Peppermint Oreo Truffles

 Peppermint Oreo Truffles

We had an office party and Dr. Porter's wife brought these and they were so yummy, so on to my blog they go:

They are from www.savingcentbycent.com

Ingredients

• 1 package (16 oz) Oreo cookies
• 1 package (8 oz) cream cheese, softened
• 1 teaspoon peppermint extract
• 16 oz melting chocolate or almond bark, melted
• candy canes, crushed, or holiday sprinkles

Instructions

1. Place whole Oreos into a ziploc bag and use a rolling pin to crush the Oreos into small crumbs.
2. Pour crushed Oreos into a medium mixing bowl. Add cream cheese and peppermint extract and use a mixer to blend well.
3. Place Oreo mixture into the fridge for one hour until firm.
4. Roll Oreo mixture into 1-inch balls.
5. Melt almond bark according to directions on package. Using a spoon, dip Oreo balls in melted almond bark and place on wax paper. Immediately add crushed candy canes or holiday sprinkles to the top.
6. Note: To prevent the Oreo balls from mixing into the almond bark, melt and use small batches of almond bark at a time.
7. Refrigerate truffles for about one hour until firm.
8. Store truffles in a covered container in the refrigerator.

There are so many oreo ball recipes out there but these were really really good with the peppermint added! YUM!

Nourishing of the Soul:

The Best Homemade baked Mac and Cheese

 The Best Homemade baked Mac and Cheese

We just had an office party and Dr Bennett and his wife brought the best Mac and Cheese I have tasted! So on my blog it goes!  It is from momontimeout.com  go here for recipe:  https://www.momontimeout.com/best-homemade-baked-mac-and-cheese-recipe/#recipe

Ingredients

  16 oz elbow macaroni, cooked

  1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil

  6 TBSP  unsalted butter

• 1/3 cup all purpose flour
• 3 cups whole milk
• 1 cup heavy whipping cream
• 4 cups sharp cheddar cheese shredded
• 2 cups Gruyere cheese shredded
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 1/2 cups panko crumbs
• 4 tbsp butter melted
• 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese shredded
• 1/4 tsp smoked paprika (or regular paprika)

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 350F. Lightly grease a large 3 qt or 4 qt baking dish and set aside. Combine shredded cheeses in a large bowl and set aside.
• Cook the pasta one minute shy of al dente according to the package instructions. Remove from heat, drain, and place in a large bowl.
• Drizzle pasta with olive oil and stir to coat pasta. Set aside to cool while preparing cheese sauce.
• Melt butter in a deep saucepan, dutch oven, or stock pot.
• Whisk in flour over medium heat and continue whisking for about 1 minute until bubbly and golden.
• Gradually whisk in the milk and heavy cream until nice and smooth. Continue whisking until you see bubbles on the surface and then continue cooking and whisking for another 2 minutes. Whisk in salt and pepper.
• Add two cups of shredded cheese and whisk until smooth. Add another two cups of shredded cheese and continue whisking until creamy and smooth. Sauce should be nice and thick.
• Stir in the cooled pasta until combined and pasta is fully coated with the cheese sauce.
• Pour half of the mac and cheese into the prepared baking dish. Top with remaining 2 cups of shredded cheese and then the remaining mac and cheese.
• In a small bowl, combine panko crumbs, Parmesan cheese, melted butter and paprika. Sprinkle over the top and bake until bubbly and golden brown, about 30 minutes. Serve immediately.

Dr Bennett said his wife uses sharp cheddar and mozzarella cheese and half of the bread crumbs called for. I did make this and it turned out great, I used the full amount of bread crumbs but I think I should have used less like he said!

Yummers from Diane Worthen

Yummers from Diane Worthen

we just had this recipe for a fun friend party, so yummy!

Yummers

3 pkgs. Bacon

1 Cup Ketchup

5 cans of Whole Water Chestnuts

1 Cup Brown Sugar

*Drain and soak Water Chestnuts in Soy Sauce for about 20 min

*Cut Bacon Strips in halves or third depending on how big the chestnuts are

*Wrap bacon around Chestnuts and secure with a toothpick.

Place on parchment or tin foiled covered baking pan.  Bake at 400 degrees for half hour.  Remove from oven and Drain off fat.  Pour the Ketchup/sugar mixture over the top of each Chestnut and bake at

350 degrees for another 30 minutes

So Yummy!

Symphony Pie

 Symphony  Bar Pie (Candy Bar Pie)

My roommate Carla just made this pie and I found it to be so delicious that I wanted to publish the recipe!

Symphony Pie

1 King Size Symphony Bar (milk chocolate or toffee chip)

1/4 cup half and half or milk (or water)

1 8 oz tub Cool Whip

Graham Cracker pie crust (or use frozen pastry crust that you cook first)

Break up Symphony Bar and add the milk or cream in large microwave safe  bowl.  Heat in microwave for 45 seconds.  Remove and mix with spoon so that all of the chocolate is melted .  Add Cool Whip and mix very well (do this for about five minutes making sure that all of the chocolate is incorporated.  Pour Chocolate mixture into graham cracker crust or cooked pastry crust and spread evenly.  Cover and freeze for 3 hours before serving.  It will stay good int he freezer for weeks but I guarantee you that it wont last that long.

***She prefers the Milk chocolate over the toffee, but they are both fantastic.  This is a great pie to experiment with.  We have done a Reese's pie with about 8 to 10 cups, made the exact same way and it was delicious!

Amazing Fudge from Kylie

We just had a work party and Kylie brought this amazing fudge recipe

It is very yummy

Kylie's Amazing Fudge (marshmallow creme fudge recipe)

3 cups granulated sugar

3/4 cup unsalted butter (1.5 sticks)

2/3 cup evaporated milk

1 jar (7 oz) Jet Puffed Marshmallow Creme

2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips (kylie uses milk chocolate chips)

1 tsp vanilla

Optional 1 cup chopped nuts (walnuts, pecans)

Instructions:

Prepare your pan by Lining a 9 x 13 pan with aluminum foil or parchment paper.  Grease lightly with butter or non stick spray

In a medium saucepan, combine sugar, butter, and evaporated milk.

Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture comes to a boil

Boil for 4 to 5 minutes while stirring to prevent burning

Remove the saucepan from the heat. Stir in the Marshmallow Creme and chocolate chips until smooth and fully melted.

Stir in vanilla extract and nuts

Pour the mixture into the prepared pan and spread evenly

Let cool at room temperature for a least 3 hours or until firm.

Now for the nourishing of the soul!:

I got this recipe in December so because we are celebrating the birth of our Savior this month I would just like to say that each day for the month of December we should be expressing gratitude in our daily prayers for the gift of the atonement and for the birth of our Savior who loves us dearly!  I love Him!

Best Italian Pasta Salad

I needed to make a pasta salad for our office party and made this and really liked it, so on to my blog it goes, and of course from cute Mel at melskitchencafe.com

Italian Pasta Salad

Ingredients

Salad:

• 12 ounces whole wheat or regular penne pasta, cooked until al dente (see note)
• 1 (6-ounce) can large olives, drained and sliced in half
• 1-2 cups chopped cucumber
• 2 cups sliced or chopped cherry tomatoes
• 4-6 ounces sliced or chopped salami or pepperoni, (about 1 cup)
• 8 ounces fresh mozzarella balls, cut in half (see note)
• ¼ cup chopped red or green onions
• ¼ cup chopped fresh parsley or basil

Dressing:

• ⅓ cup olive oil
• ¼ cup red wine or white balsamic vinegar
• 2 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan or Parm-reggiano cheese
• 1 teaspoon honey or sugar
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• ½ teaspoon coarse, kosher salt
• ¼ teaspoon dried oregano
• ¼ teaspoon dried basil
• ¼ teaspoon dried parsley
• Pinch of black pepper
• Pinch of red pepper flakes

Cook ModePrevent your screen from going dark

Instructions 

• Combine all the salad ingredients in a large bowl.
• For the dressing, combine all the ingredients in a bowl, jar or blender, and whisk, shake or process until combined (use a blender if you want the cheese in smaller pieces).
• Pour half of the dressing over the salad. Toss.
• Add more dressing, if desired (if the salad is going to be refrigerated for several hours before serving, reserve some of the dressing to toss with the salad right before serving).

Smore's Bars

 Smores Bars from Princess Pinky Girl I found on facebook:

https://princesspinkygirl.com/smore-bars/?fbclid=IwAR0jlg_739apk7IJO43oS49a6KdqzqXZZRxSHsGE7drzymGyMnQkubZuf7U

INGREDIENTS

  

• ▢2  Cups graham cracker crumbs
• ▢8-12  Tablespoons  butter melted
• ▢½ Cup powdered sugar
• ▢4 Hershey Chocolate Bar use 4.4 ounce bars
• ▢1 package mini marshmallows

• INSTRUCTIONS

   

  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  • Grease 9×13 pan with non-stick butter spray.
  • In a medium size bowl mix graham cracker crumbs, powdered sugar and butter with a spoon (see note below regarding the melted butter and the crust).
  • Place mixture in the bottom of the baking pan. Distribute the mixture evenly and press down and firmly with your fingers to "pack it" along the bottom and sides of the pan.
  • Place in oven and bake for approx. 5-8 minutes (just until sides begin to get a bit golden brown) NOTE: Crust will harden as it cools.
  • Remove from oven and let cool.
  • Lay the Hershey bars on top of the graham cracker mixture – covering up all of the graham cracker as completely as possible.
  • Place in oven for approx. 3 minutes (until chocolate just begins to melt and gets shiny)
  • Let cool for 1-2 min.
  • • Place marshmallows on top of the chocolate – pack them in their closely next to each other.
    • Turn oven to "broil" – put pan into oven and STARE at them! They only need to be in there for about 2 minutes. BUT, every oven is different! Watch them like a hawk or they will burn and set on fire (I am not kidding here – learn from my experience!!) As soon as they begin to brown, take them out of the oven.
    • Let them cool completely (after they initially cooled, I place them in the refrigerator to set even more – this will make them easier to cut)
    • Cut and serve – (tip: they can get really sticky to cut, warm a sharp knife under

    • JENN’S NOTES

      Note on crust: When adding the melted butter to the crust, some people find that there is too much butter and it pools in the mixture. My recommendation is to slowly add the butter and mix it in a little at a time until your mixture looks like the picture in the post above.

      If it does not look like the photo below and you are finding your butter is pooling or it is too wet, you should add some additional graham cracker crumbs and powdered sugar to achieve the consistency as pictured.

      The graham crackers that you use absorb differently and this will determine how much butter you will want to add. You want the mixture to be moist, but not wet.

      The butter should not pool, but the mixture should stick together when you press it into the pan for the crust

      Cutting Tips:

      Before cutting them, put them in the refrigerator for a few minutes.

      The marshmallows can get very sticky and can make it difficult to cut, but this,
    • paired with a sharp, warm knife (run it under warm/hot water and dry it off) will make them easier to cut.