Bon-Bons

Note: You know how they say stay at home moms sit around watching tv and eating bon-bons all day? Well, now you have our secret recipe. Not that we have time to make OR eat them. But you have it!

Bon-Bons

Mix...
½ cup butter, softened
1 cup peanut butter
2 cups powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla

Form into 1-inch balls.

Melt the following in a double boiler or small pan on low heat...
2 cups chocolate chips
2 Tablespoons paraffin

Roll dough balls in chocolate mixture to coat. Place chocolate covered balls on wax paper to set. Store in air-tight container.

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Reindeer Candy

Note: No idea why it is called reindeer candy. It was given to me with this name so I call it this.

Reindeer Candy

Ingredients
1 package white almond bark
1 cup peanut butter (creamy or crunchy)
1 ½ cup mini marshmallows
1 ½ cup crisp rice cereal

Directions
In large microwave-safe bowl, melt almond bark. This will take 5-8 minutes at ½ power. Stir in peanut butter to melt and mix. Stir in marshmallows and cereal to coat. Pour into wax paper lined 9x13 pan. (You can also spoon into nut cups for gift giving). Chill. Remove from pan and cut into square. Store in closed container in refrigerator.

Bread Machine Bread

Note:    I have a bread machine that I haven't been using very much.    Hubs asked me to pull it out and use it again.   He loves the smell of it baking.    I decided to surprise him and give this recipe a whirl while putting up the Christmas decorations today.

Bread Machine Bread

Ingredients:
(Put ingredients into the machine in the following order)
1 1/2 cups warm water
2 tablespoons canola oil
2 teaspoons salt
4 cups flour
1/3 cup sugar
1/2 cup instant potato flakes
2 1/2 teaspoons active dry yeast





Directions
Set bread machine on "dough" cycle. Once done with dough cycle, turn out onto floured surface. Knead a little then shape into 2 loaves or 24 rolls and put into greased pans. Put in warm oven with a dish towel over the pans to raise. (Before I put the pans in, I usually turn the oven on for a few minutes to warm it up, then turn the oven light on to keep it warm inside while the bread raises.) Let bread raise for about 1 hour in the oven.   When ready to bake, remove towel, leave pans in the oven, turn oven on to 325 degrees and set timer for 25 minutes. The bread will continue to rise a little while the oven is warming up.

Chocolate Chess Pie

Note:   I originally posted this recipe last Thanksgiving, but now that my house is filled with the smell of these pies I decided to post it again.     Little Guy is busy making these pies for us.    All I can say is yummmmmmmm...

Chocolate Chess Pie

Ingredients:

1 1/2 c. sugar

3 T. unsweetened cocoa powder

2 eggs

1 (5 oz.) can evaporated milk

1/4 c. melted butter (1/2 stick)

1 t. vanilla extract

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix sugar and cocoa together. Beat the eggs then add the cocoa mixture. Beat in the milk, melted butter, and vanilla.Pour mixture into a 9-inch unbaked pie shell (I use Pillsbury refrigerated pie crusts) and bake for 45 minutes or until set. (I recommend covering the pie's edges with foil or a pie guard after the first 20 minutes, or when edges attain a good brown color... so they don't burn.) Let cool before slicing.

Crockpot Breakfast Casserole

Note: I can't help it. I am addicted to my crockpot. My poor beat up, no armed, legs barely hanging on crock pot. It has never failed me. Recently I had a crazy hectic day and we had someone to be so I decided to just "try something". I dumped all the ingredients of a breakfast casserole into my crockpot and set it on high to cook. We were gone for two hours and when we got home I opened the lid to perfection! Oh, yes!

Crockpot Breakfast Casserole

Ingredients

9 eggs, beaten

Cocktail sausages, 1 package

2 ¼ cups of milk

2 cups of cheese (I used what we had – a mixture of mild cheddar and Colby)

10 slices of bread, torn into quarters

Salt

Pepper

Directions

Spray the crockpot with Pam. Make a layer of bread, sausages, and 1 cup of cheese. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Repeat the layer. Mix eggs and milk together. Pour over the ingredients in the crockpot. Sprinkle with the remaining cheese. Cover and cook for 2 hours on high.

Crunchies

Note: My friend, Di, gave me this recipe for our geography fair. It is one of her childhood recipes from home (South Africa). She said that she made it recently when going to a reunion and all the kids just went nuts over it! Her daughter eats it for breakfast. My hubs loves it!

Crunches

Ingredients

2 cups oats

1 cup coconut

1 cup flour

¼ t salt

¾ cup sugar

½ tsp baking soda

½ cup butter (1 stick)

3 Tblsp golden syrup

Directions

Mix all the dry ingredients together including sugar. Melt the butter and syrup and add to mixture. Will be dry and crumbly. Mix well. Press firmly into a baking pan. Bake for 20 min at 350F. Important -- Cut into squares while warm. Let stand for 10 - 15 minutes in the pan before removing.

Spiced Tea

Note: There is something about winter that makes me want to drink hot tea. I am not sure what it is, but I can make a cup every night. This particular hot tea is almost dessert like to me and is my absolute winter favorite!

Spiced Tea

Ingredients
2-½ cups Sugar
1 package lemonade Kool Aid
1 teaspoon Ground Cloves
1 teaspoon Cinnamon
½ teaspoons Ground Nutmeg
1 pound Jar Of Tang
1 cup Instant Tea

Directions
Mix all the ingredients and stir in an airtight container.

To serve, add 4-5 teaspoons mix to a cup of hot water.

Vegetable Soup

Note: Smelling soup in the crockpot just seems to make the house feel warmer on a cold day. Even my boys say that they feel like it is home when they smell food cooking when they come in from playing.

Vegetable Soup

Ingredients
leftover pot roast
2 cans beans (whatever your family likes - I like Great Northern)
2 cans Petite Diced Tomatoes
4 cans Beef Broth
1 bag Carrots - Sliced
5 whole Potatoes
1 whole Mild Onion
4 cubes Beef Bouillon
2 cups Water
Garlic Powder
Salt And Pepper

Directions
In a crockpot, pour the 4 cans of beef broth, and the 2 cans of petite diced tomatoes. Slice or shred up the leftover pot roast and add to the pot, along with any pan drippings or gravy from roasting the meat.

Peel and dice up the 5 potatoes, and add the potatoes and carrots to the pot. Peel and dice the onion and add it to the pot. At this point, you can add whatever vegetables your family likes, but it’s really good with the 2 cans of drained and rinsed northern beans.

Cook according to crockpot directions. I really thinking cooking this soup on low is the very best way!!

I usually serve this with jalapeno cornbread. I can't help it. It is the southern girl in me!

Chocolate Gravy

Note: Sounds sinful doesn't it? It is wonderful. Wonderful over pancakes, biscuits, bread pudding, ice cream. Just wonderful. Try it. You'll like it!

Chocolate Gravy

Ingredients
1 cup sugar
2 tablespoons Hershey’s cocoa

2 tablespoons self-rising flour

3/4 cup hot water
3/4 cup milk

Optional:

2 tablespoons butter
1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Directions

In a skillet, mix flour and cocoa and sugar. Turn heat to medium.

Slowly add the hot water, a little at a time. Keep stirring this paste until the sugar dissolves.

Slowly add in the milk. When completely mixed, turn up the heat to medium high.

Stir constantly until desire thickness is reached. Add butter and vanilla; keep warm on low until the biscuits are done.

For gravy that is less like syrup and more like pudding, add 3 tablespoons flour and use only milk.

For more delicious recipes, follow this link to Tempt My Tummy Tuesday.

Turkey Poop

Note: Last month we made pumpkin poop so this month we decided to make turkey poop. I must this month grossed me out whereas last month didn't! That is why there is NO picture!

Turkey Poop

small bag
Handful of Milk Duds, chocolate covered raisins or peanuts, brown jelly beans
poem

Fill bags with candy. Attach poem.

Share with friends or neighbors OR if you are brave... place at kid's table on Thanksgiving!


Poem....

You invited me to dinner
with your family and your friends.
You didn't say I was the main dish.
For me it was "THE END!"

You frightened me so badly
I knew I had been duped!
So I left you with my calling card:
This bag of Turkey Poop!

Refrigerator Raisin Bran Muffins

Note: Hubs has had a craving for these muffins. I am a raisin bran muffin snob. When I make my muffins I like to soak my raisin bran in the liquids so that they get soggy. To me, it makes the muffins come out must moister.

Refrigerator Raisin Bran Muffins

Ingredients

1 15oz box Raisin Bran
1 quart buttermilk
4 beaten eggs

1 cups melted butter 2 tsp
2 cups boiling water

3 C sugar

5 C Flour

5 tsp baking soda

2 tsp salt

Ingredients
Pour Raisin Bran into a large bowl. Pour buttermilk, eggs and butter over cereal and stir. Pour boiling water over the top and stir again. Let sit for a few minutes while cereal gets "soggy". Add sugar. In a separate bowl mix flour, baking soda and salt. Add to liquid cereal mixture.

At this point you can make muffins by filling muffin tins 3/4 of the full and baking at 375 for about 15 minutes.

OR

You can place in a container with a sealed lid and store in your refrigerator. It will keep for up to six weeks in your refrigerator!

Little Guy's White Bean Chicken Chili

Note: Little Guy has become quite the cook in our house. I can literally go days without touching the stove because he wants to cook. He recently took a class at the Viking Cooking School. When our church announced that they would be having a chili contest as part of our Fall Fest I knew that it would a perfect fit for him. He has always wanted to enter a contest.

We were so excited when he won the TOP OVERALL trophy for the entire competition! So excited for him.

Little Guy's White Bean Chicken Chili

Ingredients
5 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
3 T. butter
2 cloves garlic, minced
16 ounces salsa
4 cans Great Northern Beans (15 Oz), loosely drained
2 cups Mexican Blend Shredded Cheese
4 ounces green chilies
8 ounces frozen corn
3/4 c. sour cream
1 teaspoon Cayenne Pepper

2 teaspoons cajun seasoning
12 ounces chicken stock
salt And pepper

Directions
Melt butter in large skillet. Add garlic. Brown chicken breasts in butter and garlic. Remove chicken and cut into bite size pieces. Add pieces of chicken to the crock pot. Add salsa, green chilies, chicken stock and spices to the crock pot. Stir to mix. Add beans, corn, and cheese and stir again. Cook on low for 6-8 hours. About 1 hour before serving add sour cream and stir.

Serve over rice or Fritos and top with more sour cream and cheese. Yummy!


Join Little Guy and I as we hop over to Tempt My Tummy Tuesday to search for more inspiration for recipes! Have a great week!