WOW {Warm Oven Wednesday}

Go here Kraft Philadelphia for great holiday recipes!  Here's one of my Favorites:

Caramel Pecan Cheesecake Bars

time

prep:

15 min

total:

6 hr

servings

total:

32 servings

what you need

1

cup  PLANTERS Pecan Pieces, divided

50

 NILLA Wafers, finely crushed (about 1-1/2 cups)

1/4

cup  butter, melted

4

pkg.  (8 oz. each) PHILADELPHIA Cream Cheese, softened

1

cup  sugar

1

cup  BREAKSTONE'S or KNUDSEN Sour Cream

3

Tbsp.  flour

1

Tbsp.  vanilla

4

 eggs

24

 KRAFT Caramels

1

Tbsp.  water

3

squares  BAKER'S Semi-Sweet Chocolate

make it

HEAT oven to 325°F.

LINE 13x9-inch pan with foil, with ends of foil extending over sides. Reserve 1/2 cup nuts. Finely chop remaining nuts; mix with wafer crumbs and butter. Press onto bottom of prepared pan. Refrigerate until ready to use.

BEAT cream cheese and sugar in large bowl with mixer until well blended. Add sour cream, flour and vanilla; mix well. Add eggs, 1 at a time, mixing on low speed after each just until blended. Pour over crust.

BAKE 45 min. or until center is almost set. Cool completely.

MICROWAVE caramels and water in microwaveable bowl on HIGH 1 min. or until caramels are completely melted when stirred. Pour over cheesecake; top with reserved nuts. Melt chocolate; drizzle over cheesecake. Refrigerate 4 hours. Use foil handles to remove cheesecake from pan before cutting to serve.

kraft kitchens tips

HEALTHY LIVING

Save 40 calories and 5 grams of fat per serving by preparing with Reduced Fat NILLA Wafers, PHILADELPHIA Neufchatel Cheese and BREAKSTONE'S Reduced Fat or KNUDSEN Light Sour Cream.

SUBSTITUTE

Substitute 1 cup KRAFT Caramel Bits for the KRAFT Caramels.

EASY MICROWAVE MELTING OF BAKER'S CHOCOLATE SQUARES

Microwave 1 oz. BAKER'S Chocolate in microwaveable bowl on HIGH 1 min. or until chocolate is almost melted, stirring after 30 sec. (The chocolate will retain its shape.) Stir 1 min. or until chocolate is completely melted. Add 10 sec. for each additional ounce of chocolate, stirring every 30 sec.

Silent Night, Deadly Night by Richard Mabry, M.D.

Book Description:  The colored lights on the snow gave it a holiday appearance, but the dead woman’s body in the yard added a grisly touch. How did Ina Bell Patrick die? 

Who killed her? And why? 

The dead woman had no direct heirs, so two nephews and a niece stood to inherit. Dr. Laura Morris was left to make all the arrangements, attorney Roger Morris could certainly use the money, and Zack Morris had disappeared two years earlier. Then there was neighbor and “best friend” Fay Autrey, who was certain the woman intended to leave her some money—a great deal of money. 

The police were still looking for the killer who left the frozen body in the snow when it became apparent someone was trying to pick off the heirs, one by one. Who would win the race—the police or the killer? 

My Thoughts: A few years ago I just happened to be looking for something "different" to read and picked a copy of Dr. Mabry's novel.  I've never been interested in medical thrillers but after reading that first book by Dr. Mabry I was hooked!

This book, Silent Night, Deadly Night may look short but it is a WOW read!  There is quite a story packed into this novella!

I truly thought I had the mystery solved, I thought I was on the right track; however, I was thrown for a loop when the shooting began and the lost brother showed up.

I must say, I'm a fairly good armchair detective, but this story took a few roller coaster turns I didn't see coming!  
And the ending is so sweet!  

I loved, loved this read!  

This book would make a wonderful gift or even a stocking stuffer for your favorite armchair detective!

* A special Thank You to Dr. Mabry for kindly giving me a copy of his book to review *

Buy Book HERE!

• Paperback: 120 pages
• Publisher: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform (November 13, 2015)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1518641091
• ISBN-13: 978-1518641091

COTT {Clash of the Titles}

October November Releases CLASH! 

It's the end of our CLASH year, and we've lined up some awesome holiday reading (and gift ideas!) for this month's Clash of the Titles.
Vote for your Ideal curl up in front of a fire read!

Scroll through these releases and cast your vote for your perfect idea of a next read.

It's a tough choice, but it's up to you to determine our Clash Champion!

Risking Love

Brenda S. Anderson

A play-it-safe bank employee falls for a down-on-his-luck, risk-taking widower. Can she risk loving a man whose home she may have to take away?

An Unexpected Role

Leslea Wahl

Josie's island getaway becomes the summer of her dreams as friendships grow, romance blossoms and a series of thefts surround her with excitement. But as she sets out to solve the mystery she has become entangled in, she not only realizes the importance of relying on her faith but along the way also discovers her true self.

Forest Child

Heather Day Gilbert

Historically based on the Icelandic Sagas, Forest Child brings the memorable, conflicted persona of Freydis Eiriksdottir to life and is Book Two in the bestselling Vikings of the New World Saga.

 

Can't Help Falling

Kara Isaac

A funny, heartfelt romance about how an antique shop, a wardrobe, and a mysterious tea cup bring two C.S. Lewis fans together in a snowy and picturesque Oxford, England.

The Cautious Maiden

Dawn Crandall

In an effort to salvage her good name, Violet is forced into an engagement with a taciturn acquaintance; Vance Everstone. With danger stalking her and a new fiance who hides both his emotion and his past, Violet must decide who to trust and who to leave behind. 

The Thorn Healer

Pepper D. Basham

A wounded nurse battles resentment against a German prisoner as the two work together to save an Appalachian town from deception and disease in the wake of World War 1.

VOTE BELOW!

If you have trouble viewing the entire survey Click Here to load a dedicated page to the survey. 

Amish Christmas at North Star: Four Stories of Love and Family (Four Authors)

Book Description:  One night four lives entered the world by the hands of an Amish midwife, just outside North Star, Pennsylvania. 

Rebekah’s babies, as they are called, are now grown adults and in four heartwarming novellas each young person experiences a journey of discovery, love, and the wonder of Christmas.

Guiding Star by Katie Ganshert

Curiosity gets the best of Englisher Chase Wellington when he investigates the twenty-five-year-old disappearance of an Amish baby. When he finds adventurous Elle McAllister in Iowa will his discoveries upend her world? 

Mourning Star by Amanda Flower

Eden Hochstetler slips from her parents’ fudge shop to investigate the death of her friend Isaac Yoder.  Who is guilty? Isaac’s handsome great nephew Jacob, an angry Englisher, or someone else?

In the Stars by Cindy Woodsmall

Kore Detweiler has nursed his broken heart, avoiding North Star after Savilla Beiler suddenly rejected his love.  But when he is called to return home, he and Savilla must join forces to keep a family together.

Star of Grace by Mindy Starns Clark and Emily Clark

Andy Danner left North Star to work in construction in a new Amish settlement in Louisiana. His little brother devises a scheme to bring Andy home for Christmas, and unwittingly unleashes the power of forgiveness in an old widower’s life.

My Thoughts:  Amish Christmas at North Star features some of my favorite authors.  It was a happy day when this book came in the mail!  

North Star, Pennsylvania is a busy place with four babies being born.  These are the stories of Rebekah's Babies:

Guiding Star was the first story I had read by Katie Ganshert.  This short story is actually a mini mystery.  An Amish baby went missing twenty-five years ago and Englisher Chase Wellington decides to cure his curiosity and find out where this baby has "gone to".  An interesting little mystery.

The second mini mystery is by one of my favorite Amish mystery authors, Amanda Flower.  In Mourning Star, Eden decides she will investigate the death of her friend Issac.  I loved this mystery!

Cindy Woodsmall writes about Kore and Savilla In the Stars.  This was a nice short romance.  

Lastly, Mindy Starns Clark and Emily Clark penn a sweet story about love and forgiveness in Star of Grace.

Amish Christmas Star at North Star is a wonderful Christmas read for Amish fans!  A not.to.be.missed read!

*This book was provided for review by Waterbrook/Multnomah*

• Paperback: 400 pages
• Publisher: WaterBrook Press (October 20, 2015)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1601428146
• ISBN-13: 978-1601428141

WOW {Warm Oven Wednesday}

Oatmeal Craisin Cookies

Yay!  It's cookie season!  

I found this yummy cookie recipe just in time for Christmas baking!

       Ingredients:  

• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup brown sugar, packed
• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 1 large egg
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 cups quaker quick-cooking oats ( not instant)
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts
• 3/4 cup dried cranberries ( Craisins)
  

    Directions: 

1. Preheat Oven to 375°F.
2. In a large bowl with an electric mixer combine, sugar, brown sugar and butter and mix well.
3. Add in egg and vanilla and mix until combined.
4. Add in cinnamon, baking soda, salt and flour and mix well.
5. Fold in by hand the oatmeal, walnuts, and dried cranberries making sure that all ingredients are uniformly distributed.
6. Roll dough into 1-inch balls and place 3-inches apart onto a greased cookie sheet and bake for 10-12 minutes, just until the edges are lightly golden.
7. Remove from oven and let cool for 2-3 minutes on the cookie sheet.

Where Treetops Glisten: Three Stories of Heartwarming Courage and Christmas Romance During World War II by Tricia Goyer, Cara Putman, Sarah Sundin

Book Description:  The crunch of newly fallen snow, the weight of wartime

Siblings forging new paths and finding love in three stories, 

filled with the wonder of Christmas

 Turn back the clock to a different time, listen to Bing Crosby sing of sleigh bells in the snow, as the realities of America’s involvement in the Second World War change the lives of the Turner family in Lafayette, Indiana. 

In Cara Putman’s White Christmas, Abigail Turner is holding down the Home Front as a college student and a part-time employee at a one-of-a-kind candy shop. Loss of a beau to the war has Abigail skittish about romantic entanglements—until a hard-working young man with a serious problem needs her help. 

Abigail’s brother Pete is a fighter pilot hero returned from the European Theater in Sarah Sundin’s I’ll Be Home for Christmas, trying to recapture the hope and peace his time at war has eroded. But when he encounters a precocious little girl in need of Pete’s friendship, can he convince her widowed mother that he’s no longer the bully she once knew?

In Tricia Goyer’s Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas, Meredith Turner, “Merry” to those who know her best, is using her skills as a combat nurse on the frontline in the Netherlands. Halfway around the world from home, Merry never expects to face her deepest betrayal head on, but that’s precisely what God has in mind to redeem her broken heart. 

The Turner family believes in God’s providence during such a tumultuous time. Can they absorb the miracle of Christ’s birth and His plan for a future?

My Thoughts:  It's that time of the year again!  Christmas stories!!

And best yet...three stories in on book!  Three great authors pen about WWII and romance at Christmas time.  

In White Christmas Cara Putman writes about Abigail who is trying so very hard to hold.it.all down as she attends college and works part time at a candy shop.  But then a someone with problems bigger than hers comes along and Abigail steps in to help.  A sweet story!

In I'll Be Home for Christmas Sarah Sundin tells about Pete a fighter pilot in the war who meets the cutest most precious little girl.  This cute little girl has a widowed mother whom Pete would gladly like get together with but Pete was once a bully of sorts and the widowed mother isn't so sure about Pete.  This is what Christmas is all about!

Tricia Goyer writes about Meredith or Merry as her friends call her in Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas.  Merry is a combat nurse on the from lines in the Netherlands.  Merry and her adventures were like being on the front lines...romance and all. I loved this story simply because my baby sister recently married and moved to the Netherlands....it just hit home with me.

All three stories are novellas...short stories but they are ever.so.interesting and fun to read!  I love them all!  What a grand book! 

*This book was provided for review by Waterbrook/Multnomah*

• Paperback: 368 pages
• Publisher: WaterBrook Press (September 16, 2014)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1601426488
• ISBN-13: 978-1601426482

A Dream of Home (Hearts of the Lancaster Grand Hotel) by Amy Clipston

Book Description:  When she moves to Amish country to find peace and healing, Madeleine finds a special community—and a special man—who pull her out of her solitude into a new life.

Moving to Pennsylvania wasn’t in Madeleine’s original plans. She should still be in California and should have married her pilot fiancé a year ago—but death has a way of changing everything. Now the former Air Force flight nurse is living alone in Paradise, Pennsylvania, and working as a maid at the Lancaster Grand Hotel. She isn’t exactly a widow . . . but she sure feels like one.

Saul Beiler isn’t exactly a widower . . . but his wife is long gone. His eleven-year-old daughter, Emma, doesn’t know that her mother fled the Amish community—and married another man—but she does know that her dat is lonely, and that a pretty young maedel just moved in next door. Madeline’s numb heart begins to thaw as she spends more time with the innocent and ever optimistic Emma. The stronger her friendship grows with the young girl, the more intrigued Madeline grows about the humble, strong, man raising her on his own.

But even as a strange attraction pulls Saul and Madeleine across a stark cultural divide, they—and everybody else—have to wonder: What could they possibly have in common besides heartache? Will love allow Madeleine to finally find the home she’s been dreaming of all along?

My Thoughts:  Amy Clipston pens another great read in A Dream of Home.  This is the third book in a series. I had read book one, A Hopeful Heart but somehow missed book two, A Mother's secret.

Madeleine has moved to Pennsylvania from California to find peace and healing since the unexpected death of her fiancee. For either an Amish or Englisch person this must be quite a culture shock . . .especially for a former Air Force flight nurse . Needless to say,life in Pennsylvania is a little slower, especially since Madeleine is now a maid at the Lancaster Grand Hotel.

Then she meets Saul, who has an eleven year old daughter....just one problem Saul is single but not a widower!  Saul's wife just up and left and married another man!

This is where it gets interesting!  Saul and Madeleine are attracted to each other and Madeleine begins to grow close to Saul's daughter, Emma, BUT Saul is "divorced" and I wasn't sure how the Amish would rationalize Saul's previous marriage.  And then to boot both Saul and Madeleine seem like to skittish colts since they were both hurt in previous relationships.

Some twists and turns because life never goes quite like we think it will.

I plan on making sure I don't miss the the fourth book, A Simple Prayer.

*This book was provided for review by BookLook*

• Series: Hearts of the Lancaster Grand Hotel
• Paperback: 320 pages
• Publisher: Zondervan (November 4, 2014)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 031033585X
• ISBN-13: 978-0310335856