Salad

This Salad I made for one of our christmas parties we went to last week. Its very simple and very yummy!!

Floret Salad
1 Head of Cauliflower
1 bunch of Broccoli
1 bag of baby carrots
1 bottle of Italian dressing
1 pkg. Italian dressing mix (powder form)
1 container of Crumbled Feta Cheese
Recipe says you can add grape tomatoes too but I didnt since they are out of season and I couldnt find any.

Cut up into bite size pieces the cauliflower, broccoli, carrots and tomatoes if you use them.
Place in a bowl and mix together italian dressing and dressing mix. Pour over the vegetables. Let sit over night in refrigerator. Before serving add the crumbled feta cheese and stir.

Broccoli Cheese soup

This soup is supposedly supposed to taste like the soup from Panera Bread. I have never ate there so I cant say if it is or not. It is really good and easy too!

1 bunch of Broccoli
6 Cups chicken broth
1-1/2 cup 1/2 and 1/2
1/2 Cup flour
3 Cups shredded cheddar cheese
Steam broccoli for 6 minutes. Take out and chop up into small pieces. Meanwhile in a pot combine the chicken broth and 1/2 and 1/2 and then slowly add the flour, stirring with a whisk. Cook for 5 minutes on medium or until it comes to a slight boil. Add Broccoli. Cook another 10 minutes. Add shredded cheese and stir/cook until cheese is melted.

Raspberry Truffles

Ok, so melting chocolate and I do NOT get along. I struggled so bad last year melting chocolate to dip pretzels in that we had to go buy more chocolate to melt cause I ruined like 4 bowls full. Well this year was the same. I ruined 2 bowls full of chocolate before I melted it right. Sigh. . . . So now you all know one of my cooking flaws. Lol
I was going to melt some white chocolate to drizzle over the truffles to make em look fancy but considering my luck this morning I decided not to waste the chocolate. .

Raspberry Truffle
1-1/3 Cup Chocolate Chips
1 T Butter
2 T Heavy Whipping cream
Melt these 3 together in a pot on the stove on medium heat. Keep stirring constantly towards the end. Stir it until it looks pretty smooth. Remove from the heat and add
2 T Raspberry Jelly make sure you get the jelly that says SEEDLESS cause otherwise your chocolate are gonna have raspberry seeds in them and that isnt pleasant.
Stir jelly into the chocolate mixture until smooth. Cover pot with saran wrap and set in freezer for 20 minutes or until it sets up a little.
I actually had it in the freezer for 40 minutes. It wont set up completely but after 40 minutes its pretty good.
Remove from freezer and scoop out in spoonfuls onto a wax paper covered cookie sheet.
Set cookie sheets in freezer for another 10-15 minutes or until the mounds of chocolate "dough" are pretty hard. Then take each mound and roll between your hands into a ball shape. Put on another clean sheet of wax paper and freeze another 5 minutes or so. Dip Balls in melted milk chocolate and lay on wax paper to dry. You can let air dry or freeze them for a few minutes.
I dipped the dough balls once in chocolate then let is dry then dipped them again. It makes them stay together better.

Now Im not gonna share how to melt the chocolate for dipping them in . . Lol. But I would suggest using chocolate melting wafers from walmart. I didnt use them this time and I think it would have been easier. They are back in the crafts part with the cake decorating stuff. They are in bags. They are actually for making mints and stuff in those molds so I think they would melt easier and dip better.

Coming next week - - - Chocolate Mint cookies & Peanut Butter blossoms

Pumpkin Cookies

So instead of cleaning my bathroom like I should be doing, I procrastinated and made cookies. These are THE BEST cookies I have had in a while. They are amazing, seriously you have to try them. They are so moist and oh so yummy! I didnt have my camera here, my husband had to take it to work so there is no photo. I saw this recipe on another cooking blog and had to try them . . .. .

Pumpkin Cookies

Recipe from:

http://kitchenscrapbook.com/

1 cup Crisco
1 cup sugar
1 cup pumpkin
1 egg
1 tsp. vanilla
2 cups flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. salt

Cream shortening and sugar. Add pumpkin, egg, and vanilla. Blend in dry ingredients.

Bake at 350 for 12 minutes. Spread caramel frosting on top.

Caramel Frosting
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup butter
1/4 cup milk
1 tsp. vanilla
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar

Combine brown sugar, butter and milk and bring to a boil over medium heat. Cook and stir for 2 minutes.
Remove from the heat and stir in vanilla. Cool to lukewarm, then gradually beat in the powdered sugar until frosting reaches spreading consistency.