Cowboy Chili

1 lb (90/10) ground beef
½ -1 envelope taco seasoning mix
1 can pinto beans
1 black beans
1 can whole kernel corn (drained)
1 can chopped  tomatoes, fire roasted
1 envelope Hidden Valley Ranch Dressing mix

Brown meat, add everything else. Cook on low or in crockpot 2-3 hours. Serve with shredded cheese and chips.

Parker House Rolls

Parker House Rolls
Recipe courtesy Omni Parker House Hotel, Boston, Massachusetts

I can't remember any other kind of roll growing up. They are the best.

Yield: about 3 1/2 dozen

6 cups all-purpose flour (about)
1/2 cup sugar
2 teaspoons salt
2 packages active dry yeast
1 cup margarine or butter (2 sticks), softened
1 large egg
In a large bowl, combine 2 1/4 cups flour, sugar, salt, and yeast; add 1/2 cup margarine or butter (1 stick). With mixer at low speed, gradually pour 2 cups hot tap water (120 degrees F to 130 degrees F.) into dry ingredients. Add egg; increase speed to medium; beat 2 minutes, scraping bowl with rubber spatula. Beat in 3/4 cup flour or enough to make a thick batter; continue beating 2 minutes, occasionally scraping bowl. With spoon, stir in enough additional flour (about 2 1/2 cups) to make a soft dough.
Turn dough onto lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic, about 10 minutes, working in more flour (about 1/2 cup) while kneading. Shape dough into a ball and place in greased large bowl, turning over so that top of dough is greased. Cover with towel; let rise in warm place (80 to 85 degrees F.) until doubled, about 1 1/2 hours. (Dough is doubled when 2 fingers pressed into dough leave a dent.)
Punch down dough by pushing down the center or dough with fist, then pushing edges of dough into center. Turn dough onto lightly floured surface; knead lightly to make smooth ball, cover with bowl for 15 minutes, and let dough rest.
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
In 17 1/4-inch by 11 1/2-inch roasting pan, over low heat, melt remaining 1/2 cup margarine or butter; tilt pan to grease bottom.
On lightly floured surface with floured rolling pin, roll dough 1/2 inch thick. With floured 2 3/4-inch round cutter, cut dough into circles. Holding dough circle by the edge, dip both sides into melted margarine or butter pan; fold in half. Arrange folded dough in rows in pans, each nearly touching the other. Cover pan with towel; let dough rise in warm place until doubled, about 40 minutes.
Bake rolls for 15 to 18 minutes until browned.

Nan's Old Fashioned Sugar Cookies

Nan's Old Fashioned Sugar Cookies
(Barbra Karcher's Mum from England)

3 cups sifted flower
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup butter
1 cup sugar
1 egg
2 tbs milk
1 1/2 tsp vanilla

Frosting:
Powdered sugar
milk
1 drop vanilla

Sift flour with baking powder and salt. Cream butter and
sugar, gradually add egg, milk and vanilla. Add dry
ingredients and mix well. Chill if necessary. Roll out about 1/8 inch thick and
cut into holiday shapes (use 1/3 of the dough at a time)
Bake at 400º for 5-8 minutes on ungreased sheet. Cool.

Make frosting while cookies cool. Start with 1/2 cup powdered sugar. Add milk 1
tsp at a time until spreadable. add 1 drop vanilla and 1-3 drops food coloring.

The Original Whoopie Pies

Whoopie Pies
(From Kim Levesque's Mom)

1/2 C. shortening
1 C. sugar
1 egg
2 C. flour
1/2 C. cocoa
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 C. milk
1 tsp. vanilla

Filling:
3/4 C. shortening
3/4 C. confectioners sugar
1/2 C. marshmallow fluff

Cream sugar and shortening; add egg. Sift dry
ingredients and add alternately with milk and vanilla. Drop
batter onto greased cookie sheet in equal spoonfuls. Bake
at 425º for 7 minutes. When cool spread with blended
filling and put together.

Kim's Notes: I found this old old newspaper clipping in
my mothers recipe box with a note written in her writing
that said "This is the ORIGINAL receipt".

Raisin Filled Cookies

Raisin Filled Cookies

1 cup shortening
2 cups sugar (1 brown, one white)
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
Sift together 6 cups flour, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 3 teaspoonsbaking
powder.
1 cup sour cream
1 teaspoon baking soda in 1 tablespoon boiling water

Raisin Filling:
1 cup raisins
2 cups water
1 cup sugar
pinch of salt
thicken with 1 or 1 1/2 tablespoon cornstarch
teaspoon vanilla

Cook Raisin mixture (without vanilla) 5 to 10 minutes then
add vanilla.

Mix cookie ingredients: Cream sugars,
shortening, and eggs. Add vanilla and dry ingredients,
sour milk, and soda mixture. Roll out and cut with a
drinking glass Add a dollop of filling and cover with
another cookie, pinch together.
Bake 350º for 8-10 minutes until lightly
browned.
Aunt Yvonne's Notes: My sisters & I will always remember the
day that it snowed and when we got off the bus our
parents met us with raisin cookies and snowmen.

Christy's Brisket

Christy's Brisket

1 brisket - 5-6 pounds
1 to 2 teaspoons unbleached all-purpose flour
Coarsely ground black pepper, to taste
1/4 corn oil
8 onions, thickly sliced and separated into rings
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1-1/2 teaspoons coarse (kosher) salt
2 cloves garlic, quartered
1 carrot, peeled

Preheat oven to 325 to 350 F
Trim the brisket of most of its fat, and dust it very lightly
with the flour. Sprinkle with pepper.
Heat the oil in a large heavy flameproof casserole.
Add the brisket, and brown on both sides over medium-high heat
until some crisp spots appear on the surface.
Transfer the brisket to a dish. Keeping the heat medium high, add
the onions to the casserole and stir, scraping up the brown particles
left from the meat. Cook until the onions have softened and developed
a handsome brown color, 10 to 15 minutes.
Remove the casserole from the heat, and place the brisket, along with
any juices that have accumulated, on top of the onions. Spread the
tomato paste over the brisket as if you were icing a cake. Sprinkle
with pepper and the coarse salt. Add the garlic and carrot, and cover
tightly. Place the casserole on the middle rack in the oven, cover and bake
for 3 ½ to 4 ½ hours (add a little water if needed)
Slice brisket, transfer it and onions and carrot to a heated platter. Serve at once.

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies
From Elaine Boucher (my cousin in Maine)

2 cups flour
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp baking power
1 cup butter (2 sticks) (softened)
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 brown sugar
1 cup pumpkin (canned is fine)
1 egg
2 tsp vanilla
2 cups chocolate chips (sometimes I use milk chocolate chips)

In small bowl mix dry ingredients and set aside. In large bowl Cream butter and sugars together, add pumkin, vanilla, egg. Mix in dry ingredients. Fold in chocolate chips.
Bake at 350 degrees for 10-14 minutes.