Baked Chocolate Chip Oatmeal

On Sunday mornings, we're all headed in different directions, and sometimes breakfast is a cup of coffee, or just a glass of milk.   This week, I decided to try something different, and thought I'd make some baked oatmeal ahead of time that could be warmed up as needed, on an individual basis.  I found a yummy recipe and fine tuned it a bit and it turned out to be a big hit.  The fine tuning is listed in the "notes" below.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cup quick oats  (See notes below)
1 1/2 cup rolled oats 
1/2 - 1 cup of brown sugar
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. salt
1 cup milk (dairy or non-dairy)
1/2 cup butter or margarine, melted (or coconut oil)
2 eggs, beaten
1/2 cup chocolate chips

1.    Melt butter, and stir in all ingredients except oats & chocolate chips.  Stir well to fully blend.
2.    Stir in oatmeal and chocolate chips, stir well.
3.    Pour into greased/buttered 9inch baking dish.
4.    Bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes, or until edges are lightly brown and center is set.

Notes:  I used3 cups of quick oats since that's what I had on hand.  I leaned more towards the 1 cup of brown sugar, but did not pack it down.  I used regular milk.  I used mini-semi sweet morsels.

Serve plain, with milk or yogurt, or you could crumble it to use as a granola.    

This was a huge hit with the family.  I hope your family enjoys it!

Baked Oatmeal (Recipe)

When the kids were little, we went to a Moms group 2 times a month.  There were classes/child care for the children, speakers or craft activities for the moms, and always the best food.  I picked up a lot of great recipes from that group of women.  I've been eating a lot of oatmeal, which reminded me of a recipe I'd picked up back in those bygone days, and whipped up a batch.  I thought I'd share the recipe with all of you as well.

Lindsey and I both like oatmeal.  Tom and Olivia, not so much...however, everyone liked this recipe.  It's filling, makes a big batch (but the recipe can be cut in half), and warms up nicely in the microwave for days to come.

Baked Oatmeal:

4 eggs
1/2 cup oil
2 cups milk
1 cup brown sugar

6 cups dry oatmeal
1 Tbsp. baking powder
2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 cup raisins (optional - or replace with nuts, apples or even chocolate chips)

Preheat oven to 350.  Beat eggs, oil, milk and sugar.  Stir in dried ingredients and pour into buttered 9X13 pan.  Bake for 30-35 minutes.  Oatmeal is done when set and bounces back like a cake.  Serve in bowls with milk.

Creamy Tortellini Soup - Recipe

I found a very basic recipe online this week, and then decided to doctor it up and add my own twist to it.  It turned out very good!  Preparation time, start to finish is less than 30 minutes.  This soup was flavorful, filling, and very satisfying.

The original recipe called for:

8 cups chicken broth
1 pound frozen peas & carrots
10 oz. fresh cheese tortellini
1/2 cup of heavy cream

I added the following:

2 tablespoons butter
1 small onion - diced
2 cloves fresh garlic - minced
doubled the tortellinni
added a handful of left over rotisserie chicken breast
salt & pepper
a little corn starch to thicken

Directions:
Melt butter, added onions & garlic and saute' until tender.   Add broth, salt and pepper - then bring to a boil.  Add frozen vegetables, return to boil for 7 minutes.  Add chicken & tortellini and bring to boil for another 5 minutes.  Stir in cream and let boil slowly to thicken.  If you would like a thicker soup, make a paste out of corn starch and cold water, stir into boiling soup and allow to thicken.

Place soup in bowl.  Sprinkle fresh grated parmesan on top and drizzle with a smidge of olive oil.  Serve with a baguette and enjoy!!

Zucchini Brownies (Recipe)

We're still getting zucchini from the garden, so I decided to try something new.  This is a decadent dessert!  I hope you get a chance to try it, it's a great way to sneak veggies in the kids.

Brownies:

1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 1/2 cups white sugar
2 tsp. vanilla
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
2 cups shredded zucchini
1/2 cup chopped walnuts (optional)

Frosting:
6 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 cup butter
2 cups powdered sugar
1/4 cup milk
1/2 tsp. vanilla

Preheat oven to 350.  Grease and flour 9X13 pan.

In large bowl, mix together oil, sugar and 2 tsps. vanilla until well blended.   In separate bowl combine the flour, 1/2 cup cocoa powder, baking soda and salt; mix well.  Combine sugar mixture with flour mixture.  

YOU WILL HAVE A VERY DRY BATTER AND YOU'LL THINK "OH NO, I NEED TO ADD LIQUID!"   Tell yourself to shut up and follow the recipe, trust me.

Stir in the 2 cups of zucchini and the nuts.  The moisture from the zucchini will blend nicely with the dry ingredients and you'll have a wonderful texture. Stir well before placing in baking dish.

Bake for 25-35 minutes, or until brownies spring back when touched.  The amount moisture in the zucchini will determine baking time.  Start at 25 minutes and add more time as needed.

Frosting: 
Melt butter and stir in 6 tablespoons of baking cocoa, stir well, set aside.  Mix powdered sugar, milk and vanilla. (It will be very thin.)  Blend in butter/cocoa mixture.  Spread over cooled brownies.

Enjoy!

Zucchini Bread (Recipe)

Our zucchini harvest has been huge this year.  I believe we're at 30 squash total so far, with more on the vines.  We've given some away, fried and sauteed some and then sliced, chunked and grated crazy amounts to go in the freezer for the winter.  We have of course made everyone's favorite, zucchini bread.

This recipe makes two regular size loaf pans of zucchini bread.  It typically lasts a day and a half in our house, if we're lucky.  As you can see, there's a lot of sugar and oil in this recipe.  I've not tried substituting other sweeteners, but applesauce does work well in place of the oil.

2 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups grated zucchini
1/2 tsp. baking powder
3 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. vanilla

3 eggs - beaten

2 cups sugar

1 cup oil (or apple sauce)
1/2 cup walnuts (optional)

Preheat oven to 300, grease and flour bread pans.  Sift together flour, soda, salt, powder and cinnamon, then set aside.

Blend eggs, sugar, vanilla and oil together.  Slowly add flour mixture and mix well.  Stir in zucchini and nuts and mix well (by hand).

Bake for 1 hour, or until toothpick comes out clean.

This is an excellent snack, dessert or breakfast bread.  It does freeze well too.

Enjoy!

Weekly Wrap Up - Early July

 You may have noticed that my Weekly Wrap Up's are a little more spread out these days.  Right now, there's not a whole lot going on while we're on summer break, so I skip a week here and there.

July 4th was this past weekend and we did a little celebrating.  First, I decorated the house.  I don't have much decor in this theme, so it didn't take long.   Changing out my house and garden flags was the first task.

Then I added a festive table cloth to the dining room table.  Additionally, I found these cute drink holders at the Dollar Tree and bought one for each of the kids...then realized they were too big to fit in any cup holder in the known world.  The cups are now considered table decor.

That's the extent of my decorating.  I should probably work on that for next year.

Sunday was a regular work day for Olivia, in the evening we went out to my brother's home for a cook-out.   I made a two new recipes to share, antipasto tortellini pasta salad and loaded ranch potato salad.  Both were delish!  The temperature was unseasonably mild, so we had a fire pit after the sun went down.  We got to watch fireworks all over the place while we were there.  

Monday was a regular work day for Olivia too, but they did let everyone leave 2 hours early since the rest of the college staff had the full day off with holiday pay.  In the evening, we went out to friend's house in the country.  There was a great deal of people there, and we all rode on hay wagons up into the dark country side.  Once there, we had a reading of the Declaration of Independence as sand the National Anthem as a group.  We then enjoyed one of the best fireworks shows we've seen in ages.  Riding back out to the main parking area, we got to watch millions of lightning bugs fill the air, and the trees.  Frogs and whippoorwills were calling to each other and it was as if we'd stepped into a completely different time and place.

Lindsey's PT was supposed to end this week.  Unfortunately, her progress was slow the first few weeks and she's not where she needs to be, so we've added 4 more weeks on.  The good news is she won't need surgery.

That's about it for this week.  Have a great weekend!

Baked Potato Soup (Recipe)

Cold weather calls for warm comfort food.   We've had cold and rainy weather the last few days, so it was officially time to make my world famous (ok MY world) Baked Potato Soup.    I don't have a photo, as someone who shall remain nameless, ate my bowl of "photo soup" before I got to it.

Baked Potato Soup Recipe

1 cup chopped celery
1 cup chopped onion
2 Tbsp. butter
2 cans (14.5oz) chicken broth
3 cups potatoes, peeled and cubed
1 can (15oz.) whole kernel corn, drained
1 can (4oz.) green chiles, drained
1 package (2oz.) country style gravy mix
2 cup milk
2 cups shredded cheese (cheddar or Mexican blend)

In a large stockpot, melt butter over medium heat.  Add celery and onion, cook until tender.

Add broth; bring to a boil.  Add potatoes and cook over low heat for 20-25 minutes or until potatoes are tender.

Stir in corn and chiles.  Return to boil.  Dissolve gravy mix in milk; stir into boiling mixture.  Add cheese, cook and stir over low heat until cheese is melted and soup has thickened.

Variations:  Add cooked bacon crumbles before serving.  Serve in bread bowls or with slices of French baguette.

Crack Chicken Chili (Recipe)

Now through the end of October, Tuesday and Thursday evenings are the busiest for us.  With schedules what they are on those days (volleyball followed by jiu-jitsu) I try to put dinner in the crockpot in the morning, and then I can forget about it until time to eat.  Fall lends itself easily to soups and stews, and I'll share a few of those tried and true recipes later.  Today though, I'm sharing a new recipe that we had this past week, and it was a huge hit.

I'm not good at taking photos of food, and honestly this isn't the prettiest meal, but it's VERY tasty.

Crack Chicken Chili

4 boneless chicken breasts
2 14-oz cans black beans (drained and rinsed well)
2 14-oz cans whole kernel corn (undrained)
2 10-oz cans  Rotel tomatoes
2 packages dry ranch dressing mix (or more depending on taste)
2 Tablespoons chili powder
2 teaspoons cumin
2 teaspoons onion powder
2 8oz blocks cream cheese
1 cup water

Place uncooked chicken breast in crockpot then add all the other ingredients.  Cook on low for 6-8 hours.  Remove chicken breast and shred; return to crockpot and stir well.   

Serve with shredded cheese, sour cream and/or tortilla chips.

Variations and helpful tips:  You can use precooked/left over chicken or even canned chicken (well drained).   If the chili is a bit thinner than you'd like, stir in instant potato flakes a bit at a time to thicken.   You can easily cut this recipe in half for a smaller family, or double it for a larger family (and a bigger crockpot).

Enjoy!

Gardening and Foraging

Due to the pandemic and fear of the food supply becoming disjointed, more people are looking at gardening this year. I'll share a few tips on gardening, but will also delve into the little talked about world of foraging, because there is food everywhere, we've just been told it's a weed.  This will in no way be an exhaustive list of gardening or foraging tips, but hopefully it will be enough to pique your interest and get you started towards a more self sustainable life style.

You don't have to have a lot of land to be successful with gardening.  You can do a few tomato plants on your patio and a little herb garden in your window sill if that's all the room (and interest) you have.  However for those with a larger patio you can vary the size of your planters, growing potatoes in a trash can, a salad bowl garden in a nice planter or a wood pallet turned into a planter for multiple vegetables.

What and when you plant will of course depend on your location.  Here in Virginia we can still get frost as late as May 15. False spring is not uncommon here, so you have to resist the urge to get your vegetables in the ground too early.   Beets, peas, carrots, chard, collard greens and mustard greens can be planted in late February/early March.  Salad greens such as lettuces, spinach, and endive can be planted in early spring and again in early fall.

Potatoes (in VA) should be planted from the last chance of frost until about 6 weeks past that time.  Tomatoes, peppers, squash, melons and cucumbers are best started as seeds indoors in early-mid April and then transplanted outside after the threat of frost is gone.  If a freak freeze does happen after you plant, you'll need to cover your plants to keep the frost from killing them. Old sheets, glass jars, and even plastic shopping bags work well for this task.

Foraging:  A Lost Art

There are lots of edible items around you all the time, but most you'd never consider because you've been told they are weeds.  Here is a a short list of some pretty easy to spot plants that can be of benefit to your diet and budget.

Dandelions:  As we all know, dandelions are pretty prolific.  I personally think they are pretty in a lawn, but I know the majority of people try to kill them.   However, the maligned dandelion packs quite the punch when it comes to nutrients.

One half cup of dandelions contain more calcium than a glass of milk, and more iron than spinach.  One of dandelion greens contains 19mg of Vitamin C, and the leaves contain more Vitamin A than carrots.   Dandelions are also a great source of Vitamin K, potassium, folic acid and magnesium.

The flowers of the dandelion can be used to make jelly and wine, and can be added to salads.  The leaves can be cooked as greens, or added to a salad and the root can be roasted and used to replace coffee.

Violets (and pansies):  These lovely flowers and their leaves are rich in Vitamins A and C. The flowers can be used in salands and also to make jelly.  The leaves can be added to salads or cooked.  Both are natural pain killers.

Henbit: These cute little "weeds" are high in iron and Vitamin K.  These little beauties aid in digestion, reduces fever and can be used to help induce sweating.   The leaves can be eaten raw, used as an herb to season with, or boiled to make a tea.

Lilac bushes smell beautiful and add an intoxicating aroma to flower arrangements.  But did you know you can also make jelly out of those lovely flowers?   You may not get the deep purple color, but the fragrance and taste will be a wonderful addition to your toast and biscuits.

Poppies are a lovely addition to your flower bed, and their seeds are of course edible.  Poppy seeds can be used in cakes, breads, cole slaw and porridge, to name just a few options.

As we all know, aloe vera is great for treating burns (including radiation burns), however it is also edible.  When ingested, aloe vera helps reduce blood sugar, inflammation and help with constipation.  It can be added to salads, poached and juiced to start with.

Like I said, this is not an exhaustive list, but it should get you started if you're so inclined.  All of the "weeds" I've shared here are things that are just in my yard on their own.  Obviously you don't want to use pesticides and weed killer in an area you're going to forage from.  You can also go into the woods to forage for morels, blackberries and nuts.  Always be alert around berry bushes, they are prone to attract snakes, and bears.

How are your food habits changing?

Turnip Greens (Recipe)

The school food program gave us a small bag of fresh turnips this past week.  I have never cooked turnips, but thought this would be a great time to start (free is good).   These were young turnips so they had a really light flavor and weren't tough either.

Cut the greens off of your turnips and remove as much of the stem as you want, but you can cook and eat the stems too, they are just a bit tougher.  Wash your greens in a little bit of water and apple cider vinegar.  I let mine soak while I washed, peeled and cubed the turnips.

I can't give you specific amounts on this "recipe".  It depends really on how many turnips and greens you have.  Of course, I'm from the south so I do the "little of this, little of that" until I get it right method of cooking.

Place all your ingredients in a heavy stock pot and allow to simmer for 30-60 minutes. It doesn't look very appealing at this stage.

Turnip Greens Recipe:

Ham or smoked turkey 

water

turnip greens

turnips - peeled and diced

onion - chopped

garlic - 3-4 cloves

red pepper flakes

apple cider vinegar

tablespoon of brown sugar

salt/pepper to taste

Allow your greens to cook down until the onion and turnips are fork tender and the juice has cooked down.  I served the greens with pan fried cubed pork steaks and mashed potatoes.

Have you tried any new recipes or new foods during the lock down?

Ham Pot Pie (Recipe)

Under normal conditions, churches in our area do meal type fund raisers. Sometimes it's Brunswick stew, spaghetti suppers or just simple fried country ham sandwiches.   My in-laws church used to do a "ham pot pie" sale.  To me this was a misnomer, because pot pie should be pie shaped with a top and bottom crust and a hearty meat/veggie filling.  What they considered to be pot pie was more of a ham/potato stew with flat noodles/dumplings.

We had some Easter ham left over, and the husband had made a comment one day about ham pot pie, so I figured I'd give it a go.  It didn't dawn on me while I was making this dish to take photos, my apologies.  I shall endeavor to walk you through it though.   As you'll see by the recipe, it's pretty subjective, based on what you have on hand, and how much you have.

Recipe:
1 large onion, chopped
4 cloves of garlic, crushed
1/4 - 1/2 cup butter

8-10 cups of water

1-3 pounds of cooked ham
2-3 cans of potatoes or 2-3 cups of fresh potatoes.

salt & pepper to taste

4 cups all purpose flour
4 Tbspoon solid vegetable shortening
1 1/3 cups water

In a large pot melt the butter and saute your onions and garlic until transparent.   Chunk the ham into bite size pieces, do the same with your potatoes.   Add water and allow to simmer (I let mine simmer for a couple of hours) adding more water as necessary.  Add salt & pepper to taste.

In a large mixing bowl, combine flour, shortening and water and mix well until it forms a nice dough. Separate the dough into a couple of sections and roll it out on a floured surface until about 1/4 inch thick.  Cut in 1-inch squares (a pizza cutter makes quick work of this step).  Repeat until all dough is rolled & cut.

Allow the dough to air dry for about 30 minutes.

Bring broth/meat/potato mixture to a full boil and then drop dough in a few pieces at a time.  Stirring as you go. Boil for10-15 minutes, then drop the heat and allow to simmer until you reach your desired consistency.  Stir occasionally.  I allowed mine to simmer for 45 minutes+/- on low.

Variations: use chicken instead of ham, and/or add fresh herbs (parsley, chives, or sage).

Popcorn Balls

My husbands grandmother made popcorn balls every fall/Halloween.  It's one of his favorite childhood memories.   I've endeavored to keep that tradition alive for him and make it part of our children's memory bank as well.

For the first couple of years, I used a recipe that called for lots of ingredients, and they were good.  But pouring boiling liquid over popcorn and then trying to form balls without getting scalded wasn't my idea of a fun family activity, so I adapted.

I pop my popcorn on top of the stove in a big soup pot, but you can use microwaved popcorn or a popcorn popper, it really doesn't matter.   I fix enough to fill my biggest Tupperware bowl.   Then melt a bag of marshmallows in the microwave by melting 30 seconds, stir, repeat as necessary until melted.   Then combine the popcorn and melted marshmallows.   Combining works best by using your buttered hands, not a spoon or spatula.

There is nothing redeeming about these treats.  It's total sugar/carb overload.  It's ok to do that once a year, right?

St. Nicholas Day Cookies

 

If you've followed my blog long, you've read about our lovely neighbor Ms. Kay.  She was a young child during World War II and the Occupation of Luxembourg (do pop over and read that post, it's a living history lesson).  Anyway, growing up in Luxembourg, Ms. Kay was used to celebrating St. Nicholas Day (December 6), but adapted to the American Christmas over the years.   Each year, the girls and I do something "traditional" and surprise her with it.  This year we made traditional St. Nicholas Day Cookies.

Recipe:
1 cup dark brown sugar, packed
3 tablespoons milk
3 cups all purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 1/2 tsp. ground cloves
3/4 tsp. ground nutmeg
3/4 tsp. ground ginger
1/8 tsp. baking soda
1/8 tsp. salt
 2 1/2 sticks (1 1/4 cup) butter, cut into pieces

In small bowl, cream brown sugar and milk, set aside.

In large bowl or food processor combine flour, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, ginger, baking powder and salt.   Cut in butter with, blend until mixture resembles cornmeal.   Stir in brown sugar mixture, mixing well.

Form dough into two 7X2 inch rolls and wrap in plastic wrap.  Refrigerate 6 hours or overnight.

Let stand at room temperature for 30 minutes before rolling out.

Roll dough out on lightly floured board to `/8 or 1/4 inch thickness.   Dip cookie cutters in flour before cutting out cookies.  Place 1 inch apart on ungreased cookie sheets.

Bake at 350 for about 12 minutes, or until cookie edges start to lightly brown.   Cool and decorate with royal icing.

Royal Icing:
4 cups powdered sugar
3 tablespoons meringue powder
1/3 cup warm water

These cookies are dense and firm, almost hard (think ginger snap), with a lightly sweet and spicy flavor.   The frosting adds just a hint more sweetness.   These go great with coffee or a cup of hot tea in the evenings...and they may make elderly European ladies squeal like a little girl when she finds them waiting by her front door early in the morning on St. Nicholas Day, wink.

Happy St. Nicholas Day!

Elfing - A Family Tradition

Before I was married, I had the habit of making lots of Christmas sweets for co-workers and family members.   When I married, it became a frugal way to gift extended family and friends.   Then, along came the children, and somehow this event morphed and became known as “Elfing.”   The girls and I spend hours baking cookies, making candies, and wrapping up gift boxes full of Christmas cheer.   The husband then takes the kids out to “Elf” people.   The list changes from year to year, adding a new acquaintance or random stranger who looks like they need a pick me up.

Peanut butter balls is by far the most requested item from my Christmas kitchen.   These little delicacies aren’t nearly as difficult as people imagine, but they are time consuming.   They are a perfect project for kids in the kitchen!

Peanut Butter Balls

Ingredients:

• 1 jar of your favorite peanut butter (I like Reese’s)
• 1 pound of butter or margarine
• 2-4 pounds of confectioner’s sugar
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 1 bag semi sweet chocolate chips
• ¼ pound paraffin wax (found in the canning supplies)

Instructions:

Over low heat, melt peanut butter and butter together, stirring often.   When completely melted, stir in vanilla.   Add 2 pounds of confectioner’s sugar and stir well.

At this point, you will need to determine if your mixture is thick enough to form into balls or if you need to add more confectioner’s sugar. This is not an exact science as it is a different amount each time.   You basically want it to be the consistency of Play-doh (yum).   Once you’ve got the right consistency, begin to roll the mixture into bite size balls, and place the balls onto a wax paper covered cookie sheet.   Do this before the mixture is completely cool.   Once all the mixture has been rolled, place the cookie sheets into the fridge for an hour or so to chill (or pop them in the freezer for 20 minutes).
In the top of a double boiler, melt your chocolate chips and paraffin wax, stirring well.   Using a toothpick, dip your peanut butter balls into the chocolate mixture and return balls to the waxed paper.   The chocolate coating dries quickly and these stack well in containers.


Our second biggest hit in our “Elfing” is potato candy. This candy has reduced recipients to tears on more than one occasion, as it reminds them of past Christmases with their own parents and grandparents.   You can see a more in depth tutorial at my blog, S.A.H.M. I Am!

Potato Candy Ingredients:

• 1 small potato
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 1 Tbsp. butter
• 1 lb. confectioner’s sugar
• peanut butter

Peel, boil and mash potato. Mix in vanilla and butter. Mix in sugar (using your hands works best). Mix well. Place mixture between wax paper and roll it out very thin. Remove top sheet of wax paper, spread peanut butter on top of mixture. Roll up like a jelly roll.

Chill and cut into thin slices.

I hope you enjoy these delicious treats as you celebrate the Christmas season with family and friends!

Merry Christmas from our family to yours!

Popcorn Balls - A Fall Tradition

Truth be told, I had never in my life had a popcorn ball until I was in my mid to late 30's.  My husband mentioned in passing that his grandma always made popcorn balls around Halloween.  Being the wonderful (and humble) wife that I am, I surprised him with a batch of these ooey-gooey treats one year and it has now become a tradition that the girls and I enjoy working on together.

The recipe I use is fairly easy, and fail proof, because I have never had success with anything that says "bring to the soft ball" or "hard ball" stage.   This recipe has none of that nonsense.

1/2 stick of butter
1 regular size bag of marshmallows
1/2 tsp. vanilla
1/4 tsp. salt
3 quarts of popped corn

Melt the butter and marshmallows either in the microwave or over low heat on the stove.   Once the butter/marshmallows are melted, stir in the salt and vanilla.   (You could also add food coloring at this point if you wanted.)

Pour the melted mixture over the popcorn and stir well, making sure you get all of the popcorn covered.  Let the popcorn mixture cool slightly to avoid getting burnt.  Next, butter your hands....yes, really, and the kids will love it, trust me.   Use your buttered hands to shape the popcorn into the desired size, pressingly tightly to make the "ball" stick together.

Have a non buttered person (snicker) ready with the plastic wrap, so that the process will move quickly.   You'll want to wrap the popcorn balls pretty tightly to keep them from getting stale.  Cleanup can be a bit sticky (har har har).   Let your items soak in hot water for a few moments and you'll be good to go.

You could add food coloring or cinnamon candy flavoring to add a bit of fun to your creations.   You could also add peanuts, M&M's or other candy to the popped corn before add the marshmallow mixture.