Cracker Barrel chicken n’ dumplins

 

Ingredients:

• 2 cups Flour
• ½ teaspoons Baking Powder
• 1 pinch Salt
• 2 Tablespoons Butter
• 1 cup butterMilk, A Bit Less Than A Full Cup (you can use regular milk if needed)
• 2 quarts Chicken Broth
• 3 cups Cooked Chicken
• A bowl of chicken and dumplings. A glass of sweet tea. It’s a meal any Kentuckian would be proud to fix and danged happy to sit down to. And it’s not hard to make. Come on, I’ll show you how.

Instructions:
In a bowl, combine the flour, baking powder and salt. Cut the butter into the dry ingredients with a fork or pastry blender. Stir in the milk, mixing with a fork until the dough forms a ball.
Heavily flour a work surface. You’ll need a rolling pin and something to cut the dumplings with. I like to use a pizza cutter. I also like to use a small spatula to lift the dumplings off the cutting surface.
Roll the dough out thin with a heavily floured rolling pin. Dip your cutter in flour and cut the dumplings in squares about 2?x2?. It’s okay for them not to be exact. Just eye ball it. Some will be bigger, some smaller, some shaped funny.
Use the floured spatula to put them on a heavily floured plate. Just keep flouring between the layers of dumplings.
To cook them, bring the broth to a boil. Drop the dumplings in one at a time, stirring while you add them. The extra flour on them will help thicken the broth. Cook them for about 15-20 minutes or until they not doughy tasting. Add the cooked chicken to the pot and you’re done!

Peach Upside Down Cake

 

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup butter
• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
• 1 1/2-2 cups sliced, pitted and peeled peaches or frozen unsweetened peach slices, thawed and large slices cut in half lengthwise
• 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1/2 cup milk

Instructions:
Place 1/4 cup butter in an 8x8x2-inch baking pan. Warm in a 350 degrees F oven about 5 minutes or until butter is melted. (Be sure to watch carefully to avoid overbrowning the butter). Remove pan from oven. Add brown sugar, stirring until sugar is completely moistened. Spread sugar mixture evenly in pan. Arrange peach slices evenly over brown sugar mixture. Set aside.

In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking powder and salt; set aside. In a large bowl, beat 1/2 cup butter with an electric mixer on medium to high speed for 30 seconds. Beat in granulated sugar until well combined. Add egg and vanilla, beating until combined. Alternately add the flour mixture and milk to beaten butter mixture, beating on low speed after each addition just until combined. Spread batter evenly over the peaches in the pan.

Bake for 45 to 50 minutes or until a wooden toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Cool in pan on wire rack for 5 minutes. Loosen cake from sides of pan; invert onto a large serving plate. Cool for 10 to 15 minutes more. Serve warm. Makes 8 servings.

CRISPY PARMESAN CRUSTED ZUCCHINI

 

INGREDIENTS

• 4 zucchini, halved lengthwise
• ⅔ cup panko breadcrumbs
• ½ cup fresh grated parmesan cheese
• ¼ cup finely chopped parsley
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• ¼ cup melted butter
• Salt and pepper

INSTRUCTIONS
Preheat oven to 400°F | 200°C. Spray a baking tray or sheet with non stick cooking oil spray Place the zucchini halves, cut side up, on the baking sheet; set aside.
Mix together the breadcrumbs, parmesan cheese, parsley and garlic in a small bowl. Pour in the melted butter; season with ¾ teaspoon salt and ⅓ teaspoon pepper (or to taste). Mix the ingredients together until the breadcrumbs absorb the butter (about 40 seconds).
Spoon the mixture over each zucchini half, to evenly cover. Spray the topping with a little cooking oil spray.
Bake for 20 minutes in the hot oven until the crust is golden and the zucchini halves are cooked through. Broil for a further 5 minutes on medium heat to crisp the topping.
Garnish with parsley and serve as a side accompaniment to any main dish

AMBROSIA FRUIT SALAD

 

Ingredients:

• 1 (8 ounce) container frozen whipped topping, thawed
• 2 1/2 cups shredded coconut
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts
• 1 (8 ounce) can fruit cocktail, drained
• 1 (8 ounce) can pineapple chunks, drained
• 1 (11 ounce) can mandarin oranges, drained
• 3 cups miniature marshmallows
• 1 (10 ounce) jar maraschino cherries, drained (optional)
• 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Directions:
In a large bowl, combine the whipped topping, coconut, chopped nuts, fruit cocktail, pineapple, mandarin oranges, marshmallows, cherries, nutmeg and cinnamon. Mix together well and refrigerate for 30 to 45 minutes.
Ambrosia Fruit Salad is ready to serve.

Pecan Pie Cookies

 

Ingredients:

• 1 prepared single pie crust (homemade or purchased, I used Pillsbury)
• 2 tablespoons butter, melted
• ½ cup pecans, chopped
• ⅓ cup packed brown sugar
• ¼ cup corn syrup
• 2 eggs
• ⅛ teaspoon salt

optional
¼ cup semi sweet or milk chocolate chip for decorating.

Instructions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
In a large non-stick pan, combine butter, pecans, brown sugar, corn syrup, salt and eggs. Cook on the stove top over medium-low heat just until thickened. (You don’t want it dry, just slightly thickened, about the consistency of pudding). Remove from heat and set aside.
Unroll dough and using a 3″ cookie cutter, cut out circles. Gently fold about ⅛-1/4″ up on the edges.
Spoon 1 tablespoon of the pecan mixture into each circle.
Place on a parchment lined pan (it’s important to line it) and bake 8 minutes or until filling is just set. Remove from oven and cool on a wire rack.
Place chocolate chips in a small Ziploc bag (use brand name, the store brands tend to leak). Microwave about 15 seconds or until mostly melted. Snip off a tiny corner of the baggie and drizzle chocolate over the cookies. Cool.

Peach Hand Pies

 

Ingredients:

• 2 boxes (14.1 oz each) refrigerated pie crust
• 1 can (21 oz) peach pie filling
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 2 1/2 cups powdered sugar
• 1/4 cup milk
• 1 egg white, beaten

Directions:
Preheat oven to 425°F. Remove pie crusts from package and allow to come to room temperature while you prepare filling.
Dump pie filling in a shallow bowl and dice peaches using a fork and knife (you want them to be small pieces). Add in cinnamon and mix until blended. Set aside.
Unroll pie crusts and cut 6 circles from each crust using a 4-inch biscuit cutter. You may have to re-roll the scraps to get the 6th circle.
Using a 1 tbsp cookie scoop, drop peach pie filling into center of each pie crust circle. Fold in half and pinch edges completely. Fold pinched edges over and press with the tines of a fork to seal. Poke hand pie with fork once, to prevent bursting.
Beat egg white in a small bowl until frothy. Brush over the tops of each hand pie. Bake on a parchment paper lined baking sheet (1 inch apart) for about 15 minutes, until browned.
While pies are baking, whisk together the powdered sugar and milk until smooth. Remove cooked pies from baking sheet and drop (while warm) into glaze, coating it completely. I use two forks to flip it in the glaze and remove carefully. Return to parchment paper and allow to set (about 5 minutes).

Banana Split Pie

 

Ingredients:

• 1 stick butter, melted
• 1 box graham cracker crumbs
• 1 stick butter, softened
• 2 eggs
• 2 cups confectioners’ sugar
• 5 bananas, sliced
• 1 (15 ounce) can crushed pineapple, undrained

• 1 (16 ounce) container Cool-Whip, thawed
• 1 (4 ounce) jar maraschino cherries, stemmed
• 1/2 cup pecans, chopped
• Chocolate Syrup, optiona

Instructions:

In a 9×13 glass or porcelain dish, combine 1 stick of melted butter and graham cracker crumbs. With a fork, incorporate the butter until the crumbs are coated. Firmly press into a crust in the bottom of the pan.

In a medium bowl, cream together the other stick of softened butter, eggs and confectioners’ sugar; beat for 15 minutes. Spread evenly on the graham cracker crust. Layer banana slices evenly on top of butter/sugar mixture; layer pineapple on top of the bananas. Evenly spread the Cool-Whip and garnish with cherries and pecans. Drizzle optional chocolate syrup over the top. Refrigerate at least 2 hours or overnight. Keeps well refrigerated for about a week.