Ho ho ho, from North Carolina! The
holidays are upon us, in full swing, and I, J.J., have made a promise
to make no cookies this years! So far, I have kept that
promise...especially after the cookie making disasters of holidays
past...I am so over making holiday cheer for people, unless it comes
in the form of pouring them a glass of wine or popping a top on a
beer.
This fat and jolly old soul, (no Santa
jokes please, I work alone,) had a sexy holiday visitor this past
weekend, that brought me all kinds of yummy, homemade, Christmas type
goodies. I and the roommate were very grateful for these
goodies...the roommate works most of the time and I have not made any
goodies this holiday season, other than a peanut butter pie for
Thanksgiving.
Also along with the yummy holiday
goodies, the sexy elf and I checked out a local winery in, Mebane, NC
and it was a great choice. There was a wonderful wine tasting...13
different wines at a sit down tasting for $5.00!!! (I mean where else
can you get a $5.00 buzz?) Killer deal. I wish I could remember the
name of the wonderful lady that held the tasting as she was very
friendly, entertaining, and hilarious. The crowd for the tasting
came in waves and she handled it beautifully. I quite enjoyed the
SWEET N’ SASSY CHERRY and the holiday wine, IRON GATE BLESSINGS. I
also enjoyed the ON GATE GREEN APPLE. I will definitely be returning
back to the
Iron Gate Winery.
Now onto the other holiday treats from
the sexy Christmas elf...I had made a request for Buckeyes...a
delicious peanut butter candy and I love peanut butter/candy. I got
some delicious Buckeye Bark. Very yummy and still enjoying it. It
gets a huge thumbs up.
Buckeye Bark
Ingredients
Directions
Put a long piece of parchment paper in
the bottom of a 9x13 inch pan, letting the parchment extend up two
sides of the pan and overhang slightly on both ends. (This will make
it easy to remove the bark from the pan once set); set aside.
Melt 1 ½ pounds chocolate according to
package directions and pour the chocolate into prepared pan, use an
offset icing spatula to smooth the chocolate into an even layer.
Transfer pan to the freezer for 5 minutes or until chocolate becomes
slightly hardened.
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted
with the paddle attachment, beat together the peanut butter, powdered
sugar, butter and vanilla until smooth and creamy. Using your hands,
press into an even layer onto the hardened chocolate layer. Transfer
pan to the freezer for 5 minutes or until slightly hardened.
Melt the remaining 1 ½ pounds of
chocolate and pour it over the peanut butter layer, use an offset
icing spatula to smooth the chocolate into an even layer. Transfer
pan to the freezer until set.
Once chocolate is set, use a butcher
knife to break up the bark into small pieces. Store in the
refrigerator. Let sit at room temperature for at least 30 minutes
before serving.
Reindeer Chow
Ingredients
Slowly melt chocolate in double broiler
over water. Alternately, place almond bark or white chocolate chips
in a microwave-safe bowl, and microwave on high for 30-second
intervals, stirring between each, until chocolate is melted.
Combine remaining ingredients in large
bowl, then drizzle melted chocolate over top and mix well. Spread in
a shallow layer on a cookie sheet or broiler pan.
Allow to cool completely, then package
in single-serving bags or an air tight container.
Now for the cookies...When I was first
told about these...I kind of wrinkled my nose. When they were
presented to me I wrinkled my nose...when I tasted them...OMG. So
good...I want to make these in lemon. I had the licorice or anise
version. So yummy. I love most things German anyway...this has made
it to my list.
Springerle is a type of German biscuit
with an embossed design made by pressing a mold onto rolled dough and
allowing the impression to dry before baking. This preserves the
detail of the surface pattern. They are most commonly seen during the
Christmas season.
The name springerle means "little
jumper" or "little knight". Their origin can be traced
back to at least the 14th century in southeastern Germany and
surrounding areas.
Springerle
Ingredients
Directions
1) Lightly grease two baking sheets, or
line them with parchment.
2) In a large bowl, beat together the
eggs, salt, confectioners' sugar and flavor for 5 to 6 minutes, until
the mixture is very light and falls in thick ribbons from the beater.
3) Gradually beat in the flour to form
a stiff dough.
 |
| Not my springerle, but a photo to depict what they look like. |
4) Transfer the dough to a well-floured
work surface and knead with your hands for several minutes — it
will seem dry at first, but will become smooth as you work with it.
Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and let it rest at room temperature
for 30 minutes or so.
5) To shape cookies using a springerle
pin: Dust your work surface lightly with flour. Divide the dough in
half and work with one piece at a time, leaving the other piece
covered. Use a regular rolling pin to roll the dough into a
1/4"-thick rectangle, roughly the same size as your springerle
pin.
6) Use a pastry brush to brush a very
light coating of flour onto the dough. Flour your springerle pin,
then give it a couple of sharp raps to knock off excess. Slowly roll
the springerle pin over the dough, pressing down hard enough to leave
a good impression. Cut the cookies apart on the lines, with a pizza
wheel or sharp knife.
7) To shape cookies using a springerle
mold: Lightly dust your work surface. Dust the mold with flour, then
tap it firmly to remove excess. Divide the dough in half and work
with one piece of dough at a time, leaving the other covered. Roll
the dough into a 1/4"-thick square or rectangle
8) Press the lightly floured mold
firmly into the dough. Remove the mold and cut around the design with
a knife. Repeat until all the dough is cut.
9) Transfer the cookies to the prepared
baking sheets. If you're using anise seed, sprinkle it on the cookie
sheet or the parchment before laying down the cookies, giving them
extra flavor. They'll also raise the cookies just a bit, allowing air
to circulate around the bottom, drying them thoroughly.
10) Set the unbaked cookies aside to
dry at room temperature, uncovered, for 24 hours. Turn them over once
during the drying time to allow the bottoms to dry.
11) Preheat the oven to 275°F.
12) Bake the cookies for 25 to 30
minutes, until they're firm but not brown. (If the cookies are a bit
puffy, and the design isn't as sharp as you'd like, bake the next
batch at 250 degrees for 35 to 40 minutes.) Remove them from the oven
and transfer to a rack to cool completely.
13) Store the cookies in an airtight
container. To keep them from becoming rock hard, we suggest placing a
piece of soft bread, a slice of apple, or a cookie softener in the
container with them.
Yield: 2 1/2 to 3 dozen cookies.
Merry Christmas, Happy Chanukah, Yule,
Kwanza, or whatever you may believe in!
I am saddened recently by corporate greed. As many are well aware a childhood staple of kids everywhere is no more. Hostess is gone. This also means Wonder bread is gone. Who didn't love a delicious pb&j or baloney sandwich on Wonder bread as a kid or as where I grew up we also had Butternut bread. (Always a favorite of mine because as a child the Peanuts were spokes persons for it.) This also means no more Drakes cakes...for East Coast people. I discovered Drakes cakes about 14 years ago while living near Boston. I am also thinking about Twinkies. They are supposed to be the food that help us survive an apocalypse. It is probably a good thing the Mayan's got it wrong today.
