May 16th, 2013

40 Sweet Treats made using Nutter Butters!

Okay, I’m fairly certain that Nutter Butter’s are the most universal cookie – in the world.

Seriously, I’ve seen them used to make everything from reindeer to high heels.

Not to mention, they taste dang good dipped in chocolate.

I’ve decided to compile all of the ideas that other bloggers, crafters, and I have made into one big Nutter Butter party! I thought you would find this handy, for the next time you may need a cute and easy treat.

Scroll down to find the links to ALL 40 awesome ideas

 

1. Nutter Butter Sunglasses by Miss CandiQuik

2. Nutter Butter High-Heel Cookies by Sandra Denneler from She Knows and Project Denneler

3. Acorn Cookies by Sweet Simple Stuff 

4. Horse Cookies by Miss CandiQuik 

5. 4th of July Flip Flops by Party Pinching

6. Puppy Cookies by CandiQuik

7. Ice Cream Cones! by Rose Bakes

8. Two Peas in a Pod Cookies by Sweet Simple Stuff

9. Ballerina Slippers by A Little Loveliness

10. Nutter Butter BATS by Sweet Simple Stuff

11. Puppy Cookies by Hungry Happenings

12. Nutter Butter Babies By Kathy at Food.com

13. Nutter Butter Flip Flops by Easy Baked

14. Bunnies by Plain Chicken

15. Nutter Butter Babies wrapped in blankets by Parties and Patterns

16. Bunny Slippers by Hungry Happenings

17. Horse Cookies by Party Pinching

18. Harvest Corn Cookies by Phar-Ma

19. Dino Claws by Gourmet Mom on the Go

20. Ghost Cookies by CandiQuik

21. Turkey Cookies by 7th House on the Left

22. Cutie Bugs by Betty Crocker

23. Skulls by Hungry Happenings

24. Creepy Toe Cookies by Vintage Creations

25. Vampire Nutter Butters by BHG

26. Santa Nutter Butters by Penguin Stamper

27. Nutter Butter Mummy by My Momma Told Me 

28. Frankenstein Nutter Butters by Krazy in the Kitchen

29. Penguins by Hungry Happenings

30. Nutter Butter Mice Cookies by Country Kitchens 

31. Polar Bears by Hungry Happenings

32. Nutter Butter Chicks by Sweet Simple Stuff

33. Funny Bunnies by Munchkin Munchies

34. Nutter Butter Easter Chicks by Candlelight Lifestyle

35. Lorax Cookies by Embrace my Space

36. Lamb Cookies by Hungry Happenings 

37. Flip Flop Cookies by My Story in Recipes

38. Reindeer Cookies by CandiQuik

39. Snowmen Cookies by Miss CandiQuik

40. Nutter Butter Acorns by Our Best Bites

 

Here is a slightly smaller image if you wish to PIN, email, share on facebook, etc!

May 15th, 2013

Sunglass Cookies

These sunglasses are stylin’ if you ask me.

Who wouldn’t want to wear these!?

Top Gun, anyone?

I think the green ones are my favorite. (My hand was the most steady anyways.)

These were really simple to make though. And you only need two ingredients plus cake writing icing and sprinkles if you wish to decorate them as I did.

It’s hard to tell, but the yellow sunglasses have cute little tie-dye butterflies on them. Occasions like this are when my sprinkle hoarding collection comes in handy.

To dip the cookies, I’ve found that lowering them into the CandiQuik on a fork and using a spoon to pour the chocolate evenly over the cookie  works the best. This way the excess coating drips through the tines of the fork and you don’t end up with a giant blob of coating around the cookie once you set it on the wax paper.

Once the cookies are completely dry, I used cake writing icing to pipe on the lines of the sunglasses. Then press two cute sprinkles on near the edges.

Easy as that.

Sunglass Cookies
 
Author:

Serves: 12
Prep time:
Total time:

 
Cute sunglass cookies for Summer!
Ingredients
  • 1 (16 oz) package Chocolate CANDIQUIK Coating
  • 12 Nutter Butter Cookies
  • Cake writing icing
  • Assorted sprinkles

Instructions
  1. Melt Chocolate CANDIQUIK in tray according to package directions.
  2. Dip cookies in the melted coating and place on wax paper to dry.
  3. Once completely dry, use cake writing icing to pipe outline the shape of sunglasses.
  4. Press two sprinkles onto the corners of the sunglasses.

 

Enjoy!

 

 

May 8th, 2013

Best Teacher Appreciation Gift Ideas

Hello! I just wanted to share some last minute, cute ideas for Teacher Appreciation Week! I thought I would include a few of the best ideas that I’ve seen from around the web and compile them into one post for ya!

I’ve also made several free printables:

(If you need a little help or instructions, please visit my printables page.)

Skip to my Lou included a handy dandy guide with 50 Cute Sayings for Teacher Appreciation Gifts. Pick one (or a few) and decide what you’d like to make.

Here are my favorite sayings and the recipes to go along with them!

“You deserve an extra Payday” tag attached to a Payday Candy bar

Recipe:

“We need ‘S’more’ teachers like you” tag attached to Smore’s recipe.

Recipe:

“Here’s the scoop… you are the best!” attached to these Ice Cream Cone Pops (or gift card for an ice cream shop).

“You ‘mint’ so much to us this year”

or

“You were ‘mint’ to be a teacher!” tag attached to Homemade Thin Mint Recipe

Make.Bake.Celebrate shared this super cute idea and included the free printable.

You could use her yellow cake donut recipe, my vanilla bean cake donuts with chocolate & toasted coconut, or even store bought donuts if you’re on the run!

She also included this awesome cookie and another cute printable. Check it out HERE!

 

Please share this post on pinterest, via email, Facebook, etc.! Thanks for all of your support.

 

Linked to: Buns in my Oven

April 29th, 2013

Cactus Pretzels

Can I just say, I love chocolate dipped pretzels. Tiny twists, rods, dipping sticks, old fashioned…I’m not picky.

Plus, there are soo many ways to dress them up; from bunnies to cactuses.

Another great thing. Modeling chocolate. And yes, you can make modeling chocolate with CandiQuik Coatings.

Here’s how:

1. Melt 8 oz. (half-package) of CandiQuik Coating in tray according to package directions. (Let the melted CandiQuik sit while preparing the corn syrup, this will allow it to cool slightly but still remain fluid.)

2. In a small saucepan, heat corn syrup until it just begins to boil.

3. Pour the heated corn syrup on top of the CandiQuik and mix with a rubber spatula until it combines and forms a smooth paste.

4. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate, allowing the modeling chocolate to firm (at least 2 hours and preferably overnight).

5. Once ready to use, remove from fridge and knead until it becomes soft and pliable.

Store modeling chocolate wrapped and refrigerated.

(printable recipe at end of post)

So…what does this have to do with these cactus pretzels?

If you haven’t already guessed, the arms of these are made from this modeling chocolate recipe. I just added green (oil based) food coloring to my CandiQuik.

This is what will soon be cactus arms…

A little forming and here’s the result:

I then dipped pretzel rods in green colored CandiQuik and attached the ‘arms’…

The coating doesn’t match perfectly, but I still think they’re pretty cute.

Add a few sprinkles for texture if you desire

Cactus Pretzels
 
Serves: 12
Prep time:
Total time:

 
Ingredients
  • 1 package (16 oz.) Vanilla CandiQuik
  • Green food coloring (oil or powder based only)
  • ¼ cup lite corn syrup
  • Pretzel rods
  • Green sugar decor sprinkles

Instructions
  1. FOR MODELING CHOCOLATE:
  2. Melt 8 oz. (half-package) of CandiQuik Coating in tray according to package directions. Add green food coloring and stir until completely combined. (Let the melted CandiQuik sit while preparing the corn syrup, this will allow it to cool slightly but still remain fluid.)
  3. In a small saucepan, heat corn syrup until it just begins to boil.
  4. Pour the heated corn syrup on top of the CandiQuik and mix with a rubber spatula until it combines and forms a smooth paste.
  5. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate, allowing the modeling chocolate to firm (at least 2 hours and preferably overnight).
  6. Remove from fridge and knead until it becomes soft and pliable. Form cactus arms.
  7. Melt remaining (8 oz.) Vanilla CandiQuik and add green food coloring.
  8. Dip pretzel rods in coating and place on wax paper. Immediately attach cactus arms. Sprinkle if desired.
  9. (Store any unused modeling chocolate in refrigerator.)

Just in time for Cinco de Mayo!

Here’s another cute idea for Cinco de Mayo.

(Instructions can be found here.)

Please share these recipes on Pinterest by hovering your mouse over any photo on this page! (Or share via email, Facebook, or by sending a Tweet!)

Linked to: Time to Sparkle, Buns in My Oven, Gooseberry Patch

April 22nd, 2013

Orange Creamsicle Cake Bites

First things first, it’s my 3 year blog anniversary! Holy canoli.

I barely knew a thing about blogging when I started Miss CandiQuik. But it’s so much fun and there is a true sense of community in the blogging world. If you’re thinking about starting a blog: do it. Start it and be persistent. Keep posting and watch it (and yourself) grow.

Now, let’s celebrate! And eat cake.

I found this cake mix while wondering down the baking aisle (surprise, surprise) and couldn’t pass it up. I wasn’t sure what type of orange flavor it would deliver but I was more than willing to experiment. The result: orange creamsicle, people! Even more so when crumbled up and smooshed together with buttercream frosting.

keep reading »

April 12th, 2013

Mocha Marshmallow Pops

Why hello there!


I have a confession.

keep reading »

April 2nd, 2013

Strawberry Lemon Truffle Cake

This cake is everything I needed today.

Strawberry cake, golden oreos, lemon zest, cream cheese, and vanilla candiquik. In that order. Bring it on.

This recipe was inspired by Courtney from Pizzazzerie. She created the infamous Red Velvet Oreo Truffle Bars. Hubba hubba. So I played off of hers and made a Spring/Summer version. Or a version for anyone who isn’t a huge chocolate fan. Wait, that’d just be weird.

keep reading »

March 26th, 2013

Bunny Bait Snack Mix

Are you ready for the easiest (yummy) Easter basket treat ever?!

I needed something that was cute, wouldn’t break easy (mailing in packages), could feed an army, and last a few days without losing it’s flavor.

This is what I came up with. This takes about 10 minutes to put together. Longer if you’re coming up with cute tags to attach to your “bunny bait”, but don’t worry, I’ve got you covered. You can find the printable tags below!

Throw everything together in a giant bowl.

Don’t try to skimp on your bowl here, otherwise you’ll have Cheerios all over your kitchen floor – which may or may not differ from a normal day.

Melt CandiQuik and pour over the mixture. I used a spatula to fold together until the mixture was evenly coated.

Spread mixture out onto a large piece of wax paper (I used two pieces of wax paper, side by side). This prevents you from having one ginormous piece of Cheerio Crispy Treat.

Once the mixture is completely dry (5-10 minutes), scoop into cute little treat bags, tie off with a ribbon and treat tag! Voila.

 

Bunny Bait Snack Mix
 
Serves: 12-18
Prep time:
Total time:

 
Bunny Bait Snack Mix is the perfect snack mix for Easter baskets or any occasion!
Ingredients
  • 8 cups Cheerios®
  • 2 cups salted peanuts
  • 1 cup M&M®’s
  • 3 cups pretzel twists
  • 1 (16 oz.) package Vanilla CandiQuik® Coating

Instructions
  1. Combine cereal, peanuts, M&M’s and pretzels in a large bowl.
  2. Melt CandiQuik in tray according to package directions.
  3. Pour CandiQuik into the mixture; using a spatula, fold into the mixture until evenly coated.
  4. Spread mixture out onto a large sheet of wax paper; let dry.
  5. Once dry, scoop into treat bags or keep sealed in an airtight container.

 

Printable treat tags below:

Bunny Bait Snack Mix Tags PDF

Linked to: Pint Sized Baker, Inside Bru Crew Life, Buns in my Oven

March 21st, 2013

‘Lil Duckling Pretzel Twists

 

The first time I saw these over at Stop Lookin’ Get Cookin’s blog, I almost died from the cuteness. Why did I never think of turning pretzel twists into cute little chicks (or are they ducklings?)!? I thought of making bunnies out of pretzel RODS, but making little critters out of the twists – nope. The credit goes to Kendra’s daughter! So swing by her blog to see the other ideas she created with these pretzel twists!

I did, however, add my own twist to these and used a sliced almond for a little wing.

What I love about them is they’re easy, tasty and super adorable. You could make these right now if you wanted…

That is if you have pretzels, CandiQuik, almonds, sprinkles and candy coated sunflower seeds.

I found the candy coated sunflower seeds (with an assortment of colors available) at TJ Maxx/HomeGoods. Kendra found them at Michaels, so hopefully one of these this helps you out!

If you have difficulty finding these, you could always use an orange Tic-Tac.

 

‘Lil Duckling Pretzel Twists
 
Author:

Serves: 45
Prep time:
Total time:

 
Ingredients
  • Tiny pretzel twists
  • 1 (16 oz.) package Vanilla CANDIQUIK Coating
  • yellow food coloring (oil or powder based only)
  • Sliced almonds
  • Orange candy-coated sunflower seed
  • Jumbo nonpareil sprinkles
  • + Piping bag (or plastic Ziploc bag)

Instructions
  1. Arrange pretzels on wax or parchment paper.
  2. Melt CandiQuik coating according to package directions. Add a few drops of yellow food coloring and stir until combined.
  3. Spoon CandiQuik into a piping bag (or heavy plastic Ziploc w/ one tiny corner snipped off); pipe inside each pretzel until the holes are filled.
  4. Press a sliced almond (wing), orange sunflower seed (beak), and black nonpareil (eye) on before the coating sets.

 

Chick or duckling, they’re cute. Happy Spring!

 

 

March 19th, 2013

Peeping PEEPS

Well hello there!

What better way to eat a Peep than in a chocolate Easter egg?

Two weeks ago I bought about five dozen peeps. Pink ones, purple ones, yellow ones, blue ones, limited edition ones(!)… all in attempt to making something fun and creative for the Peeps Hop Along Party. Something more than just a chocolate dipped peep. I ended up with these guys. Peeping peeps, or they could be hatching, but bunnies hatching out of eggs is just silly. So just roll with me, ok?

You may recognize the chocolate eggs if you frequent this site…

Only this time I added a base to the egg and stuffed them with Peeps!

Fill your silicon mold with a spoonful or two of CandiQuik, using the back of a spoon to push the coating up the sides. If your sides feel thin, you may want to repeat this process.

Using a small knife, I trimmed the top of each egg. Don’t worry if it’s not perfect, this makes it look more natural!

I also cut the bottom half of each peep off. You can decide what to do with the leftover marshmallow, I’m confident it will go to good use.

Note: I only had to trim the chicks peeps

I used a toothpick to apply CandiQuik along the edge of one egg to act as a glue and hold both halves together.

Then spoon a tiny amount of CandiQuik on wax paper and press your egg on top, hold in place until the egg is able to stand on its own (this should only take a few moments).

Sorta cute, don’t you think!?

Happy Easter, Peeps!

(Sorry, I couldn’t resist)

Thanks to Christi (Love From the Oven) and Michelle (Sugar Swings! Serve Some) for organizing this Spring Hop Along PEEPS Party! Also! There is a PEEPS Giveaway! If you’re interested, enter HERE.

Be sure to hop on over to the following sites, they are all delivering a super cute PEEP idea!

 

March 15th, 2013

Baby Cake Pops

Every once in a while there is a treat that never quite makes it on the blog.

I know, weird, huh!?

Usually because I don’t really care for them, they were a complete flop, or I make them way ahead of time and never get around to sharing.

I’m not quite sure why these never made it on here. But today, I’m sharing these Baby Cake Pops over at Pint Sized Baker’s Cake Pop Thursday. Be sure to check them out over there!

If you’ve never made cake pops – be sure to check out my cake pop tutorial. If you’ve made cake pops and they were a complete disaster, also be sure to check out the cake pop tutorial.

Now head over to Pint Sized Baker for the complete tutorial of these baby pops!

Happy Baking!

 

March 13th, 2013

Candy Making for Kids & CandiQuik Giveaway!

Before we get to the good stuff I want you to see what we’re dealing with here.

Two things that go together like peanut butter and jelly, salt n’ pepper, spaghetti & meatballs, Bonnie and Clyde. You get the drift.

Candy Making for Kids by Courtney Dial Whitmore

+
CandiQuik Candy Coatings

Meet Courtney. Not only is she the author of Candy Making for Kids and Push-Up Pops, but she is also a blogger, food and party stylist, and recipe developer!

You can see more on her adorable site, Pizzazzerie.

Here’s a sneak peak at the cuteness!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

You can also enter on Courtney’s site HERE!

Follow Courtney on Pinterest, Facebook, & Twitter!

Follow me on Pinterest, Facebook, & Twitter!

 

Courtney’s Books: Push-Up Pops & Candy Making For Kids can be purchased from the following retailers:

ONLINE: Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Target

IN STORES: Barnes & Noble, Michaels, Sam’s Club, Wal-Mart