Favorite Desserts

Although dessert is not my favorite part of the meal (shocker, I know) I still love to bake. I probably love to bake more than cook actually. The love of baking came from my grandma. She was phenomenal at every stage of a meal. A few years ago, I came across a list she had created for an upcoming week in which she had guests arriving. She had meals planned out, the grocery list made and a jello dish with every meal. She was quite the entertainer, an excellent gravy maker (I'm still trying to perfect this) and a wonderful baker.
Some of my favorite cooking and baking memories stem from my grandmas kitchen whether I was helping her prepare nightly dinners, making melting moments or watching her organize mass chaos for the holidays.  If I had to pick my favorite dessert, I couldn't narrow it down to one (see previous post about picking my favorite recipe or food even...it's not possible), so I have compiled a list of some of my favorite dessert recipes. Enjoy!

Scotcharoos
1 cup sugar
1 cup peanut butter
1 cup Karo syrup
6 cups Special K (or Rice Krispy's)
6 oz butterscotch chips
6 oz milk chocolate chips

Melt sugar, peanut butter and Karo syrup over medium heat in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil, remove from heat immediately. Stir in cereal.
Transfer mixture into a well-greased 9x13 inch pan. Pat mixture down well with your hands.
Melt butterscotch chips and chocolate chips over medium low heat in small saucepan. Spread over top of bars. Cool completely.

Peanut Butter Cookies with Chocolate Stars
1 1/2 cups flour
1 t baking soda
1/2 t salt
1/2 cup peanut butter
1 egg
1 t vanilla
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar 
chocolate stars (or Hershey kisses)

Sift dry ingredients together. Cream butter and peanut butter. Add sugars egg and vanilla. Beat well. Add dry ingredients. Shape dough into balls and roll in sugar.
Bake at 375 for 8 minutes. Remove from oven, add stars and make 2-5 more minutes.

Pumpkin Bars
4 eggs
1 2/3 cup sugar
1 cup oil
15 oz can pumpkin
2 cups flour
2 tsp baking powder
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
8 oz cream cheese
1/2 cup butter
2 cups powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla

Beat eggs, sugar and oil together. Add pumpkin. Mix well. Sift dry ingredients through baking soda. Add to pumpkin mixture. Grease a jelly roll pan. Pour batter into pan, bake 30 minutes at 350. 
Meanwhile, beat cream cheese, butter, powdered sugar and vanilla together.  Frost bars after they have cooled completely.

Fanny Farmer Fudge
3 cups sugar
1 cup carnation milk
dash salt
12 oz chocolate chips
1 1/2 sticks margarine
walnuts, if desired

Boil sugar, milk and salt rapidly for 6 minutes stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Add chocolate chips and margarine. Beat until thickened.Add walnuts if desired. Pour into 9x13 pan. Refridgerate.

Melting Moments
1 cup powdered sugar
1 cup butter, softened
3/4 cup cornstarch 
1 cup flour

1 1/4 cup powdered sugar
3 T milk
1/2 tsp vanilla

Cream sugar and butter. Add cornstarch and flour. Drop cookies on an ungreased cookie sheet. Make a imprint with a fork in a criss-cross pattern. Bake and 350 for 12-15 minutes.  
Mix powdered sugar, milk and vanilla to make glaze for cookies. Add food coloring for various holidays if desired. 

Chocolate Chip Cookies
2 1/4 cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1 cup butter, softened
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla
2 eggs
1 3/4 cup chocolate chips
1 cup nuts (if desired)

Preheat oven to 350. Combine dry ingredients. Beat butter, sugar, brown sugar, and vanilla. Add eggs 1 at a time. Gradually beat flour mixture in. Sitir in chips and nuts. Drop by rounded tablespoons. Bake 9-11 minutes. Cool.

Pie Crust
2 cups flour
1 tsp salt
2/4 stick shortening, chilled
4-8 T ice cold water

Blend flour and salt. Cut cubed, chilled shortening into flour mixture. Sprinkle half of water in. Mix with fork. Add water unto dough sticks. Wrap in plastic, refrigerate at least 30 minutes. 

Sugar Cookies
1 stick (1 cup) shortening
1 cup sugar
1 egg
2 T milk
1 T vanilla
3 cups flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt

Beat shortening and sugar. Beat in eggs, milk and vanilla. Combine dry ingredients. Fold in, mix on low. Refridgerate at least one hour in plastic wrap. Preheat oven to 375. Roll out dough, use cutouts for various holidays. Bake 9 minutes. Top with frosting and fun decorations.

Mini Cheesecakes
1 1/2 oz graham crackers
1/2 T butter
8 oz cream cheese
1/4 cup sugar
1 egg
1 1/2 tsp vanilla
cooking spray

Preheat oven to 350.
Coat 4 ramekins with cooking spray. Crush crackers, add butter. Spread cracker crust evenly between 4 ramekins, making a thin crust. Bake 10 minutes. Freeze 5-10 minutes.
Combine other ingredients. Divide batter between 4 ramekins. Place ramekins on larger pan, add 1/2" hot water. Add foil around edges around ramekins. Bake 25 minutes. 
Cover and refrigerate 4 hours.

Gingerbread People
8 ounces (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened at room temperature
3/4 cup packed light brown sugar
1 egg
1/2 cup dark molasses
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
3 1/4 cups cake flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 teaspoons ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

In a mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream the butter until smooth. Add the sugar and mix. Add the eggs and mix. Add the molasses and vanilla and mix.
Sift the flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, and cloves together. Working in batches and mixing after each addition until just combined, add the dry ingredients to the butter-sugar mixture. Shape the dough into a thick disk, wrap in waxed paper, and refrigerate 1 to 2 hours.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Grease 1 or 2 cookie sheets. On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough out 1/4-inch thick and cut out with desired cookie cutters.

 I got this apple crisp recipe from Ina Garten (Food Network) a few years ago because I couldn't remember how my grandma made hers. Although it isn't the same as my grandmas (and certainly not as healthy...it does have apples and oatmeal though!) it is absolutely delicious. I have made it many times now and I absolutely love the crust!

Apple Crisp
5 pounds apples
grated zest of 1 orange
grated zest of 1 lemon
2 T orange juice
2 T lemon juice
1/2 sugar
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp nutmeg
1 1/2 cups flour
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup oatmeal
1/2 lb butter, cold and diced

Preheat the oven to 350. Butter a 9x14" pan.
Peel, core and cut apples into large wedges. Combine the apples with the zests, juices, sugar and spices. Pour into the dish.
To make the topping, combine the flour, sugars, salt, oatmeal and cold butter in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Mix on low speed until mixture is crumbly and the butter is the size of peas. Scatter evenly over the apples.
Place the crisp on a sheet pan and bake 1 hour until the top is brown and the apples are bubbly. Serve warm.