Raspberry Thumbprint Cookies

This recipe was originally from Emeril Lagasse in 2003. I've been making it ever since he aired it on TV. They are the best Christmas cookies. 

**Makes about 2 Dozen Cookies

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup raspberry jam
• 2 tablespoons Cointreau (Orange Liquor)
• 2 1/4 cups flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 2 sticks (1 cup) butter, at room temperature
• 2/3 cup sugar
• 2 egg yolks
• 1 tablespoon grated lemon zest
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Grandma Lena's Amish Cookies

This Recipe was my grandmother's cookie recipe, to me it's a cross between shortbread and a sugar cookie. You can add sprinkles of some sort on top to make them fit a certain holiday (Example: Green for St. Patrick's Day, Pink for Valentines, Red for Christmas, etc...).

Healthy "Pup"cakes

I came up with this recipe because my puppy, Kona, was turning a year old and I wanted to make her something special that wouldn't be bad for her. This recipe has all natural ingredients (as long as you use fresh ground peanut butter, not jarred, they have way to many preservatives, sugar, and sodium for your pup). A lot of people seemed to use a cream cheese frosting for the dog, but that's not as healthy. So I came up with this frosting using greek yogurt and ingredients from the pup-cake. The recipe will make about 24 mini cupcakes (there was extra leftover with mine for 1 bigger one). I would suggest halving the recipe if you don't want that many of them. Although you can always freeze them.

Festive Pumpkin Pie

This is a great, flavorful and fluffy Pumpkin Pie Recipe. I've experimented a lot through the years and this seems to be the one I stick with. This pumpkin pie almost tastes like a pumpkin cheesecake because it's so moist and flavorful. 
For the crust you can view my Easy Pie Crust Tutorial which also has the directions for the decorative pie crust leaves on this pie. 

Easy Pie Crust

Makes 1 Pie Crust (If you want pie crust decor, see the bottom for instructions)

Ingredients:

• 1 1/4 Cup Sifted Flour
• 1/4 Cup or 4 Tbsp Butter
• 1/4 Cup Shortening
• 1/2 Teaspoon Salt
• 1 Tablespoon Ice Cold Water

Thanksgiving Cranberry Sauce

This recipe is one of the best cranberry sauces I've ever made. The original idea came from Emeril's recipe on Food Network. Over the years I have tweaked it and changed the amounts. It's so full of flavor and smells absolutely amazing when it's cooking. 

Ingredients: 

• 1 bag of Fresh Cranberries (2 Cups)
• 1/2 Cup White Sugar
• 1 (Navel) Orange Juiced (1/2 Cup Juice) 
• Zest from Orange (2 Tablespoons) 
• 1/4 cup of red wine (any dry red, not a sweet)
• 1 Teaspoon of Cinnamon
• 1 Tablespoon Cornstarch

How it's done:

Turn your saucepan on to medium heat and add all of the ingredients except the cornstarch. Stir and bring to a boil.

Once the mixture boils, reduce to low heat and simmer until the cranberries soften and the sauce thickens. You can mash down some of the cranberries with a spoon to create a smoother sauce at this point. Or you can leave it as is. Take the cornstarch and mix it with 1 Tablespoon cold water in a separate bowl. Stir into cranberry mixture until it thickens. You can add more sugar at this point if you would like (keep in mind fresh cranberries are tart). 

Now refrigerate and enjoy. 

Peppermint Hot Cocoa Cookies

I came up with the peppermint Hot Cocoa Cookies because I bought a bag of these:

Kraft has it all, even Peppermint Mallows. I bought these and thought to myself how wonderful they would be in a chocolate cookie. 

These cookies are melt in your mouth, chewy, with a little crunch. More chocolate than peppermint, but just enough peppermint to give you that refreshing flavor. The cookie itself almost resembles the taste of a brownie. The cookie is filled with peppermint marshmallows (Hence the "Hot Cocoa" name) and topped with just a little crushed peppermint. 

Banana Bread Muffins

Do you have that problem where your bananas start going brown and you don't want to waste, yet you don't want to eat them? What better way to enjoy them than banana bread? These are crazy moist, high in fiber and vitamins, and extremely addicting.
The muffins can also be made into on loaf of Banana Bread or 12 large muffins. I usually make 24 smaller muffins so I have more to share with people.

Pumpkin Spice Rice Krispies

Yes you heard me...Pumpkin Spice Rice Krispy Treats! The easiest, tasty, Fall dessert. I found the Pumpkin Spice Mallows and thought they would make great rice krispy treats...and they did! 

Life without an instruction manual

Do you ever feel one step behind?

Just standing in an abyss that only appears that way to you. Hoping for answers, clues, or even a strategy. Holding to the ray of hope. Running in a direction just to wonder if you've gone the wrong way. Life happens so fast. You're thrown into it without an instruction manual and without any cliff notes. You wake up some days and feel that your dreams are so vivid; almost more real than reality. Every step you take is a step in the right direction because you end up where you were meant to be. It's funny though because everything feels so life or death when it's happening. It feels as if you'll never end up in the right place at the right time. The truth is, where you're standing right now is the right place. The experiences, the mistakes, and the people along the way are all part of your life instruction manual that you continually write for yourself. You determine your journey and the abyss is only as big as you perceive it to be. Open your mind to the possibilities each day offers and embrace every moment.