When Life Gives You Coconut Pudding....

Isn't it great to wake up to the aroma of cinnamon, butter and baking bread on a chilly Sunday morning?

It is?

I only ask because you see, I wouldn't know.  Around here, we call cinnamon buns "lunch" because even though I get up relatively early on weekends, enjoying my "me" time and a cup of freshly brewed coffee before anyone else rises, I'm not so good at planning ahead.  The thought of hot, ooey-gooey cinnamon buns strikes at, say, 9:30 or so, and after a half hour of internet time looking for the perfect new-to-me recipe, another half hour scrambling through the cupboards, bread machine dough cycle time, rising time....well, many times Sunday dinner stands around, arms crossed, foot tapping, waiting for its oven time because we're still waiting for "breakfast".

But once I get an idea in my head, there's usually no stopping me.  So this morning I decided to go with a bread machine dough recipe that calls for instant vanilla pudding mix.   Bread machine because I am yeast-bread challenged and if kneading by hand I inevitably knead too much or too little, and instant pudding mix because I knew I had some on hand.  Hubby is one of those people who prefers boxed cake mix to homemade...if I add pudding mix, it not only yields a moister cake, I also feel like I'm adding my own little secret ingredient and actually BAKING something.  Yeah, I know, thousand of people do it, but it makes me feel better!  So I (almost) always have pudding mix on hand.

And like most of my hare-brained schemes, if something can go wrong, it will.  "Bah!" moment number one....I only had coconut cream pudding mix.  I know I bought it for some reason, but can't for the life of me remember what it was!  Ah well, it will have to do.  "Argh!" moment number two, bread machine?  Where are you?  Am I the only one who goes through an insane bout of cleaning and organizing, then two months later can't find anything? Like my potato masher or my bread machine?  Finally found it in the garage.  Potato masher is still MIA, though...

Eventually, bread machine did its work beautifully, handing me this lovely ball of sweet dough, flecked with bits of coconut flakes even!

The recipe, which I've seen countless times online so I'm not sure exactly where it originates from, called for kneading an additional 3 to 5 minutes (again, I trick myself into thinking that I actually made the dough).  I rolled it out into a rectangle and just as I began to spread the cinnamon/brown sugar/butter filling, I had....an idea.

My ideas.  Well, sometimes they work, and sometimes....let us not forget *shudder*  Frankenmeatloaf.  I began to think about that coconut creme pudding mix, and suddenly that decadent brown sugar cinnamon filling seemed to lack something.  So I added 1/2 tsp of ground allspice and 1/4 tsp nutmeg, and spread that over the dough.  I also remembered seeing some shredded coconut and added a bit of that, then rethought my idea of omitting chopped pecans because they go so nicely with coconut.  I almost added chocolate chips....well, we'll see how this incarnation turns out before we go there!  I mean, before you know it I would have been chopping jalapenos or something and ended up with Frankenbuns, Bride of Frankenmeatloaf.

The dough was BEAUTIFUL to work with.  I kneaded it for a few minutes, and even with a very scant amount of flour it hardly stuck at all.  I rolled it out into a rectangle...

...topped with my spiced filling, sprinkled half with shredded coconut and pecans (some of those with whom I live are not enthusiastic about "different" things, like coconut and pecans...)

Rolled it into a log (again, no sticking! It was a miracle, I tell you!), pinched the seams and cut into 1" slices using a serrated bread knife.

Placed them in a buttered 9" x 13" baking dish, covered and let rise for about 40 minutes.

Before rising....

Then I baked for about 30 minutes in a 350 degree oven until golden and bubbly.  Meanwhile, I combined softened butter, confectioner's sugar, vanilla and some fat free half and half (you know, just to balance things out...).  Actually, I like using half and half in frostings like this for added richness.  The "fat free" part was strictly coincidence.

I let the buns cool just a bit, then topped each one with a dollop of icing and spread with the back of the spoon (then licked the spoon).  I topped the coconut filled ones with a bit of toasted coconut....

O...

 M...

 G!

The result?  Decadent. Delicious. Definitely a success.  The original "Soft, Moist and Gooey Cinnamon Buns" recipe posted on Allrecipes is a keeper, so if YOU have instant vanilla pudding mix in your cupboards, I highly recommend this recipe!  Here's my version, based upon what I had on hand....

Coconut Spice Buns

1 cup buttermilk (milk w/ 1 tbsp vinegar works fine)
1 egg, beaten
4 Tbsp butter, melted
4 Tbsp. water
1/2 3.5 oz. coconut cream pudding mix
4 cups bread flour *
1 Tbsp white sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
2 1/4 tsp yeast
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 cup packed brown sugar
2 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. allspice
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/4 cup finely chopped pecans
1/4 cup shredded coconut
1 1/2 cups confectioners sugar
4 Tbsp butter, softened
1 tsp vanilla
1 to 2 tsp milk
1/4 cup toasted coconut

Follow your bread machine instruction recommendations (usually liquids first, dry ingredients, yeast last) and place buttermilk, egg, melted butter, water, pudding mix, flour. sugar, salt and yeast in bread machine. Select Dough cycle.

Remove dough and knead for 3 to 5 minutes.  Roll into a large rectangle, approximately 18" to 20" long.  In small bowl, combine 1/2 cup softened butter, brown sugar, cinnamon, allspice and nutmeg.  Spread over dough.  Sprinkle with shredded coconut and pecans.  Starting at wide end, roll dough into log; pinch to seal seams.  With serrated knife, cut into  1" slices and place in buttered 9" x 13" baking pan.  Cover and let rise in a warm place for about 30 minutes.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Bake for about 30 minutes or until golden and bubbly.  Meanwhile, combine 4 Tbsp softened butter, confectioner's sugar, vanilla and just enough milk to make a thick, spreadable frosting.  Let buns cool for a few minutes, then top with frosting and sprinkle with toasted coconut.  Makes 18 cinnamon buns.

*Note about bread flour:  I never, ever think to buy bread flour, which is basically flour with a higher amount of gluten.  There are two ways to sub regular all-purpose flour for bread flour:  for every 1 cup of flour, add 1 tsp. vital wheat gluten OR for every 1 cup of flour, add an additional 1 Tbsp. all-purpose flour.  Either way will get you where you want to be! :)

A Very Festive Pumpkin Bread

Greetings!

My, it sure has been a while! Hope everyone out there had a good year!

We're doing well - despite a couple setbacks, every day I realize how lucky I am. The biggest news is that I am unemployed for first time since my teenage years (which was, by the way, a kind of long time ago!) But it was the inevitable result of the sale of a company, one of those things that happens and eventually you just need to deal with it emotionally and move on. So, once I got over the initial shock I decided to twist my attitude in to one of optimism instead of despair.

Believe me, we are by no means wealthy and I simply have to work - no amount of clipping coupons and cutting back will do it for us. But a very wise colleague of mine had a saying about times like this: "There are no problems, just opportunities." And for me, that translates into an opportunity to spend more time with my family this December, as well as an opportunity to explore other careers, other employers, to build my professional network, maybe further my education....oh, and clean my house. Kind of.

Or totally skip cleaning and get right down to baking something yummy!

Say hello to Cherry Chocolate Pumpkin Nut Bread!

So easy, yet sweet/tart dried cherries and hunks of chocolate make this no ordinary pumpkin bread. All I did was take a perfectly lovely pumpkin bread recipe, Pumpkin Cranberry Bread from Allrecipes, and make a few changes - sub cherries for cranberries, add some chocolate chips and instead of canned, I used my own fresh (frozen/thawed) pumpkin from the freezer.

I also used my own Pumpkin Pie Spice Blend.

The original recipe can be found HERE.

First, whisk or sift the dry ingredients together.

Since dried cherries tend to be a bit larger than cranberries, I went ahead and chopped them coarsely. Set them aside with the chocolate chips and chopped walnuts.

In a separate bowl, blend together the sugar, eggs, pumpkin and oil. Fold that into the flour mixture until just barely blended, then fold in the cherries, chips and nuts. I sprinkled about a teaspoon of flour over those and tossed them to coat before adding them to the batter. The batter was a bit thin and I was afraid everything would sink to the bottom of each loaf. A dusting of flour will help the bits stay suspended as the bread bakes.

I used three 8" x 4" foil loaf pans - you could certainly use large or smaller pans, just adjust the baking time accordingly.

Bake at 350 F for about 50 minutes or until golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Let cool completely before slicing.

I love this bread - very moist and tender, great balance of flavors and best of all, delicious!

Cherry Chocolate Pumpkin Nut Bread

2 1/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour

1 Tbsp. pumpkin pie spice

2 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. salt

2 large eggs

2 cups granulated sugar

2 cups pumpkin puree

1/2 cup vegetable or canola oil

1 cup chopped dried cherries

3/4 cup chocolate chips

3/4 cup chopped walnuts (or pecans)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease three 8" x 4" loaf pans.

Whisk or sift together flour, pumpkin pie spice, baking powder and salt; set aside.

In another bowl, blend together eggs, sugar, pumpkin and oil.

Pour over flour mixture and stir until just blended. Fold in cherries, chocolate chips and nuts.

Fill loaf pans half way. Bake for about 50 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean and tops are golden brown/

Let cool completely on wire racks (I remove from loaf pans after abut 10 or 15 minutes).

2010 Christmas Cookie #2 - Mexican Chocolate Cookies

Mmmm...Chocolate....Cinnamon....Chili Pepper

Huh? Chili Pepper? Yes!

Christmas cookie #2 comes from Mrs Williams who posted her recipe over on Grouprecipes, and also blogged about it HERE.

The cookie dough itself is soooooo chocolatey - it looks almost like fudge!

The dough starts with butter, brown sugar and water, cooked together on the stove. Then, semi-sweet chocolate chips are added to the hot mixture and melted. You let that cool for about ten minutes, the add in an egg, vanilla, flour, baking soda, salt and chili pepper.

I've often added chocolate - either cocoa or grated unsweetened chocolate - to my chili recipes. The chocolate adds a nice richness to it. In this cookie recipe, roles are kind of reversed: chocolate is the star and the chili powder is like a back-up singer. Of course, you want a back-up singer with a great voice! Not one who's just there because of their looks, right? ;) So I used some nice Ancho Chili Powder that I purchased from MySpiceSage.com.

And can I just say.... I heart MySpiceSage.com. They always add in a couple freebies with your order - one is a current promotional item (nice ones, too, like Applewood Smoked Sea Salt or Madagascar Vanilla Bean Pods) plus, depending on the size of your order, you get to choose your own sample(s) to be included in your order! Which is how I came to obtain my Ancho Chili Powder. Shipping is very reasonable, especially if you order $40 or more - then it's FREE! And to top it off, their prices are very reasonable and the product is of very nice quality. It comes packaged in airtight zipper top plastic bags...I'm still getting used to that. You can always transfer your herbs and spices to container of your choice. I've been doing that with the ones I use frequently as I'm not real good about making sure my plastic bags are re-zipped tightly after I've opened them!

Anyhoo.....back to these yummy cookies!

After the dough's mixed, you stir in some of those Hershey's Cinnamon Baking Chips. The combination of cinnamon, chocolate and chili powder is so warm, aromatic and even a bit exotic! I chilled my dough in the fridge for easier handling....actually overnight. In the morning, the dough was HARD, so I just popped it in the microwave for about two ten-second intervals to warm it up, and after that it was easy to work with.

Used my cookie scoop to make uniform sized balls of dough...

Bakes as directed and here they are....

Very chocolatey and delicious - they keep well in airtight plastic bags or containers. I've even frozen the dough in balls and baked. (I do let them thaw slightly before baking). And if you fear chili powder, let me just say that I don't really "taste" the chili powder as much as I "feel" it - it adds a nice warmth to the cookies, that compliments the chocolate and cinnamon flavors beautifully.

So if you want something different for this year's cookie trays, definitely check these out!

Here's a link to the original recipe: Mexican Chocolate Cookies

Tis The Season....

Well, hello there! (Um, if you're still there...)

Sorry I've been away for a while...things got kind of hectic with my Punkin starting school...

(I swear, I did not cry....)

...and her budding soccer career....

She liked this MUCH more than T-ball, although her T-ball coaches and team mates were nice. We're not real big baseball people, so she really didn't understand the game, so it took her a while to feel like she knew what to do. She did enjoy playing outfield, though, and spinning around until she was dizzy...

Soccer, on the other hand, she had at least seen before and kicked around a soccer ball from time to time. She did great! She may have only gotten one goal the whole season, but I was always so proud of her and the way she acted out on the field - listening to her coaches, high-fiving the other players and always - and I mean ALWAYS - smiling!

I did some baking during pumpkin season...and I have about 20 cups of pumpkin puree in my freezer. I have a new favorite use for pumpkin.....

Pumpkin Whoopie Pies!

Oh my, they were good! And pretty easy! You can click here for the recipe - I made a couple of minor changes: used my own Pumpkin Pie Spice Blend for the spices, and added and extra 1/2 cup confectioner's sugar to the filling (just to get a better texture) along with abut 1/4 tsp. orange extract. I know we're getting closer to Christmas, but it's not too late for a fall treat! I highly recommend these!

Speaking of Christmas and baking...

(Sing with me, now....)

"It's the most wonderful time of the year..."

Time for CHRISTMAS COOKIES! :)

So I've put up some decorations, put the Christmas music on and I'm getting ready for my annual baking adventures! I had this idea of doing "25 Days of Baking", like a cookie a day for 25 days, but .... it's December 3rd already. So let's just say I'll be doing "a lot" of baking, but I won't put a number on it! ;)

It's not too early to start, you know! Most cookies - or at least cookie doughs - freeze beautifully~just wrap them as airtight as possible. For the short term, plastic zip-type freezer bags work great!

I've already stashed some of these in the freezer...

2010 Recipe #1 - Hermit Bar Cookies from Allrecipes

Hermits remind me of my elementary school days - they were a favorite dessert of mine. Softly spiced, chewy bars, loaded with raisins and back in those seemingly pre-allergy days, walnuts. Although I was hoping to recreate the Hermit bar of my childhood, I didn't add nuts because some went to my Dad and he has no teeth :) These were not as chewy as the ones I remember, but they have a nice flavor and soft texture that keeps very well, and are a great snack with a cup of tea or coffee. These also freeze well after baking.

Thanks for stopping by! Help yourself to a Hermit and I'll pour you a cup of coffee... (or if you want a good cup of coffee, I'll run up the street to Dunkin's and get you one. I am admittedly not known for my coffee-making skills!)

Hope you come back soon to see what I'm cookin' up for this holiday season! ;)

Saturday Splurge - Makin' Whoopie...Pies, that is!

Last night we went out to dinner with friends to one of our old faithful places, The Boynton, in Worcester. The boys both got baked haddock and Tracy and I both got one of the specials, Brewster Striped Bass with green beans, onions and shaved fennel. Yum. And White Mango Sangria. Really good! I could go for another one right now!

The Boynton does have it's share of fine desserts, but when we dine there we usually forego the dessert menu and skip next door to The Bean Counter, a little coffee shop with some of the best pastry and desserts, and a huge variety of coffees and teas to choose from. Glass cases display everything from wedges of cheesecake, to cupcakes, to single-serving tiramisu or chocolate molten cakes, brownies, cookies, biscotti, and in large glass apothecary jars up on top, an assortment of big chunky cookies - mostly vegan. And as far as Tracy is concerned, the holy grail of vegan desserts, their Vegan Whoopie Pies. She's not vegan (hence the fish dinner) she loves these things!

I much preferred the Double Chocolate Biscotti, or the Vegan Peanut Butter Chip cookies (my choice last night!), as "Vegan Whoopie Pies" didn't sound all that tempting to me. Then one night, Tracy asked "What's in these?" and the girl behind the counter replied, "Well, they're basically just oatmeal cookies with a vegan buttercream-type filling, that's all".

I must have dreamed about them, because today I started dreaming up whoopie-pie type recipes. Tracy has us over for dinner quite a bit and I would love to surprise her next time with homemade vegan whoopie pies, maybe with a little twist. And here's what I ended up making....

MAPLE WALNUT OATMEAL WHOOPIE PIES

The cookie part came out perfect - as a cookie or whoopie pie component - but I think I need to work on the filling. Of course, I de-veganized it this time around, just to see if my theories would work. First, I subbed 1/2 cup mashed banana in place of the eggs I normally would use. Then I wanted maple flavor, but maple syrup tends to lose its flavor when cooked, so I went with maple flavoring, saving a touch of the real stuff for the filling...which is very....shortening-y and sweet. I need to work on that!

But the end result isn't bad at all! So if you're in the mood - even if for only the cookie - give this one a shot!

MAPLE WALNUT OATMEAL WHOOPIE PIES

For the cookies....

1/4 cup butter, softened

1/4 cup sugar

3/4 cup brown sugar

1 tbsp molasses

1/2 cup mashed ripe banana

1/2 tsp vanilla

1/2 tsp maple flavoring

1/2 cup buttermilk

1 cup whole wheat pastry flour (or white whole wheat flour)

1/2 tsp, baking powder

1/2 tsp. Baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp nutmeg

1/4 tsp ground cloves

3 cups old fashioned oats

1/2 cup walnuts, very finely chopped

Preheat oven to 350° F.

Cream together butter, sugar and brown sugar. Beat in banana, molasses, vanilla and maple extract.

In a separate bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and spices. Stir in oats.

Add the flour/oat mixture alternately with the buttermilk to the batter (1/3 of the flour/oat mixture, 1/4 cup buttermilk, another 1/3 flour/oats, rest of the buttermilk, rest of the flour/oats) beating well after each addition. Stir in nuts.

Using a large cookie scoop or ice cream scoop, place cookie dough on greased baking sheets, 2” apart. Press down slightly, if desired (cookies will not spread a whole lot,so they retain their shape)

Bake 10-12 minutes or until tops look dry and cookies are just golden around the edges. Remove to wire racks to cool completely.

For the filling...

1 cup shortening

1 tbsp maple syrup

1/2 tsp vanilla

4 c confectioner’s sugar

pinch salt

2 tbsp (or so) milk

Beat shortening until smooth.

Beat in vanilla and maple syrup, then beat in confectioner's sugar, one cup at a time, beating well after each addition. Add a little milk as needed to achieve desired consistency.

Sandwich filling between two cooled cookies.

(You can also make smaller cookies - this makes 12 4"-5" cookies or 12 whoopie pies.)

There's No Swearing At Christmas....

Oh, really?

Let's just hope Santa was snoozing yesterday when the inevitable baking tragedies happened. Otherwise my chances of receiving that Le Crueset tea kettle and that life-sized Benicio Del Toro oil painting on black velvet are pretty slim.

Well, the Benicio thing ain't happening ANYWAY...but I still think it would look great over the fireplace.

Well, I suppose "tragedies" is a strong word....let's call them glitches! And when your goal is to pump out 20 different kinds of cookies in 4 days (yes, I know I said 15 yesterday, but those recipes keep haunting me!) glitches are bound to happen.

My first one was a big disappointment...so big, that I couldn't bear to photograph it. The toughest part was trying NOT TO SWEAR as I tried desperately to save the $#@%#&@ing dough from my first batch of pinwheel cookies. Don't get me wrong, this was 100% operator error here, because as I found out later the dough is actually quite easy to work with. But my assistant was on a bit of a sugar high and I was distracted by a number of things so I guess I tried to "wing it"...something I don't recommend as far as baking is concerned!

My first mistake - not chilling the dough before rolling it out. It actually held up pretty well, but trying to flip one sheet onto the other, then scraping it up off of the counter to roll into a log...yeah, that just didn't work. The result? A big glob of red and white dough, destined for the trash can. Had I taken a moment to think, I would have saved it because I actually could have used it...BUT, sometimes throwing away a botched recipe is like throwing away the urge to swear, so that's what I did.

Just in case Santa was listening....

Later, after regaining my composure, I realized I might have had better luck chilling the separate doughs before trying to assemble them...so with the green batch, that's what I did. And it worked! I also rolled each color out on waxed paper, nicely floured, then flipped the green over onto the white, rolled it up and chilled that for a few hours. When it came time to bake, it was as easy as slicing, plopping a cinnamon candy in the center and baking. And they came out like this...

Beautiful! And pretty darn tasty, too.

I found myself with a few scraps of dough, so I rolled them into little balls, rolled in sugar and baked and got these....

Then I realized I could have had a whole bunch of red and white ones...DOH!

Oh well, Gitano's Christmas Pinwheel Cookies are over on AR - they make a very pretty addition to your holiday treats, and I'm sure you'll find them quite easy to make!

Later, I made a Coconut Ricotta Cookie from a fellow Allrecipes cook....ricotta cookies, dipped in an almond glaze then coconut....except I added the two cups of coconut to the batter as I yelled, "Gracie! Don't do that!" Oops. They still came out great, though, and instead of more coconut I just used Christmas sprinkles. I just wish on my inaugural attempt at this recipe I could have actually FOLLOWED THE INSTRUCTIONS! Arghhh!

Santa! Look over there....

Later, I decided to catch up on my blogging buddies, and found a recipe for Easy Homemade Fudge...perfect! Maybe instead of fighting with all these cookies, I'll just whip up a batch of homemade fudge. This one sounded sooo good, too! Semi-sweet and butterscotch (which I had a bag of and no plans for yet!) morsels, melted with sweetened condensed milk. I know for a fact I must own 13 cans of sweetened condensed milk...do you think I could find just one? Nope.

Block your ears, Santa!

There it was, 10:30 at night and because I had fudge on the brain I just wasn't happy with the piles of cookies accumulating in every corner of my kitchen. So I fell back on an old faithful recipe that I originally saw in the Boston Globe cookbook.

Cocoa-Oatmeal No Bake Cookies

Fudge...with oatmeal in it. I figure nutritionally, they kind of cancel each other out!

This was the first time I used a melon-baller to shape them, and I kind of like the rounder shape. Quick and easy, these make a nice addition to any cookie collection, and what's even better is you can whip these up on the stove while something else is in the oven. How I love to multi-task! Here's my version of the recipe that I've used for about ten years now.

Cocoa Oatmeal No Bake Cookie recipe:

2 cups sugar

5 tbsp. cocoa

1/2 cup butter

1/2 cup milk

1 tsp. vanilla

3 cups quick oats

Few drops of hot water, if needed

In a heavy saucepan, mix together sugar and cocoa; add milk and butter and cook over medium heat, stiring very frequently, until boiling. Boil for six minutes, then remove from heat and stir in oats and vanilla. Drop by heaping teaspoonfuls onto waxed paper and let cool. If mixture becomes dry and crumbly, a few drops of hot water stirred in will help reconstitute.

Believe it or not, I'm only about halfway there! I haven't made my Italian Spice cookies, my cut-outs (with a very special cookie cutter I got in Cleveland!!) and none of my breads. But I made enough to put together these tins for my daughter's teachers today:

The best part about baking all this stuff is the giving away of it all! :) That's what makes Christmas baking so enjoyable for me!

Christmas Cookies

Someone over on the AR Recipe Exchange posed a question to us the other day concerning getting ready for the holidays...

What holiday-related one task or chore do you enjoy doing?

You know me - I can never pick just one thing! And you know one is baking, of course.

I think I started my holiday baking marathons when I was about twenty. My niece was born, so that meant getting together with an extended family on holidays and birthdays, which meant more of "what can I bring?". People who could never figure out what to get me started getting me kitchen gadgets and tools. Over the next few years I started bringing in platters of baked goods for Christmas gifts for my co-workers, neighbors and friends. I felt like I was ripping them off, because, really, I baked because I liked it. With maybe one or two exceptions, I didn't have a particular person in mind when I baked a certain cookie. But we won't tell them that! ;)

I've always enjoyed baking throughout the year, but Christmas baking is special. I remember taking a week off from work, filling a shopping cart with one or two of everything from the baking aisle and taking over the family kitchen (and dining room, for cooling and storage!) right up until just before Christmas. And any time I needed to put together a platter for a gift or a party, I'd lay those bins and tins and bags of goodies on the dining room table, and work my way around as if I was at a cookie buffet.

Baking for me is one of those tasks that is fun, from filling up that shopping cart to putting together those packages. Although, as my personality dictates, I actually prefer to "hit and run" when it comes time to deliver them - at work, I'd sneak my tray into the factory breakroom when nobody was looking, or leave tins on people's desks - kinda like a cookie Santa! Not that they didn't know who it was from, but like I said, I do it for the love of doing it, not for a pat on the back or the big, wet, powdered sugar-laced kiss on the cheek.

Wrapping presents is another thing I love doing, and it's one of the first things I realized my husband and I had in common, way back when we first met. I think at that time I was just about to cross over to the dark side, like my Mom, and just throw everything into gift bags. Then I met Steve, and we had our first Christmas together and did a lot of shopping that year, as we had several young nieces and nephews to buy for. The first gift he wrapped...took 45 minutes. I kid you not! First, he had to pick the perfect paper, and not so much a coordinating bow as a contrasting one - Hey, the man was attending art school at the time. This brought wrapping presents to a whole new level of artistic expression. He even made his own bows, because the storebought ones weren't the perfect color or just weren't good enough. His motto was, and still is today (although we've sort of mellowed out on the wrapping protocol these days), "It's all in the packaging". And that's true! It's all part of the sparkle of the season.

So, back to baking....I've been doing a bit of that lately! I set up a recipe box on Allrecipes for "Christmas Cookies" - meant to hold the recipe that I absolutely, positively MUST MAKE this year. No maybe's. The biggest variety I ever made in one Christmas season was 23 different cookies, so I was aiming for a more practical, doable 15. I have 43 saved.

Yeah. Even I don't like baking THAT much!

Here's what I got so far....

These little cuties have been in my recipe box for a long time. Fudge Puddles - peanut butter cookie cups filled with a fudgy filling. Sounds good, huh? They taste even better!

They intimidated be for a while - I don't know why, they just looked like a lot of work, but trust me, they were so easy! Just roll the dough into 1" balls (yes, they'll look tiny in those mini-muffin tins, but they expand to just the right size while baking - any bigger and they'll overflow). Right out of the oven (which I adjusted to baking at 350 degrees for 12 minutes), press down the tops with a melon baller to better form the well for the filling. I used the teaspoon of my stainless steel measuring spoons, as it was the perfect shape and size. The filling - chocolate chips and sweetened condensed milk - will stay plyable if you leave it in the double boiler - just turn the heat off. I spooned some into a Ziploc bag, snipped a corner and piped it out. Easy as pie!

Then there's these cookies, Santa's Chocolate Thumbprint Cookies.

Another recipe that has haunted my recipe box for a few years now. It's a chocolate crackle-type cookie, rolled in cinnamon-sugar before baking (gotta love cinnamon and chocolate together!), baked, and when still hot you make an indentation and pop in a few chocolate chips - I used a combination of white chocolate and semi-sweet. Let them melt, swirl with a toothpick and top with crush toffee bits. The recipe calls for marachino cherries, but I skipped those. Only problem I ran into was the white chocolate - my store brand ones weren't melting nicely so I had to crack open the Ghirardelli. They melt like a dream!

My next recipe I saw in a Fine Cooking Publication last year, Dark Chocolate Crackle Cookies.

My dad is going to LOVE these! He and I are big time dark chocolate fanatics - I think we're just about a step away from being able to eat and enjoy unsweetened baking chocolate. And these are the most chocolatiest cookies I have ever tasted. The dough is flavored with cocoa and melted bittersweet chocolate, and if that's not enough, more chopped chocolate is added. I taste all my batters and cookie doughs, and let me tell you, I could not bear to add chopped bittersweet chocolate chunks to this - it would have sent me over the edge! I added semi-sweet chips, and they worked fine. They taste like....midnight. Chocolate midnight.

Dark Chocolate Crackle Cookies

Ingredients

• 2 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 1 cup unsalted butter, room temp
• 2 cups firmly packed light brown sugar
• 2/3 cup unsweetened cocoa, sifted if lumpy
• 2 tsp. finely grated orange zest or 1/4 tsp orange extract
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 3 eggs
• 8 oz. bittersweet chocolate, melted and cooled to barely warm
• 3/4 cup (4 oz) chopped white, bittersweet or semi-sweet chocolate
• About 1/3 cup granulated sugar (for rolling)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 - line baking sheets with parchment paper.
2. Whisk flour, baking soda and salt together.
3. In a separate bowl or stand mixer beat butter, brown sugar, cocoa, orange zest and vanilla on medium speed until well-blended (about 4 min). Add eggs, one at a time, beating briefly after each addition. Blend in melted chocolate, then blend in flour on low speed until just barely blended. Add chopped chocolate and blend 15 seconds.
4. Shape dough into 1 1/4" balls*. Dip tops in sugar and place sugar-side up on baking sheets about 1 1/2" apart.
5. Bake until cookies are puffed and cracked. Cool on sheets 5 minutes before transferring to cooling racks to cool completely.

Quick! Hand my something NON-CHOCOLATE!

This is a horrid picture, it just doesn't capture the snowy white of these Swedish Tea Cakes...

When I was 14, we moved into a duplex in the same neighborhood I grew up in. Hilda owned the house and live on one side, rented out the other. And because she lived alone, until I actually met her, us kids all thought she was a witch. Come on, old and living in a huge house? Gotta be. But no, as I soon discovered, she was a kind, loving, interesting woman, who was widowed at a relatively young age, worked until the age of 70, never had children of her own and had a lot of love to give. Although she spent her early years in a seaside village called Pigeon Cove, she graduated high school in my hometown, worked in the factory that pretty much built the town (literally. The neighborhood of duplexes we lived in were built to house factory workers) and knew EVERYONE in town. Even into her 90's, she still attended the high school reunions, although the number of people seated at the 1920's table dwindled over the years. She became a close friend to my mom and dad, and a surrogate grandmother to me and my sister (and ever other kid in town!) And boy, did she love to bake. Not just at Christmas, but year round. She'd make twelve different types of cookies or candy because it was a rainy April day, then strap on her plastic rain cap, don her raincoat, galloshes and gloves, and make her deliveries.

I had moved out of that house by the time she passed away at the age of 94 back in 1999. That previous Christmas, she was still baking (although, had surrendered her driver's license, thankfully, after taking out a few mailboxes). That would be the last time I tasted one of those "white powdery things" from Hilda's kitchen. We thought the recipe was lost when lo and

behold, I found a tattered, stained piece of paper with Hilda's handwriting on it - a recipe called Swedish Tea Cakes. By then I had determined that they were some variation of Russian Tea Cakes, Mexican Wedding Cakes, Butterballs, Snowballs.... But, Hilda was Swedish, made lots of Swedish pastry, and none of the recipes I had found on my own were the same as hers. I know now that the difference is in the nuts....while here recipe states that ground almonds can be used, I know she always used pecans. Her brother Walter would ship a big bag up to her from South Carolina every year. I think of her every time I make these cookies.

The thing I think about is rather sad - that Hilda never was able to share her traditions with a child of her own. But even though I love my parents, I have a special place in my heart for Hilda, and I will never forget her kindness, her voice, her laughter..or her cookies. Better yet, my daughter, born 6 years after her passing, actually knows who Hilda is. She knows when we drive by "Hilda's side of the house" when we visit the old hometown. And she knows Mommy is making Hilda's cookies when she sees the powdered sugar and chopped pecans come out!

I think that makes Hilda, wherever she is, very happy.

Hilda's Swedish Tea Cakes

1/2 cup powdered sugar

1 cup butter, softened

2 tsp. vanilla extract

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 cup finely chopped pecans (or almonds)

1/4 tsp. salt

Powdered sugar for rolling (about 1 1/2 cups)

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.

In a large bowl, beat 1/2 cup powdered sugar and butter until light and fluffy; beat in vanilla.

Stir in flour, nuts and salt, and mix until dough forms. (Chill dough, if desired)

Shape into 1" balls and place 1" apart on ungreased cookie sheets.

Bake 15 to 20 minutes or until set, but not brown.

Immediately remove from cookie sheets - cool just slightly, so you can handle with your fingers. Roll in powdered sugar and place on wire racks to cool completely.

When cookies are completely cooled, roll once again in powdered sugar.

Store in an airtight container.

Let the Baking Begin!!

There's Christmas music on the radio, the husband is cursing as he tries to untangle the Christmas lights and I just finished cleaning the oven.  LET THE BAKING.....BEGIN!!!

I love baking, especially at Christmas time.  There's just something about that marathon baking session, arranging platters of cookies, wrapping other confectionary treats and giving them all away that just makes me happy.  And there is one recipe that gets things rolling for me every single year - Chocolate Italian Spice Cookies.  Little balls of chocolate cookie, spiked with cinnamon, cloves and nutmeg, studded with chocolate chips and walnuts and finally drizzled with a simple white icing.  The smell of cocoa and spices epitomize the Christmas season, in a culinary sort of way.  

I've posted my complete recipe over on Grouprecipes.com.  If you want to give these a whirl, go here:

http://www.grouprecipes.com/72596/chocolate-italian-spice-cookies.html

Otherwise, I'm not going to bother with the exact quantities here - I'll just run through the visual with you.

You'll want to preheat your oven to 350 degrees, then in a LARGE bowl combine your dry ingredients - flour, sugar, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, cloves and nutmeg.

I like to whisk them to smoosh up any lumps.

Add your chocolate chips....

...and the chopped walnuts...

...and mix all of those together.

Crack the eggs into a separate bowl...

...beat them slightly...

...and whisk in the oil and milk.

While you have the oil out, pour a few drops into a small saucer or bowl.  This way you can dip your fingers in the oil as needed when you are working with the balls of dough.  Otherwise, things could get a bit sticky!

Add the egg mixture to the dry ingredients.

Stir together with a spoon as much as you can.

This is about as far as you will get with a spoon...

Roll up your sleeves and start working the dough with your hands, making sure to lightly oil them as necessary.  Just knead and fold the dough over, pressing the moistened dough into the dry portions, until it comes together in one big lump.  Don't give up! This might take a few minutes, but when it comes together it does so quickly.  

Soon you will have a big lump of dough like this...

...and you can stop swearing at me.  Seriously, the "oiling of the hands" tip will save you a lot of the headaches I endured over the years, perfecting this recipe.

WHICH, by the way, I did not create from scratch myself.  When I was in high school, my sister and her best friend finagled the basics of this recipe from her friend's Italian grandmother.  They are the ones who translated the "pile of flour, scoop of sugar and a big handful of cocoa" into actual measurements.  I might have tweaked the spices and made a couple minor changes, but this is really but a variation of what Susan and Candy created.

Candy's grandmother would tell you to "roll into balls the size of a walnut".  I'd say that's about right, if your walnuts are about 1 1/2" in diameter.  You could go 2", but just remember that these will rise ever so slightly while baking.  Continue oiling your hands as needed - just a drop or two will do - as you roll the dough into balls.

Place the balls on a lightly greased (and in my case, soon to be replaced) cookie sheet, about 2 inches apart, bake for about 10 minutes and let cool for a few minutes before removing to wire racks to cool completely.

Here's what the unbaked dough looks like in comparison to the freshly baked ones...

Let them cool completely, sampling one along the way if you like...you'll thank me.

When the cookies are completely cooled, mix together the confectioner's sugar, milk and vanilla to make a thin icing.

This is what it looks like when it's ready to drizzle...

You can dip the tops of the cookies in the icing if you like, but I like the look of drizzled icing.  For easy clean-up, place a sheet of waxed paper under your wire rack to catch the run off...or just lick your countertop clean, whichever you prefer.  Let it sit until the icing is dry, then store in an airtight container.  These cookies also freeze beautifully - just lay them flat in a Ziploc bag and freeze.  They'll thaw nicely in a few hours in the fridge, or even quicker at room temperature.

Enjoy!