Crockpot Hot Chocolate

This is perfect for Christmas morning or New Years!

6 cups milk, any percentage 

1 ( 14 oz) can sweetened condensed milk

2 cups (12oz) semi sweet chocolate chips

1 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream

1 t. Vanilla extract

1/8 t. Salt

Combine all ingredients in slow cooker, and stir together. Cook on low 3 to 4 hours or on high 2 hours. Stir once 15 minutes after first starting, and then again every 30 minutes or so.

Serve with marshmallows or whipped cream.

Serves 6-8

Holiday Drink

64 fl oz Cran Raspberry Juice

2 liters Gingerale

3 limes, sliced

Ice

Marshmallow Fluff Fudge

My Christmas memories growing up, always included my mom making fudge, along with red, white, and green divinity, caramel popcorn balls, and cornflake clusters. She'd make two batches of fudge during Christmas break, one with nuts, one without. I can still see it on the kitchen table, waiting for it to set up, before she'd cut it into little squares to be devoured. So rich, but oh so good!

2 1/2 c. granulated sugar
3/4 c. butter
2/3 c. evaporated milk
12 oz package semi-sweet chocolate chips
7 oz. jar marshmallow cream
1 t. vanilla

1) Line a 9 inch square pan with foil, and spray with nonstick spray. Set aside.
2) In a 3 quart heavy saucepan over high heat, combine sugar, butter, and evaporated milk. Use a wooden spoon to stir slowly until butter melts, scraping sides of pan frequently.
3) Bring to a full rolling boil, stirring constantly. Once it starts boiling, set a timer for 5 minutes and turn the heat down to medium. Stir constantly.
4) Remove from heat, and add chocolate chips. Stir until mixture is smooth. Add marshmallow creme, and beat with spoon until well blended. Add vanilla an mix well. Immediately pour into the prepared pan.
5) Let cool to room temperature.
6) Slice and serve. Store covered on the counter.

Raspberry Marshmallow Fluff Salad

This was a perfect salad for our Christmas Eve dinner this year. So yummy!

3.4 oz instant vanilla pudding
32 oz vanilla yogurt
8 oz cool whip
12 oz package frozen raspberries
2 c. mini marshmallows

1) In a large bowl mix together yogurt and pudding. Stir until completely mixed together.
2) Fold in the cool whip and raspberries.
3) Stir in the marshmallows.

 4) Cover and let the salad sit in the fridge. Stir before serving so the juice from the raspberries will spread throughout the salad.

Chicken Crescent Wreath

2 tubes (8 oz. each) refrigerated crescent rolls
1 c. shredded cheese
1 can cream of chicken soup, undiluted
1/2 c. chopped broccoli
1/2 c. chopped sweet red pepper
1/4 c. chopped water chestnuts
3/4 c. shredded cooked chicken
2 T. chopped onion, optional

Arrange crescent rolls on a 12 inch pizza pan, forming a ring with pointed ends facing the outer edge of pan and wide ends overlapping.
Combine the remaining ingredients. Spoon over wide ends of rolls. Fold points over filling and tuck under wide ends.
Bake at 375 degrees for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown.

Ribbon Salad

This is another favorite family tradition that I love! It's the perfect jello dessert to serve with your holiday meal along with ham and/or turkey, and potatoes. My mom would make this for our extended family Christmas dinner each year, and now in recent years, I've been making it for my own family. It's not only pretty, but delicious!

2 3 oz. lime jello
2 1/2 c. hot water
1 3 oz. lemon jello
1 1/2 c. hot water
8 oz. cream cheese, softened
3 c. mini marshmallows
1/2 c. pineapple juice
1 3 oz. cherry jello
1 3 oz. raspberry (or cranberry) jello
2 1/2 c. hot water

1) Spray a 9x13 inch pan with cooking spray.

1st layer:
2) Mix lime jello and hot water. Stir until dissolved. Pour into pan, and let stand in the refrigerator until completely firm.

2nd layer:
3) Whip the cream cheese until light and fluffy.
4) Dissolve lemon jello in water, and set aside.
5) In a saucepan, place the marshmallows and juice, and melt over medium heat until mixture is smooth.
6) Pour the marshmallow mixture, and lemon jello into the cream cheese and blend together until smooth. Cool completely (about 30 minutes).
7) Carefully pour over green layer. Refrigerate until completely set.

3rd layer:
8) Dissolve remaining jello in water. Cool completely about 25 to 30 minutes, before carefully pouring over cream cheese layer.
9) Refrigerate until completely set.

Salad can be made a day or two ahead of time.

Cranberry Pie

 

1 prepared pie crust

1 (3 oz) pkg raspberry jello

3/4 c. hot water

1/4 c. orange juice

1 (14 oz) can jellied cranberry sauce

1 (6 oz) instant vanilla pudding

2 1/2  c. milk or half and half

Whipping cream

Dissolve jello in water. Add orange juice. Mix in cranberry sauce. Let sit 20 minutes. Then pour into pie crust. Let set in refrigerator. 

Combine pudding and milk. Beat until thick. Layer on top of set jello mixture. Refrigerate. Top with whipping cream before serving.

Millionaire Cranberry Salad

First, make Cranberry Sauce:

• 3 cups fresh cranberries
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1 cup water
• 1 cinnamon stick

Combine ingredients in saucepan over medium heat.
Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer 10 minutes, uncovered.
Remove from heat, and cool completely. (Discard stick.)

Ingredients:

• 2 cups plain greek yogurt
• 2 cups pineapple tidbits, well drained
• 2 cups mini marshmallows
• 1 cup chopped pecans, optional
• 2 cups flaked coconut

Add ingredients with 1 1/2 cups of the cranberry mixture. Stir well. Before serving refrigerate 4 hours or overnight.

Sweet Potato Casserole

3 lbs sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into cubes
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup butter, softened
1/2 t vanilla extract
3/4 cup chopped pecans, divided
1/4 t cinnamon
salt and pepper
2 cups mini marshmallows

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Grease a 9x13 pan.
Place sweet potatoes in a pot of boiling water. Simmer for 15 minutes or until fork tender. Drain.
Mash the sweet potatoes, with butter, sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, salt and pepper.
Fold in half of the pecans, and spread into prepared pan.
Sprinkle with marshmallows, and the remaining pecans.
Bake for 25 minutes or until marshmallows are golden brown, and potatoes are heated through.

Pretzel Jell-o Dessert

My mom has made this salad through the years. It's a delicious salad/dessert. A nice combination of crunchy, creamy, sweet tanginess. Not only perfect for holiday meals, but a great fininshing touch to any meal. My kids try getting me to let them eat this for breakfast, insisting that jell-o is good for them!

Layer 1:
2 cups crushed pretzels
1/2 c. butter or margarine, melted
3 T. sugar

Combine crushed pretzels, butter and sugar. Smooth out into a 9x13 cake pan. Bake at 400 degrees for 10 minutes. Refrigerate for 2 hours. {or not... being pressed for time, I have fore-gone the 2 hour refrigeration and let it cool in the amount of time needed to complete Layer 2... and it turned out just fine}

Layer 2:
1 (8 oz.) cream cheese, softened
1 (8 oz.) cool whip
3/4 c. sugar

Beat cream cheese and sugar. Fold in cool whip and then spread on top of pretzel crust. Refrigerate for 1 1/2 hours.

Layer 3:
1 lg. pkg. raspberry jell-o {also can use strawberry or berry blue}
2 c. boiling water
1/4 c. cold water
1 pkg. frozen raspberries {also can use strawberries or mixed berries)

Dissolve jell-o in hot water, then add cold water and berries. Refrigerate until no longer runny and then pour on top of cream cheese mixture. Refrigerate until jell-o is set.

Baked Omelet Roll

6 eggs
1 c. milk
1/2 c. flour
1/2 t. salt
1/2 t. pepper
diced green pepper
diced red pepper
1 c. shredded cheese

Place first four ingredients in blender. Cover and process until smooth. Pour into a greased 13x9 baking pan. Sprinkle with peppers. Bake at 450 degrees for 20 min. or {350 degrees for 30 minutes, on Christmas morning I put this in the oven along with the Bundt Rolls, so they come out of the oven at the same time}. Sprinke with cheese. Roll up omelet in pan.

Place on serving platter. Cut into 1 in. slices. Serves: 6

Bundt "Breakfast" Rolls

I got this recipe from Aunt Linda. She made these for our Christmas breakfast one year when I was young. They were so good, I had to get the recipe. They are now a part of our traditional Christmas breakfast every year. My kids and hubby look forward to these yummy rolls. In fact, I wouldn't dream of making anything else... they wouldn't allow it!!!

1. Spray bundt pan
2. Sprinkle chopped nuts in bottom of pan, optional
3. Melt together:
                          1 cube margarine or butter
                          1/2 c. brown sugar
                          1/2 sm. box Butterscotch pudding {cook n serve NOT instant}
                          1 t. cinnamon
4. Place 18-20 frozen Rhodes rolls in pan
5. Pour butterscotch over rolls
6. Cover and let rise all night
Next morning, uncover and bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. Turn out onto serving platter and serve.

Pretzel Hugs

Checkers or Snaps
Hershey Hugs
Plain M&M's

Layer snaps or on cookie sheet. Place a hug on each one. Put in a 200 degree oven for 3 minutes. Let cool for just a bit; then decorate with m&m's. Stick in fridge for a bit. These are fun to do with any holiday with different holiday m&m's.

Yummy Trail Mix

1 lg. box rice chex
sunflower seeds
shredded coconut
peanuts
plain and peanut m&m's

Syrup:
2 cubes butter
1 1/2 c. karo syrup
1 1/2 c. sugar
1 1/2 t. vanilla

Combine dry ingredients - all except m&m's. Boil syrup on medium for 3 minutes. Pour over dry ingredients and stir. Cool slightly before adding the m&m's. Unless I'm making this for a crowd, I usually half the recipe because it makes a lot. Use a medium size box of chex, 1 cube butter, 3/4 c. karo, 3/4 c. sugar 3/4 t. vanilla.

Ryan requests this all the time at hunting season to take with him. The first year we were married I sent him with eight Ziploc bags of this and he told me all the guys grabbed a bag and had it eaten before he even got any.

Symphony Fudge

4 cups sugar
1 pint whipping cream
2 lg. Symphony toffee almond bars, broken up
2 sticks butter

Mix the sugar and cream together in a LARGE pan. Stir well and bring to a boil.
While boiling, add butter. Do not touch the sides of bottom of pan while stirring in the butter.
Using a candy thermometer, boil to the soft-ball stage (230 degrees) about 3 minutes.
Take off heat, add Symphony bars and beat with an electric mixer.
Pour into a greased 9x13 pan and chill for 5-6 hours.

ENJOY!