Hot Roast Beef and Provolone Subs page ~ 68

After all the sweet and sugary posts I thought you could use a delicious savory option. These sandwiches are always a hit. This really is on the table in no time! The recipe calls for 6 inch subs, but I just used some bread shaped like hamburger since that is what I had.
You saute' the onions then simmer them in beef broth, then add the meat in for a few minutes while you broil some cheese on the bread...
Once you put it all together you get this yummy looking sandwich! Serve the broth on the side to dip the sandwich in as you eat. I ate the leftover one cold the next day and thought it tasted great! --Carissa

Butter Crisp Cookies ~ page 205

I used to make these cookies when I was a kid (and that was a very long time ago!) back when butter was called oleo...(where did that name for butter come from??). These came out a little different texture for me this time because I have a different oven now that cooks very slow, henceforth the cookies took a long time to get a tiny touch of brown on the edges. That just shows you that each person must take into account some differences in their ovens, and even in the weather, when baking.

I like to use cherries to decorate some, pecans for some, and then sometimes I just leave the tops plain. Butter crisp cookies always make a pretty platter for a party.

Peppernuts ~ page 215

Just had to share a few pics I took of my recent batch of Peppernuts...

8 of these large baking sheets and I was tired of making cookies!

A very large bowl of Peppernuts, even after a lot of snacking!

A cute take-home treat for the holidays!

Aunt Judie's Swedish Limpa Bread ~ page 274

My job for Christmas is the traditional Swedish Limpa bread... and here is the most interest the boys have ever shown in the kitchen:

A while back I tried to make the full recipe in my mixer, had a horrible experience and ended up with way too much bad limpa. This time I halved the recipe and made it twice. Both batches turned out great. Here is the second rise:

I actually ran low on regular flour for the second batch and used bread flour which I think turned out a bit fluffier but the difference was slight. I wouldn't go out of my way to use the bread flour again. And here is my finished limpa bread, with the hot oven open, pouring out heat to keep me toasty on one of the colder nights we had!

Santa's Whisker's ~ page 271

This is my go-to cookie when I need a LOT of cookies--great for a party, school, or a bake sale! You can make them Christmasy, like the ones on the left in the picture with the bright red cherry bits in them, or make it a crispy pecan shortbread cookie for any occasion, like the ones on the right. Both ways are delicious!

This recipe makes into a slice and bake cookie. You can make up the logs of dough a couple weeks ahead even, and store them in the fridge. I made half the dough with chopped nuts and cherries and left the other half with only the nuts. If you need a lot of cookies, make one batch after another.

Wrap logs in either wax paper, or plastic wrap...both work fine.

Oops, I forgot to roll my logs in coconut before wrapping them, so I had to unwrap and get that step in--after all, the coconut is supposed to be the "whiskers"--so can't forget that step!

These slice up so fast and nice...

You can pack the cookies on your cookie sheet because they don't spread at all. It will be so easy for you to make lots of these for Christmas!

Gingerbread Men ~ page 210

Guess who decorated these gingerbread men?--well, I did do one of them, for an "example"

This Christmas, with grandkids dropping by at random times, I have kept some gingerbread dough in my fridge and candy decor is a bag ready to pull out for quickie gingerbread memories at Grandmother's house.

So far, only 3 grandkids have got their gingerbread time...but I am sure they will all get their turn in the next week or so...

I have been making this gingerbread recipe since my own kids were pre-school age. This is the original Betty Crocker recipe--the only cookbook I owned back then! ~ Janice

Peppernuts ~ page 215

Do you like to give interesting homemade gifts to friends and family at Christmas? This is one of my favorite gift foods because they are tasty and unique. These cookies are so cute, they will make you smile. I first had them years ago at a friend's house in Canada. They were served in a dish (like nuts) along with afternoon hot tea. After one or two you will notice the "heat" of the pepper, for that hot/sweet mix of flavors. I made two batches this year--one with the suggested low end of red and black pepper, and then a batch with the high end of pepper. I really like the peppery ones, but if you want to share your Peppernuts with little kids, then you might want to use less heat. However, it does keep kiddos from eating too many if they get a little heat build-up going on in their mouth!

Roll the Peppernut dough into little snakes. Then here is a trick--put the rolled snakes on a tray and pop them in the freezer for 10 minutes, or even a few days.

Now slice 3/8 inch slices and lay them out on a parchment lined baking sheet. Use a sharp knife for cutting so that you don't squish the dough down.

My grandsons like Peppenuts with a glass of milk...I especially enjoy a handful with hot chocolate or a mocha!

Elias wanted to show how tiny Peppernut cookies are! ( One of my grandkids asked me if this was puppy food--well, I had to admit they do kind of look like it!!)

Find a pretty container to fill with Peppernuts for Christmas!

Peanut Butter Truffles~ page 224

These little truffles are addictive! I made the "dough" for the middle of the truffles a couple days ahead of time and then when I was ready for them I diced the "dough" into little cubes to roll into balls. These can seem a little crumbly, but just keep rolling till the balls are smooth and round.
Below is what the dipping chocolate looks like....usually comes in an ice cube try thingy.
You just pop a couple out at a time and microwave them 1 minute, stir, then microwave them another 30 seconds or till smooth. I use fondue forks for lifting them out of the chocolate, works like a charm.
They might look a little messy when you plop them down on the parchment paper, but once they harden you can break off any extra chocolate around the edges.
Below is a close up of the middle of one! If that doesn't make you want to make these, then I don't know what will!

Flax Seed Crackers ~ page 19

 

I think these crackers are so much fun to make--and they are always a hit and a conversation piece at any event; people will be amazed you made a "cracker". Oh, and these are delicious--light, crispy, with a touch a spicy pepper. I love them with soft brie cheese--which is how I first was introduced to them at a friend's wedding. I added cracked black pepper to the original recipe, and simplified the mixing by using the food processor.

Dry ingredients and butter are dumped into the food processor--this is a fast way to cut in the butter. I like to add ground flax seed powder as part of my flour in addition to the whole flax seed, just to pump up the nutrition.

Add the milk and the dough will quickly form.

Divide the dough in half, and roll out and cook one half at a time. Cover the waiting half with a towel so it won't dry out.

This is one half of the dough. After I rolled it as thin as I could, I cut it in half, then rolled the center edges a bit more before putting the two fourths on a baking sheet. Dividing the half into fourths keeps the center from getting a little thicker and taking longer to bake up crisp.

Take from the oven when they just start to turn golden brown. You want them crisp, but not overly brown. Sometimes I have to break off the edges and cook the centers a little bit more. You can make up the dough and cover and put in the fridge to bake the next day if you want to. I often bake up several recipes of these crackers for a party, or to give as a gift at Christmas. I like to mix them all up one day, then roll and bake them the next day.  These are also good with the Cheesy Olive Spread on page 28.  ~Janice

Chicken and Dumpling Soup ~ page 35

The only credit I can take for any part of this meal is planning to make it and buying the ingredients for it. I wish I could even credit myself for chopping the vegetables or something, but unfortunately or should I say fortunately :-), my amazing husband made the entire meal. We were having weekend guests and they were to arrive just in time for lunch.

My plan was to have the soup simmering and ready to serve when they arrived, but being 9 months pregnant and getting over a cold left me with much less energy than I had expected...then our darling daughters decided to sleep in until 8:30 that morning which was wonderful, but left me with less time than I had expected as well.

Taylor eagerly offered to make the soup and also decided to make some rosemary bread to go with it.
This is the bread...isn't it beautiful? It was a recipe he had been wanting to try out for a while...it's supposed to be a copy cat of the Romano's Macaroni Grill recipe for the bread they serve. It tasted JUST like it! Wonderful! And here is the close up of the soup. It was amazing!

Thank you again for another wonderful recipe!!

And I must add an apology for my absence from the blog. Although I have still been making several recipes a week (sometimes per day) from the cookbook, and taking pictures of most of them with the intent to post...I lost my enthusiasm for food at the beginning of this pregnancy. It was hard enough for me to stomach the food enough to make it, much less to write about it and look at pictures, so I just took a break...then I just got out of the habit of posting. But I will add some of my pictures from the recipes eventually. :-)

Merry Christmas Sale!

Are you looking for a gift for the cook on your list? We have a few more cookbooks left from our last order and they are on sale during December for $30.00--a $5.savings off the regular price. This is a cookbook that can be used almost every day, unlike most of the cookbooks on our shelves that we only use a few recipes from! And if you buy a book for a friend or relative be sure to point them to the blog to get pictures of the recipes. Look under the "Order a Cookbook" tab to get our email addresses to place an order before Christmas! We will do our best to get books to you on time for Christmas.

Be watching for our Christmas cooking recipes on the blog this month!

Apple Pandowdy ~ page 229

This old-fashioned recipe is an easy, fast way to make an apple pie. I suspect that originally leftover scraps of pie dough were used, hence the "messy, or dowdy" appearance.

I made the dough up a day in advance (in the food processor), shaped it into a disc, and wrapped with plastic wrap, then slipped it into a zipper-top bag and into the fridge to chill.

I like to use a selection of both tart and sweet apples. Cut in big hunks--I take each quartered apple and cut it into thirds for thick pieces.

The apples are tossed with a cinnamon, sugar, flour, and lemon juice mixture. Scatter butter slices on the top of the apples.

Roll out the cold dough and cut into 2-inch squares. You don't have to be perfect--this is messy pie, remember!

Lay out your dough pieces on the apples kind of like a patchwork crazy quilt, leaving a few openings for steam. I like to sprinkle the top with sugar for a sparkling appearance.

We served this dessert on Thanksgiving day. This is Miss Emma, Julia's 99 year-old Grandma eating Apple Pandowdy! Miss Emma said it was wonderful! By the way, did you know there is a song about this dish? Ben was singing it at Thanksgiving, "Shoo-fly Pie and Apple Pandowdy". I looked it up, and there is such a song sung by Dina Shore! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2HBDnpu5Bl4