Vanilla Honey Cake

 

Vanilla Honey Cake

Made by my eldest and gobbled up by siblings and cousins. 

Directions:

Put a generous amount of honey in the middle of the layers 

Cake:

https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/food-network-kitchen/basic-vanilla-cake-recipe-2043654

Frosting:

https://www.twosisterscrafting.com/buttercream-frosting/#mv-creation-497-jtr

Apple Barley Pudding

Submitted by Marcia Van Camp
Inspired by http://www.europeancuisines.com/Ireland-Desserts-Irish-Apple-Barley-Pudding

Ingredients
1 1/2 pounds tart apples, cored, peeled and thinly sliced
4 rounded tablespoons pearl barley
4 tablespoons lemon juice (fresh if possible)
4 tablespoons sugar 1 quart water
2 tablespoons heavy cream
1 container of Cool Whip (8 oz)

Directions
1. Add the water to a heavy pot, add the barley, and bring to a boil. Add the sliced apples and cook gently until both the barley and the apples are soft (normally about half an hour).

2, At this point the apples may have gone completely to pieces. This is just fine. Remove the mixture from heat and puree -- either in a blender, right in the pot with a stick mixer, or by pushing through a sieve. (I didn't use a sieve)

3. Return the mixture to the pot and stir in the sugar and lemon juice. Bring to a boil again. Boil for about five minutes: then remove from the heat and cool.

4. When cooled, put into another container and refrigerate until very cold. Serve cold with cream stirred in. Or (for a slightly fancier take on the presentation) whip heavy whipping cream with a teaspoon of sugar per cup of cream, and layer in parfait glasses with the cream, saving a dollop for on top.

Notes: When I first made it, I thought the lemon was way too strong, but the next day it was much more subtle. I love the pudding and cream but I do think there might be something that could bring the two flavors together even better..perhaps a smidge of raspberry syrup would do the trick.

Earthquake Cake

Submitted by Marcia Van Camp


Ingredients
German Chocolate Cake Mix (Pillsbury is best)
8 oz. cream cheese
1 stick of butter (1/2 cup)
1 lb powdered sugar (2 cups)
1 cup crushed pecans
1 cup shredded coconut

Directions
1. Grease a 9 x 13 cake pan and then sprinkle coconut and pecans on the bottom of the pan.

2. Make cake mix as directed and pour into pan and spread evenly.

3. Heat oven to 350 degrees

4. Start water to boil in a double boiler.  When ready, put cream cheese and butter in the double boiler and melt.  Then add the powdered sugar and stir with a whisk.  Pour this over the cake mixture (like long pieces of ribbon).  The cake is going to bubble up through the cream cheese so you don't want to cover the cake completely.

5. Bake at 350 degrees for 45 min and enjoy!

Notes:
If you don't have a double boiler you can use a low heat setting and stir more often.  It will also help if the cream cheese and butter are softened ahead of time. My sister also served this to a family in Brussels and they absolutely loved it!

One-Bowl Chocolate & Orange Cake

ACTIVE | 20 MIN.TOTAL | 1 HR. 20 MIN.

• 1¼ cups all-purpose flour, plus 1 Tbsp.
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• ¾ cup Dutch-processed cocoa powder (such as Guittard or Droste), sifted if lumpy
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• Large pinch ground cloves
• ½ cup unsalted butter (1 stick), melted and cooled
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten
• 2 tsp. finely grated orange zest
• ¾ cup freshly squeezed orange juice
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips or chunks
• Powdered sugar

---

• Preheat oven to 350°F. Spray the bottom and sides of one 9×2-inch round cake pan with baking spray. Line the bottom of the cake pan with a circle of parchment paper. Spray parchment with baking spray.
• In a large mixing bowl stir together the 1¼ cups flour, the sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, cloves, and ½ tsp. salt. Add melted butter, eggs, orange zest and juice, buttermilk, and vanilla; whisk the mixture until batter is smooth. Toss chocolate chips with remaining 1 Tbsp. flour. Using a rubber spatula, fold chocolate chips into the batter. Transfer batter to the prepared cake pan.
• Bake about 1 hour or until the cake is firm to the touch. Cool in pan on wire rack. Run a table knife around edge of pan. Invert (you might need to give the pan a little whack). Peel off parchment; invert cake. Sprinkle with powdered sugar. Makes 8 to 10 servings.

Each serving 439 cal, 21 g fat, 79 mg chol, 344 mg sodium, 64 g carb, 4 g fiber, 7 g pro.

Notes: I saw this recipe in Better Homes and Gardens and made it in Jan 2017.  It was really good but I think the next day it was better because the orange taste was stronger.  Also - using parchment paper is a good idea as the directions indicate because it really does help it not stick to the pan. I thought it would have been good with some candied oranges on the top or something colorful. 

The directions above are from this website but I am pretty sure they are referencing the BHG recipe.

https://www.texture.com/article/all/test/drop-ins-welcome/f1e8901c-ca24-3ffb-8dca-11ec39fb955c/

Chocolate Moose

Submitted by Marcia Van Camp

Today I had to make chocolate moose for a large group of people and most recipes I came across were fairly complicated or required the moose to sit overnight.

This is my easy moose recipe, there might be better ones out there, but I have always gotten smiles and requests for seconds with this one.

Ingredients
Hershey's Syrup (24 oz)
1 quart heavy whipping cream
Cool Whip or similar (optional)

Directions
1. Mix the syrup and whipping cream together in a good blender.  I have a Ninja blender which worked really well.  I had the blender on a low setting for less than a minute and the moose was well mixed and dense.  I have also used a Magic Bullet for smaller portions which has worked well in the past.

2. If you want your moose to be darker / have more chocolate, you can add more syrup, but I would taste as you go, because it's pretty sweet already.

3. Keep refrigerated until you are ready to serve.  If it gets too soupy you can even blend it again if needed, but I have never had to do that.  You can also add a little whipped cream to the top, or maybe a cookie, which is tasty and cute.  My cookie of choice is a Thin Mint, but it's rare that I would have any around the house that I was willing to part with!

4. This yields about 6 cups of moose, and since it's rich, smaller portions work very well.  These are the dishes I like to use, and they are less than 3 oz.

Notes:
Magic Bullet directions http://www.food.com/recipe/magic-bullet-chocolate-mousse-221975

Oreo Cheesecake

Submitted by Marcia Van Camp
Inspired by: http://allrecipes.com/recipe/180603/easy-philly-oreo-cheesecake/

Ingredients:
24 Oreo Cookies
3 Tbl butter melted (I used unsalted)
3 (250g) packages of cream cheese softened (I use Philly)
3/4 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla
3 eggs

Special Instructions: 
1. I lined the bottom of the pan with parchment paper to avoid sticking.  If you don't know how to do this, there are a lot of great videos online.

2. My cheesecake had large cracks in it when it came out of the oven, and I look up ways to fix it. The best method was getting a spatula a little wet and smoothing over the cracks.  This could have been easily covered up with some decorations but I still would like to avoid it in the future.  I have seen a few things online about giving the cake a "water bath" basically cooking it with water surrounding it, so I may try that next time and see if it makes a difference.

Instructions
1. Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Crush 16 cookies which will become the crust.  The original directions say to do this in a bag but I found it very messy because a lot of the cookies stuck to the inside of the bag.  I had better luck with putting the cookies in a bowl and crushing them with a drinking glass. The method doesn't really matter, as long as they get crushed!

2. Place crushed cookies in bowl. Add butter; mix well (a small spoon works fine). Press firmly onto bottom of 9-inch springform pan.

3. Beat cream cheese, sugar and vanilla in large bowl with electric mixer on medium speed until well blended. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating just until blended after each addition. Chop or crush remaining 8 cookies. Stir the cookies into the batter. (I was supposed to keep some out for decorating the top, but I just put them all in the batter)

4. Bake 45 min. or until center is almost set. Cool and refrigerate 3 hours or overnight. After eating more than you probably should...Store leftover cheesecake in refrigerator.

Notes: It would also be fun to make mini cheesecakes with this recipe in cupcake pans but I think you would need more crushed Oreos for the crusts.  On the other hand, you could just buy the Oreo thins and split them up and use those without crushing anything.   I think I would drizzle some chocolate sauce over this next time or put some whole Oreos or even a few strawberries in the middle for decoration.

Irish Chocolate Potato Cake

Submitted by Marcia Van Camp

Inspired by http://www.europeancuisines.com/Ireland-Irish-Chocolate-Potato-Cake-Recipe-March-7-2009. This is a really cool website and has some other fun facts about the recipe.

You read the title correctly, there are really potatoes in this chocolate cake and it's a really, REALLY good cake, so take a chance and try it out!

No pictures for now because we ate it too fast!

Ingredients:

• 1/2 lb unsalted butter
• 2 1/3 cups / 1 pound granulated sugar
• 4 large eggs
• 9 rounded tablespoons grated chocolate (I used about 1 ½ bars of Ghirardelli’s milk chocolate baking bars)
• 3 tablespoons cocoa (I used dark chocolate)
• 1 cup cooked and mashed potato (cooled, do not add hot or warm)
• 2 1/2 cups flour  
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 2 rounded teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2/3 cup milk (I used whole milk)

Bundt pan Directions: (I didn’t use this method)

For preparing the pan you'll bake in:

• 1 1/2 tablespoons flour
• 1 1/2 tablespoons cocoa

First prepare your cake pan. A tube pan like a Bundt pan works best for this recipe: but a springform cake pan works fine too.

If using a tube pan or Bundt pan, butter it well inside, paying particular attention to any flutings or crevices in the pan. Then mix the flour and cocoa together and use this mixture to flour the inside of the pan.

Springform pan Directions:

If using a springform pan, butter it too: then line it with a circle of buttered baking parchment for the bottom and a strip of buttered baking parchment for the sides.

This is the method I used because I couldn’t find my Bundt pan.  It was yummy, but I think the Bundt has a better shape for presentation.

Here is a video which might help: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2vKnDOSO-mY

Cake Directions:

·        Preheat the oven to 350° F. Then prepare the cake batter:

·         Grate the chocolate on a fine grater, or pulse in a food processor, or crush with a mortar and pestle, until reduced to small granules. The food processor is by far the easiest and fastest way: the grater and mortar-and-pestle are more labor intensive, but produce a slightly finer result. (I did it by hand and it took a while and because it was milk chocolate it was messy.  Next time I think I will try the food processor).

·         When this is done, sift the flour once by itself. Then sift it a second time with the cinnamon, baking powder and salt.

·         Cream the butter with the sugar until light and fluffy. (Mine wasn’t light and fluffy but it looked mixed!)

·         Separate the eggs. Add the yolks, one at a time, to the creamed mixture, beating well after each one.

·         Stir in the grated chocolate, ground almonds (optional) and cocoa. Add the potato and stir again.

·         Add the flour alternately with the milk, beating gently until smooth after each addition.

·         When this process is complete, whip the egg whites until stiff but not dry. Fold the whipped egg whites carefully into the cake mixture.

·         Spoon into the prepared springform pan or Bundt pan / tube pan: tap gently once on the counter to settle. Bake for 1 3/4 hours. Test for doneness with a toothpick or skewer at the end of this time: bake for another 15 minutes if needed.

·         Remove from the oven and allow to rest in the pan for at least twenty minutes before removing from the pan: then cool on a rack.

·         To finish, you could dust with confectioners' sugar but I chose to drizzle some chocolate over it.

I used the fudge sauce from this recipe, and I only needed about ½ but I put the rest in the freezer and it’s been nice to have it ready to go for other desserts.

http://brissonsbakery.blogspot.com/2009/10/chocolate-truffle.html

Notes:

1.       The original recipe has you sieve the potatoes, but I didn’t really know how and I didn’t have time to do it. The end result was that I had tiny, very tiny lumps in my cake, but I actually liked them because they made it seem like there were soft little nuts in there.  I am sure the cake is awesome with sieving BUT it’s not a deal breaker.

2.       The original recipe calls for 5 rounded Tbls ground almonds but I excluded them in case of nut allergies.  After tasting the cake, I think that almonds would be really good and I want to try them next time. 

Shortbread Cookies

11/19/2015 Submitted by Marcia Van Camp

Ingredients
2 cups butter, softened
1 cup of white sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
4 cups all-purpose flour

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
2. Cream butter and sugar until fluffy, and then stir in the vanilla.
3. Add flour and salt and mix well
4. Roll out cookie dough and cut cookie
5. Bake for 10-12 min

Notes: This recipe was on the package for these cute cut-out cookies that I bought at World Market. I looked on their site but I don't think they have the recipe online.

http://www.worldmarket.com/product/flower+side-of-the-cup+cookie+cutter.do

Sweet is the Work

Submitted by Marcia Van Camp 11/09/2015

For Young Women in Excellence this year, our theme was Sweet is the Work.  Here are some pictures of the decorations which I am posting so if there are others out there who want to copy any of this, please do!  I can't take credit for the any of the creativity, my main contribution was frosting cupcakes.

Here is the original blog that we were inspired by and which has all these wonderful printable items!

http://shelleybeatty.com/life/events/young-women-in-excellence-young-womens-program-lds-church-church-of-jesus-christ-of-latter-day-saints-mormon/

Young Women in Excellence is a program we have every year for the girls in church ages 12 to 18 to celebrate all the hard work they have done.  We had talks given by girls on different values such as Integrity, Faith, Knowledge and so on. We also sang the hymn, Sweet is the Work and it was lovely.

https://www.lds.org/music/library/hymns/sweet-is-the-work?lang=eng

I love these rosettes and the individual cotton candy treats.  We had small bags so that girls and their families could take candy home with them. 

The podium was covered which looked so great especially when the girls were up there speaking.  

Here is a view of the whole scene.  We ended up using about half of the gym so that the program would be more intimate.  The table in the back was set up so that girls could display items from their projects.  I also like the chevron banner hanging above because it's so colorful.  As with many old church buildings, we cannot lift the basketball hoop, so we added some pom poms to it. 

Welcome table and programs.  I absolutely LOVE those large lollipop decorations.  It makes me want to watch Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.

 

Look at this yummy display!  I love the white chocolate fountain that has matching colors, so pretty!  We had strawberries, popcorn (yes, it comes in pink), and a yummy cherry bundt cake among other things.

For the chairs, plastic tablecloths were cut in strips so everything looked pretty but it was cheaper than tool, and you more options for colors. Since we were in the gym, the backboard was covered as well with those plastic tablecloths.

All of the Young Women values were on the wall along with pictures of each of the Young Women.

I made frosting for about 48 cupcakes and piped them and I doubled the below recipe but I ended up adding a little more shortening because it was too firm.    

Frosting (not doubled)

1 cup white shortening

1 lb. powdered sugar

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

8 teaspoons of water

Pink Wilton Paste - I used about 1/16 of a teaspoon 

**you might need to add a little more water or shortening to get the desired consistency

Funnel Cakes

Submitted by Marcia and Casey Van Camp

Ingredients
2 1/2 cups self-rising flour
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 1/3 cups milk
2 eggs, slightly beaten
Vegetable oil
Sifted powder sugar (optional)

Directions
1. Combine flour, sugar, milk, and eggs in a bowl, beating until smooth
2. Heat 1/4 inch oil to 375 degrees in a skillet
3. Cover bottom opening of a funnel with a finger
(funnel with a 3/8 inch opening works best)
4. Pour 1/4 cup batter into funnel and hold funnel over the skillet
5. Remove finger from the funnel's end to release batter into hot oil; move funnel in a slow, circular motion to form a spiral
6. Fry each funnel cake 1 minute or until edges are golden brown; turn and fry until golden
7. Drain on paper towels
8. Repeat with remaining batter
9. Serve warm and sprinkle with powdered sugar if desired
10. This makes about 1 dozen 5 inch cakes

Ice Cream Cake

Submitted by Marcia Van Camp

I made this cake for my mom's birthday this year and it was delicious!  Since it is cold, it may have been better for me to make it in the summer, but I wanted to try something new and I was very pleased with the results.  It took more prep time because you have to keep freezing it along each step, but the steps themselves are pretty easy.

http://www.yummly.com/recipe/Breyers-ice-cream-birthday-cake-296500?columns=1&position=3/36&ad=338006,b61b5c4b-8920-44a0-a8c1-a072be18d4bd,Search%20Results,3,with%20image,http://www.yummly.com/recipe/Breyers-ice-cream-birthday-cake-296500

Ingredients:
1. 1 box (18.25 oz.) Devil's food cake mix

2. 1 container (1.5 qt.) your favorite Ice Cream
  Getting ice cream in a square cardboard container will be the easiest. 

3. 1 container (8 oz.) frozen whipped topping, thawed          

4. 1 jar (7 oz.) marshmallow creme

Directions

1. Cook the Devil's food cake as directed and let it completely cool

2. Trim the top of the cake so it's flat.  Cut the cake in two
3. Wrap cakes in aluminum foil and freeze at least 2 hours.
4. Take the cakes out of the freezer and place 1 piece on a serving platter.
5. If you have purchased a square container of ice cream you should be able to open it up and slice pieces that will line up with your cake.  I bought ice cream which had to be scooped and it was very messy.  You can try to smooth it out and make it even but it's a lot of extra work.
6. Once you have the desired amount of ice cream on your cake, place the second piece of cake on top.
7. Freeze for about 5 hours (overnight is easy as well)
8. Beat whipped topping with marshmallow creme in large bowl until smooth. Frost cake with whipped topping mixture.
9. Freeze 1 hour. Decorate as desired.

Grandma's Jello Fruit Salad

Submitted by Alisha Stamper

Ingredients:
one 3.5 oz strawberry jello

one 3.5 oz raspberry jello

one 16 oz frozen sliced strawberries with sugar

two cans fruit cocktail with cherry removed after opening

two bananas

Directions: 

1. Defrost strawberries and strain with a colander. 

2. Strain fruit cocktail on top of the strawberries. Remove cherries.

3. Empty both jello powder packets into one bowl. 

4. Boil two cups of water, add to powder, whisk to dissolve.

5. Add two cups cold water to jello mixture.

6. Put fruit in whatever contained you want jello to "Set" in.

7. Cut up bananas into fruit.

8. Pour jello mixture on top, push down fruit as needed. Let set overnight.

Under the Sea Party

11/03/2015 
Submitted by Marcia Van Camp

Here are some pictures from Aurora's 1st birthday party. We love her so much!

Sandcastle cake! 

I used candy molds and candy melts for the seashells.  I made one cake mix in a 9 x 13 pan for the bottom.  Then I made another cake mix and split it between two smaller round glass pans I had.  I frosted with white frosting and used crushed up graham crackers for the sand. I looked at a lot of pictures online and some used marshmallows for the tops, and I used sugar cubes.  I also frosted beyond the cake onto the tray so it would spread out a little more.  I really like the way it turned out. 

Next time I would use white or a light brown cake mix since other colors show through easily...and perhaps a darker frosting as well.  I would also use less moisture in the cakes so they stack easier. For the frosting, I would not get extra whipped since it slides off the sides and can't handle the graham cracker.  

Star cookies!

I rolled out some Pillsbury ready to bake sugar cookies and used a star cookie cutter. I added some Wilton colors and eyes, and look how cute they are!

Sand dollar cookies!

I used some Pillsbury ready to bake sugar cookies for these.  I made a small bowl of light and dark brown sugar.  I put the bottom of a glass into the sugar and flattened out the cookies with it.  I bought a package of sliced almonds and tried to pick out a bunch that were not broken and had nice shapes.  I placed them on the cookies after they baked and some were easier than others.  I started getting them wet with water and that seemed to help them stick.  I think next time I would make these cookies just a little thicker.

Broken Glass Cupcakes / Cookies

Submitted by Marcia Van Camp, 10/31/2015

Inspired by http://easybaked.net/2013/10/09/creepy-broken-glass-cupcakes/

Here are some pictures of the cookies I made this Halloween.  I wanted to make cupcakes but ran out of time and energy SO I used the Pillsbury ready to bake sugar cookies I had in the fridge.  I like the attached recipe since you can microwave the glass concoction vs. using your pan.  I did find though that using cooking spray changed the color to more yellow glass...and the glass was kinda sticky.  I tried it without but then the glass just stuck to the wax paper.  Maybe next year I will try some different methods.  I was able to get enough glass though to break off, so it all worked out.

Also, I don't know that I would used sweet and condensed milk again.  I would probably try for something thicker.  My blood isn't quite as good because I didn't have any black dye, and I was trying to use brown.

Zucchini Bread

Zucchini Bread
Submitted by Marcia & Casey Van Camp

Poppa Van Camp showed me how to make this and it was delicious!

Ingredients:
3 eggs
1 cup vegetable oil
1/3 cup packed brown sugar (we used light)
2 cups grated zucchini
2 tsp. vanilla (extract is fine)
1 2/3 cups granulated sugar (white)
3 cups flour (all-purpose)
1 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
2 tsp. cinnamon (ground)
1 tsp. allspice (ground)

Directions:
1. Beat eggs until foamy
2. Add oil, brown sugar, zucchini, vanilla and granulated sugar.  Mix lightly
3. Stir in flour and the remaining ingredients
4. Pour mixture into 2 loaf pans
5. Bake at 325 degrees for 1 hour or until toothpick comes out clean

Notes:
To prepare the zucchini, wash them off and cut off the ends.  Chop them into medium/large pieces and put them in a food processor.  They do not need to be grated more than a few seconds because you want to get them finely chopped but not squishy.

Biscoff Cupcakes

Submitted by Marcia Van Camp
Inspired by http://lifemadesimplebakes.com/2012/07/biscoff-gourmet-cupcakes/

Biscoff Gourmet Cupcakes
Ingredients
1 c. all-purpose flour
3/4 c. sugar
1/4 c. brown sugar
1/2 c. (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
2 eggs
2 tbsp. heavy whipping cream
3 tbsp. whole milk
1/2 c. Biscoff spread (creamy*)
1/4 c. Biscoff cookies, crumbled
1 tbsp. vanilla extract
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. cinnamon

Biscoff buttercream frosting:
1/2 c. (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
1/2 c. (1 stick) salted butter, room temperature

2/3 c. Biscoff spread

3 tsp. vanilla extract
3 c. powdered sugar
4 tbsp. heavy cream

DIRECTIONS (cupcakes)
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. You can either make about 12 normal sized cupcakes or about 48 mini cupcakes

2. In a medium size mixing bowl, add flour, salt and baking soda, and mix to combine (you can use a spoon)

3. In a large bowl, beat together the remaining ingredients for the cupcakes.  When all of these are well mixed, add in the dry ingredients from the other bowl.

4. Fill the cupcake / mini-cupcake liners 3/4 full

5.  If you are using regular cupcake sizes, cook about 20 minutes.  If you are using mini-cupcakes, bake about 10 minutes.

6.  When the cupcakes are done, allow them to cool.  I usually like to make them the day before and let them sit in the fridge overnight.

DIRECTIONS (frosting)
1. I doubled the original recipe because I hate running out of frosting.  Also, if you have some left, you can store it in the fridge or freezer.

2. In a large bowl, add all the ingredients and mix until they are smooth and the frosting is the consistency you desire.

3. If you want to make sure it is stiff, you can mix it longer, or even add meringue powder.

4. Frost the cupcakes and either serve or put them in the fridge to keep them fresh until serving.

Notes: 
*My cupcakes turned out a little flat on the top, but they taste very good.  You could try adding sour cream vs. whipping cream to the cupcakes like in the original recipe but I don't know if that will make a huge difference in the shape.
*I really REALLY like this frosting and I want to try using it on other flavors of cupcakes.

Also - if you aren't familiar with Biscoff, here are pictures of the cookies and spread.  They have these at our local grocery store.  If they don't have them where you live, you could order them online, or perhaps even be brave and try a different type of cookies.'

Tiger Butter

Submitted by Marcia Van Camp

I do not know where my mom found this recipe but it is a Brisson Family Favorite and something we make every Christmas.  It is rich and decadent and oh so delicious!

Ingredients:
24 oz. of semi sweet chocolate morsels
24 oz. of white chocolate morsels
18 oz. of chunky peanut butter (Skippy is my preference)
 (also depending on the size of the jar, the amount can be adjusted within a few ounces more or less)

Special Items:
Wavy cutter (see photo below)
Wax paper


Directions:
1. Take a 9x13 pan or cookie sheet and cover the bottom in wax paper.  You can use another size, but just make sure it has an edge since you will be pouring in liquid goodness

2. Get 2 saucepans on the stove and turn the heat on medium for the first and low for the second

3. In the first saucepan (medium heat), combine all the white chocolate and peanut butter.  Stir constantly.

4. Add the semi sweet chocolate morsels to the second pan (low heat) and stir constantly. 

Note:  You will basically have 2 pans heating at once but you want the white chocolate mixture to be done a little sooner because it takes longer to melt down.  If you try heat both at the same time, the chocolate will dry out.  Usually, when I see that the white chocolate mixture is almost done, I turn the heat up on the semi sweet chocolate so that it will melt down and give me time to pour out the white chocolate mixture onto the wax paper.

5. Once the white chocolate mixture is creamy, pour it onto the wax paper in the pan and spread somewhat evenly.

6. Turn up the heat on the semi sweet chocolate and when it is melted, pour it in about 5-6 lines vertically on top of the white chocolate mixture.  This will be a crazy not pretty looking process but don't worry, it will be fine.  Then take a butter knife and run it through the mixture slowly in horizontal lines (about 5ish) and then in vertical lines (about 5ish).  You really don't want to do more than that because it will mix everything up too much.  Horizontal once and vertical once and you are done.

It should look like this when you are done (ignore the cuts, that is for later)

7.  Then stick it in the fridge for about 2 hrs to cool and harden.  Take it out and let it sit for 5 minutes.  You will want to cut it but if it is too cold it will be brittle and won't take the pattern of your wavy cutter.  Start cutting it up and remember that however you store it, you will need wax paper between the layers or it will stick together.  When I make it for Christmas, I have little containers standing by so that I can divvy it up and get it out of the house asap...or else there will be nothing left!

6. Here is what the pieces look like when they are all done.  So pretty and yummy!  I try to cut them small because they are really rich.  You can serve them on a pretty plate for a party or package them up for your friends and family but remember...keep everything in the fridge not because they will spoil but because that peanut butter makes everything really soft if they are out too long.

 Here is a fun cartoon picture!  Yummy!

Enjoy!

Notes:
This is a fun treat to make with 2 people so that each person is stirring 1 pan and it makes it a little easier.  My mom likes to use a double boiler to melt the chocolate and you might find that works well for you too...I don't have the patience or the pans to go that route but as long as you don't overcook and dry out the chocolate you are fine either way.

Strawberry Soup

Submitted by Marcia Van Camp

 

 

Maggie brought some of this over to our apartment once and it was so good.  I am happy she taught me how to make it!

Ingredients:
1 lb. of fresh strawberries
3 tbsp. lemon juice
3/4 c. sugar
1 1/2 c. water
1 c. Cool Whip (or similar)

Directions:
1. Combine all except cool whip. 
2. Heat slowly until mixture comes to a boil
3. Cook about 8 minutes, then remove from heat and cool
4. Blend the cool whip and the mixture together at a low speed
5. Store soup in the refrigerator in a covered container for at least 4 hours.
6. Serve cold

Notes: We like to eat this by itself but you could also put it on pancakes or ice cream etc.

Apple Amber Tart Meringue Pie

Submitted by Marcia Van Camp
I made this for the St. Patrick's Day and I really liked it!







http://www.europeancuisines.com/Ireland-Desserts-Apple-Amber-Tart-Meringue-Pie



I cooked the apples but I didn't fully purée them b/c it sounded too time consuming

This is the crust I used, but I am sure many kinds would work. http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2007/12/p-p-p-pie_crust_and_its_p-p-p-perfect/

Ingredients:
Pastry dough for a single-crust pie (I made mine, I don't like the store kind)
4 cooking apples, totaling about 1 pound, cored and peeled (I picked 4 different random apples)
2 tablespoons water
Juice of one lemon, strained (I guessed and used probably 2 tbls lemon juice)
3 large eggs, separated
1/2 cup sugar, or to taste




Directions:
1. First, prepare the pie crust in a suitable pie dish. Set aside.

2. Preheat the oven to 350° F.


3. Grate the apples on a coarse grater or cut them up tiny b/c sometimes graters are messy.

4. Add the 2 tablespoons of water to a small heavy pot, heat until steaming, add the apples, and cook over medium heat. The original directions want you to do this until the apples are pureed but I like to be able to bite into the apples, so I did not cook them that long.

5. Remove from heat and let it cool a little.

6. Beat the egg yolks slightly (this will help you not get a scrambled egg in your apples...not like I did that, ha ha ha)

7. Add the lemon and three-quarters of the sugar to the apple puree: then add the egg, and stir well.

8. Spoon the mixture into the pie shell and bake for twenty minutes.

9. Meanwhile, start beating the egg whites, adding the remaining sugar gradually as you continue beating. Whip until stiff peaks form.

10.When the pie has had its first twenty minutes in the oven, remove it and spread the meringue over the top of the pie, close to the edges

11. Return to the oven for another 10 minutes, or until nicely browned.

12. The direction say serve hot or cold, but I think cold is best

no title fudge

I threw this together while the family was at church today (still home with Fern). I plan on making it again with more ingredients so that it is measurements.

Semi-sweet chocolate chips

nutella

sweetened coconut flakes

raisins

sea salt

melt nutella and chocolate chips in a double boiler. (I used probably 6 oz chocolate chips --one cup-- and  few tbsp nutella, just what I had left in the jar)

once melted, stir in 1/4-1/2 c. coconut, and the same amount of raisins

put into dish to set, topping with sea salt before placing in fridge.

I find it is easiest to cut if you score it about half an hour after placing in the fridge.

(I will be making this again with the standard fudge base of butter, chocolate chips and marshmallows, then adding the nutella, coconut and raisins.