Friday Foodie ~ 2017 Christmas Baking

I did my annual Christmas baking this week and I have more pictures than usual.  Les has been on an extended business trip (last week he was on the East Coast, then flew to Hawaii from New York on Saturday) so I kept texting pictures to him!  He gets home tonight so he can finally sample some of this goodness.

This year I made an even 10 items, 5 kinds of cookies and 5 kinds of candy.  Gingerbread, chocolate chip, butterscotch oatmeal, peanut butter kissed, and peppermint crunch cookies.  Fudge, Scotcheroos, sugared walnuts, bon bons, and butterscotch haystacks.  None of these are new recipes, but here they are:

Gingerbread cookies - I started with Krusteaz Gingerbread mix.  Add one egg and 1/2 cup flour to recipe on the box for gingerbread cookies.  This dough tends to be very sticky, so I keep more flour close as I roll them out.  These only took 6 minutes to bake.

Chocolate chip cookies - straight from a mix!  I didn't change a thing on these.

Butterscotch oatmeal cookies - another mix, with 1/2 cup of butterscotch chips added in.

Peanut butter kissed cookies - one more mix.  Let cookies cool one minute after removing from oven then top with Hershey kisses.

Peppermint crunch cookies - I made these quite a few years ago.  This time I used Andes Peppermint chips and that took the flavor to a whole new level of goodness!

1 roll (16.5 oz) Pillsbury® refrigerated sugar cookies
1 1/2 cups white vanilla baking chips or semisweet chocolate chips (or Andes Peppermint chips)
8 round hard peppermint candies, crushed (1/4 cup)

DIRECTIONS:
Heat oven to 350°F. In large bowl, break up cookie dough. Stir or knead in 1/4 cup all-purpose flour until well blended. Shape dough into 36 (1-inch) balls. Bake 10 to 14 minutes or until edges are golden brown (my oven runs how so these took 8 to 10 minutes. ) Cool 1 minute; remove from cookie sheets to cooling rack. Cool completely, about 5 minutes.
In small microwavable bowl, microwave vanilla chips and 1 tablespoon vegetable oil uncovered on Medium (50%) 2 to 3 minutes, stirring once halfway through microwaving, until melted. Stir until smooth.
Dip half of each cookie into melted chips mixture, allowing excess to drip off; place on waxed or parchment paper-lined cookie sheets. Sprinkle each with about 1/2 teaspoon crushed candy. Let stand until set.

Fantasy Fudge (this recipe is on the marshmallow creme jar)

3 cups sugar
3/4 cup butter or margarine
1 small can (5 oz.) evaporated milk (about 2/3 cup) (Do not use sweetened condensed milk.)
1 pkg. (12 oz. each)  Semi-Sweet Chocolate chips
1 jar (7 oz.) JET-PUFFED Marshmallow Creme
1 cup chopped Walnuts (optional - I do not put nuts in my fudge, I prefer smooth and creamy!)
1 tsp. vanilla

Line 9-inch square pan with foil, with ends of foil extending over sides. Bring sugar, butter and evaporated milk to full rolling boil in 3-qt. saucepan on medium heat, stirring constantly. Cook 10 min. or until candy thermometer reaches 234°F, stirring constantly (*it is very important that the mixture reach the proper temperature.  A candy thermometer is a must!)

Remove from heat.  Add chocolate and marshmallow creme; stir until melted. Add nuts and vanilla; mix well.

Pour into prepared pan; spread to cover bottom of pan. Cool completely. Use foil handles to lift fudge from pan before cutting into 1-inch squares.

Chocolate Scotcheroos - This recipe has been in our family for years! I thought Mom created it, but it can be found on the Rice Krispies website, although Mom's version uses more chocolate and butterscotch (no surprise). Rick use to request this for his birthday instead of a cake!

1 c. sugar
1 c. Karo syrup
1 c. peanut butter
6 c. Rice Krispies
1-12 oz bag chocolate chips
1-12 oz bag butterscotch chips

Cook sugar and syrup until it starts to boil. Remove from heat and add peanut butter, mix well. Add Rice Krispies, mix well. Spread in 9 x 13 cake pan.
Melt chocolate and butterscotch chips, spread on top. Refrigerate until set.

Sugared Walnuts
1/2 c. sugar
1/4 c. water
3 Tbs. orange juice
2 1/2 c. walnuts
1/2 tsp. orange zest (grated orange peel)

Combine sugar, water and orange juice in large sauce pan. Cook slowly until candy thermometer reaches 240 ("soft ball"). This takes about 10-15 minutes, be patient! I have tried this without a candy thermometer and it never turns out right - I get too impatient and don't let it cook long enough!
Remove from heat, add walnuts and orange zest. Stir until coating is creamy and loses its gloss.
Spread on wax paper to cool.

Peppermint Bon Bons - this is an old family recipe that I never share.  Sorry.

Butterscotch Haystacks - I have made these in the past but found a recipe that included peanut butter and miniature marshmallows.  I left out the peanut butter but did add the marshmallows.

• 2/3 cups (12-oz. pkg.)  Butterscotch chips
• 1 can (8.5 oz.) or 2 cans (5 oz. each) chow mein noodles
• 3 1/2 cups miniature marshmallows

Place morsels in top of double boiler over hot (not boiling) water. Do not cover. When most of the morsels are shiny, stir just until melted. (Prevent water from coming in contact with morsels.)  Remove from heat.
Place chow mein noodles in large bowl.  Pour melted chips and mix well.  Add in marshmallows and stir until coated.
Drop by rounded tablespoon onto wax paper.

That's all my goodies for this year. There are some other favorites that I have made in years past.  I added a new category on my Friday Foodie page - at the bottom you can now find five years of Christmas Baking.

What We Tell Our Daughters

Headlines for months now have been filled with stories of men in power abusing women (and in some cases abusing men.)  The hashtag #MeToo has gained much attention.  Time Magazine's "Person of the Year" is the "Silence Breakers" who spoke out about the widespread abuse.  It seems once the doors opened a crack they were thrown off their hinges.

Sadly, abuse is nothing new.  We find it in the book of Genesis with the story of Dinah, the only daughter of Jacob.  There is also the story of King David's daughter, Tamar.  Matthew Henry's commentary of the story of Tamar is outstanding.  He introduced the story with this, "We have here a particular account of the abominable wickedness of Amnon in ravishing his sister, a subject not fit to be enlarged upon nor indeed to be mentioned without blushing, that ever any man should be so vile, especially that a son of David should be so.  Can he entertain the thought of betraying that virtue and honor of which, as a brother, he ought to have been the protector?" (You can read my full post about Tamar here.)

I have never personally experienced sexual harassment of any type.  I have had several male bosses but not once was I subjected to any abuse or harassment.  I do have a story about abuse that I believed formed me...

My Mom's dad passed away when I was about 18 months old.  I don't really have any memories of him.  He smoked a pipe and oddly whenever I smell pipe smoke I think of him.  All I know of him were things Mom told me about him.  He was a hard man - he worked hard, but he was also hard towards his family.  Mom told many stories of how he mistreated Grandma Luella.  His abuse included emotional and physical (including broken bones.)

Every time, without fail, that Mom would talk about Grandpa's abuse she followed it up with this:  "I told your Dad he might hit me once but I wouldn't be around for the second time."  I can't tell you how many times I heard that from her.  It was a strong statement that I believe she would have followed through on.  My Dad was never abusive so this was never actually an issue in our home.  Mom did not let the cycle of abuse continue in her life.

What we tell our daughters (and sons) makes a difference.  No one should be afraid to go to work or school or church.  But more importantly they should not be afraid to tell someone if abuse happens.  We must tell them, "don't be around for the second time."  I understand that it is not simple, but with the support of loved ones, escape is possible.

Southern California Wild Fires

"Southern California is currently under assault from a series of wind-driven wildfires that have destroyed more than a hundred homes in Ventura County and threatened thousands more in Los Angeles and San Bernardino counties." (LA Times.) It started Monday with the Thomas Fire.  The Rye Fire and the Creek Fire started yesterday.  This morning there was another fire in Brentwood called the Skirball fire.  These are all pictured on the map, clockwise starting in Ventura (Thomas, Rye, Creek and Skirball.)

I received an email from Nextdoor.com yesterday afternoon that first alerted me to possible trouble, "Simi Valley residents are advised that the Rye Fire in Santa Clarita may travel to Simi Valley this evening due to the weather conditions and heavy winds. Residents on the northern side of the City should be aware of this possibility and be prepared to evacuate if necessary. Residents will NOT be encouraged to shelter in place should the fire breach Simi Valley and will be encouraged to evacuate. Please be prepared to Ready, Set, Go if the situation requires."

We live on the northern side of the city so I knew I needed to pay close attention.  As the evening wore on, with winds howling, I decided to pack a few things in the car.  You might be surprised at how little I packed.  Les' trumpet and bass guitar, our wedding photo album, our Bibles (including Mom's), and an overnight bag.  I had all my electronics in a bag by my bed and woke every hour last night checking out the window for the glow of fire (did not see any) and my phone for any updates (did not receive any.)

As of this morning, we have not received any new information.  I'm hoping that no news is good news but I would really love to have more information.  The winds have calmed for now but they are expected to pick back up and continue blowing until Friday.

The pictures below are from October 2003 when a fire came to our property line.  The house on the left is ours, so you as you can imagine I am a little bit nervous.

Prayers for this region are appreciated!

Just as I was finishing this post I received the following update:

Update as of Wednesday, December 6, at 9:50 a.m.

Due to the efforts of Fire personnel dedicating substantial resources on the fire overnight, the Rye Fire’s threat to Simi Valley has been reduced at this time.

The wind situation is expected to remain calmer today, with expectations it will pick up this afternoon/evening and be stronger than in previous days.

With that potential for high winds over the next several days, and the fires continuing to burn across Southern California, the City’s Emergency Operations Center will remain open until Friday in the event that Simi Valley is threatened again by either this fire or another fire event.

There are no voluntary or mandatory evacuation notices in place at this time.  

Prayers for this region are still need and appreciated! 

Christmas Comes to Our House

Come on in, y'all!

The entryway...

Our Christmas card wreath just waiting to be filled...

The living room is filled with a variety of items, but front and center is the nativity.  No matter what else is put out, this comes out every year.

Christmas villages on two half walls...

And a lighthouse on the trunk...

There are carolers on the mantel...

And a few more with their piano player on the stereo...

There are three tall wise men on the dining room table.

And even some pretty dishes in the china cabinet.

The kitchen is filled with gingerbread men and women!

Including a village on the shelf by the sink.

I even brought out my Christmas dishes this year...

Snowmen, snowmen, snowmen in the family room!

Now let's head up the stairs...

Halfway up, on the landing, is another village but this one is a little different - it's Bethlehem!  I love this one.  I created "mountains" out of thin cork...

The mantel in the master bedroom.

And a giant angel in the guestroom.  She lights up the night!

One final look at the living room from upstairs.

Have you decorated yet?  Whole house or just the living room?

P.S.  I haven't bought any new decorations in years and many of these items were gifts.  It takes a long time to get a Christmas house ;)