Recipes Kids May LOVE!

I love to cook. I love to try to recipes ... Especially snacks and desserts.  I found a product section on BettyCrocker.com and I have feel in love with it. :o)

Here are a few I found on BettyCrocker.com under the 'product recipes' section using cereal.

Kix® on Stix

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup light corn syrup

1/2 cup peanut butter

3 cups Kix® cereal

20 raisins, miniature milk chocolate candy drops, small gumdrops, chocolate- or yogurt-covered raisins or miniature marshmallows

1 to 2 tablespoons multicolored candy sprinkles

20 thin pretzel sticks (2 1/4 inch)

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1. In 3-quart saucepan, heat sugar and corn syrup to boiling over medium heat, stirring frequently. Remove from heat; stir in peanut butter until blended. Stir in cereal. Cool slightly, 2 to 3 minutes.
2. Lightly butter hands. Shape 1 to 2 tablespoons cereal mixture into a ball around each candy. Immediately roll in candy sprinkles. Place pretzel stick into each cereal ball.

Substitution

A spray of cooking spray works as well as buttering your hands when shaping these treats.

Make and Take

Wrap in plastic wrap, tie with a ribbon and tuck in a lunch bag for a special treat.

Charming Cheerio® Necklace

4	piece red shoestring licorice (about 32 inch each)
1	cup Cheerios® cereal
1	cup fruit-flavored gummi, ring-shaped candy
1/2	cup pieces pastel-colored tube-shaped licorice candies (from 5.5-oz bag)

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1. Working from each end of the piece of licorice, string an arrangement of cereal and candies to create desired pattern on the necklace.
2. Tie the ends of the licorice together in a double knot to secure the necklace.

Holiday Chocolate Cereal Bars

1	cup sugar
1	cup light corn syrup
1 1/2	cups peanut butter
6	cups Cocoa Puffs® cereal
1 1/2	cups “holiday” colored (red and green) candy-coated chocolate candies

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1. Spray bottom and sides of 13x9-inch pan with cooking spray. In 2-quart saucepan, heat sugar and corn syrup to boiling over medium-high heat, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Stir in peanut butter until melted.
2. In extra-large bowl, stir cereal and peanut butter mixture with wooden spoon until cereal is evenly coated. Stir in 1 cup of the candies.
3. Press cereal mixture in pan. Immediately sprinkle with remaining 1/2 cup candies; press in lightly with fingers. Let stand about 30 minutes until cool. For bars, cut into 6 rows by 6 rows.

There's a lot more recipes on the website but I thought these were cute. I'm sure JD and I are going to be doing quite of few things like this next week since he's out of school for Thanksgiving break.

Butterfinger Cake

Thursday is the Thanksgiving Feast for JD's preschool class.  I signed myself up for two easy things, lol. Cranberry sauce and a dessert. 

Have you ever had Butterfinger Cake? Oh dear God ... It's so delicious. This is the second one I've ever made and I'm going to try Paula Deen's recipe. It's a little different but only because of the cake mix and the chocolate. But surely those aren't that big of a deal.  So here it is:

Ingredients:

1 box marble cake mix
1 (14 oz.) can sweetened condensed milk
1 jar prepared caramel topping
1 bag snack size Butterfinger candies
1 (8 oz.) container whipped topping
1 cup prepared chocolate syrup

Directions:

Pre-heat oven to 350ºF.

Bake cake as directed in a 9x13 pan.  Let cool.  Poke holes all over cake.  In a medium-mixing bowl mix condensed milk and caramel topping.  Pour over cake.  Break Butterfinger candy and sprinkle half all over cake.  Top with whipped topping and sprinkle with remaining candy.  Drizzle with chocolate syrup.

Doesn't that just sound delicious? 

Sugar Coated Pecans

I love, love, love recipes and cooking.  So, for the next couple of months I'm going to be posting more recipes that are easy to make, great for gift giving and perfect for the holidays.

Sugar-Coated Pecans

Ingredients:

* 1 egg white

* 1 tablespoon water

* 1 pound pecan halves

* 1 cup white sugar

* 3/4 teaspoon salt

* 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 250 degrees F (120 degrees C). Grease one baking sheet.

2. In a mixing bowl, whip together the egg white and water until frothy. In a separate bowl, mix together sugar, salt, and cinnamon.

3. Add pecans to egg whites, stir to coat the nuts evenly. Remove the nuts, and toss them in the sugar mixture until coated. Spread the nuts out on the prepared baking sheet.

4. Bake at 250 degrees F (120 degrees C) for 1 hour. Stir every 15 minutes.

Pumpkin Cupcakes with Cinnamon Brown Sugar Buttercream

Upon doing a search for pumpkin cupcakes I came across this recipe and I just HAD to share it with y'all.  Sweet Jesus these look so YUMMY!

From: My Kitchen Addiction

Check out her blog of additional pictures! Great Blog! :o)

Pumpkin Pound Cake Cupcakes

• 1 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup dark brown sugar, packed
• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
• 4 eggs
• 1/2 cup milk
• 3/4 cup pumpkin puree
• 1 stick unsalted butter, softened

Combine all of the ingredients (yes, I said all of the ingredients) in the bowl of your stand mixer (or just a large mixing bowl if you are brave and have a hand mixer). Beat on medium speed for 20 minutes (that’s why I said you must be brave… or at least energetic).

While the mixer is doing all of the work, preheat the oven to 350°F, line two standard muffin pans with cupcake papers (for 24 cupcakes).  I found cute pumpkin ones at the store, so I used those for my festive cupcakes.

Once the batter is smooth, fill each of the cupcake liners about 2/3 full with batter.  Bake the cupcakes for about 20 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.  Cool the cupcakes in the pans for a few minutes, and then transfer to wire racks to cool completely.

Cinnamon Brown Sugar Buttercream

• 1 stick unsalted butter, softened
• 1/4 cup shortening
• 1/3 cup dark brown sugar, packed
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 3 cups powdered sugar (varies based on temperature/humidity)
• 3 tablespoons half and half (varies based on temperature/humidity)

In a large mixer bowl, combine the butter and shortening. Whip together with the whisk attachment until light and fluffy.  Add the brown sugar and cinnamon and whisk until well combined.

Gradually add the powdered sugar, 1/2 cup at a time. Alternately add the half and half, whipping the icing on medium-high speed after each addition, until the desired consistency is reached.

Fill a pastry bag with the icing and pipe the icing onto the cupcakes.  I used a round tip to pipe spikes and swirls of icing.  Top the cupcakes with Halloween candy and a sprinkle of cinnamon, if desired.

Fair Food Favorites

If I'm just being honest ... And I usually am, I'm NOT a fan of fairs. I can't help it.  I just don't care for all the screaming, the long lines, annoying kids who can't get their way, etc. I know ... I'm whiny. lol But that's why I don't go. Oh, and not to mention the totally unsafe rides! You can keep all that. 

However, other than looking at all the people and thinking my family isn't so bad after all, the food is fantastic! All those weird fried foods are even better. lol

I'm going to post a couple of my favorite fair food recipes that I have found online.  Feel free to share yours with me. I love to cook and I'm definitely going to be trying some of the ones I post. 

Fried Oreos

A friend of mine posted on FB today how she tried one for the first time.  This is why I'm writing this blog post because I had to share this with somebody! She said it's soft in the middle and soooo good. I'm making this asap!

Fried Twinkies
Really? Fried Twinkies ... Twinkies are already so NOT good for you but then you batter it and fry it? lol ... Talk about something to die for! Mmm! These are delicious.

Caramel Apples
I just love caramel apples.  Last year at the fair they had caramel apples with so many different toppings on them: crushes oreos, candied corn, sprinkles, super mini marshmallows and the list goes on and on. There were at least 20 different ones to choose from.  So good!

And of course there is always the candied apple. Those are okay to me. Caramel is better though. :o) 

Fried Snickers Bar
OMG. These are delicious. I think it would be interesting to make these using the fun size snickers too and serving it with a side of vanilla bean ice cream. Mmm! 

Corn Dogs
I'll admit. I don't eat 'em but they're a popular fair food item that must be shared.  Plus, at the fair, you usually eat things that you wouldn't eat otherwise, lol. :o) 




So, there's five recipes that are usually always found at a state fair! What are your fair food favorites? Did you find the recipe online? Share it with me.

Peanut Butter "Cheese Ball"

This just looks delicious!!! :o)



Peanut Butter "Cheese Ball"

Level: Easy
Rated:

Source:

It’s a fact! Peanut butter and cheese top the list of kids’ favorite foods. Try them together in this unique recipe for Peanut Butter "Cheese Ball."

With a shell of swirled morsels, this creamy, peanut-buttery snack is perfect for dipping graham cracker sticks and apple slices -- a tasty addition to your child’s party menu.

Treat the little ones (and you too!) to this ever-so-delicious twist on the traditional cheese ball.

Estimated Times:
Preparation - 15 min | Cooling Time - 3 hrs 30 min freezing | Yields - 20

Ingredients: 1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese, at room temperature 1 cup powdered sugar 3/4 cup creamy or chunky peanut butter (not all-natural) 3 tablespoons packed dark brown sugar 1 1/2 cups (9 ounces) NESTLÉ® TOLL HOUSE® SWIRLED™ Milk Chocolate & Peanut Butter Morsels Graham cracker sticks and/or apple slices

Directions: BEAT cream cheese, powdered sugar, peanut butter and brown sugar in large mixer bowl until blended. Spoon onto a large piece of plastic wrap; bring up all four corners and twist tightly (should form a ball shape). FREEZE for 1 hour 30 minutes or until firm enough to keep its shape. Place morsels in flat dish. Remove plastic wrap from ball and roll ball into morsels to completely cover (you may find it necessary to press morsels into ball). PLACE ball on serving dish; cover and freeze for 2 hours or until almost firm. (Can be made ahead. If frozen overnight, thaw at room temperature for 20 to 30 minutes before serving.) Serve with graham cracker sticks and apple slices for dipping or spreading.

Buffalo Chicken Dip - YUM!

This is only one of the greatest dips I've ever tasted! :o) I saw the product in a local food delivery order book and decided to find the recipe myself. I had to share it with you ...

• 1 (10 ounce) can chunk chicken, drained
• 1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
• 1/2 cup Ranch dressing
• 1/4 cup and 2 tablespoons pepper sauce, such as Franks® Red Hot®
• 3/4 cup shredded Cheddar cheese
  
• 1/2 bunch celery, cleaned and cut into 4 inch pieces
• 1/2 (8 ounce) box chicken-flavored crackers

Heat chicken and hot sauce in a skillet over medium heat, until heated through. Stir in cream cheese and ranch dressing. Cook, stirring until well blended and warm. Mix in half of the shredded cheese, and transfer the mixture to a slow cooker. Sprinkle the remaining cheese over the top, cover, and cook on Low setting until hot and bubbly. Serve with celery sticks and crackers.

Now, here's what I used ... :o)
Tyson White Meat chunk chicken and Club crackers.

Also, I let my cream cheese become softened and in a bowl I mixed that and the ranch dressing together and THEN added the cheddar cheese. After the chicken and the hot sauce was very warm I mixed it in with the cream cheese mixture. THEN, I put it in a small baking dish and sprinkled more cheddar cheese on top and baked it at 350 for about 15 minutes. I ate it immediately, lol, with celery and club crackers! :o) It was DELICIOUS!

Pumpkin Gingerbread

My uncles birthday is coming up and all of my aunts and uncles are going to be there. Each year at his party we receive gifts from different family members. Well, as I get older I try to participate in giving something to each aunt or uncle. I only have 5 of them! :o) lol .. Last year I gave away bath salts and other goodies. This year, I'm baking bread! I've decided to make Pumpkin Gingerbread ...

INGREDIENTS

• 3 cups sugar
• 1 cup vegetable oil
• 4 eggs
• 2/3 cup water
• 1 (15 ounce) can pumpkin puree
• 2 teaspoons ground ginger
• 1 teaspoon ground allspice
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon ground cloves
• 3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly grease two 9x5 inch loaf pans.
2. In a large mixing, combine sugar, oil and eggs; beat until smooth. Add water and beat until well blended. Stir in pumpkin, ginger, allspice and cinnamon.
3. In medium bowl, combine flour, soda, salt, and baking powder. Add dry ingredients to pumpkin mixture and blend just until all ingredients are mixed. Divide batter between prepared pans.
4. Bake in preheated oven until toothpick comes out clean, about 1 hour.

I found this delightful recipe on AllRecipes.com! I checked out the reviews and I've decided to just leave the recipe alone and use it as is. The only thing I may be doing differently is use mini loaf pans. I am going to wrap them up real pretty and put them in a gift bag along with a Christmas ornament.

Whatcha think?

Household Recipes to Share

As I stated in my previous post, we're having a homemade Christmas this year. I'm leaning towards the idea of putting together some homemade items together in a basket and making it look nice.

I have a website that I absolutely love that has HUNDREDS of recipes like I'm looking for. It's called RecipeGoldMine.com. The name suits the site just right!

Here are a couple of recipes I'm interested in making ...

Vanilla Room Spray

1 (4 ounce) clean spray bottle with a fine mist setting
1 1/2 ounces distilled water
1 1/2 ounces clear vanilla extract

- Fill the spray bottle with vanilla extract and distilled water.
- Let the bottle sit for one day before use.
- Shake the bottle prior to each use. Mist lightly in the room. Be careful not to allow the air freshener mist to fall onto furniture or into open beverages.

Simply the Best Pancake Syrup
3 cups brown sugar (one 1-pound box)
1 1/2 cups boiling water
1 or 2 cinnamon sticks, broken
1 teaspoon whole allspice
1/2 teaspoon whole cloves
Zest of one orange or one lemon
1 teaspoon maple extract (optional)
1/4 teaspoon almond extract

Mix brown sugar and water together. Add whole spices and citrus zest. Cover and let steep for several hours. Taste to see if spicy enough and, if so, strain into a container with a cover. Stir in maple and almond extracts. Store in the refrigerator.

Makes about 2 cups.

Pecan Pie Jam
1 cup finely chopped pecans
1 cup granulated sugar
1 pinches salt
1 tablespoon ground ginger
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 tablespoon cinnamon
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter
1 tablespoons apple cider or lemon juice

Mix ingredients in a large saucepan. Cook over medium heat, until the sugar has dissolved and the mixture is well blended. Do not allow the mixture to boil. Transfer to sterile jars, and refrigerate.

Yields about 2 cups.

These are EASY recipes that are going to make great gifts. I found a website, lol, I'm always finding websites, CanningPantry.com that has all kinds of canning jars that are going to be useful for these gifts. I'm going to purchase some of the 4 oz. jars. I'm also going to be get some labels so I can create my own personalized labels to put on the jars. Then, of course, I'll be getting some fabric and rattan twine so I can make the jars look pretty!

TA-DA! This will be great for almost everyone on my list. And I can even mke something for the kids because that website has a recipes like Rootbeer Jelly, Kool-Aid Jelly, and Cinnamon Cocoa Mix in a Jar! I also plan on making these little Puzzles in a Jar gifts. I found them in a Christmas Crafts book and basically you buy a puzzle, put the peices in a jar and cut out the small picture on the puzzle box and put it in on the tag and decorate the jar. It's cute.

I think this is going to come together quite easily. I mean, if I head to Sam's Club I could buy in bulk and really save some money! Hopefully, this gave you some ideas, too! :o)

Merry Christmas!

Fruit Salsa and Cinnamon Chips

I was cruising around looking for a delicious recipe to make and this is one that I came across. I linked to the original site at the bottom of this post so you can view the different variations and the reviews.

Ingredients:

• 2 kiwis, peeled and diced
• 2 Golden Delicious apples - peeled, cored and diced
• 8 ounces raspberries
• 1 pound strawberries
• 2 tablespoons white sugar
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar
• 3 tablespoons fruit preserves, any flavor

• 10 (10 inch) flour tortillas
• butter flavored cooking spray
• 2 cups cinnamon sugar

Directions:

1. In a large bowl, thoroughly mix kiwis, Golden Delicious apples, raspberries, strawberries, white sugar, brown sugar and fruit preserves. Cover and chill in the refrigerator at least 15 minutes.
2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
3. Coat one side of each flour tortilla with butter flavored cooking spray. Cut into wedges and arrange in a single layer on a large baking sheet. Sprinkle wedges with desired amount of cinnamon sugar. Spray again with cooking spray.
4. Bake in the preheated oven 8 to 10 minutes. Repeat with any remaining tortilla wedges. Allow to cool approximately 15 minutes. Serve with chilled fruit mixture.

PREP TIME	15 Min
COOK TIME	10 Min
READY IN	45 Min

Source

White Trash

Have you ever ate trash? What about white trash? No, I'm not talking about the garbage trash, but a yummy spin on a delicious snack mix.

Here we go, this makes for a yummy snack or a great idea for gifts

Serves 18
20 min

3 C. Rice Chex
3 C. Cheerios
3 C. Golden Grahams
3 C. Raisin Bran
3 C. Pretzels
2 C. Peanut M&Ms
7 Boxes of White Chocolate Baking Bars

In a HUGE bowl mix all the ingredients except chocolate.
Melt white chocolate in a double boiler.
Pour over the mixture being sure to coat it well.
Once it's coated, lay out the mixture on waxed paper and let it dry.

Okay, there's the directions but here's what I did. I had to use 2 big bowls and melt the chocolate in batches. I laid out the mixture on baking sheets lined with waxed paper and I put the snack mix in the refrigerator to let it dry. I let it sit over night because I was using it the next morning. It's all stuck together and you just break it up.

I have never gotten so many positive reviews of anything I've ever made! This is delicious. Next time I make it I'm going to use cinnamon toast crunch rather than golden grahams. You can use ANYTHING you like.

This does make a huge batch but you can easily decrease the measurements. The original recipe only called for 1 lb of chocolate which was definitely not enough! At our grocery store our bakers white chocolate comes in 6 oz boxes. I suggest using about 7 boxes of white chocolate to cover ALL of the mix.

Make it and tell me what you think ....

Sweetheart Chocolate Lollipops

Prep Time: 20 min Total Time: 2 hr

Makes: about 2-1/2 doz. or 30 servings, one pop each

4 squares BAKER'S Unsweetened Baking Chocolate

3/4 cup (1-1/2 sticks) butter

2 cups sugar

3 eggs

1 tsp. vanilla

2 cups flour

4 squares BAKER'S Premium White Baking Chocolate, melted

Assorted Valentine sprinkles

PREHEAT oven to 350°F. Microwave chocolate and butter in large microwaveable bowl on HIGH 2 min. or until butter is melted. Stir until chocolate is completely melted and mixture is well blended. Add sugar; mix well. Blend in eggs and vanilla. Add flour; mix well. Cover. Refrigerate 1 hour or until dough is stiff.

SHAPE dough into 2-inch balls; insert lollipop stick into each ball. Place, 2 inches apart, on greased baking sheets.

BAKE 8 min. or just until set. (Do not overbake.) Let stand on baking sheet 1 min.; transfer to wire racks. Cool completely. Drizzle with chocolate; decorate with sprinkles. Let stand until chocolate is firm.

How to Melt and Drizzle Chocolate

Coarsely chop chocolate squares; place in microwaveable bowl. Microwave on MEDIUM (50%) 2 min. or until chocolate is almost melted. Stir until chocolate is completely melted. Dip fork into chocolate, then use to drizzle chocolate over pops. Let stand until chocolate is firm.