Happy Holiday's 2006!!!!

From our home to yours....












MERRY CHRISTMAS TO YOU AND YOURS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Aunt Nancy's Creamed Corn (p 2- 3)

This is so easy but very rich and tasty!

1 large frozen bag of corn
1 (8 oz) pkt of cream cheese, cubed
salt and pepper to taste

In a large crock pot add all the ingredients and cook until creamy and hot. Stir now and again as it heats up.

Note: This year I made this on top of the stove in a large pot. I don't have a German crock pot so I had to improvise. I love the ease of setting the corn up in a crock pot and pretty much forgetting about it until its done, but no such luck this year. I did add a 1 tsp of "I can't believe its not butter" and a few tsp of water in the pot with the rest of this and it turned out really good. Cover and Cook it on LOW (otherwise it will scorch). ENJOY!!!

Our Xmas....

We had a really nice Xmas this year, hope you and yours did too!
My hubby had to work Christmas day so we enjoyed our dinner that evening when he was finished. We enjoyed Egg nog and holiday treats while we opened gifts Xmas even. He invited two of his coworkers to join us and it was very nice!!!!
We had our family traditional Holiday Ham, creamed corn, twice baked cauliflower, green bean casserole, glass guild potato casserole, pistachio salad, deviled eggs, Hawaiian sweet rolls, and assorted veggies, cheeses and olives. We also enjoyed German wine and had deep dish cherry pie and pecan pie for desert. It was yummy!!!!!!!!

The snack table with loads of veggies, cheese, olives, wine and holiday treats




Our Dinner Table....

Funeral Taters (p3)

Glass Guild Potato Casserole (aka: Funeral Taters)
I got this recipe years ago when my husband and I were attending Emporia State University.We were art majors and both were into the Glass Forming Classes. My hubby was secretary of the ESU Glass guild at the time and we met and we started a relationship at one of annual ESU Glass Blowouts. (Check out the ESU glass guild site: http://www.emporia.edu/art/glassguild/index.htm).

Anyways we were getting ready for a glass show/ exhibit to get the community down to see what we were doing. We were all offering to bring some food for the event when a Sr of the department said he'd bring his mothers "Funeral Taters". He explained that his mother was on the committee in their Catholic Church and she would always make this when the group took meals to those that had a death in the family. He said he and his siblings loved this dish and referred to it as her funeral taters. He said it was really good and it made a lot so he'd call her and get the recipe. The night of the exhibition I asked him for the recipe as many others did too. Its extremely easy to make too.

Funeral Taters

1pkg. frozen hash brown cubes w/ diced onion and bell peppers
1 carton sour cream
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 can cheddar cheese soup

Mix thoroughly and place in a large baking dish. Bake 1 1/2 to 2 hours at 350 degrees. I usually bake til the top is starting to brown and i mix it up a bit and bake again til it browns again. You can also use mushroom or celery soup instead of the cream of chicken and instead of the cheddar soup you can use 1 cup of Velveeta cheese. I've never made it with these substitutions, but his mother said she has and its still very good. ENJOY!!!!!

Before being baked...still looks good doesnt it.

Holiday Treats (not SB friendly)

This year I had some help in making the holiday treats we give to some of our friends for Xmas. My daughter and two of her friends helped me and we all had a blast! We made two kinds of fudge, candy cane almond bark, chocolate covered pretzels, thumb print cookies, peanut brittle, Bourbon balls, M&M cookies, and coffee cake muffins.
These were my helpers!!!
Antoine,
Christina,
and my daughter, Martina.
Oh, and my littlest pup, Mozes.
Being goofy in the kitchen but still being very productive!




Chocolate covered pretzels.....its really very easy! Melt white almond bark or white chocolate chips in the microwave and dip pretzels in to coat. Lay out on wax paper and decorate if desired. We used colored sugar. Allow to dry/harden and then lift off the wax paper and store at room temperature in an air tight container or a large Ziploc bag.

This was sooo funny! The girls were teasing one another and Martina got Christina with Chocolate... the looks on their faces are just priceless! Total shock!!! and true laughter....I Love these three Pict's!



Candy Cane bark is extremely easy to make. You melt white chocolate chips or While Almond bark til creamy and smooth. You stir in Crush Candy Canes (I also used some colored sugar for extra color). Spread out thinly on wax paper and allow to harden back up. Break up into small chunks and store room temperature in Ziploc bags or an air tight container. Its that simple!


I cheated and used boxed Coffee Cake muffin mix.



M&M Cookies:
1 c shorting
1/2 c sugar
1 c packed brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla
cream until fluffy

fold in 2 well beaten eggs and beat entire mixture. Sift together 2 1/2 c sifted flower, 1 tsp baking soda and 1 tsp salt.
Add sifted dry ingredients to the creamed mixture and stir in 1 large bag of M & M candy (and chopped nuts if you like)
Mix well and drop my small balls/spoonfuls onto a greased baking sheet. Bake at 375 degrees for
10 min.

Peanut Brittle
2 c sugar
1 c light Karo syrup
1/2 c water
1 c butter
2 c peanuts
1 teaspoon soda

Combine sugar, syrup and water. Cook and stir until sugar dissolves. Bring to boil and add butter. Stir frequently after it reaches 230 degrees. Add peanuts at soft crack (280 degrees). Stir constantly until it reaches hard crack (305 degrees). Remove from heat quickly and stir in 1 teaspoon soda, mix thoroughly. Pour onto 2 baking sheets that have been well buttered. Cool and break by tapping with a knife handle.

Thumb Print Kiss Cookies. I am not sure where my mom got this recipe but I got it from her. These didn't have deep enough thumb prints so the cream filling didn't want to stay in...but ordinarily these are pretty and tasty!

1/2 c butter
2/3 sugar
1 egg, separated
2 TAB milk
1 tsp vanilla
1 c unsifted flour
1/3 c cocoa
1/3 tsp salt
chopped pecans or walnuts or granulate sugar

Cream butter, sugar, egg yolk, milk and vanilla. In a different bowl combine flour, salt, cocoa, and blend well. Chill dough about 1 hour or until its firm to the touch. While waiting for the dough to chill chop up nuts, unwrap the Hershey's Kisses and make the cream filling.

Cream Filling:
1/2 c powder sugar
1 TAB butter
1 tsp milk
1/4 tsp vanilla
Mix together and set aside.

When the dough is ready, roll into 1 in balls. Dip into a beaten egg white and roll cookie ball in nuts or granulated sugar. Place on a lightly greased cookie sheet and press a thumb print in the center of each cookie. Bake at 350 for 10 to 12 mins. When the cookies are done and slightly cooled fill each cookie center with the cream filling and place a kiss in the center of it and enjoy!

I got both Fudge recipes from Gretchen (The Kitchen Goddess) both were WONDERFUL!!!!
Coffee Shop Fudge

3 c semisweet chip

1 can sweetened condensed milk

2 tbsp strong coffee, room temp

1 tsp cinnamon

1C pecans

1/8 tsp salt

1 tsp vanilla

Microwave the milk, chips, coffee, cinnamon, and salt together for about 1 minute, stir and nuke in 10 second increments until melted and smooth. Stir in pecans and vanilla. Spread into a foiled and buttered 8 inch pan. Cover and refrigerate 2 hours. Cut, and store at room temp.
note: (we added some miniature marshmallows to make it like rocky road fudge and it was really good this way too)


Cranberry White Fudge
Gretchen said she got this from a Taste of Home Magazine. Its really good and I think more candy like than Fudge but either way its GREAT and one to try!!!

1 tsp butter or Pam spray
12 oz white chocolate chips
2/3 c sweetened condensed milk
1 c chopped salted almonds
1/2 c dried cranberries
2 tsp orange zest
butter or use nonstick spay and grease a foiled pan

Microwave the chips and milk until melted and smooth when stirred (about 1 1/2 minutes). Stir in nuts, berries, and zest and pour into the prepared pan. Chill 2 hours and pull out the foil and slice. Store at room temp
This is extremely easy and yummy. I got lots of compliments on this one and it will defiantly be made again. Thanks Gretchen for passing it on to me!!!



Sorry I forgot to take Pict's of the bourbon balls but let me tell ya they are GOOD!!!! I'm not a whiskey or hard liquor kinda gal...I generally prefer sweet fruity drinks but these chocolate yummy are GOOD! I got the recipe years and YEARS ago from a good friend and neighbor of mine. Thanks Tina!
Bourbon Balls
3 c finely crushed vanilla wafers
2 c powder sugar
1 c finely chopped pecans
1/4 c cocoa
1/2 c bourbon
1/4 c light corn syrup

Mix vanilla wafers, sugar, nuts and cocoa. Stir in bourbon and corn syrup. Shape mixture into 1 in balls. Roll in granulated sugar. Best if covered tightly and refrigerated for several days. I usually put them in a tin or old coffee can layered with wax paper.

Ham (Not SB friendly)

Our Traditional Holiday Ham
(Not SB friendly)

Every since I can remember we have had our family's Holiday Ham for Christmas and Easter. Its very easy to make and tastes wonderful!

1 Bone in Ham (shoulder/butt)
1 bottle of very cheep sweet white wine
1 lb box of brown sugar
1 bottle of cherries in juice
1 can pineapple rings with juice
ground cloves

With a sharp knife make punctures all over the ham. Place in a roasting pan and pour wine, pineapple and the cherry juice all over the ham. sprinkle with cloves...be rather generous with this as this adds a lot of good flavor! Using the palm of your hand pack brown sugar all over the ham. Cover with foil and bake at 350 for a few hours (20 min's per lb). Take ham out, ladle with pan drippings and repack with brown sugar as needed.

About 20 to 30 min's before the ham is done cooking take the foil off and place pineapple rings all over the ham. Take toothpicks and pierce two cherries on each toothpick and place just under the top pineapple ring to help secure it and place back in oven to bake the addition time. Let the ham rest a about 10 to 15 Min's before carving and serving. ENJOY!!!

Twiced "Baked" Cauliflower (p2 due to bacon)

I mentioned this dish before on my blog so it may look familiar. I came across this YUMMY recipe at Kalyn's kitchen blog.
This is my adaption of this recipe. The original recipe Kayln says is from from a book she recommends called: The Low Carb Gourmet (by Maren Caruso and Karen Barnaby)

Twice "Baked" Cauliflower (p1)
1 large head cauliflower (I used frozen)
4 oz. low fat cream cheese
1 T butter (optional)
1/2 cup low fat sour cream (I used at free and it still was good)
1/4 cup minced green onions
1/4 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
6 slices bacon, cooked very crisp and crumbled
1 cup reduced fat sharp cheddar cheese
Preheat oven to 350 F.

Cut out stem and core from cauliflower, and cut into small pieces, or just use frozen. Cook in large pot of boiling water until cauliflower is tender, but not overly soft. Drain well and mash with potato masher, leaving some chunks. Mix in cream cheese, butter (if using), sour cream, green onion, Parmesan, and 3/4 of the bacon. I also recommend using some onion powder and salt to taste!

Spread evenly in an 8 X 8 inch glass casserole dish (or 9x13 for thinner casserole). I baked this for 15 mins and then sprinkled with cheddar cheese and reserved bacon and baked for an additional 15 to 20 mins (until hot and bubbly).

This is a REALLY good side dish. It smells awesome when baking and reheats well. ENJOY!!!!

Pistachio Salad (p2)
I blogged this at Thanksgiving but thought I'd mentione it here again.

This is always a favorite in my family, ever since this recipe was passed around so many years ago. Its become a tradition at our Thanksgiving, Christmas and Easter dinner table. Some call it Watergate Salad others call is Pistachio Salad...but either way its known to be yummy!! This is how my family makes this dish. 1 pkt sugar free (Jello brand) pistachio pudding, dry 1 can crushed pineapple, drained and juice reserved 1/2 to 1 cup cottage cheese 1 container ff cool whip Mix dry pkt of pistachio pudding with the crushed pineapple and cottage cheese. Add pineapple juice a little at a time til its moist but not runny. Fold in cool whip and mix thoroughly. Add more juice if its seems too dry and chill in the refrigerator til ready to be served. Note: Many make this without the cottage cheese and use miniature marshmallows instead. I personally prefer it this way and its more SB friendly...but both are very good!

Spoiled Puppy Boys at Xmas (Dec 06)

~ SUCH SPOILED PUPS!~
The boys had a REALLY good time at Xmas this year. From treats to toys they got some fun goodies in their stocking AND a couple of my friends got them some gifts too. My parents dog, Rufus, sent the boys a little squeaky soccer ball that Mozes LOVES LOVE LOVES and a braided rope that they both play with, Ani and John got the boys these little tiny tennis balls and two stuffed roped toys, and Raina got them each a chew bone that they have been working on the past few days (thanks everyone!)


Euro is WAY excited about their stocking....he can smell the goodies in it. The second Pict he tries to grab it from Martina's hand with his paws... ha ha.


Mozes is now interested in the stocking and all its goodies...



YES Euro IS smiling....its so funny when he does this!!!


Oh look at the anticipation as Martina tries to open up some treats for the boys....



Mozes with the tiny little tennis ball Ani and John got them. I LOVE how Mozes sticks his butt up in the air as he chews on his toys...


Mozes with one of the stuffed roped toys. They got a bear and this elephant.



Playing with the Large Jacks...well Mozes is, Euro is wanting to be held.





Both boys playing with their new toys and look how they are scattered all over the floor... just like little kids!

Happy little boys that must have been VERY good this year as they had a GREAT Xmas!!!

Mozes & His New Ball!!!

This is Mozes and his Ball...I swear that he goes almost every place with this thing. My parents dog, Rufus, sent it to the boys for Xmas and Mozes adopted it. Its almost like a kids blankie as he is almost never without it. In fact there have been many times we've rolled over in bed to awake to the squeak. Ha ha... From taking it to bed with him, to leaving it right by the door when he goes potty...he just LOVES this thing! It's one toy he HASN'T tried to chew up...so its pretty important to him!

At Xmas after he adopted this ball he decided to take over a box of socks my hubby had got. He worked and worked on getting the ball in the box so he could lay down on the socks and the ball. He'd get it in there but when he picked it up it would roll out of his mouth and of the the box. He'd look at us like he was just heart broken that the ball didn't want to stay with him so, so he'd work at it all over again...until he got the ball in and was able to cuddle with it like he wanted. It was so cute seeing him zonked out with his new toy!

CHOCOLATE CAKE!!!!!! (not SB friendly)

Chocolate chocolate chocolate Death by chocolate, did I say chocolate(?) cake!!!!
(Photoed here is my GREAT friend Ani and the cake she made for me on my Birthday!)

It was Birthday on the 13th and Our good friends are here visiting us from the states. My friend Ani made my birthday cake I wanted CHOCOLATE!
Years ago Ani got a little booklet one day from the store. It was one of those that are often at the front checkout lane as you are going though the checkout. She picked it up and it had some great idea's on how to improve box cake mixes, as well as decorating ideas for cakes and etc... This chocolate cake recipe was one of the many in this booklet but after throwing a baby shower and using it for reference on decorating ideas the booklet was misplaced and Ani and I could NEVER find what happened to it or find it again at the store. I think it was a Betty Crocker book but I'm really not sure anymore as it's been a few years. The good thing is that this cake recipe had been copied down (as its SO good!) thus, us still being able to make it today.
Warning this is extremely rich and chocolaty!!! Women who crave chocolate and cant seem to find anything that will seem to cut the craving LOVE THIS ONE!!!!!

Cake: 1 package chocolate cake mix (dry)

1/2 cup chocolate milk

1/2 cup melted butter

3 eggs, beaten

1 16 oz container sour cream

1 package chocolate pudding (dry)

1 package 12 oz chocolate chips

Mix all ingredients with a hand mixer or by hand (mixture will be very thick) and spoon into a greased bunt pan. Bake at 350 for 55-65 min. Let cool completely before removing from bunt pan.

Glaze topping:

3/4 cup chocolate chips

3 T butter

3 T white corn syrup

1 1/2 T water In a small sauce pan mix all ingredients until melted and blended together. Keep stirring as this could scorch otherwise. Drizzle all of this glaze over bunt cake and serve!

Our Baby turned 16!!!!!!

ha ha ha....she was about to blow out the candles but had to stop and think of something to wish for first....ha ha....

(white cake with a homemade buttercream frosting [with almond extrct added to both cake and frosting] the decoration is a read and blue cake spray paint and the lavendar is just a mix of red and blue food coloring and then the writing and butterfly is free hand with a purple gel decoration tube)

We took her out for dinner and then home for cake and gifts. The weekend after we had a party for her and her friends. They boys left at midnight but the girls stayed for the slumber party. It was a lot of fun. There was LOTS of music, laughing, movies, popcorn, soda, and fun. The kids made their own pizza's and totally had a blast with it. They all seemed SO Proud of their efforts and each pizza was as individualized as each kid. Later they got to make their own ice cream sundaes and again they loved it. In fact, the kids had such a good time they have requested to do it again. I told them that we'd do a BBQ this summer which thrilled them, however they wanted something sooner! So we are making plans to have them over to help me make holiday candies, cookies, breads and so on before Christmas. They are really looking forward to it and keep asking me when exactly they are to come over...ha ha. I figured they can help me load up the goodies in gift boxes and holiday decorated trays so we can give to others, and they can fix plates of the goodies to take home for their own families. Below are some Pict's taken of the Pizza's and such.



Making the dough

TOPPINGS!!!!!


Getting them all ready to order.

READY TO BAKE!!!

All done! Oh how good it looks and smells!!!!

One with lots of mushrooms, another topped to make the letter "C" for her name and a third with a cheese stuffed crust!!!!
A supper thick crust, one half & half and the last pizza with LOTS of black olives.....

MAKE YOUR OWN ICE CREAM SUNDAE!!!!! we had homemade brownies, hot fudge, carmel and strawberry toppings, nuts, marshmallow whip, banana's and of course ice cream!