Church cookbook recipe: Scotcheroos

At almost every Iowa potluck dinner or party, you're likely to find a pan of scotcheroos (also known as Oh Henry bars, or Special K bars in some church cookbooks).  Whenever we have an office party, I bring these bars, and they're usually gone by 10 a.m.  I make two batches at a time -- one for work and one for my husband.  They are his favorite bar.

I'm not sure if these bars are a Midwestern thing, or if they are common around the country.  But they are so, so good.  They are also very rich, so be sure to cut them small for a party.

I tried a slightly different scotcheroo recipe than I typically make, and the chocolate layer on top was very thick, maybe a little too thick.  So if you don't mind a lot of chocolate, then go ahead and make this recipe as is.  Next time, I think I will halve the recipe for the chocolate layer.

These bars would be perfect for a Super Bowl party.  Enjoy!

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Scotcheroos

• 1 C. corn syrup (light or dark)
• 1 C. sugar
• 1 C. chunky peanut butter
• 4 C. Special K cereal
• 1 (6 oz.) pkg. chocolate chips
• 1 (6 oz.) pkg. butterscotch chips 

Melt first 3 ingredients at low heat, pour over cereal and mix.  Press into buttered 9x13-inch pan. Cool slightly.  Melt chips and butter together in dobule boiler. Spread over cereal mixture. Cool and cut into small bars.

Iowa recipe: Orange Honey Bread

It was 4 degrees outside last weekend.  I didn't want to leave the house, not even to get a gallon of milk at the grocery store 5 blocks away.  But I did want to bake.

I've been buying oranges and lemons like they are going extinct.  They just look so bright and fresh in a world covered in white snow and gray ice.  Plus, I remember my mom peeling oranges for us every winter morning when I was a kid.  She insisted we needed to "get our Vitamin C."  Gosh, I miss those cozy mornings on the farm.

I turned to my Iowa State Fair Cookbook to find a recipe using my favorite citrus fruits.  I thought this orange honey bread looked perfect for a cold winter day.  It calls for a minimum of ingredients, all of which I already had in my pantry or fridge.  And instead of sugar, the bread is sweetened with honey.  I've been wanting to bake more with honey, so I decided to give this recipe a try.

The bread looks beautiful.  But it wasn't all that I was hoping it would be.  The orange flavor was a little too subtle, and the honey flavor a bit too strong for my taste.  Yet it's still a very pretty quick bread.  And I didn't have to leave the house to shop for ingredients.

Feel free to try this recipe when you need a taste of sunshine.  Enjoy!

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Fresh Orange Bread

• 1 C. honey
• 1/4 C. shortening
• 1 egg
• 1-1/2 tsp. grated orange peel
• 2-1/2 tsp. baking powder
• 2-1/2 C. all-purpose flour
• 3/4 C. fresh orange juice

3/4 C. chopped pecans

Cream honey and shortening. Add egg; beat well.  Add orange peel.  In a separate bowl, mix baking powder and flour together; add to honey mixture, alternating with orange juice.  Stir in nuts.  Pour into two greased 4x8 inch loaf pans.  Bake in 325 degree oven for 55 minutes.  Remove from pans; cool on wire racks.

Winter living

It's been so cold, I haven't wanted to leave the house on the weekends.  But I wanted to take a few pictures of the snow, because it's fun to do a year-by-year comparison.  So I snapped a few photos from my yard.  As you can tell, my husband and I aren't that great at keeping up with the shoveling.  We prefer to wait for the snow melt :)

You probably can't tell by the photos, but it was 4 degrees outside when I took these.  I didn't want to spend a lot of time outside getting the perfect photos.  So please don't judge.

I'd say we have about 5 inches of snow on the ground right now.

We have rabbit and cat paw prints all over our yard.

Oh dear!  Our poor, 100-year-old porch gets a little more crooked every winter from all the freezing and thawing.

Since it's been too cold to be outside, I've been baking like crazy inside to help keep our drafty house warm.  I'll be sharing a few more recipes with you in future posts.  But I wanted to give you a "break" from recipes and show a little of what an Iowa winter looks like.