Homemade Ch-Ch- Cherry Cokes!

Ahhhhhh……back into a routine again.  The second week of school has whizzed by and the pan of back-to-school cookie bars I made so my kids could have some warm just-out-of-the-oven-homemade-we-have-the-most-awesome-mom-cookies….are long gone.

Now that I have a little more free time, I am able to spend all of my husband’s hard earned money….erm…..volunteer at our local Thrift Shop a lot more. 

(Total score!!!  Who in their right mind would donate Polish Pottery!  Whoever you are, thank you for supporting the scholarship program!)

Then, I got my new Erin Condren planner yesterday in the mail.  It was one of the happiest days of my life.  Now I am SURE I will become the organized person I have always wanted to be. (Insert husband’s eye roll here.)

But most of all, the best thing I like about school starting again, is that I have a lot of extra time to cook and bake.  I try and make something new almost every night.  Sometimes it’s a main dish, sometimes it’s a side.  Tonight I am getting all sorts of crazy and making a drink!  (Don’t tell anyone but I actually already tried this out yesterday and they are insanely delicious!)

Back To School Cherry Cokes

Printable Recipe (HERE)

Ingredients:

-24 oz of coca-cola (real cola…not diet)

-4 Tablespoons grenadine syrup

-Maraschino Cherries for garnish

-Ice

Optional : Spiced rum for the big kids

First off, put something on the grill.  These drinks definitely have a summer grilling picnicky feel to them.  I’m making Bacon Wrapped Pineapple ChickenSkewers. Next, pour cola into a big pitcher.  Add grenadine.  Stir.  Serve over lots of ice and garnish with Maraschino cherries. 

That’s it!  A perfect ending to a busy, productive, and don’t forget organized, school week!  Enjoy!

Reindeer Poo and Grinch Pills

Because my two oldest girlies are in middle school this year, they each have seven or eight teachers.  My normal go-to gift of a Barnes and Nobles gift card multiplied by sixteen, just isn’t going to fly financially…….no matter how much of Santa’s magical reindeer dust I use.

The girls are old enough to understand that presents cost money, but they are also old enough that they really enjoy giving their teachers a little something.  So, via ideas from Pinterest, the girlies got a little crafty and made their teachers and friends Reindeer Poop and Grinch Pills!

For the Reindeer Poop (found on Blooming Where I'm Planted) Abbey made her own toppers and filled cellophane bags with Whoppers candy. 

The poem reads,

Santa looked at his list.

He even checked it twice.

And he did find out,

You haven't been too nice.

Since coal is so expensive,

Here's the inside scoop....

Santa is filling your stocking,

With lots of Reindeer Poop.

She added a “thumbprint” reindeer head, drew on the antlers and eyes, and stuck a pom-pom nose on with a glue gun, and stuck on a Santa sticker.

Cute huh?

Allie sort of thought the poop was gross, so she went with the Grinch Pills.

We found this idea on Custom Creations by Tamera Bennett but we couldn’t find green Tic-Tacs in Japan so we improvised with Eclipse gum.   Allie made a simple card to stick on the cover and tied it with shiny red curling ribbon.  (Right click on the image and save, to print your own.)

 

Both girls stuck a To/From tag on the bag of their little treats and the projects were complete!

Merry Christmas everyone, from the Three Girlies!  Abbey, Allison, and Amber!

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Twisted Christmas

It is finally that time of year.  The time when I have so much to do, that I can’t even find one minute to enjoy sparkling lights, hot cocoa in front of a warm fire, and the cheerful laughter of my family.  It might help if my family’s laughter wasn’t a product of my latest Christmas recipe disaster.  (See Gingerbread Nightmare from last year)  Oh yeah, and we actually don’t have a fireplace.

This year I decided to try Homemade Candy Canes.  (Insert scary music here….like Friday the 13^th or Jaws.)

Why I decided to do this, I’m not sure.  Candy Canes are something like 99 cents a box for twelve, right?  Out of the entire recipe I made three barely presentable canes and maybe seven twisted candy stumps.

Don’t make fun of my pictures.  These three took me over an hour to stir, cool, roll, and twist.

Just in case you want to torture yourself like I did, I am including the recipe from my 1951 cookbook.  If you figure them out, let me know, because although they are a labor of sick, twisted, demented, love, they taste really really good.  I am almost tempted to try again.......after Santa picks me up in his sleigh, takes me to the North Pole, and Mrs. Santa serves me Mint Bailey’s and coffee while the elves give me a pedicure, in front of the warm fire in Santa’s lodge.  By the way, this is one of Santa's elves.....

 

          

Peppermint Candy Canes

Ingredients:

·        2 cups sugar

·        ½ cup light corn syrup

·        ½ cup water

·        ¼ tsp cream of tartar

·        ¾ teaspoons peppermint extract

·        1 tsp red food coloring

Combine sugar, corn syrup, water and cream of tartar in a saucepan; stir until sugar dissolves.  Cook on med-high without stirring until very hard ball stage is reached.  (265F on your candy thermometer)  Remove from stove and add peppermint.  Pour one portion on a buttered cookie sheet.  Add food coloring to other portion, stir, and pour onto a second buttered cookie sheet.  When cool enough to handle, pull each part separately.  Form into ropes and twist red part around the white.  Cut into 8 inch lengths and form into the shape of a cane.  Makes 10 canes.

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Jelly Breakfast Tarts

After eating one of these golden flaky treats you will never again allow a store-bought, cardboard flavored, sugar-coated pop tart, pass your lips again.


It’s like eating pie for breakfast, but better.

 

Ingredients:

• 3 cups flour, plus more for dusting
• 2 tsp sugar
• 1 tsp salt
• 4 Tablespoons cold shortening cut into small pieces
• 2 sticks cold butter cut into small pieces
• ½ cup ice water
• ½ cup of jelly….whatever kind you like. (I also used Nutella for the chocolate lover in my house.)
• 1 egg beaten
• 1/3 cup milk
• Powdered sugar, milk, and drop of vanilla (for simple icing)
• Sprinkles (opt.)

Step one: In a bowl combine flour, sugar, and salt. (I used my mixer, but you can also use a food processor or just do it by hand.) Add shortening and about one-quarter of the butter, mixing until it is blended with the flour. Add the remaining butter and mix until you have a course meal with pea sized bits of butter. (This is what makes your pastry flaky.)





Add 1/2 cup ice water and mix until dough just comes together. Turn the dough onto plastic wrap, form into a disc, and wrap tightly. Chill for at least one hour. If you really want to be sneaky, use refrigerated pie crust and skip making your own crust altogether. (This is good crust though….trust me.)


Step two: On a lightly floured surface roll the dough out to 1/8 of an inch thick. (thin) Cut out circles or rectangles using a pastry press or pairing knife.





I used a Pampered Chef Cut-N-Seal but these Toaster Pastry Presses from Williams Sonoma are soooo going on my Christmas list. You can also use a paring knife. Set your cut-outs on a parchment-lined baking sheet and chill for 30 minutes.


Step Three: Spread half of the dough shapes with a heaping tablespoon jelly or jam leaving a ½ inch around for the border. (My strawberry jelly was sort of runny....and yes, that is the Nutella.)





Brush the egg onto the edges and cover with the remaining dough cutouts. Crimp the edges with your pastry press or use a fork.





Step four: Bake the tarts until flaky and golden, 20 to 25 minutes, brushing with the milk after 10 minutes. Cool for 1O minutes.


Step five: Mix up a quick batch of simple icing by mixing some 2 cups powdered sugar, 2 or 3 tablespoons milk, and a drop of pure vanilla. Mix to desired consistency and drizzle tart with icing. Decorate with sprinkles or colored sugars to dress them up a bit.





Serve with a big glass of milk.





Recipe adapted from the Food Network Magazine, September 2011

I Want Candy

 

You can buy one here!

This necklace says it all. Isn't it cute? I need to buy it for myself and put it in my stocking for Christmas.  I might possibly try to chew the candy out of it though.  I like candy that much.

A little ironic that I married a dentist then, don’t you think?  He’s cool about my candy obsession.  He only gets mad at me because I hate to floss.

I also hate it when he walks into the room and he just hands me a string of floss.  Leave me alone already with the flossing.

Anyway, I made some homemade butterscotch. It is caramelly and smooth and just perfect to set in a pretty little candy dish for a Christmas get together. (Except I couldn't find my candy dish.)

Butterscotch Hard Candy

 

Ingredients:

·        ½ cup butter

·        2 cups sugar

·        ¼ cup light corn syrup

·        2 tablespoons water

·        2 tablespoons white vinegar

·        1 teaspoon or so DeKuyper ButterShot Liquor (optional…I made up this ingredient because it sounded good, but it turned out the candies are just as good without it…but possibly really really good with it.)

Line a 15 x 10 inch baking pan with foil.  Grease foil with butter.  In a heavy sauce pan combine the ingredients, with or without the liquor, and bring to a boil over medium heat.  Stir occasionally.  When it begins to boil, cover and cook for 3 minutes to dissolve sugar crystals.  Then uncover and cook without stirring until a candy thermometer reads 300 degrees (hard crack stage).  Remove from heat.  Pour into buttered pan without scraping the pan and do not spread the mixture.

Cool for several minutes….until a fingerprint holds its shape.  Before it gets too hard take a knife or a pizza cutter and score in 1 inch squares.

When cool, candy will easily come off foil and break apart in perfect little pieces.  I popped the pan in the refrigerator for about 10 minutes to cool faster.  From start to finish it only took about 20 minutes to make these yummy candies. 

The pictures however, took a lot longer.  Please Santa, bring me a new Canon Rebel Sx SLR camera for Christmas.  I figure if I plug this on each blog post, my husband is bound to notice.  If not, I guess I will just enjoy my candy and once again, forget to floss.

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