Blueberry French Toast

12 slices texas toast, cut into cubes
8 oz cream cheese, cut into cubes
1 cup fresh blueberries (or 16 oz frozen)
12 eggs
2 cups milk
1/2 cup maple syrup

Put half of bread cubes in greased 9 x 13 inch pan. Scatter cream cheese over bread. Cover evenly with blueberries. Add remaining bread cubes. Combine eggs, milk and syrup. Mix well. Pour over bread mixture. Cover with foil and refrigerate over night. In the morning, heat oven to 350. Place covered dish in oven and bake for 30 minutes. Remove foil and bake an additional 30 minutes until set.

Blueberry Sauce

1 cup sugar
2 T cornstarch
1 cup water
1 cup blueberries
1 T butter

Combine sugar, cornstarch and water in medium saucepan. Cook over medium heat until thick. Add berries. Simmer 1o minutes. Add butter. Serve warm over French Toast.

This was way too much for our big eating little family. Next time we will half the recipe or invite guests over for brunch. We are accepting applications.

Rolo Cookies

My sister gave me a cute cookie jar for my birthday this year. I feel obligated to keep it full of homemade cookies.

1 cup sugar

1 cup brown sugar

1 cup butter

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla

1 tsp baking soda

3/4 cup cocoa

2 3/4 cup flour

Rolos (about 60)

Cream sugars and butter together until light and fluffy.
Add eggs and vanilla, beat well.
Add dry ingredients and blend.
For each cookie, shape about 1 Tbs. of dough around a Rolo, covering it completely.
Place on an ungreased cookie sheet and bake 7-8 minutes at 375° or until they start to crack.
Makes about 5 dozen.

Ice Cream Sandwich Cake

The filling ends up tasting like a fudgy brownie. This is a great dessert for a hot summer night!
I made another one using mint ice cream sandwiches and grasshopper cookies. That was really good too.

adapted from food & family

1/2 cup hot fudge ice cream topping, warmed
1 tub (8 oz.) Cool Whip, thawed, divided
1 pkg. (4-serving size) instant chocolate pudding
8 Oreo Cookies, chopped (about 1 cup)
12 vanilla ice cream sandwiches, unwrapped (I found cookies and cream ice cream sandwiches; yum!)

Pour fudge topping into medium bowl. Add 1 cup of the whipped topping; stir with wire whisk until well blended. Add dry pudding mix; stir 2 min. or until well blended. Gently stir in chopped cookies; set aside.
Arrange 4 of the ice cream sandwiches, side-by-side, on 24-inch-long piece of foil; top with half of the whipped topping mixture. Repeat layers. Top with remaining 4 ice cream sandwiches. Frost top and sides of dessert with remaining whipped topping. Bring up foil sides. Double fold top and ends to loosely seal packet.
Freeze at least 4 hours before serving. Store leftover dessert in freezer.

Coconut Almond Macaroons

Coconut Almond Macaroons
adapted from The Silver Palate Cookbook

2/3 cup flour
5 cups shredded coconut
1 cup sliced almonds
¼ teaspoon salt
1 1/3 cup sweetened condensed milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon almond extract

Preheat oven to 350*.
Grease cookie sheet.
Mix flour, coconut, almonds and salt together in a bowl. Pour in condensed milk and extracts. Stir well to combine (dough will be very stiff). Use small cookie scoop to drop cookies on sheet. Bake for 12-15 minutes, or until golden. Remove from pan immediately and cool on wire racks.

Banana Bundt Cake

2 ripe bananas, mashed
1 box white cake mix
1 small box vanilla instant pudding
3 eggs
1/3 cup water
1 cup sour cream
2 T vegetable oil
1/4 tsp baking powder

Preheat oven to 350. Combine all ingredients in bowl of mixer. Beat together until light and fluffy. Bake in greased Bundt pan for 40-50 minutes, until a cake tester inserted in the middle comes out clean. Invert and cool on wire rack. Dust with powdered sugar to serve.

Bake Shop Cream Cheese Muffins

I love muffins. It's the best justification for eating your own little cake for breakfast.

Muffins

3 cups flour
1 cup sugar
4 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup milk
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 large eggs
8 ounces Neufchatel cheese (1/3 less fat cream cheese)
1 cup sugar
12 raspberries

Topping

4 T flour
4 T brown sugar
4 T cold butter

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Spray a standard 12-cup muffin tin and set aside.
In large bowl, combine flour, 1 cup of sugar, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl. Make a well in the center.
In separate bowl, stir together milk, oil, and eggs. Pour into well in the dry ingredients. Stir just until dry ingredients are moistened.
In a small bowl, combine cream cheese and 1 cup of sugar. Fold about half of this mixture into the muffin batter.
Spoon batter evenly into greased muffin pans. Dollop the remaining cream cheese mixture onto the muffins, place one raspberry on top of cream cheese. Press the cream cheese and berry into each muffin with the handle of a wooden spoon.

Combine all topping ingredients. Cut it together until it resembles course crumbs. Sprinkle on top of muffins.

Bake for 23-28 minutes, or until golden brown.

Mother's Day Waffles with Dad's Orange Syrup

Growing up, my dad would make us waffles with this orange syrup on Christmas morning. I don't know what waffle recipe he would use, but I found this delicious and simple waffle recipe here.

Waffles

1 3/4 cups flour
3 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
2 eggs
1 3/4 cup milk
1/2 cup vegetable oil

Mix together and bake in hot waffle iron.

Dad's Orange Syrup
½ cup butter
1 cup sugar
½ cup frozen orange juice concentrate

Combine all ingredients in saucepan. Bring to a boil, stirring occasionally. Serve warm over waffles.