New Years Eve

New Years Eve

Aimee and Chris invited us up to their house for New Years Eve.  Their parties are always fun, so of course we were in!  Chace already had plans to go to Raymond’s house for a party.  But, they didn’t invite any girls so I asked him who he was planning to kiss at midnight.  He just said Awwww mom!  I made the Three Cheese Garden Pizza from Pampered Chef.  It is so good, and that is coming a non-veggie lover, so it must mean something.  I am that person that needs a thunk on the forehead when I order my grilled chicken sandwich minus the lettuce and tomato!  I first had this pizza at a Pampered Chef party and was thoroughly impressed.  Nobody in my family really likes it that much, so I never make it unless we are going somewhere.  Here is the recipe if you’d like to try it yourself.

Three Cheese Garden Pizza
1 pkg. (10 oz.) refrigerated pizza crust
2 garlic cloves, pressed
1 C. (4 oz.) shredded mozzarella cheese
1 C. (4 oz.) shredded Cheddar cheese
1 medium tomato, sliced
1 tsp. dried Italian seasoning
1 medium zucchini, sliced
1 small onion, sliced
1 C. sliced fresh mushrooms, (I subbed squash)
1/4 C. (1 oz.) shredded Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 400ºF.
Place pizza dough on flat stone of your choice. Roll dough to fit stone. Bake 5-7 minutes or until lightly browned; remove from oven. Spread garlic onto crust; sprinkle with mozzarella and Cheddar cheeses. Top with tomato and Italian seasoning. Layer zucchini, onion and mushrooms over tomato; sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. Bake 15-18 minutes or until cheese is golden brown and bubbly. Cut into wedges; serve warm.

Also, before Christmas I had seen a recipe for Red Velvet Cookies in the newspaper at my Mom’s house.  I didn’t cut it out like I meant to, so I googled it when I got home.  I found a different one, Black and White Red Velvet Cookies, that looked yummy and tried it last night.  They were not the prettiest cookies around, my chocolate wasn’t nice and smooth like it should have been, but they were tasty anyway.  Lael only liked the white side, so she kept bringing me the other half to eat – just what I needed!!!  You should try this recipe too!

Red Velvet Black and White Cookies
Makes 10 large cookies, (It actually made 15 for me, and I think they were rather large.)

1 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 Tablespoon cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
5 Tablespoons butter, at room temperature
3/4 cup sugar
1 egg
1 Tablespoon red food coloring
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup buttermilk

For Vanilla Glaze
2 cups powdered sugar
1 Tablespoon light corn syrup
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

For Chocolate Glaze
4 ounces semi-sweet chocolate
3 Tablespoons butter
1 Tablespoon light corn syrup

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper, or grease and flour the pan well so the cookies don’t stick. In a medium bowl, sift together flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt.

Using a mixer, 5 Tablespoons of butter with the granulated sugar until fluffy, about 3 minutes. Beat in the egg, food coloring and 1 teaspoon vanilla. Beat in the flour mixture alternately with the buttermilk until smooth.

Place 1/4-cup scoops of batter 2 inches apart of the prepared baking sheet, spread the batter out with a butter knife, so they’re not completely flat but look like the pictures below. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out dry, 12 to 15 minutes. Let the cookies sit for 5 minutes, then transfer to a rack to cool.

To make the glazes-
In a bowl, whisk together the powdered sugar, 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract, 1 tablespoon of corn syrup and 2 tablespoons hot water, until smooth. That’s your vanilla glaze.

In a seperate bowl, melt the butter and the chocolate in a microwave for about 1 minute. Add the corn syrup and stir until smooth. That’s your chocolate glaze!

Once the cookies are cooled, face them all bottom side up of a clean surface. Spread half of the cookie with vanilla glaze and the other half with chocolate glaze. Refrigerate for 20 minutes to set.

Anyway, the party was a success – we had way too much food of course, but better to have too much than too little!  The kids almost made it til midnight – they started dropping off about 11:00 – waaaaayyyy past Caeden’s usual time to pass out! I’m not sure who thought up the idea of party horns, but we might need to rethink that for next year!



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