Yummy Holiday Gingerbread Loaf Recipe

You saw it in the wordless Wednesday post above, now you can make some too.

What You Need

     1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

     3/4 cup whole wheat flour

     2 tsp baking powder

     1 tsp ginger (ground)

     1/2 tsp baking soda

     1/4 tsp salt

     1/4 tsp cardamom ( ground)

     1/4 tsp cinnamon (ground)

      1/4 tsp nutmeg (ground)

     1 cup low-fat milk (warmed to 100° to 110°)

     1/2 cup molasses

     1/4 cup canola oil

     3 Tbsp prunes (puréed)

     2 large eggs (lightly beaten)

     3/4 cup dark brown sugar (packed)

     1/2 cup golden raisins

    Non stick cooking spray

     2 Tbsp finely chopped walnuts

    Large Mixing Bowl

   Medium mixing bowl

   Whisk

    9x 5 loaf pan

   Wire cooling rack ( optional)

    Thermometer

Before You Start : Preheat oven to 350°. Spray inside of loaf pan with cooking spray.

Let’s Make It! In a large mixing bowl combine flours, baking powder, ginger, baking soda, salt, cardamom, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Mix together. In a medium mixing bowl combine milk molasses, canola oil, prunes, and eggs. Mix well with a whisk stirring until well blended. Add sugar, stirring until well blended. With the back of a spoon or your hand make a well in center of flour mixture. Add milk mixture to flour mixture; stir just until combined. Stir in raisins. Scrape batter into loaf pan .Sprinkle walnuts in a 2 1/2-inch-wide strip down center of loaf. Bake about an hour ( or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean.) Cool loaf in pan (on a wire rack works best)

Serves about 12 slices

*Katies Tid Bits-try using a jar of prunes baby food instead of the puréed prunes

Toasted Pecan Mounds and Soft Sugar Cookies

It's National Cookie Day!

What You need
1 cup pecans ( toasted and cooled)
1 3/4 cups confectioners’ sugar
2 sticks (1 cup) cold unsalted butter
cut into small pieces)
2 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp salt
2 cups all-purpose flour
Baking sheet
Food processor


Before You start preheat oven to 325°F.

Lets Make It! Pulse pecans with 3/4 cup of the sugar in food processor until finely ground (do not overprocess). Add butter, vanilla and salt; process, scraping bowl often, to blend. Add flour; pulse just until dough forms a ball. Lightly flour your hands and lightly roll into 1-inch. balls. Place 1 inch apart on ungreased baking sheet. Bake 20 minutes or until tops are dry and set and bottoms are light brown. Cool cookies on sheet 10 minutes. Gently (they’re extremely fragile) roll warm cookies in remaining 1 cup confectioners’ sugar to coat. Cool, then roll in sugar again.

*Katies Tid Bits Storage Tip: Store airtight with wax paper between layers at cool room temperature up to 2 weeks. makes about 2 dozen

Soft Sugar Cookies

What You Need

    2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour (sifted)

    1 1/2 tsp baking powder

    1/2 tsp salt

    1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter (room temperature)

    2 cups sugar

    2 large eggs

    1 tsp pure vanilla extract

   Whisk

   Electric Mixer

   Cookie baking sheet

   Wire Cooling Racks

   Sifter

Before You Start: Heat oven to 350°

Lets Make It! In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Using an electric mixer, beat the butter and sugars on medium-high speed until fluffy (about 2 to 3 minutes). One at a time, beat in the eggs, and then add the vanilla. Reduce speed to low and gradually add the flour mixture, mixing until just combined (do not over mix). Drop heaping Tbsp of the dough onto baking sheets, spacing them 2 inches apart. Bake, rotating the baking sheets halfway through, until the cookies are golden, (about 12 to 15 minutes) Cool slightly on the baking sheets, then transfer to wire racks to cool completely.

Frost or leave plain. Makes about two dozen

Seasons Eatings

Seasons Eatings from Go Ask Katie!

I've recently added "Seasons Eatings" to my "Recipes from Katie's Kitchen" category at my website.

Stop by for some delicious holiday treat recipes!

Copyright ©Bobskatie Enterprises-all rights reserved

Edible Snowmen, yummy

Edible Snowmen, Yummy!
Make Marshmallow Snowmen with your children and grandchildren!
What You Need
Marshmallows, Melted Caramels,Gingersnap Cookies
and Decorative elements :(sprinkles, royal icing, pretzel sticks, spice drops, fruit leather, food coloring and pink Cake Mate Decorations
Dip a marshmallow in melted caramel; place on a gingersnap. Put sprinkles over excess caramel. Halve a marshmallow for head and attach with royal icing. Insert pretzels in body.
Flatten a spice drop; attach another to form hat. Cut scarves and bow ties from fruit leather; tuck under head. Dye royal icing and pipe eyes, nose and buttons. Attach pink Decors for cheeks.

Make and Give Snowmen Cookies for the Holidays!
SNOWMAN COOKIES
Preheat oven to 350 F. Knead 2/3 cup of all-purpose flour into a 16 1/2-oz. roll of refrigerated sugar-cookie dough.
Tear off a piece of dough and roll it in your palms to form a 3/4-inch ball. Roll a slightly larger piece into a 1-inch ball, and a still slightly larger piece into a 1 1/4-inch ball. Repeat with remaining dough. Place 1 of each size ball close together on parchment-lined baking sheets; flatten balls slightly.
Bake cookies for 12 minutes. Cool on rack. Pipe frosting for scarves and to attach M&M's Minis buttons, mini-chocolate-chip eyes, snowflake sprinkles and Hershey's Kisses for hats.
Makes about 16

Chocolate Spiders

Easy to make chocolate spiders. A fun and yummy Halloween treat

What You Need:Chocolate-covered cream-filled snack cakes
Mini chocolate cream-filled snack cakes
Black licorice laces
M&M's
Chocolate and vanilla icing ( icing piping bag) or icing in the tube
Toothpicks

Let's Make them:

Use a toothpick to poke eight holes in cake, insert licorice laces into holes and trim ends to desired length.

Attach M&M's as eyes using dots of icing. Pipe dots of chocolate icing for pupils and create fangs by piping small bits of vanilla icing.