I have to share the fun idea I did on Sunday for our 4th of July family BBQ. I know this is a little late for this year but the idea can be used for any holiday by changing the jello colors. I took our little set of shot glasses and made mini jello trifles.
I love making little finger foods in these glasses. It makes anything look fancier and for some reason stuff in little servings tastes better to me. For another party I had made mini chocolate trifles with Oreos but now back to the 4th of July.
I made blue jello using the quick set method and poured it into mini shot glasses half way up. I let that chill for 2 hours and then I mixed up red jello using the quick set method. I poured the red jello over the blue and then let that chill until it was firm.
Once the jello was set I piped Cool Whip on the top, sprinkled them with holiday sprinkles and finished with a 4th of July themed marshmallow. They turned out super cute and were very refreshing. I almost feel silly sharing this recipe because it is so easy to make.
I was in the mood to have a dessert this week so I made a no bake cheesecake that was absolutely wonderful. You must put this one on your to do list!
Crust: 
1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs
1/3 cup sugar
6 tablespoons butter
Mix all ingredients together and place in the oven at 375 for about 8 minutes.
Filling:
8 ounces cream cheese
1/3 cup sugar
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
Mix the first three ingredients together. Whip the cream and add into the mixture. Cover and freeze for one hour before serving.
Topping:
1 cup mixed berries
Place in bowl and smash into pieces. Pour it through a mesh colander or any way that you can think of to separate pieces from juice. Chill in fridge and when ready pour over cheesecake in a pretty pattern.
Last night I made a Stuffed French Toast form MyRecipes.com. I thought it would be nice to make and then take over to my fiance's house so that he could have warm breakfast leftover for his busy work week. The recipe was exactly as the reviews on the site had said, a little too runny but fixable by using 3/4 the amount of liquids. Although runny, the taste was fine. Even so, I think I am going to be asking for my Grandmother's recipe since she makes a similar one for Easter. I will post her recipe once I have time to try a round two.
If you would like try this one, click here. Tell me what you think...
This peppermint bark is aMaZiNg!! I learned how to make this last week from a coworker and I was so excited about making it for the holidays. I am planning to give it away as gifts however I am hoping that I don't eat it all first! I was surprised how easy it was to make and now I don't know why we have been buying it for so long. You can also do a variation of this recipe by doing regular chocolate first and when it is half hard add the normal mixture to the top. This will make the same look found in the stores. Hope you enjoy. Happy holidays!
Ingredients
2 lbs vanilla melty wavers (from Winco in the bulk section)
1/8 teaspoon of Peppermint Oil
1 box candy canes, crushed (place in a ziploc bag and hit with a hammer. NOTE: My mother and I could only find candy canes that were individually wrapped! Try not to do this but if you do, it was a little funny!)
4 sheets of foil
Melt the wavers in a GLASS bowl, in the microwave. Do this slowly, 1.5 minutes, stir, then keep cooking at 30 second intervals until it is smooth with some chunks still visible. It will melt all the way as you stir in the other ingredients. Be VERY careful that you don't keep cooking until fully melted, it will burn. Add in the Peppermint oil and crushed candy canes. Pour and spread the mixture evenly (not too think) into foil covered cookie sheets. Place in the fridge for 20 minutes until the edges lift and it looks shinny. Pull of foil and break into the sizes you like. You should have enough for 4 cookie sheets worth.
More holiday cooking to come this week...pumpkin bread and old fashioned divinity!
