COOK OF THE WEEK - GIRL SCOUT TROOPS

As many of you have proba-bly been approached by a Girl Scout during these past couple of weeks about buying those delicious Girl Scout cookies, you know we are in Girl Scout cookie season now through the middle of March. A week ago I visited with most of the Girl Scout leaders of the Springvale Girl Scouts. This week and in the following two weeks we will be visiting with some of the in-dividual troops. Ambassador Troop 23 – “My name is Alyssa Pflibsen. I am one of the four girls of Am-bassador Troop 23. Our troop includes Holly Stockdale, Ash-ley Kiley, Kaylynn McGriff (of Fort Dodge) and myself, along with our co-leaders, Amy Town-send and Tanya Pflibsen. We are juniors in high school. We are all involved in many activities throughout the year and also work part-time jobs. We have very busy schedules which al-lows little time for meetings, so when we do get together, we like to help with community service events and volunteer. Recently, we used our troop funds to purchase pajamas to donate to Blank Children’s Hos-pital, through Hailey Cofer, who started the project. We have all been in Girl Scouts since we were in second grade except Holly who started in the Daisy Troop in kindergar-ten. As a troop, we have earned our Bronze and Silver awards for community service. Now that we only have one more year as Girl Scouts, we each have the goal of earning the Gold Award, which is the highest honor in Girl Scouting. Through Girl Scouts, we have learned how easy and rewarding it is to volunteer and how much it affects our community. We try to use the funds we raise selling nuts and cookies, for community service projects and giving back to others.” Senior Troop 355 – “Our troop consists of Morgan Nehring (10th grade) and lead-ers, Pam Hosford and Kathy Eck. Morgan is the last girl left in our troop. She joined our troop in sixth grade. All of the other girls have moved away or graduated. Activities that Mor-gan participated in for scouts are: selling nuts and cookies and running the food booth at the Kiwanis Home Show held each April. Morgan and Kathy like to go on Girl Scout trips. In the sum-mer of 2012, along with Mor-gan’s sister, Alyssa, the three of them joined 45 other girl scouts on a bus trip to Washington, DC. The occasion was the 100th anniversary of Girl Scouts. A huge gathering of thousands of girl scouts gathered at the Wash-ington Monument on the Na-tional Mall. For their next trip, Morgan and Kathy will be joined by Morgan’s mom, Candace and her sister, Alyssa. This summer, they will travel to Savannah, GA. This is the birthplace of Girl Scouts. They will travel by bus and spend five days visiting where Girl Scouts started.” Cadette Troop 28 – “The nine sixth-grade members of Troop 28 are excited about an-other year in Girl Scouting. Ca-dette Troop 28 began the school year with a pool party at King’s Pointe Waterpark in Storm Lake. With girls planning the meetings, the troop completed the Comic Artist badge, enjoyed a spooky haunted house, and visited the Pumpkinville Corn Maze in Mitchellville. The girls enjoyed a trip to the Ames Ice Arena complete with ice skating and a pizza party. In December, the girls shopped for Christmas gifts for angels from the Angel Tree and in February, they made valen-tines to send to patients at the Veterans Hospital. Most recent-ly, the troop has completed the Business Plan badge in conjunc-tion with the annual cookie sale. Former Humboldt business-woman, Donnie Wind, visited a troop meeting and offered some insight into running your own business. The troop is currently planning a Wild West Hoedown event for the girls in Humboldt that will take place in April. Troop 28 is looking forward to camping and an overnight at the Omaha Zoo this summer. In the future, the girls are hoping to participate in council-sponsored travel opportunities.” As you probably expect dur-ing Girl Scout season, we have many recipes to share using one or more of the many different choices of Girl Scout cookies.Banana Split Cake3 ounce package instant banana pudding30 Shortbread cookies2 medium bananas, sliced8 ounce container whipped topping3 Juliette cookies, crushed Mix pudding according to package directions. In a 2-quart casserole dish, layer half of the Shortbread cookies, half of the bananas, half of the pudding and half of the whipped topping. Repeat layers. Refrigerate four hours. Before serving, top with crushed Juliette cookies. (Varia-tions: add pineapple or strawber-ry toppings when serving.)Peanut Butter andCream Cheese Pie8 ounce package cream cheese, cut up1/2 cup peanut butter1 cup sifted powdered sugar2 tablespoons milk4 ounces frozen whipped topping, thawed1 package Peanut Butter Sandwich cookies, crushed3 tablespoons melted oleocoarsely chopped peanuts, optional Crush Peanut Butter Sand-wich cookies in a food processor until crumbly. Add melted oleo and press into a 9 inch pie plate. In a large mixer bowl, combine cream cheese and peanut butter, beat with an electric mixer until combined. Add powdered sugar and milk and heat until com-bined. Fold in whipped topping. Spoon into pie shell. Sprinkle with peanuts, if desired. Cover and chill in the freezer for 15 minutes. Makes 8 servings.Levitating LayersFirst layer:1/2 cup plain flour1 stick oleo, melted1 box Caramel Delight Girl Scout cookiesSecond layer:1 cup powdered sugar8 ounce package cream cheese1/2 cup whipped toppingThird layer:6 ounce package instant chocolate pudding mix2-1/2 cups milkTopping:1/2 cup whipped topping Mix the first layer ingredients together and pat in the bottom of a casserole dish. Bake for 25 minutes at 325 degrees. Cool. Mix the second layer ingredients together and spread over cooled crust. Mix pudding and milk according to package directions and spread over second layer. Spread the whipped topping over the third layer and refriger-ate for 30 minutes to one hour.Southern Peanut Butter Pie(Troop 355)1 package Peanut Butter Patties3-1/2 ounces vanilla pudding1-1/2 cups milk1/3 cup peanut butter Grind cookies in a blender or food processor and press into a 9 inch pie plate. Prepare pudding mix according to package direc-tions using only 1-1/2 cups milk. Stir in peanut butter. Pour into the pie shell. Refrigerate until ready to serve. Garnish with whipped topping and crushed peanuts.Fudgy Peanut Butter Balls(Troop 23)1-1/2 boxes (24 cookies) Peanut Butter Patties3 tablespoons butter or margarine, melted2/3 cup salted peanuts, finely chopped Place cookies in food proces-sor or blender; process until fine crumbs. Combine crumbs and butter; mix until well blended. Roll mixture into 1-inch balls. Place peanuts in small narrow bowl. Roll each ball in peanuts, gently pressing peanuts into balls. Store in covered container in refrigerator until ready to serve.Rich and Famous Brownies1 cup evaporated milk2 cups miniature marshmallows1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips1/3 cup sugar1/8 teaspoon salt1 teaspoon vanilla extract1 tablespoon butter3 cups Thin Mint cookies, crushed into crumbs1/2 cup nuts, chopped Mix the milk, marshmallows, chocolate chips, sugar and salt in a microwavable bowl. Bring to a boil in the microwave. Stir well and cook in the microwave an additional 2 minutes at medi-um high heat. Remove from the microwave. Add butter, vanilla and chopped nuts. Break cookies into crumbs and add to mixture. Pack into a 9-inch square pan. Refrigerate to harden. Cut into 2 inch squares.Thin Mints Popcorn(Troop 355)10 cups plain popped popcorn25 Thin Mints cookies, coarsely chopped, divided1-1/2 cups white baking chips1 teaspoon shortening1 cup Andes crème de menthe baking chips In a large bowl, combine pop-corn and half of the crushed Thin Mints cookies. In a micro-wave, melt baking chips with shortening; stir until smooth. Pour over popcorn mixture; toss to coat. Immediately spread onto waxed paper; sprinkle with re-maining crushed Thin Mints cookies. Melt baking chips in microwave; stir until smooth. Drizzle over popcorn; let stand until set. Break into pieces. Store in an airtight container. Yield: 3-1/2 quarts.Lemon Surprise Cheesecake1-1/2 cups crushed Lemonades Girl Scout cookies2 tablespoons sugar1/4 cup butter, meltedLemon filling:2/3 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar5 tablespoons cornstarch1 cup water2 egg yolks, lightly beaten1/3 cup lemon juice2 tablespoons butter1 teaspoon grated lemon peelCheesecake layer:1 envelope unflavored gelatin1/2 cup lemon juice (3) 8 ounce packages cream cheese, softened3/4 cup sugar1 cup heavy whipping cream, whipped2 teaspoons grated lemon peel Combine the cookie crumbs and sugar; stir in butter. Press onto the bottom of a lightly greased 9-inch springform pan. Place on a baking sheet. Bake at 350 degrees for 8 to 10 minutes or until crust just begins to brown. Cool pan on a wire rack. In a large saucepan, combine sugar and cornstarch. Stir in water until smooth. Cook and stir over medium-high heat until thickened and bubbly. Reduce heat; cook and stir 2 minutes longer. Remove from the heat. Stir a small amount of hot filling into egg yolks; return all to pan, stirring constantly. Bring to a gentle boil; cook and stir 2 minutes longer. Remove from the heat. Gently stir in the lemon juice, butter and peel. Cool to room temperature without stir-ring. In a small saucepan, sprinkle gelatin over lemon juice; let stand for 1 minute. Heat over low heat, stirring until gelatin is dissolved. Remove from the heat. In a large bowl, beat cream cheese and sugar. Gradually beat in gelatin mixture until com-bined. Fold in the whipped cream and lemon peel. Spoon three-fourths of cheesecake mix-ture into crust; build up edges slightly. Chill for 5 minutes. Spoon lemon filling over cheesecake layer to within 1/2 inch of edges. Top with remain-ing cheesecake mixture. Cover and refrigerate overnight. Care-fully run a knife around edge of pan; remove sides of pan. Re-frigerate leftovers. Yield: 12 servings. If you are reading this, then you probably enjoy new recipes. If you would like to share some of your recipes with the com-munity, YOU could be Cook of the Week. Please contact me, Sally Redenius, if you would like to be in this column some week. I can be reached by phone at 515-373-6346 or email me at sacuthbe@msn.com. I will be happy to email or send you my short questionnaire and set up a time to come and visit you at your convenience. I’m always looking for NEW Cooks of the Week. Also, if you are new in town, this is a good way to introduce yourself to the Humboldt community and sur-rounding communities. I look forward to visiting with you. The COOK OF THE WEEK 3rd Edition Cookbook is available. Cost per copy is $10.70, plus $4.80 shipping/handling. Order a copy today by sending a check or money order, along with name and shipping address, to: Humboldt Independent, 512 Sumner Ave., Humboldt, IA 50548.