Husband's Delight

Cook, Cook, Cook and more Cooking... That is what I have been doing this week.  Steve is taking Meandering Joy from St. Petersburg, to St. Simons Island next week.  He has a crew of three other men.  I am not going along on this trip in person, but I am sending food for the crew.  Why? 

Steve can do many things very well---cooking is not one of those things.  While he is content to eat a frozen pizza or chips and salsa for every meal of the day with some Pop Tarts thrown in for good measure, I was not about to let his crew starve to death while they are with him.  I am sure they will stop for dinners, but it is not feasible to stop for breakfast, lunch, and dinner if they want to cover 600 miles in ten days.  

One of the family favorites is Husband's Delight.  It is an old recipe I got out of the First Baptist Lawrenceville Cookbook many many years ago.  

I I like to assemble all my ingredients neatly now when I cook.  I have become a little bit more organized .  

Mixing the green onions and sour cream

After stirring the browned ground beef and the spaghetti sauce, begin layering 1/2 the noodles, topped with 1/2 the ground beef topped with 1/2 the sour cream mixture.  Repeat the process once more and then load on the cheddar cheese.  Bake at 350 for 30 minutes, throw together a salad during that time and dinner is ready.  This is a great recipe to freeze.  I doubled the recipe and made several--two for the boat trip and one for Lainey--this may be her favorite recipe except of course for any of my cheesecakes.

Ingredients

·         8 oz pkg cream cheese

·         3 green onions, chopped

·         2 TBS butter

·         1- 8oz pkg egg noodles

·         1 tsp salt

·         1 tsp Worcestershire sauce

·         2 cup sour cream

·         1 1/2 lbs ground beef

·         2 -8oz tomato sauce (I substitute 16 oz spaghetti sauce for this)

·         1 tsp sugar

·         Dash pepper

·         1/2 cup shredded cheddar

 Directions

In bowl mix softened cream cheese, sour cream and green onions.  Brown the ground beef, drain, add tomato sauce, sugar, salt, pepper and Worcestershire sauce OR (16 oz of your favorite spaghetti sauce).    Cook noodles as directed on package.  In 2 qt casserole, alternate layers of 1/2 noodles, 1/2 beef, 1/2 sour cream mixture and repeat.  Top with shredded cheese.  Bake at 350 degrees until warm throughout and browned.

 Printable recipe here.

Let me know if you try out the recipe.  I would like to know if you like it as much as my family.  

Joy

Almond Joy Cheesecake

Katy requested an Almond Joy Cheesecake for her birthday.  She sent me to Creations by Kara for the recipe.  Click on Creations by Kara to see her directions and photos.  I think mine turned out almost as good as hers.  I changed the cooking times and I used slivered almonds instead of sliced. 

Almond Joy Cheesecake

Ingredients

Crust
1 1/2 cups finely crushed Oreo crumbs
1/2 cup sweetened flaked coconut
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup melted butter

Filling
4 8oz pkgs cream cheese, softened to room temperature
1 1/2 cups sugar
4 eggs
1 tsp almond extract
1/2 tsp coconut extract
1/2 tsp vanilla
pinch of salt
1/2 cup sweetened flaked coconut, toasted and cooled
1/2 cup sliced almonds, toasted and cooled ( I used slivered almonds)

Topping
6 Tbsp cream
1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1/2 tsp vanilla
1/4 cup sweetened flaked coconut, toasted and cooled
1/4 cup sliced almonds, toasted and cooled ( I used slivered almonds)

Directions

For crust Preheat oven to 350°. Combine Oreo crumbs, coconut, sugar, and butter. Press the crumb mixture into the bottom and about an inch up the sides of a springform pan. Bake for about 10 minutes. I used a 10 inch spring form pan. Cool for 10 minutes. 
Filling: Beat cream cheese till smooth. Add sugar and beat till creamy. Lightly beat in the eggs, extracts, and salt till combined. Fold in the coconut and almonds. Pour mixture on top of the crust. Turn oven down to 325° and bake for about 75 more minutes or until the outer 2 1/2" is set. Remove from oven and cool completely on a cooling rack. ( I changed these times--see Note below)

Topping: Heat cream in a glass bowl in the microwave until hot but not boiling. Add chocolate chips and vanilla. Let sit for about a minute, then stir till smooth. Pour over the top of the cheesecake, letting some drip down the sides. Sprinkle toasted coconut in the middle and toasted almonds around the edges. Chill.

Note:  I did not follow the directions for baking times.  Every time a bake a cheesecake, it cracks.  I followed some directions I found on the internet to prevent cracking--it worked.  I did this instead:  Bake half an hour at 300° F / 150° C. Then, turn off the oven, open the oven door, and rest for 30 minutes. Then, close the oven and bake 30 to 40 minutes more at 300° F / 150° C.

Printable Recipe

Let me know if you try out this recipe.  Thanks to Kara for sharing.  It is delicious!!!

Joy