Not Just Sunday Dinner

Red Velvet Cake

It’s easy for me to plan meat and sides for my family during the holidays or just a family dinner. I know what they like. Even though everything I prepare will not please everyone at the table, I know I have enough of what each individual wants so they do not leave my table hungry!

However, I like to have a dessert or two when it comes to a holiday meal. This is not the case in other family meals. Anytime my family is together, it’s a special time. Holiday meals need to be a little extra special, though.

I always need help with this. Since I do not plan to have an array of desserts, I have to choose something spectacular enough for the occasion, but it has to please everyone.

Layer cakes are a leap for me. If I bake a cake, it’s typically a pound cake. Not because I do not like them. Layer cakes intimidate me! I can follow all directions, and my layer cakes always look like the Leaning Tower of Pisa. Until this cake!

Red velvet cakes are one of the only desserts everyone likes. Here’s a funny fact: Wes called it a Roosevelt cake when he was small. Because it’s a one-and-done dessert, I will definitely serve this during the holiday season. And since I found this recipe in an old church cookbook a few years ago, it is my go-to for layer cakes.

With my dad being a pastor for years, I have a few old church cookbooks that I love. The pages have browned over the years and have splash stains here and there, but I know they are recipes I can trust. The old cooks who penned those recipes were the best!

Here are a few tips from this not-so-experienced layer cake baker:

Baker’s Joy works well for greasing and flouring the pan.
Make sure your layers are even. Rather than pouring, I use a large scoop and scoop my batter into the pans.
Cut off rounded tops to make your stacking easier!
Take your time and cool the cake layers completely!

So whether you are like me and have “layer-cake anxiety,” or you are a layer-cake pro. You will love this dessert. It’s beautiful and delicious, and it checks off all the boxes for my family’s holiday meals!

Red Velvet Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

Course Dessert

Author Amye Melton

Ingredients

Cake
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
2 sticks unsalted butter softened
2 large eggs room temperature
2 ounces red food coloring
2 1/4 cups sifted cake flour
2 tablespoons cocoa powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup buttermilk
1 teaspoon white vinegar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Cream Cheese Frosting
1 stick unsalted butter softened
8 ounces cream cheese softened
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 pound powdered sugar
1-2 tablespoons milk
1 cup chopped pecans

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Grease and flour two 8-inch cake pans, set aside.
In a medium bowl combine flour, cocoa powder, salt and baking soda, set aside.
In another bowl combine buttermilk, vinegar, and vanilla extract, set aside.
Beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.
Adjust mixer speed to low and carefully add the red food coloring.
Add dry and wet ingredients alternately, beginning and ending with dry ingredients, stopping to scrape the bottom and sides of the bowl a time of two. Mix until combined, but do not overmix.
Pour the batter into the prepared cake pans.
Bake at 350℉ for 35 to 40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Cool in pan, on a cooling rack for 10 - 15 minutes. Turn out on cooling rack and allow to cool completely.
While the cake is cooling prepare the frosting. Combine butter and cream cheese in a mixing bowl. Add vanilla and powdered sugar, beating until combined. Add enough milk to reach spreading consistency. Stir in pecans.
Place one cake layer on serving plate. Spread frosting over the top of cake.
Place second layer on top of first. Frost top and sides of cake.
Store in refrigerator.

Refrigerator Fruitcake

If you’ve ever lost someone, you understand how grief can hit you like a semi-truck out of the blue!

Yesterday, I found an unidentified foil-wrapped item while cleaning out my freezer. When I unwrapped it, I knew immediately it was a refrigerator fruitcake I had made for my mother. She passed away in January of 2022. Just weeks before, she had requested that I make it for her. You see, it was a holiday tradition for her to make one yearly. But she couldn’t hold out to do it anymore. So, I mixed it up and made it into small logs. This way, it was easier for my mom to handle. She could slice off a few pieces to keep in the refrigerator while freezing the rest. Plus, I could share it with my brother, who always looked forward to Mama’s.

My parents started many traditions that are a massive part of my identity. But Mama, in particular, made a refrigerator fruitcake every Christmas season, along with other favorites like her chocolate-covered cherries!

I rarely revisit my half-written posts. But today, I decided to see what I had in there. When I found the draft, the grief hit. All of the Thanksgiving and Christmas memories came rushing to mind. She loved this time of year. I got my love for cooking from her. The holiday cooking was her favorite. She had me in the kitchen as a child, learning the ropes and helping her. Mama loved music and laughter; you better believe both filled her kitchen during those cooking lessons! We had some of our best moments during those times. She enjoyed preparing for her family and loved for all of us to gather at her house.

Food and cooking can bring people together and create cherished memories. My grief was brief because I was able to reflect on the happy moments we shared. The following paragraph from my old writings especially made me smile.

“Last week, I went into her kitchen to attempt to make a cake half as good as hers. The memories that little kitchen holds for me started flooding my mind. Everything I touched seemed to hold a memory. From the little measuring spoons and bowls I have used all my life to the lessons she taught me there. Where I learned a little about cooking but a lot about life.”

This is Mama’s original recipe. I have added dates and apricots, and I love it that way. If you are up to experimenting, you can try different dried fruit to suit your taste. You need it wet enough to coat the dry ingredients and enough dry ingredients to hold it all together. You can roll the dough into logs using parchment paper or line a loaf pan or a pie plate.

If you press the mixture into a pan, here is a tip to help the parchment stay in place. First, crumble the parchment paper and wet it. Then, squeeze it out well and place it into the pan.

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Refrigerator Fruitcake

Course Dessert

Author Amye Melton

Ingredients

1/2 cup unsalted butter
5 ounces evaporated milk
pinch kosher salt
2 (10-ounce bags) mini marshmallows
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 (11-ounce boxes) Nilla wafers crushed
3/4 cup chopped walnuts
1 1/2 cups chopped pecans
1 (10-ounce bag) raisins
16 ounce jar maraschino cherries drained, patted dry, halved
2 1/2 cups flaked coconut optional
6 ounces dried apricots chopped (optional)
1/2 cup chopped dates (optional)

Instructions

In a very large bowl combine Nilla wafers, nuts, fruits & coconut. Set aside.
Melt butter in a Dutch oven.
Add marshmallows, salt, milk, and vanilla extract. Stir constantly over low heat until the marshmallows are melted.
Pour marshmallow mixture over fruit mixture and combine well.
Spoon mixture onto parchment paper and roll into logs or line a tube pan or loaf pans with parchment paper and spoon mixture into pans. Press down to pack in pans. Cover and refrigerate.

Notes

Can be frozen.

Crockpot Dressing

It is hard to believe we have our first Thanksgiving dinner next weekend! The holidays come faster every year, even though I know that it’s not possible. I now understand why my mother told me not to wish my life away when I would count down the days to a birthday, Christmas, or even vacation!

I have always looked forward to the winter holiday season. I typically get my shopping done early. I start to make my menu in early October. And I start planning my Christmas decorations. For years, I put my Christmas tree up after Thanksgiving. However, I am inching closer and closer to just after Halloween every year. I do not have my tree up yet, but don’t be surprised if it’s not this week!

As I plan my menu, I lean heavily toward traditions. Have you ever wondered why traditions and rituals are so important to us? For me, holiday smells and tastes remind me of happy times.

The Macy’s Thanksgiving parade brings to mind the excitement of our big family gathering at my grandparent’s house. The smell of peppermint reminds me of Christmas caroling with my church family. The smell of pine brings to mind the years my dad, brother, and I would search the woods for the perfect Christmas tree. We would set it up and decorate it, thinking it was the most beautiful tree ever; looking back at old photos tells a different story.

I took my best friend on the annual tree hunt one year with us. Years later, she told me how important that was to her. In fact, she said it was her favorite Christmas memory. Wow, if that isn’t an eye-opener to what’s important, I don’t know what is.

So, I have finally figured out why I hold on to tradition. It reminds me of a simpler time and all the joy, love, and happiness wrapped up in that simplicity! And if those simple times were so important that I strive for that same feeling every year, why do I complicate them with more, more, more? It’s something to think about!

I am keeping our Thanksgiving meal simple this year. Our table will have the traditional Thanksgiving classics such as sweet potato casserole, dressing, gravy, and pecan pie. However, as I told you a while back, I am planning and preparing early. I have several things in the freezer ready to be baked. And one of them is this delicious crockpot dressing!

My friend, Sandra shared this recipe with me. I have made it a few times for family reunions and Easter dinners. It is delicious! It tastes like Greg’s grandmother’s dressing, but it’s easier! I have mixed it up this year, and it is in the freezer, awaiting the crockpot!

This recipe is very adaptable to the needs of your family and friends. Sandra does not care for onions or celery and leaves them out. I added more broth than the original recipe. Also, a bit of sage goes a long way. It’s in poultry seasoning and just enough to please my pallet. However, you can use poultry seasoning and/or fresh or rubbed sage to taste.

Crockpot Dressing

For those that like it all!

Course Side Dish

Author Amye Melton

Equipment

crockpot

Ingredients

2 teaspoons vegetable shortening
2 large eggs
4 cups self-rising buttermilk cornmeal mix
2 1/2 cups milk
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 medium white onion diced small
2 stalks celery diced small
2 (32-oz.) containers chicken broth or enough to almost reach the consistency of soup
6 slices loaf bread toasted or 9-ounces from pkg. of Pepperidge Farm Herb Seasoned Cubed Stuffing
2 (10 1/2-oz.) cans cream of chicken with herbs soup
4 large eggs beaten
1/2 cup butter plus additional unmelted butter melted
salt and black pepper to taste
1 teaspoon poultry seasoning or to taste

Instructions

The night before you plan to make the dressing bake cornbread. Preheat oven to 425℉. Spoon shortening into 9 x 13-inch ovenproof pans. Place in oven to heat for about 5 minutes.
Whisk eggs in medium bowl. Stir in the cornmeal mix, milk and oil just until moistened. Carefully tilt to coat the bottom of baking pan with melted shortening. Pour batter into pan.
Bake 25-30 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool then cover or store in a tiptop bag overnight.
Place diced onion and celery in crockpot and add 32-ounces chicken broth. Cover and cook on LOW overnight.
The dressing only needs 4 hours to cook so if you need it later in the day, turn the crockpot off and allow the onion/celery mixture to cool in crockpot until ready to mix all of the ingredients together.
When ready to prepare the dressing crumble the cornbread into the crockpot with the onion/celery mixture. Tear the bread into small pieces and add to the mixture. Add the additional chicken broth, soup, beaten eggs, melted butter, salt and pepper and poultry seasoning. Mix well. Add a few pats of butter to the top of mixture.
Cover and cook on HIGH for 2 hours or LOW for 4 hours.

Mallory’s Birria Tacos

A weekly trip to the local Mexican restaurant was always my night out of the kitchen when my children were growing up. We could go out, please everyone, and feed the family relatively inexpensively. We moved around several times during those years, but it was always one of the first restaurants we found in our new hometowns.

Savannah has been in the Atlanta area for a few years now, and she enjoys taking us to some of her favorite restaurants when we are there. One that she has yet to take us to, though, is Siete, the one she raves about with out-of-this-world Birria tacos. I get pictures of these tacos every time she goes, but it hasn’t worked out for me to go with her yet.

However, Savannah has had me craving these Birria tacos that I had never even had. I have searched for recipes for over a year, but there has always been something that keeps me from trying them at home until recently!

It changed when Michelle, a friend, told me about the Birria tacos her daughter had made. The recipe was a simple crock pot meal, and Michelle’s daughter, Mallory, kept telling Michelle how delicious they were. I’ve mentioned that I’m a bit of a food snob, so when I heard how easy the recipe was, I had reservations. But it was too easy not to try. I didn’t have much to lose, so I decided to give it a shot.

Oh my goodness, y’all, this may be the best thing I’ve ever had. This recipe starts with only the best beef roast, a chuck roast. Add two envelopes of convenient and tasty seasonings, along with beef broth, and cook in your crock pot all day! When the roast is falling apart tender, shred it and return the meat to the incredible stew in the crock pot. Then, you assemble the tacos and cook them as the recipe suggests. Serve them with a small bowl of the stew for dipping, and expect to be blown away!

I owe Mallory a big apology for doubting her and a huge thank you for introducing me to this recipe! I’m even considering cooking this for our Christmas Eve dinner. And Christmas Eve dinner can’t be your run-of-the-mill meal if you know what I mean. I want our Christmas Eve meal to be unique, different, and memorable. These tacos are warm and comforting, and I can’t think of anything better for my family, who has spent years enjoying Mexican food together. The Birria tacos check off all of the boxes! Plus, as a bonus, I can enjoy more time with my family rather than in the kitchen!

Mallory's Birria Tacos

Course Main Course

Author Amye Melton

Ingredients

2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 3- pounds beef chuck roast
1 large white onion quartered, optional
1 (1-ounce) pkg. Kinder's Carne Asada Mexican Seasoning
1 (1-ounce) McCormick's Au Jus Gravy Mix
3 cups beef broth
taco-size flour or corn tortillas
shredded Monterey Jack cheese
fresh cilantro
lime wedges

Instructions

Add oil to a cast iron skillet and heat over medium-high heat. Season roast with salt and pepper. Sear roast in hot pan on all sides. Remove to a crock pot.
Add onion around the roast. Sprinkle in the Kinder's and McCormick's seasonings. Add broths. Cover and slow cook on LOW for 8 hours.
Remove beef from the broth and shred into small pieces.
Heat a large skillet over medium heat.
Dip the tortillas into the liquid mixture in the crock pot. The fat will be on the surface, so you don't need to dip it too far in. Just make sure it's covered good.
Top half of the tortilla with shredded beef, onions if desired, cilantro and shredded cheese. Fold over and fry your taco in a non stick skillet over medium heat until crispy, about 2 minutes per side.
Serve with a side of the stew to dip your taco in.

Caramel Halloween Munch

Decorating for Halloween is less fun than it used to be! It has always been the first of the fall festivities that I have always enjoyed! I grew up next door to my cousins, Greg and Melissa. Most of the time, we went trick-or-treating together. And, usually, only to our grandparents and our aunts and uncles’ houses. And even though Halloween in Georgia is still warm, and we were sweating, dressed in cheap vinyl costumes with masks with holes and slits barely big enough to see and breathe through, we were having the time of our lives!

Then I became a parent, and oh, what fun I had dressing my kids up! Can you relate when I say I took something I loved and made it up into so much more? I decorated and had Halloween parties with hay rides, bobbing for apples, and bonfires. And, rather than cheap vinyl costumes, my kids had cute homemade costumes. I would spend weeks shopping and planning.

That is until the year I talked Savannah into being a snowman! She was in the second grade when I decided a snowman would be too cute! I bought the white sweatshirt and sweatpants, a top hat, and everything I needed to accomplish the look. I thought she was precious, but she did not! She hated the carrot nose most of all. But she also didn’t like the pipe or the hat, and it just happened to be one of the hottest Halloween nights in years. By the time we walked the neighborhood and returned home, we were all miserable, and I had learned a lesson. That the kids were much cuter when they were happy, too!

Now that we have grown children and no longer live in a neighborhood, Halloween is just another day. Traditions change whether we like it or not.

Occasionally, I still find myself in the kitchen making the treats I made for years. Pecan brittle is a candy that I associate with fall and Halloween. Caramel corn has always been a favorite, but I tried something different this year.

I call this Caramel Halloween Munch. It’s slightly different from the caramel corn as it’s made with Bugles and Chex cereal. I decided to add Chester’s Puff Corn as an experiment. I’m so glad I did! Added to this mixture, they remind me of Buc-ee’s Beaver Nuggets.

The Caramel Halloween Munch is sweet, crunchy, and delicious! For festive fun, I added some candy corn and Reece’s Pieces to the cooled mixture. This is sure to be a hit at your next fall party!

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Caramel Halloween Munch

Course Snack

Author Amye Melton

Ingredients

4 cups Bugles
2 cups Rice Chex cereal
3 cups Chester's Puff Corn
1 cup tiny pretzel twists optional
3/4 cup packed light brown sugar
1/2 cup butter
3 tablespoons light corn syrup
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon baking soda

Instructions

Preheat oven to 375℉. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
To the pan, add Bugles, cereal, puff corn and pretzels, set aside.
In a medium saucepan, combine brown sugar, butter and corn syrup. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until mixture comes to a full boil. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla and baking soda.
Pour the syrup over the Bugle mixture and using two wooden spoons, toss to coat all of the pieces well.
Bake for 12 to15 minutes, stirring every 4 to 5 minutes. Watch very closely, it can burn fast!