Sour Cream Coconut Frosting

Light and creamy frosting that makes a white cake!


Sour Cream Coconut Frosting 
www.whispersofthyme.blogspot.com 
(yields enough to frost layer cake)

Ingredients:
16 ounces sour cream
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups powdered sugar
3 cups sweetened flake coconut
12 ounces Cool-Whip 

Instructions:
To a large bowl, add:
sour cream and vanilla extract...stir, 
powdered sugar...stir,
flaked coconut...stir,
Cool Whip (thawed)...stir in gently until thoroughly combined.  
Enough to frost and fill a 2-layer cake.    

Tips:
1) A fourteen ounce bag of sweetened flake coconut contains 5 1/3 cups coconut; you will only need 3 cups for this recipe.
2) Use more powdered sugar if you prefer it sweeter or thicker,
3) Frosting and frosted cake must be stored in the fridge...Do NOT freeze,
and
4) This is not a frosting to serve outdoors on a warm day!

Herbed Oatmeal Pan Bread

Delicious yeast rolls with a buttery, Parmesan herb topping from Pillsbury's, "The Complete Book of Baking."

Here's what you'll need:

Water, Rolled Oats, Flour, Yeast, Sugar, Salt, Butter (or margarine), Egg, Parmesan Cheese, Dried Oregano, Dried Basil, & Garlic Powder

Begin by boiling water in saucepan; stir in oats and remove from heat.

Stir in butter.

Let cool to 120 to 130 degrees F.

In large bowl, combine 1-1/2 cups flour, sugar, salt, and yeast; blend well. 

Add rolled oats mixture and egg.

Blend at low speed until moistened; beat 3 minutes at medium speed.

Stir in additional flour to form stiff dough.

On floured surface, knead in additional flour until dough is smooth and elastic...about 5 minutes.

Shape dough into ball, cover with large bowl, and let rest for 15 minutes.

Remove cover, and then punch dough down several times to release all air bubbles.

Press into greased pan.

Using very sharp knife, cut diagonal lines 1-1/2 inches apart, cutting completely through dough. Repeat in opposite direction creating diamond pattern.

Cover loosely with greased plastic wrap and cloth towel. Let rise in warm place (80 to 85 degrees F.) until light and doubled in size, about 45 minutes.

Uncover dough. Redefine cuts by poking tip of knife into cuts until knife hits bottom of pan; do not pull knife through dough.

In small bowl, combine Parmesan cheese, basil, oregano, and garlic powder; mix well. Set aside. (not pictured)

Spoon 4 Tablespoons of the butter over cut dough. 

Bake for 15 minutes.

Brush remaining 2 Tablespoons of butter over bread.

Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese-herb mixture. Bake until golden brown. 

  

Serve warm or cool.  

Optional: top with additional melted butter 

Herbed Oatmeal Pan Bread
(Pillsbury's Complete Book of Baking)

Bread Ingredients:
2 cups water
1 cup rolled oats
3 Tablespoons margarine or butter
3-3/4 to 4-3/4 cups all-purpose flour (or bread flour)
1/4 cup sugar
2 teaspoons salt
2 pkg. active dry yeast (or 4 1/2 teaspoons)
1 egg

Herb Butter Ingredients:
1 Tablespoon grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 teaspoon dried basil leaves
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano leaves
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
6 Tablespoons margarine or butter, melted

Directions:
Bring water to a boil in medium saucepan; stir in rolled oats. Remove from heat; stir in 3 Tablespoons margarine (or butter). Cool to 120 to 130 degrees F. In large bowl, combine 1-1/2 cups flour, sugar, salt, and yeast; blend well. Add rolled oats mixture and egg. Blend at low speed until moistened; beat 3 minutes at medium speed. By hand, stir in an additional 1-3/4 cups to 2-1/2 cups flour to form stiff dough.

On floured surface, knead in 1/2 to 3/4 cup flour until dough is smooth and elastic, about 5 minutes. Shape dough into ball; cover with large bowl. Let rest 15 minutes. Grease 13x9-inch baking pan. Punch dough down several times to remove all air bubbles; press into greased pan. Using very sharp knife, cut diagonal lines 1-1/2 inches apart, cutting completely through dough. Repeat in opposite direction creating diamond pattern. Cover loosely with greased plastic wrap and cloth towel.* Let rise in warm place (80 to 85 degrees F.) until light and doubled in size, about 45 minutes.

Heat oven to 375 degrees F. Uncover dough. Redefine cuts by poking tip of knife into cuts until knife hits bottom of pan; do not pull knife through dough. In small bowl, combine Parmesan cheese, basil, oregano, and garlic powder; mix well. Set aside. Spoon 4 Tablespoons of the butter over cut dough. Bake at 375 degrees F. for 15 minutes. Brush remaining 2 Tablespoons of butter over bread. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese-herb mixture. Bake for an additional 10 to 15 minutes or until golden brown. Serve warm or cool.

TIPS:
* To bake at a later time, at this point let stand at room temperature for 20 minutes. Remove cloth towel. Refrigerate 2 to 24 hours. Remove plastic wrap from dough; let stand at room temperature 30 minutes. Bake as directed above.

Two 8 or 9-inch square pans or one 8-inch and one 9-inch square pan can be substituted for 13x9-inch pan. When using 2 square pans, one pan can be baked and the other pan refrigerated for baking the next day.

HIGH ALTITUDE:  Above 3500 Feet: No change.

Recipe Review - Restaurant Style Salsa

The Pioneer Woman

 

Easy and inexpensive, but the best feature of this salsa is the taste.
This recipe is from Ree at The Pioneer Woman, and it is simple and basic but also a good starting point for adding other items, such as corn or black beans.



Here's what you'll need:
Canned Whole Tomatoes, Ro-tel Brand Diced Tomatoes with Green Chilies, Lime Juice, Cilantro, Garlic, Onion, Jalapeno Pepper, Sugar, Salt, and Ground Cumin

Place all ingredients in the food processor. Pulse until desired consistency. Since I like my salsa thin, I did about 20 pulses. I told you it was easy!

It made approximately 32 ounces of salsa...16 ounces to store...

 16 ounces to dip!

If you like salsa, please try this recipe. You can adjust the amount of seasonings to your taste.

My only changes to her recipe...
I doubled the amount of garlic, salt, sugar, and cumin.

Store in fridge.
 

RECIPE: Restaurant Style Salsa 

Crock Pot Corned Beef & Cabbage

...with Horseradish Sauce

This is a straightforward, simple, and mouth-watering dish; horseradish sauce pairs well with the meat.

Here's what you'll need (for the corned beef):
Corned Beef Brisket w/Seasoning Packet, Bay Leaves, Garlic, Dijon Mustard, Brown Sugar, Beer, Carrots, Onions, Red Potatoes, [Cabbage & Water (not pictured)].

Here's what you'll need (for the sauce):
Sour Cream, Dijon Mustard, Mayonnaise, Prepared Horseradish, Cayenne Pepper, Salt & Black Pepper

 

Start by placing all sauce ingredients in small bowl. 

Stir thoroughly. Store in fridge until ready to serve with corned beef. 

For Corned Beef & Cabbage specific directions, please follow recipe directions at bottom of post. 

Cook the meat and onions in the crock pot until done.

Add the remaining veggies and cook until tender.

Crock Pot Corned Beef & Cabbage
www.whispersofthyme.blogspot.com 

Ingredients:
2 to 3 pounds Corned Beef Brisket (flat cut) with Seasoning Packet
1 Tablespoon minced garlic
11 to 12 ounces beer
1 cup water
2 Tablespoons brown sugar
3 Tablespoons Dijon mustard
2 small or 1 large onion, quartered
2 bay leaves
1 medium head cabbage, cut in 6 to 8 wedges
6 to 8 carrots, cut in small chunks
10 small red potatoes, halved or quartered

Directions:
Rinse Corned Beef Brisket and place in large crock pot, fat side up. Top the brisket with contents of seasoning packet, minced garlic, and beer. In a small bowl or measuring cup, mix together the water, brown sugar, and mustard, then pour over brisket. Place quartered onions in crock pot along with bay leaves. Put the lid on the crock pot and cook brisket on low setting for approximately 9 to 11 hours. Once brisket is cooked, remove brisket from crock pot (leaving juices), wrap tightly in foil, and place in 200 degree F. oven to keep meat warm while cooking veggies.

Add cabbage, carrots, and potatoes to juices in crock pot, and cook until veggies are tender (approximately 40 minutes to 1 hour). Remove fat from brisket (scrapes off easily). Serve brisket with horseradish sauce (see recipe below).

Optional: Once meat is cooked, turn crock pot to warm setting. Steam cabbage, carrots, and potatoes in separate pot until tender. Add cooked veggies to meat and juices in crock pot for 15 minutes. (my preference)

 
Horseradish Sauce
www.whispersofthyme.blogspot.com 

Ingredients:
1/2 cup sour cream
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1 Tablespoon mayonnaise
2 to 3 Tablespoons prepared horseradish
1 to 2 pinches of cayenne pepper
pinch of salt
pinch of black pepper

Directions:
Mix well. Keep chilled. Serve with brisket.

Hamburger Seasoning Mix

A great addition to season your raw hamburger meat patties. This recipe contains two parts: 
1) the dry seasoning mix*, which consists of the dry ingredients, and 
2) the wet ingredients to be added to dry seasoning mix when ready to make hamburgers.

Makes enough seasoning for approximately 1 to 3 pounds of raw hamburger meat.

*The dry seasoning mix can be stored in an airtight container until ready to use.

Hamburger Seasoning
www.whispersofthyme.blogspot.com

(Please note: this is somewhat spicy...if you like it mild(er), omit or reduce cayenne pepper and black pepper.)

Dry Ingredients:
Paprika
Garlic Powder
Garlic Salt
Salt
Black Pepper
Cayenne Pepper
Brown Sugar
Cumin
Onion Powder
Mrs. Dash Southwest Chipotle Seasoning Blend

Wet Ingredients:
A-1 Sauce
Worcestershire Sauce
Olive Oil
Water

Directions:
*For the dry seasoning, mix together
One (1) teaspoon of each of the following:
Salt
Black Pepper
Brown Sugar (or up to 2 Tablespoons)
Mrs. Dash Southwest Chipotle Seasoning Blend
 
And...
One-half (½) teaspoon of each of the following:
Garlic Powder
Cumin
Onion Powder
Paprika
 
And...
One-fourth (¼) teaspoon of each of the following:
Cayenne Pepper
Garlic Salt

Combine all dry ingredients in a small bowl and stir thoroughly (makes enough to season 1 to 3 pounds raw hamburger).
When ready to make hamburger patties, add the dry seasoning mix with 
One (1) teaspoon of each of the following (reduce by 1/2 if combining with 1 pound of hamburger meat):
Olive Oil
Water
A-1 Sauce
Worcestershire Sauce

Stir together thoroughly, and then add the mixture to raw hamburger meat, mixing with your hands (do not over-handle the meat). Form patties and cook.

Tips/Notes:
If storing dry seasoning mix...stir before using.
I like to use a hamburger press to form consistently sized patties.
If frying burgers in skillet, use a non-stick skillet (un-greased), and cook over medium-low heat (#4 on my electric stove).
Turn burgers only once.
Once burgers are cooked, drain on paper towels and let sit for a few minutes before serving.