Food & Drink

Created by my mom, Mrs. Elen L. Gilpin, my family makes double and triple batches of The Bean Casserole to take to all potluck events and we always come home with an empty dish!

I’ve been experimenting and adjusting my chocolate chip cookie recipe for quite some time now and am very excited to share it with you. This specific recipe is for my Kitchen Sink Cookie but can easily be adjusted by taking out the toffee and pretzels for a classic chocolate chip cookie. Enjoy!

Like many of my cookie recipes, I believe using the 1.5” cookie scoop to create these drop cookies is the secret to success! These peanut butter cookies are soft and chewy. The chocolate chips and peanut butter chips put them over the edge and make them difficult to put down. For this recipe I do not smash them down or use a fork to put the crisscross design on them. Keeping them as a true drop cookie yields the best results. I hope you enjoy them as much as our family and friends do!

My family asks for Cinnamon Roll Casserole all the time! I love this recipe because It’s very simple and requires few ingredients, most of which we typically have on hand. You can double the recipe and make it in a 9x13 pan to serve more people. Keep in mind the cinnamon rolls should only take up one layer on the bottom and should not be piled on top of each other.

Taco Tuesday? Serve this scrumptious cake to top off your Mexican themed meal. A wonderfully moist fresh lime cake with a mouth-watering tequila/Margarita frosting.

I originally got this recipe many years ago from my mother-in-law Lela, who called it "Drizzle Cake" . I later heard that these types of desserts were also called poke cakes or dump cakes. Whatever it is called, this is a really quick and easy dessert to whip up in a hurry.

Your mouth will be in ecstasy! Such a wonderful fall dessert. This cake will not last long. My best friend, who is an amazing baker, shared her recipe with me the first time I experienced this mouth watering goodness.

This recipe is one I used often when my kids were in school and had team dinners. The kids, as well as the adults loved them! Great for Taco Tuesdays and is so easy and yummy!

This recipe was shared with me by a fellow teacher, who spent a lot of time in Costa Rica. A quick, refreshing go-to appetizer that I often use for impromptu get-togethers, that will leave your guests with an OMG experience.

Planning on having a group over? This is a great make-ahead dip that your guests will not be able to walk away from!