Luscious Lemon Bars

Hello!  Today's recipe is one of my favorites.  I LOVE lemon - lemon anything, in fact!  I was looking through cook books last night to find a recipe, and stumbled across one of my favorite cookbooks from when I was younger.  The book is a children's alphabet cookbook published by Gold Medal Flour.  Lemon Bars was listed under the L.  That is the recipe I am going to give you!

Lemon Bars

Crust:

1 cup Gold Medal all purpose flour

1/2 cup butter, softened

1/4 cup powdered sugar

Filling:

1 cup granulated sugar

2 teaspoons grated lemon peel/ lemon extract

2 T. of lemon juice

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

2 eggs

Directions

Preheat oven to 350*.

Combine flour, butter and powdered sugar.  Press evenly into an ungreased  8x8 baking dish.  Press about 5/8 of an inch up the sides.  Bake for 20 minutes.

Beat remaining ingredient on medium until light and fluffy.  Pour over hot crust and bake for 25 minutes or until no indentation remains when touched lightly in the center.  Cool and cut.  Enjoy!

I have probably eaten about a quarter of the pan myself!  I hope you all have more will power than I do!

Mashed Potatoes

Hello!  While my aunt and uncle from Canada were visiting for Thanksgiving, my aunt made some wonderful mashed potatoes.  She made them for Thanksgiving in fact!  The potatoes have skins in them, and in my opinion, that is the best way to have mashed potatoes.  They were really delicious, so I thought I should share them with you all!

Mashed Potatoes

6 med. red potatoes

2 T. butter

1/4 cup milk

1 teaspoon garlic salt

2/3 cup sour cream

1/4 cup green onions (optional)

Directions

Remove potato eyes.  Cube and boil until soft.  Drain.  Mash with butter, milk, garlic salt, and sour cream until light and fluffy.  Sprinkle green onions on top for garnish.  Enjoy!

These potatoes are really delicious!  I hope you all enjoy the recipe! 

Eggnog Latte

Hello there! Because it is now December, I thought I would do a Christmasy kind of recipe. What says "Christmas" more than eggnog? I made this delicious eggnog latte the other day, and it was so good I thought I would share the recipe with you! I hope you enjoy this delicious drink! Happy Eating! :) 

                                     Eggnog Latte

            For the latte:
                           3/4 cup hot coffee 
                           1/3 third cup eggnog
                           sugar, to taste
  
            For the whipped cream:
                           1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
                           sugar, to taste
                           nutmeg, for sprinkling


Pour the hot coffee into a mug or cup of your choice. (I found this adorable Christmas glass, and it looked perfect for a latte.) 
Heat up the eggnog in a microwave safe bowl or cup for about 30-40 seconds, or until it's warm. Mix the eggnog and the coffee together and add sugar until it is as sweet as you like it. 
I decided to put whipped cream on this hot latte as well, simply because I liked the taste of it last time. Pour the whipping cream into a blender cup and add the sugar. Using a hand blender, whip it unit it is the texture you like. Carefully spoon it onto the coffee/eggnog mixture, and sprinkle nutmeg on it if you wish. Yum! 
I hope you liked this Christmas recipe! I will hopefully be posting more in the weeks leading up to Christmas! 

~Nutmeg

Christmas Cut Outs

Hello Everyone!   I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving!  Now that we are in the month of December, I thought I would do a Christmassy recipe.  These are cut out cookies, and perfect for decorating!  They are also a hit with the kids!  We made these with my family while they were visiting for the holiday.  The original recipe for these cookies comes from my Dad's side of the family.  My Grandma used to make dozens and dozens of different cookies to enjoy throughout the month of December.  I am happy to share this one recipe with you all!

Christmas Cut Outs

2 cups softened butter

2 cups sugar

3 eggs

4 T. orange juice

2 teaspoons vanilla

4 cups flour

2 teaspoons baking powder
decorations of your choice

Directions

Preheat oven to 400*.

In a large mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar. Add eggs and beat until light and fluffy.  Pour vanilla and orange juice in and combine well.  In a separate bowl, sift together flour and baking powder; add to wet ingredients.  Combine well.  Divide dough into two rounds.  Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate  for 1-2 hours.

Working with one half of dough at a time, remove from plastic wrap onto a well floured surface.  Roll dough out to 1/8-1/4".  Cut with cookie cutters into desired shapes.  (If you want to decorate with sprinkles, now would be the time to do it.)

Place on an ungreased cookie sheet and bake on the center rack of oven for 6 to 10 minutes , or until just golden brown on the edges. (Cool if you want to decorate with frosting.)  Cool on wire rack.  Enjoy!  (Munch, munch, munch.)

I hope you all decorate these with your families!  After you finish, comment and show us a picture!

Delicious Cranberry Sauce Parfait

Happy Thanksgiving everyone! I thought for this post I would do a Thanksgiving dish. I don't know about you, but I really like cranberry sauce. I know someone who made something very similar to this every Thanksgiving, and I always looked forward to it. I made my own version of it, and, although it doesn't taste the same as hers, it is still very yummy. 
I hope you enjoy it! Happy Eating! :)

                         Delicious Cranberry Sauce Parfait

Cranberry sauce: 
                        1 cup of water
                        1 cup sugar
                        4 cups cranberries (fresh or frozen) 

Whipped cream:
                        2 cups heavy whipping cream
                        4 tablespoons sugar
          
                        chopped pecans, optional


Wash the cranberries, and make sure there aren't any bad ones. 
In a medium saucepan, bring the sugar and water to a boil, stirring until the sugar is dissolved. Reduce the heat and add the cranberries. Let them simmer for about 10 minutes, or until they have burst, forming a kind of jelly. 
Remove from the heat and allow it to cool at room temperature, then place it in the refrigerator. 
Combine the whipping cream and the sugar in a blender cup, then, using a hand blender, whip it until it is thick. 
You can make several single serve bowls, or you can make one big one. Put a spoonful of cranberry sauce into the bottom of the bowl, then spoon whipped cream on top of that, until you have as many layers as you like. Finish with a dollop of whipped cream, and, if you want, you can sprinkle some chopped pecans on top. Yummy! 
I hope you guys have a great Thanksgiving! :)

  ~Nutmeg             

Chocolate Orange Mug Cake

Hello everyone!  I apologize that today's blog article is so late.  We have family in for the holidays, and I was a bit distracted!  Today's recipe is another mug cake.  Have you ever had a chocolate orange at Christmas time?  They come wrapped in orange foil.  You smack them against a hard surface before you unwrap them, and they break into segments.  They are SO delicious!  

Also, I wanted to let you know that I will not be posting the Friday after Thanksgiving.  I hope you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving celebration!

Chocolate Orange Mug Cake

1/4 cup flour

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon unsweetened cocoa powder

2 T. brown sugar

a few drops vanilla extract

a few drops orange extract

1/4 cup milk

Directions

Throw it all in a mug and mix it until just combined.  Microwave for 1 minute and 30 seconds.  Enjoy!

My extended family from Canada really enjoyed it!  I only had a small amount left to taste myself!

Sautéed Sugar Snap Peas

Hello everyone!  I'm back!  Today's recipe is pretty healthy.  It is a delicious way to saute sugar snap peas.  This is a little off topic, but can you all leave a comment for what you are most thankful for?  Thanksgiving is coming up, and I thought we could all share at least one thing.  I am thankful for my loving family, who often helps me with this blog.  This activity will continue for the rest of the days leading up to thanksgiving.

Sauteed Sugar Snap Peas

1 lb. sugar snap peas

1 small yellow onion

2 T. sunflower oil

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

Directions

Dice onion.  String peas.

Pour sunflower oil into a large skillet.  Add onions.  Saute on medium heat until softened slightly.   Add peas.  Continue to saute until onions turn golden in color.  Season with salt and garlic powder.  Combine well.  Take off heat.  Enjoy!!!

I hope you all enjoy these sugar snap peas as much as my mom did!  She ate the leftovers from them for lunch today!