Welcome to my Blog!


I am so glad you stopped by. A couple of months ago I saw the movie Julie & Julia, where a young woman decides to take a year and make every recipe in Julia Child's French Cookbook. I enjoyed the movie very much and became intrigued. Maybe I could do something like that, so, I got out my barely used, 13 year old, Better Homes Cookbook and started flipping through. Thus began my cooking experiment.

Cooking is something I have always hated to do, it was a chore for me, not a pleasure. I am not a professional cook, and never will be, but the movie ignited a spark in me and revealed a new discovery, cooking can be fun!

I am learning that with patience, motivation, and good recipes anyone can be a good cook. Believe me, if I can do it, so can you! I hope you will experiment along with me and let me know what you think of the recipes I share.

I will post each new recipe I try along with a picture (I can't stand cookbooks that don't include pictures!) so you can see the final product. I will also share tips that I have learned along the way. For you seasoned chefs, the tips may seem like common sense, but for those of us who are dummies in the kitchen, they are epiphanies.

Happy Cooking!

Nancy

Wednesday, December 1, 2010

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Cheesecake


Wow, this was a really rich and delicious cheesecake.



Ingredients

  • 1-3/4 cups crushed chocolate chips cookies or chocolate wafer crumbs
  • 1/4 cup sugar
  • 1/3 cup butter, melted

  • FILLING:
  • 3 packages (8 ounces each) cream cheese, softened
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 3 eggs, lightly beaten
  • 1 cup (8 ounces) sour cream
  • 1/2 teaspoon Spice Island® Pure Vanilla Extract

  • COOKIE DOUGH:
  • 1/4 cup butter, softened
  • 1/4 cup sugar
  • 1/4 cup packed brown sugar
  • 1 tablespoon water
  • 1 teaspoon Spice Island® Pure Vanilla Extract
  • 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1-1/2 cups miniature semisweet chocolate chips, divided

Directions

  • In a small bowl, combine cookie crumbs and sugar; stir in butter. Press onto the bottom and 1 in up the sides of a greased 9-in. pan. Place pan on a baking sheet; set aside.
  • In a large bowl, beat cream cheese and sugar until smooth. Add eggs; beat on low just until combined. Add sour cream and vanilla; beat just until blended. Pour over crust; set aside.
  • In another bowl, cream butter and sugars on medium speed until light and fluffy. Add water and vanilla. Gradually add flour. Stir in 1 cup chocolate chips. Drop dough by teaspoonfuls over filling, gently pushing dough below surface (dough should be completely covered by filling). Place pan on a baking sheet.
  • Bake at 350° for 45-55 minutes or until center is almost set. Cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Carefully run a knife around edge of pan to loosen; cool 1 hour longer. Refrigerate overnight.
  • Remove sides of pan. Sprinkle with remaining chips. Refrigerate leftovers. Yield: 12-14 servings.



www.tasteofhome.com

Butter Pecan Pumpkin Pie


I made this for Thanksgiving and when my niece came up to me three different times to tell me how much she liked it, I knew it was a hit!



Ingredients

  • 1 quart butter pecan ice cream, softened
  • 1 pastry shell (9 inches), baked
  • 1 cup canned pumpkin
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 1/4 teaspoon each ground cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg
  • 1 cup heavy whipping cream, whipped
  • 1/2 cup caramel ice cream topping
  • 1/2 cup chocolate ice cream topping, optional

  • Additional whipped cream

Directions

  • Spread ice cream into the crust; freeze for 2 hours or until firm. In a small bowl, combine the pumpkin, sugar, cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg; fold in whipped cream. Spread over ice cream. Cover and freeze for 2 hours or until firm. May be frozen for up to 2 months.
  • Remove from the freezer 15 minutes before slicing. Drizzle with caramel ice cream topping. Drizzle with chocolate ice cream topping if desired. Dollop with whipped cream. Yield: 6-8 servings.

www.tasteofhome.com

Peachy Sour Cream Coffee Cake


This was SO good!  A wonderful thing to serve at a tea party or brunch.



Ingredients

  • 2 cups chopped pecans
  • 1/3 cup packed brown sugar
  • 3 tablespoons sugar
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

  • CAKE:
  • 1/2 cup butter-flavored shortening
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 teaspoon Spice Island® Pure Vanilla Extract
  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup (8 ounces) sour cream
  • 2 cups sliced peeled fresh peaches

Directions

  • In a small bowl, combine the pecans, sugars and cinnamon; set aside. In a large bowl, cream shortening and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in vanilla. Combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt; add to the creamed mixture alternately with sour cream, beating well after each addition.
  • Pour half the batter into a greased 10-in. tube pan with removable bottom. Sprinkle with 1 cup of the pecan mixture. Top with remaining batter and 1/2 cup pecan mixture. Bake at 350° for 30 minutes.
  • Arrange peaches over cake; sprinkle with remaining pecan mixture. Bake 30-35 minutes longer or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes. Carefully run a knife around edge of pan to loosen. Lift cake with removable bottom from pan. Cool completely. Just before serving, carefully remove cake from pan bottom. Store in the refrigerator. Yield: 12 servings.

www.tasteofhome.com

Pumpkin Chip Muffins


Ingredients

  • 4 eggs
  • 2 cups sugar
  • 1 can (15 ounces) solid-pack pumpkin
  • 1-1/2 cups canola oil
  • 3 cups all-purpose flour
  • 2 teaspoons baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 2 cups (12 ounces) NestlĂ©® Tollhouse® Semi-Sweet Morsels

Directions

  • In a large bowl, beat the eggs, sugar, pumpkin and oil until smooth. Combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon and salt; gradually add to pumpkin mixture and mix well. Fold in chocolate chips. Fill greased or paper-lined muffin cups three-fourths full.
  • Bake at 400° for 15-18 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Cool in pan 10 minutes before removing to a wire rack. Yield: about 2 dozen muffins.

www.tasteofhome.com

Marmalade Monkey Bread


This was very easy and turned out beautiful!  Make sure you cook it long enough, though.  The dough takes awhile to bake through.


Ingredients

  • 2/3 cup orange marmalade
  • 1/2 cup chopped pecans or walnuts
  • 1/4 cup honey
  • 2 tablespoons butter, melted
  • 2 tubes (7-1/2 ounces each) refrigerated buttermilk biscuits

Directions

  • In a small bowl, combine the marmalade, pecans, honey and butter. Cut each biscuit into four pieces. Layer half of the pieces in a greased 10-in. tube pan; top with half of the marmalade mixture. Repeat.
  • Bake at 375° for 27-30 minutes or until golden brown. Cool in pan for 5 minutes before inverting onto a serving plate. Serve warm. Yield: 8 servings.
www.tasteofhome.com


Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Bread


This was a delicious recipe and made two loaves, so I froze one and used it for another occasion.

Ingredients

  • 3 cups all-purpose flour
  • 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 4 eggs
  • 2 cups sugar
  • 2 cups canned pumpkin
  • 1-1/2 cups canola oil
  • 1-1/2 cups (6 ounces) NestlĂ©® Tollhouse® Semi-Sweet Morsels

Directions

  • In a large bowl, combine the flour, cinnamon, salt and baking soda. In another bowl, beat the eggs, sugar, pumpkin and oil. Stir into dry ingredients just until moistened. Fold in chocolate chips.
  • Pour into two greased 8-in. x 4-in. loaf pans. Bake at 350° for 60-70 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks. Yield: 2 loaves (16 slices each).

www.tasteofhome.com

Disclaimer:


None of the recipes posted on this site are mine, they are all taken from other sources, or given to me to try. I am not nearly creative enough or good enough in the kitchen to have come up with any of them.

I also cannot promise that any of these recipes are going to turn out good, or taste good for that matter, so you try them at your own risk.

Enjoy!!! Nancy
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