Holiday Baking

Crispix Caramel Crunch  (AKA Christmas Crack)

Legend has it, people have left Crispix boxes on my porch with notes asking it to be turned into crack!  It is a favorite of many, and highly addictive. it is easy to give as a gifts in holiday ziplock bags!

You'll need:

20 oz. Crispix cereal ( use the real stuff, the generic tends to crumble!)

2 sticks of butter

2 cups brown sugar

3/4 c. light Karo syrup

dash of salt

1/2 tsp. baking soda

Pour cereal into a heavy duty, clean,  paper grocery sack.  In a 3-4 qt sauce pan, cook butter, Karo syrup and brown sugar over low/med heat until the mixture boils. Boil until it reaches 250° . Remove from heat and add baking soda and dash of salt. The mixture will swell.  Stir well and pour over the cereal and stir gently.  Roll down the top of the bag and microwave on high for one minute. Remove bag from microwave and shake. Repeat the microwave and shake process three to five times.  2-3 minutes make s a softer, chewier batch.  Pour cereal onto greased cookie sheets and stir to break up the clumps.  Cool and store in an airtight container.

Toffee

You'll need:

1 lb. butter (cold) 

2 c. granulated sugar

6-12 oz. pecans (optional)

6 regular Hershey bars

Butter a jelly roll pan or large cookie sheet and cover with broken pecans (optional). Cook cold butter and sugar over low/med heat until it reaches 305° on a candy thermometer. Stir constantly. (30-40 minutes!) if the mixture separates you can sometimes get it back together by adding 1T. of hot water and stir vigorously!  pout the mixture onto cookie sheet and place unwrapped Hershey bars evenly on the top.  Spread the chocolate as it melts.  The pan and the toffee will be HOT! Sprinkle crushed pecans over the top if you want. Let it cool at room temp for several hours.  (overnight is best).  Break into chunks and store in an airtight container.  DO NOT REFRIGERATE.

Fantasy Fudge

 

This one is different every time I make it. The key is to not overcook the chocolate and it will be like velvet!

You'll need:

3/4 c. Butter ( can use margarine, but why?) 

3 c. granulated sugar

1~5 oz. can evaporated milk

1~7 oz. jar of marshmallow fluff

1~12 oz. pkg semi sweet chocolate chips (Ghirardelli are best!)

1 tsp. vanilla

1 c. chopped nuts (optional)

In a large bowl or mixer, place chocolate chips and fluff.  Combine sugar, butter and milk in saucepan and heat to a full boil.  Boil to soft ball or just to 234° on a candy thermometer, and remove from heat. Stir constantly to prevent scorching. Pour sugar mixture into mixer bowl and add vanilla and optional nuts. Mix until well blended.  pour into a well buttered 9x13 pan. Cool completely before cutting. Store in an airtight container for up to a month...but it never lasts that long!

I am now a two mixer house.  

When we remodeled the kitchen, the new cabinets could accommodate a beautiful 6qt lift bowl in brushed nickel! I almost sold my old white 4.5qt mixer at a garage sale.   A friend suggested I keep it until I got through a holiday season and then decide.  Smart friend!  A week before Christmas (just when my procrastination hits full force) the brand new mixer started making a terrible screeching noise.  Warranties are wonderful! They sent a new mixer, and once I got it, I had a week to test it out and return the broken one. That last week of crunch time, I used both mixers for three nights and might have used all three, but I was baking until 3am and the screeching was loud!

 Forgotten Kisses

My all time favorite holiday treat.  My grandmother taught me to make these and I remember making them with my mom who always told me I was adding the sugar too quickly!  Over time I have learned that, as long as the sugar is not just dumped int the egg whites, it is not critical how slowly it is incorporated. 

You'll need:

2 egg whites

3/4 c. granulated sugar

few grains of salt

1/2 scant tsp. cream of tartar

1/2 tsp. vanilla

1/2 c. chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 400°.  Beat eggs until frothy, add salt and cream of tartar, beating the egg whites to stuff peaks.  Add sugar "slowly".  Once the sugar on completely incorporated add  a few drops of food coloring* and mix. Fold in chocolate chips.  Place by spoonfuls on greased cookie sheets. Place sheets in oven and turn off heat. Let dry in oven for five hours without opening the door.


*I always make three batches, one green, one white and one pink for the holidays.  If you are only making one batch, you can split the egg white/sugar mixture into three parts, color and then add chips.

 I have tried to use a 2 tsp. scoop to make these, but the meringue sticks to the scoop, and they don't get the nice spikes and whirls, they look like mini ice cream scoops.

Peanut Butter Kisses

I am all about ensuring a proper chocolate to peanut butter ratio with these!  The cookie can't be too large so I always use the 2 tsp. scoop.   I also make sure I have twice as many Hershey kisses on hand than actually needed, depending on who is recruited to help unwrap all the kisses.  My helpers (Randy & Stella) have an "one for baking, one for me" unwrapping philosophy.

Cream together:

1/2 c. shortening

1/2 c. peanut butter (creamy or chunky, your preference)

1/2 c. packed brown sugar

1/2 c. granulated sugar

Add:

1 egg

2 T. milk

1 tsp. vanilla

Sift Together:

1 3/4 c. flour

1 tsp. soda

1/2 tsp.salt

Mix everything until well blended. Using  2 tsp. (small) scoop, or roll dough and place on ungreased cookie sheets. Bake at 375° for 8-10 minutes. Remove from oven, add Hershey kiss and return to oven for one minute. I like to "drop" the cookie sheet on the stove top to flatten the kisses for easier storage! These ones remained pointy!

This holiday season I will update the blog with a glimpse of Heather's OCD Christmas sugar cookie spectacular.  Stella reluctantly helps me accomplish the daunting task of icing and sprinkles to my exact specifications.  It's worthy of it's own blog post!

As I write this post, I wonder why it is I only make these recipes at Christmas......

I'm a "pinner"

I started "pinning" this week.  A verb I never thought I would use other than in reference to sewing and hemming.    I found Pinterest, a bulletin board site where I can share with the whole wide world, all the things I find to be cute, entertaining, and utterly uplifting.


While creating new boards and adding personal touches of baking and craft objects I have created, it was pointed out that I need to have some substance behind my pins.  My original pins go nowhere, which is less than ideal.


This blog will be my substance.


How I will find time to keep up with pinning things from others, while also adding substance to my own, is unknown. I have already learned that "Pinning" is easier than actually "Doing".


I will start with compiling my favorite holiday baking and gift giving recipes accompanied with photos and THEN pin them to my board.  I find the task of unpinning and re-pinning to be a bit daunting.  Just like in sewing, I would rather create something new than do alterations.