Well, I had good intentions, and got started, but ran out of time to meet tonight's deadline. DH and I went out today on a chicken coop tour of East Dallas. (which was lots of fun, but a whole nother topic) Then I had to clean the kitchen in order to cook in it. But, my little grandson (a month away from 3 yrs. old) and I did get started on Nate's carrot cake cookies, but since we didn't finish making the dough until an hour before his bed time, and the dough has to chill at least an hour, it'll be tomorrow before we bake them and do the cream cheese part. It doesn't matter. Both DGS and I had a great time mixing up the batter. He got to taste the flour, the sugar, the butter, and all the other ingredients as they went into the mix. No germaphobes need taste these cookies when they're done! Thanks Nate for the recipe, and the fun time with my grandson! Sally

Here are a few of my family's favorites: LEIGH'S BAKED BEANS FOR CROCKPOT 1 lb. ground beef 1/2 lb. bacon (diced) 1 medium sweet onion (diced) 1 red bell pepper (diced) 1/3 cup white sugar 1/2 cup brown sugar 1/2 cup light corn syrup 3/4 cup ketchup 1/2 cup barbeque sauce 1 tsp. each: salt, pepper, chili powder 1 Tblsp. mustard 1 can each: pork and beans, pinto beans, navy beans, and white butter beans. Brown ground beef, bacon, onion, and pepper, drain. Put this in crockpot and add the rest of the ingredients. Cook all day on low heat. SLOW-COOKER ADOBO PORK SANDWICHES WITH ROSEMARY-GARLIC MAYONNAISE 2 cups canned chopped tomatoes, drained 1 Tblsp. brown sugar 1 Tblsp. chili powder 3 Tblsp. red wine vinegar 3 Tblsp. adobo sauce 1 Tblsp. honey 2 garlic cloves, chopped 4-1/2 lbs. pork shoulder 6 sandwich buns Rosemary-Garlic mayonnaise (recipe follows) Toppings: lettuce leaves, tomato slices Process first 7 ingredients in a blender or food processor until mixture is smooth. Cut pork in half, and place in a 5-quart slow cooker. Pour tomato mixture over pork. Cook on HIGH for 8 hours; remove from slow cooker. Cool slightly; shred and serve on buns with Rosemary-Garlic mayonnaise and desired toppings. Yield: 6 servings. Rosemary-Garlic Mayonnaise 1/2 cup mayonnaise 2 garlic cloves, minced 1 Tblsp. chopped fresh or dried rosemary 1 Tblsp. lemon juice 1/8 tsp. salt Stir together all ingredients. Chill. Yield: 1/2 cup. Recipe from Southern Living magazine, Sept. 2001 issue. CROCKPOT MACARONI AND CHEESE 8 oz. elbow macaroni, cooked and drained 4 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese, divided 1 (12 oz.) can evaporated milk 1-1/2 cups milk 2 eggs 1 tsp. salt 1/2 tsp. pepper Place cooked macaroni in slow cooker that has been coated with nonstick cooking spray. Reserve 1 cup cheese; add rest of cheese and the other ingredients to the macaroni. Mix well. Sprinkle remaining cheese on top. Cook on HIGH at least 2-1/2 hours. Do not remove cover or stir until ready to serve. Recipe courtesy of Mr. Food. CROCKPOT CHINESE PEPPER STEAK 1-1/2 lbs. steak (any cheap cut) 2 Tblsp. vegetable oil 1 clove garlic, minced 1/2 tsp. salt 1/4 cup reduced sodium soy sauce 1 tsp. sugar 1 cup bean sprouts 1 cup tomatoes, diced 2 green peppers, sliced in strips 1 Tblsp. cornstarch 2 Tblsp. water 1 large onion, cut in chunks Cut steak in strips. Brown steak in oil. Mix garlic, salt, soy sauce, and sugar; pour over steak. Cook 6 hours on low in crockpot. Turn to high and add sprouts, tomatoes, green peppers, and onion. Dissolve cornstarch in water and add for thickening. Cover and cook an additional 30 minutes to 1 hour. Serve over hot cooked rice.

Not up to making the wonderful "scratch" brownies above? Try these with either Pillsbury Brownie Classics - Traditional Fudge or Duncan Hines Family-Style Brownies. Both these mixes make a 9 x13 inch pan of brownies and directions call for the addition of eggs, oil and water. Cheesecake Marble Brownies 8 oz. package cream cheese or Neufchatel cheese, softened to room temperature 1/2 cup sugar 1/2 teaspoon real vanilla extract 1 egg One 9 x 13 inch fudge brownie mix plus eggs, water and oil per package directions Prepare filling by beating cream cheese and sugar together until smooth - no lumps of cream cheese. Beat in vanilla and egg. Cover and chill filling until ready to finish brownies. Preheat oven and prepare pan per directions on brownie mix. Prepare brownie mix according to package directions and spread in pan. Spoon filling onto brownie mix in 3 or 4 longitudinal stripes. Using a circular motion with a fork, fold some of brownie batter over the filling, working down each stripe. Then move the fork across the stripes crosswise, back and forth, to create swirls. Don't overdo it. Bake according to package directions, but a few minutes longer. Pale filling will be very slightly browned near the edges of the pan when brownies are done. You can prepare a double recipe in a 1/2 size sheet cake pan (about 10 x 17 inches), baking a little longer than directed on the brownie mix. Make sure the pan fits in your oven with a little room to spare first. If you have to bake a lot of brownies in a hurry, you can bake nut brownies or plain brownies for the kids on the upper shelf of the oven and the marble brownies on the lower shelf. The marble brownies take a little longer to bake. I recently goofed up and used only one egg instead of four in a double recipe of the marble brownies, but the adults in the crowd still loved them. I guess "gooey" does have some appeal at times. Kids tend to prefer plain brownies, though.

Here is one recipe to get you started! Elegant Artichoke Cups 24 square wonton wrappers 1 can (14 ounces) artichoke hearts in water, drained and coarsely chopped ½ cup diced red bell pepper 2 tablespoons finely snipped fresh parsley 1 lemon ½ cup (2 ounces) shredded mozzarella cheese 1/4 cup mayonnaise 1 garlic clove, pressed ½ cup (2 ounces) grated fresh Parmesan cheese, divided Preheat oven to 350* Press one wonton wrapper into each cup of mini-muffin pan. Lightly spray wontons with vegetable oil. Bake 6 minutes or until edges of wontons are light golden brown. Remove from oven to cooling rack; set aside, leaving wontons in pan. Meanwhile, coarsely chop artichokes; place in a mixing bowl. Dice bell pepper. Finely snip parsley. Zest lemon to measure ½ teaspoon zest.. Add bell pepper, parsley, lemon zest, mozzarella cheese, mayonnaise and garlic to bowl; mix well. Grate Parmesan cheese. Add half of the Parmesan cheese to artichoke mixture; mix well. Fill each wonton cup with one rounded scoop of artichoke mixture; sprinkle with remaining Parmesan cheese. Bake 8 minutes or until edges of wontons are golden brown and cheese is melted. Remove from pan; serve immediately. Yield: 24 appetizers