Grandma Lauder's Peanut Butter Balls

The elves, busy working-

Rolling....

And dipping...

Snow, snow, snow, snow, snow. Bake, bake, bake. The past few days have been PERFECT days for baking and making treats. We have made sugar cookies, Raspberry Shortbread cookies, scones, still mixing up batches of pecan shortbread, chocolate peppermint cookies and Peanut Butter Balls. These are a Foster Fam Favorite. I was first introduced to these lovely little treats in 1982. My Mom in law-Doreen and Sis in law- Sheri volunteered to make them along with lots of other treats for our wedding. So for months, we would get together on Thursday nights, and roll Peanut Butter Balls, freeze them, and watch "Knots Landing" ( silly night soap spin off of "Dallas") . The pbb recipe came from Doreen's mother Eveline Lauder. Grandmother Lauder passed away a few years back, but her legacy lives on. She was an impeccable dresser. She worked at Beaton's Clothing store for years in Canada and the U.S. She took hours to get ready, and never left the house in sweats, or anything casual. She loved being a woman! One time I remember when she had an early flight to take after a family gathering, instead of going to bed, she stayed up and got ready- dressed, makeup on, and hair fixed, then just sat up on the sofa, and waited until it was time to go to the airport! She was a generous, loving and kind woman. She made buckets of peanut butter balls (and about 10 other types of cookies) every Christmas, and shared them with friends and family. My kids still love these treats, and ask for them every Christmas. Thanks Grandma. We love you.

Grandma Lauder's Peanut Butter Balls

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2 cups Chunky Peanut Butter
4-5 cups powdered sugar
12 Tablespoons butter, softened
2 lbs pecans or walnuts, toasted
2-3 lbs dipping chocolate

Mix the softened butter and peanut butter until blended and smooth. You can do this in a food processor, or with a hand held or stand mixer. Add powdered sugar, mix until the peanut butter mixture is dry enough to roll into balls without sticking.
You may need to add more powdered sugar. Add a little at a time. These should be a little dryer than the consistency of chocolate chip cookies. If the mixture is too dry, add a little milk.
Roll into balls about 1" in diameter. Place on a cookie sheet, when the cookie sheet is full, place in the freezer or refrigerator until thoroughly chilled.

Spread the nuts on a baking sheet. Place in a preheated 350 degree oven for about 10 minutes. Remove and let cool, coarsely chop half of the nuts by hand on a cutting board. Place in a 9x13 pan. Put the rest of the nuts into a food processor or blender and chop fine. Mix with other hand chopped nuts. Set aside.

Place the chocolate in a glass bowl in the microwave or on the stove in a double boiler. Be careful not to burn the chocolate. (It burns really fast, trust me, I'm an expert at burning chocolate) . In the microwave, melt at 30 second to one minute intervals. Remove and stir. Cook just until chocolate is melted.

To assemble:

Remove pb balls from refrigerator. Dip into melted chocolate, then roll into nuts. Place back on another cookie sheet or pan, and refrigerate. After they chocolate is set, remove and store in Tupperware or other covered container. These keep well for a long time in the refrigerator. Or in the freezer. As long as your husband doesn't see them :)

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