Cute Little Knitted Chick

 This cute little chick is fun and simple to make. Click here and find out how to make it! 

Spring Pasta Salad

This springy pasta salad is very simple to make.

Dressing~

1 cup mayonnaise

1/4 cup milk

1/4 cup sugar 

Salad~ 

16 oz box elbow noodles 

3 cups chopped carrots

1 1/2 cups broccoli

1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese 

1/2 cup salami cut up  

Cook noodles according to package directions. Meanwhile combine dressing ingredients and whisk together. Drain the water from the noodles and rinse with cold water until cool. Combine noodles, carrots, broccoli, cheese, and salami. Add the dressing and combine. You may not need all the dressing so add a little at a time. Refrigerate until ready to serve or serve right a way. Enjoy!!               

Basketball Cookies

Theses basketball cookies are very easy to make. you can make up a bunch for a birthday party too.

Ingredients~

1 recipe butter cookies and glaze with orange food coloring   

1/2 cup powdered sugar 
1/2 cup cocoa 
1 table spoon milk

Make the cookies and glaze according to recipe. Mix powdered sugar, cocoa and milk until well mixed put in a plastic bag with a hole in the corner and pip on lines to make it look like a basketball. Enjoy! 

Flower Branch

What you need~

a branch cut to the size you want

pink tissue paper 

ruler

scissors

glue

How to make it~

cut out 1 inch squares. twist the center a bit and put a dab of glue on it. adhere to the branch and repeat however many times you want. :-)    

    

Peanut Butter & Chips Cookies

(Makes about 24-30)

Ingredients~

1/2 cup butter

1 cup smooth or crunchy peanut butter

3/4 cup white sugar 

1/2 cup packed brown sugar

1 egg

1 tablespoon milk

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour 

3/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/8 teaspoon salt

1 cup peanut butter chips

1 cup chocolate chips 

more white sugar for rolling cookies

Preheat oven to 350 F. In the large bowl of a mixer, combine the butter, peanut butter, and both sugars. Beat until well blended and creamy. Add the egg, mix well and add the vanilla and the milk. Add the flour baking soda, baking powder and salt and mix into peanut butter mixture. Stir in both chips. Dough will be crumbly. Gather together about 2 tablespoons at a time and press into a ball and roll in white sugar. Place about 2" apart on a parchment paper lined baking sheet and press down lightly with your hand just enough to take away the rounded shape. Bake for 10-12 minutes or until just set. Cookies will not spread. Do not over bake. Allow to cool completely and the cookies will finish cooking. Enjoy!

St. Patrick's Day Cookies

These tasty cookies can be made into any shape you want. And the glaze isn't necessary but looks festive. I got the cookie recipe form a wonderful cook book it is called Illustrated Step-By-Step Baking.   

Ingredients~

11 tablespoons butter, softened and diced 

1/2 cup sugar

1 1/2 cups flour 

1 egg yolk 

1 teaspoon vanilla extract 

Glaze~

1/2 cup powdered sugar 

1-2 tablespoons milk

1-2 drops green food coloring (optional)  

Preheat the oven to 350 F. put parchment paper on 2 baking sheets. Put the butter, sugar, and flour in a large bowl, or into the bowl of a food processor. Rub together, or pulse-blend the ingredients until they look like fine bread crumbs. Add the egg yolk and vanilla and bring the mixture together into a dough. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface and knead it briefly until smooth. Flour the dough and work surface well, and roll it out to a thickness of about 1/4 inch. Use a palette knife to move the sheet of dough around, to prevent sticking. If the dough is too sticky to roll well, chill for 15 minutes, then try again. with a shamrock cookie cutter cut out cookies and transfer them to the baking sheets. Re-roll the scraps to 1/4 inch thick, and cut out all the cookies until all the dough is used bake in the preheated oven for 12-15 minutes, until golden at the edges. leave the cookies to cool until firm enough to handle. Combine the glaze ingredients and brush on cookies, let the glaze set and serve. Enjoy!        

Cocoa Balls

Ingredients~

1/2 cup honey
1/2 cup quick oats 
1/2 cup peanut butter 
1/2 cup coconut 
1/4 cup cocoa powder 

Heat honey and peanut butter until melted to together. Remove from heat, add other ingredients and mix well. cool slightly and form into balls. Refrigerate 1 hour before serving. 

Peanut butter glaze (optical)~ 

1/4 cup peanut butter
1/4 cup powdered sugar 
1-3 tablespoons milk

combine peanut butter and sugar. stir in 1-3 tablespoons milk until you reach the constancy you want. spread on to balls and refrigerate. I hope you enjoy them!