Easy Sticky Breakfast Buns

Orange Sticky Buns and Cinnamon Sticky Buns

I found this picture on Pinterest, which linked to this recipe.  You do need to see the pictures, since I didn't use a Bundt pan.
And her pictures are awesome!  =)

Cinnamon Sticky Buns

• 2 cans of layered biscuits 
• ½ c. pancake syrup
• 3 Tbs. butter, melted
• ½ c. brown sugar, packed
• ½ tsp. cinnamon

In a measuring cup with line increments on the side, microwave and melt the butter.
Slowly pour in the pancake syrup.  It will not mix with the butter (the butter will float on top) and you will see when the syrup gets to ½ cup.  (saves another bowl to wash)
Mix butter and syrup together, and re-microwave for 30 or more seconds to make the syrup thinner.
In another measuring cup with lines (allow room for stirring), measure out the brown sugar, add the cinnamon, and mix.

Pour half the syrup mixture into the bottom of your cake pan or dish (the original recipe uses a Bundt pan, which is awesome!) then sprinkle in half the cinnamon-sugar mixture.
Place the biscuits in the dish so they are kind of leaning against the next one.  I dipped one side of the biscuit into the syrup that is in the bottom of the dish before placing it against the previous biscuit so there would be some syrup between.
Pour on the rest of the syrup and butter, then sprinkle on the rest of the cinnamon-sugar mixture.  This will give a little crunch.  =)
Bake at 375° for 20 minutes if you use a Bundt pan.*  (Grands biscuits will take longer)
Turn out on plate so that the sticky is now on top.

Orange Sticky Buns

• 2 cans of layered biscuits
• ½ c. (1 stick) butter, melted
• 1 c. sugar
• 2 oz. orange juice

Melt butter in microwave.
Mix in sugar then microwave one more minute, or until sugar is dissolved.
Add in orange juice and stir.

Place the biscuits in the dish so they are kind of leaning against the next one.  I dipped the whole biscuit into the mixture that is in the bottom of the dish before placing it against the previous biscuit.
The butter will make the biscuits slippery, so you'll need to adjust after you get enough in there to make them stand on end.  Actually, they just lean.  =)
This recipe will have more liquid than the cinnamon one, but in the end, it all ends up being about the same stickiness as the cinnamon buns.
Bake at 375° for 20 minutes if you use a Bundt pan.*  (Grands will take longer)
Turn out on plate so that the sticky is now on top.

All it needs is a fork.  =)

For my dd's 17th birthday, she had a sleepover and wanted a special breakfast, and this is what she wanted.  So I made half a recipe of each.
I used 7-inch round Corelle baking dishes.  Since there is no hole in the middle as there is in a Bundt pan, I worried about the liquid collecting there, and hoped the biscuits would fill the space when baked, making the liquid disperse to all the biscuits evenly.  They did!  =)

*Since there was no space for heat to circulate in the middle, and maybe since I was using thick Corelle instead of the Bundt pan, I think that is why my cook time took about 24-25 minutes.
They looked prettier before I turned them out, but they tasted sooooo delicious!
One mom and 5 teenagers ate all but 3 sticky buns.  =)

Cheesy Broccoli Chowder

Shown here before cheese is added

One word:  Yummay!
I came across the original recipe on Pinterest, which linked to this site, and of course ended up tweaking it according to what I had on hand.  

And of course, being the broccoli lover I am, adding more broccoli. 🤩

My tweak (and I found I need to at least double this):

• 2 Tbs. butter, melted in pot
• 1/2 c. chopped onion
• 1 c. thinly sliced carrots (I only had 6 baby carrots!)
• 3 c. water (keep lid on so it won't boil out)
• 2 tsp. chicken bouillon (I use Knorr powdered bouillon)
• 1 tsp. garlic powder
• 2 medium potatoes, peeled and diced small
• 3 c. chopped broccoli (12 oz. frozen bag)
• 1 Tbs. self-rising flour
• 1/2 c. water
• 2/3 c. milk
• salt to taste
• cheese - prob. 1-2 cups?  Each person just added in what they wanted.

Lay bag of frozen broccoli out to thaw a little.
Boil 3 c. water.
In main pot: melt butter, saute onions and carrots.  (I'll use celery next time, too.)
Add to pot:  the boiling water, bouillon, garlic powder, and potatoes.
Bring to a boil; keep covered.
Let boil for about 5 minutes or more before adding broccoli, then turn down to medium-high.  (keep covered)
When vegetables are tender, mix 1/2 c. water and 1 Tbs. flour with whisk.  Add to pot.  Turn down to medium and let thicken for a few minutes.  (Repeat flour and water if necessary)
Add milk.  Serve when hot.  Each of us added whatever amount of cheese we liked.
If you want to add it in ahead of time, start with about 1 cup and adjust to taste.
Yummay!  
(There were no leftovers which is the saddest thing of all.)



Notes to self:
When making a triple recipe:
-get water boiling first
-takes about 10 minutes to come to a boil again after adding the partially frozen broccoli
-takes about 15 more minutes to get tender and blended.

Easy Peasy Vegetable Soup - 45 minutes

This pic is from my original vegetable soup recipe and has beef in it.  =)

If you aren't picky about using only fresh vegetables, and don't mind using canned vegetables, then this is something you can make in about 45 minutes.
I wanted vegetable soup the other day, but didn't have any beef, and I didn't have any potatoes, and I didn't have any carrots!  (my favorite)
So I looked up my original vegetable soup recipe, and I improvised!  =)
I looked through my cabinet and threw some things in, then decided I should write it here so next time I'd be able to remember what I did.

I used the same spices:

• 2 T. sugar
• 1 T. garlic salt
• 1 T. basil
• 1 T. Italian seasoning
• 1 T. parsley
• 1 tsp. pepper
• the original calls for 4 beef bouillon cubes, but I used 1 Tbs. of Knorr powdered beef bouillon.

And added

• twelve 14-15 oz. cans of undrained vegetables (or the equivalent) 
• one 28 oz. can of tomato soup, (I prefer petite diced tomatoes but didn't have any)
• 2 medium-large onions, diced.

No need to add any water unless you want it.  Cook on medium-low for about 30 minutes.
To speed up cooking time, go ahead and get the vegetables heating in the pot, then chop the onions and microwave them for about 5 minutes before adding to the pot.
I used 2 cans of pintos (using three next time), 2 cans of lima beans (next time I'm just using one!), 2 cans of peas, 2 cans of corn, 2 cans of carrots (using 3 next time), and 2 cans of green beans (leaving these out next time).  There are potatoes that come in a can, so you could also use those if you have them.
►If you want to add fresh potatoes, you may need to add cooking time.
This will fill up a 1½ gallon soup pot, so if you have a smaller pot, or a smaller family, just half the recipe.

Cubed Steak and Gravy

This recipe has been moved.
You can find it here!  =)

Hushpuppies

These are so yummy!

• 1 c. self-rising yellow cornmeal mix (I use Tenda Bake or Martha White)
• 1/2 c. sifted self-rising flour
• 1 egg, beaten
• 3/4-1 c. milk (start with less)
• 2 Tbs. bacon grease*
• 1/2 c. finely chopped onion
• 1/4 c. sugar
• 1½ quarts or more of cooking oil

*You may not have bacon grease on hand, and a lot of recipes don't use it.  After cooking bacon, when the grease cools I sometimes pour it into a jar for making gravy any time we want.  This way, the next time I cook bacon, I don't have to wait until the bacon is done to start the gravy.

►Mix together flour and cornmeal.  Beat egg and add in the rest of the ingredients.

►Heat about 2 inches of oil on medium-high, and drop in by spoonfuls.  The batter is a little thick, so I use another spoon to scrape it off into the oil.  Turn until medium golden-brown on all sides.  It takes me about 6-8 minutes for the size hushpuppies I make.

►Lift hushpuppies from oil with a slotted spoon, and place on paper towels.
The mix ends up being about 2 cups, and makes about 2 dozen golfball-sized hushpuppies.  I prefer them smaller, but my family likes them large, and I don't have to tend to as many that way, either.  =)

--Maybe you already know this, but you can save your cooking oil in a large jar.  Just pour cooled oil through a strainer and funnel back into the jar.
This may seem odd, but I used to have a Fry Daddy (plugs in, has a lid for storage).  I could deep fry things and save the oil for later use.  I think it got lost when we moved 7 years ago.

Cinnamon Biscuits

Rebekah made these for breakfast this morning.  Oh, so good!

Biscuits:

• 2 c. self-rising flour
• ¼ c. butter
• about 1 c. buttermilk (we used whole milk)
• 1 Tbs. cinnamon
• ½ c. brown sugar

Put flour and butter in mixing bowl and cut in the butter.  Add milk and stir.  On floured surface, knead until smooth, adding in a sprinkle of flour as needed to keep it from being too sticky.
Flatten out the dough and sprinkle on the sugar and cinnamon.  Fold over and knead together just a little.  Do this several times.  You can cut the biscuits w/ a cutter, or pinch them off.  My daughter just pinched them off.  Place on ungreased cookie sheet and bake at 450º for about 10 minutes or so.


Glaze:

• 2 c. confectionery sugar
• 1 tsp. vanilla flavoring
• ¼ c. butter (Rebekah always leaves this out)
• milk

If using butter, you'll need to melt first.  If not, just put sugar and vanilla in a small mixing bowl and add in milk a little at a time.  Rebekah said she doesn't know exactly how much she uses; she does not like to measure.  =)  So next time, I'll watch her and estimate.  It is a small amount, so just add a little at a time until you get it the consistency you want.  A couple of Tablespoons?  I really don't know.
But it is yummy!

Candied Sweet Potatoes

Fast and delicious!

• two 15-oz cans of sweet potatoes
• 1 c. brown sugar
• 2 Tbs. self-rising flour

Pour the liquid into a 4 quart microwavable dish.  Add sugar and flour and whisk thoroughly.
Add in sweet potatoes and mix it up.
Heat 5 minutes in the microwave, then stir gently.  Heat 5 more minutes.  Mixture will thicken.
Optional:  Spread mini marshmallows over the top between heatings.

~beth~

Ginger Cookies

These have no sugar, and use wheat flour.  And they are yummy! 
My niece found this recipe. 

• ½ c. softened butter
• 1 c. honey
• 2 eggs, beaten
• ¼ c. molasses
• 2 tsp. vinegar
• 3¾ c. wheat flour
• 2 tsp. baking soda
• 3 tsp. ground ginger
• 2 tsp. cinnamon 
• 1 tsp. cloves
• 3 tsp. pumpkin pie spice (optional - was not in the original recipe)

Cream butter and honey together.  Stir in beaten eggs, molasses, and vinegar.  Sift and add dry ingredients.  Mixture will be very stiff.
Drop by small spoonfuls onto greased cookie sheets.  (about silver dollar size)  Flatten by dipping a glass into water and pressing cookie.
Bake at 350° for about 8-10 minutes in preheated oven.  Makes about 6 dozen small cookies.
Optional - sprinkle sugar on top while hot out of the oven. 

Dot Chicken - marinade

This marinated chicken was named Dot Chicken by my niece when she was about 4 years old.  =)
You can see why!
"Aunt Marty made Dot Chicken!"  =D

"Dot Chicken"

It's not my recipe, but a recipe on the package of McCormick's Gill Mates Marinades.
This one is the Zesty Herb Marinade.
There's also Montreal Steak, (which we have used on chicken!); Mesquite, which is spicy, so we like to eat it in a biscuit after we slice it; Tomato, Garlic, & Basil, and several other kinds. 
I use the envelopes and mix whatever it calls for.  Typically water, cooking oil, and white vinegar.

I usually put in a little more water and oil than it calls for, since I'm doing 3 lbs. instead of the 2 it calls for.  I want enough liquid in the bottom of the dish so that it won't get dry, though it usually has plenty enough to spoon back over the chicken when serving.

If making more chicken, I put it into two 9x13 dishes with the thicker pieces all in one pan so I can leave them in the oven a little longer.
Leftovers are nice!  =)



I just use frozen chicken breasts, and spoon the marinade right on it.  I don't bother with letting it marinate, but it's still great!
If you want it to coat and soak into the chicken more, you can cut it into strips.  Sometimes I'll do this after it has been in the oven a bit, and has thawed a little.



I bake it on 400° for about an hour, then turn off the oven for about 30 more minutes.  As the chicken cools, the juices will soak back into it a little.  This also prevents over cooking, resulting in dry chicken with no marinade left in the dish.
I have made this quite a few times over the years, so I can usually prep it and get it into the oven in around 5 minutes or so.  Gives me plenty of time to make other dishes.  =)