Category Archives: Special

Feb 22

A day late for donuts

Hey ya’ll! How is everyone faring out? At this household, everyone is sick in some way. Stomach bug, run away noses and more common cold galore! So as you can figure, not too much baking has been done this week.

Yesterday as we all know was Mardi Gras, Fat Tuesday, whatever you may call it. In this area its known as Fasnacht Day or “Donut Day” to those not PA Dutch. When I was younger, we’d lock our teachers out of the room in the morning. Don’t know if that’s still a tradition or not, it was comical though and kept them on their toes!

Anyway, also for tradition, we bought a “King Cake”. King Cake Article It’s almost like a danish ring covered in icing and sprinkles, along with it comes a “baby Jesus” or some other trinket that you hide inside. Whoever gets the lucky trinket brings the cake next year! When I first asked my husband to get one, he said “What? What about Luke and Jesus?”…So I had to explain it to him. Sigh. After I sent him a picture and description, he successfully brought one home. Along with the baby Jesus trinket.

Just a quick poll here, how many celebrate “Pancake Day”? I have never heard it referred to as that until yesterday!

For dessert last night, we didn’t have the King Cake because I also made some delicious donuts. You’ll be surprised at how simple they really are, but they’re truly pretty good! All you do is take a can of buttermilk biscuits (no butter please!) Cut a hole out of the center (fry up some donut holes!) and wait for the oil to hit 350*. When they puff up and turn golden on one side, flip them. Drain them on a paper towel for a minute or two, then cover them in your preferred sugar. I just used granulated sugar in a ziploc bag, but use what you prefer! I read in the news that a local fire company made 800 dozen donuts (that’s 9,600 if you wanted the tally)! That’s one fried dough and sugar overload there!!!

I hope everyone enjoyed their donuts, pancakes, and other “terrible for you” foods yesterday! And also Mardi Gras, even if you didn’t make it to the Big Easy… =] Have a safe and happy humpday everyone!!!

Again for the “Fast and Easy Donuts”:
1 Can Buttermilk Biscuits
Granulated Sugar
Cinnamon Sugar
Powdered Sugar
Cocoa Powder
Glaze of 10x/Milk

Remove biscuits from tube and lay them on a flat surface. Punch small hole out of the center, reserving dough. Heat oil to 350*. Gently put dough rings (or centers) in oil and fry until golden brown. If they need flipped, do so, (some are pesky and need encouraged to “stay put”). Remove from oil and drain on paper towels. Let cool about a minute or so, place in bowl or bag with desired sugar or toppings and serve!

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Feb 19

As promised…

Here are the pics! They are super cute so lemme know what you think! =]

Recipe and how-to: Here

 

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Feb 16

Photos

Hey guys! I’ll be adding some sweet (no pun intended) red velvet valentine cookie pictures this weekend! I’d do it now but time got away from me and I’ll be losing the net connection I’ve got sooner than I’d like. Plus I’m on hubby’s computer sooo…needless to say, I hate it. I found adorable cookie recipe. I thought about taking the idea and making cheddar cheese “buttons”. At first, that’s what I thought they were! haha.

Peanut Butter Button Cookies
1 Package Peanut Butter Cookie Mix
Ingredients to make: Egg, Water, Oil
Chocolate (if desired)

Mix up the cookie dough (as directed) and roll into small balls.They should fit right inside the top of a 2-liter soft drink bottle cap.

Bake the cookies for about 8-10 minutes at 350 degrees.

As soon as you remove them, use the same bottle cap to press the cookies down forming a raised outer edge.

Use a straw and poke four holes in the center of each cookie. Poke and twist, the circles will fill up the straw leaving a vacant hole.

Let cool, and Done! Eat and Enjoy! =]

*Note* She also dipped hers in chocolate. I’ll do some with and some without because hey, chocolate never hurt!

Like I said, I plan on figuring out a recipe to do cheddar as well. First I’ll try the cheddar dough from to see how that works. If not, I’ve got a husband willing to eat anything! I’ll keep everyone updated!

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Feb 14

02.14.12

Happy Valentine’s Day everyone! First off I’d like to thank my husband, Art, for the wonderful 3 years we’ve been together. Also since he’s a big part of this, he deserves some publicity too haha. So if you still need a quick easy idea for a dessert tonight, how about something fitting like red velvet?

Tonight my sister is having the family up for dinner. She’s providing Lasagne, Mom’s bringing Strawberry Spinach Salad and I was stuck on what to bring. I thought it over and over yesterday. Then I thought why not Red Velvet Cake? Of course I got to thinking more and decided, why not make cookies!? Mom usually makes hers with a box cake mix and even searching, I found “cake mix this, cake mix that”. I got fed up with the laziness so I re-searched with “Red Velvet Cut Out Cookies”. Aha! I got quite a few “from scratch” recipes. I found but didn’t have some of the stuff. Below is my revised edition. I didn’t have buttermilk powder so I just made buttermilk with the vinegar and milk already called for. Also, didn’t have the emulsion so food coloring worked just as good. I’ll be filling them with my Mom’s “cooked icing”. It’s mostly used in whoopie pie cases but I’m excited to try it with these. I plan edging them in sprinkles afterwards. This all would have been done last night, but an emergency trip to the store for my parents side lined that. I’ll get pictures up as soon as I can! Enjoy!

Red Velvet Cut Outs
1 cup unsalted butter
2 cups confectioners sugar
1 egg
2 tsp vanilla extract
1-2 tsp red food coloring
2-3 tbsp milk
1/2 cup Hershey’s Cocoa powder
1/4 cup powdered milk
3 1/4 cups all-purpose flour (I had to use extra-dough got too sticky)
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
splash {about 1/2 a tsp} apple cider vinegar

Instructions

Mix milk and vinegar together. Let sit. Cream together butter and confectioners sugar. Add the egg, vanilla, coloring, and milk and mix well. Start with 2 tablespoons of milk, then add the rest if the dough is a little dry after adding the flour mixture. Sift together the cocoa, powdered milk, flour, baking powder and salt and add to the wet ingredients. The dough should be soft but not sticky. After mixing, let it rest for five to ten minutes, then roll out on parchment paper to 1/4 inch thickness dusting lightly with flour if needed. Cut into desired shapes and bake at 400 degrees for 6-7 minutes. Makes about 3 dozen 3 1/2 inch cookies

*I used a mix of cocoa powder and flour to roll out, less noticeable! Make sure to sift, otherwise you’ll have clumps of cocoa.
*Also, mine only took 5 minutes. Watch carefully!

Cooked Icing
4 tablespoons flour
1 cup milk
2 Sticks Unsalted Butter
1 cup granulated sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

In a saucepan, whisk together flour and milk. Turn heat to medium and cook, whisking constantly, until mixture is thick and creamy. Let it cool completely.
Using your mixer, beat butter and sugar until fluffy. Beat in the vanilla. Beat in the thoroughly cooled flour mixture. Beat and beat until the icing is fluffy and no longer grainy.

Have a safe and Happy Valentine’s with the one(s) you love!!! <3

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Jan 1

Goodbye 2011, Hiatus…

Hi everyone!

Hope everyone had a wonderful holiday. Hanukkah, Christmas, Kwanzaa, whatever you celebrated as well as welcoming in 2012. The brief hiatus was actually due to Cookie Palooza 2011. I’m sorry guys, no excuse! I made well over 15 types of cookies (and STILL doing some!) Along with all the Christmas festivities going on, buying gifts, making gifts, sigh…I got so side tracked, I never got to post a “Happy Holiday” or “Farewell 2011″ post. So let me just say how well Cookie Palooza went on. My first item up was a Chewy Gingerbread Cookie. The recipe makes about 4 dozen and they are so good! The day before, I made up the dough and chilled it. Thursday, I baked them as well as made the dough for my Mom’s “Secret Cookie”. I unfortunately can’t give out that recipe…After that, I did some Candied Walnuts and MORE Cranberry Orange Iced Cookies (Art ate almost ALL the first batch and I only found out as I plated some cookies…) and some Iced Cranberry Orange Oatmeal Cookies. (Can you tell I was in a cranberry mood?) We have a roll out sugar cookie recipe that is a yearly tradition only instead of the milk it calls for, we use orange juice. My Great Uncle was lactose intolerant so my Aunt revised it and it just simply stuck! After they’re baked, we cool them and ice them with colored icing made from 10x, OJ, and food coloring. Adding to the list, I made 3 kinds of fudge, Chocolate, Peanut Butter and Creamsicle. Let me just tell you, SO good! My favorite is always the chocolate but the creamsicle turned out so pretty, swirled to perfection. As for our traditional Christmas get together, I made a delicious Red Velvet Cheesecake. It turned out AMAZING! Just make cake batter as directed (use a box or recipe, doesn’t matter). Divide it into 2 pans (springform are best!) and bake it as directed. Let it cool and make a basic cheesecake (recipe follows cookies). Equally spread on the cakes and bake again for 40-45 minutes at 350* (for light pan, and 300* for dark)-just until set in the center. Chill for 4 hours and enjoy. YUM!

Here are a few recipes to get you started. Hope everyone had a wonderful start to 2012!

Chewy Gingerbread Cookies
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
1 cup packed brown sugar
1 egg
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons molasses
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 1/4 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon kosher (coarse) salt
1 tablespoon ground ginger
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
2 teaspoons ground cloves
1 1/2 teaspoons ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
2/3 cup granulated or coarse sugar

In large bowl, beat butter and brown sugar with electric mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Beat in egg and molasses. Stir in remaining ingredients except granulated sugar. Cover; refrigerate at least 2 hours. (I do overnight)
Heat oven to 350°F. Line cookie sheets with cooking parchment paper or silicone baking mat. In small bowl, place granulated sugar. Shape dough into 1-inch balls; roll in sugar. On cookie sheets, place balls 2 inches apart.
Bake 8 to 10 minutes or just until set and soft in center. Cool 2 minutes; remove from cookie sheets to cooling racks.

Cranberry Oatmeal Cookies

3/4 cup butter or margarine, softened
1 cup packed light brown sugar
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 teaspoons grated orange peel
2 cups quick-cooking oats
1 cup all-purpose flour
2/3 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 cup sweetened dried cranberries

Icing
1 cup powdered sugar
1/4 teaspoon vanilla
3 to 4 teaspoons orange juice

Heat oven to 350°F. In large bowl, beat butter, brown sugar, eggs, vanilla and orange peel with electric mixer on medium speed, or mix with spoon. Stir in remaining cookie ingredients.
On ungreased cookie sheet, drop dough by tablespoonfuls 2 inches apart.
Bake 11 to 14 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from cookie sheet to cooling rack; cool completely, about 15 minutes.
In small bowl, stir powdered sugar, vanilla and enough orange juice until thin enough to drizzle.

Cathedral Cookies *no bake*

1 Stick, Butter
1 (12-ounce) package semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 package colored mini marshmallows

Melt butter and chips in microwave at 50% stirring occasionally until melted. Fold in marshmallows. Divide in half, spread on sheet of wax paper and roll. Repeat. Chill. Removed paper and slice into 1/2″ slices.

Butterscotch Haystacks *no bake*
1 (12 oz) package Butterscotch Chips
3 oz. can Chow Mein Noodles
1/2 C. Peanuts

Melt chips in microwave at 50% stirring occasionally until melted. Mix in noodles and peanuts. Drop by spoonfuls onto wax paper. Cool.

Red Velvet (or any other flavor) Cheesecake

Cake
Use a favorite recipe or box mix and prepare as directed.
Bake 30 minutes at 350* for light pans, 300* for dark

Cheesecake
3 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese , softened
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
3/4 cup sour cream
3 eggs

Beat Cream cheese and sugar, add sour cream and vanilla. Beat in eggs 1 at a time until combined. Spread equally over cakes and bake again for 40-45 minutes or until center is barely set.
Light, 350*
Dark, 300*

Chill. Enjoy!

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