Christmas Goodies

The boys helped me create these yummy goodies for the office staff at the school. Just a sweet little way to show our appreciation for all they've done this year and who doesn't love some sweets at the holidays!

These bags are filled with "Muddy Buddies", taken directly from the Rice Chex box, but I will include the recipe below. You might want to whip up a batch to give to someone as a little sweet treat this year.... Enjoy!


Chex Muddy Buddies
18 Servings

9 cups Chex (Rice, Corn or Wheat)(I used Rice Chex)
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup smooth peanut butter
1/4 cup butter
1 tsp vanilla
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar

Measure cereal into a large bowl; set aside.
In microwave safe bowl, melt chocolate chips, peanut butter and butter for one minute. Stir. Microwave for another 30 seconds or until it can be stirred smooth. Stir in vanilla. Pour mixture over cereal and toss to coat evenly. Pour into ziploc bag and add powdered sugar; shake until completely coated.
Spread on cookie sheet to cool and dry. Store in airtight container in refrigerator.

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Yummy Cheesy Potatoes

Tonight I've got a recipe to share.... Yummy Cheesy Potatoes. I made these for dinner and they were a big hit. Even the big boy who HATES potatoes actually ate several bites and said they were pretty good. That is huge.... from the boy who was moved to tears when we told him they served ONLY potatoes in Idaho, our destination for a summer vacation this year. He was heartbroken, we were amused.... he may need therapy later in life. So when he was willing to try my creation tonight and said that he didn't hate them, I knew I had a winning recipe on my hands. The other boy was scarfing down his second helping at that point.

Cheesy Potatoes

4 Servings

3 medium Russet potatoes, washed and peeled

2 Tbl butter

2 Tbl flour

1 1/2 c milk

1 1/4 c shredded cheese (I used Colby Jack)

onion powder

salt

pepper

Heat oven to 400 degrees and grease a glass baking dish with a little butter. Slice potatoes very thinly. I used this mandoline that made this job a snap! Spread out 1/2 of the potatoes in the prepared dish; lightly sprinkle onion powder, salt and pepper. (I didn't measure, I just lightly sprinkled.) Layer the rest of the potatoes and sprinkle with a little more onion powder, salt and pepper. Set aside.

In a saucepan on the stove, melt butter and flour. Wisk it together as it melts and let it cook for about 2 minutes. Add in milk and wisk to blend all together without any lumps. Cook this over medium heat, wisking until it thickens. You're going for the consistency of egg nog or Pepto Bismol, whichever one your most familiar with. Add in cheese and stir. Sauce will come together really nicely when all the cheese is melted; remove from heat. Pour the cheese sauce over the potatoes and cover with foil. Bake it at 400 degrees for about 1 1/2 hours. For the last 1/2 hour, I took off the foil and the top got nice and bubbly brown.

**Note: If you haven't made a simple cheese sauce like this, don't be afraid to try it. It's actually really simple. This is the same way you would make your own macaroni and cheese. There are lots of recipes using canned soup and other creamy bases, but I think it's healthier and probably cheaper just to whip it up yourself with stuff you have in your fridge and pantry! Maybe you can even add this dish to one of your holiday meals..... Enjoy!

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Family Christmas Card

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas! The lights are up, tree is decorated, the smell of cookies baking in the oven.... I love this time of year. The boys are getting so excited and they've really good the last few days because they know the "Big Guy" is watching!

I'm not proud to admit that I don't always send Christmas cards. I know, I know.... I love cards, I make them all the time.... why oh why can't I seem to get them in the mail to send Christmas greetings to our family and friends? It's a mystery to me, but because of my years of neglect in this area, I am especially proud that I am on it this year. Now, I did streamline the process a bit... it's actually just a postcard or card front and there isn't a lick of stamping on it, but I'm proud nonetheless. To further help myself along, I skipped the stress of trying to get a good family picture of all four of us together.... someone's always blinking, looking elsewhere or just giving the cheesiest smile, so instead, I did a "filmstrip" look for our individual pictures. I created the text on the computer and added a little Christmas paper. The snowflake and faux stitching brings it all together and tada.... there you have it!

Did you hand-make your cards this year or send store-bought? Or did you just skip it all together? Either way, I hope you're in the holiday spirit.... Enjoy!

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