Italian Cream Cheese Cake

ITALIAN CREAM CHEESE CAKE

1/2 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup shortening
2 cups sugar
5 eggs, separated
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1 cup buttermilk
1-1/2 cups flaked coconut
1 cup chopped pecans

CREAM CHEESE FROSTING:

2 pkgs. (1 8 oz., 1 3 oz.) cream cheese, softened
3/4 cup butter, softened
6 cups confectioners' sugar
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
3/4 cup chopped pecans

In a large bowl, cream the butter, shortening and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in egg yolks and vanilla. Combine flour and baking soda; add to creamed mixture alternately with buttermilk. Beat just until combined. Stir in coconut and pecans. In a small bowl, beat egg whites until stiff peaks form. Fold a fourth of the egg whites into batter, then fold in remaining whites. Pour into three greased and floured 9-in. round baking pans. Bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks to cool completely. In a large bowl, beat cream cheese and butter until smooth. Beat in confectioners’ sugar and vanilla until fluffy. Stir in pecans. Spread frosting between layers and over top and sides of cake. Store in the refrigerator. Yield: 12 servings.

By taste of home

Fool's Toffee

FOOL'S TOFFEE

36 saltine crackers
1 cup butter
1 cup brown sugar
1 (12 oz.) pkg. chocolate or white chocolate chips
1 cup of your choice of chopped walnuts, peanuts, sprinkles, crushed candy, etc...

Line a cookie sheet with aluminum foil and spray with non stick cooking spray. Place the saltines side by side but not over lapping each other. In a sauce pan melt the 1 cup of butter and add the cup of brown sugar bring to a slow boil stirring constantly for about 3 minutes. Immediately pour over the crackers try to coat as evenly as possible. Bake in the oven at 375 degrees for 5-7 minutes immediately remove from oven and pour the entire bag of chips over the toffee (give them some time to melt) and spread evenly with a spatula. Sprinkle your choice of topping over the candy and press down lightly. Refrigerate till cool then remove and break into pieces and serve!

(Crushed peppermint with white chocolate chips are awesome during Christmas.)

Crazy Good Casserole

CRAZY GOOD CASSEROLE

4-5 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
6 strips of quality bacon – cooked and crumbled
2 cans cream of chicken soup
2 cups shredded Monterrey Jack cheese
1 box (16 oz.) dried spiral pasta
1 Tbsp. garlic powder
Salt & pepper to taste

Cook & crumble bacon. While bacon is cooking, cut chicken into bite-sized chunks. Set cooked bacon aside for later use. In the same pan, cook chicken in bacon drippings. Add garlic powder & salt & pepper to taste. While chicken is cooking, prepare pasta according to directions. Spray a 9 x 13 inch baking pan with non-stick cooking spray. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Drain pasta, return to pot. Add chicken, both cans of cream of chicken soup, 1 cup of Monterrey Jack cheese; stir to mix well. Pour into prepared baking dish. Top with crumbled bacon. Top with remaining Monterrey Jack cheese. Bake at 400 degrees for about 20 minutes, just until cheese is melted and beginning to brown on top.

Friendship Casserole

FRIENDSHIP CASSEROLE

2 lbs. ground beef
1 48 oz. jar spaghetti sauce
2 Tbsp. sugar
1 (16 oz.) - pkg. medium egg noodles
1/2 cup margarine or butter
1/2 tsp. onion salt (or onion powder)
1/2 tsp. garlic salt (or garlic powder)
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 12 oz. pkg. shredded mozzarella cheese

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Brown meat and drain fat. Add spaghetti sauce and sugar to meat; simmer 20 minutes. Cook noodles as directed (AL dente); drain and toss with margarine, salts and Parmesan cheese. Spray two 9x13 pans with non-stick spray. In both pans layer half the sauce, all the noodles, rest of sauce; top with mozzarella cheese. Cover with foil; bake 45 minutes.

*You can also add some sauteed green bell peppers, onions and mushrooms to the sauce. Make sure the person you are gifting this wonderful casserole to likes the veggies. If not just leave them out.

*Note: Since this recipe makes enough for two casseroles, plan one for your family and one for a friend.

Stuffed Italian Bread

STUFFED ITALIAN BREAD

1 Italian loaf, about 12 inches long
1 stick butter, melted
1/8 cup olive oil
3 tsp. minced onion
2-3 cloves garlic, grated
1 Tbsp. Dijon mustard
1 Tbsp. poppy seeds
3 tsp. chopped parsley (add more if you wish)
12 oz. grated cheese
(I used a mix of white cheddar and monterey jack.)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Mix the melted butter, olive oil, onion, garlic, Dijon mustard, poppy seeds and parsley in a bowl. Cut the bread into cubes with X slices without cutting all the way through the bottom crust. Pour the butter-onion garlic mixture carefully into those X cracks using a small spoon and over the top of the bread. Fill those delicious cracks with the grated cheese. (It seems like a lot of work and trouble but it's all worth it. Yes.) Wrap the entire loaf with foil, sealing the sides properly and bake for 15-20 minutes. Remove from the oven and unwrap. Bake for another 10 minutes until the cheese is melted and gooey.

7-Up Biscuits

7 UP BISCUITS

4 cups Bisquick
1 cup sour cream
1 cup 7-up
1/2 cup melted butter

Mix Bisquick, sour cream and 7 up. Dough will be very soft - don't worry, knead and fold dough until coated with your baking mix. Pat dough out and cut biscuits using a round biscuit/cookie cutter. Melt butter in bottom of cookie sheet pan or 9x13 casserole dish. Place biscuits on top of melted butter and bake for 12-15 minutes or until brown at 425 degrees.

Mexican Dip

MEXICAN DIP

2 8 oz. cream cheese
2 Tbsp. sour cream
2 pkgs taco seasoning
Shredded lettuce
Chopped black olives
Chopped green pepper
Chopped tomatoes
4 cups shredded Mexican Cheese

Beat cream cheese and sour cream together until smooth, add taco seasoning. Spread on large glass dish; top with lettuce, green onion (if you like onion), tomatoes, and sliced black olives. Top with cheddar cheese...use any corn chips you desire. Best part of this is you can add more or less toppings to the base depending on tastes and kids love it too. I recommend using disposable 9x13 aluminum pan if taking this dish to a party or picnic. It can be split into 2 round cake pans if you have picky eaters too!