Day 4 of 12 - Christmas Cookies

Okay, I'm cheating here a little bit. Just a little. This is borrowed from an earlier post...but used a different way. So, hoping that you won't be too upset with me and will let it count!

I tried, in vain, several ways to make these "cut out" cookies, but the dough was too soft, and was having no parts of being cut in any way. It much preferred being rolled into little balls and baked. :) Well worth it. The kids and I still had a blast frosting and decorating them today. Christmas memories, that's all I really care about. 20 years from now, they are not going to remember that these cookies were just circles. They'll remember Mom was with them, we did something fun together, and that they loved the cookies when they were done. I'll remember that I had moments with the 3 greatest gifts I've ever received. My children.


Christmas Cookies

1 Box Baker's Corner White Cake Mix (.89)
2 Eggs (.11/ea)
1/3 Cup Oil (.20 - sells for 2.29/quart)
1 container White Frosting (1.19)
1 container baker's Corner Holiday Sprinkles ($2.99 for a 6 way canister - but you use VERY little)

Preheat oven to 375.

Mix cake mix, eggs and oil together with an electric mixer. Mix well. Shape into 3/4" balls and place about 2" apart on a cookie sheet. Bake for 6 to 8 minutes or until they are puffed and golden.

Allow to cool completely.

In a microwave safe bowl, melt about half of the frosting. Gently spoon about a teaspoon and spread around on the top of each cookie. Immediately after, add sprinkles. When the frosting runs low, warm up the other half.

They taste DELICIOUS. And if you want an easy way of making Snickerdoodles, skip the frosting all together, but roll in cinnamon sugar before baking.

Day 3 of 12 - Cranberry Pecan Bark

I've been experimenting with candies this year (can you tell???), so I thought about what I'm going to give friends and such. I usually give some sort of food gift. I also make a cookie tray for my husband's work, and his cigar shop buddies. I thought it'd be fun to decorate with some homemade candies too.

This was a "using up" of ingredients I've used in other recipes (or will use, as we get closer to Christmas, I'll post my Cranberry Sausage Stuffing....so I'm saving some of the dried cranberries for that!).

This is an adaptation of an Ina Garten aka Barefoot Contessa recipe, using only Aldi ingredients of course!

Once broken in bits, it would looks so nice in a little candy box...

Cranberry Pecan Bark

4 bricks Baker's Corner White Almond Bark (.80)
2 Tbs. Southern Grove Chopped Pecans (.50)
2 Tbs. Southern Grove Dried Cranberries (.50)
1 brick Baker's Corner Chocolate Almond Bark (.20)

Chop white almond bark into small pieces, melt the in microwave in 30 second intervals until smooth and melted (stirring after each break). Pour chocolate onto wax paper lined cookie sheet and spread out to about 8 X 10 rectangle. Immediately sprinkle chopped pecans and dried cranberries on top.

In a separate microwave safe bowl, melt the 1 brick of chocolate almond bark the same way you did the other. Drizzle over the white bark.

Allow to set before breaking into bite sized pieces.

Day 2 of 12 - Grandma Normie's Apple Cake

(day late, dollar short - tomorrow I should have TWO recipes for you!)

Well, the holidays are fast approaching, and the household is buzzing. The tree is up (and even decorated!), the lights are outside, the stockings are hung over the fireplace, the Nativity is on the mantle. The countdown begins!

I love how Aldi obliges this time of year and gathers together the greatest, yummiest and easiest ingredients to make super cookies and confections! I had a hard time containing myself on my last shopping trip!!!! All the types of chips and chocolates and nuts and dried fruits, oh my.

One of my favorite memories of Christmas is baking cookies in my Grandmother's kitchen. Christmas began and Grandmom's and ended at Grandmom's. Christmas Eve started at church where I sung the Christmas Carols in the children's choir, then it was off to the nursing homes in the area to sing and bring cheer, then back to church for the midnight services. We were always allowed to open one gift on Christmas Eve, and it was always our ornament from Grandmom. She was always so good at picking something that really represented that year. Then we'd vainly tried to sleep while waiting for the sounds of Santa and his sleigh on the roof. I always fell asleep before I heard a thing. Grandmom would get up Christmas morning before we did - I always suspected that she loved the magic of Christmas morning even more than we did, we weren't allowed down the stairs unless the tree was lit, and the smell of coffee and breakfast was filling the air. And she was always downstairs at the crack of dawn, donned in her apron slaving over the bird.

This year is very bittersweet for me as we moved my Grandmom into an assisted living facility in April. She turned 87 this year in July. The transformation in her countenance since moving in there is remarkable. She is colorful and full of life again, she's even flirting with the gents. The only thing she misses, she says, is her kitchen.

My grandmother's kitchen was a magical place at Christmas time. I can still smell the burning oil of the motor and the bakealite cord of her Kenmore mixer, I can still hear it whirring away while creaming the butter and the sugar (a crucial step in most holiday baking!) Of course we made Chocolate Chip. Gotta be honest, I don't remember making any other cookie!!! I'm sure that we did, because it is hard for me to believe that my Grandmom with her many talents was a one-trick pony. But, I can't bake or eat a chocolate chip cookie without thinking of her. And well, we also need to face the fact that Aldi's got a pretty darned good recipe for these on the back of their chocolate chip bag, so it'd be kinda pointless to do a chocolate chip. So, the other thing I always remember making was the apple cake. Hours slaving over peeling apples are another memory of the kitchen. She sang the whole time. I believe that we baked at least a dozen of these leading up to Christmas Eve, possibly even more. It was a tradition that my mother kept up, and now, in her passing, my stepfather. Dense, rich, chewy, appley, delicious. It calls out to be eaten with tea, or coffee (sorry, can't stomach the stuff!), or even hot chocolate. We always called it "Jewish Apple Cake", but I'm not even sure why, and Gram can't remember either (well, she IS 87).

Grammy - this one's for you, I love you. Merry Christmas.

Grandma Normie's Apple Cake

3 Cups Grandma's Best Flour
2 Cups Baker's Corner Sugar
1 Tbs. Baker's Corner baking powder
1 tsp. Sebree Salt
1/4 Cup Happy Valley Orange Juice
4 Golden Hen Eggs
1 Cup Carlini Vegetable Oil
2 1/2 Tbs. Baker's Corner Vanilla

Apples:
5 medium to large apples
1/2 Cup Bakers Corner Sugar
2 tsp to 1 tbs Spice Club Cinnamon (or to YOUR taste)

Preheat oven to 375.

Peel, core and slice apples into sections - should get 12 sections per apple. Cover with sugar and cinnamon and marinate while preparing the rest of the ingredients.

In a large bowl combine dry ingredients. Add eggs, orange juice, oil and vanilla and mix well. If too dry, add more orange juice. The batter will be very thick...but you should be able to stir it!

Prepare a 10" Tube pan by buttering & flouring the sides (or using the Carlini baking spray which has both oil & flour already).

Pour about half of the batter into the prepared tube pan and top with about half of the apples, add remaining batter, add the rest of apples (if it looks like there's too many apples, you can hold some back....I prefer it with SOME apples, but not overflowing - my mom used to us 7 or 8 apples and you barely had enough cake to hold it together! but that's how she liked it! - my version is more to my Grandmother's actual recipe).

Bake for 2 hours. After about 1 hour to 1 1/2 hours, make sure to loosely cover top with foil so that the top does not burn.

Remove from tube after about 10 minutes. You can leave on the base until ready to serve.

It is best enjoyed with tea or coffee.

Day 1 of 12 - Mock Turtles

The official kick off of 12 Days of Christmas Recipes begins today. It had to begin with a favorite of mine, it just had too. :)

I've been trying to find a way to Aldify this recipe for about a year now. I think I've done it, but I've called it Mock Turtles instead of Turtles, because, well....you'll see!!!

They're a little gooey, a little sweet, a little crunchy and a little salty. They are also, a little messy since the chocolate covered caramels available at Aldi have a slightly creamier caramel than a Rolo would. :) But...even though they are a little messy, they are well worth the time, effort, and wait for cool down.

Even though I used the paper mini-cupcake liners, I recommend using the tin-foil ones...I believe they will release more easily, and the oils won't soak into the paper.

Mock Turtles

24 Clancy's Mini Pretzels (.10)
24 Chocisserie Chocolate Covered Caramels (2.49 for bag of about 35 - so I'm going to say 2.00)
24 Pecan Halves (2.49/bag right now! - and you only use about half - so 1.25)

Preheat oven to 275.

Line a mini-muffin pan with foil mini-muffin cups. Break a pretzel up into the bottom of each cup. Unwrap and place a chocolate covered caramel over pretzels.

Place in oven for 5-7 minutes - or until the caramels seem glossy and oozy. (that's a culinary term!)

Remove from oven and immediately press one pecan half in each cup over the melty caramel. Let cool approximately 24 hours before attempting to eat! I swear! You'll be in for a mess if you try any sooner. :)

They work out to be about .14 each - which, again, is still cheaper than Godiva

P.S. Packaged in a pretty box or bag, these make wonderful gifts!

Chocolate Cheesecake Truffles

I am a part of an online Homeschooling community. This year we decided to host a virtual cookie exchange. Each mom is adding a tried and true holiday recipe. This one was added by MamaKittyCat. Hers were officially titled "Oreo or Nutter Butter Truffles". And while they are very truffle like, I used neither Oreos or Nutter Butters (partly because I refuse to pay full price for something I can get cheaper at Aldi!!!).

I retitled them after tasting, and my kids agreed, they have much more of a Cheesecake taste. I decided then not to name them after the cookie used, but after what they tasted most like. :) Feel free to substitute the cookie with a preferred creme cookie of your choice (make sure to only use about a lb of cookies, though so that you get the right texture for the inside). I would very much like to try these with a peanut butter creme cookie....I might do that soon!!!

Cheesecake Truffles

8 oz Happy Valley Cream Cheese (.89)
Benton's Duplex Sandwich Creme Cookies (1.49)
Baker's Corner Almond Bark (1.99) (I used both white and chocolate - these are only available this time of year)

Remove 14 cookies from the package and eat like a piggie (no, seriously, set aside to eat another time...you only need about a lb of the cookies).

In a food processor, pulse cookie in batches into fine crumbs.

Combine cooking crumbs and softened cream cheese until very smooth. (I used my KitchenAid Mixer on 4 until it was a very thick, smooth batter).

Roll into about 3/4 to 1" balls.

Melt 4 bricks of your choice of almond bark coating. (I used 4 bricks of chocolate, and 4 bricks of white in separate bowls). You will have a lot of leftover chocolate bark to use for other projects - some will be forthcoming on this blog! :)

Roll the truffles in the melted coating and set on a wax paper lined cookie sheet until the chocolate sets. We also sprinkled a little bit of sprinkles on some, and on others I dipped in the chocolate and then drizzled the white bark over top.

This makes about 48-60 truffles depending on size.

Due to the fact that you have cream cheese in them, I do recommend refrigerating. Oh...and btw...they cost about 6 cents each - so - a lot cheaper than Godiva (and better tasting in my opinion!!!).

Coming soon....

....I'll be counting down the last 12 days to Christmas with recipe each day for holiday enjoyment!

Each one will be a memory, old and new.

Whether you celebrate Christmas, Hannukah (which by the way I hope you're enjoying!), or Kwanzaa....I hope you tune in for the treats!

Pumpkin Muffins

I absolutely love this time of year. The crunch of the leaves in fall, the colors, the anticipation of the coming season. I know for many, Christmas is their favorite holiday. I can honestly say that, for me, Thanksgiving is even greater.

We have a tradition where we travel to Michigan to visit my husband's stepmother. The past couple years, instead of cooking, we've gone to the Thomas Edison Inn for dinner. It's so nice, to have some one else cook, have some one else clean, and just to be able to focus on the ones you love. As much as I was just a little worried about it the first year, I'm so grateful that it's become our tradition. So relaxing and fun. I also love the 2nd day, Black Friday to most of you nuts. To us, it's Frankenmuth day. For those of you who are not from, near, or have never been to Michigan, Frankenmuth is Michigan's Little Bavaria. It is like stepping into a German town. All buildings have the Bavarian architecture, most of the waiters and waitresses in the restaurants wear laderhosen (sorry if I butchered that). And, well, it's just a wonderful day. Our stops include Bronner's, the worlds largest Christmas store (picture 3 Home Depots); The Cheese Haus; and The Bavarian Inn, where we gorge ourselves on the best chicken dinner available in the world! We also manage to take a horse drawn carriage ride around the city every year. And if we time it right, we drive through the town just after they've lit the lights for Christmas. And lets just say, they go ALL OUT. Sigh. We leave next week. And I'm so excited.

Another great thing about this time of year is that Aldi starts to stock their shelves to the gills with all the holiday necessities! Canned Pumpkin, Whole Cranberry Sauce, French Fried Onions, Turkeys, Hams and the like. All at wonderful prices. They also have special treats, giftables and toys at very reasonable prices. I try to stock up on things I know I'll use all year long.

Okay, back to the muffins. As I sit here typing, they are baking in the oven. My house smells like pumpkins. It smells like Thanksgiving. It takes me to the people I love, and the places I love to be. I hope it does the same for you, no matter where you are. I really wish you could smell my house right now.

To give credit where credit is due, this is NOT my personal recipe. It was given to me from a friend on a homeschooling forum named "Monkey Mama". It's actually a pumpkin bread recipe that I adapted to muffins so that it'd be easier to take on our road trip.


Pumpkin Muffins

5 Golden Hen Eggs (.89/dozen this week! so... .37)
1 1/4 Cups Carlini Canola Oil (.72)
1 15 oz Can of Baker's Corner Pumpkin (.79)
2 Cups Grandma's Best Flour (.50)
2 Cups Baker's Corner Sugar (.50)
1 tsp. Baker's Corner Baking Soda (.05)
2 tsp. Spice Club Cinnamon (.03)
1/2 Tsp Sebree Salt (.01)
2 3oz packages of Baker's Corner Vanilla Pudding (.75)

Preheat oven to 325.

In a large bowl, beat the eggs. Add oil and pumpkin. Beat until smooth. Combine remaining ingredients in a separate bowl and mix well. Gradually beat into the pumpkin mixture.

Pour into prepared muffin pans (you can either spray well or use muffin liners, I use the liners! Makes travel easier!).

Bake for approximately 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

This makes approximately 30 muffins at .13 each! :) ENJOY. They're fairly sweet, but if you like a little frosting, you could melt about 2 tablespoons of the Baker's Corner Vanilla Frosting in the microwave and drizzle over top. :)

BTW...they freeze and travel very well! :)