Chocolate Chip Cheesecake

For the crust you'll need:

• 16 crushed oreos
• 2 tbsp butter melted
• 1 cup chocolate chips

or you can make this crust:

• 3/4 cups of flower
• 6 Tbsp butter
• 3 Tbsp sugar
• 1 egg yolk
• 1 tsp lemon zest
• 1 cup chocolate chips
  

Either crust is fine..... I like both...

In both you mix in all the ingredients except for the chocolate chips and pat the dough on the bottom of your cheesecake pan. (I use a 13" round springform pan) bake at 300 for about 10 minutes and then take out of the oven and srpinkle the chocolate chips over it.

For the filling you'll need

• 16 oz cream cheese
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 1 Tbsp vanilla
• 3/4 cup evaporated milk

Mix the cream cheese, sugar and vanilla until fluffy. Then add the sour cream and eggs. and then add the evaporated milk.

Pour over the crust and then sprinkle with another cup or cup and a half of chocolate chips and bake at 300 for 25 minutes and then cover with aluminum foil and bake for another 30 minutes.

You'll take it out of the oven and it won't look quite done, that's fine... Just set it in the fridge and let it cool for about 4-6 hours.

ENJOY!

Strawberry Shortcake

If you're ever in a hurry and need an easy and yummy desert, this is the recipe for you!

You'll need:

• 1/2 cup butter
• 2 Tbsp sugar
• 2/3 cups milk
• 2 eggs
• 1 Tbsp Vanilla
• 1 Tbsp baking powder
• dash of salt
• 2 cups flour

• about 6 cups sliced strawberries
• 1/4 cup sugar

Mix the butter, sugar, milk, vanilla and eggs until creamy. Add the dry ingredients. You can either put this in a cake pan, or in a muffin tin so that you can make individual cakes. Either way you don't want the batter more than 1/2" high.

Bake at 450 for 10-15 minutes.

Let cool for about 10 minutes and then put whip cream and strawberries on top!

ENJOY!

Chocolate Lava Cake

This is super easy and very delicious.

Cake:

• 1 eggs
• 1/2 cup milk
• 4 Tbsp butter
• 1 Tbsp vanilla
• 1 cup flour
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 4 Tbsp cocoa
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp salt

Mix the ingredients together and put the batter in either custard pots or a big muffin tin only fill half way.

mix

• 3 Tbsp cocoa
• 1/2 cup sugar

Sprinkle this over the batter

Warm

• 1 cup milk

and pour over the batter and cocoa and sugar mixture. You'll want to leave about half inch on top of the pot or tin.

Heat oven to 350 and bake for 30-35 minutes.

Take them out and dump each individual cake upside down on a plate and you will have a delicious and easy made treat!

ENJOY!

German Pancakes

These are one of my favorite things to have for breakfast, I don't think you can find a simpler recipe! I lived in Germany for 6 years, and not once did I have these, so I'm not sure why they are called German pancakes, but they are good. You'll need:

• 1/2 cup milk
• 1/2 cup flour
• 2 eggs
• 1 Tbsp butter

Preheat the oven to 425 and put the butter in your caserole or lasagna pan (usually 9 by 13) and put in the oven until melted, about 2-4 minutes.

Mix the milk, flour and eggs. Put mixture in pan and in the oven for about 12-15 minutes. When you take it out of the oven it'll be big and puffy, but it'll flatten after a couple minutes. Serves about 2-4 people, depending on how hungry they are :)

Serve with butter, syrup, powdered sugar, what ever you like!

ENJOY!

Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies

This recipe is easy, always a hit and delicious. You will need:

• 1 cup butter (2 sticks)
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1 1/4 cups brown sugar
• 1 Tbsp Vanilla extract
• 2 large eggs
• 1 3/4 flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 1/2 cups oatmeal (or quick oats)
• 2 cups chocolate chips

Mix the butter, sugars and vanilla until creamy, add eggs one at a time. In a separate bowl mix the dry ingredients and add them slowly to the wet mixture.

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees scoop about 1 Tbsp of dough on cookies sheet (you don't need to spray it with oil trust me, the 2 sticks of butter will make sure that your cookies don't stick to the cookie sheet).

Now if you like your cookies soft (like I do) bake them for 9-10 minutes. (when you take them out of the oven they will not look done, but trust me they will finish on the cookie sheet)

Then let them sit on the cookies sheet for about 2-3 minutes and then on to the cookie rack! If you like them non soft then cook them for 11-12 minutes.

~ENJOY~

Easy Pie Crust

This recipe is very easy and most useful when you don't have time to make Pate Feuilltee I use this recipe for anything from quiche, to apple pie... You'll need

• 2 cups flour
• 2/3 cup shortening (sometimes I use butter, it'll taste better)
• 1/2 cup cold water
• 1 tsp salt

Mix all the above ingredients and you've got your pie crust. This recipe makes enough for a bottom and a lid, so if you don't want to have a lid, just cut the recipe in half.

ENJOY!

Chocolate Muffins

This is a pretty basic and delicious recipe! You'll need:

• 2 cups flour (270 grams)
• 3/4 cup cocoa powder (92 grams)
• 1 Tbsp Baking powder (9 grams)
• 1/2 tsp baking soda (3 grams)
• 1/2 tsp salt (3 grams)
• 1 1/4 cups sugar (264 grams)
• 8 Tbsp Butter (114 grams)
• 2 large eggs
• 1 cup buttermilk (or regular) (228 grams)
• 1 Tbsp vanilla
  
• 1 1/2 cups chocolate chips (260 grams)

mix the dry ingredients together (flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, and salt)

Mix the wet ingredients together (sugar, butter, eggs, milk, and vanilla)

Add the mixed wet ingredients to the dry ingredients. DON'T OVER MIX! just mix until ingredients come together. Add chocolate chips and mix until they are evenly through out the batter.

Fill Muffin pan all the way. (this makes 12 muffins)

Put in a 400 degree oven for 18 minutes (until toothpick comes out clean)

remove from pan right away!

Enjoy!

Crepes

This recipe has been most requested, so here it is. It's super easy and very delicious! My Mother has been using it for years and I promise, there's no better recipe! It makes about 20 10" crepes! You'll need:

• 6 eggs
• 4 1/4 cups milk (1 liter)
• 3 Tbsp oil
• 3 cups flour (450 grams)
• dash of salt

Mix the ingredients in a bowl. Heat your pan you are going to use. (I have a 10" crepe pan, but you can use a regular 10" frying pan and you'll be fine, any seize you have will be fine) For a 10" pan you'll take 1/2 of the batter and pour it on the pan. Let sit until the side facing you is no longer runny and then flip (to be honest, I use a pancake turner, I'm not the best flipper, especially when I'm cooking with a baby on the hip) and then when the crepe is ready it'll slide right off the pan.

Toppings: The best topping is NUTELLA but of course you can use whatever you like: peanut butter, sugar, jam, honey, butter, strawberries, bananas, etc...

ENJOY!

Easy White Bread

This recipe is the easiest white bread recipe you'll find that's still delicious! You will need:

• 5 1/2 - 6 cups of white flour
• 1 Tbsp active dry yeast
• 2 1/4 cups of milk (you can use buttermilk, half and half, water, pretty much anything)
• 2 Tbsp butter
• 2 Tbsp sugar
• 1 tsp salt

First in a saucepan over medium heat: melt the butter, then add the milk, sugar and salt. Let warm until "baby bath warm" (when you stick your finger in it it's luke warm.
Then in a kitchen stand mixer, put 2 1/2 cups of flour in and the 1 Tbsp yeast. Mix.
Then add the wet mixture
Mix on medium low speed for about a minute and constantly scrape the sides of the bowl with a spatula. Then mix on medium high for 3 minutes.

Then add 1 cup of flour and let it mix on medium high for about 2-3 minutes. Add another cup of flour and mix on medium high for about 2-3 minutes. (so far we have used 4 1/2 cups of flour).

Now you'll want to add 1/2 cup of flour and let it mix till blended, and then one more time a 1/2 cup of flour and let it mix till blended. You'll want to use one of those covers for your mixer if you have one.

Now take your dough out of the mixer and put some flour on your counter and knead the dough until it's smooth and still a little sticky. (not so sticky to still leave chunks on your counter when kneading)

Now form it into a ball (my husband says it looks more like a smooth brain).

Get a plastic bowl, spray it with oil, place the dough in it and spray the dough as well. Cover with plastic wrap and let stand until double (about an hour) in a warm place.
After an hour you'll punch down the dough.
Let it sit for 10 Minutes.
Separate the dough into two equally big balls.
Flatten them into big flat rectangles (you can use your hands, or a rolling pin)
Put the rolled up loaves in bread pans and spray them with oil. cover them with plastic wrap.

Let them rise for 35 minutes.

Bake them at 375 for 45 minutes.

Let them cool! Enjoy!

Yogurt Cake

This cake is one of my favorites, I've been making it since I've been about 6 years old. It's easy enough to have your kids help and choose some of the ingredients. You will be using a pot of yogurt, when you have emptied the pot, you will keep using that pot to measure the other ingredients.

• 1 pot of yogurt (170 grams/ 6oz) (if you are going to use fruit then you can use flavored yogurt, otherwise I recommend vanilla yogurt)
  
• 3 "pots" flour (270 grams)
• 2 "pots" sugar (270 grams)
• 1 "pot" milk (190 grams)
• 1 "pot" oil (150 grams)
• 2 eggs
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tbsp Vanilla

OPTIONAL: 2 cups cut up fruit ( I like to use peaches, pineapple, bananas, what ever you like, it can work. once I did raspberries and so I also added a cup of chocolate chips, it's really easy to play around with this recipe. )

Mix all the ingredients and then put in a 10"- 12" pan and bake at 350 for 45- 55 minutes (until a tooth pick comes out clear) OR you can put the batter in a cup cake pan and then bake for about 20 minutes.
In this picture it's 2 cups peaches, 1 tsp almond extract and a dash of cinnamon.

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

I love chocolate and peanut butter, they go together great and kids love these easy to make cookies. You mix these like you do most cookies or cakes. Beat the fats until creamy and in a different bowl you mix your dry ingredients then mix them together. I know there is much debate about how to do this, dry to wet or wet to fat; both work. However, Alton Brown (one of my heroes) recommends the muffin method, that means adding the wet goods to the dry ones and just mixing until batter comes together, it doesn't have to be smooth.

Beat ½ Cup butter

½ cup peanut butter

½ cup granulated sugar

½ cup brown sugar

1 egg

Add 1¼ cups flour

½ tsp baking powder

½ tsp baking soda

¼ tsp salt

Add 1 cup chocolate chips

Mix well

Bake at 350 for 8-10 minutes