Warm Caramel Apple Cake and Pumpkin Bars

It's fall! This warm caramel apple cake is a delicious tribute to the season, and it seems to be especially appreciated by men, even those who don't typically enjoy cake. The pumpkin bars are a perfect balance of sugar and spice and are wonderfully accompanied by warm apple cider or an apple toddy [Ingredients: 2 ounces Tuaca, hot apple cider, whipped cream, cinnamon stick for garnish. Directions: Pour the Tuaca in an Irish coffee glass; fill with hot apple cider; top with whipped cream; garnish with a cinnamon stick.]

Warm Caramel Apple Cake

Cake Ingredients:
1/2 cup butter or margarine
1/4 cup whipping cream
1 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup chopped pecans
2 large cooking apples, peeled, cored and thinly sliced (about 2 1/3 cups)
1 box Betty Crocker SuperMoist yellow cake mix
1 1/4 cups water
1/3 cup vegetable oil
3 eggs
1/4 teaspoon apple pie spice

Topping Ingredients:
2/3 cup fluffy white frosting
1/2 cup frozen (thawed) whipped topping
Caramel topping (optional)

Directions:
Heat oven to 350°F. In 1-quart heavy saucepan, cook butter, whipping cream and brown sugar over low heat, stirring occasionally, just until butter is melted. Pour into 13x9-inch pan. Sprinkle with pecans; top with sliced apples. In large bowl, beat cake mix, water, oil, eggs and apple pie spice with electric mixer on low speed until moistened. Beat on medium speed 2 minutes. Carefully spoon batter over apple mixture. Bake 40 to 45 minutes or until toothpick inserted near center comes out clean. Cool in pan 10 minutes. Loosen sides of cake from pan. Place heatproof serving platter upside down on pan; carefully turn platter and pan over. Let pan remain over cake about 1 minute so caramel can drizzle over cake. Remove pan. In small bowl, mix frosting and whipped topping. Serve warm cake topped with frosting mixture and drizzled with caramel topping.


Pumpkin Bars

Bar Ingredients:
3/4 cup butter
2 cups white sugar
4 eggs, beaten
1 (15 ounce) can pumpkin puree
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 cup chopped walnuts

Topping Ingredients:
1 (3 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
1/3 cup butter, softened
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 cups sifted confectioners' sugar

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Butter and flour a 10x15 inch jellyroll pan. In a large bowl, cream together 3/4 cup butter and white sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs one at a time, then stir in the pumpkin. Combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg; stir into the pumpkin mixture. Mix in walnuts. Spread evenly into the prepared pan. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes in the preheated oven, or until toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Cool completely before frosting. In a medium bowl, mix together the cream cheese, 1/3 cup butter, and vanilla until smooth. Gradually blend in sugar, then beat until smooth. Spread over cooled pumpkin bars. Cut into squares.

Chicken Enchiladas and Chicken Manicotti

We eat chicken for dinner several times a week, and these are two of our new favorite chicken dishes.

Chicken Enchiladas

Ingredients:
1 19-ounce can of enchilada sauce
2 cups diced cooked chicken
1 1/2 cups shredded Monterey Jack cheese (6 oz)
8 ounces reduced fat cream cheese
4.5 ounces of canned chopped green chiles
8 flour tortillas for burritos
1 cup shredded Cheddar cheese (4 oz)
Chopped avocado, black beans, corn, or green onions, if desired, to taste [I use black beans and corn.]

Directions:
Heat oven to 350°F. Spray a 13x9-inch (3-quart) glass baking dish with cooking spray, and spread 1/2 cup enchilada sauce in the bottom of the pan. In medium bowl, stir together chicken, Monterey Jack cheese, sour cream and chiles. Spoon about 1/3 cup chicken mixture down center of each tortilla. Roll up tortillas; arrange, seam side down, in baking dish. Top enchiladas with remaining enchilada sauce. Sprinkle with Cheddar cheese. Spray sheet of foil with cooking spray; cover baking dish with foil, sprayed side down. Bake 35 minutes. Remove foil; bake 5 to 10 minutes longer or until hot and cheese is melted. Top with avocado or green onions. If desired, serve with lettuce, chopped tomato and additional sour cream.


Chicken Manicotti

Ingredients:
30 ounces tomato pasta sauce
3/4 cup water
1 teaspoon garlic salt
1 1/2 pounds chicken breast, diced and browned
14 uncooked manicotti shells (8 ounces)
16 ounces ricotta cheese
2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese (8 ounces)
Chopped fresh basil leaves, if desired

Directions:
Heat oven to 350°. Mix pasta sauce and water in medium bowl. Spread about one-third of the pasta sauce mixture in un-greased rectangular baking dish, 13x9x2 inches. Sprinkle garlic salt on chicken. Insert chicken and ricotta cheese into uncooked manicotti shells, stuffing from each end of shell to fill if necessary. Place shells on pasta sauce in baking dish. Pour remaining pasta sauce evenly over shells, covering completely. Cover with aluminum foil and bake about 1 hour or until shells are tender. Sprinkle with mozzarella cheese. Bake uncovered about 5 minutes or until cheese is melted. Sprinkle with basil.

Pork Chops with Carolina Rub and Smashed Red Potatoes with Bay Leaves

Over the past few weeks, as summer has yielded, finally, to fall, I have experimented with a variety of new dishes. Some were spectacular disasters, but a few have quickly found their way into our regular rotation. These pork chops are delicious. The new potatoes get parboiled, coarsely "smashed," then crisped in the over. The pork chop recipe is originally from Cooking Light, and the potatoes recipe is originally from Gourmet. Enjoy!

Pork Chops with Carolina Rub

Ingredients:
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 (4-ounce) center-cut pork loin chops
Cooking spray
1/4 cup barbecue sauce [I like to use Sticky Fingers Carolina Sweet.]

Directions:
Prepare grill. Combine first 7 ingredients in a small bowl. Rub pork with spice mixture; let stand 10 minutes. Place pork on grill rack coated with cooking spray. Grill 4 minutes. Turn pork; grill 2 minutes. Brush each chop with 1 tablespoon sauce, and grill 2 minutes or until desired degree of doneness.

Yield
4 servings (serving size: 1 pork chop)

Nutritional Information
CALORIES 185(34% from fat); FAT 6.9g (sat 2.4g,mono 3g,poly 0.7g); PROTEIN 24.6g; CHOLESTEROL 65mg; CALCIUM 35mg; SODIUM 477mg; FIBER 0.8g; IRON 1.1mg; CARBOHYDRATE 5g


Smashed Red Potatoes with Bay Leaves

Ingredients:
2 pounds baby red-skinned potatoes (about 1-inch in diameter)
2 tablespoons (1/4 stick) butter
2 tablespoons olive oil
3 small bay leaves

Directions:
Cook potatoes in large saucepan of boiling salted water until almost tender, about 15 minutes. Drain. Melt butter with olive oil in same pan over medium heat; add potatoes and bay leaves. Saute until coated, slightly crushing each potato with wooden spoon, about 5 minutes. Transfer to shallow baking dish. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. (Can be made 2 hours ahead. Let stand at room temperature.) Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Roast potatoes until tender and beginning to crisp, about 20 minutes. Serve hot.

Caramel Apple Walnut Squares, Fresh Apple Cake, and Taffy Apple Pound Cake

It's apple season! The many wonderful apple orchards and farms in the area mean delicious fresh apples for our house all season long. Since I was a child accompanying my parents to Rouster's Apple House, I have adored autumn ventures to choose apples and drink cider. Following are three of my favorite apple recipes, all of which appear in the Junior League of Cincinnati's most recent cookbook. (The Fresh Apple Cake recipe was also featured in one of the League's previous cookbooks, RiverFeast. All of the JLC's cookbooks are must-haves, in my opinion.) Enjoy!

Caramel Apple Walnut Squares

Ingredients:
1.75 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup quick-cooked oats
.5 cup firmly packed brown sugar
.5 teaspoon baking soda
.5 teaspoon salt
1 cup margarine
1 cup chopped walnuts
20 caramels
1 14-ounce can sweetened condensed milk
1 21-ounce can apple pie filling

Directions:
In large mixing bowl, combine flour, oats, brown sugar, soda, and salt. Cut in margarine until crumb consistency. Reserving 1.5 cups crumbs, press remainder in 13x9x92-inch baking pan. Bake at 375 degrees for 15 minutes. Combine caramels and condensed milk in heavy saucepan. Cook over low heat until caramels are melted and mixture is smooth. Spoon pie filling on partially baked crust. Spread caramel sauce on apples and sprinkle with reserved crumbs mixed with walnuts. Bake for 20 more minutes. Serves 12. Delicious served with scoops of ice cream!


Fresh Apple Cake

Cake Ingredients:
3 cups all-purpose flour
1.5 teaspoons baking soda
1.5 teaspoons salt
2 cups sugar
1 cup vegetable oil
2 eggs
3 cups chopped unpeeled apples
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup chopped walnuts or pecans

Frosting Ingredients:
1 cup powdered sugar
juice of lemon, to consistency and taste
0.25 teaspoon salt

Directions:
Combine flour, baking soda, and salt. In large mixing bowl, cream sugar with oil until smooth. Beat in eggs. Add dry ingredients to egg mixture, mixing well. Stir in apples, vanilla and walnuts or pecans. Spread batter in greased and floured 10-inch tube or fluted tube pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour and 10 minutes. While cake is baking, prepare frosting. Beat powdered sugar, lemon juice and salt together until smooth. Cool cake in pan for 10 minutes, invert on serving plate, and spread with frosting.


Taffy Apple Pound Cake

Ingredients:
16 light caramel candies
3.25 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 teaspoon allspice
4.5 cups powdered sugar
1.5 cups butter, softened
1 tablespoon vanilla
6 eggs
1.5 cups coarsely chopped peeled apples

Directions:
Cut each caramel into 8 bits and set aside. Sift flour, cinnamon, and allspice. In large mixing bowl and using electric mixer, beat powdered sugar with butter and vanilla for 3 minutes or until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Gradually add dry ingredients to egg mixture, mixing well. Fold in apples and caramels. Spread batter in greased and floured 12-cup fluted tube pan. Bake at 325 degrees for 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 hours, checking after 1 hour. Cool in pan for 10 minutes, then invert on serving plate. Serves 16.

Football! Chocolate Chip Ball, Nuts and Bolts, and Ranch Rolls

Football is my favorite spectator sport, and football season is my favorite time of year. Among my family and friends, football watching rarely involves gourmet food, rather, simple crowd pleasers. These popular recipes are always well accepted and appreciated.

Chocolate Chip Ball

Ingredients:
8 ounces cream cheese, softened
0.5 cup butter, (no substitutes), softened
0.25 teaspoon vanilla extract
0.75 cup confectioners' sugar
2 tablespoons brown sugar
0.75 cup miniature semi-sweet chocolate chips
0.75 cup finely chopped pecans
chocolate graham crackers

Directions:
In a mixing bowl, beat the cream cheese, butter and vanilla until fluffy. Gradually add the sugars to the mixture, and beat until combined. Stir in the chocolate chips. Cover and refrigerate for 2 hours. After two hours, place the cream cheese mixture on a large piece of plastic wrap, and shape it into a ball. Refrigerate for at least 1 additional hour. Immediately prior to serving, roll the cheese ball in the pecans. Serve with chocolate graham crackers.


Nuts and Bolts

Ingredients:
2 8-ounce packages cheese crackers
3 to 4 cups mixed nuts, to taste
1 cup pecans
4 cups freshly popped corn
2 8.5-ounce packages sesame chips
2 15-ounce cans coconut chips
6 ounces pretzel sticks
1 cup margarine, melted
1 teaspoon salt
0.5 teaspoon garlic salt OR 1 clove garlic, crushed
1 teaspoon curry powder
dash of hot pepper sauce
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

Directions:
In large roasting pan, combine crackers, nuts, pecans, popped corn, sesame chips, coconut chips, and pretzels. In separate bowl, mix butter, salt, garlic, curry powder, hot pepper sauce, and Worcestershire sauce together, and drizzle over snack mixture, tossing to coat. Bake at 250 degrees for 1 hour, stirring at 15 minute intervals. Spread mixture on paper towel to cool. Store in tightly-covered cans or jars. Makes 20 cups.

From I'll Cook When Pigs Fly...And They Do In Cincinnati, the cookbook of the Junior League of Cincinnati


Ranch Rolls

Ingredients:
8 ounces softened cream cheese
8 ounces sour cream
1 package dry fiesta style ranch dressing mix
1 cup chunky salsa
1.5 cups shredded cheddar cheese
10 10-inch flour tortillas

Directions:
In a medium bowl, mix the cream cheese, sour cream, ranch mix, salsa, and cheddar cheese. Spread the mixture evenly onto the tortillas. Roll the tortillas, and chill them in the refrigerator. To serve them, slice the rolled, chilled tortillas into 0.75 inch slices and arrange on a large platter.

Fudge Sauce for Ice Cream and Brownie Sheet Cake

Mmmmmm, my favorite chocolate recipes typically reserved for summer vacations to the lake house! The Fudge Sauce for Ice Cream is perfect, smooth and sugary. The Brownie Sheet Cake is indulgent - and addictive.

Fudge Sauce for Ice Cream

Ingredients:
1 stick of butter
4 1-ounce squares of semi-sweet chocolate, chopped
1 can evaporated milk
3 cups granulated sugar
dash salt
1 teaspoon vanilla

Directions:
Melt butter in top of double boiler. Add chopped chocolate squares several at a time, allowing to melt into butter before adding more. Then, add sugar and milk alternately until completely mixed. Add dash of salt and heat approximately 20 minutes in top of pan. Remove from heat and add vanilla.


Brownie Sheet Cake

Brownie Ingredients:
2 cups flour
2 cups sugar
2 sticks butter
4 tablespoons high-quality cocoa
1 cup water
0.5 cup buttermilk
2 eggs, slightly beaten
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon vanilla
nuts to taste (optional)

Frosting Ingredients:
1 stick butter
4 tablespoons high-quality cocoa
6 tablespoons milk
1 box (approximately 4.5 cups sifted) powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla

Directions:
Sift together flour and sugar. In saucepan, mix butter, cocoa, and water. Bring ingredients in saucepan to a boil and pour over the sugar mixture. Add buttermilk, eggs, baking soda, vanilla, and nuts if desired. Mix all ingredients thoroughly by hand. Pour into 16x10 greased pan. Bake at 400 degrees for 20 minutes. Approximately five minutes before cake is done, in saucepan mix butter, cocoa, and milk. Bring to boil. Once boil is reached, remove from heat and add powdered sugar then vanilla. Mix together with spoon. Pour frosting over brownie sheet cake as soon as it comes out of oven. Allow cake and frosting to cool thoroughly in pan before serving. Freezes well.

Lucy Lyn's Potato Casserole

A simple but delicious family favorite passed down from a very eccentric great-aunt to a slightly less eccentric aunt, (who, truth be told, recorded the recipe but assigned the actual cooking duties to my talented uncle), to me. A highlight of every family function, always doubled, sometimes quadrupled. Most recently, my uncle brought it to my parents' Labor Day cookout, and I've already bought potatoes to prepare it at home as soon as the weather cools.

Ingredients:
6-8 large red potatoes
1 pint sour cream
1 pint large-curd cottage cheese
garlic salt, onion salt, salt, and pepper to taste

Directions:
Bring water, (enough to cover potatoes by 1 inch), to a boil. Quarter potatoes. Add potatoes to water; maintain a boil. Gently boil potatoes until tender, 15 to 20 minutes, and drain in a colander. Combine all ingredients. Hand mash. Bake covered at 350 degrees for approximately one hour, uncovering during the last ten minutes to brown. Serve hot. Can be prepared in advance and reheated in the oven prior to serving.