Dana Marie's Country Living Blog

Look what I did! One has ham filling, the other has chicken filling. I made them up as I went. Oh so good! When it comes out of the oven, it only has to cool for five minutes, then dig in! Serve with a nice salad, and you've got a wonderful meal. ~ Dana  Ham and Potato Bake Ingredients 2 cups cubed potatoes olive oil as needed for sautéeing 1 cup chopped tricolor or regular carrots 2 cups sliced mushrooms 1 leek sliced thinly 2 cups cubed ham 3 tablespoons butter 3-4 tablespoons flour 1/2 cup whole milk 1/2 cup chicken broth 4 slices white American cheese     or any good white melting cheese spices to taste:     garlic powder     onion powder     salt & pepper 1 sheet puff pastry 1 egg for egg wash Cooking the ham & potato filling  Instructions 1 . Start by preparing the vegetables. In a hot skillet with olive oil, sauté the cubed potatoes and carrots until they have a nice brown color on all sides. Turn the heat down to medium o...

One of my best tricks at Halloween is to make spider cookies. They're peanut butter cookies with little peanut butter cups on top. Here's how I do it - Halloween Spider Cookies Step 1 . Bake a batch of peanut butter cookies using your favorite recipe. Step 2 . While the cookies are still warm, put a small peanut butter cup on top of each one and let cool. Step 3 . Melt some chocolate chips, and using a piping bag or a plastic sandwich bag with a hole cut in the corner, draw some legs coming from each peanut butter cup. Step 4 . Pipe two dots onto each peanut butter cup and apply sugar eyes. You can find them in the baking section of your local store. And here's my favorite peanut butter cookie recipe from my newest cookbook, Vintage Cookie Recipes , available on Amazon® . Have a yummy, creepy Halloween! ~ Dana   Peanut Butter Cookies Ingredients 1/2 cup salted butter, softened 1/2 cup peanut butter 1/2 cup granulated white sugar 1/2 cup brown sugar 1 egg 1 teaspoon vanilla ...

I made the most yummy simple biscuits the other night. They're great as a side dish at dinner or for a delicious snack. These are semi-homemade, because you start with a couple cans of refrigerator biscuits. I used Pillsbury®, but any brand will work. Enjoy! ~Dana Garlic & Cheese Pull-Apart Biscuits Ingredients 2 cans refrigerator biscuits 1/2 cup salted butter 1 tablespoon chopped parsley chopped fresh chives, to taste garlic powder, to taste garlic salt, to taste ground pepper, to taste 7 ounces gouda or mozzarella cheese Instructions 1 . Using kitchen shears, cut the opened biscuits into pieces, about 3/4 inch. Place them in a large bowl. Biscuit pieces and herbed butter 2 . Next, melt the butter. I used my homemade garlic-chive butter - the recipe is here on the blog if you would like to make it. Otherwise, you can use regular butter and add the parsley, chives, garlic powder, garlic salt and ground pepper. As for how much to add, just season to your taste. Melted butter w...

When I need roasted garlic for a recipe, I always roast more than I need so I will have some ready for other uses throughout the week. It's heavenly in so many ways! - as a spread on bread - blended into softened butter - tossed into pasta - as a topping for grilled steak or fish - stirred into soups - as a dip flavoring - added to mashed potatoes - pizza topping - in a marinade - as a topping for sautéed vegetables - some people eat it with a spoon It can be kept in an airtight container for 3-5 days. Just separate the cloves out of the head and wrap tightly to minimize drying out. If you wish, you can freeze it as chunks removed from the peels or mashed. Spread the chunks in a freezer bag and freeze flat, for easy removal when you want to use some. Or you can freeze mashed roasted garlic in an ice cube tray.  Keeps up to 3 months in the freezer. Enjoy this delicacy! ~ Dana Garlic paste - mashed roasted garlic Roasted Garlic Ingredients heads of garlic olive oil salt (optional) In...

I made butter from scratch! So much fun. You can really tell the difference in flavor when it's made from scratch. I do have to buy cream from the grocery store, though. I wish I could have a cow. I love this kind of butter with anything savory that I cook. It's also a perfect match for steak and baked potatoes. I flavored this batch with garlic and chives. So delicious! Another great thing about making butter from scratch is all the buttermilk that you get. It can be frozen in canning jars for up to 3 months or up to 6 months if you don't mind it separating when you thaw it. It's so nice to have on hand when buttermilk is called for in a recipe. Try it, you'll love it! ~ Dana Homemade butter with garlic & chives Homemade Butter Ingredients 5 cups heavy whipping cream 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt, or to taste Supplies butter muslin or several layers of cheesecloth a butter mold or container with a lid Instructions 1 . Pour the cream into a mixing bowl. Using a sta...