German Pancakes

I got this recipe in my home ec class in junior high school. It is the only recipe that I kept, and I'm glad I did because my kids love these for dinner. They are about the easiest dinner or breakfast ever, and I still love seeing the weird shapes it makes when it puffs up in the oven!

German Pancakes

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6 eggs

1 cup milk

1 cup flour

1/2 tsp. salt

4 Tbsp. butter

Preheat oven to 450. Place butter in 9x13 pan and put in oven to melt (be careful not to burn the butter!).

In medium bowl, whip eggs until thick and lemon colored. Add milk and stir. Sift in flour and salt and mix well (I use a wisk). Pour batter into pan with melted butter. Bake 15 minutes. Serve with syrup.

Pumpkin Orange Cake

Pumpkin and orange don't seem a likely pair of flavors, do they?  But believe me, it works.  In fact, my daughter's favorite cookie at a local bakery is pumpkin chocolate chip with orange glaze.  Awhile ago, she wanted to make a treat for some friends.  She chose this cake out of one of my cookbooks.  I'm glad she did, because the recipe never really appealed to me, and I probably would have never made it!  She made it and it was sooooo delicious! 

Pumpkin Orange Cake
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1/2 cup butter, softened
1 1/4 cups sugar
2 eggs
1 cup canned pumpkin
1/2 cup orange juice
1/4 cup milk
1 Tbsp. grated orange peel
2 cups flour
1 Tbsp. baking powder
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. ginger
1/2 tsp. allspice
1/2 cup chopped walnuts (optional)

Orange Frosting:
1/3 cup butter, softened
3 cups powdered sugar
3 Tbsp. milk
1 Tbsp. grated orange peel

In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy.  Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.  In another bowl, beat pumpkin, orange juice, milk and orange peel.  Combine the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, baking soda, salt, ginger and allspice; add to creamed mixture alternately with pumpkin mixture, beating well after each addition.  Fold in walnuts.

Pour into a greased 13x9 pan.  Bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean.  Cool on a wire rack.

For frosting, in a large bowl, beat butter and powdered sugar until smooth.  Beat in the milk, orange juice and peel.  Frost cooled cake. 

notes:  next time I make this I want to add chocolate chips!  (maybe 1 or 2 cups)

Fudgy Mint Squares

You can't really go wrong with chocolate mint brownies, can you?  These brownies are a little different from your regular mint brownies.  The green layer is NOT mint frosting, but rather a cream cheese layer that is actually baked.  For those of you who love cream cheese brownies, you will love these!  I got this recipe from the Taste of Home Baking Classics cookbook.  Enjoy!

Fudgy Mint Squares

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Brownie layer:

1/2 cup butter

3 oz. unsweetened chocolate

2 eggs

1 1/2 cup sugar

2 tsp. vanilla

Melt butter and chocolate in heavy saucepan on stove or in microwave (on 50% power, checking every 30 seconds or so).  Cool slightly,  In a small bowl, beat eggs, sugar and vanilla.  Beat in chocolate mixture until blended.  Gradually add in flour.  Spread into greased 9x13 pan.  Bake at 350 for 15-20 minutes or until top is set.

Mint Cream Cheese layer:

2 Tbsp. butter

8 oz. cream cheese, softened

1 Tbsp. cornstarch

1 can (14 oz.) sweetened condensed milk

1 egg

1 tsp. peppermint extract (try 1 1/2 or 2 tsp.)

4 drops green food coloring, optional

In a large bowl, beat cream cheese and butter until smooth.  Add cornstarch; beat until smooth.  Gradually beat in milk and egg.  Beat in extract and food coloring if desired.  Pour over cooked brownie layer.  Bake at 350 for 15-20 minutes or until center is almost set.  Cool on a wire rack.

Chocolate Ganache layer:

1 cup (6 oz.) semisweet chocolate chips

1/2 cup heavy whipping cream

In a small heavy saucepan, combine chocolate chips and cream.  Cook and stir over medium heat until chips are melted.  Cool for 30 minutes or until lukewarm, stirring occasionally.  Pour over cream cheese layer.  Chill for 2 hours or until set.  Cut into bars.  Store in the refrigerator.  Makes 4 dozen.

note:  I don't think 1 tsp. of mint extract was enough.  Next time I make these I will try 1 1/2 or even 2 tsp. mint extract instead.  The mint flavor was just a little too subtle!

Zucchini Bread

This isn't just any zucchini bread.  The original name for this bread was "Pineapple Carrot Zucchini Bread", but that sounds a little too complicated to me.  The pineapple keeps the bread moist and the carrots add a little extra nutrition (or so I like to think!).  When the kids first saw it, they didn't really want to try it.  They have an aversion to actually seeing vegetables in their bread.  But after one bite, they all loved it!  Oh..and I got this recipe 11 years ago on KSL TV.  Enjoy!

Zucchini Bread  (makes 2 large loaves)
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3 eggs
1 cup vegetable oil (I only used 3/4 cup)
2 cups sugar
2 tsp. vanilla
2 cups grated zucchini
1 (8oz) can crushed pineapple, drained
3/4 cup grated carrot
3 cups flour
2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
1 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
3/4 tsp. nutmeg

Beat together eggs, oil, sugar and vanilla.  Stir in grated zucchini, crushed pineapple, and grated carrot.  In separate bowl, mix together remaining ingredients.  Add to wet ingredients and stir until moistened. 

Pour into greased and floured loaf pans and bake at 350 for 40-50 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.   

Tin Can Ice Cream

I was first introduced to tin can ice cream at girl's camp when I was 12 years old.  What a treat to have fresh ice cream while you're camping, and it is so much fun to make!  I have since made it several times with different church groups, and it always amazes me how easy it is to make your own ice cream!  This is a recipe for vanilla ice cream, but feel free to add extra ingredients to make any flavor you want.  My favorite is oreo--LOTS of oreos!


Tin Can Ice Cream
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1 cup milk (I used 2%)
1 cup half-and-half
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 tsp. vanilla


#10 can with lid
12-16 oz. can with lid
rock salt
crushed ice


Put milk, half-and-half, sugar and vanilla into small can.  Cover the top with plastic wrap, and then the plastic lid.  Place the filled can into an empty #10 can.  Fill the empty space with crushed ice, sprinkle generously with rock salt, and cover with the plastic lid.


With a partner, roll the can back and forth to each other (this works best on cement--you only need to be a few feet away from each other).  After about 10 minutes, carefully take the small can out, take off the lid and scrape the sides (be careful not to drip any water in from the ice--it is salty!).  Put small can back in large can and add more ice and salt as needed.  Roll for about 10 more minutes and it should be ready to eat!
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notes:

• I don't ever use crushed ice, just regular bagged ice that you buy at the grocery store.  
• I forgot to bring plastic wrap to camp, so we didn't use any.  I'm not sure how important that step is. 
• Make sure to roll gently to your partner.  You don't want the lid to pop off--from the large can OR the small can.  Some people duct tape the lids on, but if you roll it gently you shouldn't have a problem.
• I usually put the oreos in with the other ingredients, but I have found that no matter how big of pieces I put in, they are completely crushed at the end.  If you want big chunks of cookie, try putting some in after the first 10 minutes when you scrape the sides.   
• It is a little difficult to find small cans these days.  I used to use baby formula cans but now they are made out of cardboard.  I ended up buying the cheapest coffee I could find and just dumping it so I could use the empty cans.    

Lemon Crinkle Cookies

These cookies won first place in the LDS Living Magazine cookie contest.  They are soooo yummy, and I will definitely be making them again!  p.s.- I doubled the original recipe and it made 42 cookies.

Lemon Crinkle Cookies
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1 cup butter, softened
2 cups sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
2 eggs
2 tsp. lemon zest
2 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. baking soda
3 cups flour
1 cup powdered sugar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease light colored baking sheets with non-stick cooking spray and set aside.

In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Whip in vanilla, egg, lemon zest, and juice. Scrape sides and mix again. Stir in all dry ingredients slowly until just combined, excluding the powdered sugar. Scrape sides of bowl and mix again briefly. Pour powdered sugar onto a large plate. Roll a heaping teaspoon of dough into a ball and roll in powdered sugar. Place on baking sheet and repeat with remaining dough.

Bake for 9-11 minutes or until bottoms begin to barely brown and cookies look matte {not melty or shiny}. Remove from oven and cool cookies about 3 minutes before transferring to cooling rack.

*If using a non-stick darker baking tray, reduce baking time by about 2 minutes.

Chicken Wonton Salad

This is my favorite salad in the whole world.  It is always my first choice to serve at a bridal or baby shower, and everyone LOVES it.  I got the recipe a long time ago from my sister, and it is definitely one of my favorite recipes ever.  You will not be disappointed!

Chicken Wonton Salad
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1/2 pkg wontons, lightly fried and broken up
1 head red leaf lettuce
1 head iceberg lettuce
4 chicken breasts, grilled and cut into chunks
1 can sliced water chestnuts
3 green onions
1/3 cup sesame seeds
1 can mandarin oranges

Dressing

1/4 cup salad oil
1/4 cup rice vinegar
1/4 cup sugar
1 tsp. Accent
1/2 tsp. salt

(notes:  I fry the wontons in canola oil and usually end up using a little less than half of the package for the salad.  For the chicken, I usually just add salt and pepper and grill them.  The last time I made it though, I marinated the chicken for a few hours in 1 cup sprite and 1/2 cup soy sauce before I grilled it.  It was so moist and yummy-I will always do it that way now!  For the dressing, I double it and add just before serving.  I don't usually use all of it, but I always need more than the recipe calls for!)