Cararmel Pecan Carrot Cupcakes

I made these gems for Father's Day. They were absolutely decadent.

Ingredients:
Cakes
1 c. sugar
1c. flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 cinnamon
3/4 c. oil
2 eggs, beaten
1 tsp vanilla
1 c. shredded carrots
1/2 c. crushed pineapple, drained
1/2c pecans

Frosting
1 stick butter
1 1/2 c. powdered sugar
1/8 tsp salt
2 tsp vanilla
1 pkg. (8 oz) cream cheese
1/4 c. caramel sauce
sprinkling of chopped pecans

Recipe:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a pan with paper liners.
Mix the sugar, flour, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon together. Make a well in the middle then add the oil, eggs, and vanilla. Combine until well incorporated. Stir in the carrots, pineapple, and nuts.

Fill the cups 3/4 full and bake for 15-16 minutes. Cool cupcakes before frosting.

To make frosting, cream butter, sugar and salt for 2 minutes on low speed. When fluffy add the cream cheese and mix until smooth. Frost cupcakes, drizzle with caramel, and sprinkle with chopped pecans.

White Chocolate Amaretto Cheesecake

Ingredients:
Crust
2 c. graham cracker crumbs
1/4 c. plain almonds, processed
1/4 c. sugar
1/4 c. butter, melted
1 Tbsp Amaretto
Cake
3 pkg (8 oz each) cream cheese
1 c. sugar
3 eggs
2 Tbsp Amaretto
1 tsp vanilla
pinch of salt
2 c. white chocolate
1/2 c. half and half
Topping
1 (16 oz) plain Greek yogurt
1/4 c. sugar
1 tsp almond extract
1/2 c. sliced almonds

Recipe:
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. To make the crust combine the cracker crumbs, processed almonds, sugar, melted butter, and Amaretto. Press the mixture into the bottom of a greased 9 in. springform pan or a 9x13 for bars. Bake the crust for 5-7 minutes.

Meanwhile, mix the cream cheese, sugar and salt. Add the eggs one at a time, beating after each addition. Blend in the vanilla and Amaretto. Melt the chocolate chips with half and half over a double boiler. Stir until smooth. Blend the chocolate mixture with the cream cheese until well combined.

Bake for 55-65 minutes. To make the topping, mix the yogurt, sugar, and almond extract. Set aside until cake is done baking.

Let the cake stand for 5 minutes before spreading the topping on. Bake for an additional 5 minutes. Let it cool in the pan for 10 minutes then sprinkle with sliced almonds. Cool for 4 hours or overnight.

 

 

Margarita Cupcakes

Makes 1 dozen cupcakes

Ingredients:

Cupcakes
1 1/2 c. flour
1/2 Tbsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 stick of butter, room temp.
1 c. sugar
2 large eggs
1 1/2 limes zested and juiced (3 T juice)
1/4 tsp vanilla
2/3 c. plain yogurt
1/3 c. milk

Frosting
1 1/2 c. powdered sugar
1 stick of butter, softened
1 Tbsp. lime juice
1 Tbsp. Tequila
1 Tbsp. Triple sec

Recipe:

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. and line a cupcake pan with paper liners. Mix the flour, baking powder, and salt together. In a separate bowl combine the butter and sugar and mix on medium speed for 3 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time blending between each egg. Next, add the lime zest, juice, and vanilla. Mix in half of the dry ingredients with the butter mixture. Then pour in the milk and yogurt mixing the whole time. End with the other half of the dry ingredients until the batter is well combined.

Bake for 20-25 minutes. Brush the tops with tequila and triple sec, and let cool before frosting.

To make the frosting, whisk the butter for one minute. Add the sugar then the liquid, and beat for 3-5 more minutes until smooth. Keep beating if the frosting looks too soupy. Use right away or keep at room temperature. If you need to refrigerate it, let it come to room temp. when ready to use, and use your mixer to beat it until it becomes smooth again. Otherwise it will look like a curdled mess. I added a couple drops of food coloring to make it light green.

Smokey Bastard

Ingredients:

1 c. mozzarella cheese

3/4 c. smoked Gouda

smoked salmon shredded into bite-size chunks

handful of fresh spinach, chopped

1 Tbsp butter

1 Tbsp minced garlic

1/4 c. soy milk

1 Tbsp olive oil

1 onion, sliced

salt and pepper to taste

dough for 1 pizza crust

Recipe:

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F. If using a pizza stone, place it in the oven while it's heating up. 

Caramelize the onion in a small amount of olive oil. This takes about 25 minutes. Stir every 5 minutes until the onions are golden brown. To make the garlic butter Alfredo sauce, saute the garlic in the butter and olive oil for 3-5 minutes. Stir in the milk until thickened, and season with salt and pepper. 

Spoon the sauce over the crust and top with cheeses and salmon. Sprinkle the chopped spinach over the pizza, and bake for 10-12 minutes.

Apple Chips

Ingredients:
3-4 apples
Cinnamon, optional

Recipe:
Preheat your oven to 250 degrees F.

Slice the apples very thin. Thicker slices may need to be baked longer. Line cookie sheets with parchment paper and arrange the apple slices on the paper. Sprinkle with a dash of cinnamon if desired. Bake for 2 hours flipping the apple slices after one hour. Let cool. Apple chips should be crisp, if some are still soft, bake those a little longer.

After storing mine they got soft again, I think some of the thicker slices still had moisture in them. I popped them back in the oven though and they crisped back up again.

Mini Cherry Cheesecakes

Ingredients:

1 c graham cracker crumbs
1 Tbsp sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
4 Tbsp melted butter

2 (8 oz) pkgs. cream cheese
3/4 c sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1/8 tsp salt
3 eggs
1/2 c plain Greek yogurt
cherry pie filling

Recipe:

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.

Line muffin cups with liners. Makes about 15 cakes.

To make crust, mix cracker crumbs, sugar, cinnamon, and melted butter until well combined. Divide the mixture among the liners and press down. Bake for 5-7 minutes.

Meanwhile (with a handheld or standup mixer) beat the cream cheese with sugar. Add the eggs one at a time mixing between each egg. Add vanilla, salt, and yogurt until smooth. Pour the cheesecake batter over the crust completely filling the cups. Bake for 20-25 minutes until the tops begin to crack. Cool completely on a wire rack. Cover them or place them in a container and refrigerate for a few hours. Spoon cherry pie filling onto the cheesecakes before serving. 

Coconut Dream Bars

This is a simple yet delicious dessert that lives up to its name.

Ingredients:
2 c. graham cracker crumbs
1 stick of butter, melted
1/2 c. chocolate chips
1/2 c. butterscotch chips
2 c. coconut
1 can sweetened condensed milk

Recipe:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a 9x13 in. pan with parchment paper.

Combine the melted butter and cracker crumbs. Pour them into the pan and pack down. Mix together the chips and coconut and sprinkle over the crust. Next, pour the sweetened condensed milk over the top.

Bake for 25-30 minutes. Cool in the pan before cutting.