Monday, December 20, 2010

Haystacks and Memories

I have been in the mood to make candy this Christmas. My neighbor across the street, Mrs. Betty, always brings us a goody bag (or bucket, or dish) full of yummy things at Christmas and I wanted to return the favor this year, not just to her, but to my other neighbors who were so sweet to our family when Momma passed away.

Tonight, I decided it was time to make some Haystacks. I have a couple of recipes in my recipe folder, but neither of them sounded like the one I wanted. So, of course I Swagbucked it (I mean, if I'm gonna search, I might as well get something out of it, right?) and found one that was exactly like the one my cousin, Karen, made when I was younger.

When I first told Kiddo I was going to make them he was all over me until I finally did. He was in the shower when I mixed them up and when he came out I was already dropping them out on the foil (you're really supposed to use wax paper, but I didn't have any, so I used the non-shiny side of the aluminum foil and hope it works). He was talking non-stop and I finally shooed him out of the kitchen, then realized he was one of the reasons I was making them.

I called him back in the kitchen to help me drop the last few. After he finished, he stood there with peanut butter/butterscotch on his face, licking the wooden spoon, talking about Spider-man 3. Between licks he was comparing the storyline in the movie to our spiritual lives, and what lessons we can learn from it. My eleven-year-old...what a young man he's become. I knew right then I wanted to remember tonight forever.

In case you'd like a forever memory, here's the recipe. At least for the Haystacks. : )

Haystacks
  • 1 cup butterscotch chips
  • 1/2 cup peanut butter
  • 1/2 cup peanuts
  • 2 cups chow mein noodles
Microwave the butterscotch chips and peanut butter on 50 percent power for 3 to 5 minutes. Add remaining ingredients and blend to coat noodles thoroughly. Drop by teaspoonfuls onto waxed paper.

I doubled this recipe because I knew we'd want plenty for ourselves, too. If you make these differently, let me know. I'd like to see variations of it.

Have a great Christmas Week!


4 comments:

CarlynB said...

Sister,
Your nephew was just asking if you might happen to be bringing some of those on Christmas Day?

Love you,

Sister

P.S. He said they look good.

Richella Parham said...

Yummy-yummy-yum. These look wonderful! And I'm sure the foil will work just fine.

I've eaten these before, but never had a good recipe for them. Thanks for sharing yours!!

Aren't you grateful for Kiddo? And Sound Man? And neighbors? And kind folks? And Jesus?

What's not to love about this time of year?

Kat said...

I make the PLAINEST haystacks ever. Only the noodles and butterscotch chips...morsels...whatever. And I haven't made them in forever. I'm on to new treats these days...

Puppy Chow (Don't ask...I don't know)

1 Lg. Box Golden Graham cereal
24 oz. almond bark (white)
2-3 Cups pecans
2 handfuls of pretzel sticks
Melt candy, mix, let set.

Yummmmmmmmy! I made some last night to give away, and Anna has asked me at least 4 times if I was going to make some for us to keep.

Trixi said...

I use to make these with my Kindergarten class, years ago. I haven't made them in quite a while.