Breakfast Cookies

I usually make a treat on Saturday nights to take to my Sunday morning class, provided I have not completely exhausted myself with some other activity or event. I try not to make something too rich or sweet-I do not prefer falling into a sugar-induced coma any time before 9 pm.

Cranberry Bliss (Bars)

There is a definite nostalgia about holiday foods. They usually represent our ethnic heritage, cultural surroundings, and just plain old tradition. We have many such traditions. My family always has this ham on Christmas. We always have au gratin potatoes. Whether they come from a box, or they are these ones, or these ones, they are always there. We have croissants (not homemade) and corn. We used to eat popcorn and hot chocolate while we opened presents, but now the adults want something more substantial.

A breakfast casserole that my mom discovered has been present the last few years, but I think we are moving away from that and on to something that takes less effort. Nobody wants to be stuck in the kitchen on Christmas morning. Well, maybe I do. But nobody wants to wait for it. This year I think I am going to make a Christmas punch (if I can convince someone to buy me a vintage punch bowl).

This recipe is for a new favorite, one that I hope will find its way to your list of seasonal favorite.

For the bar:
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) salted butter, cubed
1 1/2 cups packed light brown sugar
2 large eggs
3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 cup dried cranberries
6 ounces white baking chocolate, coarsely chopped (about 1/2 a cup)

For the frosting:

6 oz cream cheese, softened
4 Tablespoons (1/2 stick of butter), softened
grated zest of one orange, finely chopped
2 cups powdered sugar
3 oz (about 1/4 cup) white chocolate, melted (see below)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Spray a 13x9-inch baking dish with nonstick spray.
Prepare the blondie layer: In a medium bowl, melt butter for one minute in the microwave; stir in brown sugar. Scrape the butter & sugar into a large bowl and let cool to room temperature. Use an electric mixer to beat in the eggs and vanilla. In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt and cinnamon; gradually add the dry mixture to the butter mixture. Stir in the cranberries and chopped chocolate (the batter will be thick).

Spread the blondie batter into the prepared pan. Bake for 18-21 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean (do not overbake). Cool completely on a wire rack.
Prepare the frosting: In a large bowl, use an electric mixer to beat the cream cheese and powdered sugar until well-blended. Gradually add half of the melted white chocolate; beat until blended. Frost brownies. Sprinkle with cranberries. Drizzle with remaining melted white chocolate. Cut into bars- square or triangle-shaped. Store in the refrigerator until ready to serve.

To melt white chocolate in the microwave: place white chocolate chunks into a microwave safe bowl. Microwave on high for 30 seconds. Stir. Microwave in 10 second increments, stirring thoroughly each time until the chocolate is smooth.

http://verygoodrecipes.com/white-christmas-challenge

Pear and Cranberry Gingersnap Crumble

Today marks one week to the signal of the beginning of the Christmas season. Black Friday. Black Friday starts at midnight for some stores in my area. I, for one, have never been a fan of black Friday. I might have gone this year, with stores opening at midnight, because I can do late night shopping trips. I don't think I will ever, ever, get up at three or four in the morning to go shopping. I would get up at three or four in the morning to bake, or something along those lines, but never to shop. I am not much of a shopper. I am a 'get in there, get it, and get out of there' kind of girl. My dad, on the other hand, is a shopper. What ever shopping gene is out there he got double and I got none. It used to make me crazy. I felt like there was no sense in looking at all of said item, if a perfectly good one was sitting right in front of me.
That said, I am looking forward to the baking I will be doing next week, especially since my mom and I are hosting our annual holiday boutique starting on black Friday. I will be furnishing hungry shoppers with biscotti, scones, savory breads, pumpkin loaves, and apple turnovers. Now that gets me excited.
I wanted to share a little treat I discovered over at my new favorite blog. I have made a very few small changes in the recipe, here it is in its entirety.

I made this for a little get together we had a few weeks ago, after I read about it on her blog. I fell in love instantly, and a star was born. We had quite a bit left over, so I got to enjoy it again and again. I also had to hold the food for over an hour and it held up quite well. This is absolutley perfect for a potluck or any similar get together you have coming up over the next week, or just make one and bring it to a neighbor or friend who doesn't have family around for the holidays.

I served mine with vanilla bean ice cream, the author suggests using freshly whipped cream.

Topping1 cup flour
1/4 cup sugar
3 tablespoons packed brown sugar
1 cup gingersnap crumbs ( about 16 storebought cookies)
1/8 teaspoon ground ginger
1/8 teaspoon  salt
Pinch of  pepper
1/2 cup ( 1 stick) unsalted butter, melted and cooled

Filling2 pounds (about 4 to 5) large ripe pears (I used Anjou) peeled, halved, cored and sliced 1/4 inch thick
3/4 cups dried sweetened cranberries
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup sugar
2 tablespoons cornstarch

Put cranberries in a bowl with 1 cup of water for about an hour.
Preheat the oven to 350°F.
Stir together the flour, granulated sugar, brown sugar, gingersnap crumbs, ginger and salt. Stir in the melted butter until large crumbs form.
Drain the cranberries.
In a 1 1/2 to 2 quart baking dish, mix the pears, cranberries, lemon juice, lemon zest and vanilla. In a small bowl, whisk the sugar and cornstarch together then toss it with the fruit mixture in the pan.
Sprinkle the gingersnap crumble over the fruit. Place in the oven and bake it for about 45 minutes, until the crumble is a shade darker and you see juices bubbling through the crumbs.

Stuffed or Dressed? (Stuffing)

I know many people who, oddly, don't care for stuffing that much. I say, what kind of stuffing have you had? I imagine it must be some horrible rendition in some horrid school cafeteria. Or perhaps your great-aunt made it with something you didn't like in it-raisins, oysters, celery, onion, etc. Which are not bad things, but if you don't like them or the way they are cooked it can ruin your stuffing experience.

I love stuffing. I know we really should call it dressing, because we never actually stuff the bird, but we always just call it stuffing. I love it and we only have it a few times a year! Recently I have begun making it when we have a roasted chicken, which happens several times a year, and also when we have ham (a twice-a-year occasion). I like it anyway it comes. I even order turkey dinners at restaurants because I just love stuffing and gravy! At a restaurant I worked at, we served several Thanksgiving banquets the week of, and the sous-chef knew of my affair with stuffing and saved me a large portion each time. I still ate plenty on Thanksgiving! A few years ago, I discovered an absolutely delicious stuffing recipe, and it has become a family favorite. It has bulk sage sausage, apples and cranberries in it. I always make one pan of that stuffing, and one pan of plain (for the unadventurous). I usually have none of the sage stuffing left. You can make the stuffing with a box mix, and just add the additional ingredients, or make it from old bread that you baked in the oven until its dried. If you use your own bread, just saute some finely chopped onions and carrots with the sausage, and season with salt and pepper.
I make this early in the day on Thanksgiving, and I put it all in a pan, cover with foil, and reheat while the Turkey is resting. I know I have mentioned Thanksgiving a lot, but I think its time we serve stuffing all throughout the year, instead of making it wait until Thanksgiving to make its appearance on our table. Let us have a stuffing revival!
 
Sage Stuffing
1 lb sage sausage (homemade or purchased)
2 boxes stuffing mix, any brand
-either
4 cups water
1 Tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon chicken bouillon,
-or
4 cups homemade chicken broth
2 small apples (crisp, sweet apples like gala, pink lady, fuji or jazz are best)
1/3 cup dried cranberries

Brown sausage in a large pot over medium-high heat.. Add apples and cook, stirring for about 1 minute. Add stuffing mix, dried cranberries, water and bouillon (or homemade chicken stock), and turn off heat. After thoroughly combined, transfer to a 9x13 glass baking dish. You can cover and reheat at 350 for about 25 minutes.

It's That Time of Year...

Since fall is approaching, I decided it's about time I began making scones again. I am not talking about that piece of cardboard that hides under a thin layer of icing trying to pass itself off as a scone, commonly found at Starbucks coffee shops.
These scones are amazing. Extremely tender with a wide variety of spices and dried fruits you can add in to create any scone you choose. I love to make them as a fall treat. If you leave out the special additions and skip the sugar these are quick and delicious biscuits that are wonderful paired with spicy sausage gravy for breakfast, or as a southern side with dinner.
The variations are amazing. Lemon-poppy seed and dried cranberry-orange are some of my favorites. The sky's the limit when it comes to these breakfast treats. You could substitute 1/4 cup of the flour for cocoa powder and drizzle them with ganache. Make apple cinnamon, sour cherry and orange, lemon-blueberry, dried apricots with toasted hazelnuts or toffee chip (mmmm!). A few simple ingredients and you have a delicious partner for coffee on a lovely fall day.
One scone that is a particular favorite of mine is the gingerbread scone. There is a delicious topping you can use made from apples, but I don't ever usually bother with it. I just drizzle the top with powdered sugar icing, or make a cream cheese frosting (see below). They are also divine when slathered with butter. They cook for 14-17  minutes in the oven and they come together in a snap in the food processor-how easy can it get?

Also, here is a little tip: If you don't have buttermilk (I highly recommend keeping a quart or half gallon of the cheap stuff in your fridge for amazing baked goods and presoaking chicken and onion rings before frying) but if you don't, microwave 1 cup milk for about 30 seconds until it is lukewarm. Stir in 1 Tbsp lemon juice or white wine vinegar. Works like a charm.

Basic Scones
2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1/4 cup sugar, plus 1 tbsp for sprinkling
1 3/4 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 stick cold  butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
3/4 cup cold buttermilk
1 egg, lightly beaten (optional)

Preheat oven to 425F and position and oven rack in the center. Line the baking sheet with parchment paper or a thin silicone mat. Place the flour 1/4 cup sugar, baking soda and salt in the bowl of the food processor and process for 10 seconds to blend well. Add the cold butter pieces and pulse 5 times at 1-second intervals, or until the butter is cut into medium pieces. Add your extras now.
 Pour in the buttermilk and pulse another 20 times, or until the dough holds together in large, thick clumps. Use a spatula to scrape the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface. Gently squeeze or knead the clumps together until they form a cohesive dough.
If the dough seems sticky, lightly dust your work surface with flour. Pat the dough in a circle about 1 inch thick and roughly 7 inches in diameter. Use a knife or pizza cutter to cut the dough into 8 equal wedges and transfer to a prepared baking sheet, spacing them about 2 inches apart.
If you would like too, brush the tops with beaten egg and sprinkle with sugar. If you make a drizzle this step is definitely not necessary. Bake for 14-17 minutes, until firm to the touch and golden brown. Transfer to a rack and let cool for 5 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Extras
1/2 cup dried sour cherries and finely grated zest of one orange
1/2 cup dried cranberries and finely grated zest of one orange
1/2 blueberries and finely grated zest of one lemon
1 teaspoon poppy seeds and finely grated zest of one lemon
1/2 cup chopped dried apricots and 1/4 cup chopped toasted hazelnuts
1/2 cup dried cranberries and 1 tsp finely grated ginger

For gingerbread scones: substitute sugar for 1/3 cup firmly packed light brown sugar. Add 2 1/2 teaspoons ground ginger, 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon, and 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves to the flour mixture. decrease buttermilk to 1/2 cup plus 2 tbsp, and add 2 tablespoons light unsulfered molasses.

Cream Cheese Drizzle
Blend:
4 oz cream cheese
2 tbsp butter
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
2 tsp vanilla
1/4 cup of milk, plus more as needed to achieve desired consistency

Raindrops on roses...

On days when our house just can't seem to get warm I like to bake cookies. The oven is normally on for a few hours, and everybody, of course, is perfectly fine with the fact that the house is warm and there are fresh, homemade cookies to be found. I have tried a few different varieties, but cookies are one area that I don't really stray from the mainstays: chocolate chip, peanut butter, sugar, refrigerator (at Christmas) and every once in a while I will do something different, like peanut butter thumbprints (I know that isn't really different), or I will add different types of chocolate chips or perhaps toffee chips (divine!). Now, perhaps you noticed a very common cookie that I didn't include in that list, namely, oatmeal raisin. There is a reason for that. I am not was not terribly fond of oatmeal raisin cookies, and I have a very valid reason for that. Have you noticed that the raisins get this burned taste? Maybe you like that, but raisins are not my favorite to begin with, so then when they taste burned I pretty much have no desire to eat them. I like the cookie part of oatmeal cookies, so I have often considered altering the recipe slightly, i.e. omitting the raisins, but I just haven't gotten around to doing it.
Lately, though, I have been purchasing my rolled oats in bulk from a large warehouse store (read: Costco). I use it for a myriad of things I cook, from meatballs to butternut squash muffins, and rolled oats are better for you than instant oatmeal, so I try to fix that for breakfast about twice a week. Anyway. I have a lot, I mean a lot of oatmeal laying around, so I decided to look in my no-fail recipe book and make some oatmeal cookies from that recipe.
I substituted dried cranberries for the raisins, and added semi-sweet chocolate chips, just because chocolate is good in everything. Well, almost. They were awesome! The cookie is so soft and chewy, with a very buttery flavor accented with just the right amount of sweetness. We couldn't stop eating them. My Dad named them his new favorite cookie.

The next time I made them I used white chocolate instead of the semi-sweet, and that was also wonderful. A little on the sweet side, but if you are a sugar fiend like my sister you will really enjoy that.
The variations are virtually limitless. We like dried cranberries a lot. If you like dried apricots, that would be delicious with the white chocolate chips also. Just about any dried fruit would be great and you could put white, semi-sweet, milk chocolate or dark chips. Coconut, walnuts, pecans or almonds would be absolutely incredible!
I recommend making a double batch and sharing with your friends or the elderly in your neighborhood or church-they will love you for it!

Oatmeal Cookies
makes about 48 cookies

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 eggs at room temperature
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter at room temperature
2 cups firmly packed light brown sugar
2 cups rolled oats or quick-cooking oats
3/4 cup dried cranberries
3/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips


Position the rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees F. Spray 2 or more baking sheets with vegetable-oil cooking spray or line with parchment paper or silpat.
Stir together the flour, baking soda, kosher salt, and cinnamon in a small bowl. Set aside.
Stir together the eggs and vanilla in a small bowl. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter and brown sugar on medium speed until creamy and blended. Alternatively, use an electric hand mixer. Add the egg mixture to the butter mixture in two additions and beat until incorporated. Scrape down the sides of the bowl after each addition. Reduce the speed to low, slowly add the dry ingredients, and beat until just incorporated. Scrape down the sides of the bowl if necessary. Stir in the oatmeal, cranberries and chocolate chips.
Drop rounded tablespoons of dough about 2 inches apart onto the prepared baking sheets. Bake until the edges of the cookies are golden and the centers are barely cooked, about 10 minutes. Let the cookies cool on the baking sheets for 2 to 3 minutes, then transfer the cookies to wire rack and let cool completely.

Do-Ahead:
Bake half the cookie dough, then wrap the rest in plastic wrap and refrigerate or freeze for later baking. The dough keeps for 1 week in the refrigerator and 1 month frozen.