Graduation Pudding Snacks

Hey everyone! Still here? I am, just not as much as usual. One exciting thing going on right now, is my baby boy is graduating highschool in a little over a month! Where did the time go? It seems like just yesterday it was me graduating. For the past year I have been gathering graduation ideas. I have pinned some ideas on my Graduation board, so stop by there too!

This idea can be whipped up in less than 10 minutes and makes a great after school treat. I used small box of white chocolate pudding mix, coloring it school colors, and dividing it into 2 cups. I was a little uneven at this, oops! The graduation caps were easy to make using a candy mold that I found at our local cake store and it can also be found on Amazon. I used melting candy, colored with candy coloring and let the hats set up while the pudding set up.

Graduation isn't something just to be celebrating for one day for us. I want this to be a fun and memorable time, so I plan on making many more graduation treats in the coming weeks leading to graduation as the countdown to graduation continues!

~Christina

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We link up at these fun parties!

Mickey Mouse Cheerios Treats

While at Disney World you may have indulged in a Rice Krispie Treat Mickey Mouse. It is definitely something we always get and also bring home with us! They are just plain cute!

Instead of Rice Krispies, I have Cheerios that no one is eating, just sitting there, a huge new box, not being eaten. It's driving me crazy, so I had to think of a creative way to use them up! 3 ingredients is all you need, a 10.5 oz bag of mini marshmallows, 3 tablespoons of margarine plus some for greasing the pan, and 5 cups of Cheerios. Put the marshmallows and margarine in a large microwave safe bowl and microwave on high for 1 minute, stir, and then 1 more minute. Mix into the Cheerios and spread into greased 13x9 inch baking pan. Flatten down with greased hands and refrigerate for about an hour. You can find the recipe and nutritional information at the Cheerios Website.

After about an hour, using a greased cookie cutter, cut out shapes, pulling away the excess. Put the cut-outs on waxed paper in the freezer for about 15 minutes to stiffen up. Prepare baking sheet with waxed paper (to catch excess chocolate) and place cooling rack over the top. Melt Chocolate Candiquik according to package instuctions, about 1 block per cut out. Working one at a time, spoon chocolate over the cut-out spreading it with the back of spoon and add sprinkles. When finished, refrigerate for about 1/2 hour to set up. Now you have made your own fun theme park treat with a twist, perfect to surprise your little ones with!

~Christina

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We link up at these fun parties!



Peanut Butter Chocolate Cookie Bars

This is one super yummy, quick, easy, and dressed for St. Patrick's Day treat! It is easily adaptable for any occasion or no occasion at all!

Here is what you need:

1 package of 17.5 ounce Betty Crocker Peanut Butter cookie mix plus ingredients needed on package

1/2 package of Chocolate Candiquik

sprinkles if desired

 

Prepare 6x10 inch baking dish or pan by spraying with cooking spray. Mix together peanut butter cookie mix with ingredients called for on package (1 egg, 3 T oil, 1 T water). Spread peanut butter cookie dough into dish, flattening if needed. Bake at 350 for 20-22 minutes. Let cool.

Melt 1/2 package of Candiquik according to package directions or I just melt it in the microwave in a microwave safe glass dish for about 1-1/2 minutes. Stir until smooth. Pour on top of peanut butter cookie and spread out with spatula or the back of a spoon. Immediately sprinkle with seasonal sprinkles, if desired. Let chocolate set up.

I thought the chocolate had set up, but with the cookie still slightly warm when I spread on the chocolate, it wasn't quite ready, and the first bar I cut the chocolate was still melty, but oh so yummy!

The cookie bars in the center of the pan are more reminiscent of a peanut butter cup, the ones on the outside with the edges a little crisper, more of a cookie. No matter which you prefer the inside or the edges....the chocolaty, peanut buttery goodness will have you wanting more!

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I link up at these fun parties!

Featured at: Hear the Bells'

Microwave Peanut Brittle

I cannot remember the last time I had peanut brittle, it has probably been a few decades! I actually think it was a cheap box from the dollar store when I was a just a kid, but I remember loving it! Around Christmas, I began seeing quite a few recipes for peanut brittle and Pinned a couple. I can't believe that as I am composing this post, I have Pinned 1100 things, mostly sweets too! Anyway, I decided to make this Peanut Brittle that I Pinned. You can also find the recipe at Plain Chicken. It was a recipe from her Mom and things passed down are always the best! Steph gave me the okay to share it with you too!

This recipe seriously take less than 10 minutes to prepare and make! After that, it just has to sit for 1 hour before enjoying! I did measure out all of the ingredients beforehand and prepare cookie sheet with parchment paper. It is very helpful to have everything ready since this recipe goes quick, quick, quick!

Here is what you need:

1 cup sugar

1/2 cup corn light corn syrup

1 cup of peanuts (I used Planters Roasted Peanuts)

1 tablespoon margarine (original recipe called for butter)

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 teaspoon baking soda

 

First combine the sugar with the light corn syrup in a microwave safe bowl and microwave on high for 5 minutes. Immediately, stir in margarine, vanilla, and peanuts. Return to microwave and cook an additional 1-1/2 minutes on high. Remove from microwave (bowl will be HOT) and stir in 1 teaspoon of baking soda. Quickly spread on parchment paper. Let cool for 1 hour before enjoying!

(Note: Microwave cooking time may vary depending on your microwave, but mine was right on with the original recipe time!)

The hardest part of the whole recipe was spreading the molten hot peanut brittle while scraping it out of the heavy bowl. It would have helped if I would have thought ahead and had the pan in a location to where it wouldn't slide so much!

In the end this peanut brittle was absolutely delicious! My son described it as a peanut butter cookie without the cookie and I thought that described it very well! I just couldn't stop eating it! We buy peanuts in a large 52 ounce container and I always have sugar, so I will definitely be making this again and often! I highly recommend trying this recipe! Quick & easy doesn't need a special occasion!

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I link up at these fun parties! 

Chocolate Dipped Valentine's Pretzels

If you don't know by now, we are all big fans of dipped pretzels around here! I made them for the 4th of July and then again for Halloween. Anytime I see someone post them, I have to comment how great they are! Something about that salty sweet combo that makes these the perfect quick and easy treat!

For directions on how to make dipped pretzels, view my Halloween Dipped Pretzels post!

If you haven't tried them yet, what are you waiting for?

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I link up at these fun parties!  

Featured at:

Tatertots & Jello

Babyberry

A Well-Seasoned Life

Tiana's Famous Beignets & Peppermint Maple Tea

There is a neighborhood in Bloggerville, where the flowers are always in bloom in the perfect gardens, laundry hangs on the line and never needs mending, the perfect temperature to build a snowman is 75, and freshly baked pies sit on every windowsill. I have met so many friends in the town of Bloggerville and the neighborhood is filled with so many talented people that bake, cook, sew, make jewelry, and all kinds of other crafts too. Being a baker, I live on Cupcake Lane and one of my neighbors is a beautiful and talented lady named Trish, from Sweetology. I know she is my neighbor because we frequently visit each other in Bloggerville and that is just what neighbors do, visit one another! Trish bakes all kinds of sweets and has tea parties every Tuesday, always reminding us to take time for tea, and it is she that inspired what I am doing today- taking time for tea!

Yesterday, after storytime at the library, my 3 year old and I were browsing through the books in the children's section and found a book called "The Princess and the Frog: Tiana's Cookbook: Recipes for Kids." Children's cookbooks seem to be where I find most of my joy, I am just a big kid! My littlest Princess and I are always watching Disney Princess movies, Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, The Little Mermaid, and Tangled are the most watched, and of course, The Princess and the Frog! When we found this cookbook, I knew I had to make something from it and what better than Princess Tiana's Man-Catching Beignets?! The name sounds so fancy being French and all, yet this really isn't fancy at all. This pillow-shaped French pastry is basically just a fried dough ball or a square doughnut without a hole, although not all of mine were all that square! In New Orleans, beignets are commonly served in cafes and the beignet is also the state doughnut of Louisiana. Anyway, I decided that since "beignet" does sound like something fancy, we would make a tea party out of it!

I don't like to cook and I have never fried anything in my life! This is an all new adventure for me! The beignet is in the first recipe in the book and in the breakfast section. This book rates recipes on a five-frog scale, 1 frog being easy and 5 frogs being complicated. This recipe is rated at 5 frog level...and after this, I think I should stick with things that are only at about a 3 frog level!

 

Tiana's Famous Beignets

Recipe slightly adapted from "The Princess and the Frog: Recipes for Kids"

 3 cups all purpose flour

1/3 cup sugar

2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp nutmeg

1 egg (beaten)

1 cup buttermilk

1/3 cup water

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

vegetable oil (for frying)

confectioners' sugar (for dusting)

 

In medium bowl, whisk together first 6 ingredients, the dry ingredients. In separate mixer bowl beat egg, and then add in buttermilk, water, and vanilla. Slowly mix in dry ingredients.

Turn out dough onto well floured surface. Flatten into 1/2 inch thick square. Flour the top of dough and cut into 2-1/2 inch squares. Mine did vary in size a bit, as this isn't very easy to cut and required a lot of flour to do so. I made about 30.

Heat 2 inches of oil in heavy saucepan on stove until 325 degrees on deep-fat thermometer. Frying 3 at a time for 3 minutes on each side. Remove using slotted spoon and transfer to wire rack set on paper towels to drain. Dust with confectioners' sugar.

My thermometer must have been slow at registering, I put 3 beignets in the oil and they burnt upon impact! So they were trashed. I checked the thermometer again and it was now registering 400! I turned the stove down, opened the window and tried again, 3 at a time. The recipe says cook 3 minutes on each side. After about 1 minute they were a light golden and I flipped them. I didn't want to over cook them this time, and they go from gold to black fast! I removed the beignets from the oil and placed them on a wire rack sitting on top of a paper towel covered baking sheet. I continued on and the beignets began to look better as I got more comfortable with the whole frying thing. As soon as they were all fried and were dusted with powdered sugar I broke open the largest beignet to test and it was still doughy inside! Trashed it, luckily the next one was fine. I probably trashed 5 total including the burnt ones. Still had plenty more to work with. The smaller beignets were cooked perfectly, some of the larger ones were a little doughy inside and I baked them later in a 350 degree oven for about 7 minutes which finished up the cooking process. They are better warm anyway, so this allowed the rest of the family to have a warm beignet!

I found these best served with a little maple syrup on the side for dipping!

We even pulled the China out of the garage for our first official tea party! It was given to us as a gift from my Grandmother and has been sitting in the box unopened for over 10 years, always afraid to break it, and always waiting for a special occasion. If having a tea party with my 3 year old isn't a special occasion, then I don't know what is! I would rather use it and break it, making memories on the way, than to never have a chance to use it at all!

We ate our Beignets served with Peppermint tea, sweetened with a little maple syrup. I would have never thought of maple syrup, but there is also a recipe in the book for Minty Iced Tea, made with peppermint tea, green tea, and maple syrup which gave me the idea. We skipped out on the green tea and just used the peppermint tea, and with a cool day, we like our tea hot, or warm for my littlest princess!

Before the tea party was over, my furbaby Rex came to join in the fun! He gave the tea a sniff and turned away, but he did have a small nibble of the beignet!

  

Life if short, so live it, and take time for tea with someone that you love!

 

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I link up at these fun parties!

Featured at: Miz Helens Country Cottage



Mrs. Fox's Sweets 2011 Thanksgiving Recap

It's here...
Happy Thanksgiving!

Thanksgiving begins such a wonderful time of year, the air is cool, a relief from the hot summer! Most of all, this time of year is all about being with friends and family! By now, I am sure you all already have your menus planned and the turkey is probably in the oven, but if you are looking for an extra sweet for the table, this is what I made for 2011!

Turkey Cake Pops

Fall Harvest Cake Pops

Fall Harvest Cookies with 3 Different Easy Ways to Decorate

Turkey Cupcakes

Fall Leaves Pumpkin Cream Cheese Cupcakes

Maple-Walnut Pumpkin Pie

Oreo Turkeys

Tiny Turkey Dinner Cupcakes

Fall M&M's Cupcakes                       Fall Brownies

 

Wishing you and yours a very Happy Thanksgiving!

 

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Oreo Turkeys

Worried you won't have something fun to make for the little kids (and big kids) at Thanksgiving?

Double Stuffed Oreos + Reese's Peanut Butter Cups + Whoppers + Candy Corn + Melted Chocolate= FUN

As soon as I saw these Oreo Turkeys they were put on my to-do list for Thanksgiving! These little guys are quick and easy to make and the kids had lots of fun helping! You can find an easy tutorial at Our Best Bites. Instead of frosting I used yellow candy melts to make the eyes, feet, and while I was at it, I drew on hands too!

Our Best Bites inserted a name pick out of the top of the Oreo Turkeys to use them as place cards! Such a cute idea! I decided to make the Oreo Turkeys as place cards too, writing everyones name on the back of the Oreo Turkeys with the extra melted candy melts that were left from drawing the hands and feet, and gluing on the candy corn beak and candy coated sunflower seed wattle. Kids love seeing their names on things, and this way there is sure to be some left for Dad and Mom too!

These were also a hit at The Sweet Swiper's Thankgiving Table last year and they have been made by quite a few already this year! All these people can't be wrong! These are sure to be a hit with your friends and family too!

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This Fun Treat is Shared at:

Cupcake Apothecary: A Themed Bakers Sunday
Home Savvy A to Z: Savvy Homemade Monday
The Southern Institute: Creative Me Monday
Sweetology: Tea Party Tuesday

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Holiday Peppermint Patties

Feel the coolness?! Mmm... mmm... good!

Apparently, it doesn't take chocolate to make a peppermint patty, a peppermint patty! At first bite, something so familiar, it will remind you of something from the candy aisle! Sure they could be made with chocolate, but a brown Christmas tree...I think not! Trust me, you won't miss the chocolate...and I love chocolate!

I haven't made peppermint patties in about 15 years, that was right before my cake disaster that scared me out of the kitchen! I am amazed I could even find my old recipe, it was packed away in a box in the attic, handwritten by a friend on an old recipe card, before the days of internet recipe storage! Of course that recipe used chocolate candy coating, I am using vanilla!

 

Here is what you will need:

Homemade Peppermint Patties

(Makes about 48 1-inch shaped peppermint patties)

1 pound of powdered sugar (about 3-3/4 cups)

4 ounces of cream cheese

Peppermint oil or flavoring (I used Wilton Candy Flavoring)

1 package Vanilla Candiquik (1 pound package)

Green Candy Coloring (I used Wilton Candy Coloring)

Optional: small cookie cutters and sprinkles

 1. In a medium size bowl, either by hand or in a mixer, combine cream cheese, powdered sugar, and peppermint oil. The amount of oil or flavoring you use will depend on the type you have. For these peppermint patties, I used the Wilton Candy Flavoring Peppermint oil, that takes about 30 drops using a small dropper. If you don't have a small dropper, that is about 1/8 teaspoon, use more or less depending on your preference. I started by mixing with a spatula and then went right in with my hands adding the powdered sugar about 1/3 of a bag at a time. To start, it doesn't seem like it will come together, but with the warmth of your hands it will work into a ball in no time. Just enjoy the wonderful peppermint aroma!

2. In between 2 sheets of waxed paper, roll out your peppermint dough working with about 1/3 of the ball at a time to about 1/2 inch thick. I do this simple because I hate cleaning up and the dough won't stick to the waxed paper.

3. Using small cookie cutter, cut out your shapes and place them on waxed paper and then into the refrigerator to chill. I used the Wilton Holiday Mini Metal Cookie Cutter Set.

I found it easier to put about half of the peppermints into the freezer and just take a few out at a time to dip.

1. Melt your Candiquik. Just pop it into the microwave for one minute. I melted 4 blocks in a 2 cup Pyrex bowl. The Candiquik can also be heated in the tray that it comes in, following the package directions. I like using this bowl for 2 reasons. First, it keeps it's heat longer than the tray and second, it has a lid and that makes it very easy to store the leftovers for future use! After the Candiquik is heated, it will come out looking just like that first picture and will need stirred.

2. Color the Candiquik. I started with just a toothpick of coloring, which was far from enough, it took quite a bit more to achieve the green that I wanted.

3. Take your peppermint and insert a toothpick about halfway into it for dipping. This is where I found it works best if the peppermint is partially frozen. If they are only refrigerated, the want to fall off the toothpick. Tap off the excess Candiquik and lay the candy coated peppermint patty onto waxed paper to dry. Sprinkle immediately while candy coating is still wet, if desired. I found it easier to remove the toothpick after the candy coating had set and just cover the hole from the toothpick with candy afterwards. The toothpick with twist right out, if you try and pull it straight out, it will crack.

I used some leftover chocolate to cover the gingerbread men peppermint patties.

I tried a couple different types of sprinkles for the trees.

I made holly leaves too.

48 peppermint patties go pretty fast...from "taste testing" too many, to dropping some off with my daughter for her friends at gymnastics, who all loved them by the way! We probably shouldn't let the coach in on that!

Here is the inside...YUM!

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Sharing the Pepperminty Coolness at:

Something Swanky: Sweet Treats Thursday, Miz Helen's Country Cottage: Full Plate Thursday, Around My Family Table: Turning the Table Thursday, The Artsy Girl Connection: Pin'Ispirational Thursday, Bacon Time: Ongoing Winter Joy Linky, Happy Hour Projects: Freestyle Friday, Bacon Time: Anything Goes Linky, Alli-N-Son: Sweet Tooth Friday, Blissful and Domestic: Let's Party, Sweet As Sugar Cookies: Sweets for a Saturday, Tidy Mom: I'm Lovin' It, Tatertots & Jello: Weekend Wrap up, Crumbs and Chaos: Seasonal Inspiration, One Artsy Mama: Shine On Fridays, Mom's Crazy Cooking: This Week's Cravings (Christmas Baking), Mom's Crazy Cooking: 12 Days of Christmas Goodies (Candy)

  

These Peppermints are Featured at- Miss Candiquik!

and Something Swanky: Sweet Treats Thursday

Crumbs and Chaos: Seasonal Inspiration

Blissful & Domestic: Pinning it Wednesday

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Flashback to Thanksgiving 2010!

It's Flashback Friday!

This is a once in awhile segment that I created to show you some of my past adventures before I began blogging!

I can't believe November is already here! To kick of the month, I am sharing the desserts I made last November!

These cupcakes were created with just a box of Spice Cake Mix and a can of Pumpkin. The frosting is canned cream cheese frosting. The leaves my daughter created with homemade fondant!

I believe this was our very first time using any type of fondant. Here is a close up to show the marbled effect!

This is just a regular pumpkin pie from a store bought crust and following the directions on the can of pumpkin. I wanted to decorate it up a bit, so I used the 2nd crust to cut out leaf shapes. I then dipped the shapes into sugar and applies the outside ring of leaves before baking. I applied a few additional leaves in the last few minutes of baking.

 Even a simple pie can taste better when it is a little more decorative! Even though I had a long dry spell without baking cakes or cupcakes. I did make Pumpkin Pies on occasion during that time and had a few disasters with that too. However, everyone was delighted to see the Pumpkin Pie decorated like this!

Quite a few sweets served at Thanksgiving Dinner last year!

The small plate of leaf shaped cookies to the left are Gingerbread Cookies.

These were the presliced cookies that are in the refrigerator sections at the grocery store. I sandwiched 2 together with chocolate frosting on the inside and rolled in chocolate jimmies.

These Cupcakes I made from the "Hello, Cupcake!" Book. Again using a Spice cake with a can of Pumpkin, needless to say that combo with chocolate wasn't my favorite.

Here's a close up of my Turkey Cupcakes!

This had to have been my favorite dessert from last Thanksgiving.

I saw this made on the Rachel Ray Show, it is called Anne Thorton's Gingersnap Pumpkin Pie. The crust is made with crushed gingersnaps.

I served each slice topped with a Gingerbread Man cookie!

These next 2 were made after Thanksgiving, but fit here as well.

These are Pumpkin Pies Bites inspired by Bakerella. They were made in mini cupcake pan. I used homemade pie crust dough cut with a Pumpkin Shaped Cookie Cutter. I was having the hardest time getting the homemade crust into the mini cupcake pans. That is when my teenage daughter came to the rescue and did the job for me. The pan we had only holds 12, so we used the rest to make the dessert below.

This was basically just a square pumpkin pie with only crust on the bottom, equalling less calories and a lot less work than the Pumpkin Pie Bites!

Those are a few ideas for the upcoming month! The Gingersnap Pumpkin Pie is the best, definitely worth trying, the recipe is linked above.  

As for this year, I have no clue what I am going to bake up for Thanksgiving! Stay tuned to find out!