Fruit Pizza

Here is another recipe shared with my by my dear friend at church. We LOVE this dessert! You can decorate with any fresh fruit you would like. I used a 9 x 13 inch pan here but my friend uses a Pampered Chef bar pan and it makes a bit larger pizza with a thinner "crust". Either way, it is yummy!

Fruit Pizza

1/2 cup butter, softened
3/4 cup white sugar
1 egg
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon cream of tartar
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese
1/2 cup white sugar
2 teaspoons fruit juice

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a large bowl, cream together the butter and 3/4 cup sugar until smooth. Mix in egg. Combine the flour, cream of tartar, baking soda and salt; stir into the creamed mixture until just blended. Press dough into an ungreased pizza pan. Bake in pre-heated oven for 8 to 10 minutes, or until lightly browned. Cool. In a large bowl, beat cream cheese with 1/2 cup sugar and fruit juice until light. Spread on cooled crust. Arrange desired fruit on top of filling, and chill.

Homemade Graham Crackers

Happy Easter everyone! I am not going to be preparing a big holiday meal this year but I do have some of my favorite Easter recipes listed here.

I recently had the chance to pick up a new very cool looking product to try. Have you seen Philly Cream Cheese's new Ready-To-Eat Cheesecake Filling. Awesome idea for people like myself (my whole family actually) that LOVE cheesecake in any form. The tub of filling costs a little under $5 which is comparable to the amount you would probably spend when buying the ingredients to make your own cheesecake filling. I first planned to just purchase (or make) a graham cracker crust to serve this new found confection, but when I remembered a recipe I had seen on The Baking Sheet for Homemade Graham Crackers, I couldn't resist making them. We made "Cheesecake Sandwiches" with them and the new Philly filling and were they good! If your grocer offers this product I highly suggest you give it a try :0)


Here's the Graham Cracker recipe...

Homemade Graham Crackers
(from The Baking Sheet)

1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 3/4 cups whole-wheat flour (I used Organic Graham Flour from Hodgson Mill)
1/2 cup sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 cup cold butter, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
2 tablespoons honey
2 tablespoon molasses
1/4 cup cold water
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

In a food processor, mix together the flours, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon. Add the cold butter and process until the mixture resembles coarse meal, about 30 seconds or so. Add the honey, molasses, water, and vanilla. Mix until the dough starts to come together in a ball, another 30 seconds. Scrape dough out of the mixer.

Between 2 sheets of waxed or parchment paper, roll the dough 1/8-inch thick. Chill for at least 1 hour, until firm (I chilled for several hours).

Preheat oven to 350F. Retrieve dough and roll it a bit more if it is not yet 1/8-inch thick. With a sharp knife or pizza cutter, cut into 2-inch squares. Arrange the crackers on parchment lined baking sheets. With a toothpick, prick several holes in each cracker.

Bake for 15 minutes, until lightly browned at the edges. Remove from the oven and let cool on the pan.

Yield: 48 crackers

Pina Colada Bread Pudding

I always save the ends of bread in a freezer bag for bread pudding. The difference this time is that all the bread I have saved lately is from fresh, homemade bread... yum! So in honor of the "special bread ends" I decided to make a special pudding. This recipe is adapted from a few I found on-line. I just tweaked it a bit to fit what I had on hand. It's cooling right now and smells wonderful!



PINA COLADA BREAD PUDDING

12 thick slices day-old bread
1/4 c. softened butter
6 eggs
1 box banana pudding mix
1/2 c. brown sugar
1 (15 oz.) can crushed pineapple in juice
1 c. grated coconut
1 cup coconut milk
2 1/2 cups milk
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/4 c. sliced almonds

Spread butter on bread slices. Place in a 9 x 13 in. dish, overlapping slices. Beat eggs with brown sugar in bowl. Add pineapple, coconut, coconut milk and milk. Blend well. Add vanilla extract and pudding mix. Blend well again. Pour over and in between bread slices. Sprinkle with almonds. Allow to soak 15 minutes. Bake 45 minutes at 350 degrees. Allow to cool before serving. This would be wonderful served with whipped cream or ice cream on top!

Five Spice Cookies

We're participating in a cookie swap with our homeschool group on Friday so today was cookie dough day :) Each family brings 5 dozen of the same cookie and leaves with five dozen different kinds. I wanted to do something full of nice warm spices like cinnamon and ginger... but gingerbread men seemed too "boring". I came up with this recipe based on some ingredients we had on had. One word for these - YUM!

Five Spice Cookies

4 1/2 c. all-purpose flour
2 tsp. baking soda
2 tsp. salt
1 1/2 tsp. Chinese Five Spice Powder (I used Penzey's)
2 cups (4 sticks) butter, softened
1 1/2 cup granulated (white) sugar
1 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1 tsp. orange extract
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2 eggs
2 c. raisins

Combine flour, baking soda and salt and five spice powder in small bowl. Beat butter, granulated sugar, brown sugar, orange extract and vanilla in large mixer bowl. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition; gradually beat in flour mixture. Stir in raisins. Drop by rounded tablespoon onto ungreased baking sheets. Bake in preheated 375-degree oven for 9 to 11 minutes or until golden brown. Let stand for 2 minutes; remove to wire racks to cool completely.

Tres Leches Cake

I had been wanting to make Tres Leches Cake for some time now and back when I found that Tres Leches Cake Mix, I've been waiting for a special occasion to try it... (I figured a mix would make it easier the first time trying to make it). Yesterday we had our monthly church luncheon so I figured I would give it a try. Well.... it was quite an experience!

I was a bit skeptical when I read on the package that the cake is a single layer baked in a 9 inch pan and is supposed to soak up over 3 cups of liquid. The directions said to bake the cake, cool it then take it out of the pan. At the point you are to prepare the milk syrup, poke holes in the cake and pour the syrup over the cake.

Well, let's just say we went through a lot of paper towels with this project. My cake keeper does not have any type of edge around it which would catch any spilling liquid so all the excess liquid spilled everywhere! I only ended up using 3/4 of the liquid on the cake so hopefully it will be moist enough. I *think* the best way to approach a cake like this would be to bake it in a square pan and then leave it in the pan to cool then pour the liquid on it right in the pan. But, back to the story...

So once I got the cake cleaned up I took some canned crushed pineapple along with the liquid an and whisked in 2 Tbsp.. water mixed with 1 Tbsp. corn starch. I cooked that until thick and then spread it on the cake. The cake then went into the fridge to set. After a couple of hours I whipped 1/4 pint of heavy cream mixed with 1 Tbsp. Confectioners sugar and spread that over the entire cake. Finally I garnished with some coconut I had toasted and sliced strawberries. Sorry for not having a picture to share but we were running late and I didn't have time to find my camera!

Crock Pot Doughnut Pudding

I found a bag of doughnuts in the freezer... the little doughnut hole type. Since I haven't made bread pudding in a while I thought it would be a fun way to use them up for the kids. They loved it!

Crock Pot Doughnut Pudding

15 doughnut holes, cut in half
1 c. milk
2 eggs
2 Tbsp. sugar
1/4 butter or margarine, melted
1/2 tsp. vanilla
dash nutmeg

Put the doughnuts into a heat safe bowl (such as pyrex) and place the bowl in the crock pot. In a mixing bowl, combine remaining ingredients and mix well. Pour over doughnuts. Cover crock pot and crock pot and cook on low for 3 - 4 hours.

Mother's Day Goodies

How is it possible to create 3 dozen sweet rolls of 3 different varieties without spending all day in the kitchen? Use frozen bread dough! That's exactly what I did to make up some Mother's Day goodies to take with us to church tomorrow. If you look in the freezer section on your supermarket you will find bread dough sold in three loaf packages. The one I like it by Rhodes. Let the dough thaw in your refrigerator and then one loaf at a time roll the dough out into rectangles. About 6 x 14 inches works well. Spread the dough with butter then top as you like. Here's what I did today:

Cinnamon Raisin Rolls - I spread the dough with melted butter then topped with cinnamon and raisins. These are frosted with a traditional confectioners sugar icing.


Caramel Walnut Rolls - I spread these with melted butter then topped with chopped walnuts and cinnamon. These are frosted with Betty Crocker Caramel icing.


Strawberry Cream Cheese Rolls - I spread these with melted butter topped with a puree of frozen strawberries (thawed) with a little sugar added. These are frosted with a cream cheese icing.

Once you top the rolls, roll the dough up jelly roll fashion, starting at one of the long ends. Cut the roll into 12 equal slices and put the rolls (with space between them) into 9 x 13 in. pans sprayed with non-stick spray. Let them rise 3 hours then bake according to the directions on the dough package (check them after 30 minutes to make sure they are not browning too quickly). Remove them from the oven when done and ice them while still hot.

For the icings this is what I did:

confectioners sugar icing - confectioners sugar (about 1 c.) thinned with just enough milk to make is spreadable.

Caramel icing - store bought by Betty Crocker

Cream Cheese Icing - confectioners sugar (about 1 c.), 2 Tbsp. cream cheese and 2 Tb. butter creamed with enough milk to make it spreadable.

Pineapple Cheesecake Squares

We're off to run some errands today, and I am really hoping to beat the traffic! If you're familiar with Arizona you probably realize that in the past few years it's really growing around here! There has been traffic jams every time we hit the freeways lately. We've got a new sports arena going up on our end of town, lots of new homes and shopping centers. There is even a new enclosed outdoor field where people can go out with their paintball guns. My husband can't wait to give that a try but I think I'll be staying at home for that one! :)

I was just going through my recipes looking for a dessert for Easter. I was so happy to find this recipe which I absolutely love! I found it in a coupon circular in the Sunday newspaper about 15 years ago and it was an instant hit. I think I will make it again this year.

Pineapple Cheesecake Squares

Crust:
2 c. flour
2/3 c. butter or margarine, softened
1/2 c. almonds, finely shopped and toasted
1/2 c. powdered sugar

Mix all ingredients with a fork until crumbly. Press firmly into the bottom of an ungreased 9 x 13 x 2 in. pan. Bake at 350 for 15 to 20 minutes or until set.

Filling:
2 (8 oz.) pkgs. cream cheese
1/2 c. sugar
2 eggs
2/3 c. unsweetened pineapple juice
1/4 c. flour
1/4 c. sugar
1 (20 oz.) can crushed pineapple, well drained (reserve 1 c. juice)
1/2 c. heavy cream

Beat cream cheese until smooth and fluffy. Beat in 1/2 c. sugar and eggs. Stir in 2/3 c. pineapple juice. Pour over crust. Bake just until center is set (about 20 minutes). Cool completely. Mix flour and 1/4 c. sugar in a 2 qt. saucepan. Stir in 1 c. reserved pineapple juice. Heat to boiling over medium heat, stirring constantly. Boil and stir one minute. Remove from heat and fold in pineapple. Cool completely. Beat whipping cream in chilled bowl until stiff. Fold into pineapple mixture. Spread carefully over dessert. Cover loosely and refrigerate until fir (about 4 hours). Cut into 3 inch squares. Makes 12 squares.

Easy Boston Cream Pie

It's a typical Saturday at our house... Cleaning, baking and doing my girls hair :)

I made a Boston Cream Pie for our church luncheon tomorrow, I can't wait to cut into it, it smells wonderful! It's a simple recipe using a cake mix which I'll share with you in a minute. But first I wanted to take note of some yummy looking blog posts I found today.

Everybody Likes Sandwiches not only has a new look to her site but she's got these delicious looking scones posted today. I haven't made scones in years and can't wait to try this recipe. Now if only I had the sour cherry jam she has spread on hers :)

The Baking Sheet has a decedent looking Mexican Chocolate Loaf Cake posted and I will be making that soon as well. I love the taste of chocolate and cinnamon together.

The Canadain Baker made an Apple Snacking Cake which I think will be perfect to make for my girls snack time since they love apples.

CJ's Food and Fantasy has some mouth watering looking Teriyaki Chicken Wings. I normally am not too crazy about wings but these look REALLY good!

And finally, a couple of new recipes I plan to add to my Latin cooking repertoire, Off The Broiler's Caribbean Meatloaf and Sweetnick's Carne Con Papas.

OK, I think I'd better stop adding to my recipe pile now... here's my Boston Cream Pie and the recipe. :) And if you haven't already, please take my weekly poll (to your left) thanks!


Easy Boston Cream Pie

Cake:
1 package yellow cake mix (plus ingredients called for on the package)
1 additional egg
1/2 teaspoon lemon extract

Filling:
1 small box vanilla pudding mix
1 1/2 c. milk
1 tsp.. vanilla extract

Glaze:
3 Tbsp. cocoa powder
1 Tbsp. vegetable oil
1 c. confectioner's sugar, sifted
2 Tbsp. boiling water

Heat oven to 350 degrees.

Prepare pudding using 1 1/2 c. of milk and adding vanilla. When pudding is ready cover with foil and refrigerate.

Spray a 9 inch. springfrom pan with cooking spray. Bake the cake according to package directions adding the additional egg and lemon extract to the batter. Remove sides of pan and allow cake to cool with bottom disc of pan still attached for minutes, then remove disc by placing a plate on top of the cake and quickly flipping it over then remove the disc.

Cut the cake in half into two layers with a serated knife. Spread the bottom layer with the pudding. Place the top layer on top.

Make the glaze by blending all ingredients in a mixing bowl and beating until smooth. Glaze only the top layer of the cake. Keep the cake refrigerated.

Oatmeal Cake with Buttermilk Icing

I have been craving Oatmeal Cake lately but most of the recipes I have found are not that healthy and most contain butter which I am trying to stay away from. I found one recipe on-line at Anita's Recipes and modified it a bit and it turned out great! It's healthy, moist and delicious.

Oatmeal Cake

1 1/2 c. boiling water
1 c. quick oats
1/2 c. soft light margarine, softened (I used Smart Balance brand)
3/4 c. brown sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
1 eggs
2 egg white
1 Tbsp. ground flax seed
1/4 c. fat free plain yogurt
1 1/4 c. whole wheat flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 c. raisins
1/2 c. chopped walnuts

In a bowl combine boiling water and oats. Stir and let set until water is absorbed. Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees. Spray a 9 inch square pan with cooking spray. In a mixing bowl, combine oat mixture, margarine, brown sugar, vanilla, egg, egg whites and yogurt. Mix well; set aside. In a small bowl, combine flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. Add to oat mixture. Mix well. Pour batter into pan and bake for 35 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Allow to cool completely then ice with buttermilk icing.

Buttermilk Icing

1 c. brown sugar
1/2 c. buttermilk
3 Tbsp. flour
1 tsp. vanilla

Combine all in a sauce pan and whisk over medium heat until thick.

Mango Bars

I was looking for recipes to make for church on Sunday since we bring treats with us to share with everyone. I decided this week to make French Breakfast Muffins but wanted something else to bring as well. I found a recipe for Apple Butter Bars on-line and decided to modify it a bit for the ingredients I had on hand. These turned out really crumbly on top but cut easily. I think they will be a hit!

Mango Bars
(modified from Food Down Under)

3/4 c. shortning
3/4 c. brown sugar
1 1/4 c. whole-wheat flour
1 1/2 c. rolled oats
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. vanilla
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
1/4 tsp. salt
3/4 c. mango sauce (purchased at Trader Joe's)

In a medium bowl, cream shortning and brown sugar. In a second bowl, stir together flour, rolled oats, cinnamon, vanilla, nutmeg and salt. Add to creamed mixture and stir just to combine. In a greased 9- by 9-inch pan, press in half of the batter. Cover with the mango sauce. Top with remaining batter and press down firmly. Bake in a 375 degree oven for 25 to 30 minutes. Cut into bars.

Cupcakes and Quick Breads

I hope you've all been enjoying my Guest Bloggers this week! I know I sure have enjoyed some new and delicous sounding recipes. I'll have a new guest every Monday so be sure to stop back by and see who's visiting :)

I recently saw the most beautiful looking Chocolate and Peanut Butter Cupcakes on The Baking Sheet so of course, since I had the ingredients on hand I had to try them! My kids did not have a problem being the guinea pigs for a new recipe involving their two favorite flavors. I made a couple of changes to the recipe. First of all I added buttermilk in place of part of the regular milk called for because I love buttermilk in anything chocolate. I also added cinnamon. To me chocolate tastes incomplete without cinnamon, but that is a personal preference.


Chocolate Cupcakes
(recipe modified from Culinary Epiphanies)

1 ½ cups unbleached, all-purpose flour
¾ cup cocoa powder
¼ tsp baking soda
2 tsp baking powder
¼ tsp salt
¼ cup butter, very soft
1 cup sugar
½ cup brown sugar
2 eggs, room temperature
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 cup milk, warm
1/2 cup buttermilk, warm

Preheat oven to 350F. Line 24 muffin cups with paper liners. In a medium bowl, sift together flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder and salt. In a large bowl, cream together butter and sugars.eat in eggs one at a time. Add vanilla. Add flour and milk, alternating in 3 additions, ending with flour. Evenly distribute into prepared muffin tins. Bake at 350F for 15-17 minutes, until a tester comes out clean and the cake springs back when lightly pressed.
Cool completely on a wire rack. Makes 18.

Peanut Butter Frosting
(recipe originally from Cullinary In The Desert)

2 tbsp peanut butter
1 tbsp butter
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup milk
2 cups confectioners sugar

In a small saucepan over low heat, melt peanut butter and butter and dissolve sugar. Remove from heat and whisk in milk. Transfer to a medium bowl and set aside to cool completely.
Add confectioners sugar and beat on medium/high speed with an electric mixer, until smooth and fluffy. Spread on cooked cupcakes. Will frost 18 cupcakes (approx. 1 1/2 cups).

(I topped each cupcake with a slice of Reeses peanut butter cup)

Since I was in a baking mood, I also made a couple of quick breads. I am planning to take these with us to church this Sunday to share with the members of our church. I found these recipes on-line (I can't for the life of me remember where) and I changed them up a bit. They smelled wonderful baking. I have a photo of them which is not much to look at. I find that most quick breads don't have a lot of eye appeal but they taste great and are very moist. I think these will fit that bill as well!


Strawberry Banana Bread

3 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
2 tsp. tablespoon cinnamon
2 cups granulated sugar
4 eggs
1 cup vegetable oil
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2 cups frozen strawberries, thawed and diced
1 over-ripe banana, mashed well
1 1/2 cups chopped nuts (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease two loaf pans. Combine flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and sugar. Stir in 4 beaten eggs, oil, strawberries, banana, and nuts. Combine all ingredients until well moistened. Pour into prepared loaf pans. Bake for 65 minutes. Cool before removing from pans.

Carrot Cake Bread

3 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
3 cups all-purpose flour
3 carrots
1 (15 ounce) can crushed pineapple
1 1/2 cups canola oil
2 cups sugar
6 eggs
1 cups raisins
1 cup chopped walnuts (optional)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Grease and flour two 9x5 inch loaf pans. Sift together baking soda, salt, spices, and flour. In a large bowl, combine ground carrots, pineapple, oil, and sugar. Mix in eggs. Blend flour mixture into carrot mixture. Mix well. Fold nuts and raisins into batter. Pour into prepared pans. Bake at 375 degrees for 45 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into bread comes out clean.

NOTE: I cut both recipes in half for today but normally I'd go ahead and make the two loaves.

Gingerbread Cake

Gingerbread cake always reminds me of the holidays. I love it with a cup of cocoa. This recipe is easy, inexpensive and delicious. Serve it warm with whipped cream of lemon curd... you won't be disappointed!

Gingerbread Cake

1/3 c. vegetable oil
1/3 c. water
1/3 c. molasses
1/3 c. sugar
2 egg whites, lightly beaten
1 c. all-purpose flour
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. baking powder
1 Tbsp. ground ginger
2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
1/4 tsp. vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine oil, water, molasses, sugar and egg whites. Stir until well mixed. Mix flour, salt, baking soda, baking powder and spices in a small bowl. Add to liquid mixture along with vanilla. Mix well until smooth. Pour into a greased 8-inch square pan or 9-inch round pan. Bake 30 minutes or until surface gently springs back when touched.

Nanaimo Bars

When I was 18 years old a family friend brought over this wonderful treat as a Christmas gift to our family. She graciously included her recipe and I promptly decided I must learn to make them. I have made them for family and friends for the holidays ever since and am always happy to continue to pass on this delicious recipe. A word of caution, these are VERY rich so cut them very small. These bars are a national dish in Canada.

Mrs. Miles Nanaimo Bars

~ Base ~
2 squares Bakers Semi Sweet Chocolate, melted and cooled
2 c. graham cracker crumbs
1 c. coconut
1/2 c. butter, softened
1/2 c. chopped walnuts
2 Tbsp. sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
1 egg

Combine all ingredients and mix well. Press into a 9 in. square pan. Chill.

~ Filling ~
1/4 c. butter, softened
3 Tbsp. heavy cream
2 Tbsp. custard or vanilla pudding mix
2 c. confectioners sugar

Combine butter, milk and custard powder. Blend in sugar until smooth. Spoon over base. Chill at least 15 minutes.

~Glaze~
4 squares Baker's Semi Sweet Chocolate
1 Tbsp. butter

Partially melt chocolate with butter over hot water in a double boiler or microwave. Remove from heat and stir until completely melted. Spread over custard layer. Chill. Store in fridge up to one month.

Holiday Fudge

One of my all time favorite treats at holiday time is fudge. I have been making this recipe since I was in high school. I got the recipe from a jar of Kraft Marshmallow Creme and it is heavenly!

(photo and recipe from Kraftfoods.com)

Fantasy Fudge

3 cups sugar

3/4 cup (1-1/2 sticks) butter or margarine

1 small can (5 oz.) evaporated milk (about 2/3 cup)

1-1/2 pkg. (12 squares) BAKER'S Semi-Sweet Baking Chocolate, chopped

1 jar (7 oz.) JET-PUFFED Marshmallow Creme

1 cup chopped PLANTERS Walnuts

1 tsp. vanilla

LINE 9-inch square pan with foil, with ends of foil extending over sides of pan; set aside. Place sugar, butter and evaporated milk in large heavy saucepan. Bring to full rolling boil on medium heat, stirring constantly. Boil 4 min. or until candy thermometer reaches 234°F, stirring constantly to prevent scorching. Remove from heat.

ADD chocolate and marshmallow creme; stir until completely melted. Add walnuts and vanilla; mix well.

POUR immediately into prepared pan; spread to evenly cover bottom of pan. Cool at room temperature at least 4 hours; cut into 81 (1-inch) squares. Store in tightly covered container at room temperature.

Holiday Snickerdoodles

Our family is participating in a cookie exchange this year with our homeschool group. After searching through many recipes the girls chose these at the cookies to make. I am planning to buy the ingredients and make the dough to freezer it so that next week all we have to do is bake them. Can't wait to taste them!

Holiday Snickerdoodles
(Cookie Exchange Quantity

Red and green sugars dress up a best-loved cookie for the holidays.

2 tablespoons Betty Crocker® Decors red sugar
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
2 tablespoons Betty Crocker® Decors green sugar
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/2 cup shortening
1/2 cup butter or margarine, softened
2 eggs
2 3/4 cups Gold Medal® all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons cream of tartar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt


Heat oven to 400ºF. In small bowl, mix red sugar and 1 1/2 teaspoons of the cinnamon; set aside. In another small bowl, mix green sugar and remaining 1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon; set aside. In large bowl, beat sugar, shortening, butter and eggs with electric mixer on medium speed, or mix with spoon. Stir in flour, cream of tartar, baking soda and salt. Shape dough into 3/4-inch balls. Roll in sugar-cinnamon mixtures. Place about 2 inches apart on ungreased cookie sheet. Bake 8 to 10 minutes or until centers are almost set. Cool 1 minute; remove from cookie sheet to wire rack. Cool completely, about 30 minutes.

Chocolate Chip Blondies

Today is my husband's birthday and I am making his favorite dessert, Chocloate Chip Blondies. These blondies are so buttery and rich with chocolate ... chewy edges... softer in the middle... they are perfect for any occasion.

Chocolate Chip Blondies

1 1/2 c. brown sugar
1 stick of butter (do not use margarine!)
2 eggs, beaten
1 tsp. vanilla
1 1/2 c. flour
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
6 oz. chocolate chips

In a large bowl, combine brown sugar, butter, eggs and vanilla, just until blended. Combine flour, baking powder and salt. Add to brown sugar mixture. Stir in chocolate chips. Spread into a greased 9x13x2 in. pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 18 - 20 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean. Cut into bars when cooled.

Holiday Baking

Today I finally got started on my holiday baking. My husband works on Thanksgiving and there will be a potluck there so I made 2 loaves of Banana Spice bread from my Easy Banana Bread recipe, using spice cake mix and vanilla pudding. In two weeks we have our monthly homeschool meeting so I made a German Apple Cake from a recipe I found on allrecipes.com. Although the cake is now in the freezer and we won't be cutting it until the day of our meeting, I can tell you from the sample I had from the wonderful little bits that flaked off, it is DELICIOUS! I also baked two pans of corn bread -- one for my turkey stuffing and a second to go with the pinto beans I am cooking tomorrow night. I think I'm going to call it a day... we have plenty of leftovers for dinner and I'm tired! Here's the recipe for German Apple Cake...

German Apple Cake - adapted from allrecipes.com

2 eggs

1 cup vegetable oil

2 cups white sugar

1 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg
1/2 tsp. ground mace

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

4 cups apples - peeled, cored and diced

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour one 9x13 inch cake pan. In a mixing bowl; beat oil and eggs with an electric mixer until creamy. Add the sugar and vanilla and beat well. Combine the flour salt, baking soda, and ground cinnamon together in a bowl. Slowly add this mixture to the egg mixture and mix until combined. The batter will be very thick. Fold in the apples by hand using a wooden spoon. Spread batter into the prepared pan. Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 45 minutes or until cake tests done. Let cake cool on a wire rack. Once cake is cool serve with a dusting of confectioners' sugar or with a Cream Cheese Frosting.

Sweet Potato Pecan Pie

Sweet potato pie has been on my mind since I started planning my Thanksgiving menu a few days ago. The recipe I enjoy most is Sweet Potato Pecan Pie. I created this recipe to try to duplicate the pie that my grandfather made for Thanksgiving when I was a kid.

Sweet Potato Pecan Pie

1/3 cup butter or margarine, softened
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 eggs, lightly beaten
3/4 cup evaporated milk
2 cups mashed sweet potatoes (you can use canned yams)
1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/8 tsp. ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 c. chopped pecans
1 unbaked 9 inch pie shell

In a mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar. Add eggs and mix well. Add milk, sweet potatoes, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves and salt mix well. Sprinkle pecans into pie shell. Pour batter into pie shell. Bake at 425 degrees for 15 minutes. Reduce heat to 350 degrees; bake 35-40 minutes longer or until pie tests done. Cool then store in refrigerator.

Note: If the crust seems to be browning too quickly, remove it from the oven and lightly cover the crust with foil (just around the edge to cover the crust, do not cover the center of the pie) then return to oven to finish baking.

Arroz Dulce - Mexican Rice Pudding

I absolutly love rice pudding... it's so warm and comforting. The recipe I grew up eating is called Arroz Dulce. It's a Mexican style rice pudding that has no eggs in it and it's prepared on the stove top. It simple and very good. Here is my recipe.

Arroz Dulce

2 c. medium grain rice
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp vanilla
½ c. raisins
1/4 tsp salt
14 oz. can evaporated milk
½ c. whole or 2 % milk
Sugar, to taste (about 1/2 c. to 1 c.)

Cook the rice according to package directions with the cinnamon added to the cooking water. Soak the raisins in boiling water with the vanilla added then drain. When the rice is done, mix the salt and canned milk and whole or 2% milk in. Stir in the raisins. Taste and adjust seasonings to taste.