Archive for the 'Christmas' Category
I know!! I was done with cookies, I really was, but Drama Boy had other ideas. He was appalled that we hadn’t made this recipe yet, which I think Mom started making when I was in college, so he took action (with a little help from Bouncy Boy). So, we took cookies to church this past Sunday and now most of the rest are boxed up waiting for Larry to come home and help the kids deliver them to the neighbors. 
Magic Peanut Butter Middles
Yield: 5 dozen
Filling:
2 cups creamy peanut butter
2 cups sifted powdered sugar
Dough:
3 cups flour
1 cup cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup sugar
1 cup packed brown sugar
1 cup softened butter
1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 eggs
Combine filling ingredients and blend well. Refrigerate at least one hour. Roll into about 60 1″ balls using floured hands; return to refrigerator until ready to use.
In a small bowl, combine flour, cocoa, and soda; blend well. In a large bowl, beat sugars, butter, and peanut butter until light and fluffy. Add vanilla and egg; beat well. Stir in flour mixture until blended.
For each cookie, with floured hands shape about 1 slightly rounded tablespoon of dough around 1 peanut butter ball, covering completely. Place 2″ apart on ungreased cookie sheet. Flatten with bottom of glass dipped in sugar. Bake at 375° for 7-9 minutes or until set and slightly cracked. Cool on wire rack.
Decorate with 1/2 recipe Vanilla Butter Frosting, tinted green if desired.
Note: The recipe called for decorating each cookie with a squiggly Christmas tree. . .if you look closely you will see Drama Boy got tired of making squiggly trees. 
Last night we popped some corn, turned on the Christmas music, and decorated our tree. It was a fun evening with only one sad incident–the glass robin that Mimi gave me many years ago hit the floor and shattered. 
But the pictures made me laugh with the silly poses that were captured and I hope you enjoy them, too!
O Tannenbaum. . .
Behold. . .a star! (made by a big boy when he was little)
“Do you see what I see?” said Drama Boy to the other boys.
Two birds, one stone. . .Larry the photographer entertains Baby Boy and keeps him from taking ornaments off faster than the other kids hang them.
Meanwhile, Angie has the job of trying to unwrap ornaments faster than five kids can hang them.
Drama Boy shuffles on over for another ornament to hang.
Bouncy Boy is. . .bouncing for joy.
Behold. . .another star!
Daddy gets the honor of putting the star on top.
Merry Christmas, everyone!
Yes, more cookies–don’t say I didn’t warn you! Did I mention it’s our turn to provide goodies for fellowship after church tomorrow? That should make a good dent in the cookie supply around here, and then we’ll pretty much polish off the rest by packing up boxes for our neighbors. I don’t think I’ll bake any more cookies this Christmas; I always like to make frosted sugar cookies but at this point I think those can wait for Valentine’s Day. 
This last recipe comes from Mom; I think she clipped it from the local paper when I was a kid. Twirly Girl chose to make these, although she is now counting sheep while I am left to glaze them so they will be ready in the morning.
Chocolate Mint Sticks
Yield: 48 bars
Crust:
1 cup butter
4 ounces unsweetened baking chocolate
4 eggs
2 cups sugar
3/4 teaspoon peppermint extract
1 cup flour
Filling:
6 tablespoons butter
3 cups sifted powdered sugar
3/4 teaspoon peppermint extract
2-4 tablespoons milk
2 drops green food coloring
Glaze:
4 ounces semi-sweet baking chocolate
4 tablespoons butter
Crust: Melt butter and chocolate; set aside. In a bowl, beat eggs with sugar; add extract and flour and mix well. Add chocolate mixture; mix well. Pour into greased 10×15″ jelly roll pan. Bake at 350° for 12-15 minutes. Do not overbake. Cool completely before adding filling.
Filling: Mix butter, sugar, extract and food coloring with enough milk to make mixture of spreading consistency. Spread over cooled crust; place in refrigerator to set, 10-15 minutes.
Glaze: Melt chocolate and butter together. Cool and spread carefully and smoothly over the filling. Chill. Cut into squares or sticks.
Here is another Taste of Home recipe we’ve enjoyed over the years; this one is dated 1998. I prefer to just sprinkle them with sugar so you can see the yummy bits of ground almond; Bouncy Boy decided to add some sprinkles too.
Almond Butter Cutouts
Yield: about 4 dozen, depending on size of cookie cutters
1 cup butter, softened
1 cup sugar
2 egg yolk
1 teaspoon almond extract
2 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup ground almonds
Colored sugar or frosting, optional
In a mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar. Beat in egg yolks and extract. Combine flour, salt and baking powder; gradually add to creamed mixture. Stir in almonds. Cover and chill at least 2 hours.
Roll out on a lightly floured surface to 3/8″ thickness. Cut with cookie cutters; place on ungreased baking sheets. Sprinkle with sugar if desired. Bake at 375° for 10-13 minutes or until the edges begin to brown. Cool on wire racks. Frost if desired.
It was Drama Boy’s turn to bake today, and he chose this slightly more complicated recipe that came into our family by way of Mrs. Ottes who used to clean Mimi’s house. Or rather, not so much complicated as time consuming (tedious?) to shape all the cookies. He made quick work of it though–his size of cookie only yields about 2 dozen, rather than the 4 dozen stated on the recipe.
Candy Cane Cookies
1/2 cup softened butter
1/2 cup vegetable shortening
1 cup powdered sugar
1 egg
1 1/2 teaspoons peppermint extract
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 1/2 cups sifted flour
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon red food coloring
1/4-1/2 cup crushed peppermint candies
1/4-1/2 cup sugar
Heat oven to 350°. Mix thoroughly butter, shortening, powdered sugar, egg, and extracts. Blend in flour and salt. Divide in half; blend food color into one half.
Shape 1/2-1 teaspoon dough from each color into a 4″ rope. Twist together and place on ungreased sheet; curve top down to form cane.
Mix crushed candy and sugar.
Bake about 9 minutes or until set and very light brown. Remove to rack (put waxed paper underneath) and immediately sprinkle cookies with candy and sugar.
Q: What do you get when you cream a pound each of butter and cream cheese together, add some flour, and then roll it up with pecans?
A: 
This recipe doesn’t have a friend or family attached to it; my notes say I clipped it from Taste of Home in 2005. I think this is only the second time I have baked these. . .so many cookie recipes, so little time.
Pecan Swirls
2 cups butter, softened
1 pound cream cheese, softened
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
4 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 1/4 cups finely chopped pecans
1 1/3 cups sugar
In a large mixing bowl, cream butter and cream cheese until smooth. Beat in vanilla. Combine flour and salt; gradually add to creamed mixture. Divide into 3 portions. Wrap each in plastic wrap; refrigerate for 2 hours or until easy to handle.
On a lightly floured surface, roll each portion into a 16″ x 9″ rectangle. Combine pecans and sugar; sprinkle over dough to within 1/2″ of edges. Roll up each rectangle tightly jelly roll style, starting with a long side. Wrap in plastic wrap; refrigerate for 2 hours.
Unwrap and cut into 3/8″ slices. Place 2″ apart on lightly greased baking sheets. Bake at 400° for 12-14 minutes or until lightly browned. Remove to wire racks to cool.
Today’s cookie recipe came from my good friend Julee, who was kind enough to share it several years ago. The nice thing about cookies that are stored in the refrigerator is that they are easier to hide from your favorite hoodlums children.
Pecan Pie Bars
2 cups unsifted flour
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 cup butter
1 14-ounce can sweetened condensed milk
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
6 ounces butter brickle chips
1 cup chopped pecans
Preheat oven to 350°. In medium bowl, combine flour and sugar; cut in butter until crumbly. Press firmly on bottom of greased 9×13 pan. Bake 15 minutes.
Meanwhile, in medium bowl, beat egg, milk, and vanilla. Stir in chips and pecans. Spread evenly over crust. Bake 20 minutes or until golden brown.
Cool. Cut into bars. Store covered in refrigerator.
The kids also like to get in on the Christmas baking, so they each choose a recipe to make (or help make) every year. Today it was Silly Boy’s turn, and we used a recipe from Irma, a dear member of a former congregation who happens to share Twirly Girl’s birthday. It’s a good one to make with little chefs: it’s quick to make and they love to sprinkle the peanuts.
Peanut Bars
2 12-ounce jars peanuts
1 10-ounce bag peanut butter chips
1 10 1/2-ounce bag miniature marshmallows
1 14-ounce can sweetened condensed milk
Sprinkle one jar of peanuts into a buttered 9×13 pan. Melt peanut butter chips, marshmallows, and milk together. Pour over peanuts, then sprinkle with other jar of peanuts. Refrigerate.
Baking (and eating and sharing) too many Christmas cookies is one of our favorite traditions here in Neverland, and today I baked my first batch. Mom gave me this easy recipe, which I’m sharing with you below. It’s often enjoyed by cranberry haters too (including Larry, who’s glad I finally convinced him to try one).
Cranberry Date Bars
Filling:
12 ounces cranberries
8 ounces snipped dates
Crust:
1 cup butter
1 1/3 cups brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups oats
Glaze:
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 tablespoon orange juice
To prepare filling: In a 2 quart saucepan, over medium heat, cook together cranberries and dates, stirring constantly, until berries have popped. Cool.
To prepare crust: In a mixing bowl, cream butter; gradually add sugar and continue beating until blended. Blend in vanilla. Sift together flour, soda, and salt; gradually add to creamed mixture. Stir in oats.
Pat slightly more than half of crumb mixture in buttered jelly roll pan. Spread filling evenly over crust. Sprinkle remaining crumb mixture on top. Bake at 350° for 25-30 minutes. Cool in pan on wire rack.
To prepare glaze: In a mixing bowl beat together sugar, vanilla, and juice until smooth. Drizzle over cooled cookies.
Yield: 48 bars
