Peanut Butter Cupcakes

Ingredients:
2 cups brown sugar
1/2 cup applesauce
1/2 cup oil
1 cup creamy peanut butter
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups milk
1 tsp vanilla
2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
2 tsp cream of tartar
1 pinch salt

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350. Line cupcake pan with paper liners. In large bowl, mix together the brown sugar, applesauce, oil, and peanut butter until light and fluffy. Beat the eggs one at a time, then stir in the vanilla. Combine the flour, cream of tartar, baking soda and salt; stir into the batter alternately with the milk. Spoon into the prepared muffin cups. Bake for 15-20 minutes in the preheated oven, until the top of the cupcake springs back when lightly pressed. Cook in the pan for at least 10 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.

Rich chocolate frosting:
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
2 Tbsp unsalted butter
18 oz semisweet chocolate, broken into 1/2 oz pieces (I like ghiradelli 60% chocolate chips)
2-3 cups powdered sugar

Heat the heavy cream and butter in a saucepan over medium high heat. Bring to a boil. Place the chocolate pieces in a bow. Pour the boiling cream over the chocolate and allow to stand for 5 minutes. Stir until smooth. Add in the powdered sugar one cup at a time. Stir it in and then use a mixer to blend it together well until you have the consistency and sweetness you like. Frost the cupcakes.

Red, White, and Blueberry Trifle

Ingredients:
10 oz angel food cake, cut into 1 inch cubes
2 pints strawberries, sliced
2 pints blueberries
for cream filling:
6 Tb fat free sweetened condensed milk
1 1/2 cups cold water (I used milk)
1 pkg sugar free white chocolate pudding mix
12 oz fat-free frozen whipped topping

Directions:
Whisk the condensed milk and water in a bowl. Whisk in the pudding mix for 2 minutes. Let stand for 2 minutes or until soft-set; fold in the whipped topping.
Arrange half of the cake in the bottom of a 14 cup trifle dish. Sprinkle evenly with a layer of blueberries. Spread half of the cream mixture over the blueberries and gently spread. Top with a layer of strawberries. Layer the remaining cake cubes on top of the strawberries, then add more blueberries and top with the remaining cream mixture. Finish with the remaining strawberries and blueberries, arranging them in a pretty pattern. Cover and refrigerate at least 1 hour.

Sweet Potato Burritos

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Ingredients
•1 tablespoon vegetable oil
•1 onion, chopped
•4 cloves garlic, minced
•6 cups canned kidney beans, drained
•2 cups water
•2.5(ish) tablespoons chili powder
•2 teaspoons ground cumin
•4 teaspoons prepared mustard
•1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper, or to taste
•3 tablespoons soy sauce
•4 cups cooked and mashed sweet potatoes
•12 (10 inch) flour tortillas, warmed
•8 ounces shredded Cheddar cheese

Directions
1.Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2.Heat oil in a medium skillet, and saute onion and garlic until soft. Stir in beans, and mash. Gradually stir in water, and heat until warm (it's going to seem really watery). Remove from heat, and stir in the chili powder, cumin, mustard, cayenne pepper and soy sauce. Mix in mashed sweet potatoes.
3.Divide bean and sweet potato mixture evenly between the warm flour tortillas. Top with cheese. Fold up tortillas burrito style, and place on a baking sheet.
4.Bake for 12 minutes in the preheated oven, and serve.

Puppy Chow or Muddy Buddies

Ingredients:
9 cups corn or rice chex
1 cup semi sweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup peanut butter
1/4 cup butter
1 tsp vanilla
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar

Directions:
Into a large bowl, measure cereal; set aside. In 1 quart microwavable bow. microwave chocolate chips, peanut butter and butter uncovered on High 1 minute; stir. Microwave about 30 seconds longer or until mixture can be stirred smooth. Stir in vanilla. Pour mixture over cereal, stirring until evenly coated. Pour into 2-gallon re-sealable food storage plastic bags. Add powdered sugar. Seal bag; shake until well coated. Spread on waxed paper to cool. Store in airtight container in refrigerator.

Easy Sour Cream Cheesecake

Ingredients:
1 prepared graham cracker crust
2 8oz pkgs cream cheese
1 cup white sugar
2 eggs
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup sour cream

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350. Cream together cream cheese and sugar. Add eggs one at a time, blending well. Add vanilla and sour cream. Pour into graham cracker crust. Bake for 60-70 minutes in oven until cake jiggles evenly across the top when lightly shaken. Let cool on counter, then place in regrigerator. Remove from pan when completely chilled, and serve.

Strawberry-Lime Cupcakes

My niece suggested we try this recipe. As soon as I saw it, I knew I had to try it out and I am so glad I did. These were soo delicious. The lime cupcake was good by itself but when the strawberry was added, oh my--I was in heaven. I adapted the recipe a little bit because I didn't like some of the reviews for the original recipe so this is a combination of the food network recipe with a recipe off of Allrecipes. Also feel free to make lemon cupcakes by replacing all things lime with all things lemon.

Ingredients:
1 cup butter, softened
2 cups sugar
3 eggs
2 tsp lime zest
1 tsp vanilla
3 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
2 cups sour cream
Strawberries

Frosting:
3 Tbsp butter, softened
4 oz cream cheese, softened
2 1/4 cups powdered sugar
2 Tbsp lime juice
1 tsp vanilla
1/4 tsp lime zest
1 Tbsp milk

Directions:
In a mixing bowl, cream the butter and sugar. Beat in eggs, one at a time. Add lime peel and vanilla; mix well. Combine dry ingredients; add to creamed mixture alternately with sour cream (batter will be thick). Fill greased or paper lined muffin cups with 1/4 of batter. Bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes; remove to wire racks to cool completely. For frosting, cream butter, cream cheese and sugar in a small mixing bowl. Add lime juice, vanilla, lime peel and milk; beat until smooth.

To assemble: Cut and remove a strawberry (coned) shape portion of cupcake from the top of each cupcake, leaving abotu 1/2 to 1 inch of cake in the bottom. Stuff each cake with a strawberry and cover with a little piece of cake. Frost.

Chocolate Raspberry Truffle Cake

Ingredients:For the cake:
1½ cups (4½ oz.) unsweetened cocoa powder
1 tbsp. espresso powder
1½ cups boiling water
¾ cup sour cream
1 tbsp. vanilla extract
3 sticks (12 oz.) unsalted butter, at room temperature
2½ cups plus 2 tbsp. (18¼ oz.) sugar
3 large eggs
1¾ cups plus 2 tbsp. (9¼ oz.) all-purpose flour
1¼ tsp. baking soda
¾ tsp. salt

For the raspberry filling:
16 oz. frozen raspberries, thawed
1/3 cup sugar
3 tbsp. cornstarch
1 tsp. lemon juice

For the ganache filling:
8 oz. bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
1 cup heavy cream
3 tbsp. unsalted butter, at room temperature

For the raspberry frosting:
1 cup sugar
4 large egg whites
21 tbsp. unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/3 cup strained raspberry puree*
½ tsp. vanilla extract
Pink gel icing color (optional)

For the chocolate glaze:
4 oz. bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
½ cup heavy whipping cream
¼ cup light corn syrup
2 tsp. vanilla extract

For garnish:
Additional fresh raspberries

*For best flavor, use fresh organic raspberries.

Directions:To make the cake, preheat the oven to 350˚ F. Grease and flour the edges of three 9-inch round cake pans, and line the bottoms with rounds of parchment paper. Combine the cocoa and espresso powder in a small bowl. Add in the boiling water and whisk together until smooth. Let cool slightly. Whisk in the sour cream.

In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine the butter and sugar. Beat together on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Blend in the eggs one at a time, scraping down the bowl as needed. Beat in the vanilla. Combine the flour, baking soda and salt in a small bowl; stir together to combine. With the mixer on low speed, add the dry ingredients to the mixing bowl in three additions, alternating with the cocoa-sour cream mixture, beginning and ending with the dry ingredients. Beat each addition just until incorporated.

Divide the batter between the prepared baking pans. Bake 35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let cool in the pans about 15 minutes, then transfer the cakes to a wire rack to cool completely.

To make the raspberry filling, drain the thawed berries, reserving the juice in a liquid measuring cup. Add enough water so that the total liquid equals 1¼ cups. Add the liquid to a medium saucepan with the sugar and cornstarch. Heat over medium-high heat, whisking occasionally, until the mixture begins to bubble and thicken. Continue whisking so no lumps form. Once thickened, remove from the heat and whisk in the lemon juice. Fold in the drained berries with a spatula. Cover and chill until ready to use. (The filling will continue to thicken as it chills.)

To make the ganache, place the chopped chocolate in a heatproof bowl. Heat the cream in a saucepan and bring to a simmer. Immediately remove from the heat and pour the hot cream over the chopped chocolate. Let stand 1-2 minutes, then whisk together until a smooth, thick ganache is formed. Whisk in the butter 1 tablespoon at a time until completely incorporated. Let the ganache sit to thicken a bit so that it is suitable for spreading and piping. (To speed thickening, place the bowl in the fridge or freezer and whisk every 10 minutes to ensure even cooling until the desired consistency is reached.) Transfer about ½ cup of the thickened ganache to a pastry bag fitted with a plain round tip about ½-inch in diameter. Reserve another ½ cup of ganache in a small bowl or container. (This can be used later for decorative detailing, if desired.)

To assemble the cake, place one of the cooled cake layers on a cake board or serving platter. Spread ½ cup of the ganache in an even layer over the cake. Using the reserved ganache in the pastry bag, pipe a border around the perimeter of the cake layer. This will act as a well to help hold in the raspberry filling. Spoon some of the raspberry filling inside the ganache border in an even layer. Top with another layer of cake and repeat this process, layering with another ½ cup of ganache and additional raspberry filling. Top with the remaining cake layer.

To make the raspberry frosting, combine the sugar and egg whites in a heatproof bowl set over a pot of simmering water. (I use my mixer bowl here to dirty one less dish.) Heat, whisking frequently, until the mixture reaches 160° F and the sugar has dissolved. Transfer the mixture to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Beat on medium-high speed until stiff peaks form and the mixture has cooled to room temperature, about 8 minutes. (The bowl should be cool to the touch.) Reduce the speed to medium and add the butter, 2 tablespoons at a time, adding more once each addition has been incorporated. If the frosting looks soupy or curdled, continue to beat on medium-high speed until thick and smooth again, about 3-5 minutes more (or longer – don’t worry, it will come together!) Blend in the raspberry puree and vanilla until smooth and completely incorporated, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. If desired, tint with pink icing gel to achieve your desired shade.

Frost the top and sides of the assembled cake with the raspberry buttercream, smoothing the surface as much as possible. Chill for at least 30 minutes.

To make the chocolate glaze, place the chocolate in a medium bowl. Heat the cream in a small saucepan over medium heat until simmering. Pour the hot cream over the chocolate and let sit 1-2 minutes. Whisk until the mixture is smooth and homogenous. Blend in the corn syrup and vanilla. Pour the glaze into a pitcher or measuring cup and let cool for 10 minutes. (Do not let the glaze cool longer or it may become difficult to pour over the cake.) Slowly pour the glaze over the cake, ensuring that the top is covered and the glaze drips over the sides. Let the glaze set about 5-10 minutes. Meanwhile, bring the remaining reserved ganache to a consistency for piping. (You can microwave in 5 second intervals on low power – it won’t take long to rewarm. If you overshoot and the ganache becomes too thin, simply chill again in the fridge or freezer until it is thick enough to pipe.) Transfer the ganache to a pastry bag fitted with a decorative tip. Pipe swirls of ganache around the edge of the top of the cake and top each swirl with a fresh raspberry. Chill the cake until ready to serve