Snowball cookies

Hola readers! Can you believe it is Thursday already? I sure can't! >.< It seems like the time at the end of my break just whooshes by! I have to drive back on Sunday. Haven't quite determined whether I will leave late morning or early afternoon yet. The bookstore closes at 5, but I might just wait till Monday to pick up my books. Decisions, decisions... I still find it weird that this is my last semester of college... like really weird. What if the real world doesn't like me? I mean, I am making a few plans, but nothing is set in stone. I am just crossing my fingers and hoping that something works out. Life tends to throw curve balls, so we shall see what happens! Anyway, since I stayed up till 8 am, I slept till 3 pm. Blah. My messed up sleep schedule needs fixing! Currently I am snacking on dark chocolate M&Ms and am hoping that my mom enjoyed seeing Twilight by herself, because I politely declined. Didn't really do much... just watched Wizards of Waverly Place for a few hours. Is it weird that I am looking forward to the big episode at 8 pm? Perhaps it just reveals how much I love disney. Nerd!

The recipe that I have for today is from one of the cookie books that my mom has used for a long while. She's had it so long (perhaps it was passed on to her?) that the pages are falling out. It's difficult to even find recipes because the index is in a different chunk than the rest of the stuff. Needless to say, the poor book should really just have the recipes ripped out of it that she wants. The recipe for today has nuts in it. The cookies are called snowballs because they kind of look like snowballs. Even more so once you cover them in powdered sugar!

Nutty Snowballs


Ingredients:

• 6 Tbsp. sugar
• 1.5 sticks of butter/margarine, softened
• 2 Tbsp. ice water (very cold water works)
• 2 tsp. vanilla extract
• 2 1/2 cups flour
• 1 cup of nuts, chopped well
• 2-3 cups of powdered sugar

Instructions:

1. Pre-heat the oven to 300 F or 150 C. 
2. Cream butter and sugar.
3. Add the rest of the ingredients (add the nuts last!) and mix to form a dough. This might be a bit stiff. 
4. Prepare your cookie sheets by greasing them (with butter or cooking spray) or lining them with aluminum foil or parchment paper.
5. Shape into bite size balls and place on your cookie sheets.
6. Bake for approximately 30 minutes. They are ready when the bottoms are golden brown. 
7. Let cool down a bit. While still warm, roll in powdered sugar. 
8. Store in an airtight container or enjoy right then!

Love it? Hate it? Want to try it? Let me know with a comment below!

As always...

Bon appétit!

7 layer bars

Hmmm... today... Well, my mom was going to take me to see Twilight, but there weren't any afternoon showings. Oh well... My sister made me go with her to pick up her cookie form thing, even though the place was easy to get to, she "forgot how to get there." How convenient... The nice thing is that we (my brother, sister, and myself) went to Target and Best Buy. I finally bought a personal blender, along with some pens for my friends, some Annie's snack mix (click here for their site), and a salad dressing emulsifier which came with two recipes for dressing! Yay! I am super excited about using these products in the dorm. Should be interesting to see what creations I come up with! I also recently acquired a popsicle mold and a VCR player. Woot! I will have plenty of stuff to take to campus, but it will be worth it! :)

This recipe is one that my mom has had for a while. We always make it at Christmas, but apparently the way I made it this year wasn't up to her standards. I don't really understand how it could be messed up since it's one of those "slap it all together and let it cook" sort of recipes, but she complained regardless. I guess next time I will use the 9 x 13 pan that she told me I should have used (ya know, after they were done...). I think another problem is that I forgot to grease the pan. I don't know if that would have really helped or not, but it's the only other thing I can think of. Anyway, I hope you all enjoy!

7 layer bars 

Ingredients:

• 1 stick margarine or butter
• 1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs 
• 1 pack chocolate chips 
• 1 pack white chips
• 1 pack butterscotch chips
• 1 can sweetened condensed milk
• 1 cup chopped nuts (whatever type you like)
• 1 cup coconut (you can add a bit more if you wish)

Instructions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 F or 177 C.
2. Melt the butter/margarine in a small, microwaveable dish. 
3. Measure out the graham cracker crumbs and spread them out in the pan.
4. Using a spoon, drizzle the melted butter/margarine over the crumbs.
5. Using your fingers, mush it all together and make a crust. 
6. Pour the nuts on top of the crust, then the chocolate chips, butterscotch chips, and white chips. Top that with the coconut and then pour on the sweetened condensed milk.
7. Bake for approximately 30 minutes or until the coconut is lightly browned and chocolate chips are somewhat melted. 
8. Enjoy!

Well, let me know what you think! Love it? Hate it? Tell me with a comment below!


As always...
Bon appétit!

Fabulous Fudge

Today was lazy. It's weird thinking that I go back to school next week. I hope you all have had a great new year so far. I have made a few resolutions and I hope I will stick to them. I got a few gift cards the other day that I need to use. Guess this week will be shopping and such. :)

Well, anyway, the recipe that I have today is one that's fast and easy! It is just a bit of time in the microwave, pour into the mold, and then let it set before it is ready to eat! I hope you all enjoy!

Fabulous Five-Minute Fudge (from Better Homes and Gardens)

Ingredients:

• 1 12-oz package of semisweet chocolate pieces (2 cups)
• 1/2 14-oz can of sweetened condensed milk 
• 1 Tbsp. water
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 3/4 cup chopped nuts (optional)

Instructions:

1. Line a cookie sheet (or a square/rectangle dish) with waxed paper; set aside.
2. In a medium microwave-safe bowl, combine chocolate pieces, sweetened condensed milk, and water.
3. Microwave, uncovered, on 100% power (high) for 1 minute; stir. Microwave about 1 minute more, or until chocolate is melted and mixture is smooth, stirring every 30 seconds.
4. Stir in nuts and vanilla. 
5. Pour mixture onto prepared cookie sheet and spread it into a 9x6-inch rectangle, or drop mixture by rounded teaspoons onto prepared cookie sheet.
6. Chill fudge about 30 minutes or until firm. Cut fudge into 1-1/2-inch squares. Makes 24 pieces.

I hope you all try this recipe out! You can even use a different type of chocolate chips to spice it up! As always...

Bon appétit!

Happy New Year

Happy new year, everyone! Yay 2012! I am looking forward to hitting the 100 entries mark! This new year will be full of recipes and hopefully more main course dishes! I am also planning to start recording (on video) some recipes for you all to enjoy! Lots to look forward to! Thank you for reading. I look forward to sharing more fun food with you all. :)

Bon appétit!