Sweet Potato Pie

4 Sweet potatoes
1 cup sure
1 stick margarine
2 eggs
2 tsp vanilla
1/3 cup milk
2 ½ Tbsp margarine
½ cup brown sugar
¼ cup plain flour


Peel and cut potatoes. Boil until tender. Drain and mash. Add remaining ingredients and mix well. Sprinkle with pecans. Bake at 350º.

Corn Casserole

1 can cream corn
1 can whole corn, not drained
1 8oz sour cream
1 stick melted butter
1 egg, beaten


Mix all together. Add 1 box Jiffy Corn Muffin Mix. Put in pan. Bake at 350º for 1 hour.
Do not double!

Hot Chicken Salad

2 cups diced cooked chicken
2 cans cream of chicken soup
2 Tbsp minced onions
2 cups cooked rice
1 tsp salt
1 ½ cups mayonnaise
1 cup slivered almonds
6 boiled eggs, chopped
2 cups diced celery
6 tsp lemon juice
Rice Krispies, crushed


Mix all ingredients and place in buttered 13x9 pan. Top with crushed Rice Krispies. Can refrigerate at this stage and wait until just before serving to bake at 375 degrees for 30 minutes

Brazilian Pie of Cookie

2 lg. pkg. pudding (either one or two flavors)
2 boxes of graham crackers
6 c. milk (or as many as the pudding boxes say are needed)
medium bowl of milk

Prepare pudding following to directions on the box. Dip graham crackers one at a time in the bowl of milk and lay them in the bottom of a med-lg sized casserole dish. When the bottom is covered put a layer of pudding over it. Add another layer of milk-soaked graham crackers. Continue, adding as many layers as desired until dish is full or pudding runs out. Cover dish and refrigerate at least 1 hour.

Sausage and Chicken Jambalaya

4 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
2 pounds meaty chicken pieces
2 pounds sausage (The spicier the better)
6 cups onions
4 cups celery
2 cups peppers (green, yellow and red)
1 tsp. oregano
1 tsp. basil
1 tsp. white pepper
1 tbsp. crushed red pepper
2 tbsp. cayenne pepper
4 jalapeños (diced fine)
2 tbsp. minced garlic
4 tbsp. salt
2 tbsp. black pepper
14 ½ oz. can tomato puree
5 ¼ cups chicken stock
3 cups Louisiana basmati rice


In a large pot (or Dutch oven), brown the chicken and set to the side. Add 4 cups of the onion, 3 cups of celery and 1 ½ cups of peppers and sauté until soft and brown, about 12-15 minutes. Add the chicken, and herbs and spices and cook for about 4-5 minutes. Add the rest of the chopped veggies and cook another 5 minutes. Add the sliced sausage and tomato puree, let cook for 4 minutes. Add the chicken stock and bring to a boil. Add the rice, bring to a boil, reduce heat to LOW and simmer for about 25-30 minutes until rice is cooked. (NOTE: If you want to add shrimp to this, just cut back on the sausage)

Yummy Squishy Brownies

1 cup sugar
1 cup butter
4 eggs
1 (16 oz.) can HERSHEY’S syrup
1 cup flour


Mix ingredients together in order as above. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. Let cool and ice.

Icing:

1 ½ cups sugar
6 Tbsp. butter
6 Tbsp Milk
½ cup chocolate chips


Boil sugar, margarine, and milk one minute. Remove from heat and mix in chocolate chips until melted. Pour over brownies.
Note: Best if made 1 day ahead. Not for the faint of heart!

Southern Living Magazine's King Cake

¼ cup butter or margarine
1 16oz container of sour cream
1/3 cup sugar
1 tsp salt
2 (.25oz) envelopes active dry yeast
1 Tbsp white sugar
½ cup warm water
2 eggs
6 ½ cups all-purpose flour, divided
½ cup white sugar
1 ½ tsp ground cinnamon
1/3 cup butter or margarine, softened


Cook butter, sour cream, sugar and salt in saucepan over low heat, stirring often, until butter melts. Cool mixture to 100º to 110º.
Dissolve yeast and 1 Tbsp sugar in ½ cup warm water in a large bowl; let stand 5 minutes. Add butter mixture, eggs, and 2 cups flour; beat at medium speed with an electric mixer 2 minutes or until smooth. Gradually stir in enough remaining flour to make a soft dough.
Turn dough onto a lightly floured surface; knead until smooth and elastic, about 10 minutes. Place in a well-greased bowl, turning to grease top. Cover and let rise in a warm place (85º), free from drafts, 1 hour or until doubled in bulk.
Stir together ½ cup sugar and cinnamon; set aside.
Punch dough down; divide in half. Turn 1 portion out onto a lightly floured surface; roll to a 28x10 inch rectangle. Spread half each of cinnamon mixture and softened butter on dough. Roll dough, jellyroll fashion, starting at long side. Place dough roll, seam side down, on a lightly greased baking sheet. Bring ends together to form an oval ring, moistening and pinching edges together to seal. Repeat with remaining dough, cinnamon mixture, and butter.
Bake at 375º for 15 minutes or until golden. Decorate with bands of Colored Frostings, and sprinkle with Colored Sugars.

Colored Frosting:

3 cups powdered sugar
3 Tbsp butter, melted
3 Tbsp milk
¼ tsp vanilla
2 drops green food color
2 drops yellow food color
2 drops blue food color
2 drops red food color


Stir together powdered sugar and melted butter. Ad milk to reach desired consistency for drizzling; stir in vanilla. Divide frosting into 3 batches, tinting 1 green, 1 yellow, and combining red and blue food coloring for purple frosting.

Colored Sugars:

1 ½ cups white sugar
2 drops green food color
2 drops yellow food color
2 drops blue food color
2 drops red food color

Place ½ cup sugar and drop of green food color in a jar or zip top bag; seal. Shake vigorously to evenly mix color with sugar. Repeat procedure with ½ cup sugar and yellow food coloring. For purple, combine 1 drop red and 1 drop blue food coloring before adding to remaining ½ cup sugar.

Mama Suzzie's Banana Pudding

2 pkgs. small instant French vanilla pudding
3 cups milk
8 oz sour cream
small tub cool whip
6 bananas
1 box Nilla Wafers

Put milk and sour cream in mixing bowl. Add pudding mix and stir until smooth. Add ¾ of the cool whip. Mix until firm. Cover bottom of serving dish in wafers, cut up banana cover with pudding. Continue layering in this manner until you’re out of pudding. Cover top with remaining cool whip and crush some wafers on top for garnish.

Note: Mom makes 3 recipes at a time to fill her banana pudding bowl.

Honeyed Apple Torte

1/3 cup honey

2 Tbsp fresh lemon juice

3 medium-firm tart cooking apples, quartered, peeled and each quarter cut lengthwise

1 ¼ cups sifted unbleached all-purpose flour

1 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

6 Tbsp unsalted butter, room temperature

¾ cup sugar

1 tsp vanilla

Finely grated zest of 1 lemon (optional)

¼ cup packed brown sugar

2 large eggs

Bring the honey and lemon juice to a simmer in a 12 inch nonstick skillet over medium heat, stirring occasionally. Add the apple wedges, cut side down, and cook, stirring gently and frequently with a heatproof rubber spatula, 10 to 15 minutes, until the apples are translucent and almost tender when tested with the tip of a sharp paring knife. Set aside to cool. Adjust an oven rack to the center position and preheat the oven to 350º. Butter a 9 inch springform pan, or coat with cooking spray; set aside.

Resift the flour with the baking powder and salt, set aside. In a large bowl, beat the butter with an electric mixer on medium speed until smooth, about 1 minute. Add ¼ cup of the sugar, the vanilla, and lemon zest and beat on medium-high speed for 1 minute. Beat in the remaining ½ cup sugar, then the brown sugar about ¼ cup at a time, beating for 20 to 30 seconds after each addition, then beat for 4 minutes. Beat in the eggs one at a time, beating for 1 minute after each addition. On low speed, beat in the flour mixture only until the batter is smooth.

Spread the batter evenly in the prepared pan.

Arrange the cooled apple slices on top in an attractive pattern of concentric circles, leaving a bit of space between the wedges. Press the apple slices slightly into the batter.

For the topping, combine 1 Tbsp sugar with ½ tsp ground cinnamon and sprinkle evenly over the apples and batter. Bake for 1 hour, or until the cake is nicely browned and springs back when gently pressed. Cool completely in the pan on a wire rack. Remove the sides of the pan and cut into portions with a sharp serrated knife.

*For those of us without springform pans, it works just fine in a round cake pan.

Chocolate Sheet Cake

2 cups flour

2 cups sugar

½ tsp salt

2 sticks butter

1 cup water

2 Tbsp cocoa

2 eggs, well beaten

1 tsp baking soda

½ cup buttermilk

1 tsp vanilla

1 tsp cinnamon

Sift flour, sugar and salt together. Set aside.

Bring butter, water and cocoa to a boil. Mix eggs, baking soda, buttermilk and vanilla in a separate bowl. Pour butter mixture over flour mixture. Mix in buttermilk mixture. Mix well and pour into greased and floured sheet pan (19 ½ x 10 ½). Bake 20 minutes at 390º. Start Icing last 5 minutes of baking time.

Frosting:

1 stick butter

2 Tbsp cocoa

6 Tbsp milk

1 box confectioner’s sugar

½ cup nuts

1 tsp vanilla

Mix butter, coco, and milk in a pan until melted. Add sugar, nuts and vanilla. Mix well. Frost cake as soon as you remove cake from oven.

Black Bottom Cupcakes

Cake:

1 ½ cups flour

1 cup sugar

¼ cup unsweet cocoa

1 tsp baking soda

½ tsp salt

1 cup water

1/3 cup oil

1 tsp white vinegar

Filling:

6oz cream cheese, room temperature

1/3 cup sugar

1 tsp vanilla

1 egg

6 oz semi-sweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350º. Combine cake ingredients and beat 2 minutes. Set aside.

Cream sugar and cream cheese until smooth. Beat vanilla and egg in. Stir in chocolate chips.

Fill cups 1/3 cupcake, 1 Tbsp filling. Bake 350º for 20-30 minutes.

Note: I usually just use the cake part and ice or put white chips in the cake while baking. Makes a 9 inch round cake layer. Can also use in 13x9 inch pan for thinner cake.

Pecan Biscuit Spirals by Sarah Morris

2 c. flour

2 Tbs. sugar

1 Tbs. baking powder

½ tsp. salt

½ c. butter

1 egg, beaten

½ c. milk

1 Tbs. butter, melted

¼ c. pecans, finely chopped

3 Tbs. brown sugar

Mix together flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Make a well in the center. Combine eggs and milk and pour into the well all at once. Stir together until dough just clings together. Knead on floured surface 12-15 strokes. Roll into a rectangle. Spread melted butter over top of dough. Combine pecans and brown sugar and sprinkle over lower half the rectangle. Fold the top half of the dough over the half with the nuts and sugar. Cut the dough into 1 in. strips (for easy cutting use a pizza cutter). Holding the bottom of a strip, twist the top around 2-3 times to make a spiral. Place spirals on greased cookie sheet. Bake at 450° for 10 min.