Favorite Holiday Recipes

Chocolate Truffles

1 12oz package chocolate chips, melted 1 8oz package of cream cheese 1 16oz bag of powdered sugar 1 12oz bag of chocolate chips, melted with 1 Tablespoon shortening. Combine the melted chocolate chips with the cream cheese, adding baking powder slowly until dough becomes slightly firm. Roll dough into teaspoon size balls and place on a cookie sheet and put in the freezer until firm, about 2 hours. Remove from freezer and dip in melted chocolate. Decorate with sprinkles or chocolate drizzles or leave plain. Crystal Oring

TURKEY CASSAROLE

4 hard boiled eggs – chopped up 2 cans mushroom soup 2 cups celery – chopped up 1 cup onions – chopped up 1 can water chestnuts – chopped up 2 cups turkey (you can use left over turkey)or chicken. dash of tabasco sauce 1 cup of mayonnaise fold all of the ingredients above put in a long baking dish sprinkle bread crumbs on top bake at 350 about 45 minutes. Jennifer Neal-Humble

Corn Pudding

Combine 1 12oz can whole kernel corn, 2 17oz cans cream style corn and 5 lightly beaten eggs. Add mixture of 1/2 cup sugar, 4 tbsp. cornstarch, 1 1/2 tsp. seasond salt, 1/2 tsp. dry mustard and 1tsp. instant minced onion. Stir in 1/2 cup each milk and melted butter. Pour into greased 3qt. casserole dish. Bake in 400*F oven 1hr. stirring once. Enjoy. Jennifer Johnson.

Favorite Holiday Recipes

Pecan Pie

1 cup Karo® Light OR Dark Corn Syrup 3 eggs 1 cup sugar 2 tablespoons butter, melted 1 teaspoon Spice Islands® Pure Vanilla Extract 1-1/2 cups (6 ounces) pecans 1 (9-inch) unbaked or frozen** deep-dish pie crust Preheat oven to 350°F. Mix corn syrup, eggs, sugar, butter and vanilla using a spoon. Stir in pecans. Pour filling into pie crust. Bake on center rack of oven for 60 to 70 minutes (see tips for doneness, below). Cool for 2 hours on wire rack before serving. **To use prepared frozen pie crust: Place cookie sheet in oven and preheat oven as directed. Pour filling into frozen crust and bake on preheated cookie sheet. RECIPE TIPS: Pie is done when center reaches 200°F. Tap center surface of pie lightly – it should spring back when done. For easy clean up, spray pie pan with cooking spray before placing pie crust in pan. If pie crust is overbrowning, cover edges with foil. NUTRITION TIP: To reduce calories, substitute new Karo® Lite Syrup for the Karo® Light or Dark Corn Syrup. High Altitude Adjustments: Reduce sugar to 2/3 cup and increase butter to 3 tablespoons. Reduce oven temperature to 325°F. VARIATION: coarsely chopped walnuts may be substituted for pecans to make a walnut pie. Lorene Coots

APPLE CRANBERRY CRISP

Topping: 1 c. all-purpose 1/4 tsp. salt 1 c. granulated sugar 1/2 c. butter or margarine 1 tsp. ground cinnamon cut in 8 pieces Filling: 1 1/2 lbs.Granny smith or Golden Delicious Apples about 4 med. sized peeled and cored and cut in bite-size chunks. 5 c. ( I like to use Granny Smith Apples) 2 c. fresh or frozen Cranberries 1/2 c. granulated sugar Heat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a shallow 2-quart baking dish Mix Topping: Mix flour,sugar,cinnamon, and salt in medium size bowl. Cut in butter with pastry blender or use food processor with pastry blades until it resembles coarse crumbs. Mix filling, Put Apples, cranberries and sugar into prepared dish. toss gently to mix. Sprinkle with the topping. Pat gently with fingertips. Bake about 1 hour or until top is golden brown and filling bubbles. Makes 12 servings. 239 calories. Shelia Begley

Favorite Holiday Recipes

Turtle Cake

1 box german choc. cake 1 can sweetened condensed milk 2 sticks butter/margarine 14 oz pk caramels 1 1/2 cup pecan pieces preheat oven 350. prepare the cake mix according to package directions. divide the mixture in half. to half of the mixture add 1/2 can of the milk and 1 stick of butter (melted) mix well. Bake 20 minutes in a 15 x9 x 2 inch greased pan. melt other stick of butter, 1/2 can of milk, carmels and nuts pour over cooked cake layer. Then add the remaining cake batter.Cook for 20 minutes. Let cool. Icing: 1 stick of melted butter/margarine 1 box 4x powdered sugar 4 tbsp cocoa 1tbsp vanilla 6 tbsp milk beat together and spread over cool cake. Barbara Collins

Japanese Fruit Pie

2 eggs beaten 1 cup chopped pecans 1 cup sugar 1 cup flaked coconut 1/2 cup butter (melted) 1 cup raisins 1 TBS. vinegar 1 9-inch deep dish pie shell Combine ingredients mixing well. Pour into unbaked pie shell and bake at 325* for 45 minutes. YUMYUM!! Ann Williams

CREME DE MENTHE SQUARES

My mom has made these forever at Christmas, and I started making them once I was married with my own family as well – they’re festive looking on a cookie tray, and who can resist chocolate and mint? Yum! 1 1/4 c Butter 1/2 c Unsweetened cocoa powder 3 1/2 c Sifted powdered sugar 1 Egg, beaten 1 ts Vanilla 2 c Graham cracker crumbs 1/3 c Green creme de menthe liquer 1 1/2 c Semi-sweet chocolate bits Bottom Layer: In saucepan combine 1/2 cup of the butter and 1/2 cup cocoa powder. heat and stir until well blended. Remove. Add 1/2 cup of the powdered sugar, the egg, and vanilla. Stir in graham cracker crumbs. Mix well. Press into ungreased 9×13 inch pan. Middle Layer: Melt 1/2 cup butter. In bowl combine melted butter and creme de menthe. At low speed beat in remaining 3 cups of powdered sugar until smooth, spread over chocolate. Chill 1 hour. Top Layer: In saucepan combine 1/4 cup butter and chocolate bits. Stir over low heat until melted. Spread over mint layer. Chill 1 to 2 hours. Cut into small squares. Store in refrigerator. Jessica Baer

Holiday Budgeting

It's the time of year for gift giving, entertaining, holiday parties, and for many–overspending and financial stress. This year, enjoy the season without letting holiday spending get the better of you; the tips and tools below will help. Setting a realistic holiday budget and making sure to stick to it is the first step to enjoying a more affordable and less stressful season. Here are a few ways to handle gift giving and celebrations without breaking the bank: 1. Set Your Budget The best place to start making a holiday budget is to look at your spending during last year's holiday season. In what areas did you spend more than planned? Next, make a list of the holiday purchases and events you plan to spend money on this year. Consider all of your major spending categories: gifts, entertaining, meals, and travel–then estimate how much you can afford to spend in each category. Knowing your spending goals long beforehand will help you stay on track financially as the season heats up. 2. Get Creative One great way to save money and wow friends and families is to get creative. Store-bought gifts are great, but homemade gift are often more meaningful and most recipients truly appreciate your time and effort. Ideas for creative gift projects are plentiful online. 3. Join Together Instead of excessively spending on each other this year, join together with family members to help those who may be less fortunate. 4. Travel Wisely If you plan on traveling, take some time to determine how much it will cost you. 5. Entertain for Less Holidays are a wonderful time to entertain, but a little planning and budgeting can help you avoid financial headaches. This article is from "practicalmoneyskills.com"

How to Establish, Use, and Protect Credit

Credit is a valuable commodity. Having the ability to borrow funds enables us to obtain things we would otherwise have to save years to afford: homes, cars, a college education. Credit is an important financial tool, but it can also lead people into debt far beyond their ability to repay. That is why learning how to use credit wisely is one of the most valuable financial skills anyone can learn. What Lenders Look For Before creditors lend money, they need to be assured that the funds will be repaid — in other words, is the prospective borrower creditworthy? To find out, they ask for various types of information:* Income & Expenses: Lenders will look at what you earn and your regular expenses, such as rent, utilities, food, and other ongoing items. The amount left tells them whether you can afford to take on additional debt. Assets: Do you have assets that can serve as collateral? Lenders will look for things like bank accounts and valuable items such as a house, if you own one.Credit History: How do you manage debt? If you have credit cards or have borrowed money before, you have a history that indicates to prospective lenders whether you are creditworthy by revealing details about the amount of debt you already have, how many credit cards you have, and whether you make payments on time. It’s easy to qualify for credit if you have a good history, but what if you have never used credit before? This is a common problem for people who have just started working, people who always pay in cash, or people who have not had assets or accounts in their own names. For people in these categories, the first step is to establish a credit history. *Creditors obtain much of this information from your credit report, a computerized profile of your borrowing, charging, and repayment activities. For further information on credit reports, see Understanding & Improving Your Credit Score, a Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia brochure. How to Establish Credit You can apply for a bank loan secured by the funds you have on deposit or by items you own, such as a car. You can ask a friend or relative who has good credit to cosign a loan, which means that he or she shares the liability for the loan with you. You can also apply for department store and gasoline credit cards, which generally are easier to obtain than regular credit cards. Before you apply for any credit, however, make sure you understand the terms. For example, how long is the grace period — the time you have to pay the current balance in full before finance charges are incurred? Is there an annual fee, or other fees, associated with the credit? If you believe that you will carry a balance, you need to know how finance charges are calculated. Patience is important. It takes time to establish credit, to build a record of consistency in making payments that demonstrates your creditworthiness. And it is much better to go slowly and assemble a strong credit record than to apply for too many credit cards or a loan that is larger than you can handle. Start slow, be cautious, keep track of your overall debt, and pay on time. Most important, remember that credit represents real money and has to be repaid with interest. Those are the keys to establishing good credit. Protecting Credit Once you have obtained credit, it is essential to protect it. This means safeguarding your credit, debit, and ATM cards, as well as your account and personal identification numbers (PIN). Carry only the cards you expect to use, and keep the others in a safe place. Maintain a list of account and telephone numbers of the companies that issued your cards. Then, if the cards are lost or stolen, you can notify the companies quickly. If your notification is received before the cards are used, you have no liability. If it is received after a credit card has been used, your liability cannot exceed $50 for each card. Your liability for ATM or debit cards depends on how quickly you report the loss. If you dispute an item on a bill, you are responsible for notifying the creditor in writing within 60 days of receiving the bill. You should include your name, account number, the item you believe is in error, and the reasons why. Common Reasons for Denying Credit Among the most common reasons people are turned down when they apply for credit are: too little time in current job or at current residence too much outstanding debt unreasonable purpose for requesting credit limited credit experience foreclosure or repossession delinquent past or present credit obligations In general, creditworthiness must be determined on the basis of criteria that relate to your ability and willingness to repay debt. You cannot be denied credit based on your sex, marital status, race, color, religion, national origin, age, reliance on income from a public assistance program, or exercise of rights under the Consumer Credit Protection Act. If you are denied credit, the creditor must provide you in writing a statement of the action and your rights, as well as the reason for denial, or how to request the reason. For information on the laws applying to credit, see Do You Know Your Credit Rights?, a brochure published by the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia. For information on rectifying credit report errors, see What Your Credit Report Says About You, a brochure published by the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia. Improving Poor Credit If you have fallen behind in your payments, the only alternative is to begin immediately to repair your credit record. Here’s how: Face up to the problem. Recognize that you are overextended, and contact your creditors to see if they will set up a new payment schedule that you can maintain. Contact creditors to try to work out a payment plan that you can live with. In any case, never ignore bills. Immediately stop purchasing with credit. Take your credit cards out of your wallet. Store them in a spot that is inconvenient to reach, or even cut them up. Consider consolidating debts. You may find it easier to make a single payment rather than several, and you might obtain a lower interest rate that will make it easier to keep up with the payments. Remember that debt consolidation is not a cure-all: You also have to learn to control your spending to avoid future debt. Contact a credit counseling organization. You can obtain referrals for organizations in your area through the National Foundation for Credit Counseling’s member agency locator, 800-388-2227. Don’t expect miracles. Don’t believe companies that promise to fix a poor credit rating quickly and painlessly for a fee. As long as it is accurate and timely, negative information cannot be removed from your credit record. The only way to improve a credit record is to let time pass and establish a record of on-time payment. This article is from the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia

You can fight identity theft

Here’s how: • Never provide personal financial information, including your Social Security number, account numbers or passwords over the phone or the Internet, if you did not initiate the contact. • Never click on the link provided in an e-mail you think is fraudulent. In addition to stealing your personal information, the link may contain a virus that can contaminate your computer. • Do not be intimidated by an e-mail or caller who suggests dire consequences if you do not immediately provide or verify financial information. • If you are unsure whether a contact is legitimate, go to the company’s Website by typing in the site address or using a page you have previously book marked, instead of using a link provided by the e-mail. • If you fall victim to identity theft, act immediately to protect yourself. Alert your financial institution. Place fraud alerts on your credit files. Monitor your credit files and account statements closely. • Report suspicious e-mails or calls to the Federal Trade Commission through the Internet at http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/ edu/microsites/idtheft/, or by calling 1-877-IDTHEFT (1-877-438-4338). To learn more about keeping your money safe, visit the http://www.mymoney.gov/scams. shtml Website. This article was used from NCUA.GOV