JAMSquared

I recently joined the committee at SHPC that makes dessert for the KidStuf Program, a monthly extravaganza for parents to engage kids more deeply in conversations about scripture and our Christian faith. For February, I made these Peppermint Pinwheels, a refrigerator cookie. I saw this recipe on a Food Network special before Christmas and I thought the red and white cookies would also be good for Valentine’s Day. I gave most of them to the KidStuf Program and saved some for James to take to work in his lunch.  They were quite tasty (we also had a few the night I baked them) and were really pretty easy to make.

Peppermint Pinwheels

Peppermint Pinwheels

Source: Food Network

Ingredients:

• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 egg
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon peppermint extract (I used mint extract since I didn’t have any peppermint)
• 1 teaspoon red food coloring

Directions:

In medium bowl, sift together the flour, salt and baking powder; set aside. In large bowl, cream butter and sugar together. Add egg and beat until incorporated. Add teh vanilla and peppermint extract. Gradually add the dry mixture, beating until combined. Remove half of the mixture from the bowl. Add food coloring, beating until fully combined. In waxed paper, roll out dough to form a large rectangle, about 1/4-inch thick. Repeat this step with the uncolored dough. Refrigerate 2 hours.

Tear out 1 sheet of waxed or parchment paper. Sprinkle surface with confectioner’s sugar to prvent sticking. Very carefully, slide the red dough on top of the white dough. Trim edges if uneven and patch is necessary. Roll dough into a log, creating a swirl effect. Place the dough back in the refrigerator and let chill for 2 hours. To prevent a flat bottom place in round glass and lay glass on side in refrigerator.

Preheat oven to 375°F.

Slice the dough into 1/4-inch slices and place on a parchment lined sheet about 1-inch apart. Bake 8 to 10 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool on wire rack.

Yield: 3 dozen

Slicing Cookies

Baking in the Oven

I’ve been meaning to try out this cookie recipe for a while. Jessica’s baptism brunch/lunch was a perfect opportunity. They turned out terrific. I really liked the slightly crispy cookies (a larger cookie scoop might make them chewier), but James wasn’t the biggest fan, so I won’t be making them for just our household as it’s probably not a good idea for me to eat that many cookies.

Oatmeal Surprise Cookies

Oatmeal Surprise Cookies

Source: Simple & Delicious Sept/Oct 2009

Ingredients:

• 1 cup butter, softened
• 3/4 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
• 2 3/4 cups quick-cooking oats
• 1 1/2 cups chocolate-covered raisins

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350°F.

In a large bowl, cream butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs. Combine the flour, baking soda and pumpkin pie spice; gradually add to creamed mixture and mix well. Stir in oats and raisins.

Drop by tablespoons 2 in. apart onto greased baking sheets. Flatten slightly. Bake at 350°F for 13-15 minutes (for me 10 minutes) or until golden brown. Cool for 5 minutes before removing to wire racks. Store in an airtight container.

Yield: 3 dozen (I actually ended up with almost 6 dozen.)

Oatmeal Surprise Cookies Ready to Go in the Oven

In addition to the Orange Bundt Cake and these Oatmeal Surprise Cookies, I prepared the Ham Florentine Wreath and Melon Fruit Slush previously blogged about when I hosted a bridal shower for Julia. I also made a turkey and mozzarella bread, a fruit salad with a honey poppy seed dressing (I will tweak the dressing recipe and share later) and Paula Dean’s Mini Phyllo Cups Filled with Shrimp Salad. The shrimp salad cups were delicious, but I wish I had made more than 36 cups as I had leftover shrimp salad although it was still tasty on a roll for my lunch. My Mom helped out by bringing a Pumpkin Cranberry Bread she baked.

We had a busy weekend. Jessica’s baptism was yesterday and we had a lot of family in town. There will be a bunch of posts related to the baptism and this first one involves the Orange Bundt Cake I baked for the brunch/lunch we held after the baptism.

It is a very moist delicious cake that I like to make when I buy orange juice, because I have a tendency of forgetting about it being in the fridge. This is the kind of cake that Sandra Lee would call semi-homemade.

Last Piece of Orange Bundt Cake

Orange Bundt Cake

Source: James’ mother

Cake Ingredients:

• 1 18-oz. package orange cake mix
• 1 3.4-oz. box instant vanilla pudding
• 1/3 cup vegetable oil
• 1 cup orange juice
• 1 tablespoon orange zest
• 4 eggs

Glaze Ingredients:

• 1 cup confectioner’s sugar
• 1 teaspoon orange zest
• 1-2 tablespoons orange juice

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350°F. Oil and flour Bundt pan.

In a large bowl, blend all cake ingredients at low speed until moistened. Beat at medium speed for 2 minutes. Pour batter into prepared Bundt pan and bake at 350°F for 38 to 43 minutes, or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool completely on wire rack.

For the glaze, mix confectioner’s sugar and orange zest; add enough orange juice to make it thin enough to spread. Drizzle over cake.

Yield: 12-15 servings

On Saturday the 12th (the same day we did our Christmas photo shoot), Kristy, Stephanie, Paramjit, and I baked cookies in Kristy’s kitchen. Kristy made us each a neat apron with our initial on the top. We each picked two recipes to bake, although we only ended up baking 7 cookie recipes. We were there for about 10 hours, although that time did include lunch, dinner, and a photo shoot. Next year, we will not pick 5 recipes that require rolling out.

Jennifer, Stephanie, Kristy and Paramjit

The two recipes I picked were Chocolate Mint Wafers and Confetti Cookies. The Chocolate Mint Wafers were tasty, but I’m not sure I will make them again. The recipe for the Confetti Cookies came out of my Nanny’s recipe box. They were extremely tasty and I will have to make them again soon.

Confetti Cookies

Confetti Cookies

Source: Nanny’s recipe box

Ingredients:

• 1 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1 cup shortening (I used butter-flavored)
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 2 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 cup cut-up small gum-drops (technically, I used spice drops)
• 1/2 cup chopped pecans

Directions:

In large bowl, cream sugars, shortening, eggs and vanilla. In separate bowl, combine flour, salt and baking soda (do not sift). Add to creamed mixture. Stir in gum drops and pecans; mix well. Drop by teaspoonfuls onto greased baking sheet. If desired, dot tops with additional cut-up gum drops. Bake at 350°F for 15 minutes or until golden brown.

Yield: 5-6 dozen

Future Baker

Jessica observed our mad baking skills from her spot on the bar in her bouncer. Thanks Nick for providing the pictures.

James’ parents and our nephew Dawson came to our house for Thanksgiving this year. We had a great meal. The entree was a fully-cooked spiral sliced ham I picked up at Costco that was heated and glazed. Side dishes were Green Bean Casserole, Baked Macaroni and Cheese (source: Alton Brown and the Food Network), Maple Sweet Potato Puree with Caramelized Onions (source: Claire Robinson and the Food Network), and Glazed Carrots with Rosemary (source: Taste of Home Holidays & Celebrations 2009) and Pillsbury Grands Biscuits. The Green Bean Casserole was a hit as always. The baked mac and cheese was tasty, but James says he prefers Velvetta Shells and Cheese. The sweet potatoes weren’t bad, but I’m just not a big sweet potato fan, but maybe I’ll find a recipe that makes me like them. The carrots were good, but the rosemary was a tad overpowering.

Of course, my favorite part of Thanksgiving is the pies. I tried a new pie crust that was oh so delicious. I will definitely be using it again.

Alton Brown’s Buttery & Flaky Pie Crust

Source: Pear Cranberry Pie

Ingredients:

• 6 ounces unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
• 2 ounces vegetable shortening, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
• 5 to 7 tablespoons water (or juice that complements pie filling)
• 12 ounces all-purpose flour, about 2 3/4 cups, plus extra for dusting
• 1 teaspoon salt (I use kosher salt)
• 1 tablespoon granulated sugar

Directions:

Place the butter, shortening and water into the refrigerator for 1 hour.

In the bowl of a food processor, combine the flour, salt and sugar by pulsing 3 to 4 times. Add the butter and pulse 5 to 6 times until the texture looks mealy. Add the shortening and pulse another 3 to 4 times until incorporated.

Remove the lid of the food processor and sprinkle in 5 tablespoons of the water. Replace the lid and pulse 5 times. Add more water as needed, and pulse again until the mixture holds together when squeezed. Weigh the dough and divide in half. Shape each half into a disk, wrap in in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour and up to overnight.

Yield: 2 one-crust pie shells or 1 two-crust pie

I made two one-crust pies with this pie dough. The first was a Texas Pecan Pie (source: Taste of Home Recipe finder), that was slightly different from my normal pecan pie recipe. It was tasty, but a little too liquidy for my liking.

Texas Pecan Pie

The second was a Pumpkin Chiffon Pie (source: Taste of Home Holidays & Celebrations 2009) that was definitely delicious, but it is not the perfect pumpkin pie. Of course, part of that could have been I was distracted while making the pie and so it didn’t end up looking quite like it should.

Pumpkin Chiffon Pie