White Christmas Crack

 

Susan’s White Christmas Crack 

2 packages Hershey’s white baking morsels
3 cups Crispix cereal
3 cups golde2n grahams
3 cups corn chex
3 cups mini pretzels
12 oz can mixed nuts
8 oz bag hershey’s cookies and crème drops – cut in halves
2 Tbsp vegetable oil

Mix all cereal, pretzels, nuts and candy in a large bowl. Melt white chocolate baking morsels and vegetable oil together in microwave, stirring every 20-30 seconds. Pour melted mixture over cereal and coat thoroughly. Pour onto wax paper, spread out and let dry until hardened. 

Royal Sugar Cookies

These are my friend Susan's amazing recipes... posting here for my easy reference.

THE BEST Sugar Cookies for Icing

2 C. butter {softened at room temperature}

2 C. sugar

2 eggs

2 tsp. flavoring (vanilla or almond, lemon, whatever)

6 C. flour {750 grams – YES, weigh the flour!}

1/8 t. baking powder

1 tsp. salt

Mix dough, then divide into thirds.  Using two sheets of parchment paper and two 5/16" dowels as thickness guides, roll the fresh dough between the pins into sheets of dough.  Place in fridge for at least 30 minutes, overnight is better.  

Preheat to 350- usually 11 minutes is enough, sometimes 12 minutes.  Try to get the cookies to pass the "push" test.  

Makes approximately 4-dozen 3” cookies. 

ROYAL ICING for Sugar Cookies 

5 T. meringue powder

3/4 C.  very warm water

1 t. cream of tartar

2 1/4 pounds powdered sugar {I weigh it – 2 lb. 4 oz. or 36 oz.}

2 tsp. clear vanilla or almond extract

gel coloring
{makes 4 cups!}

Make sure all of your tools are grease free and completely dry. Measure out your powdered sugar, so you’re ready to add it to the warm meringue/cream of tartar mixture.

In your stand mixing bowl, {bowl off of the stand for this step} hand whisk together meringue powder and warm water until foamy. Add cream of tarter and whisk again by hand.

Add all of the powdered sugar at once. Using your paddle attachment on the stand mixer's lowest setting, mix for 9 minutes. At 9 minutes, scrape down the bowl and paddle and add your flavorings and mix for one more minute.

 Divide and color your icing. When color is what you want add water to thin to desired consistency. Proceed slowly – for 1/3 of royal icing batch, I usually add 1 t. of water to start with, then add in ½ t. increments between stirrings, sometimes even a drop or two when I am close. Consistency changes quickly! I do all of my cookies using one consistency of icing. I do the 6-second test. Pull your spoon/spatula across the batch of icing you’re stirring and the spoon’s trail should “disappear” by the time you count 6 seconds. 

This recipe for royal icing makes 3 heaping cups. A Wilton disposable piping bag will hold a heaping cup of icing, so don’t ever tint more than a heaping cup of icing one color, unless you want to fill two bags with the same color.

Healthy Pumpkin Mousse

My school nurse sent out this Healthy Pumpkin Mousse recipe a few weeks ago, and after Christopher told me he had something similar at school and loved it, we decided to give it a try.  I am pleased to say that it was delicious, simple to make, easy on the eyes and completely satisfied my pumpkin pie desires, so much so that I only had a bite this last Thanksgiving weekend!  That is pretty impressive.  The original recipe called for sugar free pudding mix (if diabetes is a concern) and crumbled gingersnaps or graham crackers on top, if you are so inclined.  I just served with whipped cream and loved it as is! 

Pumpkin Mousse

1 large package vanilla pudding
1 ½ cups milk
1 15 oz can pumpkin
1 t. pumpkin pie spice
cool whip, about half of a small container, plus more for serving

Mix the pudding and milk, and then let it set up in the fridge for 5 minutes or so.  Add in the pumpkin and spices, mix to combine.  Fold in the Cool Whip until color is even throughout.  I scooped it into clear serving cups and let it set up in the fridge, garnishing with additional cool whip when serving.  Very pretty and very yummy!

I saw in a picture that it appeared as though someone had frozen it- that could be good, too!

Pretzel M&M Hugs

 

These take a fair amour of supplies- they are definitely not cheap or quick- it takes a while to unwrap all those hugs!  They are fun to make though, Kate and I had a good time last Christmas.  And they are really pretty!

Pretzel M & M Hugs*

pretzels, square or circle is ideal, butter crisps work well
hershey hugs (they're pretty melted, kisses would work too) 
M&M's (Christmas colors, or Valentine's, or whatever holiday you're close to) 
parchment paper


Preheat oven to 200 degrees. Line a cookie sheet with a Silpat or parchment paper. Align pretzels on cookie sheet in a single layer then top each pretzel with one Hershey's Hug chocolate. Bake in preheated oven for 4 - 5 minutes, until the chocolate is shiny and soft (but NOT melting, the chocolates should still hold their shape). Remove from oven and carefully place one M & M in the center of each soft Hug and press down on M & M to spread the chocolate.

* You can do the same thing to make Turtles using Rolo's and pecan halves- yummy!  

Ice Cream Cake

I made an ice cream cake for Christopher’s 6^th birthday and it turned out really good.  It was easy but you have to plan ahead- this isn’t one that you can throw together the day of.

Ice Cream Cake

3 bags of Oreo’s*
¼ C. of butter, melted
2 ½ gallons of ice cream*
3 jars of hot fudge sauce
Spray whipped cream, optional

Crumble your Oreo’s, I like the freezer bag and roller pin method but there are all sorts of ways to do this.  Mix about 2-3 C of crumbled Oreo’s with the melted butter, and press into the bottom of a (cooking sprayed) 9x13 pan.  I used my lasagna pan for this cake and it made a ton.  Pour some hot fudge sauce over the Oreo/butter mixture, and place the whole pan in the freezer for an hour or so.

Get the ice cream out of the freezer and let it warm up a little.  I put my two half gallons in my really big mixing bowl and stirred it up pretty well, so that it was easy to shape but still definitely frozen.  After the first hot fudge layer has hardened, smooth out a thick layer of ice cream on top.  I used all of my ice cream for this the first time I made it, but next time, I might just use half, then freeze that again until it gets firm, and then do another Oreo/hot fudge layer, freeze it until hard, and then dump out the rest of my ice cream.  Again, freeze the ice cream, and then dump the rest of the Oreo’s on top.  I cant remember if I froze the Oreo’s in place before I added the final layer of hot fudge, but it seems like a good idea.  Finally, apply a generous layer of hot fudge over the top of your frozen Oreo’s.  Let that freeze, preferably overnight.  Decorate the top as desired the next day, and dig in!  Serve with some whipped cream, if you like. 

This was SO good, much better than the ice cream cakes that you can buy, in my (not so) humble opinion.  Especially for the price! 

*For Christopher, we used Mint Cookie/Oreo/Hot Fudge.  I thought I’d be able to avoid most of it by choosing mint ice cream, since I am not such a big fan.  But it turns out that I really like Mint Cookie!  Not so big on Mint Chip.  There are any number of combinations that would be amazing.  The Oreo’s are a natural, but you could also do something peanut butter-y with Nutter Butter’s, maybe make your own Cold Stone Creamery peanut butter cup perfection with chopped almonds, Reese’s PB cups, peanut butter folded in, etc… 

Chocolates

Jason’s Great Grandma Squires came over this weekend and taught my mom, my sister and I how to dip chocolate and make old fashioned cooked fudge.  It was fantastic, and we all have the expanding waistlines to prove it!  We used most of a 10 pound bar of chocolate and made gifts for everyone on our “nice” list.  And then we started a new family tradition of decorating cookies!  What a fun weekend. 

Easy Mints
¼ C. butter or margarine
2 T. water
¼ t salt
½ t. peppermint oil (3-4 shakes of oil preferred, or lots more of extract)
3 ½ - 3 ¾ C. Powdered Sugar
Heat over low heat butter and water, add salt and extract, gradually add sugar until smooth.  Yields one pound of mints.

Fondant Cherries
Marischino cherries and juice (1 large jar or 3-4 small jars)
6 T. butter
¼ C. evaporated milk
¼ C. reserved cherry juice
2 t. vanilla
½ t. salt
Powdered Sugar until it’s the right consistency, about a 16 oz bag, maybe a touch more

Dry cherries on paper towel, reserve the 1/4 C. of the juice. Warm the butter, milk, cherry juice, vanilla and salt over low heat.  Remove from heat and add powdered sugar until it’s the right consistency, sort of like play dough.  Get some powdered sugar in your hands, flatten the fondant, wrap around cherries and then chill well in the freezer.  Then dip in chocolate.

Peanut Butter Eggs (from Aunt Kat) 
Mix together
4 C. powdered sugar
1 1/2 C. creamy peanut butter
1/4 C. butter or margarine, melted
2-3 T. milk
Mix together, adding milk last.  Shape into eggs, or perhaps next time I will make these into ball-shaped buckeyes and leave the top showing peanut butter so you can tell them from the cherries.  Freeze and then dip into chocolate.

Almond Joys
2 pounds powdered sugar
1 – 1 ½ pounds shredded coconut (large package)
1 can sweetened condensed milk (maybe a little more)
2 T. butter, melted
Almonds
Mix all ingredients.  Shape into ovals, put an almond (or two!) in the center. Chill well, and dip! 

Chocolate Covered Almonds or Peanuts
Stir whichever kind of nuts you like in the leftover chocolate, and dollop by spoonful onto wax paper to dry.

Kitty Litter Cake

I saw this recipe years ago, and then I had the actual cake once at a Halloween party.  I have to say, it is pretty tasty if you can get over the psychology of eating what looks like convincing cat littler.  This is a really fun novelty item and definitely one that I plan on doing some day.  Some people that reviewed it said they have never had so much fun cooking as when they made this.  I am thinking that my five year old would go nuts over this- which might be reason enough to make it.  :-) 


Kitty Litter Cake

• 1 - 2 (18.25 ounce) package German chocolate cake mix
• 1 (18.25 ounce) package white cake mix
• 2 (3.5 ounce) packages instant vanilla or cheese cake pudding mix
• 1 (12 ounce) package peanut butter or vanilla sandwich cookies
• 3 drops green food coloring
• 1 (12 ounce) package tootsie rolls (the 4" ones work well) 
• crushed up Butterfinger bars, optional
• 1 new small cat littler box
• 1 new pooper scooper

1. Prepare cake mixes and bake according to package directions (any size pan).
2. Prepare pudding according to package directions and chill until ready to assemble. (I read that it is easier to mix in if you don't let it chill first!) 
3. Crumble sandwich cookies in small batches in a food processor, scraping often. Set aside all but 1/4 cup. To the 1/4 cup add a few drops of green food coloring and mix.
4. When cakes are cooled to room temperature, crumble them into a large bowl. Toss with 1/2 of the remaining cookie crumbs, and the chilled pudding. You probably won't need all of the pudding, you want the cake to be just moist, not soggy.
5. Put cake mixture into box.
6. Put half of the unwrapped tootsie rolls in a microwave safe dish and heat until softened. Shape the ends so that they are no longer blunt, and curve the tootsie rolls slightly. Bury tootsie rolls randomly in the cake and sprinkle with half of the remaining cookie crumbs. Sprinkle a small amount of the green colored cookie crumbs lightly over the top.
7. Heat 3 or 4 of the tootsie rolls in the microwave until almost melted. Scrape them on top of the cake and sprinkle lightly with some of the green cookie crumbs. Heat the remaining tootsie rolls until pliable and shape as before. Spread all but one randomly over top of cake mixture. Sprinkle with any remaining cookie crumbs. Hang the remaining tootsie roll over side of litter box and sprinkle with a few green cookie crumbs. Serve with the pooper scooper for a gross Halloween dessert.

Pita Bread Pizzas

So my friend Nicole gave me the idea for this one, and she claims that she "doesn't cook," so they are super easy and yet surprisingly satisfying.  They take about fifteen minutes from inspiration to dining, and Christopher ate a whole pizza himself one time- so they are definitely kid-friendly.  I usually follow the recipe below for my own, and then for Christopher I use pizza sauce and mozzarella.  I have never actually decorated mine as cute as the picture above, but I couldn't resist- that is so adorable!  I do usually cut up some salami for his pizzas, as sort of a convenient pepperoni.

2 rounds of pita bread, I usually go for whole wheat but any of it works
1 medium tomato, cubed and seeded (try to get most of the juice off of it)
drizzle of olive oil
oregano or dried basil
salt and pepper, to taste
mozzarella
optional - fresh basil (yum!) or any toppings you like

Preheat oven to 350.  Cut up tomato, add olive oil, basil and S&P.  Sprinkle tomato topping over the pita's and then place in oven (with no cheese) for about 8 minutes.  Pull them out at 8 minutes, add the cheese, and then throw it back in the oven for another 2-5 minutes.  Slice and enjoy!

PS You can also make easy pizza's out of english muffins, bagels, even toast if you are in a pinch!

PS Again - here is a picture of what they might usually look like.