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PEANUT BRITTLE
Patricia's Cafe - by Pat McClelland 4 c Sugar 4 Tbs Butter 1 Tbs Vanilla ½ tsp Baking Soda 1 ea 24 oz Can of Cocktail Peanuts 1. Place a large piece of foil on the counter. 2. Place sugar, butter, and vanilla in a large heavy saucepan. 3. Heat on medium until sugar is all melted. Stir with a wooden spoon continuously so the sugar doesn’t burn. 4. Turn the heat off and quickly stir in the baking soda and peanuts. 5. Immediately pour the whole mixture onto the foil and spread so that it is about ½” to ¼” thick. 6. Let completely cool before removing from foil. 7. Break into medium sized pieces. Note: The melted sugar becomes very hot so be extremely careful. This is one of my dad’s favorite things so I try to make him a batch every year for Christmas. It is another one of those things that my mom taught my sisters and I to make when we were kids. Of course I’ve changed the recipe slightly as the years went by to make it yummier. It is very easy and inexpensive and makes a great gift. You can make it with any kind of nut instead of the peanuts if you have a favorite. To make this less fattening or non-dairy you can leave out the butter but it won’t be as rich. 
SOFT PRETZELS
Gretchen's Goodies - by Gretchen Gire Anthony Yields 16 pretzels Your kids will love this fun treat. Have fun with it and let them experiment with making lots of fun shapes and sizes. See what fun and imaginative animals they can come up with. You may even want to let them paint the unique shapes with a little food coloring. 1 package active dry yeast 1 ½ C. warm water 1 tsp. salt 1 tsp. sugar 3 ½ -4 C. all-purpose flour 1 egg, beaten Coarse salt Dissolve yeast in warm water in large mixing bowl. Stir in 1 tsp. salt, the sugar and 2 cups of the flour. Beat until smooth. Stir in the remaining flour to make dough easy to handle. Turn dough onto lightly floured surface; knead until smooth and elastic, about 5 minutes. Place in greased bowl; turn greased side up. Cover; let rise until double, 45-60 minutes. (Dough is ready if an indentation remains when touched.) Heat oven to 425 degrees. Punch down dough; cut into 16 equal parts. Roll each part into a rope 18 inches long. Twist each rope into a pretzel shape; place on greased baking sheet. Brush pretzels with beaten egg and sprinkle with coarse salt. Bake until pretzels are brown, 15-20 minutes; cool on wire rack. Store the pretzels in container with loose-fitting cover. 
SWEET WINE APRICOT BALLS
Gretchen's Goodies - by Gretchen Gire Anthony Yields about 42 balls These are yummy little sweet snacks! This recipe makes a lot but they keep for over a month if stored in an airtight container. ½ C. dried apricots (dried cranberries would also be great) ½ C. sweet wine, such as Sauternes 4 oz. semisweet chocolate, finely chopped 1 T. sugar 1 T. unsweetened Dutch-processed cocoa powder 4 T. (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, cut into pieces 1 cup cookie crumbs made from about 20 Lorna Doone cookies 1 ¼ C. toasted sliced natural almonds 1. In a food processor fitted with a metal blade, finely mince the apricots. Stir together apricots, wine, chocolate, sugar, and cocoa powder in a medium size heavy saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring frequently, until chocolate melts and sugar dissolves, about 5 minutes. 2. Remove from heat and add butter 1 piece at a time, stirring until melted and absorbed. Stir in the cookie crumbs. Scrape mixture into a bowl and chill about 1 hour, or until firm enough to roll. 3. Place nuts in a medium-size bowl. Roll apricot mixture between your palms into 1-inch balls, and then roll in nuts. You may place the balls in small muffin cups, if desired. 
LEMON CUPS
Gretchen's Goodies - by Gretchen Gire Anthony 8-10 servings These were always one of my favorite treats at the amusement parks. If you are having a grown up party then I like to substitute half of the water with rum. 2 tsp. lemon zest 4-5 lemons ¾ C. fresh lemon juice (from lemons) 3 ½ C. water 1 ¼ C. sugar Step 1 Scrape the 2 teaspoons of zest from one of the lemons, then cut all of the lemons in half and juice them. Measure 1 cup, reserving the rest for another use. Step 2 Use a melon baller to remove any remaining pulp. Slightly trim the bottom of each lemon cup so it sits flat, then set them on a plate, cover, and place them in the refrigerator. Step 3 In a medium saucepan, combine the water and sugar over medium heat, stirring until the sugar has dissolved. Bring the water to a boil, then add the lemon juice and zest and boil for 2 minutes. Step 4 Transfer the liquid to a mixing bowl and allow it to cool to room temperature. Place the bowl in the freezer until the mixture begins to freeze, several hours or overnight. Use a fork to break up the ice, and then stir it until fluffy. Step 5 Spoon 1/2 cup of the slush into each lemon half, then cover them and freeze until you're ready to serve. Garnish lemon zest before serving. |
TROPICAL GRANOLA
Patricia's Cafe - by Pat McClelland 8 c Old Fashioned Thick Rolled Oats 0.75 lb Tropical Fruit Medley (from Vitamin Cottage) ½ c Crystallized Ginger 1 c Raw Coconut 1 c Raw Macadamia Nuts ¼ c Flax Seeds 1 c Raw Sunflower Seeds ½ c Corn Oil ½ c Honey 1 Tbs Vanilla 1. Pre heat oven to 300ºF. 2. Dice fruit into ¼” pieces and add to oats in a large mixing bowl. 3. Dice ginger into 1/8” pieces before measuring and add to oat mixture along with nuts and seeds. 4. Add oil and vanilla and mix well. 5. Drizzle honey in parts while mixing. 6. Place on 2 sheet pans lined with foil and place in oven for 10 minutes. 7. Remove from oven and stir. 8. Place back in oven for 6 minutes then remove and stir again. 9. Repeat until golden brown. About 30 minutes. I found all of the ingredients at Vitamin Cottage. If you don’t like one of the fruits in the tropical fruit medley then you can get each of the ingredients by them selves so you can leave one out or replace it with something else. You can also replace or delete any of the seeds or nuts. You can cut back on the honey by adding ¼ c brown sugar with ¼ c honey to give it a maple flavor. Granola is a great way to get lots of fiber, protein and energy for the day. As I have said before oatmeal is good for lowering cholesterol. 
CANDY BAR BROWNIES
Gretchen's Goodies - by Gretchen Gire Anthony Yields 2 dozen I love these brownies because you can be so creative with them. I like to add Butterfinger, peanut butter cups, and M&M’s. Try substituting your favorite candy bar in these delicious brownies! 4 eggs 2 C. sugar ¾ butter 2 tsp. vanilla 1 ½ C. flour ½ tsp. baking powder ¼ tsp. salt 1/3 C. cocoa powder 4 (2.07 oz.) chocolate- coated caramel-peanut nougat bars, coarsely chopped 3 (1.55 oz.) milk chocolate bars finely chopped 1. Combine first 4 ingredients in a large bowl. 2. Combine flour and the next 3 ingredients; stir into the sugar mixture. 3. Fold in chopped nougat bars. 4. Spoon batter into a greased and floured 13x9x2 inch pan ;( for thicker brownies use a9x9 pan) sprinkle with chopped milk chocolate bars. 5. Bake at 350 degrees for 30-35 minutes. Cool on a wire rack, and cut into squares. 
RAINBOW BLONDIES
Gretchen's Goodies - by Gretchen Gire Anthony Yields 16 Any Kind of candy bar or bite sized chocolate candies would be delicious in this! 3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons packed brown sugar 1 large egg 2 teaspoons vanilla extract 8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 1/8 teaspoon salt 1 cup chopped walnuts 1 king size package of M&M’s, chopped, or 3/4 cup white chocolate chips Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Lightly butter an 8-inch square baking pan with sides at least 1 1/2 inches high. Using an electric mixer or mixing by hand, beat together the sugar and egg until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the vanilla and butter and beat to mix well. In a small bowl, stir together the flour, baking soda, and salt and add to the butter mixture, beating until just incorporated. Do not overmix. Using a spoon, stir in the walnuts and white chocolate. Spoon the batter into the prepared pan. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, until the top is dry and golden and a knife inserted in the center comes out with just a few crumbs attached. Cool on wire rack, cut and serve. 
GINGER BARS
Gretchen's Goodies - by Gretchen Gire Anthony Yields 24 bars If you like ginger snaps then you are sure to love these! 3/4 cup butter 1/4 cup molasses 1 cup sugar 1 egg, beaten 2 cups flour 1/2 tsp ground ginger 1/2 tsp ground allspice 1 tsp ground cinnamon 1 tsp baking soda 1 cup walnuts 1 cup raisins ICING 1/2 cup confectioners sugar 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract dash salt 2-1/2 T. milk 1. Melt butter and add molasses, sugar, and beaten egg. 2. Add to mixture of flour and spices. 3. Gently stir in the raisins and nuts. 4. Bake in 9" x 13" pan at 350° F for 20 minutes. 5. Prepare icing by blending confectioners sugar, vanilla, salt, and milk. 6. Drizzle icing over bars while still warm. 7. Cool and cut into bars. 
PEANUT BUTTER
MARSHMALLOW FUDGE Martha's Southern Cooking by Martha Faltynski Try this recipe for Peanut Butter Marshmallow Fudge. It's super easy and really delicious. PEANUT BUTTER MARSHMALLOW FUDGE 2 Cups granulated sugar 2/3 Cup milk 1 Cup marshmallow creme 2 Cups peanut butter, creamy or crunchy 1 Tsp vanilla Boil sugar and milk to soft ball stage. Remove from heat and stir in remaining ingredients. Pour into a buttered 8 inch square pan. Cut into squares when firm. To test for a soft ball stage, drop a small amount of syrup into chilled water. When it forms a ball, but flattens when picked up, it is ready. Enjoy - from my kitchen to yours - Martha |