Pin It
Spritz Cookies
Oh Christmas cookies, let me count the ways I love thee!!! I especially love Spritz Cookies, my mom would always make these every Christmas, by the pounds; I remember coming home from school and I could smell the hint of almond in the house, I knew heaven was waiting within my grimy little hands! Spritz cookies just remind of my mom, and childhood, there is nothing better to stir up a memory then food. So this year I decided to make some myself and share my little piece of heaven with a few of my friends.
I did however find, you do need a Spritz cookie press...which I don't own and I had to one borrow from my mom, so I need to get one of my very own. Her cookie press was made circa 1973 and is electric, but man it works like a champ, SERIOUSLY!! There is a little bit of a learning curve with the press, so the first few got tossed back into the batter, or in my case, my husband tossed them in his mouth, so no cookies were wasted in the making of these tasty treats. Just make sure and press down on the pan, make them often, share with your friends because with a double batch I made about 100 cookies! Happy Holidays and Happy Baking, Natalie
Ingredients:Adapted from Betty Crocker's Cookie Book
-3/4 cup sugar
-1 cup butter softened
-2 1/4 cup Pamela's Bread Flour
-1/8 tsp salt (or none, I prefer none)
-1/4 tsp Pure Almond extract
-1 large egg
-whatever food coloring you would like for each batch, and colored sugar.
How to-
-Mix together the butter and the sugar until fluffy.
-Next add salt, almond, egg and mix, scape down the sides.
-Now add the flour and food coloring and mix until incorporated well.
-Then load up your cookie press and go to town.
Bake at 375 degrees for 8 min, if you want them crispy bake for 10. Do not spray the pan or the cookies will not stick on the pan when you press them on, there is plenty of butter in the recipe, it won't stick. Cool for a couple of minutes and eat baby eat!
I dare you to try and eat just one, my son and nephew probably had 25 a piece! Then they asked if they were Gluten Free! Yesss!
Pin It
Mint Truffles
I have been dying to have some truffles, store bought ones honestly. Every time I walk into Costco, I just drool over all of the candy they have in all the fancy boxes and bags; then I pick them up and read the ingredients and start muttering Grinch type curses!!! This happens every time I walk into candy stores, or pretty much anywhere right now.....I love Chocolate and I can't figure out why "they" the makers of all these fun treats insist on putting Gluten in all of them!
Well, now that I'm through whining, I made my own SPECIAL chocolate treat, and I will say these are FANTASTIC and you could use this Truffle as a base and do whatever you would like with it, the options are innumerable, I am just really boring and my husband is even worse( he wouldn't even try one of these) he's a chocolate purist! So my thought for the day is, when you are having a lemony attitude, take the time to turn it into Lemonade! Happy Baking, Natalie
Ingredients:
Recipe adapted from-Kitchen Deconstructed
-1 cup heavy cream
-2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
-6 TBS butter cut up
-1/8- 1/4 tsp pure mint extract
(or whatever flavoring you would like)
-4 TBS unsweetened cocoa (to coat the Truffles in if you would like)
5-gloves(it's messy)
Here are a few other things you can put in or on your truffles- dip them in chocolate, nuts, coconut, powdered sugar, crushed candy canes, liquor flavors,mini chips, pretty much whatever else you can think of.
Putting Together:
1-Find a nice glass bowl or a medium sized pan(I used a bowl, I was feeling lazy) add the heavy cream or whipped cream, they work just the same, next add the butter.
2-Place in the microwave on high for 2 minutes, it will bubble a little. Take it out, add the chocolate chips, but don't stir them, just let them rest for 2-3 minutes and then whisk it together. It will take a minute or two!
3-Place this in your fridge or freezer now until it is thickish and you can roll it into balls. (25-30 minutes) If you have one of those cookie scoops( the little ones) use it. I however do not.
4-I used waxed paper on a cookie sheet and a tea spoon and scooped it out, it made 25 lumps, I let them chill for another 30 minutes in my freezer.
5-Put your gloves on and roll those babies into balls, then roll them in the cocoa, and Viola' you have made melt in your mouth Truffles!!!
These are so rich, delicious and they melt in your mouth! They would make a Wonderful Christmas gift!
Here are a couple of my favorite things: Heavy Whipping Cream and Heavy Cream, they make any frosting taste creamier and chocolate smoother. They can be use in so many ways,for so many things! I could only find pictures of Whipping Cream, but there is just Heavy Cream if you prefer.
Pin It
Chocolate Pumpkin Cupcakes
I found this recipe a while back when I was looking for a way to use a half empty can of Pumpkin. I am always looking for recipes that I can make into cupcakes, I love cupcakes; who doesn't love a portable treat!? The original recipe is from the blog I Am Baker, and her pictures are really fancy and professional (maybe someday). The hair I do for people looks like her pictures, so at least one thing I do looks professional and FANCY!!
OK, so on to the cupcakes, my son claims he doesn't like anything Pumpkin, but loves chocolate; so this was the way for me to sneak in Pumpkin and not tell him. These cupcakes were are HIT, my son couldn't keep his hands off of them, and he said it was the Best Pumpkin he's ever eaten!! So for all the Pumpkin haters out there, these are soooo good, you can't say you hate all Pumpkin! Honestly, how can you go wrong with Chocolate and Pumpkin? Try them, I think you will love them. Happy Baking,Natalie
I've done an update on this for those who can not eat dairy, I hope this helps out during the Holiday Season.
Ingredients:
Adapted from I am Baker
-1 cup brown sugar
-1 cup granulated sugar
-1/2 cup buttermilk
-1 cup canned pumpkin
-1tsp pure vanilla extract
-3/4cup oil
-4 large eggs
-1 3/4 cups Pamela's Bread flour mix
-2/3 cup unsweetened cocoa( I use the dark)
- 1 tsp baking powder
-2 tsp baking soda
-1/4 tsp salt
-1cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
Heat your oven to 350 degrees-
-I used a 1/4 cup measuring cup to fill the cups, (DO NOT OVER FILL, THEY WILL BE TOO BIG) it made 26-32
-Bake for 20-23 min, or until you check with a toothpick and it comes out clean.
Directions:
-Add your oil and sugars together, mix together.
-Then add the pumpkin, buttermilk and vanilla, then mix until they are combined, make sure and scrape the sides down.
-In another bowl combine the flour, cocoa, baking powder, soda and salt. Then alternate adding flour and eggs, mix and end on flour.
-Make sure all the ingredients are combined, scrape the sides down, and mix all together about 1-2 min on low.
-I used a 1/4 cup measuring cup to fill the cups, (DO NOT OVER FILL, THEY WILL BE TOO BIG) it made 26-32
-Bake for 20-23 min, or until you check with a toothpick and it comes out clean.
You can use the cream cheese frosting like I did, or chocolate, you really can't go wrong with these.
These are a few of my FAVORITE things:
America Color Food Gels, they are so amazing, they make the the colors of frosting and cake colors so true and bright! It it is so much better then the runny food coloring, and it comes in so many more colors.
-1/4 tsp Pure Almond extract
-Mix together the butter and the sugar until fluffy.
