First, I have tell you I purchased a whoopie pie pan… yes I know, why not use a sheet pan and cut your whoppies pie ends with a ramekin. Here’s what you’d get great circles for the two halves but no crispy edges and less whoopie pies!

Whoppie Pie

2 Cups all purpose flour

2 teas baking powder

1 tea salt

2 teas cinnamon

1 1/2 Cups cane sugar

1/2  Cups dark brown sugar

1 1/4 Cup canola oil

4 large eggs

2 1/2 Cups of coarsely grated baby carrots

1 Cup chopped pecans

1 Tbsp fresh minced peeled ginger

Filling

12 oz cream cheese, room temperature

5 Tbsp soften butter, room temperature

2 1/2 Cups of powdered sugar

1/4 Cup pure maple syrup, New Hampshire

Blend together all filling ingredients to form nice peaks. Chill before you start your whoppie pie batter.

Preheat oven to 350F

My whoppie pie pan is Teflon coated but if you choice a sheet pan butter and flour the pan

Whisk flour, salt, baking soda and cinnamon in medium mixing bowl.

Whisk sugar, canola oil and slowly add each egg and blend well.

Add carrots, pecans and fresh minced ginger.

Slowly add flour mixture until the batter forms.

Fill whoppie pie molds with not more than 1/4 cup of batter

Cook for 11 -13 minutes

Pull from the oven, cool for 10 minutes and slip on to cake rack to cool

Assemble pies by taking a generous amount of filling, at least two good size tablespoons. You will have plenty of filling.

Enjoy!

Remove strawberries green leafy stem and cut into halves or quarters depending on the size

Leave blackberries/ raspberries whole

Rinse all berries with cold water and drain.

Arrange berries in a single layer on a shallow tray, spray lightly with water

Place in your freezer for 60 minutes.

Scoop up all frozen berries and place preferred portion into individual freezer bags, label.

You can use this same freeze method with other fruits like apples, pears and peaches. Cut into preferred size and spray fruit with a 30% concentration of lemon juice/ water to prevent browning which occurs when exposed to air.

Stretch your local favorite fruits when in season by using this very simple freeze method!

For further information about freezing foods check out: USDA Complete Guide to Home Canning, available online:

http://nchfp.uga.edu/publications/publications_usda.html

1 Cup fresh strawberries

1/2 banana

4 oz plain yogurt

1 teas vanilla

1/4 teas cinnamon

1/2 cup of crushed ice

1/3 Cup 2% milk

Blend all ingredients together in  one 16oz  serving smoothie blender. Drink immediately.

1 cup butter

2 cups sugar

2 eggs

2 tsp. vanilla extract

5 1/2 cups flour

2 tsp. Baking Powder

1 tsp Baking Soda

1/2 tsp. nutmeg

1 cup sour cream

Mix shortening, sugar, eggs and vanilla extract to form a cream mixture

Blend dry ingredients and add to the cream mixture, alternating with the sour cream.

Roll out to 1/2″ on a well-floured surface.

Cut with 2″ Holiday cookie cutter.  Bake on a greased cookie sheet for 8-10 min.

Cool and frost using your favorite cookie frosting and holiday sprinkles.

1-1/3 Cup ground cinnamon

1 Cup applesauce

1/4 Cup white glue

Mix cinnamon, applesauce and glue in a large bowl, add more cinnamon if needed to form a dough texture. Shape into a ball, flatten and wrap in plastic wrap placing in refrigerator for one hour.

Roll out dough on cutting board to 1/2 inch or thicker. Sprinkle rolling pin with a little cinnamon if needed to keep dough from sticking. Use your favorite Christmas cookie cutters to create your ornaments. Punch a hole for ribbon before drying by using a bamboo skewer at best location on the ornament.

Place ornaments on a cookie sheet in a 200F oven for 2 hours, turn ornaments over after one hour.

Remove ornaments from cookie sheet and using the bamboo skewer again carefully reinforce the hole made earlier. File ornament edges if desired. Loop through your favorite ribbon and hang on your tree.

You can decorate your ornaments with your kids at this point, all ages! Last year I brought ready made ornaments, glitter, glue and other sparkly stuff to my grandkids house; it was lots of fun!

Enjoy!

Oh and contraying to what my Dad thought years ago these are not cookies; do not eat.

Add you turkey to the 450F oven for 20 minutes
Turn your oven down to 350F and cover the top [breast] with foil or paper bag.
This will limit burning
When Turkey reaches 170F in the deepest section of the bird.

Remove from and sit for 25 minutes
Just long enough to cook the gravy, add the prepped ahead: potatoes and sweet potatoes, my green bean casserole, rollsin the free oven.

And then finish your remaining glass of Riesling… or Merlot
Get some one to carve the bird.

Bon appetite

2 cups of water

2 cups of cran-apple juice

2 cups of apple juice

2 cups of kosher salt

2 garlic cloves, minced

2 TBSP black pepper

Fresh sprigs of rosemary

3 large peels from an orange, cut into sections

If the bird is not totally covered add more cold water.
Tie off bag and leave in bucket at 40F
Next day, rinse you bird off.
And proceed cooking.

Bon Appetite
Store bought turkeys have a salt solution added so be careful with the amount of salt you add.

7 strips of bacon

1 Tbp olive oil

1 Tbp butter

12oz Mushrooms, remove stems, rinse and pat dry

3 cloves of garlic, minced

1 Cup of chopped onion

2 cups of fresh spinach

Sea salt & ground pepper

Brie cheese wedge, removing the rind and chop into pieces

Preheat oven to 350F

Cook bacon until desired crispness, remove from pan and break into pieces

Remove bacon grease and add oil/ butter to saute pan, add mushroom caps coating and cooking for a few minutes over medium heat

Remove mushroom caps from pan and set aside

Add onions to saute pan cooking for 3-5 minutes

Chop fresh spinach and add to saute pan

Add minced garlic and cooked bacon

Add sea salt and ground pepper to taste

Turn heat off and add chopped brie pieces to mixture

Stuff mushrooms and place in preheated oven cooking for 15 minutes until mixture is glooy

5LB boneless ribeye
1 Tbsp minced garlic
Salt & pepper
2 Tbsp canola or olive oil

Horseradish sauce
1 – 2 Tbsp fresh grated horseradish
1/2 Tsp worchestershire sauce
2/3 Cup sour cream

This is a very simple method of cooking a delicious prime rib you would typically find in any five star restaurant. The key is simple… keep an eye on the temperature. Serve with a nice horseradish sauce and don’t be afraid to add lots of fresh horseradish.

Pull roast from refrigerator and let sit at room temperature for two hours. Preheat oven to 325F.
Blend together crated horseradish, worchestershire and sour cream; stick in the refrigerator. Taste, yummy?

Rinse the roast and pat dry. Rub roast with minced garlic and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
Heat oil in large saute pan over medium high heat. Add the seasoned roast to sear all sides, you want all sides to have a light crust and don’t worry you will have a little smoke.
Place seared roast in roasting pan, take and record internal temperature for future by inserting thermometer into the center of the roast [range will be 50F - 65F].
Place in oven for approximately 1- 1/2 hours. After one hour take a temperature reading and continue every 15 minutes.
Once the center temperature reaches 125F remove roast from oven and baste once or twice by pouring juices from roasting pan over roast. Let it sit for 25 – 30 minutes.
Pour remaining juices into a small sauce pan to prepare au jus. Heat over medium high wisk to blend juices. If needed you can add beef base to intensify flavor.
The center should be medium rare but if you desire a more cooked beef dip sliced pieces into prepared au jus for a minute or two.

Bon Appette!

Preheat Oven 350F

1 – 1/2 Cups white cane sugar

1/3 Cup brown sugar

1/4  Cup pure maple sugar

3/4 Cup canola oil

2 TBS butter

3 eggs, beaten

2 cups of peeled, cubed and cooked butternut squash [soft]

1 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp nutmeg

½ tsp salt

2 cups flour

1 tsp baking soda

½ tsp baking powder

1 cup chopped pecans

Preheat oven to 350°F.

Butter and flour 2 – 8by3 inch loaf pans

Sift dry ingredients into medium bowl

In a 2nd mixing bowl beat sugar, oil, butter, maple syrup

Blend in beaten eggs

Mix in butternut squash and spices

Add dry ingredients and pecans and mix.

Transfer batter to loaf pans.

Bake until tester stick inserted into center comes out clean, about 1 hour 10 minutes.

Cool bread in pan on rack 15 minutes. Cut around bread to loosen.

Turn out onto rack and cool completely.

Try one piece immediately when warm as it is yummy!