This recipe has been handed down for generations. It's appropriate because it's a Christmas must around my house and it's English (which goes right along with my time-travel Victorian novel). And I saved the best for last. It is ridiculously easy.

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English Toffee

• 2 cups chopped pecans
• 1 stick of butter
• 1 stick of margarine
• 1 cup sugar
• 6 tablespoons light corn syrup
• 2 tablespoons water
• 12 oz. of chocolate chips (milk chocolate or semi-sweet. Choose your own adventure here.)

Spread chopped pecans on the bottom of a cookie sheet

Combine margarine, butter, sugar, corn syrup and water.  Bring mixture to boil over moderately high heat, stirring until sugar is dissolved and it reaches a hard crack stage.

Pour over the pecans in the prepared cookie sheet.  Top with chocolate chips and swirl into tasteful shapes while you realize that you are an artiste and chocolate is your true medium.

Wait for it to cool, then break into chunks and boom goes the dynamite.

 

How to woo a gentleman—and weaponize dessert.

Romance novel junkie Eliza Pepper always thought she was born too late, but now she really is stuck in the wrong time. Tasked with mending a tear in the timeline, she’s trying desperately to fit into 1873 London. But dang it, mucking out a fireplace while looking like the lunch lady from hell is hard.

If she can just keep from setting the floor on fire and somehow resist her growing attraction to the master of the house, she’ll be fine. All she has to do is repeat her mantra:  “He’s nothing like Darcy. He’s nothing like Darcy.”

William Brown has always taken pride in his mastery of English decorum, but his new maid is a complete disaster, has thrown his household into chaos…and he finds her utterly captivating.

Though he’s willing to endure extreme physical discomfort to keep their relationship in proper perspective, her arrival has brought out a side of him he never knew existed. And Eliza has an innocently erotic knack for coaxing that decidedly ungentlemanly facet of himself out to play…

Warning:  A modern girl who knows bupkis about nursing and maiding in the 19th century, a gentleman poet with a repressed wild side, and inappropriate use of a pair of pantaloons.

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terrimeeker.com

Christmas is my favorite season. I love the sights, the smells, and the tastes. One of my fondest memories is watching my grandmother make her pralines. Now my husband makes them for our holiday. I hope you enjoy the sweet southern confection as much as we do.

Happy Holidays!

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Oma’s Pralines

1 ½ cups brown sugar

1 ½ cups granulated sugar

3 Tablespoons dark corn syrup

1 cup canned milk (Carnation or Pet)

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 ½ cups pecan halves

Butter sides of heavy 3-quart saucepan. Combine sugars, corn syrup, and milk.

Heat and stir over medium heat till sugars dissolve and mixture comes to boiling.

Cook to soft-ball stage (234 degrees), stirring occasionally.

Remove from heat, cool slightly, and add vanilla.

Beat by hand about 2 minutes before adding pecans then beat until mixture loses its gloss.

Drop by heaping tablespoons on buttered foil or waxed paper-lined cookie sheet. (If candy becomes too stiff to drop from spoon, add a teaspoon of hot water.)

Makes nine 3 ½ inch pralines.

He never doubted he’d find her.

She moved on without him.

Can he reclaim her heart before it’s too late?

Annie’s heart is torn between the man she'll always love and her promise to her fiancé’s young daughter.

A father’s lies. A first love’s determination to change her mind and her heart. A promise to . Annie is torn between the man she'll always love and the young daughter of her fiancé whom she’s promised never to abandon.

Her father’s lies. Her first love’s determination to change her mind and her heart. Annie’s heart is torn between the man she'll always love and the young daughter of her fiancé whom she’s promised never to abandon.

Her first love’s determination to change her mind and her heart. Her commitment to her fiancé and his child. Who will claim her heart?

Her first love’s return forces Annie to exam her commitment to her fiancé and his child. Who will claim her heart?

Her first love’s determination to change her mind and her heart forces Annie to exam her commitment to her fiancé and his child. Who will claim her heart?

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http://www.judythemorgan.com/

In my Triple X series about identical triplets reuniting, Lexie, Maxie, and Roxie have a tradition of drinking bourbon whenever something good happens. Fortunately at Roxie’s bar, The Ruckus, there’s plenty available. You could share a drink with your friends, too, but the following recipe is more family friendly. They’re so addictive, soon you might be saying, “This calls for a celebration! We need bourbon.”

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Bourbon Balls

1 c. semisweet chocolate chips

½ c. white sugar

3 T. corn syrup

½ c. bourbon

2 ½ cups crushed vanilla wafers

1 c. chopped walnuts (optional)

1/3 c. confectioners’ sugar

Heat chocolate chips in a microwave safe bowl for one minute. Stir and continue to heat for 20 second intervals until chocolate is melted and smooth. (If melting chocolate on stove, stir constantly and remove from heat as soon as all lumps are gone.)

Stir in sugar, corn syrup, and bourbon. Add crushed vanilla wafers and nuts. Mix thoroughly, cover, and refrigerate until firm.

Roll chilled mixture into bite-size balls. Roll bourbon balls in confectioner’s sugar (or crushed walnuts or candy sprinkles). Store in a covered container to allow flavors to blend.

It’s time for this identical triplet to meet her match.

Can a wild child ever really be tamed? Growing up in foster care has made Roxie Cannon tough and self-reliant, but being alone isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. She’s finally found her sisters. Is it time she met her match?

Roxie should be on top of the world. She’s formed bonds with identical sisters she never knew she had, and she’s buying the biker bar she’s managed for years. The feisty brunette has everything she’s ever wanted. Almost. Two things still elude her: answers to why her family was split apart and a man of her own to love. Seeing her sisters with their soulmates has made her aware she’s still the odd one out. Yet that all starts to change when a rough-and-tumble hottie from her past walks in The Ruckus’ door, wanting a second chance.

Billy knows trouble when he sees it, and Roxie is commotion in motion. They’ve always set sparks off one another. This time, he’s promised himself he won’t get burned. Yet things get serious when he learns of Roxie’s quest to find her parents. Can he save his hot-blooded lover from being hurt? Or will the wounded little girl inside her never trust him again?

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http://kimberlydean.com

 

I’m happy to be here today to share a favorite recipe for the holidays. Easy peasy to prepare. You can vary using saltines, graham crackers, or even chocolate graham crackers. Peanut butter chips can also be substituted for chocolate chips and almonds or walnuts sprinkled on top. Once you taste the toffee-like confection, you’ll find it addicting hence the “crack” label.

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CHRISTMAS CRACK

Melt two sticks of unsalted butter in a sauce pan (1 cup of butter)

Mix in one cup of light brown sugar. Stir till it's all mixed and melted together.

Line a cookie sheet with tin foil and rub with butter. Don't spray with Pam because that's just gross. =)

Lay out graham crackers on the foil, enough to cover it all.

Pour the melted butter/brown sugar mix over it, distributing as evenly as you can.

Pour a bag of semi-sweet chocolate chips over the top of the whole thing. 

Put in a 350 oven for about 12 minutes, until the chocolate chips start to melt.

Then pull it out and use a spatula to spread the chips into a layer of chocolate. 

Place the cookie sheet in the fridge or freezer until it all hardens, then crack it up into bite-sized pieces.

YUMMY!!!

While on temporary assignment to South Korea in 1966, Major Ace Cabot meets Lily Reed, a Department of Army civilian at Eighth Army Headquarters.

A high-potential career officer, Ace knows he should resist the temptation of any woman, but Lily stirs feelings he can’t ignore.

She’s a firm supporter of the budding women’s lib movement with no room in her plans for any man. No matter how captivating his smile.

In an uncertain time, yielding to temptation changes both lives forever.

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http://www.judythemorgan.com/

Making pralines, a gooey pecan-embedded caramel concoction, is a Christmas tradition in many kitchens in the South. Cookbook author Nathalie Dupree wrote in Southern Memories: "I can't imagine a world without pralines."

This family recipe for pralines appears in the print edition of my Christmas romance Nobody's Cinderella which will be available in mid-December. Luckily, you get it now.

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Magic Christmas Pralines Recipe

Ingredients:
2 cups brown sugar
1 cup heavy cream or evaporated milk or  ½ cup of each
2 tablespoons butter
2 ½ cups pecans

Equipment:
Heavy saucepan or skillet
Candy thermometer
Silicone mat or parchment paper
a Tablespoon

Procedure:
Place sugar and cream in the heavy bottomed pot. Turn on the heat and stir to mix. Bring the mixture to a boil. Cook over medium heat until the candy thermometer registers 238 degrees.

Stir well and continue cooking until candy thermometer registers 245 degrees.

Remove from heat. Quickly spoon the hot mixture onto a silicone mat or a sheet or parchment paper.

The pralines will spread and crystallize as they cool.
When they are completely cool, wrap each piece individually in a piece of wax paper -- or small paper doily if you want to package them for a gift. Store in an airtight container.

Darcy is the oldest cliche in the world--a woman in love with her boss. Other than that, she's no-nonsense, practical, mature, and sober. She's the kind of woman Chase Whitaker wants as head of accounting for his company. She's definitely not the kind of woman he wants in his bed.

Blessed with a killer hoop shot instead of feminine wiles, thanks to her 3 brothers, she hasn't a clue as to how to attract Chase's interest. She's nothing like the swinging hotties that he dates, but Darcy's meddling, matchmaking best friend has a plan to transform Darcy into the ultimate hottie--just the kind of woman Chase likes. All it takes? A couple of little lies. And a wish on a Christmas star.

The lies turn out to be not so little, and Darcy gets way more than she bargained for. You know what they say about wishes? Be careful what you wish for.

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http://www.JoanReeves.com

http://SlingWords.blogspot.com

This recipe has been in my family for at least three generations, maybe more. While not a huge lover of what others call fudge, this recipe is one I make every year… and eat most of it too.

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GG's Fudge

1 c walnuts, chopped	1 12 oz pckg semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 cube (1/4 lb) margarine, cut in eights	2 c sugar
1 small can (2/3 c) evaporated milk	10-14 regular-size marshmallows

Place nuts, chocolate chips and margarine in large mixing bowl. Set aside.

IN sauce pan, combine sugar, milk and marshmallows. Bring to a slow boil, stirring constantly. Once it begins to bubble, slow boil for 6 minutes.

Pour milk mixture over chocolate mixture and mix with wooden spoon until it starts to firm up and lose some of its sheen. Then pour over buttered sheet or plate so that it can finish setting up. Cut into pieces.

Give some to your friends – if there is any left.

Thrilled to be spending her summer interning at the world’s largest erotic library, Serendipity Jones feels it cannot get any better than sun, sand, and the beautiful castle the library is housed in. Within days of her arrival, strange things begin to occur that only she knows of. Erotic sounds come from within the library when nobody else is around, the books won't open, and a strange man seems to be plaguing her steps.

At first annoyed by the imposing taciturn man, she finds herself attracted and quickly falls in love with Joshuan even though he is meant for another. On a quest to find the woman foretold in a prophecy from his world, he is at first annoyed at Seri who keeps getting in his way before coming to enjoy her company and falling in love with her. But their short love affair must come to an end. For the woman foretold will be found as the sun goes silent and the solar eclipse comes quickly.

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http://www.thiannad.com/

Whether you a football fan or not, you’ll be a fan of this recipe I found on www.bakerella.com

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Oreo Football Truffles

1 package Oreo cookies (use cookie including the cream center)

1 8oz. package cream cheese (softened) chocolate bark (for dipping)

 

1. Finely crush cookies in a food processor or place them in a ziploc bag and crush into a fine consistency. 2.Stir in softened cream cheese.Use the back of a large spoon to help mash the two together (I used my hands). 3. Roll the mixture into football shaped balls and place on wax paper covered cookie sheet. 4. Melt chocolate as directed on the package and then dip footballs into chocolate, tap off extra and set aside on wax paper covered cookie sheet to dry. 5.) Once dry, pipe icing rings on the edges and laces on the top. 6.) Refrigerate.

Makes about 36 truffles.

And now that I got you in the mood for some football why not read Playing For Keeps?

Journalist Samantha Jameson always wanted to be one of the boys, but Ryan Terell won’t let her join the club. Fresh from the battlegrounds of Iraq, reporting on a bunch of overgrown boys playing pro football is just the change of scenery she needs. If trying to be taken seriously in the world of sports writing wasn’t hard enough, Ryan, her college crush, is only making it harder. As a tight-end for the team she’s covering, he is strictly off limits.

Ryan Terell is a playmaker on and off the field, but when Samantha uncovers his moves, he throws out the playbook. Just as he claims his sweetest victory, Samantha’s investigation into a steroid scandal involving his team forces him to call a time-out to their off the record trysts. But then a life threatening injury on the field will force them both to decide just how far they’ll go to win the game.

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http://www.taoofliz.blogspot.com