• Home
  • About
  • Recipes
  • Fiesta Friday
  • As Seen In
  • Contact

The Novice Gardener

~ Food & Garden

The Novice Gardener

Tag Archives: Christmas

From my family to yours…

25 Friday Dec 2015

Posted by Angie | Fiesta Friday in Christmas, Cooking

≈ 32 Comments

Tags

appetizer, cheese, cheese balls, Christmas, goat cheese

christmas tree cheese appetizer

snow man cheese ball appetizer

Oh, the weather outside is frightful… NOT!

And there’s no fire, either!

What. Is. Going. On? It’s close to 70 degrees. Yesterday, it was over 70. I’m trying hard to stay in the spirit of Christmas, though.

By inhaling candy cane Hershey kisses, that’s how! Oh, yeah!

And I’m trying to help you stay in the spirit, too. I’m sending you snow… along with the cheese balls. Holiday cheese balls. A Snowman cheese ball and a Christmas tree cheese ball. I hope they make you smile!

You can make them. Here’s how –>Holiday Cheese Balls

Advertisement

Share this:

  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window)
  • Click to print (Opens in new window)
  • Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window)
  • More
  • Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pocket (Opens in new window)

Like this:

Like Loading...

Fiesta Friday #48

26 Friday Dec 2014

Posted by Angie | Fiesta Friday in Blogging Event, Christmas, Fiesta Friday

≈ 102 Comments

Tags

blue and white Christmas, Christmas, Fiesta Friday, Fiesta Friday #48

I have a blue Christmas…..

Literally…..

blue christmas

blue christmas

Continue reading →

Share this:

  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window)
  • Click to print (Opens in new window)
  • Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window)
  • More
  • Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pocket (Opens in new window)

Like this:

Like Loading...

Hot Chocolate Bar

23 Tuesday Dec 2014

Posted by Angie | Fiesta Friday in Blogging Event, Christmas, Cooking, Recipe

≈ 60 Comments

Tags

caramel, caramel sauce, Christmas, hot chocolate bar, salted caramel sauce, Tea Time

hot chocolate bar

salted caramel hot chocolate

Something’s wrong with me…..

I had a free afternoon. And what did I do with my free afternoon? I spent it at the mall! I could have done a million other things. Well, not a million, but I could have cleaned the house, for instance (not really!), or I could have curled up with a good book (yes!), or I could have taken a nap (yes, yes!!)

Instead, I went to the mall. Who goes to the mall this close to Christmas?! Only those who are desperate, I guess (there were a lot of the desperate) or those who are a glutton for punishment (there were a lot of the glutton, too).

I belong to the latter, I guess. I don’t think I was desperate for anything. Well, maybe I was desperate to get just a couple more things. Both kids must get equal number of gifts. If the boy receives X number of gifts, so should the girl. That’s been the unwritten Christmas rule since I had both of them. You know how kids are. To them, it’s not the quality that counts, it’s the quantity.

So, when I found out I had 1 more gift for the boy than for the girl, I sort of panicked a little (come to think of it, I’ve been in a panic mode for some time now). And when you panic, you go to the mall.

I never said I was the best decider. My decision-making skill is as poor as my counting skill, apparently. How in the world did I get 1 more gift for the boy in the first place? Sigh…..

That mall trip was enough to rattle anyone. First, it took me 10 minutes to find a parking spot. Then, I couldn’t find any seat to eat my lunch at the food court. And, of course, it took me ages to pay for my single purchase since the line wrapped around the entire store!

I was completely frazzled when I got home…..

I went straight to my hot chocolate/coffee bar…..and I was saved…..

hot chocolate bar

by my little corner of bliss…..

christmas hot chocolate bar

This is such a nice idea. I love having this corner in my kitchen around this time of the year. When it’s so cold outside, there’s nothing more comforting than a hot cup of chocolate or coffee. And all the toppings are right there within reach.

But first, you need to make yourself some salted caramel sauce. ‘Coz that’s the best thing you can add to your latte or hot chocolate.

salted caramel sauce

Salted Caramel Sauce

  • Servings: 2 cups
  • Print

2 cups sugar
6 tbsp butter
1 cup half & half
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp fleur de sel or kosher salt

1. Place sugar in a medium saucepan and heat on medium-high.
2. When sugar starts to melt, use a wooden spoon to stir. It will be clumpy at first, but just keep stirring. Eventually it will melt completely and become smooth.
3. You can stop stirring once sugar is completely melted. Continue to boil until it reaches a deep amber color or registers 350°F on a candy thermometer.
4. Cut up butter to pieces and add to the pan. Sauce will bubble. Stir with the wooden spoon until butter is completely melted and blended into the sauce.
5. Remove from heat. Slowly and carefully, add the half & half. Sauce will start to bubble again. Again, stir it down with the spoon.
6. Return pan to heat and boil for another minute.
6. Add vanilla extract and salt. Stir to combine. Remove from heat.
7. Allow sauce to cool before using. It will thicken considerably once it’s cooled down.

This sauce makes a cute little gift placed in a jar, so make lots and start giving it away!

caramel sauce jar

Or better yet, make it into something decadent, like this thing…..

decadent

I hope Justine likes this with her tea.

Share this:

  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window)
  • Click to print (Opens in new window)
  • Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window)
  • More
  • Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pocket (Opens in new window)

Like this:

Like Loading...

Christmas Tarts

04 Thursday Dec 2014

Posted by Angie | Fiesta Friday in Baking, Fiesta Friday, Food Photography & Styling, Recipe

≈ 110 Comments

Tags

Christmas, Christmas tarts, dessert, fresh fruit tarts, grapes, pastry cream, recipe, sweet pastry crust, tarts

Christmas Tarts


Fresh fruit tart

It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas…..

All around the house….

And the Christmas tree is up….

Continue reading →

Share this:

  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window)
  • Click to print (Opens in new window)
  • Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window)
  • More
  • Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pocket (Opens in new window)

Like this:

Like Loading...
← Older posts
  • View FiestaFriday.net’s profile on Facebook
  • View angie_fiestafriday’s profile on Instagram
  • View FiestaFriday’s profile on Pinterest

Follow my recipe site: Fiesta Friday

Fiesta Friday #469

Fiesta Friday #469

January is almost over… let’s collectively breathe a sigh of relief. It’s a tough month to go through, what with the foul weather, short daylight, bleak landscapes, etc. My cooking creativity is waning under these conditions. I’m losing my cooking mojo, gasp! No, no, no… I’m just being dramatic. I hope that’ll never happen. But […]

Fiesta Friday #468

Fiesta Friday #468

Lunar New Year 2023 will begin this coming Sunday and I will mark the occasion by making bao buns. I served this non-traditional Build-Your-Own Bao Bun Tray last year and my family and I had so much fun. Everybody raved about it! So I thought… why not repeat it since it was such a success? […]

Fiesta Friday #467

Fiesta Friday #467

During the holiday break, I binge-watched all kinds of shows and movies. Many were enjoyable (Riches, Wednesday, Cook At All Costs, Emily in Paris, The Summer I Turned Pretty, Top Gun Maverick, etc). A few were not and therefore, never finished and quickly forgotten. Then there were some that were so-so. They started out full […]

Fiesta Friday #466

Fiesta Friday #466

Let’s talk about the perennial New Year’s resolutions – eating healthier, exercising more, yadda yadda… Everybody makes them, right, myself included. And I have every intention of keeping them, of course. In reality, though, it’s not as easy as it seems. There are so many factors out there, like being lazy and disorganized for one, […]

Fiesta Friday #465

Fiesta Friday #465

2023 will be here in just a couple of days! Shocking, isn’t it?! I’m looking forward to my annual “lucky foods” feast – in quotation marks because obviously, it’s just a superstition, which admittedly I mindlessly accept. In reality, though, I truly enjoy a meal of collard greens and black-eyed peas so I’m more than […]

Recent Posts

  • Merger Announcement
  • Happy Friday!
  • The Best Of Fiesta Friday #100 Unveiled
  • A Cake For You!
  • Happy Happy!
<a href="https://thenovicegardener.files.wordpress.com/2014/03/fiesta-friday-badge-button-i-party.jpg" > <img src="https://thenovicegardener.files.wordpress.com/2014/03/fiesta-friday-badge-button-i-party.jpg?w=175" alt="Fiesta Friday Badge Button I party @" width="175" height="175" class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-4941" /></a>

Fiesta Friday Buttons

<a href="https://thenovicegardener.files.wordpress.com/2014/03/fiesta-friday-badge-button-i-was-featured1.jpg" > <img src="https://thenovicegardener.files.wordpress.com/2014/03/fiesta-friday-badge-button-i-was-featured1.jpg?w=175" alt="Fiesta Friday Badge Button I was featured" width="175" height="175" class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-4942" /></a>

Categories

Archives

In Honor of Selma

Create a free website or blog at WordPress.com.

Privacy & Cookies: This site uses cookies. By continuing to use this website, you agree to their use.
To find out more, including how to control cookies, see here: Cookie Policy
  • Follow Following
    • The Novice Gardener
    • Join 54 other followers
    • Already have a WordPress.com account? Log in now.
    • The Novice Gardener
    • Customize
    • Follow Following
    • Sign up
    • Log in
    • Report this content
    • View site in Reader
    • Manage subscriptions
    • Collapse this bar
%d bloggers like this: