Making a Pinky Pie

Making food should be fun. Sometimes it’s not much fun, I’ll admit. Creating food that is fun to see, and eat, can be rewarding, though, even if making it presents a few problems.

One of our family’s traditions is that I make my kids a special birthday cake, decorated according to their interests and personality. For better or worse, my 20 year old son is a Brony. For those who don’t know, a Brony is an adult fan of the My Little Pony show. Yes, Virginia, my son watches a show  designed for little girls. He’s not alone. There are plenty of adults from all walks of life that love that show. With that in mind, I had to figure out how to make the Boy a My Little Pony themed birthday cake.

The Boy is not a huge cake fan. Neither is his younger sister. His favorite My Little Pony character is named Pinky Pie. In a state of punnific inspiration, I threw out the cake idea and make him a birthday pie, instead.

I didn’t have a lot of time with this one so, I did the only thing a sensible person would do. I turned to the baking shelves in the grocery store and bought a cheese cake mix, adding a bit of red food coloring to make it pink.

Next came the pattern. I’d found a Pinky Pie t-shirt for sale on the web, and downloaded a picture of it, copying the stylized portrait of that particular little pony onto a sheet of paper to make a pattern for the top of the cake.

Fortune smiled on me in the form of left-over fondant in the freezer. I mixed more red food coloring with some of it to fashion the mane, and left the rest white for the eyes. For the iris, I mixed up some blue food coloring with granulated sugar and sprinkled it on top. The rest was a combination of red and black decorating gel.

A word of warning about decorating gel. Don’t apply it until just before serving. It will separate and seep a colored sugar-water over the rest of your project if you let it sit very long. Blech.

I’m not going to kid you. It was fun, but it was a pain. I had trouble with the pattern. It stuck to the top of the cheesecake when I was trying to transfer the outline. The fondant kept getting way to warm to handle way too quickly and didn’t want to behave, especially for the mane. The blue sugar didn’t want to lay down where I wanted it to. (In retrospect, I should have made the irises from blue fondant). I had to make it a day prior to my son coming for a visit, due to scheduling problems, and so I was mopping up red and black seepage from the gel before showing it to him. ARRRRGGGG!

The work was worth it, though, at least in retrospect. It really was fun to present, and eat. My wife and daughters were impressed. My son was ecstatic. How could he not be? I’d make him a Pinky Pie for his birthday.

Cranberry-Raisin-Spice Biscotti

The holidays, and first part of this year, have been a rough and tumble time around the Mormon Foodie house. Family health issues, along with the normal stresses of the holidays, really slowed down my output. Consequently, you missed a few things I made over the holidays. On the tasty treat front, was a tasty holiday themed Cranberry-Spice Biscotti.

In case you don’t already know, biscotti is made by baking an over-large cookie, cutting it into long, relatively thin slices, and then cooking it again, making them hard as rocks by design. They’re supposed to be dunked in some hot drink or other. In my house that means hot chocolate, herbal tisans, or Pero.

The trouble is, I still think they’re too hard. My solution? Don’t cook them for as long. I prefer my biscotti to have some “give” when I bite into it.

This recipe uses ginger, coriander, and cardamom to bring out the flavor of dried cranberries and raisins. Feel free to substitute other dried fruit as inspired. A combination of white and milk chocolate add a bit more complementary sweetness and flavor depth. This recipe makes about 4 dozen cookies, making it perfect for a cookie exchange, or a gift for your home/visiting teaching families.

Equipment Needed
Large baking sheet
Parchment paper
Mixing bowls
Measuring cups and spoons
Hand mixer
Plastic wrap
Sandwich bags
Scissors

Ingredients
1 cup dried cranberries, finely chopped
1 cup raisins, finely chopped
3 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/4 teaspoons ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup sugar
1/3 cup unsalted butter, softened
2 eggs
2 tablespoons lemon juice
4 teaspoons light corn syrup
2 1/2 teaspoons vanilla

for the glaze
4 ounces white chocolate chips
4 ounces milk chocolate chips
4 teaspoons vegetable shortening

Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.

In a medium mixing bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, coriander, cardamom, ginger, and salt. Mix well.

In a large mixing bowl, beat the sugar and butter together, using a hand mixer at medium speed, until light, fluffy, and well blended. Add the eggs, lemon juice, corn syrup and vanilla. Beat until blended.

Warning! The mixture may look curdled. This is perfectly normal. Don’t freak out.

Gradually add the flour mixture into the egg mixture, beating just until blended. Stir in the chopped cranberries and raisins until evenly distributed.

Divide the dough in half. Roll one-half on a large sheet of plastic wrap. Shape into a 15 inch x 2 inch log, rolling it up in the plastic wrap like sushi to help you shape it. Remove from the plastic wrap and place on the prepared baking sheet. Repeat with the other half of the dough. Arrange the logs as far apart as possible on the baking sheet and press down to 3/4 inch thickness.

Bake for 30 minutes on the center rack of the oven or until browned and slightly cracked. Remove from the oven and let cool on the sheet for 5 minutes. Remove from the baking sheet and let cool on a wire rack for 30 minutes. Keep the oven on.

Transfer the flattened logs to a cutting board. With a serrated knife, cut diagonally into scant 1/2-inch thick slices. Lay the slices cut side down back on the parchment lined sheet. You may need a second sheet, or you can do this in batches. Bake for 5 to 7 more minutes in the oven, or longer if you want them hard. Turn them once. Remove from the sheets and let cool completely on wire racks. You can turn your oven off at this point.

Once the biscotti are cool, place them on a flat surface, like a table or a cool baking sheet, lined with wax paper.

Now to make the glaze. In a microwave-safe bowl, combine the white chocolate chips and 2 tsp of the shortening. Microwave on medium for 1-2 minutes, stopping and stirring every 30 seconds until the chocolate is almost melted. Continue stirring until the chocolate mixture is completely melted and smooth. Pour into a small, disposable plastic bag, a sandwich bag works great, and push the chocolate to one corner. Snip a tiny bit of the corner off with a pair of kitchen scissors and pipe the melted chocolate over the cookies in thin lines. Repeat this with the regular chocolate chips, melting, mixing, and piping.

Alternately you can melt chocolate and dip the ends of the biscotti in it. I just like the way this technique looks. It’s quite impressive, but super easy to do. For more tips on how it works, see this recipe for Holiday Orange-Spice Sugar Cookies.

Let the biscotti stand for 20 minutes until the glaze hardens. Store in and airtight container at room temperature and they will keep for up to 3 weeks, assuming they aren’t eaten before then.

Makes just about 4 dozen cookies.

The Ultimate Diet

There have been all kinds of different diet plans floating around for the last several decades, Atkins, Paleolithic, Raw Food, Vegetarian, 3-hour, 4-hour, South Beach, Manhattan … you name it. While they all have there proponents and detractors, I don't think any of them have gone far enough. Sure, they all have there rules and restrictions, but they're just mamby pamby when it comes to the diet I discovered yesterday. If you really want to lose weight, look to those individuals who have really gone and lost it: Zombies.

Yes, that's right. Just look at them! They're husks of their former selves. Each one looks just as thin and emaciated as an up and coming runway model. Isn't that the look that television has been showing us is so important to have for years, now? When has TV ever lied to us?

It's the perfect diet, combing the paleolithic diet with the raw foods diet. Zombies limit themselves to one food and one food only: fresh human brains. Why brains? Have you ever tried to get a fresh human brain? It's hard. You've got to work for it. First, you'll burn tons of calories and get a great cardio workout chasing those victims down. Don't get me started on how hard it is to dodge shotgun blasts, either.

Once you've caught the food, it's not like it just lays down and lets you eat it. Oh no. You've got a fight on your hands. It's built in strength training! If you do manage to kill, without it escaping and starting that whole “chase thing” over again, you've got to crack the skull open. Fortunately, a few sharp thwacks against the ground will do it. Once the skull is cracked open, slurping up the brains is the reward you get for all your hard labor. Getting rewarded is important if you're going train yourself to stick to any diet.

So, my friend, if you really want to lose weight, try combining your exercise with your supper. Try the zombie diet. There's nothing quite like the fresh hunt, kill, and slurp to get your juices flowing.

Just watch out for shotguns.

Editors note: If you find the zombie diet too difficult for you, you can ease yourself into it by trying cannibalism, first.

Image credit, Michal Zacharzewski

Braised Pork with Colcannon for St. Patrick's Day

Unless you're Irish, Saint Patrick's day is mostly an excuse for drinking beer and wearing green. Come to think of it, that's pretty much what it's for if you are Irish. For a foodie, it's an excuse to eat Irish food. With that in mind, I'd like to share this recipe I found for a whiskey-braised pork shoulder with colcannon. Served with Irish soda bread, it should make a hearty supper.

Note: you can omit the whiskey if you want, replacing it with more broth. There isn't really a good substitute for whiskey in cooking.

Fourth Birthday - Red Velvet Cupcakes

Today is Confessions of a Mormon Foodie's fourth birthday! It's hared to believe it's been four years since I started this blog. It's been a fun ride, and I hope to bring you more food and fun as the years go on. This year I've decided to celebrate with a Red Velvet Cupcake recipe from Dan and Sharon Yim. Dan is the community director at Kitchen Monki. If you'd rather have a full blown Red Velvet layer cake instead, I made one for my daughter's birthday a couple of years ago.



Balloon photo by Sue Byford

How to Make Candied Citrus Peel

Candied citrus peel, or “candied peel,” is used in many recipes for festive holiday breads, such as panettone and Dresdner Christollen (Christmas stollen). You'll also find it used in cookie and candy recipes. They can also be enjoyed on their own.

Candied peel can be hard to find in the grocery store, and is somewhat expensive. Making your own is actually pretty simple, but it does take a bit of time. It can be made with several different kinds of citrus fruit, oranges, lemons, limes, or grapefruit are all fair game.

I originally got this recipe from Elizabeth LaBau. I modified her recipe only slightly, to make it just a bit easier for home cooks. Her recipe uses oranges, but she also uses them as a simple baseline for other fruit. Her conversion works pretty well: 1 grapefruit counts as 2 oranges, 2 small lemons or limes count as 1 orange. You'll want to use about 1 cup plus 1 tablespoon of water and 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons of sugar per “orange.”

It is best to use organic fruit for this recipe. If you can't get organic citrus fruit, wash the outside thoroughly to remove the residual pesticides.

Equipment needed
paring knife
medium saucepan
measuring cups
spoon
baking sheet and parchment paper or fine mesh cooling racks

Ingredients
4 oranges
4 1/4 cups water
2 1/2 cups sugar plus 1 cup sugar for dredging

Directions
Using a sharp paring knife, cut the top and bottom off of an orange. Score the peel into quarters, and then again, into eighths. Peel the orange carefully, trying to keep the peel intact.

Next, cut away the bitter white pith from the backside of the peels. It's easiest to do this by laying the peel flat on a cutting board, and carefully running the knife between the pith and peel. It's okay is a little bit of the pith remains on the peel. Discard the pith. The remaining outer peels will be about 1/8 inch thick.

Repeat this process with the remaining oranges. The peels can be set aside in the refrigerator until needed. They'll keep for a few days in case you need to build up your supply.

Combine 2 1/2 cups of sugar and all the water in a medium saucepan, uncovered, over medium heat, until the sugar dissolves. Increase the heat and bring the mixture to a boil, boiling it uncovered for 5 minutes. Add the citrus peel strips, pushing them down into the syrup with a spoon, and reduce the heat to a gentle simmer. Cook, uncovered, until reduced to about 1/4 the original amount. The peels should be just covered by the syrup at that point. DO NOT STIR. The sugar is so concentrated that stirring may cause a chain reaction, giving you large sugar crystals instead of syrup. Reducing to 1/4 the volume will take about 2 hours.

Remove the saucepan from the heat and allow the mixture to cool. Drain the peels in a colander. You may be tempted to use the remaining syrup, but I find it too bitter, in spite of the high sugar content.

Preheat the oven to 200 degrees Fahrenheit. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Put the remaining 1 cup of sugar in a shallow dish. Dredge the peels in the sugar, both sides, and place in a single layer on the baking sheet. Add more sugar for dredging as needed.

Place the baking sheet on a rack in the upper third of the oven and let dry for 1 hour. Check the peels every 20 minutes to make sure they are drying and not cooking. Alternately, you can put the peels on cooling racks and let them dry overnight.

Once the peels are dry, scrape off any large sugar clumps. The peels can be stored in a cool, dry place for a few weeks. Candied peels can be used as directed in recipes, or dipped in chocolate and enjoyed by themselves.

Christmas Traditions – Aebleskivers

If you're a long-time reader, you may remember that my family spent a generation in Denmark. One of the family recipes that came across the Atlantic when they immigrated to America was for aebleskivers.

Aebleskivers are a cross between a pancake and a popover and are cooked on the stove in a special pan with round wells where the batter is poured and turned as it cooks, giving them their distinctive shape. Most aebleskiver pans are cast iron. There are two varieties available, one for gas stoves and one for electric stoves. The electric stove variety either have a flat bottom or a ring surrounding the wells to better distribute the heat and avoid “hot spots” on the bottom each pocket.

In Denmark, aebleskivers are commonly served before Christmas. In North America, there are several festivals throughout the year that celebrate the aebleskiver and Danish culture.

My mother never made aebleskivers that I remember. Her grandmother made them all the time and became quite famous for them, however. Over the last couple of years my own family has resurrected the old family recipe and the traditions that go with it. I don't use my great-grandmother's old recipe, though. It's a bit too heavy on the eggs. This is another recipe I found in my grandmother's recipe collections, that I like much better, with just a bit of modification to make it easier.

Equipment needed:
Aebleskiver pan
Measuring cups and spoons
Mixing bowls
Hand mixer or whisk
Chopsticks, spoons, or skewers to help turn the aeblesivers while cooking

Ingredients
3 large Eggs, separated
1 cup Milk, or Half and Half
1 cup All-Purpose Flour
3 teaspoons Baking Powder
1 teaspoon Baking Soda
1/4 teaspoon Salt
butter, as needed
powdered sugar as needed for dusting

Directions
Separate the egg yolks and whites. In a small bowl, beat the yolks until smooth. Mix in the milk and set aside.

In a large bowl, beat the egg whites with a hand mixer until stiff peaks form. Set aside.

In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Add the egg yolk mixture and thoroughly mix together. Gently fold in the egg whites.

Heat an aebleskiver pan over medium heat and melt 1/4 teaspoon butter in each well. Pour 1 to 2 tablespoons batter into each well. Begin turning over gradually using a teaspoon or skewer, as soon as the aelbelskivers begin to brown. Keep turning until nicely browned and cooked on all sides (you won't need to turn them over more than once or twice).

Remove from the pan and serve hot, sprinkled with powdered sugar. They are also good with jam or syrup.

You can also stuff these with small chunks of apple, a scant teaspoon of applesauce, bits of ham, cheese, green onion, or whatever suits your fancy. Just drop them into the batter after you put it into the wells, but before turning.


Photo credit: WikiCommons

Pioneer Day Food 2010

July 24th is this Saturday. In Utah it's celebrated as Pioneer Day, the day the Mormon Pioneers crossed into the Salt Lake valley. It also turns out to be the Christian Liturgical Feast day for several Saints. I don't mind sharing.

As with many summer feast fests barbecue abounds and picnic food is proffered. This year, I thought I'd offer a few suggestions from the previous posts.

Appetizers / Sides
Potato Wedges  - Don't forget the Fry Sauce
Buttermilk Biscuits or Conference Cornbread  or Newman House Dinner RollsQuick Baked Beans
Deviled Eggs
Potato Salad
Simple Green Salad

Entrees
Grilled Bacon Double-Cheeseburgers
Slow-cooker Pulled PorkGrilled Sausage and Onions

Desserts
American Flag Cake
No-Cook Peanut Butter Chews
Ribbon Jello or No-Cook Peach Pie
Smoked Apples with Peanut Butter
Easy Peanut Butter Pie

Happy Pioneer Day!

Photo by Chris Coglietti

How to Make a Flag Cake

With Independence Day just around the corner, what better way to celebrate than with food? I decided to try making a classic Flag Cake.

Traditionally, this is made with a white sponge cake and white vanilla frosting, but any flavor of cake will do. Just make sure the frosting is white. I made this one with a store-bought white cake mix and cream cheese frosting. You can make your own from scratch if you like, or even buy a plain frosted one from the bakery.

If you're making you own flag cake, from a box of from scratch, bake it in a 9 inch by 13 inch pan. Let it cool completely before generously frosting it. You make want to refrigerate it for a few minutes before decorating.

This was my first flag cake, and I wanted it to turn out, well. All I could find at the grocery store were those huge mutant strawberries, so I cut them up a bit more than you should. It also made my cake look more like a red field with white spots than stripes, but everyone who had it got the idea, and enjoyed it.

Ingredients
1 9 inch x 13 inch cake, generously frosted white
1 pint blueberries
1 quart small to medium strawberries

Directions
Wash and drain the fruit. Cut the green tops off the strawberries and then cut them in half, lengthwise; set aside.

In the top left corner, arrange the blueberries into an outline, 5 inches wide and 4 inches tall. Press the berries deep into the frosting. Fill the remaining space in with the blueberries, making neat little rows of blue, with white frosting “stars” shining through.

Place the strawberry halves, cut-side down, in rows going across the cake to make the red stripes. The top and bottom stripes of the American Flag are red, so start there. Add another row at the bottom of the blueberry field, and then fill in the other rows evenly, up and down. You probably won't be able to make all 13 stripes, but that's okay. Your friends and family will get the idea. Be sure to press the strawberry halves deep into the icing.

Serve the cake slices with any leftover berries and ice cream.

You may want to put the fruit on just before serving. You'll need to refrigerate the cake if you add the fruit, before. You can do that, but if you wait too long, the cut strawberries will leak their juice out onto the frosting, ruining the effect. I know because this happened to me. I gently dabbed up the juice with a paper towel, saving the cake, but I'd rather not have done that.

Here's wishing you a safe and happy 4th of July celebration!

Easiest Pizza Recipe, Ever

This is the easiest way I know of to enjoy pizza at home. It's so easy, in fact, that it's perfect for those times when you don't have the time or energy to cook.



Equipment Needed
1 telephone
1 telephone book (yellow pages)
1 credit/debit card with money in the account.

Ingredients
Favorite pizza drink (I recommend root beer.)

Directions
Look up “Pizza” in the yellow pages. You might find it as a sub-section under “Restaurants.” Look for closest pizza place that delivers.

Using the telephone, carefully dial the numbers listed in the in the ad. When someone answers, speak clearly, requesting whatever toppings seem appropriate. When the time comes, the person you are speaking to may ask you for your credit card number. It is okay to give it to them. Make sure to give this person the correct address of your home, or you will not get the pizza.

Pour yourself some of your favorite pizza related drink and wait for the delivery driver. When you sign the receipt, please add an appropriate tip for the driver. Transfer to serving plates if desired, or just eat it out of the box using your hands.

The number of servings are variable based on the size of the pizza.

Enjoy!

Photo by  Rob Owen-Wahl

Almond Caramels - Romantic Food

When we think Valentines day and candy, we usually think chocolate. Not a bad choice, considering. Good chocolate is rich, silky and sensual. Other kinds of candy can work, too. Almond Caramels, for example.

My daughter, Writer Girl, made a bunch of them yesterday. This was the first time she'd ever tried to make candy, and I think she did a fantastic job. She did accidentally put twice as much sugar in as the original recipe called for, and conveniently forgot to put in the almonds (the poor, deranged girl doesn't like almonds). They were still tasty caramels, if a bit gritter than normal.

I love almonds, so here's the recipe I use.

Equipment needed
8 inch square baking pan
aluminum foil
heavy saucepan
candy thermometer (optional)
waxed paper

Ingredients
1/4 cup butter
Additional butter, as needed, to grease the pan
2 cups sugar
1 cup light corn syrup
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup heavy cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon almond extract (optional)
1 cup toasted, chopped almonds


Directions
Line the inside of an 8 inch square baking pan with foil. Put one layer of foil lengthwise, and anther layer, top to bottom. This will create a “sling” that will make removing the caramel much easier. Grease the foil generously with butter, and set aside.

In a heavy saucepan, combine the sugar, corn syrup, salt and 1/4 cup butter. (Don't use margarine for this, please. It's not good!) Bring slowly to a boil over medium heat, stirring constantly to avoid burning the sugar. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer gently for 4 minutes, without stirring.

Remove from the heat. Slowly add the cream, stirring constantly until incorporated. Return to the heat and cook, without stirring, over medium low heat until the candy thermometer* reads 245 degrees Fahrenheit. This can take anywhere from 40 to 60 minutes.

Immediately remove from the heat and stir in the vanilla, almond extract (if using), and chopped almonds. Pour the mixture into the prepared baking pan. Take you time with this to avoid scraping the sides of the saucepan. (It just makes a mess. Trust me.) Let it cool completely.

Lift the caramel out of the pan with the foil “sling.” Discard the foil and cut the caramel into 1 1/2 inch squares. Wrap individually in wax paper or foil. I find that spraying the side of the foil that contacts the candy with cooking spray makes them easier to remove.

Makes 3 - 4 dozen candies to share with family, friends, and sweethearts.

You can substitute the almonds with almost any favorite crushed nut. Walnuts, pecans and hazelnuts come to mind.

*Firm Ball Stage
If you don't have a candy thermometer, you're going to cook it to the “firm ball” stage. Start testing at about 30 minutes. Working quickly, dip a teaspoon into the hot mixture and drop a few drops into a cup of very cold water (not icy). With your fingers, form the drops into a ball and remove from the water. When it's firm enough to hold it's shape, but soon starts to flatten at room temperature, you've reached the firm ball stage. If it instantly flattens, cook it a little longer. If it doesn't flatten until you press it, you've gone too far.

Marinated Olives – Romantic Food

With Valentine's Day approaching, it's time to start thinking about romantic food again. This year, I'd like to take a more playful, and more intimate, approach to romantic food. Let's talk tiny appetizers.

Why appetizers? Mostly because they're small, easy to make, and you can feed them one by one to your sweetheart between light, exploratory smooching.

Let's start with marinated olives. You can actually buy pre-marinated blends these days, but they aren't cheap. Some are actually pretty good, but others ... well ... let's just say they leave you wanting, but not in a good way, as in, “I want more.” Instead, they leave you wanting as in, “I want my money back.”

The fun part of marinating your own olives is that it's easy and relatively inexpensive. You really just need some herbs and spices, a little oil and an acid. You can add a little sweetness by adding some wine, if you want. This recipe combines the fruitiness of the wine and the acid by using balsamic vinegar, but feel free to try your own variations.

Equipment Needed
measuring cups and spoons
medium sized bowl or jar with a lid.

Ingredients
2 cups mixed pitted olives, drained if needed*
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary, crushed
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes (optional)

Directions
Mix everything except the olives together in a bowl. Add the olives and toss. Cover and refrigerate for 1 or 2 days before serving.

Share them with your sweetheart as part of a romantic evening. If you don't have a sweetheart, snack on them while watching romantic comedies to kill the pain.

*Use a mixture your favorite black and green olives varieties. They can be plain or stuffed, whatever you like. Just avoid avoid the all too common “California” olives. These are actually green olives that have been chemically treated to make them turn black, and taste terrible when compared to other olive varieties. They don't have to be pitted, if you don't want, but it may ruin the mood if you're sweetheart cracks their teeth on them.

Photo by Yucel Tellici

Christmas Cookies: Tangerine Dainties

Christmas and cookies just go together, don't you think? I sure do, which is why, every year at Christmastime, I make up a bunch of different cookies. My long time readers know this, of course. I've already got a few other cookie recipes here that you may want to check out.

This weekend, though, it was time to do something with the large number of tangerines my mother had given us for Christmas. Even though the family was doing it's best to devour them, there were quite a few left. They certainly weren't eating themselves. Then I remembered this recipe.

I really like these tiny, bite-sized cookies. Their small size may be part of the charm. They pack a surprisingly full flavor for their small size. The actual cookie has a buttery, mildly orange taste, not too sweet. The icing adds the perfect amount of sweetness, with a touch of tartness, to this elegant cookie.

If you don't have any tangerines on hand, use oranges instead.

Equipment Needed
Box grater or Microplane Grater/Zester
Several Baking sheets
Mixing bowls
Hand mixer
Measuring cups and spoons
Wire cooling racks
waxed paper

Ingredients

for the cookies
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/8 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/4 cups butter, softened
1 cup granulated sugar
1 egg, plus two more egg yolks
2 tablespoons freshly grated tangerine zest
2 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon lemon extract
non-stick cooking spray

for the icing
2 cups powdered sugar
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon tangerine juice
1/2 teaspoon fresh grated tangerine zest
1 drop each, red and yellow food coloring
1 tablespoon water, more as required

Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Spray the baking sheets with cooking spray and set aside.

To prepare the cookies:
In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Mix well.

In a large bowl, beat the butter and granulated sugar together with a hand mixer, at high speed, until well combined. Add the egg, extra egg yolks, tangerine zest, vanilla, and lemon extract. Beat with the hand mixer on medium speed until well blended.

Add the flour mixture to the bowl. Switch to dough hooks, it you have them, and mix until well blended and the dough comes together well. Cover with plastic wrap or a lid and place in the refrigerator for 5 to 10 minutes to stiffen the dough.

Roll the dough into 3 /4 inch balls and place on the baking sheets. Better yet, get your kids to do it for you. Make sure you've got around 2 inches of space between them. You'll can easily do this in batches so, don't worry if you run out of baking sheets before you run out of dough. Just put the dough back in the refrigerator between batches.

Place the baking sheets in a single layer in the upper third of your oven.* Bake for 5 minutes and then turn the baking sheets around, so the cookies that were in the front of the oven are now in the back, and vice versa. This helps ensure even cooking. Bake for 5 more minutes.

Remove the baking sheets from the oven. Using a spatula, carefully remove the cookies and place them on wire cooling racks. If the cookies are too soft, and squish in when you try and remove them, let them sit on the baking pan for about 5 more minutes to firm up. Let them cool completely while you put the next batch in the oven.

To prepare the icing:
In a medium bowl, combine the powdered sugar, lemon juice, tangerine juice, zest, food coloring, and 1 tablespoon of water. Using a fork, or the hand mixed, blend until well combined. Add additional water, a little at a time, until the icing is just a little runny. Set aside until all the cookies are completely cooled.

Once the cookies are cool, cover part of your counter or kitchen table with wax paper. Dip the tops of the cookie into the icing, and let the excess run off. Place the cookies, iced side up, on the waxed paper and let stand until the icing completely sets, about 45 minutes.

These cookies can be stored in an airtight container for up to a week, or in the freezer for one month, assuming you don't eat them all first. A better option is to give any you don't think you'll eat in time to your neighbors as a Christmas gift.

Makes about 4 to 6 dozen cookies.

I know that icing each individual cookie can be a pain, but trust me. This cookie is worth it. Enlist your family members or friends to help you make them.

*Placing the baking pans this high in the oven ensures the cookies are well cooked, but the bottoms don't get too dark. Don't try and bake them on two different rack levels. I've tried it, and the cookies never cook evenly that way. It's safer just to do them in batches.

Hot Buttered Cider for Cold Christmas Evenings

With winter's cold evenings moving in, not to mention the Christmas season, a warm drink inside can be a wonderful thing. Hot buttered cider is a perfect drink for those chilly winter evenings. Normally, this drink is made with rum. This non-alcoholic version is great for children, Mormon's, and other people who tend to avoid alcohol. If you want to imbibe, pour 3 tablespoons of rum into each mug before pouring in the cider.

Equipment Needed
Large Pot or Dutch Oven
Measuring cups and spoons
Strainer or Colander
Kitchen knife

Ingredients
2 quarts apple cider
8 cinnamon sticks
8 whole cloves
8 allspice berries
3 slices peeled, fresh ginger
4 slices lemon, halved
1/4 cup brown sugar
8 teaspoons butter

Directions
Cut the peeled ginger into thin slices, about the size of a quarter. Cut the four slices of lemon, 1/8 inch thick.

In a large pot or Dutch oven, combine the cider, cinnamon sticks, cloves, allspice, ginger, lemon and sugar. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for about 10 minutes, to develop the flavors.

Remove from the heat and strain through a sieve or colander. Reserve the lemon slices and cinnamon sticks, if you want to dress it up.

Ladle 1 cup of hot cider mixture into each mug. Put one reserved cinnamon stick and one lemon slice into each mug, if desired. Float a 1 teaspoon butter pat on the surface of each mug, and enjoy.

Serves 8.

You can prepare this ahead of time, if you want. Just refrigerate it, then reheat before serving.

If you really want to get lazy, make this one cup at a time by preparing instant hot cider mix, and dropping in the butter. A few drops of lemon juice and a dash of ground cinnamon, won't hurt it, either.