An Apple for the Teacher

If you are looking for a last minute gift for teachers, try these easy to make chocolate covered apples:

6 medium sized sweet-tart apples
Popsicle sticks or wooden meat skewers
1 lb. semi-sweet chocolate cubed or morsels
1 cup M&Ms, chopped nuts, coconut, or crushed Oreo cookies

Insert sticks in apples and refrigerate. Apples will coat better if chilled.
Melt chocolate in double boiler or in microwave oven until warm not hot. Stir to make a smooth consistency.
Dip and roll apples in chocolate using spoon to help cover hard to reach areas.
Roll coated apples in desired topping and put on waxed paper on a cookie sheet in refrigerator to set the chocolate.
Wrap the apple in colored cellophane and secure with a twisty around stick. Add curly ribbon for decoration.

Leslie's Favorite Food Gift

Leslie's favorite food gift—and recipe

This one comes from the mom of one of our son’s friends. Teresa always makes a ton of this hot cinnamon candy and passes out bags to just about everyone she knows. She’s given us both the mild and hot versions. My boys like it hot!

Cinnamon Candy

From Teresa Twedell
(who usually doubles this batch!)

Looks, smells and tastes like Christmas!

2 cups sugar
1 cup water
¾ cup Karo syrup
1 tsp red food coloring
1 or 2 tsp cinnamon oil (depending on how hot you like the candy)

Mix sugar, water, and Karo syrup together in a large saucepan. Cook on high to a hard crack stage. It will boil for about 20-30 minutes before reaching this point. To test for a hard crack stage, drop a small amount into a bowl of cold water. If it hardens within seconds, it is ready. Remove from heat.

Add the food coloring and cinnamon oil.

Stir thoroughly for 2-3 minutes. Pour onto a cookie sheet that has been sprayed with Pam. Let dry until hard (at least two hours). Break into pieces and coat with powdered sugar.

Teresa makes the round of family and friends to distribute the candy in cellophane bags or aluminum tins available at any craft store. Our family is going to try this recipe this year!

The Wilsons other favorite gift food is shelled pecans. One of Bret’s clients has her very own pecan grove and shells us several pounds worth every year. Each half is huge and the pecan “meat” is delicious.

Favorite Food Gift - Sand Art Brownies - Trish Berg

I love giving food gifts at Christmas time. It is like sharing a piece of homemade love with someone.

In Chapter 4 of A Scrapbook of Christmas Firsts, we were asked to share our favorite food gift, but not the recipe. So, here is the recipe for my Sand Art Brownies from page 54.

I love giving these to my children's school teachers as well. It is like home-baked brownies in a jar. And they are an inexpensive way to say thank you to someone like a teacher, neighbor or friend, around the holidays.

You will need some wide mouthed mason/canning jars, quart size. And I like to decorate each jar with a cut square of Christmas fabric on the lid tied with a ribbon to make it festive as well.

Enjoy the journey- Trish
Psalm 118:24
http://www.trishberg.com/

Sand Art Brownies (Trish Berg)
PREP TIME 20 Min
READY IN 20 Min
Yield: 1 jar which makes 1 9x9 inch pan of brownies

INGREDIENTS:
5/8 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
2/3 cup packed brown sugar
2/3 cup white sugar
1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup vanilla baking chips
1/2 cup walnuts

DIRECTIONS:

1. In a clean, wide mouth 1 quart mason/canning jar, layer the ingredients in the order given.
2. Attach a decorative tag to the out side of the jar with the following directions. (Hint: You can print what is here or cut and paste it into Word to make it simpler to label jars.)

Sand Art Brownies

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F
2. Grease one 9x9 inch square baking pan.
3. Pour the contents of the jar into a large bowl, and mix well.
4. Add 1 teaspoon vanilla, 2/3 cup vegetable oil, and 3 eggs.
5. Beat until just combined.
6. Pour the batter into the prepared pan, and bake in the preheated oven for 25 to 30 minutes.