We can't really say that we do much tailgating and we're not really traditional people anyway so for our tailgating food contribution, we just tried to think of foods that sound good at around 10AM and some classic Autumn flavors.

We made a couple of basic quiches:

Mrs. WYA! used her old family recipe for dough to make these cinnamon rolls of her childhood. We'd share the recipe with you but it's one of those family secret things.


We love molasses, especially in the fall:


Molasses Crinkles

Mix thoroughly:

3/4 cup shortening
1 cup brown sugar
1 egg
1/4 cup dark molasses


Sift together and add:

2 1/4 cup flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon ginger
1/2 teaspoon cloves
1/4 teaspoon salt



Chill 2 hours and roll into balls the size of large walnuts. Dip tops into granulated sugar and sprinkle with a couple drops of water. Bake 10 mins. at 375 degrees. Do not overbake. These cookies should be set but not hard. They are soft cookies and freeze well.

Butterscotch is another great autumn flavor.


Butterscotch Party Mix

Ingredients:

2 cups oven-toasted cereal squares
2 cups small pretzel twists
1 cup dry-roasted peanuts
1 cup (about 20) caramels, unwrapped, coarsely chopped
1 2/3 cups (11 oz package) butterscotch morsels



Directions:

COAT 13 x 9-inch baking pan with nonstick cooking spray.

COMBINE cereal, pretzels, peanuts, and caramels in large bowl. Place morsels in medium, microwave-safe bowl. Microwave on Medium-High power for 1 minute; stir. Microwave at additional 10 to 20 second intervals, stirring until smooth. Pour over cereal mixture; stir to coat evenly.

SPREAD mixture into prepared baking pan; let stand for 20-30 minutes or until firm. Break into small pieces.

Summer recipes... Curried Salmon Pasta Salad

If you're getting tired of your go-to pasta salad recipe, this is a really nice variation.

1 cup dry pasta, such as macaroni or small shells

8 oz cooked, skinned salmon or 7.5 oz can red salmon, cut into chunks

1/2 cup minced red or yellow onion

1 cup diced celery

1 medium to large red apple, diced

1/2 cup chopped walnuts or dry-roasted, unsalted peanuts

Dressing:

6 oz carton (3/4 cup) fat-free yogurt

2 Tbs. olive oil

1 Tb curry powder

2 tsps. fresh lemon juice

2 garlic cloves, crushed

1 tsp Dijon mustard

1/2 tsp salt (or to taste)

Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Cook pasta per package directions; drain and rinse. In a large bowl, combine first six ingredients. In a small bowl, combine dressing and ingredients. Pour dressing over salad; toss. Refrigerate.

Spaghetti Dogs

We decided not to call these pasta dogs because, for a recipe this low-brow, our childhood moniker of spaghetti is much more appropriate. Hot dogs are such a ubiquitous summer food that we started thinking about non-traditional toppings for them. We're sure that we aren't the first ones who've tried this but, we decided to see how they would be topped with spaghetti along with the Castleberry chili sauce and melted cheese.

We broiled our hot dogs until they had a nice dark crust. While they were broiling, we boiled some pasta until it was al dente, drained the water, and added the chili sauce. Once the dogs were done, we lowered the oven temp to 300 degrees, put the dogs in whole wheat buns, topped them with the chili pasta, then covered them with sharp cheddar cheese. Once the cheese was melted, we took them out of the oven.

It seems like it wouldn't really work, but the baked pasta on top of the dog really did. You had the snap of the dog, baked pasta, and cheesiness all in one bite. If you're weary of the traditional hot dog preparations this summer, you might want to give it a try.

Summer Recipes... Black Bean and Corn Salad

This is one of our big favorite side dishes in the summer. We've enjoyed it even more this year since we are growing our own cilantro.

Dressing

1/4 cup olive oil

3 Tbsp fresh lime juice (we confess, sometimes we use the bottled stuff)

1 tsp each minced garlic and salt and pepper

3 cups raw or cooked fresh corn kernels
1 can (about 15 oz) black beans, rinsed
3 ripe tomatoes, cut in chunks
1 each green and red bell pepper, chopped
1/3 cup chopped cilantro

1. Dressing: Mix oil, lime juice, garlic, salt and pepper in a 2 1/2 quart serving bowl.
2. Add remaining ingredients; toss gently to mix and coat.

Summer Recipes... Chicken Curry Wraps

This is one of our big favorites when the weather turns warm. As usual with our recipes, it's easy as well as tasty.

2 cooked chicken breasts (bake your own use grocery rotisserie chicken)

1 and 1/2 cup fat free yogurt

3 tsp curry powder

1 tsp fennel seed

1 tsp Dijon or grainy mustard

1 handful coarsely chopped almonds

Just cut up or shred the chicken to bite size pieces and combine all of the ingredients. Then spoon some into a tortilla wrap and enjoy.

Tomatillo Sauce

Sometimes a hunk of tuna steak needs a little something to jazz it up. We decided to play around with some tomatillos and made a tasty, versatile sauce.

28 oz can tomatillos

4 oz can of fire roasted green chiles

2 tsp chopped garlic

Fresh cilantro (about 2 tablespoons, you can add more or take some out depending on how much cilantro you like)

Puree (we do ours in a blender since we don't have a food processor), then pour the liquid in a pan and bring to a boil. You can cool this and use it as a salsa. We reduced this batch by about 2/3rd by simmering it on the stove and used it as a sauce for the tuna.

An easy and hearty bread

We love a quick, easy to make bread. If you do too, check out the recipe from Woman's Day. We made it in no time and really enjoyed it. We could even see where there could be a lot of options that could go into it such as seeds, nuts, fruits, etc. We highly recommend this recipe.

(and, no, we don't normally read Woman's Day but an issue was given to us and you never know what kind of treasures you will find inside a magazine)

Tomato Soup Spice Cake

A bunny was in our yard on Easter morning!

Our parents and siblings don't live in Indy so we rarely get to host a family meal. So, we were excited that Mr. and Mrs. WYA!'s parents came to town for Easter. It gave us an excuse to break out the fancy table linens, splurge on flowers, and make a lot of food. Mrs. WYA! made her spice cake cupcakes using the Wilton silicone flower cupcake form that we picked up at Walmart a few weeks back. She's made this spice cake for years and it is always a hit. We're always intrigued when we see a recipe with an unusual ingredient so this one caught our eye because it calls for tomato soup. It turns out it makes the cake moist and delicious and means that you don't have to add any oil to the cake mix. Here is the recipe:

1 pkg (about 18 oz.) spice cake mix

1 can (10 and 3/4 oz.) Campbell's Condensed Tomato soup

1/2 cup water

2 eggs

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and lightly flour two 8" or 9" round cake pans (or cupcake pan).
2. Mix cake mix, soup, and above amounts of water and eggs according to package directions.
3. Pour into prepared pans. Bake 25 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.
4. Cool on racks 10 minutes. Remove from pans and cool completely on racks. Frost with easy cream cheese frosting.

We always just buy Duncan Hines Home-Style Cream Cheese frosting but, if you want to make you own:

2 pkg (3 oz each) cream cheese, softened

1 pkg (1 lb) sifted confectioners' sugar

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Beat cream cheese until smooth. Gradually blend in sugar and vanilla. Thin with milk if desired.

Rivels (or rivlets) Recipe

Here's a quick, easy, carby, tasty side dish in case you're scrambling to pull your Easter dinner together. Some of Mrs. WYA!'s favorite culinary memories are from her Grandmother's; maybe it was that Ohio country water, maybe it was the vegetable garden, maybe it was her knack for canning, probably it was combination of everything. Anyway, rivels was one of those dishes that she enjoyed at Grandma's and here's the recipe.

1/2 cup flour

1 egg

1. Place flour in bowl.
2. Make a well in center; drop egg in well (see photo).
3. Cut egg into flour with fingers until crumbled (size of dry beans).
4. Drop slowly into boiling salted water or broth or potato soup (Mrs. WYA! discovered it is pretty darn good in cream of chicken soup so we always use 1 can of that).
5. Cook 10 minutes.

When we need a big batch, we just keep repeating the process.

Cornbread with a sweet touch

Even though we are now more than halfway through February, there are still some chili and some ham and bean eating days ahead of us. Here's the cornbread recipe that we use to go along with those dishes. It's the one Mrs. WYA!'s Mom has used for years but with a sweet little twist. We got the idea to lightly top the cornbread with brown sugar from a restaurant years ago and we've made it that way ever since.

1 cup yellow corn meal

1 cup sifted flour

1/4 cup sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

4 teaspoons baking powder

1 egg

1 cup milk

1/4 cup shortening, soft

Dark brown sugar (optional)

Sift together dry ingredients into bowl. Add egg, milk, and shortening. Beat with egg beater (or large spoon) until smooth. Pour into greased 8" square pan, sprinkle top with dark brown sugar if desired, and bake at 425 degrees for 20-25 minutes.

Conchas at Mi Mexico Supermercado

We discovered conchas, a Mexican sweet bread, a few weeks ago when we were roaming a Mexican grocery in Phoenix. They intrigued us because of their cute shell shape (hence the name concha). We really liked them and were happy to find an equally delicious one close to home. Mi Mexico Supermercado has 3 locations in Indy; we went to the one on Franklin near 42nd Street. The whole strip mall looked new and nice and the grocery was well organized and full of friendly employees. Mr. WYA! found all kinds of goodies there when he was shopping for our Arizona themed Super Bowl dinner. Conchas are not too sweet and perfect for breakfast or a snack. The topper can be different flavors. We like the cinnamon one but this recipe also tells you how to make a chocolate topped one.

Mi Mexico

4240 N. Franklin Rd. Indianapolis, IN 46226 Tel 317.542.0834

7857 Michigan Rd. Indianapolis, IN 46268 317.334.0995

8170 E. 21st St. Indianapolis, IN 46219 317.890.8644

The Chewy Brownie Cookie

We can't remember where this recipe came from but, when we want to indulge, these cookies always hit the spot. The original recipe called for the chips to be chocolate but we like to use white chocolate chips. Either way, it's hard to go wrong with this one. It's a good thing to make for your Valentine if you want to show some effort and save some $$.

2/3 cup Crisco shortening

1 1/2 cups firmly packed light brown sugar

1 tbs water

1 teaspoon vanilla

2 eggs

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1/3 cup unsweetened baking cocoa

1/4 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

2 cups (12 oz pkg) semi-sweet chocolate chips or white chocolate chips

1. Heat oven to 375
2. Combine Crisco, light brown sugar, water, and vanilla in large mixing bowl.
3. Beat at medium speed until well blended. Beat eggs into creamed mixture.
4. Combine flour, cocoa, baking soda, and salt. Mix into creamed mixture at low speed until just blended.
5. Stir in chocolate chips
6. Drop rounded tsp of dough 2" apart onto ungreased baking sheet.
7. Bake one baking sheet at a time at 375 for 7-9 minutes or until cookies are set. Cookies will appear soft and moist- do not over bake.
8. Cool on baking sheet 2 minutes. Place sheets of foil on counter top. Transfer cookies to foil to cool completely.

yields about 3 dozen

Food & Wine magazine highlights milk chocolate recipes in the February Issue. Wow, we try to eat healthy as much as possible but we just might have to try the Milk Chocolate Tart with Pretzel Crust. What a fantastic idea!

Make beans your friends in '09

If the economy finds you eating at home more, fear not, there are all kinds of great budget meals that you can easily make. Fortunately, we tend to have pauper's tastes. We like the simple foods that are affordable like rice and beans. We bought a package of Indianapolis' own Hurst Bean Company's 15 bean soup mix and a package of ham hocks and had a delicious meal.

Since we did not plan ahead, Hurst provides spur of the moment people with a "quick-cook" method. Just cover the rinsed beans with 3 quarts of water, bring to a boil. Once boiling, reduce the heat, but continue to boil for 60-70 minutes. Keep stirring, otherwise it may burn on the bottom.

After that time, add your ingredients (ham hocks, onion, etc.) then simmer for 30 to 45 minutes.

Add the seasoning packet that they provide, then dinner is served.

"Cheesecakes"

Sometimes, we just want a tiny little bite of something sweet. We came up with these little creations that we call cheesecakes. We just start with a simple cracker (we like Breton or even Kroger's store brand), put a layer of cream cheese on it followed by a layer of lemon curd that we get at Trader Joe's. This time of year, we also have the option of putting leftover spiced cranberry sauce on it instead of lemon curd and that is all kinds of delicious. They are really yummy and then we don't have a whole leftover cheesecake around the house.

Lazy Man's Turkey Tetrazzini

We actually look forward to leftover turkey so we can make our simplified turkey tetrazzini. In case you have some of the bird leftover, here's our recipe.

cooked turkey

1 can cream of mushroom soup

pasta (we like wheat, spaghetti but any shape or white would do)

Parmesan cheese

mushrooms (optional)

1. Boil 7 oz pasta (about 1/2 a box) and drain.
2. Add mushroom soup.
3. Add 1/2 soup can of milk (we use skim) and stir.
4. Add leftover turkey (however much you want), mushrooms if desired, and bring back to boil.
5. Serve hot, topped with shaved Parmesan cheese and, if you are pepper fans like we are, fresh ground pepper on top.

Spiced Cranberry Sauce

Some traditions should be changed. If having slices of canned cranberry sauce with the can indentations still visible is part of your traditional Thanksgiving spread, you should know that making your own cranberry sauce is incredibly easy, aesthetically pleasing, and tasty. It makes the whole house smell amazing and there is that fun popping sound that the cranberries make when they start to boil. We found this recipe in a Meijer supplement in 1998 and have been using it ever since. It's good, has a short ingredient list, and isn't time consuming- all things that we love in a recipe.

1 pkg (12 oz) cranberries

1 cup sugar

1 cup water

1 cinnamon stick

1/2 tsp. orange peel (you can use the real deal or just get a small container in the spice aisle)

1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

1. Place all ingredients except vanilla in a large saucepan. Stir to combine.

2. Heat to boil, reduce heat and simmer 45 minutes or until very thick, stirring occasionally.

3. Remove from heat and set aside to cool to room temperature.

4. Remove and discard cinnamon stick and stir in vanilla. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Jyoti- have an Indian feast at home

When we were at Jungle Jim's, we tasted a sample of the canned Jyoti Peas and Indian Home Style Cheese. It was so good that we bought a couple of cans of it. We came back to Indy and found out that it is available at the "Whole Foods" in Nora along with other entrees such as Delhi Saag and Madras Sambar. These taste restaurant quality good to us and they are very convenient.

There's little that we value more in our kitchen than our rice maker. We love that we can just put the scoops of rice and water in it and it will cook it perfectly while we are free to prepare other things. For your bargain at home Indian feast, jasmine rice works perfectly. We also love the frozen naan that Trader Joe's usually carries. However, this week we couldn't find it and we hope that it is just temporarily out of stock. It's not as good, but we made an easy flatbread to sop up all of the Jyoti goodness using this recipe. The only thing we did that Wikihow doesn't mention is that we put butter in our pan to cook them.

One of the finest restaurants in New York City tells you how to make Broccoli and Cheetos.

Toasted Pumpkin Seeds

When you are carving up those jack-o-lanterns, be sure to save the seeds. We feel better about using more of our pumpkin by not tossing the seeds but toasting them for a crunchy snack or salad topper. Here is our favorite recipe.

Seeds of a pumpkin

Salt

Olive Oil

1. Preheat over to 400 degrees. Separate the seeds from the stringy core. Rinse the seeds.

2. In a small saucepan, add the seeds to water, about 2 cups of water to every half cup of seeds. Add a tablespoon of salt for every cup of water. Bring to a boil. Let simmer for 10 minutes. Remove from heat and drain.

3. Spread about a tablespoon of olive oil over the bottom of a roasting pan. Spread the seeds out over the roasting pan, all in one layer. Bake on the top rack for 20 minutes or until the seeds begin to brown. When browned to your satisfaction, remove from the oven and let the pan cool on a rack. Let the seeds cool completely before eating. Either crack to remove the inner seed (we don't find this necessary) or eat whole.