Jam Bars

My mom used to make these all the time when I was a kid.  I made them this week, using homemade plum jam from last summer, and they brought a preview of summer as well as a (tasty!) flashback to childhood.  Super simple.  Super yummy.  Sweet with a hint of salty. 

Mmmm.



Cream together:

• 1c. butter or margarine
• 1 1/3 c. brown sugar, packed
• 2 1/4 c. flour
• 1 1/3 t. salt
• 3/4 t. baking soda
• 2 c. oats (quick cooking or regular)

Press half the mixture into a 9x13 pan.  Spread with 12 oz. of jam or preserves and pat remaining crumb mixture on top.

Bake at 400F for 25 minutes.  Cool and cut into squares.

Peppernuts

Because I love you all, I'll share our family recipe for Peppernuts, which are eensy little Christmas spice cookies with a yummy crunch. Within Mennonite clans, each family has their own recipe, which they claim is "the best." Of course, this one is the REAL best recipe.

It is a very big recipe and will make hundreds of tiny cookies, which I eat by the handful (very dangerous). I'm sure that you could halve it, but why would you want to? Their meant to be given away anyway!

This is also a fun recipe for kids to help with...younger kids rolling out the ropes and older kids cutting. Plus the slave labor helps, since they're a little time intensive. Maybe I should have some kids.....?

Peppernuts are best with coffee, dipped in or just crunched along side your sipping. And it's the only cookie that you're allowed to eat with breakfast.

The specifics in this recipe come from my mom.

1 cup butter
2 cups brown sugar
2 cups white sugar
4 eggs
6 cups flour (I use 5 1/2 cups)
1.5 cups finely chopped nuts (pecans recommended)
A dash of salt
1 tsp. cream of tartar
1 tsp. nutmeg
1 tsp. cloves
1/2 tsp. anise oil or 3/4 tsp anise extract
3/4 T. baking soda dissolved in 1 T. hot water

Cream butter and sugars until fluffy. Add eggs and continue beating. Sift flour, measure and sift together with spices and salt. Add gradually to creamed mixture. Add soda solution and anise. Add nuts. Chill dough.

Roll out on floured board into long round sticks about 3/4 inch in diameter. Roll onto cookie sheet lining them up until the sheet is full. Chill again (I freeze them). Take out one strip at a time and cut into 1/4" - 1/2" circles and bake on greased cookie sheet.

Bake at 375 for 10-15 minutes, depending on how thick you cut them. I bake them until they are nice and brown because that makes them crispier.

The rolled out dough can be kept in the freezer as long as you'd like -- until you're ready to bake lots or just one pan at a time. They freeze very well after baking too!

Coconut MaCaron's

For the coconut lovers among us...

2 - 7 oz. packages of sweetened flake coconut
1 can sweetened condensed milk
1 t. vanilla
2 egg whites, room temperature (very important!)
pinch salt

Preheat oven to 325 F. Fold the coconut, condensed milk, and vanilla together. In a separate bowl, beat the egg whites with the pinch of salt until stiff & soft. Fold the whites gently into the coconut mixture. Scoop by small spoonfuls onto parchment-paper lined cookie sheet and bake for 25-30 minutes til toasty brown.

*For a little extra sum'n-sum'n, dip them into melted Nutella. Slip into coconut coma. Dream of white-sand beaches.

Browned Butter Blondies

I made these the other day for Lindsey and Alicia and they requested this recipe. It is easy and yummy and has an atrocious amount of sugar. This is my go-to dessert recipe when my kitchen is bare.

2 cups flour
2 1/2 cups packed brown sugar
2 t. baking powder
1/2 t. salt
10 T. butter
3/4 c. eggs (which is funny, but the original recipe called for egg substitute, as I got this from Cooking Light. But, I'm not interested in using egg substitute)

Combine flour, sugar, b.p., and salt in large bowl.

Place butter in a small skillet over med. heat. Cook for 6 minutes, until lightly browned, stirring a bit. Cool 10 minutes or so. Whisk into eggs. Pour butter/eggs into dry ingredients and stir just until moist. Spread batter into 13x9 pan coated with butter. Bake 350 degrees for 30 minutes. Best a bit gooey.

Chocolate Chip Cookies

I'm not much of a baker, but this blog, which links to this article, which is all about this chocolate chip cookie recipe is super interesting.

there are all kinds of little interesting tidbits in the article/recipe but the long and the short of it?

36 hours of resting cookie dough in the fridge + a small sprinkling of sea salt on top before baking = the best cookie

the cure for PMS

These cookies will cure whatever ails ya. The recipe is my great-great aunt's. I just can't stop eating these things when I get a hankerin'. If you don't believe me, try them:

Flo's No Bake Chocolate Cooky
(makes 3ish dozen)

Combine in a pot:

2 c. sugar
1/2 c. milk
1 stick unsalted butter or margarine
3 T. cocoa
1/4 t. salt

Bring to a full boil, then boil one minute. Remove from heat.
Immediately blend in:

1/2 c. peanut butter
1 t. vanilla
3 c, quick oats

Mix well. Drop by spoonfuls on wax paper to cool. Eat. Smile. Draw a hot bath. Go to bed. Leave a few cookies on the nightstand for middle-of-the-night craving.

Very interesting cookies.

I made these and packaged them up for mom today-- a mother's day gift. They are truly the most unique cookie I've ever made. I've never heard of using rosemary in a cookie. Anyway, they turned out nicely-- a shortbread type cookie that would go nicely with tea. (As a side note, I got the rosemary at Wohlners, who purchased it from a local source.)

Rosemary Citrus Cookies
2/3 c. flour
1/2 c yellow cornmeal
pinch salt
1/2 c. butter, softened
1/2 c. sugar
1 large egg
2 T. finely chopped rosemary
2-3 T. grated lemon zest
1/2 t. almond extract

Combine flour, meal and salt. In another bowl, beat sugar and butter until fluffy. Beat in egg, rose., zest, and extract. Stir in flour mixture just until combined. Roll into a 10 inch log encased in wax paper. Freeze overnight. Slice the next day in 3/8 inch wide slices. Place on parchment lined sheets. Bake at 350 degrees for about 15 minutes. Transfer to rack to cool completely.