Monday 24 December 2012

Quick Cookies

Hopefully everyone has their holiday baking well in hand.  But if you just happen to have forgotten you need to bring something to that party tonight... I'm going to share my go-to quick cookie recipes. 
I made both of these two recipes a few weeks ago when I needed to bake cookies in just a couple hours between activities.  Both recipes are five ingredients or less, and cook in just a few minutes at 350 degrees, but are delicious!

Cakemix Cookies
I first learned of these while reading the Hannah Swenson mysteries.  If you like quick, light mysteries and baking I highly recommend the series. I've made these in lemon and chocolate, next up will be red velvet and funfetti. 

1 box of cakemix (any flavor)
1 tub of whipped topping (8oz, I use coolwhip)
1 egg
I already cracked the egg here.

Beat the egg in a bowl.  Add all other ingredients and mix well in a large bowl. 

Roll into small balls (these are super sticky) and then in a bowl of powdered sugar.  Place onto a cookie sheet and bake for about 15 minutes.  Cool and enjoy.  Makes about 4doz, depending on size.



More or Less Peanut Butter Cookies
These come from my friend Samantha's blog The Cluttered Table.  The blog is down now, but perhaps she'll start up again sometime.  They are a family recipe that she was kind enough to share with us all.

1 egg
1cup sugar
1cup peanut butter
chocolate chips (optional)
Hersey's kisses (optional)


Mix egg and sugar in a bowl.  Stir in peanut better until well blended.  Add in chocolate chips if desired.  The dough should be slightly oily, but not overly so, or sticky.

Roll with your hands into walnut size balls and place onto a cookie sheet.  Press down with a fork to create that classic peanut butter cookie look. 

Bake for 15-20 minutes at 350degrees.  Move immediately to wax or parchment paper to cool so that they don't stick to the cookie sheet.  Place the Hershey's kiss on top while still hot.  (I use the chocolate chips but skip the kisses personally.)  Enjoy while warm or cool.




I hope these recipes help when you need a quick but yummy homemade treat.   The great thing is they bake at the same temp for about the same time.  I love it when things work our like that!






Wednesday 5 December 2012

Starting new traditions


We started many new traditions this Thanksgiving! My favorite was our Thankful Tree. It is important to remind our children what Thanksgiving is all about.
Kaleigh (4 1/2 years old) loved sitting with me and talking about the things she was thankful for. As she would tell me I would write it on a leaf to be put on our tree. We then used washable paint on our big window to paint a tree (we didn't have any brown paint but she didn't seem to mind). Each person in the family was given a branch and wrote down the things/people/places they are thankful for.

On a crabby day I would bring Kaleigh and Lilly to the tree and read them the leaves. They would some times add things they were thankful for so they would be added to the tree. Attitudes would generally improve after being reminded of that the things they needed to be thankful for.


Dairy Free Thanksgiving

I have always LOVED cooking which is a good thing considering the allergies in our family. Kaleigh our oldest daughter is allergic to dairy and I am allergic to ALL nuts. Although Kaleigh's reaction to dairy has become less severe it is important for us to keep any form of dairy out of her diet. My allergy to Nuts consists of hives and blisters in my mouth...trust me NOT fun. I have seen conflicting opinions but I believe allergies run in a family. My mother is also allergic to ALL nuts and Catherine (the C in ACE sisters) is also allergic to dairy. My other two girls have not shown an signs of being allergic to dairy or nuts but it is still early days.

This Thanksgiving we had a treat of having Catherine come to visit us! This was her first time seeing Abigail (the newest member of the family) and our new house here in Arkansas.






Because now we had two people in the house that needed dairy-free food I decided to make everything dairy free for Thanksgiving. On the list of food for the feast included: Ham, sweet potato casserole, mashed potatoes, green bean casserole, bread rolls, cranberry sauce, brown gravy, stuffing, and pumpkin pie. Each adult made a part of the meal Curtis made the pumpkin pie with the children, Catherine made the green bean casserole, and I did the rest.


Most dishes can be made dairy free with a simple substitute like milk for a milk alternative (soy milk, almond milk, or coconut milk) and/or butter for a dairy free fat (dairy free butter, oil, or Crisco).
Dairy-free Pumpkin Pie
  • 1/2 Cup Brown Sugar
  • 1/4 Cup White Sugar
  • 1 Teaspoon Ground Cinnamon
  • 1/2 Teaspoon Ground Ginger
  • 1/4 Teaspoon Ground Nutmeg or Allspice
  • 1/4 Teaspoon Ground Cloves
  • 1/2 Teaspoon Salt
  • 2 Large Eggs
  • 1 15-ounce Can Pumpkin Puree
  • 1 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract
  • 1 Cup Soymilk
  • 1 Pie Shell 
Mix the sugars, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg or allspice, cloves and salt in a small bowl.
In a large bowl, beat the eggs. Add the sugar mixture, pumpkin, and vanilla until smooth (if you are using vanilla Soymilk do not add vanilla . Stir in Soymilk
Pour the filling into the pie crust and bake for about 50 to 60 minutes, or until a knife inserted comes out clean.
Allow the pie to cool for 2 hours.

This tastes as good as regular pumpkin pie!! 
Dairy-free Green Bean Casserole
  • 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
  • 8 tablespoons butter (non dairy)
  • 10  mushrooms sliced
  • 3 tablespoons flour 
  • pepper to taste
  • salt to taste
  • 1 1/2 cups of soymilk (could use chicken broth)
  • 16 ounces green beans(we used fresh but could be canned or frozen)
  • 1 container of French-fried onions
If using fresh green beans:
Snap ends of green beans (I never cut my green beans with a knife). Cook in boiling water for 5-10 minutes. 
In a sauce pan add oil and "butter" and heat until melted. Saute mushrooms in oil and "butter" mixture for about 5 minutes or until mushrooms darken and shrink.
Remove from heat. Add three tablespoons of flour and mix together. 
Slowly add the Soymilk, salt, and pepper. If the mixture is too thin add additional flour for a thicker.
Pour over green beans. Add half the can of french-fried onions and mix.
Bake for 30 minutes at 350 degrees.
Sprinkle french fried onions on top and bake an additional 5-10 minutes

 Here is our feast!! Yum Yum