Mini Pineapple Upside Down Cakes

Mini Pineapple Upside Down Cakes 

Cake Ingredients:

2 eggs

2/3 cup white sugar

4 Tbsp pineapple juice

2/3 cup all purpose flour

1 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

Topping:

1/4 cup butter (1/2 stick or 4 Tbsp)

2/3 cup brown sugar (packed)

1-can pineapple rings

6-maraschino cherrie

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray your muffin tins with non-stick cooking spray. 

In a mixing bowl, add eggs, white sugar, and pineapple juice. Beat for 2 minutes. In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Add to the wet ingredients and turn mixer back on for 2 minutes. 

In a small sauce pan, melt the butter and add the brown sugar. Stir on low heat for one minute.

Spoon a layer of the warm brown sugar mixture into the bottom of each muffin tin, then place a pineapple ring on top. Add a cherry in the middle of each pineapple. Pour cake mixture over to fill muffin tin 3/4 of the way full. If you are using regular muffin tins, you will need to cut down the rings to fit or just use pineapple tidbits.

Bake jumbo cakes for 25 minutes. Bake regular cakes for 20 minutes. If you choose to make a large cake, bake for 22-25 minutes in a 10 inch cast iron skillet. The cake is done with a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.

Remove from the oven. Let cool in pan for 3 minutes. Run a knife around the edge of each cake to help loosen in case it sticks a little. Place a wire cooling rack on top, and quickly flip over on top of sheet tray to catch extra drippings. 

Place wire rack of cakes on sheet tray to cool. 

Homemade Snickers Bars

Homemade Snickers Bars

[recipe from Nikki, who lightly adapted it from and old Taste of Home recipe]

makes one 9×13 pan

bottom chocolate layer

1 1/4 cups milk chocolate chips

1/4 cup peanut butter

Thoroughly grease you baking pan. Melt ingredients together in a saucepan or microwave, then pour into the baking dish and spread until even. Let cool and harden completely.

nougat layer

1/4 cup unsalted butter

1 cup granulated sugar

1/4 cup evaporated milk

1 1/2 cups marshmallow fluff

1/4 cup peanut butter

1 1/2 cup salted peanuts chopped, roughly chopped

1 tsp vanilla extract

Melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Add in sugar and milk, stirring until dissolved and bring to a boil. Let cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add in fluff, peanut butter and vanilla, stirring until smooth. Turn off heat and fold in peanuts, then pour over bottom chocolate layer. Let cool completely.

caramel layer

1 14-ounce bag of caramels

1/4 cup whipping cream

Combine ingredients in a saucepan over low heat. Let melt, stirring occasionally, until smooth – this took about 10 minutes for me. Pour over nougat layer and let cool completely.

Top chocolate layer

1 1/4 cups milk chocolate chips

1/4 cup peanut butter

Melt ingredients together in a saucepan or microwave, then pour over caramel and spread until even. Let cool and harden completely.

Refrigerate for at least one hour before serving, then cut as desired. These can stay at room temperature, but they do get gooey. I like them refrigerated best!

Note: for best results, buy one of the half-sheet aluminum cake pans at the grocery store. That way, you can pop the entire square out and cut from there!

Sausage Stuffed Jalapeños

Sausage Stuffed Jalapeños

Ingredients:

1 pound ground Italian sausage (or regular pork or whatever appeals to you)

8 oz cream cheese, softened

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese (original recipe used parmesan)

1 pound jalapenos, halved lengthwise and seeded
1 green onion, finely chopped

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. 

2. Place sausage in a skillet over medium heat, and cook until evenly brown. Drain grease. 

3. In a bowl, mix the sausage, cream cheese, cheddar cheese, and green onion. 

4. Spoon about 1 tablespoon sausage mixture into each jalapeno half. 

5. Arrange stuffed halves in a baking dish. 

6. Bake 20 minutes in the preheated oven, until bubbly and lightly browned.