Pumpkin Fluff

 When I opened the cupboard this afternoon, there were multiple cans of pumpkin staring back at me expectantly. And I realized that open season for pumpkins is well underway, so I had better get with it! Since my Grammy was coming over for the week, I thought I'd make something autumnal for dessert. However, I didn't have time to actually bake something. My solution: Pumpkin Fluff. After I finished making it, I had to try it to make sure it wasn't a total flop. I was secretly hoping no one else liked it, that way I could have the whole thing to myself. I didn't have my camera right off hand so I wasn't able to take a picture right away. But for a while there, I was worried that it wasn't going to make it all the way to picture time with out getting eaten up...

PUMPKIN FLUFF:
15 oz. pumpkin puree
8 oz. cream cheese
1 1/2 c. powdered sugar
8 oz. whipped topping
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
graham crackers

Use a food processor to whip together pumpkin and cream cheese until smooth. Then mix in powdered sugar and spices. Fold in the whipped topping until incorporated. Cover the bottom of a 9 x 9 pan in graham crackers. Then add a layer of fluff and another layer of graham crackers. Spread remaining fluff on top. Put in the freezer to chill for at least an hour before serving.

When I asked for feed back, I was told that next time I should throw some marshmallows in there somewhere, maybe on top of the bottom layer of graham crackers. So I guess that means there's allowed to be a next time for this dessert. I believe the quote of the evening was, "If pumpkins were clouds that farted, this is what you would end up with." And that's how the name "Pumpkin Fluff" came into being....

Peanut Butter Yummies

Hi ya! I'm new to this high-tech blogging business, so please bear with me as I stumble through! :)
There are a few reasons why I love to bake:
1) it amazes me how a few ingredients go into a bowl and the outcome is (hopefully) delicious!
2) all the concoctions that go down in the kitchen make my house smell amazing!
3) who doesn't love the little grins that pop out while scarfing down goodies??

Tonight was a girl's night at home, and I figured everyone needs a little sugar in their lives on such evenings, right? Any girl would agree that dessert makes bonding time all that much better. The sugar of request was cookie sandwiches, nicknamed "Yummies" by Laura. And after much debate over cookie options: sugar, peanut butter, chocolate, chocolate chip.... the list goes on and on... we agreed on peanut butter.
Since I was only making sandwiches for the two girlies, I halved the recipe; however the original made four dozen cookies....which means Laura and Rachael each ate about a dozen's worth.... well, I suppose you only live once! :D

PEANUT BUTTER COOKIES:
1/2 c. margarine
1/2 c. peanut butter
1/2 c. white sugar
1/2 c. brown sugar
1 egg
1/2 tsp. vanilla
2 Hershey's bars, crumbled into small pieces
1 1/4 c. flour
3/4 tsp. soda
dash of salt.

Cream together the margarine, peanut butter, and sugars. Add the egg and vanilla and mix. Then add in all the dry ingredients. Form the dough into balls and place them onto a baking sheet. Bake at 375* for about 10 minutes. (unless you like them a little gooey-ier like we do at my house... in which case, I take them out a little sooner.)

I had some left over peanut butter frosting from a while ago in the freezer, so I took it out and used it for filling in between two cookies.

Although a little messy, they were a success and both girls gave them a thumbs up! It's probably a good thing that neither of them were able to finish their cookies, which are waiting in the fridge to be eaten at breakfast... if they last that long. To quote Laura, "This will be just the thing to get me going for school in the morning!"   Look out teachers!