Grammie Haskins' PeanutButter Cookies

I never even cared for peanutbutter cookies until I had these melt in my mouth.

Grammie Haskin's Peanutbutter Cookies

1 cup shortening (1/2 butter tastes good)
1 cup peanutbutter
1 cup sugar
1 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
2 1/2 cups flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt

Mix all ingredients well. Shape into balls, press criss-cross with a fork. Bake at 350 until not quite done (8-10 minutes). After removing from oven, leave on baking sheet for a couple of minutes before putting on cooling rack.

GRAMMIE BOONE'S BLETHEN HOUSE MOLASSES COOKIES

My Grammie Boone always said that she was an "old-fashioned cook." She was the baker of choice for people all over my hometown. She baked for Collette's Restaurant and for the (lone) hotel, The Blethen House. She loved to bake and her family and friends loved to have her do it! These are the all-time cookie winners in my house--they taste like home. We nearly always double this recipe...

Grammie Boone's Blethen House Molasses Cookies

Ingredients:
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup molasses
3/4 cup shortening
1 egg
2 1/4 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon ginger
1 teaspoon cassia (cinnamon)
1/2 teaspoon cloves
1/4 tsp. salt

Directions:
Mix all ingredients well. Roll into balls and dip the tops in granulated sugar. Bake at 350 for 8-10 minutes or until tops are cracked.

Cloud Biscuits

The recipe we use in our household is from an old National Grange Cookbook. This is often Sunday night fare for us--especially if there is any honey, molasses, or, better yet, company on hand! We love them.

Cloud Biscuits

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 Tablespoon sugar
4 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup shortening
1 egg, beaten
2/3 cup milk

Sift dry ingredients together. Cut in shortening until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Add egg and milk. Knead. Roll until 3/4-inch thick, cut with biscuit cutter. Place on ungreased baking sheet. Brush tops with a little milk. Bake in 450-degree oven for 10 to 14 minutes or until tops are golden brown.

Mango Smoothie

2 or 3 ripe mangoes, peeled and sliced off the pit (Was that necessary? Oh well.)
1/4 cup frozen orange juice concentrate
1 cup milk
6 - 8 ice cubes, chopped up

Just put everything in a blender and blend on high until smooth. Coconut milk may be used in place of regular milk for more of a mango pudding result.

Ice Cream Cake

I found this cake in FamilyFun Magazine. I made it for my roommate's 21st surprise birthday party yesterday. It was a big hit! The recipe is really easy, but you have to move fast. I've modified the instructions slightly, but nothing crucial. Details, details...

12 Oreo cookies
About 1 t. of Milk
8 or 9 Ice Cream Sandwiches
1 pint each of three different Ice Creams/Frozen Yogurts
8 oz. of Frozen Whipped Topping, thawed.

-Grease the sides and bottom of a spring-form pan. Wrap waxed paper around sides, using grease to stick. Trim down sides to top of pan.
-Finely crush cookies in a blender. Add milk and blend just until cookies hold slightly. Set aside.
-Take out 4 ice cream sandwiches and cut lengthwise and widthwise, to make equal quarters.
-Line sides of pan with sandwiches, pressed tightly together. Repeat until pan is entirely lined.
-Spread bottom of pan with blended cookies. Press down firmly.
-Put in freezer for 1 hour.
-Take out pints of ice cream and let them thaw for 15 minutes. (Don't let them thaw too much, but you should be able to stir it.)
-Pour pints into three separate bowls. Stir until good spreading-consistency.
-Spread pints in layers in cake pan. Spread them evenly.
-Top with whipped topping. Sprinkle crushed cookies on top.
-Freeze over night. (About 12 hours.)
-To cut, spring the pan and remove the waxed paper.

The magazine suggested mint chocolate chip, vanilla frozen yogurt, and strawberry. I used Haagen daaz dulce de leche, vanilla frozen yogurt, and white chocolate raspberry truffle. Vanilla seems to be a good middle flavor, ya know, to separate the others. I also crushed Melissa's favorite candy bar, Heath, rather than cookies on top. Anyway, everyone loved it. Enjoy!

Baked Brie

This is one of my favorite things from the Jordan Pond House! It's so easy to make, too.

Ingredients:
Phyllo dough (If you buy it frozen, make sure it's thawed enough so that it wont break too much.
     Phyllo is very delicate, so be careful with it.)
Brie (If you buy it in a wheel, cut it into triangles.)
Butter, melted
Directions:

1. For every triangle, you'll need two sheets of phyllo dough. Lay them out, and place the brie near one corner of the sheets, but still have the entire piece on the dough.
2. Carefully take the corner and wrap it over the top of the dough. Wrap the rest of the dough around the brie until the entire triangle is wrapped. Brush butter over parts what will overlap, so that the top piece will stick to the bottom one.
3. Brush the top and sides with butter. Not too much or it will make the cheese greasy. Place in a small pan, put in 450 degree oven until golden brown and flakey. The inside should be gooey.

JPH serves it with crackers and grapes.

Rhubarb Sauce

None of this is exactly measured. Sorry!

Ingredients:
Chopped rhubarb
Water
Sugar

Directions:
Add just enough water to the rhubarb to just barely cover the bottom of the pan. If you think you need more later, you can add it. Put saucepan on medium-high burner. Bring to a boil, while slowly adding sugar. (I add mine in 1/4-cup increments.) Stir often. The rhubarb will break down into mush. The finished product should be a little thicker than soup, but not as thick as stew. It'll be sweet, but you should still be able to taste the sour rhubarb through the sugar.

Rhubarb Crunch

Jym sent me a package with a big bag of rhubarb in it. I immediately called up Grammy Alexa to get the recipe. She's never tried this particular one, and it's still cooling on my stovetop, but it looks like it came out great! It's not a crumble-top recipe, so it's probably more like lemon squares.

Ingredients and Directions:
1 c. flour
1/2 c. butter, softened
Large T. confectioner's sugar

Combine to make crust. Press into 8" by 8" pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes.

2 eggs, well-beaten
1 1/2 c. sugar
2/3 t. baking powder
1/2 c. flour
Dash of salt
2 c. chopped rhubarb
Strawberries, if desired. (This is almost always going to be desired, so it's more like, "if available.")

Mix to make filling. Pour into crust. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 to 35 minutes. Let cool 15 minutes.

Snickerdoodles

1 1/2 c. sugar
1/2 c. stick margarine
1/2 c. shortening
2 large eggs
2 3/4 c. flour
2 t. cream of tartar
1 t. baking soda
1/4 t. salt
orange zest

Mix sugar, margarine, shortening, and eggs until smooth. Add flour, cream of tartar, baking soda, and salt. Mix well until dough is stiff. Add orange zest. Roll dough into balls and dip in cinnamon sugar. Bake at 400 degrees for 8 to 10 minutes. Take out a little early and let them finish baking on the pan if you like them nice a soft.