No Bake Christmas Cookies

Today I spent some time making two of my favorite Christmas cookies. I love them because they don't take long to make so they are great for lazy people like myself. If only there were people who would clean up the mess as well. 


The first type is called Stained Glass Cookies. I remember having these as a kid at my Grandmother's cousin's house and for about 15 years I tried to figure out how to make them. Luckily, a coworker named Julie found this recipe online and shared it with me. I recently encountered my Grandmother's cousin and told her about these cookies she made and how much I loved them and tried to find the recipe for so long. She had no idea what I was talking about.

Stained Glass Cookies

Ingredients:


1. 1 Package (10.5 ounces) Mini Marshmallows (Colored is preferred)
2. I Package (12 ounces) Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips
3. 1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
4. 1 Stick of Butter or 1/2 Cup of Butter (or Margarine)


Directions


1. Place Butter and Chocolate Chips in a large bowl and microwave on high for 45 seconds. 
2. Stir and return to microwave for 20 more seconds. Stir again. Repeat this step until chocolate and butter are melted.
3. Add in Vanilla Extract and stir until well blended.
4. Let sit for ten minutes so the chocolate is cool and will not melt the marshmallows.
5. Add in marshmallows and stir until the entire package is well coated.
6. Roll out at least 2ft of Aluminum foil and pour mixture onto the foil. Stretch dough out into a 1 1/2 ft-2ft log.
7. You may coat the mixture with coconut or chopped nuts if you desire.
8. Wrap up tightly. Twist the ends to seal. Refrigerate for at least two hours and then cut into 1/3 inch slices.


The next recipe I got from the Betty Crocker Christmas Cookbook. I love peanut butter so this easy to make No-Bake Peanut Butter Squares seemed perfect. I'm too lazy to type in the recipe from this cookbook but I found a really great one that someone else typed in. This is from the indecisivebaker.blogspot.com. I really love that name because I am indecisive. Also her name is Rebecca too. Coolest lady ever.

No Bake Peanut Butter Treats 

(adapted from busy-at-home.com)

Ingredients:
* 1 cups butter, melted
* 1 1/2 cups peanut butter
* 1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs
* 1 lb. powdered sugar
* 2 cups semisweet chocolate chips
*2 Tablespoons dark chocolate chips
Directions:
Crush graham crackers into crumbs- get out some pent up frustration.(or buy crumbs if you’re feeling ‘zen’)

Melt butter in microwave safe bowl.

Add peanut butter, powdered sugar and graham cracker crumbs to butter and mix well. It will form a soft, moist dough. I used my Kitchen Aid for this - and it was a dream. If you feel like a work out - use a bowl and spoon.

Press the dough into a lightly greased 9x13 parchment lined pan (I LOVE parchment)

In another microwave safe container, melt the semi sweet chocolate chips in the microwave, stirring every 15 seconds until they are completely melted and spreadable.

Spread on top of the peanut butter mixture till smooth. Melt dark chunks in the similar fashion and drizzle on top of the semi sweet. IF you want pretty little bars- score the chocolate now, for easy, no breakage cutting later.

OR (what I would have done if I were thinking clearly about it) use candy molds or mini silicone cupcake molds. They would be utterly adorable and no cutting to worry about.

However you do it, after done spreading chocolate refrigerate until chocolate is set!

Colonial Gingerbread Love

I was a young girl when I had my first taste of Colonial Williamsburg's gingerbread deliciousness. At the time the blessed Colonial women baked them fresh in their old fashioned ovens and then lightly dusted them with some confectionary sugar. Later on I would be devastated to learn from Lauren Burr that now they are prepackaged. This is a travesty to the Colonial times. 


I have done some crazy things to acquire Colonial gingerbread. I have threatened Lauren's boyfriend to bring me some and I have walked through Colonial Williamsburg's back alleys just to sneak into the bake shop without paying admission. This might seem outrageous and ridiculous but the gingerbread at its peak was worth all this trouble.

One day I was wise enough to look up the recipe on the internet so that I could make these cookies whenever I wanted them so I no longer need to stoop to such low levels. For a few years in a row I made this gingerbread recipe around Christmas time. (I think I was in Grad school at the time so it was definitely something better to do than study for finals). I thought it would be easy, but I really have to hand it to the Colonial bakers. Molasses is no joke to bake with. It is SO sticky that it would take me forever to turn this dough into something workable. There were times I wanted to throw the dough out and quit because it was just sticking to my hands, but I persevered and I'm glad I did. That's just who I am, a hard worker who never quits. Haha. Let me know if you can make these better than I can. I'm sure most people are much more capable at it.

Here is the recipe that Colonial Williamsburg posted from the History.org website. 

Gingerbread

Ingredients:

• 1 cup sugar
• 2 teaspoons ginger
• 1 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup melted margarine
• 1/2 cup evaporated milk
• 1 cup unsulfered molasses
• 3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 3/4 teaspoon lemon extract
• 4 cups stone-ground or unbleached flour, unsifted

Instructions: Combine the sugar, ginger, nutmeg, cinnamon, salt, and baking soda. Mix well. Add the melted margarine, evaporated milk and molasses. Add the extracts. Mix well. Add the flour 1 cup at a time, stirring constantly. The dough should be stiff enough to handle without sticking to fingers. Knead the dough for a smoother texture. Add up to ½ cup additional flour if necessary to prevent sticking. When the dough is smooth, roll it out ¼ inch thick on a floured surface and cut it into cookies. Bake on floured or greased cookie sheets in a preheated 375° F oven for 10 to 12 minutes. The gingerbread cookies are done when they spring back when touched.

Of course I believe it is necessary to sprinkle some confectionary sugar on after they come out of the oven. It makes a world of difference and ushers in that lovely Colonial feel. I would have been an awesome 18th Century woman. Well I would have needed a television to fall asleep, but other than that I think the 18th Century rocked.

Grandma's Stuffed Artichoke Recipe

In our family stuffed artichokes are like gold. They are not made frequently, and when they are, it is in limited quantities. My sister and I always loved helping our grandmother make them. She is still the best at it, but we try very hard. Please forgive these directions if they are not very clear or detailed, I wrote most of them out when I was in eighth grade, and gram doesn't always provide specific measurements. She just "knows" what it's supposed to contain. 

Ingredients:


Artichokes
1 Piece of Bread For Each Artichoke (Stale is preferable)
Garlic Powder
Salt, Pepper
Corn Oil
Olives


Directions:


Preparing the Artichokes
1. Tear off small, bottom leaves.
2. Cut off stem from bottom and a 1/2 inch section from the top.
3. Using scissors, clip the points off of the rest of the leaves so they are blunt.
4. With your hands, stretch the middle out so it will be ready to stuff.
5. Repeat for each artichoke.
6. Soak each artichoke in a pan of water along with the stems that were cut off.
7. Boil the artichokes only (not the stems) in the pan of water until they are soft. (about ten minutes). This will reduce cooking time later on.

This is what the artichoke should look like after preparation.

Stuffing
1. Hold italian bread under running water until soaked. Squeeze it out and mush the bread together.
2. Rip the mushed up bread into smaller pieces and place in bowl.
3. Add and crush 8-10 olives.
4. Put in "tons" (Grandma was never good with exact measurements) of garlic until it "smells right."
5. Add salt, pepper, and oil to the mix so it is moist.
6. Cut the stems from the artichoke so that the outside skin is off. The remainer of the stem should be white. Chop this into small pieces and add into the bread mix.
7. Mush everything together with your fingers, adding in more oil if the stuffing is not sticking together well.


Preparing the Artichokes and Cooking
1. Line artichokes out to dry.
2. Start off by stuffing the middle of the artichoke. Really squeeze the bread down and place an oilve on top.
3. Stuff most of the top and middle leaves.
4. Line a pan with salt, pepper, and garlic. Add 2mL of water and about 2mL of oil.
5. Cover artichokes and cook them on medium heat until boiling. Switch to low heat and cook for an hour or two (it really varies) while basting with the juice from the pan every ten minutes.
6. Artichoke leaves should taste soft when cooked.

The finished product.

Non-Dairy Eggnog Latte

I'm really a tea girl and I actually NEVER drink coffee (except for when I was addicted to iced coffee for two weeks two years ago),  but Nestle Coffee Mate's large selection of holiday creamers really got me thinking that I could be missing out. I was on the lookout for dairy free egg nog but Soy Nog tastes disgusting to me. I like the package so I want it to taste good, but it always lets me down. Instead, I purchased the Coffee-Mate's Eggnog Latte Flavor Coffee Creamer (which is dairy free). I may never use this. I don't know if it would be gross to put in tea but I found a recipe on their website for an Eggnog latte, which easily could be adapted to a dairy free version if you add a dairy free milk. 

Eggnog Latte

Yield: 1

Ingredients:

1/2 cup milk (You can use soy or almond if you prefer)

1/3 cup double-strength hot brewed coffee (Not sure what this means)

3 tablespoons Eggnog Latte Flavor NESTLÉ COFFEE-MATE Liquid Coffee Creamer 

Ground nutmeg 

Instructions:

PLACE milk in small saucepan. Cook over medium heat, whisking constantly to create foam, until milk is hot. Using large spoon to hold back foam, pour milk into a mug. Stir in coffee and Coffee-mate. Top with foam and sprinkle of nutmeg.

I'm thinking this latte is either REALLY good or REALLY disgusting. I hope someone else tries it out for me and lets me know. :)

This post was almost complete until I JUST found this website (cocktailswithmom.com which might be the coolest website ever. Wish I could follow them on twitter.) with these amazing cocktails made using holiday coffee creamers. I'm definitely thinking about how bad I wish I had bought the Gingerbread creamer instead so I could make that Gingerbread Martini (Too soon??). 

Spiked Coffee Nog

1-1/2 cups Hot brewed coffee

· 1/3 cup Coffee-mate Eggnog Latte

· 2 oz. Spiced rum

· Whipped creamGround nutmeg

-Divide coffee, Coffee-mate and rum between two mugs. Top each with whipped cream and sprinkle of nutmeg.

 Gingerbread Martini:

 · 1-1/2 oz. DiVine Vodka

· 1/2 oz. Brandy

· 2 oz. Coffee-mate Gingerbread Latte

· Cinnamon to garnish

-Shake all ingredients together with ice in a shaker and strain into chilled martini glass. Garnish with cinnamon.

Limoncello

The other night my newly alcohol-loving mom, Carol, went to her friend's house to learn the art of making limoncello. She has generously shared her experiences and recipe with us below. 


Ingredients:
1.) One 1L bottle of grain alcohol. 
2.) 12 lemons with good peels (No pits or dark spots)


Directions:
1.) Pour the alcohol into a large glass jar.
2.) Grate the lemons and put the peels into the alcohol. AVOID the pith of the lemon (the white part underneath) because this will make it bitter.
3.) Let it stand for at LEAST a month. The longer it sits, the better it will taste.
4.) When it is done resting (after a month's time) strain the alcohol with a small-mesh strainer.
5.) Mix four cups of sugar to 2L of water. Boil that down on the stove to make a simple sugar. 
5.) Once the sugar solution is totally cooled, combine with the alcohol and lemons and freeze.


Random Asides:
* I can't wait to try this. I bet it will be delicious for the holidays.
* I bet my boyfriend wishes he was limoncello and could rest for a month.


Other Uses for Limoncello:
* Spiking lemonade, flavoring cocktails, and splashing on ice cream, poundcake, or fresh fruit. 
* Below is a recipe for Limoncello Cake from www.inside-sonoma.com.  

LIMONCELLO CAKE

From Tanya Baker of Baker’s Kitchen, Sonoma

2 sticks unsalted butter

2 cups sugar

3 eggs

3 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup buttermilk

3 Tablespoons grated lemon zest

2 Tablespoons fresh lemon juice

½ cup  Limoncello 

Preheat oven to 325. Grease a 10″ tube (bundt) pan. Cream butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs, one at a time. Sift together flour, baking soda and salt. Add to the batter alternately with buttermilk. Add lemon zest and juice. Spread batter evenly in pan, tap to release air bubbles.

Bake for about an hour, checking at 50 min. Toothpick should come out clean when inserted in center.

Cool cake in pan 10 min. Drizzle with  Limoncello and cool another 10 min. Remove cake from pan. Serve with fresh berries and whip cream.

A Healthy Pasta Idea

I love to indulge in a nice pasta meal every so often, but I realize that it's not always the healthiest thing in the world. I noticed that it's usually easy for me to consume a lot of pasta and not be full at all. Therefore, now I usually add an eggplant to my pasta dish. It's very simple and inexpensive to do:

1. First I wash and then cut an eggplant into 1/4 inch thick quarter moon pieces.

2. Lightly season the eggplant pieces with salt and pepper

3. Lightly drizzle a large sautee pan with olive oil

4. Sautee the eggplant on high heat for about eight to ten minutes, stirring on occasion to make sure both sides are thoroughly cooked. 

5. When plating I put some pasta, a large scoop of eggplant, followed by marinara sauce. (You could also add a small portion of mozzarella cheese. I bet that would taste really good).

This technique cuts the portion of pasta I eat in half to reduce the amount of starches I eat. Eggplant is a great vegetable because it has a lot of fiber, potassium and other vitamins and minerals. It also contains phytonutrients, many of which have antioxidant activity. I love eggplant parm, but that has a lot of fat because the eggplant is fried, and you also don't get as much eggplant because you are busy eating the batter (although it is delicious). So when I feel like a healthier, faster alternative, I turn to this.