Rach -
How was the puff pastry course? I'm looking forward to my own private tutorial over the holidays.
Yesterday was our first foray into Christmas baking this year. Of course, despite my attempt to keep the halloween cookie cutters in the cupboard, Finn felt that bats and pumpkins would be a nice addition to the more traditional stars and angels. We made the dough, cut out the shapes, all with the intention of icing in the afternoon. A day later the cookies are still un-iced; after sampling half the dough I just wasn't sure that Finn's little body could handle the sugar consumption. Maybe tomorrow. I'm not going to provide a recipe, there are enough sugar cookie recipes online and in your dusty cookbooks.
Now for the giveaway. Leave a comment telling us your favourite Christmas treat and we'll announce the winner next week Wed (the 15th). The randomly drawn name will be shipped a specialty Reems stollen.
Here are a few other seasonal recipes I trolled from our archives:
Biscotti
Not-So-Traditional Christmas Cookie
Monster Cookies
And some Dutch selections:
Speculaas
Boeterkoek
Hi Haley
ReplyDeleteI am going to try your Butternut Squash Soup this Thursday...will let you know how it goes.
Now my favorite Christmas Treat is when Gramma Ferrie used to make her NANAIMO BARS.. They were the best. Am going to make them next week , not sure how long they will last might not make it till Christmas..Now I have a giveaway on my blog that is drawn on the 15th but you have to be a follower and I see that you are not a follower yet so you better get on the program cause I know if you won the draw you will love the gift..
Love Aunty Judy x0x0x0
Girls/ladies, I love your blog. My favourite christmas treat is shortbread and most recently; toblerone shortbread (shortbread with toblerone bits in it). So, so, so good. That's why I don't have any in my house. Too dangerous.
ReplyDeleteLouise
PS Gary's favourite christmas treat is spending time with his family. Does that count? Those are the ridiculous answers I get from him.
Love that Finn brought out the Halloween cutters. Our sugar cookies are a regular cornucopia of the seasons. My favourite christmas treat is: buck-eye balls. Mmm... those morsels never lasted long in the Gunn household - they tend to stick around a few hours longer in the Sheehan home for reasons only known to my Grinchy husband.
ReplyDeleteHi Haley and Rachel - we VanDomselaars often break Dutch tradition and have Ollliebollen for Christmas, not New Year's. So I'd have to say that's my favourite !
ReplyDeleteBev
Bev, I remember your Dad's (? do I have that right?) olliebollen. I remember Christine loved it too, maybe she had a hidden agenda, marrying Jack?
ReplyDeleteReems', can you make me like stollen?
My favourite treat is still oblies, Mary Bomhof's recipe. Let me know if you need it.
Actually, Heather, I would LOVE to have the Douglas (formerly) Bomhof oblie recipe. I have fond memories of those cookies...
ReplyDeleteHmmmm, favourite Christmas treat. I think mine would be cornflake caramel squares. Or rice krispy balls with marshmallow and caramel inside. mmmmm
ReplyDeletemmmm... my favourite Christmas treat is a toss up between sugar cookies (stars, with a half maraschino cherry in the middle) and homemade turtles... yum!
ReplyDeleteI love Christmas baking - speaking of which, I'm off to get a Christmas cookie! =)
tough call as it really depends on my mood. toss up between cappuccino shortbread or cinnamon logs probably. this year my cupboards are unfortunately pretty bare in the treat department. there never seems to be enough time to get around to christmas baking on top of the mere staples. next year when parker is less demanding i suppose :)
ReplyDeleteWow guys, this is a great list. Maybe next year I'll have to request the recipes too - I've sampled a few of your faves - Ali, I fondly recall your buck-eye balls. Bev, I' m not sure that I had personally eaten any of the famous vanDomselaar ollibolen, but I have definitely heard stories. Heather, I second a request for that ooblie recipe. Our grandma had the same recipe I think, but finding it would be another story. Oh, and Heather as good as the Reems stollen is, I think that you actually have to like stollen to enjoy it. If we draw your name we'll send you biscotti. Oh, and Louise, I'm not sure that Gary's treat, while heart warming:) warrants a second entry for the Chapman household.
ReplyDeleteOK. Eating a biscotti cuppy as I write. Those suckers make the best Christmas gifts! Or, in this case, 'we forgot to give Jamie's teacher a Christmas gift' gift.
ReplyDeleteAnyhow- here's the oblie recipe (pronounced ooobley, and no, I don't know why) Makes about 40 cookies.
2 pkgs Maria biscuits (tea biscuits, get those, though, the right thickness and size)
Cream 1 cup butter, softened.
Add 2 level tbsp instant coffee, dissolved completely in a tiny bit of water
Add 2 cups icing sugar. Beat by hand until thick and smooth, like peanut butter.
Put into a large freezer Ziploc, smush down towards one corner, cut a 1 cm hole out of the corner and pipe mixture onto the cookies. Perhaps about 2 tbsp onto middle of each cookie? You'll get a feel for it after a few batches ;) Use a table knife to smooth the cream out towards the edge of each cookie, leaving a peak in the middle. The whole thing should look like a Hawaiian volcano- low slope, even profile. All this should be done as quickly as possible before the butter starts to get all melty.
Freeze on a baking tray.
Melt 350g semi-sweet choc chips and a bit of shortening in double boiler, so it's smooth and runny. Put whole almonds in a pile on the countertop, as many as cookies you made.
Dip cookie, upside-down, in chocolate so all cream is covered. Immediately plunk an almond on top, trying NOT to get chocolate on it. The almond is the la-di-dah finger-hold so you can eat these without getting incriminating chocolate evidence all over your fingers.
Once they're all dipped and topped, put them in the freezer again on the tray until really solid. Then they're containerable.
Enjoy!