The evil gas station

Okay, okay, so it's not really the gas station that's evil (though that's not too far off, what with gasoline/petrol prices nowadays).

A new gas station opened a few months ago that's right at the route we take going home from work and the owners decided to build a strip mall on the lot. All the shops opened soon after the gas station did, and one of them is my favorite doughnut shop: Go Nuts Donuts. It's not even their doughnuts that I'm crazy about (though I do like them too). It's their cupcakes. Specifically these two:

Scream Cheese is butter cake with a cream cheese center smothered in fluffy cream cheese and with butter-flavored sprinkles.

Chocolate Peanut Butter is creamy chocolate cake spread with chocolate fudge and topped with a dollop of peanut butter cream.


I think I've already gained an inch around my waist since that store opened. Evil, I tell you.

Sweet treats

My online friend Lori, in the spirit of Christmas, shared three no-bake recipes for sweet treats in my other blog. But because she posted them in the guest book, they can't be tagged. So here they are in their own posting. Thanks, Lori!



Creamy Pralines

1 cup sugar
1 cup light brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 cup butter
2 cups pecan halves
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3/4 cup half-and-half

Line a cookie sheet with waxed paper and set aside.

In a saucepan, combine the sugars, baking soda and butter. Cook over medium-high (234–238°F) heat to a soft ball stage. Add the pecans and vanilla during the last few minutes of cooking.

Remove from heat, add half-and-half and stir until thickened. Drop onto cookie sheet in small patties and allow to cool completely before storing in an air-tight container.



Orange Balls

4 cups vanilla wafer crumbs
1 cup powdered sugar
1 cup chopped walnuts or pecans
1/4 cup melted butter
1 (6 oz) can frozen orange juice concentrate, thawed
powdered sugar

In large bowl, combine crumbs, sugar, nuts and melted butter. Stir in orange juice. Mix well and form into 1-inch balls. Roll in powdered sugar. Chill.



Cornflake Wreaths

1/2 cup butter
3 cups miniature marshmallows
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon green food color
4 cups corn flakes
red hot candies

Melt butter, add marshmallows, stirring until all marshmallows are melted. Add extracts and food coloring; stir until it is a uniform green color. When mixture is smooth, add corn flakes; mix well but gently so as not to crush the cornflakes.

Form into wreath shapes on sheets of waxed paper, decorate with red cinnamon candies. Let cool.