Category Archives: Nico in the Kitchen

Dec 6

November’s Tasty Treats

I think that I was in the kitchen for the entire month of November, but it was fun to create some new holiday dishes. I know that December is going to bring even more cooking, baking, and candy making my way, and I can’t wait to get started. Here are a few of my November dishes.

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I love to make Cream Cheese Wedding mints. I made a batch for Agnes’s 1st birthday party. I’m making a big batch for our Christmas get together too. Time to visit a cool shop and invest in some Christmas candy-molds.

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I made a few Pumpkin Pies during November. Dylan and James love them. I also whip up some heavy cream to top off the pies, it is just too good.

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Cooler temps mean I can run the oven all day long. I made some Banana Muffins for MOPS,

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and some Cranberry Orange Oatmeal muffins for a road trip to K.C.

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We took Cookies to a few friends at Thanksgiving.

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I made a big batch of Coconut Macaroons for my hubby James (they are his very favorite cookie)

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I tested a new batch of cookies at Thanksgiving this year too. These are Cranberry-White Chocolate-Almond cookies, the family approved of these tasty treats.

Dec 4

Simple Saturday: Snacks

Saturday brings a lot of extra work my way. All of the kiddos are home, and usually my hubby is too.  Today I’m playing catch-up around the house, and still decorating for the holidays, but before too long, one of the boys will be asking for a snack. I have a perfect one ready to go. We are going to make some super messy indoor smores for a simple Saturday snack.

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For this recipe you’ll need:

  • 6-7 Cups of Golden Grahams ( 6 if you want your bars super sticky, 7 if you don’t want them too sticky)
  • 1 10 oz. package of Mini Marshmallows, or Gigantic ones, use whatever you have on hand
  • 2 Tablespoons of Butter or Margarine
  • about 1/2 cup of mini marshmallows and I added in what I had left in a bag of chocolate covered mini marshmallows.
  • 1/4 to 1/2 cup of Milk Chocolate Chips (for the topping, totally optional)
  • A large soup pot to melt the marshmallows, a small sauce pan and a small stainless steel bowl to make a double boiler, an large extra bowl, a silicone spatula, or wooden spoons, and a 9 x 13 pan greased with a little Crisco to give these tasty bars a place to hang out.

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Start off your double boiler over low heat, add your chocolate chips to the stainless steel bowl, and give them a stir every once in awhile. Also start melting your 10 oz. package of  Marshmallows and margarine in a large pot over med-low heat. Combine your Cereal and extra marshmallows in a large bowl and set aside.

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Everything is getting nice and melty. Once the marshmallows have completely melted add in your cereal and marshmallow mixture and stir. You need to move fast, so your added marshmallows don’t melt too much. Pour into your prepared pan and let it rest.

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Time to add the yummy chocolate topping. I made a little cone out of some parchment paper, but you can also use a ziploc bag to decorate the treats.

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Carefully spoon the melted chocolate into you parchment bag, and do be careful it is warm. Snip off the end of the bag, and streak across that tasty chocolate. Poof! Yummy indoor smores.

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Delicious!

Let it set, and cut it into bars, but if you can’t wait, just eat it straight out of the pan. Let’s see what the experts say…

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Thade liked the bars, even though they were a little sticky.

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Dylan was a little reluctant to try them at first, but then dove into the dish and asked for seconds.

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It is a fun and easy snack to make. Dylan wants to take them to preschool on snack day. Looks like this one is a keeper.

Happy Saturday!

Dec 1

December Monthly Menu

Hard to believe that December is here, and it is my last menu to plan for 2010. With the cool weather here to stay, I’m making a lot of hearty meals and using my Crock Pot whenever I can. I’m going to sneak in a few new dishes this month too. So here we go, it’s December’s monthly dinner menu.

  • 12/1/2010: Beef Stew and Homemade Bread
  • 12/2/2010: Dinner Out!
  • 12/3/2010: Stacey’s Bubble Bread, Bacon, Toast, and Breakfast Potatoes
  • 12/4/2010: Homemade Pizzas
  • 12/5/2010: Sausage-Potatoes-and Peppers with Homemade Bread
  • 12/6/2010: Grilled Chicken, Hominy, and Green Beans
  • 12/7/2010: Chicken & Noodles, Mashed Potatoes, and Homemade Bread
  • 12/8/2010: Salmon Cakes, Corn, Fried Okra, and Rice
  • 12/9/2010: Dinner Out!
  • 12/10/2010: Country Ham, Breakfast Potatoes, and Cream Cheese Sweet Rolls
  • 12/11/2010: Chicken Chow Mien, Chow Mien Noodles, Soba Noodles, Rice and Sugar Dumplings
  • 12/12/2010: Ham & Beans with Cornbread
  • 12/13/2010: Chicken Fajitas, Tortilla Chips, Salsa, Cheese Dip, and Re-fried Beans
  • 12/14/2010: White Chili, Tortilla Chips, Ro-tel Dip, and Cinnamon Rolls
  • 12/15/2010: Nacho Bar
  • 12/16/2010: Dinner Out!
  • 12/17/2010: Bacon, Scrambled Eggs, Toast, and Cream Cheese Crescent Bars
  • 12/18/2010: Homemade Pizzas
  • 12/19/2010: Beef Stew and Homemade Bread
  • 12/20/2010: Bean & Cheese Quesadillas, Tortilla Chips, Salsa, and Cheese Dip
  • 12/21/2010: Chili, Saltines, and Brownies
  • 12/22/2010: Nacho Bar
  • 12/23/2010: Dinner Out!
  • 12/24/2010: Cinnamon Rolls, Bacon, Toast, and Scrambled Eggs
  • 12/25/2010: Merry Christmas! Turkey, Stuffing, Mashed Potatoes, Green Bean Casserole, Homemade Rolls, Chocolate Cream Pie, and Coconut Cream Pie
  • 12/26/2010: Pot Roast with Potatoes, and Homemade Bread
  • 12/27/2010: Salmon Cakes, Corn, Fried Okra, and Cornbread
  • 12/28/2010: Turkey & Noodles with Mashed Potatoes and Homemade Bread
  • 12/29/2010: Ham & Beans and Cornbread
  • 12/30/2010: Dinner Out!
  • 12/31/2010: Grilled Shrimp, Garlic Pasta, Black Olives, Homemade Bread, Chocolate Bundt Cake, Chocolate Ganache Strawberries, and a Champagne toast to ring in the new year!

Have a fantastic December, and Happy Holidays too!