Pink Week: Easy Strawberry Pie

Easy Strawberry Pie

Filling:

1-8 ounce pkg cream cheese, softened
1 cup sour cream
2-10 ounce pkgs frozen strawberries, thawed
Graham cracker crust

Blend cream cheese and sour cream. Reserve 1/2 cup berries and syrup; add remaining berries to cheese mixture. Pour into graham cracker crust. Freeze until firm. Spoon reserved berries over pie.

Crust:

1 cup graham cracker crumbs
2 tablespoons sugar
3 tablespoons melted butter

Mix graham cracker crumbs, sugar and butter well and press firmly into 9’ pie pan. Chill 45 minutes.

Pink Week: Cherry Pudding

Cherries are one of those foods I didn't want to eat when I was little. I finally tried one, under duress...and liked it. My mom remembers this happening at a cherry orchard in Michigan, with a cherry picked straight from the tree. I remember it happening at the lunch buffet at Bonanza with a maraschino. Regardless, I do like cherries today. Here's a little keeper from my Grandma's recipe box...share the love with Cherry Pudding!

Cherry Pudding

2 cups sugar, divided
2 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup hot water
2 teaspoons baking powder
flour to form batter about like cake dough   
2 cups cherries

Mix 1 cup sugar with 1 tablespoon butter. Add water, flour and baking powder. Pour into greased 8 x 8 baking dish.

Mix 1 cup sugar with cherries and pour over batter. Drizzle with 1 tablespoon melted butter.

Happy Birthday Mom! Coconut Cream Pie

I haven't always been good at making pies...I threw my first crust in the trash. I hadn't baked it yet, but even as a novice, I knew the gray color and rubbery texture would not bode well for any dessert, especially not pie. I've made plenty since that first fail and with some practice, I've become pretty good at it. So even if you don't think you can, I bet you can make good pie if you really try. Here's a great recipe from the one who taught me everything I know about the subject.

My favorite thing about these recipes is the cute little cards and my mom's handwriting.

Happy Birthday Mom--I love you! Thanks for teaching me to make pie.

Coconut Cream Pie

2 cups milk, scalded

1 cup sugar (scant)

1/2 cup flour

1/4 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons butter

3/4 teaspoon vanilla

1 cup flaked coconut

1 baked pastry shell (see below)

Meringue

Add milk slowly to mixed sugar, flour and salt. Add beaten egg yolks. Cook over medium heat, stirring vigorously until mixture thickens. Remove from heat; stir in firm butter, vanilla and coconut. Pour into shell. Top with meringue; sprinkle with coconut and brown in hot oven for just a minute. Makes 1 9-inch pie.

P.S. I don't really know how to make meringue, so I often use whipped cream. Probably shouldn't put that in the oven.

Crust: (makes 2)

2 1/2 cups flour
1 1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup Crisco (this is the original recipe, so I included it, but you should know I always use butter because I am morally opposed to Crisco)
1/4 cup sugar (scant)
1/4 cup + 1 tablespoon cold water

Blend all ingredients except water with pastry blender. Add water. Divide into 2 balls. Roll between 2 sheets of waxed paper (lay wax paper opposite directions so a square is formed). Roll dough to edges of square and place in pie plate.

Winter Week: Snow Ice Cream!

It's Winter Week and Mom Week here on Single Mom Cooks. Tomorrow's her birthday, so all week I'll be sharing winter white recipes from my mom. To start us off big, since we can't get enough of it, here's one way to make snow more fun...

Snow Ice Cream

bowl of snow
vanilla
half and half
sugar

Mix all together until consistency of ice cream.  Eat immediately.

Gooey Butter Cake

The name says it all. It is gooey and buttery. I don't know much about this recipe except that it is a regional favorite from Lisa's St. Louis days. It is also, hands down, my boys' favorite dessert, and most years they request it for their respective birthdays. I may, in fact, have to make it tonight as we have a little celebrating to do at our house. It's very sweet--I like a small piece with vanilla ice cream. And coffee. Definitely coffee.

Lisa's Gooey Butter Cake

Crust:
1/2 cup butter
1 egg, beaten
1 yellow cake mix

Combine and pour into 9x13 pan.

Topping:
1-8 ounce package cream cheese
2 eggs, beaten
2 3/4 cup powdered sugar

Pour topping over crust and bake at 350 degrees for 30-40 minutes.

Caramel Oatmeal Cookie Bars

Grandma's English Toffee was a promise that did not deliver. It may have been a user error and I plan to re-try; however, my initial test drive was a flop. I can't tell you the description my daughter had for the end result, but she was right. Nonetheless, I have redeemed myself with this one.

Many years ago, I adapted this recipe from three others to provide something sweet and rich for the people in my home that did not like chocolate. I think it's really good and 3/4 of my kids do too. (The other one says it's growing on her, but then, she likes chocolate.)

This isn't my simplest recipe, in fact, it's kind of a production as far as I'm concerned. It's also insanely fattening, so it's a rare treat. Best served warm with a cup of coffee and maybe some vanilla ice cream.

Caramel Oatmeal Cookie Bars

Bar/Topping:
2 cups brown sugar
1 cup butter, soft
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 eggs
2 1/2 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
3 cups oatmeal

Mix brown sugar, butter, vanilla and eggs with an electric mixer until light and fluffy. Combine flour, salt and soda and beat into butter mixture. Stir in oatmeal and mix well. Pat 2/3 of this mixture into a greased 9x13 pan, reserving 1/3 for topping.

Caramel filling:
2 tablespoons butter
1-15 ounce can sweetened condensed milk
1/4 cup brown sugar

In a small sauce pan, heat butter over medium heat until melted. Stir in sweetened condensed milk and brown sugar. Stir constantly until mixture begins to boil.

Remove caramel filling from heat and pour over oatmeal mixture. Drop remaining oatmeal mixture over caramel filling, spreading evenly.

Bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes or until lightly brown.

Let cool, then cut into (small) squares.

If you live in the Chicago area, I'd love to hear about your favorite grocery store for my upcoming feature: Grocery Store Wars. Leave comments below to cast your vote. (And if you live in Kansas, you can also vote between Big Dillons and Super Wal-Mart...I really want to know!)

And also...my Facebook page is growing with extra material including tips and ideas from busy moms around the country. We'd love to have you join us!

Have a great weekend and see you Monday with Potato Soup in a Bread Bowl.