Tag Archives: Christmas

Cheesy Hash Brown Casserole

28 Dec

I LOVE this casserole.  I don’t make it very often because it makes so much and I don’t want to feel like I have to eat it all.  It is definitely a family favorite, and has become a favorite of friends that I have made it for as well.  My college friends refer to it as Corn Flake Surprise, referring the to crushed corn flake topping.  This was another of our Christmas dinner sides this year and I was so happy my mom made it.

Cheesy Hash Brown Casserole

What you need:

1 32-oz frozen Southern style hash brown potatoes, thawed
4 cups shredded cheddar cheese
1 can (10 3/4-oz) condensed cream of chicken soup, undiluted
2 cups sour cream
3/4 cup butter or margarine, melted, divided
1/4 teaspoon paprika
2 cups corn flakes, slightly crushed

How to make it:

Preheat oven to 350 F.

In a large bowl, combine hash browns, cheese, soup, sour cream, and 1/2 cup melted butter. Spread into a greased 13in x 9in baking dish. Sprinkle with paprika. Combine corn flakes and remaining butter, sprinkle on top.

Bake, uncovered, in the preheated oven for 50-60 minutes, or until heated through.

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Pistachio Salad

28 Dec

This side was part of the Christmas feast my mom cooked for us this year.  It’s a favorite of my brother-in-law, and is now a favorite of my older daughter as well.  It’s a lot easier than I thought it was to make too!

Pistachio Salad

What you need:

1 8 oz tub of Cool Whip
1 pkg pistachio instant pudding
1 20 oz can crushed pineapple, drained
1 cup mini marshmallows

How to make it:

Mix all ingredients and chill.

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Muddy Buddies

27 Dec

 

Some may know this as another name, Puppy Chow for People, but more recently I’ve seen it as Muddy Buddies.  It is another yummy way to use Chex cereal, or there are a variety of cereals you can use for this.  For the batch my mom made pictured above, she used Rice Chex, Cheerios, pretzels, and peanuts.  You could use just Chex cereals, some cereal with peanuts and pretzels, or another combination you come up with.

 

Muddy Buddies

What you need:

8 cups of a combination of your choice, using Rice or Corn Chex, Crispix, Raisin Squares, Cheerios, pretzels, peanuts
1 stick butter or margarine
1 cup chocolate chips
1/2 cup peanut butter
2 cups powdered sugar

How to make it:

Melt together the butter, chocolate chips and peanut butter.  Stir in the cereal combination until evenly coated.

Place the chocolate covered combination in a large resealable or paper bag.  Add the powdered sugar, and shake until evenly coated.

Spread out onto a baking sheet lined with wax paper to dry.  Store in an airtight container.

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Cheerios Treats

24 Dec

I had wanted to make these before our trip, but didn’t get around to it.  But, of course, my mom made them.  It’s another yummy marshmallow treat!

Cheerios Treats

What you need:

3 Tbsp margarine or butter
1 10-1/2 oz package mini marshmallows (6 cups)
1/2 cup smooth or crunchy peanut butter
5 cups Cheerios cereal

How to make it:

Grease a 13 x 9 pan.    Melt margarine or butter in a large saucepan over low heat.  Add marshmallows and stir constantly until melted.  Remove from heat and stir in peanut butter.  Immediately add cereal and mix lightly until well coated.  Using a greased spatula or wax paper, press mixture into the prepared pan.  Allow to cool, then cut into squares.

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7 Layer Bars

24 Dec

 

Actually, the way my mom makes these, they are more like 5 Layer Bars.  She leaves out the coconut and pecans.  With or without those 2 ingredients, they are still a creamy, chocolate-y treat for the holidays.

 

7 Layer Bars

What you need:

1 stick butter, melted
1 cup Baker’s angel flake coconut
1 6 oz. pkg butterscotch chips
1 6 oz. pkg chocolate chips
1 cup pecans, coarsely chopped
1 can sweetened condensed milk
2 cups graham cracker crumbs

How to make it:

Preheat your oven to 350 F.

Mix the graham cracker crumbs and melted butter, and press into the bottom of an 11 x 7 pan.

Layer the coconut, butterscotch chips, chocolate chips, and chopped pecans.  Pour the sweetened condensed milk evenly over the top.

Bake in the preheated oven for 20-25 minutes, or until just browned on top.  Allow to cool, cut, and serve.

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Easy Cookie Cutter Cookies

24 Dec

Yesterday, I had some shopping to do, so my girls stayed with grandma and grandpa (my parents).  Grandma got a roll of Pillsbury Refrigerated Sugar Cookie Dough, sprinkled some flour on their working surface, and rolled it out to make shapes with the cookie cutters.  She baked them according to the package directions, then frosted them with a can of frosting from the store, and added sprinkles.  My 5 year old helped with the sprinkles, she likes sprinkles a lot.

They had a lot of fun doing this together, and it went pretty quick for them.   These will be the cookies we leave out for Santa.

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Ranch Oyster Crackers

23 Dec

 

Another salty snack I like at the holidays along with Original Chex Party Mix, is Ranch Oyster Crackers.   It’s very addicting like the Chex Mix, plus it’s a nice salty balance to all the sweets we make.  Like the Chex Mix, you may want to make a double batch so you have plenty to eat and maybe some to share.

 

Ranch Oyster Crackers

What you need:

12 oz. plain oyster crackers
1 envelope dry ranch dressing mix
3/4 cup vegetable oil
1/4 tsp lemon pepper
1/2 tsp dill weed
1/4 tsp garlic powder

How to make it:

Preheat oven to 250 F.

Combine ranch mix and oil.  Add lemon pepper, dill weed, and garlic powder.  Pour over crackers and stir to coat evenly.  Pour onto a large baking sheet and bake for 15-20 minutes, stirring halfway through cooking.  Remove from oven and allow to cool before serving.

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Andes Peppermint Crunch Chunkies

23 Dec

 

My mom made these with my kids while I did some shopping today, and they are really yummy, so I thought I would share the recipe.  She made these without the coconut and pecans in the original recipe, and I don’t feel like it’s missing it.  I think they are just fine without them, but would still be good additions.

 

Andes Peppermint Crunch Chunkies

What you need:

2 sticks (1/2 Lb.) unsalted butter, softened
1 cup brown sugar, packed
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg
2 tsp. vanilla extract
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup old fashioned rolled oats
1 cup sweetened grated coconut (we left these out)
1 1/4 cups coarsely chopped pecans, toasted (we left these out)
1 1/2 cups Andes® Peppermint Crunch Baking Chips

How to make them:

Preheat oven to 300° F.

Using an electric mixer, cream the butter, brown sugar and granulated sugar until fluffy (about 3 minutes).  Beat in egg and vanilla extract.  On low speed, add baking soda, salt and then flour. Mix completely.  Stir in oats, coconut, pecans, and Andes® Peppermint Crunch Baking Chips.

Place round balls on lightly greased cookie sheets two inches apart.  Press lightly.  Sprinkle some of the remaining chips on top of each cookie.  Bake for 20 minutes for large cookies or 12-15 mins. for small cookies Do not over bake.

They get crunchy on the outside but remain soft inside. Remove from cookie sheet and let cool.

Makes: 30 – 3″ or 60 – 1 1/2″ cookies.

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S’mores Bars

19 Dec

This is another holiday recipe from my mom.  It’s been a part of her holiday treat baking for a while, but I can’t remember exactly when she first made them for us.  Anyway, I make them now at the holidays and my kids were excited to see these tonight.

S’mores Bars

What you need:

6 Tbsp butter or margarine
1/3 cup light corn syrup
1 1/2 cups chocolate chips
5 cups miniature marshmallows
1 tsp vanilla extract
8 cups Golden Grahams cereal
1 cup  miniature marshmallows

How to make it:

Grease a 9×13 pan.

In a large pot, combine butter or margarine, corn syrup, chocolate chips, and the 5 cups marshmallows over low heat.  Stir frequently until smooth.  Remove from heat and stir in vanilla extract.  Immediately stir in cereal and 1 cup marshmallows, and coat evenly. Press into the prepared 9×13 pan using a buttered spoon or a piece of wax paper.  Let it set on counter or in the refrigerator for 1 hour before serving.

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Sweet Potato Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

17 Dec

 

I’m finally getting around to finishing off all the sweet potatoes I had accumulated from Bountiful Baskets.  I wasn’t going to frost it, but since I had everything on hand to make cream cheese frosting, I went ahead and made it.  Funny story about making frosting, growing up, I only thought it came in a tubs at the store, I had no idea you could make it.  So, the first time my mom made frosting, I was totally impressed.  Silly, I know.  This frosting recipe will make more than you need for the cake, so store the leftover in the refrigerator until you have another use for it.

This cake turned out very moist and tasty, my daughter had no idea it was made from sweet potatoes.  This would be go to make with the leftover sweet potato dishes from the holidays, you will just want to decrease the sugar in the cake if you had sugar in your sweet potato dish.

 

Sweet Potato Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

What you need for the cake:

1 cup white sugar
3/4 cup light brown sugar
3/4 cup vegetable oil or applesauce (I used Homemade Applesauce since I was out of vegetable oil)
3 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups cooked, mashed sweet potatoes
2 cups all-purpose flour
3 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 cup beer (I used non-alcoholic.  Beer may be omitted, or use water, milk, or apple juice in its place)

 

What you need for the frosting:

1/2 cup butter, softened
8 oz cream cheese, softened
2-4 cups confectioner’s sugar
2 tsp vanilla extract

 

How to make the cake:

Preheat oven to 350 F. Grease and flour a 9×13 inch baking pan.

Stir together the sugar and vegetable oil (or applesauce) in a large bowl until smooth. Beat in the eggs one at a time, then stir in the vanilla and sweet potatoes.

In a separate bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon.  Stir flour mixture into the batter 1 cup at a time, alternating with the beer just until everything comes together. Spread the batter evenly in the prepared pan.

Bake for 35 minutes in the preheated oven, or until a knife inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Cool completely before frosting or serving.

 

How to make the frosting:

Beat together the butter and cream cheese.  Stir in vanilla.  Stir in confectioner’s sugar, starting with 2 cups.  Increase amount of sugar up to 4 cups, depending on how sweet you want frosting.  Spread evenly on cake.

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