Got Candy Canes?

Heloooooooooo!
So, as you can see......I'm back from my alien abduction. Those little green men were a nice escape from reality, but I figured it was time to get back to crafting and posting (at least more often than every 3 months).
So, farewell my friends from the stars....you were kind to me and introduced me to new and exciting things, like star-fishing and Gorgon hunting. I will miss you all!!
Anyhoo, I will try to post every few weeks as my blog means alot to me......as well as YOU GUYS. I am so pleasantly surprised to continue getting such nice emails wishing me well and making sure I had not fallen off the edge of the Earth (I haven't......not yet). My migraines are still around and even with all the treatments and medicines I've tried, they have (sadly) not abated. But......I am tired of being a recluse and have vowed to try to inhabit the land of the living more often. I have good days and bad days......but am learning to better take advantage of the good times.



Therefore, I want to show you all what I did with my kiddos for some fun V-Day treats! I originally saw this done here over at The Idea Room last year, and made a mental note to make sure and get extra candy canes at Christmastime. This year she added melted chocolate in the middles and they turned out so cute.



I wanted to make larger ones and this is how it worked out for me.......
I heated the oven to 350 and then I lined my cookie sheet with parchment paper (you can use the same piece over and over) so they would not stick.



Check all the canes for cracks and breaks and then lay them as shown with the stick in between.





Put them in the oven and then keep an eye on them and watch for the very FIRST signs of melting and crackling on the top. In my oven this took between 2-2 1/2 minutes.......They will continue to melt a little once out of the oven (this picture was taken after they had melted a tiny bit more and cooled). Take them out and quickly (and carefully) push the melty candy onto the stick at the top and bottom. Then, let them cool.



For the filling.....melt your chocolate chips (white or milk) and spoon into the middle of your pepper-minty treat. It took about 2 tablespoons to fill it nicely. Use the tip of your spoon or a toothpick to spread the chocolate around inside.



You need to wait a few minutes before sprinkling in your sprinkles (or crushed candies) to keep it from sinking down to the bottom like what happened here.....



Done right, they will turn out supa cute like this one!!



Then......once cooled, you can slip them into some cute bags and tie them at the bottom with a purdy Valentine's ribbon.



As you can see, my little girlies wanted to make their own customized suckers to show their cute individuality.



We even had the idea to use some of the cherry ones to make some "boy" ones for my 4 year-old's preschool class (yes, it's a small class.....2 girls and 2 boys)



So, if you happen to have any of these Christmas candies laying around......use them up now!! If not......a friend of mine even found some on clearance at one of our local grocery stores.
Have fun!!