Watergate Salad

My Grandma used to make this and I love it.  Just made it for us for dessert tonight!

1 can (20 oz.) crushed pineapple, in juice, undrained
1 package (3.4 oz) pistachio instant pudding
1 1/2 cups thawed Cool Whip
1 cup miniature marshmallows
1/2 cup chopped pecans

Combine all ingredients.
Refrigerate one hour.

Then enjoy!!

Black Bottom Cupcakes

Ingredients:
Devil’s food cake mix
1 8oz brick of cream cheese Softened
1 egg
1/3 cup of sugar
Dash of salt
6 oz mini chocolate chips


Use a standard Devil’s food cake mix ( follow directions on mix to make a cake)
Fill cupcake liners half full
Add one tablespoon of cupcake filling
Bake according to directions for cupcakes

Cupcake Filling:
1 8oz brick of cream cheese Softened
1 egg
1/3 cup of sugar
Dash of salt
Mix all ingredients together with a mixer
Stir in 6 oz mini chocolate chips


I made these for Super Bowl Sunday and they were delicious!

Vanilla Cream Pie

Vanilla Cream Pie

Ingredients
Pie

• 2 deep dish pie crusts (baked according to manufacturers directions)
• 2 boxes cook & serve vanilla pudding
• 1 small can sweetened condensed milk
• 4 1/2 cups milk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Meringue

• 3 egg whites
• 6 tablespoons vanilla extract
• 1/4 teaspoon vanilla

Directions

Mix all ingredients except pie shells. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until mixture comes to a boil. Pour into completely cooled cooked pie crusts. Allow to cool completely.

Beat the eggs whites until stiff peaks form. Add the sugar two tablespoons at a time. Continue to beat and add vanilla extract.

Pour meringue over the pies. Bake at 350 degrees until the meringue is golden brown.

Cool & serve!

Grandma Micki's Dark Chocolate Pound Cake

Ingredients

• 3 cups all purpose flour
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 cup dutch processed cocoa powder (I use Hershey's Cocoa Special Dark)
• 1/4 tsp salt

• 1 1/2 cups butter (softened)
• 3 cups sugar
• 5 large eggs
• 1 1/4 cups milk

• 1 tsp vanilla extract

Directions

1. Do not preheat oven.
2. Grease & flour bundt pan.
3. Sift flour, baking powder, cocoa, and salt together. Set aside.
4. Beat butter & sugar on low speed until fluffy. (8-9 minutes)
5. Beat in eggs, one at a time. Mix well after each.
6. Mix in milk.
7. Gradually mix in dry ingredients.
8. Beat in vanilla.
9. Pour into pan and back at 325 degrees for 1 hour 20 minutes.
10. Allow cake to cool in pan for 1 hour before removal.
11. Cool 3 more hours before serving.

It is very important to follow all the directions and measurements exactly!

Dutch Apple Pie

We made these from scratch (except the pie crust) in my moms' group recently as our "craft." It was such a fun idea, and it turned out that they were tasty, too!

Dutch Apple Pie

Ingredients
(1) deep-dish pie crust
6-8 apples (peeled and sliced)
3/4 cup sugar
1 Tbs flour
1 tsp cinnamon
2 Tbs butter

Crumb topping:
3/4 cup brown sugar
3/4 cup flour
1/3 cup butter (I was math-challenged and just used the rest of the stick missing from the 2 Tbs above)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place apples in 1-gallon Ziploc bag. Add sugar, flour, and cinnamon. Mix (shake) until apples are well-coated with sugar mixture. Place apples in pie crust. Dot apples with butter.
In small bowl, mix brown sugar, flour, and butter with pasty blender or fork. Cover apples with crumb topping.

Bake approximately 1 hour.

Yum!

Apple Pound Cake

I am still trying to work my way through my 1/2 bushel of apples. This recipe may not use a lot of them, but man is it good!

Apple Pound Cake
Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups cooking oil
2 cups sugar
3 eggs
1tsp vanilla
3 cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
3 cups raw apple chunks, peeled
1 tsp cinnamon

Cream the oil, sugar, and eggs. Then add the vanilla. SIft flour, cinnamon, soda, and salt. Add this latter powder mix to the creamed ingredients. Add apples. (you might not want to use the mixer at this point, it's pretty thick). Grease and flour a tube pan. Pour batter into pan and bake in pre-heated 350 degree oven, for 1 hour, 15 minutes, or a little longer until done.

Try to not eat it all yourself. :)

Toffee Bars

Ingredients:
1 cup butter or margarine, softened
1 cup packed brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1 egg yolk
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 tsp salt
2/3 cup milk chocolate chips
1/2 cup chopped nuts, if desired

Directions:
1. Heat oven to 350; In a large bowl, mix butter, brown sugar, vanilla, and egg yolk. Stir in flour and salt. Press in ungreased 13x9x2 pan.

2. bake 25-30 minutes or until very light brown (crust will be soft). Immediately sprinkle choc. chips on hot crust. Let stand about 5 minutes, or until choc is soft; spread evenly, sprinkle with nuts. (I never use the nuts, but this time, I'm trying Heath toffee bits on top)

3. Cool bars 30 minutes in pan on wire rack.

strawberry pretzel salad

This is a family favorite! We usually have it as a salad, but it could easily be the dessert as well!

You'll need:
2 C crushed pretzels

3/4 cup melted butter
3 T sugar

1 (8 oz) pkg cream cheese, softened
1 C sugar
1 (8 oz) container Cool Whip

2 (3 oz) pkgs strawberry Jell-o
2 C boiling water
2 (10 oz) pkgs frozen strawberries - semi-thawed (take them out of the freezer when you start the crust)

To make it:
1) Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2) Combine pretzels, melted butter, and 3 T sugar in a 9x13 pan. Press into bottom-only of dish to form crust. Bake for 8-10 minutes. Set aside and let cool.
3) Combine cream cheese, 1 C sugar, and Cool Whip with mixer. Pour mixture over cooled crust. Be sure to smoosh the mixture to the edges of the pan to form a "seal" with the white layer (this keeps the Jello from sinking down to the crust).
4) Combine Jello with boiling water until Jello is completely dissolved. Add frozen strawberries in and stir until strawberries are melted. The strawberries should make the Jello start to set up, but if not, stick the Jello mixture in the freezer for 5-10 minutes - you want it at a "goopy gel" stage (you'll know what I mean :) - basically so it's not sheer liquid. The pour the Jello over the white layer.
5) Cover and refrigerate until Jello is set up!

Farmer's Cobbler

This is called farmer's cobbler because farmer's always had the ingredients on hand and could "whip up" a cobbler any time. It's a familiar favorite in our family. Especially with fresh picked blackberries!



1 stick of butter
1 cup milk
1 cup self rising flour
1 cup sugar
1 bag of frozen fruit or 2 cups fresh fruit

• Preheat oven at 350
• While oven is heating, place 1 stick of butter in a 11 x 13 x 2 pan
• Place in oven so butter can melt
• Meanwhile, mix milk, flour, and sugar together
• When butter has melted, pour fruit in the bottom of the pan (be careful with the hot, melted butter)
• Pour mixture over fruit
• Do not stir!
• Bake in oven for 30-45 minutes until cobbler is brown

enjoy with a scoop of vanilla ice cream!