Maple Leaf Cookies

October is my favorite cookie baking month.  It is cool enough to be able to use the oven without sweltering, and it’s far enough away from the holiday season to not be frantic.  I like to bake when I’m relaxed and can actually enjoy the process.  These cookies have become a bit of a fall tradition for me because they are so easy and so much fun to make.  I like to use a shortbread dough, the recipe of which I’ve posted before, it’s Ina’s, and that woman really knows her shortbread!  It is an easy dough to work with, cuts like a dream, and leaves (if you'll pardon the pun) nice edges.

Maple Leaf Cookies

3/4 pound unsalted butter, at room temperature

1 cup sugar, plus extra for sprinkling

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1/4 teaspoon salt

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, mix together the butter and 1 cup of sugar until they are just combined. Add the vanilla. In a medium bowl, sift together the flour and salt, then add them to the butter-and-sugar mixture. Mix on low speed until the dough starts to come together. Dump onto a lightly floured board and divide into 3 sections.  Using Soft Gel Paste Food Color dye each portion of dough to the intensity that you desire. Form each colored piece of dough into a disk.  Wrap in plastic and chill for 30 minutes.

Remove dough from fridge. Tear each color of dough into four parts and fling them with reckless abandon onto a lightly floured cutting board. 

Roll the dough 1/2-inch thick and cut with a Maple Leaf Cookie Cutter. Gather up the scraps and roll again.  Each time you do this you'll get a new combination of colors.  Place the cookies on an ungreased baking sheet and bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until the edges barely begin to brown. Allow to cool to room temperature.

This post is linked to:
Seasonal Sunday
Metamorphosis Monday
Sunday's Best Party
Foodie Friday
Sweets for a Saturday

Cream of Tomato Soup with Basil and Parmesan

There’s frost on the pumpkin, and what better way to warm up than with a comforting bowl of tomato soup.  This isn’t just any soup; it is the most delicious cream of tomato soup that will ever hit your palate.  To make your life even easier, it is made in the Crockpot.  A tomato soup fancier from way back, this recipe gets my dad’s thumbs up of approval! It is rich and decadent, so ladle into small bowls.  It also pairs quite deliciously with a thick slice of pumpkin challah.  What a soothing fall meal!

Cream of Tomato Soup with Basil and Parmesan

Makes about 2 quarts (about 8 servings)

2 14-oz cans diced tomatoes, with juice
1 cup finely diced celery
1 cup finely diced carrots
1 cup finely diced onions
1 tsp. dried oregano
1 T. dried basil
4 cups chicken broth
½ bay leaf

½ cup butter
½ cup flour

1 cup Parmesan cheese (I used 2/3s)
2 cups half and half, warmed

1 tsp. salt
¼ tsp. black pepper

Place tomatoes, celery, carrots, onions, oregano, basil, chicken broth, and bay leaf into a large slow cooker.  Cover and cook on LOW for 5-7 hours, until flavors are blended and vegetables are soft.

About 30 minutes before serving prepare a roux by melting butter over low heat in a skillet and adding the flour. Stir constantly with a whisk for 2-3 minutes. Slowly stir in 1 cup of the hot soup. Add another 3 cups and stir until smooth. Add all back into the slow cooker. Stir and add the Parmesan cheese, warmed half and half, salt, and pepper.  Add additional basil and oregano to suit your tastes. Cover and cook on LOW for another 30 minutes until ready to serve.

This post is linked to:

Seasonal Sunday

On the Menu Monday

Foodie Friday

Baby Cauliflower with Spicy Béchamel

Let’s talk side dishes, shall we?  You know what I’m talking about.  In a word: vegetables.  Often the bane of the entrée’s existence, the side dish can tend to be a bit dull, bland in color, and generally rather unloved, particularly if there are kids or husbands involved.  But they don’t have to be.  I have found that an interesting appearing side dish drizzled with a tasty sauce can turn blah into wonderful and, dare I say, requested?  True.  Cauliflower is a favorite of mine.  I happen to like the taste as is, but it is one of those versatile vegetables than can be dressed up so easily, mashed into a potato-like dish that will fool even the most devoted potato fancier, and it comes in a variety of sizes AND colors.  (I’ll bet you weren’t expecting that).   Low in both saturated fat and cholesterol, it is a good source of protein, thiamin, potassium, fiber, and a host of other good things.

Baby cauliflower, I think, is particularly easy to work with, and I love the different colors of those cute little heads.  Peel back and remove the leaves, rinse the heads, and allow draining in a colander.  While you are bringing a large pot of salted water to the boil prepare the sauce (recipe below).  When your water reaches the boiling point (and I’m talking a full, rolling boil here) drop the cauliflower in all at once, and boil for 5-7 minutes until they reach the desired tenderness.  When done, drain, plate, and drizzle with the sauce.

Spicy Béchamel Sauce

¼ cup butter 
¼ cup all-purpose flour 
¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper 
1 Tablespoon LB Jamison's Chicken Flavored Soup Base 

1½ cup water 
1½ cup light cream

Melt butter over medium-high heat in a medium saucepan.  Stir in flour and cook for one minute stirring constantly.  Add seasonings, water and cream, stirring until thick and smooth.  Add more cayenne, if desired.

If you don’t care for spicy, eliminate the cayenne and add about 1/8 teaspoon of freshly grated nutmeg.  If your family consists of cheese lovers, toss in ½ cup grated sharp cheddar cheese.

This post is linked to:

Food on Friday

Maple Butter

If you’re a Susan Branch fan like I am, and you don’t already have her Autumn from the Heart of the Home book in your collection, buy it now.  I think it is the best of all of her seasonal books, each of which exudes coziness and charm, and features lovely illustrations, stories, decorating tips, thoughtful little gift ideas, and her yummy, unique recipes.  Below is an easy recipe that I make every fall because it seems to complement almost any muffin or quick bread recipe that I bake.  The addition of the hot sauce may surprise you, but it gives it quite a unique “zing” without a hint of hot sauce taste.  I like to mold mine into maple leaf shapes and store them in the freezer until I need them.  Make these ahead for Thanksgiving and dazzle your guests when you serve the bread course!

Maple Butter

From Susan Branch’s Autumn from the Heart of the Home

1 cup (2 sticks) Butter, softened

1/4cup real Maple Syrup

½ teaspoon Mexican Hot Sauce, such as Cholula

Beat the butter, syrup, and hot sauce together until combined. Transfer to a parchment paper-lined baking. pan and cover with another sheet of parchment paper. Press, using a rolling pin to pack the butter to 1/2-inch-thick slab. Chill for 30 minutes. Remove top sheet of parchment paper and cut butter into pats.

 

This post is linked to:

Seasonal Sunday

On the Menu Monday

Metamorphosis Monday

Wow Us Wednesday

Tutorial Tips & Tidbits

Brandy and Orange-Mashed Sweet Potatoes in Orange Cups

I have newly come to love sweet potatoes.  As a kid I never liked them because they were orange…and potatoes…and that was just wrong.  As an adult I steered clear of them because of those rather frightening looking casseroles studded with miniature marshmallows that, I swear, looked like eyes.  I don’t care for food that looks back at me.  Then I saw Emeril make these sweet potato filled orange cups and had to try them.  Making these has become something of a fall tradition ever since.  I did change up his recipe a bit, adding orange zest and doubling the amount of Brandy (Oh, yeah!). 

Brandy and Orange-Mashed Sweet Potatoes in Orange Cups

Adapted from a recipe by Emeril Lagasse

 To make filling:

7 large Melissa's organic sweet potatoes, about 3 pounds

4 large oranges

1 stick butter

1/2 cup light brown sugar

3 large eggs

3/4 cup fresh orange juice

1/2 cup heavy cream

1/2 cup brandy

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg

1 teaspoon grated orange zest

1/2 teaspoon salt

To make topping:

½ cup brown sugar

½  cup chopped pecans

5 Tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

Directions

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Place the potatoes on a baking sheet and bake until tender, about 1 hour. Remove from the oven and let rest until just cool enough to handle.

Lower the oven to 350 degrees F.

Make the orange cups by cutting the oranges in half and scooping out the pulp, leaving only the shell. Set aside. I find this amazingly easy to do by using an Electric Citrus Juicer.  If you don’t have one of these, get one.  It is money well spent.  These juicers can absolutely get the very last drop of juice out of any piece of citrus and leave you with an almost pristine shell.

While still somewhat hot, peel the potatoes and place in a large bowl. Discard the skins and tough, stringy fibers. Add the butter, and with an electric mixer, beat out the lumps. Add the sugar, eggs, orange juice, heavy cream, and brandy, and mix until smooth. Add the cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt, and mix well. Re-season, to taste.

Spoon the sweet potato mixture into the orange cups, mounding and smoothing the top.

Mix together topping ingredients and put a generous dollop on top of each potato.

Bake until puffed and slightly golden, about 20 minutes.

NOTE:  Both mixture and orange cups can be made a day ahead.  Store them in separate containers and refrigerate until ready to use.

This post is linked to:

Totally Tasty Tuesdays

Try a New Recipe Tuesday

Dracula's Dentures

It's October, my most favorite month of the year! I love it not just because it's such a welcome respite from a scorching summer, not just because it is one of the most beautiful, colorful months of the year, and not because it's my birthday month, though each of these do stand alone as excellent reasons. No, I love it because of the delightfully fun Halloween treats waiting to be baked.  Turning the colors and harvest of fall into delicious baked goods is such a comforting way to greet the season.  It’s also great fun to whip up something scary.

I will be the first to admit that I’m all thumbs when it comes to the tediously artistic task of decorating cookies, but when my son found these clever cookies on the web I knew that even I could do them.  Here, it is more about assemblage than decorating. The award-winning creation of Lori Fillmore, who took one of the top prizes in the Toll House Spooktacular Baking Activity Contest, these are both easy and fun to put together.  You can find the official recipe on the Nestle website here but I've reproduced it below for the sake of convenience.

 Dracula's Dentures

Ingredients:
1 package (18.25 ounces) NESTLÉ® TOLL HOUSE® refrigerated chocolate chip cookie dough
1/2 cup prepared vanilla frosting, tinted red
1 3/4 cups miniature marshmallows
48 slivered almonds

Instructions:
Prepare cookies as directed on package or according to your favorite recipe. Cool on baking sheets for 2 minutes; remove to wire rack to cool completely. Cut each cookie in half for a total of 48 halves.

Frost the bottoms of all cookie halves with frosting. Place 6 marshmallow teeth around curved perimeter of 24 halves. For additional support, an additional marshmallow can be placed behind the teeth. Top with remaining 24 halves.  Insert two almond slivers in between teeth for fangs. If fangs do not adhere, dip tips into frosting.

This post is linked to:

Seasonal Sunday

On the Menu Monday

Foodie Friday

Sweets for a Saturday