Caramel Brownies

I made these brownies last night and they were declared "one of the best desserts we've had in a long time".   Really easy and a big hit.

Caramel Brownies

1 box German chocolate cake mix
1/3 c evaporated milk
1/2 c butter,melted

Half a 14 oz package of Kraft caramels
1/3 c evaporated milk

1 cup milk or semi-sweet chocolate chips

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Stir together dry cake mix, butter, and evaporated milk. Press half of this mixture into bottom of a 9x9 inch pan. Bake for 6 minutes.
2. Melt caramels with 1/3 c evaporated milk in a saucepan over medium heat. Set aside.
3. Sprinkle chocolate chips over baked crust. Drizzle caramel over chocolate chips. Spoon or sprinkle the other half of the cake mixture on top. Bake for 16-18 minutes. Cut and serve.

White Chocolate Cranberry Blondies

I loved these! These were a Christmas hit! Normally I stick to dark chocolate, but these are my new favorites.

For the recipe, click here.

Chocolate Macaroon Bars

These are fabulous!

Chocolate Macaroon Bars
Recipe by Nestle Toll House
1 pkg chocolate cake mix
1/3 C. butter
2 lg eggs, divided
1 (14oz) can Sweetened Condensed Milk
1 tsp vanilla
2C (12 oz) semi-sweet chocolate
1 1/2 C. flaked coconut divided
3/4C. chopped nuts(optional)
1. Beat cake mix, butter and 1 egg in large mixing bowl until mixture is crumbly. Firmly press onto bottom of greased 9x13in pan.
2. Combine sweetened condensed milk, remaining egg, and vanilla in medium bowl. Stir in chocolate chips, 1C. coconut and nuts. Spread over mixture in baking pan. Sprinkle with remaining coconut.
3. Bake in preheated 350F oven for 30-40 minutes till golden brown.(center will set when cooled). Cool completely in pan on wire rack. Cut into bars.

Dulce de Leche Pumpkin Pie

I tried this because my husband loves pumpkin pie, but I am not a big fan.  I decided to try this and we both liked it.  It was different from traditional pumpkin pie.  I got this recipe from Southern Living, but it was also on Recipe Girl.  Click here for the recipe.

Peanut Butter Cup Cookies

Everyone in my family ended up with subscriptions to The Taste Of Home magazine this year for Christmas. Here is one of the recipes from the magizine. They were a big hit with my in-laws.

Ingredients:
1 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 package (13 ounces) miniature peanut butter cups

DRIZZLE:
1 cup (6 ounces) semisweet chocolate chips
1 tablespoon creamy peanut butter
1 teaspoon shortening

Directions:
In a large bowl, cream the butter, peanut butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Beat in egg and vanilla. Combine flour and baking soda; gradually add to creamed mixture and mix well. Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour or until easy to handle.
Roll into 1-1/4-in. balls. Press a miniature peanut butter cup into each; reshape balls. Place 2 in. apart on ungreased baking sheets. Bake at 350° for 12-15 minutes or until edges are lightly browned. Cool for 2 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks.
For drizzle, in a microwave-safe bowl, melt the chocolate chips, peanut butter and shortening; stir until smooth. Drizzle over cooled cookies. Yield: about 3 dozen.

Hello Dollies

I made these for my friends birthday and they were gone within minutes - sooooo good (and very sweet)! Another plus, very quick to make.  We loved them!

Hello Dollies

1 stick butter, melted

1 C. gram crackers crumbs

1 C. butterscotch chips

1 C. semisweet chocolate chips

1 C. coconut

1 C. walnuts

1 C. eagle sweetened condensed milk

Melt butter and pour into 9X13 pan. Add gram cracker crumbs into pan and form into crust. Layer by sprinkling butterscotch chips, semi sweet chocolate chips, coconut and walnuts over crust. Drizzle condensed milk over the top. Bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes. Let cool before cutting.

French Apple Pie

I love this pie and it is one of Isaac's favorites too. I made this for the teachers at New Horizon and it was so loved that for Thanksgiving that year, six of the teachers made it for their families. The crust is really yummy because it has almond extract in it and it is the easiest crust because you just pat it into the pie pan, you don't need to roll it out. It cooks in the oven, inside a paper bag. Don't worry, I have made this pie hundreds of times and the paper bag has never set on fire. My favorite apple to use for this is Gravensteins, if you can find them. This recipe also works best if the margarine is still chilled and not softened.

French Apple Pie

Crust:

1 C. flour

2 Tbs. sugar

1 stick margarine

Dash of salt

Capful of Almond Extract

Filling:

4 C. sliced and peeled apples

1/2 C. sugar

2 Tbs. flour

1/2 tsp. nutmeg

1/2 tsp. cinnamon

Crumb Topping:

1/2 C. flour

1/2 C. sugar

1/2 C. butter

1. Mix crust ingredients together in a bowl with your hands. Once well blended, press into pie pan (this crust does not need to be rolled out).

2. Peel, core and slice apples and mix with other ingredients. Pour over crust.

3. Mix topping ingredients with hands. Sprinkle over the top of the pie.

4. Place pie in a paper bag and cook in the oven at 350 degrees for an hour and a half.

Chocolate Oatmeal Carmelitas

I was introduced to Dulce de Leche when I was in Honduras. The family that I was living with would always make Dulce de Leche cake when it was someones birthday. The cake was so gross and soggy, and whoever's birthday it was got raw eggs smashed on their head (a Honduran tradition), so it also always smelled like raw eggs. Anyway, I haven't liked Dulce de Leche since, however, my friend really likes it, so for her birthday I tried this recipe that I found on Recipe Girl because it has Dulce de Leche in it, and was surprised because I really liked these bars.
Now the recipe says to "dollop" the Dulce de Leche onto the bar. But I discovered it is too carmely, so it doesn't really "dollop" and instead it made a huge mess. Next time I try this recipe, I will probably just try putting a hole in the can and drizzling the Dulce de Leche from the can instead, and not add the flour 3 TBS. flour into the carmel. This is a make ahead recipe, not one you can eat right out of the oven. You can find the Dulce de Leche in the Mexican Food section of the grocery store.

Chocolate Oatmeal Carmelitas

3 C. + 3 TBS. flour, divided

1½ tsp baking soda

½ tsp salt

4 sticks (1 pound) unsalted butter, softened

3 cups quick-cooking rolled oats

2¼ cups light brown sugar

1½ cups (16 ounces) dulce de leche

1½ cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

¾ cup chopped pecans

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter a 9x13-inch metal baking pan.
2. In a large bowl, whisk 3 cups of the flour with the baking soda and salt. Add the butter, oats and brown sugar and mix until combined. In a small bowl, mix the dulce de leche with the remaining 3 Tbsp. flour.
3. Pat half of the oat mixture into the baking pan. Bake for 15 minutes. Scatter half of the chocolate chips and pecans over the crust. Dollop half of the dulce de leche mixture on top. Crumble the remaining oat mixture evenly into the pan. Cover with the remaining chocolate chips, pecans and dollops of dulce de leche.
4. Bake for about 30-35 minutes, or until the edges are set. Let stand, uncovered at room temperature overnight. Cut the carmelitas into bars and serve.

Butterscotch Bars

I love these bars and so do Isaac's co-workers. One of them actually called me and begged me over the phone to make these and send them to work with Isaac. They are a huge hit and easy to make, just make sure you plan ahead. They require time to sit and set - you can't just stick them in the freezer and hope they set faster (they don't and your likely to chip a tooth). I got this recipe from Karli and it's one of my favorites.

Butterscotch Bars
1 C. sugar

1 C. light Caro syrup

1 C. peanut butter

6 C. rice crispies

1 1/2 C. chocolate chips

1 1/2 C. butterscotch chips

Combine sugar and caro syrup. Heat on the stovetop over medium until blended. Add peanut butter while still hot and mix. Press into 9X13 pan (lightly grease). Melt chips and pour on top. Sit to set (4-5 hours).

*Cute to make into Popsicles for a birthday or special occasion (although much more time consuming). To make Popsicles, buy sticks at Michaels or specialty store. Let rice crispy mixture sit for about an hour in the bowl and then begin to form into balls, and stick sticks into the balls. Let sit for an hour to form. Then dip individual balls into melted chocolate (also take out the sticks, dip in chocolate and put back into balls). Let sit on wax paper and add sprinkles if you want.