Chocolate Crackletops

Source: Grandma's Cookie Jar Cookbook

Ingredients:

2 c. all-purpose flour

2 tsp. baking powder

2 c. granulated sugar

1/2 c. (1 stick) butter or margarine

4 sqaures (1 ounce each) unsweetened baking chocolate, chopped

4 large eggs, lightly beaten

2 tsp. vanilla extract

1 3/4 c. M&M chocolate mini baking bits

Additional granulated sugar

Directions:

Combine flour and baking powder; set aside. In 2-quart saucepan over medium heat combine 2 cups sugar, butter and chocolate, stirring until butter and chocolate are melted; remove from heat. Gradually stir in eggs and vanilla. Stir in flour mixture until well blended. Chill mixture 1 hour. Stir in M&M's; chill mixture an additional 1 hour.

Preheat oven to 350. Line cookie sheets with foil. With sugar-dusted hands, roll dough until 1-inch balls; roll balls in additional granulated sugar. Place about 2 inches apart on prepared cookie sheets. Bake 10 to 12 minutes. Do not overbake. Cool completely on wire racks. Store in tightly covered container.

Reindeer Cookies

Source: Better Homes and Gardens: Ultimate Cookies, 2009

Ingredients:

1/2 c. butter, softened

1/2 c. shortening

1 c. sugar

1/4 c. unsweetened cocoa powder

1 tsp. baking powder

1/4 tsp. salt

1 egg

1 tsp. vanilla

2 1/4 c. all purpose flour

Miniature pretzel twists

Red candied cherries

Miniature candy-coated semisweet chocolate pieces

Directions:

In a large mixing bowl beat butter and shortening with an electric mixer on medium to high speed for 30 seconds. Add sugar, cocoa powder, baking powder, and salt. Beat until combined, scraping sides of bowl occasionally. Beat in egg and vanilla until combined. Beat in as much of the flour as you can with the mixer. Using a wooden spoon, stir in any remaining flour. Divide dough in half. If necessary, cover and chill about 1 hour or until dough is easy to handle.

Preheat oven to 350. On a lighly floured surface, roll half of the dough at a time into an 8 inch square. Cut each square into sixteen 2-inch squares. Halve each square diagonally to make 64 triangles. Place two inches apart on an ungreased cookie sheet.

For each reindeer, place two pretzel twists just under a long edge of a triangle for antlers. Add a halved red candied cherry for nose and miniature chocolate pieces for eyes. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes or until edges are lightly browned. Transfer to a wire rack and let cool.

Holiday Sugar Cookies

I haven't posted in awhile because of my hectic year-end work schedule, but I was able to do quite a bit of holiday cookie baking. I had a cookie exchange at work and I brought in several different types of cookies. Therefore, my next three posts for today will be the holiday cookies that I tried. Enjoy!

Source: Grandma's Cookie Jar Cookbook

Ingredients:

1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened

3/4 c. sugar

1 egg

2 c. all-purpose flour

1 tsp. baking powder

1/4 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon

Colored sprinkles or sugars (optional)

Directions:

Beat butter and sugar in large bowl with electric mixer at medium speed until creamy. Add egg; beat until fluffy.

Stir in flour, baking powder, salt and cinnamon until well blended. Form dough into ball; wrap in plastic wrap and flatter. Refrigerated about 2 hours or until firm.

Preheat oven to 350. Roll out dough, small portion at a time, to a 1/4-inch thickness on lightly floured surface with lightly floured rolling pin. (Keep remaining dough wrapped in refrigerator)

Cut out dough with 3-inch cookie cutters. Sprinkle with colored sprinkles or sugars, if desired. Transfer to ungreased cookie sheets.

Bake 7 to 9 minutes or until edges are lightly browned. Let cookies stand on cookie sheets 1 minute; transfer to wire racks to cool completely. Store in airtight container.

Chili

Yes, it's time for another venison recipe! I still haven't made a dent in my freezer with all the meat, but I'm going to keep on trying! This recipe turned out fabulous, but if you're squeemish about venison, this recipe will work perfect with ground beef or turkey. If you're cooking for only 2 or 3 people, I recommend cutting this recipe in half because I think this recipe was for over a gallon's worth of chili. We'll be having leftovers for a few days. This recipe was another great weekend set-it-and-forget-it recipe for the Crock Pot as well. I would definitely make this again.

Source: Laura's Recipe Collection

Ingredients:

2 lbs ground beef or venison

2 red peppers, diced into larger chunks

2 yellow peppers, diced into larger chunks

2 1/2 C frozen corn

1 28 oz. can tomato sauce

1 30 oz. can chili beans

1 medium onion, chopped

2 C canned black beans

3 T. chili powder

Tabasco to taste

Sour cream and cheese to top, if desired

Directions:

In a large skillet, brown and drain the beef. Chop the peppers and onion. Add these into the crockpot. Add in the rest of the ingredients, aside from the sour cream and cheese, and mix well.

Simmer for 8-10 hours on low. Garnish with sour cream and cheese, serve.

Broccoli and Cheese Soup

This was a new recipe to try that was requested by my husband. He loves broccoli and after eating a cream of brocolli soup that we had eaten at my work's holiday banquet, he asked if I would make a similar recipe. This soup turned out really well and depending on your mood, you don't even need to add cheese. This soup is definitely perfect for a Sunday dinner during the winter.

Source: Cooking Light

Ingredients:

Cooking spray
1 cup chopped onion
2 garlic cloves, minced
3 cups fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
1 (16-ounce) package broccoli florets
2 1/2 cups 2% reduced-fat milk
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
8 ounces light processed cheese, cubed (I used Kraft mild cheddar)

Directions:

Heat a large nonstick saucepan coated with cooking spray over medium-high heat. Add onion and garlic; saute 3 minutes or until tender. Add broth and broccoli. Bring broccoli mixture to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to medium; cook 10 minutes.

Combine milk and flour, stirring with a whisk until well blended. Add milk mixture to broccoli mixture. Cook 5 minutes or until slightly thick, stirring constantly. Stir in pepper. Remove from heat; add cheese, stirring until cheese melts.

Place one-third of the soup in a blender or food processor, and process until smooth. Return pureed soup mixture to pan.

Lime-Vodka Punch

I love to try different kinds of creamy punches, especially with alcohol. Hehe. I attended a holiday party yesterday with my friends and I wanted to bring a fun, festive punch to share. This recipe was really simple and delicious, and it disappeared quickly. The recipe actually only calls for a few cups of vodka, but as the night went on, we kept adding more and more vodka because we couldn't even taste it. When I made the second batch of punch, I added the whole bottle of vodka right away. I wouldn't recommend adding this much vodka if it's for a family party :-).

Source: All Recipes

Ingredients:

2 cups lime vodka
2 (2 liter) bottles chilled lemon-lime soda
1/2 gallon vanilla ice cream
1/2 gallon lime sherbert

Directions:

Stir together vodka and soda in a large punch bowl. Add ice cream and sherbet; stir and serve immediately.

Crockpot Venison Tenderloin

I still have at least 100 pounds of venison still in my freezer so I am still working on trying to clear it all out. The stew I made last weekend took so much time, so for this recipe, I just wanted something that would only take a few minutes of preparation. I had never cooked venison in the crock pot before, so I decided to do a little experimentation. I found a crockpot pork tenderloin recipe and just substituted the meat and altered the cooking time. This recipe turned out fantastic. I was afraid the meat would taste game-y, but it tasted quite the opposite and the meat came out so tender and flavorful.

Source: Adapted from Love To Eat

Ingredients:

1 venison tenderloin about 2 lbs (I used 2 tenderloins - 1 lb. each)
1 package dry onion soup mix
1 cup water
1 cup red wine (I used Cabernet Sauvignon)
1 tbsp minced garlic
Pepper to taste
Worcestershire sauce - a few dashes

Directions:

Put tenderloin in crock pot and rub with minced garlic and pepper. Add onion soup mix. Pour wine and water over and add dashes of Worcestershire sauce. Set crock pot on low for 6-8 hours until meat is cooked thoroughly.