Cookie Swap Candy Cane Puffs!

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It's time for The Great Food Blogger Cookie Swap reveal!

This is the 2nd year for the cookie swap, and it has just been so much fun. 

Thank you to Julie from The Little Kitchen and Lindsay from Love and Olive Oil

for putting it all together. I so appreciate it!

The best thing about this years cookie swap is that it was also

a benefit for Cookies For Kids' Cancer, and  OXO matched every donation

by participants of the swap!! How cool is that! 

Great cookies and a great cause!

So here is what I sent!

Candy Cane Puffs

(adapted from Pillsbury)

1/2 cup Butter, softened

1 cup Powdered Sugar

1 Egg

1 teaspoon Vanilla

1/2 teaspoon Peppermint Extract

2 1/2 cups Flour

pinch Salt

2 cups Almond Bark

10 Candy Canes, crushed 

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees. 

Prepare your baking sheets by spraying them with

cooking spray, or use parchment paper.

In a large bowl, beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy.

Scrape bowl down.

Beat in your egg, vanilla, and peppermint.

Beat in your flour and salt.

Wrap your dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour.

After the hour, shape the dough into 1" balls

 and bake for 10-12 minutes. 

Let cool on cooling rack for 30 minutes

Melt the white almond bark, and dip the top of each cookie

into the melted bark.

Place crushed candy cane on the top of each cookie.

Enjoy!

A huge thank you to all the people I received cookies from:

Beth from Jersey Bites, who sent me some incredible, full of flavor,

Chocolate Hazelnut Cookies,

and Betsy from @BetsyLife, who sent me delicious, sunshiney

Lemon Sandwich Cookies!

Yummy, Yum Yum to both of you!!

 (I know I am missing one, but I know it will be here shortly!!)

Thanks again to everyone who had a hand in making this Cookie Swap happen!

I can't wait until next year!!

Here where we are partying!!!:
Wicked Good Wednesdays
Tasty Thursday 

Christmas Pizzelles!

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I know everyone has a cookie that means Christmas to them. This Pizzelle is mine. I used to make this cookie with the lady who lived across the street from me when I was a little girl. Every year before Christmas I would get to go over to her house, and we would spend 2 entire days making cookies. We would listen to Christmas music and tell stories.  It was just me and her. She created an incredible memory for me. We always made these pizzelles. I can remember stacks and stacks of them when we were done. I don't know why we made so many but every minute at her house was magical to me. So when I bite into a pizzelle, I am immediately transported back to snowy winter afternoons in a warm, comfortable  kitchen in Ohio, with the smell of anise and butter in the air, and the feeling of being loved. Maybe this cookie will evoke those feelings for you.

Christmas Pizzelles
6 Eggs
1 1/2 cups Sugar
1 cup Butter, melted
2 tablespoon Anise Extract
3 1/2 cup Flour
4 teaspoon Baking Powder
Milk Chocolate Chips, melted
White Almond Bark, melted
crushed Candy Canes

You will need a pizzelle maker to make these cookies.
I got mine a few years ago after the holidays.
When you use it, make sure to spray the mold area
with pan spray, and to preheat the pizzelle maker.

Beat your eggs, and

add your sugar a little bit at a time.

Beat until smooth.
Add butter and anise. Mix together.

Sift your flour and baking powder and add it to the mix.
Mix well.  Dough will be sticky.

Drop 1 tablespoon of batter onto your pizzelle baker.
The first few cookies will probably be hit and miss
as far as the placement of the batter and the cooking time.
It is just something you have to experiment with.

See what I mean? :)

It ended up that the best placement for my
batter was slightly off center, and only cooked for 20 seconds.
Let cool.

The almond bark, chocolate, and candy canes are not
part of a traditional pizzelle, but I wanted to do
something different, and I think it looks pretty!

Sprinkle the candy cane over the bark or chocolate.
Let dry.

Enjoy!

Merry Krispie Bars!

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Here is a quick, oh, so good, festive bar to make for the holidays. It seems like everyone likes these. There is just something about them that makes people smile! Maybe it's the perennial favorite rice krispie treats, or maybe the milk chocolate, the candy canes, or perhaps it's the red and white peppermint M and M's. But whatever the reason, I hope they make you smile too!

Merry Krispie Bars

2 tablespoon Butter

4 cups Peppermint Mini Marshmallows

5 cups Rice Krispie Cereal

Milk Chocolate Chips

White Almond Bark

25-30 Peppermint M and M's

25-30 Green Holiday M and M's

2 Candy Canes, crushed

25-30 Candy Cane Kisses, quartered

Spray a 13x9" baking dish with pan spray. I also spray

a spatula or spoon to use in the mixing. Set aside.

Melt your butter over low heat and 

add the mini marshmallows to the pot. Stir until they

are completely melted. After I made these treats, I decided

that white marshmallows would be great also. 

The peppermint marshmallows did not add a lot of flavor,

 but you could add some peppermint extract if you wanted to!

Take the pot off of the heat,

and mix in the rice krispies.

Pour the rice krispies into your prepared pan.

Spread the rice krispies into the pan so they are evenly

distributed, and  firmly condensed. Let them set up.

Melt the milk chocolate chips, and frost the rice krispies

with a thin layer. I used about a 1/2 cup of chips.

Take some of your melted white almond bark, and drizzle it 

over the chocolate. Cut the Candy Cane Kisses into 1/4's 

and then drizzle them over the chocolate and bark. I used 

20 kisses, but I only sprinkled about 5 of them here. Add
 it according to how much you like the candy!

I then added some more of the white almond bark, 

and then added more chopped up Candy Cane Kisses,

some red and white peppermint M and M's and then I 

added the green ones for a burst of color.

 I sprinkled on 2 chopped and crushed candy canes.

Cover and let set up overnight.

Cut into bars and serve!

Merry Krispie Bars!

Thanks for joining me !


Don't forget about the Treats Card giveaway!
Tomorrow is the last day!

Here are the parties we wouldn't miss!:
Marvelous Mondays!
Crazy Sweet Tuesday! 

Candy Cane Popcorn!!

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Every Christmas I make a lot of gift baskets filled with food. I stuff them with cookies, candies, and nuts, and sometimes I add sauces, like BBQ or hot fudge. The process of putting it all together, deciding what recipes to make, and how to package the goodies is a source of great joy to me. When I see how happy recipients of the baskets are, it really is a present ~ for me! This year I have an abundance of glass jars (remnants of my biscoff obsession) that I wanted to put to good use. I wanted something that would look pretty and taste great. That's how I came up with this Candy Cane Popcorn!

Candy Cane Popcorn

16 cups popped Popcorn

12 squares of Vanilla Almond Bark

20 Candy Canes

Pop your popcorn and chop up your almond bark.

Let it melt slowly, stirring and using low heat.

Meanwhile, line 2 baking sheets with parchment.

 Crush your candy canes into small pieces.

Pour your popped corn in to a large bowl. 

You will need a large bowl for extra mixing room.

 Add your melted  almond bark. Mix thoroughly.

Distribute the wet popcorn between the two

baking sheets.

Sprinkle with your crushed candy canes.

Let dry.

Here is a close up to see how it sticks to the

popcorn with the help of the melted bark.

To make the jars I tied bakers twine around the lid,

 stuck a mini candy cane in the bow, and.....

 decorated the top of the lid.

They will be the perfect addition 

to the gift baskets!

Thanks for joining me today!

I will be partying at these fun spots!:
Wicked Good Wednesday 

Fabulous Fridays!
Think Pink Sunday
Church Supper
I Must Be Dreaming 

Jingle Bars, Jingle Bars!

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I was in the mood to try a new sweet the other day, so I dug around my stack of "need to be organized" recipes, and found this one. I am so glad I tried these incredible Jingle Bars. I made a few changes to the recipe, and I think it tastes even better! I am not a lover of coconut, no matter what it is mixed with, so I thought about what to use as a replacement, and as I was looking though my cupboard, the answer fell in to my hands. Literally! The package fell off of the shelf and I caught it before it hit the floor, and that's how Heath Pieces came to replace coconut, and make these Jingle Bars better than ever!

Jingle Bars, Jingle Bars!  

(adapted from tollhouse)
1 stick  Butter

1 1/2 cups Graham Cracker Crumbs

2  8ounce bags Heath Pieces

1 cup chopped Peanuts

1  14 ounce can Sweetened Condensed Milk

1 2/3 cups Nestle Toll House Holiday Morsels

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

I love a nice, clean cut for my bar cookies, so I 
lined the 13x9" pan with foil, making sure I went
over the edges. The foil will make it easier to
remove from the pan.

 I had graham crackers, so I made my own crumbs 
in the food processor.

Place your butter in the baking dish, and put it in the
oven until melted. 
Add the graham crackers and mix together.

Press the butter mix onto the bottom of the pan.

Add your bags of heath pieces 
by sprinkling them evenly over the 
graham cracker base. 

I chopped my nuts in the food processor, and.....

then sprinkled them on top also.

Pour the condensed milk evenly over the mix.

Sprinkle the Holiday Morsels over the milk.

Bake for 25 to 30 minutes.

 Cool completely on wire rack.
Lift foil from pan, open up foil and cut into bars.

Serve and.....

Enjoy! 

Thanks for joining me today!     

Here's where I am partying today:
Show Me Your Plaid Mondays 
Thursday's Treasures
What's in your Kitchen Wednesday     

Your Creative Time Out 
Creative Thursday Link Party 
Tuesday's Table-Countdown To Christmas!