Christmas Cookies (Sugar Cookie Cutouts)

Fruitful Friday ----- Ye Old English Fruit Cake

(we like our's all natural without all the candied fruits)

5 lg. eggs
1/2 lb. real butter
1 c. sugar
1 3/4 c. flour (plain)
1/2 tbsp. baking powder
3/4 lb. dried cranberries or cherries
1 lb. drained pineapple tidbits

1 cup diced dates

1 cup golden raisins
4 c. pecans 

4 tablespoons vanilla

1 teaspoons lemon flavoring 

 Toss fruit and pecans in 2 cups of flour; set aside.

Cream butter and sugar on medium high speed of electric mixer until light and fluffy; add flavoring and continue beating. Beat egg and add to creamed mixture. Dissolve soda in water. Add remaining 3 cups of flour and soda mixture to creamed mixture. Blend thoroughly. Fold in coated fruit and pecans.
 Pour into well greased and floured pans. Bake 3-3 1/2 hours at 250 degree oven. Will keep for 30 days in the fridge.

Thrifty Thursday ----- Mulled Orange Cider

        Here it is, December 1st, and Christmas is just around the corner. We thought is would be fun to share some our favorite holiday recipes we all of you.  So... to kick off the Holiday season, we would like to share an old traditional favorite.

• 1 cup water
• 1/2 cup sugar 
• 2 (3-inch) cinnamon sticks
• 4 whole cloves
• 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg 
• 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
• 4 cups apple cider 
• 2 cups orange juice 
• 1/4 cup lemon juice 
• 1/4 cup pineapple juice 

Preparation

1. Bring 1 cup water and sugar to a boil in a saucepan over medium heat, stirring constantly. Boil 3 minutes. Add apple cider and juices; bring to a boil. Add cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg and ginger; reduce heat, and simmer, stirring occasionally, 10 to 20  minutes.
2. Pour mixture through a wire-mesh strainer into a Dutch oven, discarding spices and 
3. Serve hot with sliced "Ye Old English Fruit Cake" (Recipe posted Dec.2, 2011)

Wordless Wednesdays... Hint: (Very Flashy!)

What is it?........................

Where does it grow?.........

How do you prepare it?...

What does it taste like?..... 

Have you ever tried it?......


What recipe would you suggest using this mystery Ingredient?.....

Toss Together Tuesday's ----- Tomato & Broccoli Tapenade

Ingredients

• 1 cup fresh tomatoes, chopped
• 1/2 cup fresh broccoli, finely chopped
• 2-4 small white button mushrooms, chopped
• 4 tablespoons olive oil
• 1/4 teaspoon finely chopped red pepper
• 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 2 ounces crumbled feta cheese
• 2 tablespoons fresh basil, chopped
• 1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 teaspoons balsamic vinegar
• 1 narrow Italian or French loaf of bread
• 1 head garlic, cut in 1/2 crosswise

Directions

1.   Place chopped tomatoes, basil & mushrooms in a large saute pan. Stir in the 2 tablespoons olive oil, (save the other 2 for bruschetta), red pepper, garlic, basil, black pepper, and balsamic vinegar and mix well, warm up on low for 2 minutes. Cover and chill for at least four hours before serving.
2.   To make the bruschetta base: Slice the loaf of bread, on the bias, into 1/2-inch slices, (about 12-15 per loaf). Rub each slice   with fresh garlic clove and then brush with olive oil. Place bread in oven on sheet pan, bake on 350 until golden brown on both sides, about 2 minutes on each side. Serve warm with chilled Tapenade.
3.    To serve: Fold feta into Tapenade, Place bread slices on serving dish, spoon 2 tablespoons of Tapenade onto each slice of bread and serve.

Nutritional Information 

Serving size is 2 pieces... 
Amount Per Serving:   Calories: 114 / Total Fat: 11.1g / Cholesterol: 8mg / Sodium 110mg / Protein 2.0g

Make-Over Monday - Peach Smoothies

Ingredients:
1 large peach, sliced
1/2 cup of peach yogurt
1/2 cup of skim milk
8 ice cubes

Directions:
Blend the peach slices with the ice cubes and milk first until slushy texture is formed. Then add the yogurt and blend for another 30 seconds on low. You may substitute fresh peaches with canned peaches, drained without the syrup in this smoothie recipe.
 Calories 190 ~ Calories from Fat 18 ~ Total Fat 2.0g ~ Saturated Fat 1.3g ~ Cholesterol 10mg ~ Sodium 137mg ~ Carbohydrates 29.7g ~ Fiber 2.4g ~ Sugars 28.0g ~ Protein 12.5g

Ice Cream and Peach Smoothie Recipe

Ingredients:
1 large peach, sliced
1/2 cup vanilla ice cream
1 cup of whole milk
8 ice cubes

Directions:
Blend the peach slices, whole milk, ice cream and ice in a blender for 30 seconds on low to keep the ice cream texture in the smoothie. A very great tasting and healthy peach smoothie for people who are trying to gain weight.
 Calories 352 ~ Calories from Fat 146 ~ Total Fat 16.2g ~ Saturated Fat 9.5g ~ Cholesterol 56mg ~ Sodium 155mg ~ Carbohydrates 43.0g ~ Fiber 2.9g ~ Sugars 41.3g ~ Protein 11.8g

Thrifty Thursday ----- Peach & Halibut Salad

Bob Harper, "Biggest Loser Trainer", posted this salad on his website "MyTrainerBob.com". It looked so good I just had to give it a try and the surprising thing was, I had all the ingredients in the pantry...

Ingredients:

Salad

• ½ peach, sliced
• 5 oz grilled halibut (sprayed with evoo, seasoned, grilled 8 minutes each side)
• ¼ cup drained and rinsed garbanzo beans
• 1 Persian cucumber, diced
• ¼ avocado cubed
• 2 cups mixed greens
• 1 tbsp crumbled goat cheese

Dressing

• 2 tbsp white wine vinegar
• 2 tbsp fresh squeezed lemon juice
• 1 tsp Dijon mustard

Procedure

• Top mixed greens with peaches, cucumber, avocado, garbanzo beans, crumbled cheese, halibut
• Dressing- whisk in separate bowl and drizzle over salad.

You can find his video for the salad here at the website: Bob's Peach & Halibut Salad