Just Desserts

Honey Nut Crunchies
Joy's Christmas Cookie

1 box honey graham crackers
1 stick margarine and butter, each
1/2 cup sugar
1 cup chopped pecans

Preheat oven to 350. Break graham crackers apart and line with sides touching in a jelly roll pan. Melt butter and margarine in sauce pan. Once mixture starts boiling, stir for two minutes. Remove from stove and pour over the graham crackers. Sprinkle the pecans ontop and bake for 10 minutes.

Spritz Cookies

1 cup stick butter, softened
1/2 c. sugar
2 1/4 c. flour (again, a 50/50 blend of Hard White and Soft White freshly milled flour)
1 tsp. almond extract or vanilla (I used vanilla)
1/2 tsp. salt (I did not use this)
1 large egg
food coloring

Cream butter and sugar together. Add in remaining ingredients. Press through cookie press onto cookie sheet. Bake at 400 for 6-9 minutes.

M&M Cookies

1 c. butter, softened
1 c. shortening
2 c. brown sugar
1 1/2 c. sugar
4 eggs
4 tsp. vanilla
2 tsp. baking soda
4 1/2 c. flour
2 tsp. salt

Cream together butter, shortening and sugars. Beat in vanilla and eggs. Stir in remaining dry ingredients. If you are mixing in the M&M's, go ahead and pour in a whole bag now.
Drop on ungreased cookie sheet, if you are doing M&M's on top - do it now! Bake at 375 for 9 minutes. Makes 7-8 dozen. Enjoy!

Pumpkin Bread


2 cups Pumpkin (1 15oz can will do)
1 cup oil
3 cups of sugar
4 eggs
3 1/4 c flour (can substituted freshly ground wheat for white and it works wonderfully)
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp clove powder
1 tsp nutmeg
2 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon


Stir dry ingredients together. Then, mix pumpkin, oil, sugar, and beaten eggs in another bowl. Add wet to dry and stir. This will make about 2 dozen muffins or 2 loaves. Bake at 350 for 20 minutes for muffins and 45 minutes for loaves.
(I think that it really takes more time than this but this is what I set my timer for before I start sticking the bread with a toothpick checking for doneness. One of these days I'll figure out exactly how long this takes in my oven.)