White Trash... Classy, huh?

I found this recipe earlier this month and whipped up a bunch earlier this week. It was so easy to make! It literally took 15 minutes to whip up. I halved the recipe and still had plenty. The original recipe came from Heather's Helpings blog. Here's a link to the post:

http://heathershelpings.com/2011/12/11/white-trash/

I packaged them in ziplock baggies and stapled scrapbook paper on the top. Thanks Pinterest for the idea, and thanks Heather for the recipe!

Merry Christmas!

Christmas Cookies

These are the ONLY Christmas cookies that we made when I was growing up. We usually make a double batch of the recipe shown below. Mom said when she copied it over she tripled the recipe from the original. This is a recipe that Grandma Sites makes each year for Christmas, along with a handful of others.

Sugar Cookies

1 1/2 c. sugar
1 1/2 c. oleo
3 beaten eggs
4 1/2 T. milk
1 1/2 t. vanilla
1 T. baking powder
3/4 t. salt
4 1/2 c. flour

Roll out 1/8” thick on floured board. Cut in desired shapes. Sprinkle with colored sugar. Bake at 400° for 5-8 min.

We DO NOT frost these cookies! People think we're weird but these cookies get sprinkled with colored sugar instead of getting frosted. These are the only cookies I think of when I'm hungry for Christmas cookies.

My brother and I like these just barely cooked through. Seth calls them burnt when they have just a hint of tan color on the bottom. Mom likes what Seth calls really burnt ones, the ones where the bottom is a nice toasty brown color.

Daddy Bread

This is a recipe I stumbled upon through e-mails from Lehman's Hardware Store. Aunt Deb and Uncle Gary love going there when they go to Holmes County. I've ordered a few things online from Lehman's, so now I get the e-mails on various deals. There was one on a bread bowl that had a link to this recipe.

Like the Four Cheese Chicken Fettuccine, this was part of the last meal I made for Kurt before he proposed.

Here's the link to Daddy Bread. I've only made it once, but I intend to make it again. It was very good!

Try it this holiday season. It makes three loaves, so you can keep one for home and take a couple to family gatherings.

Four-Cheese Chicken Fettuccine

Last time I made this was Holy Saturday, the day before Easter. This was part of the last meal I cooked for Kurt before he proposed on Easter morning.

Four-Cheese Chicken Fettuccine

8 ounces fettuccine or 2 c. egg noodles
1 can (10-3/4 ounces) condensed cream of mushroom soup, undiluted
1 pkg. (8 ounces) cream cheese, cubed
1 jar (4-1/2 ounces) sliced mushrooms, drained (optional)
1 c. whipping cream (I just use milk.)
1/2 c. butter or margarine
1/4 t. garlic powder
3/4 c. grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 c. shredded mozzarella cheese
1/2 c. shredded Swiss cheese
2-1/2 c. cubed cooked chicken or 1 pint turkey

Topping:
1/3 cup seasoned bread crumbs
2 tablespoons butter or margarine, melted
1 to 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese

Cook noodles according to package directions. Meanwhile, in a large pot, combine soup, cream cheese, mushrooms, cream, butter and garlic powder. Stir in cheeses; cook and stir until melted. Add chicken; heat through. Drain noodles; add to the sauce. Transfer to a shallow greased 13x9 pan. Combine topping ingredients; sprinkle over noodle mixture. Cover and bake at 350° for 25 minutes. Uncover; bake 5-10 minutes longer or until golden brown.

Buckeyes!

Everyone loves buckeyes, especially the candy kind! For our wedding, my mother-in-law and I made 600 of these little treats. After that adventure, I volunteered to make them for our Ohio ag teacher's banquet this week. It was a whole lot quicker making 300! Libby asked for the recipe, so I thought I'd share it with all of you. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

1 18 ounce jar of creamy peanut butter

1/2 cup butter (softened)

1 lb confectioners' sugar

1 tbs vanilla

Chocolate flavored almond bark

Directions:



1. Before beginning, melt the almond bark on low heat in a crock pot. (A lot of people use chocolate chips and paraffin instead. I think the almond bark is a lot simpler, because it saves time. You can put the whole block in the crockpot, and it will be melted in about 30 minutes. Add a spoonful of vegetable oil at the beginning to keep it from sticking to the sides. If the chocolate gets lumpy as you're dipping the buckeyes, you can add more vegetable oil to smooth out the consistency. Keep the chocolate stirred periodically as it melts. I used to melt the chocolate in the microwave, but keeping it liquified in a crockpot is the way to go. That way, you don't have to worry about scorching it in the microwave or melting it again and again.)
2. Cream peanut butter and butter.

3. Add sugar and vanilla and mix well.

4. Form into 1 inch balls and freeze. (I use my Pampered Chef Small Scoop to scoop out even amounts. It's equal to about one tablespoon. Then, I roll the balls in my hands. This helps make sure all the buckeyes come out the same size.)

5. Dip balls into chocolate with a toothpick about 3/4 of the way covered.

6. Place chocolate side down on a waxed paper-lined cookie sheet.

7. Freeze to set the chocolate. When they are frozen, use your finger to smooth over the hole where the toothpick was.
8. This recipe yields 80 buckeyes.

No Bake White Chocolate Raspberry Cheesecake

I bought several boxes of white chocolate pudding to have on hand to make Libby's "Amber Goo" recipe, and there was a recipe on the box for fluffy white cheesecake. I modified it a bit and came up with this creation. It was a hit!

No Bake White Chocolate Raspberry Cheesecake

1 package cream cheese, softened

1 1/4 cups milk

1 package (3.3 oz) white chocolate instant pudding

1 1/2 cups thawed Cool Whip

1 graham cracker crust

Raspberry preserves (optional)

Vanilla almond bark (optional)

Beat cream cheese and 1/4 cup milk in a large bowl with a whisk until blended. Add the remaining milk and pudding mix. Beat 1 minute. Stir in Cool Whip; spoon into the crust.

After I poured the mixture into the crust, I spooned some raspberry preserves on top, and swirled it in with a toothpick. It added some great flavor (you could also do this with chocolate or any other flavor.) It would be fine without the additional flavor, also. Then, after the dessert set up, I melted white almond bark and swirled on top for appearances. I used a homemade graham cracker crust, but you could also buy a premade crust. Here's my crust recipe:

Graham Cracker Crust

2 1/4 cups crushed graham crackers (I save the graham crackers that break in their own container, and use the pieces for crushed graham crackers.)

1/2 cup melted butter

1/3 cup sugar

Mix crumbs and sugar. Moisten with melted butter. Press into a greased pie plate and bake at 375 for 8 minutes. Allow to cool before filling.

Veggie Bake

I'm often asked to bring vegetables to family dinners. I can bake a pretty mean green bean casserole, but I hate taking the same dish to two consecutive dinners. So, this weekend I was looking for a new vegetable recipe and came across this one. It was very easy to make, and it got rave reviews. It could easily become a main dish with the addition of chicken breast. Enjoy!

Ingredients

• 16 oz of mixed California Blend vegetables, cooked but not overdone
• 1 cup of cooked rice
• 1 stick margarine (or better yet, support the dairy industry and use butter!)
• 1 can mushroom soup
• 8 oz Velveeta cheese
• Ritz crackers for topping

Directions

Melt together margarine, soup and cheese. Mix together with rice and vegetables. Crush Ritz crackers on top. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes.