It's Christmas cookie time!

12/7/11 Cook’s Corner
Betty Kaiser

Yikes! I hate to tell you this but…Christmas is less than three weeks away. So, if homemade Christmas cookies are a tradition are your house, you’d better get baking.

I struggled for years making cookies during Christmas week so they would taste fresh. When I was working 60-hour weeks, the timing of the making, baking and decorating would sometimes overwhelm me. Then I began making the dough for each batch of cookies a week before and either refrigerating or freezing it.

Most cookie dough will freeze very nicely, especially those that have egg in the batter and are firm. Light, cake-like cookies made with egg whites or a liquid batter won’t freeze as well. But at this time of year we’re usually thinking of sugar cookies and that dough will easily withstand the freezer.

Most of my sources say that the dough should not be frozen longer than 4-6 weeks. Well, you don’t have to worry about that since Christmas is just around the corner. Go ahead and make up a few batches of dough tonight and if you’re not going to bake for a couple of weeks, your frozen dough should be just fine.

Be sure and double-wrap the dough in plastic wrap and again in either a large sealed plastic bag, foil or freezer paper. Now this is important: Be sure and write the type of cookie dough and the date it was frozen on the outside of the package. I know you think you’ll remember but trust me—it’s easy to forget. Next June you’ll be wondering what you’re supposed to do with those balls of dough hiding in the corner of the freezer!

The next hurdle is to remember to take the dough out of the freezer and let it defrost in the refrigerator before baking. Plan ahead. I suggest that you write on your calendar “Defrost Dough!” the day before baking.

Once the dough is defrosted, I bake the cookies, decorate and put in a tightly sealed container. Sometimes I freeze them plain if I’m short of time and decorate later. My grandsons will still lend a hand when it comes to decorating. Again, double wrap them tightly and write the type of cookie and date on the package.

Because kids love to eat Gingerbread men I’m starting off today’s recipes with an old recipe from my ancient “Cookie Jar Cookbook.” It makes a bunch of cookies and you’ll have plenty for hostess gifts or you can freeze the excess.

The popular Cream Cheese Cookie dough is here with a couple of suggestions. It can be used almost anywhere that a basic sugar cookie is needed. You can even use it as a base for bar cookies.

All of these cookie recipes are old as the hills and you can bet that your family will gobble them up as quickly as any fancy store-bought creation. Next time we’ll tackle some bar cookies or maybe a pie to be made at the last minute for Christmas dinner. Enjoy!

German Molasses Cookies or Gingerbread Men

Makes 8 dozen

1 cup butter
1 1/4 cups light molasses
3/4 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
4 cups sifted all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons ground ginger
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 to 3/4 teaspoon ground cloves

Preheat oven to 350° F.

Melt butter in a saucepan; add molasses and brown sugar and heat until sugar is dissolved, stirring occasionally. Pour into a bowl; cool.

Sift remaining ingredients together; add to cooled mixture in fourths, mixing until blended after each addition.

Turn dough onto a floured surface and knead until easy to handle, using additional flour if necessary. Wrap in moisture-vaporproof material; refrigerate and allow dough to ripen one or two days.

Roll one fourth of dough at a time about 1/8 inch thick on a floured surface; cut with a 3-inch round cutter or fancy cutters. Transfer to ungreased cookie sheets. Bake about 7 minutes.

Note: For gingerbread men, roll dough 1/4 inch thick and cut with a gingerbread-man cutter. Bake about 13 min.

Cookie Frosting

2 cups powdered sugar
2 tablespoons milk
1 tablespoon light corn syrup
Food Coloring of your choice

Frost cooled cookies lightly and put faces on gingerbread men or snow ladies. Use raisins for eyes, Red Hots for lips or decorate with your favorite sprinkles.

Cream Cheese Cookie Dough

1 pkg. (8 ounce) Cream Cheese, softened
3/4-cup butter (1-1/2 sticks) softened
1 cup sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla
2-1/4 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda

Beat cream cheese, butter, sugar and vanilla in large bowl with electric mixer on medium speed until well blended. Add flour and baking soda; mix well. Cover and refrigerate. When ready to bake proceed to the variation of your choice.

Sugar Cookie Cut-outs

Makes about 3 1/2 dozen cookies.

Preheat oven to 350° F.

Using the above recipe roll dough to 1/8-inch thickness on lightly floured surface. Cut into assorted shapes using 3-inch cookie cutters. Place on greased baking sheets.

Bake 10-12 minutes or until edges begin to brown. Transfer cookies to wire rack; immediately press about 1/2-teaspoon crushed candies onto each hot cookie or cool completely on rack and frost using your favorite recipe or the one above.

Thumbprint cookies

Makes about 2 dozen cookies.

Using above recipe add 1-cup finely chopped pecans to dough along with the flour and baking soda. Refrigerate 30 minutes.

Preheat oven to 350° F.

Shape dough into 1-inch balls. Place on ungreased baking sheets. Indent centers. Bake 10 minutes.

Fill each cookie with about 1 teaspoon of your favorite preserves. Apricot and raspberry are always favorites. Continue baking 8-10 minutes or until golden brown.

Keep it simple and keep it seasonal!

Betty Kaiser’s Cook’s Corner is dedicated to sharing a variety of recipes 

that are delicious, family oriented and easy to prepare.

Thanksgiving traditional side dishes

11/16/11 COOK’S CORNER
BETTY KAISER

Thanksgiving side dishes

Thanksgiving dinner and tradition go together like love and marriage. As the song says, “you can’t have one without the other.” So right about now, households all across the country are doling out traditional recipes for their family’s Thanksgiving feast.

Every region of this country has its own delicious specialties. Most of us are buying turkeys for Thanksgiving but it’s a sure bet that your side dishes and mine will differ. What we each serve will usually have a connection with what we ate in childhood.

My parents and grandparents appreciated good food. They had lived through the Great Depression and two world wars. They knew what it was to have food rationed and to depend on Grandpa’s Victory Garden. Thanksgiving was a time to celebrate abundant blessings.

Although I grew up in California, my grandparents were from Texas and my parents were Missouri born and bred. Almost everything we ate was homemade and grown locally. The turkey was ordered from the butcher at the bottom of the hill and the vegetables (if not home-grown) were fresh from the green grocer who drove his produce truck down our street twice a week.

The Thanksgiving dinners I remember were pretty elaborate feasts: Relish plates of stuffed celery and olives, fancy cheeses and crackers; butternut squash soup; roast turkey with cornbread stuffing; mashed potatoes with giblet gravy; candied yams (NO marshmallows); green beans with bacon; buttered parsnips, gelatin salad and homemade yeast rolls. Desserts always included pumpkin and fresh apple pie.

It was only when I was older that I realized not everyone ate the same dinner. I read one cookbook that suggested that a Shaker family feast might also be eating roast turkey but their side dishes could include creamed oysters on toasted corn bread. Instead of pumpkin pie, dessert might be an Ohio Shaker Lemon Pie.

Looking back, I notice a distinct difference food preparation of the between then and now. There may have been many choices on the dinner table but they were relatively simple foods served without sauces. Vegetables were seasoned with butter, salt and pepper. Stuffing was cornbread, onions and celery. The yeast rolls were served with Grandma’s homemade jam. And the pies crusts were made with lard, flaky and light as a feather to enhance the filling.

In 1957 Campbell Soup Company introduced a green bean casserole that still is the most popular recipe ever to come out of their corporate kitchen. Recently, that fabulous southern cook, Paula Deen, updated the recipe. It’s basically the same as Campbell’s but she cooks fresh beans in chicken broth, adds sautéed onions and mushrooms and tops it all off with some grated cheese. It kicks the recipe up a notch.

I’m also updating two potato casseroles today. They’re both tasty and if you like to plan ahead, you can prepare the sweet potato and mashed potato dishes the day before. Refrigerate and re-heat just before dinner. Enjoy!

PAULA DEEN’S GREEN BEAN CASSEROLE

1/3 stick butter
1/2 cup diced onions
1/2 cup sliced fresh mushrooms
2 -3 cups sliced green beans
3 cups chicken broth
1 (10 3/4-ounce) can cream of mushroom soup
1 (2.8-ounce) can French-fried onion rings
Pinch House Seasoning, recipe follows
1 cup grated Cheddar

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Melt the butter in a large skillet. Sauté the onions and mushrooms in the butter. Boil green beans in chicken broth for 10 minutes and drain. Add the green beans, mushroom soup, onion rings, and House Seasoning, to taste, to the onion mixture. Stir well. Pour into a greased 1 1/2-quart baking dish. Bake for 20 minutes, then top the casserole with the Cheddar and bake for 10 minutes longer, or until the casserole is hot and cheese is melted. Serves 6

House Seasoning:
1 cup salt
1/4 cup black pepper
1/4 cup garlic powder

Mix ingredients together and store in an airtight container for up to 6 months.

STREUSEL-TOPPED SWEET POTATOES

14 cups (1-inch) cubed peeled sweet potato (about 5 pounds)
1/2 cup half-and-half
1/2 cup maple syrup
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup chilled butter, cut into small pieces
1/2 cup chopped pecans

Preheat oven to 375°.

Place potato in a Dutch oven, and cover with water. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer 12 minutes or until tender. Drain.

Combine the half-and-half and next 4 ingredients (half-and-half through egg) in a large bowl, stirring with a whisk. Add potato to egg mixture; beat with a mixer at medium speed until smooth. Spoon potato mixture into a 13 x 9-inch baking dish coated with cooking spray.

Combine flour and sugar in a food processor; pulse to combine. Add chilled butter; pulse until mixture resembles coarse meal. Stir in pecans; sprinkle over potato mixture.

Cover and bake at 375° for 15 minutes. Uncover and bake an additional 25 minutes or until the topping is browned and the potatoes are thoroughly heated. Serves 18

OVERNIGHT MASHED POTATO CASSEROLE

Seattle Times

4 pounds russet potatoes, peeled, quartered
1-½ cups sour cream
6 tablespoons butter, divided
2 teaspoons salt
¼ teaspoon pepper
¼ cup dry breadcrumbs

Cook potatoes until tender in boiling, salted water. Drain and place cooked potatoes in the large bowl of an electric mixer. Add sour cream, 5 tablespoons butter, salt and pepper.

Beat potato mixture until light and fluffy on low speed of an electric beater. Pile lightly into a buttered 2-quart casserole dish. Cover and refrigerate overnight.

Bring casserole out of refrigerator 1/2 hour before cooking. Bake, covered, in a preheated 325-degree oven about 1 hour or until heated through.

Toss breadcrumbs with remaining 1 tablespoon butter, which has been melted, and sprinkle buttered crumbs over potatoes. Continue baking, uncovered, about 30 minutes longer. Serves 8-10

Keep it simple and keep it seasonal! 

Betty Kaiser’s Cook’s Corner is dedicated to sharing a variety of recipes 

that are delicious, family oriented and easy to prepare.