Now that we’re in the swing of the holidays, you may be gearing up to get in the kitchen for a serious baking session. From sugar cookies and snickerdoodles to brownies and biscotti, it will be a veritable whirlwind of measuring, mixing, scooping and baking.
This year, consider trying a new recipe, like this one for peach dumplings from Florida camper Kim Pearce which was selected as this month’s recipe contest winner. “I came up with the recipe when tasting something similar and watching my weight so I put it together and tried it,” she said. “It’s wonderful. Everyone loved the taste of butter warm peach cobbler and didn’t even know it was reduced calorie.”
According to Kim, she’s prepared this dish in a box oven several times, making it an ideal camping dessert, too.
“It would be really good on a cool night sitting around the campfire,” she said.
Ingredients:
2 cans reduced fat crescent rolls
2-15 oz cans peaches in natural juice or light syrup
1 C butter, melted
1 C sugar
1 can Diet Sprite
1 tsp cinnamon
Directions:
Separate the crescent rolls. Place one to two peaches on each section and roll up beginning with the end. Place in 9×13 pan.
Mix butter, sugar, and cinnamon together. Cook till butter is melted and sugar dissolved. Pour butter mixture over crescents, then pour Sprite over them. Bake at 350 for 45 minutes or until brown.
More Holiday Goodness
Want more great holiday recipe ideas? Why not try Mitch Kampii’s Hot Buttered Rum Batter or Carrie Tatro’s Mint Chocolate Layer Pie? We’ve included them as an extra bonus this month.
Hot Buttered Rum Batter
Submitted by Mitch Kamppi of Everett, Washington
Ingredients:
1 Quart Vanilla Ice Cream
1 Pound Butter (not margarine)
1 Pound White Sugar
1 Pound Brown Sugar (light or dark)
Directions:
Soften one quart of vanilla ice cream in a large bowl at room temperature. Heat one pound of butter, one pound of white sugar, and one pound of brown sugar in a medium sauce pan over med-low heat until well blended. Do not let the sugars melt. Pour the butter and sugar mixture into the vanilla ice cream and blend well with an electric mixer. Store the batter in the freezer.
To use, put two heaping tablespoons of the batter into a regular sized coffee mug. Add one shot of any kind of rum, and fill with boiling water. Stir well, add a dash of nutmeg on top.
Mint Chocolate Layer Pie
Submitted by Carrie Tatro of Salina, Kansas
Ingredients:
2 pkgs instant chocolate pudding
2 cups cold milk
1-8 oz container whip topping
1 medium graham cracker pie crust
1/4 cup crushed Andes Mints
1/8 tsp peppermint flavoring
1/3 cup chocolate/fudge ice cream topping
Directions:
Combine instant pudding mix and milk in bowl and mix until smooth and pudding begins to thicken. Then, pour 3/4 of pudding into bottom of pie crust. Set remaining 1/4 of pudding to the side.
Mix together peppermint flavoring and fudge ice cream topping until combined well. Pour onto pudding in pie crust and spread as second later. Combine 1/2 of whip topping with remaining pudding. Once combined, add to pie on top of fudge layer and spread evenly.
Spread remainder of whip topping over pie and then sprinkle with crushed Andes mints. Refrigerate 45 minutes to 1 hr before serving.
