Our Christmas Treats: Recipe Five: Dip Everything in Chocolate!

It's getting late in the game and, if you're like me, that's just how we roll.  Don't panic and don't give up.  Don't worry about anything labor intensive like sugar cookies that take three hours to chill or fudge that may or may not set up!  Bake up a box of brownies and cut them out with Christmas cookie cutters and then find what you can and dip it in chocolate!  Everything tastes better dipped in chocolate!  It's fast and easy, too.  I always use almond bark because it's fool proof and that's what I need!  Throw a small spoonful of shortening in with about six squares of almond bark and cook it for two minutes in the microwave.  (use a plastic bowl if you can.  ceramic bowls are PIPING HOT when you try to get them out of the microwave!)  Using a whisk to stir this is fastest and gets any leftover lumps out.  Here is a list of things that we would (and have) dip in chocolate and call it dessert!  Add some of your own ideas!

• Candy orange slices
• Oreo cookies
• Peanut butter crackers (two ritz crackers sandwiched together with peanut butter... these are amazing!!)
• Drizzled on popcorn
• Peanuts
• Pretzels
• Coffee Beans
• Fruit (I would dip these last minute because the juices from the fruit tend to react with the chocolate and things get watery)

Sprinkle any of these with colored sugar to make them sparkle.  Good luck!

Our Christmas Treats: Recipe Four: Homemade Almond Roca

One of my mother-in-law's favorite Christmas treats was Almond Roca.  Whenever Christmas rolls around we are always sure to pick up a traditional pink can of the gold foil wrapped treats and think of our sweet memories of her.  This recipe is so authentic for me that it conjures up those same memories.  Truthfully, it always feels like she's in the room and sharing a moment with me.  If you click on the "mother-in-law" link above, you'll learn more about this amazing woman.
I found this recipe in "Miserly Meals" by Jonni McCoy.  (It's interesting to note that a third cup serving of this is only .32 cents!)  I've only made this recipe once so it's written here almost exactly as it is in the cookbook, but I have made a few adaptations for our own family's tastes.

Fuzzy... can't wait to get a new camera!

Homemade Almond Roca

1/2 cup butter
1 1/2 cups brown sugar
4 oz (1/4 cup) slivered almonds
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup chocolate chips, divided
1/4 cup finely chopped pecans

Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.
Melt the butter over medium heat in a saucepan.  Add the brown sugar and stir bringing the mixture to a boil.  Heat to a hard crack stage (about 310 degrees) then remove from the heat and add the almonds.  Stir to mix and pour the mixture onto the parchment paper and spread it out evenly.  While the candy is still hot, sprinkle 1/2 cup of the chocolate chips over the candy.  The heat from the candy melts the chocolate and makes it easy to spread it over the candy with a knife.  Sprinkle 2 tablespoons of the pecans over the melted chocolate and let the candy cool completely.
You can leave it simply like this, or melt the rest of the chocolate in the microwave, turn the cooled candy over and spread the melted chocolate on the opposite side and sprinkle the rest of the pecans on top of that.
Whichever you choose to do, once it is completely cooled, break it up into smaller pieces.

Holiday Crafts for Kids

It's that time of year when everyone is so busy and schedules are all messed up due to holiday events and company coming.  I love crafting with my kids or just handing them a pile of craft supplies and seeing what they make.  Almost nothing is off-limits to them to create with.  We have a stock of felt, construction paper, stamps and ink, scrapbooking paper and stickers, hot glue, glue sticks, glitter, beads, googlie eyes, popsicle sticks, magnets and sheets of foam... among other things... MANY other things!  There's always a mess to clean up afterward, it's true, but the kids have the best time just being able to create!
I thought I would put together a few holiday crafts that your kids could do easily without much mess.  Hope you have as much fun crafting with your kids as I do with mine.

Christmas Tree

Cut a Christmas tree out of green construction paper and let the kids stick foil star stickers on them.  I usually use a cookie cutter to cut the shape of the tree and give each child their own tree.  The foil star stickers are a little tough for younger kids to manipulate, but it's a great fine motor skill activity and there's nearly no mess.  Be creative.  Look in the office supplies as well as the craft section of your store for other stickers like dots that would make great looking Christmas balls.  Make different sized trees.  Tape them all to a string and hang them on the tree or over a window as garland.  Put a magnet on the back and put it on the fridge.  Tape them on the wall to create a forest of Christmas trees.  Take your garland to a nursing home and ask if you can place it on their tree while you visit with the residents there.  (when i had in-home daycare, we planned monthly visits to the nursing home.  we would do a craft there that the residents would help us with and have a snack.  one year, i read the christmas story and the children acted out the parts.  they simply love company!) You can use the free clip art from Carson-Dellosa to print a tree on construction paper if you'd rather.  (this website has lots!  you can save the pics to your computer and use them as coloring pages, too!)  This is a great, low mess, fast craft.

Cinnamon Bear Ornaments

Have the kids help you mix 1/2 cup of cinnamon, 1/3 cup of applesauce and 1 tablespoon of glue together in a bowl.  Dust a cutting board with cinnamon and roll the dough out.  It should be about the consistency of cookie dough.  Have the kids cut out Christmas shapes using cookie cutters.  Use a straw to make a whole in the top so it will be easy to string.  Place the shapes on a cooling rack that you've placed in a large cookie sheet.  Put the ornaments in the oven with a temperature of 200 degrees.  You can also let these air dry but it will take longer.  After they're dry, the kids can decorate them or they can go straight on the tree after you've put a string of ribbon through the hole.

Snowmen

There are so many ways to make a cute snowman!  One of my favorites is with paint.  Don't cringe!  It can still be a clean and easy craft.  Here's what you'll need:

1 sheet of blue construction paper per child
white, orange and black paint
a top hat cut out of black construction paper or felt (don't worry about being fancy if you don't want to... the kids don't care nearly as much as we do about that kind of thing)
2 or 3 sponges cut into circles, one a litter smaller than the other
a pencil with a full eraser
a paint brush

Pour a large amount of the white paint onto a paper plate.  Pour a small amount of the black and the orange paint onto another paper plate.  Dip the largest circle sponge in the white paint (you don't need a lot of paint to do this) and direct the child to stamp it near the bottom of the page... it's their project, so don't direct too much.  Repeat this with the other sponges having the child stack the circles to make a snowman.  Dip the head of the pencil eraser into the black paint and have the kids stamp eyes, mouth and buttons on their snowman.  Using the paint brush, you can paint a skinny triangle for the nose or older children can do it themselves.  Have the children glue the hat onto the snowman's head.
You can also draw a snowman on a piece of construction paper and allow the children to glue cotton balls or marshmallows on the snowman.  Eyes, nose and mouth can be made with construction paper, buttons, popcorn, cheerios or just about anything you can think of.  Use pipe cleaners for arms or popsicle sticks as seen here.

One more tip to give is if you have lots of kids to craft with, put a Christmas movie on and hand out popcorn.  While they're watching the show, invite one child at a time to the table to complete the craft.  That gives you great one-on-one time with your kids and makes the craft time nearly stress-free.
Make memories with  your kids.  It's this stuff, not a gift that is "bigger and better", that creates the memories that last a lifetime.

Our Christmas Treats: Recipe Three: Coconut Balls

One year at Christmastime we were visiting at Joseph's mom's house and his cousin, Shelly, lived across the street.  We went over there to visit and she had THE BEST treats!!  I never did get the recipe for Coconut Balls from her but she said she got it from her grandmother's cookbook.  I love that.  I love anything that has been passed down from generation to generation.  It always makes me wonder about the people who used the recipes, who ate the food.  What was their life like?  Were they happy or was sorrow touching their life?  It's for this same reason that I love antiques.  I want to ask each piece, where have you been and what have you seen?  So this recipe to me, although I made it up myself, has deep roots in the past which is always comforting to me when I make them.

Coconut Balls

1 14 ounce can of sweetened condensed milk
1 14 ounce package of shredded coconut (5 1/3 cups)

Combine the two ingredients in a bowl (you can add a little almond extract to this if you like it).  Carefully form the mixture into balls.  This is really messy but would probably be made easier with a melon baller.  Place the balls on a cookie sheet lined with waxed paper or parchment paper and put them in the freezer for one hour.  Melt almond bark as you do for Chocolate-Peanut Butter Balls.  I always add about a cup of semi-sweet chocolate chips to this and melt it with the almond bark.
Bring the coconut balls out of the freezer and dip them in the melted chocolate.  Put them back on the cookie sheet because they'll probably need a little help setting up because of the addition of the chocolate chips.  I sprinkle some melted white almond bark on top to distinguish them from the Chocolate-Peanut Butter Balls.  Depending on the size of the treats, this recipe will make from 2-3 dozen.

Our Christmas Treats: Recipe Two: Gingerbread Bears

One year in a Christmas basket from my sister and her family, there were a couple of gingerbread men tucked in among the other treats.  I've got to tell you, it was love at first bite!  I had to have the recipe!  I love things that make a memory or remind me of someone and this always reminds me of her. 
A cup of coffee and a gingerbread bear (i don't have any "man" cookie cutters that i really like so i use a bear) can double as a holiday breakfast at my house and has many times!  I suppose I shouldn't recommend that but, what a treat!

"gingy"

Gingerbread Bears


3 1/2 cups of flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. baking powder
1 cup brown sugar
2 tsp. ginger
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. allspice/cloves

1/2 cup butter
3/4 cup molasses
1 egg

Mix the dry ingredients together.  In a separate bowl, mix the butter, molasses and egg.  Blend the dry ingredients with the wet to form a stiff ball.  Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for one hour.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  On a lightly floured board, roll the dough out to about 1/4 inch.  (don't roll it too thin... fat bears are softer and yummier)  Cut out cookies and place them on the cookie sheet (i always bake with parchment paper now but i've never greased the pan either way).  Bake each batch for 10 minutes (i think that all cookies should be baked for only 10 minutes because then they are softer).
You can decorate your bears after they've cooled, but I never do.  It would be a fun thing to do with your kids, tho.

Try them for breakfast with your coffee... I promise, I'll never tell!

Our Christmas Treats: Recipe One: Chocolate-Peanut Butter Balls

This week I'm going to start a series of posts with recipes for some of our favorite Christmas Treats and the stories behind them.  In that way, I hope that we can share a little of our home with you during the holiday season.

Today's treat is...

Chocolate-Peanut Butter Balls

Peanut butter balls are one of the foods that my best friend always said she could never live without and so it was always among any gifts she received from me each year!  Peanut butter was her biggest food love in life and I never make them without thinking of her.  What a treasure to find her in even the little everyday things!  Read about my girl in other posts I've published.  She was an amazing friend and I'm blessed to have known her even in the smallest way.

1c. peanut butter
1/4 cup butter, softened
2c. crisp rice cereal
1c. powdered sugar
1pkg (14 ounces) chocolate candy coating (almond bark)
2T vegetable shortening

In a large bowl, combine peanut butter and butter and sugar.  Add the cereal, mixing until evenly combined.  Form into balls and set on waxed paper.
Melt the almond bark and shortening together for about 2 minutes in the microwave (or with a double boiler on the stovetop).  Dip each peanut butter ball into the chocolate mixture and return it to the waxed paper to cool and set up.

Giving Thanks

Today, Lord, I'm thankful for family.  I'm thankful for a husband who endures the good, bad and ugly of his job because it pays our bills and allows me to stay at home with our kids and teach them.  I'm thankful for the honor You bestow in trusting me to raise Your children.  I'm thankful for a beautiful daughter who is growing into a strong woman and for three wonderful sons who are learning so much from their Dad about how to be a man.

I thank You, God, for parents who are always there to encourage me thru life.  I thank You for any and every opportunity You give me to serve them in return.  I thank You for brothers and sisters, aunts and uncles and dozens of cousins who all, in their own way, have taught me and helped to shape my world, my heart and my compassion.  I thank You for Grandparents that I achingly miss every single day because they made such a massive impact in my life.
Thank You, God, for family traditions.  For things I will never forget because they are etched in my mind as lighthearted days full of laughter and peace.
I thank You for a warm house, employment, and plenty of food.  I thank You for friends, both here and gone.  They are so clearly Your gift to me.  Please don't ever let me take that for granted.
Most of all God, I thank You for the gift of being able to talk to You.  Thank You for showing me why I believe and that my prayers count.

I hope and I pray that I never forget who and what I am thankful for.  I want to make memories for my family that will last a lifetime and continue on for generations.  I want to be the parent that my parents have been and the grandparent that my grandparents were.  I want to leave a mark in this world that points others to the Cross because EVERYONE will see one day that, THAT is the only thing that will EVER matter.

Our Thanksgiving

Well, I've been meaning to update you on the Thanksgiving festivities at our house.  Unfortunately I came down with morning sickness that weekend and, due to many late nights, a good case of exhaustion so I haven't taken the time to sit down and write.
Jackie came out the week before and sat down and got me organized.  She forced me to allow others to do some work, too and listed all of the dishes I could prepare in advance.  It wound up being my saving grace in all of this.  She also loaned me a card table and five chairs which worked out great to put in the family room.  With 21 diners in all even my 90 inch table couldn't hold everyone!
Well, everyone arrived late Wednesday and came out to the house.  Most people ate but since it was after 8pm some had already had dinner on the road.  Only one family cancelled at the last minute but we had an addition of two more so it all worked out well.
I failed to take very many pictures... I think I was too busy talking but I did take a few..

This is a picture of Makaily on Thanksgiving morning.  She and her dad and I went out to take care of the chickens.  We were all still in our jammies and Makaily donned my pink plaid rubber boots and barn coat.  She looked so cute and was definitely very serious about her job.  Her dad dropped the bucket of scraps while 'Kaily and I went in search of eggs.  Luckily we found two!  She also found this barred rock who didn't mind being pet first thing in the morning!  Talk about unusual!  She turned around and gave 'Kaily a look but didn't shy away from the lovin'.
I took most of Thanksgiving morning off and let Joe and the others take over the kitchen.  After all, thanks to Jackie's plan of attack, most of my work was done for the day!  I was in total heaven with all of my family around.  Twelve kids and nine adults roaming (and sometimes running) around the house and the yard!  We gave thanks and all ate an amazing dinner of turkey, homemade stuffing, cranberries and cranberry salad, mashed potatoes and homemade rolls, gravy, pumpkin and apple pies, green bean casserole and sweet potatoes with marshmallows.  It was really great and a lot of fun.

This is a picture of a table we set up by the fireplace.  Jackie made the centerpiece and it looked so beautiful in the middle of the table.  I added some pumpkins from our garden, candles, silk fall leaves and grapevine pumpkins.  Pretty nice for the kids' table!
We finished the evening with a kettle fire outside.  I wish I'd have gotten a picture of that for our landlords but I just got so wrapped up in enjoying everyone that I forgot.  I was sitting at the fire and passing out marshmallows to the kids and just absorbed the moment.  It was dark out and there were kids swinging on the rope swing.  Some other kids were playing flashlight tag and some of us were around the fire.  About four or five guys got in the hot tub and they each took their littlest kids in with them.  Some people were inside playing video games.  I wish every day could end that way!

When we came inside, Uncle Jim got out his dremel so everyone could carve their names and ages in the table leaf.  Everyone wrote their name with Sharpie marker first and then Donna Marie went over it all with the dremel.  I sent a picture to my Mom.  I know she would've rather seen the table unmarred but I told her it was my forever table and that it was going to tell a story.  I think it turned out perfectly and I'm so happy with it!
I passed out the Christmas catalogs from Penney's and a Sharpie for each kid to mark what they wanted from Santa this year.  I told the parents that I was promoting commercialism among their children. :)  The kids loved them, of course!
The next morning everyone had to leave for one reason or another so we fed them all breakfast and off they went.  Most of them encountered a little snowfall on the mountain and I think that was probably the perfect end to the weekend.
Family is the most important thing in my life.  I do miss them all but am grateful to be able to live in the most beautiful bit of country on God's green earth!

The "finalized" Thanksgiving Plans...

Well, the preschool teacher in me has kicked in and I've planned excessively for our family visit. In the spirit of this blog I'd like to list the ideas I have in case you'd like to use any as your own. I'm borrowing a little bit from the past and hoping to create some new traditions for the future.
Because I love Mexican food, Wednesday night we'll have a Mexican food buffet available as our family arrives in town. On Thursday I think I'll gift the children with their own Christmas catalogs from JC Penney's. Since there are a ton of kids coming, they may have to share a bit. Maybe I'll give them each their own color of Sharpie so they can clearly mark what is on their wish list. Of course, Thursday would be Thanksgiving which means it's the day of wearing elastic waist pants! :) We'll cook, bake and eat til we nearly pop! I thought we'd finish up with a cup of coffee or cocoa or cider by a bonfire in the lower pasture. We've been collecting branches and other yard debris throughout the fall so we should be plenty ready.
On Friday we can do any number of things! We can do a little shopping (since our options are limited, I doubt we'll do that), we can visit Gilstrap Brothers Winery for a tour and tasting, do kid crafts, Christmas baking, play games or watch Christmas movies. If there's snow on the mountain maybe we could go up to Anthony Lakes and go sledding. We may just sit around and talk while the kids play and that would be ok with me, too! I'd like to finish the day with the Brazil's coming to do a little bluegrass jam at our house tho. They're so fun to watch and listen to!
The Saturday after Thanksgiving at our house is traditionally the day we go to the tree farm and cut down our family tree. We'll spend the day decorating the house and the tree. I'm hoping to convince Donna Marie to take our family pictures that day, too. Maybe even a picture of ALL of us... cousins, aunt and uncle, brothers and sisters.
Sunday, before everyone leaves, we'll have a send-off breakfast... I think I'll post the menu's I'm planning later this week. If I'm REALLY good, I'll have a basket for each family to take home with them. Farm fresh eggs, fresh bread and something we canned this year like jam or applesauce... maybe some salsa. Ambitious, aren't I? I plan on enlisting lots of help to get ready for the holiday. I just can't wait!

Your Thanksgiving...

For Thanksgiving we are blessed to have lots of family showing up for the event this year! I can't wait! I'm looking for all of your input on what Thanksgiving means to you. What traditions, food and such that just "say" Thanksgiving to you. For me it's always a massive dinner around the table with extended family, eating til you think you're gonna burst and falling asleep in front of a football game (the Cowboys, of course!). It's also the day that kicks off the holiday season for me. As a kid I'd go through the Christmas catalog and mark all of the things I wanted. Whenever I'd try to show them to my Dad he'd say uh-huh a lot but whenever I looked up he was more than likely to be watching TV instead of looking at the hundredth thing I wanted to see under the tree. :)
Ok, so tell me about your perfect Thanksgiving... I'm dying to know!