Walnuts, Apples, and Cinnamon...

Fall sweets...they just seem to require some crunchy nuts, fragant spices, and a hint of molasses, don't they? Our applesauce cookies combine the rich flavor of walnuts and brown sugar with the spiciness of ginger and cinnamon, with a little white chocolate for added appeal. They make a tasty treat to share with family and friends as the days begin to shorten and the leaves fall.

Walnut Applesauce Cookies
½ cup butter, softened
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup applesauce
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 ½ cup white flour
½ cup wheat flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon kosher salt
½ teaspoon ginger
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 ½ cups white chocolate chips
½ to ¾ cup walnuts, chopped

Preheat oven to 400F. Mix butter and sugar together in mixer. Add applesauce, beat. Add eggs and vanilla, beat. Add dry ingredients, mix well. Stir in walnuts and chocolate chips. Drop onto ungreased cookie sheet. Bake for 7 minutes. Cool. Store whatover cookies don't get eaten during the baking process in an airtight container, placing wax paper between layers of cookies.

Makes 5 dozen medium sized cookies.

Lemon & White Chocolate

Summer calls for sweet treats of all kinds, and these lemony white chocolate bars certainly suit this season of warm and sticky! A riff on a traditional brownie recipe, these bars are an excellent dessert to share with your family and friends that can't (or even more sadly, just don't) eat chocolate.

Lemon & White Chocolate Bars

¾ butter
2 cups sugar
4 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 teaspoons lemon extract
1 ¾ cups flour
½ teaspoon baking powder
¼ teaspoon kosher salt
1 ½ cups white chocolate chips

Melt butter, remove from heat. Add sugar, eggs, vanilla, and lemon extract. Combine flour, baking powder, and salt. Add flour mixture to butter mixture, stir until well blended and smooth. Stir in white chocolate chips. Spread in a greased 9x13 pan. Bake at 350 for 35 to 40 minutes. Cool and serve.