Zucchini Chips

 

Zucchini Chips:

All you do is cut the zucchini in 1/4 inch slices. Dip it in some sort of oil and then in a mix of breadcrumbs, Parmesan cheese, salt and pepper. Place on a foil or parchment lined cookie sheet and bake for 25 minutes at 400°. On one sheet I sprinkled Colby jack cheese on top... but I can't tell you which one was my favorite. They were both good!!! now you know what to do with all that zucchini that you keep pulling out of the garden;)

Preserving Pumpkins...

This year we decided that it would be wonderful if we bought pumpkins that we could use for cooking and baking instead of just carving and throwing them away a few days later... so after a blog that I follow posted instructions for how to preserve pumpkin (and it seemed really easy) I decided that I could do it:) So here are some basic instructions for turning this...

...into this:)

First, you cut the pumpkin in half and remove all of the seeds and guts. You may find that it is a little hard to cut through a pumpkin... you may need to microwave it for 4-5 minutes to make it easier to cut:) Second, you cut it into wedges and place the skin side up in a casserole dish with 1 1/2 cups of water. Bake at 350 until you can easily poke the pumpkin with a fork... 2 hours or less- depending on how big your wedges are:)

After the pumpkin is cooked, the skin can easily be removed- just scrape off with a spoon:) This is what you will have left of the pumpkin...

Take the cooked pumpkin and run it through a food processor, blender or mash by hand... I used a processor to get the smoothest of pulp:) Because pumpkin tends to separate (water from pulp) after it has been mashed, I used a clean towel to strain it... you can also squeeze it out some of the water to make it go a little quicker:)

Put the strained pumpkin into freezer bags... I put 2 cups of pumpkin in each bag- perfect for pies and bread:)

We are really looking forward to using up this pumpkin:)

Sweet Potato Casserole

I am not sure where I got this recipe but it is another one that I make every Thanksgiving...

Sweet Potato Casserole
3 cups mashed sweet potatoes
1 cup sugar
2 eggs, beaten
1/3 cup butter
1/3 cup milk
1 T. vanilla

Mix. Put in dish.

1/4 cup butter
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup flour
1/3 cup pecans, chopped

Put on top of sweet potato mixture and bake at 350 degrees for 20-30 minutes.

Shrimp Stuffed Baked Potatoes

This is one of the wonderful recipes from the kitchen of Paula Deen... so you know it is going to be good- maybe not good for you but good:)

Shrimp Stuffed Baked Potatoes
6 large Idaho potatoes
Vegetable oil, for coating potatoes
8 T. butter
2 cups grated cheddar cheese, plus more for sprinkling
2 cups grated Monterrey Jack
2 cups sour cream
Salt and pepper
1 pound shrimp, peeled and sauteed
Paprika

-Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
-Begin by washing potatoes, drying them, and gently pricking them with a fork on the sides. Coat each potato with vegetable oil, place on foil covered pan, and bake for approximately 1 hour.
-Place the butter in a large bowl. Remove the potatoes from the oven and slice each potato in half. Gently scoop out the potato and place in the bowl. Using a mixer on high, mix the potatoes, butter, sour cream, salt, and pepper. Fold the shrimp and both cheeses into the mixture. Gently stuff the mixture back into the potato shells, making sure not to break them. Pile the mixture as high as you can on top of the potato shells. Sprinkle each potato with cheese and paprika for color. Bake in the oven for approximately 20 to 30 minutes until browned on top.