How Sweet It Is...

As part of the Cookie Extravaganza that took place in my kitchen between Thanksgiving and Christmas, the sugar cookies were both my saving grace and my biggest headache. For weeks, I made dough and froze it so that I would save on time. Little did I realize just how many cookies I actually had sitting in my freezer waiting to be rolled, cut and baked.

Such an easy recipe and the result is a delicious, buttery, flaky cookie that holds its shape. You can make the dough and freeze it for up to 2 months or you can bake the cookies and freeze them. I don't recommend the latter unless you have a lot of space in your freezer. You don't want to end up with 14 dozen broken sugar cookies.

So I made my dough, I froze it, and when I was a couple days away from being ready to bake, I put it in the fridge to thaw. It worked brilliantly. The dough was the perfect chilled texture for rolling and cutting. By the way, rolling is a vicious tricep work out.

I rolled out my dough on parchment paper that I dusted with powdered sugar. I found that using powdered sugar rather than flour kept my cookies sweet and still kept the dough from sticking to everything.

Once the dough was rolled to the thickness that I wanted, I put as many of my cookie cutters as I could on to it. I fit them together like a puzzle to maximize the number of cookies I could get in one go. Alton Brown is to thank for that idea.

I baked them on foil lined pans. Depending on the pan I used, some I rotated and some I did not. Once I pulled them from the over, I let the cookies stand for a minute before transferring them to a cooking rack. Then I started the process all over again.

Once all of the cookies were finished baking and completely cooled, I made royal icing and decorated each one. By hand. Just me. 14+ dozen sugar cookies.

It was worth it. They turned out looking lovely.

 

There wasn't a container in the kitchen that wasn't filled with Sugar Cookies. All 4 of my square and rectangular Pyrex, my big roasting pan, a Le Creuset 7 quart dutch oven, and more Tupperware than I care to count. Let it be known, making 6 batches of this dough produces a lot of cookies.

Recipe:
1 cup butter, softened
1 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
3 cups of flour
1 1/4 teaspoons of baking powder
powdered sugar for rolling

* dough freezes VERY well

Royal Icing:
2 large egg whites
2 teaspoons of fresh lemon juice
3 cups of powdered (confectioners') sugar

For the cookies:

Beat together butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add egg and vanilla, mix until just combined. Add flour and baking powder in intervals. Dough will seem as if it doesn't have enough moisture but continue to mix with mixer until combined. Divide the dough into 4 equal parts, shape into 4 disks, wrap tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate (or freeze) until firm.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Roll dough, using powdered sugar instead of flour for the rolling, to approximately 1/4" thickness. Cut out shapes with cookie cutters and place on baking sheets. Bake 7-8 minutes until the edges are golden. Cool on a wire rack. Take the scraps and re-roll into a ball and chill again.

Repeat until all of the dough is used.

For Royal Icing:

Beat the egg whites and lemon juice together in a mixer. Reduce speed and gradually add in the powdered sugar. Beat until thick and smooth. If it is too thick, add a little more lemon juice or some milk. 1 tablespoon at a time. If it gets too watery, add a little more powdered sugar. Use immediately and store the remainder in an airtight container. I also saved what I wasn't using at the time with a damp cloth over it. Royal Icing tends to harden when exposed to air. You can divide the icing into different batches and use food coloring to add a little pop to your cookies.

Decorate your cookies with the icing. Allow to dry completely so the icing is totally hard.

Enjoy!!!

These cookies are do easy and the decorating possibilities are endless.

Happy baking!
FatCat

Feeling the Cancun Holiday Spirit

The last 2 years, my office has done something called a "Jingle Mingle." We have several floors in an office building and we rarely see others on the different floors. With this event we have the chance to eat, drink and be merry, all while wandering around the building.

Each department does a theme and sets up an area. They decorate, play music, set out food and beverages (adult and otherwise) and there is a competition for the best theme and execution of the theme.

My department opted to do a Mexican theme. We had homemade jalapeno poppers, plantains, empanadas, guacamole, salsa, homemade tortilla chips, margaritas, Malibu Rum and pineapple juice, and most importantly - Pina Colada Cake Balls!

I took a white cake mix and rather than using water, as the instructions said, I used pineapple juice. I also mixed in crushed pineapple. (ignore the Circus Cookies in the background - they weren't part of the recipe, they just wanted to be in the photo shoot.)

I used cream cheese frosting instead of my usual "regular" frosting. I need to play with the amounts - the dough ended up being pretty loose. Once I rolled it and chilled the balls it seemed a little easier to work with.

I dipped each ball in blue candy melts. I did this for 2 reasons. First, because it seemed festive and appropriate for a beach vacation theme. Second, because I wanted to finish off my bag of blue melts. I dropped each ball into the melted candy and rolled them around with a fork. Then I lifted them out and let the excess candy drip off.

I let the balls set on a tray lined with foil. Before the candy set I sprinkled each ball with shredded coconut.

After all of the balls had set I stuck a cocktail umbrella in each one. You can't have a Pina Colada without an umbrella in it, after all.

 

 

A very belated, Feliz Navidad!

FatCat

Cookies With a Rummy Bite

Joy Of Cooking has these little monsters listed as "Bourbon Balls." I didn't have bourbon on hand so I used dark rum. The result was a potent little ball of rummy-goodness rolled in powdered sugar.

I've made them before. Actually, my husband has made them before and I just helped. They're the perfect bring-to-a-party treat and they went over really well in my office, too. Because these cookies are "no-bake" the alcohol doesn't dissipate. That makes these quite potent, even though you're not using all that much alcohol in them.

You start out with 1 cup of confectioners' sugar and 2 tablespoons of cocoa powder. Whisk them together in a bowl until well combined.

Add in your 1/4 cup of rum (or bourbon).

Then add in 2 tablespoons of light corn syrup.

Stir into the sugar mixture until completely combined. Set it aside.

Crush to a fine crumb, 2 1/2 cups of vanilla wafer cookies. I crushed by hand and then used my Magic Bullet to make a fine crumb. Mix that into the cocoa mixture. At this point you can also put in nuts, dried fruits or anything else that you want into the dough. I didn't do it this time, but crystallized ginger is an excellent mix-in for the rum balls.

When mixing in the crumbs, start with a whisk and then use your hands as the mixture is too thick and difficult for a tool. You'll have to remove the dough from the inside of the whisk. Just giving you fair warning.

Once you add the crumbs to the mixture you need to work relatively fast. This hardens quickly and once it happens, you're done for and have a brick. I'm talking a brick that you can stick in your purse and do serious damage with. That's not good.

Take small pieces of dough and roll between your hands to form a ball. Roll the balls (as you go) in powdered sugar and set on waxed paper. If you store them between layers of waxed paper at room temperature they'll last for up to 3 weeks. If you can make it that long.

These balls of no-bake rum and vanilla wafer offer amazing taste. They're quick and easy to make and 1 batch will give you approximately 60 balls. They make great gifts and while they're traditionally a holiday cookie, you can't go wrong with these any time of year.

You can also make these non-alcoholic. My husband used Sprite instead of rum, but you can really use any kind of liquid that you want.

Rum (Bourbon) Balls

1 cup confectioners' sugar
2 tablespoons cocoa powder
1/4 cup Rum (bourbon)
2 tablespoons light corn syrup
2 1/2 cups vanilla wafer crumbs (approximately 1 box of cookies)
1 cup fruit/nuts/etc (optional)
1/2 cup confectioners' sugar

Whisk together the 1 cup confectioners' sugar and 2 tbs of cocoa powder until well combined. Add in 1/4 cup rum and 2 tbs light corn syrup. Whisk together until completely moistened. Stick in 2 1/2 cups vanilla wafer crumbs and your optional fruit/nuts. Mix together to form a dough. Roll small pieces of dough between your hands and form balls. Roll the balls in 1/2 cup confectioners' sugar. Set on tray (foil or waxed paper lined.). Store in an air tight container between sheets of waxed paper. Can be kept for up to 3 weeks. I dare you to make them last that long.

Happy no-baking!
FatCat

I Am Not A Tart!

But these are. Part of the baking bliss that I have been in for the last week and a half included Linzer Tarts.

These little cookies (or not so little in some cases) are some of my favorites. Only I didn't know it until fairly recently. My father-in-law is also a fan of them.

A simple sandwich cookie that has a "window" punched out of the top and is traditionally filled with raspberry or apricot preserves. I used apricot. They turned out marvelous, if I do say so myself.

Months ago I bought my first Linzer Tart cutter. A uni-tasker, which I don't like, but it came with 6 different cutouts for the window. I got another cutter with Halloween shaped cutouts. Unfortunately, because it seems they don't sell the cutouts separately, I have to buy more cutters just to get the cutouts. Not the end of the world, but as I only need 1 cutter it's not a great option just to get some center cutters. I'm been thinking of just getting a few different biscuit cutters (fluted and "regular") and using fondant cutters as well as the cutouts I already have for the windows. The biscuit cutters would certainly be multi-taskers.

I just love to make these cookies. It's a lot of fun.

Cutting the cookies and the "windows"

Tart cutter and window cutter

 

Ready to go into the oven!

Freshly baked and sugared. Time to cool on a rack.

 

Completed. Aren't they purdy?

Linzer Tart Recipe

1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
2.5 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp cinnamon
2 sticks (1 cup) butter, softened
1 large egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
Preserves of your choice (raspberry and apricot are traditional)

Whisk together flour, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon in a small bowl.

Beat together in a mixer at medium speed the butter and brown sugar until pale and fluffy. Beat in the egg and vanilla extract. Reduce speed and add flour mixture until just combined.

With hands "floured" with powdered sugar, form the dough into 2 balls and flatten each into a disk. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and chill until firm. At least 2 hours.

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees. Roll out 1 disk of dough on a lightly "floured" (with powdered sugar) surface. I found that rolling out on parchment paper or waxed paper worked very well. Cut out as many tarts as possible with the tart cutter. Using the cutout piece, cut windows out of half of the tarts that you just cut. Reform a ball with the scraps, wrap in plastic wrap and re-chill.

Transfer cookies to a cookie sheet (I lined mine with foil) and bake the cookies for 10-15 minutes. In my oven, 11 minutes was perfect. You just want the edges to become golden.

Remove the cookies from the sheet and put on a cooling rack. I set up a "sugaring station" for the cookies with the windows. While they are still hot you want to sift powdered sugar over the windowed cookies. If you wait until the cookies are cooled, the sugar will not stick. I place all of my hot "tops" on another baking sheet and sifted the sugar over them that way. Transfer your tops back to the cooling rack.

Continue this process until all of the dough has been cut and all of the cookies made and sugared.

Once the cookies are completely cooled, take an un-windowed cookie and spread approximately 1 teaspoon of preserves on it. Sandwich a windowed cookie on top. Viola! You have a Linzer Tart. Sandwich the remaining cookies in the same manner.

These are time consuming but surprisingly easy cookies to make.

Wishing you baking bliss during the holidays.

FatCat

Baby, It's Cold Outside

This weekend was busy. I baked, I saw people, I sang, and most importantly - I had fun.

It was a pretty miserable weekend, weather-wise. Saturday was spent running errands and getting gifts together and baking. Sunday was spent baking, singing and going to a friend's holiday party.

For this party, I figured it would be appropriate to make Penguin cake pops. Now, I collect penguins. Love them. I love their communities, I love how they care for each other, I love how they have no knees.

It was surprisingly easy to make these pops. Please forgive the horrible quality of the photos. Clearly I am not a photographer and obviously I have really awful lighting in my kitchen. I have to figure out how take better pictures. This is just getting embarrassing.

First, I shaped my cake ball. I used the same shape that I used when I made my Halloween ghosts.

 Then I dipped them in blue chocolate. I thought blue penguins would be festive.

Once the blue chocolate was set, I "carved" an oval-ish shape with a toothpick on bellies.

I painted the carved oval with green chocolate (if I was going to have blue penguins I was going all the way with the colors)

When the bellies were set, I started the face details. I used multicolored candy coated mini chocolate chips for the beaks and multicolored sequins for the eyes.

The final touch was giving each psychedelic penguin a different thing to look at.

 

They were a huge hit! This is definitely one to keep in rotation.

I really can't stay. I've got to go 'way.

Have a great one!
FatCat

Baking Has Gone To The Dogs

I haven't been able to update since Thanksgiving. Mostly because I haven't really been baking but making dough. Lots of dough. No worries, this week will be full of baking.

I did make these, and they are part of holiday baking extravaganza. It was surprisingly simple and came out very cute. Can you figure it out from the pictures?

First I mixed up my dough. That was the easy part.

The I rolled it out on a floured surface. Rolled it to about a 1/4 inch thick

Then I cut out the shapes

Baked them (and learned the hard way just how easily and quickly they can burn!)

Bagged them and tied them with a cute ribbon.

And they're ready for your favorite pooch to nom!

These easy dog treats were made using the following recipe from My Little Cupcake's blog. Like the author of that blog, I saw several variations of the recipe, but decided to use her alterations. I'm happy with the result.

Recipe:

1 Cup Peanut Butter

1 egg

1/2 cup honey

1/2 cup milk

2 cups flour (she used whole wheat flour, I used all purpose flour)

1 tbl spoon of baking powder.

I got 33 biscuits out of the recipe.

Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees. Combine honey, peanut butter and egg in your mixer. In a separate bowl combine the flour and baking powder. Alternate adding the flour mixture and the milk to the PB mixture. Once combined, roll out to 1/4" thickness on a floured surface. Take your favorite pet style cookie cutter (I used a bone shape) and cut out your shapes. Place on a baking sheet, either with parchment paper or foil on it and bake for 18-20 minutes.

I had some trouble with my oven and it pre-heated too hot. I didn't check my thermometer (Bad, FatCat!!) and I ended up with some burnt treats. Be sure your oven is at 375 degrees.

Share this yummy treat with your favorite four-legged friend. Don't tell anyone that FatCat sent them. I've got a reputation to uphold here.

Happy Howl-i-days!

FatCat