New Recipe-Pecan Nougat Logs

 I made these in 3inch logs but could easily make them shorter to get more out of a batch.  Bite size would be a thought as well.

 Unfortunatley Kadin is still a little to short, but he wanted to get a picture of me chopping pecans.  He was my big helper with the logs.

These are the finished logs. Not the traditional pecan logs that are dipped in caramel(b/c my caramel did not work) but much better if you ask me because they are dipped in chocolate. Yum!

My husband and I had to take a quick trip to Florida a couple of weeks ago with his brother and wife and on the way home through Georgia I found out that they Love Pecan Logs. They had to stop at a little shop and buy some for everyone in their home. I had never tasted one before, so they gave me a sample. Sweet marshmallow in pecans. Jim, Dan's brother, suggested that I should try to make some and see how close I could get to what they fell in love with.  So I did.  As you can tell, they turned out for me.  After they hardened up some, I broke one in half to see if the middle was a soft, delicate, creamy filling like the one I tasted in Georgia. It sure was!  The chocolate gave it a nice crunch and was not overpowering.  I really hope that Jim, Lana and their family enjoy them.  I'm sure they will! 

Oreo Truffles

Well, today I made my first batch of Oreo Truffles. OH MY GOODNESS!  These decadent, rich treats are so addicting, you can't have just one.  I did one package of cookies with cream cheese and it rolled out 58 balls.  I then dipped half in vanilla almond bark and the other half in chocolate.  Placed them back in the freezer till ready for a treat and oh man YUM!  This is a recipe to keep forever I'm afraid.  It has been very hard to keep the boys out of the freezer.  I was so worried that the coating would take away from the cookie flavor but not happening.  You get a crunch of frozen chocolate in your mouth then a creamy blast of oreo and you can't even tell that there is cream cheese binding it all together.  Dan has yet to try one because it has cream cheese in it (lactose allergy) but if he would, I know for sure he would love them like the rest of us.  I am going to try to get him to eat half of one tonight just so he knows what I'm selling and really don't think it will hurt him any since the cookie ratio is much larger than the cheese ratio. We will see.  I am thinking about saving the rest for our church dessert auction on April 3rd so others can see how yummy they are.  But I might show up at Wickmans, Dans work, with them and pass them out for some business publicity.  Not sure yet.  One way or another, these little 2 bite goodies will be ate by someone that loves sweet treats. :)

Report on BonBons

Well, arrived at Ladies retreat with Bon Bons in hand and got rave reviews on them.  I did not have to bring any home thank goodness because I knew they would not get ate here except by me and I did not need them.  On Saturday after the devotion was over I went looking for my container thinking maybe there might be one or two left but could not find the container or any bon bons. Luckily, it was just a through away aluminum container and hope everyone that wanted one got one.  I did learn that I do need to stick with half or less frosting to mix in just to keep the cake texture and so they do not weep or get to moist.  Thanks to all who gave me a report on them. I really do appreciate all words of advice and will put it to good use. I am soon to make some red velvet or german chocolate ones and hope I will beable to sale them.

My Version of Bon Bons

A baked lemon cake-just follow box instructions. I added about 1/3 cup of  lemon juice instead of all water for added flavor.

        After cake cooled, I just crumbeled the cake up and added cream cheese frosting and mixed well.

                          After chilling in fridge, I rolled into small balls.

                         Melted chocolate squares and dipped the balls in.

                                     White chocolate morsals melting

                                Dipping cake balls in white chocolate.

2nd batch of chocolate balls.  I used semi-sweet morsals for these and they turned out much better.

This is half of the finished bon bons.  The white chocolate ones are my favorite.  The cake is moist and full of flavor and very rich.  I am looking forward to letting my church friends try these pretty little treats at the Branson Ladies Retreat.  I hope they give me some good feedback.  I know they will not appeal to all but to those that do like them I know they will give me their opinion and hopefully I will return home with an empty container.  These are very simple to make and would be great in a treat bag for someone special or for an office party or for any special occasion.

Valentines to My Men

Valentines 2011 for the men in my life, big and small.  I normally do a large dinner and a dessert for the family on Valentines, along with a stuffed animal and candy for each. This year we had to change it up some due to money.  I fixed a good dinner that I new everyone would eat without any complaining and a large cake.  Home made chocolate with rich, chocolate frosting. I added a little texture and flavor with sliced cherries in between the layers and on top for some pretty for me.  It was so rich and creamy.  I have to admit, one little slice was enough for us but we had to have 2! :)  Some friends at church had a birthday on Valentines so since the cake was so big I took a piece to them on Wednesday night.  The report came back on Sunday that it was so yummy and decadent.  I really don't make cakes very often because they are time consuming with the decorating, so when I do, I don't do any major piping or fancy decorating. I just swirl on the frosting and its good enough to eat.  It never last long enough in my house to admire anyway.   I hope to have some time to make up some cupcakes and decorate them so I can post some pictures for you all to see.  I know I will have pictures by Friday of my cake truffles since the plan is to take some samples to our church ladies retreat in Branson.  Stay tuned.

My Birthday Gift

An unusual gift from my parents for my birthday.  I finally was able to use it this past Friday for some pies that I made.  Its so much fun to use but so gross as well.  Its called a sNot Mug!  It my new egg seperator and boy its funny to watch it work and it does the trick.  Enjoy the pictures. Hope you dont get grossed out too easily, if you do, oh well, enjoy as much as you can!!  Thanks Mom and Dad again.  :^)

Thank You Lord

 My cinnamon rolls rolled up and ready to see how many I get to keep for ourselves!!  22 cut and only 12 to deliver to Miss Estelle. HOT DOG!!

 Risen enough to bake and then frost.  Sorry folks, forgot to take a picture of the end result with frosting! :(

Lemon Meringue and Pecan Pies for Kim Grant to take to funeral.  They smelt soo good and looked even yummier!

Its been a long time since my last post so here we go.  I want to start by saying "Thank You Lord for your grace and showing us that your in control of our lives when we sometimes forget it!"  The Lord has been so good to Dan and I and the boys so far in this new year. We all have been sick but he has pulled us through some very bad times and we are happy and healthy as ever.  It is still a day to day battle for us just like everyone else. With gas prices sky rocketing, food prices going up and of course wages not budging, we all struggle and try to make ends meet how ever we can.  But with the Lord on our side, its not as hard as it could be, as long as we give it to the Lord and be patient and willing to be content and wait for him to show us and provide.  Well, he has done just that for me this past week for sure. 
  It started with me stating to Dan that I have been wanting to get in the kitchen and make him a lemon meringue pie. Its been since the holidays since I had made one for us and he with no hesitation said " How about a chocolate pie instead?" LOL  I looked at him pretty shocked and said "Excuse me, you don't want your favorite pie, but a chocolate one, (which is my favorite by the way)?" He told me that I never make chocolate pies for us to enjoy so lets have one just for us. Of course I said well then okie dokie! :)
This happened on Monday night and on Wednesday I made up my pie crusts, which make 3, and got us a chocolate pie ready to eat after dinner and when Dan got home from work. On that same Monday, I heard from a dear sweet lady at church asking if I could deliver a dozen cinnamon rolls to her on Thursday. That would be the first order since Christmas. Its was an answered prayer. Thank You Lord. Oh and about the pie, lets just say it was REALLY GOOD with my new special rich cocoa, but then I had 2 crust left over and not sure what to do with them. I simply posted on Facebook that I had them for sale and would make up whatever pies someone wanted and deliver them just so they would not go bad.  No luck selling them by Thursday so I rolled them out and froze them for later use.
I went on and got busy making dough and getting a batch of cinnamon rolls ready for a special lady's birthday delivery.  Got it all rolled up and cut up into 22 rolls. Yayyy! Extra for us, that's always great! :)  While they were baking, I made a pass through facebook and noticed my neighbor and old friend had gotten some bad news about her shoulder issue.  Something pushed me to wrap up a cinnamon roll and deliver it to Mrs.Kim at work and hope that food does calm and would make her happy at least for a few minutes and to know that someone was thinking about her.  I went on and delivered Miss Estelle's rolls to her and made it back home.  Later that Thursday night I got a post from Kim stating how yummy the roll was and asked if I still had the 2 crusts, which I did. She later said she would like a pecan and lemon meringue pie for a special funeral lunch she was invited to on Saturday and she just didn't have enough time to make something herself and needed them Friday night. Such an blessing.  I not only was able to get rid of the crust in my freezer, but hopefully would be able to warm the hearts of those grieving with something made from love and warmth.  Not a bad way to get my name out to people as well.   God works in his own time and in his own way. He uses me to show compassion with my fresh baked goodies at the oddest times and I greatly appreciate the hands and heart he has given me to use. It may sound odd to some of you, but God has given us all a special talent and I have found mine. Baking.  I have found that an honest kind gesture from the heart to help someone else will come back around in Gods time and then you too will be blessed.  And that I am.  Thank You Lord for your many blessings you bestow upon me and my family. 

Slower than Slow!

Its been awhile since I have posted on my blog. Sorry for those who check. Its been busy around the house due to me babysitting and keeping up with my own kids and hubby. But not so busy when it comes to my baking business. I know times and finances are tough for all now and totally understand.  People really don't want to spend any extra for goodies unless its the holidays or a special occasion.  I just wanted to update everyone on my status.  Its been a tough January and winter. Dan has not been able to put in all his hours through the week due to the weather which has hurt us so much financially. I thank the Lord for the few extra dollars I make babysitting a special sweet baby boy named Wyatt. I am hoping for one or two more little ones for some extra cash flow and to help me stay home till Kadin can get through Preschool that starts in August.  I have been passing out my business cards also to try to stimulate some people to just think and keep me in mind when they might need something special.  We will just have to wait and see what the Lord has planned for us.