Mom's Scotcheroos

 Simply the BEST rice krispies. Ever.

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 c. Sugar 
• 1 c. Corn Syrup 
• 1 c. Peanut Butter 
• 6 c. Rice Krispies cereal 
• 1 bag Semi-sweet Chocolate Chips 
• 1 bag Butterscotch Chips 

DIRECTIONS:

1. Combine sugar and syrup on the stove. Stir frequently until sugar is dissolved and mixture begins to boil. 
2. Take off the heat and stir in the peanut butter. 
3. Pour over the cereal and mix together.
4. Press into a greased cookie sheet or 9x13 baking dish.
5. Melt the chips together and spread over the top of the rice krispies. 
6. Let the chocolate harden before serving. 

*I use about half of the chips... maybe a bit more, from both bags.

Lucky Charm Treats

Yummy treats and so fun for St. Patrick's day.

INGREDIENTS:

• 3 T. unsalted butter
• 1 (10 oz) bag Marshmallows
• 1 (11.5 oz) box Lucky Charms
• Green food coloring (optional)

DIRECTIONS:

1. Heat the Marshmallows and butter in the microwave for 2 minutes. Stir and heat for an additional minute.
2. Add in the food coloring if desired.
3. Combine with Cereal and press into a greased 9x13 dish. 

World's Best Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

It's true!! These really are the BEST! Recipe from The Idea Room.

INGREDIENTS:

• 1/2 c. butter, softened
  
• 1/2 c. Peanut Butter
• 1/2 c. sugar
• 1/2 c. Brown sugar
• 1/2 t. baking soda
• 1/2 t. baking powder
• 1 egg
• 1/2 t. vanilla
• 1 1/4 c. flour
• 1/2-1 T. milk
  
• 1/2 - 1 c. Semi-sweet Chocolate chips

DIRECTIONS: Add all to the mixer from top of list to bottom!

1. Mix the butter and peanut butter.
2. Cream in the sugars, baking soda and baking powder.
   
3. Beat in the egg and vanilla.
4. Add the flour in slowly until combined.
5. Stir in the milk in the end to make the dough moist and creamy.
   
6. Fold in the chocolate chips.
   
7. Chill dough in the fridge for 1 hour.
8. Spoon dough onto a greased cookie sheet. Bake at 375* for 7-9 minutes.

* Seriously SO GOOD. I have made these frozen as well. Just form the dough into balls and place on a cookie sheet. Once they are frozen you can put them in a zip lock bag. When ready to bake just bake them for a few minutes longer then the regular bake time. I baked them frozen for 11 minutes in my oven.

ENJOY :)

Baked S'mores

Yuuuuuuummy.
Found this keeper from HERE.

INGREDIENTS:

• 1/2 c. butter
• 1/4 c. brown sugar
• 1/2 c. sugar

*Cream in a mixer.

• 1 egg
• 1 t. vanilla

*beat in.

• 1 1/3 c. flour
• 3/4 c. Graham cracker crumbs (7 full sheets)
• 1 t. baking powder
• 1/4 t. salt

*combine and add to the mixer.

• 3 super size (5 oz) Chocolate Hershey bar
• 7 oz jar Marshmallow fluff, Nuke in the microwave for a bit, so it will spread easily.

*Split the dough into 2 balls. Roll in between 2 pieces of wax paper to size of pan. Put 1 sheet of dough in bottom of a greased 11x7 pan. Then the chocolate. Spread on the fluff. Then top with the 2nd sheet of dough.

*Bake at 350* for 30 minutes or until lightly browned.

Key Lime Pie

Easiest pie to make! It's mine and my husbands favorite pie.

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 prepared Graham Cracker Crust
• 2 cans sweetened condensed milk
• 1/2 c. sour cream (light)
• 3/4 c. key lime juice (found in the liquor isle)
  
• 1 T. grated lime zest

CRUST: 1 1/2 sleeves of Graham crackers, 2 cups crushed. 1/4 c. sugar. 1 stick butter, melted. Combine and press into a pie pan. Bake @ 350* for 10 minutes.

DIRECTIONS: Mix ingredients until smooth. Pour into a prepared pie crust. Bake @ 350* for 8 minutes. *You don't want to brown the pie. Just bake long enough to see tiny pinhole bubbles come to the surface. CHILL the pie. Garnish with lime slices and whipped cream if desired.

The slice in this pic isn't chilled. Couldn't wait. :) Still so good!

This pic is 3 day old pie. Chilled in the fridge. As you can see it sets up very nicely and tastes even better after a few days!

You can add a drop or two of green food coloring for a yummy green treat for St. Patrick's Day!


Enjoy!

Monster Cookies

I got this recipe from Pioneer Women. Man, her recipes never disappoint! Another awesome cookie recipe to add to my collection. :) My kids loved helping me make these "monster" cookies. It's a good one to let them help since there is a little of everything for them to dump in!

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 sticks Butter (salted) Softened
• 1/2 c. Sugar
• 1-1/2 c. Brown Sugar, Packed
• 2 lrg. Eggs
• 1 T. Vanilla
  
• 1-1/2 c. Flour
• 1/2 t. Baking Soda
• 1 t. Baking Powder
• 2 t. Salt
• 1-1/2 c. Oats (either Quick Or Regular)
• 1/2 c. M & M's (more To Taste)
• 1/2 c. Pecans, Chopped (more To Taste)
• 3/4 c. Chocolate Chips (milk Or Semi-sweet)
• 1/2 c. Peanut Butter Chips
• 2-1/4 c. Rice Krispies cereal
  

DIRECTIONS:

1. Cream butter with sugars until fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add vanilla and beat.

2. Combine flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Add to mixing bowl and mix till combined. After that, add in remaining ingredients in whatever quantity you prefer. Add more nuts if you'd like, or more M & M's, more peanut butter chips or chocolate chips.

3. Add Rice Crispies at the very end, mixing until just combined. Do not overmix!

4. Scoop into balls of dough onto a greased cookie sheet. Bake at 375* for 12 minutes or until golden brown, then allow to cool on a rack.

*Crunchy, chewy and delicious! I'm gonna omit 1 t. salt next time because it was extra salty, but that is the only thing I will change. Great recipe!!

Reese's copycat

I love anything Reese's, so I had to try THIS recipe. I love that it's homemade. Way cheaper than buying a bag of Reese's and it tastes very similar to the real thing! You can place it in a mini cupcake liner or roll the dough into an egg shape for Easter. I rolled out the dough and used an ity bity heart cookie cutter for Valentines Day.

You will definitely want to HALF the recipe because this is a BIG batch.

INGREDIENTS:

• 4 c. Powdered sugar
• 1 1/2 c. Peanut Butter
• 1/4 c. Butter
• 2-3 T. Milk
• 3 c. Semi Sweet Chocolate Chips
• 1 T. Shortening

DIRECTIONS:

1. Combine powdered sugar, peanut butter and butter. Add Milk 1 T. at a time until it becomes a nice workable dough. It will be just like play dough and easy to work with.
   
2. Form dough. Set on parchment lined cookie sheet and freeze for 1 hour.
   
3. Melt chocolate and shortening in microwave. Stirring every 30 seconds until smooth.
   
4. Dip dough in melted chocolate to coat and set on parchment paper.

* I used a fork to dip the dough in chocolate. Then I would tap the fork on the cup to get the excess chocolate off before setting it on the parchment paper.

* I did HALF this recipe and it made a whole cookie sheet... 52 hearts! They are about the same size as a small Reese's cup.

*TIP: You can measure peanut butter in a measuring cup of water. This way it won't stick all over the measuring cup. Easy clean up!

Dump Cake

I raided my Mom's pantry last weekend for dessert. This is what I came up with. It's similar to a cobbler. It's super easy and a quick dessert. Just missing the vanilla ice cream!!

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 cans Cherry Pie Filling
• 1 Pkg. Yellow cake mix
• 1 stick butter, melted
• chopped pecans

DIRECTIONS: Dump the cherry pie filling into a greased 9x13 pan. Sprinkle an even layer of the cake mix. Drizzle on the melted butter. Top with pecans. Bake @325* for around 30 minutes.
Serve warm with vanilla ice cream!

Chocolate Nutella Cookies

Today I was eating my favorite SNYDER pretzels and then decided to try it dipped in Nutella. It was GOOD! I'm sure you all gathered by now that I LOVE cookies. So I got to thinking I HAVE to make a Nutella Pretzel cookie. I found a good looking recipe HERE. No egg, weird, but it worked! Tastes like a brownie!! Crazy good.

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 1/4 c. flour
• 1 t. baking powder
• 1/2 t. salt
• 2/3 c. cocoa powder
• 1/2 c. (1 stick) butter
• 1/2 c. sugar
• 1/2 c. brown sugar
• 1 1/2 t. vanilla
• 1/2 t. hazelnut extract *I just used 2 t. vanilla
• 1/3 c. Nutella
• 1/3 c. milk

DIRECTIONS:

1. Combine flour, baking powder, salt and cocoa powder. Set aside.
2. Cream butter and sugars.
3. Blend in extract and Nutella spread until smooth.
4. Mix in HALF of the dry ingredients.
   
5. Stir in the milk until combined.
6. Then add in the remaining dry ingredients.
7. Chill dough for at least 15 minutes. *I chilled the dough for a few hours.
8. Bake @ 325 for 10-12 minutes.
   

*I wanted to play with the cookies a bit. So I tried out different toppings for the cookie. It was fun! Check it out below....

FYI- The chocolate candies and pretzels were topped immediately after the cookie came out of the oven. NOT before.

1. Plain cookie dough (chilled)
2. Course chopped pretzels
3. Rolo in the middle
4. chopped pretzels inside
   
5. Semi-sweet chocolate chips
6. chopped pecans + Semi-sweet chocolate chips
7. whole pretzel in middle
8. Rolo in middle + finely chopped pretzel on top
   
9. Craisens... My 5 yr. old requested this one. He LOVED it!
10. Peanut butter Chips
11. Ball rolled in sugar + topped with Hershey Kiss
12. Ball rolled in chopped pecans + topped with Hershey Kiss
13. Topped with Reese's Peanut Butter cup

14. Also plain, but most brownie like.
I thought this one was interesting because I didn't expect it to turn out this way. The dough was soft and no longer cold when I put it in the oven. I baked it an extra couple minutes longer than the other cookies. Perfect-o.

Although I wanted to, I didn't try them all! I just really don't want to gain 50 pounds over night, so I had #8 the Rolo with pretzel on top. It was fantastic! Brownie like cookie with caramel in the middle and crunchy salted pretzels on top. WINNER! I also had a bite of the #14... couldn't resist it. Totally had the same texture and taste as a brownie. YUM.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Cup Cookies

Wow. These are yuuuuummy! I got the recipe HERE. I made a couple small changes to the recipe. My suggestions are at the bottom.

INGREDIENTS:

• 1½ c. + 2T flour
• 6 T. cocoa pwd.
  
• ½ t. baking soda
• ½ t. salt
• ¾ stick (6T) Butter
  
• ¼ c. + 2T creamy peanut butter
• ½ c. sugar
• ½ c. brown sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 t. vanilla
  
• 2 T. milk
• 2 c. frozen Reese's peanut butter cups, coarsely chopped. Save 1/2 c. for top.
  

DIRECTIONS:

1. Mix the flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt. Set aside.
   
2. Cream the butter, peanut butter and sugars in a mixer until fluffy.
3. Blend in the egg, vanilla and milk until smooth.
4. On low speed mix in the flour mixture until just combined.
5. Fold in 1 1/2 c. peanut butter cups.
6. Roll into ball and press some chopped peanut butter cups on top.
   
7. Bake @ 350* for 12-14 minutes. *Took my cookies 8-10 minutes. Do not over bake them! You want to take them out when they are still slightly soft.
   

*I chilled the dough overnight. I did not add the 1 1/2 c. peanut butter cups to the dough. Instead I added 1/2 c. semi sweet chips and 1/2 c. peanut butter chips. Baked the cookies and then immediately topped them with chopped Rolos and chopped Reese's peanut butter cups. YUM.

Pumpkin Oatmeal Cookies

This is one tasty cookie! Recipe found HERE.

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 c. flour
• 1 t. baking soda
• 2 t. cinnamon
• 3/4 t. ground ginger
• 1/4 t. ground cloves
• 1/4 t. nutmeg
• 1/2 t. salt
• 1 c. butter
• 1 c. brown sugar
• 1 c. sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 t. vanilla
• 1 c. pumpkin puree
• 1 1/2 c. oats
• 1 c. White chocolate chips
• 1 c. Dried Cranberries

DIRECTIONS:

1. Combine flour, baking soda, spices and salt. Set aside.
2. Cream in a mixer the butter and sugars. 3 minutes til fluffy.
3. Blend in the egg, vanilla and pumpkin puree.
4. Add in the dry ingredients just until combined.
   
5. Stir in the oats, chips and cranberries.
6. Bake @ 350* for 12-14 minutes. I found mine were done around 10 minutes.
   

* You may not have this issue, but the dough was very wet. I added in a few extra tablespoons of flour. I also did half white chips and half semi-sweet chips.... because I love chocolate.

* I chilled the dough for an hour.... longer would have been better, but I just couldn't wait any longer! It's great to chill the dough prior to baking for better consistency and it keeps the cookies from spreading when baking. These cookies seemed to brown quickly on the bottom, so I moved them up to a higher rack in the oven.

I used fresh pumpkin puree from my freezer stash. Wanna learn how to puree a pumpkin? HERE is my step by step instructions.

The Chewy (Alton Brown's)

Hello perfect chocolate chip cookie.

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 sticks unsalted butter (MELTED)
• 1/4 c. sugar
• 1 1/4 c. Brown sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 egg YOLK
• 2 T. Milk
• 1 1/2 t. Vanilla
• 2 1/4 c. BREAD flour
• 1 t. salt (I use 1/2 t. when using salted butter)
  
• 1 t. Baking soda
• 2 c. Chocolate Chips (I use 1 1/2)

DIRECTIONS:

1. Combine sugars and butter on med speed.
2. Add in the eggs, milk and vanilla.
3. Combine the flour, salt and baking soda. Slowly add to cream mixture until thoroughly combined. Fold in Chocolate chips.
4. CHILL DOUGH with saran wrap pressed against the dough.
   
5. Scoop onto parchment paper lined cookie sheets. 6 big cookies per sheet.
6. Bake @ 375 for 14 minutes.
   

*Definitely CHILL the dough. The longer it's chilled the better! I chilled the dough overnight.

Lemon Meringue Pie

My parents have 1 lemon tree and every year it produces a ton of lemons. They taste fantastic and we looove lemons. SO I swipe a couple....... dozen. :) This last Christmas I made my first Lemon Meringue Pie for my parents Christmas dinner. I would've made 2 if I had known it was gonna turn out so good! I doubted that I could make one, but it's easy peasy lemon sqeezy. You can do it! :)

Funny story... I stayed up til 2 in the morning helping Santa on Christmas Eve. Then I made this pie and crust. I wanted it to be cooled before I topped it with the meringue, after the Christmas hub bub. I didn't get to bed til like 2:30. I was so surprised the pie turned out! This is my 2 AM pie.....

(Recipe from 2004 Logandale Stake cookbook, page 237)


I used the Basic Flaky Pie Crust recipe and you can find the recipe HERE.

INGREDIENTS & DIRECTIONS:

• 1 c. Sugar
• 6 T. cornstarch
• 1/8 t. Salt
• 2 c. water
• 3 egg yolks (save whites for meringue top)
  

*Heat in double boiler, if you have one. Cook & stir ingredients (EXCLUDING egg yolks) until thick and boils (not over boiler). Put over water and cook covered for 10 minutes. Stir egg yolks with fork and temper. Then add to the cornstarch mix and cook for 3 minutes, stirring constantly.

• 3 T. Butter
• 1/3 c. Lemon juice
• 1 T. grated lemon zest

* Remove from heat and stir in butter and lemon. Cool a few minutes before pouring into cool baked 9" pie shell. Cool completely before topping. *Do not cover pie with foil. You don't want it to be wet on top when adding the meringue.*

"NEVER FAIL MERINGUE":

• 1 T. cornstarch
• 2 T. Cold water
• 1/2 c. Boiling water
• 3 egg whites
• 6 T. Sugar
• Salt (dash)
• 1 t. vanilla

DIRECTIONS:

1. Blend cornstarch & cold water in sauce pan. Add boiling water and cook, stirring until thick & clear. Let stand until completely cold.
   
2. Beat egg whites til foamy. Then gradually add sugar and beat until stiff but not dry.
3. Turn speed to low and stir in vanilla and salt.
4. Gradually add in cold cornstarch mix. Turn speed to high and beat well!
5. Spread onto lemon pie and spread making the meringue touch the crust.
   
6. Bake @ 350* for 10-12 minutes til golden brown.
   

Frosted Lemon Cookies

I love anything lemon and I love cookies. These cookies are made from my parents home grown lemons. yummy! I took these cookies to my parents house and they were devoured in no time. I do have 4 (BIG) little brothers. :) I love them dearly and they ♥ cookies.

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 c. Butter
• 1 1/2 c. sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 T. Grated lemon peel
• 1 T. lemon juice
• 1 1/2 t. Cream of Tartar
• 1 t. baking soda
• 1/4 t. salt
• 2 1/2 c. Flour

DIRECTIONS:

1. Combine dry ingredients.
   
2. Cream butter, sugar and eggs.
3. Stir in all other ingredients until mixed.
   
4. Bake on greased cookie sheet at 400* for 6-8 minutes.
   
5. Drizzle with glaze while warm.
   

GLAZE: 2 1/2 c. Powdered sugar, 1/4 c. lemon juice and lemon zest (optional).

Recipe from Highland Hills Stake cookbook.

Waite's Famous Ice Cream

Recipe from Highland Hills Stake Cookbook
I didn't actually make this recipe in the winter! It's an old pic I found. I made this a few times last summer. It's light and refreshing. I love it!

I use half this recipe because the whole recipe makes 4 quarts! Love this recipe, but the full recipe is a little much for our family.

INGREDIENTS:

• 6 oranges
• 3 lemons
• 1 can evaporated milk
• 2 c. half & half
• 3 c. sugar
• 1 c. heavy cream (no whipped up)
• Milk
• Zest from 1 orange and 1 lemon for extra flavor. (optional)
  

DIRECTIONS:

1. Cut fruit in half and and juice all fruit. Put through strainer to catch pulp. DO NOT use frozen or store bought juice. It has to be straight from the fruit!
2. Add canned Milk, sugar and half and half. Stir together then add in heavy cream. Stir and pour into the ice cream canister.
3. Inside the canister there is a "fill" line. Add milk to the fill line.
4. Process ice cream per the instructions on your ice cream maker.
   

Mint Chocolate Delight cookies

(Toll House recipe)

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 c. flour
• 2/3 c. cocoa powder
  
• 1 t. baking soda
• 1/2 t. salt
• 1 c. butter, softened
• 2/3 c. sugar
• 2/3 c. brown sugar
• 1 t. vanilla
• 2 eggs
• 1 1/2 c. Dark chocolate & mint chips

DIRECTIONS:

1. Combine flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt in small bowl.
2. In the mixer beat the butter and sugars until creamed.
3. Add in eggs and vanilla.
   
4. Gradually add in flour mixture.
   
5. Bake on ungreased cookie sheet @325 for 11-13 minutes.
   

*Makes 4 dozen. I half the recipe and add in a splash(1 T) of milk.

Peanut Butter Cookies + Reese's or Kiss

So soft and peanutbutterlicious.
My hubs favorite cookie is a good Ol' Classic crisscross peanut butter cookie. So, I made up a batch today for our 6th anniversary. Woot-woot!!

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 3/4 c. Flour
• 1/2 t. Salt
• 1 t. Baking Soda
• 1/2 c. Butter
• 1/2 c. Sugar
• 1/2. packed Brown Sugar
• 1/2 c. Peanut Butter
  
• 1 egg, beaten
• 1 t. Vanilla
• 2 T. Milk

DIRECTIONS:

1. Combine flour, salt and baking soda. Set aside.
2. Cream butter, sugars and peanut butter.
   
3. Beat in the egg, vanilla and milk.
4. Chill dough for 1 hour in fridge. I just let it chill over night.
   
5. Roll into ball. Make the crisscross mark on top and bake @ 375* for 6-7 minutes. Then cool on rack.

OR you can mix it up a bit....

Just roll up a small ball of chilled dough. Bake and then immediately press FROZEN Reese's cup into the peanut butter cookie. Chill in the fridge if the chocolate melts.

I looooove Reese's, so this is my kind of cookie! YUM.

This one is a cute little treat. A good one for the up coming holiday! Just roll a small ball of chilled dough into sugar. Bake and then top with a Hershey's Chocolate Kiss. Chill in fridge.

Basic Bread + cinnamon rolls!

I have never EVER been good at making bread. Until my cousin Jamie gave me this fail proof recipe. Bread turns out great every time. YAY! If I can make good bread, anyone can!! I promise it is easy peasy. :)

The best thing about this bread is you can make all sorts of goodies with it. My favorite thing to make is the ROLLS. These are THE BEST rolls... well besides Grandma's, but no one can make Grandma's rolls JUST like Grandma does so these will do!

You can also make....

Pizza dough
Pizza Poppers
Garlic sticks
Cinnamon sticks
Cinnamon rolls
& more!

Seriously. This recipe is awesome.
THANK YOU Jamie :)

INGREDIENTS:

• 10 1/2 c. Flour (Bread flour is best!)
• 1/2 c. Sugar
• 1 T. Salt
• 3 T. Yeast
• 4 c. Hot tap water
• 1/2 c. Oil

DIRECTIONS:

1. Mix all dry ingredients.
2. Add in water and oil. Mix for 1 minute, then check consistency. Add more flour if too wet, add more water if too dry. (Should be a tad sticky, but not sticking to your fingers.)
3. Knead for 8 minutes. I leave my KitchenAid mixer with the dough hook, on 2 speed.
4. Spray counter with oil spray. Plop dough onto counter and form ball. Cut ball into 4 sections and cover with towel to rise.

*This recipe will make 4 loaves of bread OR 4 dozen rolls OR 4 pizza crusts. I always do half the recipe because that is all that will fit in my KitchenAid mixer.

Bread: I let the dough rise once on the counter. Then I form the loaf and let it rise again in the greased loaf pan. Then I pour a few tablespoons of melted margarine over the top.... well, because that's what Grandma does. :) I usually bake on a lower rack in the oven because it rises quite a bit over the top. Bake at 375* for around 25 minutes. You can flip the loaf out of the pan to check if the bottom and sides are done.

Seriously, the best. I use this recipe every time for rolls. So easy and GOOD!

Rolls: Cover dough with towel and rise once on the counter for about 10-20 minutes. Form about 2 inch balls, cover and rise again in a 9x13 dish for around a 1/2 hour or until doubled in size. Spoon melted butter over tops. Bake at 375* for 15-18 minutes, until golden. Take a stick of butter and rub some of it over the tops of warm rolls. Cover with towel.

Cinnamon Rolls: Roll dough to flat rectangle shape. Spread softened margarine over dough. Evenly, sprinkle with sugar and LOADS of brown sugar. Then sprinkle desired amount of cinnamon. Stretch and roll tightly. Then pinch the seam well. Slice 2" rolls. Place 12 rolls into greased 9x13 dish. They will almost be touching. Pat over the top of them to make them an even height. Cover with towel and rise.

For a quick rise time. Place in 170* oven for 20-30 minutes, until about double in size.

Bake 375* for 15-18 minutes.

Mmmm.... looks and smells delicious!

Glaze: 2 c. Powder sugar, 1/2 t. Vanilla and add about 1/4 c. Milk for desired consistency. Add more powdered sugar if you like a thicker glaze. I give the rolls 5-10 minutes to cool and then I pour the glaze on top!

Grandma Waters Applesauce Cookies

This recipe is a family favorite! Everyone loves these cookies. YUUUUMMY. :) No one can make them just like Grandma does, but this is one great recipe!!

This makes a HUGE batch. I normally half the recipe if I'm not making them for others.

INGREDIENTS:

• 3 c. Applesauce
• 3 c. Sugar
• 1 1/2 c. Shortening
• 3 eggs
• 6 c. flour
• 3 t. baking powder
• 3 t. Cinnamon
• 1 1/2 t. Nutmeg
• 1 1/2 t. gr. Cloves
• 1 1/2 t. Baking Soda
• Semi-sweet Chocolate Chips

DIRECTIONS:

1. Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda and spices. Set aside.
2. In the blender cream the sugar and shortening. Beat in the eggs and stir in applesauce.
3. Stir flour mixture into cream mixture until combined. Fold in chocolate chips.
4. Bake @ 350 for 12 minutes.
   

* Grandma covers them with a towel when taken out of oven.

*I've also made these using a combo of applesauce & pumpkin puree. YUM.

Best. Carrot Cake. Ever.

This cake is amazing! So mouthwatering. :) I don't make it often, but this cake is pretty much my favorite cake. Ever. I got the recipe here, but tweaked it a bit to my liking. It's so moist and flavorful. It's one of my favorites for Easter time..... or anytime really. :)

INGREDIENTS:

• 4 Eggs
• 3/4 c. Oil
• 1/2 c. Applesauce
• 1 c. Sugar
• 1 c. Brown Sugar
• 3 t. Vanilla
• 2 c. Flour
• 2 t. Baking Soda
• 2 t. Baking Powder
• 1/2 t. Salt
• 3 t. Cinnamon
• 1/2 c. Coconut
• 3 c. Grated carrots
• 1 c. chopped pecans

DIRECTIONS:

1. Beat eggs, oil, applesauce and sugar. Stir in Vanilla.
2. Combine flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt and cinnamon. Stir into cream mixture.
3. Stir in carrots and coconut. Fold in pecans.
4. Bake in 9x13 dish at 350 for 40-50 minutes.
5. Cool completely before frosting.

FROSTING

• 1/2 c. Butter, softened
• 5 oz. Cream Cheese, softened
• 4 c. Powder Sugar
• 1 t. Vanilla
• Pecans
• Coconut

DIRECTIONS: Beat in blender; butter, cream cheese, pwd. sugar and vanilla. Spread onto cake and sprinkle frosting with coconut and chopped pecans.
*The recipe calls for the whole 8 oz. pkg. of cream cheese, but I'm not a huge fan. So I cut back on the cream cheese, but you may add the whole pkg. if you prefer. Also, I add 1 1/2 c. Cool whip because I like it in my frosting. :)