Pumpkin Squares

4 Eggs
1 ¾ cups sugar
1 cup vegetable or canola oil
1 27-ounce can pumpkin
2 cups flour
4 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon ground cloves
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 recipe Cream Cheese Frosting

Cream Cheese Frosting
1 8 - ounce package cream cheese, softened
¼ cup butter or margarine, softened
2 ½ cups powdered sugar
Hot water, as needed (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Beat eggs in a large bowl until light and foamy, beat in sugar and oil. Add pumpkin and stir until well mixed. In a separate bowl sift together flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, cloves, and baking soda; add to pumpkin mixture and stir well. Pour into two ungreased 9x13-inch pans or one 13x18-inch sheet cake pan and bake for 20 to 25 minutes. Allow to cool. Beat cream cheese and butter or margarine until very soft. Add powdered sugar and beat on Medium speed until well creamed and fluffy. If frosting is not spreadable, add hot water 1 teaspoon at a time until frosting is soft enough to spread. Frost with Cream Cheese Frosting. Makes 20 squares

**I made half a batch, but soon realized I should have made more. They are delicious and would be wonderful to give to a friend.

IHOP Pumpkin Pancakes

2 eggs

1 1/4 cup buttermilk

4 tbsp butter, milk

3 tbsp canned pumpkin

1/4 cup sugar

1/4 tsp salt

1 1/4 cups flour

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp allspice

Heat griddle to 350 degrees. Coat pan with with cooking spray. Combine eggs, buttermilk, butter, pumpkin, sugar, and salt in large bowl and mix. Combine remaining ingredients in a small bowl. Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients and blend until smooth. Pour the batter 1/4 cup portions. Turn pancakes when batter stops bublling and edges begin to harden. Serve with syrup or whipped cream.

Wendy's Chili

2 pounds ground beef
29 ounces tomato sauce
29 ounces kidney beans (with liquid)
29 ounces pinto beans (with liquid)
1 cup diced onion
½ cup diced green chili (2 chilies) ( I use canned green chilies)
¼ cup diced celery
3 medium tomatoes, chopped (I use crushed tomatoes)
2 tsp cumin powder
3 tbsp chili powder
1 ½ tsp black pepper
2 tsp salt
2 cups water

Brown the ground beef in a skillet over medium heat; drain off the fat. Using a fork, crumble the cooked beef into pea-size pieces. In a large pot, combine the beef plus all the remaining ingredients, and bring to a simmer over low heat. Cook, stirring every 15 minutes, for 2 to 3 hours. (Makes about 12 servings.)

Tidbits
For spicier chili, add 1/2 teaspoon more black pepper.
For much spicier chili, add 1 teaspoon black pepper and a tablespoon cayenne pepper.
And for a real stomach stinger, add 5 or 6 sliced jalapeno peppers to the pot.
Leftovers can be frozen for several months.

Macaroni & Cheese

One of the staples in my basement is Macaroni & Cheese. We prefer the homemade version, but when I'm in a hurry, have a babysitter, or one of the children are cooking I always like to have Kraft on hand. Wal-Mart has Kraft Macaroni and Cheese on sale this week for 50 cents a box. Can you believe it? I was so excited! Of course the checker thought I was a bit crazy (5 kids and a whole lotta Mac) but I am determined to one day have a year's supply of Mac & Cheese.

Guess what we're having for lunch today? Mmm.

Hoecakes

1 cup yellow cornmeal
1 cup flour
2 tbsp sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1 cup milk (buttermilk adds more flavor)
1 beaten egg
1/4 cup melted shortening

Combine dry ingredients, then add milk, egg, and finally melted shortening. Pour small amounts on a griddle that has been treated with a non-stick spray. The Hoecakes may be eaten plain, with syrup, jam, or with a sprinkle of powdered sugar.

Rubio's Fish Tacos

12 Cod or favorite whitefish fillets (1-1/2 oz ea.)

12 Tortillas, corn, as thick/fresh as possible

BATTER:

1 c Flour

1 c Sprite
Garlic powder
pepper to taste

WHITE SAUCE:

1/2 c Mayonaise

1/2 c Yogurt

Oil for deep frying

GARNISH:

Fresh Salsa

1 Head cabbage, green, shredded

1 Lime, cut into wedges

DIRECTIONS +++*

Mix flour with favorite spices such as garlic powder, red or black ground pepper. Stir the flour mixture into the soda and mix until well blended. Wash fish by dipping in cold, lightly salted water or water with a little bit of lemon juice added. Be sure fish is completely dry before dipping into batter. Put the vegetable oil into a deep skillet and bring to 375F. Place fish in a single layer--do not let pieces touch each other. Cook fish until batter is crispy and golden brown. Heat corn tortillas lightly in a skillet or Mexican comal until they are soft and hot. To assemble, on each tortilla layer the fish fillet, white sauce, salsa and cabbage. Top it off with a squeeze of lime. Fold tortilla over to serve.

Alright, this one isn't food storage, but it is so good. We had it in honor of Cinco de Mayo. I used talapia for the fish this time and it didn't fall apart when I cooked it.

Whole Wheat Muffins

½ cup butter
1 cup brown sugar
1 egg
2 cups whole wheat flour
1 tsp soda
¼ tsp vanilla
1 cup milk
1 cup nuts

Cream butter and brown sugar. Add egg, milk and flour to creamed mixture. Then add soda, vanilla, and nuts. Grease muffin tins. Bake at 425 for 12 to 15 minutes. Makes 1 ½ dozen.

**These are more of a sweet muffin.