Pumpkin Cobbler

How To Make Pumpkin Cobbler

At the beginning of November, I found myself debating what to do with 2 large pumpkins. I got to looking at my recipe for fresh peach cobbler and I altered it slightly for freshly cooked pumpkin. When I got ready to use the second pumpkin, I discovered it had started to rot, so I threw it away. The problem is that after having two pumpkin cobblers from the first pumpkin, I just had to have some more, so I came up with this recipe that uses standard canned pumpkin. I hope you like it as well as my family did.

I used I Can't Believe It's Not Butter (ICBINB) and Splenda to make the recipe more diabetic-friendly. You can replace these with real butter or margarine and sugar if you like. Just remember that ICBNB has a higher water content to keep the fat down, so you should adjust your recipe accordingly.

Ingredients:
1 15 oz. can Pumpkin
1 1/2 sticks (6 oz.)I Can't Believe It's Not Butter
2 tsp cinnamon
1 to 1 1/2 cups splenda
1 1/2 cups flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 cups milk
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 tsp cinnamon

Procedure:

1. Preheat oven to 350°.
2. In a 2 quart bowl, melt 1/2 stick I Can't Believe It's Not Butter, add 1/2 cup splenda and mix with a whisk.
3. Add the pumpkin and 1 tsp cinnamon and mix well.
4. Taste for sweetness and add more splenda, if desired.
5. Place 1 stick icbinb in a deep 4 quart oven-proof pan (I use a cast-iron dutch oven), and place in the oven to melt the butter.
6. In a 2 quart bowl mix together 1 1/2 cups flour, 1/2 cup splenda, 1/2 tsp cinnamon, 1 1/2 tsp baking powder and 1 1/2 cups milk (mix only to bring together - small lumps are ok).
7. Pull the pan out of the oven.
   
8. Gently pour the batter into the center of the butter in the pan - do not mix.
9. Scoop the pumpkin mixture into the center of the pan - spread it out in the center until it is almost level with the batter in the pan. Again, do not mix. You should have a border of 1 to 2 inches of batter around the filling.
10. Mix together 1/4 cup sugar and 1/2 tsp cinnamon and sprinkle it on the top of the entire cobbler.
11. Place the pan in the middle of the oven and bake for 30 to 40 minutes.
12. At the end of the baking time, brown the top by turning on the broiler on low for 2 to 5 minutes - be careful not to burn the top.
13. Let it cool for 5 minutes and serve with ice cream or milk.
14. Enjoy!

God bless you and yours and have a Great Day!

How to Make Collard Greens - Crabby Style

My Collard Green Recipe

I really love vegetables. One of my all-time favorites is collard greens. These may be considered soul food or southern food, but to me they are just plain good eating. If I make up a mess of collards, they usually don't last over a couple of days.

Every cook has a favorite method for making collard greens. The traditional method is to strip the leaves from the stems and to cook only the leaves in a pot that has 2 or more ham hocks that have cooked for a long time in seasoned water. This recipe usually takes 2 or more hours to cook. In addition, you have to purchase ham hocks, so you can't just grab what is in the 'frig or pantry for the traditional recipe. This version often has hot pepper sauce or dried chili as an added flavor.

My recipe is simple, but delicious, and requires few special ingredients (unless you want to use oriental chili in your greens). The other nice thing is that my recipe takes around an hour and a half.

Ingredients:

1 plastic grocery sack full of collard greens
4 strips of bacon
5 cloves of garlic
1/2 stick butter or margarine
4 Tbsp Canola or Olive oil
Ground oriental chili to taste (optional)
Water to cover greens once they are wilted
Salt to taste

Steps:
1. Wash the greens thoroughly to remove dirt, sand, etc.
2. Seperate the leaves of the greens from the stems.
3. If you are going to use the stems, cut them into 1/4 - 3/8" lengths.
4. Roll several leaves together and cut them into 1/2" strips.
5. Place the sliced greens into one set of bowls, and the stems into another bowl.
6. Slice the bacon across each strip, into 1/2" wide strips.
7. Put a large pan on medium high heat and add the oil and bacon.
8. Once the bacon has given up some of its fat, add the garlic.
9. Cook the garlic until it starts to change color, then start adding the stems to the pot, about 1/3 at a time, waiting for the stems to soften and change color.
10. Once all the stems are in, stir and add the butter.
11. Cover the pan and saute the stems a few more minutes.
12. Uncover the pan and add the leaves, filling the pan almost to the top.
13. Stir the greens regularly until they have wilted and changed color.
14. Add the remaining greens in batches as they wilt in the pan until you have put all of them in.
15. After all of the greens have changed color, add water to cover.
16. Add salt to the greens. The water should be a little salty to season the greens as they finish cooking.
17. Add the oriental chili (optional).
18. Simmer the greens for a while longer, checking for tenderness. When they reach the desired tenderness, turn off the heat.
19. Put some in a bowl, serve with some buttered cornbread and enjoy!

Below you will find a video of this recipe.

God bless you and yours and have a Great Day!

Quesadillas - Quick Easy and Delicious

Quesadillas - Quick and Easy

If you like Mexican cuisine, you have probably had quesadillas. They are traditionally made by melting cheese along with chilis or salsa in betweem two flour tortillas. I have seen these with both crisp and soft tortillas, but by far my favorites are the crisp ones.

Without further ado, here is the recipe for awesome appetizer.

Ingredients:
Flour Tortillas
Grated Cheddar Cheese
Diced, Peeled Green Chilis or Jalapeños
Diced Onion
Butter or Oil to brown the Quesadillas in

Utensils:
Frying Pan
Spatula
Knife
Pizza Cutter (optional)

1. Turn your stove on medium heat


2. Place the pan on the burner


3. Place a pat of butter, margarine or some oil in the pan


4. Once oil is hot, place a flour tortilla in the pan


5. Cover tortilla with onions, cheese and chilis


6. Place a tortilla on top of the filling


7. Cook until the cheese melts, then flip the quesadilla over


8. Brown on second side to desired crispness


9. Flip quesadilla over again if you want the first side more crisp


10. Plate the quesadilla, then slice into quarters or eighths


11. Serve with salsa, sour cream or guacamole


12. Enjoy!

Hope you like the recipe. Have a great day and God Bless you and yours. Check out the video of this wonderful snack.