What's Baking~Christmas Cookies

I have not yet baked one Christmas cookie. Seriously- not one. But that's not abnormal for me- I actually do not start baking until the week before Christmas. I like my cookies fresh for the Holidays and I don't like to over do it on the sweets for Christmas. Plus, I know for a fact that Santa's favorite Christmas cookies are peanut butter blossoms, and that he likes them made on Christmas Eve;-) We always save those for very last, and the girls help, since those are the ones we leave out for Santa.
So since this is the week before Christmas, we will get started on our baking. I thought I would share my Cookie Menu with you. We'll see if I actually get all of these done.

Traditional Favorites:
Peanut Butter Blossoms
Chocolate Chip ( my husband's favorite)
Sugar Cookies

Chocolate Fudge Balls

Cranberry Orange Bread (ok, so that's not a cookie)

Grownups' Favorites:
Double Chocolate Biscotti

Cranberry Orange Biscotti
Chocolate Cappucino Cookies
Raspberry Wine and Chocolate Dipped Butter Cookies (and clementines- SO GOOD!)

Do you see a theme with the chocolate? I am actually a closet choco-holic-(Shhhh don't tell anyone.) And to help with that addiction I found dairy free chocolate chips at Trader Joes.

But, first things first, I have to make Rice Krispie Treat Christmas Trees for my middle daughter's preschool party tomorrow and wrap teachers' gifts.

As I make these cookies I will share the recipes. I cannot wait to start baking this week, especially with my girls.

Tastes Like Christmas~Cranberry Orange Bread

Ever since I can remember my Mom always made Cranberry Orange Nut bread around the holidays. It has always been my very favorite bread because the tastes in it remind me of Christmas. The cranberry and orange together with just a touch of sweet- so so good!
When I became a wife and mom, I decided it was time to make my own. However, I don't like nuts in breads. Plus children under the age of 5 should not eat nuts since they are a choking hazard, so I always eliminate them from any bread recipe.

The original recipe can be found on the back of the Ocean Spray cranberry bag. That recipe uses shortening but I don't like to use that if I can help it, so I use my organic vegan butter instead.

Ingredients:
1/4 cup Earth Balance butter, softened
1 cup of sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon grated orange peel
2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 cup orange juice
1 cup chopped fresh cranberries


Directions:
Preheat your oven to 350F and spray a loaf pan lightly with cooking spray.

1.Chop your cranberries in a food processor.

2.In a mixer, cream together the butter and sugar. (It will be a little more crumbly than creamy). Beat in 1 egg and the grated orange peel.



3.In another bowl combine the dry ingredients.

4.Add the dry ingredients to the wet mixture, alternating with the orange juice. Gently fold in the cranberries.



5.Pour into a greased 9-in. x 5-in. x 3-in. loaf pan.


Bake at 350 degrees F for 60-65 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes; remove from pan to a wire rack to cool completely.



I made this on Saturday, and it was gone by Sunday night. I am going to make more today, and freeze a few of them to have through December. Although I doubt they will last that long!
If there is ever only 1 of my recipes you try, I hope it is this one. This bread really is THAT good!

Happy Cooking!

Fresh From the Oven: Focaccia Bread

I am a carb fanatic. There I said it. I love bread, potatoes, pastas. For a long time I have wanted to learn to make my own bread since so many store bought ones contain dairy. That and there is no better cooking smell than that of bread baking in the oven. I am not sure what's been holding me back, but most likely it's simply been the amount of time it takes to make bread. With kids (especially 3), time is at a premium most days! My favorite brand of flour is the King Arthur brand, mostly because I can buy it in bulk. One day I stumbled across their website, which is a wealth of bread recipes. Any kind of bread you would ever want to make- the recipe is there. It's a very well laid out website, the instructions are very easy to understand, and there are tips from others that are extremely helpful.

I served this with our Sunday dinner of my Homemade Spaghetti and Meatsauce.

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups warm water
3 tablespoons olive oil (plus additional for drizzling)
1 1/4 teaspoons salt
3 1/2 cups King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
1 tablespoon instant yeast
Dried herbs of your choice (I used garlic powder and dried Rosemary this time)



Directions:
1) Lightly grease a 9" x 13" pan, and drizzle 1 to 2 tablespoons olive oil in the bottom.

2) Combine all of the ingredients, and beat at high speed with an electric mixer for 60 seconds.

3) Scoop the sticky batter into the prepared pan, cover the pan, and let it rise at room temperature for 60 minutes, till it's become puffy.



4) While the dough is rising, preheat the oven to 375°F.

5) Gently poke the dough all over with your index finger.

6) Drizzle it lightly with olive oil, and sprinkle with the dried herbs of your choice, if desired.



7) Bake the bread till it's golden brown, 35 to 40 minutes.

8) Remove it from the oven, wait 5 minutes, then turn it out of the pan onto a rack. Serve warm or at room temperature.


(Not sure why this picture turned out bad, other than I am still learning how to use my new fancy camera)

This was so good and sooo easy! It will definitely be a staple in our house from now on! Next time I am going to change up the herbs and spices and see what I can come up with:-)

This recipe is directly from King Arthur Flour's website. Changes I made were the garlic powder and dried herbs