Yummy holiday treats.

One of my favorite things about the holiday season is all the yummy food we get to eat. These are just a few of my traditional and new favorites for the holidays. Enjoy!

Peppermint Meltaways

A college roommate and dear friend of mine introduced this recipe on her blog and it is completely delicious. They really do melt in your mouth! Thanks Claire ;)

1 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1/2 tsp peppermint extract
1-1/4 cups flour
1/2 cup cornstarch

Cream butter and powdered sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in extract. Combine flour and cornstarch; gradually add to creamed mixture and mix well. Shape into 1" balls. Place 2" apart on ungreased cookie sheet. Bake at 350 for 10-12 minutes or until bottoms are very lightly browned. Remove to a wire rack to cool.

Frosting:
2 TBSP butter, softened
1-1/2 cups powdered sugar
2 TBSP milk
1/4 tsp peppermint extract
2-3 drops red food coloring
1/2 cup crushed peppermint candies/candy canes (I like to use the green and red peppermint candies.)

Beat butter until fluffy. Add powdered sugar, milk, extract and food coloring and beat until smooth. Spread over completely cooled cookies. Sprinkle with crushed candies.

Easy Oreo Truffles

I found this recipe off of my favorite recipe website, allrecipes.com. They were given to me as a gift in Relief Society and Jon and I fell in love with them. They are positively sinful!

1 (16 ounce) package OREO chocolate sandwich cookies, divided
1 (8 ounce) package PHILADELPHIA cream cheese, softended
2 (8 ounce) packages BAKER's semi-sweet baking chocolate, melted

1. Crush 9 of the cookies to fine crumbs in a food processor; reserve for later use. (Cookies can also be finely crushed in a resealable plastic bag using a rolling pin.) Crush remaining 36 cookies to fine crumbs; place in medium bowl. Add cream cheese; mix until well blended. Roll cookies mixture into 42 balls, about 1-inch diameter.

2. Dip balls in chocolate; place on wax-paper covered baking sheet. (Any leftover chocolate can be stored at room temperature for anther use.) Sprinkle with reserved cookie crumbs.

3. Refrigerate until firm, about 1 hour. Store leftover truffles, covered, in refrigerator.

Nestle Toll House Pie

This is a family favorite of the Hogges. I made it for Thanksgiving with the Niu family and it was a hit. So easy and so rich! Eat with a glass of cold milk...yum!

1 (9-inch) unbaked pie crust

2 eggs

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup packed brown sugar

3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) butter, softened

1 cup chocolate chips

1 cup chopped nuts (optional)

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Beat eggs in large bowl on high speed until foamy. Beat in flour, granulated sugar, and brown sugar. Beat in butter. Stir in chocolate chips and nuts. Spoon into pie shell.Bake in over for 55 to 60 minutes or until knife inserted halfway between edge and center comes out clean. Cool on wire rack. Serve warm with whipped cream or ice cream. (I don't add the nuts, but I think the pie would be really delicious with them.)

Mom's Cinnamon Rolls

My wonderful and talented mother has been making these for years. Every time I come home to California I ask her to make them. This last time we visited I asked her to write down her recipe. She's never written it down before! It has become one of my absolute favorite recipes. Whenever I eat them I think of home and family. Enjoy this divine family recipe!

1. In large mixing bowl of upright mixer, whisk together: 1 3/4 cups hottest water from the tap 1/2 cup canola or vegetable oil ~ Let sit for 15 minutes.

2. Using wire whisk attachment, mix in: 1/3 cup granulated sugar 3 level tablespoons yeast 1 1/2 teaspoons salt 2 egg whites 5 1/2 cups flour - bread flour works best but is not necessary. *The last 2 cups of flour should be added slowly to allow flour to be completely absorbed. Dough should be sticky, but should pull away from sides of bowl.

3. Beat dough in mixer on medium speed for 10 minutes.

4. On a floured surface, roll out dough 3/8" to 1/2" thick, forming a large rectangle.

5. Melt 1/2 cup butter. Spread several tablespoons of melted butter onto the rolled out dough. Save rest of butter for icing*

6. In a medium bowl, combine the following: 3 cups brown sugar 3 tablespoons ground cinnamon ~ Sprinkle brown sugar mixture evenly onto prepared dough.

7. Roll up dough, jelly roll fashion, starting at one long end of rectangle. Pinch final edge of dough to seal.

8. Spray pan with non-stick cooking spray. I use a microwave-safe 12" by 12" baking pan. If you use a 9" by 13" baking pan and have slices of dough leftover, bake the extras in a prepared pie plate.

9. Using @ 18" of heavy string or dental floss, slide the string under the roll of dough. Slice off 1" to 1 1/4" pieces by bringing the string up over the dough, crossing it and pulling tightly to slice through the dough. Place on baking pan. A 12" square pan will hold 16 slices.

10. Let dough rise in a draft-free place till doubled or microwave at 10% power (not 100% power) for 10 minutes.

11. Bake in oven preheated to 375 degrees for 15 to 18 minutes, or until edges are lightly browned and centers look done.

12. While cinnamon rolls are still warm, make glaze (recipe below). Spread generously over rolls. This can be done as soon as they come out of the oven. ~ Best eaten warm and with a cold glass of milk.

Cinnamon Roll Glaze ~* remaining melted butter from above recipe 3 cups powdered sugar 3 tablespoons milk 1 teaspoon vanilla ~ Combine butter, sugar, milk and vanilla until smooth. Spread on warm cinnamon rolls.


Enjoy these scrumptious treats as you spend time with family and friends this Christmas! Luvs!

Our wedding day.

We hope everyone is having a most wonderful holiday season. Christmas time has always been my favorite time of the year. We are so excited for our first Christmas together. The pictures have come! Hope you all enjoy some of our favorite pictures of our wedding day. We are excited to hear of all of your Christmas activities. Luvs!

A few of my favorite things.

Since being married there are some things that I have come to love. This blog is dedicated to a few simple things that have made my life easier and wonderful.

First, http://www.allrecipes.com/. I have absolutely loved getting to know this website. I tried many, many websites and this is the one that I have fallen in love with. You have the option of receiving daily recipes via email. It's a great way to widen the variety of your recipes. When you become a member of Allrecipes.com you also have the option of creating a recipe box. I LOVE this option because it's all right there when I create my weekly menus. Try it out! You can also check out http://www.prudencepennywise.blogspot.com/. I love her meal ideas and recipes.

Second, http://www.grocerysmarts.com/. My sister-in-law introduced me to this website and it has been fantastic for our family of two. It is used to help you see the best deals at your local grocery stores. The stars next to the product help you know whether or not you should stock up. It is fabulous! There is a code for each state. Utah's code is g84ccl. I'm sure it wouldn't be too difficult to find codes of other states;) We have already saved loads of money. As an example, one of my sister-in-laws spent $18 on over $100 worth of food. We're always looking for ways to save.

Third, Scentsy Candles. My love for Scentsy began with a wedding gift we received...a Scentsy warmer and a block of Spruce & Citrus candle wax. Since then, we have fallen in love with many of the scents. Check it out at http://www.scentsy.com/ or just click on it under my section "My Favorite Things".

Anyway, hope you all enjoyed getting to know a few of my favorite things. Luvs!

Provo Reception.

I am finally putting up pictures from our Provo Reception. About 20 minutes before the reception our cousin Melissa asked if she could take some pictures of us and of course we agreed. She is an incredible photographer. You're all welcome to visit her blog at http://www.melissaniu.com/. Jon came into the photo shoot about 5 minutes before we finished... this is why you'll see lots more of me than him;) We feel so blessed to have so much talent in our family.

The Provo reception was absolutely exquisite. Thanks to Mama Niu, Dad Niu and all of our wonderful, supportive family members is was a complete success. Because of Jon's Polynesian background we decided that the Provo reception would keep the colors and feel of the first reception and just add Tongan details, mostly with the flowers, music, and food. It was fabulous! We had an entire Tongan dinner prepared for our guests and a full program with singing and Polynesian dancing. Hundreds came to show their love and support of which we are so grateful. Both of our receptions were relaxing (at least for the bride and groom) and so much fun. We feel so blessed to have such wonderful support from both of our families. Enjoy the pictures! There are many to enjoy! Wedding day pictures will be coming soon. Hope everyone is loving the Fall weather and enjoying the beginning of the Holiday Season!

How it began.

I returned home from my mission in Washington D.C. about a year ago. I served proselyting and at the Washington D.C. Temple Visitor's Center. I loved serving and I think about my people and my experiences every day. It's hard to explain the love you feel when you serve. The love I felt changed me and I'm grateful. Three weeks after returning home I moved to Utah and soon thereafter found my current job, which I absolutely love.

About a month later I met Jon at a CES fireside, classic. I had to take a call from my sister and he walked in fashionably late just after I got off the phone... perfect timing. He asked me if the fireside had begun, obviously it already had, nice pick-up line babe. We met in early October and didn't begin dating until early March. We both knew very early that we would get married. I had never felt so peaceful and certain about anything. Jon surprised me with an earlier-than-I-expected proposal at the Joseph Smith Memorial Building, one of my all-time favorite places. He proposed in one of the gorgeous and romantic ballrooms after a delicious dinner at The Roof. When we walked into the ballroom I saw the rose petals leading to a dozen roses and a small ring box, but thought it was for someone else. I told Jon we had to leave so we wouldn't spoil someone else's engagement experience. He took my hand and said, "Mindy, let's just take a look." It was then I knew, this was all for me. After he proposed we danced to my favorite song "Unforgettable" by Nat King Cole. Talk about romantic!

Life with Jon is simply wonderful. For many years I've heard my friends and family talk about their husbands in adoring ways and I never quite understood how they must feel until now. Jon is my best friend and I adore him completely. We just love being together. I know that Heavenly Father knows us so perferctly that He knows who we need in our lives. I think He allows us to come in contact with those people to feel a small portion of His eternal love for us. Jon is perfect for me and I'm so grateful to have him forever.

We finally gave in.

Well hello to all of our fabulous family and friends. Yes... we finally gave in and began our own blog for our "Niu" family. We are so excited to begin the life of blogging. Hopefully we can figure it out. We are especially excited to keep in touch with all of you. We have now been married for almost two months and we have loved every minute. Our wedding day was the most perfect wedding day I could have ever imagined! Everything was wonderful. Updates on the big day and more pictures will be coming soon. We love you!