Graham Cracker Candy~Super Easy and Quick!

I found this recipe in an old cookbook I found at our local DI (second hand store). It looked so easy that I just had to try it. It turned out to be a big hit with my family and I think I’ll be making it to take around to my neighbors for Christmas this year!

Graham Cracker Candy

3/4 cup butter

1 cup brown sugar

2 eggs, beaten

Cook in the top of a double boiler until it is all melted and comes together nice, about 2 minutes. Cool for 5 minutes. Spray a 9 x 13 inch pan with Pam.

2 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs

1/2 cup coconut

2 cups mini marshmallows

Mix these 3 ingredients in a bowl and pour the cooled mixture over and mix well. Pour into prepared pan.

Topping

1 1/2 cups chocolate chips

1 1/2 cups butterscotch chips

3 tablespoons peanut butter

Melt this in the microwave in a bowl for 30 seconds, then stir and repeat for 20 seconds each time until it is smooth. Pour over the top of filling. Chill in the refrigerator. These are best kept in the fridge too.

Metamorphosis Monday, a Giveaway and Peanut Butter Popcorn

Chunky Bling has offered one of my readers a free Swarovski bead ring!

Here's a description of their rings-
Our Swarovski bead rings feature elegant Swarovski crystals and Swarovski pearls set in rhinestone-crusted rondelles and accented with sterling-silver findings. All Swarovski bead rings are strung on a stretchy cord which allows the wearer to easily slip the ring on and off the finger. It also allows for flexible, comfortable sizing.
I love jewelry and rings are one of my favorites! Here's what you need to do for this giveaway! Ok, so the first entry is mandatory! Go to Chunky Bling and help them name their jewelry! Just go to the top right corner and click on contests and freebies, then name that Bling, then just fill out the little form-

then come back here and in a comment tell me what jewelry name you came up with. So this first entry actually gives you two chances to win! Other entries- Become a fan of Chunky Bling on Facebook. Leave me a comment. Become a follower of my blog, just click on the Friend Connect Button on the top left. Leave me a comment. Become a follower of Songberries on Facebook, top left on my blog. Leave me a comment. Visit Chunky Bling and pick your favorite piece, come back here and tell me what it is in a comment. This contest will end April 3.





This is a noodle toy that my grandson liked to hook on the dresser and pull out and snap. I got me thinking about all the cute tassels I've been seeing, so I decided I should make one!



Here is the one I made!

I thought she turned out really cute! She only cost me $1! I bought the little angel at Dollar Tree. The ribbon that she hangs from was tied on the little box she came in. Inside the tassel are the folded hems I cut off the drop clothes I made my grandson's quilt with. Then I just cut some fabric strips from the fabric I'm using to decorate my living room. She needed some fringe, so I picked apart a pillow that I'm going to recover and stole the fringe. I just hot glued it all on, except the ribbon on the top, I used E6000 glue for that.




I've always wondered if this base for no bake cookies would work on popcorn. Chauncey and I decided to try it, and it was super yummy! I can't wait to try it with the chocolate no bake cookie base!

Peanut Butter Popcorn

2 cups sugar
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup milk
1 cup peanut butter
1 teaspoon vanilla
8 cups popcorn (I used air popped)

In a medium saucepan cook the milk, sugar, peanut butter and butter. Cook and stir until it boils, then boil 3 minutes. Remove from heat. Add the vanilla and stir. Poor over popcorn and stir to mix. Pour onto a cookie sheet and let it cool and set up.

Peppermint Log

I found this recipe over at One Crafty Mama and had to try it since Sloan loves peppermint and chocolate so much. It is super easy to make, and would work well with leftover candy canes.



Peppermint Log

3/4 can of sweetened condensed milk
1 package of chocolate ripple cookies (I used a Keebler Cookie that had chocolate on one side and a chocolate ripple on the other side)
1 large package of peppermint candy
1 tablespoon cocoa
coconut

Crush the cookies and the mints. Mix with the sweetened condensed milk and cocoa. Make 3 logs and roll each log in a plate of coconut. Wrap in plastic wrap and freeze. Remove from freezer and cut into slices. This candy will keep well covered.

Easy Smores and Some Gifts I Made

We decided to make smore's the other night without a campfire. First we crushed some graham crackers in a baggie, then poured it into a small bowl. Then we melted some chocolate chips in the microwave in a small bowl. Then we put a couple of large marshmallows on a small plate and microwaved them for 10-20 seconds. Then we put a fork in them and dipped a spoon in the chocolate and drizzled it over the marshmallow. Then we sprinkled the graham cracker crumbs over the chocolate, Yum!

So when we were done we had all some lovely melted chocolate left and not wanting it to go to waste the kids decorated their faces!


Here's a Chocolate Chauncey!


And a Chocolate Sloan!


I wanted to show you some presents I made for a dear friend of mine. I gave her a gift certificate for a new purse and these are the accessories I made to go in it. I found this pretty green floral print fabric at DI for $.50. I decorated everything with fabric yoyo's and buttons from my button jar and some yellow gingham fabric from an old crib sheet. I got a little carried away, but it was so fun!


On the left is a insulated water bottle holder, an Altoid tin filled with Milk Duds (her favorite candy) to the right of it is a package of Trident Gum decoupaged with the fabric, then below is a checkbook cover, below it is a wallet that I made (I took an old wallet apart for the pattern and zipper) a business card holder, to the right is a tissue holder.



The notebook has a decoupaged clip on it and a hair elastic to keep it shut and pen are decoupaged with the fabric, a cosmetic bag, a bottle of green lotion, a Burt's Bees Lip Balm decoupaged, a sewing kit and a key chain.


There's a great giveaway over at Tea Rose Home!

A Contest and Microwave Peanut Brittle

I found a contest you might be interested in Little Cook, a featured iTunes App Store game for kids is announcing a new contest to find the cutest critic! The first prize winner will receive a $50 iTunes gift card and a free copy of the Little Cook iPhone application! Additional winners will also receive iTunes gift cards, along with the Little Cook app. To enter, visit the Little Cook Contest webpage to upload your favorite photo of your child enjoying his/her favorite meal!



My mom found this recipe years ago and my dad would make it at Christmas. My dad doesn't cook much so he loved this easy recipe. He's diabetic now, so he doesn't make it anymore. I should take him a couple of pieces for a treat! Chauncey and I made it after school and it's really fast, easy and good!

Microwave Peanut Brittle

Spray a 9x13 inch dish with Pam.

1 cup sugar
1 cup peanuts
1/2 cup corn syrup

Stir together and cook in a microwave for 4 minutes. Remove and add-

1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon vinegar

Cook 4 more minutes, then add-

1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon soda

Stir together. Pour into a buttered dish. When it's cool break it into pieces.

*If your microwave is a lower wattage you'll want to cook it a little longer. You want the syrup to just start to get a little brown.

Easy Homemade Caramels

I found this recipe over at Stone Creek Market and had to try it! My guys love caramels, and this looked so easy! I left the nuts out of mine. I love a super easy candy recipe! Sweetened Condensed Milk is becoming my friend!

Easy Homemade Caramels

In large microwave proof glass bowl stir together....
2 cubes of butter (melted)
1 cup of packed brown sugar
1 cup white Karo syrup
1 14 oz. can sweetened condensed milk (not evaporated milk)

Put in microwave and cook on high for 14 minutes....yes 14 minutes. Leave it alone and let it cook.

Lightly butter a 8x12 glass baking dish and get out the vanilla and chopped nuts (we love cashews, I left the nuts out). Have your electric hand mixer with beaters ready to go too. After 14 minutes is up, use hot pads to remove from microwave to counter and place bowl on hot pad or towel...remember this bowl and mixture is really hot.

Add 1 teaspoon vanilla and 1 cup chopped nuts (nuts are optional).

Beat the caramel mixture with the hand mixer for 2 full minutes.

Pour into buttered dish and put in refrigerator to set about 1 hour.

Cut into small squares and wrap in waxed-paper squares for an old fashion candy look.

I keep mine in a covered tin in the refrigerator.

Caramel Corn and A Contest!

I always think of caramel corn as a fall treat and fall is definitely in the air around here! Chauncey helped me make this treat and he said he was glad he got to help, because he could eat it while he watched his movie. He also enjoyed licking out the pot!

Caramel Corn

12 cups popped popcorn
1 cup butter
2 cups brown sugar
1/2 cup corn syrup
1 teaspoon soda
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
1/2 teaspoon salt

Put the popcorn in a large bowl. Spray a cookie sheet with Pam. Heat the oven to 200 degrees.

In a large pot melt the butter, sugar and corn syrup. Heat to a rolling boil and stir constantly for 6 minutes. Remove from heat and add the soda, cream of tartar and salt and stir well. It foams up and kind of grows in the pot. Poor over the popped popcorn and stir well to coat. Pour onto cookie sheet and spread it around. Bake it for 1 hour. Cool and break it up. Enjoy!







Cheri at It's So Very Cheri is having a huge contest! There are lots of prizes to win and lots of chances!

Super Easy Rolo Pretzel Candy and a Contest!

I came across this recipe the other day, but can't remember whose blog it was on! Wow, are these easy! This is a great treat to make with the kids! I let mine peel all those little Rolo's! The kids just love these. We'll be making them again!


Rolo Pretzel Candy

1 package Rolo's
2 cups or so small pretzels
1 cup or so pecan halfs

Roast the pecans on a cookie sheet at 359 for 3-5 minutes. Stir them around and roast another 3 minutes. Reduce oven to 250 degrees.

Spread the pretzels out on a cookie sheet. Remove the wrappers from the Rolo's and put one on each pretzel. Put in the oven for 5 minutes.






Remove from the oven and put a pecan half on each Rolo. Let cool.

There's a great contest over at Wight House Gifts for some vinyl lettering!

Homemade Twix

I was poking around on some blogs the other day and I found this recipe for Homemade Twix candy bars. I thought this looked like a fun, easy no bake treat for summer. It went together pretty fast. The hard part was waiting for the chocolate to set up! I found the recipe at Hoosier Homemade, but I made a couple of changes. She had peanut butter in the chocolate topping and I wanted it to be more like a Twix bar, so I added some shortening to thin out the chocolate chips (which I also doubled) a little. My daughter is very picky and doesn't like peanut butter and chocolate together.

Homemade Twix

1 cup graham cracker crumbs
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup milk
1/2 cup butter
Buttery Club Cracker Rectangles (enough for two layers in a 9x13 pan)
2 cups chocolate chips

Spray a 9x13 pan and cover the bottom of the pan with the buttery crackers.

In a medium saucepan heat the graham cracker crumbs, brown sugar, sugar, butter and milk until it boils. Boil and stir for 5 minutes. Pour over the crackers and spread. Cover with another layer of crackers.



Heat the 2 cups of chocolate chips and the 3 tablespoons of shortening in the microwave until melted. I heat for a minute, stir, then 30 seconds and stir and another 30 seconds and stir. Pour over carmel and spread. Refrigerate until chocolate is set, then cut.

Making easy candy and a craft project

A while back when my daughter and I first talked about me doing a blog, she suggested that I go through my cookbook collection and one book at a time try three recipes out of each book. So this morning I needed some inspiration for a treat to bring to my son's violin recital tonight. So, I pulled out a cookbook and some recipes I had torn from a magazine were in the front, so I looked through them and came up with a recipe for a no bake treat. Here's my question, does this count as one of the three recipes for this book? I think it's kind of cheating. It was a cake book, and this is more like a candy, so, I guess I just answered my own question and I still need to work on the cookbook collection!

Sweet & Salty Pretzel Candy
1 1/2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup butter
61 or so saltine crackers, or 2 cups
1 can sweetened condensed milk (14oz) can use fat-free
3 cups bite-size pretzels
You'll need a 9-in. square baking pan lined with foil (and sprayed with Pam) to extend about 2 in. above opposite ends of pan. Melt the butter and chocolate chips in a bowl in the microwave. I started out with 1 minute, then stirred and did 30 seconds, stirred and did another 10 seconds. Then add the sweetened condensed milk, cracker crumbs and 2 cups of the pretzels. Mix well. Spread evenly in prepared pan. Lay remaining pretzels on top(I didn't use all of the remaining ones). Cover and refrigerate at least 1 1/2 hours. Lift foil by ends onto cutting board. Remove foil. Cut into 6 strips, then cut each strip into 6 squares.


Now for a little crafting Project!


The other day I picked up this cute chalk board at our local second hand store (D.I.).





I wanted to put it in my dining room, but I wanted to jazz it up some, so I went to Wal*Mart and found some black gingham ribbon and some hammered gold spray paint. I masked off the chalk board and got my sweet husband to spray paint the wood for me. I'm not so good with a spray can.


Then I hot glued on the ribbon and added some little bows, layering the two ribbons and bows. I also did the eraser. Then I used velcro to attach the eraser to the chalk trough. I think it turned out kinda cute!

Here it is on my dinning room wall.