Slow Cooker Candied Pecans

Ingredients:
· 1 cup sugar
· ½ cup brown sugar
· 1 ½ tablespoons cinnamon
· 1 egg white
· 2 teaspoons vanilla
· 4 cups pecan halves
· ¼ cup water

Directions:
1. In a large bowl, mix together sugar, brown sugar and cinnamon. Set aside.
2. In a separate bowl, whisk together the egg white and vanilla until it becomes a little frothy.
3. Place pecans in a slow cooker sprayed with cooking spray. Pour egg white mixture over pecans and stir until nuts are evenly coated.
4. Sprinkle cinnamon sugar mixture over pecans and stir until nuts are all coated well. Cook covered on low for 3 hours, stirring every 20 minutes. Depending on the slow cooker, be careful not to burn. When 20 minutes are left, pour ¼ cup water into the slow cooker and stir. This will make the nuts crunchy.
5. When cooking time is up, spread nuts out on a cookie sheet to cool for 15 to 20 minutes.
6. Store in an airtight container.

Great Christmas gift!

Christmas Mix

Ingredients:
3 cups Rice Chex cereal
3 cups Corn Chex cereal
3 cups Cheerios
1 (16 ounce) M&Ms
2 cups peanuts
2 cups pretzels
16 ounces white chocolate

Directions:
Mix first six ingredients together in a large bowl.
Melt chocolate in the microwave and pour over mixture.
Spread on wax paper to let cool.
Package in tins, bags or festive jars.

Slow Cooker Candied Pecans

Okay ... one last favorite from 2014!  A lot of folks raved about these pecans and they really are the best!  Check out the recipe for Slow Cooker Candied Pecans here. 

Toffee Blondies in a Jar

Ingredients:
· 1 cup packed brown sugar
· ½ cup miniature semisweet chocolate pieces
· 1 cup all-purpose flour
· 1 teaspoon baking powder
· ¼ teaspoon salt
· ¾ cup coarsely chopped pecans or walnuts
· ½ cup toffee pieces or butterscotch-flavored pieces

Directions:
1. In a quart glass jar, layer brown sugar, chocolate pieces, flour, baking powder, salt, nuts and toffee pieces.
2. Fasten lid tightly and attach directions (see below) for making bars to the jar.

Baking Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease an 8x8x2-inch baking pan. In a large bowl, combine ¼ cup butter, 2 slightly beaten eggs and 1 teaspoon vanilla. Stir in jar contents. Spread into prepared pan. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until set and golden brown and edges just begin to pull away from pan. Cool in pan on a wire rack. Cut into bars.

Herbed Cheese Spread

Ingredients:
· 1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
· 1 (8 ounce) package feta cheese, softened
· ½ cup butter, softened
· 3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
· 2 teaspoons fresh chives
· 1 tablespoon chopped fresh tarragon
· 2 teaspoons lemon zest
· 1 teaspoon pepper
· 1 teaspoons salt
· 1 tablespoon minced garlic
· Garnish: fresh rosemary sprigs, dried cranberries

Directions:
1. Beat together all ingredients at medium speed with an electric 2 to 3 minutes or until smooth.
2. Line 2 (10 ounce) ramekins with plastic wrap, extending edges over sides. Spoon cheese mixture into ramekins. Cover and chill 24 hours.
3. Invert cheeses onto serving dishes and garnish.

Smokey Sweet BBQ Rub

All this week I'll be presenting recipes that will be great as Christmas gifts! Perfect for teachers, neighbors, co-workers, or just anyone special on your gift list. Today's recipe would be great for those fellas who sometimes aren't the easiest ones to buy for. This rub is especially good with any kind of pork, especially ribs.

Ingredients:
· ¼ cup salt
· ¼ cup firmly packed brown sugar
· 2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons paprika
· 2 tablespoons white sugar
· 2 teaspoons garlic powder
· 2 teaspoons pepper
· 1 teaspoon dry mustard
· 1 teaspoons ground cumin
· 1 teaspoon ground ginger

Directions:
Stir together all ingredients. Store in an airtight container up to 1 month.