LEMON OATMEAL COOKIES

Things are certainly boring during the pandemic sometimes.  Another recipe hanging out in my to try file and wanting to make something lemony found this recipe.These cookies spread out really big so it only made 2 dozen which I shared with a few peeps at work but made them each a small bag since it wasn't good to have them on a plate for people to grab one with trying to keep safe from virus germs.

LEMON OATMEAL COOKIES

1 cup all purpose flour

3/4 teaspoon baking soda

1-1/2 cups old-fashioned oatmeal

1/4 teaspoon salt

2 sticks butter, softened

1 cup granulated sugar

1 teaspoon lemon extract

grated zest from 1 small lemon

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/3 cup sugar for top of cookies

1/4 cup lemon juice

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper and set aside.

In a medium bowl, wish together the flour, baking soda and salt.

In another bowl with a mixer beat the butter and 1 cup sugar until light and fluffy, 4 to 5 minutes. Add the lemon extract, vanilla and zest and blend well.

Slowly add dry ingredients. Add the oatmeal and mix well.

Roll dough into small balls about walnut size.  Press a glass in the lemon juice and sugar and pat the cookies down.  These cookies spread quite a lot.  Bake at 350 degrees for 12 to 14 minutes until tops are lightly brown.  Cool. 

CHOCOLATE COBBLER/HOT FUDGE CAKE

I have heard about Chocolate Cobbler for a long time.  I believe it is an old recipe.  Weirdly I am not a fan of chocolate but my youngest grandson prefers chocolate for dessert so for Sunday dinner I decided to try this.  It calls for quite a bit of cocoa and I feared it might be bitter, but as intensely dark as it appears I believe it works.  Served with Texas best Blue Bell ice cream finished it off nicely.

CHOCOLATE COBBLER/HOT FUDGE CAKE

First layer:

2 sticks butter, melted

2 cups all purpose flour

6 Tablespoons unsweetened cocoa

1/4 teaspoon salt

1-1/2 cups granulated sugar

2/3 cup milk

1 teaspoon vanilla

Blend above ingredients together and spread into a greased 9 x 13 baking dish.  This batter is quite thick.  

Second layer:

1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa

1-1/2 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup granulated sugar

3 cups very hot water

For second layer, stir together dry ingredients.  Sprinkle over first layer and spread out to cover.  Pour hot water over entire dish.  DO NOT STIR.  

Bake in 350 degree oven for 45 to 55 minutes.  Serve warm with ice cream if desired.

INA GARTEN'S OLD FASHIONED BANANA CAKE

We have a counter in the kitchen at work where people bring things they want to share or needs using up.  Someone recently brought some bananas that were getting over-ripe which makes them perfect for banana bread or cake.  I found this recipe on Pinterest.  I made a few adjustments and here is my version. I had family come for a Sunday visit and it went over well.

INA GARTEN'S OLD FASHIONED BANANA CAKE

3 ripe bananas, mashed

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1/4 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup oil

2 large eggs

1/2 cup sour cream

1 teaspoon vanilla

2 cups flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup chopped pecans (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Grease and flour or Baker's Joy a 9 x 2 inch round pan.  (I had a scalloped 10 inch pan in my stash so used that.)  

In a mixer bowl mix the bananas, sugars, oil, eggs, sour cream, vanilla.  In another bowl mix the flour, baking soda and salt.  Stir together.  Add the dry ingredients to the wet and mix well.  Pour into prepared pan.  Bake in 350 degree oven for 45-50 minutes.  Cool.  Frost with cream cheese frosting.

FROSTING

4 ounces soften cream cheese

2 cups powdered sugar

2-3 tablespoons milk or cream

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Blend ingredients together till smooth.  Frost cooled cake.

BABY APPLE PIES

Fourth of July this year was unusual in that we could not gather for our usual time together due to the Coronavirus going around.  Spending a quiet day at home, but I decided to make something to mark the holiday.  Hot dogs, hamburgers, potato salad, baked beans are the usual fare around here.  What's more American than some apple pie for dessert.  Decided to just make a few little pies rather than a big one. 

BABY APPLE PIES

Filling:

2 cups chopped apples

3 Tablespoons water

2 Tablespoons butter

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/3 cup brown sugar

1 Tablespoon cornstarch

2 Tablespoons water

Pastry for double crust pie.

Peel and dice the apples. I don't like a lot of crunch, so I dice them small. Put apples, 3 Tablespoons water, 2 Tablespoons butter, cinnamon and brown sugar in a saucepan.  Stir together and bring to a boil.  Simmer until apples are starting to get soft.  Make a slurry of the cornstarch and water and add to apple mixture.  Stir to thicken.

Make your best recipe for pastry or use Pillsbury already made crusts.  I used a small 6 inch bowl to cut out circles.  Put a few tablespoons of filling onto circle.  Cover with another circle, cutting a vent in top.  (I had a little star cookie cutter).  Place on a baking sheet.  Bake at 350 degrees for 20 to 25 minutes until golden brown.  Sprinkle with cinnamon sugar when out of the oven.   

APPLE CINNAMON OATMEAL BREAD

I needed to take a sweet treat to a visit with my cousin recently.  Although it is not Fall by any means, I found this quick bread in my files to try.  Even in summertime this tasted pretty good and was a hit.
APPLE CINNAMON OATMEAL BREAD
2 cups all-purpose flour 1 cup oatmeal (I used old-fashioned, not quick) 1/4 teaspoon salt 2 teaspoons cinnamon 2 teaspoons baking powder 1 cup granulated sugar 2 eggs 3/4 oil 1/2 cup sour cream  1 cup applesauce (I would recommend chunky as the regular did not have a strong flavor) 1 teaspoon vanilla 1/2 cup chopped pecans (optional)
ICING/GLAZE
2 Tablespoons butter 1/2 cup packed brown sugar 2 Tablespoons heavy cream 3/4 cup powdered sugar 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
In a large bowl combine dry ingredients and mix well.  In a small bowl, whisk together eggs, oil, sour cream, applesauce and vanilla.  Combine wet ingredients to dry and mix well until blended. Add nuts if desired.  Pour into a greased 9 inch loaf pan.  Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes or until middle tests dry.  Let cool.  Prepare icing/glaze.
For icing/glaze, in a saucepan add butter, brown sugar and cream.  Bring to a boil.  Stir until sugar melts, about 1 minute.  Remove and add powdered sugar and vanilla until smooth.  Might need to add more cream to make good consistency.  Spread on cooled bread.  Can sprinkle pecans on top if desired.

GLAZED DONUT MUFFINS

For Mother's Day I cooked.  My daughter-in-law is an awesome mom to my 2 grandsons.  I think being the mom of kids is much harder than being a mom to a grownup so I felt good treating her by making lunch. I am always looking for something different and had this saved for a while to try.  There were none on the plate when I packed up leftovers so I am guessing they were pretty good. ♥

GLAZED DONUT MUFFINS

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 cup granulated sugar

2 large eggs

1 cup sour cream

1/2 cup melted butter, cooled

1 teaspoon vanilla

GLAZE

1-1/2 cups powdered sugar

2-1/2 tablespoons cream or milk

1/4 teaspoon vanilla

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Prepare muffin 12-cup muffin pan with baking spray or liners.  In a large mixing bowl, combine flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, sugar.  Whisk together.  Make a well in the center.  

In another small bowl, combine the eggs, sour cream, butter and vanilla. Whisk together until well blended.  

Mix the wet ingredients with dry.  Combine together well.  Scoop into muffin cups.  Let sit for 15 minutes before baking. Bake at 400 degrees for 16-20 minutes.  Cool on wire racks.  Dip muffins into glaze and set aside to harden.

To make glaze blend sugar, cream, and vanilla together. Can add cinnamon or nutmeg if desired for flavoring.

LEMON BARS

My blog has been so neglected.  I haven't been baking as much as I used to.  Most people request things I make often or are their favorites.  Almost everyone has made lemon bars one time or another.  I had a blessing of lemons this year from people's yards and froze a lot of juice.  I love anything made with lemon.  I needed a dessert recently so went in search of lemon bar recipes.  There are so many but this one seemed to work the best.  They were well received and not a crumb left on the plate.
LEMON BARS
CRUST:
2 cups all-purpose flour 1 cup powdered sugar 2 sticks butter, melted
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Spray a 9 x 13 pan evenly.  Stir together the flour and powdered sugar.  Pour the melted butter over and mix well until crumbs form.  Put into the sprayed pan and pat down until evenly distributed.  Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes or until light brown.  Set aside.
LEMON CURD:
6 eggs 3 cups granulated sugar 1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder 1/2 cup flour 1/3 cup fresh lemon juice 1 teaspoon vanilla
Whisk eggs until they are light and fluffy.  Add sugar, baking powder and flour.  Add  lemon juice and vanilla. Blend well. Pour mixture over crust.  Bake 45 minutes or until no longer jiggly in the center.  Cool completely before cutting.  Cut into squares.  Sprinkle powdered sugar over.

PECAN CREAM PIE

Christmas Pot Luck at my cousin's home.  There were lots of goodies and a good time with White Elephant game with lots of 'trading' of gifts.  This pie was so easy but according to the tasters was really, really good.

PECAN CREAM PIE

1 baked 9 inch pie shell (use your best home-made or bought)

1 8 oz. brick cream cheese, softened

1 container Cool Whip (or whip 1 cup of sweetened heavy cream)

1/2 cup packed light brown sugar

1/4 cup maple syrup (only use the REAL good stuff)

1-1/2 cups chopped pecans

Cream brown sugar and cream cheese and maple syrup together.  Fold in Cool Whip.  Add chopped pecans.  Blend well.  Pour into prepared crust.  Refrigerate at least 6 to 8 hours before serving.

EGG, HAM AND CHEESE BREAKFAST SLIDERS

I had a good friend come for breakfast on the weekend. I like to try new things so I searched for breakfast ideas and came up with breakfast sliders.  You can make these the night before and bake the next morning for an easy breakfast also.  These turned out really nice.

BREAKFAST SLIDERS

1 package rolls (I used Sara Lee Savory) Kings Hawaiian Rolls are a good idea too
6 eggs
8-10 slices thin-sliced ham
1 cup shredded cheese (I used pepper jack)
Melted Butter

Slice rolls horizontally.  Place bottom in a 9 x 13 pan.  Brush with melted butter.  Scramble 6 eggs as you would normally.  Spread over buttered rolls.  Sprinkle shredded cheese over.  Slice ham and sprinkle on top of cheese.  Place tops on the rolls and brush with additional butter.  Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes.  

KEY LIME PIE

Another pot luck this past weekend.  This time with a St. Patrick's Day theme.  I thought a key lime pie might be 'green' enough to honor the occasion.  I had lots of compliments from folks.

KEY LIME PIE

Crust:

1-1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs
3 Tablespoons granulated sugar
5 tablespoons butter, melted

Filling:

2 cans sweetened condensed milk
1/2 cup sour cream
3 egg yolks
1/2 cup key lime juice (I used regular lime juice)
1 teaspoon lime zest

Whipped Cream:

1 cup heavy whipping cream
2 Tablespoons granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla

To prepare crust mix ingredients together until crumbs are moist.  Pat down in a 9 inch pie pan.  Chill for 30 minutes.

To prepare filling, stir together condensed milk, sour cream, egg yolks until blended.  Add lime juice and zest and mix with mixer until smooth.  Pour into chilled crust.

Bake for 15 minutes until crust is lightly browned.  Do not overcook.  Cool completely.

Combine whipping cream, sugar and vanilla and mix on high speed until peaks form.  Top pie with whipping cream.  Chill for 3 to 4 hours or overnight.

STRAWBERRY CREAM CHEESE TRIFLE

A recent pot luck around Valentine's Day made me look for something appropriate.  I landed on this dessert from several recipes I had seen.  Yummy stuff.

STRAWBERRY CREAM CHEESE TRIFLE

1 angel food cake (home made or store bought)
2 pints frozen strawberries with sugar
2 8 oz. packages cream cheese
2 8 oz. tubs of Cool Whip
2 cups powdered sugar

I used 2 loaves of angel food cake in this.  Cut up the cake into cubes.  Thaw out the strawberries.  Whip the softened cream cheese with the sugar.  Put a layer of cake followed by thawed strawberries with juice, follow with a layer of cream cheese, then a layer of Cool Whip.  Repeat for 3 layers ending with Cool Whip on top.  Slice some fresh strawberries on top for garnish.  Refrigerate several hours or overnight.

GLAZED LEMON COOKIES

My cousin hosted a ladies luncheon this past weekend.  The theme was Italian.  With all the heavy pasta dishes I thought a light dessert would be good.  If you have ever been to Maggiano's Little Italy restaurant for your birthday you might have tasted their little crescent shaped lemon cookies.  In searching for a recipe these came up as a copy cat version.  Lots of good reviews from the ladies.  They were really good.

ICED LEMON COOKIES

3/4 cup (1-1/2 sticks) butter, softened
3/4 cup sugar
2 egg yolks
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 cups flour

Glaze:
2 cups powdered sugar
2 Tablespoons lemon juice

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Beat butter and sugar until fluffy.  Add egg yolks, vanilla and salt.  Blend well.  Add flour.  Divide dough in half and roll into logs wrapped in plastic wrap.  Refrigerate 30 minutes.  Slice into 1/2 inch slices and place on cookie sheet lined with parchment paper.  Bake for 16-20 minutes until lightly golden.  Do not overbake.  Cool cookies.  Combine glaze ingredients.  Dip cooled cookies into glaze and let rest until dry, about 15 minutes.

WHIPPING CREAM BISCUITS

I'm always looking for new and different biscuit recipes.  I have a friend who loves nothing more than a gift of biscuits. These happen to be just about the easiest I've ever done.  Just two ingredients and they taste really, really good.

WHIPPING CREAM BISCUITS

2 cups self-rising flour
1-1/2 cups heavy whipping cream
2 tablespoons oil or butter

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Pour oil or butter in a 9-inch pie plate.  Stir together 2 cups self-rising flour and 1-1/2 cups heavy whipping cream.  Pour out over a lightly floured surface and pat down to about 1 inch thick.  Cut with a biscuit cutter (I use an old Contadina tomato sauce can that was my Mama's).  Place on greased pie plate.  Bake in oven for 12-15 minutes or until lightly browned.  Can brush with melted butter after taking out of the oven.

CHOCOLATE DREAM COOKIES

A recent birthday for a friend who loves chocolate.  I had made some really good chocolate cookies before but was not at home to search my files for that recipe so I went in search of a similar one.

Searching the trusty Internet, I found the following recipe from Nestle and I think they were a big hit.

DOUBLE CHOCOLATE DREAM COOKIES

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour.

1/2 cup baking cocoa 

1 teaspoon baking soda.

1/2 teaspoon salt.

1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened.

1 cup packed brown sugar.

3/4 cup granulated sugar.

2 large eggs.

2 cups chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Combine flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt in a small bowl.  In another bowl, beat butter, brown sugar, granulated sugar and vanilla until creamy.  Beat in eggs for about 2 minutes until light and fluffy.  Gradually beat in flour mixture.  Stir in morsels.  Drop by rounded tablespoon (I used a cookie scoop) onto parchment paper.

Bake 8 to 10 minutes until cookies are puffed.  Cool on baking sheets.

SOUTHERN LIVING HUMMINGBIRD CAKE

I went to a pot luck dinner this weekend.  I usually bring desserts and wanted to try something different.  Southern Living recipes are always a definite way to go.  I added coconut to the recipe and also toasted some to go on top for garnish.  I'm not sure where the name hummingbird cake came from, but it is a good cake.

SOUTHERN LIVING HUMMINGBIRD CAKE

3 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups granulated sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 large eggs, lightly beaten
1-3/4 cups mashed ripe bananas (about 4 large)
1 8-oz. can crushed pineapple (do not drain)
1 cup toasted chopped pecans
1/2 cup sweetened coconut
3/4 cup canola oil
1 teaspoon vanilla

GLAZE: 

4 oz. cream cheese, softened
2 cups sifted powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla 
1 to 2 tablespoons milk

To prepare the cake:  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Stir together flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon.  Add eggs, oil, and bananas.  Stir well.  Add pecans and coconut.  Pour into prepared bundt or angel food cake pan.  Bake for 1 hour or until middle tests clean.  Cool completely.

Stir together glaze ingredients.  Pour over cooled cake.  Add chopped nuts and toasted coconut over top.