This recipe came to me from one of my mom’s friends years ago.  She once said that cookies that have milk as one of the ingredients are usually the best cookies.  This is certainly true of this one!

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All of my friends know how much I love to bake.  One friend even texted me and asked me to send her a picture every time I bake something while in quarantine.  I guess that way she knows, if I’m still baking, I must be doing ok.

We have all been given this extra time at home, with fewer distractions from the outside world to slow down and think about what is really important in our lives. It truthfully has been an eye-opener to discover what we can live without and how we can conserve and cut back when we really need to.  Feeding my family has been a priority for me during this crisis.  Comfort food can get us through many struggles, and this has been no exception.  It cannot help us from contracting the virus, but it can make our time in quarantine much more tolerable.

So, I have been doing a lot more cooking and baking than usual.  Doing something that I love brings me a high level of contentment and peace.  I have really gone back to the basics with a lot of things. Cooking more things from scratch, baking more, making my own laundry detergent, sewing, reading, just figuring out how to make due with what I have on hand.

Truthfully, I haven’t minded any of it.  And my family has not minded at all that there has been an abundance of good food and sweet treats during our quarantine.

Stay safe everyone!

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This is the only banana bread recipe I have ever used.  I like to use my mini loaf pans and it makes three loaves.  We always eat one right from the oven while it is still warm and one the next day.  The third I usually put in the freezer.  After being in the freezer, this bread is even more moist than when it is fresh.  I have never been able to freeze more than one because this bread is such a favorite that it disappears within hours after I make it.  If I make it to take somewhere, I like to toss in extras like walnuts, raisins, coconut or even a little crushed pineapple.  But my family prefers it plain, so I usually stick to the basic ingredients.  I top each loaf with a good sprinkle of cinnamon and sugar before baking for a nice added bit of flavor and sweetness.

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Banana Bread

Ingredients

• ½ cup shortening (I use margarine)
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 eggs
• 2 cups flour
• 1 tsp. soda
• 3 medium bananas, crushed
• pinch salt
• cinnamon and sugar

Instructions

• Cream shortening and sugar.
• Add eggs and bananas.
• Slowly add flour, soda and salt. Mix well.
• Pour batter into 3 mini loaf pans. Sprinkle tops with cinnamon and sugar.
• Bake 375° for 30 minutes if using mini loaf pans, or longer if using regular loaf pans.

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These thumbprint cookies are one of my favorites but I used to only make them for Christmas and other special occasions because they were tedious and time consuming.

This little trick that I discovered was a game changer for me.

Instead of doing an actual “thumb”print, I use this little teaspoon to make the indentation in each cookie.  Although I love to bake, I am also somewhat of a self-proclaimed efficiency expert.  I don’t see the point in using any more of my valuable time than necessary to achieve the same result. Time saved on one task is extra time to make more cookies…or clean my house……nah, I’ll just make more cookies!

The recipe originally called for strawberry jam.  I have always loved red raspberry ANYTHING, so I modified the recipe and when I tried it using my homemade red raspberry jam, it was an amazing result.  The tartness of the red raspberries and the creamy richness of the cookie dough is an incredible flavor combination.

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Raspberry Thumbprint Cookies

The tartness of the red raspberries and the creamy richness of the cookie dough is an incredible flavor combination and they look so pretty on a cookie tray.

Ingredients

• 1 cup butter, softened
• 1 cup sugar
• 3 oz. cream cheese
• 1 Tblsp vanilla
• 1 egg yolk
• 2 ½ cups flour
• red raspberry jam

Instructions

• Cream butter, sugar and cream cheese.
• Add vanilla and egg yolk. Mix well.
• Add flour and blend. Cover and refrigerate.
• Roll into balls. Place 2" apart on ungreased cookie sheets. Make indentation in center of each ball. Fill with 1/4 teaspoon jam.
• Bake at 350° for 10-12 minutes or until jam is set.
• Cool on wire racks.
• Optional: To make these cookies extra pretty, drizzle with melted white chocolate after cool.

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Ingredients

• 2 cups sugar
• 1 cup oil
• 4 eggs
• 2 tsp. vanilla
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• 2 cups flour
• 2/3 cup cocoa
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1 cup coarsely chopped walnuts

Instructions

• Cream sugar and oil.
• Add eggs and vanilla.
• Add dry ingredients.
• Spray a 9x13 pan with cooking spray. Pour batter into prepared pan. Top with chopped nuts, if desired.
• Bake 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

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Mmmm, the chocolate chip cookie. Who doesn’t love them?

They are probably the simplest, yet most common “favorite cookie” of all time.

Sometimes they are puffy and cakey.  Sometimes they are flat and chewy. Heck, sometimes we just eat the dough.  Cookie dough brownies, cookie dough ice cream, cookies and milk…the list goes on and on.

And the main character is inevitably the chocolate chip cookie.

I have tried a lot of chocolate chip cookie recipes.  My mom always used a recipe that had a box of instant vanilla pudding in the dough.  They were cakey and delicious and were the cookies that I grew up on.  But I love to experiment with different recipes.  When my sister introduced me to this cookie, I immediately knew the recipe was a keeper.  They are actually called “The Ultimate Chocolate Chip Cookie” and I must say they are appropriately named and I wholeheartedly agree.  They are rich, chewy and oh-so irresistible!

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The Ultimate Chocolate Chip Cookie

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup butter flavor shortening
• 1 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 2 tblsp milk
• 1/2 tblsp vanilla
• 1 egg
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 3/4 tsp baking soda
• 2 1/4 cup flour
• 3/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Instructions

• Cream shortening and brown sugar. Add milk, vanilla and egg.
• Add flour, salt and soda. Then add chocolate chips
• Bake in 350 degree oven for 7-8 minutes or until golden brown.

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You can use any sausage. I like to use mild hot sausage and it seems to be just right for us.

Remove the sausage from the casings so you can brown it  in a soup pot with the olive oil and onions.

Cook until nice and brown, chopping with a spatula as it cooks to break into bite sized pieces.

While the sausage is browning, cube potatoes and rinse with cold water.

Add the chicken broth and potatoes to the same pot with the browned sausage.

Cover and cook on medium heat until the potatoes are cooked through and soft.  The potatoes really take on extra flavor because they are cooked right in the chicken broth along with the sausage.

Remove stems from the spinach and add it to the pot along with the cream.  Don’t worry if this looks like a lot of spinach. It will really cook down and be just perfect.

Cover pot again and cook for about 15 minutes or until spinach is thoroughly cooked.

I don’t add any salt and pepper.  The chicken broth and the sausage add enough flavor to this soup that I find it perfect without any added seasoning.  A slice of buttered, thick Italian bread dipped in this broth is a taste sensation that you will never forget.

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Sausage & Potato Cream Soup (Zuppa Tuscano)

This soup is so full of flavor and is delicious with thick Italian bread.

Ingredients

• 1 tblsp olive oil
• 1 lb mild hot sausage
• 1 small onion, diced
• 5-6 russet potatoes, cubed
• 5 cups chicken broth
• 4 cups fresh spinach
• 3/4 cup heavy cream

Instructions

• Remove sausage from casings. In a large pot, add the olive oil, sausage and diced onion. Cook until sausage is browned.
• Add the chicken broth and potatoes to the pot.
• Cook on medium heat until the potatoes are soft.
• Add spinach and cream. Continue cooking on low heat until spinach is cooked.
• Serve with Italian bread.

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Oatmeal, Cranberry & Walnut Cookies

This is one of my favorite cookies, especially during the fall and winter months.

Ingredients

• 1 cup butter-flavored shortening
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 2 eggs
• 2 tsp vanilla
• 2 1/2 cups oatmeal
• 2 cups flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1 cup dried cranberries
• 1 cup coarsely chopped walnuts

Instructions

• Cream shortening and sugars. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in vanilla. Combine oats, flour, baking soda, cinnamon, salt and baking powder; gradually add to the creamed mixture. Stir in the cranberries and walnuts.
• Drop by tablespoonfuls 2 inches apart onto baking sheets. Bake in 350 degree oven for 10-14 minutes or until lightly browned. Remove to wire racks to cool.
• Makes about 4-5 dozen cookies, depending on the size.

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This recipe that has been around for a long time.  It was originally called Cracker Toffee Bars and the base of it was saltine crackers and everyone thought it was genius!  My mom always modified recipes and I learned from her to think outside the box when cooking and baking.  The saltine cracker idea was neat, but then mom came up with the idea to use graham crackers as the base. These were definitely a notch above the saltine cracker concept.  Then one day, I was going to make a pan of toffee bars and all I had on hand was club crackers.  Oh well, how bad could it be, right?  I’ll try anything once.  So I proceeded, never expecting that this would be the ultimate cracker to use for this recipe.  The buttery, saltiness of the club crackers was over-the-top delicious when the toffee layer and chocolate layer was added.  I have made them this way ever since, never once turning back, and always making sure I have club crackers on hand for when a toffee bar craving hits.

To make these irresistible little babies, put 2 sticks of real butter and 1 cup brown sugar in a saucepan.  There is no substitution here.  It’s real butter or nothing.  Bring these two ingredients to a boil and cook for 10 minutes. I usually start my timer once it is really boiling, like this.

I stir it occasionally but I certainly don’t feel like I have to stand there for the full ten minutes.  While it is boiling, I go ahead and move to the next step of the recipe and lay the crackers out on the cookie sheet, give the boiling mixture a stir, empty the dishwasher, give it another stir, log on to my bank account and pay a couple bills, stir it again… (Now that I think about it, I can accomplish quite a bit in 10 minutes when I put my mind to it.)

Pour the boiled mixture over the crackers and place it into a preheated 375 degree oven and bake it for 5 minutes.  The baking time can be adjusted depending on how crunchy you like your toffee.  Five minutes in the oven will give the toffee a very light, buttery crunch.  Another minute or two will make it more crunchy but still buttery and delicious.  This is a personal preference step to this recipe.

After you remove it from the oven, place the cookie sheet on a rack and let it  cool slightly.  Sprinkle a whole bag of milk chocolate chips over the top of the toffee layer and let them melt.

The chocolate chips will turn glossy once melted and you will know they are ready to spread.  I like to spread them out real pretty but it will have the same creamy milk chocolate taste no matter how you like to make it look.

I usually place them in the refrigerator at this point to get the chocolate to set faster because by now my mouth is watering and I am wondering why I don’t make these more often because they are so delightful and yet so darn easy to make. After the chocolate is set up, they are ready to remove from the pan.  I used to try to cut them into perfect squares and remove them from the pan but now I simply turn the pan upside down and let it fall out onto parchment paper or waxed paper and break it into random sized pieces.  Those imperfect shaped pieces actually look more perfect on a plate and it is more fun to break them up because I can pop several sample pieces in my  mouth as I work.

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Toffee Bars

Sweet, buttery toffee bars with a hint of saltiness.

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 5 minutes minutes

Ingredients

• 1 cup salted butter
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1 1/2 sleeves club crackers
• 1 bag milk chocolate chips

Notes

Cover bottom of cookie sheet with crackers.  Put 1 cup butter and 1 cup brown sugar in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil.  Boil for 10 minutes.  Pour over crackers.  Bake 5 minutes at 375 degrees.  Remove from oven and cool slightly.  Sprinkle with 1 bag of milk chocolate chips.  Let them melt and spread.  After chocolate sets, remove from pan and break into pieces.

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