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These Gooey Butter Cake Bars are heavenly. I only make them for a crowd, otherwise I’ll eat half the pan myself. Everyone loves this. The bars are soft, slightly gooey and have a perfect cake batter and sweet cream cheese flavor. If you’re looking to wow a crowd, bring this to your next party.

Did you know that the average age of a farmer in Arkansas is 57?

Ingredients

• 1 box Betty Crocker French Vanilla Cake mix
• 1 stick (1/2 cup) butter, melted
• 3 eggs
• 8 oz. cream cheese
• 1 lb. bag (about 3-3/4 cups) powdered sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 F. Line an 8 x 8 inch baking dish with parchment paper.
2. In a bowl, mix together the cake mix, melted butter and 1 egg until a soft dough forms. Press into the bottom of the baking dish.
3. In a stand mixer, combine together the cream cheese, two eggs, sugar and vanilla until smooth. Spread over the cake mix layer.
4. Bake bars for 45 minutes, or until edges are golden brown and the center has set to a soft consistency. Cool completely before slicing and serving.

I like recipes like Slow Cooker Spinach Tortellini, because there’s little actual preparation involved. Believe it or not, sometimes I don’t feel like cooking. I’m sure you feel that way sometimes, too. This recipe requires little preparation but tastes like you spent hours on it. I’ll warn you, if you don’t mix the ingredients well before cooking, you may come home to something that doesn’t look pretty. Don’t panic! Take a big spoon and stir it around. Voila! Your Slow Cooker Spinach Tortellini will be perfect.

Did you know more than 30 cents of every dollar you spend at the grocery store goes to processing, packaging, transporting and energy costs?

Ingredients:

• 1 family size bag of cheese tortellini
• 1 small bag spinach
• 1 box vegetable broth
• 2 cans Italian style diced tomatoes
• 1 (8-ounce) block cream cheese

Directions:

Combine all ingredients in a slow cooker, and cook on low for 3-5 hours.

I really like this recipe for Secret Fruit Salad, and I’m usually not a huge fruit salad fan. Something about the texture of a lot of fruit salads doesn’t work for me. I like this one with extra firm grapes. The vanilla pudding mix in this recipe gives the fruit a sweet glaze that really steps up the the flavor. What’s your favorite fruit salad recipe?

Did you know peaches are Arkansas’ top fruit crop?

Ingredients

• 1 (29-ounce) can peach slices, with juices
• 1 (20-ounce) can pineapple chunks, with juices
• 1 (3 1/8-ounce) box dry vanilla instant pudding mix
• 1 pound strawberries, stemmed and quartered
• 1 banana, sliced
• 1 bunch grapes

Directions

1. In a large bowl, combine peaches, pineapples and vanilla pudding mix.
2. Mix well until pudding is dissolved.
3. Stir in strawberries, banana, blueberries, grapes and sugar to taste, if desired, and chill.

When you see what’s in these biscuits, you’re going to think I’m crazy. The secret ingredient to my favorite Homemade Biscuits is mayonnaise. You might be thinking that using mayonnaise instead of shortening is not going to go well. However, the mayonnaise results in giving you a tender, moist biscuit with a multidimensional flavor you just can’t get with shortening. If you’re feeling really wild, stick a turkey sausage patty in between your biscuit halves for a delicious sausage biscuit.

Did you know Arkansas’ dairy farms produce more than 17 million gallons of milk each year? 

Ingredients

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 3 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• ½ cup mayonnaise
• ¾ cup milk

Instructions

1.  Heat oven to 450°F. In large bowl, mix flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Cut in mayonnaise using pastry blender (or pulling 2 table knives through ingredients in opposite directions) until mixture looks like fine crumbs. Stir in milk until dough leaves side of bowl (dough will be soft and sticky)
2. On lightly floured surface, gently roll dough in flour to coat. Knead lightly 10 times. Roll or pat 1/2 inch thick. Cut with floured 2 1/2-inch biscuit cutter. On ungreased cookie sheet, place biscuits about 1 inch apart for crusty sides, touching for soft sides.
3. Bake 10 to 12 minutes or until golden brown. Immediately remove from cookie sheet to wire rack. Serve warm.

Stuffed bell peppers are huge on Pinterest right now. I decided to give the trend my own spin and make Taco Stuffed Bell Peppers. I’ve had a variety of stuffed peppers, but I think this recipe is my favorite. It’s simple and comes together quickly for busy nights while being packed full of flavor. In fact, I doubled the recipe, and froze a few for the next couple of weeks when I need a quick meal.  Do you have a recipe for stuffed bell peppers?

Did you know more than 28,000 of Arkansas’ farms raise beef cattle?

Ingredients:

• 1 lb. ground beef
• 1 packet taco seasoning
• 1 packet of Spanish style 90-second rice
• 4 green bell peppers
• 1 cup cheddar cheese, shredded

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2. Meanwhile, cook ground beef based on instructions from your taco seasoning packet.
3. Cook the rice and combine with prepared taco meat.
4. Remove the tops and core of green bell peppers. Stuff with meat and rice mixture. Top with cheese.
5. Place the peppers in a deep baking dish and cover with foil. Bake for 20 minutes. Remove foil and bake for an additional 5-10 minutes or until cheese is browned and peppers are tender.