On the Fourth Day of Cookies...

Lemon Rosemary Buttons! And they are cute as buttons! This recipe is also from Sunset Magazine. They are buttery and crumbly and the icing is soooo delicious! I wasn't sure what to make of eating the rosemary sprig but it added the perfect touch and wasn't "woody" like I was afraid of. You can always leave it out too, there is still rosemary in the cookie dough.

Here's the recipe!

Lemon Rosemary Buttons-

2 cups flour

1 cup cold unsalted butter, cubed

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1/4 tsp. salt

2 lemons

Fresh Rosemary

1 1/2 cups powdered sugar

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Mix flour, butter, granulated sugar,  salt, zest of one lemon and 1 tsp. chopped fresh rosemary in the bowl of a stand mixer on low speed until just blended. Increase speed to medium and mix until dough is no longer crumbly and just comes together.

2. Form dough into a disk; chill 30 minutes. On a lightly floured work surface, roll dough 1/2 in. thick. Cut dough into circles with a 1 1/2 in cookie cutter. Arrange cookies 1 in. apart on baking sheets and chill 15 minutes. Bake until light golden brown, 12 to 15 minutes. Mix 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar with 2 Tbsp fresh lemon juice and the finely grated lemon zest of 1 lemon. Sppon 1/2 tsp. glace over each cooled cookie, spreading with back of spoon, and press 1 rosemary sprig into glaze. Makes 32.

On the Third Day of Cookies...

Filled Honey Lace Crisps! These cookies are so exotic!

They look so impressive, and they are sooo easy. I love it when it works out that way! These would look very pretty next to a scoop of vanilla ice cream. This recipe is from Sunset Magazine, the current December issue. After I had started making these I noticed that they had highlighted the honey  I randomly chose at the Farmer's Market. I was so excited! I had accidently picked their favorite honey :)

I love buying honey at Farmer's Markets; I love honey period!

Here they are just out of the oven, looking very unimpressive.    Once they cool for a few minutes they are peeled off the pan and shaped while they are still warm and pliable. Now that I think about it, you can really get "artsy" with these before they cool!
This recipe is so easy, especially if you follow the recipe! I accidently used a tablespoon instead of a teaspoon to pour the cookie batter on the pan... I ended up having a huge cookie covering the whole pan... but it was still pliable... that could have made an awesome centerpiece to  a dessert table! Next time :)

Here is one cooling on the rolling pin, and the others were wrapped around a wooden spoon for a tight curl.

Here are the rolled up crisps ready to be filled or just eaten as they are :)

Sunset gave a recipe for orange whipped cream. Fresh whipped cream is so delicious but not very stable. I had a few cheeses that I wanted to try. I bought mascarpone, creme fraiche, and whipped cream cheese. I added powdered sugar and the zest of a tangerine to each. And the winner was... all of them! Each was good on its own, but all together they were just the right texture and taste. It is such a good filling, I'm going to have to find a use for it in future recipes for sure. It would be so great in a dessert crepe!

Just the aroma of basil, tangerine, dark chocolate and honey all together make these worth it!

In the spirit of honey and farmer's markets... here's a picture of tomatoes, basil and fresh mozarella from the market. In this picture I used balsamic vinegar and olive oil, but my favorite is balsamic sweetened with honey... so good!

Honey Lace Crisps- Sunset Magazine

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a medium saucepan, melt butter with honey over medium heat. Add sugar and salt and whisk until well combined. Add flour and continue to whisk until no lumps remain. Transfer to a small bowl and let cool slightly, about 5 minutes.
2. Line 2 flat rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper. Spoon 1 heaping tsp. batter onto sheets about 4 inches apart (they will spread a lot) .
3. Bake until dark golden brown and small holes appear throughout, 10-12 minutes. Keep oven on. Let cool on tray until starting to firm up, 2-3 minutes. While cookies cool, use a paring knife to separate any cookies that have melted together and to shape each into a circle. Working in batches of 3 or 4, carefully peel cookies off paper and lay over a rolling pin. Let cool on pin until completely crisp, about 3 minutes. If cookies firm up before you can shape them, put baking sheet back in the oven to warm slightly, about 1 minute.
Make Ahead: upto 1 day; store airtight.

Orange Cream-Filled Honey Crisps-

( Instead, I used equal parts of mascarpone, creme fraiche, and whipped cream cheese. I added powdered sugar to taste as well as tangerine zest.)

Prepare Honey Lace Crisps through step 3, forming cookies into a small cylinder shape around the handle of a wooden spoon and holding until firm ( a few seconds ); slide off when cool. Whisk together 2 cups heavy cream, 1/4 cup granulated sugar, and finely grated zest of one orange until firm peaks form. Fill a large resealable plastic bag with cream, then snip a 1/4 inch hole in one corner. Pipe cream into cookie cylinder from each end. Serve immediately.

On the Second Day of Cookies...

Chocolate-Glazed Toffee Bars! This delicious recipe is from Joy of Cooking.

Here they are before I drizzled chocolate over them and cut them.

They're so nutty and delicious! I had just bought some orange blossom honey at the farmer's market that worked perfectly. Enjoy!

Chocolate-Glazed Toffee Bars- Joy of Cooking

The recipe looks a little longer and more complicated then it actually is; they didn't take too long to make :)

Grease an 8x8 inch baking pan. (I also laid an 8x8 inch piece of parchment on the bottom of the pan.)

Whisk together thoroughly:

2/3 cup all-purpose flour

1 1/2 T. sugar

1/8 tsp. salt

Sprinkle over the top:

4 T. cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

Using a pastry blender, 2 knives, or your fingertips, cut in the butter until the mixture resembles fine crumbs.

Sprinkle over the top and stir in to blend:

2 tsp. milk

Knead until the milk is distributed and the particles begin to hold together. If necessary, add a teaspoon or two more milk, until the mixture holds together but is not wet. (Alternatively, in a food processor, process the dry ingredients and butter in on/off pulses until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs; be careful not to overprocess. A bit at a time, add the milk, and process in on /off pulses until the particles begin to hold together; if necessary, add just enough additional milk so the mixture holds together but is not wet. ) Firmly press the dough into the pan to form a smooth, even layer. Refrigerate for 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, position a rack in the center of the oven.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Bake the chilled dough for 10 minutes; set aside to cool slightly. Toast, stirring occasionally in a baking pan, until very lightly browned, 5-8 minutes:

1 1 /2 cups chopped pecan (I used half pecans and half almonds)

Set aside to cool. Combine in a medium, heavy saucepan and, stirring frequently, bring to a boil over medium heat:

5 T. unsalted butter, cut into pieces

1/2 cup packed light brown sugar

2 T. clover or other mild honey

1 T. milk

1/8 tsp. salt

Boil the mixture, uncovered, for 3 minutes; remove from the heat. Stir in the toasted pecans along with:

1 tsp. vanilla

Spread the mixture evenly over the baked layer. Bake until the crumb mixture is bubbly, golden brown, and just slightly darker at the edges, 17-20 minutes. Remove the pan to a rack to cool slightly. (I let it cool completely and then turned it out of the pan and just drizzled melted chocolate over the top instead of the following steps.) Sprinle over the top:

1/4 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Let stand for several minutes until the chocolate chips partially melt, then smooth across the surface with a table knife to partially spread the chocolate. (The surface should not be completely covered with chocolate.)

Sprinkle over the top:

2 T. finely chopped pecans

Let the chocolate cool until thickened but still slightly soft, then cut into bars; let cool completely before lifting the bars from the pan. Retrace the cuts to separate the bars, if necessary.

The Twelve Days of Cookies! On the First Day of Cookies...

Fresh Ginger Cookies! These are a favorite of mine and they are from Fine Cooking. They have a crisp edge and soft center. They are great with a hot cup of coffee or tea!

Here is the recipe... Enjoy!

Ingredients-

12 Tbs. unsalted butter, softened

1 cup granulated sugar

1 large egg

1/4 cup molasses

1 tsp. grated fresh ginger

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

2 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. table salt

1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon

Granulated sugar for dipping

This recipe works best using a mixer fitted with a paddle, but you can use a regular mixer or a wooden spoon. Cream the butter and sugar until smooth. Add the egg, molasses, and ginger and mix a little more until blended. Sift together the dry ingredients, add them to the mixture, and continue mixing until a smooth dough is formed. If the dough seems very soft at this point, put it in the refrigerator for 20 to 30 minutes.

Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Turn the dough out of the bowl and divide it into about 36 marble-size balls (I made them regular cookie size). Roll the balls in the sugar (I wait until the cookies are already flattened to cover them in sugar, I think they "sparkle" a little more), and place them on non-stick or parchment-lined baking sheets about 2 inches apart. Flatten the balls slightly with you fingers. (I flatten the cookies between the backs of two plates with parchment paper on both sides of the cookie, cover them is sugar, and then lay them onto the covered baking sheet). Bake in the heated oven until golden brown, about 10 minutes. Transfer the cookies to a rack to cool completely, then store in an airtight container until ready to serve.

All Aboard!

A cake made for the train park! This was a marble cake with classic buttercream, and some skittles in the back for the birthday girl! The rocks were little edible candies from the local cake supply store.

Kids love to snack from the caboose until it's time to cut the cake :)

After I was finished, a certain someone snuck into the kitchen and took the left over icing off the counter... she was very quiet and suuuuper sneaky!

Chocolate Bread Pudding!

Oh my! This one is for chocolate lovers! This recipe is from Cuisine at Home. It is very rich and very moist. Don't let the words "bread pudding" scare you away; it is delicious! I drizzled chocolate sauce over it and topped it with whipped cream and raspberries. Vanilla ice cream is great with it also. However it is wonderful without anything; it stands very well on its own!

Thick Texas Toast gives the cake just the right texture.

Here it is, so "chocolatey" and ready to go into the oven.

And there you have it!

Chocolate Bread Pudding- Cuisine at Home

Melt-

2 cups semisweet chocolate chips (12 oz.)

1 cup brown sugar

1 stick unsalted butter, cubed

Whisk Together; Pour Over-

2 cups whole or 2 % milk

3 eggs

2 T. vanilla extract

2 t. instant espresso powder

1/2 t. table salt

13 slices Texas toast, staled and cut into 1" cubes ( I didn't have staled bread so I toasted the bread lightly in the toaster oven)

Fold in-

Chocolate mixture

Preheat oven to 350 degrees; coat a 9" springform pan with 1 T. softened unsalted butter.

Melt chocolate chips with the sugar and butter in a saucepan over low heat. Stir frequently until chips are smooth, about 8 minutes.

Whisk milk, eggs, vanilla, espresso, and salt together and pour over bread cubes. Toss well so the bread absorbs most of the liquid and begins to lose its shape.

Fold the melted chocolate into the bread mixture, then transfer to the prepared pan. Bake for 1 hour, or until the center springs back when gently pressed. Cool on a rack for 15 minutes, remove the sides of the pan, and slice.

Halloween!

This is by far my favorite party of the year! I have so much fun with it! To start the party off right I made a lot of cupcakes! The mini ones are my favorite because you can sample a few and still have room for more :)

Mmmmm... Candy Corn! In the backround are spooky ghost cupcakes, looking very smug.

Classic sugar cookies! This recipe is handed down from my mom and is a family favorite.

To make the spider web icing I covered the cookie with orange icing and then piped  winding circles of chocolate icing. After that, I drew a toothpick from the center to the edge of the cookie repeatedly.

These are the "shrunken heads" getting ready to soak in apple cider, lemonade, and spiced rum. The rum really completes the cider, delicious! They are Granny Smith Apples that are cut in half and baked at 250 degrees for about an hour and a half. I then raised the temp to 350 degrees for about 5 minutes to brown them a little bit. After baking use whole cloves for their eyes. I saw this idea on Martha Stewart last year.

They seem to have mixed emotions about being plopped into hot cider ;)

Here they are, super spooky!

A collection of favorite candies to top off the sweets!

For dinner we had bruschetta with goat cheese, carmelized onions, steak and roasted sweet peppers. We also had homemade macaroni and cheese with gruyere, and pumpkin soup with sour cream garnish.

The garnish is made the same way as the sugar cookies. With everything ready, it is time for the guests to arrive!

We had a tough costume contest this year, complete with an awards ceremony!

And the Oscar goes to...

"Dancing with the Stars!"

"Wheel of Fortune" took the silver!

Spooooky decorations are my favorite and the kids love them!

That's all folks!

Sugar Cookies-

3/4 C. Butter
1 C. Sugar
2 Eggs
1/2 tsp. Lemon Extract
2 1/2 C. Flour
1 tsp. Baking Powder
1 tsp. Salt

Mix butter, sugar, eggs, and flavoring thoroughly. Measure flour by dipping or sifting. Stir flour, baking powder, and salt together; blend in. Chill at least 1 hour. Roll, cut and bake at 400 degrees. Bake for 6-8 minutes.

Sugar Cookie Icing-

2 C. Sifted Powdered Sugar
1/2 tsp. Salt
1 tsp. Vanilla
3 T. Cream (add more or less to desired consistency)

Blend sugar, salt, and vanilla. Add cream to make it easy to spread. Tint with a few drops of food coloring. Spread on cookies.