Thursday, December 29, 2011

Samoa bark

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Recipe: Samoa Bark

Ingredients

12 oz. semi-sweet chocolate + 2 oz for drizzle
35-40 shortbread cookies (I used Lorna Doone)
14 oz bag of caramels
3 cups sweetened flaked coconut
3 Tbsp water
Instructions

Line a baking sheet with foil. Set aside.
Melt 12 oz of semi-sweet chocolate over a double boiler or in the microwave. (I prefer double boiler).
Spread the melted chocolate to your desired thickness…I went thin-ish.
Top your warm chocolate evenly with your shortbread cookies.
Place baking sheet in freezer while you do the next steps.
In a non-stick skillet on medium-low heat, toast your coconut, stirring occasionally. This will take about 10 minutes or so, but be watchful because once it starts to brown it happens quickly and you do not want to burn the coconut! When the coconut is toasted, set aside.
Meanwhile unwrap all your caramels and place them in a medium saucepan along with 2 Tbsp of water over medium-low heat.
Stir continuously until the caramel has JUST melted. You don’t want to over heat the caramel, as it will make it hard. Immediately fold in your toasted coconut.
Remove your chocolate from the freezer and spread the caramel/coconut evenly on top.
Melt your remaining 2 oz of chocolate using whatever melting process you prefer and drizzle over the top of the caramel/coconut.
Put back in the freezer for 5 minutes to set the chocolate.
Cut and enjoy!
Quick notes

Cut using a sharp knife in the size/shape of your choosing. Store in an airtight container.

Tuesday, December 27, 2011

Red Velvet Cupcakes

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Do not Over Bake

Red Velvet Cupcakes
Ingredients
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder, such as Pernigotti
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup buttermilk, shaken
1 tablespoon liquid red food coloring
1 teaspoon white vinegar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/4 pound (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 extra-large eggs, at room temperature
Red Velvet Frosting, recipe follows
Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line muffin tins with paper liners.

In a small bowl, sift together the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In a large measuring cup, combine the buttermilk, food coloring, vinegar, and vanilla.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugar on medium speed for 1 minute, until light. Add the eggs, one at a time, and beat until combined. With the mixer on low speed, add the dry ingredients and the wet ingredients alternately in 3 parts, beginning and ending with the dry ingredients, and mix until combined. Stir with a rubber spatula to be sure the batter is mixed.

Scoop the batter into the muffin cups with a 2 1/4-inch ice cream scoop or large spoon. Bake for 20 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the centers comes out clean. Cool completely in the pans and frost the cupcakes with Red Velvet Frosting.

Red Velvet Frosting
:
8 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
3 1/2 cups sifted confectioners' sugar (3/4 pound)
Place the cream cheese, butter, and vanilla in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, and mix on medium speed just until combined. Don't whip! Add the sugar and mix until smooth.

Sending Christmas Greetings







Friday, December 23, 2011

Simple Vintage Bulb Ornament

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Super Easy to make Christmas Ornament:

Vintage Christmas Bulbs

Elmer's Glue

Sponge Brushes

Fine Glitter

Pipe Cleaners- cut in half

Hot Glue

Beads or ribbon...

Directions:
I like to make the hanger first so the bulb can dry hanging up.

To make the hanger, take a half of a pipe cleaner and wrap one end around the metal part of the bulb. Hot glue the pipe cleaner in place. Now, bend pipe cleaner in a shape that makes a loop. Attach beads and then hot glue the pipe cleaner in place.

Paint a thin layer of glue on bulb. Sprinkle with fine glitter- let Dry.

Add Ribbon or other embellishments to your ornament.

Christmas Cookies and Tags










Quinn Had a Happy 11th Birthday This Week!

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Christmas Decorating







I love Getting out all my Vintage ornaments that I have collected from here and there over the years and adding to the collection. New this year, is the vintage aluminum tree and the twig tree skirt that I picked up a church garage sales in the summer. I created the shabby satin Garland from a free vintage wedding dress that I cut into strips.

Christmas Cards



Sunday, December 18, 2011

Eggnog Truffles

Eggnog Truffles


Ingredients:
1 pound White Baking Chocolate, divided
4oz Cream Cheese, softened
1/4 cup Confectioner's Sugar
1/4 teaspoon Ground Nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon Imitation Rum Extract
Additional Ground Nutmeg

Using an electric mixer, beat cream cheese, confectioner's sugar, nutmeg and rum extract in large bowl on medium speed until well blended and smooth. Melt 8 ounces of the chocolate as directed on package. Add to cream cheese mixture and beat until well mixed. Cover and refrigerate at least 4 hours until firm.

Shape into 24 balls about 3/4 inch wide. Place on cookie sheet lined with wax paper. Refrigerate for another ten minutes or until ready to dip.

Coat 12 truffles at a time.* Melt 4 ounces of the remaining chocolate according to package directions. Using a fork, dip truffles one at a time into the melted chocolate. Allow excess chocolate to drip off and place truffle back on wax paper lined cookie sheet. Sprinkle with nutmeg. Repeat with remaining 4 ounces of chocolate and remaining truffles.

Refrigerate 1 hour or until chocolate has hardened. Store truffles in airtight container in refrigerator up to 1 week.

Makes 24 Truffles.

2 Truffles: 252 Calories, 16g Fat

*The reason for dipping half of the truffles at a time is because the cold truffles can cause the melted chocolate to harden. The only bad part about this is that it is a little difficult to dip the truffles using such a small amount of chocolate. So you may want to use more chocolate then the recipe calls for or melt the entire batch of chocolate at once and just re-heat it if it hardens before you are done.

Cookie Exchange Recipes

Potato Chip Peanut Clusters

2 c. peanut butter chips
1 c milk chocolate chips
1 1/2 c roasted peanuts
1 c crushed ridged potato chips

In microwave, melt peanut butter and milk chocolate chips together, stirring after 30 second intervals, until smooth and creamy. Stir in peanuts and potato chips. Drop by level spoonfuls onto waxed paper or in candy paper cups.. Refrigerate until firm. Store in airtight container. I keep mine refrigerated but they do not have to be.


Marshmallow Sandwich Cookies
--makes about 2 dozen cookies

1 1/4 cup sugar
2/3 cup butter
1/4 cup light corn syrup
1 egg
1 tsp. vanilla
2 cups flour
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
additional sugar for rolling
24 large marshmallows cut in half

Preheat oven to 350. Beat 1 1/4 cup sugar and butter in large bowl until light and fluffy. Beat in corn syrup, egg and vanilla. Combine flour, cocoa baking soda and salt in a medium bowl; add to butter mixture. Beat until well blended. Cover and refrigerate dough 15 min. or until firm enough to shape into balls.

Place sugar in shallow dish. Shape dough into 1-inch balls; roll in sugar to coat. Place cookies 3 inches apart on ungreased cookie sheets. Bake 10 to 11 minutes or until set. Remove cookies to wire racks; cool completely.

To assemble sandwiches, place marshmallow half on flat side of one cookie on microwave safe plate. Microwave on HIGH about 10 seconds or until marshmallow is softened. Immediately place another cookie on top, flat side down and press together. Repeat in batches.


Chocolate Brownie Cookies


Makes approximately 3 dozen

1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon coarse salt
1/4 pound coarsely chopped good quality dark chocolate
1/2 cup (one stick) unsalted butter
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
3/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
3/4 cup nuts
Preheat oven to 325°F.

Whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.

In a small heatproof bowl set over a small saucepan of simmering water, melt the coarsely chopped chocolate with the butter. Let cool slightly.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, combine the melted chocolate mixture with the sugar, eggs, and vanilla. Mix on medium speed until combined. Reduce speed to low and gradually add the flour mixture. Fold in the chocolate chips and nuts.

Line a 17-by-12-inch cookie sheet with parchment. Using a 1 1/2 inch ice cream scoop, drop the cookie dough onto the paper, spacing 2 inches apart. Bake the cookies for about 15 minutes, until they look flat and the surfaces crack (cookies should still be soft in texture). Let the cookies cool on the parchment on wire cooling racks. Store at room temperature for up to 3 days.

Truffled Iced Sugar Cookies
Cookies:
1 cup all-purpose flour $
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/8 teaspoon salt $
4 tablespoons butter, softened $
2/3 cup granulated sugar $
1 teaspoon vanilla extract $
1 large egg white $
Cooking spray $
Icing:
1 cup powdered sugar
2 teaspoons unsweetened cocoa
1 tablespoon fat-free milk
1/2 ounce semisweet chocolate $
1/2 ounce white chocolate $
Preparation

To prepare cookies, lightly spoon flour into a dry measuring cup; level with a knife. Combine flour, baking soda, and salt in a bowl, stirring well with a whisk; set aside. Beat butter with a mixer at medium speed until light and fluffy. Gradually add granulated sugar, beating until well-blended. Add vanilla and egg white; beat well. Add flour mixture; stir until well-blended. Turn dough out onto wax paper; shape into a 6-inch log. Wrap log in wax paper; freeze for 3 hours or until very firm.
Preheat oven to 350°.
Cut log into 24 (1/4-inch) slices; place the slices 1 inch apart on a baking sheet coated with cooking spray. Bake at 350° for 8 to 10 minutes. Remove the cookies from pan, and cool on wire racks.
To prepare the icing, combine powdered sugar and cocoa in a small bowl; stir well. Add milk; stir well. Spread over cookies to within 1/4 inch of edges. Place semisweet and white chocolate in separate heavy-duty zip-top plastic bags; seal. Microwave chocolates at high for 1 minute or until chocolates are soft. Knead the bags until smooth. Snip a tiny hole in corner of bags; drizzle chocolates over the frosted cookies so that they resemble truffles.


Chocolate Mint Candies Cookies

3/4 cup butter
1 1/2 cups brown sugar
2 tablespoons water
2 cups semisweet chocolate chips
2 eggs
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/4 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoons salt
3 (4.5 ounce) packages chocolate covered thin mints...I use Andes thin mints

1. In a saucepan over medium heat, cook the sugar, butter and water, sitting occasionally until melted. Remove from heat, stir in the chocolate chips until melted and set aside to cool for 10 minutes.

2. Pour the chocolate mixture into a large bowl, and beat in the eggs, one at a time. Combine the flour, baking soda and salt, stir into the chocolate mixture. Cover and refrigerate dough for at least 1 hour.

3. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease cookie sheets. Roll cookie dough in to walnut sized balls and place 2 inches apart onto the prepared cookie sheets.

4. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes in the preheated oven, be careful not to overbake. When cookies come out of the oven, press one mint wafer into the top of each cookie and let sit for 1 minute. When the mint is softened, swirl with the back of a spoon or toothpick to make a pattern with the green filling of the mint wafer. For smaller cookies, break mints in half.

Wednesday, December 14, 2011

Monday, December 12, 2011

White- Chocolate Cherry Shortbread

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White-Chocolate Cherry Shortbread Cookies

Ingredients
1/2 cup maraschino cherries, drained and finely chopped
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar
1 cup cold butter
12 ounces white chocolate baking squares, with cocoa butter, finely chopped
1 teaspoon almond extract
2 drops red food coloring (optional)
2 teaspoons shortening
white multicolored sugar nonpareils ( and or red edible glitter)
Directions
Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Spread cherries on paper towels to drain well.
In a large bowl, combine flour and sugar. Using a pastry blender, cut in the butter until mixture resembles fine crumbs. Stir in drained cherries and 4 ounces (2/3 cup) of the chopped chocolate. Stir in almond extract and, if desired, food coloring. I Also Added A Few Tablespoons of Cherry Juice until the mixture came together. Knead mixture until it forms a smooth ball.
Shape dough into 3/4-inch balls. Place balls 2 inches apart on an ungreased cookie sheet. Using the bottom of a drinking glass dipped in sugar, flatten balls to 1-1/2-inch rounds.
Bake in preheated oven for 10 to 12 minutes or until centers are set. Cool for 1 minute on cookie sheet. Transfer cookies to a wire rack and let cool.
In a small saucepan, combine remaining 8 ounces white chocolate and the shortening. Cook and stir over low heat until melted. Dip half of each cookie into chocolate, allowing excess to drip off. If desired, roll dipped edge in nonpareils and/or edible glitter. Place cookies on waxed paper until chocolate is set. Makes about 60.
To Store: Layer cookies between waxed paper in an airtight container; cover. Store at room temperature for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 3 months.







Recipe: Samoa Bark

Ingredients

12 oz. semi-sweet chocolate + 2 oz for drizzle
35-40 shortbread cookies (I used Lorna Doone)
14 oz bag of caramels
3 cups sweetened flaked coconut
2 Tbsp water
Instructions

Line a baking sheet with foil. Set aside.
Melt 12 oz of semi-sweet chocolate over a double boiler or in the microwave. (I prefer double boiler).
Spread the melted chocolate to your desired thickness…I went thin-ish.
Top your warm chocolate evenly with your shortbread cookies.
Place baking sheet in freezer while you do the next steps.
In a non-stick skillet on medium-low heat, toast your coconut, stirring occasionally. This will take about 10 minutes or so, but be watchful because once it starts to brown it happens quickly and you do not want to burn the coconut! When the coconut is toasted, set aside.
Meanwhile unwrap all your caramels and place them in a medium saucepan along with 2 Tbsp of water over medium-low heat.
Stir continuously until the caramel has JUST melted. You don’t want to over heat the caramel, as it will make it hard. Immediately fold in your toasted coconut.
Remove your chocolate from the freezer and spread the caramel/coconut evenly on top.
Melt your remaining 2 oz of chocolate using whatever melting process you prefer and drizzle over the top of the caramel/coconut.
Put back in the freezer for 5 minutes to set the chocolate.
Cut and enjoy!
Quick notes

Cut using a sharp knife in the size/shape of your choosing. Store in an airtight container.

Sunday, December 04, 2011

Caramel Stuffed Apple Cider Cookies

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Caramel Stuffed Apple Cider Cookies

recipe very slightly adapted from The Cooking Photographer
Ingredients
1 cup softened butter
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 box (7.4 oz) Alpine Spiced Apple Cider Instant Original Drink mix -not sugar free- all 10 packets
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3 cups all purpose flour
1 bag Kraft Caramels (14 oz)

Directions
Preheat oven to 350° F. Line cookie sheets with parchment. (You really need the parchment!)
In a small bowl whisk together flour, baking soda, baking powder and cinnamon.
With your mixer (or an energetic spoon) cream together butter, sugar, salt and all 10 packages of apple cider drink mix powder, until light and fluffy.
Beat in eggs, one at a time. Add vanilla and mix well.
Gradually add flour mixture to butter/egg mixture. Mix until just combined.
Refrigerate for about an hour. (If you're really impatient you don't have to do this, but it makes it so much easier to work with.)
When you are ready to bake, unwrap your caramels.
Scoop out cookie dough ball about the size of a walnut. (I used a rounded cookie scoop-full. My scoop holds about a Tablespoon.)
Flatten the ball of dough slightly in the palm of your hand. Press the unwrapped caramel into the center of your dough and seal the dough around it, covering it completely. Place on parchment covered cookie sheets 2 inches apart.
Bake 12-14 minutes, or until very lightly browned around the edges. Please don't over-bake! Once the cookies are done, slide the parchment off of the baking sheet right out onto the counter. Allow cookies to partially cool on the parchment. When cookies are cool enough to be firm but still slightly warm, carefully twist off of parchment and allow to finish cooling upside down (either on the parchment or on a rack.) If you forget about them and they cool too much and stick to your parchment, put them into the freezer for a few minutes and they'll pop right off.
Yield: about 4 dozen, depending on how large you make your cookies. Store in an airtight container.

Tuesday, November 29, 2011

Creating: Christmas Candy Bar Wrappers





These Small Gift Candy Bar Wrappers were so fun to create. I Got lots of ideas and inspiration from Pinterest. I made mine to fit a regular size Hersey Bar. I also used my Silhouette Paper cutter to cut out many of the shapes. I love how the candy bar slides out when you untie the ribbon at the top.

Simple Directions:


Cut card stock into 6x6 inch Squares

Score at 1/2 inch and then at 3 1/4 inch

Use Tape adhesive and glue bottom and sides together

Decorate as desired

Punch hole in center top for ribbon

Cut ribbon at about 20 inches long - ribbon needs to be long enough to wrap around candy bar and for it to be tied at the top.

Place ribbon through holes

Place candy bar in between ribbon and slide inside of the wrapper.

Tie ribbon at top of candy bar.

Sunday, November 06, 2011

Violet's pumpkin cake

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1 cup vegetable oil
1 15 ounce can of pumpkin
3 eggs
3 cups sugar
3 cups flour
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cloves
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp ground nutmeg

Whipped cream


Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Grease and flour a 10 inch bundt pan. In a large bowl, add the vegetable oil, pumpkin and eggs. Blend well. Add the remaining ingredients to the bowl and mix until well blended. Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Bake for 60 to 75 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Remove from the oven and turn out onto a plate. Cover with plastic wrap until cool to hold in the moisture. When cool serve with whip cream.

Thursday, November 03, 2011

Caramel Apple Dip

Caramel Apple Dip



8 ounce Cream Cheese (Softened)
1/2 cup Brown Sugar
1 tsp vanilla
dash of salt
1 cup English Toffee Bits
4 sliced Apples
2 Tablespoons Caramel Sauce Topping

Cream together Cream Cheese and brown sugar, vanilla and salt. Spread in a container or on a plate. Drizzle with Caramel. Top with Toffee bits. Serve with Apple Slices.

ENJOY!

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