Category: From My Kitchen

Posted in From My Kitchen

Easy Christmas Appetizers for a Festive Holiday Party

Posted on by Reluctant Retiree

These easy Christmas appetizers are the perfect way to kick off your holiday party. This collection includes our best recipes for festive dips, skewers, bites and more.

Need Christmas party food ideas in a pinch? Kick off your festivities with these easy and impressive Christmas appetizers that will wow any crowd. Whether it’s Christmas Eve snacks or one-bite holiday snacks for an impromptu get-together, we’ve got you covered.

We’ll offer all the classic options for Christmas appetizers and party foods, from elegant bite-sized nibbles to crowd-pleasing dips and savory pastries. If you’re looking for more holiday inspiration, check out these ideas for Christmas dinner and easy Christmas desserts, plus the Taste of Home team’s complete Christmas dinner planning guide.

Taste of Home

Posted in From My Kitchen

Best Fudge Recipes for Every Occasion

Posted on by Reluctant Retiree

Fudge comes in all shapes, colors and textures, but our 30 best fudge recipes have earned high marks (and rave reviews) for their best-in-class flavors. When the holidays roll around, be sure you’re stocked with these festive favorites.

Fudge is one of those indulgent recipes that’s surprisingly easy to make. There’s a reason you’ll find it at bake sales, tucked into gift tins or on holiday dessert tables alongside barks and brittles. A traditional fudge is made with sugar, milk (or cream), butter and chocolate, but easy recipes rely on shortcuts like canned condensed milk. No matter how it’s made, fudge becomes more than just a quick treat when the texture is right—creamy, firm and smooth enough to slice. It’s so good, you can’t just have one bite!

This collection of easy homemade fudge recipes includes technique-driven fudges alongside no-bake fudge recipes made with just two ingredients and a microwave. We included options that layer in flavor and texture with warm spices, toasted nuts and marshmallows. You’ll also find a Mackinac-style version inspired by classic candy counters. There are plenty of flavors to satisfy every sweet tooth, from raspberry to peanut butter, marshmallow, peppermint and butterscotch.

Whether it’s prepared as an easy Christmas dessert or packaged with creative wrapping ideas for homemade gifts, these recipes are timeless favorites for whenever your fudge cravings strike.

Taste of Home

Posted in From My Kitchen

Feeding the Frasers: Family Favorite Recipes Made to Feed the Five-Time CrossFit Games Champion, Mat Fraser

Posted on by Reluctant Retiree

Based on Sammy Moniz’s popular Instagram page, Feeding the Frasers is a book that any CrossFit aficionado—or just someone curious about how to cook with whole foods without sacrificing the world—will want to get their hands on.
Filled with 100 terrific recipes of high quality delicious food that promote balance, togetherness, indulgence, and athletic recovery.
Sammy Moniz is well known in the CrossFit community as an activist, and she is also the wife of five time champion Mat Fraser, the winningest athlete in CrossFit history and one of the most beloved.
This is her cookbook where she shares the secrets behind feeding the greatest champion of the sport.

Posted in From My Kitchen

Maple Cookies

Posted on by Reluctant Retiree

I love oatmeal raisin cookies and gingersnaps as much as the next gal, but I like to look for cookie recipes that are a bit out of the ordinary too. Show up at a party with a batch of maple-glazed maple cookies and you’ll put smiles on a lot of faces! Plus, they’re a gorgeous bake. The maple glaze—made with a combo of butter, confectioners’ sugar and maple syrup—helps set the cookies apart, both visually and in terms of flavor.

Maple Cookie Ingredients

  • Butter: Either salted or unsalted butter will work in this maple cookie recipe. Use a brand with a nice, rich dairy flavor. To add an extra Vermont-y touch, use the butter that Ina Garten loves.
  • Sugars: This recipe calls for three types of sugar: granulated sugar, brown sugar and confectioners’ sugar. Granulated sugar is the standby for use in baked goods, brown sugar adds a delicious molasses flavor, and confectioners’ sugar is perfect for smooth homemade frosting and icing.
  • Eggs: If you have access to local or free-range eggs, those are always a good bet for baking.
  • Maple flavoring: For the best flavor, seek out natural rather than imitation maple flavoring. If you can’t find maple flavoring, real vanilla is a fine substitute, although you could also use real maple syrup.
  • Flour: There are many different types of flour, and for this maple cookie recipe, you’ll need regular old all-purpose.
  • Baking soda: Baking soda is often included in cookie recipes because it promotes browning.
  • Salt: In desserts, adding enough salt is crucial to achieving a balanced flavor, so don’t be shy.
  • White baking chips: White chocolate chips are creamy and mild, pairing well with lots of different flavors. Check out the maple cookie recipe variations below for other baking chips that are a great match for this treat.
  • Pecans: South meets north when you mix pecans and maple syrup, and the results are delicious.
  • Maple syrup: Maple syrup is made by simmering sap from sugar maple trees until it has reduced and caramelized. The flavor is unlike any of the imitation maple pancake syrups, so make sure you’re buying the real thing.

Taste of Home

Find more recipes like this on my companion blog, “Good Food, Good Meat, Good God, Let’s Eat!”

Posted in From My Kitchen

Chili Nachos

Posted on by Reluctant Retiree

A recipe for chili nachos is excellent when the weather turns brisk and you need something fast and filling. A mashup of traditional chili con carne and the standard queso nacho dip, our excellent chili filled with ground beef, pinto beans, spices and creamy Velveeta easily feeds a crowd.

Serve this cheese chili nachos recipe over crunchy corn or tortilla chips, on grilled hot dogs or in a bowl with cornbread. Kick up or tone down the spice, or add vegetables to make it your own. Anything goes! Cheese chili nachos is an ideal game-day potluck recipe—just keep the chili warm in a slow cooker for weekend tailgating. Or, prep chili nachos for movie nights in the backyard, barbecues and other fun gatherings.

Ingredients for Chili Nachos

  • Ground beef: Use the type of ground beef you prefer. After browning the meat, drain it well so you don’t end up with a greasy chili base.
  • Tomato sauce: Three cans of tomato sauce give chili nachos a wonderfully saucy base with a hint of sweetness.
  • Pinto beans: Our cheese chili nachos recipe uses two cans of pinto beans. Pinto beans are a bit plumper and creamier in the center than other chili beans like kidney beans.
  • Canned diced tomatoes and green chiles: This made-in-Texas ingredient is a chili must-have. Rotel is the standard brand many cooks use, but you’ll likely see multiple brands of this popular canned item at the store.
  • Envelopes of chili mix: Not to be confused with the spice blend “chili powder,” chili seasoning mix combines spices made specifically for chili and similar dishes. It may contain a thickener like flour or cornstarch to help thicken your chili, and it has a concentrated amount of herbs and spices meant to flavor an entire batch of chili.
  • Velveeta: You could very well call this recipe cheese chili nachos due to the plentiful amount of Velveeta. It’s the not-so-secret ingredient that gives this chili its irresistible cheesy, creamy, luscious texture and consistency.
  • Heavy whipping cream: Along with Velveeta, heavy whipping cream adds a creamy richness and velvety feel to this chili.
  • Corn chips: Corn chips are the “nachos” in this chili nachos recipe. Salty and full of sweet corn flavor, corn chips make an awesome crunch against the smoothness of the creamy chili.
  • Optional toppings: While optional, sour cream, sliced jalapeno and lime wedges tie all the flavors of our chili together for the ultimate finish. Skip the jalapeno if you don’t need the extra heat.

Taste of Home

Find more recipes like this on my companion blog, “Good Food, Good Meat, Good God, Let’s Eat!”