Custard Pie

  My Corn Fed Country Boy LOVES Custard Pie, so I have been on the hunt for “THE” Custard Pie recipe.  It’s taken me some time, some flops and some “ALMOST got it’s” before I did it.  Today, I achieved THE Custard Pie, and here it is!

{click title to print}

Ingredients

• 4 whole Large Eggs
• ⅔ cups Sugar
• 2-⅔ cups Whole Milk
• 2 teaspoons Vanilla
• ½ teaspoons Salt
• 1/2 teaspoon Nutmeg, a scant measuring
• Cinnamon

Prepare your favorite 10 inch pie crust and par-bake it. My favorite is Easy Push Crust, found here. Then, continue below:
Preheat oven to 450*. Beat eggs slightly with wire whisk before adding in all remaining ingredients, except cinnamon.
Fill your par baked crust carefully with egg mixture and cover generously in cinnamon. Slide into oven, careful not to slosh, and bake for 20 minutes.
Turn down oven to 350* and bake 15 minutes more. Pie should jiggle, but not slosh when you test it.
Cool 2 hours before serving. This will be safe for a total of 4 hours on the counter and can be served room temperature the first night.  Don’t be worried, it is also great served cold from the fridge the next day, in fact, that’s how some prefer it!

Dig in!

Hugs, T

Austrian Cream Cheese Bars

   I got an amazing cookbook for Christmas and I am super excited to start working through my 2 page list of recipes I want to try, but as always, I must pace myself, or our 2 fridges tend to get a BIT full! 🙂

  I wanted to make something fun over the weekend, and I had everything on hand to make these Austrian Cream Cheese bars.  What I didn’t count on, was my house erupting into mass chaos right as I began.  (How DOES that happen?)  Anywho, long story short, I made a ROOKIE MISTAKE!

A BIG Rookie mistake!

  I was reading über fast trying to get it in the oven so I could move on to supper prep and the errand we were going to run as a family, and I quickly glanced at the ingredient list, layed everything out and began dumping.  And…..

 Idumpedthebrownsugarinforthewhiteandthewhiteforthebrown.

  Oh what?! You didn’t hear what I said?

Sorry.

{SIGH}

I dumped the brown sugar in where the white belonged, and the white sugar where the brown belonged.

RRR, I was super ticked, but rather than waste all that butter, I rolled with it.  Needless to say, the crust was a bit chewy and the cream cheese layer had a different kick to it, but what I will tell you, is made CORRECTLY, these have the potential of being FANTASTIC!

  Don’t tell my Sunday School Class, but they were supposed to get a Breakfast Cake with their Eggs Benedict Casserole Sunday morning.  Instead, they got Austrian Cream Cheese Bars because I didn’t want a whole pan of them left at my house for me to eat on all week.  LOL 🙂   {They didn’t seem to mind.}

(From Recipes & Recollections of the Better Baker)

(click recipe title for easy printable)

• 1-½ cup Flour
• 1 cup Packed Brown Sugar
• ½ teaspoons Cinnamon
• ⅔ cups Butter, Softened
• 8 ounces, weight Cream Cheese
• ¾ cups Sugar
• 2 Tablespoons Flour
• 2 whole Eggs
• 12 ounces, weight Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips
• ¾ cups Chopped Walnuts Or Pecans

For the Crust: In your mixing bowl, whip butter, add flour, brown sugar, & cinnamon. Beat for 2 minutes at medium speed or until crumbly. Press mixture into an un-greased 9×13 pan. Bake for 12 minutes at 350*. Remove.
Topping: In clean mixing bowl, beat cream cheese until smooth, add in white sugar, flour and eggs. Stir in 1 cup chocolate chips. Pour over crust and return to oven for 20 minutes, or until topping is almost set. Remove pan from oven long enough to sprinkle remaining chocolate chips on top, return to oven 1 more minute to soften chocolate chips. Pull pan from oven, and carefully spread melted chips over the whole top. Sprinkle with nuts and press lightly. Refrigerate 1 hour before cutting into bars.

So rich and good!

Thanks for another great recipe, Mrs. Baker!

~T

Head to Post 2 for today: “Required: Nap Time & Quiet Time”.

Butterfinger Whoopie Pies

  When I saw these Butterfinger Whoopie Pies that Jocelyn shared with us at Foodie Friday, now called Weekend Potluck, I just KNEW I had to make them ASAP.  Lucky me, I just so happened to have every single ingredient necessary! SCORE!!!!!! 

Her photo is WAAAY better than mine, so if there is any doubt about wanting to make these based on appearance, you’re going to want to go check her’s out instead! 

From Inside BruCrew Life

1 white cake mix

1 stick butter, melted

1 egg

1 c. crushed butterfingers (10 snack size)

Preheat oven to 350*. Mix ingredients in a mixing bowl for about 2 minutes. Form into 1 inch balls and place on a non stick baking sheet. Bake 9 minutes. Let cool on baking sheet for 2 minutes then remove to your wax paper lined counter to cool completely. Fill with Peanut Butter Butterfinger Butter Cream. Enjoy.

Peanut Butter Butterfinger Butter Cream

1 stick butter, room temperature

1/4 c. shortening

1/2 c. peanut butter

1 Tbsp. honey

1/2 tsp. vanilla

3 Tbsp. water

3 c. powdered sugar

3/4 c. crushed butterfingers (6 snack size)

Cream butter, shortening, and peanut butter until light and fluffy. Add in honey, vanilla, and water and beat again. Slowly add powdered sugar until all is incorporated. Beat in the crushed butterfingers.

Y-U-M!

Thanks for an AMAZING recipe, Jocelyn!

I sent some to school for Destiny’s teacher and she asked for the recipe, I always take that as the sign of a “keeper recipe”!   🙂

~T

Vanilla Crumb Pie

 This is post 2 for today, head back a post for some Egg-citing news!

 

  This pie is really simple, has simple flavors and reminds me of a mix between Custard, Snickerdoodles and sugar cookies.  In other words…..SO SO good!

  First, make Easy Push Crust:

Easy Push Crust

(click title to print)

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 cup chilled Crisco (butter flavored is best)

1 tsp. salt

1/3 cup cold water

1 T. milk for basting (only when fully cooking crust)

Combine flour and salt. Using a pastry cutter, cut shortening into flour. Sprinkle with water. Form into ball, divide in 2. Flatten each to fit your pie pans, all the way to the edges. Crimp with fingertips to make pretty.  Prick with a fork before baking.  Baste with milk if fully baking.  Makes 2 crusts.

  I baked this at 425* for 10 minutes to just firm it up a bit before I put liquidy pie filling in it.  This is called Par-baking and will help the crust from getting soggy.    (Now, if you were using this crust for say Peanut Butter Pie, you’d want to baste it and fully bake it at 425* for 15 minutes, and then cool completely before filling.  Make sense?) 

• 1 cup Sugar
• 2 cups Water
• 2 Tablespoons Flour, Heaping
• 1 cup Corn Syrup
• Pinch Of Salt
• 1 Tablespoon Cornstarch
• 2 whole Eggs
• 1 Tablespoon Vanilla

Crumbs For Top:

• 2 cups Flour
• 1 cup room temperature Butter
• ½ cups Sugar
• 1 teaspoon Soda
• 1 teaspoon Cream Of Tartar

First, make Easy Push Crust, listed above.

Mix together and bring to a boil first 6 ingredients.
Remove from heat and cool mixture.
Add 1 T. Vanilla and 2 eggs.

Mix crumb ingredients and divide between the 2 pies evenly. Bake at 350* for 20-30 minutes or until the top is golden brown.  Serve warm.
Makes two pies.

Happy Baking!  This simple push crust and pie recipe will make you feel like Susie Homemaker in NO TIME at all!  It really is simple!

~T

Fluffy S’Mores Cake

Hi everyone! I was gone allll day yesterday helping my mom at her new house, and it was grocery day too.  I literally left the house at 9 and returned home for dinner.  I did stop home once, at 11:30 to throw the groceries in their homes, but then back to my mom’s.  This time, I didn’t return until supper time. (Dale was super sweet and had supper started!!!! Brownie points!!!!!!)  I don’t know how momma’s that work outside the home do it. I am exhausted, and I didn’t get HALF the stuff accomplished I wanted to today.  So alas, all I have to offer you today is a recipe, but that’s fun too, RIGHT?!  Especially when I tell you it’s DESSERT!  Mmmm!

  This creamy, mousse-like cake was DIVINE!  And pretty too!

• FOR CRUST
• 9 whole Rectangles Graham Cracker, Crushed
• 6 Tablespoons Butter, Melted
• ¼ cubes Sugar
• FOR FILLING:
• 12 ounces, weight Extra Creamy Cool Whip, Thawed (divided Use)
• 11-½ ounces, weight Milk Chocolate Chips
• 8 ounces, weight Sour Cream
• 7 ounces, weight Marshmallow Cream
• 6 whole Graham Rectangles, Crushed
• TOPPING:
• 1 whole Hershey’s Bar, Broken In Bits
• Graham Crackers, Broken In Bits
• Mini Marshmallows
• Large Marshmallows, Cut In Half (Optional)

Crush Graham crackers and mix with sugar and melted butter. Form a crust in the bottom of your springform pan. Bake at 350* for 10 minutes. Remove from oven and cool before continuing.
Carefully melt chocolate chips on stove top or in microwave, stirring often so it doesn’t scorch. Stir in 1 cup cool whip and pour over cooled crust, spreading evenly and freeze for 10 minutes to set.
Combine sour cream, marshmallow cream,remaining cool whip and crushed graham crackers. Spread over chocolate layer. Refrigerate 30 minutes or until set.
“Decorate” using marshmallows, broken graham crackers and chocolate. You might want to press large marshmallow halves all the way around the perimeter to make it pretty. (I used Gingerbread marshmallows)

Return to fridge until serving time.

It’s very rich, slice ‘em small!

~T

White Chocolate Peppermint Fudge

  Don’t miss post 1 for today: “Dear Abby”.

  So let’s say you were having a super tough, running late, kids are disobeying so you ground them from the play closet until further notice, phone ringing off the hook, “WHERE ARE YOUR SHOES?!?!?!” kind of Monday.

  Let’s also say you were 20 minutes late when you started your drive to Preschool.  In your goal to accomplish two days worth of work in one day, you push your foot a little harder on the accelerator, the list of To Do’s racing through your mind: get the Chicken in the crock pot by 10 or it won’t be done by supper time, make fudge so it has time to set up before 11 so you can finish up holiday goodie platters for the teachers, edit wedding photos, write tomorrow’s blog post……

  You are so busy with the list in your head, that you are not looking at your speedometer when, YOU SEE HIM….

THE COP.

  Oh boy.  This is not going to be good. 

    Nope. Not Good at ALL.

  So, I went home, re-did my eye makeup, and ate 3 pieces of fudge for a morning snack, and lived happily ever after.

The End.

Let’s do a little math and review the situation:

Christmas Time + BIG Ticket = Bad. 

Sad Tonya with tear streaked makeup + White Chocolate Peppermint Fudge = Good.

  See, math is fun!  And White Chocolate Peppermint Fudge is FANTASTIC! 

adapted from Girl Who Ate Everything

• 3 bags (11 Oz Each) Ghirardelli White Chocolate (I Wouldn’t Do Off Brand This Time)
• 3 containers (16 Oz. Each) Vanilla Frosting
• 1-½ teaspoon Peppermint Extract
• 12 drops Red Food Coloring
• 6 whole Candy Canes, Crushed

Line jelly roll pan (or oversized cookie sheet) with wax paper.
Melt white chocolate chips in a double boiler or microwave, stirring often
While still warm, stir in frosting quickly before chocolate starts to set up. Add peppermint extract, stir.
Spread into prepared pan evenly, then drop food coloring over the top of the fudge. Swirl with a knife.
Add crushed candy canes and press lightly to set.
Cool for an hour in the fridge.
Remove from pan using wax paper and cut on a cutting board into small squares.

  This makes a nice large pan of fudge, supposedly about 70 pieces. I didn’t count, but we did 14 goodie platters with this batch and had some leftovers to enjoy, but it all depends on how small you cut them.

Very simple, creamy and just plain GOOD!

  Our Goodie Platters are almost complete, just need ribbons tied on them yet before delivery.

Here’s to hoping my Tuesday goes better than my MONDAY did…..

Happy day to you and yours!

~T

Foodie Cravings & Holiday Baking

  We’ve established I’m a Foodie, right?!  Cooking, sharing and eating food just makes me happy!!!!!  Guess it’s fitting then, that my most popular boards on Pinterest are 4 little Fergusons Food & Proud to be a Foodie. 

Come see me: http://pinterest.com/4littleferguson/

  So, here are my latest Foodie Cravings: 

(And no, I am NOT pregnant, when you are a Foodie you have cravings pregnant or not.)   🙂

Manchego Cheese:

  At $8 a package, this craving will have to be far and few between, but thanks to the generosity of Dale’s momma, I have a whole block to enjoy and savor.  This cheese is salty, a bit dry and tastes amazing on crackers or shredded over a salad. YUMMMMMMM!

Blue Bell Ice Cream:

Christmas Cookie

Hello beautiful

Tiramisu

  This is Dale’s bucket, but it sure is good.  Tastes JUST like the dessert!I have to be careful with this one though, because I don’t do well with caffeine.  Like bounce off the walls, jitter all night kind of problems. 

Which brings me to THIS, may latest Foodie Favorite:

My friend Lori swears up and down she doesn’t like to cook. You’ve met Lori recently in THIS photo session with her sweet twin boys and hubby. She is ALSO the Lori that shared the “Can’t Leave ‘Em Alone Bars” with us. For not liking to cook, she sure comes up with some amazing recipes to bring to our Sunday school functions!

Cheddar Bacon Dip a.k.a “Crack Dip”

Ingredients

• 16 ounces, weight Sour Cream
• 1 packet (1 Oz.) Ranch Dip & Dressing Mix
• 3 ounces, weight Real Bacon Bits
• 1 cup Shredded Cheddar Cheese

Mix all ingredients together and refrigerate 24 hours. Serve with chips and PREPARE TO BE AMAZED!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

  So we are starting our Holiday baking this week and will continue into next week, getting ready to give out Goodie Platters to friends and teachers. The kids LOVE to help!  We make things after school, or when daddy is home & supper is in the oven.  This year we are making:

Christmas Kisses

Milk Chocolate Florentine Cookies-maybe

Spritz Christmas Tree Cookies

White Chocolate Peppermint Fudge

Spiced Crackers (Dale’s favorite, so we do these every year)

AND last but not least……………………..

a batch of Coyote Poo! 

  And man, was it DEEEEEEEEEEEEEEELICIOUS!

 This last one wasn’t necessarily for our Christmas goodie platters, but I HAD to try this recipe I found from Mama Bennie……

Now, if any are left by next week, they WILL be gracing our Goodie Platters, because they are THAT good!  Savory and sweet, crazy and will be the unique pop, or poop, I guess, on the platter.  Poo poo platter.  tee-hee  🙂  That’s so gross.

I will be posting this recipe soon, as well as the others, IF they get the stamp of approval!

Hugs & Happy Snacking!

~T

Easy Pecan Toffee Cookies

I got this recipe off of a site of one of my favorite bloggers, The Better Baker. 

Mrs. Baker is an amazing cook, a dedicated wife & a child of God.  She and I have become great friends over the good ol’ http://www.  She encourages me and makes me smile with her sweet comments and kind words.  Go check out her site soon!  For now, check out her delicious and EASY cookie recipe below.  It uses a cake mix, how fast is that?!?!

• 1/2 c butter, softened
• 1 (18 ozs) box yellow cake mix
• 2 lg eggs
• 1 Tbsp water
• 1 pkg heath toffee bits
• 1/2 c pecans, chopped fine

Preheat oven to 350. Mix butter, add cake mix, eggs & water. Mix well. Add toffee bits and pecans, mix by hand. Spoon onto ungreased cookie sheet and bake for 10 minutes. Transfer to cooling rack.

  You know Toffee is one of my two weaknesses, (caramel is the other) and these are just straight AMAAAAAZING!

Enjoy!

~T

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Caramel Apple Cheesecake

  Today is Avery’s Born Again Birthday!

She asked Jesus into her heart a year ago tonight when Nana was babysitting.  My mom chose not to tell us that night when we got home from our date, just to see if it was “real” to Avery.  Would you believe that early early the next morning she came racing into our room and from the doorway announced:

“I asked Jesus in my heart and I get to go to Heaven!” in her little teeny sweet 2-year-old voice, then did the sweetest little celebratory jump in the air.  “Yipee!”  🙂 

  Precious, precious moments in the lives of our children.  We will wish her a Happy Born Again Birthday when she wakes up today and remind her why we celebrate this special day:

  Jesus washed away her sins, she can go to Heaven for eternity and that on this very day a year ago, the angels had a Born Again Birthday party for her as God wrote her name in the Book of Life!  Now THAT is reason to celebrate! 🙂

  On to the dessert:

  The title says Caramel Apple Cheesecake, what more could you want to know?!  🙂

  Ok, it was delicious……caramel is my WEAKNESS!  It was the perfect fall dessert and I am SO excited to own a Springform pan so I can make this sorta thing.  (finally after 10 years of wishing I had registered for one, I now own THREE springform pans, all in different sizes thanks to a Bed, Bath and Bey0nd gift card.  I LOVE that place!)  Thank you, Lisa for sharing this great recipe!

Ingredients

• 1-½ cup Cinnamon Graham Cracker Crumbs
• ¾ cups Sugar, Divided
• ¼ cups Butter, Melted
• 14 ounces, weight Package Of Caramels
• ⅔ cups Evaporated Milk
• ½ cups Chopped Pecans, Divided
• 2 packages (8 Oz. Each) Cream Cheese, Softened
• 2 Tablespoons Flour, divided
• 2 whole Eggs, Lightly Beaten
• 1-½ cup Chopped & Peeled Granny Smith Apples
• ½ teaspoons Ground Cinnamon

1.  Place a greased 9 inch spring form pan on a double thickness of heavy-duty foil. (about 18 square inches) Securely wrap foil around pan.

2. In a small bowl, combine cracker crumbs, 1/4 cup sugar and butter. Press onto the bottom and 1 inch up the sides of prepared pan. Place on baking sheet. Bake at 350* for 10 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool on a wire rack.

3. In a heavy saucepan over medium-low heat, melt unwrapped caramel squares and milk until smooth and melted. Pour 1 cup over crust; sprinkle with 1/4 cup pecans. Set remaining caramel mixture aside.

4. In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese, 1 T. flour and remaining sugar until smooth. Add eggs; beat on low-speed just until combined. Combine apples, cinnamon and remaining flavor. Fold into cream cheese mixture then pour into crust.

5. Place springform pan in a large baking sheet; add 1 inch of hot water to larger pan. Bake for 40 minutes. Reheat reserved caramel mixture if necessary, gently spoon over cheesecake and top with remaining pecans.

6. Bake 10-15 minutes longer or until center is just set. Remove pan from water bath. Cool on wire rack for 10 minutes. Carefully run a knife around the edge of the pan to loosen; cool 1 hour longer.

Refrigerate overnight before serving.

Enjoy your GORGEOUS creation!  Its super delicious!!!!

And Happy Born Again Birthday to my precious little Peanut, Avery!

~T

Orange Cream Cheese Brownies

I LOVE the combo of dark chocolate with the fresh burst of orange.  These brownies remind me of Fall, so I make ‘em every year!

• 1 package Betty Crocker Supreme DARK Chocolate Brownie Mix
• ¼ cups Water
• ½ cups Oil
• 2 whole Eggs
• 4 ounces, weight Cream Cheese, softened
• 3 cups Powdered Sugar
• 4 Tablespoons (or More) Orange Juice Concentrate, Thawed
• doTERRA Wild Orange Oil
• Sprinkles

Heat oven to 350*. Mix up brownie mix with water, eggs and oil as listed. Add 2-3 drops of wild orange oil, if using.

Spread into the bottom of a jelly roll or bar pan.

Bake 27-29 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.

Cool Completely.

While brownies cool, soften cream cheese and in a large bowl, stir until smooth, adding 3 cups powdered sugar, 4-6 T. thawed OJ judging how much based on frosting thickness. Add 1 drop doTERRA wild orange oil for an extra POP of orange goodness!!!

Decorate with fall sprinkles or drizzle melted chocolate over brownies before serving.

Happy Baking!

~T

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