Homemade butterfinger bars

Another Pinterest recipe is checked off my list.

I have been wanting to make these since I pinned them. I bought some candy corn on sale after Halloween and am just now getting to make these. In my defense, I have been busy with all of my other hobbies. The busiest time of year for me is October through December. I love to decorate for Halloween and Christmas as you probably know if you follow my blog.

I found this recipe on Pinterest. You can find it here.

This recipe uses three ingredients and there is no baking involved.

I like to have people taste these before I tell them the ingredients.

Most people are surprised that candy corn is an ingredient.

Here are some tips for making this recipe:
First of all, 1 lb equals two cups - I have a handy magnetic chart hanging on my refrigerator to help with that.
When you are combining the melted candy corn and peanut butter, there is a lot of stirring involved - I almost called in my husband to assist because my arm was tired.
Press the mixture evenly into your pan and let it sit for a while to cool.
I didn't have parchment paper so I just buttered my pan - it worked well but it was hard to get the whole square out of the pan at once. I wanted to cut these into little squares on a cutting board because it is easier to use a sharp knife for that and I didn't want to ruin my pan.
I dipped a few of these in the morning before work so I could pass them around and I made a big mistake in my rush.
Make sure you have waxed paper or parchment or something on the surface to make it non-stick while they are setting up. I put them straight on a metal pan and then had to use a spatula to scrape them off.
These are the ones I took to work - they are not quite as pretty:

When you melt your chocolate, make sure to add a little shortening to make the chocolate more smooth and a thinner consistency.
These worked better for me than anything I have ever dipped and I dip a lot of treats!

When dipping, make sure the pieces don't have a lot of crumbs on them or your chocolate will become lumpy.
My technique is to use a spoon to cover the piece and then use a fork to pick it up out of the bowl and shake the excess chocolate off on the side of the bowl.
Then the treat will just slide off the fork onto your waxed paper or you can use another fork to slide it off.
When they have dried - if you have some extra chocolate pooled at the bottom - you can just trim it off with a sharp knife.
We will be having ours at our Thanksgiving feast.
I hope these tips help you when you try your hand at them.

Fall wreath and other projects

I jumped back and forth between so many projects today I'm surprised I got anything done.

Here are some of my accomplishments:

I had this wreath on my door with just the sprigs with the apples on it and never was quite happy with it.

I added the colorful fall leaves to this and now I love it!

I also redecorated my plant shelf:

I wanted a little something next to the trunk on the right side that is visible from my entryway. I made a quick trip to Ross and found this vase for $4 and it's perfect.

I also completed a few necklaces:

And finally, I actually made something from one of my Pinterest boards:

Copycat Pizza Factory breadsticks.

I found the recipe here.

I wonder what I can get done next weekend - besides shopping for some great deals!

Paper pumpkins

I saw some of these cute paper pumpkins on display at one of our local craft stores and thought I can make those!

I punched out circles in two different sizes so I could have varying sizes for my display.

This is where circle punches come in very handy - I would not have wanted to cut these out with scissors.

After you have cut your circles, fold them in half.

Then, start to glue a flat side of each piece together until you have enough to make a complete circle. You can glue as many as you want together, it depends on how full you want to make your pumpkin.

Before you glue the last two pieces together and close your circle, cut out a small piece of paper for your stem and insert it between them. The leaves can be added on the outside when it is completed.

To get your pumpkin to stand up, either glue a small circle to the bottom so it will sit flat or cut a small section off the bottom of the circles before you glue your last two pieces together when you can still lay them flat together and cut them all at the same time so they are even.

This could be a fun kids craft with a little help from an adult.