Fudge

The last time I made fudge it really didn't come out great. It was too soft. This time was much better. I tried a new recipe I found on allrecipes.com. I don't know about you but it's just not Christmas without fudge. (Just try to overlook the amount of sugar in this - holy cow!)

Fudge

1 cup butter
12 oz. semi sweet chocolate chips
1 (7 oz) jar marshmallow creme
1 cup chopped walnuts (I omitted.)
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/4 cups evaporated milk
4 cups white sugar

1) Line a 13X9 dish with tin foil and butter the tin foil.

2) In large saucepan combine butter, sugar and milk. Bring to a boil and let it boil for at least 5 minutes, maybe as long as 10. Stir constantly.

3) Remove from heat and stir in chocolate chips, vanilla and marshmallow creme. Mix until chocolate chips are completely melted. Then stir in walnuts (if you choose). Spread mixture into prepared dish. Refrigerate until cool and hard.

*A tip when cutting. I pulled the entire thing out of the pan by grabbing the edges of the tin foil. Then I cut a large section at a time and transferred it from the tin foil to a cutting board to cut it up further. This way you don't end up with pieces of tin foil in your fudge. :)

Creamy White Chili

This is my new favorite chili recipe. I love it! And so does my husband - which is always a bonus. It is really flavorful and tastes great with tortilla chips. It doesn't need to cook all day either - takes about an hour from start to finish. I got this recipe from www.melskitchencafe.com - a GREAT recipe site.

Creamy White Chili

1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1 medium onion, chopped
1 1/2 teaspoons garlic powder
1 tablespoon oil
2 cans (15 1/2 ounces each) Great Northern Beans, rinsed and drained
1 can (14 1/2 ounces) chicken broth
2 cans (4 ounces each) chopped green chilies (if you like less kick, add just one can)
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 cup sour cream
1/2 cup whipping cream

In a large saucepan, saute chicken, onion and garlic powder in oil until chicken is no longer pink. Add beans, broth, chilies and seasonings. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, for 30 minutes. Remove from the heat; stir in sour cream and cream. Garnish with fresh cilantro, if desired. Serve immediately. Makes about 6 servings.

Chicken a La King

In my rush to get my children fed before hurrying out the door to the Mormon Tabernacle Choir Christmas concert (which we didn't even get in to!), I didn't get a picture of this meal all put together. But you'll get the idea. This is a Christmas dish as it refers to a meal for THE kings - the three Wisemen. I loved the idea of making these bread crowns - and they couldn't have been easier to make! You just pour the sauce over a couple of bread crowns and enjoy! Oh - I got this recipe from Sisters Cafe.

Chicken a La King

1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup red bell pepper, chopped
1/2 cup green bell pepper, chopped

Saute just until soft.

1/2 cup flour

Add to butter mixture and mix well to make a roux. Let it bubble.

2 small cans mushrooms and juice (I am not a fan of mushrooms so I left these out....I just used less flour and a little more chicken broth to make up for omitting these.)
3 cups chicken broth

Add and bring to a boil to thicken.

1 cup cream
5 cups cooked chicken, shredded (Rotisserie chicken would work well too.)
salt and pepper

Add to above mixture but don't boil any longer after adding cream. (You can also add 1/4 cup milk to thin the sauce if needed.)

To make the crowns, buy wheat bread - just the cheapo kind. (Or you can use white if you prefer.) Get out a muffin tin. Place a slice of bread over a muffin hole. Push in on the four sides and push down into muffin hole. Don't squash the bread, but use enough force so that it stays down in the hole. The four corners should be sticking up. Bake at about 250 until toasted and dry. It took me about 15 minutes. When you lift the crowns out of the muffin tin they should hole their shape.

Cinnamon Rolls

I have been craving warm homemade cinnamon rolls for a while now. I finally got around to it. I last made this recipe while up at my parents' house in Washington. My dad wanted to take cinnamon rolls into his office to thank everyone for their kindness towards are family so I stayed up all night making these. They were hot and ready in the morning. These are really quite easy to make they just take a LONG time because of all the rising. Both times I've made this recipe it has taken the full time to rise. But they are worth the wait. This recipe comes from Melanie at http://sisterscafe.blogspot.com.

Cinnamon Rolls

2 cups milk
2 cubes butter (1 cup)
2 pkgs yeast (4 1/2 tsp)
1/3 cup warm water
1 1/3 cup sugar
1 tsp salt
4 beaten eggs
8 cups flour

Filling: 1 cube softened butter, brown sugar and cinnamon

Heat milk and 2 cubes of butter in saucepan until butter is melted. Cool and set aside. Mix yeast and warm water; let stand 5 minutes. Add cooled milk, 1 1/3 cups sugar, 1 tsp salt and 4 beaten eggs. Add 4 cups flour and mix. Gradually add 4 additional cups of flour. If you don't have a Bosch or Kitchen Aid (like me) you can mix this all by hand. Dough should be firm but sticky. Cover with cloth and allow to rise until nearly double in size (about 2 hours). Divide dough in half and empty onto floured surface and knead a little. Roll dough into a large rectangle, about 1/2 inch thick. To this half of dough, spread 1/2 cube of softened butter, completely covering dough. Then generously sprinkle brown sugar over entire piece of dough. Then a layer of cinnamon - be generous. Roll into long roll, pinch edges together and slice with dental floss. Place on a cookie sheet covered with parchment paper. Do same thing to second half of dough. Cover with lightly sprayed plastic wrap and allow to rise until double in size (2 to 5 hours). Bake at 350 for 10-15 minutes, until barely browned. Remove from oven and let sit for 5 minutes. Drizzle with glaze while still warm. Makes 2-4 dozen, depending on size.

Butter Cream Glaze

1 cube softened butter (1/2 cup)
1 tsp vanilla
dash of salt
dash of cream of tarter
1 1/2 lbs powdered sugar
scalded milk or cream (I heat about 1 cup, but you may not use it all.)

Add all ingredients together, adding milk gradually to reach desired consistency. It should be thinner than regular icing.

Pumpkin Bread

My old neighbor Kristin made this bread back when Ben and I were first married and it was delicious so of course I asked her for the recipe. She actually got it from another friend of ours, Mikaela. So here's one of my favorite recipes for pumpkin bread with chocolate chips!...love the combination of pumpkin and chocolate. A couple of notes: I prefer to use oil instead of butter for this recipe. If you double this recipe it makes three regular size loaves. As is, this recipe makes four small loaves.

Pumpkin Bread

1 3/4 cups flour
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp nutmeg (I only do 1/4 tsp.)
1/8 tsp ground cloves
1/2 cup melted butter (or oil)
1 cup canned pumpkin
1 egg beaten
1/3 cup water
1/2 bag chocolate chips (about 1 cup)

Combine dry ingredients. In another bowl, combine pumpkin, egg and water. Add pumpkin mixture to dry mixture along with butter (or oil). Mix until dry ingredients are moistened. Fold in chocolate chips. Pour into greased loaf pan(s). Bake at 350 for about an hour or until toothpick comes out clean. Can also make muffins. They take about 20-25 minutes to bake.

Black Bottom Cupcakes

I first tried these at a stake relief society social in our BYU married student ward. The wife of one of our high counselors made these. Many years later, I finally decided to give this recipe a try. They were just as good as I remembered and easy too!

Black Bottom Cupcakes

1 1/2 cups flour
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup cocoa
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt

1 cup water
1/3 cup oil
1 Tbsp vinegar
1 tsp vanilla

Mix dry ingredients together. Add remaining ingredients and using a mixer, blend well. Fill lined muffin cups 1/3 full with batter.

Filling:
1 - 8oz. package cream cheese
1 egg
1/3 cup sugar
1/8 tsp salt
1 cup chocolate chips
chopped almonds (I omit.)

Combine cream cheese, egg, sugar and salt. Beat well. Stir in chocolate chips. Place heaping spoonful of mixture on top of batter in each muffin cup. Sprinkle with additional sugar and chopped almonds (I omit both.) Bake at 350. I bake one muffin tin at a time (so 12 muffins) and it takes between 18-20 minutes to cook. Makes 24 cupcakes.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Candies

These are a tasty, if fattening, treat. They're pretty much homemade Reese's Peanut Butter Cups. This time we gave most of them away. That was a good thing because I could have eaten the whole pan myself.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Candies

1 cup butter
1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs
1 1/2 cups creamy peanut butter
1 lb package powdered sugar
1-12 oz. package chocolate chips
1-2 teaspoons creamy peanut butter

Melt butter. Add graham cracker crumbs (I crush mine in a blender), peanut butter and powdered sugar. Using a mixer, blend well. Pat into a 9X13 pan. Melt chocolate chips and 1-2 teaspoons of peanut butter (makes the chocolate spread easier) and spread evenly over top. Refrigerate 10-20 minutes. Cut into squares.

Pumpkin Waffles

If you're wondering why the syrup doesn't cover the entire waffle, it's because Tyler didn't want syrup on his section. He wanted ketchup. :) These waffles are seriously good! This is the time of year when I always seem to have pumpkin leftover in my fridge so I'm always looking for ways to use it. I love just about anything pumpkin. I got this recipe from my friend Sheia and my friend Melanie has a recipe for apple cider syrup that goes great with these too.

Pumpkin Waffles

2 cups all purpose flour
1/3 cup sugar
1 Tbsp baking powder
2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
1/2 tsp salt
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups milk
4 Tbsp butter, melted
2/3 cup canned pumpkin

In a medium bowl, stir together flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt. In a separate mixing bowl, whisk together eggs, milk, melted butter and pumpkin. Pour wet ingredients into dry and stir until just combined. Coat waffles iron with non-stick spray and cook.

Apple Cider Syrup

Mix in sauce pan

• 1/2 cup sugar
• 4 tsp corn starch
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon

Add

• 1 cup apple cider or apple juice
• 1 TBS lemon juice
• 2 TBS butter

Cook all ingredients except butter over medium heat. Heat until thick and bubbly. Cook 2 more minutes. Remove from heat. Stir in butter.
Makes 1 1/3 cups syrup.