Pumkin Butter ~ By Victoria

Nothing says fall like pumpkin butter!  You could use pumpkin butter on biscuits, rolls, toast, scones or even in pumpkin butter pancakes. :)  I *highly* recommend using it on top of a bagel with cream cheese.  Now *that* is absolutely heavenly!

Ingredients

• 1 15 oz can Pumpkin
• 1 Cup Sugar
• 1 Cup Brown Sugar
• 1 tsp Cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp Nutmeg
• 1/2 tsp Ginger
• 1/8 tsp Ground Cloves
• 4 1/2 Pint Sized Canning Jars and Lids

Instructions

1. Combine all ingredients in a slow cooker and mix well.
2. Cover and cook on high for 3 hours- stirring occasionally to prevent scorching.
3. To Can* (see note below): Fill jars 3/4 of the way full and secure canning lids. Place jars in a pot with a shallow boiling water bath for 40 minutes (or 20 minutes in a pressure canner with 10 lbs of pressure)

Source: http://recipesthatcrock.com/slow-cooker-pumpkin-butter/

Chocolate Zucchini Bread ~ By Victoria

This bread it perfect for an afternoon snack, breakfast, or dessert!

It is soooo moist! 

And having zucchini in it makes you feel like you're eating a healthy food!

Well, sorta. :)

 

Ingredients:

2 (1 ounce) squares unsweetened chocolate 3 eggs 2 cups white sugar *1 cup sour cream 1 cup vegetable oil 2 cups grated zucchini

1 teaspoon vanilla extract 2 cups all-purpose flour 1 teaspoon baking soda 1 teaspoon salt 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon 3/4 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Directions:

1.	Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly grease two 9x5 inch loaf pans. In a microwave-safe bowl, microwave chocolate until melted. Stir occasionally until chocolate is smooth.
2.	In a large bowl, combine eggs, sugar, oil, grated zucchini, vanilla,  sour cream and chocolate; beat well. Stir in the flour baking soda, salt and cinnamon. Fold in the chocolate chips. Pour batter into prepared loaf pans.
3.	Bake in preheated oven for 60 to 70 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a loaf comes out clean. Source: All Recipes http://allrecipes.com/Recipe-Tools/Print/Recipe.aspx?recipeID=17289&origin=detail&servings=20&metric=false * The recipe we use has the exact same direction and ingredients, but a cup of sour cream was added.

Fried Chicken ~ By Victoria

Fried Chicken

 

I hate to even say it, but this was the very first time any of us girls made fried chicken! How have we lived all these years without it!? This is the first (and so far only) recipe I have tried, but wow, was it a hit! Everybody loved it! When we find a recipe that every Bowes member likes, we know it's a keeper and needs to go on the blog! :)  

Ingredients

* 1 chicken (about 3 pounds), cut into 8 pieces
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 1/2 cups flour
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 cup buttermilkvegetable oil

 

Directions

1. Combine the salt, flour, black pepper, and cayenne in a large, shallow bowl. Dredge the chicken in the flour mixture, shaking off the excess. Set aside for about 15 minutes. Pour the buttermilk into a second shallow bowl. Dip the chicken in the buttermilk, then again in the flour mixture.
2. In a heavy-bottomed Dutch oven (preferably cast iron), heat about 4 inches of vegetable oil over medium heat until the temperature registers 360° F on a deep-fry thermometer.
3. Carefully place the chicken in the oil, using tongs. (Add the pieces slowly, so that the temperature does not drop, and work in batches to avoid overcrowding.) Fry the chicken until golden brown, turning once, 10 to 20 minutes, depending on the size of the pieces. Check for doneness by piercing the meat; the juices should run clear.
4. Drain the chicken on paper towels set on a wire rack. If desired, the cooked chicken can be kept warm in an oven set on low.

* Since I didn't have a whole chicken on hand, I used chicken breasts. I cut each one in half before dredging.

Source: Real Simple Food
http://www.realsimple.com/food-recipes/browse-all-recipes/easy-fried-chicken-10000001038795/index.html

Strawberry Cream Crepes

This very rich and sweet breakfast recipe has been a long-time family favorite.  A big giant batch is normally cooked in the Bowes house on special occasions such as birthdays, holidays, and sometimes even for visiting friends and family.  It could easily double as dessert, too!

Batter:

1 1/2 C milk

3 eggs

2TB melted butter

1/2 tsp. lemon extract

1 1/4 C flour

2 TB sugar

1/8 tsp. salt 

Combine dry and wet ingredients separately and then mix them together.  Pour about a 2/3 c of batter onto a heated, greased, frying pan and cook until the top is "dry."  (Set your burner on a medium-high setting.)  Layer crepes between wax paper or fill and serve immediately because they will all stick together!

 

Filling:

1 C. whipping cream, whipped (fold into the following ingredients)

 8oz softened cream cheese

2 C. powdered sugar

1 tps. vanilla

Topping:

Berry sauce of any sort!  I like to mix about 3c fresh raspberries and blueberries with 1/4 c sugar, bring to a boil for 5 minutes.  Ready to serve!

You can also add a dollop of whipped cream to the top, if you feel like over-indulging :-)

Chocolate Chip Cookies ~ By Victoria

 Let me introduce you to the Bowes Family's BEST chocolate chip cookie recipe!! We LOVE these cookies! We Boweses are quite picky when it comes to CC cookies... and finding a recipe that we all like can be very challenging. But here it is. This recipe has been in the family for as long as I can remember and no other recipe has even come close to winning all of our favor (and believe me, we have tried a LOT of other recipes!). These cookies are soft, chewy and fluffy and do not flatten out like most other CC cookies. They do have Crisco instead of butter, but I believe that is one reason why they are so good as the recipes we use with butter always completely flatten out.

We like to use half mini c. chips and half regular c. chips or half white c. chips and half regular in this recipe. :-)

 

Chocolate Chip Cookies

3/4 cup butter Crisco

1 1/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar

2 T. Milk

1 T. Vanilla

1 Egg

2 cups flour

1 tsp. salt

3/4 tsp. baking soda

1 1/2 cups chocolate chips

 

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375

Cream Crisco and brown sugar. Add milk, egg and vanilla.

Combine flour, salt and baking soda. Add to creamed mixture and then (by hand) stir in chocolate chips.  

Bake for 8-10 minutes.

 

 

 

 

Funfetti Cookies ~ by Caroline

Perfect for celebrating the 4th of July, or any special occasion, these cookies are very festive and delicious!!! They are fun to make and serve!!! 

 

Ingredients

• 2 sticks softened butter
• 1 1/4 cup sugar
• 2 tsp vanilla
• 1 tsp almond extract
• 1 egg
• 2 1/2 cup flour
• 1/4 cup cornstarch
• 3/4 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup rainbow jimmie sprinkles (the long thin sprinkles))
• 2 tbsp rainbow perils (tiny balls sprinkles)

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 375º.

Cream the butter and sugar in your stand mixer (or hand mixer) for about 2 minutes (until fluffy). Add the vanilla, almond, and egg. Beat until well combined.

In a separate bowl, sift in the flour, cornstarch, soda, and salt. SLOWLY add the flour mixture to the butter mixture, and continue on low speed until it’s all added and combined. Mix in the sprinkles (don’t overmix or the sprinkles will start to bleed into the dough).

Using an ice cream scoop, scoop cookie dough onto cookie sheets, about 1 1/2 inches apart (fits 8 cookies per sheet). Bake for about 15 minutes.

*Only bake until they very slightly start to turn light golden brown just on the edges. You don’t want them to totally turn golden or they’ll be crisp cookies. Check then around 10 minutes, then 12, and so on.

Cool on a wire rack.

Store in an airtight container up to 4 days.

 

Source: Tasty Kitchen.Com Blog
http://tastykitchen.com/blog/2012/05/funfetti-cookies/

Strawberry Cheesecake Cupcakes ~ by Caroline

First off, we give all the credit for these amazing cupcakes/muffins to their creator at http://granolagirlbakes.com/   She came up with the recipe, and she also has some awesome pictures to go along with it!   We just recently stumbled across her site, and at the time, these were what were posted on her home page.  The only thing we didn't do was frost them as they are wonderful and just to our liking, even without the extra sweetness.

Yields 24 cupcakes
Cake Ingredients

• 1 1/2 sticks butter{softened}
• 4 oz cream cheese{softened}
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 3 eggs
• 1 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 1/2 tsp almond extract{optional}
• 1 1/2 cups white flour
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 pint fresh strawberries diced

Icing

• 1 stick butter{softened}
• 6 oz cream cheese{softened}
• 3 cups powder sugar
• 1 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 1/2 tsp almond extract{optional}
• 1/2 tsp salt

Topping

• 1/2 cup graham cracker crumbs

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350° Fahrenheit. Line muffin tins with paper!
2. Cream butter, 4 oz cream cheese, and sugar in an electric mixer on high-speed for 3 minutes.
3. Add eggs one at a time mixing well after each egg. Stir in Vanilla & almond extract and scrape sides.
4. Turn mixer on low and slowly add flour 1/2 cup at a time and salt until completely combined!
5. With a rubber spatula, gentle fold in strawberries. Place 1/4 cup batter in each muffin cup. Bake for 14-17 minutes or until golden and an inserted toothpick comes out clean!
6. Allow to completely cool while you make the icing!

For the icing:

1. Place all ingredients in a large mixing bowl and beat on high for 3 minutes. Scrape sides and bottom of bowl and mix for another minute!
2. Pipe onto cooled cupcakes and top with graham cracker crumbs!
3. Enjoy!!