MRS. HODGE'S KITCHEN

Down South Baked Mac ‘n’ Cheese

My husband calls this the “durty down south macaroni and cheese”, because it taste like the mac ‘n’ cheese only found in the dirty south! I LOVE macaroni and cheese of all kinds- gooey, creamy, baked; You name it, I’ve tried it. I’ve tweaked this particular mac ‘n’ cheese dish over the years and I can say I’m 99% to perfection- Don’t mind me, I am my biggest critic :D 

Recipe: I’ll never tell :)

Baked Lasagna 

Here is a simple, traditional and tasty lasagna recipe! Left overs are even better than the first day served!  If you want to spice it up, I recommend adding spicy italian sausage to the beef, and chopped sauteed white onion (1/2 cup) and green peppers (1/4 cup) to the sauce.

Ingredients

 - 9 lasagna pieces

- 1 lb ground beef

- 2 bottles of traditional spaghetti sauce

- 1 tsp of white sugar

- 1 tbsp of Italian seasoning

- 16 oz whole milk ricotta cheese

- 4 cups of shredded mozzarella cheese

- 1/2 cup of grated parmesan cheese

- 1 egg

- 3 garlic cloves (finely chopped)

- Dash of salt and black pepper 

- Additional parmesan cheese, italian season and bread crumbs (Optional garnish)

Directions 

Cook lasagna pasta according to box instructions (Usually 8-9 minutes in  large boiling pot of  water uncovered).

Brown ground beef in a pan and drain.

Add spaghetti sauce, white sugar, 1/2 tbsp italian seasoning, and dash of salt and pepper to ground beef. Stir, cover and let simmer for 5 minutes.

In a large bowl beat egg, add ricotta cheese, 1/2 teaspoon italian seasoning and dash of salt and pepper, mix. Add chopped garlic, parmesan cheese, 2 cups mozzarella cheese and dash of salt and pepper. Mix well.

In a 14x9 greased baking pan, spread 1/2 cup of sauce on bottom of pan (this should lightly coat the bottom). Place 3 lasagna pieces lengthwise in pan (they may slightly overlap). Dollop half of the cheese mixture on top of noodles and evenly spread. Pour about 3/4-1 cup of sauce on top of the cheese mixture and evenly spread. Repeat this layering process one more time. Top the last layer of sauce with the remaining 2 cups of mozzarella cheese. Sprinkle with bread crumbs, italian seasoning and grated parmesan cheese (Optional).

Cover with foil and bake at 375 degree F for 20 minutes. Remove foil and bake for an additional 10 minutes. Let cool and serve.  

Enjoy!!!

Southern Baked Candied Yams

These are some sweet flavorful candied yams! This was one of my side dishes for Thanksgiving dinner.  

Recipe: http://divascancook.com/2011/11/southern-baked-candied-yams-recipe.html

*Note- The recipe calls for 2 cups of sugar; I cut it down to 1 cup.

*Noe- Added a 1 tbsp of lemon juice to the syrup 1/2 way through cooking (help prevent yams from darkening)

The BEST Red Velvet Cake

I got this recipe from food blog: www.divascancook.com This was my first time making a RV cake from scratch, and it was well worth it! This cake was really that GOOD! It was moist, decadent and pair well with a cup of milk or coffee! 

Recipe:  http://divascancook.com/2009/11/the-best-red-velvet-cake-recipe-easy-homemade-moist-with-southern-flair.html   

*Note- The recipe calls for 4 oz of red food coloring. I only used 1 oz (average bottle size) and the color still came out a rich red.

*Noted- I lined the edges of the cake platter with wax paper. After frosting, gently pull away wax paper to remove excess icing- easy clean up!

Pumpkin Cheesecake Muffins

A few years back, my husbands boss made some of the best pumpkin bread I ever tasted! When I asked her for the recipe, I was surprised to hear it was an out-of-the-box Pillsbury Quick Bread and Muffin Mix! Needless to say, this became one of my staple fall time foods to make. I happen to see a recipe on the side of the box for Pumpkin Cheesecake Muffins, and decided to make these yummy semi-homemade treats on Thanksgiving morning…a gal needed a break from all the cooking (from scratch) I did the previous day ;) The recipe is EASY and REWARDING!

Ingredients

Filling

1 (8 oz) pkg cream cheese, soften

1 egg

2 tbsps sugar

2 tsps grated lemon peel

(I also added 1/2 tsps of good vanilla extract)

Muffins

1 (14 oz) pkg PILLSBURY Pumpkin Quick Bread

3/4 cup milk

2 tbsps vegetable oil

1 egg

3 tbsps butter, melted

1/4 cup chopped pecans (I didn’t add these b/c my son can’t eat nuts)

Directions

1. HEAT oven to 350 degrees F. Spray muffin pan with no stick spray, or butter the cups.

2. BEAT cream cheese in a medium mixing bowl with electric mixer until soft. Add eggs, sugar, lemon peel, vanilla, beat until smooth.

3. EMPTY pumpkin bread mix into a large bowl. Remove 3/4 cup dry mmix and set aside in small bowl to make topping. Add milk, oil and egg to remaining bread mix in large bowl. Stir 50 strokes or until blended.

4. FILL each muffin cup with about 1/4 cup batter. Make indentation in batter with a small spoon coated with non-stick spray. Put one heaping tbsps cream cheese mixture in center of each muffin.

5. ADD melted butter to reserved dry mix. Stir with fork until crumbly. Add pecans. Crumble about 1 tbsps over each muffin.

6. BAKE for 20 minutes. Cool for 10 minutes in pan. Remove muffins from pan. Place on baking rack to finish cooling. 

*Note- There was enough batter to make 8 average size muffins.

Down Home Chili with Creamed-Corn Bread

This is that kind of chili that you and the family should eat on Saturday evening, while watching a movie, in the bed! I’m positive it will put you to sleep! And of course, you will have sweet dreams :) The cornbread, made with creamed-corn and a touch of vanilla , is one of my favorite ways to prepare corn bread. Thank goodness the pot yields a lot-so you will have left overs.  

Blueberry Lemon-Ricotta Pancakes

I have a weakness, a real fetish for PANCAKES. As if I haven’t posted enough pictures of pancakes, check these out! These cakes were so fluffy, moist with crispy buttery edges, and I can’t forget those plump juicy blueberries. Yumm!!!
 

Brunch at the Hodge’s

Baked ziti, tossed italian salad, yeast rolls, fruit-ka-bobs and lemon pound cake. 

Brunch at the Hodge’s

Lemon ricotta pancakes, herb goat cheese pasta, turkey sausage w/onions & green peppers, spinach and swiss cheese scrambled eggs, citrus fruit platter and mimosa’s.

I love throwing brunches for visiting family and friends! I’m a breakfast lover, more so than the average person, so I lean towards planning events during the afternoon to get the best of both worlds, breakfast + lunch, which to me means sweet + savoy options! Not only do you get the party started early enough to have the rest of the evening to thyself, but it’s an appropriate time to serve light alcoholic beverages, such as mimosas, bellini’s, sangria’s or spritzers. 

Fall Season Sunday Dinner

BBQ country pork ribs (made in crock-pot), brown stew chicken, stuffing, garlic string beans, glazed carrots, corn bread and banana bread.

The fall season is always an opportunity to celebrate FOOD! I cook big Sunday dinners and always make dessert to cap the night off. Needless to say, I’m a few pounds heavier by Winter! But it’s all so worth cooking and eating with the family, a home cooked meal prepared with love. 

FUN-FETTI CAKE…just for fun!

For my toddler 2nd year-old-birthday, rather than getting all “fancy”, I decided to bake one of MY childhood favorites, a FUN-FETTI CAKE- straight out of the box! Yes, I admit, I baked this cake only to eat some of the batter out of the bowl :)

Browned Butter Lemon Chicken with Angel Hair Pasta

Nothing gets better than the marriage of butter and lemon!  Thyme, which has a natural lemon-e flavor, compliments lemon dishes. It is a perfect herb to use in this dish. Try out this simple yet sumptuous dish any day of the week. 

Ingredients

Thinly sliced chicken breast (5 pieces)

Flour (1 cup)

Thyme (3 sprigs)

Lemon juice (1/2 a lemon)

Parmesan Cheese (1 tablespoon)

Butter (3 tablespoons)

Angel Hair Pasta ( 1/2 pack of whole grain)

Olive Oil (1 teaspoon) 

Salt 

Pepper

Instructions

Fill large pot with water and bring to boil- add salt (1 1/2 teaspoons) and oil (1 tablespoon- oil will keep noodles from sticking) Cook for 7-9 minutes and drain water.

Season chicken breast with salt and pepper and coat with olive oil. Season flour with salt and pepper. Lightly drench chicken breast in flour. Melt butter in medium frying pan until brown (medium high). Lightly brown chicken in butter and remove from pan. Add noodles to the frying pan (there should still be browned butter). Make sure to scrap the “yum-yums” off the bottom of the pan and toss. Pour noodles in a bowl, add parmesan cheese and toss. Return chicken pieces back to the pot. Add water (1/2 cup), thyme sprigs and squeeze lemon juice over the chicken and salt and pepper to taste. Cover pot (turn on medium low heat) for 3-5 minutes, spoon liquid over chicken. Serve over noodles.