What, you mean I used to blog about something other than pregnancy?

Oh yeah... food! In my defense, food was not my favorite thing for a while there. But now that it is at the top again, let me share with you my favorite Christmas treats :-)

(sorry for the dark photos, I still need to get photoshop up and running with my newly reformatted computer.)

First up, Chocolate Peanut Butter Bars. Well that's what I like to call them anyway. They have no real name, as they are a recipe that has been passed around by friends for a long time. My mom got it from a friend many years ago, and used to make these every year at Christmas. She stopped a while back, but found the recipe this year so I decided it was time to bring them back!

These are really quite simple. What you need:

1 cup peanut butter
1 1/2 sticks (3/4 cup) margarine - softened
3 cups finely crushed graham crackers
1 1/3 cups powdered sugar
1 12 oz package semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 can sweetened condensed milk (I forget the size, but there's only one size at the store anyway)

Mix together first four ingredients and press into 9x13 pan.

In a double boiler (or microwave) melt chocolate and milk. Spread over peanut butter mixture.

Refridgerate 1/2 hour. Cut into squares.

See? So simple. And the taste? To. die. for. J calls them peanut butter cups on steriods.

Then we have the fudge. I have made these every year for about 10 years now. Everyone expects it at Christmas. Last year I only made the chocolate, and my cousins were so sad there was no penuche!

First up, Never Fail Fudge. If you don't recognize the name already - it's off the jar of fluff. It's the easiest fudge ever. Maybe not the traditional way to make it, but I don't even know because I have only ever made it this way!

What you need: (This is with a small jar of fluff, the larger one has appropriate amounts on it if you use that, which I always do. I just happen to have a small jar in the house now.)

2 1/2 cups sugar

1/4 cup butter or margarine

1 small can (5 oz) evaporated milk

1 jar (7 1/2) marshmallow fluff

3/4 tsp salt

3/4 tsp vanilla

1 12 oz package semi-sweet chocolate chips

Line a 9x9" pan with wax paper.

Combine first 5 ingredients. Stir over low heat until blended.

Bring to a boil over moderate heat, being careful not to mistake air bubbles for boiling. Then boil slowly, stirring constantly, for 5 minutes.

Remove from heat. Stir in chocolate and vanilla until chocolate is melted and blended throughout. Pour into pan and cool. I like to let this refridgerate overnight.

Second is Penuche. Some people don't know what penuche is - it's a very sweet fudge that has a maple brown sugar type of taste. It's also a very hard candy to make. This year it came out a bit brittle, but still tasted awesome and melts in your mouth. I think my mistake was using a nonstick pan, so next year I will try with a stainless pan and hopefully it will be a bit softer.

What you need:

2 cups light brown sugar

2/3 cup heavy cream

1/8 tsp salt

1 tbsp butter

1 tsp vanilla

Line a 9x9" pan with plastic wrap (I recommend wax paper instead).

Combine sugar, cream, and salt in a saucepan. Stir over medium heat until mixture comes to a boil. Let simmer, without stirring, until a candy thermometer registers 240* (about 30 minutes, although it only took me 15 this year.)

Remove from heat and put pan on a wire rack. Cut butter into small pieces and scatter on top of hot syrup. Do not stir. Let cool to 110*. This can take over an hour.

Add vanilla. Beat mixture with an electric beater until candy is very thick and loses its sheen, 3 to 5 minutes.

Press mixture into prepared pan and cover with plastic wrap. Refridgerate. When firm, cut into squares.

I highly recommend cutting these into small pieces. It's verrrryyy sweet. But oh so good!

So those are my favorite Christmas treats. I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday season!