This recipe was shared by Aunt Shirley from Kaplan, Louisiana.
Sugar Coated Pecans
Ingredients:
2 egg whites
2 cups pecans halves
1/4 cup sugar
2 tsp cinnamon
Directions:
Beat egg whites until foamy. Add pecans and toss until well coated. Combine sugar and cinnamon. Sprinkle over pecans and toss to coat. Spread in a layer on ungreased baking sheet. Bake for 30 minutes or until golden brown.
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Don’t forget to send me your favorite holiday cookie recipe!
This recipe was shared by Linda, a former co-worker of mine.
Toffee Bars
Ingredients:
1 stick margarine and 1 stick butter
1/2 cup white sugar
1 small package slivered almonds
Graham crackers (broken using the lines on the crackers into individual pieces) to cover bottom of 11 x 17 inch pan. (I use a metal cookie sheet but make sure it has a rim around it so syrup stays in the pan.)
Directions:
Combine butter & sugar in saucepan. Bring to boil and boil for 2 minutes. DO NOT OVERCOOK. Pour syrup over crackers & sprinkle with almonds. Bake at 325 degrees for 10-12 minutes. Remove from pan & place on waxed paper to cool.
(I use a metal pancake turner & knife to remove from the pan onto the waxed paper. After letting them cool & harden up a bit, I move them to a new sheet of waxed paper so they won’t stick. Also, these make a bit of a mess with the butter seeping through the paper & the syrup is very hot, so either a thick protective dishcloth or even newspapers underneath the waxed paper should be used so your table/countertop doesn’t get damaged.)
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Don’t forget to send me your favorite holiday cookie recipe!
Pumpkin Cranberry Bread
I picked this recipe up years ago, made it once and then forgot about it for a while. Just after Halloween this year I decided I wanted to make a batch and I’ve made it three times since then. It disappears nearly as fast as I can get it baked! I’ve made a couple of slight revisions to the recipe, but the original came from Libby’s.
Ingredients:
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 Tbsp pumpkin pie spice
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 cups sugar
1 3/4 cups (15 oz can) pure pumpkin
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 cup fresh, frozen, or dried cranberries
Directions:
Combine flour, pumpkin pie spice, baking powder, and salt in large bowl. Combine eggs, sugar, pumpkin, vanilla extract, and oil in small mixer bowl and beat until just blended. Add pumpkin mixture to flour mixture and stir until just moistened. Spoon batter into two greased and floured 9×5 inch loaf pans.
Preheat oven to 350. Bake for 55-60 minutes (I find it takes a little less time) or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pans for 5-10 minutes. Remove to wire rack to cool completely.
Variation:
I like to make this in a mini loaf pan (like a cupcake pan but loaf-shaped). Make recipe as above, then spoon into greased mini loaf pans. Bake at 350 for about 15 minutes. Makes about 3 dozen.
Don’t forget to send me your favorite holiday cookie recipe!
It’s that time of year again and I’ve got cookies on the brain! Some of my fondest Christmas memories include making cookies with my mom and sister. The snowballs were always my favorite, not only because they are delicious, but because they were a lot of fun to make too. I really look forward to my children being able to be more active in the holiday cookie making in a few years. Zach had fun decorating sugar cookies last year so that’s probably what we’ll focus on again this time around but I thought it might be fun to try out a few new recipes too (this is where you all come in!).
As I was thinking about all of the cookie options I had an idea – what if I could get all of my friends and family to send me their favorite holiday cookie recipes? There may be a few duplicates, but I’m sure you all have some great recipes you’ve been stashing away.
I thought about turning it into a contest, but in the end I figured out a way that everybody can win! What I would like to do is collect all of your favorite holiday cookie recipes and create a downloadable pdf recipe book for everyone to share. Each recipe will be featured in a post on Recipe Corner, as well as included in the printable recipe book.
Here’s what I need from you:
E-mail your entry to dee(AT)recipecorner(DOT)net (please send to this address only so I can keep them straight)
Deadline for entries is next Friday, December 19, 2008 to allow time for me to put the pdf book together.
Any questions? Feel free to leave it in the comments or e-mail me at the address above.
I think this is a pretty standard banana pudding recipe, but I made Brian call my mother-in-law so I could make sure I had it right. I’ve always just made it with plain banana pudding, but this way is so much better! The picture isn’t very flattering because I didn’t have great lighting conditions, but I assure you it looked very yummy!
Ingredients:
1 package banana cream instant pudding (we used sugar free)
2 cups milk
8 oz. sour cream
1 regular size tub of Cool Whip
1 box ‘Nilla Wafers (minis or regular)
3-4 bananas, sliced
Directions:
Mix pudding packet and milk according to package directions.
Mix sour cream and Cool Whip into pudding (I use an electric hand mixer for this to make it nice and fluffy).
Layer bottom of pan or bowl (we used a 9×13 dish here with a double batch of pudding) with Nilla wafers. Spoon a layer of pudding on top. Add a layer of sliced bananas, then another layer of pudding, etc. until you’ve used up all the pudding.
In the picture above I got a little decorative with some canned Cool Whip, banana slices, and crushed Nilla Wafers, but that isn’t necessary. (It is fun though!)
Suggestions:
If you want to make a double batch, use one package of vanilla pudding and one package of banana cream pudding. If sugar is a concern, you can use sugar free pudding and sugar free Cool Whip. The cookies still have sugar, but it reduces it quite a bit!
Every year when Fall gets near and football season comes around I start having cravings for Pear Crisp. The first year we lived in our house we discovered that we had a pear tree in the yard. When they ripened up we had more pears than we knew what to do with so I had to look for creative ways to use them up. This pear crisp recipe has become my favorite way to use up all those pears and I’m not sure I can get through Fall without it!
Ingredients:
8-10 large pears, sliced
1/2 cup sugar
1 1/2 cups packed brown sugar
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup quick-cooking or old-fashioned oats
2/3 cup butter or margarine, softened
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
Directions:
Heat oven to 375ºF. Grease bottom and sides of 9×13 baking dish with shortening.
Spread pears in pan. Spread 1/2 cup sugar over pears and sprinkle with cinnamon. (I usually add just a little water to pan as well to keep pears from burning). Bake for about 20 minutes to soften pears.
In medium bowl, stir remaining ingredients until well mixed; sprinkle over pears. Bake about 30 minutes or until topping is golden brown and pears are tender when pierced with a fork.
Suggestions:
Serve warm with ice cream on top.
This recipe is one that I got from my ex-mother-in-law years ago. She used to make it almost every time I came to visit and fortunately I got to take the recipe with me when my ex and I split up. I don’t have any pictures because it has been a while since I’ve made it, but I assure you it is very yummy!
Ingredients:
1 ½ cup uncooked elbow macaroni
¼ cup margarine or butter
½ tsp salt
¼ tsp. pepper
¼ cup flour
1 ¾ cups milk
8 oz. (8-10 slices) American cheese
chopped onion
potato chips
Directions:
Cook macaroni as directed on package. Cook and stir margarine, onion, salt and pepper over medium heat until onion is slightly tender. Blend in flour with whisk. Cook over low heat stirring constantly until mixture is smooth and bubbly. Remove form heat. Stir in milk. Heat to boiling, stirring constantly, on medium heat. Remove from heat. Stir in cheese until melted.
Place macaroni in ungreased 1 ½ quart casserole dish. Stir cheese sauce into macaroni. Crumble potato chips on top. Cook uncovered in 375◦ oven for 30 minutes.
Makes approximately 5 servings.
Ever get tired of eating the same old thing week after week? We sure do. A while back I went on a search for some new quick-fix recipes. I found this Thai Pita Pocket recipe online (though I can’t remember exactly where) and it soon became one of our favorites.
Ingredients:
2 chicken breasts (or 1 package pre-cooked chicken strips to save time)
4 Pitas
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
1 cup shredded carrots
1/2 cup green onion
Thai peanut sauce
Kraft Asian Sesame Salad Dressing (optional-we added this for a little more moisture)
Directions:
Grill or fry chicken breasts and cut into strips. Mix cheese, carrots, green onion, peanut sauce (more or less depending on taste), and sesame dressing together in bowl. I like to microwave it for 30 seconds or so to melt the cheese a little. Warm pita bread in microwave (about 30 seconds). Slice in half. Open “pockets” and spoon mixture into the pita pockets.
My sister made this yummy dessert one evening when we were at her house for dinner. It was absolutely delicious and very easy to make.
Ingredients:
1 can crescent rolls
1 8oz. cream cheese, softened
1 egg
1/2 cup sugar
1 Tbsp flour
1 Tbsp lemon juice
Directions:
Spread rolls with the wide sides together in center of pan. The points should be toward the outside of the pan forming four triangles on each side. Press the dough together in the middle.
Mix cream cheese, egg, sugar, flour and lemon juice until fluffy. Pour over the center of the rolls. Fold points over top of cream cheese mixture and press ends down to prevent oozing.
Sprinkle top with cinnamon and sugar. Bake at 350 degrees for about 25 minutes.
Let cool. Slice and enjoy!
Suggestions:
Serve with fresh strawberries or other fruit on the side.
This recipe was given to me by a co-worker a few years ago. I was shocked when I found out the main ingredient was saltine crackers, but all you taste is sweet, chocolatey goodness.
Ingredients:
1 cup real butter (2 sticks)
1 cup brown sugar
1 package saltine crackers
1 package chocolate chips (I use dark chocolate but any will work)
chopped pecans
Directions:
Melt butter in microwave. Mix butter and brown sugar together. Microwave for 3-5 minutes until thick and bubbly (make sure that butter is not separated from mixture).
Line a 9×13 cake pan with aluminum foil. Cover bottom of pan with saltine crackers.
Pour butter and brown sugar mixture over crackers and spread out until all crackers are covered. Bake at 350° for 15-20 minutes until it is bubbly on top.
Take out of oven and pour chocolate chips over the top. As chocolate chips melt, spread them over top with a spoon or knife.
Sprinkle pecans on top.
Refrigerate for at least one hour to set. Cut or break into pieces and enjoy!