Family Recipes: Saving the World One Recipe at a Time

Contents

Desserts

~ Pies and Cakes ~

Super Great Pie Crust

Super Great Pie Crust II

Pie Crust (for tarts)

No Roll Pie Crust

Phyllis’s Pie Crust

Phyllis’s Rosy Apple Pie

Pumpkin Pie

Pumpkin Chiffon Pie

Walnut Pumpkin Pie

Pecan Pie

Blueberry Pie

Apple Pie 2 Ways

Streusel Topping

Lemon Cream Cheese Pie

Vanilla Cream Pie

French Silk Pie

Peach Cobbler or Pie Filling – Frozen Fresh

Pumpkin Cream Cheese Pie

Chocolate Mousse Pie

Lemon Meringue Pie

Meringue Shells

Pecan Tart Filling

Mini Pecan Tarts

Lindsay’s Favorite Tarts

Cheesecake

The Truly Best Ever Cheese Cake

Key Lime Cheesecake

Mini Cheesecakes

Black Forest Cheesecake Squares

Pumpkin Pie Cake

Pumpkin Rolls

Poppy Seed Cake

Macadamia Nut Cake

Cindy’s Carrot Cake

Cream Cheese Icing

Flourless Chocolate Cake

Spice Cake

Zeke’s Mom’s Caramel Icing

Sour Cream Chocolate Cake

Sour Cream Chocolate Icing

Swedish Apple Cake

German Chocolate Cake Frosting

Seven Minute Frosting

Blueberry Crumb Cake

Streusel Topping

Cathy’s Rum Cake

German Chocolate Upside-down Cake

Lemon Cake

Pumpkin Dump Cake

Black Bottom Cupcakes

Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cake

Strawberry Refrigerator Cake

Harvest Pumpkin Brownie with Caramel Sauce

Texas Sheet Cake Perfected

Chocolate Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Filling

Tres Leches Cake

Gelatin Cake

Amaretto Cake with Cinnamon Swirl

World’s Best Brownies

Blondies

Zebra Brownies

Rocky Road Fudge Bars

Chocolate Mint Brownies

Chocolate Chip Cheesecake Bars

Debbie’s Gingerbread

New Recipes

~ Cookies ~

Gingerbread Cookies

No Bake Cookies

Chewy Chocolate Crinkles

Swedish Oatmeal Cookies

Chocolate Chip Cookies

Aunt Sylvia’s Chocolate Chip Cookies

Macadamia White Chocolate Chip Cookies

Just Like the Mall Chocolate Chip Cookies

Chocolate Chip Cookies

Cream Wafers

Chocolate Cookie Balls

Soft Gingersnap Cookies

Coconut Chews

Peanut Blossom Cookies

Chocolate Mint Cookies

Homemade Oreos

Fresh Orange Cookies

Grandma’s Icebox Cookies

The Biggs Girl’s Famous Sugar Cookies

Valentine’s Day Frosting

Half – Hearted Cookies

Cherry Chocolate Kisses

Fortune Cookies

Crispie Chocolate Chip Cookies

Butterfinger Cookies

Dreamsicle Cookies –

Pumpkin Cookies

Cowboy Cookies

Orange-Spiced Oatmeal Raisin Cookies Dipped in White Chocolate

Almond Bonbons

Oatmeal Apple Butter Cookies

Biscotti

Cookie Pizza

New Recipes

~ Popcorn and Cereal ~

Caramel Popcorn

Chocolate Popcorn

White Chocolate Caramel Corn

Sticky Gooey Caramel Corn

Grandma’s Puffed Rice Balls

Fudge Crispies

Gooey Cereal Mix

~ Gelatins ~

Jeanette’s Gelatin

LeElla’s Gelatin

Cherry Rice Gelatin

Pretzel Gelatin

Rainbow Gelatin

Chris Nichols’ Lemon – Lime Gelatin

New Recipes

~ Candies and Confections ~

Handmade Fudge

Chocolate Butter Fudge

Grandma’s Fudge

Ella Mae’s Fudge

Chocolate Fudge

Lynne’s Grandma Mally’s Pulled Mints

Candied Nuts

Grandma’s Caramels

Lynne’s Caramels

Caramels

Cream Candy

Grandma’s Peanut Brittle

New Recipes

~ Frozen Treats ~

Mom’s Vanilla Ice Cream

Charlotte’s Blackberry Ice Cream

Rocky Road Ice Cream

Tropical Ice Cream Dessert

Chocolate Mint Ice Cream Pie

Praline Ice Cream Pie

Balsamic Berry Sauce for Ice Cream

Danish Dessert

Mock-Fried Ice Cream

Chocolate Peppermint Dessert

Strawberry Mock Ice Cream

Frozen Raspberry Macadamia Dessert

Chocolate Cream Filled Cookie Raspberry Dessert

Wedding or Party Slush

New Recipes

~ Miscellaneous ~

Caramel Sauce

Raspberry Pretzel Delight

3 Layer Pumpkin Dessert

Turtles with a Twist

Nut Diamonds

Bread Pudding

Cinnamon Bread Pudding

Anney’s Bread Pudding

New Recipes

Breads and Pastries

Danish Pastry and Fillings

Bonnie’s Cream Puffs and Éclairs

French Custard Filling

Cream Puff Frosting – chocolate ganache

Baklava

Cheese Squares

Cream Puffs in a Pan

Crepes

Bran Muffin Mix

Basic Muffin Recipe

Popovers – Lynne Haley

Best Ever Cornbread

French Bread

Easy Pita Bread

Paula’s Rolls

Beth’s 24-hour Butterhorns

Bread

Aunt Sylvia’s Soft, Light, Yummy, Whole Wheat Bread

Maori Bread

Knotted Rolls

Finnish Braid

Rosemary Focaccia Bread

Amish Friendship Bread

Pizza Dough

Monkey Bread

Grandma Nina’s Orange Rolls

Pumpkin Bread

Banana Bread

New Recipes

Main Dishes

Café Rio Pork

Costa Vida Sweet Pork

Manicotti

Smooth Spaghetti Sauce

Chalupas

7-Day Brisket

Texas Brisket

Bar-B-Q Sauce

Kalua Pork

Flat Enchiladas

Mom’s Famous Meatloaf

Red Chili

Green Chili

Chicken Tetrazini

Roasted Butternut Squash and Penne

Chicken, Rice, and Grape Pilaf

Company Chicken

Cream Cheese Chicken

Chef William’s Chicken with Goat Cheese & Sun-dried Tomatoes

Chef William’s Chicken Pasta

Pesto-Cream Sauce

Pesto

Sweet and Sour Tuna

Cashew Chicken

Sweet and Sour Pork

Chicken Teriyaki

Egg Rolls

Alfredo Sauce

Pasta with Ham

Crock Pot Chicken

Chicken Pot Pie

Chicken Enchiladas

Chicken Burritos

Fajitas

Chicken Wings

Chicken Cordon Bleu

Chicken and Dressing

Hawaiian Ham and Cheese Sandwiches

Chicken Crescent Rolls

Chicken Salad

Orange Pineapple Chicken Salad

Shannon’s Favorite Chicken Salad

New Recipes

Vegetables and Side Dishes

Garlic Red Potatoes

Gourmet Sweet Potato Classic

Scalloped Potatoes

Funeral Potatoes

Oven Roasted Vegetables

Crispy Sweet Potato Fries

Sweet Potato Casserole

Paprika Browned Potatoes

Oven Fried Zucchini

Grandma’s Turkey Dressing

Honey Almond Couscous

Spanish Rice

German Potato Salad

New Recipes

Breakfast

Wheat Pancakes

Best Ever Granola

French Bread Breakfast Casserole

Breakfast Casserole

Overnight French Toast

Buttermilk Biscuits

Sausage Gravy

French Breakfast Puffs

Pat’s German Pancakes

Oven Apple Pancake

Corn Bread and Sausage Breakfast Casserole

Aunt Jane’s Sausage Apple Pie

New Recipes

~ Syrups ~

Syrup

Buttermilk Syrup

Vanilla Syrup

Praline Syrup

Salads & Soups

Sue Smith’s Tortellini Salad

Shrimp Pasta Salad

24-Hour Salad

Paradise Salad

Frog Eyed Salad

Aunt Barbara’s Fruit Salad

Bow Tie Chicken Pasta Salad

Italian Pasta Salad

Buttermilk Ranch Pasta Salad

Spinach and Blackberry Salad

Red Onion Mushroom Salad

Poppy Seed Bow Tie Pasta with Grilled Chicken

Uncle David’s Famous Salad and Dressing

Butterfinger Apple Salad

Broccoli Salad

Red Wine Vinegar Salad & Dressing

Taco Salad

Sweet Basil Dressing

Creamy Balsamic Dressing

German Potato Salad

Croutons

Cheese Broccoli Soup

9 Bean Soup

Lentil and Sausage Soup

Chicken Chowder

Carol’s Corn Chowder

Quick Taco Soup

Autumn Soup

Clam Chowder

Fire Roasted Tomato Soup

Pumpkin Soup

Shannon’s Creamy Jalapeño-Artichoke Soup

Stew

New Recipes

Appetizers & Dips

Shrimp Dip

Clam Dip in Sourdough Bread

Houston’s Spinach Dip

Artichoke Spinach Dip

Spinach Dip

Crunchy Spinach Dip

Chili Cheese Dip

Sausage Dip

Creamy Crab Cheesecake

Pesto Cheesecake

Chicken Wing Dip

Warm Cheese Dip

Texas Caviar

Salsa

Shannon’s Salsa

Vegetable Pizza

Apple Dip

Pumpkin Dip

Tang Fruit Dip

Pina Colada Fruit Dip

Lanie’s Mango Salsa

Chili Cheese Ball

Aunt Sylvia’s Favorite Cheese Ball

Mom’s Cheeseball

Garlic Toast

Cheesy Bread

Cheese Biscuits

Crab Puffs

Herbed Oil for Bread

Flavored Oils

New Recipes

Beverages

Pina Colada Punch

Hot Chocolate Mix

Hot Cider Nog

Russian Tea

Frappe

Orange Julius

Banana Crush Punch

Brazilian Lemonade

New Recipes

This is not your average cookbook. Although we don’t want to discourage anyone from using this book and enjoying the great recipes contained in it, it may be more useful to those who have some cooking experience. We have not given detailed instructions for preparation for most recipes. For that reason, some basic knowledge of food preparation and experience in the kitchen is helpful. We want people to use this book to add to their own favorite recipes and make these recipes their own by modifying and adjusting them to meet their own tastes and preferences. We love to do that to recipes we find and try.

The recipes in this book have been begged, borrowed, modified, and shared from many sources. We are the kind of cooks who gather recipes from friends, family, and other sources; try them at home on your own families, then pass them along to others. We have tried to give credit to friends and family who have helped make us the cooks we are, but we have some recipes that have been in our family for years and have no idea as to their origin. We also usually change recipes we get and therefore they become something different and unique. We invite you to do the same. Use these recipes; change them; make them your own; share them with others.

Our families tend to be on the picky side and many of our recipes do not include onions. We don’t really like them. (It is a texture thing more than a taste thing.) This is a great example of how you can take these great ideas for food and make them your own. We use a lot of onion powder, but very few real onions – it’s a family thing. Our grandma used to try to trick us by grating onions into her meatloaf and other dishes. Sometimes it worked and sometimes it didn’t. Our mother tried similar things with powdered milk and deer meat – neither one of those worked. There is no hiding the taste or texture of venison or reconstituted powdered milk when you have such picky eaters! We have made and eaten every recipe in this book on more than one occasion. Some recipes have been in our family for generations. We feel confident you can open this book and make any recipe and come out with a great product. We have personally tested every one (well, I can’t say we have all eaten the sweet and sour tuna, but my sister Kerri has and she lived through it. That is the only recipe we would not recommend even though we have included it!)

We have had books, recipe cards, pieces of paper, and newspaper clippings of recipes for years, and we finally decided it would be great to have many of our favorite recipes in one easy to use place for a change. We really made this book for us, but we hope whoever happens to use it enjoys the first offering from our collection. We are always on the look out for new recipes to try and invite anyone who would like to send us their favorite recipes to do so at the email address below. We hope this is just the first of many cookbooks that hold our favorite recipes. Maybe yours will be in our next one. Send your favorite recipes to sistersfamilyrecipes@gmail.com.

We certainly enjoy a good meal out now and then, but we believe the best meals are those made with love and eaten with people you enjoy spending time with. When you cook, you get to decide what goes into everything you make. You see how fresh things are. You get to smell all the great fragrances of cooking food. You get to lick the beater, (we used to fight over that at our house!) and sneak a handful of cookie dough! Think about the last time you had people over. Where does everyone hang out? Usually the kitchen! That is because everyone knows great things come from the kitchen. Cooking makes you feel creative. Cooking with someone else brings you closer together. There are so many great memories connected to the food we eat and their smells. So many family traditions are connected to certain foods at specific times. It is never too late to start a family tradition connected to food or add a new kind of food to a traditional holiday or event.

We think we really can change the world one freshly baked cookie at a time. We have seen first hand the difference one cookie can make in the life of a child or an adult. Giving makes you feel good; giving something you made yourself makes you feel great! Giving is a good feeling and giving of one’s self is a great thing to do. Make a batch of cookies, maybe even a double batch, mix up some bread, find someone to give to, and change the part of the world you live in.

Desserts

We started with dessert because dessert is a signature of our family. How many times have you wished you had saved room for dessert? We always do, and sometimes we even start with it. I wouldn’t be lying to say that many a vacation has been planned around where we would eat dessert. When our family gets together, there is always something great to eat. This has been the case for generations. When we were very young, our family was known for bringing homemade desserts to every family get-together.

Our mom is famous for her pies and ice cream. There wasn’t a McGee family holiday get-together without one or the other and sometimes both. We always do things in a big way and we never make a pie. Our favorite piecrust recipe makes three crusts, so the minimum is always three. At Thanksgiving we always had to make a fruit pie for Uncle George. None of us really like fruit (well, except for Jana), but cooking and baking are not usually about what you like but about making things that other people will enjoy. We still start making pies several days before Thanksgiving. We start by making piecrusts and freezing them. Then, the night before Thanksgiving, we fill the crusts and bake the pies.

Sunday nights are the perfect time to make something sweet to eat. We usually have a big family meal on Sunday afternoons and then we don’t make another meal in the evening. We often have extended family and/or friends over, so dessert is the perfect thing to have around to go with the leftovers from Sunday dinner. Sunday night would not be complete without dessert, and the dessert is always sweeter when it is shared. Sunday night dessert is the perfect way to get ready for the long work week ahead. It really spices up the