Our Favorites from 2012

Last year around this time we posted the most popular recipes of 2011.  This year we thought we'd do something different.....this time we are sharing OUR favorites!  Each of the Mavens has chosen their favorite personal recipe of 2012.  We hope you'll give them a try if you haven't already!

from Emily.....Balsamic Glazed Pork Loin

from Anna.....Mexican Street Corn

from Melissa.....Amazing Crockpot Grits

from Audrey.....Mom's Rolls

from Niki.....Cheesy Vegetable Chowder

from Julie......Cottage Ranch Dip

from Amy.....Cobbler Custard Cups

from Kara.....Spinach Dip

Care to share what some of your favorite Maven recipes have been?  We'd love to hear from you!

image source: Microsoft Office Clipart (manipulated through Picmonkey)

My Favorite Carrot Cake!

This is the best carrot cake I have ever had! Even people who think they do not really like carrot cake LOVE this one! 

My mom is famous for this cake! Her co-workers always request this for their birthday, and she is asked to bring it to family and church activities all the time. This is a picture of the one she made for our family Christmas party. I wish there was a "scratch and sniff" and a way you could have a little nibble. The texture is so amazing...mmmmm...and the flavor is just perfect! It's very dense and so moist, and I love the nuts in it! But it's the icing that I dream about!

Mom's Famous Carrot Cake

2 1/2 cups all purpose flour

2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp salt

2 cups white sugar

1 cup oil
2 tsp vanilla

2 eggs

2 cups shredded carrots (I like fine shreds)

1/2 cup drained crushed pineapple (this is what makes it extra amazing!)

1/2 cup chopped pecans (optional - I like lots!)

1/2 cup raisins (optional - you'll never find them in MY cake!)

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour (or spray) a 9 x 13 pan.

2. In medium bowl, combine flour, baking soda, salt and cinnamon. Set aside.

3. In large mixing bowl, combine sugar, oil, vanilla and eggs. Beat well. Stir in flour mixture, then carrots, pineapple, nuts (and raisins if you insist.)

4. Pour into prepared pan. Bake for 50 - 60 minutes or until done in center.

Icing for Cake

(People have actually requested that my mom make an extra bowl of frosting, just so they can eat it by itself! This icing is AMAZING!!)

8 oz cream cheese, softened

2 1/2 cups powdered sugar

6 TBSP butter

2 tsp vanilla

1/2 cup chopped pecans 

1 cup shredded coconut 

1. In medium bowl, combine all ingredients and beat until smooth. Then stir in nuts and coconut. Spread over cooled cake. It's sooooooo good! You are going to love it!

Notes:

Because this cake is so dense and moist, it might be difficult to make it into a 2 layer cake. Mom always keeps it one layer, which I think is perfect!

Source: My cute little mom, Brenda Joyner.

Chocolate Eclairs

This is one of those desserts that take extremely little time to prepare, but tastes SO good. It tastes a lot fancier than what the ingredients seem. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do!

Chocolate Eclair Dessert

Eclair Filling:
2 small boxes French Vanilla Pudding
3 cups cold milk
8oz container thawed Cool Whip
Full Graham cracker sheets


 Chocolate Frosting: 
 1 ¾ cup powdered sugar
 4 Tbs HOT water
 4 Tbs soft butter
 4 Tbs Cocoa
 1 tsp vanilla


Directions:
1. Mix pudding and milk with wire whisk until well blended. Let stand 5 minutes. Fold in thawed Cool Whip.
2. Place whole graham crackers in the bottom of a 9x13 sprayed pan, covering entire bottom.
3. Spread pudding mixture over graham crackers.
4. Top with another layer of whole graham crackers, covering top completely.
5. In a bowl, beat all ingredients for chocolate frosting until smooth.
6. Spread frosting over top layer of graham crackers.
7. Refrigerate 24 hours.

Merry Christmas!

"Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord."

May all the joy of this Christmas season be yours this day and always.

Sour Cream Banana Bread

There's a reason I don't make this very often.  I can't stop eating it!!!

Ingredients:
2 sticks butter, softened
1 1/2 cups plus 2 Tbsp. sugar
3 eggs
1 1/2 cup mashed ripe banana (about 3 bananas)
4 cups plus 2 Tbsp. flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 1/2 cups sour cream

1.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Grease and flour bundt pan.
2.  In a mixer, cream together the butter and sugar until well combined.  Add the eggs in, one at a time, beating each egg in well.  Add mashed banana and beat in.
3.  Combine the dry ingredients into a separate bowl.  Add dry ingredients alternately with the sour cream, beginning and ending with the flour mixture.  Beat well after each addition.
4.  Pour into bundt pan and bake for 70 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the bread comes out clean.  Allow to cool in the pan for 10-15 minutes.  Then invert onto a cooling rack and allow to cool further before slicing and serving.  If decorating, allow to cool completely.

Notes:

• I didn't mash my banana up beforehand this time.  I just threw the peeled suckers in whole and let the machine do the work for me.  Lazy?  No.  Efficient!
• Of course, you can use other types of pans.  This time I used a decorative Hansel & Gretel pan from Nordicware, and had enough leftover to do a small loaf.  Just keep an eye on the bread and adjust your cooking times accordingly.
• If you want to put a glaze on top of the bread, you can do that while it's warm and/or cool.  While it's warm the glaze will soak in to the top more.  While it's cool it will just sit on the surface mostly.  If you do two "coats" (one while warm and one while cool) you'll get the best of both worlds!  Or you can just do like I did and give it a powdered sugar snowfall.

Source:  Tasty Kitchen

source

Merry Christmas

Cranberry Orange Muffins

These are some of our favorite Christmas eats! My sister-in-law Miriam Sellers passed the recipe onto me when I married into the family (she is a remarkable cook and can make healthy food taste sinful).  Enjoy!

1 3/4 c. Whole Wheat Flour

2 1/2 tsp. Baking Powder

1/4 tsp. Nutmeg

3/4 c. Sugar (or sweetener of choice)

1/4 tsp. Salt

1 tsp. Vanilla

1/3 c. Butter (melted)

1/2 c. Milk

1 Egg slightly beaten

1 tsp. Orange peel

1/2 c. chopped Cranberries

1/2 c. grated Apple

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Mix dry ingredients together.  Make a hole in the dry ingredients, add wet ingredients into the hole.  Mix until moistened, then add cranberries and apples.  Do not over mix   Place in lined or greased muffin tins.  Bake for 13-17 minutes, or until golden brown.  Lightly butter top and sprinkle with powdered sugar.  

Source: Miriam Sellers

The Perfect French Bread

More than a decade ago the ladies at my church had a monthly "homemaking" meeting and, although I do not remember what else we had to eat that night, I do remember the delicious, homemade French bread that my friend Irene Jarvis made.  She shared the recipe with me and when I have the time I like to make my own from her recipe.

Ingredients:
2 1/2 cups very warm water
2 tablespoons cooking oil
2 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon salt
6 cups all-purpose flour, stirred and measured
2 pkgs. dry yeast (2 tablespoons)

1.  Into a large warm mixing bowl, pour warm water, then stir in sugar , salt, oil and half of the flour, and the yeast.  Beat vigorously 2-3 minutes.  Stir in remaining flour until all dry ingredients are completely mixed in, leaving the spoon right in the heavy batter.

2.  Allow dough to rest 10 minutes, then stir down.  Allow dough to rest another 10 minutes, then stir down.  Repeat this process until dough has been stirred down five times.

3.  Turn dough onto floured board, kneading only enough to coat dough with flour so it can be handled easily.  Divide into two parts.  Roll each part of dough into rectangles about 9" x 12", and roll up like a jelly roll, starting from the long side.  Pinch edge of loaf to seal the dough.

4.  Arrange dough lengthwise on large cookie sheet that has been sprinkled with corn meal, allowing room for both loaves.  Cover lightly and let rise at room temperature for 30 minutes.

5.  With a very sharp knife, cut 3 gashes(oops, forgot to do that...) at an angle on top of the dough then brush entire surface with lightly beaten whole egg.  If desired, sprinkle with sesame or poppy seeds.

6.  Bake immediately at 400 degrees F. for 25-30 minutes or until golden brown (you will notice mine was a little more brown.  I wasn't downstairs at the time I should have taken it out!)  Remove from baking sheet immediately and cool on racks.  2 LOAVES



Source:  Irene Jarvis, El Paso, Texas