Spiced Orange Hot Cocoa

My son Dylan LOVES hot cocoa. He LIVES for it! We love this recipe and wanted to share it with you and your families.

Ingredients:
1 cup Confectioners Sugar
1/4 tsp of cardamom
1/2 cup of cocoa powder
6 cups of milk
1/2 tsp of orange zest
1 cup of whipped cream

Stir confectioners sugar, cardamom, and cocoa powder into a mixing bowl. Bring the 6 cups of milk to simmer over medium heat. Whisk in the cocoa mixture until smooth.
Fold orange zest into whipped cream.
Devide the cocoa into 6 coffee mugs. Top with the whipped cream!

YUM-O

The Perfect Bacon

Okay, so most of you cook bacon the old fashion way.. In a skillet on the stove top. But in my experience it is not only messy, it doesn't cook it evenly and it tends to over cook. plus Bacon isn't cheap! So you don't want to waste or ruin it.

So here's a recipe cooked in the oven. It's perfectly cooked and tastes the best!

Prep Ingredients:
1 package of Bacon - I buy the pepper
Cut, thick sliced
Cookie sheet or jelly roll pan
Foil

Okay... First things first. Preheat your oven to 375 degrees. Make sure your rack is in the middle. Line your pan with foil. Bacon is messy so an easy clean up is always preferred! Now line your strips of bacon up on the pan. Close together is okay, bacon tends to shrink and curl anyhow.

Now place Your bacon in the preheated oven and cook for 12 minutes, flipping slices half way.

There you have it folks! Deliciously perfect bacon! ENJOY!

Mashed Potato Pancakes

Have tons on leftover mashed potatoes from Thanksgiving do ya? I did so for breakfast this morning I made potato pancakes.

Ingredients:
2 cups of mashed potatoes (warm them so it's easier to whisk)
1/4 cup of flour
1/4 cup of milk
1 egg, lightly beaten
Salt and pepper to taste

In mixing bowl, mix milk, egg, flour and salt and pepper. Whisk well. Add warm mashed potatoes and whisk for at least 3 minutes.

Heat 1 tbsp of salted butter over medium high heat until melted and evenly distributed in the pan. Using a 1/4 cup measuring cup, scoop out potato mixture on pan. Cook on each side about 3 minutes each. DO NOT over turn. They will break up. Another alternative is frying in bacon grease for you non healthy folks.

BAM! This recipe makes about 6-8 pancakes, so double if you dare!

I LOVE THE HOLIDAY MAGAZINES!

Can't wait to cozy up and read through this magazine! Perfect to pair with a margarita!

Hot Turkey Sandwiches

Looking for something to spruce up that left over turkey? Here's a yummy recipe that is sure to put a smile on your face!

Ingredients:
5 slices of bacon
1 small onion chopped
2 tbsp of flour
1 3/4 cup of milk
1 3/4 cup of chicken broth
Kosher salt and pepper
4 thick slices of bread, toasted
1 1/4 grated muenster or monterey jack cheese
Dijon or spicy mustard for spreading
1 tomato, sliced
3 cups of sliced or shredded turkey
1/4 cup of fresh chopped Parsley

Preheat the broiler. Cook bacon over med-high head in deep skillet. About 10 mins or so. Transfer to a paper towel lined plate.

Make the Gravy: add onion to the skillet, cook, stirring occasionally for about 3 mins until soft. Add flour and cook stirring, 1 more minute. Increase the heat to med high, add milk, chicken broth, and brig to boil... Stirring occasionally. Reduce head to medium low and simmer,stirring, until slightly thickened, about 6 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in 1 cup of cheese. Season with salt and pepper.
Arrange bread in baking sheet. Sprea each slice with mustard, drizzle some gravy and top with a tomato slice. Toss turkey in remaining gravy in the skillet. Divide turkey on each slice, evenly among slices. Sprinkle with the remaining cheese. Broil until golden, about 2 minutes. Crumble bacon over the sandwiches and sprinkle with parsley.

Bon Appetit!

Thats a wrap!

Whoa! What a day! I hope your Thanksgiving was extra special and as fab as mine was! The weather was AMAZING, sunny and 68 degrees!
Well, it all started with a early wake up call @ 5:30AM thanks to me forgetting my own alarm clock was still on... Thanks to my amazing fiancé for rescuing me from early morning baby and letting me sleep a tad longer. My day was filled with laughter, whining, barking and complaining. Which is pretty typical. Although the "I love yous" were extra special today!
After my favorite cup of joe, I was up and ready to prepare my Thanksgiving feast. Turkey was thawed, and ready to rub and get in the oven. I made our dessert first - Apple Pie with Apple Crumble Cinnamon topping and lets just say the aroma made me want a slice right then @ 9:30am!
Next came the turkey... In the oven and ready to roast! Yummy!
I made some apps for snacking midday. Left over buffalo chicken dip warmed up nicely!
I made homemade smashed creamy mashed potatoes, and I would lie if I didn't admit I complained the WHOLE
TIME I peeled potatoes. Garrett watched in amazement while I peeled, sliced and was the first to try them (per-spiced of course) and loved them!
Made the White Castle stuffing and it was AWESOME! I added garlic to mine and heated butter, about 1/2 a stick of salted butter, in my Dutch oven and let it get crispy and then simmer. Dylan loved it! Gravy was superb, rolls were sweet and all and all I did a great job I think!
I was the last to get out of my PJ's, and first to put them back on. It was fantastic.
Even Zed, our four legged family member, enjoyed his dinner with turkey and drippings. Pretty sure he licked his dish clean and was carrying it around hoping for seconds.
Now it's snuggle time and a movie! Only thing missing is a fire... Just isn't cold enough tonight.
Season's Greetings to all!