A Small Town Christmas Part 33

PUMPKIN COOKIES.

COOKIE.

cup b.u.t.ter cup shortening 1 cup sugar 2 cups flour 1 teaspoon baking soda teaspoon salt 1 teaspoon cinnamon 1 cup canned pumpkin 1 egg 1 cup raisins cup chopped walnuts or pecans FROSTING.

3 tablespoons b.u.t.ter 1 tablespoon cream cheese, room temperature 4 teaspoons milk cup brown sugar, packed 1 cup powdered sugar teaspoon vanilla Cream shortening, b.u.t.ter, and pumpkin in mixing bowl; blend in egg. Sift together dry ingredients and blend into pumpkin mixture. Fold in raisins and nuts. Drop by spoonfuls (Sarah uses a regular dinner spoon) onto an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake at 350 for 15 minutes.

Combine b.u.t.ter, milk, and brown sugar in a saucepan. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until dissolved. Remove from burner and add cream cheese. Stir until smooth. Add powdered sugar and vanilla. Spread over warm cookies. Let dry completely before storing.

Makes about 3 dozen.

OATMEAL COOKIES.

cup margarine cup sugar cup brown sugar, packed 1 egg 1 cups flour 1 cups rolled oats (Sarah uses the old-fas.h.i.+oned kind) 3 teaspoons baking powder teaspoon salt 2 teaspoons orange extract cup white chocolate chips cup dried cranberries Cream together margarine, sugars, and egg. Add extract. Sift together dry ingredients and add to creamed mixture. Finally, mix in white chocolate chips and dried cranberries. Drop by rounded tablespoons onto ungreased cookie sheets and bake at 350 for 15 minutes.

Makes about 28 cookies, depending on how much of the dough disappears before getting to the baking sheet. These cookies go fast, so Sarah recommends doubling the recipe.

GINGER COOKIES.

cup shortening 1 cup sugar cup mola.s.ses 1 egg 2 cups flour 2 teaspoons soda teaspoon salt teaspoon cloves teaspoon ginger 1 teaspoon cinnamon Cream shortening and sugar until smooth. Add mola.s.ses and egg and cream until thoroughly mixed. Sift dry ingredients. Add to creamed mixture. Sarah doesn't do this, but you can chill for an hour if you want a dough that is easier to work with. Form dough into 1-inch b.a.l.l.s and bake at 350 for 12 minutes or until browned and flattened.

Makes about 3 dozen.

SARAH'S HUCKLEBERRY COFFEE CAKE

(Adapted from a recipe by Rana French) CAKE.

3 cups flour 1 cup sugar 1 tablespoon baking powder 1 teaspoon salt 1 teaspoon cinnamon 1 teaspoon vanilla 1 cup b.u.t.ter or margarine, softened 2 eggs, slightly beaten 1 cup milk FILLING.

cup sugar cup cornstarch 2 cups fresh or frozen huckleberries cup water or huckleberry juice TOPPING.

cup b.u.t.ter cup sugar cup flour cup slivered almonds For filling, combine sugar, cornstarch, water (or juice), and berries in a medium-sized saucepan. Cook over medium heat until thickened and clear. Set aside to cool.

To make cake, sift flour, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon into a mixing bowl, then add sugar. Cut in b.u.t.ter to form fine crumbs. Add eggs, milk, and vanilla. Stir until blended. Spread half the batter in 2 greased round 8-inch pans. Divide filling between the 2 pans, spreading evenly over each batch of batter. Drop remaining batter by spoonfuls over filling.

Prepare topping by cutting b.u.t.ter into previously blended flour and sugar; then stir in nuts. Spread topping on top of cakes.

Bake at 350 for 40 to 45 minutes. (If desired, one coffee cake can be baked in a 13 9 2-inch pan.) Makes 16 pieces.

Note: Sarah uses wild huckleberries, but frozen raspberries or blueberries also work great.

DANISH PUFF.

PASTRY BASE.

1 cup sifted flour cup margarine 2 tablespoons water TOP.

cup margarine 1 cup water 1 teaspoon vanilla 1 cup flour 3 eggs ICING.

1 cup powdered sugar teaspoon almond extract 2 tablespoons milk 1 cup slivered almonds For pastry base, measure flour into a medium-sized mixing bowl and cut in margarine as for pie crust. Sprinkle with water and mix with a fork. Divide into 2 b.a.l.l.s. Put on a large, ungreased cookie sheet and pat into two long strips 12 inches by 3 inches.

To prepare top, put margarine and water into a small pan and bring to a rolling boil. Add vanilla and remove from heat. Stir in flour quickly. When smooth, thick, and slightly cooled, add eggs one at a time, beating till smooth. Divide in half and spread evenly over each strip of pastry. Bake at 350 for 1 hour (or until brown and puffy-Sarah always checks it at 40 minutes). Let cool.

For icing, mix powdered sugar with extract until smooth. Spread over both pastries and top with slivered almonds.

Serves 8 to 10.

From Jamie

CALIENTE FUDGE.

(Courtesy of Maria Parra-Boxley, Dulce Pa.s.sion Bakery) 1 can sweetened condensed milk (14 oz.) (La Lechera) 3 cups semisweet chocolate chips 1 tablet Nestle Abuelita authentic Mexican chocolate drink mix 2 tablespoons cinnamon spice blend CINNAMON SPICE BLEND (POUR INTO A SMALL PLASTIC ZIP SANDWICH BAG AND COMBINE):.

1 tablespoon Saigon cinnamon 1 tablespoon ground ancho chile pepper 1 tablespoon ground red cayenne pepper 1 tablespoon cinnamon plus spice blend (The Pampered Chef) Line an 8- or 9-inch square pan with waxed paper. In a heavy saucepan over low heat melt tablet of Nestle Abuelita authentic Mexican chocolate drink mix on one side. When you see it begin to melt on one side turn it over to melt the other side (tablet will not fully melt until combined with sweetened condensed milk). Add 3 cups semisweet chocolate chips and stir in 2 tablespoons cinnamon spice blend (cinnamon spice blend can be decreased or increased according to your heat taste buds). Continue to stir slowly so your chocolate doesn't stick and burn. The chocolate and spice mix will start to get heavy and clumpy. At this point add the sweetened condensed milk and keep stirring until well combined. Turn off heat and pour the fudge into prepared pan. Let cool and chill for 2 hours or until firm. Turn fudge onto cutting board; peel off paper and cut into squares. Store loosely covered or at room temperature.

Makes about 2 pounds of fudge.

PRUNE TRUFFLES WITH ARMAGNAC.

(Courtesy of Kathy Nordlie) cup (4 ounces) pitted prunes, each prune cut into eighths cup Armagnac cup heavy cream 6 ounces bittersweet chocolate, such as Lindt or Tobler, broken into small pieces 1 tablespoon unsalted b.u.t.ter at room temperature cup toasted pecans, finely chopped cup cocoa powder for coating In a small bowl, combine the prunes and the Armagnac. Cover tightly and let sit at room temperature for at least an hour to soften.

In a small saucepan, bring the cream to a boil over moderately high heat. Add the chocolate and remove from the heat. Whisk until the chocolate is melted and the mixture is smooth. Beat in the b.u.t.ter.

Drain the prunes, reserving 1 tablespoon of the Armagnac. Add the prunes, the reserved Armagnac, and the pecans to the chocolate mixture, mixing until well combined. Transfer the mixture to a shallow bowl and refrigerate, uncovered, until firm, at least 3 hours.

Coat your palms with the cocoa. For each truffle, form about 1 teaspoon of the cold truffle mixture into a ball, rolling it between your palms. Place the truffles on waxed paper. After the truffles are shaped, dredge them lightly in the cocoa, then toss gently from palm to palm to remove any excess. Place each truffle in a paper pet.i.t four cup and refrigerate for at least 1 day to let the flavors mellow.

Makes about 30 truffles.

WHITE CHOCOLATE LEMON FUDGE.

1 cup cream 3 teaspoons b.u.t.ter 2 teaspoons shortening 4 teaspoons lemon extract 24 ounces (3 boxes) Baker's white baking chocolate 1 cup shredded coconut 1 cup powdered sugar Break the chocolate into small pieces and put in a large bowl, along with the shortening. In a small saucepan, bring cream slowly to a light boil. Pour the boiling cream over the chocolate and keep stirring until the chocolate is melted. Beat well, as if for ganache. Add powdered sugar, lemon extract, and coconut, and pour into a 9-by-9-inch gla.s.s baking pan. Let sit for 2 hours or until firm.

Makes 9 to 12 pieces, depending on how you cut it.

Note: This is truly the best fudge on the planet. Jamie stumbled onto it quite by accident, early in her truffle-making career. When the ganache didn't set up (it probably would have if she'd been a little more patient!) she tried to roll it into b.a.l.l.s and dip it in melted white chocolate anyway, hoping against hope the truffle fairies would fix the mess. All she got was a tray full of blobs that looked like they had candy leprosy. Disgusted, she scooped up the mess, combined it with the leftover white chocolate for coating, then mixed in some powdered sugar and dumped the whole thing in a 9-by-9-inch gla.s.s pan. And shockingly, she wound up with incredible fudge. It just goes to show, nothing is ever wasted in the kitchen if a girl is clever!

PRETZEL TURTLES (QUICK AND EASY).

(Courtesy of Carol Isaacson) One bag Rollo candies One small (16-ounce) bag small, knotted pretzels One medium-sized bag (6 ounces) of pecans Lay out pretzels on an ungreased cookie sheet. Put a Rollo candy on each pretzel. Put in oven at 250 for 4 minutes. Take out and top each with a pecan. (Press pecan in lightly.) Put in refrigerator to harden for 3 minutes. (Don't leave in the fridge. Jamie's not sure why you shouldn't leave them in the fridge, but Carol told her not to, so she doesn't!) You can make up to 57 of these if you use a whole bag of Rollos. You'll probably have extra pretzels left. Eat the evidence.

CHOCOLATE MINT PIE.

Single baked pie crust (you can use a prepared crust or make from scratch) or prepared chocolate crumb crust 1 cup b.u.t.ter 2 cups powdered sugar 4 ounces (squares) unsweetened chocolate, melted 4 eggs teaspoon peppermint extract 2 teaspoons vanilla extract Using mixer, cream b.u.t.ter and sugar together. Add melted chocolate and blend well. Mix in eggs, one at a time, then flavorings. Pour mixture into sh.e.l.l and freeze until solid. Can be served with whipped cream, chocolate shavings, peppermint candy, or coconut.

Serves 8.

Note: You can actually serve more since this pie is so rich that a very small serving goes a very long way.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS.

I have made some great new friends in the process of writing this book, and I'm indebted to the following people for giving me a glimpse into their lives as shop owners and busy women. Thanks to Mona Newbauer, the owner of 1 Angel Place Chocolate Bar in Langley, Was.h.i.+ngton, for sharing with me a day in the life of a chocolatier. Mona, your truffles are to die for, and if I had to get up at the crack of dawn like you do, I would die. Huge thanks also to Valerie Wood at Material Girls Quilt Shop in Silverdale, Was.h.i.+ngton, for showing me how much is involved in running a quilt shop. What a labor of love! And speaking of labors of love, huge thanks to Helen Ross, berquilter, for her patient explanations of the complexities of quilting. Thanks, too, to Kathy Nordlie and Maria Parra-Boxley for the wonderful candy recipes you contributed. Thanks to the Bainbridge Island Brain Trust (Susan Wiggs, Suzanne Selfors, Elsa Watson, Carol Ca.s.sella, and Anjali Banerjee) for their invaluable input. And, finally, thanks to Paige Wheeler, my agent, and Rose Hilliard, my editor, and all the wonderful people at St. Martin's Press who continue to make writing such an enjoyable adventure.

ON STRIKE FOR CHRISTMAS.

Sheila Roberts.