Oatmeal Cookies

Today Valarie made old fashioned oatmeal cookies with chocolate chips instead of raisins. Boy they were good! I decided to share the recipe. It is from my Better Homes and Gardens Cook Book page 188. (sometimes you can not eat what Valarie cooks!) I am not sure what year this book is published. I have had it since 1999 or 98.

Oatmeal Cookies

• 3/4 cup butter
• 1 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon (optional) [haha Allison!]
• 2 eggs
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 3/4 cup all purpose flour
• 2 cups rolled oats (old fashioned oats, not quick oats)
• 1 cup chocolate chips

1. in a large mixing bowl beat butter with an electric mixer on medium to high speed 30 seconds. Add brown sugar, granulated sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and cinnamon. Beat until all combined and scrape sides of bowl occasionally. Beat in the eggs vanilla until all combined. Beat in as much of the flour as you can with the mixer. Stir in remainder of flour, then stir in the oats and chocolate chips.
2. Drop dough by rounded teaspoons 2 inches apart on an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake in a preheated 375 degree oven for 10 - 12 minutes or till edges are golden. C ool cookies on a wire rack. Yield 48.

Val did a great job on these, and she is very proud of herself!

See you next time!
Y'all have a great day!

Memories from Lincoln Elementary School

Well, a couple days ago Valarie handed me a box of cocoa and a box of oats and said, "kitchen now!" Well, since the box of oats was the old fashioned kind I got out of it at that point. I told her she had the wrong kind of oats, which she did really, but you can use them if you have to.

When we were at Lincoln School every Friday we had no-bake cookies. Every Friday. Without fail, those cookies were there. It was the dessert of the day. And the left overs were for sale at a quarter a piece. Yum! I always had an extra quarter that day! They also made them for sale on days when we hosted baseball games!

So without further delay, here is the recipe!

No-bake Cookies

• 2 cups white sugar
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1/2 cup butter
• 4 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/2 cup peanut butter (may use crunchy for additional flavor)
  
• 3 cups quick-cooking oats
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

In a medium saucepan, combine sugar, milk, butter, and cocoa. Bring to a boil, and cook for 3 minutes. Remove from heat, and stir in peanut butter, oats, and vanilla. Drop by teaspoonfuls onto wax paper. Let cool until hardened.

I hope you enjoy these! Have a great day!

I love y'all!

To be continued.............

Taco Soup

One day last winter I decided to make a pot of taco soup. It was so good, we ate on it all day! I thought I would share the recipe since I found a picture of it and thought how good it looked....

You can add cheese, hot peppers, sour cream or other garnish when you are finished with it, serve with corn chips or tortilla chips....


Taco Soup

• 2 pounds ground chuck
• 2 cups diced onions
• 2 (15 1/2-ounce) cans pinto beans
• 1 (15 1/2-ounce) can pink kidney beans
• 1 (15 1/4-ounce) can whole kernel corn, drained
• 2 (14 1/2-ounce) can diced tomatoes
• 2 (4 1/2-ounce) cans diced green chiles
• 1 (4.6-ounce) can black olives, drained and sliced, optional
• 1/2 cup green olives, sliced, optional
• 1 (1 1/4-ounce) package taco seasoning mix
• 1 (1-ounce) package ranch salad dressing mix
• Corn chips, for serving
• Sour cream, for garnish
• Grated cheese, for garnish
• Chopped green onions, for garnish
• Pickled jalapenos, for garnish

Directions

Brown the meat and onions in a large skillet; then drain the excess fat, then transfer the browned beef and onions to a large slow cooker or a stockpot. Add the beans, corn, tomatoes, green chiles, black olives, green olives, taco seasoning, and ranch dressing mix, and cook in a slow cooker on low for 6 to 8 hours or simmer over low heat for about 1 hour in a pot on the stove. To serve, place a few corn chips in each bowl and ladle soup over them. Top with sour cream, cheese, green onions and jalapenos.

This is so good, even I like it as picky as I am! And it will be fall before we know it and soup weather!

Y'all have a blessed day now! Hear?

Hot Fudge Cake

A few years ago I found a recipe for a good looking hot fudge cake. It makes its own fudge sauce and is excellent with home made vanilla ice cream! Yum! It is one of those things you make right before you want to eat it, then it's gone. It doesn't keep very well overnight. Actually it does still taste good, it just doesn't keep the hot fudge part well. But, you make it in a 9 x 9 pan and so it is good for a family dessert.

1 c. self-rising flour
3/4 c. granulated sugar
2 Tbsp. cocoa
1/2 c. milk
2 Tbsp. melted shortening
1 c. chopped pecans (if desired, I leave these out)
3/4 c. brown sugar
1/4 c. cocoa
1 1/2 c. hot water

Heat oven to 350°. Measure flour, granulated sugar and 2 tablespoons cocoa into bowl. Blend in milk and shortening; stir in nuts. Pour into ungreased square 9 x 9 x 2-inch pan. Stir together brown sugar and 1/4 cup cocoa; sprinkle over batter. Pour "hot" water over batter. Bake for 45 minutes.

While warm, spoon cake into dessert dishes and spoon sauce over each serving. Serve with a scoop of vanilla ice cream or whipped cream.

Yum!

Enjoy, and let me know how you like it!!