Category Archives: Lady Fab Cooks
“Funeral Sandwiches”
I recently discovered this recipe while browsing one of my favorite forums. The name along intrigued me to take a look-sy. I never heard of “Funeral Sandwiches” before now but anything that involves a sammie I’m all in. Talk about Total Yum factor; Not to mention the recipe calls for brown sugar and King’s Hawaiian Rolls. Double Yum! This would be a perfect dish for tailgating or entertaining.
Ingredients
For the sandwiches:
- 24 King’s Hawaiian Rolls
- 24 slices deli slice Honey Ham
- 24 slices deli slice Swiss cheese
- Mayonnaise
For the glaze:
- 2 sticks butter, melted
- 4 Tablespoons Brown Sugar
- 2 Tablespoons mustard
- 2 Tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
- 1 Tablespoon finely minced onion (or 2 tsp. dried minced onion)
- Poppy seeds, for sprinkling
Instructions
1. Cut the rolls in half and spread the insides lightly with mayonnaise. Lightly oil or spray baking pan with Pam. Line the bottom of a baking pan with the bottoms of the rolls. Layer the ham slices, then cheese and place the top half back on.
2. In a medium bowl mix together the melted butter, Worcestershire sauce, mustard, brown sugar and onion. Pour the entire concoction over the buns, drenching each one. Sprinkle each sammie with poppy seeds. Cover tightly and marinade anywhere from 4-24 hours.
3. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Bake for 15 minutes, uncovered or until cheese is melted and bun tops are a bit golden. Serve warm!
*CHEF’S TIP – BYOC (Be Your Own Chef) Mix and Match your favorite deli meats and cheeses to truly personalize it and make it your own.
Sweet Potato Butter Cake
The very first time I made this recipe was for Thanksgiving dinner a few years back. I thought it was a total disaster. That was until I tasted it. You see the original recipe calls for pumpkin and I’m not that type of girl. So being that I LOVE sweet potatoes the Chef in me thought it would be clever to just substitute the two. After all they are kind of similar, right? Anywho, the plan was set and the butter cake was made but as the saying goes you eat with your eyes first. And without even tasting the dessert I just knew I had messed up because it didn’t look nothing like the picture on the internet. And without a second thought we just pushed it to the side and opt’d for the other desserts.
Well as fate would have it all the other desserts were gone in record setting time and the only thing that was left was this concoction of sweet potatoes, powdered sugar and cake mix. My husband and I hesitated but decided Why Not? We have to try it at some point. And Boy O’ Boy was it good. We just looked at each other and proceeded to give the head nod of approval. And the rest is history.
Ingredients
Crust:
- 1 (18 1/4-ounce) package yellow cake mix
- 1 egg
- 8 tablespoons butter, melted
Filling:
- 1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened
- 2 small to medium sweet potatoes, baked & mashed
- 3 eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 (16-ounce) box powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon nutmeg
Instructions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Combine the cake mix, egg, and butter and mix well with an electric mixer. Lightly oil hands and pat the mixture into the bottom 13 by 9-inch baking pan until covered evenly.
3. To make the filling: In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese and sweet potatoes until smooth. Add the eggs and vanilla. Next, add the powdered sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, and mix well. Spread sweet potato mixture over cake batter crust and bake for 40 to 50 minutes. Make sure not to overbake as the center should be a little gooey.
4. I like to serve my Sweet Potato Butter Cake slightly warm & with fresh whipped cream.
Original “pumpkin” recipe & photo courtesy of: Baking Is My Zen
Peanut Butter Cookie Dough Brownies
Ingredients
- 9×13 pan of brownies, baked and cooled
- 1/4 cup salted butter, softened
- 1/2 cup peanut butter
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons milk
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- 1 & 1/4 cups m&m’s
Instructions
1. With an electric mixer, cream the butter and peanut butter until smooth, about 1 minute. Add the sugars, and continue creaming until light and fluffy, about 1 minute more. Add the milk and vanilla, and mix until smooth. Add the flour, and continue to mix at low speed until fully combined. Stir in the m&m’s.
2. Spoon the cookie dough onto the cooled brownies and spread gently into an even layer. Slice into squares, and prepare for your life to change.
Source: Confessions of a Cookbook Queen
Bubble Up Pizza Casserole
Ingredients
- 1 pound 96% lean ground beef or ground turkey
- 2 teaspoons onion powder, or 1 onion, chopped
- 16 ounces tomato sauce
- 1/2 teaspoon dried basil
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 15 ounces refrigerated buttermilk biscuits, buttermilk
- Add whatever typical pizza toppings you like, green pepper, turkey pepperoni, mushrooms, etc.
- 1 1/4 cups part skim milk mozzarella cheese, shredded
Instructions
1. Preheat oven to 350 F. In skillet, brown meat over medium high heat until browned, stirring to crumble. Stir in onion powder, tomato sauce, basil, garlic and Italian seasoning.
2. Add quartered biscuits; stir gently until biscuits are covered with sauce. Mix in toppings of your choosing. Spoon mixture into a 9×13 inch baking dish coated with cooking spray. Bake for 25 minutes. Sprinkle with cheese; bake an additional 10 minutes or until biscuits are done. Let stand 5 minutes before serving.
Source: Weight Watcher Boards
Strawberry Cake
Next to pineapples one of my favorite fruits is strawberries. I remember growing up and my home ed teacher, Mrs. Burns would sell this extra large cupcakes after school for $0.75 cents. Without fail every afternoon she would sell of this delectable delights of lemon, vanilla and strawberry. So this past Labor Day weekend I decided to re-visit an old friend, the Strawberry Cake. So as our farewell to summer until 2013, we celebrated with a delicious, scrumptious strawberry cake. It was fresh, fruity and full flavor. Just like I remembered.
Ingredients
Strawberry Cake
- 1 (18.25-ounce) box white cake mix
- 1 (3-ounce) box strawberry-flavored instant gelatin
- 1 (15-ounce) package frozen strawberries in syrup, thawed and pureed; Reserve 1/4 cup for frosting
- 4 large eggs
- 1/2 cup canola oil
- 1/4 cup water
Strawberry Cream Cheese Frosting
- 1/4 cup unsalted butter, softened
- 1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened
- 1/4 cup reserved strawberry puree
- 1/2 teaspoon strawberry extract
- 7 cups confectioners’ sugar
- red food coloring, optional
- Freshly sliced strawberries, for garnish, optional
Instructions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease 2 (9-inch) round cake pans.
2. In a large bowl, combine cake mix and gelatin. Add pureed strawberries, eggs, oil, and water; beat at medium speed with an electric mixer until smooth. Pour into prepared pans, and bake for 20 minutes, or until a wooden pick inserted in the center comes out clean.
3. Let cool in pans for 10 minutes. Remove from pans, and cool completely on wire racks.
4. Time to make the frosting: In a large bowl, beat butter and cream cheese at medium speed with an electric mixer until creamy. Beat in 1/4 cup of the reserved strawberry puree and the strawberry extract. Gradually add confectioners’ sugar 1 cup at a time, beating until smooth.
5. Spread frosting in between layers and on top and sides of cake. Garnish with sliced fresh strawberries, if desired.
*Chef’s Note – 1) You can use fresh or frozen strawberries. If you use frozen, let them defrost first and then place in a food processor and pulse until pureed. If you want puree to be seedless just run through a medium-sized strainer to remove the seeds.
2) Some chefs avoid using red food coloring, I did however add some food coloring to achieve that perfectly pink color. If you don’t care about getting the pink color, feel free to leave it out. I used about 5 drops, but you should add them one at a time until you achieve the color you are looking for.
Peanut Butter Fudge Cake
Now you know I love me some peanut butter and chocolate. And any way I can get, I have it. This cake is so rich & so delicious. Don’t forget the milk. You will definitely need it! It’s like having a BIG OLE’ peanut butter cup in your mouth.
Ingredients
for cake:
- 1 box Betty Crocker Devil Food Cake Mix
- 1/2 cup canola oil
- 1/2 cup buttermilk
- 4 eggs
- 1 cup sour cream
- 1 Tablespoon vanilla
- 1 ½ cups semisweet chocolate chips
for frosting:
- 1 (8 oz) cream cheese, soften
- 1 stick unsalted butter, soften
- 2/3 cup creamy peanut butter
- 4 cups powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2-4 Tablespoons heavy whipping cream
- 1 bag Reese’s Peanut Butter cups, chopped (optional garnish)
Instructions
1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease and flour (on chocolate cake mixes I love to use cocoa instead of flour) two 9 inch circle cake pans.
2. Place cake mix, eggs, sour cream, buttermilk, vanilla and oil in large mixing bowl. Blend on low for 1 minute, scrape bowl, and blend on medium 2 more minutes. Batter should look thick and well combined. Lightly coat chocolate chips with flour and fold into the batter, making sure they’re well distributed. Pour batter into greased and floured pan.
3. Bake 45-50 minutes, or until cake springs back when lightly touched and cake just starts to pull away from sides of pan. Place on rack to cool for 20 minutes.
3. While cake is cooling make frosting. In medium bowl beat the peanut butter, cream cheese and unsalted butter until light and fluffy. Add vanilla, whipping cream and 1 cup of powdered sugar. Beat well and continue to add 1 cup of powdered sugar at a time mixing thoroughly after each addition and scraping down the sides of the bowl often. Continue to beat on medium speed until light and fluffy and it reaches your desired consistency. About 3 to 4 minutes.
4. Now for the assembly, place bottom circle on cake stand or plate. Spread top with 1 cup frosting. Add the second circle to the top. Spread the rest of frosting on sides and top of chocolate cake. Carefully garnish cake by pressing chopped peanut butter cups into frosting. Chill for a few hours, or overnight, before serving. Serve & Enjoy!
*Chef’s Tip – This cake benefits from some refrigeration due to the cream cheese & heavy whipping cream in the frosting. It helps the entire enterprise of cake while melding the layers together. Maybe an hour. Not a lot. Or forget it and just dig into the cake. Perfect slices are for when you need to appear fancy. Get over it and just eat the darn thang. Nobody really remembers how good it looked. Just how good it tasted.
Caprese On A Stick
Here’s a last minute appetizer that’s perfect for your Labor Day barbeque or football tailgate party. I love Caprese Salad so these little bites are a perfect snack. These are fresh, light, easy, healthy and delicious. Not to mention that the flavors compliment each other perfectly. You can add variations to this recipe based on your favorite Caprese salad ingredients. I included Kalamata olives on some of my skewers for an extra twist! So until next year, Goodbye summer!
Ingredients
- 2 boxes cherry tomatoes (red or yellow)
- 12 bocconcini (small mozzarella balls), about 8 ounces
- 1 bunch basil
- salt (coarse ground or Kosher)
- black pepper
- extra virgin olive oil
- balsamic vinegar
- oregano (use fresh if you have it, if not dry works well)
- Kalamata olives, pitted (optional)
- long pointed wooden skewers
Instructions
1. Prepare ingredients. Cut cherry tomatoes in half and cut mozzarella balls in half.
2. Skewer alternating tomato halves, mozzarella, basil leaves and kalamata olives (if using). Repeat with the remaining cheese and tomatoes.
3. Arrange on platter and drizzle balsamic vinegar, extra virgin olive oil, coarse salt, coarse ground black pepper, and oregano over skewers.
4. Feel free to be creative with the placement and amount of tomatoes or mozzarella based on your preferences.
Peanut Butter “Cheese Ball”
Well the time has come and I am ready for some football baby. And what goes perfect with football? Snacks of course. So here is a yummy recipe that takes the savory cheese ball and turns it into something sweet. Like I said before anything with peanut butter & chocolate; I’m All In!
Ingredients
- 1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese, at room temperature
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 3/4 cup creamy peanut butter (not all-natural)
- 3 tablespoons packed brown sugar
- 3/4 cup milk chocolate chips
- 3/4 cup peanut butter chips
- Graham cracker sticks, teddy grahams, and/or apple slices for dipping
Instructions
1. Beat cream cheese, powdered sugar, peanut butter and brown sugar in large mixer bowl until blended.
2. Spoon onto a large piece of plastic wrap; bring up all four corners and twist tightly forming into a ball shape.
3. Freeze for 1 hour 30 minutes or until firm enough to keep its shape. Place peanut butter and chocolate chips in flat dish. Remove plastic wrap from ball and roll ball into morsels to completely cover, pressing morsels into the ball if necessary.
4. Place ball on serving dish; cover and freeze for 2 hours or until almost firm. (Can be made ahead. If frozen overnight, thaw at room temperature for 20 to 30 minutes before serving.) Serve with graham cracker sticks, teddy grahams, or apple slices for dipping or spreading.
*Chef’s Note – Celery sticks and/or carrots make for an excellent dipper for this dip also.
Hot Bean Dip
The first time I had bean dip I was blown away. It was in my 1oth grade Spanish class. We had to do a presentation for class and one of my classmates had brought a bean dip for extra credit. I think he was just trying to kiss up to the teacher. Such a Show-off. Making us all look bad with his fabulous, oh so good bean dip.. Anywho, it was a big hit and everyone loved it. The only regret I have about it was I wish I got the recipe. Even though I have not found an exact replica, I have discovered this concoction that is Easy. Peasy. Hot and Cheesy. Just absolutely delicious. Try this hot cheesy delicious dip at your next gathering! Your friends will thank you!
Ingredients
- 1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
- 1 cup sour cream
- 2 (16 ounce) cans refried beans
- 1/2 (1 ounce) package taco seasoning mix
- 5 drops hot pepper sauce
- 2 tablespoons dried parsley
- 1/4 cup chopped green onions
- 1 (8 ounce) block Cheddar cheese, shredded
- 1 (8 ounce) block Monterey Jack cheese, shredded
Instructions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2. In a medium bowl, blend the cream cheese and sour cream. Mix in the refried beans, taco seasoning, hot pepper sauce, parsley, green onions, 1/2 the Cheddar cheese and 1/2 the Monterey Jack cheese.
3. Transfer the mixture to an 8×12 inch baking dish. Top with remaining Cheddar and Monterey Jack cheeses.
4. Bake in the preheated oven 20 to 30 minutes, until cheese is slightly browned.
Bourbon-Glazed Chicken Drumettes
I’m not a big drumette person but when I do indulge I prefer bar-b-que wings over buffalo wings. Here’s a recipe that is to be a sure crowd pleaser. Buffalo wings, all grown up!
Ingredients
for Bourbon-Glazed Chicken:
- 2 tablespoons (1/4 stick) butter
- 1 cup chopped onion
- 3 garlic cloves, peeled, thinly sliced
- 1 cup bourbon, divided
- 1 cup ketchup
- 1/2 cup hot pepper sauce (such as Crystal)
- 1/4 cup tomato paste
- 3 tablespoons (packed) brown sugar
- 30 chicken drumettes (about 4 pounds)
- onion powder
- garlic powder
- salt
- black pepper
- Celery and carrot sticks, for serving
for Blue Cheese Dipping Sauce:
- 1 ounce Roquefort cheese, crumbled
- 1/3 cup nonfat Greek yogurt
- 2 tablespoons mayonnaise
- 2 tablespoons chopped scallions
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
- 1 teaspoon white wine vinegar
- Juice of 1 lemon, fresh squeezed
- Juice of 1 lime, fresh squeezed
Instructions
1. For the blue cheese dip: Cream the Roquefort until smooth in a medium bowl. Mix in the yogurt, mayonnaise, scallions, salt, pepper, vinegar, lemon juice and lime juice until well blended. Chill for 2 hours or overnight.
2. Melt butter in heavy large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add onion and garlic; sauté until golden, about 5 minutes. Add 3/4 cup bourbon; boil until most of liquid is absorbed, 6 to 8 minutes. Whisk in 1/4 cup bourbon, ketchup, hot pepper sauce, tomato paste, and brown sugar. Bring to boil. Reduce heat and simmer until sauce thickens slightly, stirring occasionally, about 10 minutes. Season marinade with salt and pepper. Remove marinade from heat; cool to room temperature.
3. Place chicken drumettes in 15 x 10 x 2-inch glass baking dish. Pour marinade over and turn drumettes to coat. Cover and refrigerate overnight.
4. Preheat oven to 375°F. Line baking sheet with foil or parchment paper. Place cooling rack atop prepared baking sheet. Arrange drumettes on rack, spacing slightly apart. Spread any remaining marinade from dish over drumettes. Sprinkle with onion powder, garlic powder, salt and pepper.
5. Bake drumettes (still on cooling rack) until cooked through and brown in spots, about 45 minutes. Transfer drumettes to serving platter. Serve Blue Cheese Dipping Sauce alongside.
I Am Lady Fab 