Egg Nog French Toast

I created this over Christmas break so that my family would help me finish the Egg Nog.  Nobody in my family of 6 likes Egg Nog except for me....and hello...have you seen how many delicious calories there are in Egg Nog?  My body can't afford to drink it all by myself.  So I made this French Toast, and everyone loved it!  Hooray!

Egg Nog French Toast
Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups Egg Nog
1/2 cup milk
4 eggs
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
1 loaf of french bread

Directions:
Whisk together Egg Nog, milk, eggs, cinnamon, and nutmeg until eggs and spices are well blended.  Slice french bread into 3/4 inch thick slices.  Dip each slice of bread in the egg nog mixture and place on griddle.  Flip and cook on the other side.  Enjoy with this cinnamon syrup.

Chocolate Dipped Pretzel Rods

These little guys are so easy and fun to make. They make great holiday treats and are fun to do with the kiddos too.  Plus, let's be honest, who doesn't like that mixture of salty and sweet?  It's perfect! 

How to make Chocolate Dipped Pretzel Rods

Ingredients:
12 oz. semi sweet chocolate chips
1 Tbsp. shortening
1 10 oz. bag of pretzel rods
Toppings of choice

These were my toppings. What are your favorites?

Directions:
1. In a glass bowl, melt chocolate and shortening in the microwave for one minute. Stir. Then continue to melt the chocolate for 15 second intervals stirring each time until chocolate is completely melted and smooth.

2. Pick your toppings. I put my toppings on paper plates. Each topping went on a separate plate in preparation for the pretzel. Then at the end I just threw the plates away. Next time, I'm just going to use wax paper. I'll put each topping on a separate square of wax paper for the pretzel rod roll.

3. Dip pretzel in chocolate. I had to spoon some of the chocolate onto the pretzel to get the chocolate closer to the end. Then roll the pretzel in the desired topping.

(What in the world?  You'd think I was decorating a log of poo. The more I look at it, the more I think it.  Hopefully you will still make chocolate pretzels after viewing this picture.)

4. Put dipped and topped pretzel onto a cookie sheet lined with wax paper.

(See!!!  They do turn out looking pretty.)

5. Let the chocolate cool. Then wrap if desired. I bought pretzel bags at Michaels. They worked great! Such a fun, easy, and delicious holiday treat!

Easy Pleasy Peppermint Bark

This delicious recipe is so perfect for Christmas! It's easy to make and so yummy! You will never want to buy peppermint bark in the store. My sister created this peppermint bark recipe. She is an excellent cook. I wished we lived closer so I could indulge myself on more of her scrumptious morsels. Thanks Tiffy for the fantastic recipe!

Easy Pleasy Peppermint Bark

Ingredients:
2 - 16 oz. bags of dark or semi-sweet chocolate chips (or four cups)
1.25 lbs. Ghirardelli white chocolate dipping bar (you could also use white almond bark or 1 1/2 bags of Wilton white candy melts)
3 full sized peppermint candy canes (or more if desired)

Directions:
Line a medium sized cookie sheet with parchment paper. Crush the candy canes in a zipper bag (e.g. Ziploc) with a small hammer or the butt of a butter knife until you have the desired size of pieces (large or small, depending on your preference). Set aside. Melt the dark chocolate chips or bars in the microwave for 1 minute, then stir. Microwave for 15 sec., then stir. Repeat this until the chocolate reaches desired consistency. Once it has a creamy consistency, pour onto the parchment paper on the cookie sheet. Spread out evenly with a spreader or scraper. Wait for the dark chocolate to harden. If you are in a hurry, put in the refrigerator for a few minutes. In another bowl, melt the white chocolate in the microwave until it reaches the desired consistency following the same method as with the dark chocolate. Pour the white chocolate over the dark and spread with scraper so none of the dark chocolate is showing. Immediately spread the crushed candy pieces over the top so as the white chocolate hardens, the candy cane pieces stick to the chocolate. Again, wait for the white chocolate to harden and put in freezer/refrigerator for a few minutes. Once the peppermint bark is hardened, lift out parchment paper, hold paper securely on all sizes and gently drop the solid slab of peppermint bark on a hard surface to make natural breaks in the peppermint bark. Continue this process until you have pieces small enough to enjoy!

Chocolate Candy Cane Kiss Cookies

These are fantastic and well loved Christmas goodies. We made them for a party and they got devoured! Plus, they are so easy to make. Especially if you do it the easy way like I did for the party. I totally used a box cookie mix. They still turned out great and saved me lots of time that I needed.

Ingredients:
1 box Pillsbury Dark Chocolate Chunk Cookies(or your favorite chocolate chunk cookie recipe)
1 Bag of Candy Cane Kisses

Directions:
1. This is the trick to these bad boys: Place the kisses in the freezer! The candy cane kisses melt really fast when placed on the cookie. They will turn to a gooey kiss on your cookie if you don't freeze them.
2. Make the cookies as directed on the box. Cook them according to the directions on the package. Take them out of oven and let the cookies cool for 3-4 minutes. Unwrap kisses and push into the middle of cookie. You're done! Super easy and great for Christmas!

3's Jello

I first encountered this dish at a huge Thanksgiving dinner with friends in Kentucky.  I remember thinking, "What's that pink fluffy stuff?"  Then as I tasted it, my mind shouted, "Only one of the best things you've ever tasted!!!"  Is it weird to think that about jello?  This jello is fabulous!  It makes it appearance at all the best occasions like Christmas, Valentines, Thanksgiving, and just when we have that cravin'!
1 - 3 oz. box raspberry jello (NOT instant)
1 - 3 oz. box vanilla cook and serve pudding
1 - 3 oz. box tapioca cook and serve pudding
1 - 12 oz. bag frozen raspberries
1 - 8 oz. tub of cool whip

Add the boxes of pudding and jello to 3 cups of water.  Boil for three minutes and let cool (in pan, not in fridge) for 3 hours.  Thaw and drain the berries.  Put the pudding mixture in a large bowl.  Mix cool whip and berries into the pudding mixture. You can use a hand mixer or just do it by hand. Enjoy!

Recipe Source:  Our fabulous friend, Sherstine Mortensen