Pineapple Upside Down Cake

No one can resist this warm, homemade favorite!

Pineapple Upside Down Cake

1/3 cup butter
2/3 cup brown sugar
pineapple rings
maraschino cherries
yellow cake batter (from scratch or box)

Melt butter in a cast iron skillet.  You could also use a glass baking dish or non stick cake pan.  Swirl butter in the pan to coat.  Sprinkle brown sugar into the butter.  Line skillet with pineapple rings with a cherry in each center.  Pour cake batter over pineapples.

Bake at 350 for about 40 minutes.  Use a butter knife to loosen the edges and allow to cool.  Place a large plate over the top of the skillet and flip upside down.  Remove skillet and viola!  Pineapple upside down cake!  Yum!

Pulled Pork Barbeque Sandwiches

Home made slow cooked traditional southern style succulent pulled pork barbeque. Need I say more?

Pulled Pork Barbeque Sandwiches

5 lb or more bone-in fresh pork picnic roast
Salt
Pepper
Cayenne
Paprika
Garlic powder
Onion powder
Barbeque sauce
Fresh wheat rolls, halved and toasted
Mayonnaise
Claussen pickles, diced

Generously sprinkle the pork with all of the seasonings on all sides. Place the roast in a roasting pan with a lid, fat side up. Cook at 275 degrees for about 1 1/4 hours per pound or until the meat pulls apart easily with a fork. Remove from oven and allow to set until cool enough to work with.

Use forks (no knife should be needed) to separate sections of meat away from the bone. Discard fat. Place meat into a large bowl. Use two forks to pull the meat apart into shreds. While you are shredding the meat, have some barbeque sauce heating in a sauce pan over low heat. Stir when necessary. When all the meat is shredded and the sauce is heated through, mix the two together to lightly coat the meat. Only about 2 TBS sauce per 1 cup pulled pork is needed.
To assemble sandwiches, spread mayonnaise on rolls, add 1/4 to 1/2 cup of barbeque pork, and top with diced pickles. Serve with kettle chips, cole slaw, potato salad, sliced tomatoes, and/or fresh tossed salad.
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Soft Shell Crab

OMG I found a place where you can order soft shell crabs!

Linton's Seafood

1/2 dozen soft shell crabs for as low as 20 bucks... that's $3.33 per crab. Not bad, not bad at all - especially if you have ever had good soft shell crab. When its done right, oh, its sooo done right. My favorite is deep fried, but sauteed scampi style is a very close second!

Fried Soft Shell Crab

2 soft shell crabs per person
flour
buttermilk
cracker meal
oil

Thaw the crab if not fresh. Pat dry with paper towel. Dredge in flour for a thin coating. Dip in buttermilk, then cracker meal, then buttermilk again, then cracker meal. You could also use panko breadcrumbs if you like it crunchy. Deep fry in 350 degree oil until golden brown. Get creative on your plate presentation, too!

Sauteed Soft Shell Crab Scampi

2 soft shell crabs per person
salt and pepper
oil
1 small onion, diced
2 TBS garlic, chopped
Juice of 1 lemon
1/2 cup white wine
1/2 cup stock (shrimp stock is best)
2 TBS butter
parsley

Thaw crabs if not raw. Season with salt and pepper. Heat oil over medium heat in large skillet. Saute onions for about 3 minutes. Add garlic and crabs. Saute 3 minutes. Add lemon juice, wine, and stock. Reduce to almost 1/2 the liquid, should take about 6 minutes. Add butter. After butter is melted, add lots of chopped parsley. Serve over linguine, if desired.

And you might want to check out this option:
Soft Shell Crab BLT with Lemon Pepper Mayonaise
Oh no they didn't!!!

Key Lime Cookies

These lime cookies are really great for summer, but the green tint makes them a unique addition to the Christmas cookie assortment. Everything else is so sweet, but these cookies have a twist of tart, fresh lime.

Key Lime Cookies

Cookie:
1 1/2 sticks butter, softened
1 cup sugar
3 egg yolks
Zest of 1/2 of a lime
Juice of 1/2 of a lime
2 cups all purpose flour
1/8 tsp salt
Green decorating sugar

Icing:
Zest of 1/2 of a lime
Juice of 1/2 of a lime
1 TBS maple syrup (sugar free works as a substitute here)
1 cup powdered sugar

Cream together butter and sugar with mixer. Mix lime zest, juice, and egg yolks into batter. Remove mixer. Add flour and salt all at once. Using rubber spatula, scrape sides of bowl and fold mixture until it forms a ball of dough. Divide the dough in half. Roll each half into a log. Roll logs in green sugar. Wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours.

Cut and discard the ends off the log. Or, bake the ends for yourself as taste tests. Roll the log in green decorating sugar. Slice the rest of the log into 1/4 to 1/2 inch thick slices. Place on lightly greased cookie sheet, making a slight thumb print depression in the center of each cookie. Bake at 375 for 8-10 minutes or until edges just begin to brown. Remove from oven and let stand on cookie sheet 5 minutes. Then use spatula to gently transfer cookies to wire rack to cool.

Combine icing ingredients in a small sauce pan on very low heat. As icing heats up, it will be easy to drip from a rubber spatula in a little puddle on top of each cookie. When icing cools, it will be solid. Makes about 1 dozen cookies per log.

Homemade Dog Food

I want the best for my puppies. They are rescues and had hard lives before they came to me, so I want to make sure they are as happy, healthy, and comfortable as possible. In exchange, they protect the house, entertain us with their antics, and give snuggles. We had quite a scare when our smallest one vomited blood. We took her to the emergency vet to find out it was diet-related. Then our pointer mix started vomiting daily. I was feeding them a good brand of natural dog food for sensitive stomachs, but it just seemed like it was not good enough. I researched and found out that the ingredients in dog food are not well regulated and can be quite disgusting, if not dangerous to pets.So, I started making my own dog food at home. Yes, it takes time - it helps to make a big batch ahead of time or even freeze portions. But, its about the same price as the higher quality dry dog food. My dogs stopped vomiting immediately, and no more diarrhea. They have super-soft fur - like baby bunnies, and they scratch less indicating healthier skin. They don't have any more of the infamous "dog farts" that send you running from the room. They are more calm and content, too - not as much whining and hyper activity. I am so glad I tried it. You have to be careful with the portions, and its always good to supplement with a doggie multi-vitamin. Choose healthy, recommended ingredients - even 2 tablespoons of excess fat can cause pancreatitis and intestinal bleeding, so you have to be careful. There is a lot of conflicting information on the net, so when in doubt, leave it out. Here are some of the recipes that I have been successfully using, and of course, they are a hit with the doggies!


Basic Homemade Dogfood Portioning

1 cup cooked grains
1/2 cup cooked, chopped meat
1/2 cup cooked veggies
4 TBS chicken stock

Everything should be bland - no salt, seasonings, breading, skin, fat, etc. I typically use boiled brown rice or cooked pasta for my grains. For the meat, I use boiled or baked chicken, diced. You can also use scrambled eggs, tuna, salmon, or beef. The easiest veggies are the frozen peas and carrots mix or broccoli, carrots, and cauliflower mix.

Mix it up and serve at room temperature.

Chicken Chow

1 cup cooked brown rice
1/2 cup diced bland chicken
1/2 cup frozen peas and carrots
4-6 TBS chicken stock

Mix and heat in a pan. Serve at room temperature.

Tuna Puppy Pasta

1 cup cooked macaroni
1 can drained tuna
1/2 cup frozen mixed veggies, cooked
4 TBS olive oil

Mix together and serve at room temperature.

Sunshine Scrambles

1 cup cooked brown rice
1/2 cup mixed veggies, cooked
3 eggs
1/4 cup milk

Beat eggs and milk in a bowl. Scramble in a greased pan over medium heat until done. Mix rice and veggies together and top with scrambled eggs. Serve at room temperature.

Awesome Crunchy Treats

Baby Carrots!

Yes, I keep a bag of baby carrots in the fridge at all times. A baby carrot makes a healthy treat, its cool and crunchy, you know its good for them, and they love it! I give them one at a time, and act like its a big deal when they get one :)