WHITE TRASH CHRISTMAS

Several years ago I had two friends that do not know each other both give me almost the same Christmas treat. You may remember my friends the Halfbacks, Happy Halfback called her version White Christmas Mix. You may also remember my porch sittin' friend, the Redneck Girl. She called her concoction White Trash. They were both delicious and a big hit with my family.

I took both recipes and made them my own with a few little tiny changes. Since that year, I've been making batches and batches of the stuff every holiday season and giving it along with other treats to neighbors, friends and teachers as gifts.

Every year I have to make more. The kids have always taken it to their teachers but each year they had to take it to new teachers but still gave to the old ones who would start asking for it once December rolled around. This year I don't even have kids in school here but D2 plans to take goody bags to hers and D1's favorites when she gets home from school next week. I figure it's the least I can do to say thank you for not only educating my children but inspiring them to be educators themselves.

In the interest of time, of which I have none extra to create an interesting and entertaining blog post, I will give you my Christmas treats (one at a time) that have become a tradition in my house.

I really enjoy creating yummy and sometimes complicated recipes for my family. But to be honest, when it comes to the holidays and providing food or treats for large quantities of people, I prefer to keep it simple and enjoy the time I get to spend with family and friends rather than slaving away over a hot stove. So believe me when I say that these recipes will be simple and very easy to make. But don't be surprised if once you've given away one of these treats, you'll be expected to do it year after year. (And that feels pretty good.)

#1 Across the board hit: White Trash (If you know me at all, is it any wonder which name I decided to stick with?)

2 ½ cups of rice chex

2 ½ cups of wheat chex

2 ½ cups of cheerios

2 ½ cups of stick pretzels (I've used the waffle ones before and some from Sams Club that were shaped like Christmas trees)

Plain m&ms (I like using minis when I can get them and I also prefer the Christmas colors)

1 package of vanilla flavored candy coating (I like Eagle brand but this year I used something from Walmart that worked just fine)

Break apart the candy coating and melt it in a double-boiler. (I don't have a double boiler and so I put some water in a pan and put a stainless steel bowl on top of the pan. This works just fine)

Mix all the cereals and pretzels together in a large bowl. Once candy is melted and there are no lumps, pour over cereal mix and toss to coat thoroughly.

Line jelly roll pans with wax paper and spread mixture into pans in a shallow layer. Sprinkle with m&ms and then stir around gently just to get the m&ms slightly coated so that they stick to the cereal.

Let it sit until the candy sets. Gently break apart into clumps.

I like to give it in little Christmas bags with a ribbon gathered at the top.

Enjoy but be warned. It's addicting!