Yummy Treat!

Val brought these little guys over the night before they left. Her cousin made them and told her how, so this recipe is more like a method and I have never done it myself. I have, however, eaten them myself and they are GOOD!! And they sound very easy too!

Have you heard of cakeballs? They're very trendy right now. Not quite as trendy as cupcakes, but still popular. I imagine that you can do the same cute things with these babies as you can with cakeballs.

And "these babies" need a name...anyone want to take that on?

Ingredients:
1 package of oreos
1 package of cream cheese
meltable chocolate for dipping
sprinkles (jimmies) for sprinkling

1. Val's cousin used a stand mixer, I don't have one so I might try the food processor, but crush the oreos in the mixer. Add in the cream cheese and mix til combined.

2. Form the dough into balls about the size of a walnut and put in the fridge to harden.

3. Melt your chocolate and dip the balls.

4. Top with sprinkles (or anything really).

5. Keep them stored in the fridge.

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins

It is that fall time of year and pumpkin treats come to mind. I love this recipe and have received many compliments and requests for the recipe, so I hope you have a chance to enjoy it this year too!

1 2/3 cups flour
1 cup sugar
1 tbs pumpkin pie spice
¼ tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
¼ tsp baking powder
2 eggs
1 cup plain pumpkin
½ cup butter, melted (one stick)
8 oz of chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350. Mix dry ingredients. Blend wet ingredients separately. Pour wet ingredients into dry. Stir only until moistened. Spoon into muffin cups. The batter does not rise a lot while cooking so fill cups about the size you want the muffins. Makes 12 big muffins or 15 small muffins. Original recipe says cook 17-18 minutes but really seems to be more like 20-25, depending on how big you made your muffins.

Another note: The canned plain pumpkin seems to come in two sizes, less than you need or more than you need. I have found that if you double the recipe you can use the whole big can (even though it is technically still more than you need) and they turn out yummy!

MUST Cobbler

If you like cobbler, you MUST make this!

And if you think you don't like cobbler, you MUST make this, because you will!


Please forgive the picture. I remembered to take it only after it was almost entirely eaten. Then I zoomed way in with my little camera so it wouldn't be so obvious we almost inhaled it. But now I'm telling you so that defeats the purpose.

Anyway, we pass by this fruit stand (outdoor store, really) on our way to Dallas. I have always wanted to stop and last month we finally did. I bought some beautiful blackberries. And we enjoyed this recipe.

And now I pay my parents to stop when they come down, or I stop myself if I'm the one traveling, for those blackberries. So, so yummy! And I imagine that this would taste great with most stone fruits.

Ingredients:
1 cup flour
1 1/2 cups white sugar
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
6 Tbs. cold butter
1/4 cup boiling water
2 Tbs. cornstarch
1/4 cup cold water
1 Tbs. lemon juice
4 cups fresh blackberries (frozen would probably work too, just thaw and get rid of the extra liquid)

1. Preheat oven to 400. Line sheet pan with foil.
2. Mix flour, 1/2 cup sugar, baking powder, and salt. Cut in butter until resembles coarse crumbs. Stir in 1/4 boiling water just until mixture is evenly moist.
3. Dissolve cornstarch in cold water. Mix in remaining 1 cup sugar, lemon juice, and blackberries. Transfer to a cast iron skillet (a saucepan works if you don't have one), and bring to a boil, stirring frequently. (If you used a saucepan, now's the time to transfer to a baking dish). Drop the dough onto the berries by spoonfuls. Place skillet on foil lined sheet.
4. Bake 25 minutes in oven until dough is golden brown.

And finally, you MUST serve this warm (hot, even) with vanilla ice cream!

Quick Easy Dressed up Oreos

Sorry this is past the season for candy canes but they taste really good(to my mom and me)Enjoy when you try them. Kieran

Ingredients
Almond bark
Candy canes
Oreos

1. melt 2 squares of Almond bark in the microwave(or stove doesn't matter)
2. Unwrap your candy canes and crush them in a bowl till they are in small little chunks
3.place the bowl of chocolate,crushed candy canes. and Oreos side by side (for an assembly line type thing)
4.dip the Oreos one at a time in the chocolate. covering them half way
5.then dip the chocolate side of the Oreo into the candy canes
6. Set to dry on wax paper(or something of the sort)
7. wait till the chocolate is hard then enjoy

Chocolate Chip Cake

Another tried and true for thirty years.
2 cups All Purpose flour
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/3 cups dairy sour cream
2/3 cup butter or margarine, softened
1 teaspoon vanilla
3 eggs
1/2 cup sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Heat oven to 350 degrees or 325 for a glass pan. Grease 13 x 9-inch pan. In large bowl, combine first nine ingredients. Blend 1 minute at low speed; beat 3 minutes at medium speed. Pour half of batter (about 2 1/2 cups) into greased pan. In small bowl, combine 1/2 cup sugar and cinnamon. Sprinkle half of sugar mixture and chocolate chips over batter. Repeat with remaining batter, sugar mixture and chocolate chips. Bake 35 to 40 minutes until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. (High altitude over 3500 feet: Decrease baking powder to 1 teaspoon. Bake at 375 degrees (350 for glass pan) for 30 to 35 minutes. It really makes a difference.) This cake doesn't need frosting.

Yellow Cake with Chocolate Frosting

Quite often I find myself in the same predicament which requires me to come up with dinner, or dessert with whatever I have in the pantry or fridge. We were having some friends over on Sunday night for dinner. Things got away from me on Saturday and I didn't have time to get to the store. So, I figured out dinner, but still wanted to have something for dessert. I found this recipe, and it turned out great. As I was making it, Dan brought up the topic of cake mix vs. scratch cake. I am a huge fan of cake mix, it's easy and delicious. He feels the same and expressed his doubts over this cake from scratch. But later that night as he was cutting his second slice, he said, "Well, this might be better than a mix". So here's the recipe for this dense and moist yellow cake!




Yellow Cake

1 cup butter
2 cups white sugar
4 eggs
3 teaspoons vanilla
2 3/4 cups all purpose flour
3 teaspoons of baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 3/4 cups milk

1. Preheat oven to 350. Grease and flour two 9 inch round pans or one 9x13 pan. (I used two 9" rounds. I trace the pan on paper, cut it out and lay it on the bottom of the pans, just like my Mama taught me. It ensures the cake comes out super easy.)

2. Cream together the butter and the sugar. Then beat in the eggs and the vanilla.

3. In a separate bowl, sift the flour, baking powder, and salt together.

4. Alternately add flour and milk to the creamed mixture. Mix well and pour into prepared pans.

5. Bake for 35-40 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. (mine took less time than recipe and browned a little on the edges. So just keep half an eye on it.)

I layered the two cakes and frosted with chocolate frosting. This is from the back of the Hershey Cocoa box.

Chocolate Frosting

1 stick butter/margarine
2/3 cup cocoa
3 cups powdered sugar (I used a 1/2 cup more)
1/3 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla

1. Melt butter and stir in cocoa

2. Alternately add powdered sugar and milk, beating on medium speed to spreading consistency. Add more milk if needed. Stir in vanilla. Makes about 2 cups frosting.

So if you're ever in a similar predicament or just want to try a scratch cake, this one'll do ya!

Caramel Brownies

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Melt in the microwave:
1/2 cup evaporated milk
1 lb. unwrapped caramels

Mix separately:
1 chocolate cake mix
3/4 cup butter or margarine
1/3 cup evaporated milk

Smash 1/2 of the chocolate mixture into a sprayed 9x13 pan. Bake for 8 minutes.

Remove from oven and sprinkle 1 cup chocolate chips over the top and drizzle the caramel mixture on top.

Crumble the rest of the chocolate mixture on top and return to the oven to bake for 20 minutes.

Let cool, cut into bars.

For Starters

Here is a delicious and super-simple little dessert. Someone brought these to Dan's work during the holidays, he brought home the idea, and we've had them as a little sweet snacker when friends come over.

1 bag of pretzels (shaped like a little square grid, mine were Snyder's Butter Snaps)
1 bag of Rolos
1 bag of pecans (whole or halves)

On a cookie sheet, put your pretzels down first, and then a Rolo on top of each one. Put them under the broiler until the Rolo's look kind of melty. As soon as they come out, push a pecan into each one. Let them set up for a few minutes, or eat them right away!