Oh My Cherry Pie

(We couldn't wait for the pie to cool!)

Fresh cherry pie is right up there at the top of my favorites list. Along with most fresh fruit pies. Especially blueberry. Or deep dish, single crust peach. Ah, summer fruit.

We picked cherries from a very old, very tall tree... which meant we wished we had taller ladders. We cleaned out the lowest branches but I'm sure the birds are happy that most of the fruit was way out of our reach.

Fresh sour cherries are best used very soon after picking. I made a pie and used the rest in a chocolate cherry smoothie the next morning. You can freeze the fruit too, if you pick enough to have any leftover. Wash, pit, bag, and label in freezer containers.

Dave and I worked together on the picking and the pitting. (He used our pitter, pitting 4 at a time. I used a knife one at a time, which was almost as quick.) Time consuming, but worth the work!

Here's a classic cherry pie recipe. Nothing tricky. Adjust the sugar depending how tart the cherries are and your own taste. Enjoy!

Oh My Cherry Pie 

Filling:

6 Cups washed, pitted tart cherries

1 1/4 Cups white sugar

5 Tablespoons cornstarch

Pie Crust:

2 2/3 Cup sifted flour

1/2 Cup shortening

1/2 Cup butter

1 tsp. Salt

2 tsp. Sugar

5-7 Tbs. cold water

Sift flour into bowl. Add salt and sugar. Mix with fork. Cut in shortening with pastry blender until mixture resembles coarse meal. Cut in butter, leaving butter in pea-sized bits. Sprinkle with water, one tablespoon at a time. Gather dough into ball. Divide dough in half. 

Roll one ball of dough on a generously floured pastry cloth. Line pie dish with rolled crust. Set aside.

Combine sugar and cornstarch in a small bowl and set aside. In saucepan, cook cherries over medium heat for several minutes to release juice. Add the sugar mixture to the hot cherries and mix well. Cook over low heat until thickened, stirring gently and constantly. Remove from heat and cool. 

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. 

Fill prepared pie crust with cooled cherry filling. Roll top crust. Cover fruit filling with top crust. Seal and flute edge. Lightly brush top with melted butter or lightly mist with cooking spray. Sprinkle with sugar. 

Slit or prick top crust to vent.

Cover edge with foil or pie crust shield ring. Bake for 25 minutes. Remove ring and cook another 25 minutes  or until crust is golden and filling is bubbly. 

Cool and serve with your favorite vanilla ice cream. 

Sky High Blue Pie

I love blueberries. Yes I do. I love blue pie, how 'bout you?

Every summer, we pick blueberries at a farm not too far from us.

Bybee Farms is located at the base of Mt. Si. Some years, the weather is perfect, the view of the mountain awesome, (we've seen mountain goats there!), the picking abundant.

This year, it was rainy. But the picking was great! (And so was the price- $1.95 a pound.)

 We picked about 25 pounds, freezing most of them. (Wash, sort, and drain. Spread in a single layer on a rimmed cookie sheet or jelly roll pan. Place (level!) in the freezer until just firm. Use a wide spatula to loosen berries from pan. Bag in freezer-safe containers, labeled and sealed.)

But we don't freeze them all. Must make a blue pie with some! 8 CUPS to be exact. 

For ONE pie. 

 Yum is all I can say. Yum.

And if we'd picked a day later….

Sky High Blue Pie 

Pie Crust:
2 2/3 cup sifted flour – (measured by sifting into cup)
1/2  cup shortening

1/2 cup butter
1 tsp. salt

2 tsp. sugar
5-7 Tbs. water

Cinnamon sugar to sprinkle, optional

Filling:

8 cups fresh blueberries

1 cup sugar

6 Tablespoons flour

1 Tablespoon lemon juice (adjust depending on fruit's sweetness)

Pre heat oven to 375 degrees Sift flour into bowl.  Add salt and sugar.  Mix with fork.  Cut in shortening with pastry cutter or two butter knives until mixture resembles coarse corn meal.  Cut in butter, leaving the size of small peas. Sprinkle water over flour mixture.  Stir until dough forms into a ball.
Divide dough in half.

Roll out one ball of dough on generously floured pastry cloth.  When rolled out into big enough circle, fold dough in half to put it into pie plate. Cut edges of dough around the rim of the pie plate.

Filling:

Combine flour and sugar. Toss with fruit and lemon juice. Fill lower crust, mounding fruit.

Roll out top crust.  Place over of filling.  Cut around edges, leaving about an inch.  Fold under bottom pie crust.  Flute edges. Brush lightly with melted butter, and prick top of crust with fork or small knife to vent. Sprinkle with cinnamon sugar.

Cover crimped edge with foil or pastry rim.  Bake at 375 degrees for 25 minutes. Remove rim and bake another 20-25 minutes until crust is lightly golden and filling is bubbling. Cool and enjoy!

(The crust is adapted from my son-in-law's recipe- thanks, Jed!)

Make it a Wonderful Day!

Quickest Peach Cookie Crisp

 Anyone who knows me well has heard me tell about my Nana's Peach Cobbler. It's the best- a deep dish pie really, with only the top crust. She made it in a small dishpan, the fruit-to-piecrust ratio seriously favoring the fruit. It was my favorite dessert growing up.  I've posted my version of her "recipe" HERE.

I've had conversations with friends over the years about what constitutes a cobbler, a crisp, or a crumble. Generally, cobbler is sweet-biscuit topped. A crisp has a coarse topping that include oats, while a crumble is oat-free. My Nana's didn't really fit any of the definitions, with her single pie crust topping.  But she called it a cobbler, and so that's what I call it too.

A few nights ago, I was in the mood for peach cobbler, but didn't want to take the time to make it.
So I came up with a quick version of a crisp using what I had on hand. No, it wasn't just like Nana used to make. But it was pretty delicious. And quick enough to satisfy my late-night sweet tooth without staying up till two.

Quickest Peach Cookie Crisp (Serves 2) 

2 large, ripe, juicy, organic peaches
2 large, soft, oatmeal-raisin cookies
Optional: 
3 Tablespoons sour cream
1 teaspoon brown sugar

Peel and slice peaches into 2 microwavable bowls. Crumble one oatmeal cookie over each peach. Microwave on high for 1 minute. Gently stir brown sugar into sour cream. Spoon a dollop onto the warm cobbler and enjoy.


Make it a Wonderful Day!

Happy Heart Fruit & Nut Balls

These are a heart-healthy sweet for your sweetheart. Or make some just for you!

Yummy dried fruits, nuts, and a bit of zip from some candied ginger. 

These are quick to make in your food processor. No baking required.

Fruit and Nut Balls
(inspired by these)

1/2 Cup each: dried cherries, blueberries, raisins, dates, cranberries (Unsweetened)
1/2 Cup each: toasted walnuts and pecans, coarsely chopped (toasting the nuts adds so much flavor!)
1 Tablespoon candied ginger, coarsely chopped
1/4 Cup powdered sugar
1 Tablespoon orange juice
1 Tablespoon honey

Place fruit, nuts, ginger, and powdered sugar in food processor bowl. Pulse until evenly chopped. Add juice and honey. Pulse until mixture begins to clump together. Shape into bite-sized balls and place into 1-inch fluted cups. (I think these are best as small bites- they pack a lot of flavor!)
Store in a cool, dry place.

Happy Heart Day!

Brown Sugar Almond Bites

These are a long-time favorite, usually reserved for making at Christmas.  A shortbread layer topped with a delicious layer of gooey sugared nuts. A bit like pecan pie in cookie form. Only a little lighter and brightened with lemon juice. And with almonds instead of pecans. Yum. I made them again this year, eating more than my share for sure.

So I'm thinking I'll make these for Valentine's Day so Dave can have some too.

Brown Sugar Almond Bites

1/2 Butter, softened
1/2 Cup sifted Powdered Sugar
1 Cup flour
3 Tablespoons Butter
1/2 Cup packed Brown Sugar
3/4 teaspoon fresh Lemon Juice
3/4 C sliced Almonds
1 teaspoon Vanilla

Cream together 1/2 Cup butter with electric mixer. Add flour; mix well. Pat into 9x9x2 inch pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 12-15 minutes.

Meanwhile, melt remaining butter in saucepan. Add brown sugar, 1 Tablespoon water, and lemon juice; bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Remove from heat, stir in almonds and vanilla. Pour over crust, carefully spreading to edges. Place back in 350 degree oven and bake for 15-20 minutes. Cut into bite-sized bars while still warm.

(I make a double batch, using one 9x9 and one 8x8 pan.)

Make it a Wonderful Day!

Ginger Pumpkin Bread

Here's another recipe for Pumpkin Bread. This one has chocolate chips and candied ginger.

You can see in the photo that it's a teeny bit undercooked. But I don't mind that-I like it better a little under than over. 

I served some (without the ginger) for my quilt group meeting at my house this month. I forgot to take a photo of the table or the food. So maybe one day I'll pretend like I'm a food stylist and do a fake photo shoot…um, probably not, but I'll just tell you that it looked festive.)

I did package up some of the Pumpkin Bread, along with my two favorite Halloween candies, Reese's Peanut Butter Cups and Candy Corn, to share with some friends I visit every month. Black plates and checkered ribbon- also a favorite combination of mine. 

Ginger Pumpkin Bread
Makes 2 loaves (Inspired by letsdishrecipes.com )

2 C Unbleached White Flour
1 1/2 C Whole Wheat Flour
2 1/2 C White Sugar
3/4 C Brown Sugar
2 tsp. Cinnamon
1 tsp. Nutmeg, freshly grated
1/2 tsp. Fresh Ginger, grated
1 tsp. Salt
2 tsp.Baking Soda
2 C Pumpkin, canned or cooked
1/4 C  Coconut Oil
3/4 C Applesauce
4 Eggs
2/3 C Water
1 C Semi-sweet Chocolate Chips
1/4 C Candied Ginger (chopped semi-fine)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease two 9x5 loaf pans.
Combine flours, sugars, baking soda, salt, and spices in large bowl.
Combine wet ingredients in medium bowl.
Stir wet ingredients into dry.
Stir in chocolate chips and candied ginger.
Divide batter between the two prepared loaf pans.
Bake for 55-65 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in loaf comes out clean.
Cool 20 minutes. Turn out to wire rack to cool completely before wrapping in foil.

We'll enjoy a slice or two while watching Arsenic and Old Lace (the old black& white movie with Cary Grant) while we wait for a few Trick or Treaters.


Make it a Happy Halloween!

Cherry Mojito Punch

Dea, one of my awesome daughters-in-law, hosted a baby shower recently. Here is the refreshing punch she served.

Cherry Mojito Punch
Frozen Limeade
Sparkling Water
Fresh Mint
Marachino Cherries (or use raspberries or strawberries)
Put mint and cherries in pitcher along with a splash of sparkling water and muddle. 
Add limeade.
Add two can measures of water.
Add approximately two can measures of sparkling water or to taste. 
Add ice and enjoy! 


Make it a Wonderful Day!

Nutella Cheesecake

Worth every calorie!

This delicious Nutella Cheesecake with Chocolate Ganache and Toasted Hazelnuts is one of my new favorites! I found the recipe here 

Rich. Creamy. Nutty. Crunchy. Oh. So. Good.

 

 Nutella Cheesecake with Chocolate Ganache and Toasted Hazelnuts (slightly adapted from The Picky Apple)

Crust:

• 1 3/4 cups chocolate cookie crumbs
• 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
• 1/4 cup melted butter

Filling:

• 24 ounces cream cheese, softened
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 egg yolks
• 1 whole egg
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1 (13 ounce) jar Nutella

Topping:

• 1 cup heavy cream
• 1 1/2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 1  cups toasted hazelnuts, chopped

 Crust:
 Preheat oven, 350 degrees F. In a small mixing bowl, combine crust ingredients. Pat gently into the bottom of springform pan and bake for 10 minutes.
 Filling:
Beat cream cheese, sugar, flour and vanilla extract with electric mixer until just combined. Add egg yolks and egg, beat on low until just combined. Add milk and Nutella and mix completely. Pour filling into springform pan. Reduce oven temperature to 300 degrees F. Place springform pan on a cookie sheet in oven. Bake for 1 1/2 hours, or until center appears set when shaken lightly. Cool on a wire rack.
 Topping:
Bring cream to a boil. Pour over chocolate chips. Stir until smooth. Spread evenly over top of cheesecake. Sprinkle toasted hazelnuts over chocolate. Refrigerate cheesecake for at least 4 hours to set.

Make it a Wonderful Day!

Spicey Birthday Cake with Caramel Frosting

I just had a birthday. My twin did too! :D

My childhood favorite cake was Spice Cake with Caramel Frosting. Back it the day, it came from a box mix. Remember when frosting mix came in a box too? Mom made both of us our own cake, though Alison wasn't committed to a particular cake. In fact, she doesn't remember that we each had our own cake! (Our childhood memories are so different, we sometimes we think we grew up in different houses!)

Anyway, when Dave asked me what kind of cake I wanted for my birthday, I gave him three choices: his favorite, Ruby's Italian Cream Cake, our stand by, Sour Cream Chocolate Cake, or Spice Cake with Caramel Frosting....Only I didn't have a recipe for my childhood favorite. So he went on line, found a recipe, and made this for me. From Scratch. YUM!

It sank a bit in the middle. And the frosting set up so fast, it had to be patted on in places.
But it was delicious.


Yes, that's a monkey mask with my birthday cake. And there's a wolf mask too. That's what you get when you're an Art-Teacher-Who-Likes-Cool-Folk Art-Slightly Freaky-stuff. The masks were gifts from two of my sons who went to Ecuador recently. Thank you, family, for a great birthday!

Spice Cake with Caramel Frosting
(from Alice Bird, posted by Charlotte J, on www.food.com )

Cake:
2 1/4 C. cake flour, sifted
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. cinnamon
3/4 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. ground cloves
1/16 tsp. black pepper
3/4 C. shortening
1 C. sugar
3/4 C. brown sugar, packed
3 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
1 C. buttermilk
Sift together dry ingredients. Cream together shortening and sugars till fluffy. Add vanilla. Add eggs one at a time, beating after each. Add dry ingredients, alternating with buttermilk. Beat an additional 2-3 minute with mixer on high speed. Pour into greased and floured 8-inch round pans. Bake at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes. Cool.
Frosting:
1/2 C. butter
3 C. powdered sugar, sifted
1 C. brown sugar, packed
4 T. cream
1 tsp. vanilla
Melt butter in saucepan. Add brown sugar and cook over low heat 2 minutes, stirring constantly. Add cream and continue stirring until mixture comes to a boil. Remove from heat. Gradually add powdered sugar and vanilla. Add additional cream as needed.

Make it a Wonderful Day!

Art Party

Art Club has ended for the year at all three of my schools. So it was time to PARTY!

That means cookie decorating (one cookie per artist) , art games, foil sculptures, and finishing up odds and ends. This year it meant oil pastels,  phrase illustrations, and for a few, painting details on their paper mache pieces.

I always bring a ton of stuff- all the cookie fixings, along with fruit, carrots, chips and salsa, etc. The set up includes a colorful thrifted table cloth.

Games include geometric shapes to arrange in pictures, visual thinking puzzles, and close-up photo identification cards. The kids have fun with those- they can play as teams trying to guess what each photo close up is. The name is on each card as a word scrambled clue. 

And we had rolls of foil for sculpting.

I make all the cookies and the frosting. Why? Because I'm nutty. And I love an excuse to bake.

These are the BEST Sugar Cookies.

And the BEST Buttercream Frosting. 

YUM.

Char's Sugar Cookies 

COMBINE in a bowl:

                    5 Cups Flour

                   1/2 tsp. Baking Powder

                   1 tsp. Baking Soda
                   1 tsp. Salt
CREAM with electric mixer: 
                   1 Pound Salted Butter

                   1 Cup Sugar

                   1 Cup Powdered Sugar

ADD to creamed mixture:
                   2 Eggs

                   1 Tablespoon Vanilla

NOW slowly add dry ingredients.

ROLL to 1/4 inch thickness on floured surface, and cut out.

 (If dough is sticky, refrigerate to firm, then reroll and cut.

BAKE cookies at 375 degrees for 7-9 minutes.

Number of cookies will depend on size.. And how much of the dough you eat. (Not that I ever do that....) Can be made ahead and frozen. I think I got about 60 (3- inch ) cookies from each batch...Note to self: 3 batches is more than enough for 8 classes..

My Best Buttercream

(adapted from Billy's Bakery Vanilla Buttercream)

1 Cup salted Butter

6-8 Cups Powdered Sugar

1/2 Cup Heavy Whipping Cream

2 tsp. Vanilla

In electric mixer, cream  room temperature butter until smooth, about 3 minutes. With mixer on low speed, add 6 Cups of the sugar, alternating with whipping cream and vanilla. Gradually add more powdered sugar to desired consistency.

Make it a Wonderful Day!

A Cake for Dave

Dave asked for this cake for Valentine's Day. It's a classic sheet cake, but I used a large circle cutter after baking. The frosting is cooked on the stove, and then poured onto the cake while still warm. It's like a layer of fudge on top of the cake, so some of you may want small portions. (Not me. I'm hooked on butter and sugar- my favorite food group.)

SOUR CREAM CHOCOLATE CAKE
Cake:
MIX: 2 C. Sugar 2 C. Flour  and 1/2 tsp. Salt. Set aside.
MELT: 1C. Butter with 4 Tblsp. Cocoa
ADD: 1 C. Water. Bring to boil.
POUR: Over dry ingredients and mix.
ADD: 1/2 C. Sour Cream and mix.
ADD: 2 Eggs and 1 tsp. baking soda; mix.
POUR: Into greased and floured 9x13 pan
BAKE: In a 375 degree oven for 20-25 minutes. Cool
Frosting:
BOIL UNTIL BUBBLY: 1 C. Butter 6 Tblsp. Canned Milk and 4 Tblsp. cocoa
ADD: 1 pound Powdered Sugar and 1 tsp. Vanilla.
BEAT by hand or with electric mixer until smooth.
ADD: 1 C. Chopped Nuts
FROST: Cooled cake immediately with warm frosting.

Confession time: I've made this cake TONS of times with no problem. But this one baked unevenly, sinking in the middle. So cutting it into serving-sized pieces was a solution to a not so pretty cake! I didn't get a photo of it garnished with strawberries-but this looked a lot better than serving a crater cake in my old baking pan!


Oh, here's a little gift for Dave wrapped in paper I stamped with my carved eraser. So quick and easy!

Still Time for Your Valentine!

I know it's last minute, and you probably have everything all ready for your Valentine's Day celebration... But just in case you're running behind, here is a recipe, a craft, and a great thrifted find too!

I made a batch of Lori's famous caramels. She shared her mom's recipe a few years back, and now it's a tradition for a few of us to get together at Christmas to make them. I decided that once a year just isn't often enough to enjoy these!

Caramels

2 C. Brown sugar
1 C. Karo syrup
2 Cubes Butter
1 Can Eagle Brand Sweetened Condensed Milk
1 tsp. Vanilla

Combine sugar, corn syrup, butter; add milk slowly. Bring to a boil over medium-low heat, stirring constantly. Using candy thermometer, bring to softball stage, (or just barely past for a firmer caramel). Remove from heat and stir in vanilla. Pour quickly into a buttered 9x13 pan. Cool. Cut into small pieces and wrap with waxed paper, twisting each end to secure. (I cut the waxed paper into  4-inch squares. Shape the caramels as needed with your fingers.)

Homemade Stamps
Even with all the tags and cards I made last weekend, I didn't have Valentine tags. So I carved a little heart stamp from an eraser using an xacto knife and a linoleum block carving tool.

The stamp is made from 1/2 a white eraser. First, trace around your eraser to get the size, and then draw your design on white paper. 

Keep it simple, and remember, if you write a word, you'll need to make sure it's reversed on the eraser. (After I drew mine, I went over it with Sharpie- the black is the part that I carved away.) Rub the whole design with pencil lead. Place paper pattern on your eraser, and trace over the lines from the back. Now your design is ready to carve. It's easy to carve, but make sure to supervise kids and be careful!!

Attach the stamped image to red cardstock. Use double sided thick mounting tape to attach the image to the larger tag. (Mine is a scrap of white textured cardstock with the corners trimmed like a traditional tag.The red circle is made using a small circle punch, another one of my favorites! After attaching it to the white tag, I used a regular paper punch to make the hole through both. Add string to tie to the cellophane package, and tie with ribbon.)

And I love my thrifted plate from Value Village!

Make it a Wonderful Day!!

Whole Wheat Pumpkin Bread

I like foods with flavor and color, and I love to use healthy ingredients too! This Pumpkin quick bread captures the colors and flavors of fall using whole wheat flour, along with pumpkin and walnuts.

I used this King Arthur flour- It's 100% hard white whole wheat, which has the same fiber and nutrition as traditional red wheat, but a milder flavor. It has all of the wheat germ and bran, and it's not bleached or anything like that. (Oops, didn't mean to do a commercial for them! But I like this flour!)


See all those yummy bits? Sweetened dried cranberries, golden raisins, toasted walnuts, and crystalized ginger. I LOVE the sweet/spicy bits of ginger!



The bowl with nuts in the background is thrifted (Value Village)-that green is one of my favorite colors, so it had to come home with me.

I think I'll have a slice for breakfast, along with my oatmeal and blueberries...

Whole Wheat Pumpkin Bread makes 3 delicious loaves

3 1/2 Cups Whole Wheat Flour

1 Tablespoon Baking Soda

1 1/4 tsp. Salt

1 1/2 tsp. Cinnamon

1/4 to 1/2 tsp. Ground Clove

3 C. Sugar

2 C. Pumpkin (canned)

1/2 C. Vegetable Oil

1/2 C. Applesauce (unsweetened)

2/3 C. Water

4 Eggs

1 C. Walnuts (toasted*), chopped

1/2 C. Sweetened Dried Cranberries (Craisins), soaked for a few minutes in water to plump a bit, drained

1/2 C. Golden Raisins

1 Tablespoon Crystalized Ginger, chopped medium fine (edit: I think I'll double the ginger next time!)

Beat eggs, sugar, pumpkin, oil, applesauce, and water together in large bowl.

Sift in flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and clove. Mix well.

Fold in toasted walnuts, raisins, cranberries, and crystalized ginger.

Pour/spoon into three (7.5x3.5) greased and floured loaf pans.

Bake at 350 degrees for 55-65 minutes.

Cool in pan for 10 minutes, then remove from pans and cool on wire rack.

*Toasting really brings out the flavor in the nuts- I think it's worth the extra step. I like to have some toasted and stored in the freezer to sprinkle on oatmeal or to toss on a salad. Toast walnuts in a dry skillet over medium heat stirring frequently until just browning, being careful not to burn.

Midnight Brownie Cookies

I needed to make some cookies. Fast.




I looked on line for a cookie recipe made from a brownie mix. I found one with oats and cinnamon. Oats, cinnamon... healthy, right? And I decided to frost them with a cinnamon spiced dark chocolate glaze. Dark chocolate's a health food too, isn't it??

Okay, these won't qualify as fitness fare, but they were easy, tasted great, and the very dark chocolate's color gives them just the right Halloween vibe!

A few ingredients, a few minutes....Bake. Frost. Share with friends!



Midnight Brownie Cookies (adapted from an internet recipe I can't find again! I'll keep looking to give proper credit...)

1 pkg. Brownie Mix
1 C. Semi Sweet or Dark Chocolate Chips
1 1/2 C. Oats
1 tsp. Cinnamon
1 C. Chopped Nuts
1/2 C. Water
1 Large Egg
Midnight Glaze (adapted from Hershey's Special Dark Cocoa label's "Especially Dark Frosting" )
1/4 C. Butter
1/3 C. Hershey's Special Dark Cocoa
1 1/2 C. Powdered Sugar
1/4 C. Milk
3/4 tsp. Vanilla
1/2 tsp. Cinnamon
To make Cookies:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In bowl, mix all cookie ingredients together with spoon. Drop by teaspoon* onto greased cookie sheets and bake for 10-12 minutes. (*a little tip- I sprayed the teaspoons with cooking spray when I prepared the cookie sheets-made for easy spooning!) Don't overbake. Cool for two minutes on the cookie sheets before moving to cooling rack. Frost with Midnight Glaze.
To make Midnight Glaze:
In saucepan, melt butter. Add cocoa. Add powdered sugar, alternating with milk. Stir in vanilla and cinnamon. Adjust thickness by adding more milk as needed to make pourable. While still warm, use wire wisk to drizzle cookies (still on rack) with glaze, one direction. Repeat in the opposite direction for a second coat.
Serve on a cute thrifted (Value Village) plate with a pitcher of cold milk.

Dave's Favorite

He says I'm his favorite. But when it comes to his favorite cake, this is it. Three layers of moist cake with coconut and pecans wrapped in a rich and nutty cream cheese frosting. Every year, I "surprise" him with this cake for his birthday. This recipe is a keeper, and so is he! xoxo


Ruby's Italian Cream Cake

1/2 C. Butter
1/2 C. Shortening
1 tsp. soda
1 tsp. Vanilla
2 C. Sugar
1 C. Buttermilk
5 Egg whites, beaten (stiff)
5 Egg yolks
2 C.Flour
1 C. Coconut (flaked)
1 C. Pecans (chopped)

Beat egg whites and set aside. Cream butter & shortening. Add sugar and beat. Add egg yolks and continue beating. Combine flour and baking soda; add to creamed mixture alternating with the buttermilk. Stir in vanilla. Add coconut and pecans. Fold in egg whites; pour into three buttered and floured cake rounds. Bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes until golden brown. (Be careful not to overbake.)

Frosting:
1 (8 oz.) pkg. Cream Cheese
1/2 C Butter
1 tsp. Vanilla
1 lb. Powdered Sugar
1/2 C. Pecans, chopped

Cream together cream cheese & butter until smooth. Add sugar & vanilla. Mix well. Add pecans.
Frost cooled cake. Makes lots of servings because you only need a thin slice. (At least a thin first slice...you decide how big a piece you need for seconds.)