Happy National Candy Corn Day!

Celebrate National Candy Corn Day with these delicious Candy Corn recipes!

Candy corn is an iconic Halloween treat and the holiday doesn't seem complete without them. In addition to eating this classic candy as is, try making one of these delicious candy corn recipes that takes its inspiration from these colorful candies. Serve the tri-colored treats at a Halloween party or place them in boxes or cellophane bags as favors for guests.

Here are some sweet and tasty recipes with candy corn:

• Cupcakes: Bake scrumptious candy corn cupcakes for a Halloween party or even just as a special treat for the kids. Bake either vanilla or chocolate cupcakes and frost with orange, yellow or white frosting. Use a decorative frosting tip to make your first layer of frosting in the color yellow. Create a second layer of frosting in the color orange. Add white frosting to the top. Apply the frosting to create a triangular cone shape to resemble a piece of candy corn. Place a piece of candy corn at the top of the frosting stack.

• Cookies: Make delicious candy corn cookies for Halloween. Ingredients for the candy corn cookie recipe are: 4 tbsp. unsalted softened butter, ½ cup sugar, 1 egg yolk, ¼ tsp. of vanilla extract, ¼ tsp. baking powder, ¼ tsp. salt, ¾ cup flour and a few handfuls of candy corn (35-40 pcs). Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Combine the butter and sugar, and beat the mixture in a bowl. Add the egg yolk, baking powder, salt and vanilla. Slowly add the flour and form the cookie dough. Use a teaspoon to scoop out the dough and roll the dough into balls and place them on a cookie sheet. Bake for 10-12 minutes. Once out of the oven, press a piece of candy corn into the middle of each cookie.

• Rice Krispy Treats: Make chewy, gooey candy corn Rice Krispy treats for a Halloween party. Ingredients include: ½ cup butter, 10 cups Rice Krispy cereal, 9 cups small marshmallows and 2 cups candy corn. Place the rice cereal and candy corn in a bowl. Melt the marshmallows and butter in a large pot, and mix it until smooth. Add the rice cereal and candy corn mixture to the butter and marshmallows. Butter a baking pan, and spread the cereal mixture on top. Once cool, cut the Rice Krispy treats into triangular candy corn shapes. Serve the Rice Krispy treats on a Halloween platter, or send your guests home with favors by placing the treats into individual cellophane bags with orange and yellow ribbon around the top.

Add something extra to your baked goods and dip them in chocolate or add sprinkles. Homemade baked treats will impress your guests and satisfy every Halloween craving.

For more information see Punch Bowl.

Mountain Moonshine Festival

Parades, race car drives, and kids activities are just some of the events happening at the Mountain Moonshine Festival.  Make sure to go to the festival this weekend where proceeds go to the KARE for Kids Foundation.  Make sure to sign up for the race before next weekend, and have a great time at the festival!

 

45th Annual Mountain Moonshine Festival
October 27 & 28, 2012

  KARE for Kids is proud to announce our 2012 Grand Marshall will be Bud Moore

All proceeds go to KARE for Kids, Inc.
“Making the World A Brighter Place,
One Child at A Time”

• See the parade of moonshine and revenue cars to kick off festivities at 9:00 Saturday morning.
• For Lodging Information, Click Here.
• Many great vendors – something for everyone
• Two stages with live entertainment around the square in downtown Dawsonville
• Car Show, Cruise-In and Swap Meet held at the Georgia Racing Hall of Fame  formerly known as “Thunder Road USA”
• Moonshine Run on Friday, October 26th, leaving the Georgia Racing Hall of Fame at approximately 10:00 AM, registration to begin at 9:00 AM.
• Meet many legendary race car drivers. See Vintage Race Cars and more Authentic Moonshine-Hauling cars than you’ll ever see gathered in one place anywhere in the US!
• Purchase festival souvenirs such as t-shirts, caps & refrigerator magnets.
• Camper & Hauler parking will be available at the GA Racing Hall of Fame in a designated area only. Please see a KARE representative for assistance. Any hauler or camper parked in a show car parking area or public parking area will be subject to fees according to the size of the camper or hauler.
• Help out with a very worthy cause, KARE for Kids, Inc.

For more information see KARE for Kids.

Ten Tips for College Graduates

College graduates are having more trouble finding jobs than ever before.  As they are forced to move home, they end up working part time retail jobs until they may land a job a few years later.  Here are ten great tips on how to improve your chances at landing a job post graduation.

Many companies are biased against hiring recent grads. Diana Zimmerman of the marketing communications agency CMS Communications, Intl., says she doesn't interview recent college grads anymore: "I have found, overall, they have, (right or wrong) a very different work ethic, and are just too self-absorbed. A job interview is not about them. It's about what value they can bring to the company. Many of them haven't even researched the company they are interviewing for."
But all hope isn't lost. Here's a list of 10 steps you can take to increase your chances of snagging a great job once you graduate.

1. Find hands-on learning opportunities. According to Sabrina Ali, career counselor and writer, participating in cooperative education or practicum opportunities gives college students "paid work experience, industry mentoring, and [they] become a known entity in their industry of choice prior to needing or wanting full-time work, and have a chance to figure out better what they want for themselves in terms of a career after they graduate."
See if your university or department offers opportunities that would allow you to try out working in the field you're studying in.

2. Socialize online (beyond Facebook). Maria Stephens, PR manager at the pattern-based analytics company Emcien Corporation, says it's important to manage your online reputation. According to her, employers will Google you, so it's best to be prepared by knowing what they'll find. Make sure your LinkedIn profile is polished and up-to-date. Either don't post anything embarrassing that might prevent you from being hired on Facebook or Twitter, or change your privacy settings so your updates don't appear in search results.

3. Become more than just a resume. Stephens also suggests managing a blog to give you a leg up in the competitive job market. "[Find] something professional that relates in a way to something that could strengthen your chances of getting an interview because you'll instantly become more than just a resume," she says. "Whether it's your interests with running or cooking, show that you're an interesting person with talents and a personality."

4. Never waste a summer. Sure, you know that interning is one way to get some job experience while still in college, but don't be afraid to take on more than one over the years of your entire college education. "In this tough job climate, it is important that college students prove that they are worth the risk of being hired," says Christie Haynes, president of the Dawson County Chamber of Commerce and Convention & Visitors Bureau in Dawsonville, Ga. "They can do this by never wasting a summer in college ... Find an internship that allows you to gain valuable experience in the field you hope to enter upon graduation."

5. Take classes outside of your major. You can assume that if you take all the sociology classes your major requires that you'll be hireable when you finish your degree, but the truth is: that's not always the case. Other classes, especially those in business, can give you real-world knowledge that employers will appreciate. Consider taking classes in communications, public speaking, finance, and general business.

6. Get a part-time job in the field you're interested in. Scooping ice cream to pay for your college courses won't do you any good when you graduate. Robert Sollars of Today's Training LLC says if you take an entry-level position in the industry you want to work in (such as working a private security position if you're working toward a degree in criminal justice), you can get a sense of what the work requires to see if you're truly interested in making a career out of it. "This will allow them to get their 'feet wet' and learn more about a different side of the law enforcement community," he says.

7. Meet people. Most college students aren't thinking about networking, but that's exactly what you should be doing before you graduate. Many colleges have strong alumni networks that students can tap into, and many college departments offer opportunities to meet professionals in the community who are working in that field. Get out and shake hands. Get advice on the profession you're interested in and ask questions to get tips on how to best position yourself.

Ali says you should ask questions you can't find the answers to online: "What do you wish you'd known about the job before you started? What skills and traits make someone ideally suited for this kind of work in the long-term?"

8. Know how to talk about yourself. Early in your career, you may find it hard to toot your own horn, but Ali says it's important to be able to do so: "This element is so important and so often overlooked, yet it's a crucial step in determining your success in finding work," she says. "What are you going to say when someone asks: 'Who are you and what are you looking for (in relation to work)?'"

Be confident in your response, and don't be afraid to say what you want. Knowing what you want out of a career proves you're a go-getter, which appeals to employers.

9. Nail the interview process. Even before you apply for your first job, find out what a professional job interview will look like. Talk to professionals that you network with to see what questions you should expect to be asked, and practice your answers. Have a friend mock interview you so you can get your nervous tics out and learn to smoothly answer questions.

10. Be open. If you zero in on one single job that you want, you might miss out on other great opportunities. Spend your college time exploring different industries you could work in, as well as different roles you might be eligible for once you graduate. Your ideal job may come from left field, so be open to possibilities.

For more information see US News.

Three Free Ways to Organize The Things on Your Desk

 Is your desk and computer full of clutter?  Here are three free ways to organize your office supplies.  Organizing your desk can help reduce your stress, and it can make it a little more enjoyable to do some work.


Here are three things you can do today to organize your desk for maximum efficiency. And they're totally free!

1. Edit your supplies: It's easy to acquire an absurd number of pens, pencils and highlighters. They're given away everywhere and seem totally practical — so they're never thrown away. Grab every single writing utensil in your desk and select 10 that you actually like and use regularly. Give the rest away.


2. Create a digital file cabinet: One of the biggest areas of stress for me was my file drawer. It was full of documents I hadn't looked at for 10 years. It can be intimidating, but the first step is to open the file and shred anything you don't absolutely need. Anything you do need, scan and put it in a folder on your computer called "File Cabinet." Within that file, you can create subfolders for your financial information, vehicles, and insurance, for example. Don't forget to back up this file to an external hard drive or to a cloud service like Google Drive.
3. Put a stop to unsolicited mail: Junk mail was one of my biggest problems. I would throw it into my desk until one day I'd open the drawer and coupons for kebabs and life insurance offers would explode all over my floor. If this sounds familiar, the Federal Trade Commission has put together a list of ways you can stop most unsolicited mail. Some of the most frustrating mail for me was the endless credit card offers. By calling 1-888-5-OPT-OUT (1-888-567-8688) or visiting optoutprescreen.com, you can stop all credit card and insurance offers for five years.
   
   For more information go to Apartment Therapy.
   

Do You Have A Well Stocked Freezer?

Do you have a well stocked freezer?  A well stocked freezer can help you in an emergency or even have something you need for impromptu company.  Here are five essentials that apartment therapy recommends, but there are many other things that you can add to your well stocked freezer.

A well-stocked freezer can spare a person a lot of late-night snack cravings or lazy days when you just don't feel like going to the store, and it's absolutely essential if you have friends who like to drop by for impromptu parties. (See our 8 staples for stress-free entertaining here, but be warned: the well-stocked freezer may cause this habit to develop in your friends.) But what constitutes "well-stocked" depends a lot on where we live, how we cook and entertain, and how big our freezers are. 

What are your essentials? Here are five of my own.
 
In a perfect world, I would have the following things in my freezer at all times:

• Cocktail ice — I love making fancy cocktails, and my favorite parties are cocktail parties. But a host always needs more ice than he or she thinks, so I like to keep on hand more ice than makes any rational kind of sense, just to be prepared. And of course I have to keep an ice ball or two around in case my father comes to dinner and wants one in his Scotch.

• Frozen fruit — Freezing summer fruit when it's in season is probably the only thing that gets me through the dark days of December, when the novelty of winter food has worn off and all I really want is a strawberry smoothie.

• Homemade stock — Homemade stock and broth makes such a difference in the way food tastes. I like to freeze mine in muffin tins (each muffin well holds 1/3 cup), then pop them out and store them in bags for later. And whenever we have meat, I like to store the bones in the freezer until there are enough to make a new batch of stock.

• Ground pork — My husband and I make a lot of Chinese food, and a lot of my favorite dishes, like dry-fried string beans, call for just a tablespoon or two of ground pork. Since I can't buy just a tablespoon of pork at a time, I like to freeze the rest in individual portions so it's all ready next time I need it.

• Frozen snacks — I am always happy knowing that there are single-serving pizzas or mini quiches or pork dumplings in my freezer, because it absolutely never fails that I will become suddenly ravenous at exactly the moment the very last delivery place closes, and that's not the time to start making a big meal. Frozen savory snacks are also good to have on hand when you have friends who like to drop by for cocktails. You have to have something to feed them, and this way you don't find yourself stuck in the kitchen making 12 grilled cheese sandwiches while there's an impromptu party going on.

For more information go to Apartment Therapy.