Gingersnaps

I made these for my cookie exchange this year -

Gingersnaps
3/4 C. Crisco
1 C. white sugar
1 egg
1/4 C. molasses
2 C. flour
1 tsp. ginger
2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. cinnamon

extra white sugar for rolling

Cream Crisco and sugar together.  Add egg and molasses and mix well.  Add the dry ingredients and mix together.  Form 1 teaspoon dough into small ball by rolling in hands.  Then, roll in white sugar to cover entire surface.  Bake at 350 degrees for 12 minutes or until tops are slightly rounded, crackly and lightly brown.  **I have a gas oven and found that I needed to bake them at 300 degrees for 9 minutes.

These pics are when I was making them for my cookie exchange and I had tripled the above recipe.  It all fit in my KitchenAid - barely!!!

The dough --

Rolled in balls on the cookie sheet --

Rolled in sugar then put in the oven --

Yum!!!

I saw this recipe on my Yahoo Christmas group and it was sent in by Margaret who said it was her grandmother's recipe.  They are a crispy cookie -- Mr. Cardigan would put some in a sandwich bag to take to lunch and put a half piece of bread with it to soften it.  You can add that to your storage container, too, if it gets to the point they need a little softening.  I like mine crispy though -- that is what a Gingersnap is, isn't it???

I guess this is boring Lucy!!!

I am linking to Schue Love's Christmas Recipe Linky Party.  Check out all the great recipes by clicking here.

Simple Ornament w/Filler Decoration

A very easy and simple decoration to make for your home or to give as gifts -

Find the right size mirror for the ornament you plan to use.  Once I had all my mirrors then I would coordinate an ornament with a filler/spray that I either had bought for this project or from my stash -

I had found these mirrors at our regional craft chain - Pat Catan's.  This size is nice with the scalloped edge and the felt underneath -

I used my pliers from beading to remove the top -

Next, I used my hot glue gun and placed a dab in the middle -

Immediately secure the ornament to the mirror -

Find your filler - cut to length.  I then used a tiny bit of glue from the hot glue gun on each side of the opening and put the filler inside the ornament making sure that the edges hit the glue to keep it all secure -

And, then I continued making more -

I made these to give as gifts for my Cookie Exchange (except for the silver glitter ornament that I kept for myself -- you can see how I displayed it in the top pic in this blog).  I have a couple mirrors left and will make a couple more to give as gifts.  I think that I might pick up more mirrors as these are cute to make up -- maybe for other holidays -- use red ornaments with coordinating fillers for Valentine's Day, etc. --

Lucy on the other hand is really taking a liking to my little Chef Santa  -- she just loves food!!!!!

I am joining the Holiday Crafts Party at Centsational Girl.  Check out some great holiday crafts by clicking here.

'Wigged Out Cookie Exchange'

I have been hosting a cookie exchange for 13 years now!!  This is my tradition that lets me know the holiday season has begun.  This year we had a theme - 'Wigged Out Cookie Exchange'.

It begins with the invitation -

I was so excited to see how everyone was going to look.  Here is our group photo -

Pretty good group, don't you think?  I just had to pose with everyone --

The food was yummy.  We had pulled pork sliders, cole slaw, deviled eggs, cheesy potatoes, salami rollups, and much more --

I gave everyone a little handmade gift -

Just look at all the cookies!!!  I made Gingersnaps this year.  We each were able to take home one from each group (except our own) -

I have talked about my great girlfriends - the YaYa's.  Here we are with our wigs -

Lucy has not been very sociable lately.  I am tracing it back to being woken very early for some gals coming to the Royal Wedding back in April.  She has not been courteous to visitors since then.  She made the tree skirt her domain during the cookie exchange and anyone who walked past her she kept an eye on and made a little growl and sometimes would swipe at their feet.  Even with me.  She was perfectly fine when we were all just sitting and eating - that's when I took this photo.  I think she was defending her home -- and was she ever tired and was so glad when we were eating so she could nap --

I am linking up to Keeping the Christmas Spirit Alive 365's Holiday Traditions Linky Party.  Please click here to get plenty of Christmas ideas.

Crockpot Roast Beef

Great meal during this busy time of the year!!!!!  (Mr. Cardigan and I had this for Christmas Eve a few years ago!)

Crockpot Roast Beef


3-4 lb. thawed, boneless roast
1 onion, sliced

Layer bottom of crockpot with the sliced onions.  Place roast in crockpot on top of the onions.  Combine the sauce and pour over beef.

Sauce:
1 oz. pkg. Au Jus mix
.7 oz. pkg. Good Seasons Italian salad dressing mix
1 - 10.5 can beef broth
1/2 soup can water

Cover and cook on low for 8 hours.


Here are the ingredients -

Roast in crockpot on top of the sliced onions -

The sauce -

Sauce poured over the roast -

Roast all finished -

The roast is perfect served with mashed potatoes -

In trying to get some pics of Lucy -- she wanted me to get as close as I could -

Maybe that was too close!!!

I am linking to Design by Gollum's Foodie Friday.  See all the great recipes by clicking here.

Colorful Christmas Mantel

After years of having all my snowmen on the mantel -- I wanted something different this year.  A few of the items I had, but most of it is new this year and very affordable, too.  The candles are battery operated and are from Sam's Club -

The wreath I had and it was from Pier One many years ago -

The presents, large green ornaments, and both the white and burgundy poinsettia garlands were new from Menards this year -

The bottle brush trees I have had and the white tree fillers I thought would be nice here since I hadn't used them yet -

I really like this look and am glad that I switched things up this year -

Love these candles - there is a 6 hour timer on them, too --

Little shelf next to the mantel -

The extended look with my Mittens & Skates tree in the corner -

I hope that you have enjoyed this year's mantel -

Lucy is enjoying the decorating this year.  She has discovered great uses for the totes that appear for a couple days to unpack in our home -

I am linking to Southern Hospitality's Merry Mantels.  Please look at all the beautiful mantel decorations by clicking here.

I am also linking to Home Stories A to Z - Christmas Mantel Link Party.  You can click here to see more beautifully decorated Christmas mantels.