Pumpkin Carrot Bars & Microwave Applesauce

Good evening and come on into the 'Net Porch and have a cup of coffee and one of my new Pumpkin Carrot Bars. I have wanting to bake this for awhile for after making the Sweet Potato Cupcakes, a similar recipe has been running around in my mind. Today I tried it out and it is really good.

I also made applesauce in the microwave to use in the bars for I think that bought applesauce is completely tasteless so try this applesauce to use in the Pumpkin Bars. It is also very good alone as a dessert or I use it as a spread on toast for there is no sugar in it. You can add brown sugar if you like but if the apples are sweet and with the cinnamon you don't miss the sugar. We also like chunky applesauce and I leave the peelings on the apples for the added flavor, color and texture. It is really better with the peelings.

Microwave Chunky Applesauce

4 cups apples in large chunks – washed and peels on - about 6 apples
1 cup dried cranberries
¼ cup freshly squeezed orange juice
zest from orange
1 tsp. Cinnamon
1 tsp apple pie seasoning
grated nutmeg or a couple of pinches

Cut the washed apples in eighths and cut into large chunks. I use the apple slicer for this. Put in microwave proof bowl – I like glass – add the other ingredients and fold together with spatula. Don't over mix and bruise the apples. Cover loosely with plastic wrap – leave a vent – and microwave for about 7 minutes. After 5 min. check and see if tender. Mash with potato masher but leave chunky. I don't add sugar but if you like, add about ¼ cup brown sugar.
Makes about 2 cups applesauce

The apple pie seasoning is new to me but it really adds a great flavor. If you haven't discovered the wonderful, full flavor of grating your own nutmeg you are missing a great experience. It is much better than the ground.

The Pumpkin Carrot Bars are similar to the Sweet Potato Cupcakes and just as good. By adding the grated carrots, you are introducing a little texture and a little bit of vegetable and the added color is very pretty. If you try this, let me know.

Pumpkin Carrot Bars

1 box Betty Crocker Carrot cake mix
½ tsp. Cinnamon
½ tsp. Apple pie seasoning
grated nutmeg or pinch or dried
1 can pumpkin – not the pie mix but plain pumpkin
1 cup applesauce
¼ cup fresh squeezed orange juice or from carton
1 cup dried cranberries
1 cup coarsely grated carrots
1 tsp. Orange flavoring
1 cup chopped pecans
zest from orange – about 1 tsp.

Preheat oven at 350 degrees or 325 for glass dish
Spray 13 x 9 inch pan with cooking spray

In mixer bowl combine cake mix, pumpkin, applesauce, orange juice and carrots and mix on medium speed until mixed well. Add the cranberries and flavoring and mix. Add the pecans and mix by hand until well mixed.
Pour into prepared pan and bake about 25 – 30 minutes or until tested. It make take a little longer according to your oven. Remove from oven, cool on rack in the pan and cut into bars. Can sprinkle with powdered sugar for a little extra sweetness if desired. This will be a dense bar cookie and is good for breakfast with milk or coffee. It is also good reheated and served with additional Chunky Applesauce on top.

If you use my microwaved chunky applesauce, you don't have to add the orange juice, spices or cranberries.

This is a good recipe and I hope you will try it and let me know if something needs tweaking. Would love to hear from you.

Well, the day is drawing to a close, getting later and time to read awhile. I have just finished Michael Palmer's The First Patient and started James Patterson's The 9th Judgement and it is good. Both are books you won't put down until they are finished if you like mysteries.

Ya'll be careful going home and come back to see me. Enjoy the recipes and let me know what you think, please.

Nuff said,

The Georgia Peach

Christmas Cookies and Candy

Eufaula, AL Gazebo

Good evening, ya'll. Come in where it is warm and sit a spell. It was a beautiful day here with sunshine, not too cold. I cleaned out a flower bed, cut back my rosemary bush and made a wreath with the trimmings. It had gotten huge and large parts of it had turned brown so it was time to prune. Now it will come back nice and green from bottom to top.

Rosemary grows into a shrub here in the South and makes the yard smell so good when you brush past it. I took most of the green cuttings and put them in 3 pots of potting soil to root. The other limbs were woven into a wreath to hang on a fence section behind the flower bed. I will take a picture tomorrow to show you. When it dies it will will be lovely dark grey and make the spot smell good. I just couldn't throw away the limbs I cut and if half of the cuttings root, I will have lots to share and I want to plant several around the pond.

Speaking of the pond, with all the rain we have had this week, our new, front yard pond is full and ready for the fish. We are getting the fish through the Georgia Extension Department and we are waiting on them to let us know when to pick them up. We will go up to the fish hatchery up close to Fitzgerald and bring our bream to their new home. Then next year we will add some bass. Then, the long wait until they are ready for me to catch, clean, fillet and fry. Oh boy is that good. Add some hush puppies, cheese grits and slaw and you have a Southern feast fit for royalty. If it is summer we will have some fresh sliced tomatoes and corn on the cob and maybe a peach cobbler. Maybe ya'll can come on over and have some.

Well, it is almost Christmas day and I still have to wrap my presents. They are piled on the bed in one of the bedrooms waiting expectantly to be wrapped up in pretty paper and decorated with ribbon. This is a job I don't especially enjoy but can do a pretty good job when I get around to it. They have to be wrapped by Monday night for we are leaving to go to Camden to the home place for Christmas. This was a request by our children and so off we will go. If you are in the area drop by for a slice of pie and some hot coffee.

I have a few more recipes to share with you that I made this week. They turned out pretty good so I can share. You will never know how many I mess up and don't share but that is between me and the trash can. I have a chocolate cookie recipe using a sugar cookie mix and a method of making a roll cookie which I adapted from Food TV. The candy is my own concoction and it was enjoyed at the choir party and it is quite easy. Cooking is so much fun now that I have the time to experiment. If you have any questions about the recipes just message me and I will be glad to help or if you try one, please let me know how you liked it.

CHOCOLATE NUT COOKIES

1 pouch sugar cookie mix
4 Tbsp. cocoa powder
1/2 cup melted butter
1 egg slightly beaten
Dark chocolate chips and finely chopped pecans

Mix the sugar cookie mix and cocoa until blended. In a smaller bowl combine the egg and the melted butter and pour over the cookie and cocoa mixture. Blend well until all the dry ingredients are incorporated into the butter and egg. If you don't have enough liquid, I add about 1 tbsp. of cold coffee. Shape into a roll, wrap in wax paper or plastic wrap and chill for at least an hour.

After it has been chilled, roll into a rectangle and sprinkle the chocolate chips and pecans over the dough leaving about an inch at the top and bottom edges. Using the wax paper as a helper, roll the dough into a tube and take your hands and mash the dough up and down the roll to squeeze the chocolate chips and nuts into the dough. Reshape into a roll, wrap in wax paper and chill for about an hour or overnight in the refrigerator.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees, lightly spray cookie sheet or line with parchment paper. Slice the cookie roll and place the slices on the cookie sheet about 1 inch apart and bake for 7-9 minutes. Cool on cookie sheet for 1 minute and remove to rack to complete cooling and then store in a tight container. These are crispy and good.

I didn't measure the chocolate chips or the nuts but just sprinkled about 1 cup of chips and about 3/4 cup finely chopped pecans. These are really good. Just use as many or as few as you like.

WHITE CHOCOLATE WITH CHEERIOS AND CRAISINS CANDY

6 squares white chocolate
1 cup cheerios
1 cup craisins

Melt white chocolate in glass bowl in microwave following directions on the package. When melted add the cheerios and craisins, mix and drop by spoonfuls on waxed paper. After they have cooled, store in tight container. These were an experiment and are quite delicious. My friends had a hard time believing I had used cheerios and not nuts and craisins add add a sweet, slightly tart flavor I like. You can add more or less cheerios or craisins if you like.

These would also be good in the dark chocolate. I found some Ritz bits with chocolate peanut butter in the center and dipped those in white chocolate also and they are good.

I hope you enjoy these recipes and they will make great Christmas presents. Put in a pretty tin or try a quart canning jar with a pretty ribbon tied around the top. They will be enjoyed by all your friends and even your enemies. Happy cooking.

Nuff said,

The Georgia Peach
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Cookie Time

Good morning, ya'll. Come in the house where it is warm and have a cup of coffee. It is cold and the wind is blowing and I'm going to hibernate and clean house. Now it's not dirty but it sure is cluttered with Christmas projects in most every room. Being a procrastinator gets a little untidy sometimes but today is the day to complete some projects.

The picture above is some of our very own fruit we are growing in our back yard. We have picked about 2 dozen red, grapefruit and a few oranges and tangerines. Hopefully the oranges will do better next year and we are going to plant a satsuma tree to add to our little grove. The grapefruit are delicious and I peel and section them, add peeled and sectioned oranges with a little artificial sweetener and dessert is served. This is also good for snack time and sometimes I add some chopped apple for crunch. Even if you have to buy the fruit it is a little cheaper right now and you have a sugar and fat free healthy snack.

This time of year at our house is about the only time I bake cookies or at least a whole bunch of cookies. They make great gifts for friends and church staff members that you want to remember and those finger food parties keep popping up. The past weekend called for some cookies and I concocted a new recipe using sugar cookie mix. It's amazing what you can do with this mix so I thought I would share it with you. Happy eating.

CHOCOLATE MOCHA DROP SUGAR COOKIES

2 pouches Betty Crocker Sugar Cookie Mix
1 cup melted butter
2 eggs
6 Tbsp. cocoa
2 Tbsp. instant Swiss Mocha coffee mix
about 5 drops red cake coloring
2 Tbsp. cold, brewed coffee
1 cup finely chopped pecans - use the food chopper for you want them finely chopped

Heat oven to 375 degrees

Melt butter (I use the microwave). Slightly beat the two eggs in a small bowl and add the red cake coloring, butter,and coffee and blend.
In large bowl mix the cookie mixes, cocoa and coffee mix until blended. Add the egg and butter mixture and stir until a soft dough is formed. To blend in all the dry ingredients I use my hands to knead it.

Refrigerate for about 30 minutes and drop by small balls into the chopped pecans, and roll into small balls. Place about 2 inches apart on parchment lined cookie sheets or lightly sprayed cookie sheets.

Bake for 6-8 minutes until edges are LIGHT golden brown. Cool for 1 minute on cookie sheet before removing. Store in airtight container.

This makes about 2 dozen cookies.

I stored about 2 cups of the chocolate cookie mixture in the refrigerator and today I am going to make 1 pouch without the chocolate and after chilling the dough roll both doughs into a rectangle, place the chocolate on top the the sugar cookie dough, roll, chill, and slice for a rolled cookie. I will let you know how this tastes but I know it will be good.

CINNAMON DROP SUGAR COOKIES

1 package sugar cookie mix
1/2 cup melted butter
1 egg slightly beaten

Mix all the ingredients until well blended. Drop rounded spoonfuls into cinnamon sugar, roll into small balls and place on parchment lined cookie sheets. To flatten slightly dip the bottom of a glass in the cinnamon sugar and press gently. Don't make them too thin and bake for 7-9 minutes in 375 degree, preheated oven. Let sit for 1 minute before removing from cookie sheet.

Mix 1 cup powdered sugar, 2 tablespoons orange juice and 1/4 tsp. orange flavoring for a glaze. Put the glaze in small zipper closed plastic bag and cut a small hole in one corner of the bag to drizzle the glaze over the cookies.

These are delicious and the orange glaze adds just enough added flavor to make them tastier. Next time I am going to add a little orange zest to the dough.

I have found that a roll of parchment paper and a small cookie scoop are invaluable in making cookies. You don't have to worry about the cookies sticking and the cleanup is a breeze. The cookie scoop makes all the cookies the same size so they bake evenly. This little scoop is also great for making meatballs which I make in large batches, bake and freeze.

I hope you will enjoy these recipes and have fun baking some cookies with your children or grandchildren. A plate of cookies says Merry Christmas in a delicious way.

Nuff said,

The Georgia Peach
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