Generally, I get crazy into Christmas decorating and making gifts and everything that is cliche for the season. I try to start shopping in September or October, hoping to be done buying stuff by November. Christmas cards need to be finished by Thanksgiving, which is when I try to start sending them out. I try to start decorating the house the weekend after Thanksgiving as well, with a live tree when it is possible. I then, hopefully, will have the whole month of December to craft gifts so that they are ready to be given/mailed out at the appropriate times.
This year, oh ho, this year is different. I don't have a wreath or door decoration up because it has been a stormy month and I don't want to hear it banging around. We didn't get a tree because we didn't get a chance to get one until the tenth and I didn't want to put up a tree for two weeks as well as try to get low enough to water it. I did end up putting some decorations up so that we can put stockings out and have somewhere to place gifts. Wes loves having the lights on!
I don't usually make treats for Christmas. I was asked to bring a dessert to my Grandpa Sandoval's dinner so I thought I would do something easy but festive. I decided to make brownies with crushed candy cane on top. Wes was a really good helper and helped me bake these treats.
Looks delicious! I haven't tried them yet but the house smells awesome, like peppermint and chocolate. Although the mix is store bought, I did make one change to the recipe. Instead of using the oil, water and eggs that are called for in the recipe, I used a can of black beans instead. This one change in the recipe means that the brownies are just a teensy bit healthier than normal. I found the recipe online; I honestly didn't make this change because it was healthier but because it was easier for me to do. Wes helped me out the whole time, which wasn't necessarily faster but he wasn't in my way or trying to get into things. He helped me puree the beans, he helped me mix the batter with the electric mixer and he loved breaking the candy canes up with the rolling pin! Here is the recipe that I found:
- 1 18oz Brownie Box mix ( I used the Pillsbury Chocolate Fudge mix)
- 1 15.5 oz can of Black Beans
- water
- sprinkles (optional)
First drain and rinse the beans. Place beans back into the can and fill with water. The idea here is to replace the salty bean juice with fresh water to reduce the sodium. If you have sodium free beans this step is unnecessary.
Puree the beans and water together. Add the bean puree and brownie mix to large bowl. Mix well with a spatula until combined. Spray your brownie pan with non stick spray and pour in the batter. (I used an aluminum pan from the dollar store.) Top with festive sprinkles if you like. (NOTE: I put the candy canes on at this point on the first batch, but the melted out a bit. The second batch I made I waited about fifteen minutes and then placed the candy canes on top and they didn't melt at all.) Bake for 30 minutes. This may vary based on your pan size and material. They take less time then the package states for traditional eggs/oil. I found 30 minutes to be perfect. A toothpick stuck in came out clear and the top was firm to the touch. If you bake longer they will start to dry out and become more cake like. Remove form oven and let cool in pan.
Depending on how I feel today, I may attempt to make some cream cheese mints as well, but I'm not sure if that is going to get done. This year is the year the I am letting go. If it gets done, then it gets done; if it doesn't, the world isn't going to stop because of it. I very much doubt I'll keep this attitude going forward but limitations this year have made me more likely to embrace this idea. I still have gifts for Wes that need to be wrapped but instead of wrapping them individually, I may end up putting a few together in a box and then it's fewer presents to wrap for me. We got a huge ride-on tractor for Wes and Casey is going to have to put it together tonight, so at least we'll be up together!
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