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Holiday

Mini Tall & Creamy Cheesecakes

December 10, 2020 by Amy Leave a Comment

One of the few things that I’m known for in my friends/family/coworker circle is that I can make a really great cheesecake. This particular cheesecake is smooth, creamy & almost has a light/airy texture to it that you don’t find with typical cheesecakes.

There’s no secret to my cheesecake – whenever people ask me about it, I happily share the recipe. However, I’ve noticed there’s some sort of intimidation when it comes to cheesecake – like that intimidation a lot of us have with bread. When it comes to cheesecake, the secret is in the mixing. Don’t skimp on mix times, and scrape down the mixing bowl a lot – like after every ingredient addition. You want the batter to have as few clumps as possible. Other than that, I find cheesecakes to be fairly simple to make – you just have to think ahead to make these, since they require a decent amount of chill time before serving.

This year – there’s no cheesecake for the coworker pot luck (we are all working from home), and there’s no cheesecake for family gatherings (we are all distancing in our immediate family circles). However, I still want to give them their holiday cheesecakes this year, so I purchased some 4″ springform pans.

I used the same recipe I always use, but instead of the typical bake time, I baked these for just about half the time. They still had that perfect texture, and a 4″ springform is a generous dessert for 2. Top these with the sauce of your choice – I made a homemade strawberry sauce.

Check out what other bloggers are sharing for #ChristmasSweetsWeek below this recipe!

Mini Tall and Creamy Cheesecakes
Source: Baking From My Home to Yours

Ingredients:

For the crust:

  • 1 3/4 cups graham cracker crumbs
  • 3 tablespoons sugar
  • Pinch of salt
  • 1/2 stick (4 tablespoons) unsalted butter, melted

For the cheesecake:

  • 2 pounds (four 8-ounce boxes) cream cheese, at room temperature
  • 1 1/3 cups sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
  • 4 large eggs, at room temperature
  • 1 1/3 cups sour cream or heavy cream, or a combination of the two (I used heavy cream)

Directions:

To make the crust:

  1. Butter 4-inch springform pans (this recipe makes enough for 6), and wrap the bottom of the pans in a double layer of aluminum foil; put the pans on a baking sheet.
  2. Stir the crumbs, sugar and salt together in a medium bowl. Pour over the melted butter and stir until all of the dry ingredients are uniformly moist.  Turn the ingredients into the buttered springform pan and use your fingers to pat an even layer of crumbs along the bottom of the pan and about halfway up the sides (I like to use a round glass to make it flat.). Don’t worry if the sides are not perfectly even or if the crumbs reach above or below the midway mark on the sides—this doesn’t have to be a precision job. Put the pans in the freezer while you preheat the oven.
  3. Center a rack in the oven, preheat the oven to 350°F and place the springforms on a baking sheet. Bake for 10 minutes. Set the crusts aside to cool on a rack while you make the cheesecake batter.
  4. Reduce the oven temperature to 325°F.

To make the cheesecake:

  1. Put a kettle of water on to boil (or microwave water in a bowl).
  2. Working in a stand mixer, preferably fitted with a paddle attachment, or with a hand mixer in a large bowl, beat the cream cheese at medium speed until it is soft and lives up to the creamy part of its name, about 4 minutes. With the mixer running, add the sugar and salt and continue to beat another 4 minutes or so, until the cream cheese is light. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Beat in the vanilla. Add the eggs one by one, beating for a full minute after each addition—you want a well-aerated batter. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Reduce the mixer speed to low and stir in the sour cream and/or heavy cream.
  3. Put the foil-wrapped springform pans in a roaster pan.
  4. Give the batter a few stirs with a rubber spatula, just to make sure that nothing has been left unmixed at the bottom of the bowl, and scrape the batter into the springform pans. The batter will reach the brim of the pans. Put the roasting pan in the oven and pour enough boiling water into the roaster to come halfway up the sides of the springform pan.
  5. Bake the cheesecake for 45-50 minutes, at which point the tops will be browned (and perhaps cracked) and may have risen just a little above the rim of the pan. Turn off the oven’s heat and prop the oven door open with a wooden spoon. Allow the cheesecake to luxuriate in its water bath for another hour.
  6. After 1 hour, carefully pull the setup out of the oven, lift the springform pan out of the roaster—be careful, there may be some hot water in the aluminum foil—remove the foil. Let the cheesecake come to room temperature on a cooling rack.
  7. When the cakes are cool, cover the tops tightly and chill the cake for at least 4 hours, although overnight would be better.

Welcome to #ChristmasSweetsWeek 2020! Co-hosted by Terri from Love and Confections and Christie from A Kitchen Hoor’s Adventures! What better way to celebrate the holidays than with food and fun? 21 bloggers from around the country have come together to share some of their favorite sweet Christmas recipes!! Deck the halls and get ready for very merry sweet treats, like fudge, cookies, Christmas morning breakfasts, layer cakes, cocoa, and more! Follow along on social media with our #ChristmasSweetsWeek hashtag. Happy Holidays!

Enjoy these #ChristmasSweetsWeek recipes from our bloggers:

Candy and Fudge Recipes
Peanut Butter Truffles by A Kitchen Hoor’s Adventures
Grinch Snack Mix by Sweet Beginnings
Chocolate Pecan Pralines by House of Nash Eats
Oreo Cookie Truffles by Kathryn’s Kitchen Blog

Pastry and Dessert Recipes
Gingerbread Poke Cake by Love & Confections
Mini Tall & Creamy Cheesecakes by The Nifty Foodie
Small Batch Chocolate Cake with Fluffy Peppermint Frosting by Kate’s Recipe Box

Filed Under: Cakes/Cupcakes, Desserts, Holiday Tagged With: cheesecake, dessert, holiday dessert, individual dessert

Classic Cinnamon Rolls

December 7, 2020 by Amy 5 Comments

Happy Holidays, y’all! ‘Tis the season for the holiday shopping bustle, office parties, holiday bake-palooza….wait…

I’ll be honest – without the normal traditions, I’m struggling with feeling the holiday spirit. We put up the tree – heck, we even splurged on a new 9 ft. tree – but with the way things are currently, it’s so different. SO much is different.

I haven’t felt the holiday funk since the year our sweet dog, Millie, passed away from cancer. I couldn’t face the doggie decor – I knew her ornaments and stocking would be there. This year, I’m sitting in our house and kind of mourning the loss of what I have ever known the holidays to be (as most of us are).

I know what you are about to say – count your blessings, Amy. Oh trust me – I absolutely am. I’m lucky to have a job that puts safety at the forefront – I’ve been working from home since March. I’m lucky to even have a job at all. I know so many people are suffering this year, and for that reason alone – I shouldn’t be in a funk. I’m lucky that no one in our families have gotten sick this year. There’s a lot to be thankful for – yet here I am.

So, I’m trying to force some holiday happy into my life by doing what I do best around the holiday season – bake. This week, I’m sharing 3 classic baking recipes with y’all by participating in #ChristmasSweetsWeek 2020 – these classic cinnamon rolls are one of the recipes. Check out what other bloggers are sharing this week as well – I have the links below this recipe!

Classic cinnamon rolls to me are fluffy, gooey & flavorful – this recipe has a brioche-type of bread dough with a sweet (yet not TOO sweet) cream cheese icing. It’s insanely delicious! These aren’t a quick recipe by any means, but it’s SO worth it!

Classic Cinnamon Rolls
Source: slightly adapted from The Vanilla Bean Blog

Ingredients:

For the dough:

  • 4 large eggs, at room temperature
  • 3/4 cup whole milk (warmed to 100-110 degrees F)
  • 1/4 cup honey
  • 4 cups all-purpose flour
  • 2 1/4 tsp. active dry yeast
  • 2 tsp. salt
  • 10 tbsp. (1 1/4 sticks) unsalted butter, softened

For the filling:

  • 1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
  • 1 tbsp. cinnamon
  • pinch of salt
  • 2 tbsp. unsalted butter, melted and cooled

For the icing:

  • 8 tbsp. (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
  • 4 oz. cream cheese, softened
  • 1 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
  • 1 cup confectioners sugar

Directions:

  1. To make the dough, prepare a large bowl by greasing it well. In a large liquid measuring cup, whisk together the eggs, warmed milk and honey.
  2. In the bowl of a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, mix the flour, yeast, and salt together – stir on low until combined. Add the egg mixture to the flour mixture, and mix until just combined. With the mixer on low, add the butter in 1 tbsp. at a time. Once the butter has been added, increase the mixer’s speed to medium and beat the butter into the dough, until the butter pieces are mixed into the dough (about 1 minute).
  3. Using a spatula, transfer the dough to the greased bowl. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap, and allow the dough to rise for 30 minutes. Once the dough has risen, use your fingers or a spatula to reach under the dough and gently pull it up over the rest of the dough. Turn the bowl and repeat the “folding” process until the dough has been pulled up from the bottom of the bowl. Re-cover the bowl with plastic wrap, and allow the dough to rise for another 30 minutes. Repeat this process three more times. Once the folding process is done, cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate the dough overnight (or up to 72 hours).
  4. Once the dough has been refrigerated, flour a work surface and knead the dough 10-12 times. Once the dough has been kneaded, shape the dough into a ball, cover the top of the dough with a light dusting of flour and then cover the dough with a tea towel while the dough comes to room temperature.
  5. Prepare a 9×13 inch baking pan by greasing it well or line it with parchment paper. In a small bowl, mix together the filling ingredients (brown sugar, cinnamon and salt).
  6. Roll the dough into a 16×12 inch rectangle. Then, brush the dough with the melted butter and sprinkle the cinnamon/sugar/salt mixture evenly over the top of the dough. Once that has been sprinkled on, take a little time to lightly press the cinnamon/brown sugar/ salt mixture into the butter to help it stick together. Starting at a longer side of the rectangle, carefully roll the dough into a tight cylinder shape. Pinch the seam of the dough gently to seal it, and then shift the dough to be seam side down.
  7. Use a serrated knife to gently cut the dough into 12 even pieces. Transfer the pieces of dough to the prepared pan, and place the dough pieces cut-side up. Then, cover the pan loosely with plastic wrap and allow the dough to rise until it has doubled (about 1 to 1 1/2 hours).
  8. Just before the end of this dough rise, move an oven rack to the middle position. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Once the oven has preheated, remove the plastic and bake the cinnamon rolls for 27-32 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through. If you find that the rolls are browning too fast, but are not done baking, use oven mitts carefully cover your pan with foil to finish baking.
  9. While the rolls are baking, prepare the icing. Using the paddle attachment of a stand mixer, beat the softened butter and softened cream cheese on medium speed, until fluffy and creamy. Add the vanilla extract and salt & mix on low to combine. Scrape the bowl of the stand mixer, and mix the confectioners sugar in the icing mixture on low until everything is combined. Scrape the bowl once more, and then mix the icing on medium until the icing is fluffy and creamy (about 3-4 minutes).
  10. When the rolls are done baking, transfer the pan to a wire rack to allow it to cool for 5 minutes. Generously spread the icing over the tops of the rolls, and enjoy!

Welcome to #ChristmasSweetsWeek 2020! Co-hosted by Terri from Love and Confections and Christie from A Kitchen Hoor’s Adventures! What better way to celebrate the holidays than with food and fun? 21 bloggers from around the country have come together to share some of their favorite sweet Christmas recipes!! Deck the halls and get ready for very merry sweet treats, like fudge, cookies, Christmas morning breakfasts, layer cakes, cocoa, and more! Follow along on social media with our #ChristmasSweetsWeek hashtag. Happy Holidays!

Enjoy these #ChristmasSweetsWeek recipes from our bloggers:

Beverage Recipes
Homemade Dark Hot Chocolate Mix by Bear & Bug Eats

Breakfast and Baked Goods Recipes
Easy Cranberry Orange Monkey Bread by Love & Confections
Classic Cinnamon Rolls by The Nifty Foodie
Spiced Pear Quick Bread by Simply Inspired Meals
Cherry Croissant Breakfast Bake by Making Miracles
Cranberry Eggnog French Toast Bake by The Redhead Baker

Candy and Fudge Recipes
3 Ingredient Old Fashioned Potato Candy by Blogghetti
Bourbon Caramels with Chocolate and Vanilla by Christmas Tree Lane
Star Bread by House of Nash Eats
Chocolate Peppermint Graham Crackers by Kathryn’s Kitchen Blog

Pastry and Dessert Recipes
Peanut Butter Cut Outs by A Kitchen Hoor’s Adventures
Banana Cake by Palatable Pastime
Cranberry Orange Sugar Cookie Bars by Sweet Beginnings
Peppermint Dipped Chocolate Chip Cookies by An Affair from the Heart
Hazelnut & Raspberry Balsamic Brownie Cookies by The Spiffy Cookie
Lemon Ricotta Cookies by A Little Fish in the Kitchen Lemon
Egg Nog Ice Cream by A Day in the Life on the Farm
Eggless Blue Curaco Velvet Cake by Magical Ingredients
Pecan Crusted Pecan Pie by The Mandatory Mooch
St Louis Gooey Butter Cake by For the Love of Food
Hot Chocolate Sweet Rolls by Kate’s Recipe Box

Filed Under: Breads/Muffins, Breakfast, Desserts, Holiday Tagged With: bread, cinnamon rolls, dessert, holidays, pastry, yeast

Santa’s Popcorn

December 19, 2017 by Amy Leave a Comment

Disclosure: This post is sponsored by G.H. Cretors. All opinions are 100% my own.

Santa's Popcorn

One of my favorite parts of the holiday season involves making delicious goodies for the people that I care about. Family, friends, coworkers…you name it. After all is said and done, I typically make 300+ cookies, as well as various other homemade goodies. However, for the first time in years, I decided to not do the grand bake-palooza.

The simple why is that I just haven’t found the time to do it. As you guys can tell, my blog has become more of a back-burner project. It’s a bit sad, since I love spending time in the kitchen, and I look forward to sharing my big bake-palooza post with y’all every single holiday season. However, this is the first season without it, and hopefully the last. 🙂

This year, I’ve focused on easier homemade goodies, like this popcorn mix. Within half an hour, you have a tin-full of this delicious mix, which I’ve lovingly named Santa’s Popcorn. I imagine if Santa had a favorite popcorn, it would be something like this. 🙂

One of the biggest time-savers is using pre-made caramel popcorn. One of my favorite pre-made caramel popcorns is G.H. Cretors “Just the Caramel Corn”. The popcorn is still crunchy, the caramel is rich and flavorful, and it’s affordable!

Santa’s Popcorn
Source: a Nifty Foodie original

Ingredients:

  • 1 8 oz. bag “Just the Caramel Corn” popcorn
  • 1 cup M&Ms
  • 1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips, melted
  • 1/2 cup white chocolate chips, melted
  • various sprinkles

Directions:

  1. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment or wax paper. Pour the bag of caramel popcorn onto the lined baking sheet, in one even layer. Pour the M&Ms over the popcorn in one even layer.
  2. Drizzle the semi-sweet and white chocolates over the popcorn and M&Ms. Immediately sprinkle the popcorn mixture with as many sprinkles as you’d like, being careful to finish this step before the chocolate hardens. Wait for the mixture to cool.
  3. Enjoy!

 

Filed Under: Candy, Chocolate, Holiday, Holiday Recipes

All About The Turkey (+ GIVEAWAY)!

November 9, 2016 by Amy 17 Comments

Disclosure: Butterball provided me with a turkey gift check, as well as two other turkey gift checks to giveaway, in exchange for a post. All opinions are 100% my own.

You guys. I am the worst! My laptop has been going crazy for a couple of months, and it seems to be on its last leg. 🙁 I have so many recipe ideas to share with y’all, and now that I have a new laptop, I’m excited to be sharing some delicious food (as well as other random talk) just in time for the holiday season!

image

In a couple of short weeks, it’s going to be Thanksgiving. I can’t believe I’m typing that, but it’s so true!

Whenever I’m planning out my menu for Thanksgiving, I always plan out the turkey first. How am I going to prepare it? When do I need to thaw it? How much turkey do I need? There’s a lot of thought that goes into the turkey, because it’s essentially the main event for the whole meal.

Now for a first-timer, that’s a bit overwhelming. I remember thinking…as long as my turkey doesn’t end up like Catherine’s (from Christmas Vacation). Goals, right?

Butterball has been known for years as being the professionals that home cooks turn to when it comes to all things turkey. For years, they have offered their Butterball Turkey Talk-Line services, but now they will be offering something new — week-long 24/7 text help!

Yep, you read that right…TEXT HELP. Butterball will be expanding their Butterball Turkey Talk-Line services, by allowing customers for the first time to text in their cooking questions. This will be offered from November 17-24. The service will help customers looking for how-to tips, cooking support and any other turkey questions that customers may have. Text help will be available 24/7 by texting 844-877-3456.

Other ways that you can get help through the Butterball Turkey Talk-Line include:

  • How-To Videos – available at Butterball.com or YouTube.
  • Website/Mobile App – Butterball.com and the Butterball Cookbook Plus App contain so much like coupon savings, trusted recipes, how-to videos, and key tips for success, to name a few big features.
  • Social Media – Butterball has presence on Facebook , Twitter , Pinterest and Instagram for tips, special savings, recipe inspiration, some behind-the-scenes looks at Butterball and more!
  • Live Chats – Talk to the turkey experts through Live Chats on Butterball’s website during the months of November and December for real-time suggestions/advice.
  • Email – You can always email Butterball here to get helpful tips and tricks conveniently in your inbox.
  • 1-800-BUTTERBALL – As always, you can call the Turkey Talk-Line experts from November 1- December 24 to get help with your Thanksgiving cooking questions.

There’s so many wonderful ways to get the help that you will need this Thanksgiving season!

The generous folks at Butterball want to offer TWO readers of The Nifty Foodie a turkey gift check!

To enter, use the Rafflecopter widget below (must be over the age 0f 18 and live in the continental US):

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Note: This giveaway is supplied by Butterball, and is open to readers in the continental US only over the age of 18. Entries will be accepted until November 14th, 2016 at 11:59pm (central standard time). Winner will be emailed (make sure you leave an email address in the form), and will have 48 hours to respond or another winner will be chosen.

 

Filed Under: Holiday, Holiday Recipes

Our Holiday Moving Announcements

December 14, 2015 by Amy Leave a Comment

Disclosure: Minted.com is compensating me for writing this post in the form of a credit on their website, in exchange for this post. All opinions are 100% my own.

These past few months have just flown by. My work weeks have been pretty busy, and on weekends, our focus is to see the progress of the new house. It blows my mind that our dream home is pretty much done and ready for us to make this new house into a home. 🙂

Our usual holiday cards feature Millie, but with the big move about to happen, I thought it would be fun (and hey, pretty darn efficient) to mention our move with our holiday cards. Thankfully, the designers at Minted already have this covered…there’s a whole category of holiday moving announcements on their site!

Some of my favorite options in the category included:

MintedOption1
Source: Minted

MintedOption2
Source: Minted

I honestly loved both of these cards, but it was a bit hard to figure out when we would be able to take a picture of us with Millie in front of the house. We would have had to wait until the house was done to get a picture taken, since a dog + a construction site is simply not a good idea.

Then, I started to look into non-photo options. There were SO many great cards!

MintedOption3
Source: Minted

MintedOption4
Source: Minted

OurMintedChoice
Source: Minted

It was really hard for us to choose, but after going back and forth with H about it, we decided on the Yule Haul card!

Along with the option for many different types of cards, I love that Minted also has a few color choices once you choose the card you like. We went with the cranberry Yule Haul card, which looks fantastic!

Once we selected the card we liked, we were able to get a live preview of the card before placing the order, which was helpful. Our new address is a bit on the long side, so the option to alter the font sizes was really great. Also, once we placed our order, we were sent a proof to approve before the card went to print. You pretty much know what your cards will look like before you receive them in the mail.

Minted also has a great, new option to make holiday cards even easier: recipient addressing (at no extra charge!). All you have to do is download their excel file template, fill it in with your address book and save it. Then, you upload that table, and then Minted autofills in your addressing information on their envelopes! I think that’s pretty awesome!

As far as my experience goes, I was thrilled with the way the cards came out. Granted, I really can’t show them to you all (since they contain my address), but I wanted to show you how much care goes into their packaging.
Minted Review

Everything was bubble-wrapped, so there were no bent envelopes or bent corners in the cards. I also appreciated that the quality of the cardstock and envelopes are great. I’ve purchased holiday cards from other companies before, and the cardstock/envelopes from Minted are by far, the best quality.

I can’t wait for our friends and family to receive our cards this year. It’s an exciting time for us, and I really feel that these cards are such a fun way to announce the upcoming move!

Filed Under: Holiday, Review

Favorite Gifts for the Host (+ GIVEAWAY)

December 23, 2014 by Amy 5 Comments

Disclosure: I was sent a sampler of Orchard Choice fig spread, in exchange for a post that included their products, by Valley Fig Growers (made possible by KitchenPLAY). Valley Fig Growers is also providing the giveaway item. All opinions are 100% my own.

Randoms

With Christmas in a couple of short days, I’m sure that quite a few of y’all (myself included) are hosting or going to holiday meals with loved ones. One of the few things I often forget to do is to thank the host/hostess with a small gift. Quite a few people like to bring a bottle of wine or a bouquet of flowers, but I much prefer bringing something food related. It can be anything from a homemade food gift to a fun food product that I think is worth sharing with others.

Here’s some of my favorites:

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Filed Under: Entertaining/Parties, Giveaways/Reviews, Holiday

Peppermint Bark Brown Sugar Lip Scrub (+ GIVEAWAY)

December 7, 2014 by Amy 8 Comments

Disclosure: This is a sponsored post on behalf of Dixie Crystals. I received products in exchange for this post. They also supplied the items for the giveaway. All opinions are my own.

Peppermint Bark Brown Sugar Lip Scrub

This past week, I started wrapping Christmas gifts to place under the tree. The day after Thanksgiving, my husband took down the gift wrapping boxes from the attic, and I just had a wrapping spree. Gift wrapping takes me a while, because I try to make the packaging as pretty as possible, just because I enjoy the heck out of it. Wire ribbons, festive paper, gift tags…so fun! When I was younger, I remember watching my mom meticulously wrap presents for others. She would make these gorgeous bows, to where they were almost too pretty to unwrap. She is so skilled at it…she can wrap nearly anything. I’m pretty sure that she would put mall gift wrappers to shame. 😛

When I wrap gifts, I like to add a fun little gift on the outside, whether it’s a candy cane, lip gloss or a mini ornament. It just adds a little something to the gift, and it’s easy to tie or tape on. This year, these brown sugar lip scrubs are going to be part of our gifts. The chocolate and mint are just a perfect combination for the holidays, and with brown sugar, along with coconut oil, they not only exfoliate, they also moisturize like crazy!

Dixie Crystals has so many great homemade sugar scrub recipes, and since I gifted peppermint sugar scrub as a gift last year, I wanted to go with a lip scrub this year. With the winter as crazy cold as it’s been so far (it reached the 20s a couple of weeks ago), this lip scrub is definitely needed.

Peppermint Bark Brown Sugar Lip Scrub

I placed the lip scrub in these mini (food-safe) glass jars that I found at a craft store. I then placed them in these large, ornament shaped plastic balls that you can pop open, and on the inside, I added thin, red tinsel and this leafy looking pipe cleaner with the lip scrub jar. Festive, right?

This brown sugar lip scrub couldn’t be easier to make. You just throw the ingredients in a bowl, mix and add to clean, food-safe jars of your choice.

Peppermint Bark Brown Sugar Lip Scrub
Source: slightly adapted from Dixie Crystals

Ingredients:

  • 3 tbsp. cocoa powder
  • 1 1/2 cups Dixie Crystals packed light brown sugar
  • 1 tbsp. vanilla extract
  • 1/4 tsp. mint extract
  • 1/3 cup coconut oil, melted and cooled

Directions:

  1. Mix all ingredients in a medium-sized bowl, until everything is combined well.
  2. Place in containers, and gift! They keep for 2 months, when kept in a cool, dry place.
  3. To use, place a small amount on the lips and gently swirl around in a circular motion for at least a minute. When done, rinse the scrub off in cool water or if you want a sugar-y treat, you can lick this off, too.

The generous folks at Dixie Crystals are offering a lucky reader of The Nifty Foodie the ultimate sugar prize package! 🙂 As I’ve mentioned before, I’m a big fan of Dixie Crystals’ products, so this is perfect if you enjoy baking!

The prize includes:

  • Five 4-lb. bags of Dixie Crystals granulated sugar
  • Six 2-lb. bags of Dixie Crystals light brown sugar
  • Six 2-lb. bags of Dixie Crystals dark brown sugar
  • Six 2-lb. bags of Dixie Crystals powdered sugar

To enter, use the Rafflecopter widget below:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Note: This giveaway is supplied by Dixie Crystals and is open to readers in the continental US only. Entries will be accepted until December 11th, 2014 at 11:59am (central standard time). Winner will be emailed (make sure you leave an email address in the form), and will have 48 hours to respond or another winner will be chosen.

 

Filed Under: Crafts, Giveaways/Reviews, Holiday

My Ultimate Gift Guide + GIVEAWAY!

November 18, 2014 by Amy 16 Comments

Disclosure: I was sent an Aerogarden 3SL at no cost to me, for a fair and honest review, by Miracle Gro (through KitchenPLAY). They also supplied me with the giveaway item. All opinions are 100% my own.

Gift guide

I’ve been asking my husband almost every day if I can convince him to go in the attic and bring down all of our Christmas decorations. The answer never changes…”Wait until Thanksgiving.” Well, next week is Thanksgiving!!

Also…next week is Thanksgiving? Dang!

It’s getting to be that point of the year where family/friends are asking me what I want for Christmas. While I can’t really figure things out (besides new plates/bowls in our kitchen…how boring!), I figured I’d share my favorite things that I’ve been using this year. Maybe this will inspire your wish lists? Who knows…but I figured I would share some of my favorite things with you guys, and also offer a pretty awesome giveaway (at the bottom of this post, if you make it that far…) :-).

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Filed Under: Giveaways/Reviews, Holiday

Hosting your First Thanksgiving & Giveaway!

November 14, 2014 by Amy 21 Comments

Disclosure: Butterball provided me with a turkey gift check, as well as two other turkey gift checks to giveaway, in exchange for a post. All opinions are 100% my own.

ThanksgivingMeal

I’ve always been a fan of having big family gatherings for holiday meals. I used to watch my mom, aunts and my grandma flawlessly host Thanksgiving year after year, so when I got married, I thought I would give it a try. I mean, how hard could it be?

I’ll never forget that first year. I ran out of counter space, I ran out of oven space, I ran out of time…I mean, there was a meal at the end, but I was a stressed-out mess. I learned quite a few things, and ever since, while there’s always SOMETHING that doesn’t quite go as planned, our holiday meals have been a whole lot better.

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Filed Under: Giveaways/Reviews, Holiday

Red Velvet Peppermint Bark

December 13, 2013 by Amy 1 Comment

redvelvetcakebatterbark

One of the things I can’t get enough of lately is peppermint + chocolate. I’m obsessed with Chick Fil-A’s peppermint chocolate chip shake, and I’m pretty sure I’ve eaten half a bag of Candy Cane kisses. It’s just insane how much I love it, because usually I could give or take peppermint bark. Eggnog is usually my thing. I’m really not sure what’s gotten into me, but I’m not complaining!

I originally saw the idea for cake batter bark on How Sweet It Is. I’ve been wanting to do it with red velvet, and thought that it would be so festive to use red velvet cake mix in peppermint bark. The results were great! One of my coworkers tasted it, and then grabbed 4 pieces haha! It’s also very simple to make, and it makes a good bit!

Red Velvet Peppermint Bark

I packaged these in simple printed cello bags, and added Christmas sprinkles with the crushed candy canes for a more Christmas-y touch. Y’all know I’m all about sprinkles!

Red Velvet Peppermint Bark
Source: inspired by How Sweet It Is

Ingredients:

  • 1/2 lb. dark or semi-sweet chocolate, chopped
  • 1/2 lb. white chocolate, chopped
  • 1 tsp. canola oil (divided)
  • 3 1/2 tbsp. red velvet dry cake mix
  • 10 mini candy canes, crushed
  • Christmas sprinkles
  • red powdered food coloring

Directions:

  1. Melt the 1/2 lb. of dark/semi-sweet chocolate in a microwave safe bowl, along with 1/2 tsp. of the canola oil, until melted. You’ll want to do this in 30 second increments at 50% power, being sure to stir well between each microwave cycle. Pour and spread the chocolate, using a spatula, on top of a silicone baking mat or parchment paper. Allow it to set for 15 minutes.
  2. Melt the 1/2 lb. of white chocolate with the remaining 1/2 tsp. of canola oil, until melted. Microwave this in 30 second increments as well, at 50% power, being sure to stir well between each microwave cycle. Mix in the dry cake mix, as well as the powdered food coloring (a little at a time until desired color is achieved), until everything is well combined. Pour this over the set dark chocolate and spread the red velvet white chocolate carefully, making sure to cover the dark chocolate. Sprinkle the crushed candy canes and Christmas sprinkles liberally over the red velvet white chocolate.
  3. Allow the bark to cool completely before breaking into pieces and serving.

Filed Under: Chocolate, Desserts, Holiday, Holiday Recipes

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Image Credit: Leslie Pendleton Photography

 

Hey y’all!

Thanks so much for reading! I’m Amy, and I live in south Louisiana with my husband and our rescue dog. I enjoy sharing my love for cooking, baking, crafts & more! Follow my daily adventures on social media!

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