Stuffed, Wrapped Jalepeno Appetizers

If you haven't experience the goodness that is the Pioneer Woman, you are missing out. She knows that fattening food keeps a man as easily as a roll in the hay. :P Looking at her site makes me nostalgic of my Texas roots and her mention of her husband always reminds me of my cowboy uncle. These are a Sunday staple in Dallas. My football fan friends love these! They whip these up, as though it were merely openin' a bag of chips!

Cream Cheese Stuffed, Bacon Wrapped, Jalapenos


Ingredients
Fresh Jalepenos
8 oz block of cream cheese
package of REAL bacon, cut in 1/2 if using large jalapenos, or 1/3 if using smaller ones.

Directions
Cut jalapenos in half and clean out the seeds and membrane. Leave seeds if you like it hot! Spoon cream cheese into jalapeno like you would peanut butter to celery. Wrap with bacon slice and hold in place with a toothpick.

Bake on a pan with a rack (or a broiling pan) so the bacon grease can drain, for 25-30 minutes. Broil for a few minutes following until bacon is crispy brown around the edges.

Voila! Serve hot and room temperature. Perfect for parties!

Notes
*When cleaning out a jalapeno either be mindful of the seeds or wear latex gloves so your fingers don't hate you the next day. Leave a few seed in if you prefer some heat.
**I only had large jalapenos but smaller are better because the bacon overlaps.
***Husbands love these!

Lemon Bars

Nothing enhances life better than flour, sugar, and butter! Two of my girlfriends introduced me to this recipe a couple years ago. You could actually pay Kevin for car repair with lemon bars, which one of them did. :) We eat these gooey and straight from the oven because we can't wait for them to cool! But once cooled, the crispy edges are delish!

Bake Sale Lemon Bars
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2/3 cup confectioners' sugar
3/4 cup butter or margarine, softened
3 eggs
1 1/2 cups white sugar
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/3 cup lemon juice
1/3 cup confectioners' sugar for decoration

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Grease a 9x13 inch baking pan.

Combine the flour, 2/3 cup confectioners' sugar, and butter. Pat dough into prepared pan.

Bake for 20 minutes, until slightly golden. While the crust is baking, whisk together eggs, white sugar, flour, and lemon juice until frothy. Pour lemon mixture over the hot crust.

Return to the preheated oven for an additional 20 to 25 minutes, or until light golden brown. Dust the top with confectioners' sugar. Cut into squares.

Lemon Poke Cake

Don't mid that it is COVERED in sprinkles, because the cake is delicious. Preston loves sprinkles, so for his birthday, I decorated this cake with only him in mind. He was ecstatic! I aimed to make a cake that, once the inch deep layer of sprinkles were scraped off, was still pleasing to the adults. You can't go wrong with lemon desserts in the summer!


Lemon Cake with Creamy Lemon Frosting
1 package lemon cake mix
1 (3 ounce) package lemon flavored Jell-O
1 cup boiling water
1 (8 ounce) container Cool Whip
1 (3 ounce) package instant lemon pudding mix
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup milk

Prepare and bake cake mix according to package directions for a 9x13 inch pan. Poke holes in cake while still hot with the round handle of a wooden spoon. (I had to assure my husband that I wasn't ruining it) Make gelatin with only 1 cup of boiling water. Pour liquid gelatin over cake while hot. (I had to assure my husband that it wouldn't be soggy. He remained unconvinced.) Cool cake completely.

Beat together whipped topping, pudding mix, milk and vanilla extract. Ice cake once it is completely cooled. Refrigerate until ready to serve!

*My cake-pessimistic husband loved this cake, even with the sprinkles. And said "you have to make this again."