Cookin With Brooke

I love pumpkin pie, but I wanted to shake it up a bit. This gives you all the flavors of pumpkin pie, but it serves WAY more people and you look like a super star!

1 spice cake mix made per directions

1 large box vanilla pudding (prepared per directions)

1 (30-ounce) can pumpkin pie filling (or some cans say ‘mix’)

1/2 cup brown sugar

1 (12-ounce) container whipped cream

Bake the cake according to the package directions; cool completely.

Meanwhile, prepare the pudding and set aside.

Stir the pumpkin pie filling and brown sugar together then into the pudding.

Crumble half the cake into the bottom of a trifle bowl. Pour 1/2 of the pudding mixture over the cake then add a layer of whipped topping.

Repeat.

Refrigerate overnight.

This recipe is easy and makes MANY MANY MANY! Perfect for teacher gifts or hard-to-buy for friends on your list.

1 bar German Chocolate cooking chocolate

12 oz semi-sweet chocolate chips

48 oz almond bark (24 oz  almond bark and 24 oz milk chocolate bark)

1 16 oz dry roasted unsalted peanuts

1 16 oz dry roasted salted peanuts

Place all ingredients in CrockPot. Cook on low for 1.5 hours or warm for 3 hours. DO NOT TOUCH. Turn CrockPot off and let it sit for 20 minutes. Cover counter top or table with waxed or parchment paper. Stir mixture completely. Drop by spoonfuls onto paper or into small paper muffin cups. Let harden and store in airtight container. Give away and save some or your family to enjoy. (they also freeze!)

Been making this recipe for years! It really helps you turn the corner and say “Welcome, Fall!”

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1 teaspoon ground cloves

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup softened butter

1 1/2 cups white sugar

1 cup canned pumpkin puree

1 egg

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350.

Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and salt; set aside.

In a medium bowl, cream together the butter and sugar. Add pumpkin, egg, and vanilla to butter mixture, and beat until creamy.

Mix in dry ingredients.

Drop on cookie sheet by tablespoonfuls and flatten slightly. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes in the preheated oven. Cool cookies, then frost. (we use cream cheese frosting)

This is the BEST Potato Soup I’ve ever made and by FAR the easiest! There’s something about potato soup that makes you feel like you’re wrapped up in a warm blanket. This recipe came from my daughter-in-law’s mother. Thanks, Marcia!

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 pkg southern style hash brown potatoes
• 1/3 cup chopped green onion
• 1/2 pound bacon cooked & crumbled
• 4 1/2 cups hot water
• 4 1/2 tsps chicken bouillon
• 8 oz. cream cheese – softened and cut in chunks
• 1/4 tsp pepper
• 1/2 tsp salt

TOPPING:

• Sour cream
• Extra crumbled bacon

Combine in CrockPot and cook on low 6-8 hours. Serve with a dollop of sour cream and sprinkles of crumbled bacon. Sourdough bread on the side is a good choice!

Thanks, Nancy for this photo! She combines shredded and cubed hash browns in hers.

Pure vanilla is so expensive to buy. Have you been shocked at the price in the store so you just go ahead and buy the cheaper imitation version? Yep, me too. Well, at least I used to. Now I make my own. And I even make enough to give away for Christmas gifts! It takes a little time, so you need to start soon!  

INGREDIENTS:

A Fifth of 80 proof Vodka (or glycerin)

Tahitian Vanilla Beans (I get mine at saffron.com)

Glass bottles

A small funnel

The ratio is 5 beans per cup of vodka.

Use any glass jar that has a lid. Even a quart-sized canning jar. Pour three cups of vodka into the jar.

Slice the (15) vanilla beans in half lengthwise. You’ll see tons of what looks like brown goop. That’s actually the good stuff! Scrape that out with a knife and add to the jar of vodka.

Place the scraped out vanilla flecks and beans in the jar with the vodka and screw the lid on tightly.

Now wait. Give it a shake every now and then during the process.  It will become dark within just a few days, but it’s not really going to perform like vanilla until after about 6 weeks. And vanilla extract only gets better and stronger with age. I actually make 2 batches every year so I have enough to give and enough to use myself!

After at LEAST 6 weeks, pour into 2 or 4 ounce bottles.

Hey there. Thanks for stopping by. This is really my very first post. I’ve been trying to find a way to keep giving you all my Cookin With Brook recipes. So many people have been asking for them.

I keep losing them. And what I mean by that, is…every radio station I’ve worked at has housed them on their site and then either deleted them or have not given me a chance to take them with me. So I end up starting over.

WELL…not any more. I’m going to make sure I keep them safe and secure. Right here. It’s going to take awhile to build them all back up again, but I will. Believe me. I love sharing my family’s favorite recipes with you and I appreciate how much you love them! Thank you.

Keep your eyes here to see more and more. And if by any chance you’ve ever printed any of my other ones or have them somewhere, please email them to me! It will help me get this built!

THANKS! ~Brook