Congo Squares

My Grandma GG always had these ready for us kids when we would come visit.  Making them reminds me of all the summers we'd go to Utah to see grandma.

2 1/4 c brown sugar
2/3 c softened butter
3 eggs
2 3/4 c flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp vanilla
1 pk chocolate chips
1 c nuts (optional)

Add butter to sugar and cream well. Add eggs and beat. Add rest of ingredients. Mix well and spread in pan 3/4 inch thick. Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes. Cool and cut.

GG's Jiffy Potatoes a.k.a. Funeral Potatoes

This is Grandma GG's recipe and she calls it Jiffy Potatoes. Most people call this dish Funeral Potatoes, but I didn't want to call them: GG's Funeral Potatoes. That sounded bad.


2 lb bag of Frozen Hashbrowns
1 can Cream of Potato Soup
1 can Cream of Celery Soup
1 can Cheddar Cheese Soup
1 small carton (8 oz) of Sour Cream
1 chopped Onion (optional)
2 cups of Buttered Bread Crumbs

Mix all the soups together in a large bowl. Stir in the sour cream and onions. Fold in frozen hashbrowns. Put in 9x13 greased baking pan, top with buttered bread crumbs. Bake at 325 degrees for 1 hour, 15 minutes.

Notes:
To make the bread crumbs, I broke 3 pieces of bread into small pieces and put into a small bowl. I melted 4 tablespoons of butter and poured it over the crumbs. Using a fork, I mixed it around to make sure that all the bread was coated with the melted butter.
I tweaked this recipe ever so slightly. To see GG's exact recipe, click HERE.

Black Bottom Cupcakes

This is GG's special recipe. They were always good to sneak out of the freezer (she would make some and freeze them when we were coming to visit.


1/2 c cocoa
3 c flour
2 c sugar
2 tsp soda
1 tsp salt
Mix together in bowl. Make three depressions in mixture; put 3/4 c salad oil in one, 2 T. vinegar in one, and 2 tsp vanilla in the third.
Add 2 c cold water and stir.
Fill muffin papers 2/3 full with batter. Drop 1 tsp filling on top. Bake at 350 degrees for about 20 minutes. Cool and frost with icing recipe below.

Filling:
1- 8 oz pkg cream cheese
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
1/4 c sugar
Mix these together and a 1- 6oz pkg of chocolate chips

Frosting:
3/4 stick margarine
3 T sour cream
3-5 T cocoa
1 1/2 T peanut butter
Mix together and add powdered sugar till right consistency and good taste. You can add a small amount of canned milk if you need to thin it down.