Two Trees and a Roll of Duct Tape
I have some really fun childhood holiday memories. Perhaps the most fun was getting our own Christmas tree. What really made the trip fun was going with Uncle Frank.
Uncle Frank was my dad’s baby brother. He was always so much fun. He had a great sense of humor, too.
The one thing Uncle Frank never seemed to have- at least at tree cutting time- was a car with a working heater. I am not sure if he and my dad thought it was more of an adventure that way. I mean, we could have gone in my family’s car- but we never did.
One year in particular, will always stand out for me. There were 7 of us in a Volkswagen beetle. Two adults, my Dad and Uncle Frank, three of my cousins, my brother and me. Of course, no heater in the car. It was also a very snowy December, so the car was cold.
We were all bundled up as we headed out to get a couple of Christmas trees. There is a small space behind the back seat in an old Beetle. That is where my cousin Laurie and I sat. My brother and two cousins shared the back seat. Dad and Uncle Frank sat in front.
When we got to the tree farm, the dads pretty much left us kids on our own. There was a lot of snow on the ground and I remember sliding down a snowy hill, over and over. When we were called back to the car- we were all pretty cold- and our boots were full of snow.
I don’t want you to think that my Dad and Uncle Frank were not good parents or reckless. They were the best- and so much fun. They insisted we all take off our wet boots when we got in the car. Everyone tossed them in the area in back were Laurie and I had been sitting. We joined the others in the back seat. My cousin Gary sat on my Dad’s lap. Well, that was after my Dad and Uncle Frank got in the car.
See, there was this problem with the trees. For some reason they didn’t have enough rope- or any rope. I don’t really remember that part.
I just know, that at some point, with the kids shivering in the car- we were now wet and had removed our boots- My Uncle Frank and my father started taping two pine trees to a VW Bug. I remember them passing the tape over and under the car, making sure the trees were not going anywhere.
I feel the need to point out, that the rounded top of the beetle was not an easy place to secure a tree- or two. So the trees ended up more on the sides of the car, taped securely into place. I learned at a very early age, the value of duct tape. The guys had to come in through open windows, since the trees were pretty much blocking the doors.
When my Uncle started up the car- the windows were all frosted up. The heater did not work, so no defroster for the windows. He used his thumbnail to scratch off an area of ice about the size of a silver dollar. He closed one eye, put the open eye up to the little circle he had cleared on the windshield and declared – it was fine- he could see just fine.
We all laughed. He was laughing, so was my Dad. We took our cues from the adults and joined in the merriment. It was a cold, but laughter- filled ride home. When we got back, my uncle crawled out the window and un-taped the trees so we could all get out of the car.
My Mom and Aunt quickly got us into dry clothes and I am guessing they were not as amused by our condition as we were. The point is, no one got hurt and it probably toughened us up a little.
I am glad there are car seats and seat belts and air bags in cars today. I think kids and adults should be safely secured in all moving vehicles. But way back when- we didn’t have those safety features. It isn’t like they decided not to strap us in- they couldn’t.
While my Uncle Frank was laughing and joking around that day, he was also a police officer. I am sure he knew how to drive in snowy conditions. Maybe he was nervous. Maybe my dad was, too. But if they were, they didn’t show it.
I know there was a lot of love and laughter in the Beetle that day. I can only imagine the looks we got from other drivers on our way home. I couldn’t actually see other cars, however, as the view was blocked by the tree branches and frosty windows.
If there is any lesson- perhaps it is to be brave enough to be silly sometimes. While I don’t want anyone to put a child in harm’s way- don’t be so careful that your kid’s miss out on adventures, too.
Be the person that gives a kid a really good memory this holiday season. Perhaps, using duct tape and a couple of trees.
Posted in Cooking
Toasted Pecan and Orange Waffles
These orange- pecan waffles are sure to make anyone smile. They are really tasty. They aren’t hard to make, either. They would make a great breakfast for any holiday or special occasion.
You can serve them just on their own, or perhaps with a side of crispy bacon or some breakfast sausage and some fresh fruit.
I started with my basic vanilla waffle recipe and had some fun with it. I enjoyed the combination of pecans with orange juice. Since it is citrus season, I used fresh squeezed juice, but bottled juice is just fine. Serve them with warm maple syrup, powdered sugar or perhaps orange marmalade..
Here is the recipe.
Toasted Pecan and Orange Waffles
2 cups flour
4 teaspoons baking powder
2 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 t. orange zest
2 eggs
1 cup orange juice
½ c. milk
½ c. melted butter
1 T. vanilla
¾ c. toasted pecans, chopped*
Whisk together dry ingredients and set aside. Beat together remaining ingredients and add to dry ingredients mixing until smooth. Cook in a waffle iron until crisp.
* To toast the pecans, place on a baking sheet and bake in a 350-degree oven for about 10 minutes. Toast them before you chop them- smaller pieces can burn easily.
Snow People Cookies
These cookies are adorable and fun to make. They also taste really good. They are a fun cookie for kids to make. The cookies are made from a rich, cream cheese dough. They stay soft in the middle, with a little crunch on the outside. They are even cuter if you use the candy-striped kisses available this time of year.
Snow People
Dough:
4 c. flour
1 t. baking powder
1 c. butter, softened
1 (8oz.) package cream cheese, softened
2 c. sugar
1 egg
1 t. vanilla
¼ t. almond extract
Decorations:
Mini chocolate chips or mini M&Ms
Kisses, whole, or mini peanut butter cups, halved
Frosting:
2 c. powdered sugar
Few drops green food coloring
Milk
Extra powdered sugar for sprinkling
Mix dry ingredients and set aside. Cream together butter and cream cheese until smooth. Beat in sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in egg and flavorings then stir in dry ingredients. Chill dough overnight. For each snow person rolls out 3 balls of dough, 1-inch, ¾-inch and ½-inch in diameter. Place balls in descending order on ungreased baking sheet. Press together lightly. Use 2 mini chocolate chips for eyes in smallest ball and use either chips or mini M&Ms for buttons (2 on largest ball and 1 in medium). You can also add a tiny dot of frosting once they are cooled for the buttons, too. Bake in a preheated 325-degree oven for about 18 minutes or until edges are firm and bottoms are lightly browned. Cool on baking sheet 1 minute then remove to rack to finish cooling. Combine powdered sugar with green food coloring and just enough milk to make a frosting that can be piped. Use a little dab of frosting to attach either a chocolate kiss (unwrapped) or half of a peanut butter cup as a hat. Pipe a small amount of frosting to form a scarf. Dust cookies with a little extra powdered sugar for snow when finished decorating. Makes about 48 cookies.
Peanut Butter Coconut Shortbread – Vegan
I made these for my goddaughter. She is vegan. The original recipe for the shortbread was her great grandmother’s. It is a great recipe, but not vegan. I tweaked it a little.
The original recipe called for a pound of butter. I swapped out the butter with a cup each of peanut butter and coconut oil. It worked out great.
The cookies had that same wonderful crumbly texture and rich flavor you expect in a good shortbread cookie. I used crunchy peanut butter- it was what I had. I like the bits of peanuts in the cookies. I could see adding a few more chopped peanuts the next time I make these cookies.
You could also use other nut butters, like almond or cashew, if that is what you have.
Peanut Butter-Coconut Shortbread
1 c. sugar, plus 1/4 cup extra for sprinkling
1 c. peanut butter
1 c. coconut oil
4 c. flour
2 t. vanilla
Cream together sugar, peanut butter, coconut oil and vanilla. Stir in flour until mixture forms into a dough. Press into 9×13-inch baking dish. Sprinkle extra sugar over the cookies dough, and cut into squares. Bake in a 300 degree oven for an hour or until light brown around edges. Re-cut while warm. Makes 4 dozen. They can be frozen.
Cranberry Nut Cookies
I got this recipe from a friend’s cousin. I made them for years then sort of forgot about them. Came across the recipe again and decided to make them again. Wow, they really are good. Not the prettiest cookie out there, but so soft and tender and tasty.
The original recipe calls for a cup of butter and a cup of shortening. I used straight butter, but chilled the dough Either variation works, just your preference. What can I say? I prefer butter.
The recipe also calls for dried sweetened cranberries, not fresh berries.
So here is the recipe. It makes a big pile of cookies. You can freeze the dough or even the baked cookies if it is too much for you.
Enjoy.
Craisin Nut Cookies
1 c. shortening or butter, See note:
1 c. butter
1 1/2 c. sugar
1 1/2 c. brown sugar
3 eggs
1 T. grated orange peel
5 c. flour
1 1/2 t. each baking soda and salt
2 c. chopped nuts
1 (6 oz.) package craisins (sweetened dried cranberries)
Cream together first 6 ingredients and blend until smooth. Combine flour with soda and salt and add to sugar mixture. Stir in nuts and craisins. Drop walnut sized balls on an ungreased cookie sheet about 2-inches apart. Bake in a preheated 350-degree oven for about 8-10 minutes or until golden brown. Makes about 7 dozen.
Note: If using all butter, chill the dough for at least a few hours before baking,
Sugar Cookies with Non-Royal Icing
These cut-out cookies are a classic, and always part of my holiday cookie baking. I will confess to having an enormous assortment of cookie cutters, so there is almost no end to the shapes I might use. This time of year I am making trees, stars, snowmen and more.
These cookies are crisp and sturdy enough to stand up to frosting, without being too hard. They also hold their shape well when baking.
I normally use royal icing to frost them, and an assortment of sprinkles and other candies. Royal icing is made with egg whites or powdered egg whites. The advantage over a butter cream, is that royal icing hardens, making the cookies easy to pack and stack. You don’t need much- just a thin layer. Tinting the frosting different colors is a big part of the fun. Depending on how much time you have, you can get really creative with decorating.
I tried a different frosting last year. Several friends had said they didn’t have, or couldn’t find, powdered egg whites and wondered if there was an alternative. There is. This one has just a few easy to find ingredients, and hardens up as nicely as royal icing, with a bit of a shine. The recipes for both icings follow the recipe for the cookies.
Sugar Cookies
1 c. butter
1 c. sugar
1 egg
1 t. vanilla
3 c. flour
2 t. baking powder
3 T. milk
Extra sugar for sprinkling, if desired
Beat butter and sugar until fluffy. Beat in egg and vanilla. Combine dry ingredients and add to butter mixture. Beat in milk. Heat oven to 375-degrees. Roll dough on lightly floured surface to about 1/3- inch thickness. Cut out with lightly floured cutters and sprinkle with sugar or colored sugar if you like and if you are not going to frost them. Bake on an ungreased baking sheet for 10-12 minutes. Cool on baking sheet 3 minutes before placing on wire rack to cool completely. Frost when cooled. Makes about 4 dozen.
Decorating your cookies:
You can use a buttercream frosting, if you like, however the topping I prefer is royal icing. Because royal icing contains egg whites it gets hard. Cookies have a smooth appearance and can be stacked. When making royal icing, use pasteurized egg whites or powdered egg whites. Raw egg whites pose a risk of salmonella.
You can also use colored sugar and sprinkles and mini chocolate chips for eyes.
Non-Royal Icing
4 c. powdered sugar 3 T. corn syrup 2 t. vanilla extract 1/3 c. lemon juice- about
Combine the first three ingredients then add the lemon juice, a little at a time until the icing gets to the consistency you want. You might need a little more. Stir until smooth and add food colorings, if you like. Spread or pipe out, allowing to dry before adding new layers of icing.
Royal Icing
1 lb. powdered sugar
½ t. cream of tartar
5¼ t. egg white powder
6 T. water
½ t. vanilla, optional
Assorted food coloring
In large mixing bowl combine dry ingredients and mix well. Add water and vanilla and beat until light and fluffy, about 10 minutes. Divide into small bowls and tint each batch as needed. Keep bowl covered with a damp towel while waiting to use so frosting will not dry out.
Keith’s Molasses Cookies
I really enjoy cookies made with molasses and spices. They have a unique flavor and texture that I like. A friend recently posted pictures of these molasses cookies. I wanted to try them, so I asked him for the recipe. Keith was kind enough to send me the recipe. Thanks Keith!!!
I made a batch yesterday. I can see why Keith says these are a family favorite. They are crispy on the edges, with just a touch of chewiness in the middle. The spices are a perfect balance. They remind me of the gingersnaps I make at the holidays, but with a more tender texture. I LOVE these cookies. I shared them with some friends yesterday and everyone agreed with just how good they are.
I am not sure where the recipe came from originally. Keith said the recipe came from a jar of molasses a long time ago. He has memories of making these with his grandmother.
One difference I found was that I got a lot more cookies from the recipe than I thought I would. The recipe said 5-6 dozen, based on cookies made from 1-inch balls of dough. I suspect Keith’s balls were bigger than mine. I ended up with more like 8 dozen!
With dark cookie dough, people are often worried about how to tell when their cookies are done baking. These are also a soft cookie out of the oven, so you might be worried they aren’t baked long enough. They firm up as they cool. I did 8 minutes on all but one of the batches, and they were perfect. I did a 10 minute batch, just to compare. They were also fine, if a bit darker on the bottom and crisper. If you are concerned, take one cookie off the baking sheet and flip it over. It should be a little darker than the top of the cookie. Don’t worry if they are soft when you try to take them off the baking sheet. They firm up nicely after cooling down. If it is too hard to move them right away, you can leave them on the baking sheet for a minute, before removing them.
So here is the recipe. Enjoy!!
Keith’s Molasses Cookies
1½ c. butter (3 sticks)
2 c. sugar
½ c. dark molasses
2 eggs
4 t. baking soda
4 c. sifted flour
1 t. ground cloves
1 t. powdered ginger – I used fresh grated ginger instead, adding 2 teaspoons to the dough
2 t. cinnamon
2 t. salt
Extra sugar for rolling
Melt butter. Set aside to cool. Beat sugar, eggs and molasses together until well mixed. Add cooled butter. Mix well. Sift dry ingredients together and stir into butter mixture. Dough will be on the soft side. Refrigerate dough for at least a few hours, or overnight. Preheat oven to 375. Grease baking sheets and set aside, or use silicone liners. Roll dough into approximately 1″ balls. Roll balls in granulated sugar. Place 2 inches apart on prepared baking sheets. Bake at 375 for 8-10 minutes. Re-grease sheets after each use.
Cool on flat surface covered with wax paper. I actually used a cooling rack. Cookies are very soft, but firm up a lot as they cool. Transfer carefully or allow to cool a few minutes on the baking sheet before removing. Makes approximately 5 to 6 dozen cookies.
Note: I got more like 8 or 9 dozen, but I think my balls were smaller.
If you like a softer cookie, remove at the 8 minute mark. 10 minutes will give you a crisper cookie.
Cream Wafers
Cream Wafers are a little more work than most cookies, but they are worth it. They are the most requested cookies of all the ones I make. The secret is the dough, which contains no sugar. It is made from only three ingredients- flour, butter and heavy whipping cream.
When baked, they turn into flaky layers that melt in your mouth. Seriously, if you want to really impress this holiday season, show up at a party with these cookies.
Cream wafers are coated in sugar before baking. You can use tinted sugar, if you like. Once baked and cooled, they are made into little sandwich cookies, using a buttercream frosting. You can also tint the frosting if you like.
Because they puff when baking and become thicker, and you are using two of them to make the sandwich cookie, be sure to roll them out pretty thin.
Here is the recipe. Hope you enjoy!!
Cream Wafers
1 c. butter
1/3 c. heavy whipping cream
2 c. flour
extra fine or granulated sugar
Frosting:
¼ c. butter, softened
¾ c. powdered sugar
1 T. milk
1 t. vanilla
food coloring, if desired
Mix butter, cream and flour well. Wrap and chill at least an hour. Roll chilled dough 1/8 inch thick on lightly floured board. Cut out into 1½ inch rounds or even little hearts or stars. Transfer cookies to a sheet of wax paper heavily coated with extra fine or granulated sugar and coat both sides. Place on an ungreased baking sheet and prick each cookie 4 times with a fork. Bake at 375-degrees 7-9 minutes until lightly browned and puffy. Cool on rack. Mix frosting ingredients. Put 2 cookies together with frosting to make “sandwiches”.
Almond Cookies
I do love these cookies. They are delicate and cake- like and the perfect finish for almost any meal. I always make them as part of my holiday cookie baking. The whole almonds toast nicely as the cookies bake. I also like that they are easy to make. If you haven’t tried them before you might want to. I think you’ll like them as much as I do.
I used a mix of white and colored sugar to top the cookies , but you can use white sugar alone.
Here is the recipe.
Almond Cookies
¾ c. sugar
¾ c. softened butter
1 egg
2 T. water
1 t. baking powder
1 t. almond extract
¼ t. salt
2 ½ c. flour
whole almonds, about 1/3 cup 3-4 T. extra sugar for topping
Combine all ingredients except flour and nuts and beat until smooth. Stir in flour. Shape dough into 1-inch balls and place 2” apart on lightly greased baking sheet. Dip bottom of buttered glass in sugar and use it to flatten cookies a little. Press an almond into the center of each. Bake in a 350-degree oven for 8-12 minutes. Cookies should be firm to the touch, but not brown. Makes 3-4 dozen.
Eva’s Kolachy
Over the years, I have shared many of my family recipes. This is another family recipe- but not my family. Tia Houpt found this recipe when going through her Grandmother’s recipe collection. She was kind enough to share the recipe- and gave me permission to share it with you. Her grandmother was Eva Skero- so I have named the kolachy in Eva’s honor.
There is something special in having old family recipes. We find so many recipes online these days, we sometimes forget there was a time when recipes were handwritten. Often, they were stored in a drawer or in a shoe box. There is usually a mix of handwritten recipes and recipes cut out of newspapers and magazines.
Sometimes you just find a list of ingredients. Measurements aren’t always precise. A handful of this a pinch of that. The phrase moderately hot oven doesn’t real help, does it? And what exactly is a number 2 can? Still, there are some real gems in those collections.
This is one of those recipes. A real gem.
I have made kolachy for years and have used the recipe for the crust that my mom used. I love my mom’s recipe. I love this recipe even more.
I was intrigued that the dough contains both baking powder and yeast. I had to make it, just to see what it was like.
The dough is tender and very easy to work with. It doesn’t get chilled. You just make the dough, then roll it out and make the cookies. I did let my butter soften a little before cutting it into the flour. I could see using cold butter instead.
The dough rolled out beautifully and baked up a perfect golden brown. I had to let them cool a bit before I could taste one. I am not kidding- they were heavenly. Tender and so flaky. Tia and I both see this as a very nice tart or pie dough, too.
So here is Eva’s recipe. I hope you will give it a try. Thanks, Tia, for sharing it.
Eva’s Kolachy
Dough:
3 c. flour
1 t. baking powder
½ t. salt
1 c. butter*
3 eggs
2 pkts. Yeast
½ c. warm milk
Filling:
Assorted pie fillings, jams, sweetened cream cheese or ricotta cheese. You will need about three cups of filling.
In mixing bowl, combine flour with baking powder and salt. Cut butter into flour until mixture looks like coarse crumbs. Set aside. Place eggs in a small bowl and beat until smooth. In small bowl, dissolve yeast in warm milk. Add to egg mixture and stir to combine. Add egg mixture to flour mixture and stir until combined. If mixture is sticky add a small amount of flour. Roll dough out on floured board. Thinner the better, as this dough will puff some when baked. Cut into squares- or whatever shape you like. I did 2-inch squares. Place a spoonful of filling into center of each cookie. Fold up two of the corners and press firmly to seal. Fold over and press seam again. These like to pop open when baking, so the second fold over and pressing helps them to stay closed. Some people like to add a bit of egg wash or milk to the tops to help them seal better. I just squeeze together and fold twice. Place cookies on an ungreased baking sheet, about an inch apart. Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for 20 minutes, or until golden brown. Cook on a rack. Dust cooled cookies with powdered sugar or with a powdered sugar glaze. Makes about 5-6 dozen.
*The original recipe called for shortening. Tia and I both decided butter was better!! That is the only change we made to Eva’s original recipe.
Blueberry Pie Filling
3 1/2 c. blueberries
3/4 c. sugar, or to taste
1/4 c. cornstarch
1 c. water
1 T. lemon juice
In saucepan, bring blueberries and sugar to a boil, stirring often. Combine cornstarch with water and lemon juice and add to the blueberry mixture. Return to the boil and cook until thickened and bubbly. Makes 4 cups. You might not need the whole batch for the cookies.
Cooled and dusted with powdered sugar
This post is dedicated to Eva Skero and all the home cooks out there who lovingly kept their recipes for us to find.
