Blueberry Stuff (aka- Blueberry French Toast)

My mom makes this for Christmas morning every year. She also makes it for breakfast for birthdays and other special occasions- our family LOVES it.

12 slices day old white bread
2 packages (8 oz each) cream cheese
1 c fresh or frozen blueberries (JD and I use mixed berries instead- we like that better)
12 eggs
2 c milk
1/3 c maple syrup or honey

Sauce:
1 c sugar
2 T cornstarch
1 c water
1c blueberries (or mixed berries)
1 T butter

Cut bread into 1 inch cubes; place half in greased 9x13 pan. Cut cream cheese into 1 in cubes; sprinkle over bread. Top with blueberries and remaining bread. Beat eggs, milk, and sugar together in large bowl. Pour over bread mixture. Cover and chill 8 hours or overnight. Remove from fridge 30 min before baking. Cover and bake at 350 for 30 min. Uncover and bake 25-30 min longer, or until set.

In saucepan, combine sugar and cornstarch; add water. Bring to boil over medium heat and boil for 3 min, stirring constantly. Stir in blueberries, reduce heat. Simmer for 8-10 min, or until blueberries burst. Stir in butter until melted. Serve over french toast.

Potatoes Benson

I've tried many variations of this, but this one is easily the best!

6-8 medium potatoes
1 can cream of chicken soup
1/2 c butter melted
1/2 pint sour cream
1/4 c chopped green onions

Topping:
3/4 c grated Cheddar cheese
2 handfuls corn flakes, crushed coarsely
2 T melted butter

Boil potatoes until tender. Grate or slice and put in bottom of 9x13 pan. Mix soup, 1/2 c melted butter, sour cream, and onions. Spread on potatoes. Put on topping. Bake 25-30 min at 350.

Frog Eye Salad

It's a crime in the Sangster household not to have this salad for holiday meals.

1 box Acini de Pepe pasta
3 cans (11 oz) mandarin oranges
2 cans (20 oz) pineapple chunks
18 oz carton Cool Whip
1 cup mini marshmallows
1 can (20 oz) crushed pineapple

1 cup sugar
1/2 tsp salt
2 Tbl flour
2 eggs, beaten
1 3/4 cup pineapple juice
1 Tbl lemon juice

Combine sugar, flour, salt; gradually stir in pineapple juice and eggs. Cook over moderate heat until thickened, stirring frequently. Stir in lemon juice. Cool to room temperature.

Cook pasta with 2 tsp salt and 1 Tbl oil until done, about 8-10 minutes. Rinse. Cool to room temperature. Combine with egg mixture. Refrigerate overnight or for several hours. Add remaining ingredients. Makes a ton- double at your own risk!

Holiday Salad

When my mom was a teenager, she decided to make dinner for my grandparents for their anniversary. She found this salad and made it and it has been present at holiday meals ever since.

2 small packages of raspberry jello
3 cups boiling water
1 can jellied cranberry
1 package frozen raspberries
1 cup sour cream

Dissolve jello in water. Add cranberry jelly and raspberries. Mix, then pour half in 9x13 pan. Set. Set the rest to a jelly consistency.  Spread sour cream on firmly set jello. Top with remaining jello mixture and set.

Hot Apple Cider

Ingredients

• 4 whole Cinnamon Sticks
• 1/8 teaspoon Ground Cloves
• 8 whole Allspice Berries
• Orange Peel From 1 Orange
• Lemon Peel From 1 Lemon
• 1/2 cup Maple Syrup
• 6 cups Unfiltered (fresh Squeezed Is Great) Apple Juice
• 1/2 cup Dark Rum (optional)

Preparation Instructions

(Adapted from AllRecipes.com.)
Place cinnamon sticks, ground cloves, allspice berries, orange peel, and lemon peel in a medium saucepan. Pour in maple syrup and apple juice, then bring to almost a boil. Reduce the heat to its lowest setting and simmer for 30 minutes. Remove from heat and serve in mugs.

From: Pioneer Woman

Chocolate Covered Honeycomb

How to make Honeycomb

* 2 cups granulated sugar
* 1/2 cup Light Corn Syrup
* 1/4 cup Honey
* 1/4 Water
* 1 Tbsp (heaping!) Baking Soda

You need a candy thermometer. Do not attempt this project without one. Take a baking pan and rub butter all over the bottom of the pan and lightly flour it.

1. Add the sugar, corn syrup, honey and water into a pot that has at least 3 times the head space. The entire thing poofs up like crazy in a bit and overflowing sugar is a huge mess.

2. Stir the ingredients together until smooth with no lumps.

3. Put the candy thermometer into the mixture. Turn the heat onto medium-high.

4. Wait, no stirring, until the mixture reaches at least 300 degrees. The brown caramel color is what you're going for. Turn the heat off. Wait for at least a minute until the mixture has stopped bubbling.

5. Add that generous Tablespoon of baking soda to the mixture. Stir. Stir. Stir. Watch for the poof. See it? It keeps growing.

6. Pour into your lightly floured, buttered pan. Don't fill it up all the way because the entire mixture keeps poofing.

7. Let sit for 2 hours until hard. Hit with a hammer to break up.

8. Optional: Dip into chocolate for a sweet yummy surprise.

From: soap-queen.blogspot

Quick and Easy Flourless Torte

• 8 oz Ghiradelli Bittersweet Chocolate, chopped
• 1/2 cup butter
• 3/4 cup white sugar
• 3 eggs, beaten
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees F (150 degrees C). Grease an 8 inch round cake pan, and dust with cocoa powder. (NOTE: Use a spring form pan or put parchment on the bottom of the cake pan.)
   
2. In the top of a double boiler over lightly simmering water, melt chocolate and butter. Remove from heat, and stir in sugar, cocoa powder, eggs, and vanilla. Pour into prepared pan.
3. Bake in preheated oven for 35-40 minutes. Let cool in pan for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack and cool completely. Slices can also be reheated for 20 to 30 seconds in the microwave before serving.

From: allrecipes.com

Chocolate Truffle Sauce

3/4 cup whipping cream
2 Tb butter
2 cups semisweet chocolate chips
1 t vanilla

Put butter and cream in a saucepan and heat over medium-low heat until cream is hot. Do NOT BOIL. Remove from heat and add chocolate. Let it melt then whisk until smooth and add vanilla.

From: sisterscafe

Easy Hot Fudge

This is the notorious hot fudge recipe that caused me great problems when I tried making the sweetened condensed milk from scratch. But it is FABULOUS if you don't try to be Fran the Food Storage Queen- just BUY the stuff from the store.

For 1 pint:

3oz semi-sweet chocolate* (3 squares of baking chocolate, or about 1/2 C chocolate chips

1/4 C butter (that's a half of a stick folks. Admit it, at least one of you didn't know that)

1 Can Sweetened Condensed Milk

*I wouldn't use milk chocolate for this, it's way too sweet, however both dark and bittersweet are awesome

1. If you're using baking squares, chop them up into small pieces so they melt easier. I chop the butter up into small chunks too.


2. Okay, it's not rocket science. Put it in a pan on medium heat and melt it all together till it's smooth, creamy, and just looking at it gives you happy thoughts.

3. If you have leftovers (but let's be honest, you'll have to quadruple the recipe to have leftovers) then put it in an airtight container in the fridge. It will harden into a soft, gooey fudge like consistency.


From: ourbestbites.com

Eggnog Bundt Cake

1 yellow cake mix (preferably with pudding in the mix)
3 T. flour
2 c. eggnog
¼ c. butter, softened
2 eggs, slightly beaten
¼ tsp. rum extract
1/8 tsp. nutmeg

Beat until smooth and creamy. Pour into greased bundt pan. Bake at 350 for 35-45 minutes. Dust lightly with powdered sugar for presentation.

Caramel sauce:
½ lb brown sugar (~1 1/8 c.)
½ lb butter
½ lb powdered sugar (~2 cups)
½ T. cinnamon
½ qt. rich vanilla ice cream

Melt together over medium heat. Pour warm over individual servings immediately before serving.

From: The Sisters' Cafe

Pumpkin Gingerbread Trifle

Ingredients
2 (14-ounce) packages gingerbread mix (or 1 box spice cake mix)
1 (5.1-ounce) box cook-and-serve vanilla pudding mix
1 (30-ounce) can pumpkin pie filling
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/3 teaspoon ground cardamom or cinnamon
1 (12-ounce) container frozen whipped topping
1/2 cup gingersnaps, optional

Directions
Bake the gingerbread according to the package directions; cool completely. Meanwhile, prepare the pudding and set aside to cool. Stir the pumpkin pie filling, sugar, and cardamom into the pudding. Crumble 1 batch of gingerbread into the bottom of a large, pretty bowl. Pour 1/2 of the pudding mixture over the gingerbread, then add a layer of whipped topping. Repeat with the remaining gingerbread, pudding, and whipped topping. Sprinkle of the top with crushed gingersnaps, if desired. Refrigerate overnight. Trifle can be layered in a punch bowl.

From: Amanda Wilkinson

Peppermint Marshmallows

1/2 c. powdered sugar
1/3 c. cornstarch
2 envelopes unflavored gelatin
1 1/3 c. sugar
2/3 c. light corn syrup
1/2 c. crushed peppermint candy canes (about 6)
1/8 tsp. salt

*Tip: to crush your candy canes, break them up in large pieces, then seal them in a Zip Loc bag. Put your bag on a sturdy cutting board and use a hammer to smash them into a powder. The finer the powder, the better.

1. Into a small bowl, sift together powdered sugar and cornstarch. Line a 9x13" pan with foil and spray with non-stick cooking spray.

2. Sift 2 Tbsp. of the powdered sugar mixture into pan and tilt to coat all sides. Leave excess in pan.

3. Place 2/3 c. water in a large bowl and sprinkle with gelatin. Let soften 5 minutes.

4. In medium, heavy-bottom saucepan, heat sugar, corn syrup, candy cane, and salt over medium heat until completely dissolved (about 7 minutes).

5. Pour into bowl with gelatin mixture and beat on high speed with electric mixer until light and fluffy (10-15 minutes).

6. Spread evenly into prepared pan. Smooth top and dush with powdered sugar mixture. Let sit at room temperature for 2 hours.

7. Lift from pan with foil. With a small, wet cookie cutter, cut shapes and dip sides in sugar mixture. Cut up remaining marshmallows into small, irregular pieces (these are the ones I let my kids and husband eat!). Or, using a wet knife, cut into 6 large squares and dip sides into powdered sugar mixture. Then cut each of those squares into 9 pieces and dip in sugar mixture.

8. Store at room temp, loosely covered.

From: littlebirdiesecrets.blogspot.com

Starbuck's Peppermint Brownies

Here's a great one for the holidays (or anytime you want, really). It's a mint chocolate brownie with peppermint buttercream frosting on top and creamy chocolate frosting on top of that. And to simplify the cloning process a bit, we start with a common fudge brownie mix. By changing the required ingredients listed on the brownie mix box and adding some other modified steps, we can improve on the finished product. Rather than oil, use a stick of melted butter in your brownies for a richer, better flavor. And cook the brownies at a slightly lower temperature so that they come out moist and chewy. Since this recipe is for peppermint brownies, adding just a bit of peppermint extract will do the trick. The peppermint brownies from Starbucks have red and white frosting drizzled lightly across the top. To save time, buy premade red and white colored frostings that come in little cans (with tips included).
	Brownies one 19.5-ounce box fudge brownie mix (Betty Crocker Fudge Brownie Mix works great) 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, melted 1/4 cup water 2 large eggs 1/4 teaspoon peppermint extract Peppermint Buttercream Frosting 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar 1 tablespoon milk 1/4 teaspoon peppermint extract 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract Chocolate Frosting 1/3 cup whole milk 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter one 12-ounce bag semi-sweet chocolate chips 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 1 cup powdered sugar Decorative Icing 1 can white frosting (with fine tip) 1 can red frosting (with fine tip)
	1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F, then prepare a 9 x 9-inch baking pan by spraying it with a light coating of nonstick spray. Cut a piece of parchment paper or nonstick aluminum foil to the same width as the bottom of the pan, but make it much longer than the pan so that the left and right ends go up and out of the pan on the left and right sides. This will create a "sling" that will help you lift the brownies out of the pan after they've baked. 2. Make the brownie batter by first sifting the box of ingredients. This will destroy any clumps. Add the melted butter, water, eggs, and peppermint extract and mix the batter by hand just until all the dry stuff is mixed in. Pour the batter into your prepared baking pan and bake it for 50 to 55 minutes, or until a toothpick stuck in the center comes out clean. Allow the brownies to cool before frosting. 3. Make the peppermint buttercream frosting by beating together 1 cup of powdered sugar and the softened butter in a medium bowl with an electric mixer. Mix in another 1/2 cup of powdered sugar, then add the milk and the peppermint and vanilla extracts. Mix for about 1 minute to make the frosting smooth. Add an additional 1/4 cup of powdered sugar if the frosting is too thin and light. You want a frosting that can be spread easily, yet it should be firm enough to hold up the layer of chocolate frosting that's coming next. When the brownie has cooled, use a spatula to spread the frosting evenly over the top. Put the brownie in the fridge to firm up the buttercream frosting. 4. Make the chocolate frosting by bringing the whole milk and butter to a boil in a small saucepan over medium heat. Pour the chocolate chips into a heat-safe bowl. When the milk and butter comes to a boil, pour the mixture over the chocolate chips and let it all just sit there in the bowl for a couple minutes. Add the vanilla to the mixture and whisk until smooth. Use an electric mixer to beat in the powdered sugar until the frosting is smooth. Spread the chocolate frosting over the white frosting on the brownie. 5. Add the decorative red and white icing by first applying the white icing to the top of the cake in a sweeping motion diagonally across the top of the entire cake, then add the red icing over the white in the same sweeping motion in the same direction. 6. Stick the brownie back in the fridge for about an hour before removing it from the pan and slicing it into 9 equal portions. The leftovers will keep well for several days covered in the refrigerator. From: topsecretrecipes.com

Chocolate Truffles with Sea Salt

8 to 9 ounces good semisweet chocolate
8 to 9 ounces good bittersweet chocolate
1 14-ounce can sweetened condensed milk
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
8 ounces meltable milk chocolate

Heat chocolate and condensed milk in a double boiler over medium low heat until chocolate is melted. Stir—mixture will have a slight marshmallow texture.Stir in vanilla. Cover and refrigerate for two hours. Roll in balls, then roll in melted chocolate coating. Sprinkle with sea salt or other fine, coarse sprinkles.

From: thepioneerwoman.com

Truffle Cake

Grease and flour one 9x2 round pan and line bottom with parchment paper. Preheat the oven to 350.

Combine in a heatproof bowl placed over hot water:
6 oz. (2 sticks) butter
6 oz. semisweet chocolate
6 oz. unsweeted chocolate

Stir until melted, then cool 5 to 10 minutes.

In the bowl of an electric mixer at high speed, use a whisk attachment to beat:
5 large eggs
1/2 cup sugar
2 tsp. pure vanilla extract

Continue beating until triple in volume and the batter forms a ribbon when the beaters are lifted.

Meanwhile in saucepan, heat to a full boil:
1/2 cup sugar
1/3 light corn syrup

Remove from the heat and slowly beat the hop syrup into the eggs with the mixer at low speed. Beat at medium speed until batter reaches the top of the bowl, about 8 minutes, then decrease the speed to low and beat in 1/2 of the chocolate mixture. Before it is full incorporated take off the whisk and fold in the remaining chocolate by hand.

Pour the batter into the pan. Place the pan in a larger pan and fill the larger pan halfway with hot water. Bake for 40 minutes. The cake will look set. Cool the cake on a wire rack for 15 to 20 minutes. Then turn it out of the pan onto a cake round. Cool completely, then chill before glazing.

Chocolate Glaze
In a metal bowl over hot water, melt:
12 oz semisweet chocolate (about one bag of semisweet chocolate chips)

In a sauce pan, warm over medium-high heat:
1 cup heavy cream
3.5 tbsp butter
2 tbsp. corn syrup

Stir until butter melts, then continue to heat to just before the boiling point. Slowly pour the scalded liquid over the melted chocolate, whisking constantly until smooth. Strain through fine sieve. The glaze can be used immediately or cooled and refrigerated for up to 2 weeks.

From: Sarah Tolman

Italian Christmas Cookies

1 cup butter, softened
2 cups sugar
3 eggs
1 carton (15 ounces) ricotta cheese
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda

FROSTING:
1/4 cup butter, softened
3 to 4 cups confectioners' sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 to 4 tablespoons milk
Colored sprinkles

Directions:
In a mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in ricotta and vanilla. Combine flour, salt and baking soda; gradually add to creamed mixture.

Drop by rounded teaspoonfuls 2 in. apart onto greased baking sheets. Bake at 350° for 10-12 minutes or until lightly browned. Remove to wire racks to cool.

In a mixing bowl, cream butter, sugar and vanilla. Add enough milk until frosting reaches spreading consistency. Frost cooled cookies and immediately decorate with sprinkles. Store in the refrigerator. Yield: 8-1/2 dozen.

From: Taste of Home

Tamales

The day before:
1 (4 pound) chuck roast
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
1 1/4 cups diced green chile pepper
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper
1 (5 ounce) bottle hot pepper sauce
1 teaspoon garlic powder

DIRECTIONS
Trim the roast of any excess fat, and season with salt and pepper. Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Place meat in hot skillet, and brown meat quickly on all sides.

Transfer the roast to a slow cooker, and sprinkle onion over meat. Season with chile peppers, chili powder, cayenne pepper, hot pepper sauce, and garlic powder. Add enough water to cover 1/3 of the roast.

Cover, and cook on High for 6 hours, checking to make sure there is always at least a small amount of liquid in the bottom. Reduce heat to Low, and continue cooking for 2 to 4 hours, or until meat is totally tender and falls apart.

The day of:
3 (8 ounce) packages dried corn husks
3 cups lard (I used shortening)
1 tablespoon salt
9 cups masa harina

Place corn husks in a large container and cover with warm water. Allow to soak for 3 hours, until soft and pliable. May need to weight down with an inverted plate and a heavy can.

Place lard and salt in a large mixing bowl. Whip with an electric mixer on high speed until fluffy. Add masa harina and beat at low speed until well mixed. Pour in reserved cooking liquid a little at a time until mixture is the consistency of soft cookie dough.

Drain water from corn husks. One at a time, flatten out each husk, with the narrow end facing you, and spread approximately 2 tablespoons masa mixture onto the top 2/3 of the husk. Spread about 1 tablespoon of meat mixture down the middle of the masa. Roll up the corn husk starting at one of the long sides. Fold the narrow end of the husk onto the rolled tamale and tie with a piece of butchers' twine or a strip of corn husk.

Place tamales in a steamer basket. Steam over boiling water (I used beef broth) for approximately one hour, until masa is firm and holds its shape. Make sure steamer does not run out of water. Serve immediately, allowing each person to unwrap their own tamales. Allow any leftovers (still in husks) to cool, uncovered, in the refrigerator.

From: allrecipes.com

Band-aid Bread (a.k.a. Panatone)

Story behind the name: My mom makes this bread for Christmas as gifts. This year she made a batch for some of the general authorities that my dad was going to meet with. She threw it in the oven, and then discovered her band-aid that was on her finger was missing. She searched the kitchen frantically (dad had to leave soon) and couldn't find it. She couldn't bring herself to chance it and threw all 7 loaves away. A few days after Christmas, she found the band-aid. It wasn't mixed in the bread afer all!

Beat together until smooth:
6 eggs and 12 egg yolks
4 1/2 c sugar
3 c melted butter

Add:
2 T grated lemon peel
2 T anise seed
2 T anise extract

Stir in 1 1/2 cups each of:
pine nuts
raisins (I don't like raisins so I skip it)
dried apricots
craisins or dried cherries

Add:
16 c flour
4 T baking powder
1 T salt
6 c milk

Add dry ingredients alternately with milk, stirring until mixed.

Before mixing the batter, fold down the cuffs of brown lunch sacks until they are about 4 1/2 inches tall (about 3 folds). Grease sacks or spray with Pam. They will be translucent when greased.

Put bags on a cookie sheet. Be sure the bottoms don't get too brown and be sure there is plenty of room around each bag for the bags to cook evenly. Bake at 325 for 1 hour and 20-45 minutes. It makes 7 sacks. Tie a ribbon around the sack and it's so cute!

From: Mom

Egg Nog

3 eggs
1/4 cup-ish sugar (to taste)
a capful (or 1/2 t) vanilla
1 1/2 c milk
1 1/2 c half/half
nutmeg

Separate eggs yolks and whites. Beat the yolks with sugar until well blended. Stir in vanilla, milk, and half/half. Beat egg whites until fluffy (if you get any yolk in the whites, it will be hard to get it to fluff up). Fold whites in egg nog thoroughly. Don't be too gentle, the whites should lighten the drink but not be discernible. Pour in glasses and sprinkle with a little nutmeg.

Adapted from: How to Cook Everything

Scottish Shortbread

1/2 lb butter
1/2 c sugar
2 1/2 c flour

Melt butter. Add sugar. Mix with wooden spoon. Add flour one cup at a time. Spread into two 8" round pans. Prick all over (like every half an inch) with a fork. Bake at 275 for an hour. Should be light in color. When done, sprinkle with fine sugar (what's that? I just use regular). Cut before it gets cool.

From: Mom who used to make it every year for my Grandpa Sangster. It brings back many happy Christmas memories.