Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies with Brown Sugar Frosting

Submitted by Becca Leeper

Ingredients for the cookies:
1 c crisco
1 c white sugar
1 c pumpkin
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
2 1/2 cup flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp salt
6 oz semi-sweet chocolate chips

Directions:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees
Cream together crisco, sugar, pumpkin, egg, & vanilla. Sift in remainging dry ingredients. Stir in chocolate chips. Spoon by tablespoons onto ungreased cookie sheet. Bake for 10-12 minutes until the edges are browned. Once cool ice cookies with the following icing.

Ingredients:
1 tsp vanilla
3 Tblspns butter
3 Tblspns milk
1/2 c brown sugar
1 1/2 c powdered sugar

Directions:
On stove top heat vanilla, butter, milk, and brown sugar until sugar is dissolved. Remove from heat and wisk in powdered sugar.

NOTES: I made this Gluten Free and used the Grandpa's Kitchen Gluten Free Flour blend.

Hot Spinach and Artichoke Dip

Submitted by Becca Leeper
(Original recipe from Allrecipes.com)

Ingredients:
10 slices bacon
1 (10 oz) package frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained
1 (14 oz) marinated artichoke hearts, drained and coarsely chopped
1 (5oz) container garlic-herb flavored cheese spread (Allouette)
2 cloves garlic minced
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 (8 oz) container sour cream
1/2 cup mayonnaise

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees
Cook bacon until evenly brown, drain and crumble. Mix all the ingredients together in a medium bowl and then scoop into shallow baking dish. Bake in preheated oven for 20 minutes or until bubbly and lightly browned.

Peanut Butter Balls (Buckeyes)

Submitted by Joe and Dede Russo

Ingredients:
2 c. creamy peanut butter
1 c. unsalted butter, room temperature
1/2 t. pure vanilla extract
6 c. powdered sugar
9 oz. semi-sweet chocolate chips or chunks

Mix together peanut butter, butter, and vanilla extract.
Work in the powdered sugar until it's completely incorporated.
Roll the peanut butter mixture into 1" balls. Place on a parchment-lined baking sheet and freeze for 15-20 minutes.
Melt the chocolate in a double boiler.
Using a toothpick, dip the balls one at a time in the chocolate leaving a small circle undipped to resemble a buckeye. Or you can use two forks to roll the peanut butter balls in chocolate, completely coating them.
Recipe yields approximately 60 buckeyes or peanut butter balls.

Black Bean Hummus

Submitted by Joe and Dede Russo

You will need:
1 can black beans, drained
1 can garbanzo beans, drained
4 cloves garlic
1/4 – 1/2 teaspoon cayenne
1/4 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon cumin
3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
2 tablespoons tahini
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 teaspoons lemon juice
1 tablespoon cilantro (Optional)

Combine all ingredients in a food processor. Process until smooth.
Transfer to a bowl and serve.

Baked Brie with Chutney and Cashews

Submitted by Allie Jones

One large "triangle" of brie
one small jar mango chutney
about 1/2 cup coarsely chopped cashews.

Preheat over to ~ 375 or 400 degrees
carefully scrape of most of the "skin" off the top and sides of the brie with a sharp knife (keep skin on bottom)place brie in small/med, shallow, pyrite or glass or ceramic baking dish completely cover top of brie with many spoonfulls of chutney, let it spill over the sides Then top that with good layer of cashews, so that you can sort of but not really see the chutney underneath it.

Bake for about 20 minutes or so...check now and then to make sure its not burning too much on top (if so, turn down oven a bit). The sign that its done is when brie is basically liquidy and bubbling and is all "spread out" in baking dish

Serve with a nice cracker or sliced baguette.

Ginger Cookies

Submitted by Kimberly Felix

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

1 C sugar
3/4 C shortening
1/4 C dark molasses
1 egg
2 C flour
1 t baking soda
1/2 t salt
2 t ginger
1/2 t ground cloves
1 t cinnamon


Mix and bake (rounded teaspoon sized) at 350 degrees for 10-15 minutes.

Chickpea Hummus

Submitted by Kimberly Felix

Ingredients
2 cups canned chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1 lemon, juiced
2 tablespoons tahini paste
1 tablespoon garlic
1/4 cup olive oil, plus more, for drizzling
Salt
Freshly ground black pepper
Directions
In a food processor fitted with a metal blade, combine the chickpeas, lemon juice, tahini paste, and garlic. Process until smooth. With the machine running, add 1/4 cup olive oil, a little at a time. Season with salt and pepper.

Vegetarian Zucchini Pie Casserole

Submitted by Joe Russo

2 cups Zucchini
2 cups lentils (Soaked overnight)
2 cup carrots
1 cup celery
1/2 cup onion
2 cloves fresh garlic
1 tsp. cumin
1 tsp. turmeric
2 tsp. yellow curry
2 Cups bread crumbs to top (Optional)

In a large skillet, add some olive oil to coat the pan and begin to caramelize the onions with the garlic. Then add carrots and celery until cooked. Then add the zucchini and lentils. Let them cook together for about 10 min. Then add all the seasonings. Once mixed transfer to a 9 x 9 pan. Sprinkle with top with breadcrumbs and bake for 10 min. Then Serve :) Serves 6.

I have found this to be really good mixed with Spaghetti sauce, just so the kids will eat it.

Frosti-Harvester Pie

(Ice-cream Pumpkin Pie)

Recipe Submitted by Kimberly Felix

Crust:
1/2 C flaked coconut
1/2 C chopped pecans
1/2 C butter
1/4 C brown sugar
1 C flour

Combine and cut in butter until mixture is crumbly. Spread into 9 x 13 baking dish. Bake at 400 for 15 minutes. Stir after removing from oven and place aside about half for topping. Press remaining half into bottom and sides of a 9" pie pan and chill.

Filling:
1/2 chopped pecans
1/4 C brown sugar
3/4 C pumpkin puree
1/2 t cinnamon
1/2 t ground ginger
1/8 t ground cloves
1/8 t nutmeg
1/4 t salt
1 quart softened vanilla ice cream

Combine all but ice cream in a large bowl. Stir spices together, then mix in the ice cream. Spread ice cream mixture into chilled crust. Garnish with reserved crumbs. Freeze until firm. Top with whipped cream if desired.

Let soften 5-10 minutes at room temperature before serving.

Spinach Salad w/ Sweet Potato, Pecans & Cranberries

Recipe submitted by Keith Albury

Ingredients:
3 lrg sweet potaotes, peeled and cut into 1/2 inch cubes
4 Tblspns vegetable oil
2 tspns salt
1/2 tspn pepper
1/2 tspn powdered ginger
2 cups coarsely chopped pecans
1 lb prewashed baby spinach
1 1/3 cups dried cranberries
5 oz goat chees crumbles

Maple-Mustard Vinaigrette:
1 Tblspn maple syrup
2 Tblspn red wine vinegar
2 tspn Dijon mustard
Salt and Pepper to taste
1/2 cup vegetable oil

Directions:
Up to 3 days ahead: prepare vinaigrette. Mix maple syrup, vinegar, mustard, salt and pepper in bowl. When salt is dissolved, stir in oil. Do not overmix. Refrigerate.

One day ahead: peel and cube sweet potatoes. Toss potato cubes with oil, salt, pepper, and ginger. Divide potatoes between two foil-lines 9x13 roasting pans. (Do not crowd, or potatoes won't roast properly.) Roast at 450 degrees F for 15 minutes, stir then roast an additional 10-16 minutes until they begin to turn golden. Leave in pans and let cool to room temperature. Refrigerate overnight in sealed plastic container. Coarsley chop pecans and toast in skillet on medium heat until loghtly browned, about 7 minutes. Cool and set aside at room temperature until you're ready to assemble salad.

On the day of the meal: 30 minutes before serving, reheat sweet potato cubes in a 350 degree F oven for about 15 minutes. Cool slightly. Put spimach in a large salad bowl. Layer sweet potato cubes on top. Pour dried cranberries over potatoes, then pecans. Sprinkle with goat cheese. Serve dressing on the side.

From St. Pete Times which attributes Yankee Magazine, November 2002.

Cranberry Bread

Recipe submitted by Emily Williams

Sift together:
2 cups flour
1 tspn salt
1 cup sugar
1 tspn soda

Beat together:
1 egg
1/2 cup orange juice (Emily used fresh squeezed)
2 Tblspn melted butter
2 Tblspn hot water

Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients until just blended. Add 1 cup raw cranberries. Pour into prepared pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 50-60 minutes for bread. (20 minutes for muffins.)

Slow Cooker Country Ribs

I have to give credit where credit is due. When my daughter was diagnosed with Celiac disease my younger sister showed up the very next day with a sack full of gluten free food and this cookbook. (Thanks Aubs) Since my daughter was only two when she was diagnosed I was having a hard time finding recipes that were mild enough for her palette. I have found and use a lot of really great recipes from this book. This recipe is one of them. I have made a few adjustments, but basically it is the same. Here it is:


Country Ribs

2 lbs lean country style pork ribs
3/4 cup maple syrup
1/3 cup applesauce
3 Tblspn Ketchup (I actually use BBQ sauce)
1 Tblspn Worcestershire sauce
2 Tblspn Lemon juice
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp cinnamon

Lay the ribs in a slow cooker. In a bowl, stir together all remaining ingredients. Pour the sauce over the ribs. Cover the pot and cook on low heat for 8 hours.

Allie's Squash/Apple Soup

I'm a newbie to the blogging world, so please be patient with me.

Allie's Squash/Apple Soup
Serves 8

3-4 Tblsp Butter
1 small onion coarsley chopped
3 cloves of garlic, coarsley chopped
2 stalks of celery, coarsley chopped
6-7 cups of vegetable broth
1 med to large butternut squash (enough to make 2.5 cups squash puree)
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp allspice
1/4 tsp nutmeg
fresh ginger (keep frozen)
1 granny smith apple, skinned and coarsley chopped
1 Tblsp honey
1 tsp chipotle puree (or Thai chili paste works well too)
1 small container either half and half or whipping cream (optional)
Salt and freshly ground pepper

Slice squash in half and place face down in a large glass or pyrex baking dish in an inch or 2 of water, bake at 425 degrees for about 45-50 minutes. While squash is baking, saute on med/high the onion, garlic, celery, apple, and a little salt in the butter in a covered skillet until the celery is really soft. Put the veggie saute in a food processor and when thoroughly blended transfer to a large pot on the stove on med/high heat. At this point add the vegetable broth (7 cups if adding no cream, 6 cups if adding cream.) When squash is all baked, remove rom oven and skin and seed it. Add squash 'meat' to food processor. When fully blended add to pot on stove. Add cream, honey, spices, chipotle puree, fresh grated ginger, and salt and pepper to taste. (I usually do a hearty amount of ginger.) Serve when hot. Garnish option: pumpkin seeds on top.