Fudge and Forgotten Delights

Do you like to do lots of baking for the holidays? Just a few family favorites each year? We shared a couple of fudge recipes on the show today.

A favorite that a listener called in last year is Milky Way fudge, made with Milky Way candy bars. Very YUMMY and very easy!

Milky Way Fudge

3 regular size Milky Way candy bars

1 can sweetened condensed milk

1 (12 oz.) pkg. chocolate chips

Place all ingredients in microwave-safe bowl. Melt until smooth. Pour into greased 8x8" glass dish. Chill until firm.

This recipe was also shared on today's program. It would be a festive touch to your holiday dessert platter with the red cranberries...

Cranberry Nut Fudge

1 tsp. butter

1 (16 oz.) can milk chocolate frosting

1 (12 oz.) pkg. milk chocolate chips

1 (6 oz.) pkg. dried cranberries

1/2 c. chopped pecans

LIne an 8" square dish with foil and grease the foil with butter; set aside. In heavy saucepan, combine frosting and chocolate chips. cook and stir over medium low heat until chips are melted. Stir in cranberries and nuts. Pour into prepared pan. Refrigerate until firm, about 2 hours. Using foil, lift fudge out of pan. Discard foil; cut fudge into 1" squares. Store in refrigerator. Yield: 2 pounds.

In the Book Nook segment today we spoke with Lesley M.M. Blume, author of "LET'S BRING BACK-AN ENCYCLOPEDIA OF FORGOTTEN YET DELIGHTFUL, CHIC, USEFUL, CURIOUS AND OTHERWISE COMMENDABLE THINGS FROM TIMES GONE BY". It's a whimsical and beautifully illustrated collection of objects, recipes, words, and even people that she feels should be re-introduced...

As I read through the book, I easily flagged about two dozen things. For instance: door-to-door peddlers (I remember the Fuller Brush Man and the Minnesota Woolen Mills rep who stopped at our house once every six weeks or so). Good Cracker Jack prizes (I liked to collect all the circus train cars). Homely Christmas Trees. (No matter what our tree really looked like, Dad always proclaimed it was "The prettiest tree we ever had!")

There are so many more items that will trigger your memories. A fun read, and a great gift to give or receive.

Showers, Snails and Special Memories

We're having a heat wave today, however the weather on Saturday was wonderful.

I enjoyed spending time with my oldest daugther at a baby shower for one of her high school friends. Sarah lives in Michigan, so I don't get to see her that often. It was a wonderful day to sit outside, and catch up on the busy lives of her friends (and their moms). The mom-to-be received some wonderful gifts (she knows it's going to be a girl). What a fun relaxing way to spend a Saturday afternoon....

One of my favorite baby items- the hooded terry towels. Babies outgrow them way too fast!

We played a couple of games and I learned that most babies are born on Tuesdays, in the month of September (all those January snowstorms) and the month that records the least number of births is November!

Today's Quote:
"Babies are God's way of showing us that the world should go on."

Today is National Escargot Day.
I shared an Easy Garlic Escargot recipe on the show today.
Do you have a "snail" story? The only time I tasted escargot was in 8th grade "Home Ec" class. We had to plan and prepare a meal for our teachers. I do remember that spaghetti and meatballs, French bread, and a green salad were on the menu as well as escargot. I think we roasted or baked them. I have no idea why we chose "snails" as our appetizer but I do recall that I thought they were pretty good-if a little "slippery".

Yesterday was National Taffy Day.

My Mom has a recipe for homemade taffy that we used to make on snowy winter days, usually after a morning of skating at the local ice rink, or building forts outside in the snow. She would mix together all the ingredients, bring the syrup to a boil, drop a bit into a cup of cold water and if it formed a ball we'd be ready to grease our hands with butter and pully the candy until it turned white. I was always amazed at how my Mom knew when the taffy was just the "right" temperature. We shaped it into ropes, cut it into pieces and then wrapped the pieces in waxed paper. That is if we didn't eat it all first! Six hungry helpers made for not too many leftovers!

In today's book nook segment we talked with hematologist/oncologist Dr. Christopher Flowers about Cancer Survivor Day coming up on June 7th. -More about that later.