Auntie J's Pumpkin Bread

This is one of my hubby's favorites from when he was younger. It is from his Great-Aunt Jeanette.

2 C canned pumpkin
1 tsp baking powder
1 C vegetable oil
1 tsp baking soda
3 C sugar
1 tsp clove powder
4 eggs, beaten
1 tsp nutmeg
3 1/4 C flour
2 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon

Mix ingredients and pour into 2 greased bread pans. Bake @ 350 degrees for 1 hour.

Pastry Crust

I got this recipe from our friends, the Chips, and it is totally awesome. It is so easy to make and it tastes great with dessert pies, though it would not be good for savory pies (i.e. meat pies).

1 1/2 C. flour

3 T. sugar

1 tsp. salt

1/2 C. oil

2 T. milk

Mix all ingredients together and pat into a 9 inch pie pan. Bake at 375 for 15-20 min (until light brown). Or pour in filling and bake as recipe suggests.

Baked Pineapple

1 can (20 oz) crushed pineapple in juice
2 eggs, well beaten
1/2 C. sugar
2 Tbsp flour
1/4 lb butter
8 slices white bread, cubed

Mix together sugar and flour. Add to beaten eggs and pineapple. Pour mixture into buttered casserole.

Melt butter in large frying pan. Add cubed bread to this and stir until brown. Put on top of pineapple mixture.

Bake ½ to ¾ hour in a moderate oven.

Merry Christmas Cookies

As a kid I made these cookies every year at Christmas time (hence the name) with my mom. They are a lot of fun to make, and little guys especially love getting to use the rolling pin and cookie cutters.

½ C butter
½ C shortening
1 C sugar
3 eggs
2 C honey
1 Tbsp vanilla
8 ¼ C flour
1 Tbsp soda
1 Tbsp salt

Chill dough at least 1 hour.

Preheat oven to 375.

Roll out to ¼ inch thickness. Cut out cookies. Bake 8-10 minutes.

(Theoretically this should make 15 dozen cookies, but it doesn’t even come close. This is 3x the original recipe.)

Chocolate Peanut Butter Bars

1 1/2 C butter, melted
2 C peanut butter
4 1/2 C confectioner's sugar
2 C graham cracker crumbs

1/2 C butter
2 C semi-sweet chocolate chips

Grease a 10x15 inch pan. In a large bowl, combine 1 1/2 C melted butter, peanut butter, confectioner's sugar, and graham cracker crumbs. Spread in prepared pan.

Combine 1/2 C butter and chocolate chips in a medium saucepan over medium-low heat. Stir occasionally until melted and smooth. Spread over peanut butter mixture. Let cool completely before cutting into bars.