Peppermint Meringues

8 eggs
1/2 tsp. cider vinegar
1/2 tsp. salt
1 1/3 cups sugar
12 candy canes, crushed

Preheat oven to 225 degrees. Line cookie sheets with foil or parchment. In a large glass or metal bowl, whip egg whites, vinegar and salt to form soft peaks. Gradually add sugar while continuing to whip until stiff peaks form, about 5 minutes. Fold 1/3 of the crushed candy canes into the mixture, reserving the rest. Drop by heaping teaspoonfuls or pipe through a large tip onto prepared pan one inch apart. Sprinkle with remaining candy canes. Bake for 75-90 min, until dry. Cool on baking sheets.


Recipe by Christie Sims

Pumpkin Cheesecake

2 (8oz) packages cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla
2 eggs
1/2 cup canned pumpkin
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
dash of ground cloves
dash of ground nutmeg
1 graham cracker pie crust (6oz) (or I made my own with butter, graham crackers, and some sugar)

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Beat cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla with electric mixer on medium speed until well blended. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing on low speed after each addition just until blended. Remove 1 cup of the batter, stir in pumpkin and spices.

Pour remaining plain batter into crust. Top with pumpkin batter.

Bake 40 minutes or until center is almost set. Cool. Refrigerate 3 hours or overnight.

Recipe by Evelyn Weed

Peanut Butter Pie with Ganache

For the crust

36 Oreo's (8 oz), broken into pieces, or 1 3/4 cups crushed Oreo's
6 Tablespoons unsalted butter
3 Tablespoons dark brown sugar
Pinch of salt

For the filling
6 ounces cream cheese (brought to room temperature)
3/4 cup confectioners sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 1/4 cup creamy peanut butter
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups heavy cream

For the garnish
1 oz semi-sweet chocolate (preferably 55% cacao or greater)
2 Tbsp creamy peanut butter

For the ganache

1 cup plus one Tbsp. of heavy cream

8 oz. of bittersweet chocolate

4 Tbsp. of butter

The crust
Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees. In a food processor, pulse wafers until finely ground. In a bowl, combine wafer crumbs, butter, brown sugar, and salt. Press mixture firmly into the bottom and up the sides of a 9 inch pie plate. Refrigerate until firm (about 15 minutes). Bake until set (8–10 minutes). Let cool completely on a wire rack.Directions:

For the filling
With an electric mixer on medium speed beat the cream cheese, confectioner’s sugar, and salt until fluffy. Beat in peanut butter and vanilla.

In a chilled bowl, beat cream until soft peaks form. Whisk 1/3 of whipped cream into peanut butter mixture, then gently fold in remaining whipped cream. Spoon filling into cooled crust. Freeze uncovered for 4 hours or up to one day covered in plastic wrap.

Ganache Combine 8 oz of bittersweet chocolate and room temp butter in a heat safe bowl. In a saucepan heat cream until boil, quickly poor over butter/chocolate and let rest for about 3 mins. then mix with whisk until smooth. Let cool for half hour, then poor over the peanut butter pie that has been in the freezer.

Peanut Butter Chip Drizzle Melt 6oz. peanut butter chips over a double boiler until melted and drizzle over chilled ganache.

Recipe by Kelly Atwood

"To Die For" Chocolate Mousse Pie

1 baked pie crust (8 or 9 in)
1 cup Nestle semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 c. powdered sugar
1/2 c. expensive butter (1 cube)
1 t. vanilla
4 eggs

Melt chips and let cool. Melt over the stove or in the microwave. Set aside. Cream butter and sugar until very fluffy. Add vanilla and cooled melted chips. Beat. Add eggs (cold from the refrigerator), one at a time, beating for 2 minutes after each egg for greatest volume. Pour into cooled pie shell and smooth on top. Freeze. Place in refrigerator 1 hour before serving. Serve with whipped cream and chocolate shavings. Very rich and delicious!!

Recipe by Sara Gillespie

Savory Smoked Salmon Pies

1 pkg. crescent rolls
1 container herb cheese spread
1/2 cup smoked salmon, flaked with a fork
1 clove fresh garlic, crushed
1-2 Tbsp. dried dill (your choice)
2 green onion, finely chopped (green stalks only)
1/4-1/2 cup feta cheese
1 egg

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Open crescent rolls and separate into 8 triangles. Mix all other ingredients together in a bowl. Holding crescent in your hand, spoon large dollop of salmon mixture into the center of the triangle. Cup dough and wrap the long end around folding the ends down to shape into a rose. Brush with egg wash and bake for 10-12 minutes.

Recipe by Rebecca Lorentzen-Webster

Peanut Butter Pie

Crust

1 1/4 cups crushed Oreos (white filling removed, about 20 cookies)
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup butter, melted

Combine cookie crumbs, sugar and butter. Form a crust by pressing cookie crumb mixture into a 9 inch pie plate. Bake for 10 minutes on 375 degrees. Cool

Filling

1 8oz. pkg. cream cheese, softened
1 cup creamy peanut butter
1 cup sugar
1 Tbsp. butter, softened
1 tsp. vanilla
1 cup heavy cream, whipped
Grated chocolate

In a mixing bowl beat cream cheese, peanut butter, sugar, butter and vanilla until smooth. Fold in whipped cream. Gently spoon into baked cookie crust. Garnish with chocolate shavings. Refrigerate at least 3 hours before serving.

Recipe by Christie Sims

Artisan Bread

6.5 cups Flour
3 C. Warm water
1.5 TBSP yeast
1.5 TBSP Salt

Mix water, yeast, and salt.
Add the flour and mix JUST until their are no flour clumps.
Put a loose lid over your sticky mixture and let sit for 2 hours.
With floured hands and floured surface fold dough into three balls.
Let rise on a portable surface (i.e. cutting board) that has been covered with plenty of cornmeal for 1 hour.
Heat oven to 450 degrees with a pizza stone on middle rack and a roasting pan (for steaming) on lower rack.
Cut grooves on top of dough for the artisan look.
When oven is at full heat, open oven door, cover oven glass with a dish towel (water drops can damage it) pull out the steamer pan, slide loaf onto pizza stone, pour 1 C. water into steamer pan and quickly remove towel & close door.
Let bake for 25-30 minutes or until bread is a golden brown.

Recipe by Katie Richardson