Nurnberger Lebkuchen

I'm convinced that I'm going to make this complicated cookie for Christmas this year.
I'm fascinated with these cookies.  I lived in Germany when I was in my 20's and Christmas in Germany is....... well, amazing!  We also went to the Frankfurt German Market during Christmas in Birmingham, England in 2012. We have a German Store in our town and I buy my Oblaten there.

1/2 C Butter, softened
1 C Granulated Sugar
4 Eggs
3 C Flour
1 - 2 TBS Lebkuchen spices, recipe to follow if you don't have access to it.
2 TBS Cocoa Powder
1 1/2 tsp Baking Powder
1 C Whole Milk
1 3/4 C Ground Almonds
1/2 C Candied Lemon Peel, chopped
1 TBS Grand Marnier

Glaze:
1/2 C Granulated Sugar
1/4 C Water
1/2 tsp Vanilla
2 TBS Grand Marnier
1/2 C Confectioner's Sugar
32  - 3" Oblaten Wafers
1/2 C Raisins, soaked in Rum and chopped.


Homemade Lebkuchen Spice Mix:

In a small bowl:
2 TBS Cinnamon
2 tsp Ground Ginger
1/2 tsp Ground Allspice
1/4 C Nutmeg
1/2 tsp Coriander
1/2 tsp Cardamom
1/2 tsp Ground Ginger
1/2 tsp Ground Anise
Whisk well and store in a jar.
Use 1 - 2  TBS per recipe.


In a Stand Mixer with a paddle attachment:
Butter
Sugar
Eggs
Beat until light and creamy.

Gradually Add:
Flour
Lebkuchen Spices (1 - 2 TBS)
Cocoa Powder
Baking Powder
Alternating with Milk.
Mix well.

Fold in:
Almonds
Lemon Peel
Stir in:
GrandMarnier
Raisins
Mix well.

Drop 3 TBS of the dough onto each Oblaten.
Spread out and smooth the dough to the edges, slightly mounding the dough in the center.
Bake  on a parchment paper lined sheet pan at 375 degrees for 15 - 20 minutes.
Reduce the oven temperature to 350 if the cookies are browning to quickly.
Remove the sheet pan and cool on a rack for ten minutes.
Transfer cookies to a rack and cool completely.
While they are still bait warm prepare the Glaze.

Glaze:
In a small saucepan, on medium low heat:
1/2 C Sugar and 1/4 C Water.
Bring to a boil for a few minutes.
Add:
Vanilla
Grand Marnier
Stir often.
Sift the Confectioner's Sugar over the Hot Sugar Syrup and stir continuously.
Use a Pastry Brush and Brush the Glaze over each cookie and allow to dry completely.
Allow them to sit at room temperature overnight.
Store them in an airtight container.


Genießen Sie!
Frieden in der Küchen!

Layered Bar Cookies

Can we really get enough recipes for Bar Cookies?
I don't think so.........

 Layered Bar Cookies:

Here's what you'll need:
1- 9"X13" pan, spray with a vegetable cooking spray. I brush mine with Pan Release Mix. ( equal parts of Crisco, Vegetable Oil, Flour) Mix well and keep in a jar in the refrigerator. I start with 1 C of each and always have it available for all of my baking needs.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

2 C Crushed Graham Crackers
1/2 C Butter, melted
2 C Chocolate Chips
1 C Chopped Pecans
1 1/2 C Peanut Butter Chips
1 1/2 C Shredded Coconut
1 can (14 oz.) Sweetened Condensed Milk

In a small bowl:
Graham Cracker Crumbs
Butter
Mix well and press evenly into the bottom of pan. (not up the sides).

Begin layering evenly in the following order:
Chocolate Chips
Pecans
Peanut Butter Chips
Coconut
Drizzle evenly with Sweetened Condensed Milk.
Bake for 25 minutes.
Remove pan from the oven to a cooling rack to cool completely.
Cut into squares to serve.

Enjoy!
Peace in the Kitchen!

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Lemon Bundt Cake

I get so many recipes from books, friends, family and online. I believe in giving credit when possible. However, it bothers me that some people post recipes and make it sound like they created them and when I research them online, I find that there are no real references to the origin and there are dozens of the same recipe available. I will give credit to well known chefs and Food Network Bloggers, Sites like Pillsbury, Kraft and Berry Crocker, but I'm not going to continue to give credit where I don't honestly believe it's deserved. If you are a blogger and you read this blog, pleas start giving credit to others when you did not create the recipe. All of my original recipes are noted.
So now that I've made that statement, here's a recipe I received and it's all over the internet so I am not giving anyone credit.
I happen to love the recipe.

I would give credit for this one to the Betty Crocker website since it uses a Betty Crocker Cake Mix.

Here's what you'll need:

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.
1 Bundt Pan, your choice of design.
Pan Release Mixture:
Equal parts of Crisco, Vegetable Oil and Flour. I start with 1 C of each, mix it well and store it in a jar, refrigerated. I always have it available for all of my baking needs.

Lemon Bundt Cake:

1 box of Betty Crocker Super Moist Yellow Cake Mix
1 C Whole Milk
4 oz. of Cream Cheese, softened
2 TBS Grate Lemon Zest
1/4 C Fresh Lemon Juice
3 Eggs

Glaze:
2 C Confectioner's Sugar
2 TBS Fresh Lemon Juice

Glaze:
2 C Confectioner's Sugar
2 TBS Fresh Lemon Juice

In a large mixing bowl:
Beat cake ingredients by hand with an electric mixer, on low speed about 1 minute.
Scrape the bowl as needed.
Increase speed to medium for an additional 2 minutes.

Brush the pan well with the Pan Release Mix.
Pour the batter into the pan.
Bake for 40 - 45 minutes, until a toothpick in the center comes out clean.
Remove from the oven and cool on a rack for 15 minutes.
Invert the cake onto a serving platter and cool completely.
Make sure the platter is large enough to allow for the glaze to drip down the sides of the cake.

Make the Glaze in a medium bowl.
Beat Confectioner's Sugar and Lemon Juice, a little at a time until the glaze becomes thick.
Pour evenly over the cooled cake.


Enjoy!
Peace in the Kitchen!

Homemade Apple Spice Tea Mix

I'm on a Tea kick........ off of coffee for awhile so I'm in pursuit of great tea recipes. I posted a recipe for homemade Chai Tea Mix and here's the next recipe that I'm passionate about.
The Tea Mix makes a great Holiday Gift with the instructions for making a cup of tea, attached to a Christmas Mug, or place the mix in a decorative Christmas Tin with a label.

Apple Spice Tea Mix:

Here's what you'll need:
Individual Tea Filters

2 TBS Loose Green Tea
2 TBS chopped Crystallized Ginger
1 tsp Whole Allspice
1 tsp Whole Cloves
6 -  Dried  Crispy Apple Slices, just make sure they're not the soft ones.
6 -  3" Cinnamon Sticks

In a mixing bowl:
Green Tea
Ginger
Allspice
Cloves
Mix well.

Divide the tea mixture among 6 tea bags and add 1 slice of Dried Apple.
Tie 1 piece of Cinnamon stick onto the bag as you secure the top with string.

Prepare the tea in individual mugs of hot water:
1 bag for 6 - 8 oz. of hot water.
Steep for 4 minutes.
Remove the bag and enjoy!

Enjoy!
Peace in the Kitchen!

Amish Raisin Filled Cookies

If you follow my blog on a regular basis, you know how much I love Amish Cooking. In a way I relate it to being a Hippy in the Kitchen. The Hippy philosophy of cooking is simple, healthy and back to basics, much like the Amish. I have a large collection of Amish Cookbooks and even some that are hand written from Amish and Mennonite families in Kansas.
My favorite Amish Pie, and it was my father in- law's too, is Raisin. The Amish and the Mennonites make the best Raisin Pie.
I recently found this recipe in my archived Amish recipes.

Amish Raisin Filled Cookies:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Dough ingredients:
2 C Sugar
2 Eggs
1 C Shortening (Crisco)
1 C Milk
4 C Flour
2 tsp Baking Soda
4 tsp Cream of Tartar
1/2 tsp Salt
1 tsp Vanilla

Filling ingredients:
1 1/2 C Dark Raisins (Chopped) The Amish actually grind them.
1 1/2 C Water
1 1/2 C Sugar
1 1/2 TBS Flour

Dough preparation:
In a mixing bowl with a hand mixer:
Shortening
Sugar
Cream well.
Add:
Eggs
Vanilla
Beat well.

Sift the dry ingredients.
In a bowl:
Alternately add dry mixture and milk. Add enough to make a dough that will roll nicely.

Place raisins in a saucepan on medium heat and add all remaining filling ingredients.
Bring to a boil.

Roll out the dough into 2" circles. Cut a 1" hole in half of the circles to be used for the tops.
Put 1 tsp of filling on the solid circle and put a circle with the hole cut out, on top.
Pinch the edges to seal them.

I like them to look a bit rustic and homemade. You can cut the circles by hand to do this, or use a 2" round cookie cutter.

Bake for 10 - 12 minutes or until golden brown.


Enjoy!
Peace in the Kitchen!

Frozen Holiday Cranberry Salad

We just returned from our place in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains of Colorado.

We have 5 acres there and are surrounded by Amish neighbors. There's a Mennonite Bakery in town that we visit almost daily. My wife grew up on a Mennonite Farm in Kansas and the Bakery makes all of the breads, pastries, cakes, cookies and cinnamon rolls exactly as she remembers her mother making on the farm.

I have a great collection of cookbooks that are Amish and Mennonite and of course I have all of my mother in law's recipes. Many of them are hand written.

Here's just another Thanksgiving recipe using Cranberries.
This recipe is from one of the bakery's cookbooks.

Here's what you'll need:

1 - 9"X13" pan

1 C Sweetened Condensed Milk

1/4 C Lemon Juice

1 small can of crushed Pineapple, drained

1 (16 0z.) can of Whole Cranberry Sauce

2 C Miniature Marshmallows

1/2 C chopped Pecans

1 - (8 oz.) container of Cool Whip, thawed

In a mixing bowl:

Milk

Lemon Juice

Whisk Well.

Fold in by hand:

Pineapple

Cranberry Sauce

Marshmallows

Nuts

Mix well.

Fold in Cool Whip.

Pour into the pan and freeze for 1 hour, or until firm.

Cut into squares to serve.

Enjoy!

Peace in the Kitchen!

Vintage Molasses Cookies from Aunt Faye

I call these vintage because they are the iconic Molasses cookie that my Grandmother and my Aunt made.


2 1/2 C sifted flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1 C granulated sugar + 1/4 C  in a small bowl for rolling the cookie balls.
3/4 C (1 1/2 sticks) butter, melted
1/4 C Molasses
1 Egg

In a large mixing bowl, whisk:
Flour
Baking Soda
Salt
Cinnamon
Ginger
Clove
Nutmeg
Whisk well and set aside.

In another large mixing  bowl:
1 C Sugar
Butter
Molasses
Egg
Whisk well.
Gradually add the dry ingredients.
Stir well with a wooden spoon.
Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
Line a sheet pan with parchment paper.

Using a cookie scoop, shape the dough into 1" balls and roll each ball in the remaining sugar.
Place the cookies 2" apart on the sheet pan.

Bake for 10 minutes.
For a crisper cookie, bake for 12 minutes.
The tops should begin to crack.

Remove the pan and cool it on a rack for 5 minutes.
Transfer the cookies to the rack and cool completely.

Enjoy!
Peace in the Kitchen!