Happy List -- Happy! Happy! Happy!!!!

Well I have quite the Happy List this week!!!
So hear I go.....

1) Thank you so much Evelyn .  My 12 days of Christmas Swap package arrived yesterday!  I so can't wait for tomorrow and start opening a present each day.  Thanks again Evelyn and Sami for letting me in on my 1st ever Swap - If you can't tell I feel like a little kid again...and it awesome.

2)  I received a Super Exciting Email from the Coffeemate Brew Crew ...Which I am a proud member - as I posted about awhile back about applying for the Coffee-mate Fan Appreciation Trip to L.A. - I am one of the 10 who have been selected!!!!  Wow! Wow! Wow!  What an honor.  I have never been to CA let a long a large city like L.A.  Now if they will just let my darling hubby go along - I will be making the big exciting trip toward the end of Jan.  What a way to ring in the new year!!!  So say a prayer or two for me that they let him come along  - so I will make the trip! :)  My current favorite flavor of Coffee-mate is the Gingerbread Latte - it is sooooo good.  What is your seaonal favorite? 


a. Sugar and Spice

b. Eggnog Latte

c. Gingerbread Latte

d. Pumpkin Spice

e. Peppermint Mocha

f. Caramel Apple

 

3) I also woke up to another great email today.  I won my 1st blog contest - thanks to middayescapades . I won an awesome - 12 piece box Rosa's Gourmet Fudge.  Can't wait for it to arrive and try it out.

4) And my Christmas baking is still going well.  Just finished more peanut brittle today and hard anise candy - so my house smells like Christmas.  Now I just have to get busy decorating the tree.




The Anise candy before I broke it into pieces.


What is on your Happy List this week? - please link below and share.

Ghirardelli Ultimate Double Chocolate Cookie Recipe

Last weekend my husband was looking at Allrecipes.com and one of the featured recipes was Ghirardelli Ultimate Double Chocolate Cookies.  Of course he mentioned how delicious this chocolaty recipe looked.  ....So I took that as a hint (plus I never can get enough chocolate!)....and I had to make this Chocolate treasures.

Wow - these were worth the wait - and I know these will not be just a Holiday favorite - but an anytime chocolate favorite.  What a great addition to my goodie bags this year.  The bittersweet chocolate helped to off set the richness of the semi-sweet chocolate.  The walnuts added a great bitterness and crunch to the cookies.

Ingredients:


2 cups Ghirardelli 60% Cacao Bittersweet Chocolate Chips

6 tablespoons unsalted butter

3 large eggs

1 cup granulated white sugar

1/3 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

2 cups Ghirardelli Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips

1 cup chopped walnuts

Directions

Melt the bittersweet chocolate chips and butter in the top of a double boiler or in a heatproof bowl over barely simmering water, stirring occasionally until smooth.


I purchased a double boiler a few years ago and I can't image cooking with out it now.  It was definitely worth the investment!



In a large bowl, beat the eggs and sugar with an electric mixer until thick.

Stir the chocolate mixture in egg and sugar combination.

In a small bowl, stir together the flour and baking powder; stir into the chocolate mixture. Gently mix in the chocolate chips and walnuts.

Using a sheet of plastic wrap, form the dough into two logs, each 2 inches in diameter and about 8 inches long. Because the dough will be quite soft, use the plastic wrap to hold the dough in the log shape.

Wrap tightly; refrigerate for at least 1 hour or until firm.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Grease a cookie sheet or line with parchment paper.

Unwrap the dough. With a sharp knife, cut the dough into 3/4-inch slices. Place the slices 1 1/2 inches apart on the prepared cookie sheet. ( I put the unused dough back into the refrigerator until I needed it for the next pans - to help keep in firm)

Bake for 12 to 14 minutes, until a shiny crust forms on top of the cookies but the interior is still soft. Let cool on the cookie sheet. Then remove from the cookie sheet with a metal spatula.

The cookies turned out perfectly - as long as you follow the recipe.  The dough was soooo soft that I was concerned it would never firm to the point of being able to cut it - but it did just fine after a little time in the refrigerator.  And make sure you let the cookies cool on the pan - as they need the extra time with the heat of the cookie sheet to finish baking - gently.

Santa's Whiskers - My new cookie to try this Holiday Season

I found a recipe online back in 2001 and printed it off - but it always went into my one cookbook.  Every Holiday Season I would go through the sack of recipes and decide which ones to make - this one always was put to the side - but I never had the heart to throw it away.  I knew I wanted to make them some year. 

Well, 9 years later - it finally happened - after a few personal tweaks of the recipe - the "Santa's Whiskers" came to life.  The biggest challenge with the recipe is cutting up the candied cherries.  Wow are they sticky, sticky, sticky!  That was the most time consuming part of the entire process - but well worth all the effort. 

Ingredients:

1 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 cup granulated sugar
2 Tablespoons milk
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 1/2 cups flour
1 cup chopped candied cherries
1 cup chopped pecans
1 cup sweetened flaked coconut

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees

Cream together butter and sugar

Blend in milk and vanilla

Stir in flour and mix well

Stir in Cherries, Pecans, and Coconut

Make into balls (walnut size) and flatten on ungreased cookie sheet

Bake for 10-12 minutes - until light golden brown on the bottom.

They are so buttery and delicious. The smell of them baking reminds me of my snow balls recipe. The candied cherries add a nice touch and are not too sweet.

My Happy List

Well another week has went by - and I still have more Christmas baking to do - But I have made plenty more treats during this past week!  My Christmas goodies bags are going to be awesome this year.

I am excited to say I was able to return to light duty at work this week.  I get to sit at my desk and type reports - Hey, but I am not complaining - at least I don't have to go on FMLA again this year!  Thank God for that.



If it was only the Glamorous at my desk!!!

The 1st Swap I have every participated in is going awesome.  I love my Swap Partner Evelyn . She is the coolest.  And I already mailed my package out to her on Friday!!!  I am so excited - I hope Evelyn likes it as much as I enjoyed putting it all together!


A Childhood candy favorite of mine was and still it Twin Bings!!!

I contacted Palmer Candy Company this week to see if they sold seconds!  They do! They do! They do!  I am now on the waiting list and as soon as they get some in they will be mailing me out a 5 pound box for 11.95 + shipping.  What deal!  I am so excite - now I just have to be patient for them to arrive.

The last thing is I received an awesome FedEx package today.  It was from Allrecipes.com - I won a twitter contest they were having over Thanksgiving. 

An avocado Slicer and this awesome dual ended small spatula.  The spatula made by Chef'n is my new favorite Kitchen tool.  I used it so much in the kitchen today with my holiday baking!  It is the most beautiful color of Eggplant and heat resistant up to 650 degrees! 
What is your happy list for the week?
 

Cream Cheese Pecan Swirl Cookies Recipe - Taste of Home

I like to try at least one or two new Holiday recipes every year.  Some of the recipes go to the "Land of Misfit Recipes" and other survive for at least another year.  This recipe - I found back in 2005 from the "Taste of Home" website called Pecan Swirls - it has become a keeper for the family.  I adjusted the amount of vanilla - as I like more of that flavor - but other than this one minor adjustment - the recipe remains the same.

This is one of my husband's yearly requests and I am glad - as I love them myself.  The aroma of cream cheese and vanilla wafting from the oven as these bake, make me feel like Pavlov's Dog (I start salivating).  The texture of these sweet cookies is light and the nut/sugar mixture is a perfect balance with the cream cheese dough.

I hope you find this recipe as enjoyable as we do.

Ingredients:

2 cups unsalted butter, softened
2 - 8oz packages of cream cheese, softened
1 Tablespoon vanilla extract
4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 1/4 cups finely chopped pecans
1 1/3 cups granulated sugar

Directions:

In a large mixing bowl, cream butter and cream cheese until smooth.

Beat in vanilla.

Combine flour and salt - gradually add to creamed mixture.

Divide into three portions.

Wrap each in plastic wrap - refrigerated for at least 2 hours or overnight - until easy to handle.

On a lightly flour table - roll each portion into a 16" x 8" rectangle.

Combine pecans and sugar - sprinkle over dough within 1/2" of edges.

Roll up each rectangle tightly jelly-roll style (starting with long side).

Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours.

Unwrap and cut into 3/8" slices.  Place 2" apart on a lightly greased cookie sheet.

Bake 400 degrees for 12 to 14 minutes or until lightly browned.

Remove to wire racks to cool.

My favorite part of baking these swirls in the ends of the cookie rolls.  They are not pretty to look at, but they are wonderful.  So I can't give these ugly ends away as gifts - so I get to eat every, last one of them :)

Congrats to the Winner of my 1st Blog Giveaway with King Arthur Flour!

Thank you all for entered my 1st Giveaway on my blog.  I am happy to announce the winner of my first Giveaway sponsored by King Arthur Flour.  I used http://www.randomizer.com to select the winner of this giveaway.

Number 91 was Deborah Wellenstein. Thank you for entering. I have sent you an email. Please reply with your address - and King Arthur will be sending you your prize directly.


Thank you all who entered and keep I watch on my blog for my next giveaway soon!

Krispy Chocolate Covered Peanut Butter Balls Recipe

Growing up we always went to my Grandma and Grandpa's farm every Christmas Eve - after attending the Children's Mass at our church.  The house was always full of family members, great food and treats and gifts. **It was magical**  Everyone that attended the Christmas Eve Celebration always brought something along to share with everyone. 

I am still not sure who always brought these heavenly peanut butter balls.  I remember how the chocolate coating would shine (makes me wonder if they used Paraffin wax in the melted chocolate).  I would bite into the firm chocolate and a crunchy explosion would happen in my mouth.  The creamy peanut butter, which had a slight hint of salt, the crunchy Krispy rice cereal combined together perfectly. 

That was the only time each year I had this treat.  So as a grew up, I decided I needed to find a recipe or make one that would remind of being a child at the farm on Christmas Eve.

Okay I need to confess my first year of making these....I never gave any of them out......I ate my all myself over a two week period.  I think that Christmas season I gained at least 10 pounds - thanks to these Peanut Butter Balls.  This year I have sealed them up!  I have only eaten a couple....I am so proud of myself.

Here is the recipe I continue to tweak for Krispy Chocolate Covered Peanut Butter Balls.

Ingredients:

2 cups peanut butter ( I like Creamy)
1 stick butter, softened
1 tsp vanilla
1 pound powdered sugar
3 cups Rice Krispies
1 pound melted chocolate

Directions:

Mix first 4 ingredients.

Add in Rice Krispies.

Roll into balls.

It is much easier and cleaner, if you roll all of them out first, before dipping.

Dip into Chocolate. 

I love to use my crock pot to heat up the chocolate.  It helps keep it warm and liquefied as you dip all the tasty peanut butter balls.



This photo makes me think I should call them Peanut Butter Mice - Don't they kind of look like that?

Hope everyone tries this recipe out and has some self control not to eat all of them like I did that one time :)