Sweet Potato-Pecan Upside-Down Cake

Makes 8 servings

Hands-on Time: 25 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour, 15 minutes

Preheat oven to 350

1 1/2 cups coarsely chopped pecans

1/2 cup firmly packed light brown sugar

1/3 cup butter, melted

1/4 cup sorghum syrup or corn syrup

1 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup butter, softened

2 large eggs

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour**

1 1/2 tsp. pumpkin pie spice

1 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

1 (15 oz) can sweet potatoes, drained and mashed

1/3 cup buttermilk

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1. Preheat oven to 350. Stir together first 4 ingredients and 2 Tbsp. water, and spread on bottom of a lightly greased 10-inch cast iron skillet or a 9-inch round cake pan (with sides that are at least 2 inches high).

2. Beat granulated sugar and 1/2 cup softened butter at medium speed with an electric mixer until smooth. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating until blended after each addition.

3. Combine flour, pumpkin pie spice, baking soda, and salt. Gradually add flour mixture to butter mixture, beating at low speed just until blended and stopping to scrape bowl as needed. Add sweet potatoes, buttermilk, and vanilla, beating at medium speed until smooth. Spoon batter over pecan mixture in skillet.

4. Bake on an aluminum foil-lined jelly-roll pan at 350 for 40-45 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in skillet on a wire rack 10 minutes. Carefully run a knife around edge of cake to loosen. Invert cake onto a serving platter, spooning any topping in skillet over cake.

*Taken from September 2010 Southern Living magazine

**I used whole-wheat white flour and it was delicious!

Black Bottom Icebox Pie

Makes 8 to 10 servings

Hands-on Time: 35 minutes

Total Time: 9 hours, 35 minutes

1 (9 oz) package chocolate wafers

1/2 cup butter, melted

2/3 cup sugar

3 Tbsp. cornstarch

4 egg yolks

2 cups milk

2 (4 oz) bittersweet chocolate baking bars, chopped

1 tsp. imitation rum flavoring

1 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

2 cups heavy whipping cream

1/4 cup sugar

Garnish: bittersweet chocolate shavings

1. Pulse chocolate wafers in a food processor 8 to 10 times or until finely crushed. Stir together wafer crumbs and butter, and firmly press mixture on bottom, up sides, and onto lip of a lightly greased 9-inch pie plate. Freeze crust 30 minutes.

2. Whisk together 2/3 cup sugar and 3 Tbsp. cornstarch in a 3-qt. heavy saucepan.

3. Whisk together egg yolks and milk in a small bowl; whisk yolk mixture into sugar mixture in pan, and cook over medium heat, whisking constantly, 10 to 12 minutes or until mixture thickens. Cook 1 more minute. Remove from heat.

4. Microwave chocolate in a microwave-safe glass bowl at HIGH 1 1/2 minutes or until melted, stirring at 30-second intervals. Whisk melted chocolate, rum, and vanilla into thickened filling. Spoon filling into prepared crust. Place plastic wrap directly onto filling (to prevent a film from forming), and chill 8 to 24 hours.

5. Beat whipping cream and 1/4 cup sugar at medium-high speed with an electric mixer until soft peaks form. Top pie with whipped cream, and garnish, if desired.

*Taken from the September 2010 Southern Living magazine

*I used Ghirardelli 60% Cacao Bittersweet Chocolate Baking Bars

*I added the vanilla and rum flavoring to the melted chocolate before stirring it in with the filling. I think it would have been better to just add them all to the filling at once, while the chocolate was still freshly melted.

*This dessert is for the TRUE dark chocolate lover.

The Best Brownies...EVER

4 (1 oz) unsweetened chocolate baking squares
3/4 cup butter
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar
3 large eggs
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/8 tsp. salt

1. Preheat oven to 350. Lightly grease 8-inch pan.
2. Microwave chocolate squares and butter in a large microwave-safe bowl at HIGH 1 1/2 to 2 minutes or until melted and smooth, stirring at 30-second intervals. Whisk in granulated and brown sugars. Add eggs, 1 at a time, whisking just until blended after each addition. Whisk in flour, vanilla, and salt.
3. Pour mixture into prepared pan.
4. Bake at 350 for 40 to 45 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out with a few moist crumbs. Cool completely on a wire rack (about 1 hour). DEVOUR!

Fast Stir-in:
Toasted Coconut-Cashew Brownies: Spread 1 cup sweetened flaked coconut into a single layer on a baking sheet. Bake at 350 for 8 minutes or until lightly toasted, stirring every 2 minutes. Let cool 10 minutes. Stir toasted coconut; 1/2 cup cashews, chopped; and 2 Tbsp. finely chopped crystallized ginger into batter. Increase baking time to 44 to 46 minutes.

Easy Topping Upgrades:
Peanut Butter Streusel Brownies: Stir together 1/2 cup all-purpose flour, 2 Tbsp. light brown sugar, 2 Tbsp. granulated sugar, 1/3 cup chunky peanut butter, 2 Tbsp. melted butter, and 1/8 tsp salt until blended and crumbly. Sprinkle peanut butter mixture over batter. Increase bake time to 50 to 54 minutes.

Candy-and Pretzel Brownies: Sprinkle 1 cup pretzel sticks, broken into pieces, and 2(3.7 oz) king-size Snickers, coarsely chopped, over batter. Increase bake time to 52 to 54 minutes.

*I found this recipe in the 2009 Southern Living magazine. They say to bake the brownies in a foil lined pan, and then to use the foil to lift the brownies out of the pan and slice into servings. The first time I made them I followed this suggestion, and it took twice as long for the brownies to bake. The second time I made them I skipped the foil, and they were done baking at the listed time. There is enough batter to bake in a 9x13 pan. This will be my next experiment. In the 8-inch pan they are divine!

Andes Peppermint Crunch Chunkies

Preheat oven to 300 degrees.

2 sticks (1/2 lb) unsalted butter, softened
1 cup dark brown sugar, packed
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg
2 tsp. vanilla extract
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup old fashioned rolled oats
1 cup sweetened grated coconut
1 1/4 cup coarsely chopped pecans
1 1/2 cups Andes Peppermint Crunch Baking Chips

1. Using an electric mixer, cream the butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar until fluffy (about 3 minutes).
2. Beat in the egg and vanilla extract.
3. On low speed, add baking soda, salt, and then flour. Mix completely.
4. Stir in oats, coconut, pecans, and Andes Peppermint Crunch Baking Chips.
5. Measure out 2 Tbsp. for large, or 1 Tbsp. for small cookies. Place round balls on cookie sheet about 2 inches apart. Press lightly. Sprinkle some of the remaining chips on top of each cookie.
6. Bake for 20 minutes for large cookies, or 12-15 minutes for small cookies. Do not over bake.

Yield approx: 30 - 3" or 60 - 1 1/2" cookies

Molasses Cookies (from Amy Mills)

Preheat oven to 350
Bake 12-15 minutes

2 cups sugar
1 1/2 cups Crisco
2 eggs
1/2 cup molasses
Little bit of dried/fresh orange rind

**Cream together above ingredients

4 cups flour
4 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
2 tsp each: cloves, all-spice, cinnamon, ginger

**Sift and blend into molasses mixture. Bake 350 for 12-15 minutes.

Fresh Apple Cake

From: Paula Deen

Makes: 12 servings

Preheat: 325

Cook: 1 1/2 to 1 3/4 hours

Pan Coating:

3 Tbsp sugar

1 tsp. ground cinnamon

Cake:

1 1/2 cups vegetable oil

2 cups sugar

3 large eggs

3 cups chopped Granny Smith apples, peeled (about 3 medium)

2 tsp. vanilla extract

2 tsp. ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp. freshly grated nutmeg

3 cups all-purpose flour

1 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

1 cup chopped pecans

1/2 cup raisins or coconut

1. Generously grease a 10-inch tube pan. Combine the sugar and cinnamon and coat the inside of the pan with the mixture by shaking the pan all around until the sides and bottom are coated.

2. Beat the oil and sugar with an electric mixer until well blended. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.

3. With a spatula, stir in the apples and vanilla.

4. Sift together the cinnamon, nutmeg, flour, baking soda, and salt. Add the flour mixture to the apple mixture and mix well with a spatula.

5. Add the pecans and raisins. The batter will be very thick.

6. Spoon the batter into prepared pan and smooth top.

7. Lift the pan from the counter about 2 inches and drop it back down to get out all of the air bubbles.

8. Bake the cake in preheated oven for 1 1/2 to 1 3/4 hours or until a tester comes out clean.

9. Allow to rest on the counter top for at least 30 minutes before turning out onto a cake plate to cool completely.

**Something about this time of year always makes me crave a good apple cake. This is by far the best recipe that I have found. It comes out with a wonderful cinnamon "crust" that is absolutely delicious.