Christmas Playlists

Several years ago, when iTunes and Amazon's music libraries started becoming extensive, I began a new holiday tradition - a compilation CD (or playlist).  Every year shortly after Thanksgiving, I listen to Pandora's holiday stations to get song ideas.  Then I purchase enough music to fill a CD, label it, and we enjoy it throughout the season.  I try to find a good mix of classic standards, relaxing instrumentals, and contemporary releases.  The songs are great to listen to in the car or to have on as background music during Christmas baking or present opening.  Now I have seven years worth of CDs and a pretty large library of tunes.  The CDs also make great stocking stuffers for friends and family.  My sister even checks with me each year to find out if I'm still continuing the tradition.  I thought if she and her family enjoy it so much, it might be fun to share my latest playlist with you (and include links so you can purchase the songs, too!).

2012 Christmas Playlist

1. Happy Holiday/The Holiday Season - Andy Williams
2. Joy To The World - Third Day
3. Heaven Everywhere - Francesca Battistelli
4. Christmas Comin' Round Again - Scotty McCreery
5. Ding Dong Merrily On High/Chimes Reel (Medley) - Craig Duncan
6. Let It Snow - Rhonda Vincent
7. I'm Gettin' Nuttin' For Christmas - Shirley Temple
8. Up On The Housetop - Gene Autry
9. Angel's Dance - Cincinnati Pops Orchestra
10. Where Are You Christmas - Faith Hill
11. God With Us - Jeremy Camp
12. Gabriel's Message - Sting
13. Messiah Hallelujah Chorus - Alexander Vilumanis
14. I Heard The Bells On Christmas Day - Frank Sinatra
15. Mistletoe - Colbie Caillat
16. Ar Hyd Y Nos (All Through The Night) - Joel Rosenberger
17. I Wish You A Merry Christmas - Bing Crosby
18. Fum, Fum, Fum - The Von Trapp Children
19. Go Tell It On The Mountain - Big Daddy Weave
20. Sing We Now Of Christmas - Pikes Peak Ringers
21. O, Christmas Tree - Winter Solstice
22. Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas - Sarah McLachlan
23. What Are You Doing New Year's Eve? - Nancy Wilson

 What fun Christmas traditions do you have that you enjoy every year?  Please comment and share!

A Tradition Addition: Salted Caramel Bark

It's that time of year again.  Christmas baking.  The time when I make things I don't dare have around the house the rest of the year.  Peanut butter balls.  Munch-a Bunch-a Mix.  Cut-out cookies.  Raspberry thumbprint cookies.  Yummy stuff.  I always like to try a few new recipes because you just never know what you might be missing.  And did you know that Christmas cookie calories don't count?  Nope!  Not a one!

I was at Sam's Club a few weeks ago when some salted caramel bark caught my eye.  It was in the bakery, where all the stuff I would never consider buying (because I can make it!) is displayed.  It looked fantastic.  And I figured there HAD to be a recipe for salted caramel bark online.  And there was.  Happy me!

Salted Caramel Bark
From ShugarySweets.com
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1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 1/2 Tbsp. milk
1/4 tsp. vanilla extract
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1/2 tsp. kosher salt (which I forgot to include)
16 oz. Vanilla Almond Bark or white chocolate
3/4 cup milk chocolate morsels
1 1/2 cup pretzels, broken

In a medium sauce pan, melt the butter.  Add brown sugar and milk.  Bring to a boil, stirring frequently.  Cook for 2 minutes.  Remove from heat and whisk in vanilla extract and powdered sugar.  Stir until smooth and set aside.

Melt Almond Bark (or white chocolate) in a double-boiler, being careful not to overheat.  Pour the melted candy on a parchment lined cookie sheet and spread evenly.

If necessary, reheat the caramel sauce to a drizzling consistency and pour over the melted Almond Bark.  Sprinkle with kosher salt (or, if you forget to, omit it).  Top with broken pretzels and press lightly into the bark.  Melt milk chocolate morsels in the microwave, stirring every 15-20 seconds to avoid overheating.  Drizzle over the bark.  Allow to cool completely before breaking into pieces and storing in a covered container.



Hubby said he could easily eat a whole container of this bark, which is about half the recipe.  Considering there are over 4000 calories in the entire thing, I would advise against it.  But then again, if I only make it once a year, so it is a possibility.  Needless to say, this salted caramel bark made it to the permanent Christmas rotation.  A new tradition!

Caramel Apple Cider Fudge

Have you ever had a recipe that just would not work?  The recipe you follow to the letter but it still comes out all wrong?  This fudge started out that way.  In fact, I made it THREE times and it was wrong.  Every.  Time.  Frustrating!  But it sounded so good, I just had to try again.  And so, with a little tweaking and a whole lot of persistence, the fourth time was a charm.

Caramel Apple Cider Fudge
Adapted from Very Culinary
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3 1/2 c. powdered sugar
1/4 c. apple cider
1/4 c. evaporated milk
1/2 c. butter
2 c. brown sugar, packed
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
1/4 tsp. allspice
2/3 c. vanilla chips
2 Tbsp. Mrs. Richardson's Butterscotch Caramel Sauce, melted

Spray an 8x8 baking dish with non-stick cooking spray and set aside.  Measure powdered sugar into a large bowl and set aside.  Melt butter in a medium-sized saucepan over medium heat.  Add cider, evaporated milk, and brown sugar.  Stir to combine.  Bring to a boil, stirring frequently because it can easily scorch.  Add vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg and allspice and mix thoroughly.  Remove from heat and pour butter mixture over the powdered sugar.  Add vanilla chips and stir to combine.  Press mixture evenly into baking dish.  Drizzle with melted caramel sauce and allow to cool completely in the refrigerator.  Cut into 64 bite-sized pieces.  Store in a sealed container in the refrigerator 

Honey Roasted Almonds

It's funny how one's tastes change.

I have vivid memories from my childhood of being held captive and forced to eat zucchini pot pie.  Well, maybe not captive.  Or forced.  But I do recall not being allowed to leave the dinner table and go to the county fair unless said pot pie was eaten.  Enter ketchup.  Lots and lots of ketchup!

I'm still not a fan of zucchini pot pie (specifically the zucchini part, not the pot pie part), but I never in a million years would have imagined that one day I'd be voluntarily eating almonds.  And LIKING them, much less blogging about them and singing their praises.  But these almonds are good.  Really, really good.  Hubby tells me they really complement a glass of bourbon (as pictured below).  Not that I'd know, though, since bourbon just isn't my thing.  I'm finicky, in case you hadn't noticed.  

Honey Roasted Almonds (printer-friendly copy)

1 1/3 cup whole almonds, raw
1 Tbsp. + 1 tsp. Splenda
1 Tbsp. + 1 tsp. granulated sugar
1 tsp. Splenda brown sugar
1 Tbsp. Land O' Lakes Light Butter
1 Tbsp. honey
1/2 tsp. Kosher salt

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.  Spray baking sheet with non-stick cooking spray and set aside.  Place almonds in a medium-size heat-resistant bowl and set aside.  Mix together both Splenda varieties and sugar in a small dish and set aside.  Stir together light butter, honey, and Kosher salt in a microwave-safe dish.  Heat in the microwave at 15-second intervals until the butter has melted and the mixture is bubbly.  Pour the honey mixture over the almonds and toss until the nuts are well-coated.  Place nuts on baking sheet and bake in preheated oven until well-browned, about 30 minutes.  Stir the mixture at 10-minute intervals to ensure even cooking.  Remove from oven and scrape nuts into a large heat-resistant bowl.  Sprinkle nuts with the sugar mixture and stir to evenly coat.  Allow to cool to room temperature.  Store in a sealed container.

It's amazing what you discover when you take a risk and try new (or old) things.  Next thing you know I'll be eating zucchini.  Or not.

It's All About Caramel

Ice cream.  I love it.  In fact, it's my firm belief that a day without ice cream is like a day without sunshine.  It's also like a day without peanut butter.  Or chocolate.  But those are posts for another day.  This one is about ice cream.  Caramel and ice cream to be exact!

The weather is cooling down, but you can believe I'm still enjoying my daily dose of ice cream.  Pumpkin treats and desserts seem to be all the rage right now, for obvious reasons, but I've never been a big pumpkin fan.  Fall has me dreaming of harvest at Apple Hill, in El Dorado County, California, where orchards are plentiful and competition for business offers a huge variety of baked treats and yummy goodies.  I have very fond memories of the former Honey Bear Ranch that sold Pie Royale, the very best apple pie ever (no lie), served with vanilla ice cream and covered with caramel.  So when I came across a recipe for caramel apple ice cream, which combined my love of ice cream and transported me back to my retro autumn days, I knew I had to try it out!

Caramel Apple Ice Cream
Adapted from The Pioneer Woman and Cookies & Cups
Printer-friendly copy

For the caramel:
4 tablespoons Land O' Lakes Light Butter
1 cup brown sugar, packed
1/2 cup heavy cream
Pinch of Kosher salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

For the ice cream:
1 tablespoon Land O' Lakes Light Butter
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
Pinch of Kosher salt
2 small apples, cored, peeled and diced small
2 cups heavy cream
1/4 teaspoon Penzey's Baking Spice
1 14-oz. can sweetened condensed milk
1/2 cup caramel sauce (from above)

Mix light butter, brown sugar, heavy cream, and Kosher salt in a saucepan over medium low heat.  Cook while whisking gently for 5 to 7 minutes, until thicker.  Add vanilla and cook another minute to thicken further.  Turn off heat and pour sauce into a clean jar.  Refrigerate until cold.

Meanwhile, in a medium saucepan, melt butter.  Add brown sugar, cinnamon, salt, and diced apples and cook on medium-low until apples are soft (cooking time will vary, depending on the variety of apple used).  Set aside to cool.  In a medium-size mixing bowl, whisk together the cream and Baking Spice, beating until stiff peaks form.  Fold in the sweetened condensed milk.  Transfer mixture to the frozen bowl of an ice cream maker and process according to the manufacturer's directions.  When approximately 1-2 minutes of mixing remains, add in apples and caramel sauce.  Transfer ice cream to a freezer-safe container and place in the coldest part of your freezer, at least 6 hours or overnight.  Serve with additional caramel, if desired.

What is YOUR favorite fall treat?  Do you prefer pumpkin or would you rather eat apples?  I'd love to hear your comments!