Holiday S'Mores

I recently went to a Christmas party with our "adopted family" and found myself in baking heaven with soooo many new cookies, candies and sweets to put myself into a diabetic coma for a week! After completing the difficult task of taste testing each item (someone had to complete this difficult task!!!!), I found my new favorite cookie/bar of the holiday season to be the holiday s'mores! Being a new mom and a wife who is working extra hours, I found this recipe even more satisfying when I was told the recipe and realized just how simple, quick and tasty it was. 
So - stop at the grocery store on your way home and have fun baking these treats tonight! I hope you enjoy them as much as I did!!!!!!


Merry Christmas and Thank You to Holly for including me as part of her 12 Christmas Bloggers!!!
Michelle


Holiday S'mores

(Makes 36 bars)

12 Chocolate graham crackers(or enough to cover entire bottom of pan)

3/4 cup butter

3/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar

3 cups miniature marshmallows

1 cup  candy coated milk chocolate pieces (like M & M's - Christmas colors are a nice touch)

Heat oven to 375 degrees. Line 15 x 10 x 1" jelly-roll pan with aluminum foil leaving 1" overhang

on ends: spray foil with no-stick cooking spray. Place graham crackers onto foil so sides touch.

Melt butter and brown sugar in 2 quart saucepan over medium heat, stirring constantly, until smooth

and mixture just comes to a boil (4 - 6 minutes). Pour evenly over the graham crackers. Bake for

5 - 6 minutes or until bubbly. Remove from oven; sprinkle with marshmallows. Continue baking until 

marshmallows begin to soften (2 - 3 minutes). Sprinkle with candy. Cool completely. Lift from pan 

using foil as a handle. Cut into bars.

Snicker Salad.

This is by far a family favorite - though not a favorite of mine.  I'm sure it would quickly become a favorite in your family as well and would be a hit at a pot luck.

I had a few granny smith apples laying around...I don't really eat apples and my husband was boycotting them because they were not of the MacIntosh variety.  I was tired of looking at them.  Luckily, I remembered how he loves my mom's snicker salad.  Perfect.  Attempting to get a decent picture: not so perfect.  You'll have to use your imagination on this one!

Snicker Salad.

(Recipe from My Mom)

3 Snicker Bars (regular sized)

3 Granny Smith Apples

1 Large Box of Instant Vanilla Pudding

1 1/3 cup milk

16 ounce Cool Whip

Chop Snickers and apples.  Whip pudding and milk together.  Fold in Cool Whip, Snickers, and apples.  Keep and serve cold.

Most people will enjoy this.  It's unlikely you'll have any leftovers.  Now go buy some granny smith apples!!

Chocolate Haystacks.

I should stop baking holiday treats.  I should stop no-baking holiday treats.  I really should.  I'm ready for my kitchen to be back to normal (no candies hardening on the counter, no flour sitting out because I am using it all the time anyway, no constant dish washing).  And, I'm ready to cook again.  But, I always get a ting of fear right before I begin gifting the goods..  What if I don't have enough cookies?  Maybe I need more candy?  Is there a good enough mix of chocolate and non-chocolate? And so on and so forth.

To calm my fear: continue making holiday treats.

Chocolate Haystacks
(recipe adapted from my mom)
1 bag semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 bag butterscotch chips
1 bag chow mein noodles

Melt chips together.  Add chow mein noodles.  Mix until combined.  Drop by tablespoon onto waxed paper and allow to harden.  Store in an air tight container and serve throughout the holiday season.

And with that I am off to finish my turtle cookies and then make a double batch of m&m cookies.  Then I'm done with the sweet holiday treats.  I promise.

'Holly'day Treats.

 

I named these 'Holly'day treats because I don't know the real name for them and because growing up these were by far my favorite holiday treat.  As soon as my mom had them made I would start sneaking them...I wonder if she ever knew some were missing :)

'Holly'day Treats

(Recipe adapted from My Mom)

1/2 bag chow mein noodles (use right from the package)

1/2 bag fruit flavored marshmallows

2 cups rice krispies

1 package white chocolate candy

1 1/2 cups peanutbutter

Combine chow mein noodles, marshmallows, and rice krispies.  In a separate bowl melt white chocolate.  Once melted mix in peanutbutter until the two are combined.  Dump white chocolate/peanutbutter mixture over the dry ingredients and stir until evenly coated.  Drop by tablespoon unto waxed paper and leave until set.  Place in an air-tight container and enjoy throughout the holiday!

Dried Cherry & Chocolate Walnut Brittle

Wow, I don't know if I can top those White Chocolate Cherry Shortbread Cookies below. Nothing beats a good Christmas cookie!

I can't wait to get started with my usual holiday baking and cooking. Growing up, my sisters and I would always help with the treat making. Cut-out sugar cookies were always my favorite, but I also liked helping out with white chocolate covered pretzels, chocolate dipped peanut butter crackers, chex mix, and butter spritz cookies. It was tradition, and I always insisted on making those items. I feel the urge to get crackin'! This month is already flying by!

Our family would munch on goodies all month long, and we'd usually make up a new batch of items to take to my grandparents' farm on Christmas day to share with aunts, uncles and cousins.

We weren't much into candy-making; no brittles, no toffee, no marshmallows, and gasp - no fudge. I don't ever remember making candy when I was growing up... I suppose because these items are much more difficult to make. Also, molten hot sugar and small children do not mix.

Therefore, I feel deprived of candy making, and need to make up for it as an adult. So this holiday season I'm making it a point to create more candy recipes for my blog. Buttery chocolate-covered toffee, anyone? Peppermint Marshmallows? Wheee!

Making candy can be tricky business, but I'm up to the challenge. I even went out and bought a brand new candy thermometer! The one I had from 1970 wasn't doing the job. :) I used the new candy thermometer when I created today's recipe: Dried Cherry & Chocolate Walnut Brittle.

Traditional peanut or walnut brittle is delicious, but let's admit it - it's pretty boring, right? I thought I would spice up walnut brittle for the holidays and add dried cherries, dark chocolate, and crystallized ginger. Chocolate, walnuts, cherries and ginger are a match made in heaven!

Happy holidays!


Dried Cherry & Chocolate Walnut Brittle (Recipe from Sugar Plum)
Printable Recipe

1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup corn syrup
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup coarsely chopped walnuts, toasted
1/2 cup dried cherries
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 tablespoons minced crystallized ginger
3 tablespoons dark chocolate chips

Butter a cookie sheet well.

Stir together sugar, corn syup and salt, and bring to a boil over medium-high heat; stir in walnuts and cherries, and continue to cook until mixture reaches 300 degrees F, stirring frequently. Remove pan from heat and stir in butter and baking soda, quickly; pour onto cookie sheet, and spread out thinly using two forks.

Sprinkle ginger over brittle and gently press into surface. Sprinkle chocolate chips over brittle and gently press into surface. Cool completely before breaking into pieces.