recipes – Desires of my Heart Blog

Recipe Fave | Granny’s Cornbread & Okra

marsha0727 — Wed, 25 Apr 2018 13:36:41 +0000

So, I should start by saying that I am no cook! That’s probably why I was so excited that my attempt to make my Granny’s cornbread and okra actually turned out. You see…I love my Granny’s southern cooking. But, she uses no recipes…she just adds what she thinks she needs, and it always turns out just perfectly. Mine…not so much. Thankfully, after many failed attempts, I finally succeeded!!

So, here’s what I did:

Cornbread

Preheat oven to 400*. If using a cast iron skillet (which I recommend), add enough oil to lightly coat the entire bottom of the pan (approx. 2-3 tbsp). Then put the skillet in the oven for 5-10 minutes to get it nice and hot.
While your skillet is heating in the oven, make the batter. I used my “eye” to put what I watched my Granny do last weekend, and then I mixed it together well. It should be easy to pour (think pancake batter). If needed, add a bit more milk. But it’s approximately this measurement: 1 1/2 cups cornmeal
- 1/2 cup flour
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 1 egg, beaten
- 1 1/4 cup milk
After your mixture is ready and your skillet is hot, carefully take the skillet out of the oven. Then, pour your batter into the hot skillet (it should sizzle on the bottom…that’s what makes it such a pretty golden color when you flip it over and serve later). Return it to the oven for approximately 20 minutes.
After the cornbread has baked for the 20 minutes, it should be ready, but you can check it by inserting a toothpick in the center to make sure it comes out clean. Your bread should be a nice golden color, and the edges should be browning.
Remove the skillet (carefully…it’s hot) from the oven and flip it out (upside-down) onto a serving platter. I usually let mine rest for 10-15 minutes while I finish other things, and then cut it to serve.

Okra

For this recipe, my Granny had canned okra from last season that she gave to me. For that, I rinsed the canned okra well and laid it out to dry a bit before battering. You can also use fresh okra (just wash and cut into the small pieces). I liked the canned okra best, because I hate having to deal with the slimy-ness of fresh okra, and it tasted exactly the same! But whatever you have seasonally works!

Mix 2 cups cornmeal with 1/2 cup of flour in a large bowl. (If you are using fresh okra, you’ll also want to add some salt. You don’t need it for the canned okra.) Pour your okra into the bowl and coat well with the cornmeal/flour mixture. I use a large slotted spoon to scoop the okra out while shaking off the extra cornmeal mixture off of the okra before putting it on your pan.

For cooking…two options (skillet/stovetop or baked/oven):

My Granny prefers baking her okra. If you also like the oven, here’s what you need to do with your coated okra…

Preheat the oven to 425*.
Pour approximately 4 tbsp of oil onto a large baking sheet and place in the preheated oven for just a few minutes to warm up the oil. Be careful not to let it start to smoke.
Carefully remove the hot baking sheet from the oven. Use the slotted spoon to scoop the okra out of your bowl and shake off the excess cornmeal mixture. Then put the coated okra evenly on the baking sheet. Return it to the oven and bake for approximately 20 minutes. I typically stop about halfway and “shake” the okra around to kind of turn it mid-way. But it isn’t absolutely necessary. Just watch it, so you don’t end up burning your okra (yeah…I’ve done that before). Remove and enjoy!

My late grandma always preferred cooking her okra in her cast iron skillet. If you also like this option, here’s what you need to do with your coated okra…

Heat about 1 1/4 cup of oil in your cast iron skillet.
Depending on the amount of okra you are cooking, you may have to cook in batches. Use the slotted spoon to scoop the okra out of your bowl and shake off the excess cornmeal mixture.
Allow your okra to fry on one side until it’s browned and then begin to turn/move it in the skillet so it doesn’t burn too quickly. Be careful…you can go from beautiful to black very quickly if you aren’t careful.
Carefully remove the okra and let it drain in a bowl with paper towels on the bottom, to remove excess oil. Always remember to add more oil to the pan as needed when you get ready to cook your next batch(es). And, as always, ENJOY!
We love to eat the leftover okra straight from the refrigerator…no need for heating

Recipe Faves | Easy “School” Breakfast Muffins & Casserole

marsha0727 — Tue, 09 Aug 2016 17:29:00 +0000

Tomorrow starts our “school year” routine, whether I’m ready or not! So, I decided that today was the perfect day to cook up two of our favorite easy school morning breakfast recipes — though, now I’m thinking I probably set the bar a little too high for myself for the rest of the school year! {Surely they won’t think they will have these every day, right??} Either way, there are few things that I’ve tried that are any easier to prepare that will actually keep the kids full until their lunch time! So, I’m going to share these two favorite recipes with you! {Keep scrolling for recipes}

Sausage Muffins

Ingredients: 1lb sausage (cooked), 1c bisquick, 1c shredded cheddar cheese, 4 eggs (beaten)

Directions: Mix all 4 ingredients…place them in a muffin pan (I love to use my washable cupcake liners, because these don’t stick at all, and it keeps my pan from needing all of that scrubbing later!). Bake at 350* for approx. 25-30 minutes, until fluffy and golden brown. These are like little “sausage balls” without having to get your hands all messy!! We love these! I let them cool and then throw them in a ziplock bag or container, and store in the fridge until we are ready to reheat them in the microwave for a few seconds at breakfast. (Even the kids can do that!)

Breakfast Casserole

Ingredients: 1lb sausage (cooked), 1-2c shredded cheddar cheese, 6 eggs (beaten), 1 pkg canned biscuits, 1/4c milk

Directions: Spray bottom of casserole dish with non-stick spray. Cut canned biscuit dough into 1/4 pieces and place in the bottom of the dish. Sprinkle cooked sausage over biscuit layer. Cover sausage/biscuit layer with shredded cheese. In a separate bowl mix milk, eggs, and salt/pepper (if desired), then pour egg mixture over the other layers. Bake at 350* for approx. 25-30 minutes, until fluffy and golden brown. If you don’t get the eggs mixed well enough, you may see the “white” of the egg in your casserole (as mine shows above), but don’t worry…it’s still SUPER delicious! Even the kids love this! Store in fridge and heat individual pieces as wanted for breakfast (or whenever). **I sometimes add green chilis to the egg mixture sometimes for a little extra flavor…the kids don’t care for that, so I usually save half “plain” for them.**

Recipe Fave | Easy Fruit Salad

marsha0727 — Sun, 24 Jul 2016 11:44:00 +0000

I wanted to guilt-free, dessert-worthy fruit salad for our playdate yesterday. We were going to have 8 kids from age 2 to 9, and 2 moms…I needed a quick and easy, and also easy on the grocery budget, side to go with our lunch. I looked through my old faithful book of recipes that I’ve added to over the last 10-12 years, and I found the yummy fruit salad recipe a sweet lady from my old church had shared with me, and decided to give it a try!

It takes minimal time, inexpensive ingredients, goes far, and tastes amazing! It was totally a hit with everyone today, and I didn’t mind giving out seconds, since it was a good-for-you treat. So, in case you would like to change it up a bit and try a new recipe for easy fruit salad, here it is:

Ingredients:
1 can (20oz) pineapple chunks
1/2 cup sugar
2 tbsp cornstarch
1/3 cup orange juice
1 tbsp lemon juice
1 can (11 oz) mandarin oranges (drained)
3-4 chopped, unpeeled apples
2-3 sliced bananas
(optional, sliced strawberries)

Directions:
Drain pineapple reserving 3/4 cup of juice. In a saucepan combine sugar and cornstarch. Add pineapple juice, orange juice, and lemon juice. Cook and stir over medium heat until thickened and bubbly; cook and stir 1 minute longer. Remove from heat and set aside. In a large bowl, combine pineapple chunks, (drained) mandarin oranges, (chopped) apples, & (sliced) bananas. Pour warm sauce over the fruit; stir gently to coat. Cover and refrigerate.

**I added sliced strawberries as an optional, but tasty ingredient…it gave it a great flavor addition, as well as more color!**

ENJOY!!!

Easy Sausage Muffins

marsha0727 — Sat, 12 Sep 2015 23:41:00 +0000

So, with the kids now in school outside of the home, I’ve been looking for easy but healthy (and filling) breakfasts. I have pretty much overused the Bubble Up Breakfast Bake to the point that no one really wants it anymore….and other casserole style breakfasts have not been a hit with the entire family. But, I made an accidental discovery tonight, that my entire family loves!!

I had browned some fresh sausage in preparation of making my Granny’s Mini Sausage Biscuits for the family to enjoy this week….but then I realized I was missig a necessary ingredient–self-rising flour! And, though I’m sure I could have goggled it and found a substitute, I chose not to go through all of the labor for biscuits with the fear that it may all be in vain. So, what’s a mom to do?! I remembered a Chicken Pot Pie Muffin recipe that I had found online, and thought, hmmm, instead of chicken/veggies/cheese, why not just sausage and cheese?! The base was eggs, milk, and bisquick, so it sounded like a great breakfast muffin to me!! So, I did the recipe just as it had directed on the Mini Chiclen Pot Pies, but added cooked sausage and shredded cheddar cheese on the inside layer. And the results were amazing!! Almost like my Granny’s sausage balls, but without all the work! My kids immediately asked where I got the recipe, and I told them that I kind of made it up. Immediately, Katie said, “You better write that down!!” So, here it is:

Easy Sausage Muffins

1. Cook 1lb sausage and drain grease. Pre-heat oven to 375*.

2. Mix 1/2 cup Bisquick, 1/2 cup Milk, and 2 eggs in a small bowl.

3. Spray muffin pan with non-stick spray, or better yet, use these awesome reusable silicone muffin cups (we also use these for separating items in our kids lunch box containers!)

4. Add approx. 1 tbsp of Bisquick mixture to the bottom of each muffin cup.

5. Then add good spoonful of sausage to the muffin cup. And sprinkle geese on top of the sausage. This is your filling, so add whatever you’d like. We just stuck with sausage and cheese.

6. Top each muffin cup with approx. 1 tbsp more of the Bisquick mixture.

7. Bake in oven for 25-30 minutes. Then enjoy!!

I failed to take a picture of the beginning process, because frankly, I wasn’t sure it would even turn out! But here is why I suggest the silicone muffin/cupcake liners:

They are soooo much easier…the muffins came right out nice and clean. A quick sink wash, and they’ll be as good as new!

And here’s our finished Easy Sausage Muffins…pretty sure they aren’t going to last past breakfast tomorrow morning (if we are lucky enough for that!)

They are a bit small, but they are very filling! So, don’t let the size fool you!! These would probably also be awesome with a little pepper in it for kick, yummm!!

Maybe this is a well-known recipe for you all, but it’s a new, Now-I-Know-Secret for me! So, I thought I would share just in case you were like me…

Here’s the silicone liners I bought from Amazon Prime (only $9.99!!).