Rice Krispie Squares/Scotcheroos

By Kathy Brasier Sikorski

She calls them Rice Krispie Squares, to me they are Scotcheroos. Either way, they are fantastic. Perfect with a cup of hot coffee (to wash the sticky off your teeth.) So good!

Rice Krispie Squares
1 cup sugar
1 cup corn syrup (white)
1 cup peanut butter
6 cups Rice Krispies
1 pkg chocolate chips
1 pkg butterscotch chips

Combine sugar and corn syrup and large pan. Heat to rolling boil. Remove from heat; stir in peanut
butter. Add cereal. Press into 13x9 pan. Melt chocolate and butterscotch chips together. Spread over
cereal mixture. Cool completely.

Fruit Fluff Parfait

By Priya Poehner


Priya served this at a recent coffee hour, and it was a big hit--the bowl was nearly licked clean! She found it  here via Pinterest, so thank you to the original poster. It is light and delicious, and could not be easier.

I know this one is going in my file for the holidays--simple and tasty!


Ingredients:

• 2- 6 oz. raspberry yogurts (or your favorite flavor)
• 1- package vanilla instant pudding mix (3.4 oz. powder)
• 16 oz. whipped topping (Cool Whip)
• about 16 oz. your favorite fruits (Priya used frozen mixed berries, which gave it a delicious, frosty flavor)

Mix yogurt and vanilla pudding powder well, then fold in the whipped topping. You can either fold the fruit in or serve it over the top of the fluff, or in layers in a trifle dish if you want to get really fancy. ;-)

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Cheesecake Dip

by Sylvia Musheno

This is the dip that was served last week and was a big hit with young and older alike! Before I left coffee hour, I tracked down Sylvia to demand this recipe for the blog, and was stopped in the hall on the way to my car with a request for it! So here you go--like a big bowl of cookie dough (without the salmonella fear of raw eggs.) Or, like one bite at a time cheesecake--either way, you win!

8 oz. cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup butter or margarine, softened
1/4 tsp. vanilla extract
3/4 cup powdered (confectioner's) sugar
2 Tb. brown sugar
3/4 cup chocolate chips (mini are a great size for this)

Beat cream cheese, butter and vanilla until fluffy. Beat in sugars until well blended, then stir in the chips. Serve with fruit, animal crackers, graham crackers, etc. for dipping. Stand back to avoid the stampede.

7 Layer Bars (One Pan!)

By Ronica Skarphol Brownson

These were taken from my Mom's KMOT TV Minot ND cookbook from the 70's. There were 3 versions of this recipe in there, and probably a million like it on the web. I figured that must mean they are good. I was right! Some people call these Dolly Madison bars, or 7 Story Bars. I love how easy they are, how great the house smells when they are done, how quick they go together, and of course, how delicious they come out!

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter
1 cup graham cracker crumbs
1 small (7 oz.) bag sweetened coconut
1 cup butterscotch chips
1 cup chocolate chips
1 cup chopped nuts
1 can Eagle brand Sweetened Condensed Milk

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Put the stick of butter in a 9x13 pan and put it in the oven to melt. When melted, swirl it around to coat the bottom and sides. Sprinkle the rest of the ingredients, in the order given, as evenly as possible in the pan. Do not stir. Drizzle the milk evenly over the whole works. Bake for 25-30 minutes. Allow to cool well before cutting. Store in the fridge.

Some tips I read:

If the coconut goes on last (or you save some for the top) it will get all toasty.
You can put half the milk over the crumbs, then the rest over the toppings to make it hold together better. I didn't have any trouble with mine, but it's a variation.
Line the pan with parchment paper or non-stick foil for ease of release.
You can mix the butter and crumbs in a bowl, then pat in for a more firm crust. Again, I had no trouble with mine, so I would skip this step.
Change the chips, nuts, etc. for your own variations. This week mine used peanut butter, milk chocolate and semi-sweet chocolate chips with pecans. Mainly this is because someone stuck the wrong kind of chips in the butterscotch spot on the shelf at Wegman's and I grabbed the wrong bag. But they were delicious so that was fine with me!

Fast and Easy Tailgate Apps

by Viki Stumbers

Here’s a non-recipe favorite:

Arrange on a large platter:

·         fresh apple wedges
·         pretzels
·         crackers
·         small slices of cheddar cheese

Serve with 1 jar of Herlocher’s Dipping Mustard and 1 container of Caramel Apple dip (found in the produce section).   Set out two spoons (for the dips) and toothpicks.  Just about everything goes with everything else, and prep time is nearly nil.

Ways to stretch/expand the apps (and still just about everything goes with just about everything else):

1.        Need to make it heartier?  Add cubes of ham and cubes or cracker slices of Swiss cheese.
2.       Heartier than that?  Also add chunks of kielbasa or smoked sausage and a small container of horseradish.
3.       Need it to be sweeter?  Add plain store-bought cookies (sturdy/crisp) and a jar of Nutella (chocolate-hazelnut spread—find it near the peanut butter).
4.       Need it to be healthier?  Add natural peanut butter, raisins and celery sticks.
5.       Need to feed a crowd?  Add all items from 1-4 to make a super-platter.
6.       Need it to be faster?  Buy the cheese pre-sliced for crackers (near the shredded cheese section) and the apples pre-cut (in produce aisle)
7.       Need it faster than that (as in, you’re on your way to the tailgate/party/whatever and realized you forgot to get anything)?  Almost all items are available at Sheetz—grab and go!