It's Beginning to Smell A Lot Like the Holidays!

Tis the most wonderful time of the year... the Holidays!! I am not sure which part is my favorite, the baking, food, the music, or the scents. When the holiday time arrives, I immediately start making my favorite stove-top  holiday scent. I am going to share how to make your home smell like the holidays!

For the fruit, I use the apples and oranges that are close to being thrown away. They still have a lot of scent to them and work perfect for this recipe.

Usually I make a single batch and it will last me at least a week! I only need to add water about every other day. So gather up some old apples, oranges and cinnamon and get ready to be put in the holiday mood!

Hope you enjoy this wonderful scent of the holidays!

-Simply a Girl and Her Home

May not look pretty but it sure smells good! 

Kym's Holiday Stove-Top Scent

Ingredients:

Apples, roughly sliced
Oranges, sliced and peeled
Peelings from oranges
Whole cloves
Cinnamon (can be ground or sticks)
Nutmeg
All-Spice
Water


Directions:

1. Slice your fruit and throw them into a big pot.
2. Add water to the pot about 1/2 full.
3. Next add in all of your spices and orange peelings.
4. Turn heat to high until it starts to boil. Then turn heat down to simmer and Enjoy!

Homemade Fall Snickerdoodle Cookies

During the holiday season, I like to experiment with new recipes and flavors. I was watching one of my Food Network shows the other night and they were making snickerdoodle cookies. I am a huge fan of snickerdoodles! Believe it or not I have yet to make my own, so I figured I would give it a try and add my own spin to it. 

I started with my base recipe, which is actually the recipe for the Boyfriend cookie just without the candies. In order to get that "fall flavor," I added a pinch of all-spice and nutmeg to my dry ingredients. I also added a little of those spices to the sugar mixture that I rolled the dough in before baking the cookies. 

These are some delicious little cookies! They would be perfect on some ice cream or with some coffee. I could picture them wrapped in cute bag and given as a gift during the holiday season! 

Hope you enjoy this recipe as much as I have! 

-Simply a Girl and Her Home  

Fall Snickerdoodle Cookies

Ingredients:

1/4 cup white sugar

3/4 cup brown sugar

1 cup butter, softened

1 pkg instant vanilla pudding

1 tsp vanilla

2 eggs

1 tsp baking soda

2 1/4 cups flour

1 tsp nutmeg

1 tsp all-spice

Sugar Topping:

Sugar

Cinnamon sugar

Nutmeg

All-spice

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees for dark/ non-stick pans, 375 degrees for regular baking pan. 

2. In a large mixing bowl, cream the butter and sugars 

3. Add the pudding mix, eggs, and vanilla into the mix and stir well 

4. Next add the flour, spices and baking soda to the mixture, and continue to mix well  

5. Make small balls of dough and roll them in the "sugar topping" mixture.

6. Place them on the baking sheet about 1/2 inch apart. The cookies do not spread out much so the 1/2 inch should be enough. 

7. Bake for about 10 minutes or until golden brown 

8. Remove and cool before packaging

A Holiday Favorite: Kym's Holiday Almonds

Well it's my favorite time of the year again... Holiday time! Usually around Thanksgiving, I get many requests to make my cinnamon almonds. They are warm, sweet and addicting! I thought I would share my recipe so that you can make your own tasty delight! 

I have used this recipe and changed it many times. I add a little nutmeg sometimes and other times I add more vanilla. It is yours to change and make amazing! I make them and let them sit overnight, just so they can completely cool and harden. They can be used as a small gift or even taken to a holiday party! 

If you add anything new let me know, so that I can try it out!! 

Enjoy! Happy Early Thanksgiving! 

-Simply a Girl and Her Home

Kym's Holiday Almonds

Ingredients:

3 cups almonds, whole, raw
1 cup sugar
2 tbs Cinnamon Sugar
1/4 cup water
Vanilla (to taste)
Parchment paper
Spices (All to Taste):
Ground Cinnamon
Ground Nutmeg 
Ground All-spice  



Directions:

1. In a saucepan, heat the sugars, spices, water and vanilla. Let it boil for 1 minute while stirring continuously. 

2. Remove from the heat and add the almonds. Mix the almonds until they are completely coated.

3. Pour almonds out onto a piece of parchment paper.  Spread them around the paper to make a single layer.

4. Let them cool completely overnight. Try not to eat too many! 

5. Break them apart and share! The almonds may be stored in an air tight container for a few days.