Saltine Cracker Toffee

Saltine Cracker Toffee

Ingredients

• 40 saltine crackers or enough to line your pan
• 1 cup butter
• 1 cup packed brown sugar
• 2 cups milk chocolate or semisweet chips (I used semisweet)

Directions - preheat oven to 400 degrees

1.  Line cookie sheet (I used jelly roll pan) with aluminum foil.
   Lay crackers out in a single layer.

2.  In sauce pan combine sugar and butter.
    Stir and bring to a boil.
    Boil 3 minutes, stirring constantly, it will thicken and turn darker.
    Immediately pour over saltine and spread to cover crackers completely.
    It is sticky so don't bear down too hard, spread lightly.

 3.  Bake 6 - 7 minutes, keep an eye on it, it can burn.

 4.  Remove from oven and sprinkle chocolate chips over top.

    Let stand for a minute and then spread the melted chocolate.
    Wait 1 - 2 minutes, then you can top with sprinkles or chopped nuts if desired.

 
5.  Cool completely and break into pieces.
    Putting pan in refrigerator for an hour will firm it up quickly.
    Freezes well.

Very good and easy too.
Hope you like it!

Got the recipe from my friend Pam.
Thanks Pam!!  🙂

Philly Gift Cake

Philly Gift Cake

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 8 oz cream cheese
• 1 cup butter
• 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
• 4 eggs
• 1 3/4 cup flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 3/4 cup maraschino cherries

Directions:

1. Combine first 4 ingredients.  
2. Add eggs one at a time, beating after each.
3. Add flour and baking powder
4. With 1/4 cup of the flour toss with the cherries.  Fold into batter.
5. Pour into greased pan and bake in a 325 degree oven.

Baking times
10" tube pan - 1 hour 20 minutes
5 mini loaf pans, 5 3/4 x 3 1/4  - 45 to 50 minutes.

I like to use the mini loaf pans and give the cakes away as gifts.

Instead of maraschino cherries, I use red and green candied cherries.
I baked the mini loaf pans 43 minutes.

Icing for Cakes - Combine 1 1/2 cup icing sugar and 2 tablespoons milk.  Drizzle over cake and garnish with cherries.

I prefer to use Royal Icing because it hardens.

This is an old recipe and back then when coffee and shortening came in metal cans you could also bake this cake in them.

(3) l lb coffee cans - 1 hour
(4) l lb shortening cans - 1 hour

Chocolate Chip Cookies

Chocolate Chip Cookies

These chocolate chip cookies are a bit different in that they are made with 

Rice Krispies in them.

Though they are good both Ken and I like the Chocolate Chippers

that I usually make better.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar.

2 sticks butter, softened

1 cup brown sugar

1 cup white sugar

Add and beat well:

1 egg

1 tablespoon milk

1 tablespoon vanilla

In a separate bowl, sift dry ingredients:

3 1/2 cups flour

3 teaspoons baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

Stir flour mixture, alternating with oil, into wet ingredients:

1 cup vegetable oil

Add remaining ingredients until blended:

1 cup oats

1 cup Rice Krispies

12 oz chocolate chips

Drop onto ungreased cookie sheet. ( I use Pampered Chef sm scoop)

Bake 12 - 15 minutes (I only had to bake for 10 minutes)

Let cool on a wire rack.

Freezes well

Happy Eating 🍪 

Sugar Cookies (my favorite)

These are my favorite Sugar Cookies

 Ingredients:

• 2 sticks salted butter, softened
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 1/4 teaspoon vanilla
• 2 teaspoon baking powder
• 3 cups flour

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Cream butter and sugar in mixing bowl.
2. Add egg, vanilla, and baking powder, mix until incorporated.
3. Add flour, one cup at a time, mixing on low in between additions until it is barely stirred in.
4. After the third cup mix a little longer but stop as the dough begins to form and leave the sides of the bowl.  It will NOT be all incorporated into a neat dough ball. 
5. Gather up the dough in the bowl into a ball with your hands.
6. Roll out the dough and cut out shapes.
7. Bake 10 minutes.
8. Cool on racks.  Decorate when completely cooled or eat them plain.

I find the dough rolls out easily.

I like to ice them with Royal Icing because the icing dries hard.

Got the recipe from Blogger Friend Karen, but sorry to say she no longer blogs.

Happy Eating.

Cafe Rio Chicken

Cafe Rio Chicken

Ingredients:

• 2 lbs chicken breasts
• 8 oz zesty Italian dressing
• 1/2 Tablespoon minced garlic
• 1 packet ranch dressing mix (mixed with 1/2 cup of water)
• 1/2 Tablespoon chili powder
• 1/2 Tablespoon ground cumin

Directions:

1. Place all ingredients in slow cooker.
2. Cook on LOW for about 5 hours.
3. Shred with fork and serve in salads, burritos, tacos, or in whatever you like.

Happy Eating

Eggplant Pizza

Eggplant Pizza

Ingredients:

• 2 eggs
• 1 Tablespoon water
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 1/2 cups Italian bread crumbs
• 1 large eggplant, peeled and cut into 1/4 inch rounds
• Nonstick cooking spray
• 2 cups spaghetti sauce
•  cup shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  
2. In shallow dish beat eggs with water and pepper.  Place bread crumbs in another shallow dish.
3. Line 2 large baking sheets with aluminum foil and coat generously with nonstick cooking spray, set aside.
4. Dip each eggplant round in the egg mixture, then in the bread crumbs, coating completely.  Place on the baking sheets in a single layer, then spray the tops with cooking spray.  
5. Bake for 15 minutes. Then turn slices over and spray with cooking spray, bake for 15 minutes more.
6. Remove from oven and place about 1 tablespoon spaghetti sauce on each.  Sprinkle evenly with mozzarella cheese and return to oven and bake 4 to 5 minutes more or until the sauce is bubbly and the cheese is melted.

Both of us liked this a lot. 
Will definitely be making this again.
It's a hand held eggplant Parmesan. 😄

Blueberry Bread

Blueberry Bread

Ingredients

• 2 cups flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1 1/2 cup blueberries

1. Mix flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt and set aside.
2. Beat butter, sugars till smooth.
3. Add eggs one at a time beating after each.
4. Beat in sour cream and vanilla till combined.
5. Add dry ingredients alternating with milk.
6. Fold in berries.
7. Spoon into a 9 x 5 greased loaf pan.
8. Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for 60 - 65 minutes.
9. Loosely cover bread with tin foil 1/2 after half an hour to keep bread from getting to brown.
10. Toothpick should come out clean when done.
11. Cool on rack

We both liked this a lot but it was more like pound cake than bread.
Ken thought it would be just as good without any blueberries in it.
Also I'm sure you could add apples, cherries or chocolate chips instead.

Happy Eating