Christmas Favorite cookies

Ginger Bread Man cookies

3 Cups of flour

2 Teaspoons Ground Ginger

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup butter, softened

3/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar

1/2 cup molasses

1 egg

Directions:

MIx flour, ginger, cinnamon, baking soda, nutmeg, and salt ina lage bowl. Beat butter and brown sugar in a large bowl with electirc mixer on Medium speed until light and fluffy. Add molasses and egg; beat well. Gradually beat in flour mixture on low speed until well mixed. Press dough into a thick flat disk. Wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate 4 hours or over night.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. ROll out douhg to 1/4-inch thickness on lightly floured surface. Cut into ginger bread man shapes witha 5 inch cookie cutter. Place 1 inch a apart on ungreased baking sheets.

Bake 8-10 minutes or until the edges of the cookies are et and just begining to brown. Cool on baking sheets 1-2 minutes. Remove to wire racks; cool completely. Decorate cookies as desired. Store cookies in airtight container up to 5 days.

Christmas Stars:

3/4 cup butter, softened

1 cup sugar

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 1/2 cups flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

6 tablespoons strawberry jam

1/4 cup green decorator sugar (optional)

Directions:

Ina large bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Gradually add eggs and vanilla. Mix well. Sift togehter flour, baking powder, and salt. Stir flour mixture into the butter mixtureuntil well blended. Refrigerate dough for three hours.

Prehaet oven to 350 degrees. Grease several cookie sheets. On a floured surface, roll out 1/2 the dough at a time to 1/8 inch thick. Cut dough into star shapes unsing a 3-4 inch star cookie cutter. Using a 1-2 inch star cookie cutter for center of half of the big stars. Sprinkle with colored sugar, put on the prepared cookie sheet about 1 inch a part and bake for 6-8 minutes. After cookies have cooled, spread 1 teaspoonof preserves in the center of each cookie that does not have a star cut out in the center. Place a cookie with the cut out on top of the layer of preserves. Pack cookies in a covered tin to preserve freshness.

Pumpkin Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

Ingredients:

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup quick cooking rolled oats, uncooked
1 teaspoon baking Soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup butter, softened
1 cup packed brown sugar
1 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg, slightly beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup canned pumpkin

1 cup semi sweet chocolate chips

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350F. Grease baking sheets. Combine flour, oats, baking soda, cinnamon and salt; set aside. Beat together butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Add egg and vanilla, mix. Alternate additions of dry ingredients and pumpkin, mixing well after each addition. Stir in chocolate pieces. For each cookie, drop 1/4 cup of dough onto prepared baking sheet. Bake 20 to 25 minutes until firm and lightly browned.

Some of our previous cookie post:

Cowboy Cookies

White Chocolate Chip Cookies (Nestle)

Sugar Cookie Recipe from Allrecipes.com

M&M cookies

These recipes are great for a cookie exchange, or just to pass out to neighbors and friends! Have fun and enjoy!

Christmas Favorites #2

Orchard Punch

1 (32 oz) Bottle of apple juice, chilled

1 (12 oz) Can frozen Cranberry juice concentrate

1 Cup Orange juice

1 1/2 liters of ginger ale

1 apple

Directions

In a large punch bowl, combine apple juice, cranberry juiceconcentrate, and orange juice. Stir until dissolved, then slowly add ginger ale.

Thinly slice the apple vertically, forming whole apple slices. Float the apple slices on top of punch.

Christmas Punch

1/3 Cup white sugar

1 Qt Cranberry juice

2 Cups unsweetened pineapple juice

3 Tablespoons almond extract

1 (2liter) bottle of ginger ale

In a large bowl, mix togehter sugar, juice and extract. Refrigerate 1 day.

To serve, pour mixture into large punch bowl, and stir in ginger ale.

Recipes from Allrecipes.com

Christmas Favroites

Apple Cinnamon Chex Mix:
5 cups Wheat Chex® cereal
1 cup lightly salted whole almonds
1/4 cup butter or margarine
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
2 tablespoons light corn syrup
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 cup dried apples
1/2 cup vanilla yogurt-covered raisins

Directions:

In a large microwavable bowl, mix cereal and almonds

In a 2 cup microwavable cup, microwave butter, brown sugar, and corn syrup and cinnamon on high for about 2 minutes, stirring every 30 second intervals. When mixture is boiling, pull out and stir. Pour over cereal mixture until coated.

Microwave on high, uncovered, stirring and acrapping the bowl after every minute.

Stir in apples; microwave on high about 2 minutes of until the edges of the apples begin to brown.

Spread on wax paper or foil to cool for about 15 minutes.

Place in serving bowl, and mix in yogurt covered raisins, and store in an airtight container.

Gluten Free Chex mix:

8 C Chocolate Chex cereal

3/4 C Packed brown sugar

6 TBS margarine or butter

3 TBS light corn syrup

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 Cup white vanilla baking chips

Directions:

In a large microwavable bowl, measure out cereal and put in bowl, set aside.

Line cookie sheet with waxed paper.

In a 2 cup microwavable cup, microwave brown sugar, butter and corn syrup uncovered on high 1-2 minutes, stirring after each minute until smooth. Stir in Baking soda, until dissolved. Pour over cereal, stirring unti levenly coated. Microwave in high for 3 minutes, stirring ever minute. Spread on cookie sheet. Cool 10 minutes. Break into bite size peices.

In a small microwaveable bowl, microwave vanilla baking chips uncovered on high about 1 minute 30 minutes or until chips can be stirred smooth (bowl will be hot). Drizzle over snack.

Refrigerate until set.

Store tightly covered.

Thanksgiving

If you are not done with you recipe shopping for our upcoming holidays, here is a few yummy recipes:

Twice Baked Sweet potatoes:

6 sweet potatoes

2 tablespoons oil (vegetable or canola)

1 package (8 oz) cream cheese

1/2 cup brown sugar

3 tablespoons butter

1 tablespoon vanilla

salt

pepper

1/2 cup chopped cashews

Heat oven to 350 F.

Rub sweet potatoes with oil and wrap in tin foil. Bake in oven for an hour or until tender. While potatoes are cooking, combine all other ingredients and mix well. After the potatoes have finished cooking, scoop out the centers and add it to the other ingredients. Mix well again and scoop back into the potato skins. Back for another 7-8 minutes until nice and hot.

This recipe is from Make it and love it blog

Sweet potato bake:
2 cans Yams
1/2 brown sugar (packed)
1/4 C Butter or Margarine
1 tsp Cinnamon
1 tsp vanilla
Marshmallows

oat mixture:
1 C Old fashioned oats
a sprinkle of cinnamon
2 Tbsp brown sugar
1Tbsp flour
2 Tbsp butter (melted)

In a large bowl mix Yams, brown sugar, margarine, cinnamon, and vanilla together, and blend on medium speed with a hand mixer.
When smooth, put into a 11x7 casserole dish. Top with marshmallows.
In a small bowl mix together, Oats, cinnamon, flour, and brown sugar. When mixed well, add melted butter slowly, while stirring. Mix until crumbly.
Crumble over the top of marshmallows.
Bake in oven until marshmallows are browned and puffy.

Herb Stuffing:

1 3/4 cups Swanson® Chicken Broth (regular, Natural Goodness™ or Certified Organic)Generous dash ground black pepper
1 stalk celery, coarsely chopped
1 small onion, coarsely chopped
4 cups Pepperidge Farm® Herb Seasoned Stuffing

Heat broth, black pepper, celery, and onion in a 2 quart saucepan over high heat. When it comes to a boil, reduce heat to low. Cover and cook for 5 minutes or until vegetables are tender. Add stuffing and stir lightly to coat.

Rosemary Roasted Turkey:

3/4 cup olive oil

3 tablespoons minced garlic

2 tablespoons chopped fresh rosemary

1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil

1 tablespoon Italian seasoning

1 teaspoon ground black pepper

salt to taste

1 (12 pound) whole turkey

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C).
2. In a small bowl, mix the olive oil, garlic, rosemary, basil, Italian seasoning, black pepper and salt. Set aside.
3. Wash the turkey inside and out; pat dry. Remove any large fat deposits. Loosen the skin from the breast. This is done by slowly working your fingers between the breast and the skin. Work it loose to the end of the drumstick, being careful not to tear the skin.
4. Using your hand, spread a generous amount of the rosemary mixture under the breast skin and down the thigh and leg. Rub the remainder of the rosemary mixture over the outside of the breast. Use toothpicks to seal skin over any exposed breast meat.
5. Place the turkey on a rack in a roasting pan. Add about 1/4 inch of water to the bottom of the pan. Roast in the preheated oven 3 to 4 hours, or until the internal temperature of the bird reaches 180 degrees F (80 degrees C).

Roast Chicken and Vegetables with Almond Pilaf

We have made this recipe from Rachel Ray twice because we love it! It is very simple to make. This last time I added zucchini. Yummy! (Click the title of this post for the recipe.)

Pumpkin

I made my first completely homemade pie a week ago and of course it was pumpkin, but afterwards we decided that we just aren't pumpkin people so now that it is November I will post some of the recipes that we have been trying. But first here is the pie I made. It was the best pumpkin pie I have ever had, but I still don't love pumpkin.

October Pumpkin Dessert Recipes: Pumpkin Blondies

Pumpkin Blondies
Ingredients:
2 cups all-purpose flour (spooned and leveled)
1 tablespoon pumpkin-pie spice
1 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 1/4 cups sugar
1 large egg
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup canned pumpkin puree
1 package (12 ounces) white chocolate chips

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line bottom and sides of a 9-by-13-inch baking pan with foil, leaving an overhang on all sides. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, pie spice, baking soda, and salt; set aside. With an electric mixer, cream butter and sugar on medium-high speed until smooth; beat in egg and vanilla until combined. Beat in pumpkin puree (mixture may appear curdled). Reduce speed to low, and mix in dry ingredients until just combined. Fold in chocolate chips.

Spread batter evenly in prepared pan. Bake until edges begin to pull away from sides of pan and a toothpick inserted in center comes out with just a few moist crumbs attached, 30 to 40 minutes. Cool completely in pan.

Lift cake from pan (using foil as an aid). Peel off foil, and use a serrated knife to cut into squares.

Tips: I used unsalted butter for the first batch because I had brought it. However, I only had salted butter for the second batch. I reduced the salt to about 1/4 tsp and we all agreed that there was no difference between the two.

Recipe from “whats for dinner” blog

October Pumpkin Dessert Recipes: Pumpkin Pie Bars

Pumpkin Pie Bars

INGREDIENTS

1/2 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup rolled oats
2 eggs
3/4 cup white sugar
1 (15 ounce) can pumpkin
1 (12 fluid ounce) can evaporated milk
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2. In a medium bowl, cream together butter and brown sugar. Mix in flour. Fold in oats. Press into a 9x13 inch baking dish.
3. Bake in preheated oven 15 minutes, until set.
4. In a large bowl, beat eggs with white sugar. Beat in pumpkin and evaporated milk. Mix in salt, cinnamon, ginger and cloves. Pour over baked crust.
5. Bake in preheated oven 20 minutes, until set. Let cool before cutting into squares.