This is a great idea for Cinco de Mayo or any party really. I first saw it in a magazine and I’m afraid that I can’t remember which one or I would give credit where it is due.
All you need to do is put out a buffet of taco fillings and chips. Guests can fill the cup with the fillings of their choice and they have an easy, portable meal.
Happy Birthday Dr. Seuss! I love Dr. Seuss so for his birthday I made Star-Belly Sneetch Cookies (Otherwise known as Grocery Store Sugar Cookies).
Now, the Star-Belly Sneetches had bellies with stars.
The Plain-Belly Sneetches had none upon thars.
This recipe was provided by one of our multi-talented employees. Andrea adapted a recipe that she posted on her blog. She used Quark and they turned out terrific! She can also make cheese! Here she is making Gouda. 
Star-Belly Sneetch Cookies
1 c. butter, at room temperature
2 c. granulated sugar
3 eggs
2 t. vanilla extract
1 1/2 c. Quark
6 cups all purpose flour
1 t. baking soda
1 t. baking powder
Directions:
Cream the butter and granulated sugar at medium speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating until incorporated. Add the vanilla and Quark and beat at low speed until combined.
Sift the dry ingredients and gradually add to the Quark mixture. Beat at low speed until just combined. The dough will be a bit “sticky” but don’t worry. Divide the dough into two sections. Flatten each section to a rectangle about 1 1/2 inches thick, then wrap with plastic wrap. Chill in the refrigerator until firm, at least two hours or overnight.
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper or a baking mat.
Dust the dough with flour and roll out to 1/4-inch thickness. Cut out cookies* and transfer to a baking sheet. Bake for 7 minutes, until pale golden. Immediately transfer the cookies to a wire rack to cool.
Frosting:
1 c. butter, room temperature
1 t. vanilla extract
4 c. powdered sugar
6 T. heavy cream
Several drops food coloring
Directions:
Cream together the butter and vanilla. Slowly beat in the powdered sugar. Once smooth and creamy, add in heavy cream, 1 tablespoon at a time until the desired spreading consistency is achieved. If desired, add food coloring and beat until combined. Once cookies have cooled completely, frost and decorate.
Makes approximately: 5 to 6 dozen cookie
*I made stars but the tips on the stars turned brown really fast so be careful with your choice of shapes. They also puff up so detailed shapes wouldn’t work very well.
One wonderful use for Quark is in cake. Quark cakes are moist and delicious.
Chocolate Zucchini Cake
3 eggs
2 cups white sugar
½ cup vegetable oil
1 cup Appel Farms Quark
2 cups grated zucchini
1 tsp vanilla extract
3 (1 ounce) squares semi-sweet chocolate, melted and slightly cooled
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1 tsp ground cinnamon
¾ cup semisweet chocolate chips
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a bundt pan and set aside. In a large bowl, combine eggs, sugar, vegetable oil and Quark, beat well. Gently stir in the zucchini, vanilla and melted chocolate.
In a small bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and chocolate chips. Stir the flour mixture into the zucchini mixture and pour into the bundt pan. Bake for 60 to 70 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the cake comes out clean. Cool for ten to fifteen minutes on a wire rack, then invert onto a serving plate and cool completely. Top it with powdered sugar or a glaze.
I asked Jessie to give me something exciting to show you. She decided to show you the flip. After pressing the gouda, she takes the wheels out of the form, flips them over and then presses them again.
It has something to do with not wanting lopsided cheese.
I love this! Here we go:
Ready…
Set…
Slam Dunk!
Then Jessie and Marlies decided to show you “the toss.”
It has nothing to do with making cheese, they were just hamming it up for the camera.
I was given this recipe a while back and hesitated to try it, I thought that making crackers would be too difficult. I was so wrong! These were really easy and quick to make and they are delicious! They were a big hit at the Lady’s Luncheon at Church. I have tried them with different flavors of cheddar and gouda, my favorite is using Jalapeno Gouda.
I happened to have an alligator cookie cutter in the cupboard (I think every kitchen should have an alligator cookie cutter). I also have some little Fall cutters from the local craft store. I tried some larger size cutters, but I like the small crackers better. If you prefer, you can skip the cookie cutters and just cut the dough in squares, triangles, diamonds, whatever shape you like.
Cheese Crackers
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 tsp salt
¼ cup cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
8 ounces grated Appel Farms Cheddar or Gouda, any flavor
3 – 4 Tbsp ice water
Place the flour, salt, and butter in a food processor. Pulse until the mixture resembles coarse meal. Add the cheese a little at a time, pulsing after each addition, until the mixture again resembles coarse meal.
Add the water, one tablespoon at a time, until the dough forms a ball. Pulse between each addition and be careful not to add too much water.
Form the dough into two balls and wrap each in plastic wrap. Chill for at least one hour or up to 24 hours.
Using one dough ball at a time, roll the dough to about 1/8 inch thick. Cut the dough into small shapes, with whatever method you prefer and transfer to a baking sheet.
Bake at 350 degrees for 15-20 minutes or until golden brown, keep an eye on them after 10 minutes, they can overcook quickly.
When all the crackers are done, turn off the oven and pile the crackers onto a baking sheet. Put the crackers back into the warm oven for anywhere from an hour to overnight, this will make them crispy. The time it takes varies depending on how big and how thick the crackers are. My alligators only took an hour, but the pumpkins took much longer. If you want to speed up the drying, you can set the oven on warm, but keep an eye on them.
Quark is a great product. It is a plain and simple soft cheese that is a bit difficult to describe. It is somewhat like a cross between Ricotta, Yogurt, Cream Cheese and Sour Cream. It is ABSOLUTELY WONDERFUL to use in so many recipes. I use it in Lasagna, Quiche, Cakes, Dips, Toppings, Sauces, Tacos, Quick Breads, Casseroles, Biscuits, the list goes on and on! I have files full of recipes from customers as well as family favorites that I will be posting for anyone to enjoy.
I should probably tell you, I am not really much of a cook, so the recipes that I share are from customers and other sites. I will try the recipes before sharing for two reasons, first because I want to make sure that I am getting it right and not sharing something that doesn’t work (typos can really make for trouble), and also because recipe trials are YUMMY. I will certainly share my sources unless they have been contributed anonymously.
