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.