, I just don't feel well enough to be in there, so I love having my crockpot handy for these times.

This is a great recipe, kids LOVE it.




3 lbs chicken, cut up in pieces
1 large onion, thinly sliced
2 (6 ounce) cans tomato paste
6 ounces sliced mushrooms
1 green bell pepper, finely chopped
2-4 cloves garlic, minced
2 teaspoons oregano
1 teaspoon dried basil
1/2 teaspoon celery powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup dry white wine
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, optional
Cooked spaghetti

Place onions in bottom of crock pot. Add chicken pieces.

Stir all the other ingredients together. Pour over chicken.

Cook on low heat 7 to 9 hours or high heat for about 3 to 4 hours.

Serve over spaghetti. What I do, is cook the spaghetti and then drain it and add it to the crockpot, mix it all well and serve.

One of the most common portuguese desserts is Pudim de Caramelo and I can tell you right now that every portuguese housewive has at least one or two versions of this recipe.

This is a different take on the pudding, it's perfect for those days when you need a great dessert but don't want something elaborate.



10 Maria cookies or you could use Vanilla Wafers too
2 cups of milk
4 eggs
10 teaspoons sugar

For the caramel:

1 cup of sugar


Place the sugar in a small pot on medium heat and cook until you get a brown colored syrup. Pour into a fluted pan and set aside.

Mix the remaining ingredients in a blender and pour over the caramel in the fluted pan.

Bake at 350º in a water bath for about 40 minutes. Let cool down completely and then unmold onto a serving dish.

Place in refrigerator and serve cold.

Growing up we often had this as a quick midweek lunch, it's so easy to make and really good.

It always brings back memories of my greatgrandmother, of sitting at the kitchen table eating while we chatted and laughed.

The great thing about this salad is that you can make it just for yourself or you can double or triple the ingredients to serve more, as needed.




1 can garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed
1 can tuna in water, drained
finely chopped onion, about a tablespoon or so
salt and pepper to taste
olive oil and vinegar to taste

Mix garbanzo beans and tuna in a small bowl, add salt and pepper to taste and drizzle with olive oil and vinegar.

I love meatloaf, it's definitely a comfort food in our home, though I do make it the normal way, sometimes I turn to this recipe when I'm in the mood for a more gourmetish (not even a word I'm sure LOL) meatloaf.

I don't really have a recipe for it, it's just the way I've made it since forever.



1/2 cup crushed saltines or bread crumbs if you don't have the saltines around
2 pounds ground meat (beef, sausage, turkey or a mix)
1 egg
2 teaspoons crushed garlic
1 small onion, chopped
salt and pepper to taste
1/4 cup ketchup
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
cheese ( can kind, I use swiss cheese slices and some shredded colby & monterey jack)
some ketchup for the top


Preheat oven to 350°. Spray loaf pan with non stick cooking spray.

In a large bowl, mix together meats, bread crumbs, egg, garlic, onion, salt and pepper, Worcestershire sauce and ketchup. Don't over mix, just mix with your hands until everything is combined well.


Split meat mixture in half.Place half in the pan. Layer with the cheese slices and the shredded cheese.


Top with second half of the meat mixture, then go around the edges and make sure you seal the meatloaf to keep the cheese inside.


Pour tomato sauce over the top and then bake for about 60 minutes or until meat is done.

Nothing says comfort food like a big juicy sandwich with chunks of shredded beef and dripping with goodness. YUM!

Another one from the Gooseberry Patch Cookbooks.



3-lb beef rump roast
2 c. water
1/2 c. soy sauce
1 t. dried rosemary
1 t. dried thyme
1 t. garlic powder
3 to 4 whole peppercorns
1 bay leaf
6 to 8 hoagie rolls, split

Place roast in a slow cooker. Mix remaining ingredients except rolls; pour over roast.

Cover and cook on high setting for 5 to 6 hours, or until beef is tender. Remove meat from broth; shred with a fork and keep warm.

Strain broth and skim off fat; discard bay leaf. Spoon shredded meat onto rolls and serve with broth for dipping.

Serves 6 to 8.

Dinner tonight is a chicken chili, it's a recipe from one of my Gooseberry Patch Cookbooks which I absolutely adore.

Let me tell you this was SO good, a huge hit with the family, my kids both had second helpings, my husband had THREE helpings and then there was fighting over who got the leftovers tomorrow LOL



1 T. oil
1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breast, cubed
1 onion, chopped
14-oz can chicken broth
2 15-1/2 oz. cans Great Northern beans, drained and rinsed
2 4 oz. cans chopped green chilies
1-1/2 t. garlic powder
1 t. salt
1 t. ground cumin
1/2 t. dried oregano
8-oz container sour cream
1/2 pt. whipping cream
10-oz. pkg. corn chips
8-oz. bag shredded Monterey Jack cheese

Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat; add chicken and onion. Saute until chicken is cooked through; set aside.

Combine broth, beans, chiles and seasonings in a large soup pot over medium-high heat; bring to a boil.


Add chicken mixture; reduce heat and simmer for 30 minutes.


Add sour cream and whipping cream; mix well.


Top with corn chips and cheese. Serves 8.

Come on in and see what's on my menu for this week. I'll be posting the recipes as I make them during the week, so come on back for any that caught your eye :)

If you want to join in with your own menu or take a look at all the other ladies participating, head over to Laura's blog "I'm an Organizing Junkie".

6. Put in hot oven and bake for 15 - 20 minutes until dough is brown.
7. Remove from oven and flip pizza crust on to serving plate and remove the cereal bowl.