Paula Deen's Lemon Blossoms

I've been making these for quite some time and Alyssa decided to start making them too.
She now calls this her" signature" dish because she loves making them so much.

Paula Deen's Lemon Blossoms

18 1/2-ounce package yellow cake mix

3 1/2-ounce package instant lemon pudding mix

4 large eggs

3/4 cup vegetable oil

Glaze:

4 cups confectioners' sugar

1/3 cup fresh lemon juice

1 lemon, zested

3 tablespoons vegetable oil

3 tablespoons water

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Spray miniature muffin tins with vegetable oil cooking spray. Combine the cake mix, pudding mix, eggs and oil and blend well with an electric mixer until smooth, about 2 minutes. Pour a small amount of batter, filling each muffin tin half way. Bake for 12 minutes. Turn out onto a tea towel

To make the glaze, sift the sugar into a mixing bowl. Add the lemon juice, zest, oil, and 3 tablespoons water. Mix with a spoon until smooth.

With fingers, dip the cupcakes into the glaze while they're still warm, covering as much of the cake as possible, or spoon the glaze over the warm cupcakes, turning them to completely coat. Place on wire racks with waxed paper underneath to catch any drips. Let the glaze set 1 hour, before storing in containers with tight-fitting lids.

* the glaze seems to run out before the blossoms do so we make a double batch.

**it is hard to get the portions of raw dough right so that they don't bake out of the cups and overflow so I would fill the cups no more than halfway and even a third is good. Very small spoonfuls.

Chocolate Chip Cookies!

This recipe is from the butter flavored Crisco can, doubled. One batch never seemed to go far so I always doubled it....I was turned on to this recipe by my Mom, Linda Dukes. Sometime in the late 80's, early 1990's I believe......

She started making these as Christmas gifts in the 80's. They are unbelievably good and disappear fast at our house.

Chocolate Chip Cookies

1 ½ cups butter flavored Crisco
2 ½ cups firmly packed light brown sugar
4 tbsp. milk
2 tbsp. vanilla
2 eggs
3 ½ cups self rising flour
2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
2 cups coarsely chopped nuts (pecans or walnuts-optional)
**if nuts are omitted add 2 more cups of chocolate chips**

Heat oven to 375 degrees.

Cover cookie sheets in parchment paper

Combine Crisco, brown sugar, milk and vanilla in a large bowl. Beat with an electric mixer on medium speed til well blended.

Add eggs and mix well.

Gradually add flour and mix well.

Stir in (by hand) the chocolate chips and nuts. Drop rounded tablespoons of dough onto cookie sheets and bake at 375 degrees for (Chewy Cookies) 8-10 minutes (Crispy Cookies) 11-13 minutes.

*Do not overbake*
**Bake only one cookie sheet at a time**

Cool on sheets 2 minutes and remove to cooling rack to cool completely.

Butter Pecan Peach Schnapps Cake

**Alyssa requested this cake for her birthday. Had to make four to have enough for everyone....



For Monica and Hannah!

This recipe was given to me by a lady named Leah Reagan in late 1995 or so...She was a dear friend.....

Butter Pecan Peach Schnapps Cake


1 c. Pecan halves
1 (18 1/2 oz.) pkg. yellow cake mix
1 (3 3/4 oz.) pkg. instant French vanilla pudding
4 eggs
1/2 c. water
1/2 c. Oil
1/2 c. Peach Schnapps

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Grease a 10 inch tube pan or 12 cup Bundt cake pan. Sprinkle nuts over bottom of pan. Mix all ingredients together and pour over nuts. Bake 1 hour. While still in the pan prepare the glaze. Prick top. Drizzle smooth glaze evenly over top and down the inside of the pan sides right after the cake comes out of the oven. Allow cake to absorb glaze. Repeat until the entire batch of glaze is used. Cool, then invert onto a serving platter.

GLAZE:
1 stick butter
1/4 c. water
1 c. granulated sugar
1/4 c. peach schnapps


Melt butter in saucepan. Stir in water and sugar. Boil 5 minutes, stirring constantly. Remove from heat and stir in peach schnapps. Pour over cake while cake is still hot from the oven.


*I use Baker's Joy only to grease/flour all of my cake pans.

** ALWAYS use real butter, not margarine.

***this recipe can be divided and make 2 smaller Bundt cakes.

****I peel the bottom crust closest to the center of the pan off so that the glaze sinks in better.

My Mom's Nanner Pudding!

Yes, this is the recipe for the most requested dessert I have ever made!

5 C. Milk

2 lg. boxes Vanilla Instant Pudding

2 lg containers of Cool Whip, thawed

1 Can Condensed Milk

1 large box Vanilla Wafers

1 tbsp Vanilla Extract

5 bananas

**a VERY LARGE mixing bowl

**a VERY LARGE serving dish

Mix the pudding and milk in the mixing bowl for two minutes and set aside.

Pour and spread out all but 10 vanilla wafers in the bottom of the serving dish and slice all 5 bananas over them. Set aside.

To the pudding add the can of condensed milk and 1 tbsp vanill extract, mix well.

Mix in 1 container of thawed cool whip and pour over the wafers/banana mix.

Spread the last container of cool whip over the op of the pudding mix and crumble the reserved vanilla wafers over the top for decoration.

It is ready to eat at this point or keep in the fridge til ready to serve.

*Sometimes I make this and break it down into 3 smaller pans because it makes A LOT. In that case I put more bananas in each pan.