Saturday, December 20, 2008

Chocolate Cherry Cake

I found this recipe in a cookbook given to me by my great-aunt Ann as a wedding gift. It is the cookbook put together by her church, and it has so many wonderful recipes!

I made this for a Christmas party this week, and it was amazing! I used a bundt pan instead of a 9x13 pan.

Don't forget to visit Carol for more Saturday Stirrings recipes.


Chocolate Cherry Cake

1 box chocolate cake mix
1 can cherry pie filling
3 eggs

1 c. sugar
5 T. margarine
1/3 c. milk
1 c. semisweet chocolate chips
1 t. vanilla

Mix cake mix, cherry pie filling, and eggs in a large bowl. Pour into a greased and floured 9x13 inch pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 to 35 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to cool completely.

For Fudge Icing: combine sugar, margarine and milk in a saucepan. Cook and stir over medium heat until mixture comes to a rolling boil. Boil and stir for 1 minute. Remove from heat. Add semisweet chocolate chips and vanilla. Mix well and pour over cake.

Saturday, December 13, 2008

Russian Tea Cakes

This is one of my all-time favorite Christmas cookies! It's not Christmas without Russian Tea Cakes. You might know this cookie by another name, but this is the recipe that our family has always used from the Betty Crocker Cookbook.

Don't forget to check out more Saturday Stirrings recipes here.
And check out my Christmas cookie collection here.


Russian Tea Cakes

1 cup butter or margarine, softened
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 1/4 cups Gold Medal® all-purpose flour
3/4 cup finely chopped nuts
1/4 teaspoon salt
Powdered sugar

1. Heat oven to 400ºF.
2. Mix butter, 1/2 cup powdered sugar and the vanilla in large bowl. Stir in flour, nuts and salt until dough holds together.
3. Shape dough into 1-inch balls. Place about 1 inch apart on ungreased cookie sheet.
4. Bake 10 to 12 minutes or until set but not brown. Remove from cookie sheet. Cool slightly on wire rack.
5. Roll warm cookies in powdered sugar; cool on wire rack. Roll in powdered sugar again

Tuesday, December 9, 2008

Coconut Oatmeal Cookies

This is the second installment of my Christmas cookie posts for December. Click here for all of my Christmas cookie recipes.

I remember my mom making a small crisp coconut oatmeal cookie when I was growing up. This recipe is close to hers, and we modified the baking (see NOTES below) to make a crisper cookie. This recipe is on Recipezaar.

Thanks to Lisa and Lana for hosting Tempt My Tummy Tuesdays! Check them out for more great recipes and kitchen ideas.


Coconut Oatmeal Cookies

2 cups brown sugar
1 1/2 cups butter
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
3 cups rolled oats
1 cup coconut
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup nuts, chopped (optional)

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350°F.
2. Cream together; butter and brown sugar.
3. Add flour, salt, baking soda, baking powder and rolled oats.
4. Stir in coconut, eggs, vanilla and nuts.
5. Either drop by teaspoonfull or roll into little ping pong-sized balls (for a more uniform/cute look) and place on greased cookie sheet.
6. Bake for 15 minutes.

NOTES: I wanted a smaller, crisper cookie. So I divided the dough, formed each half into a log on wax paper, then wrapped the wax paper around the dough, and froze the logs for 1 hour. Then, I sliced the frozen dough into smaller cookies.

Also, I used both metal cookie sheets and a stoneware bar pan for baking. The cookies released much easier from the metal pans.

Saturday, December 6, 2008

Rum-Pum-Pum Thumbprints

I will be posting a lot of Christmas cookies this month; this is the first installment! I have so many great memories of baking Christmas cookies with my family. Every Sunday in December would be time for baking. Mom would have Dad stir while he was in front of the TV watching football. She would add ingredients and tell him to stir.

I love this variation of a thumbprint cookie. The rum extract and nutmeg are a great combination. Make sure your dough is not sticky before putting it in the refrigerator. They'll be hard to roll and will spread out too much.

Don't forget to check out more Saturday Stirring recipes over at Carol's blog. And don't forget to come back all month long for great cookie recipes!


Rum-Pum-Pum Thumbprint Cookies

Cookies:
1 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1 egg
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 teaspoons rum extract
2 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon nutmeg

Frosting:
2 cups powdered sugar
3 tablespoons butter, softened
1/2 teaspoon rum extract
2 to 3 tablespoons milk
food color, if desired

1. In a large bowl, combine 1 cup butter and brown sugar; beat until light and fluffy. Add egg, vanilla, and 2 teaspoons rum extract; blend well. Lightly spoon flour into measuring cup; level off. Stir in flour and nutmeg; mix well. Cover with plastic wrap; refrigerate 1 hour for easier handling.

2. Heat oven to 325 degrees. Shape dough into 1-inch balls; place 2 inches apart on ungreased cookie sheets. With thumb, make imprint in center of each cookie.

3. Bake at 325 degrees for 11 to 14 minutes or until firm to the touch. Cool one minute; remove from cookie sheet.

4. In a small bowl, blend all frosting ingredients until smooth, adding enough milk for desired spreading consistency. Spoon or pipe about 1/2 teaspoon frosting into center of each cookie.

Makes 4 1/2 dozen cookies.

Tip: If any thumb indentations fill in during baking, indent them again immediately upon removing the cookies from the oven.