Countdown to Christmas has started! We have had a bunch of holiday functions to attend and work has been busy so hence my big gap in posting. My parents arrive tomorrow and both my kids are home so this house will be the fullest it has in a long time. Yay! We got a massive dump of snow in the foothills yesterday and overnight so my husband and our neighbours were able to put the collective snowblower to good use. Still had to do some shovelling and push out vehicles this morning. Considering we were in double digits temperature wise last week, zero snow and I still had my flip flops by the door, today was a reality check that winter arrives tomorrow. It will be a white Christmas!

Everyone was either working or out at about so I decided to stay in, clean house and do some baking. I had all the ingredients for Peanut butter Marshmallow Squares so I decided to whip some up. Plus they are my son’s favourite. Hopefully some will make it to Christmas. 😉

Peanut butter Marshmallow Squares
What you will need:

1/2 cup of butter or block margarine

1 cup smooth peanut butter

1 pkg (300 grams) butterscotch chips

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 pkg (400 grams) white mini marshmallows

1/2 cup coursely chopped maraschino cherries (well drained)

1/2 cup semisweet coconut shreds

How to make them:
In the top of a double boiler melt the butter or margarine, the entire bag of butterscotch chips, peanut butter and the vanilla. As the ingredients begin to melt, stir them together until they are super smooth, zero lumps. Take the pot off the simmering water and set it aside to cool. Be sure the peanut butter mixture has cooled down sufficiently before adding the marshmallows. You should be able to touch the bottom of the pot with your hand, this usually takes about a half an hour. During this time I grease my 13’x9’x2′ pan with either margarine, butter or spray. Cut a piece of parchment or waxed paper to fit the pan, put it in and then grease the paper. No stickage allowed. Plus the paper will make it easy to take out the set marshmallow mixture and cut it into pieces.

Dump the entire bag of marshmallows into a large bowl and then pour the peanut butter mixture over the top. Give it a good stir to cover all the marshmallows and then add the cherries and coconut and stir it all up again.
Dump the mixture into the greased pan and spread it out evenly. I decided to sprinkle some red and green nonpareils over the top to make them more festive, but you don’t have to. If there are allergies or you just don’t like maraschino cherries or coconut you can skip them as well. Cover with plastic wrap and let them set in the fridge. Once they are set you can lift them out by the paper and cut into squares. They also freeze excellent, so you can take them out as you need them.

Now I must go eat some! Happy Holidays!