We are the girls of Ohio. This is a blog dedicated to our friendship and our latest homemaking discoveries. We hope you enjoy!
Hi Everyone! This blog is being seriously neglected and I am feeling a little sad! I'm at the point where I am sick of the same old recipes, so get posting ladies...
I have a delicious recipe to share (well, I thought it was delicious!) I stole the recipe and the picture from
here. If you love fresh peaches, then you will love this. There are a few things I will change next time I make it, but I'll give you the recipe first...
Layered Peach Dessert
Crust:
1 pkg. Vanilla wafers, finely crushed
Filling:
1 8 oz pkg. cream cheese, softened
1 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1/4 cup butter, softened
10 fresh peaches, sliced
Topping:
1 pt. whipping cream
½ cup sugar
½ tsp vanilla
Place half of the crumbs in a 9x13 pan. Whip cream cheese, sugar, and butter together until smooth. Drop by spoonfuls over the crumbs. Spread carefully using a spoon dipped in hot water. Keep dipping the spoon in the water so the mixture doesn't stick to it. The crumbs will slide around, but that is okay. It doesn't need to be perfectly smooth. Arrange the sliced peaches over the top. Whip the cream and add sugar and vanilla. Spread over the peaches. Sprinkle last half of crumbs over top. Cover and chill 8 hours, or over night.
Okay. I halved this recipe because I didn't want to eat a whole thing by myself. Here's what I would change... The whipped topping is already sweet enough (I used Dream Whip), I wouldn't add the 1/2 cup of sugar - I would also add a few more peaches - 7 instead of 5, or 12 instead of 10. It is very, very yummy and peaches are so delicious right now!
Brownies 101-
Okay, I'm sure most of you already know how to make amazing brownies, but it has taken me awhile to figure out. I don't know why I have never thought of it before, but I have had problems in the past with getting my brownies to cook evenly (usually they are crunchy on the outer edge and gooey in the middle). The trick my friends is parchment paper. I lined my pan with parchment paper and trimmed the edges (you do not want parchment hanging over the edge of your pan). After it had had cooled I carefully lifted the brownies out, and voila, they were cooked evenly.
This is a recipe that I use when I want to mold chocolate into shapes (like the flower in the picture) to add a little extra flare to your dessert tray:
Chocolate Plastic-
- 2/3 cup lt. corn syrup
- 16 ounces semisweet chocolate chips
* For a variation, using white or milk chocolate reduce corn syrup to 1/2 cup
In a saucepan over medium heat stir the corn syrup and chocolate together, continue stirring until they are mixed thoroughly. Line jelly roll pan with plastic wrap and spread the mixture 1/3" thick. Let cool completely (I usually make this recipe and store in the fridge a few days before). When ready to mold, let the chocolate mixture stand at room temperature for several hours, knead and roll out about 1/8" - 1/4"thick. Cut into desired shapes.
I am usually not a big fan of brownies, but I love the BYU Mint Brownies! I got the recipe from one of my mom's friends. I hope you enjoy!
MAKES ONE 9-BY-13 PAN OF BROWNIES.
PREP AND COOK: 90 min. COOL: 1 hr.
- Brownies:
- 1 c. margarine
1/2 c. cocoa
2 Tbsp. honey
4 eggs
2 c. sugar
1 3/4 c. flour
1/2 Tbsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1 c. chopped walnuts12 oz (optional)
- Chocolate Icing: (Use your own icing recipe or purchase some chocolate frosting. You can also search the Internet for chocolate icing recipes.)
- Mint Icing:
- Dash of salt
- 5 Tbsp. Margarine
3 Tbsp. milk
1 Tbsp. light corn syrup
2 1/3 c. powdered sugar
1/2 tsp. mint extract
1-2 drops green food coloring
1.Melt margarine and mix in cocoa. Allow to cool. Add honey, eggs, sugar, flour, baking powder, and salt. Mix well. Add nuts. Pour batter into a greased 9-by-13 baking pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes. Cool.
2. Prepare mint icing: Soften margarine. Add salt, corn syrup, and powdered sugar. Beat until smooth and fluffy. Add mint extract and food coloring. Mix. Add milk gradually until the consistency is a little thinner than cake frosting.3. Spread mint icing over brownies. Place brownies in the freezer for a short time to stiffen the icing. Remove from the freezer and carefully add a layer of chocolate icing.
These are the yummiest! I got this recipe from Jamie Lamb, and when she brought them over to us, we ate the entire plate in about 15 minutes! (It's probably because of the shortening, but they are great!)
1 cup shortening
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 eggs
2 tsp. vanilla
2 3/4 cup flour
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. cream of tartar
2 Tbl. sugar
2 tsp. cinnamon
Combine shortening, sugar, eggs and vanilla. Cream together. Next add flour, salt, soda and cream of tartar. Mix well. Combine sugar and cinnamon. Roll cough into 1-inch balls and roll in cinnamon sugar mixture. Bake at 400 degrees for 6-7 minutes.
(Don't over cook these or they will be crunchy. Also, I would avoid using an airbake pan, because it takes double the time)
Directions:
Melt butter, brown sugar, and water in a saucepan over medium heat until melted and then add the chocolate chips, stirring until completely melted. Cool for 10 minutes. Put this in a mixing bowl and beat in 2 eggs. Add the flour, baking soda, and salt. Mix together and chill for about 45 minutes. Roll into balls (1 - 1 1/2 inches big), flatten slightly, place on cookie sheet and bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes. When cookies come out of oven, sprinkle mint crumbles* on top of the cookie (Optional: I like to spread the mint crumbles like frosting after they have melted a little - but I do not like to spread the peppermint crumbles - the pieces will get soft at first, but then keep their shape and re-solidify when cool).
* Mint crumbles can be found in the baking aisle next to the chocolate chips.
** The picture you see above is a holiday variation that uses Andes peppermint crumbles (also found in the baking aisle). This variation is great for Christmas or Valentine's Day.
