Cream Puffs

I know these look intimidating but they really aren't that hard to make, and they taste so good fresh. For an even easier finish just dust them with icing sugar or leave off the garnish altogether. 

 

Cream Puffs

1 c. boiling water
1/2 c. margarine
1/4 tsp. salt
1 c. flour
4 eggs
whipped cream

Combine water, margarine and salt in a medium saucepan, stir to melt margarine and bring to a boil. Add flour all at once and stir vigorously until it forms a ball and pulls away from the sides of the pan. Remove from heat. Add eggs, one at a time, beating thoroughly after each is added. Drop by spoonful's onto greased baking sheet (leave room for them to expand). Bake at 425 for 30 minutes. (They should look dry) When cool you can either pipe whipping cream into each puff or cut off the tops and fill with whipping cream.
To garnish: you can melt chocolate in microwave and drizzle on top, dust with icing sugar or enjoy them as they are.

Christmas 2013

Wishing everyone a Merry Christmas with their family and friends, and all the

Lords Blessings in 2014.

 

Links to my Christmas baking and appetizers:

Creamy Christmas Truffles
Candy Cane Cookies
Chocolate Filled Shortbread
Molasses-Spice Cookies
Cranberry Bliss Bars
Oatmeal Shortbread
Aunt Roses Fantastic Butter Toffee
Mixed Nut Bars

Puff Pastry Sausage Rolls
Mexican Spirals
Mushroom Turnovers

Aunt Rose's Fantastic Butter Toffee

This is my absolute favorite holiday candy! It is so addictive, I'll even go to the bottom of my freezer to have a piece. It's not hard to make, and people will be asking you for more (if you decide to share it :))

Aunt Rose's Fantastic Butter Toffee
adapted from taste of home

1 1/2 c. sliced almonds
200 g. milk chocolate (I get 2 bars of Co-op Fine Swiss Chocolate)
1 c. unsalted butter
1 c. sugar
3 Tbsp. cold water

Toast almonds in 350 oven for  5-10 minutes, shaking pan occasionally and watching closely till they just start to golden. Can give the nuts a rough chop if you like, I usually just leave them as is. Grind chocolate in a food processor until fine (I grate my chocolate bars, with my cheese grater). Sprinkle 1 c. nuts over the bottom of a well greased (or parchment-lined) jelly roll pan (large cookie sheet). Sprinkle 1 c. of ground chocolate over the nuts and set aside. In a heavy saucepan, combine butter, sugar and water, cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally until the mixture reaches 280-290 (soft-crack stage), I stop at 280 otherwise I find it hard to pour. Very quickly pour mixture over nuts and chocolate. Sprinkle with remaining chocolate and the remaining nuts. Chill and break into pieces.

Oatmeal Shortbread

These are a bit different than your traditional holiday shortbread, but are easy and quick to make. (I think they are just as addictive without the chocolate tips!)

 

Oatmeal Shortbread

1 1/3 c. flour
2/3 c. oatmeal
1 c. butter, softened
2/3 c. brown sugar
2/3 c. fine unsweetened coconut (I've used sweetened too)

Mix dry ingredients and then work in the butter until dough comes together. Roll out on a floured surface into a rectangle 1/4-inch thick. Cut into 1/2 x 2 inch rectangles, and transfer to ungreased cookie sheets. Bake at 275 for 20 minutes (until cookies are set). Let cool.

Chocolate tips: Slowly melt 1 c. semi-sweet chocolate chips with 3 Tbsp. milk or cream over low heat, stirring until smooth. Dip each cookie so about 1/4 of the cookie is chocolate covered, and let cool on waxed paper until chocolate is set (the fridge works best).

Cranberry Bliss Bar

This was a new recipe this year (I've seen some of you have pinned it too), that will definitely become a holiday tradition around here! I love the combination of warm ginger, cranberries and white chocolate, add some icing and how could you go wrong? Lyndon said, I have to save the whole batch for him, no sharing these bars ;)

 

Cranberry Bliss Bars

1 c. butter, softened
3/4 c. brown sugar
1/2 c. granulated sugar
3 eggs
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla
1 tsp. ginger
1/4 tsp. salt
1 1/2 c. flour
3/4 c. dried cranberries, diced
6 oz. white chocolate, cut into chunks (I used the wafers you find in the bulk section and put them through my food processor for a few seconds)

Cream together butter and sugars until smooth. Add eggs, vanilla, ginger and salt, beat well. Gradually mix in the flour until smooth. Stir in cranberries and chocolate. Spread evenly into a well-greased 9x13 and bake at 350 for 35 minutes (until lightly browned at the edges). Allow to cool then ice:

4 oz. cream cheese (half a brick)
3 c. icing sugar
4 tsp. lemon juice
1/2 tsp. vanilla
1/4 c. dried cranberries, diced

Cream cream cheese, icing sugar, lemon juice and vanilla until smooth. Frost cooled cake and sprinkle with cranberries. Then drizzle with glaze:

1/2 c. icing sugar
1 Tbsp. milk
2 tsp. shortening

Whisk together glaze ingredients and drizzle over cranberries. I found the easiest way to do this was to put the glaze in a sandwich bag and cut the corner off, then drizzle over the cranberries. Allow the bars to sit for several hours before cutting, they look really pretty when you cut them in triangles, enjoy :)

Molasses-Spice Cookies

No Christmas baking is complete without a spice cookie, and this is my favorite recipe that I have found so far. They always disappear fast from my freezer, I'll go to grab some and the pail will be empty??? (Didn't take the kids long to figure out where mom hides her treats :))

 

Molasses-Spice Cookies

2 1/4 c. flour
2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. ginger
3/4 tsp. cloves
1/4 tsp. allspice
3/4 c. butter, softened
1/2 c. brown sugar, packed
1/2 c. granulated sugar (plus some for rolling cookies in)
1 large egg
1 tsp. vanilla
1/3 c. cooking molasses

Combine flour, baking soda, salt and spices, set aside. Cream butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Add egg, vanilla and molasses, beat until combined. Make sure you scrape the bowl so everything gets evenly distributed. Add dry ingredients and beat on low until just combined. Roll about 2 tablespoons into a 1 3/4-inch ball and dip just the tops into sugar (I find it easier and it cuts down on the sugar in each cookie), then place onto ungreased baking sheets. Bake at 375 for 11-13 minutes, allowing to cool 3 minutes before removing from sheet.

Chocolate-Filled Shortbread

This is the one cookie in our home that gets made EVERY Christmas, no matter what! It's my husbands favorite and even the youngest kids can help make them (after those little hands are done with them they might look a little scary but they always look good after they come out of the oven :)) My mom has made these as long as I can remember and with only 5 ingredients they whip up in a snap and are a fun twist on traditional shortbread. 

 

Chocolate-Filled Shortbread

1 lb. butter (454g.)
1 c. icing sugar
3 c. flour
1/2 c. cornstarch
chocolate wafers (the kind you find in the bulk section for melting)

Cream the butter and sugar. Add flour and cornstarch, combine till stiff dough forms.
Place 2 chocolate wafers in the middle of each 1" ball. (I like to make them flatter than a ball.)

(Hope the pictures help)

 

Then bake on ungreased cookie sheets at 325 for 20 minutes. (Until they start to get very lightly golden at the edges). Easy Peezy, enjoy!

 

Candy Cane Cookies

These are one of my personal favorite Christmas cookies (they're also the most labor intensive ones I do, so don't worry it's all downhill from here :)). I think they just look so festive, and the kids love to help with these.

 

Candy Cane Cookies

1 c. margarine, softened
1 c. icing sugar
1 large egg
1 tsp. almond flavoring
1 tsp. vanilla
1/4 tsp. peppermint flavoring
2 1/2 c. flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. liquid red food coloring (instead I like to use a squirt of my gel food coloring)

Beat first 6 ingredients in a bowl until light and creamy. Combine flour, baking powder and salt, then add to margarine mixture. Stir until stiff dough forms. Divide into 2 equal portions.
Knead food coloring into 1 portion of the dough until evenly tinted.
Roll about 1 tsp. of each color of dough into a 5 1/2 cm rope.

Lay side by side. Pinch ends together, twist and form into candy cane shape.

Arrange on a greased baking sheet. Bake at 350 for 10 minutes, until just golden. Let sit for 5 minutes before removing from cookie sheet to cool completely.

Creamy Christmas Truffles

It is that time of year again ... Christmas baking time! Anyone who knows me knows this is my absolute favorite baking event of the year! I thought I'd give you a little taster of the things I like to whip up this time of year, I hope to post a number of family favorite treats and make ahead appetizers over the coming weeks. These truffles are melt-in-your-mouth perfection, I have always been nervous to try homemade truffles, but they are actually not that hard and if you follow the instructions you should have no problems.

 

 

Creamy Christmas Truffles

 

2/3 c. whipping cream

1/4 c. butter (no substitutions this time)

1/4 c. granulated sugar

1 tsp. vanilla

8 squares semi-sweet chocolate, chopped (I use Baker's that you buy in a box in the baking isle)

 

Coatings:

1 1/4 c. finely ground nuts (I used walnuts this time) or chocolate wafer crumbs

 

In a saucepan combine whipping cream, butter and sugar. Stir over medium heat until sugar is dissolved and mixture boils. Remove from heat. Add vanilla and chocolate, stirring until chocolate is melted. Refrigerate mixture for 5 hours, or until it is firm enough to roll into balls. Drop chocolate mixture by tablespoon into coating and roll into balls. Store in airtight container in refrigerator.   Makes 36 pieces.

 

Note: you can change the flavour by substituting the vanilla with a liqueur of your choice.