Chocolate Cherry Coconut Macaroons

A holiday favorite! The maraschino cherries give the macaroons a festive look and this year I added some white chocolate chips because I didn't have enough semi-sweet and they were delicious!

Ingredients:

1/2 c. chopped maraschino cherries
2 eggs
1/8 t salt
3/4 c. sugar
2 t vanilla
1/3 c. flour
2 c. flaked coconut
1 c. semi-sweet chocolate chips

1. Extract as much juice as possible from the chopped cherries ( I use a strainer and spoon and then paper towels)

2. Grease baking sheets (they are pretty sticky if you skip this step) and preheat oven to 325 degrees

3. Beat eggs and salt until light



4. Beating constantly @ medium speed add sugar 1/4 c. at a time, beating well in between additions

5. Beat until thick, pale ribbons form (around 5-10 min)...gets a little exhausting!



6. Fold in vanilla, flour, coconut, chocolate chips and cherries!



7. Bake 15-19 minutes or until golden brown, cool on racks

I like them a few minutes after they come out of the oven, but they'll keep fresh for a few days or you can freeze them for later. Watch out...they go fast!

Callahan, Walker, Hoogestraat Christmas

We had a fun get-together this year for Christmas at Patty's house. We stepped it up a notch and had some ice breaker like games. The first was having to guess what was written on a piece of paper on your back by asking yes or no questions. Of course, all the questions were "farm related." I had the hardest time guessing "electric fence." I guess I'm a city-slicker. There was a coloring contest as well. Jennie won with a psychedelic coloring scheme...not sure what her farm was growing! I brought Calico Beans and made Cherry Chocolate Coconut Macaroons. I'll post both recipes in another post. Some highlights - playing Hoity Toity (and losing...again), making my cookies, seeing some old pictures of Grandma and Grandpa that Kara had used in a scrapbook, watching the dogs entertain us all with their wrestling, playing apples to apples, staying late to talk with Patty, Kara and Kelson. It's too bad we don't have more get-togethers...they sure are fun.

Christmas Gift - Summer Tote Bag

I made a simple tote bag for my Mom and Kendra this year. I hadn't sewn a bag before, but found this pattern simple and easy to follow. The bag is perfect for carrying school papers or groceries and I like it because you can wear it on your shoulder or you can carry it in your hand and it doesn't brush the ground. Lucky for me I had time to make them during the snow days before we left for California! Of course, I chose bright summery prints...thinking it would be a great bag to take to the beach! I made the two simultaneously and it took me only a few hours (and I'm pretty slow!). I think to improve the bag for carrying groceries I would make that base a bit wider and add something to maintain its shape. If you're interested in making one for yourself, I found the tutorial at the Sew, Mama, Sew blog (one of my favorites!). I'm already dreaming of warm summer days...rain, rain go away!

Christmas Slideshow

Merry Christmas!

A Walker/Hoogestraat Christmas get-together. We had fun sipping lattes and eating delicious desserts!

Bellinis

Luke and Kendra gave me the gift of Italian cooking this Christmas - A cookbook by Giada de Laurentiis, called Giada's Kitchen. Her style is described as "Italy meets California," which in my opinion, you can't go wrong there. Immediately upon opening the book, I came across a recipe for Pomegranate and Cranberry Bellinis, which sounds like the perfect addition to the holiday table. I was particularly drawn to the recipe because they contain Prosecco, a light Italian sparkling wine that I remebering enjoying with Emily at a quaint wine bar in Venice. Lucky for us Red Apple was open and so my dad and I were able to pick up almost all of the ingredients! Unfortunately, they didn't have any mint or pomegranate seeds to use as garnish. We made it work though and the drink was delicious (Kendra and I loved it at least!) and it looked beautiful on the holiday table!

House Elves!

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

You definitely need to check this out and send to friends and family!

Thanksgiving

Drop Box

Click on the above picture to view the entire album

Looking back through the pictures of delicious food causes me to consider how fortunate I am. I have a wonderful family, a warm home, good food, a wii to play on with my grandma! and so much more. There is so much to be thankful for, even if the economy isn't what we hope for. My favorite thanksgiving memories are making a new bacon/apple stuffing, eating Wanda's amazing cranberry salad, spedning time in the kitchen with my mom, cow racing against my grandma on the Wii, making fresh air-popped popcorn to watch elf with Kara, Kelson and Patty, and drinking lattes with Dave and Pam. What a wonderful holiday to spend with family!

a spooky pumpkin

Yes...I cheated...I used a template!


Jen didn't like the blood and guts


Ta-da! the final outcome!