Slow Cooker Peach Butter

What do you do with a whole case of peaches that are getting smooshy and soft? Make peach butter! I have always been intimidated by the phrase "butter". Apple Butter, Peach butter, Pumpkin butter. Which is kind of silly since real butter is really easy to make! Especially if, like me, you leave the heavy whipping cream to long in the mixer. There is a fine line between thick cream and butter and I seem to cross it.... A LOT! Probably because I try to do to many things at one time. But in the past I have always thought fruit butters are hard to make. I mean the Amish make them and sell them so in my mind that means it must be difficult. But today I am glad to prove my thought wrong!

The other day Keith came home with a crate full of peaches. Sadly we didn't realize that if you have them in a fridge and then take them out and leave them they get soft. What a waste, I thought.  But I decided to slice and freeze them for smoothies which my boys love, so I did. While scanning some recipes on Pintrest, where now days everything is getting you in the mood for Fall, I saw a few for Slow Cooker Apple butter. I am a sucker for Slow Cooker recipes so I read it. Then I read all the comments. People raved about how easy it was and how delicious it came out. One comment caught my eye. It asked "Can you use this recipe with Peaches?" There was no reply but it got me curious. I started to research peach butter recipes for the crock pot and HAPPY was I to see that there were several..... Hundred. But I went with the one with 5 stars. How can you go wrong with that? Thankfully this recipe was worth ever star it got. It was easy and DELICIOUS! I am now interested in making my own and trying all the butters! Pumpkin, Apple and whatever other kinds I can find! Seriously this was so delicious! So easy! I am not intimidated any more! So I am now going to share this amazing recipe so you can save money and make your own peach butter! When I try the other fruit butter recipes I will post those too.

Peach Butter
5 lbs Peaches (fresh, frozen or it said you could use canned)
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup honey
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp all spice (this was NOT in the original recipe but I like this flavor)

Peel the peaches( I didn't because my peaches were frozen and it still turn out nice) Core and chop them. Put them in a food processor or blender. Puree till smooth. Add to crock pot and add all ingredients. Mix well. Cook on low 6 hours or till it is thick and brown. I stirred it a few times during the time. I also cooked it about 2 hours more because it was kind of runny. Probably due to them being frozen. Let cool and place in the jars. If you want to seal them, process in a water bath for 15 minutes. With this recipe I got a little more then 2 pint jars. I sealed to and left the rest in my fridge for Breakfast.

I hope you enjoy this recipe. It was delicious!

Baked Sugared Peanuts

This is a treat my mom always made while growing up. She would make it and send a bunch of it to boarding school with us. Mine never lasted to long! We got this recipe from a Chinese restaurant in Lusaka. They always had a yummy bowl of these nuts sitting on the table when you sat down to eat. It was teaser because it was always a small bowl and they were always delicious! When we went home to visit Mom and Dad April of 2012, Aunt Betty made me some because she new I LOVE IT!
I don't get to make these very often because getting raw peanuts is hard here in Galena and with Kaden's allergy to eggs really causes me to miss this yummy treat. It does NOT work with Egg-replacer.  It is really easy to make and is a wonderful treat for parties or just to snack on. Just the right amount of sweetness on a crunchy treat.   This can make a great gift that you could put in a jar with a pretty bow or little gift bags. If you give some away you may want to double or triple the recipe. Try it out!

Baked Sugared Peanuts
4 cups raw peanuts
Beat 2 eggs and mix in peanuts
In another bowl mix:
2/3 cups flour
1 cup sugar
1 tsp salt
Add this to the peanuts to toss till all wet. If it is not wet add a Tablespoon of water. Place on Wax paper covered cookie sheet. Bake 325 degrees for 45 minutes. Stir every 15 minutes. Peanuts are done when they are golden brown. Let cool and break apart.

Cinnamon Hot Chocolate.

"Oh the weather outside is frightful

And the fire is so delightful

And since we've no place to go

Let it Snow Let it snow Let it Snow!"

"When it snows ain't it thrilling

Though your nose gets a chilling

Well frolic and play the Eskimo way

Walking in a winter wonderland"

Two songs that go along with my day! We are having a winter storm with high winds and lots of snow. But thankfully warmer temps.... when I say warmer I am meaning in the teens. But it is refreshing and the snow is so beautiful! My kids are outside with our neighbors daughter playing in the snow. I was just out shoveling it, which honestly I love to do.... Is that weird? We are expecting 6-12 inches of snow this weekend and maybe some rain... Hopefully not the rain. But the snow provides us with an abundant  amount of activities to do like snow ski, sledding, building snow castles and snow angels. Mountains of fun! I love snow and so do my boys! After an afternoon of playing in the fluffy fun, it usually is hot chocolate time! What better way to warm you up then with a warm cup of chocolate? As I am writing this I can hear my boys stomping their feet in the Arctic Entry way and taking off their coats. So I am headed to the kitchen to make some hot chocolate. 

This recipe is from my friend Catherine, who shared it after her trip to Paris to visit her in-laws. I have adopted this recipe as my own and LOVE IT! I have also made some adaptions to fit different taste buds. This is a creamy smooth hot chocolate that warms you up real nicely! DELICIOUS!!! 

Cinnamon Hot Chocolate.(this really is delicious! Can I say that enough)
1/2 cup sugar
1/3 cup cocoa powder
1/3 cup water
4 cups milk
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp cinnamon
dash of salt
 Mix cocoa, cinnamon, salt and sugar in pan. Combine water and stir. Bring to a boil over Medium heat. Boil 2 minutes. Slowly add milk. Stir well. Heat thoroughly and add vanilla. Topping this with whipped cream is scrumptious.

My Adaptions:
 Mexican Vanilla Cinnamon Hot chocolate I add a dash of Cayenne pepper. Makes it a little spicy! I love it!

Fall Spice Cinnamon Hot Chocolate Add some Pumpkin Pie spice to give it that fallish flavor. Try this, It will become a favorite for those cold winter nights.... which we are already having.

Mom's Granola

Well it is a rainy, cool, Saturday and it is a bowl of cereal and cartoons kind of morning. I LOVE CEREAL! Lucky Charms, Captain crunch, Cookie Crisp, Cinnamon toast crunch. Yes a bowl of sugary goodness! But there is one cereal I love even more and it can always be different. You can change up or add ingredients to make this granola your own. My mom would always have this on hand, and speaking of on hand, it is a great snack to eat right out of your hand. With a cold bowl of milk this is one great bowl of cereal! Try it! You may never buy granola again.... I don't. This can be put in a jar and decorated with a pretty bow and makes a great WELCOME to the Neighborhood gift. Here in Galena, shopping for friends birthdays is a bit harder but homemade gifts are loved. This could be a great one to use.

Mom's Granola
Combine:
2 cups oats
1 cup coconut shredded.
1/2 cup wheat germ or sunflower seeds
1 1/2 cup nuts(chopped almonds, pecans, walnuts, peanuts. I like to add a bunch of different ones.)
1 tsp salt
Stir in 1 can Sweetened Condensed milk. Mix thoroughly
Add 1/4 cup oil
Spread in shallow baking pan lined with wax paper. Bake 1 hour at 300 degrees after golden brown take out of oven.

Don't add these before baking because they get tough and burn but after the oven I then add Craisins, Raisins, Dried apples, dried apricots, dried blueberries, dried peaches, or any other yummy dried fruit. You can add whatever ingredients you like in your bowl of cereal. Make it your bowl of cereal.