White Trash Truffles aka Junk Balls

Our friend Jessica introduced us to white trash truffles this week. My sister and I don't like to call them that though. We prefer junk balls, or trashy balls. or junk truffles.... anyhow.. they are a party for your tongue, and you have to try them just once. We have put people in awe this week of their amazingness, a great addition to a cookie plate or just to satisfy your sweet tooth.

• oreo cookies (mint and peanut butter work best)
• dipping chocolate (white or dark)
• cream cheese (we opted for 1/3 less fat)
• sprinkles or coconut for decor

1. place a bag of cookies into a ziploc bag and use a rolling pin to crush them
2. once they are pulverized mix them with a mixer and a package of cream cheese
3. make little balls you roll out of the mixture
4. place balls into freezer for 30 minutes or until hard (the harder the easier the next steps are)
5. once balls are hard put dipping chocolate into microwave to melt
6. when chocolate is liquified remove balls from freezer
7. dip each ball into the chocolate, one side at a time helps your fingers from burning
8. before chocolate hardens top with sprinkles or coconut
9. place back into freezer for an hour or so
10. eat and be merry

Candied Ginger Recipe

Seeking an ideal finishing touch for my cookie plates this year, I turned to crystallized (candied) ginger. The recipe was actually so easy. Give it a try yourself and save some money on sweet and spicier candied ginger.

• granulated sugar
• ginger root

1. peel and slice 2 ginger roots into coins
2. pour 3 cups of water and 3 cups of sugar into a pot to under medium heat, stir
3. once the syrup is warmed add your ginger coins to the mixture, mix and keep an eye on it
4. after 30 minutes and ginger is tender remove ginger with a strainer (you can save the sweet ginger syrup for homemade ginger ale)
5. place your ginger in a single layer to dry on a cookie rack
6. after 5 hours at least your ginger should be dry, fill a bowl with sugar
7. place ginger in bowl and shake it up
8. remove ginger and let dry another hour before serving or adding to cookie plate