Holiday

  Some of your favorite CBS 3 personalities share their all-time holiday favorite recipes.

Susan Barnett: Sweet Potato Casserole

This is my all time holiday favorite... and it's almost as good as dessert!

3 cups mashed sweet potato
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup milk
2 eggs
1/2 cup margarine
1 tsp vanilla

Topping:
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup margarine
1/3 cup flour
1 cup chopped pecans

Mix all ingredients with sweet potatoes. Pour into greased casserole dish. Mix topping ingredients together and sprinkle on top. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 to 35 minutes.

Dave Huddleston's 7up Pound Cake

3 cups of sugar
5 eggs
3 sticks of butter
3 cups of flour
3/4 cup of 7up
2 tablespoons of lemon extract

Beat sugar, eggs, and butter together.
Add flour a little at a time
Add flavor
Fold in 7up

Grease and flour a Bundt pan
Set oven at 325 degrees

Bake for 1 hour and 15 minutes or until you can insert a toothpick and it comes out clean.

It's a nice easy dessert that even guys can do that it's good!


Pat Ciarrocchi: Creamed Mushrooms Ciarrocchi

This is a great holiday side dish that adds an exotic flare to your table.

The recipe serves six.

Ingredients:

Mushrooms -- 2 lbs fresh, lightly washed and wiped of dirt, stem trimmed, sliced in silhouette
(You can use white button mushrooms only, or add in a few shiitakes, and cremini to make the dish more exotic. We don't recommend the use of portabellas for this recipe because they're too dense.)

2-3 T butter
1/4 cup onion, diced
1/4 cup white wine (Only use wine you would happily drink)
Seasoning: salt, pepper, a dash of garlic powder and a sprinkle of dry parsley to taste.

2 T flour
1 cup light cream


Preparation:

First... how to handle the mushrooms. The watch word for handling mushrooms is delicately. They bruise easily, but the bruising only affects their appearance, not their taste.

When washing, run under cool water, rubbing the excess dirt with your fingertips. Mushrooms aren't meant to be peeled. As you wash them, you can trim the stems, removing the harder edges. The fresher the mushrooms, the better, they should be very white, and firm to the touch.

Portion -- figure about a quarter pound per person, because they shrink when cooked.

The cooking:

Wash and slice the mushrooms in silhouettes. Don't slice them too thin or else they'll disappear.

Prepare a saute skillet with butter and onions on a medium flame. You don't want to burn the butter or onions.

Once the onions are clear, toss in mushrooms - Don't be concerned if they fill the pan because they'll shrink.

Season the mushrooms with salt, pepper, garlic powder and a little dry parsley.
Add the wine...

You'll find the water in the mushrooms fills the pan. Keep sautéing the mushrooms until the water is partially absorbed.

Add two Tbsp of flour and then stir in gradually one cup of light cream.

Let the cause come to a low bubble, stir and serve immediately.


Before serving:

Don't forget to say a little prayer for the mother and grandmother who taught me how to do this... and the brothers who still grow the mushrooms at our family farm.

Leslie Van Arsdall's Favorite Chocolate Chip Cake

This is the best chocolate chip cake ever. If I can do it anyone can.

Crumb MIx:
1 cup sugar
2 tablespoons cinnamon
12oz. Chocolate chips

Mix together and set aside

Cake mix:

1 cup butter
2cups sugar
2tsp. Vanilla
1/2 tsp. salt
4 large eggs
3 cups Ceresota flour
1 pint sour cream

Preheat oven 350
Beat butter and gradually beat in 2 cups sugar beat abt. 5 mins till fluffy.
Add eggs beat until creamy
Add vanilla
Sift flour, baking soda , and salt
Mix on low speed adding flour mix and sour cream
Pour half batter in pan
Put 1/2 crumb mixture on top

Repeat with remaining batter and rest of crumb mixture. Cut through batter and cover chocolate chips or they will burn. Bake at 350 for an hour and enjoy!

(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)