Christmas Eve is a fun time for us! Every year my daughter in laws' parents have a Christmas Eve night with all the family and extended families. Everyone brings appetizers and we all chow down soon after we get there. The food is always scrumptious!!
Then we have a fun craft, contest or game. Last year we divided up into teams of two and were given clean empty pop bottles. There was a large container full of fabric, glitter, foam balls, buttons, pipe cleaners, etc. which we could use. We had to make something out of the bottles, and the best item won a prize. It was a lot of fun and some of the creations were pretty wild!
Once that part of the evening is done, my DIL's father mysteriously disappears, and Santa shows up at the door with his bells jingling and a large bag full of gifts. The kids (big and small) love it!!
Every year there is a different activity, so I'm hoping to get some photos this year to share with you!
But enough chit chat! I have a recipe to share!
FUDGE PUDDLES
(You'll need Mini muffin tins for this recipe)
1/2 cup butter or margarine and 1/2 cup peanut butter
1/2 cup white sugar and 1/2 cup brown sugar
1 egg
1/2 tsp. vanilla
1 1/4 cup flour
3/4 tsp. Baking Soda
1/2 tsp. Salt
Cream butter and peanut butter.
Add sugars and beat together
Add egg and vanilla and mix well
In a separate bowl, sift together flour, baking soda, salt and then add to cream mixture. Mix well.
Chill mixture for one hour.
When chilled, roll mixture into approximately 1 inch balls
Place each one in a greased or papered mini muffin tin.
Bake at 325F for 14 to 16 minutes.
Remove from oven and immediately make wells in the center of each ball.
Cool 5 minutes, then move to racks and cool.
Fudge
1 cup milk chocolate chips, or 1/2 cup milk and 1/2 cup semi sweet chips
1/2 can Sweetened condensed milk
1 tsp. vanilla
chopped peanuts
Melt chocolate chips in a double boiler.
Stir in milk and vanilla. Mix well
Using a small pitcher or pastry bag, fill shells with fudge (tip below)
Sprinkle each one with chopped peanuts (check below)
*(I have greased the tins in the past, and that works well too...I just think they look more festive in paper cups.)
*You don't need to push very hard to make the wells--the deeper you make the wells, the more fudge you'll need to fill them.
The ones in the picture are a bit deep and I had a few left over without fudge....which...you know... really wasn't a problem for me. ;)
I can't remember where I found this handy dandy little wooden tool, but it works great! Before I found this, I used one of those small long thin plastic containers for childrens liquid cough medicine, or the end of a wooden spoon--these work fine if you don't have this wooden doodad. :)
It is a bit fiddly filling the cups with the chocolate mixture, especially since the mixture begins to thicken quite fast when it's ready! *I usually use two teaspoons to fill them (instead of a pastry bag), working quickly.
*I also just put a 1/2 a peanut on top of each one instead of sprinkling chopped up peanuts on top. It's easier and looks better.
These are pretty yummy and everyone loves them so I make them every Christmas!
Oh, and Janet at Today's Fabulous Finds has a tutorial posted for a S'mores Kit that would make a great last minute gift for a friend or neighbour! She also has some cute gift tags and instruction printables- free!!
Well, that's all folks! Hope you're all ready, or close to ready for the big event! Don't get too stressed out this Christmas, and remember that it is about so much more than presents, decorations, and eating.
"And she wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger"
Merry Christmas!
Carmen
They look and sound amazingly yummy! Definitely bookmarking this one to try. :-)
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