Red, White and Blue Muffins

Begin Independence Day with these festive and good-for-you muffins!

2 cups flour
1 cup wheat flour
4 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 cup milk
1/2 cup oil
1 cup frozen blueberries
1 cup frozen raspberries

Stir flour, baking powder, salt and sugar. Beat eggs, milk, and oil together. Add to the dry ingredients. Stir only enough to blend ingredients together. Fold in berries. Spoon batter into muffin tins. Bake at 375 for 25 minutes.
Should make 12-18 muffins

Peanut Butter M&M Cookies (With a patriotic twist)

This is one of my very favorite cookie recipes. It could easily be adapted to a 4th of July recipe by using the red, white, blue m&ms that are in stores this time of year!

1/2 c. margarine
1/2 c. sugar
1/2 c. brown sugar
3/4 c. peanut butter
1 egg
1/2 tsp. vanilla
1 1/4 c. flour (or use 3/4 c. white flour & 1/2 c. wheat)
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
8 oz. chocolate chips or M&Ms

Cream together the margarine, sugar, brown sugar, and peanut butter. Add egg and vanilla Mix well. Stir in flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Mix thoroughly. Gently stir in the chocolate chips/M&Ms. Spoon onto cookie sheets. Bake at 350 for 8-10minutes or until lightly brown. Allow to sit for 1 minute before removing from pan.

This recipe can be found in Homemade With Love-treasured family recipes of Marilyn Boyer

Cookout Potato Packets

So many people cook out on the 4th of July, so I thought I 'd share this yummy and different way to serve potatoes at a cookout.

For each "packet" you will need the following:

1 potato peeled and sliced into thin- medium long strips
Garlic Powder
Salt
Pepper
1 Tbs. margarine
2 Tbs. finely chopped onion
2 Tbs. finely chopped or shredded carrots

Place sliced potatoes onto a sheet of foil, sprayed with cooking spray. Sprinkle with garlic, salt and pepper to taste. Sprinkle with onion and carrots. Drop 1 Tbs. margarine onto the potatoes. Bring foil up on either side and fold down in the middle to seal shut. Seal the ends. Grill for approx. 30 minutes or until potatoes are tender.

"Shoney's" Hot Fudge Cake

1 (18.25-oz.) pkg. devil's food cake mix

3 eggs

1 1/3 c. water

1/3 c. vegetable oil

1 half-gallon box vanilla ice cream (must be in a box)

1 (16 oz.) jar chocolate fudge sauce

1 can whipped cream

12 maraschino cherries

1. Mix the batter for the cake as instructed on the box of the cake mix by combining cake mix, eggs, water and oil in a large mixing bowl.

2. Measure only 4 cups of the batter into a well-greased 13"x9" baking pan. Discard remaining batter, or make into cupcakes.

3. Bake cake according to box directions. Allow to cool completely.

4. When the cake has cooled, carefully remove from pan and place rightside up onto a sheet of waxed paper. With a long, serrated knife, slice horizontally through the middle of the cake, and carefully remove the top.

5. Pick up waxed paper with cake bottom still on it, and place back into the baking pan.

6. Take ice cream from freezer and, working quickly, tear the box open so that you can slice it like bread.

7. Make 6 3/4"-inch slices and arrange them on the cake bottom in the pan. Cover the entire surface of the cake with ice cream slices, cutting 2 of the slices in half to make it fit if necessary.

8. Carefully place the top half of the cake onto the ice cream layer. You now have ice cream sandwiched between the two halves of your cake. Cover the whole pan with plastic wrap and place in freezer until serving (will keep for weeks if tightly covered).

9. Slice cake into 12 servings. Leave at room temperature for 5 minutes to soften a bit.

10. Heat up the fudge sauce in microwave or in a jar immersed in saucepan of water over medium/low heat.

11. Pour fudge sauce over cake slices and to each add a mountain of whipped cream.

12. Top off each cake with a cherry stuck into the center of the whipped cream.

Serves 12.