I’ve seen these treats simply called “peanut butter balls,” and I know the fact that I refer to them as buckeyes is purely because I live where I do. The buckeye is Ohio’s state tree (and also the name of our college football team, of course!), and these treats were given their name because of their resemblance to the buckeye nut. Although the ones from the trees aren’t edible, thankfully these are – and they’re delicious.
Buckeyes, hands down, are my favorite Christmas treat. They remind me of my childhood, when we’d go to my grandma’s for Christmas every year and my aunt would make a huge plate of buckeyes for the dessert table. It was something I looked forward to every single Christmas. Even today, when I make my own buckeyes (using my aunt’s recipe!), they still don’t taste as good as hers.
Not all buckeyes are created equal. Homemade ones are vastly superior to the packaged ones you can get at the store. The type of peanut butter is important for these, too; don’t use natural peanut butter, and don’t use a generic brand. Normally I’m all about generics, but the flavor of the peanut butter is really important in these treats. I prefer using Jif, but I've also used Skippy for these with good results.
This will be the first year Andrew will help me make our buckeyes. Rolling all those peanut butter balls can get a bit time-consuming, but I’m betting the time will fly when I have him in the kitchen helping me.
A note about the recipe: You’ll probably only need around 4 cups of chocolate chips to dip the peanut butter balls in, but I strongly suggest you melt even more chocolate than you need. When you get to the last few, it’ll be hard to get enough chocolate to cover the peanut butter. You can save the leftover chocolate for another recipe if you don’t want to waste it.
Buckeyes
from my aunt
1 1/2 cups creamy peanut butter
1 cup softened butter
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
4 cups confectioners’ sugar
4 cups semisweet chocolate chips
1 teaspoon vegetable oil
1. In a large bowl, blend peanut butter, butter, and vanilla until smooth and well-combined. Add powdered sugar and mix well.
2. Roll dough into 1-inch balls and place on a baking sheet lined with waxed paper. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.
3. Combine chocolate chips and vegetable oil. Melt in the microwave in 20-second increments until smooth, stirring after each interval.
4. Using a tooth pick, dip each peanut butter ball in melted chocolate, leaving a portion of peanut butter showing at the top to make them look like buckeyes.
5. Refrigerate until serving. Makes 4 to 5 dozen buckeyes, depending on size.
I’m taking a break from the Christmas treats this morning to bring you our meal plan for the week. When planning this week’s meals, I really wanted things that were quick and easy, since our December schedule is jam-packed. I also wanted meals that were cost-effective and used up a lot of things that I have on hand, since it is Christmas time, and we still have lots of presents to buy. So the meal plan this week is a combination of old favorites and a few new-to-me recipes I’ve been dying to try.
I'll be back tomorrow with the fourth Christmas treat!
Monday: Egg salad BLTs and chips. Egg salad is one of my favorite quick meals to make. I’ve never posted my tried-and-true recipe here because I figure everyone already has a favorite that they use, but if anyone wants me to share it, I certainly will!
Tuesday: Spinach and chicken tortilla bake. Stephanie (who just had a sweet baby boy!) never steers me wrong, and this tortilla bake looks delicious!
Wednesday: Bow ties with spicy sausage in tomato cream sauce. This pasta is amazing.
Thursday: Tater tot nachos. The original recipe calls these “tacos,” but they look more like nachos to me, so that’s what I’m calling them. But no matter what I call them, I’m sure everyone will love them!
Friday: Pizza (or pizza rolls). I’ve realized lately that cooking all seven days in a week, along with all of my other responsibilities, is kind of a lot for me. I’m trying to give myself a break more often, and I think having pizza on a Friday night is a good way to do that!
Saturday: Ranchero chicken crostada. My mouth is watering, just remembering how delicious this is. I can’t wait to have it again!
Sunday: Chicken Marsala pasta. I’m going to love anything that has the word “Marsala” in it. I tried my own version of chicken Marsala pasta last winter, but I wasn’t completely happy with the results. I like the looks of this recipe a lot. I may even sub smoked gouda for the parm and provolone, since it goes so well with the flavor of Marsala (and is probably my favorite cheese).
I made (and posted about) these buried cherry cookies in the early days of my blog, and I’ve made them at least twice a year ever since – usually for Valentine’s Day and again at Christmas. Everyone absolutely loves these sweet little cookies.
Although I’m not a fan of chocolate-covered cherries (it’s the creamy white stuff in them that I don’t like), I adore these cookies too. First of all, they’re adorable. Secondly, it’s such a fun surprise to bite into a cookie and find a cherry hiding under the chocolate frosting. These come together really easily, and the recipe makes more than 40 cookies, so again, these are perfect for cookie exchanges and gift-giving.
The frosting does actually cook in the oven along with the cookies, which may sound a little strange. It hardens just slightly and adds an interesting texture to the cookies, and baking the frosting enables it to hide the cherry perfectly without sliding off. I think you’ll love these fun, cute little cookies!
Buried Cherry Cookies
from Better Homes and Gardens
1 10-ounce jar maraschino cherries (42 to 48)
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 egg
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup sweetened condensed milk
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Drain cherries, reserving juice. Halve any large cherries. In a medium mixing bowl, beat butter with an electric mixer on medium to high speed for 30 seconds. Add the sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Beat until combined, scraping sides of bowl occasionally. Beat in egg and vanilla until combined. Beat in cocoa powder and as much of the flour as you can with the mixer. Stir in any remaining flour.
2. Shape dough into 1-inch balls. Place balls about 2 inches apart on an ungreased cookie sheet. Press your thumb into the center of each ball. Place a cherry in each center.
3. For frosting, in a small saucepan combine chocolate chips and sweetened condensed milk. Cook and stir over low heat until chocolate melts. Stir in 4 teaspoons reserved cherry juice. (If necessary, frosting may be thinned with additional cherry juice.) Spoon 1 teaspoon frosting over each cherry, spreading to cover.
4. Bake about 10 minutes or until edges are firm. Cool on cookie sheet 1 minute. Transfer to a wire rack and let cool. Makes 42 to 48 cookies.
When I’m planning my Christmas cookie trays, there are certain requirements that I like to fill to make for a well-rounded selection of treats. I like to include something minty. I like to include some sort of candy-like treat. And I like to include some type of fudge.
As soon as I stumbled upon this recipe for raspberry truffle fudge, I knew I’d be making it instead of the standard chocolate or peanut butter version. And I’m so very glad that I did, because I got more compliments on this fudge than on anything else I included on my cookie trays. Raspberry and chocolate pair so perfectly together, and they’re a match made in Heaven in this rich, chocolaty fudge.
This fudge is so easy to make, and it’s definitely a crowd-pleaser!
Raspberry Truffle Fudge
adapted from Allrecipes
3 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 14-ounce can sweetened condensed milk
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Salt to taste
1/4 cup heavy cream
1/3 cup raspberry preserves
2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
1. Spray a 9x9 inch pan with non-stick cooking spray, and line with wax paper.
2. In a microwave-safe bowl, combine 3 cups chocolate chips and sweetened condensed milk. Heat in microwave until chocolate melts, stirring occasionally. Be careful not to let it scorch. Stir in the vanilla and salt. Spread into pan, and cool to room temperature.
3. In a microwave-safe bowl, heat raspberry preserves until smooth. Strain seeds using a fine mesh strainer. Stir in cream and 2 cups chocolate chips. Heat in the microwave until the chocolate melts and stir until smooth. Cool to lukewarm, then pour over the fudge layer.
4. Refrigerate until both layers are completely set, about 1 hour. Cut into 1 inch pieces.
For the next two weeks, it’s all Christmas, all the time here at Cassie Craves! I have ten great recipes for Christmas treats to share with you. If you’re still planning your Christmas cookie trays (like I am – I can’t believe I haven’t finalized my baking list yet!!), I hope you find something here that inspires you. All of the recipes I’ll be sharing were on my cookie trays last year.
First up are these delicious gingerbread eggnog cookies. They’re a classic, quick and easy drop cookie, and one batch makes a ton, which makes them perfect for gift-giving and cookie exchanges.
As you can probably tell from the picture, the cookies aren’t actually gingerbread. They’re made with gingerbread eggnog. This stuff is delicious – on its own, and in the cookies. It gives the cookies just the right amount of the warm, inviting, spicy flavor of gingerbread. It’s a flavor that just screams Christmas for me, and it turns these cookies into something really special.
Gingerbread Eggnog Cookies
adapted from Allrecipes
1 cup butter
1 cup white sugar
1 egg
1 cup gingerbread (or plain, or any flavor) eggnog
1 teaspoon vanilla
3 1/4 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease cookie sheets.
2. In a medium bowl, cream together the butter and white sugar until smooth. Stir in the egg, eggnog and vanilla.
3. In a separate bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt; stir into the sugar mixture so it is well blended. Drop by rounded spoonfuls onto the prepared cookie sheet.
4. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes in the preheated oven. Allow cookies to cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely. Makes 6 dozen cookies.
