My Favorite Day after Christmas Tradition

hitting up Target for all the 50% off Christmas themed napkins, cups, plates, Ziploc bags, Ziploc containers, foil, parchment paper...you name it...even scored some snow flake flannel sheets! My mom taught me well!

Quick Homemade Treats

One thing I love about this time of year is making home made treats for people. Whether it's a plate of cookies for some co-workers or some home made Chex Mix, I love creating little things to give out. So, here are so super quick ideas that don't take a ton of time to make or a ton of ingredients!

 Muddy Buddy Chex Mix

Warning...this stuff can be as addictive as crack!!! It seriously takes 10 minutes to make and it's so good!

Here's what you need..2 boxes of plain Corn Chex cereal, 1 bag of chocolate and peanut butter chips (if you have a peanut allergy, plain chocolate chips will do the trick!) and some powdered sugar (you probably need about 3/4 of a cup..I have a mammoth bag because I buy it bulk for frosting.)

Separate the 2 boxes of cereal into 3 large ziploc bags. Melt the chips..I prefer a double boiler since I burn them in the microwave..just take a small saucepan, put some water in it, place a glass bowl on top. Throw the chips in the bowl, heat the water, and it takes about 7-10 minutes to melt them. Once the chips are melted, spoon melted chocolate into the ziploc bags. I use 1 bag of chips for 2 boxes of cereal. Once it's in there, seal the bags...make sure they're sealed to avoid a shower of melted chocolate cereal on your kitchen floor...and shake them to coat the cereal. Sometimes I'll do some melted chocolate, shake, them put more in vs. putting it all in at once. Once the cereal is coated, add some powdered sugar...seal it again and then make sure it's sealed!..and shake some more..the powdered sugar will help separate the cereal. You can choose how chocolate-y and how sugary you want it! I throw it in a huge bowl, let the chocolate harden a bit and them put it in a tin or little treat bags.

2. Homemade Peppermint Marshmallows

I saw these on Martha Stewart's show a couple years ago..when she was on real tv and not booted to the Hallmark channel, which we don't even get. I loved this idea and these were pretty easy to make!

It starts off with some sugar, corn syrup, and water. Boil it in a small sauce pan. while it's heating up, you take some gelatin and water and get the mixer going! Once the ingredients in the saucepan are combined, add it to the mixer and let it mix...

Once the ingredients are combined, I took a 8 by 8 brownie pan. Cover it in saran wrap with an overhang. Spray it with Pam or another non stick spray..this is important or you'll never get the marshmallows out of the pan! Here's what mine looked like..

After about 2 hours, they should be ready to cut. You can cut them as large or as small as you'd like!

Then comes the powdered sugar bath....

Here are the real play by play directions! These are perfect for a hostess gift..or pair it with a mug, a container of hot chocolate and maybe even a bottle of Peppermint Schnapps!

Ingredients
3 (1/4-ounce) packages unflavored gelatin
1/2 cup cold water
2 cups granulated sugar
2/3 cup light corn syrup
1/4 teaspoon coarse salt
1/4 teaspoon pure peppermint extract
Confectioners' sugar, sifted, for coating

Directions:

Lightly spray a 9-by-9-inch baking pan with cooking spray. Line pan with plastic wrap, leaving a 2-inch overhang on all sides; set aside.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, sprinkle gelatin over 1/2 cup cold water; let stand for 10 minutes. In a medium saucepan, combine sugar, corn syrup, and 1/4 cup water. Place saucepan over medium-high heat and bring to a boil; boil rapidly for 1 minute. Remove from heat, and, with the mixer on high, slowly pour the boiling syrup down the side of the mixer bowl into gelatin mixture. Add salt and continue mixing for 12 minutes

Add peppermint extract and mix until well combined. Spray a rubber spatula or your hands with cooking spray. Spread gelatin mixture evenly into pan using prepared spatula or your hands. Spray a sheet of plastic wrap with cooking spray and place, spray side down, on top of marshmallows. Let stand for 2 hours.

Carefully remove marshmallows from pan. Remove all plastic wrap and discard. Cut marshmallows into 2-inch squares using a sprayed a sharp knife. Place confectioners' sugar in a large bowl. Working in batches, add marshmallows to bowl and toss to coat. Marshmallows can be stored in an airtight container up to 3 days.

A Kick Ass Christmas Breakfast Recipe and My All Time Favorite Tradition

I complain constantly how I don't have a ton of hard core traditions, so in an effort to start making some of our own, Mr. Allan and I have some must do/make/see things we love at Christmas time. One of my favorites..since I love to cook and bake..making Mr. Allan and the cats a delectable Christmas morning breakfast. I try to keep it healthy and am constantly scurrying the baked goods and cookies out of our house and to the workplace kitchen area so we don't eat them, but, I found a little indulgent recipe that's not too too bad that we make every Christmas morning....

So, my friends, I give you the best Christmas morning casserole....Pannettone French Toast Casserole..it's sooooo good..and a bonus..you can assemble it the night before, so you can just pop it in the oven on Christmas morning while the coffee is brewing, the Christmas tunes are pumping and, at least in our house, the cats are opening their gifts.

Panettone French Toast Casserole
courtesy of Whole Foods
Ingredients
6 tablespoons butter, melted, divided
1/2 cup brown sugar, packed
1 tablespoon water
4 Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored and thinly sliced
1/2 cup dried cranberries or raisins
6 (1-inch-thick) slices panettone (about 1 pound), halved
2 cups milk
6 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Directions:

In a small bowl, whisk together 4 tablespoons butter, sugar and water until well combined. Spread mixture over the bottom of a 9- x 13-inch baking dish and set aside.

Heat remaining 2 tablespoons butter in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add apples and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened and golden brown, 8 to 10 minutes. Transfer apples and their juices to the reserved baking dish and spread out evenly over the sugar mixture. Scatter cranberries over apples and arrange panettone over the top, overlapping the slices as needed. Set aside to let apples cool slightly.

In a large bowl, whisk together milk, eggs, vanilla and cinnamon then pour over panettone, being sure to coat all slices. Cover and chill overnight.

Preheat oven to 350°F. Uncover baking dish and bake until just cooked through, puffed and golden brown, about 40 minutes. Set aside for 10 minutes to cool slightly before serving.

Just a couple notes...I just cube the Pannettone vs. putting slices on top and I used skim milk last year and probably almond milk this year since we're on a non dairy kick...the type of milk doesn't really affect this recipe at all!

And...for my all time absolute favorite Christmas tradition...it must be good if it beats the Christmas casserole....is the annual Briggs sisters Christmas Exchange...or as we call it Our Favorite Things.

Yes, this is an absolute knock off of Oprah's Favorite Things. I was the brainchild behind copying Oprah. Every Year we spend around $50..although I always go way over...and purchase our favorite things of the past year...it's so much fun to come up with the list and it's easy since there are 3 of us..each of us just buys duplicate things for the other two. So, it's 2 for the price of 1 Christmas shopping with a lovely traditional twist. While I can't reveal this year's Favorite Things...since I know my two sisters best be reading this blog...here's a LINK to the items that made it on last year's list..and I must say, this year's list is so much better!

What I'm Loving Wednesday!

Twas the Wednesday before Christmas...and here's what I'm loving for this week's edition of What I'm loving Wednesday with http://www.littledaisymay.blogspot.com/ !

Reigniting my major girl crush on Kate Middletown...here she is in a black Alexander McQueen gown looking stunning as usual...

Although I thought this was cute...Mr. Allan thought it was hilarious. I heard him cracking up on the couch and he kept rewinding the tv to see this over and over again....why it's the monkey that rode a dog during the halftime show as our beloved Patriots kicked the Denver Broncos butts!



I'm also loving these....they are the most amazing flats I've owned..yes, they're pricey and yes, they did take a little bit to break in...but now they so soft and so comfortable and I find myself wearing them all the time!

Tory Burch Reva Ballerina flats (LINK)

I'm also loving this hand cream by Burt's Bees. Besides the amazing smell, it's helping out my poor dry hands..this time of year with all the baking, the cold weather, and constantly washing my hands..they've taken a beating!

Happy Wednesday! May you enjoy your Christmas week!

Christmas Cards

I love sending them and love receiving them. There's something about the whole process of buying them, filling them out, addressing them, and running to the post office for cute Christmas stamps and putting them in the mail box that I love. I also love getting home from work to open the mailbox and have tons of them to open and then hang in our hallway. It's usually about this time that the little Christmas Card rack from Pottery Barn barely has a hook left on it!

Holiday Tradition #2...

Now that the tree has been chopped down and decorated...in came another weekend and more fun little traditions. Yesterday was cookie baking day! usually I love to make a million different kinds and fill tins with an assortment of treats to deliver to friends. But, I went a different route this year..and instead made all sugar cookies and decorated them with royal icing.

Decorating sugar cookies takes a lot of patience..something I don't have. It's somewhat of a long process as well...since I jammed it into one day, the morning was spent making and chilling the dough, the afternoon was baking and cooling the cookies, and night time was set aside to get them decorated so they could dry overnight. My husband probably heard more four letter words come out of my mouth during the icing process...royal icing can be messy and is sometimes like glue, since it hardens up pretty quickly. But, once you get to the end result..it's all worth it!

Things that are exciting me today

1. Finding a dress in the back of my closet that I forgot I had and can't remember where I wore it last to find out it fits and is perfect for the Holiday Gala at Oceancliff tonight! Not too shabby of a venue for a little Christmas dinner with friends!

2. Christmas shopping is 95% done thanks to a sprint to the mall at lunch and dodging lots of 14 year old girls toting Chanel and Louis Vuitton purses. Two thoughts came to mind..1) why aren't they at school and 2) what parent in their right mind buys a kid a purse with a price tag well over $1000...but I digress...

3. My hair came out kind of good today

4. Tomorrow is dinner with great friends and Cirque du Soleil's Holidaze..I love a good dinner and a Cirque show after makes for the perfect night!

5. Sunday is a day dedicated to singing Christmas carols while baking cookies and wrapping gifts.

Happy Weekend...hope yours is as good as mine!