In all honesty, I never saw my mom make this…I have never had this…but OMG, this is right up my alley, and likely was made for my dad (who was a big peanut butter fan).

I just can’t imagine this not working — it has brownies (you don’t have to even do them from scratch, you can totally just plop a box mix in a pan and move on with your life) — it has cream cheese and peanut butter!  Drool!

And did I mention it was easy to make? No cooking, no freezing — just cool the brownies.  Honestly! And if you have a little cupcake corer, you can make these into delightful little self contained treats.

Peanut Butter Brownie Cheese Cake

• 1 box Brownie Mix
• ¾ cup Hot Fudge (warm) (Make the Holy Hot Fudge or just get a jar, either way works)
• 2 8oz pkgs Cream Cheese
• ½ cup Crunchy Peanut Butter (or smooth)
• 1 14oz can Sweetened Condensed Milk
• 1 ½ cup Whipped Cream
• 2 TBL Powdered Sugar
• 4 Peanut Butter Cups
• 2 TBL Chocolate Syrup (or more hot fudge)

Instructions:

Prepare Brownies according to the box.  Cool and cut into small squares and press into a springform pan (reserving enough for topping. Cover with ½ cup hot fudge. 

Beat cream cheese, peanut butter, and sweetened condensed milk together.  Set aside.

Add powdered sugar to the cream.  Whip cream, reserve 1/2 cup.  Stir the rest of the cream into the cream cheese mixture.  

Spread cream cheese mixture over hot fudge.  Sprinkle with remaining brownies and chopped peanut butter cups.  Top with reserved whipped cream, and drizzle with chocolate syrup or more hot fudge.

Before you judge…a) I’m a white girl and b) I can’t get my hands on Cojita Cheese regularly.  That is likely my problem, which stems from the fact that I am not going to grocery stores with the Omicron variant of COVID-19 currently cutting swaths through the vaccinated population like a hot knife through butter.  WHICH MEANS when you put in an order for grocery delivery (which, omg, before COVID I would have thought that was such a luxury…and now, it is the only way I get groceries), anyway, you are at the mercy of the shopper!  If they go late in the day, no Cojita.  Also, no ham, or distilled water, or powdered sugar (welcome to the holidays with supply chain issues).

This is so much better with cojita…that being said, it is uber forgiving.  It is cheese and corn, how could it not be amazing?  So if you must, and you’re a white girl who can’t get her hands on the right cheese you can totally use cottage cheese and the recipe (while disdainful) will totally get it and be like, “I can work with this.”  

Elote Corn Casserole

• 1 cup Mayo
• 1.5 TBL Chili Powder
• 2 cloves of Garlic, minced (or more, measure that with your heart)
• 1 lime zest 
• 1 squeeze of lime juice (½ tsp)
• ½ cup cottage cheese (drained) — you can also use cojita or feta or goat cheese
• 3 oz Parmesan cheese, grated
• 1 bunch of scallions (more or less to taste)
• 5 cups of frozen corn

Directions:

Heat oven to 425 degrees.  Spray a casserole dish with cooking spray.  It is up to you the shape and size of that dish.  I like my corn thick and creamy, my wife likes it thinner and crispier…so we trade off what pan we use when.

Mix mayo, chili powder, garlic, zest, lime juice, and cottage cheese in a large bowl — mix well.

Add scallions and corn and mix until all the corn is well coated.

Put half the mix in the casserole dish, cover with Parmesan.  Add the second half on top of the first, cover with Parmesan. 

Cook for 40 minutes, and be sure to get a helping before it disappears!

I remember HATING these cookies as a child…why?  Well, as an adult, I can’t really recall, because I made them and ate them; and they were AMAZING!

The carrots added some wonderful depth to the sweetness of the cookies, and the orange icing adds a tartness that really makes this cookie a worthy addition to any Christmas exchange (yeah, I do them too).

Pro Tip: Don’t cook your carrots, no one does that anymore.  Instead, get a can of sliced cooked carrots and drain them.  Wham-bam, done. 

Also, as an aside, I’ve always wondered what peopled used those canned cooked carrots for…and lately I’ve been finding all sorts of uses!  And really they aren’t much different from just cooking your own.  I mean, yeah, there is a little bit of a “tin can” taste, but you pick your battles.  My battle is not cooking carrots, that battle is stupid – it take forever and frustrates me.  It may not be the same for you, so do what you feel.  I am a HUGE proponent of doing what you feel.

Carrott Cookies (Carrot)

½ cup Shortening (I used Crisco Butter Flavored)

1 cup Sugar

1 Egg (unbeaten)

2 cups Flour

2 tsp Baking Powder

Pinch Salt

1 cup Cooked Mashed Carrots

½ tsp Vanilla

Directions:

Cream shortening and sugar.  Add egg and beat well.

Sift together flour, baking powder, and salt in another bowl.  Add slowly to the sugar mixture.  

Blend in carrots and vanilla. Mix well.  

Drop from teaspoon onto an ungreased cookie sheet.  Bake at 350 degrees for 10 to 12 minutes.  Makes 5 dozen cookies.  Ice with Orange Icing.

Orange Icing

2 TBL Butter

2 TBL Flour

⅓ cup Orange Juice

1 tsp Grated Orange Peel

1 cup Powdered Sugar

Melt butter, stir in flour, add orange juice and peel.  Simmer over low heat until mixture thickens, stirring constantly.  Remove from heat.  Add powdered sugar, blend until smooth. 

(If you want a more “marmalade” style icing use less powdered sugar.  I did that and it was lovely!)

For all of you that have had my eggs…this is where they originate from.  Now, in all honesty, I think my sister’s eggs are better (she does the low and slow method and they are lovely and silken — they also take forever, and I know that I am not a patient cook), but I wouldn’t be bragging to say my eggs give her a run for her money.

Anyway, a long time ago, I found this recipe in my mom’s pile of recipes and asked her about it…she used to make it a lot, and I remember this being one of the things she would cook and take when we went down to the farm or were going on a family vacation. It is easy, reheats well, and is 100% customizable.  

Feel free to cut this in half! I did and got 12 egg bites out of it and was able to get 3 of 4 different flavors each! VARIETY!

Warning about his recipe:

Note that this recipe has NO SPICES! Not even salt and pepper!

This is a damn shame — jack cheese doesn’t really add much by way of flavor, so don’t depend on that to save this.  It is up to you to open your spice rack and go to town.

German Baked Eggs

1 Dozen Eggs

1 lb. Monterey Jack Cheese (shredded)

2 Cups Cottage Cheese

1 tsp Baking Powder

1 Stick melted Butter or Margarine

Directions:

Mix all ingredients in a large bowl.  Pour into 9×13 pan.  Bake at 350 degrees for 35-40 minutes or until the eggs are set and the top is light brown.

Suggestions:

Make this in cupcake pans for easy individual breakfast treats.

Add crumbled bacon or cooked spinach or even bread to give it a delicious twist.

Switch up the cheese — Swiss never hurt anyone and melts amazingly (oh, and with ham that would be a dream), Colby for those finicky eaters, and some real stinky blue if you want to really go out on a limb. 

Add ½ tsp curry powder, ½ tsp onion powder, a generous amount of pepper, and ½ tsp garlic powder if you want these to taste like mine.   Also, use intense cheddar cheese!

BTW! These freeze amazingly well! Pop 2 of them in a snack baggie, throw them in the freezer and when you need them microwave them for 1 to 2 minutes (depending on your microwave). They really are on par with the egg bites you can get from the grocery store and famous coffee shops.

And all I got was this silly post. And a new house with a pool!

My site is fixed y’all, and I’m so exited to talk about FOOD and writing, in that order!

Welcome back to my site that has been sooooo broken for so long!

Special thanks to Meriah for getting it fixed! You are the MOST awesome!

This is THE recipe, well, one version of THE recipe — THE CUSTARD RECIPE!  See, when I was growing up custard was one of those amazing treats that I couldn’t get enough of…early on mom made mostly “baked custard” (which I make and post for all you lovely people soon, I promise, but we are low on eggs right now — thanks, Covid-19!).  Baked custard is egg-white goodness, but this custard recipe — the yellow recipe — is full on stovetop egg-yolk goodness.  

While baked custard can stand on its own and you can slice through it right out of the oven…drool…this custard is very much smooth, velvet creaminess that you can just pour into a glass and then let it set up (or eat it immediately, I LOVE hot custard).  

When my mom discovered this custard I remember it — I remember thinking it was a whole new experience in taste and texture, but it was so damn familiar that it just made me smile.  Thus began the, “Which custard do you want?” debate in the house — it was mostly internal, my siblings were already out of the house and my dad would NEVER have fought me for the right to decide which custard we were going to have — but omg, every time I asked mom for custard it was a tough decision.  

I’ll spare you that decision, and just give you the stovetop one for now.  Later we can introduce a contender (again, if we get some eggs). Stay well, and at home if you can!

Custard

• 2 TBL Butter or Margarine
• ¾ cup Corn Starch
• ½ tsp Salt
• 2 cups Milk
• 2 Egg Yolks (beaten)
• 1 tsp Vanilla

In a pot, melt the butter.  Blend in cornstarch, sugar, and salt.  Gradually add the milk. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until mixture thickens and boils. 

Boil for 1 minute.  Temper eggs by pouring a small amount of the milk mixtures into them, whisking constantly, then add the eggs back to the milk mixture — again, whisking constantly.

Boil 1 more minute, stirring constantly. 

Remove from heat, stir in vanilla.  

Place into dessert cups.  Serve WARM or cold…philistine.

Chocoflan

• ¼ cup cajeta — if you don’t have this just make a soft caramel (or melt down some caramels from the store)

Cake:

• 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
• 6 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• ½ cup butter, softened
• 2 ½ tablespoons butter, softened
• 1 cup white sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 tsp Espresso Powder
• 1 cup half and half (or evaporated milk or whole milk)

Flan:

• 2 ½ cups evaporated milk
• 1 (14 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
• 4 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease the base and sides of a 10-inch Bundt pan — the more decorative the better! Now is the time to break out those damn pans that never come out clean no matter what you do!!!

Fill a shallow baking pan with enough water to come 1/3 of the way up the sides of the tube pan. Place water bath in the oven to warm up while it is preheating.

Warm caramel sauce and pour into the prepared tube pan, covering the base completely.

Mix flour, cocoa powder, espresso powder, baking soda, and baking powder together in a bowl and set aside.

Then beat 1/2 cup plus 2 1/2 tablespoons butter in a bowl with an electric mixer until smooth. Add sugar; beat until light and fluffy. Beat in 1 egg. Alternate adding flour mixture and milk, mixing well between additions. Pour cake batter evenly over caramel in the tube pan.

Combine evaporated milk, condensed milk, 4 eggs, and vanilla extract in the bowl of a food processor; blend until smooth. Pour over cake batter through a fine sieve.

Bake in the water bath in the preheated oven until a toothpick inserted into the chocolate cake comes out clean, about 1 hour.

Let cake cool!!!! I didn’t and you see what happened, it split!!!! Carefully run a thin knife around the edges to loosen the cake, cover with a serving plate, and flip onto the plate.

I don’t ever remember my mom making this one, but I do remember the “pick your own” farm down the road. They had asparagus (which we picked A LOT of) and later blueberries — which was not as much fun as it sounded because they had only recently planted those bushes and they were like scrub brush! Lots of bending and back pain, before I finally gave up and just sat on the ground!

This has led to my lifelong love of “pick your own” farms. Some people think it is stupid to pay more to do all the work, but I love being out in the fields. I’ve dragged many friends to pick with me and everyone has had a great time. So if you are looking for something fun to do…go pick, and then afterwards make this pie.

Be warned, the filling won’t take up the whole pie crust (and mine looked ugly)…that is because you are adding 5 cups of blueberries to the top of it. It’ll work out, don’t fret.

Blueberry Cream Pie

Crust:
1 ⅓ cup Vanilla Wafers (crushed)
2 TBL Sugar
5 TBL Butter
½ tsp Vanilla

Filling:
¼ cup Sugar
3 TBL Flour
Pinch of salt
1 cup Half and Half
3 Egg Yolks (beaten)
1 tsp Vanilla
[2 TBL Butter]
1 TBL Confectioners Sugar

Topping:
5 cups Fresh Blueberries
⅔ cup Sugar
1 TBL Cornstarch

Combine 1st 4 ingredients, press into the bottom and sides of an ungreased 9 inch pie pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 8-10 minutes. Cool.

In a saucepan combine flour, sugar, salt. Wisk in cream, cook, stirring often, over medium heat until thick and bubbly. Cook 2 more minutes, stirring often. Wisk ¼ of the cream mixture into beaten egg yolks slowly, wisking constantly (so as not to cook the eggs). Add egg mix back to the pan and bring to a gentle boil. Cook 2 minutes, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Stir in butter and vanilla. Sprinkle with confectioners sugar.

In a medium saucepan bring 2 cups blueberries to a boil. Cook 2 minutes, then remove from heat and immediately press through a strainer. (You should have 1 cup of juice, add water if necessary to get 1 cup — get rid of the pulp.) Combine sugar and cornstarch, and stir it into warm blueberry juice, return to heat and cook until thick and bubbly. Cool 15 minutes. Stir in 3 cup fresh berries. Add to top of pie. Chill 3 hours before serving.

Anyway, her name is Polly PureBread. Full disclosure, I just used plain flour and she came together fine (the recipe above is just fancy with it’s “whole wheat flour” — which I had in the house…why didn’t I use it? I could have been fancy! Dang it!).

Here she is in her infancy:

Here she is coming into her own:

And then she bloomed into the most amazing loaf of bread — next time, though, we cook her in cast iron!

I had so much fun with this, I can’t wait to bake more!

My story about having shrimp goes like this: My mother-in-law and I take a tour of Oahu. We stop at a shrimp truck as part of the tour. She is very unsettled, because it is a TRUCK on the side of the road. Like a panel truck. It looked like they had shoved a kitchen in the back, and called it good. And, me, I’m the food adventurer — but she’s got a point.

Look, I even have an unfortunate picture of a woman who looks like she is having intestinal distress right outside the truck:

But STILL I was all “gimme” and she was more, “Uh — okay, I guess, if I must.” Flash forward: she CLEANED her plate (so did I) and we both literally groaned with pleasure. And THEN the next day she says, “we’ve got a rental car today, perhaps we can go have shrimp on the North Shore”. I LOVE THAT WOMAN!

Since then I have DREAMED of a shrimp that would taste like these…I tried a few recipes, but it was more shrimp scampi and less garlic shrimp. But this one is very, very good and reminds me of the roadside adventure!

Hawaiian Garlic Shrimp

• 1-2 lbs uncooked medium to large peeled shrimp (thawed)
• 1 stick unsalted butter
• ¼ cup olive oil
• 1 tsp bacon grease (optional, but amazing)
• 1 head of garlic (yes, one entire head)
• ½ tsp cayenne pepper 
• 1 ½ tsp smoked paprika
• ¼ cup flour
• 1/4 tsp salt (if not using bacon grease, increase this to ½ tsp salt)

Dice garlic.  Melt butter with olive oil and bacon grease in a saute pan, add garlic.  Cook 2 minutes. 

Mix flour, cayenne pepper, paprika, and salt.  Dredge shrimp in flour mix and place in a single layer in the saute pan.  Cook 3 minutes on each side. 

Serve and die and go to shrimp heaven!!!!