I am so happy that you stopped by today! I hope you had a very Merry Christmas surrounded by friends and family! Let's celebrate today because this party is the last one of 2018!
Can you believe it!?
Happy New Year! This year went by soooo fast!
Let's raise a glass to all the possibilities of 2019 and get this party started!
I have to admit something to you~I am an appetizer junkie! They are so very hard to resist! Don't you think? I love going to events where appetizers are served! It's fun to try all the delicious little bites, and one of my favorites are these Cheese Steak Appetizers! They can be made ahead of time, and fried right before the party starts, which helps to ease that last minute scramble to get all the food ready. They are perfect for game day, birthday parties, cookouts, and almost any event you can think of, including New Years Eve!
Cheese Steak Egg Rolls
Makes 10-12
(printable recipe at end of page)
1/2 pound Center Cut Top Sirloin
1/2 cup sliced Sweet Onion
sprinkle of Pepper
Provolone Cheese
Shredded Mozzarella Cheese
Egg Roll Wrappers
Oil for frying
8 ounce Cream Cream, softened
4 ounce Sour Cream
1 tablespoon Buffalo Sauce
Slice the meat very thinly. If you don't want to use a slicer, just slice thinly with a knife.
This is how it should look.
Thinly slice the onion and peppers.
Melt butter in pan. Use medium high heat to cook the meat. Add the pepper. Once the meat starts to cook, add the onion.
Add peppers and cook until tender.
Continue to cook until the meat is cooked and all the vegetables are tender.
Sop up the extra juices in the pan by using a paper towel to remove the grease.
Add both cheeses to pan, making sure the grease is pretty much gone. Mix in as it melts.
Melt the cheese by placing small pan upside down over meat and cheese.
1. Place the egg roll mix onto the egg roll wrapper. Set the wrapper so that a pointy edge is at the top. Brush cold water around the edges of each wrap to help them stick.
2. Fold one side and then the other into the center of the eggroll wrap.
3, Pull the bottom up and tuck over the food.
4. Continue to roll the wrap until done.
At this point the egg rolls can be covered with plastic and refrigerated overnight until you want to fry. Fry in a small fryer or in a pan of oil heated to 350 degrees. Remove from fryer and drain on a paper towel.
Make dipping sauce by whipping together the cream cheese, sour cream and buffalo sauce until mix is smooth.
You are going to love this sauce!
Serve with chips! Happy New Year!
I joined a group of bloggers to celebrate New Years Eve! Check out their appetizer recipes below!
Slice the meat very thinly. If you don't want to use a slicer, just slice thinly with a knife.
Thinly slice the onion and peppers.
Melt butter in pan. Use medium high heat to cook the meat. Add the pepper. Once the meat starts to cook, add the onion.
Add peppers and cook until tender.
Continue to cook until the meat is cooked and all the vegetables are tender.
Sop up the extra juices in the pan by using a paper towel to remove the grease.
Add both cheeses to pan, making sure the grease is pretty much gone. Mix in as it melts.
Melt the cheese by placing small pan upside down over meat and cheese.
1. Place the egg roll mix onto the egg roll wrapper. Set the wrapper so that a pointy edge is at the top. Brush cold water around the edges of each wrap to help them stick.
2. Fold one side and then the other into the center of the eggroll wrap.
3, Pull the bottom up and tuck over the food.
4. Continue to roll the wrap until done.
At this point the egg rolls can be covered with plastic and refrigerated overnight until you want to fry. Fry in a small fryer or in a pan of oil heated to 350 degrees. Remove from fryer and drain on a paper towel.
Make dipping sauce by whipping together the cream cheese, sour cream and buffalo sauce until mix is smooth.
Can you believe it is only 5 days until Christmas Day?!
I know I can't! Where did the time go?
If you are looking for gift, food, or decorating ideas, there are plenty here at Celebrate It!!
Just scroll through the last couple months of parties to find lots of fabulous ideas from blogger contributors! Just check out the idex on the right side of the page and click on Celebrate It!
This post is sponsored in conjunction with Christmas Cookies Week. I received product samples from sponsor companies to aid in the creation of the Christmas Cookies Week recipes. All opinions are mine alone.
Welcome to the last day of #ChristmasCookieWeek 2018! I have one more recipe to share with you today, and then we will be done filling our cookie tin! I searched for a cookie that is pretty much universally loved by all, and also screams "Christmas"! I needed it to be a small cookie, so it could be what I like to call "a filler". A filler cookie fills the holes in the cookie tin once the tin is filled with the larger cookies. There is usually room for filler cookies on the sides of the tin. Of course, fillers don't always have to be cookies. They could also be candy that compliments the cookies, like caramels, peppermints or fudge!
I knew right away that I wanted to make small gingerbread cookies as my filler! They are one of my very favorite cookies, and it just wouldn't be Christmas without them! So I decided to make these Gingerbread Cookie Stars. They are simple, small and have just enough of the gold and silver sugar to be festive! I think they fill our tin beautifully!
Gingerbread Cookie Stars
(printable recipe at end of page)
1/2 cup Shortening
1/2 cup Sugar
1 teaspoon Baking Powder
1 teaspoon Ground Ginger
1/2 teaspoon Baking Soda
1/2 teaspoon Ground Cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon Ground Cloves
1/2 cup Molasses
1 Egg
1 tablespoon Vinegar
2 1/2 cups Flour Decorative Sugars
Beat the shortening for 30 seconds on medium speed, then add sugar, baking powder, ginger, baking soda, cinnamon, and cloves. Beat to combine the ingredients. Scrape sides of bowl once combined.
Add molasses, egg, and vinegar. Mix with batter.
Add flour and mix in.
Once all batter is combined, divide dough in half, and wrap with plastic. Chill for 3 hours or until easy to handle.
Once chilled, roll out the dough to 1/8" thickness. I rolled the dough between parchment paper because I like how easy it is to handle this way.
But you can also do it this way.
Cut dough with a star cookie cutter. Place on baking sheet and sprinkle with decorative sugar. Bake at 375 degrees for 4-5 minutes, depending on the size of your star. Cool on a cooling rack, and enjoy!
Now that I am done baking all the cookies to fill up the cookie tins I give to friends during the holidays, I thought I would share with you how the tin looks with the cookies in it. I am very happy with how they turned out, and I think everyone will enjoy every cookie!
Thank you so much for joining me and my blogging friends, as we worked our way through the tastiest week of the season! I hope you enjoyed all the recipes, and let me know if you make any of them! One question-What's in your cookie tin?
Beat the shortening for 30 seconds on medium speed, then add sugar, baking powder, ginger, baking soda, cinnamon, and cloves. Beat to combine the ingredients. Scrape sides of bowl once combined.
Add molasses, egg, and vinegar. Mix with batter.
Add flour and mix in.
Once all batter is combined, divide dough in half, and wrap with plastic. Chill for 3 hours or until easy to handle.
Once chilled, roll out the dough to 1/8" thickness. I rolled the dough between parchment paper because I like how easy it is to handle this way.
Cut dough with a star cookie cutter. Place on baking sheet and sprinkle with decorative sugar. Bake at 375 degrees for 4-5 minutes, depending on the size of your star. Cool on a cooling rack, and enjoy!
Disclaimer: Thank you #ChristmasCookiesWeek sponsors: Adams Extract, Sprinkle Pop, YumGoggle and Silpat for providing the prizes free of charge. The #ChristmasCookiesWeek giveaway is open to U.S. residents, age 18 & up. All entries for the winner will be checked and verified. By entering you give the right to use your name and likeness. The number of entries received determines the odds of winning. Four (4) winners will be selected at random from entries received. The prize packages will be fulfilled by and sent directly from the giveaway sponsors. #ChristmasCookiesWeek bloggers are not responsible for the fulfillment or delivery of the prize packages. Bloggers hosting this giveaway and their immediate family members in their household are not eligible to enter or win the giveaway. No purchase necessary. Void where prohibited by law. This promotion is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, Twitter or any other social channel mentioned in the #ChristmasCookiesWeek posts or entry.
I am so happy you are here! It seems as if we are smack in the middle of the holidays, but I am feeling very far behind in my preparations. No tree up, no gifts bought, I need to get busy!!!
I hope your holidays are going smoother than mine!! Anyway.... lets, get this party started!
This post is sponsored in conjunction with Christmas Cookies Week. I received product samples from sponsor companies to aid in the creation of the Christmas Cookies Week recipes. All opinions are mine alone.
One of my favorite cookies to bake and decorate is a cut out sugar cookie! I have been making them for a long time, and I love giving them away in my cookie tins for Christmas! For today's Cut Out Sugar Cookie I used an ornament cookie cutter, courtesy of yum google, and it was so much fun making this cookie! This is the fourth cookie I am making this week for the cookie tins I'm sending out this holiday season. I chose a vintage looking ornament because there is so much you can do with it! I decided to give it a old time vibe, but it would also look great in modern colors, a solid color, or maybe with a design on it!
Cut Out Sugar Cookies
(printable recipe at end of page)
5 cups Flour
3 teaspoons Baking Powder
2 cups Butter
2 cups Sugar
2 Eggs
2 teaspoon almond extract
1 teaspoon Salt Royal Icing 6 ounces Warm Water 5 tablespoons Meringue Powder 1 teaspoon Cream of Tartar 2.25 pounds Powdered Confectioners Sugar
Mix the dry ingredients together, then set aside. Cream the butter and the sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs and extract, and continue to mix well. Add the dry ingredients a little at a time, to the butter mixture. Mix until the flour mix is incorporated and the dough comes together. Cut a piece of parchment paper 2 times the size of the cookie sheet. Fold it in half. Place some dough on the parchment, fold the paper over and roll the dough to a 1/4" thickness. Place the dough on the cookie sheet, and do it again until all the dough is between parchment paper and on the tray. Cover the tray with plastic wrap and refrigerate. The dough will become solid, making it easier to cut out the cookies. This system works great if you are using an intricate cookie cutter too. It cuts the edges and corners perfectly.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Use the cookie cutter to cut out the design. Bake in the oven for 8-10 minutes. Then remove cookie from cookie sheet and let it cool on a cooling rack. Once you have cut the cookie from the dough, let the rest of the dough soften a bit and then reroll it and refrigerate all over again.
Make the frosting by pouring the warm water in a mixer and add the meringue powder. Whisk by hand until frothy for 30 seconds. Add cream of tartar and mix for 30 seconds again. Pour all the confectioners sugar into the mixer bowl, and mix using a paddle attachment for 10 minutes. Frosting should be thick and creamy. Cover with plastic when not using.
I decided to decorate the ornament cookie with some old time gold and silver decorating sugar. Start by outlining where you want to put some of the same color sugar. It is easier to decorate when the parts you are working on are separate from one another. After outline the area, spread the white icing lightly through the space. Add the sugar, a bit heavy in the spot, and let it dry for 30 minutes. After the time is up, it will still be wet, but you are able to work near the other color. Outline the top of the bottom part and the very top hook area. Add the silver sugar to those areas.
Add the silver to the bottom of the second area from the bottom. Use a piece of wax paper as a shield when applying the color close to another.
Apply the icing as the glue to the big section just above and below the circle. Let dry. Place the star in the center of the circle to see where you want it. Use the pastry bag with the frosting in it and outline around the star. Spread frosting in the area around the star, and sprinkle the gold and silver mix in that area. Let dry, and remove star cutter. If necessary, use a small dry paint brush to get rid of sprinkles that don't stick. Wrap a ribbon through the hole and hang on a tree, or add it to your cookie tin!
Don't forget to check out these yummy cookie recipes from my blogger friends!:
Our giveaway is still open. Don't forget to enter!
Disclaimer: Thank you #ChristmasCookiesWeek sponsors: Adams Extract, Sprinkle Pop, YumGoggle and Silpat for providing the prizes free of charge. The #ChristmasCookiesWeek giveaway is open to U.S. residents, age 18 & up. All entries for the winner will be checked and verified. By entering you give the right to use your name and likeness. The number of entries received determines the odds of winning. Four (4) winners will be selected at random from entries received. The prize packages will be fulfilled by and sent directly from the giveaway sponsors. #ChristmasCookiesWeek bloggers are not responsible for the fulfillment or delivery of the prize packages. Bloggers hosting this giveaway and their immediate family members in their household are not eligible to enter or win the giveaway. No purchase necessary. Void where prohibited by law. This promotion is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, Twitter or any other social channel mentioned in the #ChristmasCookiesWeek posts or entry.
Author: The Freshman Cook
Cut Out Sugar Cookies
ingredients:
Cut Out Sugar Cookies
5 cups Flour
3 teaspoons Baking Powder
2 cups Butter
2 cups Sugar
2 Eggs
2 teaspoon almond extract
1 teaspoon Salt
Royal Icing
6 ounces Warm Water
5 tablespoons Meringue Powder
1 teaspoon Cream of Tartar
2.25 pounds Powdered Confectioners Sugar
instructions:
Mix the dry ingredients together, then set aside.
Cream the butter and the sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs and extract, and continue to mix well. Add the dry ingredients a little at a time, to the butter mixture. Mix until the flour mix is incorporated and the dough comes together.
Cut a piece of parchment paper 2 times the size of the cookie sheet. Fold it in half. Place some dough on the parchment, fold the paper over and roll the dough to a 1/4" thickness. Place the dough on the cookie sheet, and do it again until all the dough is between parchment paper and on the tray. Cover the tray with plastic wrap and refrigerate. the dough will become solid, making it easier to cut out the cookies. This system works great if you are using intricate an cookie cutter too. It cuts the edges and corners perfectly.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Use the cookie cutter to cut out the design. Bake in the oven for 8-10 minutes. Then remove cookie from cookie sheet and let it cool on a cooling rack. Once you have cut the cookie from the dough, let the rest of the dough soften a bit and then reroll it and refrigerate all over again.
Make the frosting by pouring the warm water in a mixer and add the meringue powder. Whisk by hand until frothy for 30 seconds. Add Cream of tartar and mix for 30 seconds again. Pour all the confectioners sugar into the mixer bowl, and mix using a paddle attachment, for a 10 minutes. Frosting should be thick and creamy. Cover with plastic when not using.
I decided to decorate the ornament cookie with some old time gold and silver decorating sugar. Start by outlining where you want to put some of the same color sugar. It is easier to decorate when the parts you are working on are separate from one another. After outline the area, spread the white icing lightly through the space. Add the sugar, a bit heavy in that spot, and let it dry for 30 minutes. After the time is up, it will still be wet, but you are able to work near the other color. Outline the top of the bottom part and the very top hook area. Add the silver sugar to those areas.
Add the silver to the bottom of the second area from the bottom. Use a piece of wax paper as a shield when applying the color close to another.
Apply the icing as the glue to the big section just above and below the circle. Let dry. Place the star in the center of the circle to see where you want it. Use the pastry bag with the frosting in it and outline around the star. Spread frosting in the area around the star, and sprinkle the gold and silver mix in that area. Let dry, and remove star cutter. If necessary, use a small dry to brush away sprinkles that don't stick. Wrap a ribbon through the hole and hang on a tree, or add to our cookie tin!
