Saving Christmas: Bake Someone Happy. From Scratch.

We're down to the last week - are you ready?  Christmas is almost here and I hope everyone is ready to enjoy some time with family and friends.

I finished up my Christmas baking a few weeks ago, and froze the bounty, which I'll make into plates to take to neighbors. I already sent a plate with Mr. Official to share with his coworkers last week.

But as I scoured for new Christmas recipes to try, it struck me that we really do live in a slice-and-bake era, and most of the "new" Christmas treats are cobbled together from pre-made ingredients.

I'm sorry if I'm bursting anyone's bubble, but I don't think Christmas cookies include your run-of-the-mill chocolate chip, M&M or peanut butter cookies or Rice Krispie treats.  (Although if you usually resort to pre-made or easy-bake cookies, maybe from-scratch versions of these cookie jar staples ARE your idea of a special "Christmas cookie.")

And in the interest of full disclosure, I admit I have my share of what I call "cheater" treats - coated pretzels, Rolo "turtles," and Oreo truffles.  These are treats with 2 or 3 ingredients that go together fast, are fun to make and tasty, and we use them to fill out the cookie plates as well as munch on ourselves.

But when it comes to cookies and Christmas, it's time to put the brakes on and get our bake on.

Let's slow things down a bit and dig out some of those old recipes.  If you don't have copies of them, think back to what you remember from your childhood, or ask parents, aunts and uncles or grandparents about the special baked treats they remember most from their own "wonder years."   Then look through cookbooks or online for recipes that will bake someone a happy memory or two. 

Yes, it's extra work.  Yes, we'll have read and follow archaic directions and actually measure out ingredients.  We may have to measure out some time - something that is in short supply these days.  And we may wind up with a big mess in our kitchen.

You can't cook or bake?  Really?  The generation that can figure out how to text and tweet has no excuse:  we can read and follow directions, which is all cooking and baking really is.

No time to do a full-blown cookie bake-a-thon?  No problem. Pick one recipe - just one. Carve out time and make a batch this week. Put on some Christmas music - (the Charlie Brown Christmas track is one of my all-time favorites), and before you know it, you'll be washing up the baking sheets and nibbling on your results as they cool.

I promise, it will be worth it.  Be it ever so humble, those old-fashioned Christmas cookie recipes from a by-gone era are a bridge between our past and our future.  Deciphering decades-old recipes scribbled on yellowed scraps  of paper, searching out those ingredients we aren't familiar with, and even enduring the occasional failed effort.  Those form traditions that give us and our children a rich layer of Christmas memories.  And those memories will carry into their adult years and can be passed along to their children.

It is a sure bet that a child (even if it's only your inner child) will remember a December evening or weekend morning  making cookies.  No matter how messy or disastrous, it will stick with you long after you have forgotten the must-have toy of the year. Don't settle for slice-and-bake.  Bake some memories, and make them special.

Happy baking,
 

Recipe of the Week: Peppernuts

I love the holidays, don't you?  I love the flavors of the holidays.  And the songs.  And the lights.  And the jingling of sleigh bells. And...the cookies.

Last year, I shared several of my favorite cookie and candy recipes on the Wednesdays leading up to Christmas. This year I started December off with cinnamon-scented "gingerbread" dough for ornaments.  Smells yummy, but it's probably not too tasty.  This week, I'll share a lesser-known, but very edible sweet holiday treat recipe: peppernuts or pfefferneuse.  I always associated these with my German ancestry, but from the looks of things, they have blonde roots - Scandinavian to be precise.

Regardless, peppernuts are a traditional holiday favorite with some of my family members, although they are a rarity in the south.  They are a small, hard cookie (think tiny biscotti) that pack a punch of flavor in the form of spices, including white pepper.  They need to be made a few weeks in advance so they will "cure" and the flavors can mellow.  A few of these little nuggets are delicious with a cup of fresh dark coffee.

Pfefferneuse (Peppernuts)

Ingredients
1/2 cup shortening
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 egg
1 cup molasses
3 drops anise oil
1 tablespoon hot water
3 1/4 cups flour
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon white pepper

Directions: Mix together shortening, brown sugar, egg, molasses, anise oil and hot water. Add the remaining ingredients in the order given.  Knead until dough is of molding consistency. Shape into small (1/2-inch) ball and place on ungreased cookie sheet (parchment paper is helpful).  Bake at 350 for 10-12 minutes or until brown on bottom.  Place in a tin and store for ten days to two weeks to cure before serving.  You can place a slice of apple in the container (it's best to put it in a cup or other open container) for softer cookies.  They may be rolled in powdered sugar before serving.  Makes about 8 dozen cookies. 

I didn't have any ground cloves when I made mine this year, so I substituted cardamom, which is sometimes called for in other peppernut recipes.   You will also find recipes that use mace, ground or finely diced candied ginger, and some that introduce finely chopped nuts or dried fruit.  Some will leave out the pepper, or use black pepper instead.  Others will claim there shouldn't be any butter or shortening in the recipe; others will have both.  As is the case with most traditional foods, there is no "one" way to make these treats, although hethose whose grandmothers made them will defend their recipe as the sentimental favorite in their family.

The modern practice of baking Christmas cookies has its roots in Germany, most notably when inexpensive metal cookie cutters in holiday shapes were exported from Germany in the early 20th century and American cooks latched onto the idea of baking holiday treats, and Christmas cookie recipes began to appear in cookbooks.  To celebrate this aspect of my heritage, I'm planning to start testing some recipes for German cookies, such as Butter Cookies (Butterplatzchen) and Lebkuchen (a gingerbread-type cookie) in the coming months, and possibly introduce one or both on my Christmas goodie plates for next year.

Happy Christmas,

Recipe of the Week: Pumpkin Caramel Blondies

Today marks the end of this "Great Pumpkin" recipe series; next week, we swing into full-bore Christmas cooking and baking.  Some of you may be breathing a sigh of relief, or maybe that was a wistful sigh of contentment I heard.

There are so many yummy pumpkin recipes I haven't tried yet, I may continue test-driving them on my family and friends over the next year, and have a whole new lineup for an encore performance next fall.

We'll see.

Mr. Official says I'm starting to sound like Forrest Gump's friend Bubba when he rattled off all the ways you could cook shrimp.  I've got recipes for pumpkin biscuits, pumpkin soup, pumpkin butter, pumpkin cheesecake, pumpkin donuts, pumpkin fried pies, pumpkin brownies, pumpkin trifle....the list just goes on forever.  Or as long as the canned pumpkin holds out.

Today we'll take several fave flaves, including chocolate, pecan, caramel and pumpkin and swirl them together in these gooey pumpkin blondies.

I made these on Monday and planned to send some with Mr. Official on Tuesday morning. But Middle Son looked forlorn when I mentioned sending them off, so I left them for him enjoy while he and the pooches house-sit this week.  They are pure decadence, so make them when you can spread the love and calories over many eaters, or give to a few eaters with high metabolism.

Pumpkin Caramel Blondies

Ingredients:
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, slightly softened
1 1/4 cups brown sugar
1 egg (2 for cake-like texture)
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 cup pumpkin puree
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
3/4 cup chocolate chips
3/4 cup butterscotch chips
1/2 cup coarsely chopped pecans
1/2 cup caramel syrup


Directions:  
Preheat oven to 350.  Line a 9x13 pan with parchment or foil; if using foil, grease or butter well.  SEt aside.  In large bowl, cream together butter and sugar.  Add eggs, mixing well.  Add pumpkin and vanilla.  Stir in flour, soda, salt and spices just unti incorporated. Spoon about half the batter into the prepared pan and smooth to cover bottom. Sprinkle with chips and nuts; drizzle with caramel. Drop remaining batter over top, then use a spatula to smooth and cover the caramel layer.  Bake for 30 minutes or until toothpick inserted comes out clean (it may have caramel on it.)

Cool and use foil or parchment to lift from pan; pull away lining and cut into squares.  Makes 20-24 bars.

Happy baking,

Some new twists on old favorites

My office is in the new kitchen. That's both good and bad: I'm finding the kitchen stays cleaner (the opposite of "out of sight, out of mind" I guess), but it also seems to just beckon me to come cook or bake something.

Since we moved in (just over a week ago!), I think I've used nearly every pot and pan and utensil I own (and a good majority of my serving dishes too.) We've enjoyed chicken piccata over vegetable pasta, twice-baked potatoes and grilled steaks, even pancakes and bacon (that was definitely a "holiday" from our regular low-carb regimen.)

But my real joy of cooking rests in baking, especially sweet treats. I spent Mother's Day afternoon making banana bread with a batch of too-ripe bananas. I made three big loaves: one for here, one for Mr. Official to take to work, and one for a friend who pleaded for one while she was homesick and overseas. She's now home, and this was a belated welcome home gift.

I've also taken some twists on a couple tried-and-true recipes. When moving, I discovered I had two bottles of lime juice. So Miss JoAnn's Lemon Bars became Lime Bars (and promptly vanished into thin air just like the lemon variety tends to do.)

An extra bag of raisins (which were no longer plump and soft) were the inspiration for raisin pinwheel cookies. I used my grandmother's recipe for date pinwheels and substituted raisins (with a dash of cinnamon) for the dates in the filling. I don't think I've ever made pinwheel cookies except at the holidays, until now. Now they might become another everyday favorite.  Hint:  they were better the second day.  And gone by the third.

Hmmm. I wonder what other recipes I can take for a spin in my new kitchen?  Yesterday was national chocolate chip day; I bet I could find a chocolate chip recipe to turn on its head.

Happy baking,

Recipe of the Week: Miss JoAnn's Lemon Bars

A while back, I posted a recipe for Parker House Rolls, which was shared by a very gracious lady from South Carolina. Another "keeper" recipe of hers is this one - it's a family favorite that seems most fitting in the warm months of the year. One word of advice: these bars are very rich, so cut them small for serving.

Miss JoAnn's Lemon Bars

Crust Ingredients
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup powdered sugar
1/2 cup butter

Filling Ingredients
2 eggs
1 cup sugar
1/8 cup flour + 2 tablespoons
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 cup lemon juice

Directions:
Heat oven to 350.  Sift together flour and powdered sugar.  Cut in butter (it can be slightly softened, but it shouldn't be room temperature) until crumbly.  Press in bottom of 8x8 pan (I like lining mine with parchment to make it easier to lift and cut these bars.)  Bake at 350 for 20 minutes or until brown.

In the meantime, beat eggs until frothy, add sugar and incorporate well. Whisk in flour and baking powder until there are no lumps. Add lemon juice and stir thoroughly.  Pour over crust as soon as you remove it from the oven.

Return to the oven for another 25 minutes or until the filling is just set (it will still be soft.)  Sprinkle with powdered sugar and let cool completely before cutting.  (Or cut warm and enjoy them while they're still gooey.)


Note:  Store the bars at room temperature for up to a day, or in the refrigerator to keep them fresh longer.  You can also double this recipe and bake in a 10x15 pan.  I've even quadrupled it and baked it in a parchment-lined jelly roll pan.

Happy baking,

Recipe of the Week: Peanut Butter Butterscotch Chip Cookies

Not as well-rounded as Betty, but a good 'un

It's chocolate chip cookie week, not that I ever need an excuse to bake cookies.  The Cookbook Junkie posted this classic chocolate chip cookie recipe from King Arthur flour and we will be trying it out soon, no doubt.

Since I've already shared my favorite chocolate chip cookie recipes,  I thought I'd share another favorite in honor of the week.  I discovered this one in my trusty Pillsbury Complete Book of Baking when I was trying to find a good way to use up a stray bag of butterscotch chips without resorting to "oatmeal scotchies."   Even though I'm not a fan of butterscotch chips, the recipe was surprisingly good, and these cookies will appear occasionally when I'm in a mood to bake something different.  And I have been known to mix half chocolate and half butterscotch chips in this recipe, with good results.

Butterscotch Chip Peanut Butter Cookies

Ingredients:
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup margarine or butter, softened (I use butter)
1/2 cup chunky peanut butter (smooth works okay too)
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 egg
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup butterscotch chips (or half butterscotch, half semi-sweet chocolate)

Directions: 
Heat oven to 375.  In large bowl, combine sugars, butter and peanut butter.  Cream at low speed until light and fluffy.  Add vanilla and egg; blend well.  Stir in flour, baking soda and salt, mix well but don't over-mix.  Stir in chips.  Spoon onto cookie sheets, roughly 1-inch balls, roughly two inches apart.  Slightly flatten with a fork if desired (I don't, but you can :-)

Bake at 375 for 6-10 minutes or until golden brown.  Remove from cookie sheets and cool completely.  Makes 4-5 dozen.  These hold up well for a day or two, if they last that long.

Happy baking!

Recipe of the week: Christmas Confections Concluded

This has been a week of surprises and lessons-learned on procrastinating. A shout-out to my awesome Mr. Official husband who is currently laid up (laid low?) at MTMC's brand-new hospital, suffering from another bout of rhabdomyolosis. (Second inpatient stay in 2 years.)  It's a long story and has something to do with his first attempt at Body Pump and not being outdone by his lovely wife (his words, not mine.)

I'm not sure how I'm going to pull off all the pre-Christmas to-do's on my list while checking in on him several times aday, let alone get his list done, but somehow we'll make it work.  The things that are most important will get done, and everything else will wait or not get done at all.

Anyhoo.

Today is the third and final spotlight on holiday confections, which I will wrap up with two more favorites: almond crescents and homemade peppermint patties.  The almond crescent cookie recipe has been in our family for a very long time; the peppermint patty recipe came to me from a davesgarden.com member back in 2001.  They are both worth the effort to try.

Almond Crescents

Ingredients:
2 cups chopped almonds, divided
1 1/4 cup flour
1/4 cup sugar
1 cup butter, softened
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup powdered sugar

Directions:
Mix together 1 2/3 cup almonds, flour and sugar. Work in butter and vanilla. Chill for one hour, then form into 1-inch balls and roll in remaining chopped almonds. Form into crescent shapes (it takes a little practice to make the half-moons), and place on ungreased cookie sheet. Bake at 350 for 12-15 minutes. Cool on pan for ten minutes, then roll in powdered sugar. Makes about 2 1/2 dozen cookies.

Peppermint Patties

Ingredients
1 pound powdered sugar
3 tablespoons butter or margarine, softened
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
2 teaspoons peppermint extract
1/4 cup evaporated milk
2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
2 tablespoons shortening

Directions:
In mixing bowl,combine powdered sugar, butter, vanilla, peppermint extract and milk. Shape into 1-inch balls and place on waxed-apper lined cookie sheets. Flatten with a drinking glass to 1/4 inches thick. Cover and freeze 30 minutes. In a double boiler over medium-low heat, melt chocolate chips and shortening together. Dip patties in melted chocolate and place on waxed paper to harden. Makes about 5 dozen.

Happy confecting!

Recipe of the Week: Christmas Confections

It's cookie and candy making time! Here are two of my favorites. One dates back to my grandma's day, and a wonderful new recipe I snagged last holiday season.

Grandma Eden's Date Pinwheels

Dough ingredients
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 egg
2 1/4 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda

Filling ingredients:
1/2 pound (1 cup) chopped dates
1/3 cup water
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup chopped almonds

Directions:
Cream butter and sugars together. Add egg. Stir in flour and baking soda; mix well and chill for at least 1/2 hour. While dough is chilling, combine dates, water and 1/4 cup sugar in a heavy saucepan, over medium-low heat. Bring to boil and boil for five minutes or until mixture has become dense and sticky. Remove from heat and stir in almonds. Let cool to room temperature.

On waxed paper, roll out dough to 10x16 rectangle. Smear with date mixture and roll up tightly starting at wide end. Use waxed paper to keep dough intact as you ease it into a roll. Wrap tightly and refrigerate for another hour or overnight. Cut into 1/4-inch slices and place on ungreased cookie sheet. Bake at 350 for 12-14 minutes or until golden (but not hard). Makes 6 dozen cookies.

Jeanetta's Pretzel Turtles

Ingredients:
Small round pretzels
Rolo chocolate-covered caramel candies
Pecan halves

Directions:
Cover a cookie sheet or shallow jellyroll pan with foil, spray lightly with Pam or other cooking spray. Heat oven to 300 degrees. Place pretzels in a single layer on the sheet, leaving a bit of space between them. Unwrap and place a Rolo candy on each pretzel.

Place in oven and heat for 2-3 minutes (just until candies soften.) Remove from oven and immediately press a pecan half on each, pressing down to force chocolate and caramel into the pretzel. Allow to cool completely and refrigerate or freeze until ready to serve. Allow to come to room temperature.

Happy confecting!

Recipe of the Week: Monster Cookies

This recipe was given to my mom (and me) many years ago by a friend who baked them for her teenage daughters and friends to enjoy on high school game trips. These monster-sized cookies are flourless (good for those who are looking to eliminate or reduce gluten in their diets), but they are definitely not diet-friendly.

The batch of cookie dough is so large, I splurged on a huge Tupperware bowl just for them.  Mine is identical to this one except it has a bright pink lid (all the better).  It has come in handy for other things but it is still used when I make a full batch of monster cookies.  

When we return home from our annual "last dance with summer" on the white sand beaches of Florida, it will be a good time to usher in fall with some of these scrumptious, oversized treats.

Martha's Monster Cookies

Ingredients
1 cup butter or margarine, softened
2 cups white sugar
2 cups brown sugar
3 cups peanut butter
6 eggs
1 1/2 teaspoons corn syrup
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
4 teaspoons baking soda
9 cups rolled oats
1/2 pound M&Ms (plain)
1/2 pound semi-sweet chocolate chips

Directions
Preheat oven to 350.  In a large bowl, cream butter, sugars and peanut butter. Add eggs one at a time, then stir in remaining ingredients in order given.  Drop by large spoonfuls (or a small ice cream scoop), 6 to a sheet.  Bake for 12-15 minutes.  Remove from oven and let cool slightly, then transfer to a rack to finish cooling.  Store in an airtight canister (can be frozen).  Makes 6 dozen cookies.

Since getting this recipe, I have figured out it can be cut in half fairly easily, although we rarely throw away uneaten cookies.  If you happen to have an empty oatmeal canister due to this recipe, you may find it works great for stacking these huge cookies and transporting them.

Happy baking!

Recipe of the Week: Two Favorite Chocolate Chip Cookies

I have two favorite chocolate chip cookie recipes.  They both yield consistently good results, so I offer them both for you to test for yourself.  The first recipe is from a longtime family friend who shares my penchant for all things sweet - she was the source of my turtle cake recipe we enjoyed as a birthday cake a few weeks ago.  (She also makes a mean brisket and does wonderful things with everything that comes out of her huge garden.)  The photo below is a tin full of the slice and bake cookies, baked up hot and fresh for a group of middle school youth group workers.

The second recipe is from The Pillsbury Complete Book of Baking, a cookbook I bought from a fundraiser many years ago.  It gets used more frequently because it makes a smaller batch (and it stays on my counter next to my KitchenAid mixer, along with a few other oft-used cookbooks. )

Denise's Slice & Bake Chocolate Chip Cookies

Ingredients:
2 cups butter or margarine, softened
1 1/3 cups white sugar
1 2/3 cups firmly packed brown sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
4 eggs
5 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons salt
2 teaspoons baking soda
2 cups (16 ounces) semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 cup chopped nuts

Directions:
Cream butter and sugar.  Beat in vanilla and eggs until light and fluffy.  Gradually stir in dry ingredients into creamed mixture.  Add chips and nuts last (I usually take the mixer off the stand and fold them in by hand.)

Divide dough into 4 equal parts.  Shape into rolls 2 inches in diameter; wrap tightly in waxed paper and refrigerate. Can be frozen for 6 months. (I double-wrap in foil if I'm freezing them for any length of time.)  When ready to bake, slice 3/4 inches thick and bake at 350 F for 10 minutes. Makes 7-8 dozen cookies.

Pillsbury's Chocolate Chip Cookies

Ingredients:
3/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 cup butter or margarine, softened
1/2 cup shortening
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup chopped nuts or shelled sunflower seeds (I confess I've never used sunflower seeds in cookies)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 375 F.  In large bowl, combine brown sugar, white sugar, butter and shortening; beat until light and fluffy.  Add vanilla and egg; blend well.  Stir in flour, baking soda and salt; mix well.  Stir in chocolate chips and nuts.  Drop dough by teaspoonfuls, 2 inches apart on ungreased cookie sheets.  Bake for 8-10 minutes or until light golden brown.  Cool 1 minute then remove to cooling rack.  The book says it makes 4 dozen cookies (I usually get just under 3 dozen, but that could be due to generous portions and sneaking nibbles of dough.)

As you can see, the recipes aren't merely scaled differently, but have different ratios of fat-sugar-flour.  But they do have one thing in common:  they both bake up chewy, crispy edged cookies that make you contentedly close your eyes and smile as you eat one.  Or two.