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Tuesday, August 29, 2017

Coffee hour treats

I serve at our church's coffee hour on a rotational basis. In addition to pouring juice and making coffee, we provide the snacks for the hour. Snacks mostly come in the form of a baked good, like cookies, cupcakes, donuts, and quick breads. Sometimes there is cheese, crackers or fruit.  This past Sunday was my turn. I baked and frosted some cookies, using a mix and canned frosting that I picked up on clearance late last winter (cookie mix was 42 cents, frosting 37 cents).


The mix made 3 dozen cookies, exactly, and I needed another 2 dozen treats of some sort. I had thought I would swing by Cash & Carry early on Sunday and pick up a container of fresh strawberries to put out for the remainder of the my treats. I ran short on time and energy, and I really wanted to just use what I had on hand. In looking for something healthy in my fridge I found some red grapes and a large block of cheddar cheese. In about 15 minutes, I made 2 1/2 dozen mini-kebabs of cheese and grapes.


I saved time, energy and money by choosing to do these instead of buying strawberries. And they went over very well.


15 comments:

  1. Well, that looks delicious! I would choose the grapes/cheese any day over a cookie. Yum!

    Alice

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Alice,
      I always tell myself I would choose something like this, but sadly I am drawn to the donuts. :(
      There were quite a few people, though, who did choose these kebabs.
      I hope your day is off to a wonderful start, Alice!

      Delete
  2. You are so clever! And those treats look luscious! Plus a diabetic could eat those easier than cookies. When we serve at church we try to have something like cheese or fruit. But pairing them looks so appealing. And I am blown away at how cheaply you made cookies. You are definitely impressive.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. As it turns out, there are a few people in our church who don't eat grains or gluten, and this treat worked for them. So I was very glad that I had it for them, especially.

      Those cookie mixes and cans of frosting were a steal, weren't they? I only wish I had bought more of the mixes, but of course they were an odd flavor and I wasn't sure if we'd like them. They turned out to be quite good. :-)

      Delete
  3. Replies
    1. Thank you, Cat.
      Last minute thing and they did work out well. Have a great day!

      Delete
  4. Great idea and cute presentation! I loves grapes and cheese! Quick, snack-y lunches are my favorite for work. Grapes and cheese are frequently in my rotation. Sometimes I add crackers.

    Those marked down mixes and frostings have served you well! I'm going to watch for some of those after the holidays this year.

    Have a lovely day!
    Angie

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Angie,
      I don't know if the flavor will be repeated, or if it was a one-time offering, but the mix and frosting was "Cinnamon Bun." The frosting has a hint of cinnamon and maple, and the cookies are like a snickerdoodle, but a bit more cinnamon-y. It does seem like a "seasonal" flavor, so may come back this fall, and is just odd enough that there would be leftovers that make it to markdown, after Thanksgiving/Christmas.

      I used the mixes on 4 occasions for coffee hours and got really good feedback every time. I always had 2 or 3 people asking me for the "recipe." If I see these mixes and frosting again, on markdown, I will definitely buy them.

      Your lunches for work sound delicious. I often do something similar, with cheese, nuts, fruit, peanut butter on toast, for either lunch or breakfast.

      Have a wonderful day, Angie!

      Delete
  5. I sometimes do cheese cubes with toothpicks for snacks, but putting a grape with them is even better. I find that the cheese has to be just the right temperature when inserting the toothpick or it splits. Did you have that problem?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi live and learn,
      you know, I was concerned the cheese might crack, but it didn't. I think drier cheeses that are aged longer would be more susceptible to cracking. I also think it helped that I cut the cubes into substantial pieces. I had the cheese on the counter for about 20 minutes before cutting. Maybe it did warm to just the right temp. I'm just guessing at why it didn't crack. I was quite grateful that it didn't.

      Delete
    2. I just remembered. I put pretzel sticks in them. Those are big enough to cause a cracking problem unless the cheese is just right.

      Delete
  6. Ooooo! LOVE the cheese and grape kabobs! They look so pretty too. I'll have to remember that one.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks, Cat. I like how simple they are, yet they look nice.

      Delete
  7. I, too, think the cheese and grapes look wonderful! Great idea--I'll be storing that one away!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Kris,
      Very easy and fast. The bonus is they used up the last of some red grapes. I'll likely do these again, if I have the right ingredients on hand.

      Delete

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