This was a childhood favorite of mine (and Craig's too...I think..) Sometimes my mom didn't have recipes. Those are the ones I wished I had written down before she died. This is one of those recipes. However, I found a Paula Deen recipe that sounds just like the one Mother made when we were growing up. For some reason, she stopped making these in our later years (not sure why...maybe they are difficult to make). I absolutely LOVED these (but there wasn't much I didn't love..haha).  She would roll half in coconut and leave the coconut off the other half. (And I'm pretty sure Mother used canned yams...)

Sweet Potato Balls (by Paula Deen):

4 large sweet potatoes

2/3 cup packed brown sugar

2 tablespoons orange juice

1 teaspoon orange zest

1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

1/2 cup sugar

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1 lare marshmallow per potato ball

2 cups coconut

Bake the sweet potatoes until tender; peel and mash them. Stir in brown sugar, orange juice, zest, nutmeg, sugar and cinnamon. Press mashed sweet potatoes around a marshmallow and form a ball about 2 1/2 - 3" in diameter. Roll the balls in coconut. Bake 15-20 minutes at 350.  Watch carefully for the last few minutes of baking. The expanding marshmallow can cause the ball to burst.

Thie recipe was always a staple at Thanksgiving and Christmas. It could almost be a dessert. I still make this for almost every holiday meal. I usually double it though to make sure there is enough (for our family anyway...) It is GREAT!!

Sweet Potato Casserole:

1 large can yams (drain half the liquid)

2 eggs

1/4 cup sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/8 teaspoon salt

1/2 stick butter  (melted)

Add all ingredients in mixing bowl and beat with mixer until well blended. Put into greased 9 x 13 pan.

Topping:

2 tablespoons flour

1/2 stick butter

3/4 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup chopped pecans

Mix together and sprinkle over top of casserole. Bake at 350 for 1 hour  (until set).

One memory I have of my mother is cookbooks. She gave me and my sisters-in-law cookbooks many times at Christmas. This recipe is actually from a cookbook she gave all of us one year (Texas Tastes). It's a great cookbook and I use it often. I will treasure my books forever. This recipe is by Velma Wilson from LaPorte, Texas (giving credit where credit is due) and it is GREAT. The key is to follow the directions EXACTLY. (However, I DO add more cumin and garlic powder than is called for...I just add it to taste.)

Spanish Rice:

2 cups rice

1/2 cup oil

1 cup onion

1 cup bell pepper

1 - 10 oz. can Rotel tomatoes

1 - 8 oz. cans tomato sauce

3 cups water

2 teaspoons garlic powder

1 teaspoon cumin

1/2 teaspoon salt

Lightly brown rice in oil. Add chopped onion and bell peppers and saute. Add tomatoes, tomato sauce, water, and seasonings. Bring to boil, stir once, and reduce heat. Cover and simmer 40-45 minutes. DO NOT STIR and DO NOT TAKE LID OFF until time is up.

Mother made this often, I think because we could eat on it for more than a day ( of course this is AFTER my three brothers were out of the house..haha). Good recipe and EASY to make. One of my favorites.

Mexican Chicken:

1 cooked and boned chicken

1 can cream of mushroom soup, undiluted

1 can cream of chicken soup, undiluted

1 can Rotel tomatoes

1 chopped onion

Cayenne pepper to taste

10 corn tortillas

1 pound shredded sharp cheddar cheese

1 stick butter

Saute onion in butter - add soups, tomatoes, cayenne pepper and blend well. Cook about 15 minutes. Place alternate layers of chicken, tortillas, cheese and sauce. Repeat layers and end with sauce on top. Bake approximately 1 hour at 350.

My mother made this cake many times when she would visit her brother (Billy Bob...aka Sonny) in Sulphur Springs. This is also one of my favorite cakes (especially the icing....I would make myself sick eating leftover icing).

Carrot Cake:

2 cups sugar

2 teaspoons soda

1 teaspoon salt

4 eggs

2 cups flour

3 teaspoons cinnamon

1 1/2 cups Wesson oil

3 cups grated carrots

Cream together sugar, eggs, and oil. Add flour, soda, salt, and cinnanmon. Fold in carrots and pour into 3 - 8" round, greased and floured cake pans. Bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes.

Icing:

1 stick butter

1 - 8 oz. cream cheese

1 box powdered sugar

1 cup chopped pecans

Mix and spread between, on top, and sides of cooled layers.

Another good "shower" cookie. These are not real sweet. More along the lines of a shortbread cookie. Mother made them often for showers. Probably one of my favorites. Sometimes I wished she didn't always make cookies that had to be rolled into balls...because I was usually the one that rolled them while she moved on to something else!!!

Brown Eyed Susans:

Cream 3/4 cup soft butter, 1/2 cup sugar, 1 egg, 1 teaspoon vanilla, and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Stir in 1 3/4 cup sifted flour. Chill one hour. Shape into 1" balls. Place on ungreased cookie sheets. Top each with a chocolate chip morsel. Bake at 400 8-10 minutes. Makes 4 dozen.

This is an AWESOME recipe. Mother didn't make these very often because they are a "little bit of trouble". She did make them for her friend, Lynn Chambers a few times (if I rememebr correctly). It is a GREAT chocolate cake.

Feathery Fudge Cake:

2/3 cup soft butter

1 3/4 cup sugar

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla

2 1/2 - 1 oz. squares semi-sweet chocolate squares, melted

2 1/2 cups flour

1 1/4 teaspoon soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 1/4 cups ice water

Cream together butter, sugar, and vanilla until fluffy. (Beat five minutes at high speed.) Blend in cooled chocolate. Sift flour, soda, and salt and add to creamed mixture alternately with ice water, beginning and ending with flour; beat after each addition. Bake in 2 greased and floured 9" round pans at 350 for 30-35 minutes. Frost with Chocolate Satin Frosting.

Chocolate Satin Frosting:

3 1/2 - 1 oz. semi-sweet chocolate squares

3 cups sifted confectioner's sugar

4 1/2 tablespoons hot water

1 egg

1/2 cup softened butter

1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Melt chocolate in mixing bowl over hot water. Remove from heat. With electric mixer blend in sugar and water. Beat in egg, then butter and vanilla. Frosting will be thin at this point, so place bowl in ice water; beat till of spreading consistency. Frost tops and sides of 2 - 9" layers.

This cake is VERY moist. Mother made it all the time (for home and to sell). I think it was one of her favorites. After having a hard time getting it to turn out of the Bundt pan, I now have a fear of bundt cakes. I either let them stay in the pan and cool too long or I try to turn them out too soon.  Either way, this is a great recipe.

Fresh Apple Cake:

4 cups dices apples

2 cups sugar

1 cup oil

2 eggs - beat egg whites stiff

2 1/2 cups sifted flour

2 teaspoons soda

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon cinnamon

Mix all ingredients and fold in stiffly beaten egg whites last. Bake in a greased and floured tube pan. Bake 1 1/2 hours at 325.

I never realized how simple a pecan pie was until I started cooking with Mother. This was one of my brother's favorites (Deryl Ray). Therefore, there was usually always one made for holiday dinners.

Pecan Pie:

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 stick butter

1 cup light Karo syrup

3 eggs

1 cup pecans - or more

Melt butter and add remaining ingredients - pour into unbaked pie shell. Bake approximately 1 hour at 350.

Honestly, I never really cared for these, but lots of people did. Mother made them often during the holidays with all her other candy making.

Bourbon Balls:

3 cups ground vanilla wafers

1 cup ground pecans

1 cup confectioner's sugar

3 tablespoons Karo syrup

1 1/2 tablespoons cocoa

1/4 cup whiskey

Grind wafers and nuts finely and mix with other ingredients thoroughly. Roll into balls and dust with powdered sugar. Makes 30-35.