Christmas Candy - part 2

Today's Christmas candy making involved more of the yummy white chocolate I used yesterday. This time it was for white chocolate covered pretzels which were specifically requested by Husband. I had no idea how to make these, but I managed to fake it pretty good (at least I think so!).

First take pretzels, white chocolate, and sprinkles.
Melt chocolate for about a minute and a half in the microwave, stir until melted.

Put in a handful of pretzels, not to many or they are hard to stir up.

Pull them out with tongs, this allows some of the chocolate to drip off into the bowl.

Put the covered pretzels onto a wax paper covered cookie sheet.
Sprinkle with festive Christmas sprinkles.

Put cookie sheet in the fridge until chocolate is set.

Eat and enjoy!

Christmas Candy - Part 1

I love this time of year....buying and wrapping presents for my family, decorating the house, and all the fun Christmas baking. This year I have already made my go-to Christmas candy, Peppermint Bark, twice. Candy bark may be the easiest Christmas baking project possible, just a tiny bit more complicated than stopping at the store on the way to the party :)

Let's begin...

That is chocolate chips, white chocolate, and peppermints. I have always used Nestle white chocolate chips, but this year because I am doing so many candy projects (stay tuned for the next few days) I bought a block of Ghirardelli white chocolate and OH MY GOODNESS it has so much more flavor. I wanted to eat it all right out of the package. YUMMY!!!


Why, yes, that is a meat tenderizer, and yes, this is the only purpose I use it for. Seriously, I don't even know what to really do with it, but it works magic on hard candy.

There are several steps missing because one must work quickly with melted chocolate, but this is what you get after a while...
The chocolate is alternated and then swirled with a knife.

A few hours in the fridge, an appointment with a knife and into the cute little jar it goes.
This one is going to the in-laws!

And now for the recipe you have all been waiting for...

Peppermint Marble Bark

12 oz Chocolate chips
12 oz White Chocolate (I will be using the squares from now on)
50 peppermint candies smashed up

Melt each chocolate seperately in microwave for 1.5 minute, then stir until melted. Add 1/2 the peppermint to each bowl of chocolate. While the chocolate is still warm, spoon it onto a wax paper covered cookie sheet. Alternate the two colors of chocolate in small mounds. Then take a knife and drag it through the different chocolates so it looks marblized. Let cool (best done in the fridge). Cute with a sharp knife.

Turkey Meatballs with Spicy Tomato Sauce

A while back I was feeling like trying out something new and, since I had never made tomato sauce from scratch, I thought I would attempt to make meatballs and sauce from scratch.

I found a recipe here (by the way, I have made several of Ellie Krieger's recipies with ground turkey and all have been wonderful)

But then I had to modify it as I went, because here in the Bennett household LOTS of sauce is a must have. So I added a bit more tomato sauce and paste than in the original recipe (and some extra garlic!!)

So here is the Bennett version...

Ingredients

Sauce:
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 6-ounce can tomato paste*
• 2 8-ounce can tomato sauce*
• 1 (28-ounce) can crushed fire-roasted tomatoes, liquid included
• 1 teaspoon finely minced canned chipotle en adobo and sauce, or more to taste
• 1 teaspoon oregano
• Salt
• 1 tablespoon dried basil leaves

*Depending on how much sauce you want, add or subtract some amount of these two items.

Meatballs:
• Cooking spray
• 1 pound ground turkey meat
• 1/2 cup Italian bread crumbs
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan, plus more for serving
• 1/2 cup finely chopped onion
• 2 large cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoons parsley leaves,
• 1 teaspoons minced fresh thyme leaves
• 1 egg, lightly beaten
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• Freshly ground black pepper

• 1 box (16 ounces) spaghetti

Directions
Fill a large stockpot with water and bring to a boil for pasta.

Make Sauce:
In a 4-quart saucepan heat the oil over medium heat. Sauté the onions until translucent, about 3 minutes, then add the garlic and cook for 1 minute more. Add tomato paste, tomatoes, chipotles, oregano, and salt. Bring all the ingredients to a low boil, reduce heat and cook for approximately 15 minutes, until liquid has evaporated slightly. Season with salt and pepper, to taste. While sauce is cooking, make meatballs.

Meatballs:
Preheat the broiler. Spray a baking sheet with cooking spray. Combine the turkey with all other ingredients in a large work bowl. Form into 2 1/2 -inch balls and place on a baking sheet. Broil for 10 minutes, or until browned and almost entirely cooked through.

Add the meatballs to the sauce, cover, and cook additional 10 minutes, or until sauce has slightly thickened and meatballs have absorbed some of the sauce. While the meatballs are cooking, cook the spaghetti according to package directions.

An Encouraging Poem

I came across this poem in The Wedded Unmother by Kaye Halverson, I don't know where it was from orginally. It is a great verse about being a woman who loves and is loved.

Accept your womanhood, my daughter, and rejoice in it.

It is your glory that you are a woman, for that is why
he loves you, he whom you love.

Be gentle, be wise, as a woman is gentle and wise.

Be ardent and love with a woman's ardor.

Through your love, teach him what it means to be a man, a noble man, a strong man.

Believe in him, for only through your belief can he believe in himself.

In your secret heart, man and woman, we long above all else to know that the other, the one we love, knows what we are and believes in what we can be.

Is this not romance?

Yes, and the highest romance, investing the smallest detail of life with the color of joy.

Marinated Salmon and Purple Potatoes

This recipe is a true Bennett Family Favorite. I think I found it on-line after Husband said he liked the salmon dish at Lonestar Steakhouse. We don't have one of those near us, so this is what we came up with. So far, we like it better!!

Marinade:
1 sweet bourbon marinade
1/4 c pineapple juice
2 tb soy sauce
2 tb brown sugar
1 ts kentucky bourbon
1/4 ts cracked black pepper
1/8 ts garlic powder
1/2 c vegetable oil

Combine the pineapple juice, soy sauce, brown sugar, bourbon, pepper
and garlic powder in a medium bowl. Stir to dissolve the sugar. Add
the oil.

This covers 2 8 oz fillets nicely.

Place the fillets in a shallow dish & pour the bourbon marinade over them,
saving a little to brush on the fish as it cooks. Put a lid over the
fish & refrigerate for at least an hour. A few hours is even better.

After the salmon is done in the marinade, it can be cooked any way you like salmon. We have tried it grilled and baked, both are tasty!!

The purple potates add a nice splash of color to the dinner. These seem to be getting more popular and can be purchased at major grocery stores now (for those of you in Florida, almost all Publix carry these potatoes).

Quick Cleaning Tip - Cleaning Supplies

I am not sure if this is quick because I have little time today or quick because it makes cleaning faster...anyway...on to the topic at hand...

I like to clean house, but I dislike wandering back and forth and all around looking for cleaning supplies.

My solution: keep everything where it is needed.

For example, we have two bathrooms...so this means I have two of everything necessary to clean a bathroom. Now, when the bathroom needs cleaning I don't have to go get the cleaning supplies, walk them to the bathroom, clean, and walk them back to their home.

As for cleaning supplies that are not as room specific, those all live in the laundry room in one special place. Again, this shortens the prep time for cleaning since I know exactly where the squeegee (I don't know if that is spelled right, but I too tired to care) is at all times.

For things that Husband also uses, he gets his own set of cleaning supplies for the garage so he also does not have to go wandering about looking for things.

It's the little time savers that really add up!

Saying Goodbye

I know what you are thinking..."what? wait, we just got here, why are you saying goodbye?!?" I am talking about how to say goodbye to your husband. This idea, I will gladly admit, comes from my mom.

When I think back on growing up, I can't remember a time that my mom left the house (if my dad was home) without finding him and telling him where she was going and giving him a kiss (awwww).

Smallish tangent: I must insert here that I was SHOCKED when I found out this was not done by everyone. Along with being all cute and loving, it also strikes me as being respectful of those in your household. Just something to think about. End tangent.

So, now that I am married I put this into practice...the last thing I do before leaving the house is to kiss Husband. It lets him know that I am thinking of him even as I am out and about.

Next step...in the mornings when Husband leaves I go out to the garage with him. Sometimes I just stand on the step at the door, sometimes I actually go outside (this generally depends on a combination of what I am wearing, the weather, and if the neighbors are out). I watch him get his stuff in the car, I smile all cute (because isn't that what he should remember me looking like while he is gone? who wants to think about a grouchy wife nagging about one last thing as he walks out the door?), he comes over and kisses me, and then I stand there and wave. Just STAND and WAVE...not working on any project, not playing with the dog, not distracted by what I am going to do next, just waving to Husband. So that the last thing he sees as the garage door shuts is his wife focused on sending him out into the world.

Everyone is happier when they know someone cares about them. Why not take a few minutes to have a routine that sends your husband out into the world knowing there is a wife at home cheering him on!