Christmas Cookie Time!!

My favorite time of the year - Christmas Cookie time!  The time when the work "diet" is a four letter word!! Who goes on a DIET at Christmas time?? IMPOSSIBLE!!  So do you have a favorite Christmas Cookie recipe? 

I have to admit I am an iced sugar cookie addict.  Is there a 10 step program for me?  It is a serious addiction.  The problem is there is SO many cute cookie cutters!  And I have so much fun decorating them!

The other day when I was going through my cookbooks, I found an old recipe from my Grandmother (my Mom's Mom) for a Swedish Christmas cookie.  It is sort of a fruitcake type cookie - really good.  I will try to make that next week.  Boy, just the thought of that cookie brings back so many good memories!!

So for the next month or so, I will hide my scale and wear pants with elastic waistlines!!  Merry Christmas and Happy Baking!

The Demise of the "Twinkie"

How can this be???  How can we go on???  No more Twinkies!!!  Today, Hostess Bakeries have decided to close their doors forever (and I mean FORVER!!) which means no more Twinkies.  Now, to me that is no big deal because I am not a huge Twinkie fan (I know - the HORROR!!).  BUT, to my family this is the worst news ever.  Of course, I will terribly miss the Hostess Cupcakes (that is another story!!).

Have no fear Twinkie Addicts!! Help is on the way!!  I have found a recipe for homemade Twinkies - TADA!!  No applause necessary!  Now, I have not tried this recipe yet.  I will in the next couple of weeks and will post my "findings."  Again, this recipe comes from the "FAMOUS INTERNET" folder. 

Homemade Twinkies recipe

Ingredients:

For the cake:
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
1-1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup milk
1/3 cup canola oil
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon vanilla

For the filling:
1/3 cup shortening
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 cup light cream
1/2 cup confectioners' sugar

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease mini loaf pans* with cooking spray.

mini loaf pan on Amazon

.Beat the eggs and sugar with a mixer until thick. Slowly add in all other ingredients and beat until fully combined. Divide the batter among the mini loaf pans, filling about 3/4 full. Bake cakes for at least an hour, or until golden brown. Cool in pans and then transfer to a wire cooling rack.

While cakes cook, prepare filling by mixing shortening, sugar, vanilla and light cream with a mixer. Once mixed, slowly add in sugar and beat until combined. Fill a pastry bag with frosting and cut a small hole.

.Once cakes have cooled, carefully poke three holes in the bottom of the cakes. Pipe frosting into the holes until just filled. Cool for at least 20 minutes and enjoy!  Life is good again!!

Buttermilk Bread

Now, doesn't that sound good!  I've heard of Buttermilk Biscuits, so I figured Buttermilk Bread has got to be good.  So when I saw the recipe in my new book, I knew I had to try it - thus a NEW adventure was born.  And how long has been since I have made bread . . . too long!!

This recipe can be found in Suzanne Dunaway's book, No Need to Knead, Handmade Italian Breads in 90 Minutes.  Once again, I am not paid for endorsing her book nor do I know Suzanne Dunaway personally.  I just read a lot of good reviews on her book, so I bought it.

Onto the recipe . . .

First you need to make a BIGA (or a sponge) the night before.

BIGA

2 T active dry yeast
1/2 cup lukewarm water (85 to 95 degrees F)
2 cups warmed buttermilk (I heated it up to about 70 degrees F)
2 cups unbleached bread flour

In a small glass measuring cup, mix the yeast with the warm water and stir well - set aside.  Mix the flour and buttermilk together  in a larger bowl and add the yeast mixture.  The yeast mixture should be bubbly by now.  This will form a very, very wet dough, almost the consistency of thick pancake batter.  Cover the bowl tightly with plastic wrap and let "ferment" overnight at room temperature.  (If your house is cold at night like mine is - put the bowl in your oven with the oven light on).  This is what you should find the next morning:

BREAD

2 T melted butter (I always use unsalted)

1 T honey

3 to 3 1/2 cups white flour

olive oil

Add the butter and honey to the biga and mix well.

Stir in all the flour until the dough is smooth and pulls away from the sides of the bowl.  Add up to an additional 1/2 cup of flour if the dough is too moist.

Move the dough to a floured surface.  Rub your hands with flour.  Push the dough with the heels of your hands and flip it over, folding it on itself several times.  The dough will be slightly sticky.  Put the dough in an oiled bowl, cover it with plastic wrap and let it rise until the dough has doubled in volume - about an hour.

Grease two 8 1/2 by 4 by 4 inch bread loaf pans.  Divide the dough in half and form each into a loaf.  Place the dough into the plans.  Brush the each loaf with olive oil, cover and let rise until the dough reaches the rim of the pans - roughly 30 to 40 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.  Place the pans in the oven and bake for 30 to 40 minutes until the loaves sound hollow when tapped.  Cool on a wire rack - if you can wait that long!!

I will give you the verdict on these loaves in the next couple of hours.  My kitchen does smell heavenly.  Hopefully, they taste as good as they look!

Enjoy!