Green Chile Beef Tacos

I made this for Sunday lunch, except used pork roast. It was awesome and so tender!

5 pounds boneless beef chuck roast
1 (1 ounce) packet taco seasoning mix
1 (16 ounce) jar green salsa
1 Can Rotel tomatoes w/ lime and cilantro
2 cups beef broth, or more if needed

1. Lay the chuck roast into the bottom of a slow cooker with a tight-fitting lid. Sprinkle the taco seasoning mix over the beef. Pour the green salsa over the beef, followed by the beef broth.
2. Cook on Low for 4 hours. Add more beef broth if needed. Remove the beef from the slow cooker and shred with two forks. Return the shredded beef to the slow cooker; mix with the liquid. Serve hot.

Oatmeal Carmelita Bars

Yield: 24 bars
Prep Time: 20 minutes | Bake Time: 25 minutes
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
¼ teaspoon salt
1 cup butter, at room temperature
1½ cups light brown sugar
2 cups quick-cooking oats
14 ounces caramel candies, unwrapped
½ cup evaporated milk
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1 cup chopped pecans
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Butter a 9×13-inch baking dish; set aside.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda and salt; set aside.
3. Using an electric mixer, cream together the butter and brown sugar on medium speed until combined and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Reduce the speed to low and slowly add the flour mixture until fully incorporated. Add the oats and mix on low briefly to just combine.
4. Transfer approximately half of the dough mixture to the baking dish. Spread and press the dough into the baking dish until you have an even layer with no cracks or crumbles. Bake for 10 minutes, then remove from oven.
5. While the dough is baking, combine the evaporated milk and caramels in a small saucepan over medium-low heat. Stir the mixture constantly until all the caramels are melted and you have a thick sauce. Allow to cool until cookie base comes out of the oven.
6. Once out of the oven, sprinkle the cookie base evenly with chocolate chips and pecans, and then carefully pour the caramel sauce over the cookie base, nuts, and chocolate. Use an offset spatula to spread the caramel sauce into an even layer.
7. Sprinkle the remaining cookie dough over the top of the caramel-chocolate-nut mixture a handful at a time, making sure to get an even coating over the whole dish.
8. Return the dish to the oven, baking until the topping is lightly browned, about 15 minutes.
9. Once out of the oven, cool the dish to room temperature and then refrigerate at least 2 hours or overnight. Cut into 2-inch squares and serve. Store leftovers in an airtight container at room temperature or in the refrigerator.

Black Velvet Cake

Tired of Red Velvet? Maybe black is the new red...

2 1/4 cups cake flour

2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder (not Dutch process!)

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature

1 1/2 cups granulated sugar

2 large eggs

1 teaspoon pure vanilla bean paste (substitute an equal amount of pure vanilla extract for the paste!)

3 tablespoons Pero
1/2 cup buttermilk

1/2 cup half & half
1-2 tablespoons black food coloring (depends on how dark you'd like your cake to be!)

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon distilled white vinegar

Chocolate marshmallow frosting
one 7-ounce jar marshmallow creme (also known as fluff!)

2 tablespoons butter, at room temperature

1/2 cup confectioners' sugar

2 ounces semi-sweet chocolate, melted and slightly cooled

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

2-3 tablespoons heavy cream, depending on how thick you'd like your frosting to be

2 T black food coloring
sprinkles or nonpareils, for decorating (optional)


Combine cake ingredients, place in pan(s) and cook, time depending on the size of your pans. Cool, then make the frosting. Enjoy.

Apple Tapioca

From Teena Read

Makes one quart. OK to increase for canning.

Mix together:

1/3 c. tapioca

1 c. firmly packed brown sugar

4 c. sliced tart apples 2 c water

2 c. water

1/4 t. cinnamon

1/4 t. salt

Let stand 5 minutes. 

Let stand 5 minutes. Place mixture in a sauce pan. Bring to a boil, stirring often. Simmer till apples are tender (about 12 minutes). Fill jars, wipe rims, apply lids and rings and process in a boiling water canner for 20 minutes.

Serve warm or cold, as topping for ice cream, filling for pie shell or base for apple crisp.

Garlic Dill Pickles

From Marissa McClellan of FoodinJars.com. 

Makes approximately 8 pints (total yield varies depending on size of cucumbers).

2 overflowing quarts of pickling cucumbers, sliced into fat coins*
4 cups apple cider vinegar
4 cups water
6 tablespoons pickling salt
16 garlic cloves, peeled (2 per jar)**
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper per jar
(2 teaspoons total)
1 teaspoon dill seed per jar (8 teaspoons total)
1/2 teaspoon black peppercorns per jar
(4 teaspoons total)

Wash and slice the cucumbers. In a large saucepot, combine vinegar, water and salt. Bring to a simmer. Arrange jars on counter and dole out the spices to each. Pack the cucumber slices firmly into the jars. You don’t want to damage the cukes, but you do want them packed tight.

Pour the brine into the jar, leaving ½ inch headspace.Wipe rims, apply lids and rings and process in a boiling water bath for 10 minutes.

If you want to skip the boiling water process, these pickles are also wonderful as refrigerator pickles. Just pop the jars into the fridge once they’re cool.

*I use slices because I find that they are easiest to pack into jars. However, you could also choose to make spears, halves or pickle the cucumbers whole.

**I like to peel the garlic by leaning on it ever so slightly with the side of a chef’s knife. This bruises the garlic a bit and gets its pungent flavor into the brine/cucumbers more effectively.

***Some people have reported that this level of spice leaves their pickles far too spicy. If your red chili flakes are particularly fresh or potent and you’re not a huge fan of spice, consider reducing the amount.

Sweet & Sour Sauce

From my grandmother Grace Taylor. This is one of my favorite recipes to can. It is also a great recipe to make for dinner, though you might want to half it if you are not cooking for a crowd.

Makes 12 pints or 6 quarts.

8 cups tomatoes, diced
2 1/2 cups onions, chopped
1 can mandarin oranges
2 can pineapple tidbits
5 cups bell peppers, chopped
7 cups white sugar
3 cups cider vinegar
1/2 cups soy sauce
1 cups cornstarch

Combine all except pineapple juice & cornstarch. Cook until onions are translucent. Combine cornstarch with pineapple juice and add to pot and let thicken. At this point it is ready to serve immediately. If you are canning it, fill jars with sauce, wipe rims, apply lids and rings and process in a boiling water canner for 35 minutes.

Standard Tomato Sauce

From the USDA Complete Guide to Home Canning, 2009 edition

Whole tomatoes
Lemon juice

A bushel of tomatoes weighs a little more than 50 pounds and will produce 10-12 quarts of thin tomato sauce. The thicker you make your sauce, the lower the yield.

Wash, remove stems and trim off bruised or discolored portions from tomatoes. Cut a good portion of the tomatoes into quarters and put directly into a large, hot saucepan and crush them with a potato masher. Continue to slowly add and crush freshly cut tomato quarters to the mixture, stirring occasionally.

Simmer for another five minutes, then remove from heat and press the heated tomato mixture through a medium sieve or food mill to remove skins and seeds. Return to heat, simmer and reduce the sauce until you reach the desired consistency.

Add 2 tablespoons lemon juice to clean, hot quart-sized canning jars, adding salt if you like. Fill hot jars, leaving 1/4-inch headspace. Remove air bubbles and adjust headspace if needed. Wipe rims, apply lids and rings and process in a boiling water canner for 45 minutes.