So today something cool happened. Alright, actually several cool things happened but I’m gonna focus on one here because if I took the time to write about every little detail in my life that I felt was cool or neat or served as evidence to enforce my view that the world is mostly a good place full of good people, y’all would just have to clock in each morning by 5:00 AM and hang in there with me til I ran out of wind around midnight - And Repeat next day  

So I checked in on twitter and I saw a wonderful tweet from Charlie Daniels, so I retweeted it. Then I got to working in the kitchen and cranked up some CDB while I was cooking. I tweeted about that, too. Cool thing is, I heard back  “Bet you’re cooking something good” from Charlie Daniels himself!

As a girl I used to listen to his fiddle playing, begging my dad to play Devil Went Down To Georgia over and over again. When I took up classic violin in middle school I had visions of playing like him one day. The fact that I never got much beyond The Old Gray Goose is entirely beside the point… 

I called my mother and said “Guess who just talked to me on twitter? Charlie Daniels!” 

She replied, “Really? Now you know They say he’s just the nicest man.

I held in my chuckle. We do that a lot around here, talk about “They” say this or that.

“They” is a group of people that just about everyone I know has. “They” apparently get together frequently to discuss current events, recipes, people, and raising your kids.

I’ve spent my life hearing:  They say you should (insert should here)… They say this really tastes good…and when it comes to people “They say Charlie Daniels is the nicest man”

So I just wanted to take a minute to thank everyone who happens to be in our group of “They”. There are all sorts of “They” groups and I’m so thankful that the “They’s” in our lives are the kind that say nice things about people. :0)

If your group of “They” is like that, They say you should let them know how much they are appreciated! 

And now, On to the Pie! 

Okay, kinda. I have something else to talk about first but I promise we’re getting a lot closer to the pie…

The famous Miss Fay's portrait is also with us in this photo!

So this past weekend, my mother and I ended up at the famous Loveless Cafe in Nashville, Tennessee with our friends Shannon Kozee and Tamera Alexander. I’m gonna talk more about Shannon in a future post. If Tamera’s name sounds familiar it is because she is a wonderful author of historic fiction. (You can check out her blog here. You can also get her latest book here, which Mama is reading now and I’m reading as my treat once I get done writing my second cookbook.)

Getting to meet her was a complete thrill for me because we’ve had some of those encounters with each other via internet that you know just can’t be coincidences. The first time I was made aware of her blog was when I got a notice that someone had blogged about me (it is an automated thing that sometimes works but most of the time doesn’t). I looked at the name and thought it sounded familiar but couldn’t quite place it. Then, a few days later, someone was giving a copy of my cookbook away on Twitter and again, her name. So this time I decided to do a little investigating and went to visit her blog. As I scrolled down I saw the cover of a book she had written – and that book was sitting beside my chair because I had just finished reading it. LIGHTBULB.

We exchanged a few emails and Tammy was always so encouraging and warm in hers. I was actually a little nervous about meeting her but she was even warmer in person! She absolutely exudes kindness and grace and is just one of those people you want to sit around and soak in for as long as possible. She also had perfect hair. ~sigh~ But I shall not covet…much.

While there, of course we had to have dessert. They had a new offering which immediately caught my attention: Oatmeal Raisin Cookie Pie. Oh my goodness, how I love a good oatmeal raisin cookie! I had to get it.

When it came, I was not disappointed. Mama and I split the piece and it tasted like the ideal oatmeal cookie, hot from the oven (even thought it was served cold!) because the middle was nice and gooey with the richness of oats, brown sugar, and cinnamon. I set to looking for the recipe the moment I got home.

I found one of the original postings of it on Sun Maid Raisin’s website, so I contacted Sun Maid raisins and they graciously gave me permission to share their wonderful recipe with you. I have to tell you my funny Sun Maid story though..

When I was going to New York to do the Today show a little over a year ago, I was scheduled to promote my book by making Lela’s Fried Peach Pies. The secret to Lela’s fried pies is, of course, the dried peaches. Whe you make pies with dried fruit instead of canned or even fresh, you get a much bigger punch of flavor. Well, I got a call from the food stylist in NYC to see if I could bring the dried peaches with me. It turns out, they are almost impossible to find in the big city! So I headed to the “big town” with three bags of Sun Maid dried peaches in my suitcase. I guess tha tmakes those pies “fancy” since they were made with fruit imported all the way from Alabama If you’d like to see that segment and my recipe for fried peach pies, click here, but come back because I wanna show you this pie, too!

Oooh yum, de pie! de Pie!

(that was supposed to be my impersonation of Tattoo in Fantasy Island, in case you didn’t recognize it)

To make this delicious pie, you’ll need: Raisins, Cinnamon, quick oats, corn syrup, salt, brown sugar, and a wee bit of melted butter and flour.

You’ll also need a pie shell.

The original recipe called for a graham cracker crust but I’m using my traditional mix-in-the-pan pie crust. You can click here if you’d like that recipe.

Place brown sugar, eggs, corn syrup, and melted butter in a bowl. Mix well with a large spoon.

Until it looks like this

Now add in all of your other ingredients and mix again.

So it looks like this.

See how easy that was? Easy as pie, right?

Thus the expression

Oh! I forgot to show you my bowl.

You’ve probably seen this one before but just in case it is a Pyrex Cinderella Bowl in Amish Butterprint blue.

Ain’t it purty?

Spend time with those you love. One of these days you will say either, “I wish I had,” or “I’m glad I did.”

~Zig Zigler

Thank you to Angela for submitting this one! Add your motivational or inspiring quote to our collection by clicking here. 

]]> http://www.southernplate.com/2012/02/oatmeal-raisin-pie-and-they-say.html/feed 95 http://www.southernplate.com/2012/01/cappuccino-cake.html http://www.southernplate.com/2012/01/cappuccino-cake.html#comments Mon, 16 Jan 2012 15:18:05 +0000 Christy Jordan http://www.southernplate.com/?p=18026 Pin it

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Incredibly moist Dark Chocolate Cake iced with a Whipped Cappuccino Buttercream icing and served with chocolate ice cream drizzled with chocolate syrup… 

We used to have this great restaurant in Huntsville called Darryl’s. Everyone loved that place. As a teenager, anytime homecoming, birthdays, or any other eating out occasion rolled around, we all went to Darryl’s. It got to be kind of funny because you’d show up with a date or a group of friends and it would turn out more like a class reunion with practically every other table filled with folks you know.

Unfortunately, Darryl’s closed a good while back. There is only one remaining in North Carolina, but I live in Alabama so I’ve spend over ten years pining away for my very favorite thing on their menu – Cappuccino Cake.

Cappuccino Cake was one of their signature desserts and they always brought out a huge wedge of it for birthdays and special events. My sister got her first job working there as a hostess and we’d never been more proud of her than when we’d come home on the rare occasion and find an entire cappuccino cake in our refrigerator! They served it cold (I think it is better that way) with a side of chocolate ice cream and generously drizzled chocolate syrup over the whole thing.

This is a deep dark chocolate cake iced with a whipped cappuccino buttercream icing. Does it get any better than this? Maybe, but not right now because right now, we’re focusing on this little side of heaven .

After pining away for over a decade, I decided it couldn’t be that difficult to duplicate the recipe so I set out to do just that. You can’t find a copy anywhere on the internet so I went by memory and a basic starting point of dark chocolate cake, coffee infused buttercream – and we have a winner. We have  grand prize winner. This puppy deserves one of those 6 foot tall trophies.

If I didn’t share this recipe I could retire and just bake Cappuccino cakes the rest of my life. But it’s not nice not to share recipes and I don’t really want to wash that many dishes. 

I hope you get to make this soon. It is definitely a showstopper cake perfect for any special occasion.

Come to think of it, today seems pretty special to me, doesn’t it to you? 

For the cake part, you’ll need: 

Chocolate Cake Mix*, milk, sour cream, eggs, dutch process cocoa powder (dark cocoa powder), and oil. 

*You can use any dark chocolate cake mix such as devil’s food, dark chocolate, or even regular chocolate if you like. You can also use your favorite chocolate cake recipe if you like but I like this one because it is dense and extremely moist.

In a mixing bowl, place all of your ingredients. 

Mix that with an electric mixer until well blended and smooth, about 2-3 minutes, scraping down sides as needed. 

Some folks have you add gradually but unless you’re just now joining this party, you know I’m really not a gradual person. 

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While that is mixing, grease two or three 8 inch round cake pans. I’m only using two. 

To grease my pans I fold up a paper towel and dip it in vegetable shortening and then smear it around real good.

Instead of flouring our pans, since this is a chocolate cake, I like to use cocoa powder. Just put a tablespoon or so in your pan and then…

 tilt your pan all around while patting it to distribute it evenly like this. 

Dump excess out into the trash or back yard. Squirrels need chocolate too. Just kidding. It may be bad for squirrels and then I’d get all sorts of squirrel rights activists boycotting my website and such, which is utterly ridiculous considering I’m practically running a squirrel wildlife refuge here at my house considering I have two of the biggest pecan trees you’ve ever seen in my yard but have gotten a grand total of two pecans in the past three years. The squirrels sure are plump though. And happy. In fact, I don’t think they could be any happier unless I started giving them chocolate…

Then you divide the batter evenly between your two baking pans.

This batter is going to be really thick and will likely remind you of jello.

Remember, never ever eat raw cake batter. 

But I don’t count licking it off the spatula as eating it. 

So many things are all about perspective…

~grins~

Bake cake layers in the oven at 350 for about 25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. 

Note: If you are making more than two layers, check on them after twenty minutes. Mine are thicker since I’m only doing two layers so they will need to cook longer.

Once they are finished baking, remove from oven and let sit in the cake pans for ten minutes. 

After ten minutes, turn cakes out and allow to cool completely. 

I like to let mine cool and then wrap them really well and refrigerate overnight for easier icing the next day

Time to make Cappuccino Buttercream Icing!

You’ll need: Butter, milk, instant coffee, vanilla, and powdered sugar. 

I only use instant coffee for recipes such as this so I got those neat little packets that have a sleeve you open for each cup. They were just $1.00 for a box of seven so that seemed like a pretty good deal to me and my instant coffee stays fresh for whenever I need it.

When it comes to my daily coffee, I need the hard stuff. The real stuff. I’m talking coffee so strong you’d have to put quarters on your eyelids if you wanted them to shut anytime in the next eight hours. 

Take the instant coffee and stir it into your milk until dissolved.

 This may take a minute. 

You don’t have to heat your milk first though.

Place your well softened butter in a mixing bowl. 

Important: Don’t be tempted to soften your butter in the microwave, on the stovetop, or any other trick we use to soften it when we’re in a hurry for this recipe. We really want to just leave our butter on the countertop for a few hours until it softens on it’s own for this recipe. Normally, I’m all about shortcuts but this one is important because we’re gonna have us a whipped icing in the end so bits of melted butter won’t help us achieve our purpose

.

Beat for a minute or two, until fluffy like this. 

Add in all other icing ingredients. 

and beat until smooth, scraping down the sides as needed (like in this picture)

Now crank up that mixer again and beat this icing until it is fluffy, 5-7 minutes. 

If you haven’t tasted this icing by now, I’d sure like to know where you get your willpower from.

Time to ice the cake!

This cake is best if made ahead and refrigerated until good and cold. 

I know that is torture but just try it for me once, it’s totally worth the wait!

Serve with chocolate ice cream, chocolate syrup (I used Hershey’s) and a strawberry.

Eat the strawberry last – your body might get confused and think you just finished a fruit plate

Note: There is a print link embedded within this post, please visit this post to print it.

 “Pleasant words are a honeycomb, sweet to the soul and healing to the bones.”

Proverbs 16:24

The honeycomb is one of the strongest structures designed. Strengthen those around you with uplifting speech. Everyone needs cheerful words these days. Life and death are in the power of the tongue, Choose LIFE.

~Submitted by Marilyn Miller. Click here to submit your quote.

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I love to surprise my kids after school with little treats and things that show them I was thinking of them and excited about them coming back home at the end of the day. Sometimes I pick them up and take them for surprise frozen yogurt, sometimes it’s a walk in the park, every now and then it’s Chocolate Chocolate Chip Cookies or Peanut butter cake….but a few days ago it was this pretty tray of apple slices, arranged just so around a big old bowl of creamy peanut butter dip. My kids love all things Peanut Butter.

I had it sitting in the center of the table with plates and two glasses of juice, just waiting on them. They walked in and I was already beaming, which caused them to beam - I love how beaming is contagious in my family!

Now I’m not one on to get persnickety on food presentation (I always say we’re cooking the food to eat, not to build a shrine to it) but I do enjoy setting a nice scene for the kids and as they turned the corner their eyes got big as dollars and my heart swelled up so big it just about burst. THAT is when it is worth the extra effort

There are two groups people in this world that make it really fun to do nice things for, children and folks older than me. It just seems both of those groups take the time to notice life more than those of us in the middle. The middle folks like to rush around with a head full of “I” ideas. “I have to go here. I have to call so-and-so. I have to work on this. I have to pick up that. I have to talk to so-and-so about how they hurt my feelings when they looked at me funny. I’ve got to get up in the morning. I’ve got to cook breakfast for these people. I’ve got to wear this. I need that…”

Children and Older folks have more sense than middle minded folks. They notice things. They don’t walk by flowers without smelling them or at least smiling at them. And when someone offers a kindness, their hearts are readily available to notice it and add in an extra pump of blood flow to their mind in a moment of joy. This makes it lots more fun to do even the smallest things for them.

I was reminded of that this morning when I ate a peppermint lifesaver. Hang in there with me, there is a point to this..

When I was five years old, My parents always said “Don’t shut the car door by yourself when you get in. Let us shut it for you.” They said this over and over so of course I was just pretty much waiting on the day when I could beat them to it and shut the car door on my own because, you know, shutting the car door by yourself must be an awful lot of fun for them to always want to save the experience for them!

So I shut it by myself one day, and broke my thumb in the process.

As it turns out, thumbs aren’t meant to be shut in car doors so there is your public service announcement for the day.

It wasn’t all bad though, because I got to ride in Mama’s lap in the front on the way to the hospital and my brother and sister still had to sit in the back ~fights the urge to call her siblings and remind them that she got to ride in the front and they didn’t~.

So we ended up at the emergency room back in the day before you had to bring a bedroll and rations to make it through the wait and I kept my coveted spot in Mama’s lap, sniffing from time to time while I looked at my odd looking thumb.

A lady sitting there with us smiled at me. I still remember that. Then she opened her purse and looked around for a minute before pulling out a roll of peppermint lifesavers and said “Would you like one?”. I lit up and nodded eagerly and she gave me that peppermint lifesaver. There was something in that tiny little gesture that, for whatever reason, just came at the right time for me and made me feel better.

I knew at that moment that everything was going to be alright because nice ladies were handing out peppermint lifesavers in the waiting room of Huntsville Hospital.

I don’t remember any of the pain of having a broken thumb. I just remember getting to sit in Mama’s lap and that peppermint lifesaver.

So this morning I was piddling around in the house and came across my husband’s “pile”. That little area where he cleans out his pockets at night and refills them again in the morning. My eyes caught sight of some peppermint lifesavers and my heart did that little jump as I smiled and took one and remembered how good that felt to have a stranger take notice of me and do something so sweet. I’m sure she has no idea that her tiny little gesture is still bringing me joy over three decades later.

Folks, you just never know. It is the smallest acts of kindness. Don’t fret over trying to make a wave, all you’ve got to do it just add your tiny drop of water…

And maybe keep some lifesavers handy.

You’ll need: Creamy Peanut Butter, Brown Sugar (dark or light, your preference), Softened Cream Cheese, and Milk

 Place cream cheese, peanut butter, and dark brown sugar in a mixing bow and mix until smooth.

Like this.

Now we wanna add in our milk to make it nice and creamy and dippable.

Silly Spellcheck is trying to tell me that “dippable” isn’t a word but we both know exactly what I mean by that so clearly, our intelligence level is just above that of the computer.

Add in the milk and mix again until smooth and creamy, scraping down the sides as needed.

When you’re done it is gonna look like this.

Now at this point, this stuff is just plain good. In addition to dip, it would also be a great icing for cupcakes or cookies!

Cut the apples into wedges, removing the center and seeds.

Now there are different ways to keep your apples from turning brown, the most common is using a powder called “Fruit Fresh” or coating them in lemon juice. I try to avoid both of those because they put a really sour coating on the apples. So I use orange juice instead and it works every bit as well.

Place the apples into a bowl filled with orange juice (this keeps them from turning brown)

Take the apples out of the orange juice when ready to serve with the dip and place on a paper towel lined plate while you arrange them on your platter, this gets the extra OJ off of them.

Enjoy!

This is great served with apples, celery sticks, cookies, ginger snaps, etc. It would also be a fabulous icing to cupcakes!

“An inexhaustible good nature is one of the most precious gifts of heaven, spreading itself like oil over the troubled sea of thought, and keeping the mind smooth and equable in the roughest weather.”

– Washington Irving

Thank you Christy Ryan for submitting this! I’m always tickled to get more quotes submitted so please click here if you’d like to visit our Give A Penny page and add your words of wisdom and wit!

A Little Video Coffee Chat about Taste of the South, National Cornbread Festival, The Book I’m Writing, and more.

]]> http://www.southernplate.com/2012/01/creamy-peanut-butter-fruit-dip.html/feed 55 http://www.southernplate.com/2011/11/cranberry-crunch-and-ghosts-of-thanksgiving-past.html http://www.southernplate.com/2011/11/cranberry-crunch-and-ghosts-of-thanksgiving-past.html#comments Fri, 18 Nov 2011 01:02:13 +0000 Christy Jordan http://www.southernplate.com/?p=17393 Pin it

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Some recipes just get you talking about the old days, which is why we love them so much. This is one of those recipes that gets my mother to talking about her childhood. The school lunch ladies often made this around the holidays and she loved it so much that one of them gave her the recipe for it, which has led us to enjoy it for the past couple of generations. Nothing like an heirloom recipe to bring memories back to life, especially around the holidays. Which brings me to my point…

Cranberry Crunch with Whipped Cream

You know, our kids are going to look back on this Thanksgiving the same way you look back on yours as a child. This time of year, I can’t help but think back to when I was a girl, when my Grandaddy and great grandmother were still with us at all of the Thanksgivings we celebrated at their house on Brookline Drive in Huntsville, Alabama. My cousins and I would stay outside as long as we could because the house was so hot from all of the baking. We’d come in when called, eat a plate full of our favorite foods, and rush right back out into our leaf piles and hide and seek games.

Later on, I’d end up sitting up against my grandaddy, my head resting on his shoulder as he worked on a crossword puzzle or told one of his latest jokes to the family, fully content at feeling the warmth of him through his thin cotton shirt and his strong arm around me. He’d lean over at some point and kiss the top of my head and tell me he loved me. It was such a natural gesture for him that I don’t think he even gave it thought when he did, which made me all the more content.

I can’t help but get caught up in those memories this time of year, but I try to stay ever conscious that these Thanksgivings, today, are the ones my kids will remember.

My parents are Grandmama and Grandaddy now. I’m one of the ones at the stove, who put them in the sweater that ended up being so warm it forced them outside to seek a cool breeze away from the oven’s heat.Someday folks will gather on a Thanksgiving day and play a video of this year and one of my kids might walk in during the middle of it and see faces that are no longer with them. They may be the ones finding themselves having to walk out of the room, feeling hurt that no one warned them they were about to hear their Grandaddy’s voice calling out for the first time in nearly fifteen years.

Some parts of the holidays will always be bittersweet when you have loved and been loved, but living in the past should always come full circle as a reminder to live in the moment.

Nowadays I understand the hint of sadness in the eyes of people, even though they are with their family at the holidays. Even though children are sitting up in their laps and siblings and spouses are chattering away while they pass dishes around a table filled with blessings.

Oftentimes, as we look around that table it occurs to us…

someone is missing.

Yes, some folks may be missing from our tables this year, but that isn’t an excuse for you to be. I miss them, too, but there are so many people here with us now waiting to have an arm wrapped around them. Waiting to be told they are loved. Waiting for that one special moment with you that they will someday tell their kids about when they think back to Thanskgiving. Waiting to taste that special recipe you made just for them.

Next year, 2011 will be a Thanksgiving past and it will be added to your reserve of treasured memories for you and all of those around you.

Don’t set yourself so firmly on remembering Thanksgivings past that you forget to put your heart into this one.

You’ll need: Whole Berry Cranberry Sauce, Old Fashioned Oats*, Flour, Brown Sugar, and Butter.

*I use old fashioned but quick will work just as well if that is what you have on hand. You can also use margarine instead of butter and don’t waste a single moment fretting over it! As for brown sugar, I’m using dark because it is my very favorite, but if you have light or prefer light, knock yourself out!

Place your flour, oats, and brown sugar in a bowl

Stir them up.

Add in your butter or margarine and cut that in with a long tined fork.

Like this

Now spray a pie plate or 8×8 dish with cooking spray.

And press half of your mixture into the bottom of the pie plate.

Top that with the entire can of cranberry sauce.

I just glob it by spoonfuls on top of my little crust…

Then take that same spoon and spread it around a bit.

Sprinkle remaining topping over cranberry sauce

Bake at 350, uncovered, for 45 minutes to one hour, or until bubbly and browned.

Excellent served with whipped cream or ice cream but you can also serve it as a side dish as well.

Some parts of the holidays will always be bittersweet when you

have loved and been loved, but living in the past should always

come full circle as a reminder to live in the moment.

~Christy Jordan. I apologize for quoting myself, but I think it bears repeating.

]]> http://www.southernplate.com/2011/11/cranberry-crunch-and-ghosts-of-thanksgiving-past.html/feed 176 http://www.southernplate.com/2011/11/faux-pecan-pie.html http://www.southernplate.com/2011/11/faux-pecan-pie.html#comments Wed, 02 Nov 2011 15:40:13 +0000 Christy Jordan http://www.southernplate.com/?p=17294 Pin it This is a fun recipe to feed people. At first glance, it looks like a pecan pie and folks usually don’t take a second glance before digging in for a bite and telling you how good it is. My husband’s exact words were “That is the BEST pecan pie I’ve ever tasted!”. Then I got to tell him it didn’t have any pecans in it…

A similar situation happened at my kid’s school when I took a few of these up there. One of the teachers came into the office talking about how good the pecan pie was and the secretary said “You mean the pecan less pecan pie?” she replied “Oh no, I got the one that had pecans in it…” ~snickers~ Of course, I hadn’t taken anything with pecans in it to the school.

This is a fabulous pie for those with nut allergies but that isn’t why I developed it, I actually didn’t even think about that until someone asked for the recipe, stating that they had a friend with allergies who would be excited to get pecan pie again! I developed it as a way of saving money. Have you seen the cost of pecans lately?

Right about now, making this pie with my recipe instead of pecans will save anywhere from five to seven dollars, depending on where you shop. Most folks I know can cook an entire supper for that amount of money!

So I guess there is a double bonus involved, but in hindsight having a faux pecan pie for those with nut allergies is a much greater purpose.

I have seen some varying recipes for faux pecan pie around the web. The most common one utilizing pinto beans in place of pecans. I have that on my list to try someday and I’ll probably do it around about the time I try raw oysters, but I couldn’t bring myself to suggest you put pintos in your pie so I set about developing my own faux pecan pie.

I started with my Mother’s No Fail Pecan Pie recipe and then blended it a bit with that crust of my Strawberry Pretzel Salad (which is in my cookbook, but not on SouthernPlate.com). Everyone is always surprised that the crust isn’t made of pecans, so what a great inspiration to add to my pie! It took about seven pies to get the proportions and cooking time just right, because this pie really needs to be made as a deep dish but I’m finally ready to bring it to you today in it’s final form.

I’m gonna start this post out with a disclaimer that I’m sure is obvious to just about everyone reading this: Pecan pie is not a health food. It’s not supposed to be. A good pecan pie is gonna contain butter, sometimes lots of it. It will also have sugar in various forms, usually granulated and corn syrup. A good pecan pie is not for the faint of heart but it is the golden nugget of pies. Rich, buttery, delicious. Unlike any other. This Faux Pecan Pie lives up to all of those expectations.

If you’re on a diet, just have one or two bites and make sure you savor them, then be sure and make it again when you’re not on a diet anymore. If you have a family member or friend with a nut allergy, this would be a welcome treat for them at your Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner! But I suggest not telling anyone it doesn’t have pecans until they eat it, mainly because it is fun seeing the look on their face .

You’ll need: A Deep Dish Pie Crust, Light Corn Syrup, Butter, Pretzels, Sugar, Eggs, and Vanilla.

I recommend unsalted, real butter in this recipe.

I also recommend not spelling “recommend” unless you have to because it is one of those annoying words to spell. I really think it needs two “c” ‘s but Websters never listens to me. ~sigh~

Note: If all you have is margarine or you just can’t afford butter, go for it. Trust me, I’ve been there! The pie will taste slightly different but t’ain’t nobody here gonna judge because we were raised better than that. ~Grin~

Following my recipe below, place the butter for the pie filling in a large bowl and microwave it until melted. Allow to cool.

You ever hear the saying “Do as I say, don’t do as I do?” Well that applies here. Normally you could just dump all of your other filling ingredients in and give them a stir but I don’t really have time to allow my butter to cool so I’m gonna stir in my sugar real good to cool it down a bit before I add everything else.

If I just dumped everything in with hot butter, it would cook my eggs a bit, leaving me with thin ribbons of cooked egg mixed in with the custard of my pie and that isn’t very fun!

So at this point you can add in all of your other ingredients and give it a good stir until well combined.

But if you’re impatient like me, add your sugar first and stir that up a bit until your butter is cooler. 

Like this.

Now add all of the other filling ingredients and give it another good stir.

I’ve had a few questions about my flat whisk pictured here. I bought this when my friend Maralee McKee told me about it. It came from Williams Sonoma and is the only thing I have ever bought from that store, lol. I go in there from time to time just to look around and really enjoy it, but I find that specialized tools and pots aren’t a good use of my money when standard things I have around my kitchen will do just fine and I don’t have to find the storage space for them. I can just see my great grandmother staring at a wall of peculiar utensils and asking “Now what do ya need all them thangs for?”

You can also find these whisks on Amazon by searching for “flat whisk”. They really do work well and I prefer it over a traditional whisk.

Here is our pie filling all mixed up. Ready for an action shot now?

Isn’t that pretty? I’ve learned how to do a lot of things left handed since having to venture into the wonderful world of food photography.

Whoops, I was being a bit sarcastic there when I said “wonderful”. Food photography is actually the one thing I don’t really enjoy that much about blogging. Food is very uncooperative. I have yet to ask any item of food to pose pretty and not been met with a blank and vacant stare.

It doesn’t help that I’m not one to be more impressed with a piece of say, banana bread, just because it is encased in a soft focus vignette. I find banana bread on an old corelle plate, presented as is, has more heart. ~sighs~ I know, but I have to at least attempt pretty food pictures. I put a wee bit of my heart into it from time to time.

But if you ever think some of my food isn’t pretty, just imagine a sweet granny standing behind it, handing it to you with a loving expression.

That is how I picture all of my food, and it makes it quite beautiful. Tricks of the camera or photo shop can’t add an effect like that.

Oops, got sidetracked. Okay so here is your filling in the crust.

I know it looks yellow now but it will be that beautiful golden color once baked.

Now we need to crush our pretzels.

I’m using my heirloom rolling pin that my great grandmother bought for my mother with green stamps when Mama was just thirteen years old.

At thirteen, her parents divorced and she went to live with her father to take care of him. She cooked all of the meals and kept house until he remarried a few years later.

At thirteen, I was listening to bad eighties music, hanging out at the mall, and spending my spare time becoming proficient with aqua net hair styling techniques.

Never hurts to contrast your life with others in order to see how good you got it. 

Place your pretzels in a gallon zipper bag and crush those puppies. They don’t have to be pulverized, just broke up kinda good.

I took this rollin pin with me when I went to film at Paula Deen’s house and we used it on the show. I told her all about it and we talked green stamps for quite a while. That show airs this Saturday for the first time. November 5, 2011. Check the Food Network for times in your area and click here to rsvp on my Facebook page if you plan on watching and read a few behind the scenes stories I’ve posted.

Melt your butter for the topping (see recipe) and add in your tiny amount of sugar.

Add in pretzels and stir until coated well.

Sprinkle evenly over the top of your pie.

I know it will seem like a lot of pretzels but they sink down a bit as we cook, which is why I made this a deep dish pie. The first pie I tried wasn’t deep dish and it seemed like there was hardly any filling when the pretzels sunk down a little bit. This will come out in perfect proportions to the top crust and the filling.

Place pie plate on a baking sheet and bake at 350 for one hour, covering with foil after the first thirty minutes to prevent over browning.

Allow to cool completely before serving. 

This is a piece of pie posing on a Jewel Tea, Autumn Leaf plate.

This is a closer shot that shows the filling a little better (because I couldn’t pick which one I liked the most)

This post is dedicated to my sweet friend, Alyssa, who has a nut allergy.

I got to meet her yesterday when I had a book signing at a local elementary to support their book fair.

I mentioned today’s post and she was so excited for a nut free pecan pie!

Special thanks to everyone who invited me and were so kind yesterday.

I enjoyed getting to meet you all and what an honor it was to see a table filled with food from my cookbook!

Notice one piece of the pie is unaccounted for. ~looks innocent~

I hope you get to make this soon and enjoy your faux pecan pie!

Don’t forget to add this pie to your holiday menu!

If you’re coming to my Holiday Cooking Show on November 10th (see poster below this recipe), this is one of the many recipes I’ll be serving the entire audience!

Advance ticket purchase is recommended but you can also pay at the door. 

Sara submitted a great quote on our Give A Penny Page that I think really puts you in the right frame of mind for dealing with life sometimes. We can’t just go out meekly with a weak smile and hope for a good day, we have to do it with Gusto!

“Tackle the world with a smile, and the world will tackle you back with more than one.”

Thank you Sara! Submit your quote by clicking here.  ]]> http://www.southernplate.com/2011/11/faux-pecan-pie.html/feed 175 http://www.southernplate.com/2011/10/harvest-stuffed-cinnamon-rolls.html http://www.southernplate.com/2011/10/harvest-stuffed-cinnamon-rolls.html#comments Fri, 21 Oct 2011 19:19:38 +0000 Christy Jordan http://www.southernplate.com/?p=17172 Pin itBe sure you tune in to Paula Deen’s Best Dishes on November 5th to see me if you can! Click here to visit the event section on the Southern Plate Family Facebook Page , check out some exclusive photos from the filming, and RSVP (please) if you plan on tuning in! I’ll also be on Great Day Houston live next Tuesday morning (Oct 25) if you’re in the Houston, Texas viewing area!

Today is my daughter’s 7th birthday. She woke up so excited, rushing out of her room to see her door decorated with crepe paper streamers and the balloons all in the den floor. We started doing that when Brady (who is now twelve) was just a toddler and it seemed a great tradition to stick to so now each year, when our kids go to bed, we set to taping streams of crepe paper up on their door frames and Ricky sets to blowing up balloons.

I don’t have the air in me to blow up balloons anymore, I guess I use all my wind talking.

Brady and Katy Rose enjoying birthday biscuits, another family tradition.

I’m gonna tell you what, it sure is good for the soul to see the excitement of a child. The wonder they feel, the joy and exuberance at every little thing, but especially on big days like this.

I was on a plane last week and as it took off I got to thinking about the first time my daughter was on a plane and how, when it took off, she threw her hands up in the air and shouted “WEEEEEE!!!!” as it rose into the air. Not a soul on that plane complained, her joy and excitement were so contagious that it was just met with smile and chuckles.

As my plane left the Huntsville airport I didn’t throw my hands up in the air, but I sure did think about it, and my heart cried out “WEEEEEEE!” as I set off, thinking of the day as an adventure just as Katy Rose had taught me to do.

They keep us lighthearted, don’t they? We sure do need that. It’s easy to get bogged down with deadlines and schedules and I know my kids are exactly what I need to keep my focus on the truly important. Like today, when Katy Rose is turning 7.

Happy Birthday Katy Rose and Happy Katy’s Birthday to her brother, Bradybug.

I sure do love you.

Now lets make some cinnamon rolls. These puppies are to die for and they are so very easy. They are a deluxe version of my original cinnamon roll recipe, click here for that one.

Today, we’ll be using my favorite shortcut of frozen bread dough (but the original recipe has my homemade dough recipe if you’d like to make it from scratch). I figure someone made this frozen dough from scratch already though, so that works for me!

You’ll need: A loaf of frozen bread dough (I’m using Rhodes), cinnamon, an orange, butter, brown sugar, pecans, and dried cranberries (also known as craisins).

You can also use raisins in this or even dried cherries if you like. If you have any of those on hand, go with what you have .

Note: I’m going to give you the recipe for making one pan of these but during this tutorial I was making two pans so if you think some of the ingredients look like a lot more than the recipe calls for that is why. Why make one pan when you can make two and have more to share!

Place your pecans on a baking sheet and place them in a 350 oven for 5-6 minutes, keeping an eye on them so they don’t burn. You just want them lightly toasted.

Toasting pecans really brings out their flavor. I’ve grown to appreciate this extra step! When I was in Charleston we showcased a German Chocolate Cake from Southern Living and I took a bite of it on air. As soon as the segment ended I turned to the stylist and said “You toasted those pecans!!! That was amazing!” It changed the taste of the entire cake for me.

Now I love dried cranberries but raisins and dried cherries would work really well in this also. Before I add mine into a recipe I like to plump them a bit.

To plump your cranberries, simple place dried berries in a bowl and cover them in hot water. Let them sit for about five minutes or so and then drain them.

I love this little bowl. I gotta admit that I have coveted it most of my life. It belonged to my mother and I’ve kept my eye out for one of my own for a few years now.

Some months back, when I was at Mama’s house, I mentioned how hard it is to find one like hers. She went to the kitchen, got the two bowls she had in this pattern, wrapped them up in a dish towel, and put them in a sack and handed it to me! “Just take good care of ‘em and you can have ‘em.”

“Yes Ma’am!”

If y’all see Mama tell her you saw her bowls and they looked very happy and well cared for in their new home…

Line a countertop with a silicone mat or some waxed paper. 

Spread some flour over that to help prevent your dough from sticking.

I used to roll out a bit of waxed paper on my countertop to roll my dough out on but about a year or so ago I found this little mat on sale and picked it up. It’s awfully handy for cookies, rolls, etc. When I’m done I just wash it off really well and fold it to store until the next time I need it. Makes counter cleanup a breeze, but waxed paper will still work just as well.

Make sure your bread is thawed completely and place it on your floured surface.

Coat your rolling pin with a little flour (just rub it on there with your hands) and roll that puppy out into a rectangle -esque object.

Kinda like a rectangle, but no one is taking off points for style or precision here.

If your dough struggles with you, what I often do is roll it out a little bit, let it sit for a few minutes, then roll it out again. This will let it relax some and it will be easier. Either way, rolling it out will take a little muscle. But you can do it. Because …..

“Always remember, you’re braver than you believe, stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think” ~Winnie The Pooh quote

I doubt the author was thinking about making cinnamon rolls when he said that but it’s always nice to find a quote is versatile, don’t ya think?

Spread your dough with about half a stick of butter.

“About” is the key word here. Again, no points are taken off for precision. If you’re making these cinnamon rolls for anyone other than yourself, I can guarantee you won’t get complaints. If you do get complaints, take the cinnamon roll back

Stir your brown sugar and your cinnamon together until well blended (or until you get tired of stirring).

And zest that orange.

Now most folks would use a zester for this but mine is around here somewhere and this little handheld grater is so much easier anyway. If you use a grater just be sure you grate only the orange part and try not to get down into the white part because supposedly, that part is bitter I’ve never tried it myself so I’m gonna say “supposedly” here. I think orange zest is kind a bitter but in recipes like this, it is kinda heavenly too.

Now sprinkle your brown sugar and cinnamon over the butter and then top with pecans, orange zest, and cranberries.

Isn’t this beautiful?

~clears throat and speaks louder~ I said, Isn’t this beautiful????

Of course it is ~grins~. We really need smellovision technology. Plumped cranberries, toasted pecans, orange zest for that hint of citrus, brown sugar, and cinnamon...just in case you needed a recap. ~breathes it all in~

Now we gotta roll this puppy up. The trick to rolling it up, as I’ve learned, is to kinda squeeze it together as you roll. Roll, squeeze, roll, squeeze, roll, squeeze.

This is gonna really help keep your filling in while it bakes and also while you cut it and put the slices into your pan. You can kinda see here where I’ve pressed it together as I rolled it up.

Here is my final cinnamon roll log like thingiemabobber whosiewhatsit.

Yup, that’s it! Now we’re ready to cut it.

A lot of people tell you to cut your cinnamon rolls with dental floss and this or that but I have never seen the reason to go to all of that trouble…

I just grab a serrated knife (I am actually using a steak knife here) and go at it in a light sawing motion.

If you prefer to use dental floss or some other method, knock yourself out. But if you ever ask one of your friends to ask me the “right” way to do it, come whisper in my ear real quick that you do it that way so I can tell them I do it that way too and make you look good

.

Spray your pan with cooking spray.

I’m using disposable aluminum pans because I actually took both of these to my kid’s school. Okay, I might have snuck a few out for us first…

I do a LOT of baking for Southern Plate and sometimes I bake to get myself comfortable with Southern Living recipes that I’ll be doing on tv and such, so more often than not when I bake something, I have immediate plans to take it somewhere because we just can’t eat all of it!

Place your slices in the pan, spread out a bit like this so they have room to rise. Cover them and let them rise in a warm place until doubled in size.

If you don’t have a “warm” place, sometimes I just turn my oven on and let it preheat for a few minutes, then turn it off and open the door for a minute or two to make sure it is warm, but not hot. If it is “hot” it will start cooking your rolls and they won’t rise like they should, so make sure it is just warm.

Then place your covered rolls in the oven for an hour or so until they double.

Now we’re ready to bake these puppies!

I bake them at 400 for about fifteen minutes, or until done.

Once you remove them from the oven, This is the point where you would freeze them.

If you like, you can cook them until they’re done but not quite as brown as this and then brown them more in the reheating. If you freeze them before they are cooked, it will kill the yeast. They won’t rise the second time and if they are already risen but not baked, the yeast will still die and they’ll lose volume and be smallish, hardish things. Trust me, I know from personal trial and error. I called Rhode’s bread dough company and they gave me these exact instructions that I’m passing on to you for the best way to freeze these .

To freeze: Allow to cool completely. Wrap well in foil (really well) and place in freezer. To reheat, thaw in the refrigerator (overnight is great) and remove foil. Cover loosely with more foil and place in 200 degree oven for 15-20 minutes. Ice and serve.

Make your icing according to the recipe below (you can visit my original cinnamon roll tutorial if you’d like step by step photos of the icing) and spread it over your warm cinnamon rolls.

It helps if you use a cute little piggy spatula, like the one Angela Lewis bought me!

Now remember when I told you to kinda squeeze the dough together as you rolled it up?

I’ve seen a lot of instructions lately on the internet saying that you should turn your cinnamon rolls upside down after cooking them so that all of the good stuff goes back up in the cinnamon roll, but I find that when I kinda squeeze my dough together like I showed you…all the good stuff stays in the cinnamon roll. Here is my pan, perfectly clean on the bottom where I took out two cinnamon rolls.

My husband ate those two just so I could show you this picture. He’s so supportive

 Hope you get to make these Stuffed Cinnamon Rolls soon. They sure are good!

Have a wonderful weekend!

Gratefully,

Christy

” It’s better to be kind, than to be right.”

Submitted by Diana L who found it on a fortune cookie about five years ago.

I am so excited that this is apple week for Southern Plate. The weather has turned cooler here and brought with it thoughts of beef stew and apple dumplings. Of course, I love apples cooked any way, Apple Dapple cake, fried apples, apple pie and these apple dumplings.

Tonight I made a big pot of beef stew , a skillet of cornbread and a large casserole full of apple dumplings. Christy wanted me to take some pictures and send her the recipe that I use for apple dumplings. You will see that I am definitely not a photographer but the end product was delicious. This is an old fashioned recipe that uses a little of this and a smidgen of that so I have done my best to measure all the ingredients for you. Do not be scared of adding or adjusting the ingredients to suit your taste. This is a very delicious and forgiving recipe. It would be even more delicious with vanilla ice cream on top!

Before I give you the recipe, let me tell you a little about how I went about making these dumplings. I use the small cheap canned biscuits. We call them whampum biscuits since you whampum on the counter to open them. I open the biscuits, take them apart and lay them out on wax paper to come to room temperature while I prepare the apples. This makes the biscuits easier to roll out. Then I peel the apples and cut them up into little pieces about the size of Chiclets chewing gum. Now the original recipe said to place a small amount of apples (about a heaping tablespoon) on each biscuit and then sprinkle with cinnamon. I can never remember to sprinkle the cinnamon on the apples when I get in a rhythm of making the dumplings so I just sprinkle cinnamon on the apples in the bowl and stir them up to distribute it. If you don’t like cinnamon, the dumplings are just as good without it. I have had them both ways and love them either way.

~Mama

Alright, this is where I step in and take over. I, being me, Christy . Now I know my Mama and Grandmama really well. In fact, I’m pretty confident that I know both of them just about better than any living person at this point. Mama and I are best friends and talk several times a day on the phone and for a good bit of time when I was in college after my Grandaddy had passed away, Grandmama and I lived together as roommates. So knowing the two f them and seeing this post, I know that y’all missed out on the best parts and I’m here to insert them, word for word, as I am sure they went down in the making of these dumplings.

Mama: Mama, this don’t look right. Go get me a bath towel because Christy says you gotta have a light background.

Grandmama : Well what kind of a bath towel you want me to get? What you gonna do with it?

Mama: Get me a white one and hurry, I’ve got to get supper on before they all get here. Lane, baby, can you go do your homework on the kitchen table so I can take pictures here for Aunt Christy’s website?

To make this recipe you’ll need: Sugar, Cinnamon, 2 cans biscuits (ten count cans), apples (Granny smith is best but others work), and butter.

~in comes Grandmama with the towel~

Mama : Oh now that looks better.

Grandmama: It really brightened it up, didn’t it? Let me see how it looks…

~Mama holds up the camera with the image on the back~

Grandmama : Oh I never could see them things on these new fancy cameras…

Peel and slice your apples however you want, a knife is fine.

Mama uses this fancy thing, which is really awesome, but I just use a paring knife and it works just as well. Mama has more storage space than me for gadgets – and she also has the ability to keep up with them far better than I do! If I bought one of these I’d probably use it once and then never be able to find it again.

Grandmama: Jan are you about done? I’m gittin’ tired of holding this towel up here…

Mama: Almost, let me get one more picture and then you can put it down.

Grandmama : Well alright, hurry it up, we ain’t got all day and I’m hungry. Reckon Christy will really put this on her website?

*Click*

Grandmama: Jan you ain’t done took a picture of me did you! Janice! I’ll say!

Mama: ~giggle~

Place your diced apples in a bowl and sprinkle with cinnamon. Stir to coat.

Mama: Okay Mama, you can put the towel down now.

Grandmama : Oh good, I think the weather is fixin to come on.

~Grandmama shuffles off into the den to watch her favorite meteorologist~

Take each biscuit and roll it out as best you can on waxed paper. Don’t roll it too thin, just roll it out enough to be able to put some apple filling in the center.

Y’all don’t know this but every time Mama takes a picture that she thinks turned out well she grins and tucks in her chin proudly as she looks at it. So just pretend that big old shadow isn’t there and if she notices it we’ll tell her it is in her head and looked fine to us.

Wow, there’s the flash! lol

Put a heaping tablespoon of filling in the center of each one.

This is the point in the tutorial where Mama had to stop for a minute to try to help my nephew Lane with a math problem. The real problem occurred when she called me to help her figure out how to help him. My engineer husband wasn’t home just then and it was like the blind leading the blind…

Alright well the good news is that Mama turned the flash off in this one but…

~squints~

Lets just use our imagination here.

After you put the filling in each round of dough, fold up the sides and press them together to close them.

Place all of you dumplings in a baking dish (I’m using a 9×13). Top each with a small pat of butter and sprinkle your remaining apples over them. If you don’t have apples left, don’t worry, just go with it and it will be fine. Sprinkle your sugar over the apples*.

*Mama uses half sugar and half splenda when she makes these.

Mama’s Note: If you counted my dumplings, you will notice that I only had 17. My grandson ate two of the raw biscuits and his sister wanted to try one. She was not impressed! But 3 biscuits were missing in action.

Gently pour boiling water over the apples.

Mama says :I know this seems strange pouring water over this but trust me, it will turn into a delicious syrup.

Bake at 350 for one hour.

Sit back and enjoy fall and the all the wonderful flavors that it brings!

Mama: Mama come sit down and eat.

Grandmama: Well just a minute, I’ma cleaning up the stove a little bit coz you done made a mess…

Gotta love ‘em!

P.S. I just read this post to mama. She said “Well sounds like you got us pegged alright!”

“Grandma always made you feel she had been waiting

to see just you all day and now the day was complete.”

~ Marcy DeMaree

]]> http://www.southernplate.com/2011/09/mama-and-grandmama-make-apple-dumplings.html/feed 70 http://www.southernplate.com/2011/09/old-fashioned-slow-cooker-baked-apples.html http://www.southernplate.com/2011/09/old-fashioned-slow-cooker-baked-apples.html#comments Mon, 19 Sep 2011 15:45:35 +0000 Christy Jordan http://www.southernplate.com/?p=16836 Pin it

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Today begins Apple Week on SouthernPlate.com!

I have over TWENTY apple recipes to share with you this week so be sure and Subscribe by email and join us on Facebook so you don’t miss a single recipe!

My Grandma Lucy just loves baked apples. of course we all do but they have always been such a treat for her. Growing up, it was a rare occasion to get them and she often tells us a story of the one day she got one for dessert. They were sharecropping in a field at a nearby farm and Grandmama and her family had walked over there in the morning to work. It was customary that when you worked the field for a family, they provided a mid day meal for you. It got to be lunchtime and they were cold and tired as they headed up to the main house. As they walked in the door, the smell of baked apples filled the air. “Those apples smelled so good. I’ll never forget that, never.”

They all sat down to eat their meal but Grandmama said all she could think about was those apples and she sat there trying to eat and hoping so bad the lady had made some for them. When they finished eating the lady who owned the house came to the table with two big old pans of baked apples, one for everyone.

Grandmama said “There was a lot of workers there so you know that woman musta put a good bit of time into coring all those apples for us, but they sure were good! We didn’t hardly ever get baked apples and we sure did enjoy those. They were the best things!”

I remember asking her, just a few years back, “Grandmama, why didn’t y’all ever get baked apples?” and her answer was so obvious that you and I would likely never think of it, but it made perfect sense when she replied “Because we didn’t have no apple tree!”

So today I’m going to show you the simple way to make baked apples, and how to do it in your slow cooker (or crock pot, as most folks call it). This is a simple recipe, prepared like they did it in the old days where you just core your apple, stuff it with some good stuff, and bake away! But now the bonus is that you can do it in the morning and come home to that same smell my Grandmama walked into all those years ago.

Now, I doubt I’ve ever made these the same way twice. It’s just one of those recipes you can throw together and customize to your liking or based on what you have on hand.

Today, I’m keeping it simple but I’m going to give you lots ideas to personalize it and make it your own and I want to hear your ideas in the comments on this post, too!

For starters you’ll need: 

• Apples (about five fit into my slow cooker)
• Dried Cranberries (or raisins, or leave these out entirely)
• Brown sugar (I’m using dark but light is fine. You can also use white sugar if that’s what you have)
• Butter (or margarine)
• Cinnamon & Allspice (you can leave the allspice out if you like but I love how it enhances the cinnamon. Also, if you are a nutmeg lover you can add that as well. I’ve never been a nutmeg fan so I avoid it)

You can also add: Pecans, walnuts, oats, or anything else you come up with! 

Place your brown sugar, cinnamon, and allspice (or whatever spices you are using) in a small bowl and stir them up really well.

Add in your dried cranberries or raisins and stir those up as well.

Usually when I cook with raisins or dried cranberries I like to soak them in really hot water for a few minutes to plump them up a bit before adding them to the recipe but these will be slow cooking with plenty of steam in there so there isn’t any need to do that here.

Core your apples.

I’m not a big fan of kitchen gadgets, mainly because I am unorganized and so I either lose them or can’t find a place to keep them, but I did break down and buy one of those apple corer thingiemabobbers. It is about the size of a vegetable peeler and it sure is neat! I like that thing.

After you core your apples peel off just a little strip around the top.

This is supposed to keep the apples from splitting as they cook but I mostly just do it because Mama told me to….

Now place them in the bottom of your slow cooker and use a spoon to fill each apple with your sugar mixture.

Then, take your finger and push the filling down in there and fill it up some more!

Top each one with a pat of butter.

You can also cut the butter into your sugar mixture but this works just as well and is less work.

You work hard enough as it is, it’s okay to take an easy pass.

Cover with lid and cook on low 6-8 hours or on high 3-4, or until tender.

My husband loves these served with a scoop of ice cream.

Leftovers are great heated up the next day and served with oatmeal!

Remember to add nuts, oats, spices you like, and anything else to really make this recipe your own!

Oooh, how about serving it with ice cream and caramel sauce?

“When bobbing for apples, an idealist endlessly reaches for the

best apple, a pessimist settles for the first one within reach,

while an optimist drains the barrel, fishes out all the apples and makes pie.”

~Vera Nazarian

Submitted by Jenny (thanks, Jenny!). I’d love for you to submit your positive or uplifting quotes to use in future Southern Plate posts. To do so, please visit my Give A Penny page by clicking here.

 MORE APPLE RECIPES !

If you’re an email subscriber, check your inbox tomorrow for an email

with at least three more apple recipes in it!

 I’ll post links on our Facebook page, too!

If you’re on Facebook and could click that little “like” button up there I’d sure appreciate it!

Today I’m going to attempt to keep this blog post short and sweet. Well, the recipe makes it sweet but the only way we’re gonna make it short is if I’m not quite so chatty. Yeah….good luck with that one. But I have pies to bake, errands to run, and books to write so I’m gonna make an attempt. It’s the thought that counts, right?

These cookies are the ones you most likely remember from your childhood. We usually had them in chocolate form (click here to view my mama’s tutorial on how to make the chocolate ones) but I somehow ended up with an entire family who LOVES peanut butter. Anything Peanut butter. Seriously.

We go through one of the HUGE jars each and every week. They love PB&J sandwiches, peanut butter on toast, Peanut butter balls (which I try to always keep in the freezer), Peanut Butter Cookies, oh! And of course Yellow Cake with that Peanut Butter Fudge Icing. There is a cute story about that, too. When I did the 700 Club, I made seven different cakes and talked about The Seven Cakes of Christmas story from my family (You can watch all of my tv clips by visiting this page).

Well lo and behold I arrived back in Alabama that night and my whole family met me at the airport, including a very exuberant Katy Rose, who hugged me and immediately started craning her neck to look around at my luggage.

She said “Mama, where is that peanut butter cake? I know you made that one for me!” Bless her heart, she had watched me with that peanut butter cake on tv and since it was her favorite, she just knew I had made it to bring home to her! Needless to say, that child got Peanut butter cake for breakfast the next day

So what are we waiting for? Oh, yeah, we’re waiting for me to stop talking and get to the recipe, huh?

Alrighty then, do I need to tell you how good these are? Fudgey, chewy, and every kid’s favorite. I think we’re all about due for a batch today!

You’ll need: Sugar, oats, peanut butter, vanilla, butter (or margarine), and milk. 

Place your sugar, butter, and milk in a heavy bottomed saucepan. 

Stirring constantly, bring it to a boil over medium heat.

Once it reaches a full rolling boil, continue to stir and boil for one minute.

I usually boil for a minute and a half to be on the safe side. 

After it’s boiled for a minute, remove from heat and add in peanut butter and vanilla. 

Stir until smooth, creamy, and all of the peanut butter is melted. 

Like this  

Now add in your oats and stir those up really well. 

I love oats…

Like this. 

Don’t you just love seeing pictures of cooking? I think it makes us more likely to actually make a recipe because by the time we’re at the end of a post, having looked at al of the photos, we’ve already made it in our head so it doesn’t seem so daunting

That’s just my theory anyway. I love looking at the photos but I’m not too terribly into taking them, as you can tell by looking at mine. So many food bloggers take these gorgeous photos of all of their food but I’m kinda just more into cooking it, telling the story behind it, and then feeding people.

Okie Dokie, now pour that into an 8×8 pan that you’ve sprayed with cooking spray and let sit until cool.

Of course, if you want you can drop these by spoonfuls onto waxed paper like we did back in the old days. I just prefer the pan method because it is so much less work and they make cute little cookie bites when you cut them.

You can speed up the cooling process by placing your pan in the fridge.

Oh goodness, these are good!

Did you have these as a kid?

Who made them for you?

The recipe for the chocolate version of these cookies can be found by clicking here. 

If you’d like to watch some of my national tv appearances, I have a few on on my Media/PR page, click here to go there and just scroll down to see all of the videos.

“We can only be said to be alive in those moments when our hearts are

conscious of our treasures.”

– Thornton Wilder

Submitted by Jenny. Submit your quote by clicking here.

]]> http://www.southernplate.com/2011/09/peanut-butter-no-bake-cookie-bites.html/feed 119 http://www.southernplate.com/2011/08/peanut-butter-cake-from-scratch-with-pb-cream-cheese-frosting.html http://www.southernplate.com/2011/08/peanut-butter-cake-from-scratch-with-pb-cream-cheese-frosting.html#comments Thu, 18 Aug 2011 15:33:23 +0000 Christy Jordan http://www.southernplate.com/?p=16410 Pin it

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Today one of our family’s dear friend, Kate Burhop, was gracious enough to share her Grandmother’s Peanut Butter Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting recipe with us. She even brought me a piece, too! It was absolutely amazing and I’ll soon be making one of my peanut butter loving family. This is similar to my Old Fashioned Yellow Cake With Peanut Butter Fudge Icing but the from-scratch cake and cream cheese twang in with the peanut butter icing really differentiate it and I know you’ll love it as much as I do! Thank you so much, Kate!

Gratefully, Christy

From Kate:

My mamaw passed away when I was just a little girl, but since then there are two major things I’ve learned about her from my family.

1. She was shorter than your average woman.  She was 4’11’’ if she stood up as straight as she could, which was a big difference from Papaw’s height of 6’6’’. But just because Mamaw was short didn’t mean she couldn’t hold her own. Papaw would call her “Banty Rooster” because she had red hair and a temper to match.
2. She could cook like no one’s business.  Mamaw was a true Southern cook with a natural know how in the kitchen. She knew all of her recipes by memory and was never once seen with a measuring cup.  Intuition was a large part of her cooking, which made it difficult for anyone to borrow her recipes.

Mamaw was particularly well known for making a to-die-for peanut butter cake and frosting.  When asked to write down the recipe with ingredient measurements, she never could.  She would say, “Just do it ‘til it looks right.” Finally, people realized that the best way to copy her cooking was to watch her firsthand.  That’s how the family finally managed to get her “Peanut Butter Cake” and “Peanut Butter, Cream Cheese Frosting” recipes on paper.

This is the first cake that I learned to bake from scratch, and I can say that it is absolutely the most requested dessert recipe from my family. It’s stick-to-your-mouth good and never leaves a crumb to spare!

For the cake and frosting you’ll need: Self Rising Flour, Sugar, Baking Soda, Peanut Butter, Cream Cheese, Powdered Sugar, Butter (Mamaw liked Blue Bonnet), and 2 eggs.

Place sugar, butter, peanut butter and eggs in a mixing bowl and mix up with an electric mixer until well combined and smooth.

Mix self-rising flour with baking soda. I don’t sift. Neither did Mamaw. A spoon works just fine for this. Add flour to wet mixture alternately with the buttermilk.

Frost your cake however you wish!

I assure you it will taste just as good if not better slopped on the cake as it will neatly decorated.

Don’t forget your glass of milk!

I’d like to hear from you in the comments below!

Kate’s Family calls it “Frosting” and my family usually calls it “Icing”. What does your family call it?

If you aren’t grateful, you’re not paying attention.