Cooking With Shari

Sage advice

🍯 Crackly Peanut Brittle ~ Recipe by my mother-in-law, Jan Davis!

Ingredients
• 3 cups sugar
• 1 cup light corn syrup
• ½ cup water
• 3 cups shelled Spanish peanuts
• 2 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp salt

⸻

Directions
1. Prep: Butter two large cookie sheets and set aside.
2. Cook the base:
In a heavy 3–4 qt saucepan, combine sugar, corn syrup, and water.
Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until mixture reaches 280°F on a candy thermometer (soft-crack stage).
3. Add peanuts: Stir in peanuts gradually.
Continue cooking without stirring until the mixture reaches 300°F (hard-crack stage).
4. Finish: Remove from heat. Quickly stir in baking soda and salt. Mixture will foam and lighten.
5. Pour: Immediately pour onto your buttered cookie sheets. Let it spread on its own.
6. Cool & break: Do not refrigerate, and store at room temperature. Let cool completely, then break into pieces.
Makes about 2½ lbs.

Enjoy!

🥜✨ Stop what you’re doing because THIS is the most delicious peanut sauce on the face of the earth! ✨🥜

Creamy, dreamy, a little sweet, a little spicy… it’s like a hug in a bowl. 💛 Perfect for dipping, drizzling, or honestly just eating with a spoon (no judgment here 😉).

Made with coconut milk, Thai red curry paste, natural peanut butter, and a little love, it’s the secret sauce that makes everything taste better. 🌶️🥥

Be sure to follow me! Cooking With Shari!

Luscious Chocolate Mousse ~ by Shari

A rich and creamy chocolate mousse with just three simple ingredients!

Ingredients:
• 1 can (15 oz) pumpkin purée
• 1 ½ cups chocolate chips
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Instructions:
1. Melt the chocolate chips in the microwave for 30 seconds, stir, then heat for another 30 seconds. Stir again until completely smooth.
2. Add the melted chocolate, pumpkin purée, and vanilla extract to a blender. Blend until silky smooth.
3. Line a small springform pan with parchment paper and pour the mixture into the pan.
4. Refrigerate for at least 4 hours, or until set.
5. Remove from the pan, slice, and serve with a fresh raspberry if desired.

This is a must-make treat!

Enjoy!

Cherry, Cashew, Cream Cheese Chip Cookies ~Recipe by Shari

Ingredients:
• 1 cup butter (softened)
• 2 eggs
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 3/4 cup brown sugar (packed)
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 cup cream cheese chips
• 1 cup dried cherries
• 1 cup roughly chopped cashews

Instructions:
1. Preheat the oven: Set it to 375°F (190°C) and line baking sheets with parchment paper.
2. Cream the butter and sugars: In a large bowl, use a mixer to cream the softened butter, granulated sugar, and brown sugar until light and fluffy (about 2-3 minutes).
3. Add the eggs and vanilla: Beat in the eggs, one at a time, followed by the vanilla extract, until well combined.
4. Mix the dry ingredients: In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt. Gradually add this dry mixture to the wet ingredients, mixing just until combined.
5. Fold in the mix-ins: Gently stir in the cream cheese chips, dried cherries, and chopped cashews until evenly distributed.
6. Scoop and shape: Drop rounded tablespoons of dough onto the prepared baking sheets, leaving about 2 inches of space between each cookie.
7. Bake: Bake for 10-12 minutes, or until the edges are golden brown and the centers are just set.
8. Cool and enjoy: Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for 2-3 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

These cookies are packed with sweet, creamy, and nutty flavors, offering a perfect balance of textures.

Enjoy them with a glass of milk or as a fun treat!

Mom’s Corn Casserole
~ Recipe by Virginia Griswold

Ingredients:
• 3 tablespoons flour
• 3 tablespoons butter, melted
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon pepper
• 1 ¼ cups milk
• 3 eggs, beaten
• 1 can whole kernel corn (drained)
• 1 can cream-style corn
• 1 can onion rings

Instructions:
1. Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C).
2. In a large mixing bowl, beat the eggs.
3. Add the flour, melted butter, sugar, salt, pepper, milk, whole kernel corn, cream-style corn, and half of the onion rings to the beaten eggs. Mix until well combined.
4. Pour the mixture into a baking dish.
5. Top with the remaining onion rings.
6. Place the baking dish in a water bath by setting it inside a larger pan filled with about 1 inch of hot water.
7. Bake for 1 ½ hours or until the casserole is set and golden brown on top.
8. Remove from the oven, let cool slightly, and serve warm.

Enjoy!

Ranch - Seasoned Zesty Pretzels ~ recipe by Samantha Mullino

Ingredients:
• 1 (15-ounce) bag of crisscross pretzels
• 1 packet Hidden Valley Ranch dressing mix (not the dip mix)
• 3/4 cup oil (vegetable or canola)
• 1 1/2 teaspoons lemon pepper
• 1 1/2 teaspoons garlic salt
• 1 1/2 teaspoons cayenne pepper

Equipment:
• 1 gallon-size Ziploc bag

Instructions:
1. Pour the pretzels into the gallon-size Ziploc bag.
2. In a small bowl, mix together the Ranch dressing mix, oil, lemon pepper, garlic salt, and cayenne pepper until well blended.
3. Pour the seasoned mixture over the pretzels in the bag.
4. Seal the bag tightly and shake thoroughly to coat the pretzels evenly.
5. Let the bag sit for 2 hours, turning it occasionally to redistribute the seasoning.
6. Serve and enjoy your flavorful Ranch-Seasoned Zesty Pretzels!

Tip: These make a perfect snack for parties, game nights, or gifting!

Enjoy!

Ultimate Banana Bread Bliss 🍌~ Recipe is by a dear friend, Barbara Caddell

Ingredients:
• 3 ripe bananas, mashed
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup butter, melted
• 2 eggs
• 2 tablespoons sour cream
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 cup walnuts (optional)

Instructions:
1. Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C). Grease and flour a loaf pan or line it with parchment paper.
2. In a large mixing bowl, mash the ripe bananas until smooth.
3. Add the sugar, melted butter, eggs, sour cream, and vanilla extract to the mashed bananas. Mix until well combined.
4. Stir in the salt and baking soda. Gradually add the flour and mix until just combined.
5. If using, fold in the walnuts.
6. Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan, spreading it evenly.
7. Bake in the preheated oven for 1 hour, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
8. Let the bread cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Enjoy!

Snow Pies ~ by Shari

2 cups rolled oats
2 cups rice crispies
1/2 cup cocoa powder
1 cup sliced toasted almonds
1/4 cup melted butter
1 can sweetened condensed milk
1/8 tsp salt
1 tsp Vanilla

Mix the dry ingredients together and set aside.

Mix all of the wet ingredients together.

Once the wet ingredients are mixed well, pour into the dry ingredients and mix until everything is well coated.

Drop the mixture with a small scoop full in small silicone muffin pans.

Decorate with small marshmallows, and however, you would like! I used Christmas sprinkles for the holidays!

Place in a 350° oven for about 5 to 8 minutes or until the marshmallows are slightly browned and puffy.

Pull them out of the oven and put directly in the refrigerator for about an hour.

Enjoy!

ENJOY THIS SCRUMPTIOUS DELIGHT!

Invisible Apple Cake

1 cup flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp ginger
Pinch of cloves
1/4 tsp salt
2 Tbs melted butter
1/2 cup whole milk
1 tsp Vanilla
3 Lg eggs
2/3 cup granulated sugar
2 Lg apples, peeled and sliced1/8-inch thick

Prepare apples. Once sliced, add a few drops of lemon juice, then stir and set aside.

Mix all of the ingredients, except for the apples.

In a parchment-lined bread pan, start layering apples. Do a layer of the mixture, then layer of apples, then mixture, and continue layering until full. Put in the preheated oven and bake!

Preheat oven to 375°F
Bake for 75 minutes

Remove from oven, and sprinkle the top with powdered sugar.

Let the cake cool completely before cutting!

Enjoy!

Recipe Source: on Instagram

Cheesy Chewy Puffs - Modified from an Instagram post!

Preheat oven to 400°F

1 egg
3/4 cup milk
1/3 cups oil
1 1/3 tapioca flour
3/4 tsp salt

Mix until smooth turn the blender off

Add all cheeses at the same time!

1 1/2 cups your cheese blend
1/4 Parmesan cheese

Add the cheeses to the wet mixture and turn the blender on for two seconds just to incorporate the cheese, but don’t over mix.

Into small muffin tins and fill almost to the top. (Makes 18 muffins.)

Bake at 425°F for 15 to 20 minutes.

Let them cool slightly and remove from the muffin tins.

Enjoy!