Fudgy No-Bake Cookies

Everyone I know has some variation of this recipe,

and I myself have tried several different ones throughout the years.

This is one that I just made tonight to take to a Church Relief Society activity for my ward.

WOW!  It was sooo good.  

When I was a child and in Elementary school, we would always have these fudgy cookies on Fridays.  Even though everyone knew that it was near impossible to get someone to trade theirs for anything they wanted of yours, you'd still try. 

I have searched and searched for a recipe that might come close to what I remember having in the lunch room as a child...

I FINALLY FOUND IT!  

And I am so excited!

YUM YUM!

2 cups sugar

1/2 cup milk

1/4 cup cocoa

pinch of salt

1 stick butter

1 cup peanut butter

1 tablespoon vanilla

3 cups oatmeal

1/4 cup coconut {optional}

.

In a heavy saucepan bring to a boil the sugar, milk, cocoa, salt and butter.

Let boil for 1 minute. 
{The sugar needs to completely dissolve or it will have a sugary texture instead of being creamy.}
 Add peanut butter, vanilla, oatmeal and coconut.

Drop mixture by the teaspoonfuls, onto a sheet of waxed paper, until cool, or spread into a cookie sheet.

Oreo Cheesecake Truffles

Um, Yum!

1 package Oreo cookies
8 ounces cream cheese, softened at room temperature
2 cups semisweet chocolate chips
2 tablespoons vegetable shortening
.
Crush the Oreos until finely ground.
.
Transfer 3 cups of the Oreo crumbs to a bowl and add the cream cheese.
Using a spoon, press, mix and stir until the cream cheese is completely mixed into the Oreo crumbs and you have a soft, homogeneous mixture.
Using a small cookie scoop, {or the equivalent of 2 teaspoons} scoop/roll balls of the Oreo/cream cheese mixture and place on a wax paper-lined baking sheet.
Once you have scooped out all of the filling, refrigerate the baking sheet for at least 30 minutes, until firm.
.
In a small bowl, microwave the chocolate chips and shortening in 15 second increments, stirring after each, until completely melted and smooth.
Working with one Oreo ball at a time, dip it into the melted chocolate, roll it around to cover completely, and then use a fork to remove it from the chocolate, letting any excess drip off.
Place the dipped truffle back on the wax paper-lined sheet.
Repeat with all truffles; once finished, return the baking sheet to the refrigerator for another 30 minutes.
.
Serve the truffles, or garnish with some melted white chocolate and leftover crushed Oreos.
Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.
{When you crush the Oreos, use the whole cookie, cream and all.}

Eggnog Fudge

If you try this, let me know how it is!  Sounds good!

2 cups granulated sugar
½ cup unsalted butter
¾ cup eggnog
Pinch of salt
10½ ounces white chocolate, chopped
½ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg, plus a little more for dusting the top of the fudge
One 7-ounce jar marshmallow creme
1 teaspoon rum extract
.
Line an 8-inch square pan with parchment paper and let it hang over the side; set aside.
.
In a heavy 3-quart saucepan, combine the sugar, butter, eggnog and salt over medium heat.
Bring to a rolling boil, stirring constantly.
Continue boiling 8 to 10 minutes, until a candy thermometer reaches 234 degrees F, stirring constantly to prevent scorching.
Remove from heat.
.
Using a wooden spoon, work quickly to stir in chopped white chocolate and nutmeg until chocolate is melted and smooth.
Stir in marshmallow creme and rum extract.
Beat until well blended and then pour into prepared pan.
Sprinkle a little freshly ground nutmeg on top.
Let stand at room temperature until cooled, then refrigerate overnight until firm.
.
When completely cool, cut into squares.
Store in a covered container in the refrigerator.

Marshmallow S'mores

I have really been liking S'mores lately and came up with this yummy little treat last night!  They were so yummy!  Luckily we had lots of family in town so I only had to eat a few!  Eating all of them would be REALLY bad!
{This could be a really fun easy thing to send around at Christmas time for neighbor treats!  You could also dip them in caramel and then roll them in rice crispies or chopped nuts or pretzels!  Toffee bits would be delicious too!  Have fun with it!}

1-1/2 bags milk chocolate chips
1/2 cube butter
1/4 cup evaporated milk
1 bag lrg. marshmallows
2 packages graham crackers
toothpicks
.
Crush graham crackers with a food processor or blender.
Pour into a shallow dish.
Set aside.
.
In a double boiler, melt butter and chocolate chips together. {I don't have a double boiler so I just put the butter and chocolate in my smallest pot and stuck the small pot on top of a little bit bigger pot that had water in it.  It worked perfectly.}
Stir in evaporated milk.
Keep melted chocolate in double boiler above hot water, but remove from heat.
.
Poke a tooth pick into one marshmallow and dip into chocolate, coating all sided except for the top.
Roll into graham crackers crumbs, making sure that all the chocolate is covered.
Place on a cookie sheet and repeat until all marshmallows are done.

Chelsey's Christmas Fudge

1 Pkg. milk chocolate chips

1 can sweetened condensed milk

Dash of salt

2 Tbsp. butter or Margarine

2 cups mini marshmallows

.

In a Medium sauce pan over medium heat, melt chocolate chips, sweetened condensed milk, salt and butter together until smooth.

Remove from heat.

Stir in marshmallows.

Put in a 8X8 baking dish and refrigerate until firm.

English Toffee

2 1/2 cups sugar

1 lb. butter

1/2 cup water

4 Tbsp. Karo Syrup

1/8 tsp. salt

8 oz. slivered almonds {optional}

Milk chocolate chips

.

Cook to hard crack stage. {300 degrees, or until when drizzled in cold water it hardens and is crunchy when eaten.}

Spray large cookie sheet with Pam.

Put slivered almonds on the bottom of pan.

Pour hot English Toffee evenly over almonds.

{If you're worried that the nuts will push to the sides of the pan when pouring on the hot English toffee, you can always put the nuts on after the chocolate layer melts.}

Let harden slightly and while still warm spread chocolate chips over the top.

Let chocolate chips melt on top of toffee.

When cool, break in to pieces with a butter knife.

{do not cool in fridge or in freezer, it will harden chocolate and then separate from toffee when you try to break it in to pieces. I learned this the hard way...}

Peanut Butter Pretzels

This is such a great recipe.
I got it from a friend up in Logan and I'm not sure if she made it up or if she got it from someone else but it is so yummy!
If you like peanut butter and chocolate, you'll LOVE this.
{Kind of tastes like a Take 5. minus the caramel.}
1 cup creamy peanut butter
2 Tbsp. margarine, softened
1/2 cup-3/4 cup powdered sugar
3/4-1 cup brown sugar
1 bag milk chocolate chips

Prepare
a cookie sheet with parchment or wax paper.

Combine
peanut butter and margarine in a large bowl with a fork.
Add the sugars and stir to combine. {add a little more of each sugar until it is easy to roll into balls.}
Use a small cereal spoon to scoop the filling.
Roll each portion into a small ball and set on a cookie sheet.

Next,
sandwich between 2 square pretzels and set on cookie sheet.
Stick tray in freezer for 30 min.

Meanwhile,
Pour chocolate chips into a small, microwave safe, bowl and heat till melted, stirring occasionally.
Remove pretzel sandwiches from the freezer and quickly dip each half-way into the melted chocolate.
Return tray to the freezer for 30 more minutes to set.
Store in a plastic bag in the fridge.

Peanut Butter Popcorn

½ Cup light corn syrup

½ Cup sugar

½ Cup Peanut Butter

1 tsp vanilla

6 Cup popcorn

Heat the sugar and syrup in a pot until the sugar is melted.

Turn burner off and add peanut butter stir till melted.

Add vanilla and stir.

Pour mixture over popcorn

Divine Caramels

1 Qt. light karo syrup
4 cups sugar
2 squares butter
1 pint whipping cream
2 Tbsp. vanilla
1-12 oz. can evaporated milk

Before starting caramels, foil cookie sheet with Release foil from Reynolds. Make sure foil goes up sides too.

{you may have to fold foil together to form a tight seal, and to make it big enough.}

Butter all of the foil, making sure to get sides as well.

Mix karo syrup and sugar together in large, heavy pan over med-high heat.

Bring to boil, then add butter, stirring constantly until all butter is melted.

Add, altering back and forth till gone, some of the whipping cream and then the evaporated milk.

*Do not just dump in all at once*

Bring back to a boil. Stir constantly until it reaches between 228-230*F.

Test on a spoon in cold water.

Caramel should be firm but not hard. It should slightly move when spoon it tipped.
Remove from heat and add vanilla.

Pour into greased and foiled cookie sheet.

**DO NOT scrap extra caramel from the pan. It will be sure to fail.**

{If you would like to eat caramel from sides of pan, scrap into small bowl.}

Let caramels ripen 24-48 hours before cutting and wrapping.

Caramel Chocolate Preztel Rods

Recipe and picture submitted by Cindy Larkin, owner of Cindergirl Photography. Check out her amazing photo blog here: http://cindergirlphotography.blogspot.com

*Stick pretzel's in the freezer before starting. If you freeze your pretzels ahead of time, the caramel sticks to it best. It won't run off as easily when you put them onto wax paper to cool*

2 cubes butter

2 cups brown sugar

1 can sweetened condensed milk

1 cup light Karo syrup

1 tsp. vanilla

Cook in heavy duty pan stirring constantly until soft ball stage.

(Test in cold water in glass dish. When it forms a ball that holds together and when you put it onto the counter it pretty much holds its shape.)

Take off heat and add:

1 tsp. vanilla.

Stir well.

Let cool so that it isn't HOT anymore but not completely cool.

Put it back into the freezer or fridge just to keep the temperature cool to keep the caramel on the pretzels the best you can.

For drizzling the chocolate:

use chocolate buttons or almond bark (white choc. & milk choc.)

Put about a cup of them into a freezer bag and melt in the microwave.

Cut a little tiny hole in one corner then squirt little tiny lines of chocolate on top of the caramel. Do one color and then the other color. Let the choc. set till hard, then turn them over and do the back side.

Store in a lock tight container, such as Tupperware, in the fridge