Sausage Soup

1 lb ground sausage (pork, turkey, chicken)
1 large onion, chopped
6 cloves garlic, crushed and chopped
1 tsp extra virgin olive oil
1 sprig thyme (or 1/4 tsp dried)
3 medium sage leaves (or 1/4 tsp dried)
1 bay leaf (fresh or dried)
1 tsp beef bouillon powder or 1 cube
2 14 oz cans tomato (no sodium added), your choice depending on how chunky you like the soup
1 can chick peas, rinsed
1 c frozen spinach
1/4 rice (your choice, I like mixed wild/brown)
ground black and crushed red pepper, to taste 

In a large soup pot, brown meat in olive oil. Once its almost cooked, add onion and garlic, and fresh herbs if using. Cook until soft.

Add tomatoes (I like 1-whole peeled, 1-fire roasted diced), chick peas, dried herbs (if using), bouillon and 3 cans water. Bring to a boil and reduce heat to medium. Add rice.

Cook 15-20 minutes until rice is done. Add spinach and stir in until mixed.

Monkey Munch

Some people call this Puppy Chow, some Muddy Buddies. Either way it is YUMMY!
9 cups Chex cereal (any variety)
1 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
1/4 cup butter
1 tsp vanilla
1 1/2 cup powdered sugar

Put chocolate, peanut butter, and butter in a microwaveable casserole dish. Heat 60 seconds, stir, and then return in 30 second increments until everything is smooth and melted. Add vanilla.

Measure cereal in a large bowl. Pour chocolate mixture over cereal and stir well. Add powdered sugar and toss well to coat. (I use a large Tupperware bowl that has a lid so I can shake it up).

Pour onto a baking sheet  and cool in the fridge. Store in a gallon bag or the bowl you used to toss the mix and divide into 1 cup size gift portions.

Christmas Movie Night Snacks

Holiday Popcorn
3 c popped popcorn (air popped is the best)
3 TBSP butter, melted
1 TBSP Splenda
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp nutmeg

Put the popcorn in an extra large bowl. Pour the butter over popcorn, and lightly toss to coat the popcorn. Combine the sugar and spice in a small bowl. Sprinkle it over the popcorn, tossing to coat it completely.

Rich Homemade Cocoa
1 1/2 TBSP cocoa powder
1 TBSP Splenda
1 c milk
dash cinnamon
dash cayenne pepper (optional)

Whisk ingredients over low-medium heat, stirring constantly until hot. Adjust sweetness to taste. Top with whipped cream and a dash of cocoa powder, cinnamon or cayenne for presentation.

Toaster Oven S'mores
 For each s'more:
1 sheet of graham cracker
1/4 of a Hershey bar
1 marshmallow

Brake the cracker in half, place marshmallow on 1 side and chocolate on the other. Put in the toaster oven on broil until the marshmallow turns golden brown, turn over and toast the oven side. Sandwich together and VIOLA.

Kiddie Proof S'mores
 Substitute Nutella for the chocolate and fluff for the marshmallow. Spread 1 tsp of each on half the cracker. Sandwich for your little guys.

Do you have an air popper?

Candy Cane Fudge

This is also known by some as "that pink stuff". Its pretty, its creamy, it tastes just enough like candy canes without being too strong, and the mint helps offset the sweetness of the fudge. I have even had a few people tell  me they don't like fudge, but love this one.

5 c. sugar
1 1/2 tsp. salt
1 stick butter or margarine
10 oz. evaporated milk (1 1/3 c.)
15 oz Marshmallow Fluff
1 1/2 tsp peppermint extract
6-8 drops pink food coloring
24 oz.  white chocolate pieces
1  c. chopped candy canes or starlight mints (I use the food processor or crush them in a ziploc with a hammer)

Grease a 13X 9-inch baking pan; set aside. In large saucepan combine the first 5 ingredients. Stir over low heat until blended. Increase heat to Medium and bring to a full-rolling boil being careful not to mistake escaping air bubbles for boiling. Boil slowly, stirring constantly for 5 minutes (use Soft-Ball test). Remove from heat, stir in food coloring, extract and chocolate until chocolate is melted. Add 1/2 of the candy pieces and stir in. Turn into greased pan and cool. Cover with the rest of the candy pieces. Makes 5 pounds.

Homemade Gifts: Flavored Olive Oil

This year we are trying to focus on some love-filled homemade gifts. It not only saves on the budget but shows that you care enough to give your time. To save money I try to think about Christmas all year and pick up things when they are a great deal. My brother James mentioned this idea, and a week or two later I stumbled into a huge sale on the oil and bottles. Must have been meant to be .....

You will need:
Green glass bottles (1 liter) with corks OR glass oil bottles w/ stoppers- washed/dried
Extra virgin olive oil
A variety of herbs, spices, essential oil and/or flavorings (You can make many variations of herb-infused olive oil. Some suggestions for herbs and spices are rosemary, garlic, basil, bay, chives, dill, mint, marjoram, tarragon and thyme- Think of good salad dressing combos)

I picked:
Spicy Garlic Oil: Granulated dried garlic, dried diced jalapenos, crushed red pepper, dried whole Thai chilies
Lemon Rosemary Oil: Dried lemon peel, Dried rosemary sprigs, lemon essential oil

Directions:
Wash and dry your herbs. After washing, leave your herbs out to dry. Slightly tear or bruise the herbs so that they begin to release their aroma and flavors.

Once completely dried, loosely fill 1-2" of herbs in glass bottle. Use a funnel to pour in the EVOO and cover. Tightly cork/seal and let stand at least 2 weeks.

Create personalized tags including the type of oil, ingredients, and what you think its best for (salad dressing, dipping bread, sauteing/roasting veggies, marinating meat, stir-frying, etc).

Things to Keep in Mind:
- It is unsafe to put anything in the oil that contains any trace of water or moisture ( garlic, lemon peel, fresh peppers, fresh herbs, etc).  The oil will not support bacterial growth but the water containing herbs will.

- Avoid a fresh garlic infused oil. They look great, they taste yummy, you see them in the Gourmet oil but it really isn't safe to make them at home without the commercial machinery. Buy dried granulated garlic, or use already flavored garlic oil for some of the EVOO.

- Garbage in=garbage out. You want to use a quality olive oil or the end quality will suffer. Also, you should use either fresh herbs that you dry, or newly purchased dry herbs (not the ones you got in a housewarming gift Spice Rack back in '01 and  just never knew what to do with them....).

- This project requires some planning ahead. If you want to do a large volume, you will want to shop around in the early fall for deals on glass bottles and the oil itself (I scored mine for $7.99/2L bottle at World Market in October!!!!). You will either need to plan to make the oil a couple weeks ahead, or include when the oil will be ready to use on the gift tag.