Easy Eggnog Recipe

This simple, yet sweet easy egg nog recipie uses 4 ingredients to make a yummy alternative to store bought egg nog.

Thanksgiving day is the "official" start of the holiday season in our house, or at least it was growing up.  I think that's because Thanksgiving day was the first day my dad would break out the Eggnog.  He would make up this yummy holiday drink and we would sit and watch the Macy's Thanksgiving Parade with the turkey and pies baking in the background.  It is still one of my favorite traditions.



Now that I'm the one making the turkey and other Thanksgiving treats, I don't get to sit and enjoy the parade as much as I used to.  But I do still try and keep it on in the background and cook with a glass of eggnog in my hand.

It's probably one of the easiest things that I make all Thanksgiving.

Start by separating 2 eggs.  I've always had a hard time doing this, but we finally bought an Egg Separator and I can't believe how much easier it was.  I highly recommend one if this is something you do often.

In a large punch bowl, add 6 cups of Milk

 1 Tablespoon of Vanilla.

1 small package of Instant Vanilla pudding.

and the Egg yolks.

Blend the mix up very well.

You an just drink it now.  I'm not a huge fan of the "fluff" that goes on the top, so I highly recommend that, but if you want, you can add a little extra sweetness to the Eggnog by topping it with:

2 Egg whites

1/4 cup Sugar

pinch of Salt

Mix well and add to the eggnog.

Sprinkle a little nutmeg on the top of your eggnog and Enjoy!

This is not a very sweet eggnog compared to those that are sold in the stores.  I think that's part of why I like it so much.  In a way, it's more of a lightly flavored milk.  It goes perfect with some Pumpkin Cookies or Homemade Fudge and starts the holiday season off in the "right" way.

Do you have a tradition that kicks off your Holiday season?  Here's the recipe and the Eggnog Printable Recipe. 

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Happy Thanksgiving

Wishing everyone a wonderful day full of family, friends, food and fun.  Happy Thanksgiving!

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S'mores Bars-12 Weeks of Christmas Treats

For week 10 of 2013's 12 Weeks of Christmas Treats hosted by Brenda at Meal Planning Magic, I am sharing an unusual bar cookie.  The base for this bar cookie is made without flour.  It contains only crushed graham crackers, brown sugar, white sugar, eggs and vanilla.

The original recipe came from Woman's Day magazine many years ago.  I added the chocolate and marshmallows to turn the bars into S'mores.

The batter is very easy to put together, but it does take some patience when mixing the egg mixture into the dry mixture.  Just keep stirring until all the dry ingredients are moistened.

The bars need to be thoroughly cooled before they are cut.  I flip the bars over and cut them from the back.  Use a well-greased knife and clean it after two or three cuts.  Sometime the topping wants to separate from the base.  I just smoosh it back down.  That usually does the trick.

Hubby said not to make these often, they are very addictive.

S'mores Bars

2 c. graham cracker crumbs, about 11 double crackers
1 c. brown sugar, packed
1/2 c. sugar
dash salt
4 large eggs
1 t. vanilla
1 pkg. milk chocolate chips
2 c. miniature marshmallows

Combine graham cracker crumbs, brown sugar, sugar, nuts and salt in a medium mixing bowl.  Mix to combine well, breaking up any brown sugar lumps.  In a small bowl, beat together eggs and vanilla until well blended.  Add eggs to graham crackers mixture and mix until all dry ingredients are well moistened.  Turn into an 9x13-inch pan that has been foil-lined and well greased.  Bake at 350 degree for 20 minutes. Remove from oven and sprinkle evenly with milk chocolate chips.  Return to oven for 3 to 4 minutes or until the chips are softened.  Carefully spread chips out to a smooth layer over the base with an off-set spatula. Sprinkle the marshmallows evenly over the chocolate. Return to the oven and heat until marshmallows are lightly browned, another 2 to 3 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool on a wire rack.  Flip slab of cookies over onto a baking sheet.  Cut with a well-greased knife, cleaning and re-greasing after every two or three cuts.  Makes about 32 bars.  Store tightly covered in a zip top bag.

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To see what other bloggers have posted for this week's 12 Weeks of Christmas Treats, check out the links below.


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Pumpkin Bread Recipe

A yummy pumpkin bread recipe that's perfect just out of the oven or the next day.

One of my favorite things about the holiday season is all the baking.  There's just something about the warmth of the oven heating up the kitchen and the smell of sweet treats wafting through the house.  Put on some Christmas music with the snow falling outside and you have a perfect day.



One of my favorite treats to make is Pumpkin Bread.  I don't make regular bread, so the smell of the pumpkin in the oven just makes me happy.  Then, a big slice of pumpkin bread with a smather of butter melting into the warm bread makes my tummy happy.



And as far as bread goes, it's a really simple recipe to make. After all, it would have to be, since I can make it!

Start with 1 pound of pumpkin (a 15 ounce can works great)

3 eggs,

2 3/4 cup of regular sugar.  

Mix that in a large bowl until it's nice and smoothly blended.

Add the remaining ingredients of  

3 1/2 cups Flour

3/4 cup Vegetable Oil

1 tsp Baking Powder

4 Tbsp Pumpkin Pie Spice (we like to use this Pumpkin Pie Spice since this is such an expensive spice)

1 tsp Soda

1 tsp Vanilla

1 tsp Salt

1 cup chopped Walnuts (optional)

Once everything is mixed well, add to 2 bread loaf pans.  Bake at 325 degrees for 1 hour and 10 minutes.

If you're patient, you can allow the bread to cool before you enjoy, but we never are.  We like it when the bread is warm and melts the butter into the bread.  The first loaf never seems to make it to the cooling stage, but we also like it just as well when we come back and enjoy the second loaf the next day.  It never seems to make it to the third day, so I'm not sure what it's like then!

Do you enjoy pumpkin bread?  What's your favorite treat to make at the holidays?  Here's the recipe if you want to try this!  You can find the Pumpkin Pie Recipe Printable Version here.

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Strawberry-Banana Jello Salad Recipe

This simple, but yummy jello salad is filled with light flavors and fruit. It makes a great addition to your dinner table or your dessert table.

I'm always amazed to hear from people who don't like to be with their extended family.  It completely catches me by suprise, since I love to be with my brothers and sisters and we get together every chance we can.  With 9 of us, plus spouses, plus children, it's quite a crazy gathering.  There are certain things we like to do every time we are all together, and a big gathering around the table is one of our favorites.

Depending upon the reason we are together, we could be having turkey, or ham, or even just "Dad's Enchiladas"  (I've never figured out how he makes them so much better than I do.)  Yet there is always one recipe that makes it to all of our get-togethers no matter what we are eating; it's almost as much of a tradition as us all being together every year.  For we all LOVE our Strawberry-Banana Jello Salad.

It's a quick, easy salad recipe that brings an almost dessert taste to the dinner table.  Today I'm sharing the secret with you.  Maybe it will become a favorite for your family too.

Start with 2 cans of Very Cherry Mixed Fruit Cocktail, 1 large container of Cottage Cheese, 1 large container of whipped topping, and a small box of Strawberry Banana gelatin.

Drain your fruit cocktail and set it aside.  Be sure Whipped Topping is not frozen since it will make it hard to mix the salad together.  Add the remaining ingredients to a large bowl and mix. (Mini Me loves to do this since its a "good workout" to mix the cool whip together.)

Add the fruit cocktail to the mixture.  We also like to add cut banana or strawberry slices to the mix if we're feeling very "fancy."  I don't recommend adding the bananas if you are going to have left overs because the bananas don't last too well in left overs, but it is SUPER delicious the first time around!

Once your salad is completely mixed well, set it in the refrigerator to set for an hour or two.  Refrigerate until ready to serve and any leftovers.

Go here for the Strawberry Banana Jello Salad Printable Recipe version.

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Thanksgiving Mini Wrapper Printable

These Thanksgiving Mini Wrappers are an easy addition to your Thanksgiving table or dinner party.  Simply print, wrap, and serve.

This is  my last Thanksgiving project for this year.  I need to get moving on Christmas. I know it'll be here before I'm even close to ready.  But I had one last idea hit me this morning and I wanted to share this easy and sweet Thanksgiving printable project.

Start by right clicking and saving the Hershey mini wrapper printable at the end of the post.  Go into your picture program (or wherever you saved it) and right click on the picture.  Hit the print button to print out these candy bar wrappers.  Then go ahead and cut them out.

Place the picture on the front of the miniature and wrap the printable around. Either glue the wrapper or tape it in place.  There are 5 different pictures per set, so use the candy bars as you need.

Decide what order you want your bars in and place them inside a pretzel bag.  You can find these pretzel bags at Amazon or in your local craft store.  The miniatures are a bit snug in the bag, but they do fit if you make sure all the sides are tucked in good and flat.

Finish your Thanksgiving Mini Wrappers by tieing a bow at the top and cutting off the extra bag.

Talk about a quick, easy, and yummy Thanksgiving project.

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Irresistible Caramel, Toffee, White Chocolate Dreams

Here we are at week 9 of 2013's 12 Weeks of Christmas Treats hosted by Brenda at Meal Planning Magic. Unfortunately I have spent the last few days in the land of "Computer Purgatory" so I am very late with this post.  First I lost Windows, then I possibly lost a motherboard, then I found that my external hard drive had not backed up my computer properly.  I lost it all, every bit of information that I had on my computer.  I have no recipes, no pictures, nothing.  In the grand scheme of life,however, when there are things like typhoons and tornadoes this is but a small blip, so I am heaving a big sigh and moving on.

I call this bar cookie irresistible because it has so many goodies packed into it.  Want oatmeal shortbread, it's in there.  Want white chocolate, it's in there.  Want toffee bits, they're in there.  Want almonds, they're in there.  Want caramel, it's in there.  Lastly, want streusel (I do), it's in there.  These are thick, very rich cookies that are both crunchy because of the almonds and streusel, and gooey because of the caramel.

As with most of the cookie recipes I post, this recipe can be easily varied by changing the flavor of the chips, the variety of nuts and using other flavors of ice cream topping such as butterscotch and chocolate.

If you have someone to mail cookies to, these travel well if they are tightly wrapped.

Caramel, Toffee, White Chocolate Dreams
2 1/2 c. all-purpose flour
2 c. quick oats
1 c brown sugar, firmly packed
1 t. baking soda
1 c. butter or margarine melted
1 (12 oz.) jar caramel flavor ice cream topping
1/4 c flour
1 pkg. white chocolate chips
1 c. slivered almonds
1 pkg. toffee bits

Mix flour, oats, brown sugar and soda in a large mixing bowl until well blended.  Stir in butter or margarine until mixture is well blended and butter is the size of small peas.  You may have to finish the mixing with your hands.  Measure out and reserve 1 1/2 cups for the topping.  Pat remaining mixture evenly into a foil-lined 9x13-inch pan.  Bake at 350 degrees for 12 to 15 minutes or until lightly browned.  Remove from oven, place on a wire rack and let cool 5 minutes.  While crust is cooling remove lid from ice cream topping, heat jar in microwave for 1 minutes on high. Pour into small bowl, add flour and mix well.  Scatter the  white chocolate chips evenly over the slightly cooled crust, followed by the almonds and the toffee bits.  Pour the caramel topping/flour mixture evenly over the top.  Scatter the reserved flour/oat mixture evenly over the caramel.  Press down slightly with palm of your hand.  Return to oven and bake an additional 20 to 25 minutes until golden brown.  Place pan on a wire rack to cool.  Cut into bars with a wet knife, cleaning it often.  Makes about 36 bars.  Store in zip top bag.

There is still three weeks remaining.  If you have some favorite treats you would like to share, just go here to sign up.

Check out the links below to see other Christmas treats posted this week.

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Turkey Chocolate Sucker DIY with Candied Decorations

Make a DIY Turkey chocolate sucker with only a few supplies to add a yummy addition to your Thanksgiving desert table.

Does anyone else remember the Adam Sandler song about Turkey?  I feel like I've been singing it all day long as I made these chocolate Turkey suckers.  Or maybe I'm like Bubba from Forrest Gump "Turkey Suckers...Turkey Caramel Apples...Turkey Place Card Holders...Turkey Cake Box...." since I feel like most of my blog posts lately have involved Turkeys.



But I have to admit, that I just love these turkey chocolate suckers.  They are the cutest things and will make a great addition to my Thanksgiving dessert table, especially since they are not Pumpkin Pie related.

All you need to make these turkeys is this Candy Turkey Chocolate Sucker mold, some milk chocolate Candy Cocoa Melts, Lollipop Sticks , and a package of M and M candies.

Start by melting your chocolate in the microwave on 50% power for 2 minutes.  Stir your chocolate and repeat.  Keep an eye on it since you don't want it to burn.  Trust me, burnt chocolate is HORRIBLE smelling.

Once you have your chocolate melted, spoon some into your turkey sucker mold and add your sucker stick.  Turn the stick in the mold base to coat it completely.  Now tap the mold carefully on the counter to bring all the air bubbles in the chocolate to the top.

Place your mold into the refrigerator for 10 minutes to set.  Pop out the sucker from the mold when the back side looks clear and the chocolate has slightly pulled from the mold.

Dip the end of one of your sucker sticks into the melted chocolate and tap it into 3 of the indentions in the turkey sucker.  Quickly add 3 different colored M and M candies on to the chocolate.  I don't like to see the "M" on the candies, so I turn it upside down.  Only work in small sections so the chocolate doesn't harden up before you can get the M and M on.

It won't take long, but once the candies are on your sucker, use a little bit of cling wrap or a small bag, and tie it on the turkey sucker with a matching bow.

Now you have a chocolate turkey that will be a wonderful addition to your Thanksgiving dinner as a dessert, a party favor, a place card, or as a Thank you gift.

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10 Thanksgiving Place Card Holders

10 Amazing and Fun Thanksgiving Place Cards for you to make and decorate your Thanksgiving Dinner table to surprise and delight your guests.

If I'm going to go to all the work to make an AAAHHH-mazing Thanksgiving dinner with all the fixings and desserts, I want my table scape to be just as amazing.  That means adding the little details that bring a little extra something to the dinner table.  

I'll bring out my good china, or use the Thanksgiving Dinner Plates that I made last year, add a beautiful centerpiece, use the good silverware, and sit everyone at the table in a way that lets all the cousins sit by their favorites.  This means sitting the family using beautiful, fun, and sweet Thanksgiving Place Cards.  Here is a selection of some great ones that I found from fellow bloggers.

1.Personal Pilgrim Place cards by Gracious Rain.

2. Thanksgiving Place Card Cookies by Frog Prince.

3. Thanksgiving Place Cards by Unoriginal Mom.

4. Thanksgiving Turkey Place Card Holder by Think Crafts

5. Easy to Make Thanksgiving Place Cards by Create and Babble

6. Pilgrim Place Cards by Jelly Bean Junkyard

7. Candy Corn Thanksgiving Place Cards by Sweet Metal Moments

8. Mini Hay Bundle Name Place Card by The Twinery

9. Turkey Candy Place Card by Sugar Bean Bakers

10. Printable Turkey Napkin Place Card

Which ones are your favorites?  Do you use a place card at your Thanksgiving table?

For more great Thanksgiving ideas, check out my Thanksgiving Pinterest Board!

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