English Toffee

English Toffee
Recipe from Cally Carlson
(This is the best toffee I have ever had, and it is super easy to make and tastes better than store bought Almond Rocca.)

Ingredients:

• 2 cubes butter
• 1 cup sugar
• 3 TSP water
• 1 cup finely chopped walnuts
• 1 (16 ounce) package chocolate chips

Directions:

• Combine butter, sugar and water in a heavy pan over high heat.
• Stir continuously.
• Cook until the candy makes a color change to deep amber (approximately 15 minutes) and is steaming.
• Do NOT mix/scrape sugar from upper level of the pan (the stuff above the level of the candy) as this will change the consistency. Cally quote, "Be sure not to scrape down the sides of the pan while cooking. The sugar will crystallize and the Toffee will come out grainy and chewy instead of crunchy."
• Remove candy from heat and spread on cookie sheet that has been lined with wax paper.
• Let begin to cool 2 -3 minutes.
• Sprinkle chocolate chips evenly on top of hot candy and spread until it begins to melt.
• Sprinkle top with the chopped walnuts.
• Lightly press nuts down.
• Cool in refrigerator until hard.
• Use hands to break into pieces.

Hints:
Call Cally for hints!!! When I made this the first time without her, I didn't let the color change enough before removing it from the heat and then the candy was tougher and didn't break so easily. Cally says, "I am always more likely to under cook than overcook. Let it get a little more brown than you think."
Also, remember to stir it constantly.
But the most important thing to remember....Keep the kids away while stirring and pouring!!! This stuff gets HOT!

Dirt With Worms

(Pictured is dirt with bears since the store was out of worms)

This the the best dirt you will ever eat! Recipe originally from cooks.com. Adjusted for our tastes.

Ingredients 1 pkg. gummy worms 2 pkg. chocolate pudding 3 1/2 c. milk

1 package Oreo cookies

1 package Grasshopper cookies 8 oz. cream cheese 1 1/2 c. confectionery sugar 3/4 c. butter 1 tsp. vanilla 12 oz. Cool Whip Directions

Mix the pudding and milk together. Whip in the cream cheese, sugar, butter and vanilla. When mixed, fold in the Cool Whip. In separate dish, crumble the cookies and mix the two kinds together. In serving dish layer cookies, then pudding mixture and worms. Repeat the layering process until all of the ingredients are used. Make sure to finish with a layer of the crumbled cookies. Chill until ready to serve. Looks beautiful in a tall glass serving dish!

Ice Cream Sandwich Cake

Okay, so technically this isn't even a recipe. It is so easy and there is absolutely no cooking involved!

Ingredients:

Approx. twelve ice cream sandwices

1 tub Cool Whip

Favorite candy bars and/or sliced fruit for toppings (strawberries, kiwi)

Directions:

Take each ice cream bar out of its wrapper and place them next to each other on a cookie sheet. Do this until the entire cookie sheet is full with no spaces in between. Kind of like putting together a puzzle.

Frost your ice cream bar "cake" with a layer of Cool Whip.

Sprinkle the top with your favorite crushed candy bar.

Another option would be to layer the top with sliced fruit.

Peach Cobbler

I've never before been a fan of cobblers, but this one is really good! Especially when your husband makes it instead of you. :) Recipe from allrecipes.com

Ingredients:

• 8 fresh peaches - peeled, pitted and sliced into thin wedges (we used 4 cans worth)
• 1/4 cup white sugar
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
• 2 teaspoons cornstarch
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup white sugar
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, chilled and cut into small pieces
• 1/4 cup boiling water
• MIX TOGETHER:
• 3 tablespoons white sugar
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C).
2. In a large bowl, combine peaches, 1/4 cup white sugar, 1/4 cup brown sugar, 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon, nutmeg, lemon juice, and cornstarch. Toss to coat evenly, and pour into a 2 quart baking dish. Bake in preheated oven for 10 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, in a large bowl, combine flour, 1/4 cup white sugar, 1/4 cup brown sugar, baking powder, and salt. Blend in butter with your fingertips, or a pastry blender, until mixture resembles coarse meal. Stir in water until just combined.
4. Remove peaches from oven, and drop spoonfuls of topping over them. Sprinkle entire cobbler with the sugar and cinnamon mixture. Bake until topping is golden, about 30 minutes.

Peppermint Bark

Another Holiday Favorite growing up! Grandma Buis used to make this, then my mother, and now onto the next generation! We mix plates of peppermint bark and Calli's English Toffee for our neighbors every year. Quick, easy and delicious! Ingredients:

• 1 bag regular red and white Peppermints
• 1 bag white or milk chocolate chips

Directions:

• Lay wax paper onto large cookie sheet
• Crush peppermints in a blender.

(Or if you are like our mother, crush them in a double layered ziplock bag by banging them with a hammer!) You want small/tiny pieces, but don't crush so much that all you have left is "peppermint dust".

• Add chocolate to a large microwavable bowl.
• Melt chocolate in microwave for 30 seconds at a time.
• After each 30 seconds, stir the chocolate to prevent it from burning.

• After all chocolate is melted (about 2 minutes), slowly mix in and stir the peppermints. You want a good mix, not too much peppermint or it will be too dry.

• Stir fast before the chocolate hardens!
• Pour chocolate over cookie sheet and spread into thin layer.
• Allow to cool and harden, either at room temperature or in the refrigerator.
• Break into pieces and place in gift bags or onto plates to serve!

Key Lime Pie

(Photo courtesy of southernliving.com.) This pie is soooo good! Quick and easy to make too. Recipe from our friend, Mark Long.

Ingredients:

4 egg yolks 1 can sweetened condensed milk 3 ounces key lime juice Graham cracker pie crust Cool Whip Optional: Lime slices for garnish

Directions: Beat the egg yolks and milk together Slowly stir in the key lime juice Pour into graham cracker crust Bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes Garnish with lime slices and top with whipped cream

Oreo Truffles

Great recipe from the Caite + Create blog.

  Ingredients: 1 package crushed Oreo cookies 8 ounces of cream cheese Melted chocolate for dipping Directions: Mix crushed Oreos and cream cheese until they are the consistency of cookie dough. Shape into balls. Allow to set in the fridge for approx. 20 minutes Dip into the melted chocolate and allow truffles to harden

Homemade Cinnamon Rolls

These cinnamon rolls are super easy to make and sooo good! I made two batches and it only took 30 to 45 minutes before they were ready to rise and go in the oven.
I've added my own input/variations, but this recipe is originally from allrecipes.com 

Prep time: Approx. 1 1/2 to 2 hrs (includes rising time)
Cook time: 15-20 minutes at 350 degrees
Makes approx. 16 mid-size cinnamon rolls

Ingredients:

STEP 1 (dough): 
1/4 cup water (room temp so as to activate yeast)
1/4 cup melted/room temp butter
1/2 package of instant vanilla pudding mix- 3.4 oz (I used a whole package as others suggested)
1 cup warm milk (again, warm but not hot to activate the yeast)
1 egg (best if at room temp)
1 TBSP white sugar
1/2 TSP salt
4 cups of bread flour
1 package of active dry yeast (I used approx. 3/4 of a TBSP from a jar of yeast)

STEP 2 (cinnamon mix) :
1/2 cup softened butter
1 cup brown sugar
4 TSP ground cinnamon
Optional: 3/4 cups chopped nuts

STEP 3 (frosting): 
4 ounces (1/2 a normal package) of softened cream cheese
1/4 cup of softened butter
1 cup powdered sugar
1/2 TSP vanilla extract
1 1/2 TSP milk

Directions: 

In your mixer, combine all of the ingredients from step one and mix at mid speed for approx. 5 minutes or until a good dough ball forms and yeast is activated.

Using a rolling pin, roll dough out on a lightly floured surface (My dough wasn't sticky so no flour was needed). Roll until your dough is approx. a 17x10 inch rectangle.

Spread 1/2 cup of softened butter from step 2 over the dough. Combine the cinnamon and brown sugar (and nuts, if desired) from step two in a bowl and sprinkle/spread over the dough. (If you press the cinnamon mixture into the dough and butter a little after spreading it will help it not all fall out when you do the cutting.)

Butter a 9x13 inch baking pan.

Roll the dough into a big "tube". Cut into 16 one inch slices and place in the buttered pan. Cover and let rise in a warm spot for approx. 45 minutes, or until the rolls have doubled in size. (I sat mine in the sun on the deck and that really helped it to rise faster.) 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Bake rolls for 15 to 20 minutes, until lightly browned. (Our oven runs hotter than most but it still took about 17 minutes.)

FROSTING: Mix together ingredients from step three. Spread frosting over top of warm rolls. 

Eat and Enjoy! 

Jello Cake

Jello Cake Ingredients:

• One box cake mix- lemon, white or strawberry work best for this
• One large box of Jello
• One box pudding (we used Vanilla)
• Cool Whip

Directions: Make cake as directed. Using the back end of a wooden spoon, make hole all over in the cake. You DON'T need to wait for the cake to cool to do this. Make as many holes as you'd like. These holes are how the Jello gets inside. Make Jello according to package directions, but use one less cup of water. Pour Jello over the cake and into the holes. Cool in refrigerator for at least one hour. Make pudding using one less cup milk than called for on box. Mix pudding and Cool Whip and use as frosting on the cake. Keep Cake in fridge before eating.

(Rainy Day) Lemon Squares

 Lemon Squares

from San Francisco pastry chef Emily Luchetti

for the crust:

1 1/2 c. flour

1/2 c. powdered sugar

12 T cold butter, cut into 1/2 inch pieces

To make the crust: Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Combine flour and powdered sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment and beat on low speed until mixed. Add butter and continue to mix until butter is the size of small peas, about 30 seconds. The mixture will be very dry. Gently press mixture evenly onto the bottom of a 9-by-13-inch baking pan.  Bake until golden brown, 20 to 25 minutes. Let cool to room temperature. 

Reduce oven temperature to 300 degrees.

for the filling:

6 large eggs

3 cups sugar

1 cup plus 2 T. fresh squeezed lemon juice

1/2 c. flour

To make filling: In a large bowl, whisk together eggs and granulated sugar until smooth. Stir in lemon juice and then the flour. Pour filling on top of crust.
Bake until lemon filling is set, about 40 minutes. Let cool to room temperature and then put in the refrigerator for 1 hour or keep at room temperature for 3 hours before cutting. Cut into squares, with a wet, sharp knife, measuring about 2 1/4 inches and dust the tops with confectioners’ sugar.

Enjoy! Just try not to think of how much butter and sugar went into this recipe, or else there's no point in even making them. :) 

Heaven on a Spoon Chocolate Mousse

Oh yes, this is a decadent dessert. Don't you wish these were all fat free too? I do... because then I would eat this for every meal.

(I adapted this recipe from a recipe on www.allrecipes.com).

Ingredients:

-1 bag semi-sweet (or milk chocolate) chocolate chips

-3 Tablespoons butter

-4 Tablespoons sugar

-2/3 cups water

-Yolks from 5 medium eggs

-1 pint heavy whipping cream

Directions:

In a microwave, heat chocolate, 1/4 cup water and butter until melted. Set aside bowl and allow to cool for 10 minutes. 

In a small heavy saucepan, whisk egg yolks, sugar, and remaining water. Cook and stir over low heat until mixture reaches 160* F, about 1-2 minutes (I didn't use a thermometer, but just don't let it get too hot). Remove from heat; whisk in chocolate mixture. 

Set saucepan in freezer (or in a bowl of ice) and stir until cooled, about 5-10 minutes. 

While that's cooling, beat the heavy whipping cream in a cold bowl until it's the consistency of room-temperature butter. 

Fold in whipped cream into the chocolate mixture. 

Refrigerate 4 hours or overnight. You can also freeze it and it makes something even better than ice cream!