Cherry Cheesecake Brownies

Recently I've been a little bit appalled (is that the right word? too strong probably. maybe "saddened" is better) at the lack of hospitality we here in modern America have as part of our culture. When was the last time you were invited over to someone's home for dinner? When was the last time you opened your home to someone else? When was the last time you walked into a church service on Sunday morning, not knowing where you were going to be eating lunch, and walked out with an impromptu invitation to someone's home? When was the last time you ran into an old friend; and instead of vaguely saying, "We should get together sometime!" you said, "Can you come over this Friday evening? Around 6:30 or 7:00? Great!"

I understand that people are busy, but we all have to eat, right? I understand that there are various seasons of life; and sometimes at challenging times, the thought of hosting anyone is overwhelming. I've been there. I understand that sometimes, we feel like our homes are so messy that we don't want to open the door to anyone for fear of looking like a failure or being judged. For that, I say, check out FlyLady and, for your own sake, take some baby steps to regain control of your house and your life. I understand that fixing a whole dinner for guests can be time-consuming and expensive and scary, especially if you're new to the realm of hospitality. Here's my solution for that: call up some friends or your Aunt Mary & Uncle Joe or your next-door neighbors, and ask if they can come over around 7:15 for coffee (iced tea, if it's hot) and dessert. (That's it. Just dessert and coffee. No dinner. Make things easy on yourself.) Then make this...

Cherry Cheesecake Brownies are a wonderful way to bless your family or guests with a delicious dessert without a lot of time or effort. Here's how:

What You Need

1 box brownie mix (and ingredients called for by the mix)

2 tsp. vanilla

1 egg

1 can (14 oz.) sweetened condensed milk

1 pkg. (8 oz.) cream cheese, softened

1 can (21 oz.) cherry pie filling

What You Do

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Prepare brownie mix as directed on package. Pour into a 9 x 13 greased baking pan. Bake 15 minutes. Beat vanilla, egg, milk, and cream cheese in bowl until very smooth. Pour over baked brownie layer. Return to oven and bake until topping is set, about 25 minutes. Let cool. Spread with pie filling. Refrigerate for about 2 hours (or more) before serving. Cut into squares. Store any leftovers in refrigerator.

This recipe is from The Fine Art of Hospitality Handbook, edited by Sheila Jones and Betty Dyson.

See? You can do this! Happy hosting! :)

********

Hospitality seeks to provide a safe place.
Entertainment seeks to provide a showplace.

Hospitality strives to serve.
Entertaining strives to impress.

Hospitality puts people before things.
Entertaining elevates things above people.

Hospitality claims that what's mine is yours.
Entertaining claims that everything is mine and you should admire it and certainly not touch it.

Hospitality takes no thought for reward or reciprocation.
Entertaining expects praise and a return invitation.

Hospitality is about welcome, inclusion, and acceptance.
Entertaining is about exclusiveness and pride.

Hospitality frees us to enjoy one another and grow in the Lord.
Entertaining enslaves us to personal and cultural expectation.

Hospitality specifically seeks out those in need of food, shelter, company, or a listening ear.
Entertaining seeks out those we think can help us in some way.

Hospitality is an act of obedience and stewardship.
Entertaining is essentially a self-serving occupation.

~ from Finding Your Purpose as a Mom

by Donna Otto

Read more...

Chocolate Cobbler

The only place I've ever had chocolate cobbler is at a local buffet restaurant here. We only go about twice a year and this is the only thing I get for dessert. it's just so good that I had to find a recipe for it. I finally found one from Allrecipes.com, and it was exactly what I was hoping for! Serve it warm from the oven with some all natural Breyers vanilla ice cream. Oh my...delicious.


Chocolate Cobbler

Ingredients:
12 Tbsp. butter
2 cups self-rising flour
1 1/2 cups sugar
3 Tbsp. unsweetened cocoa powder
1 cup milk
2 tsp. vanilla
2 cups sugar
1/2 cup cocoa
2 1/2 cups boiling water

How to Make It:
1) Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Melt butter in 9x13 dish while oven is preheating.
2) In bowl stir flour, 1 1/2 cups sugar, and 3 Tbsp. cocoa. Stir in milk and vanilla until smooth. Spoon over melted butter in dish.
3) Stir together remaining sugar and 1/2 cup cocoa. Sprinkle over batter. Slowly pour boiling water over mixture.
4) Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes until set.

*This recipes is doubled. If you want to make half in an 8x8 dish, just do half of all the ingredients except the water. Use 1 1/2 cups instead of 2 1/2.

Read more...

Sconies

I am a cookie fanatic. I estimate that I spend approximately one-third of my life thinking about chocolate, and half of that time is spent thinking about cookies with chocolate. So when I started baking scones a few years ago, I kept thinking there had to be a way to retain the creamy crumbliness of a scone and still make it yummier . . . like a cookie. So over time, my scones became more cookie-like -- sweeter, moister, more chocolatey -- and of course, I threw in my very favorite dried fruit: cherries.

Sconies are some of my favorite things to make (and it took me a long time to decide whether or not to share this recipe). It only takes me a few minutes to whip up a batch, and they always seem to hit the spot, whether it's 7 a.m. or 10 p.m. Savor them with a cup of tea or coffee, or treat them like the cookie cousins they are and wash them down with a tall glass of milk.

Sconies

2 cups all-purpose flour

1/4 cup sugar

1 tablespoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

5 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into very small cubes

2/3 cup dried Montmorency cherries

2/3 cup semisweet chocolate chips

1 cup heavy cream

Coarse sugar, for dusting

Adjust an oven rack to the middle position and preheat oven to 450 degrees.

Whisk together the flour, 1/4 cup sugar, baking powder, and salt. Scatter butter cubes across the flour mixture and use a pastry blender to cut in the butter until the mixture resembles cornmeal. Add dried cherries and chocolate chips.

Stir in the cream with a rubber spatula until a soft dough begins to form (there will be lots of floury crumbs). Then, to bring it all together, reach your hands into the bowl and knead the floury bits into the moist dough until just combined. (If you prefer, you could turn the mixture out onto the counter and knead it together there.)

Turn the dough out onto a counter (or into a 9-inch pie plate) and form the dough into a 9-inch disc. Cut the disc into 8 wedges and sprinkle with coarse sugar. Place sconies on a parchment-lined cookie sheet.

Reduce oven temperature to 425 degrees just before placing sconies in the oven and bake until the tops are just beginning to turn golden in spots and they are nicely browned on the bottom (usually about 12 minutes, but I watch them carefully).

Eat them with people you love.

Read more...

Brownies

To call this just a "brownie" doesn't do it justice. These are without a doubt one of the best chocolate confections you will ever eat. I got this recipe from my mother and I think she got it from heaven. You simply have to make them and let me know what you think!

Brownies

Ingredients:

1 cup butter
2 cups sugar
2 cups bread flour (not self-rising)
2/3 cup cocoa
1 tsp. vanilla
4 eggs
2 cup pecans, chopped

How to Make It:

1) Preheat oven to 300 degrees.
2) Put butter in 9x13 dish, melt in oven.
3) Mix sugar, flour, and cocoa.
4) Add melted butter, vanilla, and eggs. Mix well.
5) Stir in pecans. Batter will be thick. Pour batter into pan and spread evenly.
8) Bake at 300 degrees for 25-30 minutes or until toothpick inserted 1-2 inches from edge comes out clean. (Be very careful not to overbake.)
9) Cool completely and frost.


Frosting:

2 cups confectioner's sugar
1/4 cup cocoa
1/2 cup butter, softened
1/2 tsp. vanilla
2-4 Tbsp. milk, for desired consistency

(The frosting has been halved from the original recipe, but it makes plenty.)

Read more...

O'Henry Bars

Most of the time a recipe comes with a good story, and if you're lucky, a good one. This is one of those recipes — it was my husband's grandmother's. She would make it quite often for her grandsons when they were young. And even as adults when we'd all visit her, she'd have a plate ready for us.

SO, if you're feeling generous to share, which may not be your first reaction, your friends/family/kids/coworkers/neighbors will rave about this little snack. (did I cover everyone?)

You'll just have to trust me: they're good.


What You'll Need:

2 tsp vanilla
1/2 c corn syrup
2/3 c butter (softened)
2/3 c brown sugar
4 c quick oats

Topping:
1 c chocolate chips
2/3 c peanut butter


What to Do:

    1.    Blend first five ingredients until crumbly. Press into 9x13 greased pan.
    2.    Bake @350 for 15 minutes. Cool slightly.
    3.    In a double boiler, melt chocolate chips and peanut butter together until smooth. Spread on oat mixture while still hot.

Because I have eager people waiting to eat this, I put it in the freezer for 15 minutes to cool, then move it to the refrigerator for another 15.

Read more...