Caramels

You know how there is always one lady at church that is a fabulous cook?! This recipe is from "the lady" at church while I was growing up. I think I may have made this enough to have finally gotten it right...gotta find the temperature that works on your own termometer!

1 cup butter
1 cup light corn syrup
1 lb. brown sugar (2 ¼ cup)
Dash of salt
1 can sweet and condensed milk
1 tsp. vanilla

*melt butter in saucepan. Add brown sugar and salt. Stir in corn syrup. Mix well. Gradually add milk, stirring constantly. Cook and stir over medium heat until candy reaches firm ball stage, about 12-15 minutes. Remove from heat; stir in vanilla
*Pour into buttered jelly roll pan. Cool and cut into squares. Wrap individual pieces in plastic wrap
*When caramel is cooked, you can stir in pecans or walnuts. Can also make into turtles.

My thermometer reads 238* when ready!

Sarah's chocolate chip cookies

My friend Sarah makes these every Sunday afternoon! I think she might have gotten the recipe right off the package of chocolate chips...but man are they good. I always cool my cookies on foil instead of on a cookie sheet. This makes for a much softer cookie!

2 ¼ cup flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
1 cup butter softened
¾ cup sugar
¾ cup packed brown sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
2 large eggs
2 cups chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 375* Combine flour, baking soda and salt. In another bowl beat butter, sugars and vanilla until creamy. Add eggs, beat well. Gradually add flour mixture. Stir in chips.

Bake 9-11 minutes

Mom's Ranger Cookies

This cookie dough is my very favorite to eat raw...so make sure you don't cook it all!

Mix:
1 Cup Shortening
1 Cup white sugar
2/3 Cup brown sugar
2 eggs

Sift:
2 cups flour
½ tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. salt

Combine two mixtures and add:
2 tsp. vanilla
2 cups quick oats
2 cups cornflakes

Bake cookies 350* for 8-10 minutes

Tuxedo Brownie Cups

These brownies are adorable and make the perfect treat for a baby/bridal shower or any time you want to bring a dessert to impress.

1 package brownie mix plus ingredients to make cake like brownies
2 squares white chocolate for baking
2 tbs. milk
1 package (8 oz) cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup powdered sugar
1 cup thawed, frozen whipped topping
1 pint small strawberries, sliced

1. preheat oven to 325*. Spray cups of mini muffin pan with nonstick cooking spray. Prepare brownie mix according to package directions for cake-like brownies. Fill cups 2/3 full. Bake 14 minutes or until edges are set (do not over bake).

2. remove pan to cooling rack. Immediately press tops of Brownies in (I use the pampered chef mini-tart shaper) to make indentions in brownie. Cool in pan 15 minutes. Loosen edges and gently remove brownies from pan. Cool completely. Wash pan, spray with cooking spray and repeat baking with remaining batter.

3. Microwave white chocolate and milk in microwave safe bowl on High for 1 minute. Stir until smooth. Cool slightly. Combine cream cheese and powdered sugar. Mix well. Gradually stir in white chocolate mixture until smooth. Fold in whipped topping.

4. Fill decorator icing bag, with a large star tip, with mixture. Pipe cream cheese mixture into cooled brownie cups. Arrange strawberry slices on top. Garnish as desired (with orange zest, mint leaves or melted semi-sweet chocolate). Place in airtight container and refrigerate 1-3 hours before serving.

Yield 4 dozen

Thanks to pampered chef for the great recipe

crockpot brownies

Hold on to your hats. This is one rich, satisfying, amazing dessert. And it took all of 5 minutes to prepare.
The Ingredients.
--1 16 oz package of brownie mix
--1/4 cup melted butter
--1 egg
--1/4 cup water
--1 can sweetened condensed milk
--1/4 cup walnuts
--1/4 cup coconut
--1/4 cup oats

The Directions.
I used my mini 1.5 quart crockpot for this dish
The proportions of the oats, coconut, and walnuts are for the mini crock. If you decide to use a larger size, use enough of the toppings to spread over the whole surface area.
--melt butter
--add 1/4 cup of water, the egg, and the brownie mix
--stir until none of the powder is left dry; batter will be quite thick
--pour can of sweetened condensed milk over the top.
--Shuffle children quickly out of the kitchen because you are "working" and lick out the inside of the can, being careful so you don't cut off your tongue.
--wash sweetened condensed milk off of your face
--cover milk with a layer of oats, then coconut, then walnuts.
--close up crockpot and cook on high, if using a little crock, low if using a bigger one. Test with a knife after two hours, if it comes out clean, cook for another 20-30 minutes with the lid off to get rid of the collected condensation and to help solidify the condensed milk. You will know this is done when the edges pull away from your stoneware.
Since I used my mini crockpot, this cooked for about 4 1/2 hours altogether.
The Verdict.
Well worth the wait.

Snickers Salad

This "salad" is a real crowd pleaser. It was even a special request for the young women at girls camp, and this is with very picky young women. I call it salad, you may call it heaven!

4 apples-chopped
4 bananas-sliced
1 lb. snickers-chopped (or any other favorite candy bar)
12 oz. cool whip

Mix and chill!