Sunday, September 28, 2025

Copy Cat Cracker Barrel Hashbrown Casserole


Hashbrown Casserole is easy, cheesy and totally delicious!  This simple casserole is made easy with frozen hashbrowns! 

Copy Cat Cracker Barrel Hashbrown casserole needs just 5 minutes of prep making it the a great side or potluck dish! This is a perfect breakfast casserole for any holiday morning or just when you’re getting the family together for a delicious breakfast or brunch.

Equipment
  • 9 x 13-inch Casserole Dish
Ingredients
  • 32 ounces frozen shredded hash browns thawed
  • ½ cup melted butter
  • 10.5 ounces condensed cream of chicken soup 1 can, or cream of cheddar
  • 16 ounces sour cream
  • ½ cup finely diced onion
  • 2 cups shredded Colby cheese divided, or cheddar cheese
  • ¼ teaspoon black pepper
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease a 9x13-inch casserole dish.
  2. In a large bowl, combine thawed hashbrowns, melted butter, cream of chicken soup, sour cream, onion, 1 ½ cups of cheese, and pepper.
  3. Spread the mixture into the prepared baking dish and top with the reserved ½ cup of cheese.
  4. Bake for 45-55 minutes or until hot and bubbly.

Strawberry Romaine Salad

Make dressing at least an hour before serving. It will keep a couple weeks in refrigerator.

Ingredients: 
  • 1 large bag chopped, washed romaine (spring greens also good in this salad)
  • 1 pint fresh strawberries, washed and sliced
  • 1/3 cup toasted sliced almonds
  • 3/4 cup shredded Monterrey Jack cheese
  • 4 or 5 green onions, sliced
Directions:

Place above ingredients in a bowl.  Toss with dressing just before serving.  You can vary quantities of the ingredients to suit your taste.  I don’t measure so these are my best guess of the right amounts.    

Dressing:
  • ¾ cup sugar or equivalent of Splenda or Stevia
  • 2 cloves garlic, crushed
  • ¼ t. pepper
  • 1 c. olive oil
  • ½ cup red wine vinegar
  • ½ t. salt
  • ½ t. paprika
Combine ingredients, whisk together and refrigerate at least an hour before serving.

I use about half this dressing recipe on a batch of salad because I do not like them dressed heavily.  Some like it heavier, so dress to taste.

Elena Barham Mize

Saturday, September 27, 2025

Ritz Carlton Lemon Pound Cake


Equipment:
  • Kitchen-Aid Mixer
  • Tube Cake Pan
  • 15-cup Bundt Cake Pan
Ingredients:
  • 3 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 Tbsp baking powder
  • ¾ tsp salt
  • 3 cups sugar
  • 1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
  • ½ cup Crisco shortening
  • 5 large eggs
  • 1 cup whole milk
  • 6 Tbsp lemon juice
  • 1 lemon, zested
Instructions:
  1. Preheat oven to 350ºF. Spray or butter and flour a 15-cup Bundt pan.
  2. Sift flour, baking powder and salt into medium bowl. Set aside.
  3. Using an electric mixer, cream together butter, shortening and sugar. Add eggs one at a time, beating until well blended after each one.
  4. Add dry ingredients in three additions to butter mixture alternately with milk, beginning and ending with flour mixture. Beat at low speed just until blended after each addition. Mix in lemon juice and zest.
  5. Pour batter into prepared pans. Bake cakes until tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 55 minutes. Cool cakes in pans for 15 minutes. Turn cakes out onto racks and cool completely.
Notes:
  • DO NOT fill your pans to the very top or the cake will overflow!
  • I use a 15-cup Bundt pan. It also works in a Tube Pan.
  • If you are using a 12-cup or 10-cup Bundt pan, make sure to leave at least 1-inch to 1½ inches unfilled. You may have leftover batter.
  • One cup of flour weighs 4.25 ounces. To properly measure flour, give the flour a stir to loosen it up in the container. Use a spoon and lightly spoon the flour into your measuring cup. Use a flat straight edge (like the straight back of a knife) to level off the top of the flour in the measuring cup. Do NOT compact the flour in the measuring cup.