Holiday Cookies 2011

This year of holiday baking is complete.  Sweets have been made, packed and, if need be, sent in the mail.

Now comes the time to share the recipes.  Some, like fudge, are usually reserved for the holidays but others, like the shortbread, can be made other times of the year.

I made a few of these recipes last year and because they were so good, they became repeaters.  Others are new this year and if they are as well received by my friends as they were by Bo, they will be made again.

Enjoy the holidays, the goodies, and hopefully you will find a gem to make for your family!

Double Ginger Crackles
These were Bo's favorite because it had a certain level of spice which tempered the sweet.

Tuscan Rosemary and Pine Nut Bars (Short & Sweet: Sophisticated Desserts in No Time at All by Melanie Barnard) I loved these but because of the level of butter involved, they won't be frequent guests  in our home! 1/4 cup pine nuts 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter 1/2 cup powdered sugar 1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary 1/2 teaspoon salt 1 cup all-purpose flour Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Spread pine nuts on baking sheet and toast in oven, stirring once or twice to prevent burning, until they are a shade darker, about 5 minutes. Remove from baking sheet to prevent further browning and set aside. In medium saucepan over medium heat, melt butter. Remove pan from heat and stir in sugar, rosemary, salt and pine nuts. Combine until sugar is dissolved. Stir in flour to make a stiff dough. Spread the dough evenly into an ungreased 8-inch square baking pan. Bake about 20 minutes until the dough is golden around the edges and firm in the center. Cool pan on a rack for a few minutes, then cut dough into bars or squares. Let cool in the pan for at least 15 minutes before removing.  Makes 18 bars or 16 squares. Yum-Rum Balls (Recipe by Southern Living) These are a repeat from last year and I see them being made for several more! 1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk 3 cups semisweet chocolate morsels 3 tablespoons dark rum 1/2 cup chocolate cookie crumbs 1/2 cup powdered sugar Cook sweetened condensed milk and chocolate morsels in a heavy saucepan over  medium heat, stirring often, until chocolate morsels melt. Remove from heat, and stir in rum. Pour into a lightly greased 8-inch square pan. Cover  and chill 3 hours or until firm. Shape mixture into 1 1/4-inch balls; roll in chocolate cookie crumbs and then in powdered  sugar.   Place balls in miniature paper baking cups, if desired. Store in an airtight container  in the refrigerator up to 1 week. Cinnamon-Chocolate Fudge (Recipe courtesy Giada De Laurentiis) Also a repeater that will be used again! Butter, for greasing the pan 1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract 1 pound (about 2 cups) bittersweet (60 percent cacao) chocolate chips  3 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces, at room temperature Kosher or flake salt, optional Butter the bottom and sides of an 8 by 8-inch baking pan. Line the pan with a sheet of  parchment paper, about 14-inches long and 7-inches wide, allowing the excess to  overhang the sides. Set aside  In a medium glass or stainless steel bowl, combine the condensed milk, cinnamon, and  vanilla.  Stir in the chocolate chips and butter. Put the bowl on a saucepan of barely  simmering water and mix until the chocolate chips have melted and the mixture is smooth,  about 6 to 8 minutes (mixture will be thick). Using a spatula, scrape the mixture into the  prepared pan and smooth the top. Sprinkle with salt, if desired.   Refrigerate for at least 2  hours until firm.  Run a warm knife around the edge of the pan to loosen the fudge. Remove the fudge to  a cutting board.  Peel off the parchment paper and cut the fudge into 1-inch pieces. Store  refrigerated in an airtight container or freeze.  Cook's Note: The fudge can also be made using 1 pound (about 2 1/2 cups) of semisweet  chocolate chips.

Thai Green Curry with Shrimp Dumplings

Please excuse the picture quality, we are in-between "good" cameras...

I AM going to learn to cook Thai and it WILL taste good!  This is my new goal - I suppose it can be called a New Year's goal, but I am beginning it early.  I have several great places to do my research including amazing cookbooks and the blog of a foodie friend.  So this should be fun!

My first undertaking was a green curry (a favorite of mine) with shrimp dumplings (sounds fun, huh?).  I got the recipes from a couple of different blogs and both agreed with one key point:  Start out using green curry paste from a can.  Learn how it should taste, then attempt your own.  Or don't.  Apparently many Thai home cooks use canned past for their curry.  So this is what I did:

I found the curry recipe from She Simmers and she got it from Kasma Loha-unchit, a Thai cooking teacher.  I did a tiny bit of adapting of my own, but only when I couldn't find a particular vegetable.  Basically I used the wisdom and knowledge of these two women to make one of the most incredible things that has come out of my kitchen in awhile.  I served the curry over a short grained brown rice and we lapped it up!  


As I work to develop a Thai cooking style of my own, I will use this green curry base again and again.  Maybe someday I will be ready to make my own paste?


Thai Green Curry with Shrimp Dumplings (from She Simmers)
note - please read her blog for more specific instructions on making the green curry from this basic recipe.

A Recipe of Kasma Loha-unchit
Recipe Copyright © 1995 Kasma Loha-unchit

• 2 cups or 1 14-oz. can coconut milk
• 2-3 Tbs. green curry paste
• Shrimp dumplings *
• 1/2 lb. small, round Thai eggplants (ma-keua bprawh), cut in halves or quarters, or substitute with 2 long Asian eggplants, cut in bite-size chunks
• 1/2 cup small peas
• 2 kaffir lime leaves (bai ma-gkrood)
• Fish sauce (nahm bplah) to taste
• 2 tsp. palm sugar, or to taste
• 1/2 to 1 cup fresh Thai sweet basil leaves and flowers (bai horapa)
• Slivered chillies, to desired hotness

Do not shake the can of coconut milk before opening, so that the cream remains on top. Spoon about 2/3 cup of this thick cream into a medium-size saucepan and heat over medium to high heat. Reduce until smooth and bubbly and until oil begins to separate from the cream. Add the curry paste and fry in the cream for a few minutes to release the aromas. Then pour in the remaining milk.

Bring to a boil and add the Thai eggplants. Simmer a few minutes more, then stir in the peas and kaffir lime leaves. Season to taste with fish sauce (may not be needed if the curry paste is already salted). Add palm sugar to balance and enhance the spice and herb flavors to your liking. Continue to simmer until eggplants and peas are tender. Stir in the shrimp balls basil and chillies (as desired for added hotness) and cook another minute. Serve hot over plain steamed rice.

*Shrimp Dumplings

1 lb shrimp

2 t fish sauce

1 T corn starch

Stir together all ingredients in a food processor until it is rubbery.  Roll the mixture into bite-sized balls, cover and refrigerate until ready to use.

Chicken Cooked in Ginger

I am learning something new, and I am excited.  Having experienced some fabulous Thai and Vietnamese food in the past few years I decided it was time to learn how to cook a few dishes from each country.

So the education begins.

I started with a Vietnamese recipe called Chicken Cooked in Ginger from Luke Nguyen's Vietnam on The Cooking Channel.  It seemed simple to make with flavors we would love. I was completely right! Ginger had softly stewed with previously seared chicken in a bath of chicken broth.  Chopped green onions finished off the dish and I served it on a bed of purple sticky rice.

Bo was pleased, I was pleased so all in all it was a successful first attempt!

Chicken Cooked in Ginger: Ga Ban Kho Gung (Recipe by Luke Nguyen)

• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 3 tablespoons fish sauce
• 1 teaspoon oyster sauce
• 17 1/2 ounces/500 g chicken, chopped into bite-size pieces
• 2 tablespoons finely sliced fresh ginger
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 2 tablespoons finely diced garlic

• 1 cup/ 250 ml chicken stock
• Pinch salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 4 spring onions (scallions), sliced into 1 1/2-inch/4 cm lengths
• 1 long chile, julienned
• Serving suggestion: Jasmine rice.

In a mixing bowl combine sugar, fish sauce, and oyster sauce. Mix well, then add the chicken and ginger massaging the marinade into the flesh.  Cover and place in the refrigerator to marinate for 20 minutes.

Bring a wok or saucepan to medium heat, then add oil and garlic and cook until fragrant.  Now turn the heat to high then add the chicken searing all sides. Cover the chicken with the stock, pour in the remaining marinade and bring to the boil.  Skim off all impurities until clear and cover the pan.

Reduce the heat to low and simmer for 15 minutes.  Add spring onions and freshly ground black pepper, stir and cook for a further minute.  Transfer to a serving bowl and garnish with chile. Serve with jasmine rice.  

Asian Marinated Flank Steak With Wasabi Mashed Potatoes

I subscribe to several fitness-style magazines and I tend to zip right by the makeup sections, the fashion area and I don't normally make recipes from my exercise magazines.  In fact I don't think I've ever cooked from one of them.  But as soon as I saw this recipe, I knew Bo would love it and I had to give it a whirl.  And I was right.  In fact I heard something I have heard in awhile "You've outdone yourself honey!"

I followed the recipe as written with a  few minor changes that I noted below.  There was leftover marinade that I tossed with fresh green beans and cooked in my cast iron skillet.  

In the magazine picture of the potatoes they were a lovely green color from the wasabi paste.  My potatoes didn't show even a hint of green even though I doubled the paste.  Hmmmm, maybe I should have added green food coloring too.  


If you don't like things spicy at all, use less Siracha.  The steak was a pleasant level of heat for us, and the potatoes picked up the sharpness of the wasabi without the heat.


If I tended to make recipes more than once, this one would be a repeater!

Asian Marinated Flank Steak With Wasabi Mashed Potatoes (Fitness Magazine)

• 1 1/4 pounds  flank steak
• 1/4 cup  soy sauce
• 2 tablespoons  toasted sesame oil
• 1 tablespoon  hot chili sauce, such as Siracha
• 1 tablespoon  honey
• 1 teaspoon  minced fresh ginger
• 3 pounds  russet potatoes, peeled and cubed
• 1/2 cup  unsweetened almond milk (I used regular skim milk and used closer to 3/4 cup)
• 1/2 cup  nonfat Greek yogurt
• 1/2 teaspoon  ground ginger (I didn't have this so I let it out)
• 1 teaspoon  wasabi paste (I doubled the paste)
• 1 teaspoon  salt

1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Place the steak, soy sauce, sesame oil, chili sauce, honey and fresh ginger in a ziplock freezer bag. Close the bag and turn it to coat the steak with the marinade. Marinate at room temperature 15 minutes.

2. Add the potatoes to the boiling water. Cook until fork tender, about 10 minutes. Drain fully and return to pot. Pour in the almond milk and mash until smooth. Gently fold in the yogurt and add the ground ginger, wasabi paste and salt.

3. Meanwhile, heat a large pan over medium heat. Add 2 tablespoons of the marinade, then the steak, to the pan. Sear steak 3 to 5 minutes on each side. Remove to a cutting board and let rest 5 minutes.

4. Slice steak into 1/4-inch-thick pieces. Serve with mashed potatoes.