Aunt Ionia's Pecan Cups and Last Day to Enter Apron Giveaway

Today is the last day to enter my giveaway for the Mrs. Christmas Apron.  Click HERE to enter. 

Our Christmas Angel, Aunt Ionia hosted Christmas Eve every year.  After a sumptuous dinner, the men would wash and dry the dishes and silverware by hand!, She would always have fancy Christmas dish towels that they were NOT supposed to use to dry the dishes; each year they would tease her that they were using the fancy towels! 

 After the dish washing, Ionia would bring out a cookie tray.  There would be a least nine kinds of cookies, served with peppermint ice cream.  All of these were made by Ionia; no one was allowed to bring anything to her Christmas Eve feast.  She would store the tins, with Christmas goodness, on the steps leading to her attic.  Pecan Cups were my favorite on the cookie tray. They are buttery, yummy bites of deliciousness.

Recipe for Pecan Tarts

Cup Ingredients

1-1/2 cups of butter

1 (8-ounce) package of cream cheese

3 cups flour

Cream butter, cream cheese together and then mix flour with hands.  Chill for about an hour.  Make into balls (about 1 tablespoon) and form into min muffin pans to make a crust.  It is better to use non-stick pans as they tend to stick.  You can also use the handle little tool that my mother-in-law Geniel gave me to make the cups.  I think it is a Pampered Chef item.

Filling:

3 cups brown sugar

4 teaspoons vanilla

2/3 cups pecans - cut in small pieces

4 eggs

4 tablespoons butter, very soft, but not melted.

3/4 teaspoons salt

Mix all filling ingredients together.  This is the recipe that was given me, but I only use about half of the filling; so half it if you like.  Fill the cups with about a little less than 1 teaspoon of filling.  Bake 325 degrees for about 22-25 minutes.  Like many things, these taste better the next day after baking.

The pecan cups with the filling waiting to be baked.

I hope you make some delicious Pecan Cups for those you love at Christmas!

Thanks for dropping by Red Couch Recipes today.

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Holly Bloggy Christmas Party

Grandma Utahna Felix's English Toffee

Click HERE to enter my drawing for the Mrs. Christmas apron.

I have been making this toffee and giving it to friends and family for years.  It is simply delicious and is the main goodie that I make at Christmas.  Recently, my sister Jacqueline (Purple Chocolat Home) and I had a day of making toffee at my home.  Do not be intimidated by making toffee; this is really the most easy candy to make --- and the most delicious.  It is a vintage recipe of my husband's Grandma Utahna.  I guess you could guess that she was born in Utah and named after her home state.

Utahna, Leo, and LaVar Felix in the 1930's

This is so delicious that sometimes I have made up to 26 batches to give away to family and friends  at Christmas!

I am giving you the recipe  as it was given to me.  Although I use a thermometer with most other candy, I don't with this recipe.  Also, I always use milk chocolate chips.  The brand I love to use is not available anymore.  Jaqueline brought three kinds of chocolate chips and I closed my eyes -- yes, a true blind test -- when tasting.  The Ghiardelli milk chocolate tasted the best -- the chips were sweet and creamy.  Do NOT use margarine!  I always use salted butter.

Can you see me in the bottom right Christmas ball?  Jacqueline is pictured on the bottom left.

Recipe for Utahna's English Toffee

1 cup butter

1 cup granulated sugar

3 tablespoons water

1 cup toasted pecans broken in pieces--Toast in 350 degree oven for about 10 minutes.

Milk chocolate chips

Place toasted pecans in the bottom of  8 x8 pyrex pan.  Put butter, sugar, and water in medium heavy sauce pan and cook at high temperature.  I always break up my butter in small pieces in the sauce pan.   Stir with wooden spoon throughout the cooking time.  The mix should always appear fluffy at all times.  Cook until mixture turns an amber color, starts to leave the sides of the pan, and is slightly smoking, take off heat and turn immediately over onto prepared nuts. The cooking time is relatively short, depending on your stove, approximately 7 to 8 minutes with a gas stove and 10-11 minutes with an electrice stove.  These are just approximate times.   Let toffee cool for 8 to 10 minutes.  Then sprinkle with milk chocolate chips.  When chips are melted, swirl around with knife.  Let chocolate dry -- this takes several hours.  When chocolate is dry, turn over toffee on wax paper and break into pieces.

Candy Making Notes:
While stirring, use a wet pastry brush or clean, wet dishcloth to wash down the sides of the pan to dissolve any undissolved sugar crysals.  If you skip this step, the candy might sugar.  Also when you pour the toffee mixture on the pecans, do NOT scrape the pan.  If you do scrape the pan, this could also cause the mixture to sugar. If you are making more than one batch, make sure that your pan and spoon are clean of sugar crystals.  If it DOES sugar, it tastes wonderful broken up and served on a good quality vanilla ice cream.  Also, make sure that your toffee is truly an amber color before you take it off the stove.

 

Breakfast with the Big Guy!

Click HERE to enter my giveaway for the Mrs. Christmas apron handcrafted by my talented sister Jacqueline, Purple Chocolat Home.  It would look fabulous on you!

Welcome to my breakfast with the Big Guy at Red Couch Recipes!  Every Christmas morning, before we open the presents, we eat a big breakfast which includes the traditional Christmas morning casserole served by my mother-in-law Geniel for many years. I may be posting this later; I have some pre-blogger pictures from last year.

Before I beginI want to extend thank yous as I have experienced Christmas Luck recently in winning blogger giveaways.

I want to thank Sherry from The Charm of Home for the wonderful giveaway package I received this week!  Sherry must have seen the condition of my Christmas hot pad and towels!  I immediately went to my bedroom and began to read this fun book stuffed with decorating ideas.  The candle smells and looks devine.

I also want to thank Beth, Food as Art, for the lovely Le Creuset tart pan -- in my favorite color.  I know a tart will taste better in such a pretty pan.  I had a red pie pan similar to this that I loved.  I took it to a church function and dropped it on the sidewalk after the function ended. I am planning the things I will bake in this beautiful new pan. Love this!

Breakfast with the Big Guy Tablescape!

My sister Jeannie gifted me these dishes about ten years ago.  I love the gold stars and gold rims.

Here is a picture of the backside of the plate.

The "Joy" salad plates are from Wal-Mart this year.  I also have plates that say Hope and Peace.  Can you believe I only bought six of these?  Now they are gone.

I added cream napkins with Style Sisters napkin rings and tucked in a candy cane.

Here's a close-up of the napkin ring.

For glasses I used the tall goblets bought at Costco years ago.  The smaller glass is a vintage Royal Crown goblet. 

My Aunt Ionia, who was our family's Christmas Angel, set the "adult table" every year on Christmas Eve with these glasses. In all the 27 years that I went to my Aunt's for Christmas Eve, I don't think I ever sat at the "adult table." My sisters and I loved those ruby glasses and they created a longing for ruby glasses in us.   Later in life, we all bought a set of the tall Costco glasses. This year Jaqueline gifted me these Royal Crown goblets as a remembrance of those magical Christmas Eve's spent at our Aunt Ionia's home.  My sisters and I didn't inherit the Royal Crown so you can imagine how special it is to have a set of these?

My Aunt Ionia, My Dad, Uncle Bob, and Aunt Mary

Here is a sideview of the table.

Here is an overhead view of the table.  I love the red balls in the ruby footed bowl.  I bought the footed bowl years ago at Tai Pan Trading.

I bought the Santa cookie jar at T.J. Maxx years ago.  He is so jolly and cute.

The Santa canvas is a Susan Comish print.  One year I bought this, and didn't tell anyone.  I brought the canvas out on Christmas Eve when everyone was in bed and told everyone that Santa had brought a picture of himself!  I love her pictures of Santa. 

My Love Affair with Santa

My mother said that as a young girl, I loved "Causie," as I called him, right from the get go. She wrote, "Causie  is the big thing in my life."  When I was only 18 months she wrote that "Causie came -- Ho! Ho! Ho!  Causie is my name for Santa Claus, who was so important to me."  After the Christmas when I was 18 months,  she wrote, "I talked of him for months and laughed like he does. " 

As a little girl, the only present I ever really cared about was receiving a stuffed Santa for Christmas; each year I would receive a new one.  I didn't care for dolls -- I just loved my Santa!   I would carry around my stuffed Santas year round.  When the black boots ripped, my parents would tape them up with electrical tape.  One year, I realized when all the presents were opened, that I wasn't receiving a new Santa Claus.  I was so disappointed!  Then my parents realized that "Santa" had left some packages in their closet.  To my relief, I received a new Santa.  They don't make Santas like that anymore and I wish I still had one.

The big red jingle bells were from a local craft store a few years ago.

I hope you enjoyed my Breakfast with the Big Guy!

Tablescape Information;

Tablecoth -- Can't remember where, maybe Wal-Mart

Placemats -- Wal-Mart

Gold Chargers -- Costco

Red Galaxy Plates -- Gift from Jeannie my sister

Peace, Hope, Joy Salad/Dessert Plates -- Wal-Mart this year

Silverware -- Damask Rose by Oneida -- Wedding present from my parents

Red Goblets -- Costco

Royal Crown Goblets -- Gift from Jacqueline, my sister

Napkins -- Wal-Mart

Napkin Rings -- Style Sisters

Large Jingle Bells -- Roberts Arts and Crafts

Red Footed Bowl -- Tai Pan Trading

Santa Cookie Jar -- T,J. Maxx

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Tickled Pink