Free Cone Day

Get to the closest participating Ben & Jerry's and get what's yours. A free scoop of delicious ice cream, frozen yogurt or sorbet. I had a scoop of the Imagine World Peace and it was incredible. It really does make the day that much better!

Scrabble Squares

My mom has made these every Christmas for as long as I can remember. I'm not a huge sweets person - I would much rather have a bag of chips over a slice of pie. But...I love these because they're sweet AND salty.

Ingredients:

1 (12oz) pkg chocolate chips

2 tbsp vegetable oil

3 c. Minature marshmallows

2 c. Coarsely broken pretzels

Melt chocolate chips and veg oil over hot, not boiling water. Remove.

Combine marshmallows and pretzels in a bowl. Add chocolate mixture and fold carefully to blend.

Spread evenly in foil-lined 11 x 7 1/2" or 9" sq. pan. Chill until firm.

To serve, let stand at room temperature a few minutes. Remove from pan and cut into squares.

Store in refrigerator.

Makes 35-40 pieces.

Pretzels with a Twist

This year for my co-workers, I decided to do something a little different than my traditional baked good. I stole this idea from the Foodnetwork. You can really do these any which way you like, for any holiday, any time of year.

What you will need:
45-60 Pretzel Sticks (I went through 4 bags of Snydes of Hanover pretzels – ratio of non-broken sticks is about 80%)
1 cup chopped dark chocolate (I use bakers dark chocolate that comes in a bar)
1 cup chopped milk chocolate (same as above)
1 cup chopped white chocolate (same as very above)
* You can really use any type of chocolate you like.

Parchment or wax paper

Sprinkles (your favorite type or color – I used red)
1 cup Finely Chopped peppermint
1 cup Finely Chopped nuts (any kind you like)
1 cup Finely Chopped Skor Bar

Your favorite ribbon and packaging

What to do:
Melt chocolate (one kind at a time) in a double boiler. If you do not have a double boiler, you can make a make-shift version with a sauce pan full of boiling water and glass bowl fit to the sauce pan, which you will set on top (bottom of bowl just touching boiling water). Slowly melt the chocolate until smooth. Dip pretzel sticks carefully into the chocolate and coat about half the stick; shake off lightly for an even coat. You can then add sprinkles or coat in candy, peppermint or nuts. Set on parchment paper to set.

Note: White chocolate takes longer to set, so you may have to put these in the refrigerator if you are on a time line.

Repeat the above 45-60 times (allow at least 2 hours to do this).

Once set, put a few of each kind into your favorite packaging, tie a bow and tada! I gave these to my co-workers and also used them as hostess gifts.

Date & Goat Cheese Treats

My mom was in town a couple of weeks ago and we went to dinner at this amazing Tapas restaurant Minotaur in Playa Del Rey. We tried the most amazing appetizer, and my mom concluded that this would be an easy recipe to duplicate at home.

Ingredients:

• Pitted Dates
• Goat Cheese
• Fresh Raspberries
• Creme De Coco (found in the drink mixers section of your grocery store)
• Balsamic Vinegar

First you need to reduce the balsamic vinegar in a sauce pan on low heat. While that is simmering down, cut the dates & raspberries in half and set aside. Take the Creme De Coco and squeeze it onto your place in a spiral design. Take the cooled down, reduced balsamic vinegar and spoon it over the Creme De Coco in a similar design. Take a toothpick and drag it through the mixture in a couple straight lines to mix the two together and for appearance.

Next, take the date halves and stuff each one with some goat cheese and set on top of the Creme De Coco/Balsamic mixture. Once you have finished stuffing your dates, lightly place a raspberry half on top and *viola* you will have an appetizers or dessert that your guests will be coming back for again and again!

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins

This muffin recipe is from my sister and has been a family favorite for years. I however, never used to eat them, because I thought I didn't like pumpkin. Well, I've recently come to find out that I enjoy pretty much everything pumpkin, except pumpkin pie (lattes, ale, seeds, soup, ravioli).

2 lg eggs
3/4 c. canned pumpkin
1/2 c. margarine, melted
1/4 c. milk
1 2/3 c. flour
3/4 c. sugar
1/2 c. mini chocolate chips
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt

Mix dry ingredients into wet. Pour into muffin tins. Bake 350 degrees for 15 min (or until a fork or toothpick come out clean)

Optional addition: I've made these before with a bit of cream cheese in the batter and then placed a dollop on top of the muffins about 12 min into baking.