Mini Pecan Crumb Cakes

these tasty little coffee cakes are sure to become a household favorite! (says the recipe)

makes 1 dozen cakes (really, muffins, lets be honest)

topping:
2/3 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/3 cup finely chopped pecans (about 1 1/3 oz)
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/3 cup chilled butter, cut into small pieces

cakes:
2 cups all purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/8 tsp allspice
1/4 tsp nutmeg
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup butter, melted and cooled slightly
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
3/4 cup milk

1. Preheat oven to 350. grease or paper line 12 standard size muffin pan cups
2. to prepare topping, mix together flour, brown sugar, nuts, and cinnamon. using a pastry blender or 2 knives, cut butter into flour mixture until coarse crumbs form. set aside.
3. to prepare cakes, mix together flour, baking powder, salt, nutmeg, and allspice. mix together sugar, melted butter, eggs and vanilla until blended.
4. alternately stir flour mixture and milk into butter-egg mixture. spoon batter into prepared pan, filling cups two-thirds full. sprinkle topping over batter, press in slightly.
5. bake until toothpick inserted comes out clean, 20-25 minutes. transfer pan to wire rack to cool slightly. optional: drizzle cakes with an icing made with 1 cup powdered sugar and 2 tbsp milk.

Velveeta Roll

I know this sounds sketchy, but it is always a hit at parties!!

1 small box (1 pound) Velveeta
1-8oz block of cream cheese
1-4oz can diced green chilis

Place block of Velveeta between two large pieces of wax paper or saran wrap. Roll out to about1/8-1/4 inch thick, trying to keep it as even as possible. It will resemble a large rectangle when rolled out. Soften cream cheese to room temperature. Spread cream cheese evenly across Velveeta. Evenly spread green chilies on top of cream cheese. Starting at the short end, roll the cheeses and chilies from one end to the other like a sleeping bag is rolled. Cut off the ends to make it look nice. Serve with wheat thins or cracker of choice.

Anne's German Chocolate Cheesecake

(i would love to take credit, but it is from my amazing hershey's cookbook)

Coconut-pecan graham crust (recipe to follow)
4 bars (1oz each) Hershey’s semi-sweet baking chocolate, broken into pieces
3 packages (8 oz each) cream cheese, softened
¾ cup sugar
½ cup sour cream
2 tsps vanilla
2 tbsp flour
3 eggs
coconut-pecan topping (recipe to follow)

prepare coconut-pecan graham crust, increase oven temp to 450 degrees. In small bowl, place chocolate and microwave on high 1-1 ½ minutes or until chocolate is smooth and melted. In large mixer on medium speed, beat cream cheese, sugar, sour cream and vanilla until smooth. Add flour, blend well. Add eggs and melted chocolate, beat until blended. Pour into prepared crust. Bake 10 minutes. Without opening oven door, reduce temperature to 250 and continue baking for 35 minutes. Remove from oven to wire rack. With knife, immediately loosen cake from side of pan. Cool completely, remove side of pan. Prepare coconut-pecan topping, spread over top of cheesecake. Refrigerate several hours. Garnish as desired. Cover, refrigerate leftover cheesecake

crust
1 cup graham cracker crumbs
2 tbsp sugar
1/3 cup butter melted
¼ cup sweetened coconut flakes
¼ cup chopped pecans

heat oven to 350 degrees. In a small bowl, combine graham crackers and sugar. Stir in butter, coconut and pecans. Pressure mixture onto bottom and ½ inch up sides of 9 inch springform pan. Bake 8-10 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool completely.

Topping
½ cup (1 stick) butter
¼ cup packed light brown sugar
2 tbsp light cream
2 tbsp light corn syrup
1 cup sweetened coconut flakes
½ cup chopped pecans
1 tsp vanilla

in a small saucepan, melt butter; add brown sugar, light cream and corn syrup. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until smooth and bubbly. Remove from heat. Stir in coconut, pecans and vanilla. Cool slightly.

Magic Bars

1/2 cup butter
1 1/2 cup graham cracker crumbs
1 12oz package chocolate chips (milk or semi-sweet, your choice)
1 1/3 cups flaked coconut
1 cup chopped pecans
1 14oz can sweetened condensed milk

preheat oven to 350. place butter in 9x13 and stick in oven while it is pre-heating. when butter is melted, pull out and press crumbs in pan. layer evenly with remaining ingredients IN ORDER! bake 25 minutes or until lightly browned. cool. cut into bars and serve at room te

Mexican Fondue

8 oz pepper jack cheese, shredded
4 oz gruyere cheese, shredded
4 oz cheddar cheese, shredded
1 tbsp cornstarch
1 cup chicken stock, (the recipe calls for mexican beer, what do you know? I'm fresh out)
2 tsp hot sauce, such as tabasco
zest of 1 lime, plus 1 tbps fresh lime juice
3 tbsp canned green chili peppers, finely chopped
2 tbsp chopped fresh cilantro, for garnish, optional

serve with:
grilled chicken or steak, cubed
grilled, chopped sausage
sliced zucchini
chunks of bell peppers

in a small bowl combine cheeses and cornstarch. add the chicken stock to a small pot and bring up to a bubble over medium heat. reduce the heat to simmer and add the hot sauce, lime zest and juice, then the cheese mixture in handfuls. stir constantly in a figure eight pattern with a wooden spoon, melting the cheese in batches. when the cheese has been incorperated fully, stir in the chili peppers. transfer to fondue pot and garnish with cilantro, if using, then serve.

Sour Cream Blueberry Coffee Cake

Another of Anne's delish recipes.

1 cup butter
2 cups sugar
2 eggs
1 cup sour cream
1/2 t vanilla
2 cups cake flour (which I never have on hand and regular flour always turns out just fine)
1 t baking powder
1/2 cup blueberries

filling:
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1 t cinnamon
1/2 cup chopped nuts
mix until combined

cream butter and sugar, add eggs. fold in sour cream and vanilla. sift together dry ingredients, add to wet mixture. fold in blueberries. pour 1/3 batter into greased bundt pan. sprinkle with 1/2 the filling. pour 1/3 batter over top, sprinkle remaining filling. gently swirl cake with a spatula. bake at 350 for one hour. cool and invert onto a serving platter. dust with powdered sugar. serves 12-16

*a note as of 4/20/10. This is Anne. Made this again recently, and this time I actually had cake flour on hand as well as fresh blueberries and its the best this cake has ever tasted. So if you want to take the extra effort, its well worth it to use those 2 ingredients. It takes it from good to extraordinary!

Paula Deen's Southern Pecan Brownies

This is also one Anne passed on to me. Any of you that have been to the south know that the food is rich and not low fat (to put it nicely.) These are absolutely amazing!!



1 1/2 cups butter (yes, really)
5 (1 oz each) squares unsweetened chocolate
2 1/2 cups sugar
6 large eggs
2 cups flour
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup milk chocolate chips
1 cup toasted chopped pecans (toasting is easy, spread pecans evenly on cookie sheet, bake 350 5-10 minutes, don't let get too dark)

preheat oven to 350. line a 9x13 pan with tin foil and lightly grease the foil. in a medium bowl, combine butter and unsweetened squares. microwave at 30 second intervals, stirring after each, until butter and chocolate are melted and smooth, about 2 minutes total. set aside to cool. in a large bowl, beat sugar and eggs with an electric mixer on high speed until fluffy. gradually beat in flour and salt. add melted butter mixture, stirring (not electric mixer) well. stir in vanilla, chocolate chips and pecans. pour into pan. bake 35-38 minutes or until center is firm. once cool, lift brownies from pan using foil as handle. dust with powdered sugar if desired. enjoy ya'll!

Anne's Amazing Peanut Butter Toffee Cookies

¾ cup all-purpose flour (spooned and leveled)
¼ tsp baking soda Dash of salt
4 tbsp unsalted butter, room temperature
½ cup sugar
½ cup smooth peanut butter
1 egg
2 chocolate covered toffee candy bars (1.4 oz each) chopped


Preheat oven to 350. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, salt. In a large bowl, with an electric mixer on high speed, beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add peanut butter and egg; beat until smooth. With mixer on low, gradually add flour mixture. Stir in toffee. Use 1 tbsp cookie scoop and drop cookies onto ungreased cookie sheet. Use fork to smash down and make criss cross design. Bake 16-18 minutes or until edges are golden brown. Do not overbake. Makes 24 yummy cookies.

Oatmeal Pancakes

I am a huge breakfast fan and these are a fav of mine. J loves them too.

1 cup milk
2/3 cup quick oats
2/3 cup flour
2 T. brown sugar
1 ½ t. baking powder
¼ t. salt
¼ t. ground cinnamon
2 eggs, beaten
2 t. oil
¼ t. vanilla

In a small saucepan heat milk until hot; remove from heat. Stir in oats. Cover and let stand five minutes. Meanwhile, stir together flour, sugar, baking powder, salt and cinnamon. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients.

In a small bowl mix together eggs, oil and vanilla. Add egg mixture and oat mixture all at once to dry ingredients. Stir until well combined.

Pour ¼ cup pancake mix onto greased griddle or skillet. Cook over medium heat, about four minutes until pancakes are golden brown, flipping once.

Pumpkin Muffins

FAVORITE PUMPKIN CHOCOLATE CHIP MUFFINS

Printed from COOKS.COM

---

Make 1 or 2 days ahead for best flavor.

1 2/3 c. flour
1 c. sugar
1 tbsp. pumpkin pie spice
1 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
2 lg. eggs
1 c. plain pumpkin (half of 1 lb. can)
1/2 c. (1 stick) melted butter
1 c. (6 oz.) chocolate chips

Mix dry ingredients in large bowl. In another bowl whisk until well blended: eggs, pumpkin and butter. Stir in chocolate chips. Pour over dry ingredients and fold in until just moistened. Bake 20 minutes or until puffed and springy to tough. Grease muffin cups or use paper baking cups. Bake at 350 degrees for 20 to 25 minutes.

Makes 12 regular or 48 miniature.

Bacon Tomato Cups from allrecipes.com

INGREDIENTS

• 8 slices bacon
• 1 tomato, chopped
• 1/2 onion, chopped
• 3 ounces shredded Swiss cheese
• 1/2 cup mayonnaise (miracle whip is better!)
  
• 1 teaspoon dried basil
• 1 (16 ounce) can refrigerated buttermilk biscuit dough

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Lightly grease a mini muffin pan.
2. In a skillet over medium heat, cook bacon until evenly brown. Drain on paper towels. Crumble bacon into a medium mixing bowl, and mix with tomato, onion, Swiss cheese, mayonnaise and basil.
3. Separate biscuits into halves horizontally. Place each half into cups of the prepared mini muffin pan. Fill each biscuit half with the bacon mixture. (i use a regular muffin tin, not mini and it makes 16)
   
4. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes in the preheated oven , or until golden brown.

Turkey-Vegetable Chili

Hooray for fall and chili season! This recipe is a little different slant on traditional chili, but it is yummy. Any of you on Weight Watchers--1 cup of this chili is only 1 point! Freezes well.

10 oz. extra-lean ground turkey breast
1 med onion, diced
2 (28 oz.) cans diced tomatoes
2 medium zucchini, sliced lengthwise and chunked
2 medium yellow squash, sliced lengthwise and chunked
1 (15 oz.) can black beans
2 (15 oz.) cans fat-free, reduced sodium chicken broth
4 stalks celery, sliced
2 green peppers, diced
1 (1 1/4 oz.) pkg dry chili seasonings

Spray large pot with nonstick spray; set over medium heat. Add turkey and onion and saute until browned, about 10 minutes.

Add tomatoes, zucchini, squash, beans, broth, celery, bell peppers, and chili seasoning. Bring to a simmer over medium heat. Continue to simmer until vegetables are tender, about 20 minutes.

Serves 20.

Staci's super cinnamon rolls

cinnamon rolls

1/2 cup sugar
1 pkg yeast
1 1/2 cups warm water
1 cup prepared instant mashed potatoes
1/2 cup butter
2 eggs
1 1/2 tsp salt
6-7 cups of flour

dissolve yeast in warm water. stir in potatoes, sugar, butter (softened), eggs, salt and 3 cups of flour. beat until smooth. mix in enough remaining flour to make dough easy to handle. knead. let rise in a warm, dry place until doubled in size, (approx 1-2 hours). punch down. Roll out on floured work surface into a rectangle shape. with a spatula, spread 1/4 cup room temperature butter (not melted) onto dough. then sprinkle generous amounts of brown sugar and white sugar. sprinkle cinnamon and a few drops of vanilla. roll dough on the long side, cut into 12 cinnamon rolls. let rise on pan until rolls touch each other. bake at 375 for about 15 minutes, if browning too quickly, drape with tin foil.

steve's yummy cream cheese frosting:

1/2 pack of 8 oz cream cheese, softened
1/8 cup butter
1/2 tsp vanilla
1/8 cup milk
2-3 cups powdered sugar, depending on how thick you like your frosting

mix all together and spread over warm rolls, enjoy!!!

Neiman Marcus Cookies

Here Anne--I will be curious how it compares to yours.

BTW--these are the BEST cookies ever.


2 cups Butter
4 Eggs
2 tsp. Vanilla
4 cups Flour
2 tsp. Baking soda
2 tsp. Baking powder
2 cups Sugar
2 cups Brown sugar
5 cups Blended Oatmeal (put in blender and blend until fine powder)
24 oz. Chocolate chips
1 tsp. Salt
1-8oz. Hershey Bar (grated)
3 cups Chopped nuts (optional)

Cream butter and sugars. Add eggs and vanilla. Mix together with flour, oatmeal, salt, baking powder and soda. Add chocolate chips, Hershey bar and nuts. Roll into ball and place on cookie sheet. Bake at 375* for 10 minutes.

**This is a huge recipe. You can either cut it in half, or make the whole thing and freeze the cookie balls until you are ready to cook them. That way you always have a refreshment ready when needed.