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Weekly Cooking (and related issues) Threaqd

Posted on 11/28/2017 3:26:23 PM PST by Jamestown1630

Now that Thanksgiving has passed, the bustle of preparing for Christmas begins. This weekend my husband put up our lights (every year he adds a little something, and by now I suspect our balcony and windows can be seen from space) and we've got most of the gift shopping done. Now I'm thinking about food.

I have never made Christmas cookies as much as I’d like because I felt they had to be done close to the holiday, when I'm usually very busy; and many recipes lose a lot if you freeze the baked product.

For some reason I didn’t think to make at least the dough ahead and freeze that, though I’ve done it with savory pastries. Here from All Recipes is a guide to freezing and then baking your cookie dough, and even your cookies:

http://dish.allrecipes.com/freezing-cookies-and-cookie-dough/

I recently obtained a copy of the first Food52 cookbook, " the first-ever online community cookbook", which has a lot of very interesting recipes, including a good recipe for Eggplant Parmigiana, and a roasted beet/citrus salad that I want to try.

It's a very nice book, the Kindle version of which is currently available on Amazon for $.99; and it includes ‘Secret Cookies’ - which apparently got their name because they were passed down in confidence by an elderly woman who said, “After I’m gone, you may give out the recipe.”:

https://food52.com/recipes/165-secret-cookies

-JT


TOPICS: Chit/Chat; Food; Hobbies
KEYWORDS: christmas; cookies; food52; freezeahead
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To: CottonBall

I just got obsessed, when I discovered the local thrift store, where a lot of good old cookbooks are often only 1 or 2 dollars.

If you become a member of BookBub, and choose ‘cookbooks’ or ‘cooking’ as one of your preferences, they’ll send you notices when the Kindle books go on sale - often, again, for $.99 or $1.99.

Saves a lot of space on the bookshelf ;-)


161 posted on 12/01/2017 6:07:58 PM PST by Jamestown1630 ("A Republic, if you can keep it.")
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To: Jamestown1630

I love old cookbooks. That was back when cooking was a required skill.

I still prefer hard copies although my first choice when looking for a recipe is Allrecipes. But I like to read through cookbooks like a regular book for entertainment.


162 posted on 12/01/2017 7:37:48 PM PST by CottonBall (Thank you, Julian!)
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To: leaning conservative; CottonBall; Jamestown1630
Sorry I let myself get sidetracked. And I had to take timeout yesterday to sell some grain. I had 31,000+ bu corn and a bunch of soybeans and didn't know they charge 18 cents a bushel to carry over an inventory to the next crop year. I've been hoarding 3 years of corn plus this fall harvest and 2 years of beans. They get you coming and going with money stuff. So I took a bath but still did pretty well considering prices aren't so good right now. It was emotionally draining, yesterday was the last day before the charges kicked in, another 4000K plus all the other charges I've racked up. I won't do that again. I guess I have to learn how to trade the stock indexes or something.

I thought about starting a vanity to see if there are any other farmers on here (I'm a city girl absentee landlord share cropper). The only other farmer on FR is disdainful about people like me who take government payments. It's not that much, and I take any money I can get honestly plus I pay taxes on it. And blah blah.

I have tummy troubles; it's been rough. I don't like to think I've been through hell because there is always somebody worse off. But that is Pollyanny thinking, and I never did like that.

So I sent my daughter for some salmon again and made some box scalloped potatoes. I like mine better but they are a heck of a lot more work and these aren't too bad for something out of a box.

Was tweaking my aisles online grocery list and spotted some Hershey's kisses, always liked to try the new ones. So I put mint truffles and dark chocolate truffles in my cart. Then I saw peppermint striped kisses and thought they would look nice on a chocolate blossom. They have everything. I decided to try this one, not that I'm a big fan of chocolate cookies, like brownies better:

https://www.lemontreedwelling.com/2015/12/chocolate-peppermint-blossoms-holiday-baking-giveaway.html

I'll try to keep up better after I take care of some things that need attention like a roof leak and house winterized because it is so cold and drafty I don't know what happened. There is an energy rebate program and I hope that will work out for me to save some money and get a thorough job done well..

163 posted on 12/01/2017 9:40:20 PM PST by Aliska
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To: Jamestown1630

When county libraries have their annual book sales, you can sometimes pickup old cookbooks dirt cheap.


164 posted on 12/02/2017 1:41:11 PM PST by Liz (Liberals are incapable of governing or practicing journalism in a normal American way.)
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To: All
A cute indoor wreath.


165 posted on 12/02/2017 2:12:21 PM PST by Liz (Liberals are incapable of governing or practicing journalism in a normal American way.)
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To: Liz

Yes; I think some of mine came from those sales.


166 posted on 12/02/2017 2:13:55 PM PST by Jamestown1630 ("A Republic, if you can keep it.")
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To: SkyDancer; All

This recipe for Ginger Cookies is about the best I’ve had. They used to be made by the mother of a friend of mine. The original recipe calls for 2 teaspoons of ground ginger, but she always used 3 teaspoons – and maybe that’s why they were so good.

Ginger Cookies

3 sticks butter (she insisted that you NOT use ‘oleo’)

½ C. Molasses (Brer Rabbit or Grandma’s Dark)

2 C. granulated sugar

2 eggs

4 C. flour

2 tsps. Ginger (my friend always used 3 tsps.)

4 tsps. Baking powder

2 tsps. Cinnamon

1 tsp. Ground cloves

Extra granulated sugar

Melt butter and add molasses and sugar

When cool enough, add the eggs. Beat well.

Sift together the flour, soda, cinnamon, ginger and cloves. Add these to the beaten mixture and blend well on low speed.

Refrigerate the dough, wrapped in foil, for at least a few hours or overnight.

Roll into small balls, about walnut-sized; then roll the balls in granulated sugar.

Bake at 350 degrees for 8 to 10 minutes. They will be soft as they come from the oven but will firm up on the cooling racks.

Cool on the racks and then store in a tightly covered container.


167 posted on 12/02/2017 2:17:15 PM PST by Jamestown1630 ("A Republic, if you can keep it.")
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To: Aliska

Those peppermint-stripey ones are pretty.

Sorry you aren’t feeling well, Aliska; I hope the coming year will be a much better one for you.


168 posted on 12/02/2017 2:28:20 PM PST by Jamestown1630 ("A Republic, if you can keep it.")
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To: Liz

That’s very clever!


169 posted on 12/02/2017 2:29:29 PM PST by Jamestown1630 ("A Republic, if you can keep it.")
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To: Liz

Love it! How are the candy canes held together??


170 posted on 12/02/2017 2:41:30 PM PST by MomwithHope (Law and Order and that includes Natural.)
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To: MomwithHope

I prefer making the wreath by gluing the smaller candy canes together, adding a bit of red ribbon and a glittering snowflake.....

Place one at each table setting.


171 posted on 12/02/2017 2:44:42 PM PST by Liz (Liberals are incapable of governing or practicing journalism in a normal American way.)
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To: Jamestown1630

Oh Yea!


172 posted on 12/02/2017 2:47:16 PM PST by SkyDancer ( ~ Just Consider Me A Random Fact Generator ~)
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To: Jamestown1630

Thank you for the well wishes.


173 posted on 12/02/2017 3:04:38 PM PST by Aliska
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To: Liz

So pretty & simple, sweet! My mom is retired from the library in a small town & on Wednesdays she & her friends sort donated books at the library for their booksale. She has found wonderful cookbooks for me along w/ my beloved Lawrence Sanders books. She just sent me an Irving Penn book for my birthday. It’s this tiny library that is a treasure chest of used books.


174 posted on 12/02/2017 5:03:41 PM PST by leaning conservative (snow coming, school cancelled, yayyyyyyyyy!!!!!!!!!!!)
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To: leaning conservative

That’s great......a good place to get OOP books.


175 posted on 12/02/2017 5:32:29 PM PST by Liz (Liberals are incapable of governing or practicing journalism in a normal American way.)
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To: Aliska

I am sorry to hear about everything going on in your life. I had no idea that you farmed. Wow! May good things happen in the coming new year.

I used to make chocolate crinkle cookies. Yours are beautiful even though I despise chocolate & mint (except strangely Andes mints) or any fruit w/ chocolate except for cherries!).

Be well.


176 posted on 12/02/2017 7:02:51 PM PST by leaning conservative (snow coming, school cancelled, yayyyyyyyyy!!!!!!!!!!!)
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To: leaning conservative
Thank you. I've got to go get some tests done I've been dreading and putting off. I wondered about the chocolate and mint too although I love it in candy. I don't have any peppermint extract any more and hardly ever use it when I do.

I never made chocolate crinkle cookies either, just easier to make brownies, love the Pillsbury shiny top moist fudgy ones. Duncan Hines pretty good, too. I used to beg my mother to make chocolate drop cookies with chocolate frosting but haven't made them or wanted them in years.

Yeah the cherries, got some in my cart for my daughter as she loves them. You can make them but too much trouble to dip and temper the choc.

I do like choc covered raisins, will tolerate the bridge mix, love choc covered orange peel (have made that and got it just like the candy store). And another favorite they don't make any more, Fannie May rum raisin. They're bon bons, and I think the flavoring might be the artificial butter rum which I love in some things.

I don't do the farming work, wish I could do some of it, would love to be able to plant and maintain an orchard and other dreams but no, have to go with tried and true and be thankful if you have good people doing the work. I have to pay all my share of the bills and property taxes, there's a lot and high seed and other costs just to get the crops in the ground. I have to know a lot though but I started as a kid following my father around to check on things and take care of business. It's different from my father's time though. My family, "how did you learn to do all that?" lol.

177 posted on 12/02/2017 7:31:40 PM PST by Aliska
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To: MomwithHope; Liz

Instructions for these seem to use a hot glue gun. But the canes look like they are still in their wrappers, and I would guess that Elmer’s glue might work if you let it get tacky before joining. Then, the canes would still be ok to eat, if you wanted to make the small ones for place-setting favors.


178 posted on 12/02/2017 8:40:36 PM PST by Jamestown1630 ("A Republic, if you can keep it.")
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To: Jamestown1630; MomwithHope

I would advise removing the original wrappers and rewrapping the canes in saran....for a tighter, more attractive look.


179 posted on 12/03/2017 3:51:54 AM PST by Liz (Liberals are incapable of governing or practicing journalism in a normal American way.)
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To: Liz

Aha! Thanks to you and Jamestown.


180 posted on 12/03/2017 4:18:32 AM PST by MomwithHope (Law and Order and that includes Natural.)
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