Red Velvet Whoopie Pies

If you've never had a whoopie pie, you're missing out, they are like a cookie cake with filling, they are so yummy!

Ingredients:

2 c. flour

2 TBS. unsweetened cocoa powder

1/2 tsp. baking soda

1/4 tsp. salt

1/2 c. butter. softened 

1 c. packed brown sugar

1 egg

1 tsp. vanilla

1/2c. buttermilk

2 TBS. red food coloring

Preheat oven to 375 degrees and line cookie sheet with parchment paper, or foil that's been sprayed with vegetable oil. In a medium bowl combine flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside. In a large mixing bowl beat the butter for about 30 seconds to a min. Beat in brown sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in egg and vanilla. Alternately add flour mixture and buttermilk, beating after each addition just until combined. Then hand stir in food coloring. Spoon batter ( it will be thick and sticky) leaving at least 1 inch apart and about 1/2 inch thick. Bake 7 to 11 min, depending on how big you made them, smaller cookies try 7 to 9, larger 9 to 11 mins. Or wait until tops are just set. Cool completely on sheet on wire rack. Once completely cooled cut them in half and fill with real whipped cream, cool whip just doesn't have the flavor. They'll look like little red sandwiches. 

All Purpose Dough

I use this for almost everything, rolls, pizza dough, or cinnamon rolls, or basically anything you want.

Ingredients:

4 c. bread flour or all purpose

1/4 c. granulated sugar

1/2 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

2 1/2 tsp. dry active yeast

1/2 stick or 1/4 c. melted butter

1 egg

1 egg white

1 1/2 c. buttermilk, warm, microwave for a minute

You can use a bread machine and put on the dough cycle, or an electric mixer with dough hook. If you are using a bread machine, make sure how yours works, like dry ingredients on bottom or top. Mine for instance is wet on bottom and then I put flour over the top then the rest of dry then yeast last, you need to keep it separate until the mixing starts. If you are doing it with a mixer and hook put all wet in then yeast then remaining dry and mix on low speed for 2 minutes, then medium fast for 6 minutes.  Then transfer to bowl sprayed with vegetable oil and lightly floured bowl and cover with plastic wrap and let sit out at room temp until doubled in size, then punch down and cover again and let sit for 10 minutes. Then roll out for whatever you are using it for. Rolls for instance need to rise again after you've shaped them. If you are doing pizza, and using a pizza stone put the stone in the oven while preheating so it's hot when you put the dough on it and the toppings, it starts to cook the bottom and helps even baking with the dough.

Chai-Tea

If you've never had Chai-Tea you are definatley missing out. This is best to make in a Cocoa-latte machine from bed, bath, and beyond (worth it, highly recommended!!) But in a saucepan over the stove or a tea kettle while work just fine.

Ingredients:

2 cups milk

1/4 cup water

1 1/2 tsp. unsweetened instant tea, i also get the uncaffienated too

1/4 tsp. cinnamon

1/4 tsp. ginger

1/4 tsp. cloves

1/4 tsp. nutmeg

2 TBS honey

If using the cocoa-latte or a different hot drink maker, just add together and turn on. If on the stove top or kettle, add the milk and water and warm through, do not let it boil, then add remaining ingredients and whisk until honey and tea are dissolved. 

K-rab Salsa

I love this fake krab salsa, you could use real crab, but K-rab works and tastes just fine.

Ingredients:

1/2 large onion, chopped

3 medium sized vine tomatoes,chopped

1 cucumber, diced

1/2 bell pepper, chopped

1 pkg. imitation crab

1/2 bunch cilantro

1 1/2 c. v8 tomato juice

2 TBS ketchup

1 tsp. tapatio or el pato hot sauce

juice of 3 limes

Chop everything about the same size, I chop small. Mix everything in bowl, cover and let sit in the fridge for a few hours. The longer it sits the better it tastes. You can adjust ingredients to make more or less.

Pumpkin Swirl Cheesecake

For those who like pumpkin but not pumpkin pie so much (me) I don't know why it's something about the texture of the pie, but I love pumpkin bread and cookies, so this cheesecake is really good and easier for me to eat.

Ingredients:

1 c. graham cracker crumbs (8 full rectangles)

2 TBS or 1/4 stick butter, melted

1 c. sugar

2 tsp. vanilla

4 eggs

1-16 ounce can of solid pumpkin pack

2 TBS cornstarch

1 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp allspice

1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp nutmeg

1-8 ounce container of sour cream, or 1 cup

For the crust crush the crackers into fine crumbs and add the butter and mix until the crumbs are completely covered and slightly hold together. Press in the bottom of springform pan and bake at 325 degrees for 10 min and allow to cool. If you are using a round cake pan there will be left over cheesecake mix and you can do the mini cheesecakes again,(refer to the white chocolate cheesecake recipe)

In a large bowl beat cream cheese on medium speed until smooth, slowly add the sugar. Then on low speed add eggs slowly one at a time, scraping down after each egg and only blend until combined. In a separate bowl mix pumpkin, cornstarch, cinnamon, allspice, salt, and nutmeg. Stir in HALF cream cheese mixture in pumpkin, then stir the remaining cream cheese mix with the sour cream. KEEP THEM SEPARATE!!

Now take 1/2 c of pumpkin cream cheese mixture and set aside. Pour the remaining pumpkin over the crust to make first layer. Then pour the sour cream mix over into another layer. Spoon dollops of the 1/2 c. reserved pumpkin onto the sour cream. With a butter knife cut and twist through white sour cream layer to make swirl effect. Bake the cheesecake for 1 hour at 325 on a baking sheet. Then turn the oven off and leave cheesecake in oven while off for another hour. With a small knife loosen cheesecake from sides of the pan to prevent cracking while cooling. Cool completely on wire rack. Cover and refrigerate overnight or 6 hours at least. 

Bob's White Chocolate Raspberry Cheesecake

This is my all time favorite Bob recipe! He is a genius!

Crust:

1 1/4 c. Famous chocolate cookies crushed

1/4 c. sugar

1/3 c. butter, melted

Filling:

3 pkgs. ( 8 ounces each) cream cheese, softened

1 can (14 ounces) sweetened condensed milk

2 tsp. vanilla

2 c. white chocolate chips, melted and slightly cooled

4 eggs

Topping:

1 pkg. (12 ounces) frozen raspberries

1 TBS sugar

1 TBS water

1TBS cornstarch

Combine crust ingredients and press into greased 9" springform pan, bake at 325 degrees for 10 min. allow to cool.

In mixing bowl beat cream cheese, milk and vanilla until smooth. Add melted white chocolate until blended. Add eggs slowly one at a time just until combined. Pour over crust and put pan on a baking sheet, and bake at 325 degrees for 40-45 min or until center is not quite set. Allow to cool on wire rack for an hour, then with butter knife run along edges of pan. While cooling add all ingredients for topping in saucepan and cook until raspberries have broken apart and starting to thicken up. Let cool down then pour over cheesecake and cover and let refrigerate overnight.  If you don't have a springform pan, you can use a round cake pan, however it will be harder to get out, and the first piece will look mangled, and the cake pans aren't as deep as the springform so you will have some batter leftover, I use muffin tins and make mini cheesecakes, and do the same thing as you would for the big ones just spray it well if you don't have paper cups. and bake for 30 min then check it and pull out when not quite set in center follow the rest of directions. I did this for Christmas, and had the mini ones too, it's really awesome, although I did get one comment from someone that he likes cheesecake factory better, but you can't please everyone.

Family Favorites

Ok, so these aren't mine and not my ideas, but they've been made for years and always good. These are my comfort foods.

Russian Chicken, I'm not sure where my mom got this one, but it's so good!

Ingredients:

1 bottle of Russian dressing (wishbone is the only brand I can find, and the small bottle is just right)

1/2 jar apricot preserves, (1/2 of a big jar, if it's a small one use all of it)

2 Tablespoons onion soup mix

1/2 white onion sliced, use them even if you don't eat them, pick them out later, they give it a better taste

2-4 russet potatoes, peeled and sliced 1 inch thick

In a crockpot or roasting pan put chicken, onions and potatoes in bottom. Then mix dressing, preserves, and soup mix together in bowl and then pour over the chicken. Bake at 350 until chicken is done and potatoes are tender. If in crockpot it needs to cook at least 6 hours or until potatoes are done.

Hamburger Cassarole, this is basically shepards pie, but with a few differences. It looks kinda gross but is so good and the leftovers are better. I always eat it for breakfast the next day

Ingredients:

1 Lb ground beef, cooked crumbled and drained of fat

1 can cream of mushroom soup

2 cans green beans

5 russet potatoes, boiled and mashed (mash with butter and sour cream and salt and pepper)

1/2 - 1 c. shredded cheddar cheese

Mix cream of mushroom with beef and spread out layer on bottom of cassarole dish. Put green beans over that into another layer. Spread mashed potatoes over the beans into an even layer, sprinkle cheese over that use more or less cheese as you want, I like a lot. Bake at 350 degrees until cheese is bubbly and everything heated through. Let sit 10 mins before eating. You can also adjust to make more or less