Happy Christmas Eve Eve! We got home a week ago and are looking forward to spending Christmas in our own home. Through the years I have done a lot of Christmas baking. You can check out other editions
here, here, here and
here! Some years I've made a huge variety, others not so much. This year I made four kinds of cookies: Butterscotch Oatmeal, Peanut Butter, Gingerbread (all starting with a mix) and I tried a new cookie - Cranberry Orange Shortbread. I also made fudge (recipe from the Marshmallow Cream jar) and Peppermint Cracker Toffee. Here are my two new recipes:
Cranberry Orange Shortbread Cookies from Mom in Timeout
Ingredients:
½ cup dried cranberries (Craisins)
¾ cups sugar, divided
2½ cups all purpose flour -
spooned and leveled, not scooped * this is very important! It was not on the recipe when I printed it originally and my dough had way too much flour. The cookies still tasted great, but getting the dough rolled together took a lot of work.
1 cup butter, cubed (and cold)
1 tsp almond extract
zest of 1 orange
1 to 2 tbsp of fresh orange juice (optional)
additional sugar to coat cookies before baking if desired
Instructions
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
Combine cranberries and ¼ cup of sugar in a food processor and process just until the cranberries are broken down into smaller pieces. Set aside.
Combine flour and remaining sugar in a large bowl.
Use a pastry cutter to cut in butter. You want very fine crumbs.
Stir in extract, cranberries and sugar mixture, orange zest and orange juice
(I personally don't think the orange juice is optional as it brings out the orange flavor. It's subtle, but it's there.)
Use your hands to knead the dough until it comes together and forms a ball. Work the dough until it comes together.
Shape dough into a log about two inches in a diameter and wrap in plastic wrap.
* here is where I ran in to trouble because of having too much flour. The dough was way too dry. I ended up with three smaller dough logs because they were easier to handle.
Refrigerate for two hours or up to 72 hours.
Preheat oven to 325F.
Cut slices of cookie dough about ¼ inch thick.
Place about a half a cup of sugar in a bowl and coat the cookie slices with sugar.
Place cookies on baking sheet and bake for 12 to 15 minutes or just until cookies are set. Do not over bake. I pull mine at 12 minutes.
*mine only took about 9 minutes, I think my oven runs a bit hot.
Let cookies cool for several minutes on baking sheet before removing to cooling rack. Let cool completely.
Store in airtight container for 3 days or freeze for up to 3 months.
These cookies were not pretty but they sure did taste good! I will make them again but measure the flour more carefully.
My other new recipe is
Peppermint Cracker Toffee from Shugary Sweets. I've been seeing quite a few cracker toffee recipes lately, it's something I'd never tried but it will become part of my mix from now on!
Ingredients:
40 saltine crackers
1 cup unsalted butter
1 cup granulated sugar
1 package (11 oz) white chocolate chips
6 candy canes, crushed (about 1/2 cup)
Directions:
Line a 15x10x1-inch baking sheet with the saltine crackers. (My pan was a little smaller so my crackers overlapped a little.) Set aside. Preheat oven to 375°F.
In a small saucepan over medium-high heat, melt butter. Add in sugar and bring to a rolling boil, stirring constantly. Once it begins to boil, remove from heat.
Pour over saltine crackers. Place in a 375°F oven for about 10 minutes, until crackers are browned and caramelized.
I should have pulled mine at about 8 minutes, again my oven was just a little too warm so the edges got a little burned.
Sprinkle with white chocolate chips and allow to sit for several minutes (until they melt).
Spread with a spatula evenly over crackers and immediately sprinkle with crushed candy.
Allow chocolate to set and store in airtight container for up to 5 days. Mine did not break apart in cracker sized pieces but they sure were good!
