Ultimate Filled Peanut Butter Cookies

This recipe is from Lara at the Recipe Shoebox.


1 bag of miniature Reese's peanut butter cups --FROZEN
1-1/4 cups flour
3/4 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 cup butter flavored Crisco (no substitutions)
1/2 cup peanut butter
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 egg
1 tsp. vanilla

In a large mixing bowl, cream together the Crisco, peanut butter, sugars, egg, and vanilla until it is smooth and creamy. Next add the dry ingredients and beat until smooth. Roll dough into 1-inch balls and place them in an UNgreased mini muffin pan.



Bake at 375° for 10 minutes.

Immediately press a FROZEN miniature Reese's PB cup into the center of each cookie--pressing down until the top of the candy is at the same level as the top of the cookie.



Allow to cool in the pan for at least 2 minutes before removing them. To remove, insert just the tip of a thin knife between the cookie and the pan. Allow to cool completely and the chocolate to reset before serving. Makes about 30-36 cookies (mini-muffin size).

Indian Chicken and lentils with Rice

This recipe is from A Year of Slow Cooking. we were not overly crazy about this dish, it lacked something, maybe more spice?

2 cups lentils
3 cups chicken broth
3 cups water
1 small yellow onion, diced
1 cup diced celery
1 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon corriander
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon dried mustard
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
4 cloves garlic, chopped
1 (4 ounce) can diced chiles (hot or mild, your choice)--no need to drain
1 tablespoon dried parsley (or 1/4 cup finely chopped fresh)
4 large chicken breast halves

The Directions.

Rinse the lentils under cold water until it runs clear. Dump into the slow cooker. Add broth and water. Add diced onion and celery. Add all spices, the garlic, and chiles. Stir to combine.

Lay 4 chicken breast halves on top of the assembled food.
Cover and cook on low for about 7 hours, or on high for about 4. Before serving, remove chicken from the slow cooker, chop it up, and stir back in. Serve over basmati rice with corn tortillas.

Crockpot Cranberry Sauce

This delicious and easy recipe comes from A Year of Slow Cooking.
12 oz cranberries (fresh or frozen)
--1/2 cup orange juice
--1/2 cup water
--1/2 cup brown sugar
--1/2 cup white sugar
--1/4 tsp cinnamon

The Directions.
I doubled this recipe and used a big 7 qt. crockpot.

Rinse off the cranberries and put them into your crockpot. Add the orange juice and water. I used fresh squeezed.
Add the sugar and the cinnamon. Stir. There will be an awful lot of liquid, and the cranberries will float .
Cover and cook on high. It will take about 3 hours. Stir ever 30 minutes or so. I wondered if the sauce would ever thicken. The sauce was still watery when I put it in the refrigerator and by the morning the cranberry sauce thickened and was wonderful.

Black Forest Cake

This recipe come from the book Cake Mix Magic in Minutes.
1 box Chocolate cake mix
2 x 20 ounce. cans Pitted cherries
1 c. Sugar
3 Tbsp. Cornstarch
1 tsp Vanilla
3 c. Whipping cream, chilled
1/3 c. Powdered sugar
Directions
Bake chocolate cake according to directions on box to make 2 9-inch cakes. Allow cakes to cold.
Meanwhile, combine cherries with just 1/2 c. liquid (drain remaining liquid off of cherries), sugar, cornstarch and vanilla in a saucepan and cook over low heat till mix thickens. Remove from heat and set aside.
Slice each cake layer in half horizontally. Crumble one of the halves and set aside. Beat cool whipping cream and confectioner's sugar till stiff peaks form.Place one half layer of cake on a plate and top with 1/3 of cherry mix followed by a layer of whipped topping. Place second layer of cake over the first and repeat with the second and third layer ending with cherries on top. Use remaining whipped cream to ice the sides of the cake. Use crumbled cake and press crumbs along the sides of the iced cake.

Paula Deen's Hoecake Recipe

I got pretty good reviews on these hoecakes from the family. They smelled really good.
1 cup self-rising flour
1 cup self-rising cornmeal, or from a mix (recommended: Aunt Jemima's)
2 eggs
1 tablespoon sugar
3/4 cup buttermilk
1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon water
1/4 cup vegetable oil or bacon grease
Oil, butter, or clarified margarine, for frying
Directions
Mix well all ingredients, except for the frying oil. Heat the frying oil or butter in a medium or large skillet over medium heat. Drop the batter, by full tablespoons, into the hot skillet. Use about 2 tablespoons of batter per hoecake. Fry each hoecake until brown and crisp; turn each hoecake with a spatula, and then brown the other side. With a slotted spoon, remove each hoecake to drain on a paper towel-lined plate. Leftover batter will keep in refrigerator for up to 2 days.

Breakfast Burrito

6 slices bacon
6 eggs, lightly beaten
salt and pepper to taste
6 (8 inch)corn tortillas
6 slices Cheddar cheese
In a skillet, cook bacon until crisp; remove to paper towels. Drain, reserving 1-2 tablespoons drippings. Add eggs, salt and pepper to drippings; cook and stir over medium heat until the eggs are completely set. In a seperate skilllet warm the tortillas. Place 1 slice of cheese on each tortilla, a slice of bacon and eggs. Roll and serve.

Rachael Ray's Mu Shu Chicken Patties with Seared Napa Cabbage

This recipe was flavorful, we did not need the hoisin sauce. I would definitely make this again.
Ingredients:
2 pounds ground chicken
4 scallions, finely chopped
One 2-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and grated or finely chopped
3 tablespoons tamari sauce (gluten free)
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 tablespoon grill seasoning, such as McCormick Grill Mates Montreal Steak Seasoning (about a palmful)
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 small Napa cabbage, shredded
Salt
2 tablespoons toasted sesame seeds
Hoisin sauce, to pass around the table Directions:In a medium bowl, mix the chicken with the scallions, ginger, tamari, garlic and grill seasoning. Form into 8 small patties. In a large nonstick skillet, heat 1 tablespoon oil, 1 turn of the pan, over medium-high to high heat until smoking. Add the patties and cook until well done, about 5 minutes on each side; transfer to a plate.

Add the remaining 2 tablespoons oil to the skillet and heat to smoking, then add the cabbage and stir-fry until wilted. Season with salt and add the sesame seeds. Pile the cabbage on plates and serve with 2 chicken patties per person. Pass the hoisin sauce around the table.

Chinese Sesame Noodles

1 package Tinkyada spaghetti style brown rice pasta
3 T peanut butter
2T Tamari sauce ( gluten free)
1/2 T sesame oil
3 garlic cloves minced
2 tsp. grated ginger
1 1/2 T Price Chopper Thai chili garlic dipping sauce( gluten free)
1 medium red pepper chopped
1/4 C minced scallions
Cook and drain pasta according to package directions. In a sauce pan combine :peanut butter, tamari sauce, sesame oil, garlic, ginger, chili garlic sauce, and pepper. Cook until ingredients are combined. Toss with pasta and scallions.

Brownies in the Crockpot

I got this recipe at A Year of Slow Cooking. the kids were so excited to smell sweet smells instead of savory from the crockpot.
I mixed up a batch of brownie mix according to the box. I then spayed 5 coffee mugs with cooking spray. I placed in the crockpot and cooked for 2 hours. I think 2 hour was a bit long next time i would check after and hour and then ever 15 minutes.

Granola in the Crockpot

This recipe is from A Year of Slow Cooking.

-5 cups oats( I used regular oats for the kids)
- 1/4 cup honey
- 1/4 cup melted butter
- 1 T flax seeds
- 1/4 cup slivered almonds( I use dhwole almonds and pecans)
- 1/4 cup raw pumpkin seeds
- 1/4 cup raw sunflower seeds
- 1/4 cup unsweetened coconut
- 1/2 cup dried fruit (I used raisins)
Directions.

Put all the dry ingredients into your crockpot.

Melt the butter on the stove top add the honey. Toss well.

Cover, but vent with a chopstick. Cook on high for 3-4 hours, stirring every so often.

This granola made the whole house smell so good.

Dump out on some parchment paper and let cool. Eat with milk like cereal, warmed with milk like oatmeal, or as is. Seal well in an air-tight container or in a ziplock. Granola freezes well.

Buffalo Chicken Lasagna

The flavor of this lasagna was wonderful. This recipe is from A Year of Slow Cooking.

Cook's Country Slow Cooker White Chicken Chili

This recipe was alright. I would have liked a thicker chili.
This recipe at allrecipes.is quite similar.

Greek Quinoa Salad

This recipe is from Taste of Home Magazine , so delicious and full of flavor.
1 cup quinoa, rinsed
2 cups water
1 package (10 ounces) frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
1-1/2 cups (6 ounces) crumbled feta cheese
1 cup grape tomatoes
3/4 cup canned black beans, rinsed and drained
1/2 cup chopped seeded peeled cucumber
1/2 cup sliced pepperoncinis
1/2 cup Greek olives, pitted and halved
3/4 cup reduced-fat Greek or Italian salad dressing, divided
Directions
In a small saucepan, bring quinoa and water to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 12-15 minutes or until water is absorbed. Remove from the heat; fluff with a fork. Let stand for 10 minutes.
In a large bowl, combine the quinoa, spinach, cheese, tomatoes, beans, cucumber, pepperoncinis and olives. Pour 1/2 cup dressing over quinoa mixture and toss to coat. Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
Just before serving, drizzle remaining dressing over salad; toss to coat. Yield: 10 servings.


Greek-Inspired Quinoa Salad published in Healthy Cooking April/May 2009, p35

Applesauce Coffee Cake

1 3/4 flour (separated)
1/2 C sugar
1/2 C butter
1/4 C nuts
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
2 beaten eggs
1 C vanilla yogurt
1 large apple peeled and sliced
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 C raisins

In a bowl combine 3/4 C flour and the sugar; cut in butter. For topping rove 1/2 C crumb mixture; stir in nuts and cinnamon (oats) and set aside.
To remaining crumb mixture add remaining flour, baking powder, and baking soda. (oats) Add eggs, vanilla yogurt, apple and vanilla. beat until well blended. stir in raisins if desired. Pour into a 9x9x2 inch baking pan (I use a larger pan12 x12). Sprinkle topping with crumb mixture. Bake in a 375 degree oven for 30 to 35 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Serve warm.







__._,_.___
Reply to sender | Reply to group

Pumpkin Spice Cookies

Share on Facebook




Not only will these ideas give your guests something special to take home with them, they’ll also help you bring a beautiful look to your holiday table.

Thankful Place Tags

When it’s time for everyone to sit down, your guests will be touched to see some simple place tags that double as a take-home favor. Buy small, inexpensive picture frames for photos of each of your guests. Make a color copy of the photo, or if you have an electronic version of it, just print out another copy to fit in the frame.

To add a more personal touch, write a short note telling each person why you’re thankful he or she is in your life. You can write on the back of the picture or on a piece of cardstock glued to the back of the frame or the support arm. When you set the table, place everyone’s frames in front of their place setting and then encourage everyone to take this heartfelt gift home.

Thankful For Good Food

Sharing food and traditions with the people closest to you is a big part of the holidays. The simple act of sharing food around a table leads to great times, so why not give your guests something that they can take back to their own dinner tables?

Take all of the recipes that you used to create your holiday meal, and make copies of each on notecards. Stack the recipe cards and tie them up with some fall colored ribbon. Tie a short thank you note onto the end of the ribbon. Your guests can share your recipes at their own upcoming holiday celebrations and think of you each time.

Thankfully Sweet


Cookies are always an easy way to bring a smile to someone’s face, and a great way to thank someone. Here’s a delicious Pumpkin Cookie recipe to try. Personalize each place setting by writing your guests' first initial on a cookie with icing. You can serve these as part of dessert, or wrap them in tissue for a take-home treat.
















Pumpkin Cookies

INGREDIENTS

1 cup white sugar
1 egg
1 cup shortening
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
1 cup canned pumpkin
White cookie icing

INSTRUCTIONS

Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease cookie sheets.
In a large bowl, mix sugar, egg, shortening, and vanilla.
Sift together flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon. Stir into the creamed mixture, then stir in the pumpkin.
Spoon dough onto the cookie sheets.
Bake for 12 minutes then let the cookies cool on cooling racks. When cool, write your guests' first initial onto each cookie with white icing

Pumpkin Spice Latte

This recipe come from A Year of Slow Cooking.The kids drank this up and LOVED it!
--2 cups milk (I used 1%)
--2 T canned pumpkin
--2 T white sugar
--2 T vanilla (not a typo. it asks for tablespoons)
--1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
OR: 1/4 tsp cinnamon, 1/8 tsp cloves, 1/8 tsp nutmeg, and a teeny tiny pinch of ground ginger
--1/2 cup brewed espresso or 3/4 cup strong brewed coffee

--garnish with whipped cream (optional)

The Directions.

This will make enough for 2 people to have a big mug with a bit leftover. If you are having friends over, adjust the recipe accordingly. I used a 4-quart crockpot, but as small as a 1.5 quart will work with these amounts.

Add the coffee/espresso and milk to the crockpot. Whisk in the pumpkin, spices, sugar, and vanilla.

Cover and cook on high for 2 hours if everything is cold. Whisk again.

Ladle into mugs, and garnish with whipped cream and additional cinnamon. I added a cinnamon stick to be fancy.
(if I rinse it off, can I re-use it? It seems wasteful to toss.)

Giada De Laurentiis Panettone French Toast

The only change i made was ommitting the mascarpone. The kids loved this breakfast.
Ingredients
Cinnamon Syrup:
1 cup water
1 cup packed dark brown sugar
2 tablespoons whipping cream
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
French Toast:
1 (1.1 pound; 500 gram) loaf panettone bread, baking paper removed
6 large eggs
3/4 cup whipping cream
3/4 cup whole milk
1/4 cup sugar
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/2 cup mascarpone cheese
Powdered sugar, for dusting
Directions
To make the syrup: Combine 1 cup of water and brown sugar in a heavy medium saucepan. Bring to a boil over high heat, stirring until the sugar dissolves. Boil until the syrup reduces to 1 cup, about 10 minutes. Remove from the heat and whisk in the cream and cinnamon. Keep the syrup warm. (The syrup can be made 1 day ahead. Cool, then cover and refrigerate. Rewarm before serving.)

Meanwhile, prepare the French toast: Preheat the oven to 200 degrees F. Trim the bottom crust of the panettone. Starting at the bottom end of the panettone, cut it crosswise into 6 (3/4-inch thick) round slices (reserve the top piece for toast!). In a large bowl, whisk the eggs until well blended. Add the cream, milk, and sugar and whisk until well mixed. Melt 1 tablespoon of butter on a large nonstick griddle over medium heat. Dip 3 slices of panettone into the custard, turning to allow both sides to absorb the custard. Grill the soaked panettone slices until they are golden brown and firm to the touch, about 4 minutes per side. Transfer the French toast to a baking sheet and keep them warm in the oven. Repeat with the remaining butter, panettone slices, and custard.

Transfer the French toast to plates. Dollop the mascarpone atop each. Lightly dust with the powdered sugar. Drizzle the cinnamon syrup over and around the French toast and serve immediately.

Beef and Barley Soup

This recipe is from www.about.com
4 slices bacon, diced
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 1/2 pounds stew beef, lean, cut into small pieces
3 tablespoons flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
8 ounces sliced mushrooms
1 cup sliced celery
1 1/2 cups chopped onion
6 cups beef broth
1 bay leaf
1/3 cup pearled barley
2 cups sliced carrot
2 cups diced turnip
1 large baking potato, cut in cubes
1 cup green peas, frozen, thawed
2 tablespoons flour blended with 2 tablespoons cold water, optional
Preparation:
Cook bacon over medium-low heat in a large stockpot or Dutch oven until almost crisp.
Toss stew beef pieces with the flour, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/8 teaspoon pepper. Add to the bacon mixture. Add olive oil. Add mushrooms, celery, and onion. Cook over medium heat, stirring frequently, until beef is browned and onion is tender. Add beef broth and bay leaf. Cover and simmer over medium-low heat for 45 minutes. Add barley, carrots, and turnip. Reduce heat to low. Cover and simmer for 25 minutes. Add potatoes and simmer for about 25 minutes longer, or until vegetables and meat are tender. Add peas and cook for 10 minutes longer.

If desired, stir in the flour and water mixture. Cook, stirring, until thickened and bubbly.
Serves 6 to 8.

Wellesly Fudge Cake

This recipe is in the newest issue of Cook's Country Magazine. Everyone loved this cake.

Egg Drop Soup

We had this soup on Thursday and it was so good. I was not able to get a picture of the soup. The recipe is from allrecipes.com.


4 cups chicken broth, divided 1/8 teaspoon ground ginger 2 tablespoons chopped fresh chives 1/4 teaspoon salt 1 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch 2 eggs 1 egg yolk
Directions
Reserve 3/4 cup of chicken broth, and pour the rest into a large saucepan. Stir the salt, ginger and chives into the saucepan, and bring to a rolling boil. In a cup or small bowl, stir together the remaining broth and cornstarch until smooth. Set aside.
In a small bowl, whisk the eggs and egg yolk together using a fork. Drizzle egg a little at a time from the fork into the boiling broth mixture. Egg should cook immediately. Once the eggs have been dropped, stir in the cornstarch mixture gradually until the soup is the desired consistency.

Chili Verde

4 pound chuck roast, or pork shoulder/butt (I used a chuck roast)
1 green bell pepper, seeded and diced
1 small onion, diced
1 (4 ounce) can diced chile (mine were mild, your choice)
1 (14.5 ounce) can diced tomatoes
10 tomatillos, diced (peel off the outer wrapper, if they have one)
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 teaspoons kosher salt
2 teaspoons cumin
2 teaspoons sage
1 Tablespoon oregano
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes (or more, to taste)
1/4 cup chopped cilantro leaves

The Directions.

I used a 6 quart. Trim any visible fat from the meat, and plop into your slow cooker stoneware. Add diced bell pepper and onion. If your tomatillos have the leafy-outer skin left on them, take the skin and stem off, and dice finely (I used the pampered chef chopper thingy. You can pulse in a food processor, instead, if you'd like). Pour in the contents of the diced chile can and the tomato can. Add spices. Stir a bit to get the spices down the sides of the meat. Add chopped cilantro to the top.
Cover and cook on low for 8-10 hours, high for 6, or until meat shreds easily with a fork. After 7 hours on low, my meat was still pretty tough, so I chopped it into large chunks, and put it back in the pot for another 2 hours. By then, it had shredded nicely for me.

Serve with rice, corn tortillas, shredded cheese, and a dollop of sour cream. oh! and refried beans.
This recipe comes from A Year of Slow Cooking.

Turkey Craft

Chicken Cheese Soup

This recipe is from Taste of Home. It was very easy and excellent. Very filling.
4 cups cubed cooked chicken breast
3-1/2 cups water
2 cans (10-3/4 ounces each) condensed cream of chicken soup, undiluted
1 package (16 ounces) frozen mixed vegetables, thawed
1 can (14-1/2 ounces) diced potatoes, drained
1 package (16 ounces) process cheese (Velveeta), cubed
Directions
In a Dutch oven, combine the first five ingredients. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 8-10 minutes or until vegetables are tender. Stir in cheese just until melted (do not boil). Yield: 7 servings.

Mint Hot Cocoa

The kids woke up this mornig and were surprised by this treat.

Beef Stew

2 pounds Wegman's organic beef stew meat, cut into 1 inch cubes
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
salt and ground black pepper
2 clove garlic left whole
2 bay leaf
1/2 T paprika
1T Worcestershire sauce
2 onions, chopped
6 cups beef broth
3 potatoes, diced
4 carrots, sliced
1 stalk celery, chopped
1T dried basil
1/2 T dried Italian seasonings
Directions
In a Dutch oven warm 2T extra virgin olive oil. In a small bowl mix together the flour, salt, and pepper;dredge meat Brown beef on all sides. Add onion, garlic, celery, and carrot brown for about 5 minutes. Add remaining ingredients. Bring to a boil. Boil for 10 minutes. Reduce heat to simmer and cook for 6-8 hours. 30 minutes prior to serving add 1 bag of frozen peas. Season with salt and pepper. Serve.

Just Like "Olive Garden" Chicken Marsala

4 chicken breasts, boneless & skinless
1/2 cup flour
Salt to taste
Pepper to taste
Dried oregano to taste
4 Tbsp oil
4 Tbsp butter or margarine
2 cups fresh mushrooms, sliced
1 cup Marsala wine

Procedures

1. Pound chicken breasts between sheets of plastic wrap until about
1/4" thickness.
2. Combine flour, salt, pepper and oregano in a mixing bowl. Dredge
chicken pieces in the flour, shaking off any excess.
3. Heat oil and butter in a skillet over medium heat. Cook chicken
breasts on medium heat for about 2 minutes on the first side, until
lightly browned. Turn breasts over to cook other side, then add
mushrooms to skillet. Cook breasts about 2 more minutes, until both
sides are lightly browned. Continue to stir mushrooms. Add Marsala
wine around chicken pieces.
4. Cover and simmer for about 15 minutes.
5. Transfer to serving plate.

Serves 4

This recipe is from www.recipesecrets.net

Holiday Punch

I found this recipe at www.crockpot365.blogspot.com. I would make this again. Everyone really liked the flavor.
4 cups cranberry juice
4 cups pineapple juice
1/3 cup hot tamales or red hots candy (hot tamales are on the GF candy list)
1 cinnamon stick

that's it!

The Directions.

This serves 6. Combine juices in your crockpot, and add hot tamales or red hots. Cover and cook on high for 2 hours, or on low for 4-5. Stir. The candy will pretty much dissolve, leaving just a hint of cinnamony-flavor.

Ladle into mugs, garnishing with an extra cinnamon stick if desired.

Soul Cakes

I made doughnut holes using this recipe. Very tasty.