Christmas |

Chocolate Bark

Posted on December 19, 2012 by Kaitlin

Bark is one of my favorite holiday treats to make. Why? Because it is so darn simple. And people LOVE it. It is basically melted chocolate with some other deliciousness thrown in. Candy, pretzels, nuts.. whatever makes you happy. I wanted to make some bark to supplement my cookies this year and found this fantastic recipe from Baked Bree. Bree included some Rice Krispies cereal in between the layers to add a little bit of extra crunch to the bark, brilliant! The red and green M&Ms and candy canes make this the perfect holiday treat. Ingredients (adapted from BakedBree.com) 16 oz package dark chocolate chips 16 oz package white chocolate chips 1 cup Rice Krispies 4 candy canes 1 bag red and green M&Ms Note: this will make one cookie sheet worth of bark. I suggest making 2-3 sheets so you have plenty to share!

Christmas Trifle

Posted on December 17, 2012 by Kaitlin

Each year, my mom makes a beautiful trifle for Christmas. I’m pretty sure at one point, she was only making one, but as the popularity of her trifle grew, she is now up to making 6+ for different holiday events, friends, and family. My sister and I grew up begrudgingly helping my mom make these trifles but we both have grown to love them and look forward to a bite of trifle every December. A trifle is just a layered dessert that is usually made with cake pieces, cream, pudding, and fruit. My mom tops her with a beautiful design of fruit: kiwi, peaches and raspberries. I wanted to make some trifle to share with this blog but a normal trifle can serve a whole family, so I made a mini version! To prepare a regular trifle, the process is just the same. I highlighted Driscoll’s Berries in my trifle. I absolutely love their raspberries and blackberries so I wanted to have a higher ratio of berries in my trifle than may normally be used. Driscoll’s also sells really beautiful Strawberries and Blueberries that I have used in many many of my previous posts. Berries always add such … Continue reading →

Rainbow Cookies (a.k.a Seven-Layer Cookies)

Posted on December 6, 2012 by Kaitlin

If you’ve never heard of these lovelies, you are not alone. Rainbow cookies are made of almond cake died fun bright colors with apricot preserves all sandwiched in between two thin layers of chocolate. They really aren’t cookies at all, more like thinly packed cake. But whatever the heck they are called, they are delicious. I don’t really recall these cookies growing up, but my boyfriend (who is from Long Island) absolutely loves them. In fact, he was kind of taken aback when I mentioned I didn’t really know what they were. One of his friends was absolutely horrified; he basically forced me to eat one right then and there which I didn’t complain about. I love them now! So I wanted to try to make these little guys… I’m not sure why. They are awfully difficult (well, more time consuming than difficult). But I was so darn proud of myself when they were done, I don’t even care about the effort I had to put in! The cookies go by a ton of names … Rainbow, Seven Layer, Neapolitan, Tricolor… but I’m pretty sure they tend to be a Christmas staple in Italian households. I found … Continue reading →

Slow Cooker Mulled Wine

Posted on November 5, 2012 by Kaitlin

My goodness it dropped in temperature quickly! It feels like we went straight from September weather to December weather. Luckily, I have the perfect warm drink to keep you toasty. This is a (probably) oversimplified version of a drink my aunt and uncle always have at their house for the holidays: Wassail. It’s basically a mulled wine that warms you up from the inside out. I’ve been thinking about Wassail since the change in temperature so I decided to make a quick batch with things I already had in my house. Ingredients: 1 bottle red wine (I used a red zin) 2 cinnamon sticks 3 whole cloves 5 allspice berries 1 orange 2 oz whiskey 1 oz triple sec 1/4 cup brown sugar I like using the slow cooker so that I don’t accidentally boil the wine. This recipe can be multiplied as needed, it cooks down a bit so one bottle of wine renders about 3 glasses. Add the bottle of wine, cinnamon sticks, whole cloves, and allspice berries to the slow cooker. Cut the orange in half. Squeeze 1/2 of the orange into the slow cooker. Slice the other half into thin slices and throw in the slow … Continue reading →

Homemade Pancake Mix

Posted on January 6, 2012 by Kaitlin

Now don’t get me wrong, there is nothing wrong with store-bought pancake mix. However, are you aware of how easy it is to make your own at home? This recipe makes 16 pancakes; you can store the dry mix in a cool, dry place for up to 6 months. I found this recipe on allrecipes.com. Ingredients: 4 cups all-purpose flour 2 cups whole wheat flour 2/3 cup sugar 2 tablespoons baking powder 1 tablespoon baking soda To make the dry mix, just add all of the ingredients to a bowl. Whisk to combine. Pour into an air tight jar. Simple, right? I actually made this for a friend as a bit of a belated Christmas present. To make pancakes, add 1 egg and 3/4 cup milk to a bowl. Add 1 cup of the pancake mix and mix to combine. Pour batter onto a lightly greased griddle or pan. Cook until bubbles form on top, then flip using a spatula. Cook until both sides are golden. You can customize the pancakes however your little heart desires: blueberries, strawberries, bananas. Cinnamon, powdered sugar. You can even substitute buttermilk for the normal milk. Enjoy!

Snickerdoodles

Posted on December 21, 2011 by Kaitlin

I am back in cookie baking mode. This time around, I’m going the more traditional route. First on my list, classic snickerdoodles. 3/4 cup granulated sugar 2/3 cup light brown sugar 1/2 cup butter, softened 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 1 large egg 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour (about 6 3/4 ounces) 1 teaspoon baking powder 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1/4 teaspoon salt 1/3 cup granulated sugar 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Add the sugar, brown sugar, and softened butter in a large bowl. Using a hand mixer, beat at medium speed until well combined. Add the egg and vanilla and beat in until incorporated. In a medium sized bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon and salt. Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture and beat on medium until just combined. Shape the dough into 30 balls. (I somehow ended up with 29. So close..) Combine 1/3 cup sugar and 1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon in a shallow bowl. Roll the bowls in the sugar mixture one by one. Place two inches apart on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake at 400 degrees for 8 minutes. The original recipe said … Continue reading →