Tuesday, January 13, 2015

Holly Berry Cookies

I enjoy making these delectable treats for Christmas, along with the help of my husband.  After I prepare the cookies and place them on a baking sheet, my husband then tops each with the Red Hots Cinnamon Candies.  We love these no-bake cookie treats, they are colorful, festive, and delicious!


Holly Berry Cookies

1/2 cup butter
30 large marshmallows
1-1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 teaspoon green food coloring
4 cups corn flakes cereal
Red Hots Cinnamon Candies, to garnish cookies

1.)  Line 2 large baking sheets with wax paper; then set baking sheets aside.

2.)  In a large kettle or Dutch oven, add the butter.  (I used a 5-quart Teflon coated Dutch oven.)

3.)  Melt the butter over low heat, then add the marshmallows; stirring constantly until the marshmallows have melted completely.

4.)  Remove kettle from heat, and add the vanilla extract and food coloring; stirring until the food coloring has blended well into the melted marshmallow mixture.

5.)  Remove kettle from heat, and add the vanilla extract and food coloring; stirring until the food coloring has blended well into the melted marshmallow mixture.

6.)  Drop mixture, one heaping tablespoon at a time onto the wax paper; spacing them at least 1-inch apart, then decorate each with 2-3 red hots cinnamon candies (quickly before they set).

7.)  Allow cookies to set on the wax paper for a few hours, so they will harden.

8.)  To store cookies, place them in an air-tight container with a lid.

9.)  Yields: About 2 dozen cookies

10.) Note: When I display the cookies on a platter, I keep them intact on the wax paper.  If giving cookies to others, I cut closely around the wax paper and cookies with a scissors.  And when ready to eat the cookies, just peel off the wax paper.



In this photo, I displayed the Holly Berry Cookies
and the Snickerdoodle Blossoms on a cookie platter.
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Friday, January 2, 2015

Pink Peppermint Melt-A-Ways

I love these cookies!  They are a peppermint-y tasting cookie.
I like how they look displayed in the center of the cookie platter.




Pink Peppermint Melt-A-Ways

1-1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup cornstarch
1 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 teaspoon peppermint extract
15 drops red food coloring
1-1/2 cups powdered sugar, for coating the cookies

1.)  In a medium size bowl, combine the flour and cornstarch, then set the bowl aside.

2.)  In a large bowl cream together until light and fluffy, the butter and the 1/2 cup of powdered sugar.

3.)  Mix in the peppermint extract.

4.)  Gradually add the dry ingredients into the creamed mixture, and mix well.

5.)  Thoroughly mix the food coloring into the cookie dough.

6.)  At this point, I refrigerate the cookie dough (in a bowl covered with aluminum foil), so the dough firms up enough to shape into dough balls.  This may take anywhere from 1-2 hours.  (I let mine set overnight in the refrigerator, and bake mine the next day when I have the time.)  I then let the dough sit on the counter (in the bowl covered with foil) for about an hour, before making the cookies.

7.)  When ready to bake the cookies, heat your oven to 350ΒΊ F.   And in a shallow bowl, add the 1-1/2 cups powdered sugar.  Set the bowl aside (Use more powdered sugar if need be.)

8.)  Line baking sheets with parchment paper.

9.)  Shape the cookie dough into 1-inch balls.  (I used a small cookie scoop which is equivalent to 1 tablespoon to make each cookie, then shape the cookie dough into 1" balls.)

10.)  Place the dough balls 2-inches apart on the parchment lined baking sheets.

11.)  Place baking sheets in the oven, and bake for about 13 minutes (until the bottoms of cookies are lightly brown) then remove from oven, and let cookies set 2 minutes on baking sheet before removing them to a wire rack.

12.)  Gently roll the warm cookies in the powdered sugar, then place the powdered coated cookies back on the wire racks.

13.)  Once the cookies have cooled slightly, gently roll them again in the powdered sugar, and place them back on the wire racks to finish cooling.

14.)  Makes approximately: 3 dozen cookies.

15.) Note: I had noticed after baking 2 sheets of cookies, the cookie dough was becoming soft, so I place the remaining cookie dough back in the refrigerator, so it could firm up a bit, then finished baking the cookies.  Also, once these cookies had cooled, I then place them in a container (such as Tupperware or Rubbermaid) and in the freezer, as these cookies do keep well if stored in the freezer. I then only take out a few cookies at a time when I want to serve them.
 



I added another photo of the Pink Peppermint Melt-A-Ways,
which are surrounded by Snickerdoodle Blossoms,
plus (Red & Green Sugar Coated) Gingersnap Cookies.
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Cream of Potato & Cheddar Cheese Soup

One day my daughter had given me some of her Yukon Gold Potatoes from her garden.   I then decided I'd quickly  throw a potato soup toge...