Milton moms participate in Holiday Cookie Exchange with momstown

When I saw the Cookie Exchange on the momstown Milton calender, I couldn't resist, so I signed up immediately.  My plan was to make snowballs, which is an old fashioned Newfoundland recipe. 

That Sunday, our kitchen turned into an assembly line, with me rolling the snowballs into the coconut, and my husband packaging.  We made three batches, so there were snowballs everywhere.  With my treats in hand, I was ready to go!

Here are my snowballs all wrapped and ready to go!

 

Our hostess - Lisa Roach had outdone herself  with a beautifully decorated home that was warm and inviting.  There were delicious appetizers including spinach dip, a cheese log, and brie and cranberry sauce on tortillas, to name a few.  Of course, no momstown evening event would be complete without wine and sparkling beverages.

Brie, cranberries and scoops - simple yet delicious!

 

A cup of holiday punch

 

We all had the opportunity to introduce ourselves and we had lots of time to chat and get to know each other.  It was nice to talk to other women who can truly understand the unique challenges of being a mother.  Lisa led us in a fun game with lots of prizes using the classic poem, "The Night Before Christmas", and after all of that, it was time for the cookies!

 

 

We were each able to take more than 12 bags of cookies and there were so many to choose from.  Among others there were:  cinnamon shortbread cookies, chocolate shortbread, whipped shortbread, gingerbread, chocolate chip, cranberry white chocolate chip, eggnog cookies, truffles, and white chocolate peppermint melts.  The giant bag of treats that I brought home, more than endeared me to my loving husband, who was babysitting that night.  I will definitely be going to the cookie exchange next year, both for the opportunity to meet new people and catch up with old friends, and of course to try all of the delicious treats that the momstown moms whip up!

This is only one of many Moms Night Out Events that momstown Milton hosts throughout the month. We have a supper club, dessert night, movie nights, cooking events and lots of craft and fitness demos. If you would like to join in on the fun and meet some other mamas in the community, all you need to do is register for a 6 week FREE trial membership!
  

This post is written by Karen Bivand, a momstown Milton member who has a 2 year old son, Eric. Check out her blog at: www.exploringmilton.com 

Chocolate Raspberry Crumb Bars

A few years ago, when my girls were younger, I decided to try something I'd never tried before. A hands-on cookie making class at the local Real Canadian Superstore. My family's Christmas traditions didn't include cookie baking/exchanges so I was eager to learn a new skill and perhaps create a new tradition with my family. Not to mention it was a great way to get this mama out of the house and socialize.

One of the recipes I learned to make on that memorable evening was a a delicious crumb bar of chocolate and raspberry. In all honesty, I could just drizzle warm chocolate over raspberries and declare that I'd found heaven but really, this recipe is to be tried and tasted, of course.

Chocolate Raspberry Crumb Bars

Ingredients

1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup packed golden brown sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
2 cups coarsely chopped bittersweet chocolate, divided
1 14oz can sweetened condensed milk
1/2 cup finely chopped toasted hazelnuts
1/2 cup seedless raspberry jam

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 350F. Lightly grease a 9x13 baking pan.

2. In a large bowl, using an electric mixer, beat the butter until creamy, about 1 minute. Add the flour, brown sugar and salt; continue to beat until well mixed. Let it be crumbly. Crumble with fingertips if needed.

3. Press 1 1/2 cups of this mixture into the bottom of the prepared pan. Bake until set and edges are light brown, about 10-12 minutes.

3. Use your fingertips to crumble the rest of this mixture; set aside.

4. In a heavy saucepan, combine 1 cup of the chocolate and the condensed milk. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until mixture is smooth and chocolate has melted, about 3 minutes. Pour onto baked crust; spread evenly.

4. Stir the nuts into the crumb mixture; sprinkle evenly over the chocolate filling.

5. Drop the jam by scant teaspoonfuls over the crumbs. Scatter the remaining chocolate over top

6. Bake until the centre is firm and the top is golden brown, about 25-30 minutes. Cool at least 1 hour before cutting into bars.

 Recipe submitted by Liz Marques Kogan, member of momstown Milton  

 www.orchidaforever.blogspot.ca