Easter Bird's Nest Treats

You've probably seen or heard of these wonderful treats before!  Perhaps you know them as "haystack cookies" or something similar. 


This recipe might not be new to you but they were new to me when I made them for a recipe swap last Friday!  I never had much reason to bake cute and fun things until I became a mom and joined a group where we exchange recipes each month.  Now I'm always on the lookout for new and creative ways to make cooking more fun! 


I opted to use Chinese noodles (chow mein) and chocolate chips for my version of this recipe.  But there are many other ways you can vary this dessert.  In fact, check out my pal Lara at Recipe Shoebox (whom I admire and adore) - she just posted her verison of these bird's nest delectables yesterday!  She used pretzels and butterscotch chips. 


Have fun with it and make it your own way.  Here's my version if you want to copy it:





Easter Bird's Nest Treats

(Makes about 20 cookies)

1 bag (about 3 cups) of Chinese Chow Mein Noodles, such as La Choy
1 bag (10 to 12 oz) of chocolate chips (I used Ghiradelli all natural semi sweet chocolate)
1 cup of creamy, all natural peanut butter
About 60 jelly beans (3 per nest), mini chocolate eggs or candy-coated almonds


Lightly grease two muffin tin containers with cooking spray.  In a medium size microwave-safe bowl, place the chocolate chips and peanut butter.  Heat on high until the chocolate has melted.  Stop at about 45 seconds; stir it.  Then heat for another 15 to 30 seconds, if needed.  Be sure the chocolate and peanut butter are blended together.  Stir in the chow mein noodles until completely coated.  Drop by handfuls or spoonfuls into the greased muffin tins.  The muffin tins will give these Easter "nests" their circular shape.  (Or you can simply drop onto waxed paper and shape the "nests" yourself by hand).


If you'd like the "eggs" to stick to the nest, then place three jelly beans (or almonds or other candy) in the center of each "nest" before placing them in the fridge to harden.  Or you can wait to add the "eggs" on top later.


Place the pan full of "nests" in the fridge.  Chill them for 2 to 4 hours to be sure they have hardened.  Keep them there until ready to serve. 


For even more fun and dramatic effects, you can place a Peep shaped like a bird on top of the "nest" full of eggs.  Let your kids help you with this fun and easy recipe!  They are really adorable. 





I'm thinking that these would be great to make in the falltime as well.  Instead of being "Easter bird's nests," they could easily be turned into pumpkin haystacks.  I could use my mini bread pan and shape them into rectagular haystacks and place candy pumpkins on top.  Won't that be cute!?   I better bookmark that idea and save it for later!  


Does your child or someone you know have peanut allergies?   No Worries!  You can still make these!  Just substitute marshmallows in the place of peanut butter. 

A friend of my daughter's cannot have any nuts. So I made one especially for her using marshmallows.  I also substituted pretzels in the place of chow mein noodes.

Here's what her nut-free Easter nest looked like:   





Are you making any special Easter treats?  Do you have any great foods lined up for the holiday? 

I will be returning from a vacation; therefore, I think we'll be having takeout or eating from the freezer this year for Easter. 

Irish Cream Cake Balls (And Happy St. Patrick's Day!)

I am adding this bonus recipe in honor of St. Patrick's Day.  I'm not Irish (to my knowledge) but I have friends who are and have a lot of pride in their heritage.  So I made this with them in mind.  


Ironically it doesn't look too beautiful or appealing.  Therefore it fits right in with my Ugly Foods that Taste Fabulous Week (making it example # 4 -)



The idea for this came to me as I was looking at dessert recipes online early this morning.  A "Cake ball" listing caught my eye.  It sounded simple - just combine a cake mix with icing, roll it into balls and dip it into chocolate.  I wanted to give it a festive twist though. I decided to take a chance by adding in Bailey's Irish Cream and some green food coloring for the holiday.  Then I realized I didn't have a cake box mix.  No problem though, I can make my own cake mix using the ingredients I have on hand.  And soon after, this green treat was born.


I hope you enjoy it!   And I hope the Irish give me their stamp of approval as well!






Irish Cream Cake Balls

(Makes over 3 dozen, about 40 balls)

1 box of yellow cake mix (Or make your own cake mix, recipe is posted below!)
8-10 oz of diet soda (I used Diet Coke instead of using oil and eggs)
2 oz of Bailey's Irish Cream liquor
1 can of vanilla cake frosting
10 to 12 drops of green food coloring
chocolate chips or bark for dipping (10 oz bag or more) - this is optional


Homemade Yellow Cake Mix  (if you need to make your own, like I did!)
2 and 1/2 cups of unbleached, all purpose flour
1 and 1/2 cups of sugar (I used Stevia)
1 tbsp + 1 tsp of baking powder
1/4 cup of light butter, cut into small pieces



Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Grease a 13x9 inch baking pan with cooking spray.  Grease two mini muffin tins with cooking spray as well.

Combine the ingredients of your homemade yellow cake mix (recipe is listed above) together and blend well.  Or simply throw the contents of a yellow cake mix into a large bowl.  Pour in the 8 to 10 oz of diet soda and the 2 oz of Bailey's Irish cream.  Add in about 5-6 drops of the green food coloring. Stir with a spoon until all has been incorporated. 

(Note: If you are using a regular cake mix, you can follow the instructions to include oil and eggs.  I just prefer saving that for other meals since I know that Diet soda or regular soda works just fine.  Don't forget to use the Irish Bailey's Cream though!  :-)

(Or if you just want to make this special green dessert for kids, then I suppose you can leave out the Bailey's liquor.  But really it's what makes this treat extra delicious! )

Pour (or spoon out) batter into the greased 13x9 inch baking pan.  Bake for 25 to 30 minutes in the oven.  Remove from the oven and let the cake cool for about a half-hour.  Don't worry about how it looks because you're going to break it up into crumbs anyway! 

After the cake is cool, crumble it into small pieces using a fork or just your hands.  Open your can of vanilla cake frosting.  Place about 4-6 drops of green food coloring into the icing.  Mix well.  Spoon out the vanilla cake frosting into the cake crumbles. 

Yes, that's a lot of green!  Just go with it! 

Mix with a spoon or your hands until it has blended together.  Now form the cake mixture into balls.  I placed mine in lightly greased mini muffin tins to help me keep them about the same size:




I made 40 balls with my cake batter.  Place them in the freezer to harden for at least 30 - 45 minutes.  Remove from the freezer. 

You can serve them as is without any dip.  Or if you want to give them that extra sugar and special touch, then you can dip them in chocolate.   

To make the chocolate dip: Take your bag of chocolate chips or bark (white, dark, milk chocolate - it doesn't matter!) and melt them until they are a complete liquid.  Use a double broiler or melt them in the microwave every 30 seconds and stir constantly.  Dip each ball in the chocolate then place them back in the mini muffin tin or a pan until they harden.  These are best placed in the fridge until you're ready to serve them! 

But if you don't want to go through all the trouble of dipping them in chocolate, they are just as good without the dip, in my opinion.  Plus, they're good conversation starters by keeping them solid green!  :-) 





And yes, I CAN DEFINITELY taste the Irish cream in them.  It's not an overpowering flavor but it's surely there! 

May the luck of the Irish be with you!  I'll enjoy a few of these cake balls tomorrow for breakfast and with my coffee, which will also have some Bailey's in it!  :-) 


Happy St. Patrick's Day! 

I'll see you on Friday with another ugly food recipe and an ugly food photo submission! 

I Love You Candy Bars

Happy Valentine's Day and Happy Monday to you!  I felt a little bad about my lack of Valentine's Day spirit last week with my "Un-Valentine's Chocolate Broken Heart Treats" post.  Therefore I made up for this weekend.  I somehow got into the romantic spirit to make my loved ones the following treats - giant candy bars and red-swirl cupcakes. 


I even became a bit carried away and wrote "I Heart U" using dried fruit I had in my pantry.  If you like this idea, feel free to take it and make it for your loved ones today or later in the week.  It's very easy and requires only a few basic ingredients. 


Well I say it's easy when I actually burnt the white chocolate on my first try.  Have you ever had burned chocolate in your home before?  It's awful - just like any typical burnt smell in your house.  I did have fun with learning how to remove the terrible odor though and will share that tip later this week in a new "Learn With Me" segment. 


Anyway, here's the recipe for you:





I Love You Candy Bar
(Makes Two Giant Size Bars)

11 oz (1 bag) of chocolate chips (I used Ghiradelli all natural white chocolate chips)
2 tbsp orange juice (optional)
1 tsp water
1/2 tsp almond extract
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
About 30 pieces of dried cranberries
2 large dried apricrots


Place parchment papers into two greased bread loaf (9 inch) pans.  Keep them close by. 

Line up your dried fruits on a piece of napkin or paper plate.  Write out the letters for "I" and "U."  Take the dried apricrot which is normally oval shaped and shape it into a heart.  Carefully use a knife to cut that apricot into a heart.  I made a small sliver down the top center and trimmed the edges at the bottom to form the triangle.  Set all the dried fruit pieces aside.





In a small sauce pan, pour the chocolate chips.  Melt the chips over medium-low heat, stirring frequently to prevent it from burning or sticking.  As the chocolate is mostly melted, add in the orange juice, water and extracts.  Continue stirring until completely smooth.


Pour the melted chocolate onto the parched baking pans.  Use a spatula to spread out the chocolate evenly, making it the size and shape of the bread pan (a rectangle - large candy bar size). 



Once the chocolate is spread, grab the dried fruit pieces.  Line them up to spell out your "I Love (Heart) You" message.  I made mine go verticle (downward), like this:




Repeat this for the second candy bar too. Place bars in the fridge for at least two hours to harden.  Then serve to your special someone. 


Candy bars should remain in the fridge until ready to serve.  Leftovers should be stored in an air-tight container.  Or you can freeze the chocolate for up to two months and eat again later.  Enjoy!

On Saturday, I also made a batch of marble swirl red velvet cupcakes as well.  They turned out very pretty so I took a photo of them:




I followed this recipe exactly to make them.  Try them out too!


Happy Valentine's Day to you!  Do you have anything special planned? 

I woke up early and made my husband a breakfast bagel (homemade I should add!) with scrambled egg and cheese.  Tonight he's bringing home dinner for me so I don't have to cook.  Not a bad trade-off, I think!  Enjoy your day!

The Un-Valentine Dessert: Chocolate Broken Heart Treats

Valentine's Day is coming up on Monday the 14th but not everyone has a special someone.  Or perhaps you're just not in a loving, romantic mood this year.  Or maybe, just maybe.... you're sick of seeing all the fancy, cutesy, festive, decorative and beautiful-looking food out there because you know you can't make it or emulate it!!!  I know I can't!  I am NOT a neat and clean kind of baker or cook!  I will prove that with several example photos tomorrow actually. 


Therefore, when your attempts to make heart-shaped cereal treats fall apart, I mean LITERALLY fall apart.... don't get upset!  Just go with it!  In fact, do what I did.....  make a broken heart treat!  Be original.  Be different.  Be candid.  How many recipes will you see for an un-valentine?  Huh?  Huh?  Yeah, that's what I thought!


So don't go for the best looking desserts during this romantic season.... go for the most creative and simple instead.  Just tell your friends and family that your heart is broken and it's up to them to put it back together (or make you feel and look whole again)!   :-)


And please enjoy this recipe and idea of mine.  It doesn't get much easier than this which I why I love it and had to share it here!  :-)





Chocolate Broken Heart Treats

(Makes 15 - 18)

3 cups of rice cereal, such as Rice Krispies
1 bag (11 oz) of chocolate chips (I used Ghiradelli milk chocolate)
a heart shaped cookie cutter


Generously spray an 11x7 inch baking pan (or an 8x8 inch size pan) with cooking spray.  Set aside.  In a medium size sauce pan, melt the chocolate chips at medium heat on the stove.  Stir continually until smooth.  Remove from heat.  Add in the 3 cups of rice cereal.  Gently mix until all rice is incorporated and covered in the chocolate liquid.  Spoon out the chocolate rice cereal into the greased baking pan.  Press down firmly and evenly throughout the pan.  Place in the fridge for at least two hours before cutting. 




To make the broken hearts, I first cut the chocolate rice cereal into 15 squares.  I then used a heart-shaped cookie cutter to form a heart out of the square, like the below photo: 




Since the rice breaks apart easily, the "heart" may actually "break" on its own.  Or you can use a knife to cut a slit down the center and "break" it apart yourself. 


Have fun with this dessert and telling your friends and loved ones what they can do with it or how they can "fix" your "broken heart."!  Serve them with a knife or fork through them as well. 


Keep them chilled in the fridge until ready to eat so the chocolate won't begin to melt.  Or you can let them melt a little so they'll become really ugly and look like the heart is pooping or bleeding brown goop.  How's that for a Valentine?  ;-)




Enjoy!  And I hope your heart isn't breaking over how silly this recipe and my post is today!  :-)  Have a Happy Un-Valentine's Day or a regular Valentine's Day, whatever you choose to celebrate! 

Mardi Gras Mini King Cakes

Can we pretend it's "Fat Tuesday"?  That's Mardi Gras for those of you who might not know that.  Carnival season is almost here!  It's time to get into the spirit by baking your own version of the king cake. 

This is a festive, fun recipe that you can make and have your kids help you with.  They will love it.  Everyone loves these because they are basically cinnamon rolls with colorful icing.  I opted to place fruit filling in mine but you can leave that out if you like.  Below I will place step by step photos of how I put it together!

The funny thing is that I didn't set out to make these mini king (cup) cakes....it just kind of happened that way.   I looked up a ton of king cake recipes online since I've never made one on my own but always wanted to do so.  I grew up near New Orleans after all and Mardi Gras is just part of my culture and history.  However when I read about using five cups of flour and all the kneading involved in making the traditional king cakes, I just couldn't do it.  Plus I didn't have time to spend hours in the kitchen like that over the weekend.  So I came up with my own, easy recipe instead.  I think you'll enjoy this one!

And if you have no idea what a King Cake or Mardi Gras are, then here is a great site that covers it all!  Mardi Gras is definitely something to experience once in your lifetime! 






Mandy's Mardi Gras Mini King Cakes
(Makes 16 mini cakes)

3 cinnamon roll packages  (I used reduced fat cinnabon flavored by Pillsbury, 8 in each pkg)
*keep the icing that comes in the cinnamon roll packages too!
1 container  (8 oz) reduced fat cream cheese, softened
1 can (15 oz) apple pie filling or other fruit filling (optional)
food coloring - purple, yellow and green  (or use a combo of red and green to make purple like I did!)
3 tbsp sugar
brown sugar and powdered sugar for dusting (about 1/4 cup each)


Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Generously grease two muffin tins with cooking spray.  Note: This makes 16 cakes so I used my 12-muffin tin and my 6-muffin tin pans.  Open up two packages of cinnamon rolls and set the icing aside. 

Place each individual cinnamon roll in a muffin spot, just like this picture below.  This will be 16 cinnamon rolls.  Save the third package for later:




Shape them as best as you can to be round within the muffin tin.  Open your fruit pie filling can, if you use it.  The apple pie filling was excellent!  Scoop out one teaspoon on top of each cinnamon roll, just like this photo below:






Once you have spooned out the fruit filling, open up your third and final package of 8 cinnamon rolls.  Tear each roll in half and place 1/2 of it on top of each fruit filled roll in the muffin tin pan.  Spread it out to cover the rolls as best as you can where you can't see the center.  It will look similar to this:






Now bake your cinnamon rolls in the oven at 400 degrees for 15 to 20 minutes.  While the rolls are baking, make your icing to cover them. 


Place three, separate bowls out on your table.  Scoop out the icing that came with the cinnamon rolls packages.  Take your 8 oz container of reduced fat cream cheese and divide it evenly into each bowl.  Then add 1 tbsp of sugar to each bowl as well  (equal to 3 tbsp all together).  Now place the food coloring in each bowl.  Place a few drops of yellow in one bowl, a few drops of green in a second bowl and then use purple food coloring for the final bowl.  If you don't have purple food dye, like I didn't, then make your own by using about two drops of blue and four drops of red.  Mix until you have the right color you desire.  You may need to melt the added cream cheese a little in the microwave if it has not been softened.


Aren't these pretty?






Once the cinnamon rolls are done baking and lightly browned on tops and edges, remove them from the oven.  Let them cool for about five minutes before topping them.   At the last minute, I decided it would be fun to place a small scoop of the "icing" in the center of the cinnamon rolls too.  That way, when you bite into them, they'd have the fruit filling PLUS a bit of the icing too.  Double the goodness!


So if you want to do that as well, then you'll just need to gently pull up the top of the cinnamon rolls and scoop out a bit of icing into the center.  Like this:






But this is an optional step and it requires a bit more work.  Still it's fun and the cinnamon roll "top" can easily be put back together.  The icing helps it stick and your kids can help you too!


Continue spreading the colored icing all over each cinnamon roll, covering the tops and down the sides.  Sprinkle each one with brown sugar and powdered sugar.  Then amaze your friends and family with how good these are!  Almost too pretty to eat!  :-)  I said....almost!






Have you ever been to a Mardi Gras Parade?  If you ever get a chance to visit New Orleans but you cannot go during Carnival Season, you can still see the large, beautiful floats and taste king cake by visiting Mardi Gras World.  It's a great place to see artists in action making the floats and experience a bit of the fun if you cannot do the real thing! 

Merry Christmas, A Giveaway And Simple Recipes For A Holiday Ending!

I'd like to wish you all a VERY, MERRY CHRISTMAS!  I hope this holiday is a great one for you and your family! 

Here is a special gift for you - another giveaway of my cookbook!  The contest is being hosted by my friend The Book Chick who also interviewed me and reviewed my book!  She's an amazing person and I'm always going to her site for great reading ideas. 


You should definitely enter to win my cookbook!  Even if you have a copy, you could win a copy for a friend or relative.  At the very least, I think you'll enjoy reading the funny stories posted by everyone on her blog.  I've been laughing for two days at the entries posted!


And finally, here are a few simple recipes for Christmas day and post-Christmas that I thought were worth sharing again:


(1) Santa's Cure (or Mommy's Cure) for a Headache Hot chocolate - perfect in the wee hours of Christmas or the day after!

(2) Mint Chocolate Chip Cookies - Great for breakfast or to leave out for Santa!


(3) Breakfast casserole - when you can't stand the sight of that turkey, ham, stuffing and cranberry sauce anymore!


(4) Gingerbread Cupcakes - when you realize you still have a whole jar of molasses and brown sugar to get rid of!


And


(5) Holiday Tortilla Chips and Guacamole Dip - when everything else in the house has been eaten!



That's all I've got!  I'm off to enjoy Christmas Eve and Christmas Day with my family.  I hope you enjoy yours! 


I'll be back on Sunday to post my meal plan for the upcoming week.  Have a wonderful, joyous holiday!  Best wishes to you all!

How I Used Johnny Depp For A Holiday Cookie Contest

Marlon Brando says these famous lines in the film entitled On The Waterfont --  "You don't understand. I coulda had class. I coulda been a contender. I coulda been somebody, instead of a bum, which is what I am, let's face it."

I feel you Marlon.  I feel you.

That's how I felt when I attended a recent holiday party and cookie exchange.  I was robbed from winning the prize.  Ya see, there was a friendly competition in who would have the best cookies.  However, it wasn't for the best tasting cookies.  The winner would be decided by how the cookies were presented.  It was all about the packaging at this party!

Oh Crap, I thought to myself when I realized this stipulation.  We all know my cooking isn't the prettiest or most presentable.  Taste is usually all I have going for me.  They need to look pretty or be in some Martha Stewart hand-crafted package??  I'm screwed.  I'm really screwed.  I'll never win.

While I sulked, a commercial starring Johnny Depp in his new film The Tourist comes on.  Mmmm, Johnny Depp!  Sexy Johnny Depp!  He can help me save the day..... I've got it!

No woman I know can resist Johnny Depp.  If I could just find a gorgeous picture of him, preferrably with his shirt off and then write up a poem as if it were written by him.... Yes, yes!  This is going to be good.  I can make this work!  Especially when I find a photo like this:






Here's what I came up for the package presentation of my cookies (see below photo):





In case you have trouble seeing or reading the picture above, the red and green polka-dot cookie box has a photo of Johnny Depp holding a cigarette.  He is also bare chested.  Below his photo is the following poem that I wrote but claimed as his own words:

"Listen to me, my beauty
Mandy's cookies are the best!
Delicious, flavorful and savory
Just like my lips and chest.

Let's eat these treats together
As we stroll, dance and dip.
If you vote for her dessert,
I will kiss you on the lip." 


Not bad, right?  I was pleased with myself and I hoped it was just the ticket I needed to win the cookie contest. 

I mean, who could resist a box with bare chested Johnny Depp on it reciting a love poem.  And cookies inside it too.





Sadly though, I was defeated in my efforts.  The winner of the cookie contest was just a bit more clever than me and had an even sexier idea than Johnny Depp, if you can believe that. 

That's right, the winner - ES - hand crafted little Santa pants and Elf pants.  Then she placed chocolate oreo balls and peanut butter balls inside each pants leg.  Therefore, no matter whose pants you got into (Dirty Santa or Buddy the Elf), you discovered tasty balls! 

I'm not kidding people!  This is what I was up against!  So yeah.... ES and her balls in the pants packaging was indeed victorious!  Maybe next year I'll come up with something even better.

The pressure is on!  When you're up against packages that look like this (below photo):




then you have to be smarter, more creative and ruthless!  At least I've got another year to come up with a genius plan.  Maybe in 2011, I'll be a contender! 

Until then, feel free to borrow or steal my idea for exploiting Johnny Depp and his bare chest for any of your holiday gatherings and functions.

Best wishes to you!

Holiday Tortilla Chips Appetizer With Gucamole Dip

I will often browse healthy alternatives to traditional recipes.  As I was looking up holiday appetizer ideas, I came across this Pita Tree treat.  It looked so fun and festive.  Best of all, it seemed easy.  So I decided to make my own version of it.  I used whole wheat flour tortillas instead of pita bread and I made my own guacamole dip instead of using the store bought kind. 

This is a very kid-friendly dish.  So let your children help you with this one.  Both recipes are listed below!





Holiday Tortilla Chips
Adapted from Eat Better America

4 to 8 (1 package) of whole wheat flour tortillas -  or use more or less, depending on amount you feed
2-3 different holiday cookie cutters
Olive oil cooking spray (or several teaspoons of olive oil from a jar)





Brush the olive oil or spray the cooking oil on cookie pans.  On a cutting board, place the whole wheat flour tortillas.  Use holiday cookie cutters to mold and shape your desired "chips".   This is a great activity to let your kids get involved in helping you cook.  Children love to make shapes so give your trusted little ones the chance to make the holiday chips!







Place the chips on the greased cookie pans.  Lightly spray or brush a tiny bit more olive oil over the top of the tortillas.  Broil (not bake!) in the oven at 400 degrees for about five minutes.  You can shorten or lengthen the time depending on how brown you like your chips to be.  Carefully remove with an oven mit.  Chips will only need about one minute to cool before you can eat them. 


Spread the below gucamole dip on the chips.  Top with additional tomato slices or use diced red bell peppers.







Guacamole Dip
 (Serves 6)

2 avocados—cut open, scooped out and mashed

1 large tomato, chopped and drained of juices (about 1/3 cup)

2 tbsp lemon juice

2 cloves of garlic, minced

2 tbsp (1/8 cup) of Taco seasoning mix (from an envelope used to make tacos) - Or use 1/2 a packet if you like a lot of flavor!

Cut avocados in half.  Scoop out the seeds.  Throw them away.  Then scoop out flesh and mash it in a medium bowl.  Add in diced tomato with the seeds and juices squeezed out.  Mix in your garlic, lemon juice and taco seasoning.  Blend well.  Let your kids stir the dip once you have all the ingredients.  Children love to stir, mix and see how fast or slow they can swirl things around.  Spread over homemade tortilla chips (recipe is listed above). 

 
Store dip in refrigerator inside an air tight container for up to three days.   Enjoy!

Getting Crafty With Foods - A Sweet Turkey Treat!

I belong to a local MOMS Club organization.  I volunteer a lot with this non-profit group.  They have many activities for moms and children to keep us all active and happy.  Today we had a meeting with our members where I was asked to demonstrate a holiday craft that parents could do with kids at home. 

I've never considered myself to be a real "crafty" person.  I will pull out play-doh to mold or paint for my three year old daughter to make a mess with but I am not artistic.  I can't sew.  I can't draw.  But as I'm discovering and revealing on this site (and in my upcoming cookbook), I can learn.  I can practice at being better.  With hard work and determination, I can improve at a skill or hobby.  After all, I only really began cooking within the past year.  So if I can do that and write a book about it, then I can do almost anything, right?  Right! 

Plus, I am resourceful at finding ideas for crafts and other fun things to do.  I came across this Oreo Turkey Treat posted on a food blog I love while browsing new recipes to try.  This kid-friendly treat looked perfect for my group.  Best of all, it seemed easy enough for even a novice like me to make.  All of the ingredients were easy to find too. 

I was right.  It was simple to make.  Fast too.  Perfect.  I'd definitely recommend it to you and others to try at home!  

Here is my sweet bird:







Don't laugh at it! (Okay, you can laugh, I won't know you're making fun of me anyway!)  My stuff isn't always the prettiest but it's still something that can be enjoyed and best of all, eaten!   Below is the recipe and instructions on how to make your own turkey treat.



Sweet Turkey Treat
(adapted from the Recipe Shoebox blog)

1 box of Oreo cakester cookies  (I like these better than regular Oreo cookies, less mess~!)


1 small package of candy corn
1 small package of whoppers malted candy
1and 1/2 tsp of white icing
1/4 tsp of red icing (or use white with red food coloring) OR use an edible red candy ornament


For each child participating, give him or her a plate.  Place 1 tsp of white cake icing in the center of the plate.  Instruct the kids to place the Oreo cakester upright into the center of the white icing.  Then place one whopper malted candy ball in front of the Oreo cakester so it looks like the head (face) of a turkey.  Gently twist the candy corn pieces into the creamy sides of the Oreo cakester until a full-feathered bird is shown.  Use your remaining white icing to make eyes on the face (whopper candy) of the turkey.  Then use red icing or whatever red ornament candy you have on hand to make the wattle (neck and throat) of the turkey. 

Make as many as you and your kids feel like using all the above ingredients.  Have fun with it!  Then gobble it up!  :-)