A Very Baking Christmas

So the message that I love to bake and need/want baking stuff made a very big impression this Christmas. While not all of my presents were baking related, most of them were. Which made me a very happy camper! In today's post, I'll share the wonderful stuff I was given specifically for the kitchen.

Of course, the very first thing I got were the mixing bowls. Check out the blog post I already made.

Next, I have 2 things I was given that are cooking related instead of baking related.

The big thing is a pressure cooker, from my aunt. The only time I've ever used a pressure cooker was at her house, but I was very impressed with it there. Plus looking at how quick and easy I can make various things, like cooked beans and rice (two things I need to make regularly and hate to do) this may get used quite a bit in my house!

The little red thing is a meat thermometer. Dave got it for me, stating that this might solve my problem of chronically under cooking meat dishes. Before you shake your head at me, please remember that I suck at cooking and rock at baking, OK?

These three are from my in-laws. Dave told my mother-in-law I needed baking stuff and she went a little crazy. She got me a recipe box (that came with recipe cards already, perfect for me to write down my recipes as I make them!), measuring spoons (they are in the middle and a little hard to see, they get lost in the pattern, sorry!), and measuring cups. I really, really needed measuring spoons so I was especially grateful for those. Missing from this picture (not sure I how I managed to miss them) are two sunflower dish towels.

These two come from my grandparents. On the left, we have my yearly gag gift from my grandpa. It's a gingerbread man spatula! It's very cute! The item on the right is a bar cookie baking pan. Dave was happy because now I can make bar cookies that aren't in a square (or rectangle) baking pan that we have to cut.

This is an apple slicer/corer. I used to have a cheap one my mom picked up for me at a flea market and I used it constantly until it literally gave up and broke. So Dave got me a new one this year, that shouldn't have the handles snap in my hands. He knew how much I loved the other and wanted to replace it. This should mean more apple recipes, since I can quickly get them cored and sliced!

The final present is also from Dave. This was my big present and I AM SO HAPPY! I kid you not, the man did an awesome job this year and deserves husband of the year award (sorry ladies, he's all mine, you can't have him). Here's my last present:

Canisters. Yeah, for many people this sounds completely dumb, but this is so perfect for me. Now I have my baking stuff right at hand instead of up in the cupboard. I filled them up this morning and they now hold: white flour, white sugar, brown sugar, wheat flour, baking soda, baking powder and corn starch. The four taller cans also have a metal spoon on the side making it easier to scoop too, instead of searching for a spoon constantly.

While these were by no means the only things I received (thanks Mom for the GPS! We love it!), these are the stuff that you might actually care about. Did you receive any baking-related stuff for Christmas and if so, what?

Peppermint Cheesecake

For Christmas Eve with my family, I made Peppermint Cheesecake. Partially because it's Christmas and partially because I've found cream cheese on such a good sale. They got to be my taste testers today and agreement was that the crust was slightly off (I adjusted the recipe, so it should come out just fine for you) but otherwise, this was delightful. The peppermint is not too strong but it does give it a definite flavor enhancement. It was very rich and I had trouble finishing piece number two simply because of how rich it was. Everyone else stuck with just one piece. Here's a picture of the finished product:

It's hard to see in the picture, but there are pink streaks throughout, thanks to the candy canes I added.

Crust Ingredients:

3 cups crushed Oreo cookies (for an alternative, you can add peppermint Oreos, sold at Christmastime only. I think it will only add a slight peppermint flavor to the crust, but it won't make that much of a difference)
1 cup melted butter

Cheesecake Ingredients:

8 candy canes, crushed (aim for 3/4 cup. For me that was 8 candy canes, but you may have a different amount)
3 8oz boxes of cream cheese, softened
2/3 cup sugar
1 Tablespoon flour
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon peppermint extract
3 eggs
1/3 cup sour cream

To make the crust, crush the Oreo cookies (I found it took me an entire container of Oreo cookies to make enough for the crust). I crushed them using a bag and rolling pin, but if you want to do it another way, you can.

Once crushed, add them to a mixing bowl and combine with the melted butter. When I made the crust I only used 1/2 cup and found the crust not quite right, so add 1 cup. Press this along the bottom of your springform pan.

At this point (say it with me now) TURN THE OVEN ON! 375 degrees for this recipe.

Next is to make the actual cheesecake. You need softened cream cheese. If you forgot to take the cream cheese out of the fridge a few hours before (like I did when I made it), microwave it for 15 to 30 seconds. By the way, did I mention my new mixing bowls are microwave safe? My old ones were not (ask me how I know!) so this made my life a lot easier since I plopped the cream cheese into my large mixing bowl and put the whole thing in the microwave!

The other big thing you need to do before you can really make the cheesecake is to crush the candy canes. I tried a couple different methods, but the most effective thing I found was sticking them in a Ziploc bag and pounding on them with a hammer. It crushed them into lots of little pieces and the only trouble I had was Dave asking why I was using his hammer. Simply dump the pieces into a measuring cup, because you need 3/4 of a cup (or very close to it. Going either over or under slightly is fine).

Once you have softened cream cheese and crushed candy canes, you can make the cheesecake!

Mix the cream cheese with the sugar and flour using your mixer on a low speed. Once thoroughly combined, add the vanilla and peppermint extract and mix well again. Add the eggs, mixing after you add each one, followed by the sour cream. Once you've got the sour cream thoroughly mixed in (and your cheesecake batter looks a bit yellow from the egg yolks), add the crushed candy canes and mix for 30 seconds to a minute on a low speed, enough to mix them in.

Pour the cheesecake batter on top of the crust and bake the whole thing for 45 minutes. Around the 25 minute mark my house started smelling like cheesecake and when it came out at 45 minutes, it looked glorious. Allow the whole thing to cool before serving. If you want, you can chill it. I made mine the night before and allowed it to chill for nearly 24 hours, but that shouldn't be necessary. I would at least make it 6 to 8 hours before eating, though, with chilling time in between.

Like I stated before, my crust came out slightly funny, so watch for that. Otherwise it was rich cheesecake with a great peppermint flavor that didn't overwhelm you (like I worried it might). I also did not having candy cane chunks, even though some of my original pieces were about 1 to 2 inches long (something else I worried about). Instead, it melted and blended in, added pink tinges to the cheesecake.

 Oh, and if you're looking for another good holiday cheesecake recipe, you can always try the Pumpkin Cheesecake I made for Thanksgiving. My grandmother was telling me today that her neighbor (who had a piece) is still raving about it a month later.

Crackled Crescents

Crackled Crescents have been in my family longer than I have. My grandmother makes them every single year. We expect them. So yes, this is definitely a recipe from Cookie Day 2010. According to my grandmother, the recipe originally came from some magazine somewhere, but after all this time, nobody remembers which one and we've never found the recipe anywhere else.

You almost didn't get this and neither did we again. My grandmother's dog grabbed the recipe the other day and nearly destroyed it. Fortunately, we rescued it and are able to provide it to you. Plus, now we have multiple backups of the recipe in case that happens again.

Ingredients:

3 1/2 cups flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 cup margarine, softened
1 8 ounce package cream cheese, softened
2 cups sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/8 teaspoon almond extract
1 cup miniature chocolate chips
Regular sized chocolate chips
Chopped walnuts

Blend flour and baking powder and set aside.

Beat together the margarine and cream cheese until smooth.  Beat in sugar, egg, and extracts until thoroughly blended and light.

Add flour mixture to margarine mixture and thoroughly blend.  Stir in miniature chocolate chips.

Chill several hours or overnight.  Roll into one inch balls, then shape into crescents.  Bake on ungreased baking sheet for 10-12 minutes in 350 oven.

Spread melted regular chocolate chips in half of each cook and top with walnuts

Peanut Butter Chocolate Cookies

Yup, another Cookie Day 2010 recipe. This one is the "easier" version of Buckeyes. To be honest, it's only somewhat easier. It does make a lot fewer cookies and you aren't rolling 400 some odd little balls. This also has a nice crunch that Buckeyes don't have. If you like peanut butter and you like chocolate, you will like these. Yes, you will, I promise!

Ingredients:

1 cup butter, softened
1 1/2 cups peanut butter (I used creamy, but either will work)
1 cup white sugar
1 cup brown sugar, packed
2 eggs
2 1/2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon vanilla
3 bags of chocolate chips, melted (maybe 4, fair warning!)

Mix the butter, peanut butter, white sugar, brown sugar and the eggs together in a large bowl. In a separate bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, and baking soda. Slowly add the flour mix to the sugar mix, mixing as you add it in. Add the vanilla and combine thoroughly. Allow the batter to chill for at least an hour in the fridge.

Bake the cookies at 350 degrees for 10 to 12 minutes. Allow the cookies to cool completely.

Once the cookies are cool, melt the chocolate chips and dip the bottom of the cookies in the melted chocolate. Place the dipped cookies on a cookie sheet covered in parchment paper. Once you have a full cookie sheet, place the whole cookie sheet in the fridge until the chocolate hardens, usually 30 minutes.

Honestly, it's just like Buckeyes. My very first thought when I bit into them was "Oh, it's buckeyes with a crunch" and my family all agreed with me. You can't go wrong with peanut butter and chocolate cookies...

Gingerbread

Another recipe from Cookie Day 2010! This one is the multi-generational cookie recipe. I made the dough, my daughters cut out the shapes and my mom decorated them. Also, my mom had the wonderful patience to help my girls cut out shapes. I don't know if I could have sat there and done it, but she did and did it wonderfully. The girls had an awesome time cutting out cookies with grandma!

Ingredients:

3 3/4 cup flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons ginger
1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon cloves
2/3 cup butter, melted
3/4 cup molasses, room temperature
1/3 cup white sugar
1/3 cup brown sugar, packed
1/4 cup water, room temperature
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Mix flour, baking soda, ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves in a small bowl. In a large bowl, mix butter, molasses, brown sugar, white sugar, water, the egg and vanilla. Once the liquids are thoroughly combined, slowly add the dry ingredients into the liquid ingredients, mixing as you go along. Chill the dough for at least 3 or 4 hours. I chilled for 2 hours, took it out to transfer it to my mom's and when they tried to make cut them out, it didn't work very well. We chilled it for another half an hour to an hour and cut them out again. We chilled the dough in between baking between batches.

Cut out the dough using cookie cutters (we used all sorts of different Christmas designs, but of course men are the most common). Bake at 350 for 10 to 12 minutes. Allow them to cool completely before decorating with icing. We used a white icing along with a red and green gel icing.

Cherry Chocolate Cookies

Day 2 of the Christmas Cookies from 2010. This recipe is one of mine.

I had exactly 2 complaints about this. One, dried cherries cost an arm and a leg and two, dried cherries are a lot bigger than I thought they would be. Other than that, this recipe is very good, especially if you like chocolate (especially dark chocolate). Since I do, I've been working very hard at not eating all of these at once.

Ingredients:

1 cup butter, softened
3/4 cup white sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar, packed
2 eggs
2 cups flour
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 teaspoon almond extract
1 6oz bag dried cherries
1 12oz bag of dark chocolate chips (look for Hershey's or Ghiradelli, both make dark chocolate chips)

Start by heating your oven to 350. Yes, always, always, always preheat your oven!

Cream together the butter and both sugars. Add eggs and beat well. In another bowl, mix flour, cocoa powder and baking soda. Slowly add the flour mixture to the sugar mixture, mixing as you go. Add both vanilla and almond extract and mix well. Finally gently mix in the cherries and chocolate chips.

Plop them down on cookie sheets and bake for 12 to 14 minutes. Mine came out very soft at first, but once they finished setting up, they were wonderful, soft and chewy, lots of chocolate with a wonderful surprise of cherry in it. Trust me, if you like chocolate, this will send you reeling!

Orange Wedding Cookies

Our first recipe from Cookie Day 2010 is from Jandy, also known as She Who Must Be Obeyed. Funny story, by the way. When my sister, the Sardonic Girl, started a blog over a year ago, she asked for names and my mom decided she wanted to be called "She Who Must Be Obeyed." It turns out the name is from a book, but its a book my mom has never read (which is rare. I mean, have you seen her website? She reads everything!). So now I've given my mom a new book on her every growing list (aptly named Mt. Bookpile).

While I give my mom new books to read, she gave me her recipe for Orange Wedding Cookies. It's a variation on the Mexican or Italian Wedding Cookies. I've had some. And by some I mean at least 5 yesterday alone. These are wonderful and very easy to grab and go!

Orange Wedding Cookies:

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups unsalted butter

3/4 cup confectioners’ sugar

Dash salt

1 1/2 cup finely ground almonds or pecans

3 teaspoon orange extract

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 teaspoon grated orange peel

3 cups flour

1/3 cup confectioner's sugar

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees. 

Cream the butter and slowly add in the 3/4 cup confectioner's sugar and salt. Beat the whole thing until it's light and fluffy. Add the nuts, orange extract, vanilla extract and orange peel. Mix well. Gradually add in flour, mixing well.

Take 1 teaspoon of dough each and roll into balls. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, but do not let the cookies brown. Let them cool completely. Roll the cookies in the remaining 1/3 cup confectioner's sugar. 

Cookie Day 2010

This picture is just a sliver of what we did on Saturday. Christmas cookies, christmas cookies, christmas cookies!

Here is what we made:

I made peanut butter-chocolate cookies, chocolate cherry cookies, and gingerbread.

Jandy, my mom, made sugar cookies, pecan tassies, m&m cookies, and orange flavored Mexican wedding cookies.

Marsha, my grandmother, made crackle crescents, cinnamon sledges, and one more (I will get you the title later).

Right now my house is in cookie overload!

The recipes you will be getting over the next few days: all of my recipes, orange flavored Mexican wedding cookies, crackle crescents and cinnamon sledges.  If there are any recipes listed above that I don't post (like pecan tassies), leave me a comment below or send me an email here and I'll let you know where the original recipe came from.

Buckeyes

Every year, for the last 25, my family has gotten together one Saturday in December and made Christmas cookies. It's a tradition I've been a part of for the last 20 years (approximately, it may be closer to 17). This year, our cookie day is tomorrow. My mom, grandma, and I, along with a friend of the family, will be baking probably around a dozen different kinds of cookies.

Over the next few weeks, I'll be sharing the recipes I made along with some family favorites that we make nearly every year. Some recipes get skipped some years for various reasons, but these recipes have been passed down and are almost expected in the Christmas cookie trays.

The first recipe in this group is Buckeyes. Buckeyes are basically chocolate and peanut butter in a ball. Most of the peanut butter is dipped in chocolate, but a small amount on the top isn't. The candy looks very similar to the nut of the Buckeye tree, also called a Buckeye. Fun fact: The Buckeye tree is the state tree of Ohio.

Buckeyes are a family tradition, but they take quite awhile to make and are getting skipped this year (I'm making a cookie based on them, though, so watch for that recipe!). Instead, I'll share the recipe with you and if you want, you can make them.

Oh, next VERY IMPORTANT thing to note: This recipe is supposed to make 36 dozen buckeyes. No, I'm not kidding. That is over 400 little round chocolate and peanut butter balls. Even when we make them anymore, none of us ever make the full recipe. I am giving you the full recipe so that you can either A. Make all 432 buckeyes for your family and friends or B. Can cut down the recipe properly to make a whole lot less.

Ingredients:

1 lb of butter
2 lbs of peanut butter
2 lbs of confectioner's sugar
2 bags of chocolate chips
1 block paraffin (optional)

Yes, I mean lbs and not cups. Please remember, 36 dozen. 36 dozen!

Melt the butter and peanut butter in a saucepan. Once melted, mix with the confectioners sugar and mix and mix and mix and mix and mix until thoroughly incorporated. It will happen, but it will take FOREVER. No, I'm not kidding. Trust me on this!

Melt the chocolate chips and paraffin if you are using it. Note on the paraffin: it doesn't effect the taste, it simply holds the chocolate together better once the buckeyes set. It's not needed, but it makes life easier when you are eating them.

Roll the peanut butter mixture into a ball about 1 inch around. Using a toothpick, dip the ball into the chocolate, covering between 1/2 to 3/4 of the peanut butter ball. Place the ball onto a cookie sheet lined with wax or parchment paper. Repeat until you have the cookie sheet full. Place the cookie sheet in the freezer for up to 2 hours (or outside if the weather is well below freezing. We used to do this when we lived in North East Ohio, it saves freezer space. This doesn't work now, in Southern California.) Repeat this until you have made all of the buckeyes. The chocolate may start to set while you are waiting for available cookie sheets/freezer space. Simply stick it in the microwave for about 15 seconds to remelt it. If it doesn't completely remelt in 15 seconds, stir and microwave for another 15 seconds. Repeat as necessary.

I promise, these taste really good and are worth the time, but this recipe will easily take you all day long. When we made this in previous years, someone always started it first thing in the morning and you knew you'd still be working on it well into the evening.

Pumpkin Cheesecake

Hello all my readers! It's the time of the year when everyone ramps up their baking. Today, I made a bit of a twist on a holiday favorite, pumpkin pie. That's not to say that I didn't make a pumpkin pie for Thanksgiving (I did!) but instead of giving you a recipe for that one, I decided to make a wonderful treat the combines two of my favorites: pumpkin pie and and cheesecake. Yup, pumpkin cheesecake.

Oh, before I go much farther, I do want to give this warning out to everyone. DO NOT BUY PUMPKIN PIE MIX! There is a BIG difference between pureed pumpkin and pumpkin pie mix. If you buy pumpkin pie mix and use it in this, or any of my recipes that call for pumpkin, it will turn out badly. The hard part is that the main company that makes pumpkin labels the two almost identically. The cans come in the same size and the labels are the same color. Watch the wording very carefully to make sure which one you buy.

Crust Ingredients:
2 cups crushed graham crackers
1/3 cup walnuts, finely chopped
1 1/2 Tablespoons sugar
3/4 cup of butter, melted.

Combine all the ingredients and press the whole thing down into the the bottom of your springform pan.

Cheesecake Ingredients:
3 8 oz packages of cream cheese
3/4 cup sugar
1 15 oz can of pureed pumpkin (NOT PUMPKIN PIE MIX)
1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon cloves
3 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla.

Mix the cream cheese with the sugar. Add the pureed pumpkin, cinnamon, ginger and cloves and mix again. Add the eggs and vanilla and mix well. Pour the batter onto the the crust you made.

Bake the whole thing at 375 for 45 minutes. Be careful to 1. Preheat the oven (like always) and 2. Check your temperature! Today, I baked the thing at 325 for an hour, only to realize that  I'd been at the wrong temperature than where I'd wanted to be. I upped it to 350 for another 15 and it came out fine, but it's a lot easier if you just bake it at 375 for 45 minutes!

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins

It's Thanksgiving! Ok, tomorrow is Thanksgiving, but we're close enough. We had a huge Thanksgiving meal last Saturday with my family and combined it with the girls' birthday party. Tomorrow we're having Thanksgiving with Dave's family. For both dinners, we are having this delightful Thanksgiving baked good. It's now a traditional part of my family's Thanksgiving dinner and I want to share it with everyone.

This recipe comes from Jandy. She has an awesome website, Jandy's Reading Room. If you like to read, check out her website. Jandy (which is not her real name, in case you were wondering) happens to be very important to me too. She's my mom! Now, I know I've said all these wonderful things and you're thinking "well of course you'd say that, she's your mom" but I promise you, lots of other people agree with me and many of them aren't related to her. So take some time and check out her website. Also, make the recipe, it's yummy!

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins

Ingredients:
2 eggs
1 cup plain pumpkin puree (half of a 1 pound can. Make sure it's not pumpkin pie mix! They look almost identical!)
1/2 cup butter, melted
1 2/3 cup flour
1 cup sugar
1 Tablespoon pumpkin pie spice
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup chocolate chips (if you make the mini muffin version, use mini chocolate chips)

Heat your oven to 350 degrees.

Get your muffin tins together, either by greasing them or putting in paper baking liners.

I doubled the recipe, so the pictures will show everything at twice what it normally looks like (except the final pic, I only took a picture of one muffin tin). The recipe above is for a single, not a doubled recipe. Remember that!

In a large bowl, combine the eggs, pumpkin and melted butter. Whisk until well blended.

I used my mixer instead of a whisk, but it will still look like this.

Next, add the dry ingredients except the chocolate chips and blend it well. I forgot to take a picture at this stage, sorry!

Add the chocolate chips into the mix and stir them in gently. Like this:

Scoop the batter into the muffin tins.

The cups should be 2/3 to 3/4 of the way full. Bake until springy to the touch. Generally 20 to 25 minutes. Allow them to cool.

While you can eat them right away, these are best if they are stored for a day or two before. You can reheat if needed. We usually make them the day or two before and store in a plastic bag.

Variations! Yes, there are two variations to this recipe!

Mini Muffin Variation: You make them almost the same. The only difference to the recipe is use mini chocolate chips instead of regular chocolate chips. Bake them in mini muffin tins for 17 to 20 minutes. It makes 36 mini muffins.

Non-Chocolate Variation: My family loves the muffins this way too and will be good for those wanting slightly healthier muffins and/or you have someone who doesn't eat chocolate. Follow the recipe, except skip adding the chocolate chips. You can make either the regular or mini muffin version without chocolate chips. It doesn't effect the baking time at all.