Boston Baked Bean Brittle

Every holiday season I make a batch of nut brittle. Okay, okay, more like two or three. Hee, hee. It's one of our favorite sweet treats. I often opt for a mixed nut and cardamom version from Better Homes and Gardens. It's so delish. This year, I was inspired to do something a little bit different - think outside the box, if you will. So I went all Boston baked beans on my usual recipe.

Isn't the color of this Boston Baked Bean Brittle just gorgeous?

This recipe cooks up in the microwave. Make sure to use a microwave safe bowl and work quickly as the candy hardens within seconds.

You'll want to have all of the ingredients for this Boston Baked Bean Brittle measured out and ready to go.

You'll also want to measure out all of your ingredients and have them ready to go. The whole process will take about 8 minutes and you'll want everything to be on hand to dump and stir.

This Boston Baked Bean Brittle needs to be spread as thinly as possible.

Make sure to have your baking sheet already lined as well. You'll need to pour the brittle out onto your pan very quickly and spread as thinly as possible. Thick pieces are a no-go with this brittle. It needs to be very thin to avoid breaking anyone's teeth. Trust me. I had a few thick pieces in my batch. It was no bueno.

Boston Baked bean Brittle, you shard perfectly.

Once the brittle is cool and hard, break into shards by hand. Isn't the color just gorgeous?




Happy candy making, folks! See y'all next year! 😉 

Boston Baked Bean Brittle

INGREDIENTS
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup light corn syrup
1/8 tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp salt
1 1/2 cups Boston baked beans
1 Tbsp butter
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp vanilla extract

DIRECTIONS
1. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicon liner. Measure out all of your ingredients and have them ready to go.
2. In a microwave safe bowl, whisk together the sugar, salt, and cinnamon. Add the corn syrup and microwave on high for 3 minutes.
3. Stir and microwave another 3 minutes.
4. Add nuts and butter and microwave for 2 to 3 minutes more.
5. Quickly stir in the baking soda and vanilla and immediately pour out onto your prepared baking sheet making sure to spread as thinly as possible.
6. Allow to cool and harden. Then break into shards.

Sparkling Christmas Sangria

I'm no mixologist, but I make a pretty mean Sparkling Christmas Sangria. It's time for a holiday partay y'all!





This recipe makes a big batch, but it can easily be halved for a party of four.




First, muddle slices of red apple, green apple, pear, and halved cranberries. Aren't the colors just gorgeous?

Mix in a bottle of red wine and a bottle of 100% cranberry juice. Cover and refrigerate overnight for the flavors to meld.




When you're ready to serve, mix in some spiced rum and some simple syrup to taste. The ratios I use are in the recipe below. I make my mixture a little sweeter than I like it so that it balances out when I add the club soda. If you don't like yours sparkling, mix in less simple syrup.

For a big party batch I mix up my preliminary wine mixture in a large plastic pitcher and then pour it into a pretty drink dispenser before adding in the simple syrup, rum, and club soda. For a half batch, I just use my favorite glass pitcher and everything fits nicely into it.

Merry Christmas folks!

Sparkling Christmas Sangria
(serves 10 to 12 people)

Ingredients
1 red apple, sliced
1 green apple, sliced
1 pear, sliced
1 cup cranberries, halved
1 bottle red wine
1 64 oz bottle 100% cranberry juice
2 cups sugar
2 cups water
6 oz spiced rum or to taste
1.5 liter bottle club soda or sparkling water, cold

DIRECTIONS
1. Dump fruit into a large pitcher and muddle, or smash up, with a wooden spoon.
2. Mix in the wine and cranberry juice, cover, and refrigerate overnight.
3. Make a simple syrup by heating the sugar and water in a small pot over medium low heat, stirring often, until sugar is completely dissolved. Pour into a sealable container and refrigerate overnight as well.
3. Pour sangria mixture into your drink dispenser along with the fruit.
4. Mix in the rum and about 8 oz of the simple syrup.
5. Pour the club soda down the side of the container to preserve as many bubbles as possible. Stir carefully.
6. Taste and add in more simple syrup and rum to taste.

* This recipe is easily halved for a smaller dinner party and should fit nicely into a pretty glass pitcher.

Paper Poinsettia Ornaments

The boys and I have Christmas fever. We can barely focus on our school work these days. Luckily, I had planned out this Christmas ornament craft ahead of time. We make homemade Christmas tree ornaments every year - usually out of scrapbook paper. This year we're making these gorgeous Paper Poinsettia Ornaments, both for our tree and to give away as gifts. The boys are so excited to give them out, and working on them a little each day is scratching that Christmas itch - along with copious amounts of Christmas music and the eating of many a Christmas cookie. 😊

Our Paper Poinsettia Ornaments turned out fabulous!

We mixed and matched different shades and patterns of red paper to really make the ornaments pop.




Here's what you'll need:
several sheets of various red colored and patterned paper (one scrapbook sized page will make about 2 flowers)
a printer
a pencil for tracing (see note below template)
sissors
a glue stick
red and/or yellow pipe cleaners (1 per flower)
red curling or mylar ribbon (6 to 8 inches per flower)
glue gun (optional)

Start by printing and cutting the template below. Trace the cutouts onto the back of your pretty red paper and cut 'em all out. Each poinsettia will require 6 large petals, 5 to 6 small petals, and one circular base.

For each petal, cut an inch up from the bottom, put a generous amount of glue on the back of one end and glue it over the other end to create a pucker at the bottom. Hold that pucker closed for several seconds to secure while also bending the petal back at the middle. Poinsettias are an open flower and you'll want the petals to tilt out instead of in. Allow the petals to dry.




To the base, glue a six inch piece of curling ribbon to make a loop for hanging. Let dry.

If you have smaller children, you'll want to do this preliminary glue prep for the petals and bases beforehand. It's a little tedious.




To prep the center of the flower, cut a pipe cleaner in half and then in half again to get 4 equal pieces. Curl in the ends of each piece. Then, twist all four pieces together at the middle and separate out the little tendrils.




To put the flowers together (this is the fun part), glue the large petals, one at a time, onto the ribbon side of the base overlapping them a little as you go.




Now glue the smaller petals in the center, also, overlapping them a little as you go.




Glue a pipe cleaner center smack dab in the middle. This is where you may want to use a glue gun if you have one. Pipe cleaners need a lot of glue to stay secure.

These paper Poinsettia Ornaments turned our little fake Christmas tree (we call it our "humble" tree) into something spectacular. Aren't they just gorgeous on the tree?

Here's that template:




Note: If you're using 8 1/2 x 11 inch colored paper, you can load the paper right into your printer, making sure to print the template on the back side, and then cut out the petals for use. No tracing! If you're using scrapbook sized paper, you'll need to print out the template (card stock is best) and cut out 1 large petal, 1 small petal, and the base to use for tracing.

Happy Christmas crafting!