For the Little Kid In Me!

Hello Sweets,

I hope everyone is enjoying their Friday, for all the working people you've earned it!  I am off back to Canadia tomorrow, normally I am completely distraught having to leave Nathan.  Not this time though, well maybe still a bit lol who am I kidding, only because I am getting ready to move :)  I still have a little packing to do (bedroom only), and I am doing my final walk through now that the apartment is completely finished.  I am one excited and happy girl, I've never lived in a brand new apartment so I am pumped!!

Since it's Friday and my last night with Nathan I figured a short post will be okay, don't worry there is still a sweet treat in store for y'all.  Today's delicious treat is brought to you on behalf of Kellogg's, and their delicious cereal Rice Crispies.  I bet y'all can figure out what we're making, but first let's go down memory lane for some history on my Rice Crispy story.  When I was small and even elementary school age, I ate almost all of my breakfasts with my grandparents.  Normally I would eat eggs and bacon, but some times I would eat a bowl of rice crispies.  However, when my grandmother had her back turned I would put a whole lot of sugar on top.  I mean a LOT, lol so when I'd scrape the bottom of the bowl I would get a spoonful of sugar :)  Of course my grandma would make rice crispy treats every once in a while, and I hadn't had them in years.  That is until a few months ago when Nathan asked me to make him some, and I am making them monthly now lol.  This is obviously not my recipe but I add a little more of some things.

Rice Crispy Treats

Ingredients

6C Rice Crispy Cereal

4Tbs Butter

42 Marshmallows

Love simple recipes

Directions:

1)  Melt the butter in a large pot over low heat.

 

2)  Once the butter is melted, add the marshmallows until completely melted.

3)  Remove from heat and add the rice crispies, mixing until blended.

4)  Grease a baking dish and pour the mixture in, pressing evenly flat with wax paper.

5)  Allow to cool completely before cutting.  Store in an air tight container.

yummy!!

See, wasn't that simple, easy, and delicious?  You can't beat cereal treats, they are your guide down memory lane to childhood.  The are many ways you can dress these bad boys up, from adding chocolate (chips or on top), nuts, food coloring, or even cutting them into fun shapes.  I'm sure you could even use those colored marshmallows for a cool little twist.  

Well that's all I've got in me for now :)  I am off to enjoy one last night in my loves arms, I hope y'all are enjoying your weekend with what ever makes you happy!  Until next time....

Stay sweet,

Jennifer xoxoxo

Jack Frost Nipping at Your Nose?

Hello Sweets,

Merry Christmas to all of my readers, from the great state of Texas!  I hope you all received some special kitchen tools from Santa, I know I did.  But more on that later, today was our first of two Christmas dinners and I would say it went off pretty much without a hitch.

Since I am writing this on Christmas eve (because even bloggers need a day off now and then) I thought I would keep it festive, so I saved one last holiday cookie recipe to share with all of you :)  I have some great memories from when I was a little girl and I am going to share one of those moments with you.  I come from Canada, and if you know your geography you know that no matter where you are in Canada, winter means snow, and a lot of it.  Well you knew where to find all the neighborhood kids when the snow started falling; outside enjoying the winter wonderland (although I no longer feel that way).  And when we finally were convinced to come inside every single part of us was frozen, sometimes even my mittens had icicles on them lol.  My grandmother would always make us hot cocoa with little tiny marshmallows in them, and it is a drink that I still enjoy today on a chilly night.  Well when I came across a recipe for hot cocoa cookies I couldn't pass them up!  Lets get to the warm gooey goodness that is this cookie :)

Hot Cocoa Cookies (via The Food Network Magazine)

Ingredients

2 1/4C cake flour, plus more for dusting

1/4C unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder

1 Tsp baking soda

1/4Tsp salt

1C butter, room temperature

3/4C sugar

1 large egg

1 Tsp vanilla extract

1/2C marshmallow cream

 

Directions:

1)  Sift the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt into a medium bowl.

 

2)  Beat the butter and sugar in a large bowl with a mixer on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, 3-5 minutes.

 

3)  Add the egg and vanilla and beat until incorporated.

 

 4)  Reduce the mixer speed to low; add the flour mixture in two batches and beat until just incorporated.

 

 5)  Divide the dough in half, wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate until firm, at least 1 hour and up to 1 day.

6)  Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.  Working with one piece of dough at a time, dust the dough generously with flour and roll out between 2 pieces of parchment paper until about 1/8" thick.  Cut out shapes using 2 to 4 inch cookie cutters and transfer to the prepared baking sheets.  Gather the scraps and refrigerate until firm; re roll once to cut out more cookies.  Refrigerate the cutouts until firm, about 30 minutes.

 

 7)  Position the racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven and preheat to 350F.  Bake the cookies, switching the position of the pans halfway through, until slightly puffed and darker around the edges, 12-15 minutes.  Let cool 5 minutes on the baking sheet, then transfer to racks to cool completely.  Sandwich the cookies with the marshmallow cream.

forgot to take a full picture, but don't these 2 look lovely :)

Well folks there it is, the final holiday cookie recipe I have for you.  Now that doesn't mean I won't be baking any goodies in the near future, have you heard me talk about my sweet toothed sweet heart??  Lol but who knows what Canuckette will bake next, heck I'm her and I don't know yet.  

I do want to warn you guys, I will have a couple of "technical" posts coming up. I just got a whole whack of fun kitchen toys from Nathans family and frankly I am SUPER excited to share with all of you :)  But I think my turkey tiredness is starting to kick in, so I will leave you with well wishes and a merry Christmas!  Until next time.......

Stay sweet,

Jennifer xoxoxo

A newbie and a Classic

Hello Sweets,

I don't know about where all of you are, but here in Texas there is a cold front coming and it is chilly, stay inside kind of weather.  The winds are so strong here, that the outdoor fans look like they're on high speed!  Before coming down to Texas, I made sure to pack some new and old recipes to make for my favorite men :), and I completely forgot about the rare and unique recipe that I had stumbled upon.....pecan pie muffins!  I love pecan pie, and just this last summer, Nathan took me to the Fort Worth Stockyards for a day trip/date, and while we were there we went to Riscky's Steakhouse.  We had some delicious steak, the waiter tried to trick us into ordering cow testicles, lol yuck, and for dessert we had the most amazing piece of pecan pie either of us have ever had!

Now I know with that setup, you'd be thinking I'm going to do a pecan pie recipe, but nope not a pie, but muffins!  When I came across the recipe, I thought it was an interesting concept and decided right then and there that I should make this the next time I'm in Texas.  Now Texans love their pecans, any which way they can have them too, so I knew that I had to make sure I brought my A game, and rock out some amazing muffins.  So let's get this recipe in the oven.  It's super simple and very quick to make ;)

Pecan Pie Muffins

Ingredients

1C pecans, chopped

1C brown sugar

1/2C flour

2 eggs

1/2C butter, melted

I'll be writing "keeper" on this recipe card ;)

Directions:

1)  Preheat the oven to 350F.  Combine the first 3 ingredients in a large bowl, make a well in the center of the mixture.

I only had whole pecans, so chop chop chop for me 

so simple it's crazy 

looks almost like instant oatmeal, but much more aromatic

2)  Beat eggs until foamy.  Stir together eggs and butter; add to dry ingredients, stirring until just moistened.

foamy eggs 

now with butter 

smells just like pecan pie, mmmmm!

3)  Place baking cups into muffin pans, or spray with cooking spray if you're out of muffin cups.  Spoon batter into cups, filling them 2/3's full.

Makes a small batch, only 12 :( should have doubled the recipe.

4)  Bake at 350F for 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.  Remove from pans immediately.

Makes your kitchen smell just like pecan pie!

Don't be alarmed when they don't rise, they are short but hearty muffins.  The top will be nice a crispy where the sugar caramelized, and the bottom is soft and sweet.  It passed the Texas men test, not to mention I absolutely love them too, so they are officially part of Canuckette's recipe box!  Hmmm maybe when I get home I'll take a picture of my recipe box and the story about how it all started :)

Well obviously that was the new recipe (I only said it like three times lol), and this oldie but goodie recipe is very simple but always delicious.  Now I have been craving these for almost five months now, lol and I know what you're thinking; "just make them!".  But you need a certain cooking method in order for them to be perfect and living in the city sort of limits you from having a....fire to roast marshmallows!  I have been wanting smores for so long, and since Nathan's family has a fire pit I asked him if we could have some :)  Of course he said yes, he actually thought I was cute when he saw how excited I got over them lol, and the best part of smores is that you can make them anyway you'd like.  It's much different now then when I grew up, they have all different kinds of marshmallows and even multiple types of graham crackers!  You can use different types of chocolate, so use your favorite chocolate bar.  There are unlimited options for them so have fun and get creative.  I have opted to go with the classic plain marshmallows, a Hershey's chocolate bar, and the twist is with the "cinnamon" graham crackers, courtesy of Honey Maid ;)

Super Easy and Delicious Smores

Ingredients

Kraft Jet Puffed marshmallows, as many as you'll need

Hershey's milk chocolate bars

Honey Maid graham crackers (we're using cinnamon)

Directions:

1)  Start a fire, making sure it's contained.  If you're a child, make sure that you have adult supervision.  If you're not lucky enough to have a marshmallow roaster, you can make one out of a coat hanger (just unwind and straighten as much as possible), and burn for a moment to sanitize.  You can also use a stick (just make sure it's not too thick and again burn it for a moment to sanitize).

I'm a child at heart, so Nathan supervised and started the fire

all the fixin's 

2)  Place the marshmallow on the end of the stick and roast it just above the flames.   I personally like mine REALLY cooked, but most people like them a light brown.

waiting is the hardest part

3)  Once you have reached your roasting preference, place a piece of the chocolate on a graham cracker and squish the marshmallow between that and another graham cracker.

haven't had one in years!!!!!

4)  Wait just a second or two as to not burn your mouth, and enjoy!

Lol I look sort of evil, my smore!!

Honestly this was the perfect little mini stay-in date on a chilly night :)  How do you like your smores?  Do you have any secrets or tips?  I would love to hear all about your childhood memories of summer.  And I encourage all of you to go back to your childhood once in awhile, and if you have an indoor fireplace I encourage you to have smores once every couple of months lol!!  Until next time....

Stay sweet,

Jennifer xoxoxo