Pumpkin Pie Biscotti

Ingredients:

• 3-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1-1/2 cups firmly packed brown sugar
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
• 1/2 cup mashed canned pumpkin
• 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 2 tablespoons butter or margarine
• 1-1/4 cup macadamia nuts, coarsely chopped

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 F.
   
2. Combine flour, brown sugar, baking powder, salt, and pumpkin pie spice in a large bowl; stir well. In another bowl, combine pumpkin, eggs, and vanilla, stirring well with a wire whisk.
   
3. Slowly add pumpkin mixture to flour mixture, stirring until dry ingredients are moistened. (Mixture will be very crumbly; it will gradually become moist after stirring.)
   
4. Melt butter in a large skillet over medium heat; add macadamia nuts. Cook, stirring constantly, until nuts are browned. Remove from heat and cool completely. Knead or gently stir cooled nuts into dough.
   
5. Place dough on a lightly floured surface and divide into 4 portions. Lightly flour hands and shape each portion into a 1 x 15" long log. Place logs 3" apart on lightly greased cookie sheets.
   
6. Bake for 23 minutes; cool logs 15 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 300. Cut each log diagonally into 1/2" slices using a serrated knife. Place slices on ungreased cookie sheets. Bake for 15 minutes.
   
7. Cool completely on wire racks.

Strawberry Butter

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup butter
• 1/4 cup confectioners sugar
• 1/4 cup strawberry or favorite fruit preserves (I used fresh chopped strawberries)

Directions:

1. In a small bowl, combine butter, sugar and preserves.
2. Using an electric mixer, beat at medium speed until fluffy.
3. Store in container with tight-fitting lid in refrigerator up to two weeks. Makes 3/4 cup.

Wiggly Pumpkins

Ingredients:

• 2 packages (6 ounces each) orange gelatin
• 2-1/2 cups boiling water
• 1 cup cold milk
• 1 package (3.4 ounces) instant vanilla pudding mix
• Candy corn
• Black licorice and/or gumdrops
  

Directions:

1. Dissolve gelatin in water; set aside for 30 minutes.
2. Whisk milk and pudding mix until smooth, about 1 minute. Quickly pour into gelatin; whisk until well blended.
3. Pour into an oiled 13-in. x 9-in. pan. Chill until set.
4. Cut into circles or use a pumpkin-shaped cookie cutter.
5. Just before serving, add candy eyes and mouths.

Yield: 14-16 servings.

Pumpkin Cheese Ball

Ingredients:

• 1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese, softened
• 1 carton (8 ounces) spreadable chive and onion cream cheese
• 2 cups (8 ounces) shredded sharp cheddar cheese
• 2 teaspoons paprika
• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1 celery rib or broccoli stalk
• Sliced apples and assorted crackers
  
  

Directions:

1. In a small bowl, beat cream cheeses until smooth.
2. Stir in the cheddar cheese, paprika and cayenne.
3. Shape into a ball; wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for 4 hours or until firm.
4. With a knife, add vertical lines to the cheese ball to resemble a pumpkin; insert a celery rib or broccoli stalk for the stem.
5. Serve with apples and crackers.

Yield: 2-1/2 cups.

Chunky Crockpot Applesauce

Ingredients:

• 10 large apples (I use Cortland), peeled, cored and chunked
• 1/2 cup water
  
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 cup - 1 cup sugar.
  

Directions:

1. Put all ingredients in crockpot. Add water, cinnamon and sugar. Cook on HI 4-5 hours or on LOW for 8-10 hours.
   

Crockpot Apple Butter

Ingredients:

• Fill crock pot full of chopped apples.
• 4 cups sugar, or less
• 4 tsp cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp cloves
  

Directions:

1. Drizzle over apples. Cook 1 hour on HIGH. Lower heat. Cook until smooth (9-11 hours).
   

Cookies & Creme Pudding Pops

Ingredients:

• 1 pkg (3 oz.) chocolate instant pudding
• 2 cups cold milk
• 6 oreo cookies
• 1/2 cup thawed cool whip
  

Directions:

1. Beat pudding mix and milk in large bowl with whisk 2 minutes.
2. Place cookies in resealable bag; seal bag. Use rolling pin to crush cookies.
3. Add cookies and cool whip to pudding; stir until just blended.
4. Spoon into 9 small paper or plastic cups.
5. Insert wooden popsicle stick or plastic spoon into each for handle. Freeze 5 hours or until firm.

These are delicious! The kids (& grownups) love them!

Fruit Pizza

Ingredients:

• 1 (18oz) pkg. refrigerated sugar cookie dough
• 1 (8oz) pkg. cream cheese, softened
• 1 (8oz) container whipped topping, thawed

• 2 cups sliced strawberries

• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 1 pinch salt
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch
• 1/2 cup orange juice
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1/4 cup water
• 1/2 teaspoon orange zest

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Slice cookie dough and arrange on greased pizza pan, overlapping edges. Press dough flat into pan. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes. Allow to cool.
2. In a large bowl, soften cream cheese, then fold in the whipped topping. Spread over cooled crust. You can chill for a while at this point, or continue by arranging the fruit.
3. Begin with strawberries, sliced in half. Arrange in a circle around the outside edge. Continue with fruit of your choice, working towards the middle. If bananas are used, dip them in lemon juice so they don't darken. Then make a sauce to spoon over fruit.
4. In a saucepan, combine sugar, salt, corn starch, orange juice, lemon juice and water. Cook and stir over medium heat. Bring to a boil, and cook for 1 or 2 minutes, until thickened. Remove from heat, and add grated orange rind. Allow to cool, but not set up. Spoon over fruit. Chill for two hours, then cut into wedges and serve.

Serves: 8

Nacho Cheese Dip

Ingredients:

• 2 lbs. Velveeta Cheese, cubed
• 8 oz. sour cream
• 2 cans cream of chicken soup
• 1 - 16oz picante sauce
• 1 lb. (hamburger, sausage or combination of both)
  

Directions:

1. Brown meat; drain
2. Combine meat with remaining ingredients.
3. Place in crock pot; cook on low until cheese is melted.
4. Serve warm with tortilla chips.
   

Fruit Pizza

Ingredients & Directions

Crust:

• Pillsbury Sugar Cookie Dough
• Roll out and bake on round stone or pizza pan at 350 for 15 minutes. (I use a jelly roll pan)
• Sauce: 8oz Cream Cheese
• ½ cup sugar
• 1 Tbl milk
• Beat and spread on crust

Toppings:

• Cut up fruit arrange on top, sliced strawberries, sliced kiwi, sliced bananas, pineapple pieces, mandarin oranges, blueberries.

Glaze:

• 2 Tbl cornstarch
• ½ cup of mandarin orange juice
• ¼ cup of pineapple juice or lemon juice
• ¼ cup water
• ½ cup sugar

Cook until clear and thick. Pour over pizza.

Honey Snack Mix

Ingredients:

• 1 package (10 oz) honey-flavored Teddy Grahams
• 3 cups Honeycomb cereal
• 1½ cups Reese's pieces
• 1 cup chocolate-covered raisins
  

Directions:

1. In a large bowl, combine all ingredients. Store in an airtight container.
2. Yield: 9 cups

This is a wonderful mix to eat when traveling. I even brought it to the beach in Florida for a snack (we kept it in the cooler so the chocolate didn't melt.)

Apple-Raisin Ladybug

Ingredients:

• 2 lettuce leaves (we don't use them)
• 1 medium apple, quartered and cored
• creamy peanut butter
• Raisins
• 5 red grapes
  

Directions:

1. Place lettuce leaves on plates. (I skip this step)
2. Arrange two apple quarters, peel side up. (I like to spread a little peanut butter between the quarters, to help them stick together better)
3. Use dabs of peanut butter to place raisins in the space between the apple quarters.
4. Place one grape at the stem end of the apple for head.
5. For legs, cut remaining grapes lengthwise into 4 pieces; place three on each side of ladybugs.
6. Place small dabs of peanut butter on remaining raisins; press onto apple for spots.

Makes 2 servings

Ladybug Appetizers

Ingredients:

• 2 oz cream cheese, softened
• 2 Tbsp. sour cream
• 1/2 tsp. snipped chives
• 1/8 tsp. minced parsley
• 1/8 tsp. garlic salt
• Black paste food coloring
• 36 butter-flavored crackers
• 18 cherry tomatoes, quartered
• 18 large pitted ripe olives
• 72 fresh chive pieces (about 1 1/2" long)
  

Directions:

1. In small bowl, beat cream cheese until smooth. Add sour cream, chives, parsley, and garlic salt; mix well.
2. Place 1 Tbsp. in small bag, tint black; set aside.
3. Spread remaining cream cheese mixture onto crackers.
4. Arrange two tomato quarters on each cracker for ladybug wings.
5. For heads, halve the olives width wise; place one half on each cracker.
6. Insert 2 chives into olives for antennae.
7. Use tinted cream cheese to pipe spots on wings.

Makes 3 dozen. Instead of making the cream cheese mixture I have used Garden Vegt Cheese Spread, or French Onion Dip. I rarely add the antennae, and our kids still know its a ladybug!

Peanut Butter Balls

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup peanut butter
• 3 1/2 Tbsp. non-fat powdered milk
• a bit of honey
  

Directions:

1. Mix together and roll into balls.

2. Store in the refrigerator.

3. Optional: roll in wheat germ, coconut, brown sugar, etc.

I know peanut butter is a "NO NO" with the salmonella scare right now, but when that passes these are so yummy and so healthy. These were a favorite of mine as a child, especially rolled in wheat germ!! Mom would make a Tupperware full and we'd snack on them for several days.

Peanut Butter Honeybees

Ingredients:

• 1/2 c. creamy peanut butter
• 2 Tbsp. butter, softened
• 1/2 c. powdered sugar
• 3/4 c. graham cracker crumbs (about 12 squares)
• 1 square (1 oz) semisweet chocolate
• 1/3 c. sliced almonds, toasted
  

Directions:

1. In mixing bowl, cream peanut butter, butter and sugar until smooth.
2. Add graham cracker crumbs; mix well.
3. Shape teaspoonfuls of dough into 1 1/4" ovals; place on waxed paper-lined baking sheet.
4. Melt choc in microwave; high for about 1 minute. Transfer to resealable plastic bag; cut a small hole in corner of bag.
5. Pipe three stripes on each bee.
6. Insert two almonds into each bee for wings.
7. Use a tooth pick to poke holes for eyes.
8. Store in refrigerator.

Makes about 4 dozen

Carmel Crispex

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup real butter
• 1 cup brown Sugar
• 3 TB white syrup
• 6 cups crispix cereal
• 2 cups pretzels
• 1-1/2 cups mixed nuts
  

Directions:

1. In a large bowl, combine the cereal, pretzels and nuts. Set aside. (I use a big roasting pan, especially if I'm making a double batch. You need to have something large enough to be able to stir it all up in.)
2. Bring butter, sugar and syrup to a boil, stirring so it doesn't burn. Pour over cereal mixture and mix completely. Spread onto a greased jelly roll pan and bake at 275* for 20 minutes. (If you make a double batch, you'll need more than one jelly roll pan. It needs to be in a single layer.) Let cool and break apart.

Recipe from Becky K in Appleton.

Cheese Ball

Ingredients:

• 2 - 8 oz. pkg. of cream cheese
• 1 - 8 oz. pkg of sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
• 1 teaspoon each, pimento, green pepper and onion diced finely
• 1 teaspoon worchestershire sauce
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice
• chopped pecans
  

Directions:

1. Mix first 5 ingredients together well. Roll into ball and then into chopped pecans. I find that it is easier to form into a ball using wax paper. Then I use another peice of wax paper for the pecans and just roll ball into the pecans until evenly coated. Wrap in saran wrap and chill. Serve with crackers.
   

Fruit Dip

Ingredients:

• one jar of Marshmallow cream
• 8 oz. cream cheese
  

Directions:

1. Beat these two ingredients together with mixer.
2. Serve with fruit of any kind. We prefer apples, strawberries, and pineapple.

This dip is good enough to eat by the spoonfuls and so simple. Enjoy!

Apple Dip

Ingredients:

• 1 pkg cream cheese
• 1 C. brown sugar
• 1 tsp. vanilla
  

Directions:

1. Mix together and serve with apples.
   

Wheat Thin Cracker Dip

Ingredients:

• 3 pkgs Corned Beef - cut into small pieces
• 3 pkgs light or fat free cream cheese - cut into 1 inch squares
• 3 tsp. worchestershire sauce
• 1 tsp. Bon Appetit Seasoning
  

Directions:

1. Mix all together and serve with crackers of choice - best with Wheat Thins