Christmas Baking

This recipe is from a website Bekah has listed on her blog.

http://eighteen25.blogspot.com

Pretzel Hugs

bag of mini pretzels

candy cane Hershey kisses

red and green m + m's

preheat oven to 200 degrees

place a layer of pretzels on a wax paper (or parchment paper) covered cookie sheet

top each one with a kiss

bake for about four minutes until the kisses are really soft

immediately place two m + m's on each one

place in freezer to set

I couldn't find the Candy Cane Kisses anywhere! We tried about 5 stores. So I found another candy called Palmer peppermint bells. They were a little tall, so I cut the tops off so they would melt a little better.

Another variation we did was to cut up some Peter's Caramel and put a piece (about 1/8" - 1/4" thick) on each pretzel and melt it for a couple of minutes. Then when that hardened, put a dark chocolate Hershey's kiss on each one and put it back in the oven for the 4 minutes. I think that the regular milk chocolate kisses would be great too. This was a much easier way to get the flavor of those carmel/chocolate dipped pretzel sticks.

WHITE CHOCOLATE MACADAMIA CRANBERRY DREAMS

Megan and Jay brought us a bag of fresh chopped macadamia nuts from Hawaii. So Megan found this recipe to use on baking day. These stay nice and moist. We made the chocolate variation and drizzled white chocolate over the top. Make 36 cookies.

Ingredients

• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup white sugar
• 1 cup packed light brown sugar
• 1 cup butter, softened
• 2 eggs
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup vanilla baking chips
• 1 cup chopped macadamia nuts
• 1 cup dried cranberries

Directions

1. In a medium bowl set aside flour, baking soda and salt.
2. Cream together white sugar, light brown sugar and butter (do not use shortening). Add slightly beaten eggs and vanilla.
3. Add flour mixture until just mixed. Stir in vanilla chips, macadamia nuts and dried cranberries.
4. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Place on ungreased cookie sheet by small scoop or rounded teaspoon. Bake for 10 minutes or just until set. Remove from oven and let cool. Cookies will sink slightly.
5. Variations: To make chocolate cookies - omit 1/2 cup flour and replace with 1/2 cup cocoa. To make refrigerator cookies - Roll dough into 2 rolls, wrap with plastic wrap and chill or freeze. (If you freeze the dough - thaw for at least 1/2 hr). Slice 1 inch slices - cut into 4 and place on baking sheet point up. For fancier cookies: Drizzle melted white chocolate on chocolate cookies and melted dark chocolate on the white cookie. Enjoy

CANADIAN NANAIMO BARS

This is in a recipe book I have called "101 Gourmet Cookies" by Wendy Paul. Jay was looking through this book and chose this recipe to make for baking day. The hard to find ingredient is Bird's custard powder. I was able to find it at Macey's here in Provo. These are extremely rich, so cut them into small pieces!

Crust:

2 Tbs. cocoa

1/2 cup unsalted butter

1/2 cup sugar

1 egg, beaten

1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs

1/2 cup coconut

1/2 cup almonds, chopped

Melt cocoa, butter, and sugar. Whisk in egg. Continue to stir until sauce thickens. Remove from heat and allow to cool for 5 minutes. Add graham cracker crumbs, coconut, and almonds. Pat down evenly in the bottom of a 9X13 greased baking dish. Place in freezer to set and harden while making the middle.

Middle:

1 cup butter, softened

1/3 cup heavy cream

1/4 cup Bird's custard powder

3 cups powdered sugar

Cream together butter and heavy cream. Add custard powder and sugar and blend until smooth and creamy. Spread over hardened crust. Return to freezer to set.

Topping:

8 oz. semi-sweet chocolate

4 Tbs. butter

Melt and mix together chocolate and butter. Cool slightly. Pour and spread gently over custard filling. Allow bars to harden completely before cutting.

Candy Cane Kiss Cookies

I think I've found a new favorite cookie. These are delicious. And impossible to eat just one, despite how rich they are.

Just a few notes:
-I searched everywhere for Candy Cane Kisses but couldn't find them, so I copied my friend Anna and used Andes mints. My, oh my. I can't imagine the candy cane kisses tasting any better.
-the peppermint extract is optional, but I don't think they would be as good without it. I only put in a 1/2 tsp. or so.
-It took me a couple tries to find dark chocolate chips (we have the worst grocery stores out here) but I definitely recommend using them.

Candy Cane Kiss Cookies
Recipe by Our Best Bites (click to see photo)

1/2 c. shortening
1/2 c. real butter
1 c. brown sugar
1 c. white sugar
2 eggs
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla
optional: 1 1/2 tsp peppermint extract
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
2 1/2 c. flour, lightly spooned into measuring cups and leveled with a knife
1/4 c. + 2 Tbsp. unsweetened cocoa powder
1 1/2 c. dark chocolate chips
48 Hershey's Candy Cane Kisses, unwrapped

Preheat oven to 350.

Cream together softened butter, shortening, brown sugar, and white sugar for 1-2 minutes on medium-high speed or until light and fluffy. Add the eggs and vanilla (and peppermint extract if using). Meanwhile, combine the baking powder, baking soda, salt, flour, and cocoa powder. Add to the butter/sugar mixture and mix until combined. Mix in the chocolate chips.

Drop the dough by the tablespoonful onto an ungreased baking sheet. Bake for 8-10 minutes or until the centers are set but still soft. Remove from oven and allow to cool for 1-2 minutes. Top each cookie with an unwrapped Candy Cane Kiss. Allow to cool completely, long enough for the Kiss to harden. If necessary, after the cookies have cooled, they can be placed in the refrigerator or freezer to re-solidify the Kiss.

Perfect Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Bread

The name says it all. I have tried numerous recipes for pumpkin chocolate chip bread and this really is the best one I've had.

A couple notes. I replaced half the oil with applesauce and it makes no difference. I've made it into loaves and muffins, just cook the muffins for 15 minutes or so. For some reason this bread tastes ten times better the next day. And if you top it with some cream cheese frosting, you really do have perfection.

Perfect Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Bread
from www.melskitchencafe.com

*Makes 2 (9X5-inch loaves) or 3 (8X4-inch loaves) or a couple pans of muffins

2 ½ cups white flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
3 cups granulated sugar
2 teaspoons baking soda
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 teaspoon salt
1 (15 oz.) can pumpkin puree (not pie filling)
1 cup canola or vegetable oil
4 large eggs
2/3 cup water
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease two 9×5-inch loaf pans or three 8×4-inch loaf pans.

In a large bowl, mix flours, sugar, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt together. Set aside.

In a medium bowl, whisk together canned pumpkin, oil, eggs and 2/3 cup water until well combined and stir into dry ingredients, just until the dry ingredients are moistened and no dry streaks remain. Stir in chocolate chips. Pour batter in prepared pans.

Bake the bread for 60 to 70 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Remove the bread from the oven and let sit for 10-15 minutes. Run a knife gently around the edge of the bread and turn the bread out, right side up, onto a wire rack to cool completely.

This bread freezes beautifully. After cooling, wrap the bread in a layer of plastic wrap and then a layer of tin foil. Freeze for up to 2 months.

Vanilla Quinoa Pudding

I made this last night while Joy and Martha Erickson were here. We all liked it, but I think I would rather have it for breakfast than as a dessert. And it would make a really healthy breakfast! Quinoa is such a nutritionally complete grain - it even has lots of protein.

Vanilla Quinoa Pudding

3 cups whole milk (I used almond milk and it added a great taste)

1 tsp vanilla extract (recipe calls for 1 vanilla bean split. None in my pantry!)

1/4 cup maple syrup

pinch of salt

1 cup quinoa

any add-ins you want like cinnamon, nutmeg, craisins, nuts, brown sugar, berries, dried fruit

Rinse the quinoa. Mix milk, vanilla, maple syrup and salt in a saucepan and set on simmer. Add quinoa and cook for 30 minutes, stirring frequently. Serve warm or cold. I added craisins while the quinoa was cooking and a little cinnamon.

Dill Carrot Pasta

I invented this one night when about the only fresh vegetables I had on hand were carrots and onions. It was so good I've made it a few times since then, so I decided to write it up so I can remember it.

Dill Carrot Pasta
2T butter
4 carrots, peeled and cut into rounds
1 medium onion, coarsely chopped
salt
pepper
dill
parsley (or peas, it just needs some green color)
--
plus however much pasta you can make in your 2qt pot.
--
Parmesan cheese

Melt butter in your pan. Add carrots and fry. Meanwhile, chop the onion and add it to the pan, then start cooking the noodles. When the carrots are tender, add salt, pepper, and dill to taste. Add enough parsley to make it look pretty.

To serve, top noodles with carrot mixture and sprinkle with parmesan cheese.

Winter Squash Tip

I've started microwaving my winter squash for 1 minute before cutting it in half. It's much easier to cut, but not too hot to handle. And so far there have been no squash explosions in the microwave.

Autumn Pear Salad and Homemade Pita Chips

Autumn Pear Salad
dressing:
5T olive oil
2T Balsamic vinegar
1t honey
1t Dijon mustard
2 green onions, chopped
salt
pepper

Shake together in a jar. Keep refrigerated.

salad:
1 head of green or red leaf lettuce, washed and torn
2 ripe pears, thinly sliced
2oz Asiago cheese, shaved with a vegetable peeler
1/2 C cashews

Toss the greens with the dressing. Arrange everything else on top.


Pita Chips
Cut pita bread into strips or triangles and tear the two sides apart. Arrange the pita bread pieces on cookie sheet and drizzle with olive oil. Stir with a spatula to coat the bread with oil. Sprinkle with salt. Bake in the oven at 350F until crispy (about 10 minutes).

I served this with cream of pumpkin soup, but that recipe was only OK, not awesome. But it did go pretty well with the pear salad.

Beef Sirloin Tips w/Smokey Pepper Sauce

I just made this for lunch today and Dad and I both really liked it. It is from Better Homes and Gardens magazine. It was a very quick, easy meal to make. Of course, we tweaked it some, so here is the original recipe with my comments at the end.

beef sirloin tips with smokey pepper sauce

Start to Finish: 30 minutes

ingredients

• 1-1/2 lb. beef sirloin tip steak
• 1/2 tsp. smoked paprika or paprika
• 1 Tbsp. vegetable oil
• 1 12- to 16-oz. jar roasted red and/or yellow sweet peppers
• 1/2 cup hickory- or mesquite-flavored barbecue sauce
• 1/4 cup coarsely chopped fresh Italian (flat-leaf) parsley

directions

1. Trim meat and cut into 1- to 1-1/2-inch chunks; sprinkle with paprika. In a 12-inch skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat. Add meat; brown 5 minutes or to desired doneness. Remove from skillet; keep warm.

2. Meanwhile, drain roasted red peppers, reserving liquid. Cut up roasted peppers. Measure 1/2 cup of the reserved liquid (if needed, add enough water to equal 1/2 cup). Add peppers and the liquid to the skillet. Add barbecue sauce. Cook, uncovered, 5 to 10 minutes, stirring frequently until sauce is slightly thickened. Return meat to skillet; heat through.

3. Sprinkle with parsley. Makes 4 servings.

nutrition facts

• Calories367,
• Total Fat (g)18,
• Saturated Fat (g)6,
• Monounsaturated Fat (g)9,
• Polyunsaturated Fat (g)2,
• Cholesterol (mg)111,
• Sodium (mg)510,
• Carbohydrate (g)13,
• Total Sugar (g)7,
• Fiber (g)2,
• Protein (g)36,
• Vitamin C (DV%)2.64,
• Calcium (DV%)5,
• Iron (DV%)21,
• Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet

The meat would be better sliced thinner than the recipe suggests. Also, I would add mushrooms and onions to the peppers. Be sure to use the smoked paprika - it is my new favorite seasoning. I added some black pepper and some red cooking wine. The sauce is a really good flavor. If you want lots of sauce, just use some more liquid and BBQ sauce. We served it over rice, but the suggestions in the magazine were polenta, couscous or mashed potatoes. Try it, it really is good!