Play-Doh Cookies

3/4 cup butter, softened
3 ounces cream cheese
1 cup white sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
assorted colors of paste food coloring
24 lollipop sticks

In a bowl cream butter, cream cheese and sugar until fluffy. Add egg and vanilla; beat until smooth.

In a medium bowl combine flour, baking powder and salt. Add dry ingredients to the creamed mixture. Stir till soft dough forms. Divide dough into fourths. Tint each with a different food color. Wrap in plastic wrap and chill for 2 hours.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Working with half of each color, shape dough into 3/4 inch balls and for each cookie place 1 pink, 1 green, 1 blue and 1 orange ball together to make 1 large ball. Shape into a 12 inch long roll (like a snake), starting at one end, coil roll to make a 2 3/4 inch round cookie. Place cookies 3 inches apart on lightly greased baking sheet. Carefully insert lollipop sticks into bottoms of cookies.

Bake cookies for 8 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool and store in an airtight container.

Balsamic Rosemary Pork Loin with Roasted Potatoes

(theotherwhitemeat.com)
15 minutes prep, 75 minutes cook

Ingredients

2 1/2 pound boneless top loin pork roast
1 1/2 cups fresh rosemary
12 cloves garlic
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons black pepper
2 1/2 pounds small red potatoes, cut into 1/2-inch wedges

Directions

Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.
In a food processor, combine rosemary leaves, garlic, oil, vinegar, salt, and pepper and pulse to make a coarse, wet paste, scraping down the bowl as necessary. Spread 3/4 paste on all sides of roast. Place roast, fat side up, in shallow roasting pan large enough to hold roast with 3 inches room around all sides. Roast 15 minutes.
Meanwhile, in a large bowl, combine potatoes and remaining paste.
Reduce oven to 350 degrees F. Add potato mixture to pan, arranging potatoes around roast. Continue roasting 50 to 60 minutes, tossing potatoes halfway through, or until internal temperature of roast reaches 155 degrees F and potatoes are tender. (If roast is done before potatoes, transfer it to a cutting board and return roasting pan with potatoes to oven.)
Remove roast from oven and let rest 10 minutes. Slice roast and arrange on platter. Surround with potatoes and serve.

Yield: 8 to 10 servings