Tortillas - Flour

Ingredients:

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
3 Tablespoons oil
1/2 cup hot water

Combine flour, salt, & baking powder in a bowl.
Stir in the oil until well distributed.
Stir in hot water, and keep working the dough, until it starts to form a ball.

Transfer to a flat surface and knead for about 30 seconds until it forms a smooth ball.

Cut dough into 8 equal pieces, i cut it into half, and then in half again until i got 8 equal pieces.

Form each piece into a smooth ball, i keep them covered with a piece of plastic wrap, while i work with 1 piece at a time, this keeps them from drying out.

Start preheating an ungreased pan to medium-high.

Roll each ball super thin, i use a small 6 inch saucer for a template, and use sheets of wax paper to separate them, until i get them all rolled out.

Place each one on the pan, it only takes about a minute on each side to turn them golden brown.

Set your oven to just "warm", and place a plate inside to hold your finished tortillas. when you are finished, wrap in wax paper or plastic wrap to keep them from drying out. Warning: after you make these from scratch, you will never buy them pre-made again! lol.

Mini Chocolate Chip Cookies - Low Sugar

Ingredients:
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup (2 sticks) butter or margarine, softened
1/2 cup SPLENDA® Sugar Blend
1/2 cup cup SPLENDA® Brown Sugar Blend
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 large eggs
2 cups (12-oz. pkg.) NESTLÉ® TOLL HOUSE® Semi-Sweet Chocolate Mini Morsels
1 cup chopped nuts, (optional)

Heat the oven to 375° and line two cookie sheets with parchment paper.

Mix flour, baking soda and salt in small bowl. Beat butter, sugars and vanilla extract in large mixer bowl until creamy. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Gradually beat in flour mixture. Stir in morsels and nuts. Drop by rounded tablespoon onto parchment lined baking sheets.

Place about 2 tablespoons of SPLENDA® Sugar Blend on a paper plate and using the bottom of a glass, dip the glass onto the sugar, Gently press down on the cookie dough, dipping the glass before each one.

Bake for 9 to 11 minutes or until golden brown. Cool on baking sheets for 2 minutes; remove to wire racks to cool completely.

Jack Skellington Halloween Pumpkin

Carving Halloween pumpkins is an old tradition that is easy to learn how to do. My husband decided this year he was gonna carve a simple Jack Skellington Jack 0' Lantern type pumpkin, He did a great job, and we had a lot of fun doing it! Scroll down for some awesome pumpkin stencils, print them out and get carving!

Select a healthy pumpkin. When you're choosing a pumpkin, try to pick one that's free of nicks, bruises, and cuts. Wash the Pumpkin Thoroughly, Whether your pumpkin came from a pumpkin patch or the grocery store, give it a good scrub with soap and water. This will give you a clean surface to work on, and it will eliminate any mold spores that might be lurking. Ours was homegrown it came out of our Pumpkin Patch.

First make a lid by cutting a circular hole on top, around the stem. This is one step where a sturdy serrated kitchen knife is probably preferred. Cut at a slight inward angle toward the middle, so the lid won't fall inside. Making the lid a unique shape will help you line up it up perfectly when you replace it. Make sure this hole has plenty of room to fit your hand through.

TIP: Sprinkle cinnamon onto the inside of the lid. When lit you will get a lovely pumpkin pie smell.

There are two ways to transfer your design onto the pumpkin. One is to copy it freehand, Washable Crayola markers work well, if you’re drawing the design freehand, and they wipe off easily when carving is complete. If the design doesn’t work out exactly the way you wanted, you can just wipe it off and start again.

The other is to tape your template to the pumpkin, then score the design into the skin by poking holes through the template with a nail or plastic poking tool that comes in some pumpkin carving kits. I walked into my local Dollar Store and this one was readily available, and they are so cheap!

Select the paper stencil you want to use and trim the excess paper from it with scissors. Be sure to leave at least a 1/2 inch border for the tape to go on. Attach the stencil to the face of the pumpkin with tape. Top first, then the bottom and lastly the sides. Because of the uneven and curved nature of a pumpkin, the stencil isn't going to sit flush against every bit. Use your one hand to flatten a small piece of a stencil at a time, and work your way around it.

Using the Transfer Tool, press the pointed tip into and through the design lines on the paper stencil spaced about a 1/8 of an inch apart. Complex and thin designs might require the dots to be a little closer together. The tip of the Transfer Tool should be pushed in just enough to go through the paper and the outer skin of the pumpkin.

Take your time and follow the pattern edges carefully, Using the Carving Saw, push the tip of the saw-blade into a pattern hole and saw through the design lines with short back-and-forth motions.

Battery lights are great for pumpkin lighting, and cheap at your local Dollar Stores. However, if you really love candles, use these to light your pumpkins. Light your candle and then, about a minute or two later, blow it out and observe the inside top of your pumpkin. You’ll see a dark area singed by the candle’s flame. Carve a chimney hole into this area, just over an inch wide, to allow the flame’s heat to escape. Now, relight the candle and watch your pumpkin Glow, Be careful in using candles.

Simply click on one of the following design stencils, print it out and create your own frightfully fun jack-o-lantern.

Mini Corn Dog Muffins

An easy way to make the favorite treat from the fair. They are basically just like corn dogs. Except they’re not on a stick, they’re in muffin pans. And they’re not fried, they’re baked. And the hot dogs aren’t whole, they’re cut into pieces, But other than that, they’re exactly like corn dogs!

Ingredients:
2 Boxes of 8 1⁄2 ounces corn muffin mix
2 Eggs
2/3 Cup Milk
Package of Hot Dogs cut into 1 inch bite size pieces, (cut them into smaller chunks for kids), or You can substitute cocktail wieners for the hot dogs.

Pre-Heat oven to 375ºF.
Spray a mini muffin tin very well with nonstick spray

Let's start by making the cornbread batter. In a large bowl, mix together the corn muffin mix, eggs and milk.

Fill each mini muffin cup about 2/3 full of batter, place a hot dog piece into the center of each muffin tin.

Bake 10 to 12 min. or until golden brown. Cool 5 min. before removing from pans. Serve warm with mustard.

For Cheesey dogs, add a teaspoon or a cube of cheese to the each muffin before baking.

Sweet Pickles

Here's everything you need to know to make your own batch of homemade Sweet pickles right now. We had an abundance of Organic Straight 8 cucumbers so that is what we used, you can use whatever you have on hand as long as it is firm.

Ingredients:

14-16 large cucumbers
2 medium size sweet onions
1.4 oz mustard seed (small jar)
1 1/2 Tablespoons Tumeric
1 Tablespoon Celery Seed
2 Tablespoons Canning Salt
4 Cups White Vinegar
5 Cups Sugar

Wash cucumbers well with cold water. Trim blossom ends and cut cucumbers lengthwise into spears. To make paper thin slices of the onions i used a kitchen Mandoline Slicer.

Add vinegar to dry ingredients to a large stock pot, heat the brine to a boil and pour over your cucumbers and onions.

Cover and let sit overnight, stirring often.

Remove the cucumbers from the brine and firmly pack the wedges vertically into pint jars. Next pour the brine into a large stockpot, Re-heating to a boil, then ladle the boiling brine over the cucumbers, leaving 1 inch head space in the jars. Run a thin, non-metallic utensil down inside of jars to remove air bubbles, Wipe rim of jars clean with damp cloth. Cover jars with metal lids and screw on bands.

Prepare your water bath canner and process for 20 minutes. After processing jars, remove from water bath canner. Cool at room temperature on towel or rack for 12 to 24 hours.

Bread and Butter Pickles

This was my first attempt on canning pickles, we had a lot of cucumbers this year and my husband wanted me to try and make pickles. I did learn a few things along the way, like packing the pickles tightly. I did not use pickle crisp, but next time i will for crispier pickles, But these turned out wonderful!

Ingredients:
12 medium cucumbers
5 medium onions
1/4 cup canning salt
2 cups vinegar
2 cups sugar
1 cup water
3 tsp. mustard seed
3 tsp. celery seed
1 tsp. curry powder

Wash cucumbers and slice, Peel onions and slice, in a large bowl or large stockpot, whatever type you have big enough to hold ingredients in. Arrange cucumbers and onions in layers, sprinkling salt between each layer and ending with salt.

Let stand 4-6 hours. Drain and rinse well.

Combine remaining ingredients to a large stock pot and heat to boiling.

Pack the cucumber/onion mixture tightly into sterile hot jars.Cover the cucumbers with the boiling brine, leaving 1 inch head space.

Process in a water bath canner for 10 minutes.

Yields about 5 pints.

Chocolate No Bake Cookies

Ingredients:
1/2 cup butter
2 cups sugar
1/2 cup milk
4 tablespoons cocoa
1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
2 teaspoons vanilla
3 -3 1/2 cups dry quick-cooking oats

Add the first four ingredients into a 4-quart saucepan, stirring constantly over medium high heat until it comes to a boil. Bring to a rolling boil and hold for 1 minute, Do not boil for more than a minute 2 maximum or the cookies will be dry and crumbly.

Remove from heat, Add peanut butter into the hot mixture and stir until melted, Add in vanilla. (almond extract is good also, but I only use 1/2 teaspoon almond and 1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla).

Mix in the oats and working quickly drop by tablespoons onto wax paper.

Oreo Ice Cream Cake

This is my son's favorite cake, and his most requested cake for his birthday!

Ingredients:
2 Packages of Oreo's Chocolate Sandwich Cookies (14.3 Ounce Package).
4 Tbsp Melted Butter
1/2 Gallon of Ice Cream, i used vanilla but you can use whatever kind you like.
2 Tubs of Cool Whip (8 ounce tubs).
1 Chocolate Candy Bar

For the crust: Place about 22 cookies in a food processor or you can use a large ziploc bag and a rolling pin to crush the cookies for the crust, you can use more or less depending on the thickness you desire. Add the melted butter and press crust mixture in the bottom of a 9 inch springform pan.

I lined my springform pan with some plastic wrap, doing this will make it much easier removing it from the pan.

After you have the crust mixture pressed into the springform pan, place in the freezer while you prepare the filling.

I removed the Ice Cream from the freezer and placed in a large glass bowl till soft enough to stir.

You will need to crush more cookies for the filling, you can add as many or few as you desire, and they can be crushed fine or in larger chunks, my son likes lots of Oreos, so i worked in about 24 cookies into the soft filling.

Remove the crust out of the freezer and add whole cookies all around the inside border of the pan, then fill the pan with the Oreo Ice Cream filling and return to the freezer.

After an hour remove the cake and spread one of the tubs of Cool Whip over the top smoothing it out, and return to the freezer for another hour. Loosen the springform pan and remove the cake carefully from the pan.

Chop the chocolate into small pieces Place them in microwave safe bowl. Microwave on high for 10 seconds (depending on the amount of chocolate you are melting, you may need to leave it longer in the oven), remove the chocolate from the oven every few seconds to avoid the chocolate from being overheated.

Dip a fork into the melted chocolate, Drizzle chocolate over the edges and tops of the cake. Use left over Cool White in a pastry bag with a star tip to make rosettes on the cake and garnish with more oreo cookies and chocolate curls, place the cake back into your freezer for at least 4 hours before serving.

I ended up using almost both bags of cookies, and that was counting the ones that kept jumping into my glass of milk! I have also made this Oreo cake with sugar free Oreos, Sugar Free Ice Cream and sugar free Cool Whip.

Canning Carrots

You will need 1 to 1-1/2 lb carrots per pint jar, about 6-9 medium
Prepare Your pressure canner and jars.

Wash peel carrots. Cut carrots into slices or leave whole. Pack Carrots tightly into hot jars leaving 1 inch headspace. Add 1/2 tsp salt to each pint jar.

Ladle boiling water over carrots leaving 1 inch headspace. Remove air bubbles. Wipe rim. Center hot lid on jar. Apply band and adjust until fit is fingertip tight.

Process pint jars in your pressure canner at 10 pounds pressure 25 minutes, adjust settings for your altitude.

Apple Pie Filling - Low Sugar

Ingredients:
12 C. apples, peeled, cored, sliced and treated to prevent browning
1 1/2 C. Splenda Brown sugar
3/4 C. Clear Jel®
1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg
1 1/4 C. cold water
2 1/2 C. unsweetened apple juice
1/2 C. lemon juice

After preparing apples, blanch them for one minute in boiling water. Drain and set hot apples aside under a towel.

Combine with brown sugar with the Clear Jel® before adding to the pot, by mixing them together it makes it easier when adding to the other ingredients less lumps.

In a large, stainless steel pot, combine all of the ingredients EXCEPT the apples and lemon juice over medium heat, Stirring constantly bring the gel filling to boil over med-high heat, Cook until mixture starts to thicken and bubble.

Add lemon juice and return to boil, boiling for one minute, stirring constantly.

Turn down heat and fold in apples, cooking until apples are heated through.

Ladle hot apple pie filling into hot jars leaving 1 inch headspace. Remove air bubbles. Wipe rim. Center lid on jar. Apply band until fit is fingertip tight.

Process jars in a boiling water canner for 25 minutes, adjusting for altitude. Remove jars and cool. Check lids for seal after 24 hours. Lid should not flex up and down when center is pressed.

Makes about 7 (16 oz) pints

Homemade Apple Jelly - Using Cores And Peelings!

What I love about this jelly is that it is made from the leftovers from making Apple Pie Filling, I used the apple peelings and cores to make apple juice that is later made into apple jelly. Apples make their own pectin so none is needed for this recipe.

Place the peelings and cores into a large stockpot, leaving just enough room for 6 cups of water. allow to come to a boil uncovered, turn down the heat and simmer uncovered until the fruit becomes soft. it took about 1 hour of simmering.

Strain off the juice through prepared cheesecloth or jelly bag, i used a fine wire mesh strainer to drain the juice out into a large crock bowl, Do not press on the peels as you strain the juice. I covered the apples with a towel and allowed the apple bits to sit and drain overnight. You want to end up with clear liquid and not sediment.

You can discard the peels and cores, i tossed mine out to the bunnies that live under our shed.

Measure your juice and place back onto the stove into a large stockpot, adding 1 cup of sugar for each cup of juice, Stirring until dissolved, then add in 3 TBS of lemon juice, and 1/2 teaspoon of Apple Pie Spice, you can use a little more depending on your taste.

Bring to a boil over medium high heat and cook, stirring often so it does not burn, until the mixture reaches the gel point. I use a saucer and added a tablespoon onto the center and placed in the freezer for about a minute to cool down, I drew a finger down through the center of the jelly and it stayed parted, it was gelled enough, Tart apples have a higher pectin content than blandly sweet ones and will reach the gel point sooner.

- Skim the foam and ladle in hot, sterile, ½ pint jelly jars.
- Process in a water bath canner for 10 minutes.
- Yields about 6 half pints.

Marinara Sauce - Low Sugar

Ingredients:
 10 lb tomatoes (about 30 medium)
 1/2 Cup onion, chopped
 3 Tablespoons olive oil
 1 bay leaf
 6 cloves garlic, minced
 2 teaspoons basil
 1 teaspoon oregano
 1 teaspoon salt
 1/2 teaspoon pepper
 1 1/2 teaspoons Splenda Sugar Blend
 2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar

You will also need:
3 Quart glass preserving jars with lids and bands
¼ tsp Ball® Citric Acid or 1 Tbsp bottled lemon juice per hot jar

First you will need to prepare the tomatoes, it seems like a chore, but really it is very easy, and goes by fast. This is called the Poaching Method.

Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Meanwhile cut stems from your tomatoes and slice a shallow "X" in the bottom. You just need to slice through the skin.

Fill a bowl with ice and water and set it next to the stove.

Working in batches, drop several tomatoes into the boiling water. Watch for their skins to start to wrinkle and split, 45 to 60 seconds, then scoop them out with a slotted spoon and transfer them to the ice water bath. I then place them in a large strainer, Once cooled, Use your fingers or a paring knife to peel back the tomato skins. peel the skins off of the tomatoes, they should slide right off after you break the skin. cut out cores and cut tomatoes into big 2-3 inch chunks. Keep all the juice, Set to the side.

Chop Your Onion and the garlic, Preheat the Olive Oil in a stockpot, sure you could use less oil, but it adds such richness and flavor.

Add the onion and the garlic to the pot and cook for about 3-4 minutes over medium heat, until it is soft.

Add in all your ingredients except the balsamic vinegar.

Adjust the heat, and cover the pot and allow to simmer for about 45 minutes to an hour. Adjust seasonings to taste, Allow to simmer another 1/2 hour to 45 minutes.

liquid should have boiled down and reduced by about half. stir in balsamic vinegar. taste, maybe add another teaspoon balsamic.

ADD ¼ tsp Ball® Citric Acid or 1 Tbsp bottled lemon juice to each hot jar. Ladle hot sauce into hot jars leaving 1/2 inch headspace. Remove air bubbles. Wipe rim. Center hot lid on jar. Apply band and adjust until fit is fingertip tight.

Process filled jars in a boiling water canner for 35 minutes, adjusting for altitude. Remove jars and cool.

Strawberry Jam - Low Sugar

Ingredients:
 4 pounds strawberries
 4 tablespoons Ball Low or No-Sugar Needed Pectin, (in the pink boxes).
 1 cup Unsweetened Apple Juice
 2 Tablespoons Lemon Juice
 1/2 Cup Splenda Sugar Blend
 2 Tablespoons Honey

Wash, stem, and crush strawberries with a fork as desired.
Combine strawberries, apple juice, lemon juice and pectin in a large saucepan, stirring to dissolve pectin.

Add sugar and honey, Taste the strawberries for sweetness and adjust to your taste.
Bring to a boil, stirring constantly.
If it starts to gel before your 1 minute boil is complete, remove from heat.

I keep a metal tablespoon sitting in a glass of ice water, then take a half spoonful of the mix and let it cool to room temperature on the spoon. If it thickens up to the consistency I like, then I know the jam is ready. If not, I mix in a little more pectin (about 1 Tablespoon) and bring it to a boil again for 1 minute.

Another method of testing is, Put a Tablespoon of jam on a saucer and place in the fridge for a few minutes, If you can run your finger down through the jam and it stays separated then it is ready.

Ladle hot jam into hot jars, leaving ¼ inch space below lid. Remove air bubbles by stirring with a spatula. Put on lids and process 10 minutes in Water Bath Canner, adjusting for altitude.

Makes about 10 of the jelly jars as shown.

Picked from my strawberry patch!

Homegrown Salsa - Low Sugar

Ingredients:
 1 red onion, chopped
 1 white onion, chopped
 1 yellow onion, chopped
 6 pounds fresh tomatoes, peeled and chopped
 2 banana peppers, chopped
 3 green bell peppers, chopped
 3 (6 ounce) cans tomato paste
 1/2 cup white vinegar
 2 tablespoons garlic powder
 1 1/2 tablespoons salt
 1 tablespoon cayenne pepper
 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
 1/4 cup Splenda brown sugar
 1/4 cup Splenda Sugar Blend

 8 pint canning jars with lids and rings

Combine red onion, white onion, yellow onion, tomatoes, banana peppers, green peppers, tomato paste, white vinegar, garlic powder, salt, cayenne pepper, cumin, brown sugar, and white sugar in a large pot. Simmer until thick, about 3 hours.

Ladle hot salsa into hot jars, leaving 1/2 inch headspace. Remove air bubbles and adjust headspace, if necessary, by adding hot salsa. Wipe rim. Place hot lid on jar. Apply ring until fit is fingertip tight.

Process both pint and half pint jars in a boiling water canner for 15 minutes, adjusting for altitude.