Links – It’s All About Snickerdoodles

Snickerdoodles are one of my favorite cookies. They are not only delicious, they are nostalgic for me. My Gramma made them. Maybe both of my grandmothers made them. My mom has made them. I have made them for my own family and have probably made them for my husband.
But, why limit them to cookies? Just for fun I thought I’d see how many different snickerdoodle recipes I could come up with and here’s the results! :-)
Snickerdoodle Cupcakes
Snickerdoodle Cake
Snickerdoodle Muffins
Snickerdoodle Ice Cream
Snickerdoodle Ice Cream Sandwiches
Snickerdoodle Chex® Mix
Snickerdoodle Cheese Cake
Snickerdoodle Pie
Snickerdoodle Blondies
Snickerdoodle Cookie Dough Dip
Snickerdoodle Pie Crust (This recipe calls for gluten-free packaged cookies. Use your own snickerdoodles if you don’t want the packaged ones.)
Snickerdoodle Trifle (This recipe is full of poison, er, I mean dangerous chemicals with all the sugar-free ingredients and Cool Whip. However, with a few changes – regular pudding mixes and real whipped cream – I think you could make it more health friendly instead of diet friendly, whatever that is.)
Toffee Chocolate Chip Snickerdoodles
Whole Wheat Snickerdoodles
Peppermint Snickerdoodles
Gluten-free Snickerdoodles (That should make someone happy!)
And, last but not least, my own Gramma’s recipe:
Gramma Hoover’s Snickerdoodles

A Little Home Maker In Training

Today is my niece’s seventh birthday (on U.S. time), so I thought it would be fun to put up some pictures of her.  She is an eager learner of cooking, along with other home making skills.  These pictures were taken at various ages and stages over the last few years.

Cooking
 

Hospitality

Tea time for brother and friend.

Child Care

Housekeeping

Ironing her dolly’s clothes.

Cleaning up the kitchen with her brother, Danny, and mama.

Making Home Pleasant

 

Growing in grace and the knowledge of Jesus Christ.
 
Happy Birthday, Dolly! :-) May you be a happy little home maker to your family again this year.

Peppermint Road Fudge

I made some alterations to a recipe for Rocky Road Fudge and came up with this.  It is a nice way to use up candy canes.  Since we don’t celebrate Christmas, I bought mine at a dollar store marked waaaay down after the holidays.  I don’t remember the price, but it was something like 70-80% off as I recall – a really good deal.  Striped peppermint sticks of any kind are so pretty crushed and used for decoration on top of deserts – especially chocolate. :-)
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Peppermint Road Fudge
2 1/2 C. chocolate chips (I use bittersweet)
1 14 oz. can sweetened condensed milk
1/4 tsp. mint or peppermint extract
1 C. crushed peppermint sticks (candy canes or other)
1 10.5 oz. pkg. miniature marshmallows
(Extra crushed candy canes for garnish.)
In a heavy sauce pan over low heat melt chocolate chips, sweetened condensed milk and butter, stirring often.  Meanwhile measure candy bits and marshmallows into a large bowl.  Add mint extract to choc. mixture when melted and mix in well.  Pour choc. mixture over candy and marshmallow mixture.  Stir until marshmallows are coated, but not until they are falling apart.  Spread in a waxed paper lined 9x13 cake pan.  (Sprinkle with extra candy bits or sprinkles if desired.)   Chill till firm.  Remove from pan and cut into pieces.
Note:  Stir in extra butter if the chocolate mixture seems too thick to mix into the marshmallows.
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Yes, I know.  This is not the healthiest recipe.  But, it must be better than fudge made with powdered sugar, right?  I hope? :-)

Super Simple Side Salads

Sliced papaya and kiwi fruit with a garnish of fresh mint make a very pretty side salad for a nice dinner.

No dressing required, but you could drizzle the Creamy Citrus Dressing over it if you wanted to.

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Another pretty but simple fruit salad:  fresh mango, strawberries and kiwi fruit – cut and arranged in a white bowl.

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Lettuce, tomato, grated cheese and a drizzle of dressing looks colorful too, as well as being easy.  (Leftover taco toppings make this a breeze.)

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And, the easiest side “salad”?  A bowl of canned fruit, of course. :-)

In a pretty, contrasting bowl it looks very attractive.

Fresh Green Bean Salad

 

This is a refreshing, delicious salad for a hot summer day.  If you have garden fresh beans, so much the better!  I don’t have measurements.  I don’t think we ever used any.  We just made it with however much was available.  It is easily adjusted for special diets too.
Fresh Green Bean Salad
Fresh green beans
Tomatoes, chopped or sliced
Whit onion (optional), diced
Crumbled Feta cheese, or cheese of your choice
Italian salad dressing, or vinegar and oil dressing of your choice
Parboil or steam beans just till tender crisp.  Remove from heat and drain immediately and rinse in cool water.  Refrigerate till ready to make salad.  Arrange beans around the edge of a large plate or small platter.  Place tomatoes in center.  Sprinkle with onions and cheese.  Pour salad dressing over the top.  Serve.
Note: You could substitute green or red onions or chives for the white onions.  Also, if you have fresh basil or oregano, it would be a nice addition snipped and sprinkled on top.
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Make this recipe dairy free by leaving out the cheese.  Make it gluten free by using gluten free dressing and cheese.

Salad Dressing – Creamy Citrus Dressing

Due to health issues and concerns we try to avoid a lot of things in our diet.  It is necessary that we avoid MSG (monosodium glutamate), which is in many store bought salad dressings.  We also make a point of avoiding high fructose corn syrup, which also appears in many store bought foods.  My mom made a lot of homemade dressings when we were growing up (probably because they are cheaper), so it wasn’t a big challenge to us to make all our dressings at home when these things became an issue. 
I enjoy inventing my own dressings.  They may well be repeats of other people’s efforts, but that isn’t surprising since there are so many thousands of recipes available on the internet now! :-)  I hope to post some of my recipes for salad dressing here this summer since summer is a the time of year for fresh fruits and veggies.  Enjoy!
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Creamy Citrus Dressing
1/2 C. sour cream
1 C. mayonnaise
Buttermilk or yogurt if needed to thin
2 Tbl. toasted sesame seeds
Sugar or natural sweetener to taste
1-2 Tbl. lemon or lime juice (fresh is best)
2 Tbl. orange juice
1/2 tsp. ginger paste
Mix all ingredients till smooth.
This dressing is especially good on lettuce salads with fruit in them – think strawberries, blueberries, cantaloupe, etc.  It might also be good on a fresh fruit salad.
 
You can sprinkle the sesame seeds on top if you prefer.  It is prettier this way. :-)

Caramelized Pecans

I found this recipe on the internet and then made my own adjustments to it.  It was a hit with my family!
1 Tbl. butter
1 heaping Tbl. brown sugar
1 tsp. white sugar
3/4 C. pecans
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
A pinch of salt
Pre-measure all ingredients.  You will need to add the sugars, nuts, etc. quickly before the butter browns.
Melt butter in a skillet over medium heat.  Add sugar, cinnamon and nuts and increase heat to medium-high.  Stir constantly until sugar loses its grainy appearance – about 5 minutes.  Pour nuts onto sheet of aluminum foil and let cool about 15 minutes.  Store in an airtight container.
These nuts are very good added to a salad of lettuce and fresh strawberries with a sweet-sour dressing!