SUMMER FRUIT DIP

Mmm! Don't you just LOVE it when fresh fruit is in season?! Wow! This is one of my favorite Summertime desserts. Cantalope, chunk pineapple, strawberries, red grapes and blueberries. Then I serve it with the most delicious dip / topping. It's so yummy, you'll want to eat the topping with a spoon! The best part is, you can make the topping relatively sugar free and fat free.

FRUIT DIP

1 ½ C. Cold milk
1 pkg. (3.4 oz) instant French vanilla pudding (can use sugar free, if you'd like)
1 cup (8oz) Cherry vanilla yogurt
1 (8 oz) Cool Whip (can use fat free if you'd like)

In mixing bowl, combine milk & pudding mix. Mix well. Let stand 2 - 3 minutes. Add yogurt, mix well. Fold in cool whip.
Mix in several drops of red food coloring to make pink. Be sure to mix well to get pudding up from bottom. Refrigerate. Best served w/ a fruit mix of Strawberries, Cantaloupe, Pineapple, Grapes and Blueberries.

PUMPKIN GOOEY BUTTER CAKE

Oh my soul!! If you've never made a gooey butter cake, you simply MUST try one some time! They are so stinking good!!! You can make them with tons of variations, but the pumpkin is by far, our favorite. You really should put this on your next menu for dessert! And Thanksgiving, is a given! I promise, you'll never want pumpkin pie again! LOL

PUMPKIN GOOEY BUTTER CAKE

Cake:
1 (18 oz) box yellow cake mix
1 egg
1/2 cup melted butter

Filling:
1 (8 oz) cream cheese, softened
1 (15 oz) can pumpkin pie filling
3 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1 (16 oz) box powdered sugar
1/2 cup melted butter

Preheat oven to 350. Lightly grease a 13 x 9 baking pan. In a bowl of an electric mixer, combine the cake mix, egg and butter and mix well. Pat into the bottom of prepared pan and set aside. Still using an electric mixer, beat cream cheese until smooth. Add pumpkin, eggs and vanilla. Dump in powdered sugar and beat well. Reduce the speed of the mixer and slowly pour in butter. Mix well. Pour filling onto cake mixture and spread evenly. *Bake for 40 - 50 minutes. Don't be afraid to make a judgment call on the cooking time, because oven temperatures can vary. You want the center to be a little gooey, so don't bake it past that point!
Remove from oven and allow to cool slightly. Cut into squares and serve with whipped cream. These little cakes are very, very rich and a little will go a long way!

*NOTE* ESPECIALLY if you are using a Pampered chef stone baking pan. If you are, you should remove it from the oven at around 30 - 35 minutes, as it will continue to cook in the stone. I find that as soon as I see the edges starting to look "cooked" and a bit dry, I remove it, even if the center still seems a bit "soft". It really will finish cooking in the pan.

SNICKERS PIE

I apologize once again for a horrible picture. We had company for dinner and I can't spend very much time playing with angles and lighting when people are waiting to be served! LOL
This pie is really yummy, but also very rich. It's the kind that you cut in small pieces - LOL.
If you love Snickers, this will be a favorite of yours! Super easy to put together. I should have let mine chill a little longer, but everyone begged me to get it out and serve it! LOL That's why it looks a bit "soft" on the sides. This is definitely a keeper.

SNICKERS PIE

4 king size Snickers bars
1/2 cup peanut butter
2 Tblsp heavy cream or 1/2 & 1/2
4 cups Cool Whip
1 deep dish (9") graham cracker pie crust
Additional whipped topping and chocolate syrup for garnish

In the top of a double boiler, melt together Snickers bars, peanut butter, and 1/2 & 1/2, stirring until smooth. Remove from heat and allow to cool slightly. Fold in Cool whip and pour into crust. Freeze for 4 - 5 hours before serving. When ready to serve, top with additional Cool whip and drizzle with Hershey's chocolate syrup. Store in refrigerator.

FETTUCINE ALFREDO

I finally got to use my new, cool, pasta bowl tonight! I picked it up from the clearance rack for $4. My family loves Alfredo, and it is so stinking easy to make. It's a nice side dish for those nights when you need something in a hurry. It tastes like you labored over it for a good while. You can take all sorts of liberties with this dish. Add cooked, cut up chicken, broccoli, etc... We like it "on the side" with chicken as the main dish. I'm sure there is a "skinny" version out there, somewhere, in WW land. But for me, I'd rather have the real deal and just eat a smaller portion.

FETTUCINE ALFREDO

1 stick REAL butter
1/2 tsp minced garlic
1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
1/2 cup fresh grated parmesan cheese
1 lb Fettucine noodles

Cook noodles according to pkg directions, but leave them al dente. Drain them, return them to the pot they cooked in and toss in a little butter to keep them from sticking together. In a separate saucepan, over med-high heat, melt the butter. Add the minced garlic and stir for a minute or two. Just long enough for the garlic to infuse the butter. Add the whipping cream and Parmesan cheese and stir constantly to combine. Do not boil. Once it is well combined and hot, place pasta in pasta dish, pour sauce over noodles, and toss gently with a pasta rake to combine. Garnish with fresh parsley, and serve with your favorite cut of meat.

*NOTE* Usually when I make this, I'll double the amount of sauce it calls for. We like our noodles to be really creamy with the sauce.

SUNDAY FRIED CHICKEN

What's better than a plate full of crispy, fried chicken for Sunday afternoon dinner?! I could probably count on one hand, the times that I have actually been able to FRY chicken for Sunday dinner. But today was unique. My Honey preached out of town this morning, for an old preacher friend, who became ill all of a sudden. It was close enough though, that he could rejoin us for dinner, this afternoon! But yet far enough away to allow me the time needed to fry this up today! He had no idea I was making this. He was pleasantly surprised when he walked in the door, and was greeted, not just by his little family, but by the smell of FRIED chicken! On THE LORD'S DAY no less! LOL We were sitting at the table eating, lips just a smacking! LOL And he looks at me and says, "This is the best day ever!" *hehe* I think I earned some brownie points today, don't you? *wink*

SUNDAY FRIED CHICKEN

3 or 4 eggs, beaten with a little water
2 cups self rising flour
1 tsp black pepper
1 whole chicken, cut into pieces
(or you can use whatever your favorite pieces are. I found legs & thighs on sale for .79 / lb this week, so that is what I used).
Salt, garlic powder and Lawry's seasoned salt
Canola oil or Crisco shortening, whichever you prefer

Lay your chicken pieces on a baking sheet and season them with a little salt, garlic powder and bit of Lawry's seasoned salt. Let them sit for several minutes. Beat eggs with a little water (1/4 of a cup or so). Pour the 2 cups of flour into a heavy duty ziploc bag and add in the black pepper. Dip seasoned chicken into the egg; then drop them into the ziploc bag of flour, 2 at a time, twist the bag shut tight and give them a couple good shakes. Remove with tongs. Fry in MODERATELY hot oil or shortening (350) until golden brown and crisp on both sides. Remember, dark meat takes longer to cook (about 15 minutes, compared to 10 for white meat).

*I find the VERY BEST pan for frying chicken, is a cast iron skillet. Pour your oil into the skillet. Set your heat to medium, and don't be tempted to "hurry" it along and go any higher. The secret to good, juicy, fried (and DONE) chicken, is low and slow. Also, NEVER use a fork to poke the chicken to turn it. Use tongs and only turn it once.

FRIED CHICKEN GRAVY

Remove the excess grease from the pan, but leave the "crispies" that fell from the chicken as it fried. Toss in 2 or 3 Tblsp of flour and give it a good stir with your wisk. Pour in a cup or two of milk and stir constantly until it thickens. If it's too thick, add more milk. Season with salt and pepper. Serve over red skin mashed potatoes! Mmm!
Or if you prefer a more "chickeny" taste to your gravy, you can use half milk and half chicken broth.

PEANUT BUTTER PIE #1

I have 2 or 3 versions of Peanut Butter pie that I make. One is this, one is the real creamy kind with the cream cheese, peanut butter, powdered sugar and cool whip, then the other is the Peanut butter chiffon (made with gelatin). At some point I'll have all 3 versions posted on here, this is the first of the set! LOL This is super easy to throw together, and as long as you have a box of graham crackers and a couple boxes of instant pudding among your pantry staples, the rest you will probably already have on hand. I love recipes that I already have most of the ingredients for! This is one of those.

PEANUT BUTTER PIE #1


CRUST:

1 1/2 cups flour
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup oil
2 Tblsp sugar
2 tsp milk
*(or you can do like me, and just use a Graham cracker pie crust, if you're in a hurry)*

FILLING:

1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
3/4 cup powdered sugar
1 (5.3 oz) box instant vanilla pudding mix
2 1/2 cups milk
1 (8 oz) container Cool Whip

Preheat oven to 350. Lightly grease a 9" pie pan.
Blend all crust ingredients together in a bowl with a spoon and press into prepared pan. Bake 8 - 10 minutes or until brown. Remove and allow to cool.
For filling, using a fork, mix peanut butter and powdered sugar in a bowl, until crumbly (a pastry blender works really well for this step). Sprinkle peanut butter crumbles evenly into bottom of pie crust, reserving 2 Tblsp for garnish. In separate bowl, beat pudding mix with milk for 2 minutes, using a handheld electric mixer. Pour on top of the peanut butter mixture in the crust. Spread with Cool Whip. Sprinkle remaining peanut butter crumbles over the top and refrigerate several hours before serving. (you don't really need to cool it for "several" hours. I mixed mine up after church this morning and we ate it after Sunday dinner! LOL)
Serves 6 - 8

HANNAH BANANA MUFFINS

Don't you just love a good muffin? But I think it's a cardinal sin to make or eat a DRY muffin! I just won't do it. I like muffins to be MOIST and have a nice crispy, light brown, crown on them. To me, that is perfection in a muffin. You can tell these muffins are moist, because they don't crumble when you cut them. I probably make these a couple times a month, or whenever the bananas don't get finished off after I buy them. Tonight I had 4 dark bananas sitting in the fruit bowl, staring at me, wondering what their fate would be. I finally took pity on them and re-made them into some glorious "Hannah Banana" muffins. They were so happy! *hehe* If you're wondering where "Hannah Banana" came from, it was when our daughter (now 23) was diagnosed with cancer at 6 yrs old. It was the nickname attached to her by her nurses and caretakers in the hospital. The name has just kind of stuck, so these muffins are in honor of my sweet "Hannah Banana!" I'm so glad we still have her with us! THANK YOU Lord!

HANNAH BANANA MUFFINS

1 cup sugar
1/2 cup butter, softened
2 eggs
3 or 4 very ripe bananas
1/2 cup sweetened applesauce or 1/2 sour cream
(whichever you prefer or happen to have on hand)
1 tsp. vanilla
2 cups flour
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
1 heaping tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg

Chopped pecans & extra sugar for topping

Cream softened butter and sugar together with a mixer. Add eggs, bananas, applesauce (or sour cream, whichever you decided on) and vanilla. Mix well. In a separate bowl, combine flour, salt, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon and nutmeg. Slowly add to creamed mixture a cup at a time, beating with mixer after each addition. Line a jumbo muffin tin with jumbo muffin papers and fill each one 3/4 of the way with muffin batter. Sprinkle liberally with chopped pecans and then liberally with sugar. Bake at 375 for 20 - 25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. DO NOT overbake them or they will dry out. Remember the 20 - 25 minutes is for JUMBO muffins. If you are using a regular size muffin pan, you will need to adjust your cooking time accordingly. I LOVE the crunchy topping these get while they are baking! Mmm!To get the full effect of this delicious muffin, you HAVE to eat it warm. So if you make them the night before (like I did) be sure to warm yours in the microwave for about 10 seconds before you eat it. When you sit down with your hot cup of coffee and a warm banana muffin in the morning, think of me and say a prayer for this preacher's family.