Snickers fudge

I will be ending my string of Christmas treats with my three favorites. I've been saving the best for last! This fudge is incredible and comes with a warning: If you take a bite, you will not want to stop taking bites. You will need to dig very deep inside of yourself for willpower to stop taking bites. It is so addicting that I have been storing my batch of crack, I mean fudge, in the freezer to make it more difficult to graze upon. 

As I type, I am drinking a green, juiced mug of veggies. My goal is to drink this for my breakfasts and lunches all week to counter some damage I have done over the past 10 days. Ok, I really need someone to come remove this fudge from my freezer. HELP!

Here is Day #10 of Twelve Days of Christmas Treats!

(recipe adapted from: desertculinary.blogspot.com)

Coat a 9x13 pan with cooking spray and set aside.

FIRST LAYER:

In a small bowl, combine:

1 cup milk chocolate chips

1/4 cup creamy peanut butter

Heat in the microwave in two 30-second intervals, stirring after each. Stir until creamy and then pour the mixture in an even layer into the bottom of the prepared pan. Place the pan in the freezer.

SECOND LAYER:

In a medium saucepan, melt 4 tablespoons of butter over medium heat. 

Add:

1 cup sugar

1/4 cup evaporated milk

Stir and bring to a boil. Boil for 3 minutes, stirring constantly.

Remove from the heat and add:

1 1/2 cups marshmallow creme

1/4 cup creamy peanut butter

1 teaspoon vanilla

Stir until combined.

Add 1 cup of salted peanuts.

Stir until combined. Remove the pan from the freezer and pour the mixture in an even layer over the chocolate layer. Place back in the freezer.

THIRD LAYER:

In a small saucepan, add:

14-oz. bag caramels, unwrapped

1/4 cup evaporated milk

Cook over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, until the caramel is melted and smooth. You could do this step in the microwave instead, but for some reason I always prefer melting caramel on the stove.

Remove the pan from the freezer and pour the caramel over the top in an even layer. Place back in the freezer.

FOURTH LAYER:

In a small bowl, combine:

1 cup milk chocolate chips

1/4 cup creamy peanut butter

Heat in the microwave in two 30-second intervals, stirring after each. Stir until creamy. Remove the pan from the freezer and pour the mixture in an even layer onto the top. Make sure the caramel layer is firm before doing this.

Refrigerate for 1 hour (or perhaps you could cheat a bit and freeze for a shorter time like I may or may not have done).

Cut into small squares and serve! Store the uneaten fudge in the fridge. Or the freezer, depending on how addicted you become.

Enjoy!

Printable recipe: Snickers fudge

Peppermint bark

This Christmas treat was readers' choice, chosen by my Facebook friend Brittany. Great pick! Thanks for the suggestion, Brittany. I had never made Peppermint Bark before. It's easy, simple and addicting.

Before I get to the recipe, it has been snowing in our neck of the woods for just about the entire day. It is gorgeous! The boys had so much fun playing in it. We made a snowman named Charlie, and a fort with a back door. We can't wait to get back out there tomorrow to throw some more snowballs around!

Back to the star of the post, the Peppermint Bark!

Line a rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil and set aside.

Pour an 11.5-oz. package of milk or dark chocolate chips into a small bowl and an 11.5-oz. package of white chocolate chips into another small bowl.  

Microwave the milk (or dark) chips in the microwave in 30-second intervals, stirring after each one, until the chocolate is smooth.

Pour onto the prepared baking sheet.

Smooth it out with a spatula and place in the refrigerator for 10 minutes to harden.

Meanwhile, melt the white chips using the same 30-second interval method.

Pour the white chocolate on top of the hardened milk (or dark) chocolate.

Spread evenly with a spatula.

Sprinkle chopped candy canes over the top (approximately 6 large ones) and place back into the fridge until it is completely hardened.

Break into pieces and serve!

Printable recipe: Peppermint bark

S'mores brownies

So I'm a bit off today. One of my boys was very sick and up a lot during the night. He had a minor surgery yesterday, which went great, but his stomach did not agree with the anesthesia. There is nothing tougher on a mama than having a sick/sad/hurting kid! He is resting now. I should be resting, too, but I have posts to write and treats to make!

Sorry, not much fluff today. Aside from the marshmallows, that is. 

Here is Day #8 of Twelve Days of Christmas Treats!

(Recipe adapted from The Emeals Blog)

Prepare a 19.5-oz. box of brownie mix (family size) in a 9x13 baking dish, according to package directions. 

While the brownies are baking, set the following aside:

8 cinnamon graham crackers, broken into pieces

2 cups miniature marshmallows

Three 1.55-oz. Hershey's bars, broken into pieces

Remove the brownies from the oven and set oven to Broil.

Top the brownies with the graham cracker pieces and the marshmallows. No structure is needed here. Unless you want there to be. 

Once the broiler is ready, return the pan to the oven and broil for no more than 2 minutes, or once the marshmallows just start to brown.

Remove the brownies from the oven and immediately place the chocolate pieces over the top. Allow the chocolate to melt slightly. If they aren't melting enough for your liking, place the pan back in the oven for a minute.

Cut into squares and serve. Store, covered, at room temperature or in the refrigerator.

You can't go wrong with these. They are virtually impossible to mess up! Good luck! Farewell! Till next time (tomorrow)!

Printable recipe: S'mores brownies

Chocolate crinkle cookies with a Rolo surprise

I love hiding edible treasures inside baked goods. The obvious perk is consuming said treats, but I also love seeing others' reactions upon biting into something unexpected. "Oohh, what a good coo....OHHHh! Is that CANDY?! CARAMEL?! WHAT IS THAT?!!" The only thing better than pleasing a friend with a holiday cookie is double pleasing a friend with a holiday cookie. 

This was my first attempt at a crinkle cookie and also my first time baking with black cocoa, which added a delicious touch of richness. If you are unable to find black cocoa, replace it with unsweetened cocoa. The cookies will still make you squeal, I promise.

Here is Day #7 of Twelve Days of Christmas Treats!

In a medium bowl, combine:

2 cups all-purpose flour

3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1/4 cup black cocoa (substitution: unsweetened cocoa)

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

Mix well.

In a large bowl, combine:

10 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened

1 1/2 cups granulated sugar

2 eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Using a hand-held mixer, mix on medium speed until smooth.

Gradually add the flour mixture and mix until just combined. 

Using your hands, pat the batter into a giant ball and wrap it up in plastic wrap.

Refrigerate for a minimum of 2 hours, or until completely chilled.

While your dough is chilling, unwrap 24 Rolos candies and set them aside.

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F and line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.

I turned around to find a gigantic chocolate tower that had been constructed by my youngest helper. Nice, Sammy!

Pour 1 cup of confectioners' sugar into a small bowl and set aside.

Remove the dough from the refrigerator. Scoop out a large spoonful of the dough and flatten it into a disc, using your fingers. Place a Rolo into the center of the disc.

Wrap the dough around it, forming a ball. Smooth out the creases in the dough as much as possible.

Roll the ball in the confectioners' sugar and coat completely. Do this twice! 

Repeat this process with the remainder of the dough and place on the prepared baking sheets.

Bake in the preheated oven for 10 minutes.

Enjoy your weekend (and, um, these cookies)!

Printable recipe: Chocolate crinkle cookies with a Rolo surprise

Spicy ginger sugar cookies

There isn't much that tastes like Christmas to me more than an old-fashioned sugar cookie. I have posted a few other sugar cookie recipes on this blog, so I wanted to do something a bit different this time. As I flipped through a holiday-themed recipe magazine in the check-out line a few days ago, I spotted something intriguing. Ginger in a sugar cookie?! Fun! And I refuse to make a sugar cookie without at least a little bit of almond extract. There is another ingredient I added that leaves a hint of spice on your tongue after all the tasty crumbs have been washed into your belly. Read on to find out what it is!

This is Day #6 of Twelve Days of Christmas Treats! Halfway done (not that I want to be).

In a medium bowl, combine:

2 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon white pepper (adds just a teeny bit of spice)

Mix well and set aside.

In a large bowl, combine:

3/4 cup butter, softened

1 cup sugar

1 egg

1 tablespoon fresh ginger, finely minced

1/2 teaspoon almond extract

Using a hand-held mixer, beat on medium speed until creamy. Gradually add the flour mixture, mixing after each addition until just combined.

Using your hands, form a large ball of dough and wrap it in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for 1 hour.

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.

Place half of the dough between two sheets of wax paper (my favorite way of rolling dough - no scraping dried dough off my kitchen table). Using a rolling pin, roll the dough so that it is 1/4- to 1/2-inch thick. 

Remove the top sheet of wax paper and press cookie cutters into the dough. Remove excess and put in a pile.

Repeat this process with the other half of the ball of dough.

Place cookie cut-outs onto the prepared baking sheets and decorate, if desired.

Re-roll the excess dough and repeat the process.

Bake in the preheated oven for 11 to 13 minutes, or until the edges of the cookies start to get very slightly brown.

Instead of repeating the same process with my excess dough, I formed little balls and rolled those in sprinkles. I baked them for the same amount of time, and they came out great! My boys thought they were way tastier, only because they were prettier.

Printable recipe: Spicy ginger sugar cookies