Green Giant Valley Fresh Steamers Frozen Mixes

MyBlogSpark asked me to do a review and giveaway for Green Giant Valley Fresh Steamers. I was not influenced by them, the opinions are my own. I need to try something first and if I believe in it, I will write about it. I was having company for dinner last week so I decided to try the Green Giant Valley Fresh Steamers. I choose the Broccoli in Cheese sauce. I served it with oven roasted chicken, potatoes and a salad. The Broccoli in Cheese sauce was a hit not only with my guests by my Husband loved it! Next I will be trying the vegetables with pasta. Making meal time easier than ever, Green Giant has introduced vegetables with pasta and savory sauces to their already convenient and tasty line-up of Valley Fresh Steamers frozen mixes. New Valley Fresh Steamers Vegetables with Pasta varieties include: Macaroni and Cheese Sauce with Broccoli - classic elbow pasta and broccoli in a mouth watering cheese sauce Pasta and Vegetables with Alfredo Sauce - delicious corkscrew pasta with carrots and broccoli in a savory Alfredo sauce Steam-in-the-bag sides will have your family asking for seconds. Join in the conversation today on the Green Giant Facebook page. this is what you will receive in the Giveaway: Coupon for a free Green Giant Valley Steamers, serving bowl, two Green Giant place mats and a broccoli stress reliever. Here is what you need to do to enter this giveaway: 1. Visit Green Giant on Facebook...become a fan. 2. Follow me on twitter 3. Tell a friend about this giveaway and send me a copy of your email to your friend. 4. "Like" Grandmas Cooking Corner and more on Facebook. You can enter as many times as you want. this giveaway will end Dec. 28, 2011. "Disclosure: Green Giant Valley Fresh Steamers with Pasta, information, and giveaway have been provided by General Mills through MyBlogSpark."

Pumpkin Spice Bars from Gold Medal Flour

I got this recipe from the giveaway I just ended from Gold Medal White Whole Wheat Flour from MyBlogSpark. I made the Pumpkin Bars and they were scrumptious. I decided this is definitely one to share.
Prep Time: 15 min. Start to Finish: 2 hrs 45 min
Bars
4 eggs
2 cups granulated sugar
1 cup vegetable oil
1 can (15 oz) pumpkin (not pumpkin pie mix)
2 cups Gold Medal white whole wheat flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger'1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
Cream Cheese Frosting
1 package (3 oz) cream cheese, softened
1/3 cup butter or margarine, softened
1 teaspoon vanilla
2cups powdered sugar
1. Heat oven to 350 F. Lightly grease bottom and sides of 15x10x1" pan with shortening.
2. In large bowl, beat eggs, granulated sugar, oil and pumpkin with electric mixer on medium speed until smooth. Stir in flour, baking powder, cinnamon, baking soda, salt, ginger and cloves. Spread in pan.
3. Bake 25 to 30 minutes or until golden brown. Cool completely in pan on cooling rick, about 2 hours
4. In medium bowl, beat cream cheese, butter and vanilla with electric mixer on low speed until smooth. Gradually beat in powdered sugar, I cup at a time until spreadable. Frost bars. Cut into 7 rows by 7 rows. Store covered in refrigerator.
1 Bar: Calories 140 (Calories from Fat 60); total Fat 7g (Saturated Fat 2g, Trans Fat 0g); Cholesterol 25 mg: sodium 90mg: Total Carbohydrate 18g (Dietary Fiber0g, Sugars 13g); Protein 1g% Daily Value: Vitamin A 30%; Vitamin C 0%; Calcium 0%; Iron 0%
Exchanges: 1/2 Starch, 1/2 other Carbohydrate, 1 1/2 fat
Carbohydrate Choices: 1

Jewish Apple Cake

This wonderful recipe was given to me by my adopted Auntie Pat. Cake is awesome. This is the best time to make it because of apple picking season. Make a few and freeze them for later on. Great for the Holidays that are just around the corner.
Here is what you will need:
Peel and cut 6 or 7 apples, add 2 tsp.cinnamon and 2 tbs. sugar, mix and set aside.
Mix together

3 cups of flour
2 cups of sugar
3 tsp Baking Powder
1 tsp Salt
1 cup cooking oil
4 eggs
1/4 cup orange juice
2 1/2 tsp Vanilla
Beat together until smooth, grease a tube pan, large loaf pan or bunt pan. Pour 1/2 of batter in pan, arrange 1/2 of the apples, then pour the rest of the batter. Arrange the rest of the apples on top.
Bake at 350 over for 1 to 1 1/2 hours.....Check cake after 1 hr and every 1o minutes until done.
Let cool before removing from pan.
YUMMY!

Spaghetti Sauce (Gravy) with Meatballs, Sausage & Pork Meat

Everyone loves my spaghetti sauce (we call it gravy) so I thought I would share it with my readers.
Here is what you will need for the sauce:
Large Sauce pot
6 cans of Pastene Kitchen Ready tomatoes.
1 can of water
1 tablespoon sugar
1 tablespoon salt
1 tablespoon of Olive Oil
Oregano to taste
Two cloves of garlic, pressed.
Combine everything in large pot and simmer. Add cut up sausage and pieces or pork meat or pieces of beef. Next are the meatballs.....best part of the meal. My Grandchildren love my meatballs.
2 1/2 lbs of ground beef
5 large eggs
1/2 sweet onion, chopped fine- I use my Pampered Chef manual food processor.
1 cup of Italian Seasoned Bread Crumbs
Mix it all up and form meatballs. I used the medium size scoop
from The Pampered Chef so that they would all be the same size.
Add raw meatballs to the sauce that already has been simmering with the sausage and pork. Cook on stove top until meat is cooked.
I sometimes make my sauce in a crock pot. I start it at 11pm and cook it on low heat all night. The next morning it's done. Deliciouso!
I hope you try it....please let me know how it turns out.

Introducing Frozen Pillsbury Grands Biscuit Sandwiches

To celebrate the launch of new Frozen PillsburyŽ Grands!Ž Biscuit Sandwiches and Pillsb uryŽ Egg ScramblesTM, the Pillsbury Doughboy teamed up with Grammy-award winning American gospel music duo Mary Mary and surprised morning commuters with an unexpected performance. Mary Mary is the featured artist behind the catchy jingle titled "Brand New Morning" accompanying the new Pillsbury Frozen Breakfast television spots. Get a sneak peak of the new Pillsbury frozen breakfast products and visit www.facebook.com/pillsbury to receive a $1 off coupon, while supplies last. Then let us know what you think. Click on the link below to see 14 Pillsbury Doughboys and Mary Mary doing a breakfast boogie! Pillsbury Grands! Biscuit Sandwiches and Pillsbury Egg Scrambles heat up in minutes in the microwave and are available in your grocer´s freezer. Made with quality ingredients like real egg, tasty meat, cheese, Grands! Biscuits and Green Giant® vegetables, this new line of quick and delicious frozen breakfast dishes comes in six flavorful choices: Sausage & Cheese Biscuit Sandwich Bacon & Cheese Biscuit Sandwich Ham & Veggies Biscuit Sandwich Bacon & Veggies Egg Scrambles Sausage Egg Scrambles Sausage & Veggies Egg Scrambles So what are you waiting for? Head over to www.facebook.com/pillsbury to "Like" the brand and learn more about Frozen PillsburyŽ Grands!Ž Biscuit Sandwiches and PillsburyŽ Egg ScramblesTM. Disclosure: I received the above details from Pillsbury through MyBlogSpark. Pillsbury Website: http://bit.ly/pbbreakfasts Pillsbury on Facebook: http://on.fb.me/pillsburyonfb Pillsbury Doughboy Breakfast Boogie Video: http://bit.ly/doughboyvideo

Grilled Portabello Mushrooms

I found this wonderful recipe in the Federal Hill Gazette and I must share this for those of you who do not have access to this newspaper.

Potobello mushrooms grilled with marinade served on a bed of arugula topped with sliced tomato and fresh mozzarella cheese.
4 portobello mushrooms (without stems)

marinade:
1/4 cup olive oil
2 cloves crushed garlic
5 leaves chopped basil
3 tbsp. balsamic vinegar
3 tbsp. wine vinegar

Stir and brush top of mushrooms while grilling. Turn once ( low grilling) about 8 to 10 minutes until tender. Reserve remaining marinade. Place a few leaves of arugula on plate.
place mushroom and top with tomato and fresh cheese. Drizzle remaining marinade on top of each mushroom. Serve warm.

Please come back and let us all know how much you enjoyed this.

MELTING BUTTER

Here is a good cooking tip from "The Pampered Chef"

The Pampered Chef

Ever notice that butter burns SO easily? Here's a tip to help prevent that. When cooking with butter, add a little oil. Butter browns easily and burns at a lower temperature than most vegetable oils. The combination of the two will give your food a rich, golden color.

Disclosure: this information came from The Pampered Chef and I was not compensated for posting it. This post is for your information only.

The Winner of the Pampered Chef Giveway is:

Nancy from Vermont....she has 24 hours to get in touch with me. If I don't receive an email from Nancy, I will pick another winner. Thank you all for entering my giveaway. Look for another next month.

The winner is picked at rand0m by Random.org.

Spring Cleaning made easier

Here are some wonderful ideas to help with your Spring Cleaning. I ran across these suggestions in "all you" Magazine. I want to share them with you.
Substitute cleaners in a pinch:

1. Instead of Toilet Cleaner try: sprinkling the sides of the toilet bowl with a few teaspoons of Tang, or drop in a couple of denture-cleaning tablets or a cup of white vinegar. Let the remedy sit for 10 minutes, then brush and flush.
2. Instead of Microfiber Cloths on Glass Surfaces try: coffee filters. They're lint-free.
3. Instead of Eraser Pads try: whitening toothpaste on a toothbrush to scrub away crayon and scuff marks.
4. Instead of Glass Cleaner try: a mixture of equal parts rubbing alcohol and water to clean mirrors. Spray the homemade solution onto a cloth and wipe.
5. Instead of Silver Cleaner try: filling a spray bottle with inexpensive vodka. Spritz, let it sit for 15 minutes, then rub with a cotton cloth. Buff to a shine
6. Instead of Baking Soda try: a charcoal briquette to absorb odors inside your fridge and freezer.

Disclosure: I read this article in "all you" Magazine. Sources: Jeff Campbell, author of Speed Cleaning: Tips, Trick and Strategies to Get Everything Done in Half the Time or Less: Linda Cobb, author of Talking Dirty with the Queen of Clean; Cynthia Ewer, editor of organizedhome.com; Donna Smallin, author of The One-Minute Cleaner

Winner of the Old El Passo "family taco night" Giveaway is.....

Drum roll please...the winner is "Liz" I will contact Liz and she has 24 hrs. to email me. I will pick another winner if I don't hear from Liz by the deadline. The winner is chosen by Random.org. thank you all for your participation.

Snow and Swing Sets

Okay, so it’s snowing in Rhode Island….that’s where I live. I’m sitting by the window and watching the snow falling and piling up on the “mountains” of snow that has already been dumped on us. Oh well, it is winter after all.

Now I am starting to think ahead to spring hoping this will make me feel better as the snow keeps coming. I enjoy Springtime so much. Hopefully the daffodils won’t have to struggle to come out of the soil. The deep freeze of winter should be over by then! I especially enjoy watching my Grandchildren playing outdoors. The boys have their baseball games and the girls love playing in the backyard on their swing set. I was looking at some swing sets for kids at one of the CSNstore.com in case theirs needs to be replaced. Sometimes the boys will visit their little cousins and they all enjoy the swing set together. It has a covered crawling area, slide, two swings, rock climbing board and a sand box. It is such a pleasure to watch them all play together. If I keep this picture in my mind, maybe I can forget about the falling snow.

Taffy Apple Tartlets

I recently became a Pampered Chef Consultant and this is one of my favorite recipes. Of course along with the recipe and directions, we point out the Pampered Chef products to use.

Bursting with caramel and apples, these miniature tarts bring out the best of the fall harvest.

¼ cup dry-roasted peanuts

2 large Granny Smith apples, peeled

¾ cup butterscotch caramel sauce (from a 17-oz jar), divided

2 tbsp all-purpose flour

1 pkg (15 oz) refrigerated pie crusts (2 crusts), softened according to

package directions

12 caramels, unwrapped

Preheat oven to 400°F. Chop peanuts using Food Chopper; set aside for later use. Cut peeled apples lengthwise into

quarters using Utility Knife. Lay each quarter cut side down; angle knife, cut out and discard core. Coarsely chop apples

with Food Chopper. Combine apples, ½ cup of the caramel sauce and flour in Classic Batter Bowl; mix well using

Small Mix ‘N Scraper®. Microwave on HIGH 5-6 minutes or until bubbling and thickened; stir and set aside.

Meanwhile, unroll one pie crust onto lightly floured Cutting Board. Spacing closely together, cut 12 disks from crust

using outer tube of Measure-All® Cup (nine around outside edge and three in center). Press disks into wells of

Deluxe Mini-Muffin Pan using Mini-Tart Shaper, ruffling edges. Repeat with remaining crust.

Cut caramels in half using Utility Knife; place one piece into each tart shell. Spoon apple mixture evenly into tart shells;

sprinkle with peanuts. Bake 14-16 minutes or until edges of tartlets are golden brown. Remove tartlets from pan to

Stackable Cooling Rack. Drizzle with remaining ¼ cup caramel sauce. Serve warm.

Yield: 24 servings

Nutrients per serving: Calories 110, Total Fat 4 g, Saturated Fat 1.5 g, Cholesterol 5 mg, Carbohydrate 19 g, Protein 1 g,

Sodium 75 mg, Fiber 0 g

This recipe is brought to you by ©The Pampered Chef, Ltd., 2008

Old El Paso "family taco night" Review and Giveaway

I was so excited to receive a gift pack from Old El Paso through MyBlogSpark to do a review and giveaway. I had never had Tacos before and this was a great opportunity for me to try them.
Needless to say I loved them. It is so important to gather the Family together at dinner time. A family taco night can be a lot of fun for the whole family, try it, the kids might actually sit down for dinner!

This giveaway includes everything you see here plus a $10.00 gift card to buy the rest of the items you will need to make delicious Tacos.

To Enter: Do any of the following, you can enter as many times as you wish, just leave a separate comment for each entry.

1. Leave a comment as why you would like this gift packet
2. Follow me on Twitter (http://twitter.com/gramscooking) and tweet about the giveaway: come back and leave a comment.
3. Follow me on Facebook, come back and leave a comment.
4. Tell your friends about the giveaway and send me a copy of your emails to your friends.

Be sure to include your e-mail address in your comment so that I may notify you if you are a winner. Good Luck!

Details: this giveaway is open to US residents only and will end January 25, 2011 at 11:59pm EST. The winner will randomly be picked and announced shortly after. You will have 24 hours to contact me after you receive the e-mail. If I don't hear from you within that time frame, I will choose another name.

Disclosure: I received this gift pack from Old El Paso through MyBlogSpark for my review. However my words and opinions are my own and were not influenced by this.