The Geminid Meteor Shower made its appearance last night. I was grateful for a super-clear night. We all bundled up and went out into the backyard to watch. The sky was clear of clouds and the stars were twinkling everywhere. Occasionally a jet with flashing lights would crawl across the black velvet. And then we started seeing the meteors. Just now and then. Shooting “stars” streaking down. It was amazing.
We came in after a while and settled in to bed. I found out this morning that the kids sneaked back outside to watch and were out until one-thirty this morning! They were both so excited about how many meteors fell as the night wore on.
I’m just amazed that they didn’t fight and wake up the neighbors!
I love that we are able to make such sweet memories as a family. We have so many “remember when?” moments!
Another memory that we share as a family is cooking. We love to get in the kitchen and make something.
Yesterday I made a batch of Crock Pot Candy. It’s just what it sounds like. Candy made in the crock pot. I just layered everything in, glanced at the clock and left it to make itself. Four hours later, it was time to stir and start spooning. While I was dropping spoonfuls of chocolate into waiting mini muffin liners, Elizabeth was making popsicles – something she really enjoys doing. She always starts with a base of whipping cream and sugar and then adds different things. The best part is that they don’t freeze solid like ice. They’re more of an ice cream consistency. Yesterday, she added caramel extract – and the popsicles were yummy!
I love that both kids love to experiment in the kitchen. My mama always let me try new things and create new recipes. It’s always been fun.
This recipe is not an original. I can remember my mother-in-law making a crock pot candy nearly five years ago. When I saw Trisha Yearwood making it on her show a couple of years ago, I remembered enjoying my mother-in-law’s version and decided to give it a try. I changed a few things to make the recipe mine. You can do that, too of course. A recipe should always just be a jumping-off point!
Crock Pot Candy
- 1 pound of dry roasted, salted peanuts
- 1 pound of dry roasted, salted cashews
- 2 1/2 pounds of white almond bark
- 1 12-ounce bag of milk chocolate chips
- 4 ounces of Bakers semi-sweet baking chocolate, broken into pieces
Layer in a crock pot: nuts, almond bark, chocolate chips, and baking chocolate. DO NOT STIR! Cook on low for four hours.
Stir with a big spoon until everything is mixed together. Drop by spoonfuls into mini muffin liners. Allow to cool completely and harden.
Well Duh #1: Use any combination of your favorite nuts. Just use 2 pounds. I love cashews, so I used cashews and peanuts. Because it’s all going to get stirred together, I bought the cashew pieces. It was cheaper than the whole ones.
Well Duh #2: My almond bark was in a plastic tray like ice cubes, so it was already separated. If yours is in a solid block, you’ll need to use a knife to cut it into squares or chunks.
Well Duh #3: The reason you don’t stir it is because the layer of nuts keeps the chocolate from burning on the bottom. Make sure the nuts are the bottom layer!
Well Duh #4: The first time I made this last year, it burned and I had to throw the whole batch out. I realized that one of my crock pots cooks at a higher temperature than the other one. I switched to the “cooler” one and it turned out fine.
Well Duh #5: When it’s time to stir, stir from the bottom to make sure you get all the nuts combined.
Well Duh #6: I put my muffin liners on big cookie sheets, so they were already separated and ready to fill.
Well Duh #7: This recipe makes about 125 pieces of candy! I filled each liner with about a half a spoonful of chocolate. I was just using a regular tablespoon – not a measuring spoon. More of a soup spoon.
I made this in the hopes that I could get ahead on my holiday baking and goody making. I can already see that I’m going to have to make another batch. Every time I go into the kitchen, more of the candy is gone! It really is yummy. I can’t blame them! A perfect little bite-sized nugget of deliciousness!
Another sweet memory to add to our “remember when?” list.
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