New York Style Cheesecake Recipe

Updated photo 8/24/2014 Very Berry Cheesecake
Raspberries, Blueberries, Strawberries

This is actually an updated photo, every time I make this, I try a new topping so this is the latest Triple Berry. Just add crushed  raspberries to the recipe below for the glaze instead of the strawberry glaze  (or raspberry pie filling will do fine!). You can buy  a glaze to dip the strawberries in, and set the blackberries on the sides around the cake, such a festive looking cheesecake for any occassion, this one happened to be my Hubby's birthday!

I have to tell you about this is a "NEW YORK STYLE" Cheesecake. It's absolutely fabulous, easy and your going to love it!    Taste great with strawberries whole with a glaze or plain. Simply delicious...

Cheesecake:
4 8-ounce packages cream cheese, room temperature
1 cup (packed) golden brown sugar
2 tablespoons (1/4 stick) butter, melted
5 large eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Crust:
1 package of Lorna Doone cookies crushed fine or use graham crackers if you want to
1 stick butter or margarine
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

Mix all together

Preheat oven to 450°F. Spray bottom of 9-inch spring form pan with 2 1/2-inch-high sides with nonstick spray. Stir ground cookies, butter, and sugar and cinnamon in medium bowl until moist clumps form. Press cookie mixture firmly onto bottom of prepared pan. Wrap outside of pan with 3 layers of heavy-duty foil.

For cheesecake
Beat cream cheese and sugar in large bowl until smooth around 25 minutes till it has a smooth and creamy no lumps consistency, use an industrial size mixer on low, be patient, this needs to be silky smooth. Beat in butter, then eggs, 1 at a time, until well blended, around 8 to10 minutes. Be patient. Beat in vanilla. Pour batter over crust in pan. Place spring form pan, I spray with non stick spray first, then put in large turkey size roasting pan. Add enough hot water to come halfway up sides of spring form pan. Reduce heat to 350 and place cheesecake with water bath in the oven.

 ( If you have bubbles on top swirl a knife around the batter to burst before cooking. ) Bake cake uncovered until filling is puffed around edges and moves slightly in center when pan is gently shaken, about 1 hour 10 minutes. Remove pan from water; remove foil. Cool completely, in the refrigerator, remove ring only after this is completely cooled. Slide onto your favorite plate. Top with favorite toppings some suggestions below.

Chill overnight or at least four hours before serving.

For Strawberry...you will need one quart of fresh strawberries removing stems.
1 batch of glaze
In a saucepan add
3/4 cup water
3 tbsp cornstarch
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon red food coloring
Simmer till clear in pan. Add one teaspoon of vanilla. Cool pour some of the glaze on cheesecake reserving enough to dip strawberries in the glaze, place on top of cheesecake.

For Macadamia, Caramel and Toffee Cheesecake:

Topping:
1 jar caramel ice cream topping pour on top around 1/2 cup
add 1/2 cup coarsely chopped macadamia nuts
2 to 3 heath bars crushed on top.....

Macadamia and Toffee

Plain

Sweet and Sour Franks

Sweet-Sour Franks (crock pot)
1cup chili sauce
1 cup grape jelly
3 tablespoons lemon juice
1 tablespoon mustard
-- prepared
2 pounds hot dogs -- or cocktail franks
2 cans pineapple chunks -- 27 ozs.
Combine first four ingredients in removable liner; mix well to break up jelly chunks. Place liner in base. Cover and cook on high 15 to 20 minutes to soften jelly and blend sauce ingredients. Cut hot dogs in bite-size pieces and add. Add pineapple. Cover and cook on high for 2 hours; or low for 4 hours. Set control to low to maintain temperature while serving.

Dipping herbs mix for Italian bread

Try some of this delicious dipping oil and herb with Homemade Italian Ciabatta Bread!

A fresh loaf of bread, with E.V.O.O and the exotic tastes of several spices entice your taste buds ...you and your family will say "I can't stop eating this".

1 tablespoon basil dried
1 tablespoon parsley dried

1 tablespoon minced garlic or 1 teaspoon of garlic powder
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon ground sea salt
1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes or Cayenne pepper
1/2 teaspoon olive oil **
1/8 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
**Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Combine all of the ingredients, EXCEPT oil and lemon.
Put all ingredients in a bowl.
Stir in oil and lemon juice.
To Serve: Combine about 1 1/2 teaspoons spice blend to 3 to 4 Tablespoons Olive oil on a small Dish. Optional add Balsamic Vinegar to taste also.
Dip sliced Italian Bread in Mixture.

Margaret Ann Fanelli Colenzo's Cream Puffs Vintage Recipe

Margaret Ann Fanelli Colenzo and Carmen...her famous recipe.
This one's for you mom, thanks for leaving yet another wonderful memory and recipe to share.....

Mom had a business at one time in the early 1950's, this was a favorite by all who patronized back then. I thank her for the memories and being able to share her wonderful recipes.....this one's for you mom....hope your watching out there....Here, forever in our hearts!

Eclair or Cream Puff filling,
Follow recipe exactly:

1 cup water

1 stick butter

1 cup flour

4 eggs

Beat eggs in bowl set aside. Measure 1 cup flour and set aside.

In a heavy non stick saucepan, pour 1 cup water and a stick of butter (not margarine) and bring to a boil on medium heat, leave on heat and add flour stirring quickly with a wooden spoon until flour is dissolved and comes together.

Remove from heat, add eggs and beat very rapidly with the wooden spoon until a ball of dough if formed...Note its very important to beat this fast.

Spoon one tablespoon of dough or teaspoon for small puffs on an ungreased cookie sheet or on parchment paper. Shape into logs for eclairs or round for cream puffs. For Fancier puffs, use a cookie star tip and pastry bag to make a round swirl effect.

Bake on 400 for 1/2 hour, do not open oven or puffs will not cook correctly. When browned remove from oven, cool completely, cut in half to fill.

You can fill with puffs whipped cream, Italian pastry creme, vanilla pudding. Eclairs also will have chocolate frosting on top filled with vanilla pudding.

Variations:

Note: If you want to use this dough for a dinner party sandwich, fill puffs with egg salad, tuna salad or chicken salad.

Grandma Fanelli's Boiled Frosted Cookies

These cookies have a lemon flavor and a boiled frosting that glazes them, a barese cookie...favorite

Italian Cookies

6 eggs

1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup oil
1 1/2 teas lemon extract
6 teaspoons baking powder
4 to 5 cups all purpose flour

Beat until fluffy. Let rest. Roll out a small rope and tie in knots.

Bake at 350 oven till brown.

Boiled frosting for Cookies:

2/3 cup sugar

1/4 cup water
1/2 teaspoon lemon extract
In large saucepan boil three ingredients together until foamy, this takes awhile. Add cookies stir very gently with wooden spoon and until sugar starts to coat the cookies. Take off the heat, put cookies on wire racks with wax paper under the racks for cookies to dry.

Traditional Italian Sunday Sauce Recipe

Mom always had a pot of Sunday Sauce cooking on the stove. Along with fried meatballs in our Italian family!

Thanks for stopping by!
Ciao, Claudia

A tradition in our house was pasta every Sunday, thats where Sunday Sauce came from....here is our version handed down from generation to generation. Any pasta will be enhanced by the fresh herbs and spices along with fresh whole plum tomatoes...simply the best smell cooking in your kitchen in the world on Sunday enjoy

Everyone's sauce comes out to taste different, no two are alike and always unique. This is our family Italian style sauce. Hope you all enjoy Mom's and Grandma's sauce... you can adapt anyway you like to your personal additions, this is basic tomato sauce.

2- 28oz cans of whole tomato's put in food processor and pulse till pureed

2 cans water
( from above cans)

2 -28 oz cans of crushed tomato's

Oil for frying

1 small can of tomato paste

2 cloves fresh chopped garlic

2 teaspoons garlic powder

2 fresh basil leaves

2 teaspoons fresh parsley
 2 sprigs fresh basil

1/2 teaspoons each dry oregano, dry parsley, sugar, salt, pepper

1/2 cup Burgundy wine

Add to the pot your favorite meats:

2 pounds of Italian sausage links cut up and fried and set aside and/or

2 pounds of hamburger (meatball recipe to follow) fried and set aside and/or

2 pounds of boneless spare ribs country style fried and set aside

Meatball recipe: Video posted below of how we start out before adding to the sauce:

Italian Style Meatballs:

2 pounds of hamburger
2 eggs

1/2 cup grated Romano cheese,

2 cloves chopped garlic,

1/2 teaspoon of garlic powder,

2 tablespoons of chopped fresh parsley,

4 pieces of day old bread run under water, squeezed out and crust off,

1/2 cup of Italian flavored bread crumbs.

Mix all together till well blended, shape into balls and fry in electric skillet as shown on video or large frying pan, in mixture of olive oil and canola oil till brown set aside. (recipe can be doubled for large groups.) Make around 18.

In a heavy large non stick saucepan 5 to 6 quart size or (same electric skillet remember if you use the electric skillet , you will have to take the meat out set aside, fry paste and continue on with the same process on low. ) , add oil to cover bottom of pan around 1/4 cup, add garlic chopped and saute' till light brown add tomato paste. Fry for around 2 minutes.

Add at the end with Burgundy wine to the large saucepan...

Cover cook on low for at least 3 to 4 hours. If you use a crock pot set around 8 hours......

Serve with your favorite pasta boiled separately in salt water

You will also find on this site... Stuffed meat rolls, braciole....this can be added to this sauce also. Here is how we start off our Sunday morning, and usually eat these meatballs for breakfast.....see video below.....enjoy!

Italian Style Barbecued Pulled Pork Sandwich in the Crockpot with Bourbon Barbecue Sauce

Italian Style Roasted Pulled Pork

2 to 3 pound pork tenderloin

1 cup of white wine

1/4 teas salt and pepper

1/4 teas garlic powder

Pour wine over pork in a crockpot or (roasting pan for oven cook on 300 for 1/2 hour per pound) and cover on low for 6 to 8 hours. Pull apart with two fork. Make sauce below or put your favorite barbecue sauce over pork, serve with French rolls.

Sauce for topping the pork:

1/2 teas garlic powder
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 cups ketchup
1/3 cup vinegar
1/2 cup brown sugar, packed firmly
3/4 cup molasses
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/4 cup tomato paste
2 teaspoons liquid smoke
1/2 teaspoon Tabasco sauce (or to taste) or 1/4 teas of cayenne pepper
1/2 cup Bourbon  of choice

Directions:
Combine the garlics with the whiskey (start with a small amount... you can always add more to taste) in a large saucepan; cook until translucent. Add remaining ingredients; bring to a boil.
Simmer for 20 minutes. Pour over pork. Serve on French rolls......

Mediterranean Chicken with Wine Recipe

Here is a great sauce that goes well with chicken. This is bursting with freshness. Mushrooms, peppers, capers, celery, olives and a little white wine.  All will compliment kind of pasta or rice you serve this with. We love to serve this over a penne pasta tossed with garlic and olive oil. Sprinkled heavy with grating cheese.

Mediterranean Chicken with Wine

6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil first cold pressed

8 skinless boneless chicken breasts

1 1/2 pounds of baby bella mushrooms some whole some sliced

2 bell peppers sliced and 1 stalk celery cut up

1 1/2 cups of low sodium chicken broth

1/3 cups Kalamata olives

4 ripe plum tomatoes cut up

1 1/2 cups canned whole tomatoes pulsed still chunky
2 tablespoons tomato paste

3 tablespoon chopped fresh garlic

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

2 fresh basil leaves

1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

3 tablespoons fresh parsley

1/2 teaspoons oregano

1 tablespoons of capers optional

3 tablespoons toasted pine nuts

grated cheese, crumbled feta cheese

3 tablespoon of butter

1/2 cup white wine

Preheat oven to 270 degrees. In a large skillet on high, heat 3 tablespoons oil with chopped garlic . Sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper add chicken to skillet cook till brown around 4 minutes each side. Put into ovenproof baking dish and put in oven to keep warm. Remove oil from pan.

Add the remaining oil to same skillet on high add mushrooms all veggies, cayenne pepper and garlic powder and saute till brown 3 minutes. Add broth boil 5 minutes, add olives, tomatoes, wine, capers and paste . Boil till liquid is reduced around 7 minutes. Add butter, salt and pepper to taste. Spoon mushroom mixture over chicken sprinkle with pine nuts return to oven around 1/2 hour, sprinkle with grated cheese and feta and serve.

Goes well with plain with some crusty bread,  over rice, egg noodles, also a great side is penne with garlic, oil and grating cheese.

Homemade Gnocchi (Potato Pasta)

A potato dumpling pasta. My brothers John and Luke named these little pasta shapes, sinkers as kids. They really are a heavy pasta. No one leaves the table feeling hungry. They are worth the extra time to make, and through these generations to our children a well loved pasta in our family.

I use to call them sticky macaroni. That was what I thought they were, and when they came out great they stuck to the roof of my mouth....if they didn't they weren't right....lol

Rolling them out like ropes and cutting them are so simple. Once you cut the one inch pieces, just take a fork and roll the piece of dough towards you to leave a pocket inside and roll up towards you quickly using lots of flour. It takes a few tries.

Then after these are done, add a sheet of wax paper, dust your cookie sheets with flour and cook or freeze them till firm then put into bags.

This is a potato pasta, Margaret Ann Fanelli Colenzo and Grandma Ferraro Colenzo made for many holidays, eventually we all helped out as the families grew larger. As the years went on she even adapted a quicker recipe by using instant mashed potatoes so we could have them more often, as these take alot of time. This is a favorite in our house and no longer do we wait for holidays.... My brothers, John, Luke and their children love these and make them also, the traditions live on.....through all of us. We called them the sticky macaroni as kids!

You will need a big pot of Traditional Sunday meat sauce and plenty of good grade pecorino romano grating cheese, topping it all off with a good bottle of Chianti, this is a great dish ...... oh and did I mention my very favorite~

 Potato Gnocchi....(Potato Dumpling Pasta

Potato Pasta dough

4 cups of mashed potatoes made fresh (potatoes that are soft and don't leave lumps are recommended such as still slightly warm

4 cups of all purpose flour (more for rolling and adapting to the amount of moisture in the potato, have a 5 lb bag on hand)yukon gold or white creamy potatoes.

2 tablespoons butter

1/2 teaspoon salt
Mix in a large bowl making sure to add more flour if the dough is too sticky.

On a large floured board, roll out long ropes. Slice in one inch pieces. With your index and middle finger, roll each piece of dough toward you or use a fork, rolling the dough towards you to make lines.

Put rolled gnocchi onto floured cookie sheets, keep adding flour not to clump them on top of each other or stick, you can stack by layering them with wax paper sheets between them.

When the sheet is full freeze them completely, unless you are ready to have them . When frozen put into bags and refreeze for future use.

These don't usually make the freezer, but if you want to make them ahead of time for an occasion they freeze very well.

In a big saucepan large enough to house the amount you want to cook, fill pan with water, add a 1/2 teaspoon of salt, when the water comes to a boil add gnocchi, when they float to the top they are done.

Top with your favorite sauce and grated cheese. Enjoy!

Printable Recipe

Vegetable Quiche Low Fat

 .

*1 package of refrigerated crescent roll


1 cup egg beaters or 4 eggs
1/4 cup frozen chopped spinach drained and squeezed
1/4 cup of canned artichoke hearts chopped rinsed
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/8 teaspoon of cayenne pepper or black pepper
1/2 teaspoon grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 cup fat free half and half or fat free evaporated milk
1 cup of 2% grated Swiss, Monterrey or mozzarella cheese
In a greased 9x9 pan spread crescent rolls on bottom of pan. Bake for 7 minutes in over 400.
In the meantime, pour in a bowl the egg beaters, all spices, half an half, cheeses. Add vegetables at the end. Pour over crescent rolls and bake in over at 400 till browned. Serve warm.
*Optional you can use pre made frozen crust, or phyllo dough. Also, you can make individual ones in cupcake tins and freeze.
Suggestions of vegetables in combination chopped: Mushrooms, shredded zucchini, roasted peppers, chopped tomato,green peppers, jalapenos, chopped fine broccoli...
For Meat lovers :

If you want to add chopped ham, turkey bacon or Italian or breakfast sausage, regular eggs and cheeses, all can be substituted instead of low fat recipe.

Grandma's Soft Italian Wedding Cookies with Frosting (Wedding Tray Cookies)

Mom's and Grandma's special recipe handed down from generation to generation. You will often find this soft frosted cookies on large trays at Italian weddings and other Italian functions. Very versatile, flavored any way you like them. I love to tint them at Christmas in green or pink for the holiday.

Italian Wedding Tray Cookies

3/4 cup butter

1/2 cup sugar

3 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla

2 tablespoon lemon, almond, vanilla or anise extract

3 cups flour

1 tablespoon baking powder

Mix all ingredients in a bowl, drop on cookies sheets by teaspoons. Bake at 350 till brown around 8 to 12 minutes. The tops will look dry and the bottoms will be brown. Cool frost add colored sprinkles.

Frosting:

2 1/2 cup confectioners (powdered) sugar

3 tablespoons butter softened

1 teaspoons of extract of your choice above

2 to 3 tablespoons water to mix

Mix adding more water if this is too thick to spread, add more powdered sugar if it's too thin.. beat till smooth.

Grandma Victoria Ferraro Colenzo's (heavy scratch cake)

This is a heavy almost pound cake texture. Growing up our Grandma used ingredients that were always around....the sweet smell of the the citrus peels left to dry out on top of the gas stove all day in the winter time....was absolutely wonderful......

Serve with fresh fruit, whipped cream, pudding, or just powdered sugar.

1 1/2 cups sugar

1/2 cup shortening
Beat till light around 15 minutes
Add 1 teaspoons of vanilla, fresh lemon, fresh orange and grated peels from both.
Add 2 eggs beating after each addtion
Add 2 1/4 cups sifted flour
2 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt

Beat together into creamed mixture alternately with 1 cup milk plus 2 tab milk.

Bake into 2 greased and floured 9 inch pans at 375 for 20 minutes.

Crema pasticcera Grandma Victoria Ferraro Colenzo's Creme Pudding (Easter)

 Italian Creme (Crema pasticcera) Pudding

 pictured . Our grandma lived to be 92 years old  and born Rome, Italy. She would make this  traditionally at Easter.

Vanilla Cream

6 egg yolks beaten
2 cups milk
2 tab of butter melted
1 full piece of orange peel (optional)

3/4 cup sugar

6 tablespoons of flour
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract

Melt butter in pan add flour stir till smooth no ,lumps.. add milk, beaten egg yolks, sugar, butter, peel, vanilla...stir constantly until thick and creamy, if it gets too thick add a little more milk. Remove immediately from pot as it will continue to cook and then pour into a bowl. Cool with a piece of wax paper over the top and a teaspoon of sugar this will keep the skin from forming on top....

Chocolate Version

1 ¼ cups whole milk
2 oz. semi-sweet, melted
3 egg yolks
¼ cup granulated sugar
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons cocoa powder
2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons cornstarch
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

In a small saucepan, warm the milk over low heat until warmed. After this milk is warming, whisk together the egg yolks, sugar, flour, cocoa powder, and cornstarch again the trick is to keep this completely smooth.

Add the melted chocolate to it and whisk until it is fully incorporated into the milk. Add half of the chocolate milk, stir constantly, to the egg mixture. Add the milk and eggs back into the hot milk, continue stirring quickly, and heat it for 1-2 minutes, cook until it is very thick. Remove from the heat, stir in the vanilla extract, and follow same instructions on top to keep the skin off.

Italian Sambuca or Rum Cake

Sambuca in coffee and cake. A great dessert to the

ending of any Italian meal. Growing up this was a quick and easy dessert to serve and the coffee was the perfect pairing. This is an was a quick and easy version. Mom usually made from scratch and later adapted with using a mix.

Italian Black coffee and Anisette every Sunday was a tradition in our house.

1 18 oz box yellow cake mix with pudding in mix

4 eggs

1/2 cup evaporated milk, regular milk or water

1/2 cup oil

1/2 cup of Sambuca or Dark Rum.

******Make glaze when cake is almost done below:

1/2 cup butter

1/2 cup water

1 cup sugar

1/2 cup Sambuca or Dark Rum simmer 5 minutes

Mix all ingredients in a bowl till thick and well blended. Pour into greased bundt pan. Bake at 325 until brown. About an hour, turn onto a deep pan 13x9x2 inch, lined with wax paper and poke holes in cake. Pour glaze over cake and cool, transfer to plate. Serve with freshly whipped heavy cream sweetened, or just plain.

Cake keeps well for days.

Breakfast Baked Pancake!

2 cups all purpose biscuit mix (recommended Bisquick)

1/2 teaspoons cinnamon

1/4 teaspoons nutmeg

1 cup milk

2 eggs

1 cup chopped apples

fully cooked breakfast sausages



Mix all ingrediants in a bowl except sausages, spread batter in a 13x9 pan and add them to the top of batter.... Bake at 400 for 30 to 35 minutes or till brown......

Option:

Fresh blueberries can be used instead of apples or if preferred can do both, one of each over half the batter.

Serve while warm, top with syrup and butter.

Corn Fritter Doughnuts

Simple and delicious you will get addicted to these delicate little fritters....hard to resist!

Corn Fritter Doughnuts

2 cups flour

1 tablespoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

4 tablespoons sugar

2 eggs

1 cup milk

4 tablespoons melted butter

1 cup canned corn

powdered sugar to sprinkle on these:

Mix everything in a bowl except for corn fold in last...

Drop by tablespoons in a deep fryer for at least 5 minutes or till browned.

Sprinkle with powdered sugar serve warm....

Biscotti Anisette Italian Cookie Recipe

New Photo in 2015
Grandma was 94 when she passed away. A real old fashioned almost bread like Italian hard dunkin cookie. These are so good. We have them always ready for company. It makes a good amount to freeze in loaves and have in a quick instant when company arrives. Don't forget to serve that demitasse black Italian coffee, that was her favorite along with a shot of anisette liqueur and actual sugar cubes... wow do I miss her!

Perfect for Gift Giving around the Holiday!

New Photo in 2015

                                                     My photo from back in 2009

An easy cookie really twice baked...after making large loaves on a cookie sheet, you'll cut these while warm, and put them bake in the oven to toast....very easy and traditional...a cookie that never grows old. If you don't like anisette flavoring....try another flavor, add hazelnuts, chips. Biscotti is a versatile cookie, and this basic dough will get you to any favorites. You can even dip each end in different chocolates, white, milk, dark, colors, then drizzle white chocolate over the top, to look like the many bakery favorites. I have made them many ways, but this is the old time original....the only one grandma would make...

By the way..these are great dunkers for cappuccino....

Anisette Cookies......

6 eggs ( 1 more for later to brush on top)

1 cup oil

1 1/2 cup sugar

2 teaspoon pure anise extract

4 1/2 cups flour

1/2 teas salt

6 teaspoon of baking powder

Mix all in a bowl to form a stiff dough. On a greased cookie sheet form two loaves in thin width shapes of a torpedo, brush with one beaten egg ( if you love anisette flavor add another teaspoon to the egg wash). Bake at 350 until brown.

 Take out of oven cool, for 5 minutes, slice cookies on a slant, put bake on the cookie sheet, bake again until toasted......

***Optional: At Christmas time, we like to dip the bottoms or the ends in  melted chocolate. Just melt chocolate chips in the microwave for a minute at a time till smooth. Dip the ends in chocolate, or the whole bottom of the cookie. You can also add sprinkles, colored sugars for a festive look..

Blueberry Crumb Muffins

Another one of those breakfast foods great for anytime. Blueberries are in abundance right now and in June, I have to make good use of them while they are fresh. These blueberries were so sweet and delicious, they never needed any sugar and I can never eat enough while in season. Of course I freeze them for fall. They grew everywhere wild and over a very large fields when I lived in Upstate NY, and we would pick them, very seldom anything left by the time I got back. We would try and find as many as we could but instead of filling my bowl, I filled my tummy.....good times back then. Fond memories.

The fresh blueberries make fabulous, pies, cakes and muffins. So as I grew up, anything but fresh was not an option.

These are one of my favorites, quick and easy, with a crumb topping.

The batter very thick, you don't want to over mix as these are really a light muffin, and the texture will be thick and chewy if you over stir the mixture. So remember to just fold in the blueberries at the end for a tender muffin.

In a large bowl mix:

1/4 cup of sugar

1/4 cup of shortening

beat in :

1 egg

Add:

1 3/4 cup cake flour

3 teaspoons of baking powder

a pinch of salt

Alternate:

1 cup of milk to wet the dry ingredients.

Fold in one cup of fresh blueberries

Line muffin cup pan with paper liners, fill to 3/4 full. Add crumb topping (below) on top, bake at 350 around 20 minutes.

Crumb Topping:

1/4 cup brown sugar

2 tablespoons cinnamon

1/4 flour

mix together till well blended.

Seafood Nacho's

Seafood Nacho's


Ingredients:
1 large (16-ounce) bag corn tortilla chips

2 cups shredded sharp Cheddar

2 cups shredded Monteray Jack Pepper Cheese

1 tablespoon butter

1 /2 teas garlic powder ,

1/2 pound lump crabmeat or imitation

1/2 pound shrimp chopped up,

1/2 pound scallops,

1 cup heavy cream

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

2 cups grated Parmesan

Salt ,ground black pepper.

1 cup shredded iceberg lettuce, for topping 1 cup salsa, jalapeno slices, for topping Sour cream, for topping
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
In a large baking pan or cast iron pan place a layer of the tortilla chips and cover with the shredded Cheddar and Pepper Jack cheeses. Bake the chips for 2 to 3 minutes, or until the cheeses are melted. Remove the dish from the oven and set aside.
In a large saute pan over medium-high heat, melt the butter and saute with garlic powder until soft. Add the crabmeat, shrimp, and scallops and saute for 3 minutes.
Add the cream, garlic powder, Parmesan, salt and pepper, to taste, to the seafood and stir for 2 to 3 minutes, until the sauce has thickened.
Remove the seafood mixture from the heat and pour over the tortilla chips. Top the nachos with shredded lettuce, salsa, jalapenos, and sour cream. Serve immediately.

Italian Style Beer Batter Fish

Beer Batter for Fish

2 pounds of  white fish of choice fillets snook, cod, haddock, walleye, perch, shrimp, scallops, tilapia, redfish.

Batter

1 cup of all purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1/2 tsp of each, parsley, oregano, basil

2 tablespoons of paprika

2 teaspoons salt

2 teaspoons black pepper

1/4 teaspoon of cayenne pepper

1 egg

1 12 ounce can or bottle of beer

2 quarts of cooking oil for frying: heat to around 375

Combine all dry ingredients, add egg then beer. Dip fish in batter and fry in hot oil.

Drain on paper towels.

Carrot Cake taste like a scratch cake!

Oldie but extreme goodie! Carrot Cake. They'll never know it starts with a mix! Perfect anytime and I like to think it's healthier since it's made with a vegetable  ( smiling) !  Enjoy!

Carrot Cake taste like a scratch cake!

1 pkg of spice cake or carrot cake mix

2 cups of shredded carrots

1 8oz can of crushed pineapple drained

Topping

1/2 cup of shredded coconut (I like mine toasted, just spread on parchment paper and put in the oven on 350 degree until browned)

1/4 chopped finely chopped raisins
1/2 cup chopped pecans set aside

Frosting:

1 8oz tub of whipped topping

2 pkg of cream cheese

2 cups of confectionery sugar

Heat oven to 350*. Make cake as directed on package stirring in carrots and drained pineapple. 
Note: If you love pecans or walnuts and raisins, fold in 1/2 cup of each at this step

Pour into a 13x9 pan that has been greased. (You can also use two 8 inch well greased cake pans. Fill between layers with frosting and toppings) Bake 25 minutes. Cool.

Beat cream cheese and sugar with a mixer until well blended, add whipped topping.

Spread over cooled cake and top with mixture of nuts, coconut and raisins. Keep refrigerated.

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