FUDGE IS NOT JUST FOR CHRISTMAS! SPRING TIME LEMON FUDGE

 I think just about

EVERYONE

associates

FUDGE 

with Christmas.

I know that I always

make several batches

of all different types

of fudge during the

Holiday Season.

I give them to my

enemies friends to 

MAKE THEM FAT-

that way I look thinner 
enjoy.

Pretty smart for a blond, huh?

Anyway,

I have a recipe for

LEMON FUDGE

for Spring.

If you love lemon this is for you!

I'm not sure where it came

from but I have used it for

several years.

It was probably the old

Taste Of Home magazine.

It is so good that you

will be licking the pan.

You will bow down

before me because

I am 

The Fudge Queen.

This is NOT a recipe

for those 

weak-willed people

that cannot refrain from

eating the whole pan...

Nosirreeee..

Here you go-

LEMON FUDGE

1/2 cup REAL butter (no oleo/margarine)

One 4.5 oz cook & serve lemon pudding

(do not use instant pudding)

1/2 cup milk

3-3/4 cups confectioner's sugar

1 teaspoon lemon extract

Line a 9" square pan with foil

bringing it up the sides.

Use butter and heavily butter the foil

In large saucepan combine:

Pudding mix

Milk

Butter

Cook and stir over medium heat

until mixture has thickened.

Remove from heat.

Beat in confectionery sugar & lemon extract.

Pour into buttered pan and refrigerate.

Use tinfoil to lift fudge out of pan.

Cut into squares and store in fridge.

Serve to family and friends

and your skinny enemies.

Trust me-

You will have a new

Easter candy tradition.

THIS IS SOOOO GOOD!!!!

NANA DIANA'S CARAMELS--EASY PEASY-NO FAIL RECIPE

Every couple of years I post

this recipe because people

LOVE IT!

AND- you can't screw it up.

 When I was a kid,

 my mother

often whipped up a batch 

of fudge from scratch

after the chores were done

on a snowy Pennsylvania night.

I make caramels instead.

As you can tell, I love to bake

and make candy.

I don't know how many 

caramel recipes I have tried

over the years.

Some of them called for

stirring for what seemed hours

and then...

they might or might not

"turn out".

These are quick!

Less than 10 minutes from

start to finish AND they

NEVER FAIL 

to set up properly.

I am not sure how these would 

turn out if you have an old

low wattage microwave.

I think most of them are at least

1000 watts now.

I have made them in 1000W,

1200W & 1500W mics

and the timing is the same.

Ready?

Get yourself a nice big 

microwave measuring cup.

I use an 8 cup one.

Make sure it is microwave safe.

Before I start-

One warning-

You CANNOT double this recipe.

You would have to make two batches

if you want more.

Everything that is measured out

is in 1/2 cup increments.

Melt 1/2 cup butter.

Remove from microwave.

Add 1/2 cup Karo syrup,

1/2 cup light brown sugar,

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup sweetened CONDENSED MILK

(not evaporated milk)

Stir until mixed and dissolved.

Microwave on high 3-1/2 minutes.

Stir down.

Microwave on high 3-1/2 more minutes.

Remove from mic.  Add 1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Add 1/2 cup chopped nuts-if desired- I don't.

Stir until few air bubbles remain.

Pour into 8x8 buttered dish.

Refrigerate until set.

Cut into squares.

You can wrap these if they last long enough.

Ours never seem to make it to the

wrapped stage!

Serve these to your husband.

Make sure he eats twice as many

as you do.

Remember- the fatter he gets

the skinnier you look

standing next to him!;>)

If you do have some left to wrap

they make a perfect little 

take-along gift in a pretty 'card box',

like the post before this with the fudge in it.

USE THOSE BEAUTIFUL CARD BOXES AS GIFTS (WITH A TWIST)

I have done a post about this before

but I wanted to do it again

just in case you need a

Little sumthin/sumthin to take along

to give as a little gift.

AND you can use those beautiful boxes

that Christmas cards come in---

you know the ones that are so pretty

you don't want to throw them out.

Here is a use for them.

It's the sweetest little gift ever!

This is 

THE EASIEST HOMEMADE

PEANUT BUTTER FUDGE

ever.

I wish I could tell you where

I got the recipe but I can't remember.

Here's how to take the box below
and turn it into a 

special gift.

Don't you hate to throw them away

because they have such pretty

"faces"?

They make wonderful little

Candy Boxes.

Open the box and line it with tin foil.

Butter the tin foil.

Then make this:

EASY PEASY PEANUT BUTTER FUDGE

In pan over medium heat melt

2 sticks of butter

When melted stir in 

1 cup peanut butter, creamy or crunchy.

Like this.

Stir in one teaspoon REAL vanilla.

Add 3 cups CONFECTIONERY SUGAR

(not granulated)

(That old tin scoop belonged to my Mom-Good Housekeeping 1954)

I beat it quickly with a hand mixer

(it sets up fast) 

and then pour it into the 

buttered foil lined box.

Put it in the fridge to harden

and as soon as it sets up

lift it out and wrap it in 

parchment paper,

then wrap it with a piece

of ribbon and place it

back in the box.

 I pick up odd knives all year here and there
and include one in each box.
Or you can buy real knives at
Wallyworld for about 59 cents each.

The fudge stays fresh
until they cut it.

Put the lid on and it presents

like this when opened.

 Recipe:

SMOOTH AND EASY

PEANUT BUTTER FUDGE

2 sticks butter

1 cup peanut butter

1 teaspoon vanilla

3 cups confectionery sugar

In saucepan:

Melt butter

Stir in peanut butter and vanilla.

Use hand mixer (or mix by hand)
and quickly

mix sugar in. It sets up fast.

Place in tinfoil lined box and

set in fridge until hard.

This is the smoothest peanut

butter candy I have ever made.

This recipe makes two card boxes 

full OR 1 8x8 buttered pan.

It's quick, easy and just
a sweet little surprise.

Save a few pieces for your friends.

 Let them eat this while you sip

black coffee or diet Coke.

Remember...

The fatter THEY get the 

THINNER YOU LOOK

next to them!

It's nice to have some

HEALTHY SNACKS 

this time of year, too.

Have a GREAT DAY...

I will be finishing up a couple of 

Christmas gifts tonight and then

I AM DONE!!!-
Well, except for cooking, baking, washing, ironing, cleaning, scrubbing,disinfecting,
need I go on?????

CALGON--TAKE ME AWAY...

for all of you youngsters...

that is an old ad for relaxing 

in a bathtub!

(which I used to do while floating a

plastic bowl of M&Ms in the tub

while four kids were screaming

outside the door)...

now THOSE were the days!!!!

Happy Tuesday!!!

I'M BACK!!!!!!!!!! A PECAN PIE FOR THANKSGIVING---YUMMMMMMMM

Do you know that hardly

ANYONE

in my family

likes nuts?

Can you IMAGINE that?

I can't!

I have always loved nuts!

Peanuts,

Almonds,

Walnuts,

Cashews,

Brazil Nuts,

Pistachios,

You name it- I love it.

But my FAVORITE of all time

is probably

PECANS!

Gotta love those pecans!

At Thanksgiving I always

make at least one

PECAN PIE.

Now I have always used a

traditional recipe for

Pecan Pie

but when I spotted this recipe

I thought it would be fun

to try it for

Thanksgiving.

This came from

Southern Living.

If you can't read it 

I have typed it out here for you.

Utterly Deadly Southern Pecan Pie

1- 10" pie crust (I use Pillsbury Dairy Case)

1 TBS powdered sugar

4 large eggs

1-1/2 cups firmly packed light brown sugar

1/2 cup melted butter @ room temperature

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup chopped pecans

2 TBS all purpose flour

2 TBS milk

1-1/2 tsp vanilla (I use a bit more)

1-1/2 cups pecan halves

Preheat oven to 325º

Fit pie crust into 10" cast iron skillet

Sprinkle pie crust with powdered sugar

Whisk eggs in large bowl until foamy

Whisk in brown sugar and next 6 ingredients

Pour mixture into pie crust and top with1-1/2 cups pecan halves

Bake at 325º for 30 minutes

Reduce oven temp to 300º

Bake 30 more minutes

Turn oven off and let pie stand

in oven with door closed

for three (3) hours.

Serve with dollop of whipped cream

Just so you know-

there are many NUTS in this family

which lends itself to

much hilarity at family gatherings.

We don't all go out to eat at

restaurants very often because

the family gets LOUD...even though

most of us don't drink.

We laugh about everything

and some poor soul is usually the

BUTT of the jokes--

but the VICTIM changes

on a whim.

Anyone else have a family like that?

My Hero does his best to ignore

everyone and pretend he is just

a visitor at the table.

Yep- one in every family!

By the way,

I am home from vacation

and as soon as I figure out how to get

my pictures out of that darned
CLOUD

I will be posting some pictures.

I promise you will NOT see ANY

pictures of me in a bikini--

YEAH---Wouldn't want you to 

lose your appetite

before Thanksgiving.

Hmmmm...on the other hand-

maybe that's not such a bad

deterrent for overeating....

nah..........never mind..........

NEVER FAIL CARAMELS ON A SNOWY DAY!

There's a storm brewing here today.

We have 3-5" of snow coming

this morning- 

downgraded from 6-7".

I love to putz in the kitchen

on days like this, don't you?

You are in for a treat today!!!

When I was a kid,

 my mother

often whipped up a batch 

of fudge from scratch

after the chores were done

on a snowy Pennsylvania night.

I make caramels instead.

As you can tell, I love to bake

and make candy.

I don't know how many 

caramel recipes I have tried

over the years.

Some of them called for

stirring for what seemed hours

and then...

they might or might not

"turn out".

These are quick!

Less than 10 minutes from

start to finish AND they

NEVER FAIL 

to set up properly.

Ready?

Get yourself a nice big 

microwave measuring cup.

Make sure it is microwave safe.

Everything that is measured out

is in 1/2 cup increments.

Melt 1/2 cup butter.

Remove from microwave.

Add 1/2 cup Karo syrup,

1/2 cup light brown sugar,

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup sweetened CONDENSED MILK

(not evaporated milk)

Stir until mixed and dissolved.

Microwave on high 3-1/2 minutes.

Stir down.

Microwave on high 3-1/2 more minutes.

Remove from mic.  Add 1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Add 1/2 cup chopped nuts-if desired- I don't.

Stir until few air bubbles remain.

Pour into 8x8 buttered dish.

Refrigerate until set.

Cut into squares.

You can wrap these if they last long enough.

Ours never seem to make it to the

wrapped stage!

Serve these to your husband.

Make sure he eats twice as many

as you do.

Remember- the fatter he gets

the skinnier you look

standing next to him!;>)

Happy Wednesday!!!!