Sugar Cut Outs

There are a million different recipes for Sugar Cookies out there, I know.  What's special about this one, you ask?  Well, it doesn't have any secret ingredients or anything.  But it's a special recipe to us because it's the recipe John's mom always used at Christmas. And according to John, the cookies have to be pink and mint green, too, because that's how he remembers them from childhood (remember back in the 80s when all food coloring only made pastel colors?).   But I will tell you it's a solid sugar cookie recipe and they keep their shape well. 

Look at the cute ones the kids did....We make the candy canes into Js in our family...our last name is James, see....

Sugar Cut Outs

3/4 cup butter
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1/4 teaspoon vanilla
2 1/2 cup flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt

No instructions come with this recipe because it's an old one.  Here's how I make them:  cream butter (room temperature) and sugar together until fluffy.  Add eggs one at a time and mix until well combined.  Add vanilla.  Whisk together flour, baking powder and salt in a separate bowl.  Add dry ingredients gradually until just combined.  Separate dough into 2 flat circles, wrap in plastic wrap, and chill them at least one hour. 
Roll out dough to about 1/4 inch and cut with cutters.  Bake 8-10 minutes at 400 degrees. 

Sugar Cut Out Icing (please don't buy icing in a can, please)

2 tablespoons butter
4 cups powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla

Add milk to desired consistency. 

Cranberry, Pistachio, and White Chocolate Shortbread Cookies

I made these for a cookie exchange party because they aren't too sweet and they are so festive with the red and green.  They are incredibly easy to make, too, not to mention unbelievably good.

Cranberry, Pistachio, and White Chocolate Shortbread Cookies

3/4 pound (3 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
3/4 cup chopped dried cranberries
1 cup roughly chopped pistachios
1 cup white chocolate chips

Cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Mix in the vanilla extract. In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour and salt. Add the flour & salt to the butter mixture. Mix on low speed until it just starts to come together. Add the cranberries, pistachios, and white chocolate a little at a time until it's incorporated. Mix until the dough forms a ball. Roll into a log about 1 1/2 inch in diameter. Roll the log in parchment paper and chill it for at least 1 hour.

Preheat the oven to 350F and line a sheet pan with parchment paper. Slice the log into 1/4 inch slices. Place the slices on the sheet pan. They don't spread much, so they can be pretty close together. Bake for 10-13 minutes, or until the edges are just starting to brown. Remove from the pan and cool on a wire rack.

Cinnamon Sugar Pretzels

How about a little Christmas gift for friends and neighbors that takes about 5 minutes to make?  These Cinnamon Sugar Pretzels are my new favorite thing.  Go ahead and double this recipe.  It's that good.  Package them in clear cellophane bags and tie with a pretty ribbon. 

Cinnamon Sugar Pretzels

1 16-18 oz. bag of pretzels
2/3 cup canola oil
1/3 cup sugar
1 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 cup cinnamon sugar for sprinkling (mix your own according to your taste)
1 cup white chocolate chips

Whisk together oil, sugar, and cinnamon in a large measuring cup.

Pour pretzels into a microwave safe bowl and pour oil mixture in.  Stir until coated.
Microwave for 1 minute, remove and stir.  Microwave another minute.   
Spread pretzels evenly onto two cookie sheets covered in foil or parchment.
While still warm, sprinkle cinnamon sugar generously. 
Melt white chocolate in microwave (about 30-60 seconds) and drizzle over cooled pretzels. 

Gingerbread House Tips

Doing a gingerbread house is a tradition in our family. Up until this year, we've always done one of those kits from Sam's or Walmart.  Look at these cute little girls from 2006: they were 3 and 1.

Well, last year there was quite a bit of arguing involved between these 2 little sweeties (can you even believe it?) as they both worked on one gingerbread house, and little brother couldn't even get one gumdrop without a sister pushing him out of the way.  So I decided they'd each do their own graham cracker/gingerbread house this year.  It worked out much, much better.  And they turned out so cute!

I have a few tips for you on making the perfect individual gingerbread house. (go here to see detailed pics) 

1) Use melted white almond bark to assemble the house. Forget the royal icing, it takes too long to dry. Melt the bark in the microwave for a couple of minutes and then spoon it into Ziploc bags.  Cut a tiny bit off the corner of the bag and let the kids go to town "gluing" the house together.  It dries so fast and makes a really sturdy house.   You can use it to decorate as well. 

2) Use a plastic serrated knife to cut the graham crackers.  Like the kind you get with fast food.  A good quality serrated knife or steak knife will break the crackers.  A regular butter knife *might* work, but you should have an extra package of graham crackers on hand just in case.  

3) You need 6 full graham crackers per house.  Go look at these pics as to how you cut them to make a house.  It is so easy.  Why have I never thought of it??

Salted Caramel Pretzel Bark

If you're like me, you've got plenty of opportunities through the holidays to make sweets for parties and potlucks, or to give as gifts.  I made a batch of this Salted Chocolate Caramel Pretzel Bark for my family as a try-out to possibly be our teacher gifts this year.  While it's one of the best candies I've EVER eaten, the finished product isn't exactly pretty enough to go to our very special teachers.  So we just gobbled it up and I'm on to plan B for the teachers...

Salted Chocolate Caramel Pretzel Bark (adapted from here)

1 cup (2 sticks) butter
1 cup light brown sugar
about 1/2 bag of mini pretzels
12-oz bag of semi-sweet chocolate chips
coarse sea salt

Wrap a baking sheet with tin foil.  Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Melt the butter in a saucepan over medium heat. As it melts, cover the baking sheet in an even layer of mini pretzels.

Once the butter is melted, add the sugar and stir to incorporate. Allow the sugar and butter to softly simmer and bubble for 3 minutes.

After 3 minutes, pour the mixture evenly over the pretzels on the baking sheet. Bake the pretzel-caramel mixture in the oven for 5-7 minutes.

When the pretzels come out of the oven, sprinkle the entire bag of chocolate chips over the top. Wait for a minute, and then use a spatula to spread the melted chocolate.

Sprinkle sea salt evenly over the bark. Place it in the fridge to cool and harden for about an hour and then break into chunks.

Thanksgiving Rolls

Here are the rolls my mom made for Thanksgiving.  They are really yeast-y and soft.  Love them! And they way they are rolled up is so pretty.

I've never been able to make bread at all, but my mom said these are easy. I don't know about that..the recipe is really long and also includes a video (all signs of a difficult recipe).  Maybe someday I'll try to make them.  Someday when I get a little more patience...But you should bake them for Thanksgiving; they'll be worth it.  You still have time and I'll bet you have all the ingredients in your pantry!

Homemade Thanksgiving Rolls (from here)

2 cups warm water

2/3 cup instant nonfat dry milk

2 Tablespoons dry yeast (2 packages)

1/4 cup sugar

2 tsp. salt

1/3 cup butter or shortening

1 egg

5-5 1/2 cups all purpose flour (bread flour can be used)

 

In the large bowl of an electric mixer, combine the water and the milk powder and stir so the milk dissolves.
Add the yeast to this mixture then the sugar, salt, butter, egg and 2 cups of the flour. Mix on low speed of mixer until ingredients are wet, then turn to medium speed and mix for 2 minutes. Stop the mixer and add 2 more cups of flour then mix on low speed until the ingredients are wet, then turn mixer on medium speed and mix for 2 minutes. The dough will be getting stiff and you may need to remove the bowl from the mixer and mix in the remaining flour by hand.
Add approximately 1/2 cup of flour and mix again. (This can be done by hand or mixer). The dough should be soft, not overly sticky, and not stiff. (It is not necessary to use the entire amount of flour). The less flour you use, the softer the dough will be. Scrape the dough off the sides of the bowl and pour approximately on tablespoon of vegetable oil all around the sides of the bowl. Turn the dough over in the bowl so it is covered with the oil. (This helps prevent the dough from drying out.) Cover with plastic and allow to rise in a warm place until double in size.
Sprinkle a cutting board or counter with flour and put the dough on the flour. You can roll these into crescent rolls or do it the traditional Lion House way. Here is a video showing how to roll them the Lion House way. Roll into a rectangle. You want to cut the rectangle into smaller rectangles that are 2"X4" (a little smaller than a dollar bill). Then you roll them (or flip them like in the video) and place them on a greased (or parchment lined) baking pans. 

Let rise in a warm place until the rolls are double in size (approx. 1-1 1/2 hours). Bake in a 375-degree oven for 15-20 minutes or until they are browned to your satisfaction. Brush with melted butter while hot. Yields 2 to 2 1/2 dozen rolls.

Popovers

Have you ever had popovers?  Love them.  The texture is great because they are kind of crunchy/chewy on the outside and light on the inside.  The best part is that you don't have to know how to work with yeast, cut in butter, or let anything rise.  But, there are 3 things you must do (thanks, Barefoot Contessa):

1)  Make sure the pan is hot before you pour in the batter

2)  Fill each section no more than half full

3)  No peeking while they're in the oven (the most difficult)

1 1/2 tablespoons butter melted, plus softened butter for greasing pans
1 1/2 cups flour
3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
3 eggs
1 1/2 cups milk

Generously grease popover pan (use a muffin tin if you aren't as fancy as Ina and Jeffrey, that's what I did) with softened butter. You'll need enough pans to make 12 popovers. Place the pans in the oven for exactly 2 minutes to preheat. Meanwhile, add the flour, salt, eggs, milk, and melted butter to the blender and blend until smooth. The batter will be thin. Fill the popover pans less than half full and bake for exactly 30 minutes. Do not peek.

Not Your Everyday Pumpkin Bread

Now THIS is some pumpkin bread.  I had intended on taking a neighbor the muffins, but they were gone before they were cool! Delicious.

The recipe makes 2 loaves, but I only have one loaf pan, so I made half the recipe into muffins (with chocolate chips).

Pumpkin Bread

3 cups flour
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 cup brown sugar
2 tsp. baking soda
1 1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
1 cup oil
1 can cooked pumpkin
2/3 cup water
1/2 cup chopped walnuts (optional)

In a large bowl, combine all dry ingredients together.  Add the wet ingredients and mix well.
Divide into two, greased and floured loaf pans. Or one loaf pan and 8 muffins. 
Bake at 350 degrees for 50-60 minutes.  Cool 10-15 minutes in pans then invert and cool completely.

Quick Bread Recipe

I made purple hull peas for dinner again tonight, since I surprisingly found some fresh ones at my Walmart Market today.  I realized I was out of cornmeal at the last minute, so I couldn't make cornbread.  And what's a good southern dish like purple hull peas without cornbread?  Then I remembered an old recipe I have for Beer Bread.  This bread is so quick to put together, and so delicious, that it doesn't even bother me that it takes an hour to bake. I completely do not understand the science behind why pouring beer into flour makes bread, but it does!

 

Beer Bread

3 cups self rising flour

3 tablespoons sugar

12 oz beer

Preheat oven to 350.  Mix ingredients and pour into greased loaf pan. Bake for 30 minutes.  Butter top of bread and bake 30 additional minutes. Butter top again. 

Cheddar Cheese Biscuits

For the Teacher Appreciation Luncheon on Monday, another mom made these delicious Cheddar Cheese Biscuits to go along with our Chicken Berry Salad.  They are just like Red Lobster's! Why don't we ever go to Red Lobster anymore?  Anyway, here's the recipe.

Cheddar Cheese Biscuits

4 cups baking mix (like Bisquick)
3 ounces Cheddar cheese, shredded
1 1/3 cups water
1/2 cup melted butter
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon onion powder

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. In a mixing bowl, combine the baking mix, cheese, and water. Mix until dough is firm. Using a small scoop, place dough on the prepared pan.
3. Bake at 375 degrees F  for 10 to 12 minutes, or until golden brown.
4. Combine the melted butter, garlic powder, salt, onion powder. Brush over baked biscuits immediately upon removing from oven.

The Best Chocolate Cake

Hershey's Chocolate Cake
This is my super secret favorite chocolate cake recipe.  So secret that it comes from the back of the Hershey's cocoa box.  It's almost as fast as a cake mix, but tastes so much better!  We added a cute bunny on the top since Easter is Sunday. 

2 cups sugar
1-3/4 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup HERSHEY'S Cocoa
1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1-1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1 cup milk
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup boiling water
"PERFECTLY CHOCOLATE" CHOCOLATE FROSTING (recipe follows)

Heat oven to 350°F. Grease and flour two 9-inch round baking pans.

Stir together sugar, flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda and salt in large bowl. Add eggs, milk, oil and vanilla; beat on medium speed of mixer 2 minutes. Stir in boiling water (batter will be thin). Pour batter into prepared pans.

Bake 30 to 35 minutes or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes; remove from pans to wire racks. Cool completely. Frost with "PERFECTLY CHOCOLATE" CHOCOLATE FROSTING. 10 to 12 servings.

CUPCAKES: Line muffin cups (2-1/2 inches in diameter) with paper bake cups. Heat oven to 350°F. Fill cups 2/3 full with batter. Bake 22 to 25 minutes. Cool completely. Frost. About 30 cupcakes.

"PERFECTLY CHOCOLATE" CHOCOLATE FROSTING
I double this recipe for a 2 layer cake.

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter or margarine
2/3 cup HERSHEY'S Cocoa
3 cups powdered sugar
1/3 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Melt butter. Stir in cocoa. Alternately add powdered sugar and milk, beating to spreading consistency.
Add small amount additional milk, if needed. Stir in vanilla. About 2 cups frosting.

Irish Soda Bread

I'm no good at baking bread.  I don't have the patience for it, I think.  But Irish Soda Bread is no usual bread...no kneading, no rising, no yeast, no waiting.  And it's supposed to be ugly once it's baked!  I can handle that.  So in honor of St. Patrick's Day, we had some Irish Soda Bread to go with Panera Broccoli Cheddar Soup from Sams (and our pot o' gold from the end of the rainbow).

I found this recipe on Tasty Kitchen, but I left out the caraway seeds 'cause I don't like 'em.   Oh, and even my little boy with a stomach bug devoured it! Who doesn't love fresh bread out of the oven?

4-¾ cups Flour
½ teaspoons Salt
1 teaspoon Baking Soda
3 Tablespoons Honey
1 whole Egg
1-½ cup Buttermilk
3 Tablespoons Butter, Melted

To a bowl add together dry ingredients: the flour, salt, and baking soda. Mix well.
Now add in the honey, egg, and buttermilk. Stir it up until a dough just begins to form.
Add in the melted butter and knead dough until all ingredients are combined. Don’t overknead.
Form into a ball and cut a plus sign at the top of the loaf. Put dough on a baking sheet and place in an oven preheated to 350ºF for 50 minutes to an hour.

The Best Oatmeal Cookies

For me, cookies are just a chocolate delivery vehicle.  But John is weird.  He likes peanut butter cookies and oatmeal cookies, in that order. And something weirder about his favorite oatmeal cookies?  No cinnamon and no raisins. But let me tell you, they are just good!  They're thin and so chewy.  We love them!

This is the recipe his mom always made for him, so while he was out on Saturday afternoon, the girls and I whipped these up as an early Valentine's Day surprise.

Greta's Oatmeal Cookies

1 cup shortening (I sometimes use butter if I don't have shortening in the house)
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 eggs
1 1/2 cup flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups oats (not quick cooking)

Cream shortening and sugars together with electric mixer until fluffy.  Add vanilla and eggs.  Sift together dry ingredients and add to mixer.  Drop by tablespoons onto cookie sheet and cook at 350 for 11-12 minutes.  Let cool on sheet to keep them chewy.