Cream Cheese Cookies

CREAM CHEESE ORANGE SLICE COOKIES COOKIES

COOKIES
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) butter, softened
8 ounce package cream cheese, softened
1 cup powdered sugar
2 1/4 cups flour
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 1/2 teaspoon grated orange peel
1/2 teaspoon baking soda

• Beat cream cheese and butter together until well creamed.
• Add sugar and blend again.
• Add flour, orange peel and soda.
  
• Mix well.
• Shape into a log.
• Chill 30 minutes.
• Cut 1/4 inch slices.
• Bake on ungreased cookie sheet 15-18 minutes until edges begin to golden.
• Cool on rack.
  

DIP
1/3 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 tablespoon orange juice
1 tablespoon orange liqueur

• In a small saucepan melt melt chocolate chips, orange juice and orange liqueur together until smooth.
• Dip 1/2 of each cookie into the chocolate mixture.
• Cool on wax paper until chocolate mixture hardens.
  

Favorite Ingredient Friday ~ Devil's Food Orange Cake & Orange Butter frosting

CAKE

4 medium navel oranges, room temperature
3 squares unsweetened chocolate
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 cup vegetable shortening
2 Jumbo eggs
1 cup whole milk
2 cups flour

• Heat oven to 325 degrees.
• Generously grease a Bundt pan (I like a decorative Nordicware or Wilton pan)
• Squeeze oranges, saving pulp
• Melt the chocolate in the microwave. Then add 1/2 cup of the sugar, the cinnamon and 1/2 cup of the orange juice, stirring until the sugar is dissolved. Cool.
  
• Mix the baking soda into 2 teaspoons of orange juice.
• In a large mixing bowl cream the shortening with 1 cup sugar. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each.
• Alternate the milk and flour, sifting the flour into the cream mixture and blend until smooth.
  
• Add the baking soda mixture and blend well.
• Add the cooled chocolate mixture and blend well.
• Pour the batter into the prepared pan.
• Level pan by dropping on counter top to remove air bubbles.
• Bake until springy 55-60 minutes.
• Cool 10 minutes and then invert onto platter.
  
• Cool before frosting.

FROSTING

1/2 cup butter, softened
5 cups sifted powdered sugar
1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/3 cup freshly squeezed orange juice, pulp and all
2 teaspoon orange zest

• Beat butter until fluffy.
• Beat in 1/2 of the powdered sugar until smooth.
  
• Add orange juice, vanilla and orange peel. Blend until smooth.
  
• Slowly add the remaining sugar and blend until silky.
• Adjust sugar and orange juice until desired consistency and flavor is reached.

If you don't have this mess in the end,
you did it wrong!

I do the memes: Menu Plan Monday hosted by Laura at I'm an Organizing Junkie, Favorite Ingredient Friday hosted by Kathryn at Overwhelmed with Joy, Freezer Food Friday hosted by MJ at mjpuzzlemom, Scrumptious Sunday hosted by Meredith at Mercedes Rocks and Slow Cooking Thursday hosted by Sandra at Diary of a Stay at Home Mom. Doing them all make great additions to help keeping me on track and finding so new recipes!

Favorite Ingredient Friday ~ Dessert Edition ~ Cheese Danish

hosted by Overwhelmed with Joy

4 oz. cream cheese*
1/3 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon lemon juice
2 - 8 oz. crescent rolls
1 egg
1 tablespoon butter

• Combine first 5 ingredients and cream together.
  
• On a large greased cookie sheet, roll out the first can of crescent rolls, sealing all the edges.
  
• Spread the cream cheese mixture evenly over top of crescent rolls.
  
• Top with the other can of crescent rolls and seal all the outside edges top to bottom.
  
• Beat together the egg and melted butter.
  
• Brush egg mixture over crescent rolls.
  
• Bake at 35 degrees for 20 minutes.

*can substitute 4 oz. cream cheese for 2 oz. cream cheese and 2 oz. jam (favorite flavor)

I do the memes: Menu Plan Monday hosted by Laura at I'm an Organizing Junkie, Favorite Ingredient Friday hosted by Kathryn at Overwhelmed with Joy, Freezer Food Friday hosted by MJ at mjpuzzlemom, Scrumptious Sunday hosted by Meredith at Mercedes Rocks and Slow Cooking Thursday hosted by Sandra at Diary of a Stay at Home Mom. Doing them all make great additions to help keeping me on track and finding so new recipes!

Scrumptious Sunday ~ Cookies ~ Majestic Cookie Bars ~ 5th Edition 2nd Issue

If you'd like to play along, see other entries and share recipes please visit
Meredith at Mercedes Rocks who hosts Scrumptious Sunday

Magic Cookie Bars - my way - Majestically

Eagle brand has a recipe for magic cookie bars on their can that sounds yummy, but I changed years ago to reflect my families preferences and called them Majestic Cookie Bars.

1/2 cup butter
1 1/2 cup ground ginger snaps and vanilla wafers*
14 oz. can sweetened condensed milk
1/2 cup butterscotch chips**
1/2 cup milk chocolate chips
1/2 cup peanut butter chips**
1/2 cup golden raisins
1 cup minced walnuts
1 cup shredded coconut

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  
• Melt the butter in the bottom of a 13x9 baking dish.
• Sprinkle cookie crumbs over butter evenly.
• Pour milk over crumbs evenly.
• Sprinkle the remaining ingredients in order listed over milk evenly pressing down slightly with the spatula so they sink slightly into the milk base.
• Bake until lightly browned - about 25 minutes.
• Store tightly at room temperature.
  

*I have also used the remaining crumbs from whatever was in the cookie jar last with great success.

**I sometimes substitute 1 1/4 cup raspberry jam instead of the peanut butter and butterscotch chips for fruity taste. If using the jam, chill the baking dish after adding the milk for 10-15 minutes before adding remaining ingredients and baking. Chilling the milk gives a firmer base to be able to evenly spread the jam over it. Also be sure to add the jam on top of the milk before the chunky ingredients.

I do the memes: Menu Plan Monday hosted by Laura at I'm an Organizing Junkie, Favorite Ingredient Friday hosted by Kathryn at Overwhelmed with Joy, Freezer Food Friday hosted by MJ at mjpuzzlemom, Scrumptious Sunday hosted by Meredith at Mercedes Rocks and Slow Cooking Thursday hosted by Sandra at Diary of a Stay at Home Mom. Doing them all make great additions to help keeping me on track and finding so new recipes!

Did I mention we're on diets around here? Easy Diet Cake & YummyToo!

We are on a diet around here, but today was hubby's birthday and he needed a cake so I made this one. It's one of our favorites.

PINEAPPLE ANGEL FOOD CAKE
1 box Angel Food Cake Mix
1 large can crushed pineapple with juice

Mix them together, pour into a 13x9 baking dish and bake 30 minutes.

Voila, a light and fruity dessert. If you want to get fancy spoon Comstock cherries over top before serving.

Peanut Butter Fudge Bars - Favorite Ingredient Friday

My cousin Jenn, made this recently so we have a picture courtesy of her.

1 box yellow cake mix

1 cup creamy peanut butter
1 egg
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 can sweetened condensed milk
1 cup chocolate chips
2 tablespoons butter

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Combine peanut butter, egg and oil until smooth. Add cake mix and mix well. Press 2/3 of mixture into bottom of 13x9 pan. Bake 10 minutes.

In a saucepan heat together butter, milk and chocolate chips over low heat until melted, blended and smooth. Watch closely so it doesn't burn.

Pour evenly over baked crust. Sprinkle the remaining crumb mixture evenly over chocolate mixture. Bake 20-25 minutes.

Cool completely before cutting.

I have successfully experimented with this by changing the cake mix flavor and the chip flavors. Use your imagination.

Favorite Ingredient Friday hosted by Overwhelmed with Joy.

~*~Grandma's Oatmeal Chews~*~

2 cups oatmeal (quick or regular)
1 1/2 cups flour + 1/4 cup flour
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup butter, melted
1 cup Mrs. Richardson's Butterscotch Caramel Ice Cream topping*
1/2 cup Mrs. Richardson's Hot Fudge Ice Cream Topping*
1/2 cup golden raisins
1 cup Nestle's milk chocolate chips**
1/2 cup walnuts

• Preheat Oven to 350 degrees.

• Generously spray the bottom of a 10x15 jelly roll pan (stainless steel cookie sheet).

• Combine oatmeal, 1 1/2 cup flour, brown sugar, baking soda and butter. Mix until crumbly. Reserve 1+ cup of mixture. Press remaining mixture onto bottom of prepared pan and bake 15 minutes.

• Combine butterscotch caramel topping with 1/4 cup flour and whisk until smooth. Drizzle this over prepared crust when removed from oven. In a complimentary pattern drizzle hot fudge. Top with raisins and chocolate chips and nuts if desired. Crumble reserve oat mixture over top.

• Bake another 15 minutes. Cool completely before cutting into bars.

*You may need to microwave for 20-30 seconds so this is pourable
**I often interchange these for peanut butter chips for a little different flavor

Favorite Ingredient Friday January 11, 2008

I'm trying to branch out this year on my blog. Cooking is an integral part of our everyday lives and can be fun and easy with a little prep. I thought that Favorite Ingredient Friday, hosted by Overwhelmed with Joy would be a fun and informative place to start.

This upcoming Friday Theme is 'Pies'. So my recipe is for Black Bottom Banana Cream Pie, an original recipe I developed after a major banana and chocolate (2 of my most favorite ingredients) craving one day. It's relatively quick and easy while giving the appearance that you spent all day in the kitchen. It's a great dessert to serve to guests, they'll think you spent all day preparing for them!

9-10" deep dish pie plate sprayed with PURE - I like to use my Pyrex french white tart pan

4-8 Tablespoons butter

2-3 cups crushed gingersnaps and vanilla wafers mix (you decide which flavor you prefer)

12 ounces cool whip

12 ounces semi-sweet chocolate

1 1/2 cups cold whole milk

1-5.1 ounce Jell-O Cheesecake flavored instant pudding

1/2 teaspoon rum extract

2 bananas

1 small baskets raspberries

1) Melt butter and mix into cookie crumbs. Push into bottom of pie plate firmly.

2) Melt 6 ounces of the chocolate chips and mix together with 1 1/2 cups cool whip until well mixed and smooth (microwave about 45 seconds, but you could use double boiler if you prefer). Spread on top of crumb crust.

3) Slice bananas and layer over chocolate layer saving a few for garnish if you like. If you save a few for garnish, be sure to douse them with lemon juice to prevent browning.

4) Mix together milk, rum extract and pudding mix. Whisk together until smooth and thick. Fold in 1 1/2 cups cool whip. Spoon over top of chocolate mixture.

5) Melt the other 6 ounces of chocolate chips and mix together with 1 1/2 cups cool whip until well mixed and smooth. Spread over pudding layer.

Chill at least 30 minutes before serving. Just before serving garnish with cool whip, banana slices and raspberries. For a more decadent looking dessert add a few pieces of shaved chocolate.