Festive.Fun.Food

I hope you all had a great weekend with the ones you love. We took it easy on Saturday and than Sunday I took my little man to the mall. It was perfect because it wasn't too busy and it was warm,making it easier to transport him from the vehicle. We sat at Starbucks and people watched, while I enjoyed my eggnog latte and he his puréed mangos :). All in all a great weekend.  As I mentioned last week I am going to share a recipe or DIY holiday craft every Monday & Friday until Christmas.  Today I will share two recipes- both are desserts and are very easy to make.

The first recipe comes from a family cook book I was given as a wedding shower gift. I have seen similar recipes online but this is the one I have made and it is usually gone very quickly! It is very yummy and highly addictive so BEWARE! 

Pop Fly Popcorn

10 cups popped popcorn

1 cup pecan halves 

1 cup slivered almonds

1 1/3 cups sugar

1 cup butter ( no substitutes)

1/2cup light corn syrup

1 tsp vanilla extract

1/2 tsp cream of tartar

1/2 tsp baking soda

In a large bowl combine the popcorn and nuts, set aside.  In a large saucepan, bring sugar, butter and corn syrup to a boil.  Boil for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Remove from heat; add the vanilla and cream of tartar & baking soda. Drizzle over popcorn mixture, stir to coat. Spread it out on two greased cookie sheets and let dry for 1 hr.  Break apart into bite sized pieces and enjoy!

This is a perfect recipe for christmas snacking or gifting. Package it up In a christmas tin or bag and voila!

The next recipe is for reindeer cookies. How cute are these !? Love them. They are super easy because they really are just a few extra steps added to the good old peanut butter cookies we know and love.

The peanut butter cookie recipe used is from the Jif PB container. I'm sure any peanut butter cookie recipe will work.

Reindeer Cookies

3/4 cup peanut butter

1 1/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar

1/2 cup shortening

3 tablespoons milk

1 tablespoon vanilla

1 egg

1 3/4 cup all-purpose flour

3/4 teaspoon baking soda

3/4 teaspoon salt

Chocolate-covered mini pretzels

Mini brown M&Ms

Regular-sized red M&Ms

Preheat oven to 375°F.

Combine brown sugar, peanut butter, shortening, milk, and vanilla in large bowl. Beat at medium speed until well blended. Add egg; beat until just blended.

In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking soda, and salt. Add to creamed mixture at low speed. Mix just until blended.

Form dough into 1-inch balls. To make reindeer-shaped cookies, pinch the bottom of the ball slightly to form a point, then gently flatten with your hand. Space cookies about 2 inches apart on a greased cookie sheet and bake for 7 to 8 minutes, until set or just beginning to brown. 

Remove from oven and immediately (and gently) press two mini pretzels into the tops of the cookies for the reindeer's antlers. Press two mini brown M&Ms in for the eyes and one red M&M for the nose (or any other colour). 

Allow to cool 2 minutes on the baking sheet and then transfer to a wire rack or paper towel to cool completely. 

Recipe is from the blog Baker Girl

On Wednesday I will share some of what I learned last week, on how to accomplish a mini christmas photo shoot In your home. Have a wonderful day!