Fresh Homemade Granola! Light and Easy!

Ingredients:
6 cups regular oats
2/3 cup wheat germ
2/3 cup brown sugar
2/3 cup raw almonds, chopped
1/3 cup flax seed meal
1/3 cup raw pepitas
1/3 cup raw sunflower seeds
1 tsp. cinnamon
Dash of salt
2/3 cup canola oil
1/2 cup honey
2 tsp. vanilla

Directions:
Combine dry ingredients together.  Combine the wet ingredients in a separate bowl.  Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix until well coated.  Pour the mixture onto  a large greased cookie sheet that has sides and bake at 350 degrees for 24 minutes.  Stirring half way through.  Let cool and enjoy! Pin It

Rice Krispy Spiders

Remember when Heather introduced us to these little beauties? 

Ingredients:
5 1/4 cups coco krispies
10 ounce bag of miniature marshmallows, reserve 20 of so for the eyes
3 Tbsp. butter
pretzel sticks
candy eyes

First make the rice krispies like usual.  Melt the butter and marshmallows over low heat until smooth.  Take off the heat and add the coco krispies.  Pat into a greased 9 x 13 inch pan.  Let cool a few minutes then take a circle cookie cutter and cut out the spider bodies.  Take a knife and poke a hole where you'd like the legs to go and then insert the pretzels into the spaces.  Flatten some marshmallows for the eyes and add candy eyes on top.

So adorable and perfect for Halloween!  Thanks again Heather!

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Peanut Butter & Chocolate Chunk Cookies

Ingredients:

2 1/4 cups flour

1 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

3/4 cup butter, at room temperature

1/2 cup peanut butter

1/2 cup sugar

3/4 cup brown sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp. vanilla

1 - 3.4 ounce box instant vanilla pudding mix

2 cups peanut butter chips

6 - 1.55 ounce Hershey Candy Bars, broken roughly

Directions:

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda and salt.  Then set aside.  In another bowl cream the butter, peanut butter, sugar and brown sugar with an electric mixer.  Next mix in the eggs and vanilla until well blended.  Add in the pudding mix and then the dry ingredients to the mixture. Add the peanut butter chips and candy bar pieces by hand.  Scoop out spoonfuls onto a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper or a silicone pad.  Bake at 350 degrees for 8 to 10 minutes.  They should be chewy, so don't over bake.

Makes about 3 dozen

This recipe was found over at Stephanie's Kitchen

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Sugar Cookie Bars

Ingredients for Cookies:

1/2 cup butter, room temperature
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
2 1/2 cups flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. baking soda

Ingredients for Frosting:
8 oz. cream cheese, softened
2 Tbsp. butter, softened
1/2 cup white chocolate chips
1 Tbsp. milk
4 Tbsp. strawberry puree
3 to 4 cups powdered sugar

Directions:

To make the cookies, cream the butter and sugar until fluffy.  Add in the eggs and vanilla.  Whisk together flour, salt and baking soda in a separate bowl.  Add in wet ingredients and mix until just combined.  Spread into a greased 9x13 inch pan.  Bake at 375 degrees for 10 to 15 minutes.  The cookies should be lightly golden and a toothpick should come out clean.

For the frosting, use an electric mixer to mix together the cream cheese and butter until fluffy.  In a small bowl mix the chocolate chips and milk.  Melt in the microwave for 30 second intervals until smooth and melted through.  Make sure you mix after each interval.  Add the chocolate mixture to the cream cheese mixture.  Start adding in the powdered sugar until you like the consistency.  Mix in the strawberry puree.


These are so yummy!  I love sugar cookies!

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Chocolate Covered Peanuts

Ingredients:
Peanuts, redskin
Milk Chocolate

Directions:

Gradually melt the chocolate. Use either a double boiler or in the microwave in 30 second intervals, stirring after each cooking period. Be careful not to burn the chocolate. Once the chocolate is smooth then it is candy making time. Place some of the peanuts in a small bowl and pour the melted chocolate over the top until they are coated. Spoon out clusters of peanuts onto waxed paper. Continue until you have made your desired amount or run out of treat making supplies. Let cool and enjoy.

Try this out with any kind of nut. So YUMMY and simple! Pin It

Glazed Toffee Bon Bons (NEW!)

Cookie Ingredients:

1 cup butter, at room temperature
1 cup brown sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
2 eggs, at room temperature
3 1/2 cups flour
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
6 - 1.4 ounce bars of chocolate covered toffee (Skor candy bars), crushed

Glaze Ingredients:
1/4 cup butter
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
2 to 3 Tbsp. milk
1 1/3 cups powdered sugar
1/3 cup milk chocolate chips
1/3 cup white chocolate chips

Directions:

Heat the oven to 325 degrees. Combine together the dry ingredients and set aside. Beat the first four cookie ingredients together on medium speed until light and fluffy. On low speed, mix in the dry ingredients. Reserve 1/3 of candy bar pieces for topping the cookies and pour the rest of the candy bar pieces into the dough. Shape dough into one-inch balls and place on an ungreased cookie sheet, one inch apart. Bake for 10 or 11 minutes. This is a drier cookie so do not over bake them. Immediately remove to a cooling rack.

For the glaze:
In a saucepan heat the butter, brown sugar and milk over med-low heat; stirring frequently until the mixture just comes to a boil and sugar is dissolved. Stir in the powdered sugar. Beat with a wire whisk to remove lumps. Immediately dip the tops of cookies in the glaze (cookies do not need to be completely cooled, just firm and set). Be careful the glaze is very hot. Place back on the rack and let stand about 10 minutes until the glaze is set. (If glaze starts to thicken or set in the pan just reheat it over med-low heat and stir with a whisk.)

Place milk chocolate chips and white chocolate chips in separate bowls and heat 15 to 30 seconds in microwave to melt, stir frequently. Place melted chocolate in plastic bags and snip a little bit off of the corner (or use a spoon) and drizzle over cookies. Top with remaining candy pieces.


Recipe from Taste and Tell

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Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

Ingredients:

1 box spice cake

12 ounces semi sweet chocolate chips

1 small can of Libby’s pumpkin 100% solid

Directions:

Mix together all the ingredients well and cook in the oven at 350 degrees for around 13 or 14 minutes until golden. They should not be over done, but they should not be runny either.

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Pumpkin Fudge (NEW!!!)

Ingredients:

3 cups sugar

3/4 cup butter, melted

2/3 cup evaporated milk

1/2 cup canned pumpkin

2 Tbsp. corn syrup

1/2 tsp. cinnamon

1/4 tsp. ginger

1/4 tsp. nutmeg

1/8 tsp. ground cloves

1 package white chocolate chips (12 ounces)

1 jar marshmallow creme (7 ounces)

1 cup peacans, chopped and toasted

1 tsp. vanilla

Directions:

Line a 9x9 inch pan (a 9x13 inch pan will work but the fudge will be thinner) with aluminum foil. Grease or butter the foil. In a 3 1/2-quart saucepan, stir together the sugar, butter, milk, pumpkin, corn syrup and spices over medium high heat. Stir constantly until the candy thermometer reaches 234° degrees. Remove from heat. Add the remaining ingredients and stir quickly until smooth. Quickly spoon the fudge into the pan. Let completely cool for at least 2 hours. Cut fudge into little squares.

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Pumpkin Bread

Ingredients:

2 cups flour
1 Tbsp. pumpkin spice
1 tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. salt
½ tsp. baking powder
1 ½ cup sugar
½ cup oil
2 eggs
1 cup canned pumpkin
1 cup chocolate chips
3 Tbsp. water

Directions:

Mix all ingredients together. Grease bread or muffin pans and fill with batter. Bake at 350 degrees until done. Approximately 15 to 25 minutes for muffins and 45 to 55 minutes for bread loaves.

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Better than Mom’s Oatmeal Cookies (NEW!!!)

Ingredients:

1 cup butter

1 cup sugar

1 cup brown sugar

2 large eggs

2 tsp. vanilla

1 ½ cups flour

1 1/8 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. salt

1 tsp. cinnamon

½ tsp. mace

½ tsp. nutmeg

½ tsp. ground cloves

3 cups rolled oats

1 cup chopped walnuts or pecans

1 cup golden raisins

Directions:

In a large bowl, cream butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs and vanilla. In a medium-sized bowl, combine flour, soda, salt, cinnamon, mace, nutmeg, and cloves. Gradually add dry ingredients to creamed mixture, mixing until completely blended. Mix in oats, nuts, and raisins.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease cookie sheets and drop teaspoonfuls of dough about 2 inches apart.

Bake for 8-10 minutes for a soft cookie, 12 minutes for a crunchy cookie.

Cool on wire rack.

Makes about 4 dozen cookies.

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Peanut Butter Balls (NEW!)

Ingredients:

2 1/2 sticks margarine (NOT butter)
2 cups creamy peanut butter
5 cups powdered sugar
2 big Hershey bars (or 8 reg size)
1 - 12 ounce package semi-sweet chocolate chips
1/2 bar of wax (melt in a rinsed out soup can inside a pan with 1 to 2 inches of water)

Directions:

In a large bowl mix margarine, peanut butter and powdered sugar together until it reaches the consistency of play-dough. Using a tablespoon to measure, roll the dough into balls & place on a waxed/parchment paper lined baking sheet. Refrigerate to make firm then remove the balls and let return to room temperature before dipping. If the balls are too cold the chocolate thickens very quickly and can get clumpy.

Melt chocolate together. Melt wax separately. Gradually add wax to the melted chocolate, stirring constantly.

Drop peanut butter balls into the melted chocolate mixture, pick up with a fork and gently slide back onto lined baking sheet. It is easiest to use a plastic fork with the two center prongs broken out. Keep chilled in the fridge.


Thank you AnneMarie for another winner!

http://annemarie-tastebuds.blogspot.com/2009/01/peanut-butter-balls.html Pin It

Ricotta Cheese Sugar Cookies (NEW!)

Cookie Ingredients:
1 cup butter, softened
2 cups sugar
1 - 15 ounce carton full-fat ricotta cheese
2 eggs
3 tsp. vanilla
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. lemon zest, grated
4 cups flour

Glaze Ingredients:
2 cups powdered sugar
3 Tbsp. lemon juice, squeezed
1 tsp. lemon zest

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Mix together the cookie ingredients to form a sticky dough. Use a cookie scooper to drop spoonfuls onto a pan lined with parchment paper. Make sure you have at least 2 inches between each cookie. Bake 10 minutes or until the bottoms are golden and the tops are still white. Transfer to a wire rack and cool.

Mix together the ingredients for the glaze. If it is a little thick just add 1/2 teaspoon water to make it easy to spread onto the cookies. Add a tiny bit more water if it is still too thick.

These are really YUMMY! You could even add sprinkles on the top if the glaze is still wet.

ENJOY Pin It

White Chocolate Oreo Pops

Ingredients:

Double-Stuff Oreo Cookies
White chocolate
Sprinkles
Candy/Lollipop Sticks

Directions:

Complete these steps for each Oreo Pop that you want to make. Twist open the Oreo cookie. Press a candy stick into the side with the frosting so the stick is about ½ the height of the cookie. Melt some white chocolate and put a dab over the stick and frosting. Replace the other side of the cookie over the top. Let set in the refrigerator for about 15 minutes. Once set, dip the whole cookie in white chocolate and gently shake off excess. Place some sprinkles on a plate and gently press cookie into the sprinkles to decorate every side (I used small hearts and white ball sprinkles for this first part). Again, let the cookie set in the refrigerator for a little bit. Before the chocolate gets too hard stick your larger sprinkles in the cookie (This is where I used the larger hearts). Let cool completely, wrap up and then they are ready to give.

A close up shot!

Ingredients I used

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Ginger Molasses Cookies (NEW!)

Ingredients:

1 cup brown sugar
3/4 cup butter
¼ cup molasses
1 egg
2 ¼ cups flour
2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. ginger
½ tsp. cloves
¼ tsp. salt

Directions:

Mix all wet ingredients. Add dry ingredients and mix until combined. Refrigerate the dough at least one hour. Form dough into balls the size of walnuts and roll into white sugar. Bake at 375 degrees for about 7 minutes. Cool completely. If desired, dip 1/2 of the cookie into melted white chocolate.

Yields 12-18 cookies. Pin It

White Chocolate Popcorn (NEW!)

Ingredients:

2 to 3 bags of buttered popcorn
1 bag white Ghiradelli chocolate chips

Directions:

Microwave 2 to 3 bags of buttered popcorn. Pour into a large bowl. In a small bowl melt the white chocolate chips in the microwave for 30 second intervals, mix after each interval until the chocolate is smooth. Pour over the popcorn and mix well to coat. Then pour out onto wax paper to dry. Break apart and enjoy.


*For a special occasion add colored M&M or your favorite small chocolate candy. If you want to add color to the popcorn itself, mix a little food coloring to some extra white chocolate. Once the chocolate is broken apart, drizzle your new color over the popcorn in this stripes. The possibilities are endless with the simple, yet delicious recipe. Pin It

Caramel & Chocolate Rice Krispies (NEW!)

Thank you Rochelle for reminding us about these wonderful treats and thank you Heather and Meg for the photos.

Ingredients:

10 ¼ cups rice krispies
2 - 10 ounce bags of marshmallows
6 Tbsp butter
Caramel
Dipping Chocolate

Directions:

Make the rice krispies like usual. This recipe simply doubled the typical recipe minus a little of the rice krispies. Therefore, melt the butter and marshmallows over low heat until smooth. Take off heat and add the rice krispies. Pat the mixture into a greased 9 x 13 inch pan. Melt the caramel in the microwave and pour over the top. It doesn't need to be too hot, but warm enough that it will spread smoothly. Smooth around so that there is about 1/8 inch of caramel over the entire pan. Let cool completely. Gradually melt the dipping chocolate in the microwave at 30 second intervals, stirring in between each interval. Cut the krispies into squares. Dip the rice krispies into the chocolate on the opposite side of the caramel then let dry chocolate side up on waxed paper.

Enjoy!

Check your local candy store for caramel that comes in a large block. Ours was a five-pound block that costs about $24. With that amount of caramel around the treat making is limitless.

Don't you want a plate of these gorgeous and scrumptious treats?

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Magic Bars (NEW!)

Ingredients:

1 ½ cups corn flake crumbs
½ cup sugar
½ cup melted butter
1 cup milk chocolate chips
1 cup white chocolate chips
1 1/3 cups flaked coconut
¾ cup chopped macadamia nuts
1 can sweetened condensed milk

Directions:

Stir together the corn flakes, sugar and melted butter in a 9 x 13 inch pan.  Press the mixture evenly and firmly to the bottom of the pan with the back of a spoon to make a crust.  Layer the chips, coconut and nuts evenly over the crust.  Pour sweetened condensed milk evenly over the top.  Bake the bars at 350 degrees for 25 minutes or until the edges become slightly browned. Cool completely before cutting into the bars.

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Rolo Cookies (NEW!)

Ingredients:

     1 package Devils Food Cake Mix

     1 package of Rolos, individually wrapped

     2 Tablespoons of flour

     2 eggs

     1/2 cup oil

     sugar

Directions:

 

Mix the cake mix with the flour, eggs and oil.  Roll each unwrapped rolo in the cookie dough.  Lightly roll the cookie in sugar.  Bake at 350 degrees on a greased cookie sheet for 8 to 9 minutes or until they just start to crack.  They will flatten.  Cool on waxed paper because if placed on a wire rack the carmel might seep through the spaces.

Makes 3 dozen.

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Coconut Cranberry Chews

Ingredients:

     1 ½ cups butter, room temperature
     2 cups sugar
     1 Tbsp. grated orange peel
     2 tsp. vanilla
     1 large egg
     3 ¼ cups flour
     1 tsp. baking powder
     ¼ tsp. salt
     1 cup cranberries
     1 ½ cup coconut

Directions:

Beat together butter, sugar, orange peel and vanilla until smooth.  Beat in egg. In a large bowl, mix flour, baking powder, and salt.  Add to the butter mixture and mix together.  Then add cranberries and coconut.  Spoon the batter onto a cookie sheet and bake at 350 degrees for 11 to 15 minutes.

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Sugar Coated Peanuts

Ingredients:

     3 cups cocktail peanuts
     2 cups sugar
     1 cup water

Directions:

Place all the ingredients in a large frying pan. Cook on medium heat until the mixture boils and crystallizes. Stir occasionally. Once crystallized spread out on wax paper and let cool.

Put cooled nuts in jars or bags for gifts with a cute bow. Good for every occasion.

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