It’s that time of year again and our staff want to share some of their favorite holiday recipes with you. From our home kitchens to yours. Tis the season for warm wishes, good food shared with those you care about.
Darcie’s Cookie Dough Truffles
These truffles have been a Christmas tradition in our house for many years. To quote my kids, ‘’there freaking awesome”. While they make a great gift or stocking stuffer I highly suggest you make enough for yourself too or risk having to make more.
If you like truffles you’re going to love these.
½ cup salted butter
¾ cup packed brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 14oz can sweetened condensed milk
1 cup mini chocolate chips
1 ½ pounds melting chocolate wafers
Chocolate chips and sprinkles for decorating
Mix all ingredients (except melting wafers and sprinkles) together and shape into balls. Put on wax paper lined bake sheet. Freeze until firm. Melt chocolate wafers over double boiler. Dip balls in the chocolate and place on wax paper. Sprinkle with mini chocolate chips or sprinkles. Let sit until chocolate is dry. Put into containers and keep in the fridge.
Ashley’s Disappearing Strawberry Cookies
I’ve been making these cookies at Christmas for several years now. I came across them from a Pinterest search back in 2013. As a child of the 80’s I have certain memories burned into the back of my brain that don’t disappear, unlike these cookies. One of which was a doll with a batch of plastic muffins. For years I swore the doll was Strawberry Shortcake but with a quick google soon realized her name was cherry merry muffin. The memory was not so much about the doll but the smell of the toy muffins that came her. Trust me if you had the doll you know what I’m talking about. Low and behold these cookies smell just like those toy muffins. With a cakey texture and a light yet creamy flavor that’s bursting with fresh strawberries these things are delicious. If you were an 80’s child with a Chery Merry Muffin doll and always wished you could secretly eat those muffins the wait is over and you’re welcome.
2 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1 cup butter or margarine
1 8 oz package cream cheese
2 eggs
2 cups granulated sugar
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp almond extract
1 cup fresh strawberries, finely chopped
1 Tbsp raw sugar
1 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
Frosting
1 Tbsp butter, softened
1/2 Tbsp strawberry jello powder
1/4 cup pureed strawberries
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
3 cups powdered sugar
Start by finely chopping your strawberries.
Add the raw sugar and lemon juice to the berries and stir to coat. Set aside.
In a large bowl or stand mixer cream the butter, cream cheese, and sugar.
Add the eggs one at a time beating well after each addition.
Add the vanilla and almond extracts and mix.
Scrape down the bowl and add the dry ingredients to the butter mixture in 2 to 3 additions. Mix to incorporate the flour after each addition. Gently fold in the strawberries. Stir just to combine or you’ll risk your batter turning pink.
Refrigerate the dough for at least 30 minutes.
Preheat your oven to 350˚ F. Line a baking sheet and drop 12 pieces of dough onto the baking sheet.
Bake the cookies for 13-15 minutes or until the bottoms are starting to brown and the tops are puffed and set.
Let cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes then transfer to a cooling rack to cool completely.
For the Frosting:
Mix the butter, jello powder, pureed strawberries, and vanilla. Add 1 cup of the powdered sugar and beat with an electric mixer. Add the rest of the powdered sugar in small increments beating with each addition until you reach your desired spreading consistency. Frost cooled cookies and allow the frosting to set up.
Faye’s Christmas Shortbread
This was my mother’s shortbread recipe . I make it every year with my grandkids. It’s sort of a Spelay family traditon. My grandkids love to roll the dough into the sprinkles. By the time the cookies are done baking my kitchen has sprinkles everywhere but smells amazing. It’s a classic fun recipie that’s easy and delicious.
1lb butter, not margarine
½ cup cornstarch
3 cups flour
1 cup sifted icing sugar
Soften and cream butter, slowly add dry ingredients. Beat until smooth.
Form dough into logs, 2inches in diameter.
Don’t over work dough.
Roll the log in colored sugar, slice ½ inch thick slices.
Bake at 350 for 10-12 minutes. Enjoy!!
Norm’s no fail rum glazed turkey
I’ll be honest I’ve never tried this recipe. It seems like a lot of steps and a ask for a few more ingredients than I’d like to bother with for myself. It has some good reviews online though. I’m calling it my no fail turkey recipe because when you’re done with cooking the turkey you’ll still have an open bottle of rum left over so even if the recipe doesn’t turn out great you still have something you can use to wash down your underwhelming turkey with and that’s a win in my books.
For the Stuffing:
4Tbsp butter, + 12 Tbsp melted
1 cup diced onion
½ cup diced carrots
½ cup diced celery
2 Tbsp fresh parsley
1 tsp fresh sage
8 oz roasted, peeled and chopped chestnuts
2 peeled and diced apples
½ cup dries cranberries
1 cup sautéed mushrooms
1 ½ pounds sourdough bread cubed and toasted
2 eggs, slightly beaten
1 cup chicken stock
Salt and fresh ground pepper
For the Turkey:
1 (22-pound) turkey
2 Sticks of softened butter
2 cups brown sugar
½ teaspoon cinnamon
¼ tsp nutmeg
½ cup dark rum
Salt and fresh ground pepper
Preheat oven to 375 F
In a large skillet over medium-high heat, melt 4 tablespoons of the butter. Add onions, carrots and celery and sauté until tender. Transfer to a large mixing bowl and toss with parsley, sage, chestnuts, apples, dried cranberries, mushrooms and bread. Pour eggs, stock and remaining 12 tablespoons of melted butter over, season with salt and pepper and toss again well. If the stuffing is too dry add a bit more stock or water. It should not be saturated or soggy, though
Place the turkey on a rack in a roasting pan. Rub the cavity opening with salt and pepper. With your fingers, carefully separate as much of the turkey’s skin from the breast, as you can, trying not to puncture any holes in the skin as you go.
In a small mixing bowl stir together 8 tablespoons of the softened butter with 1 cup of the brown sugar. Smear about half of the softened butter and sugar mixture over the breast under the skin. Rub the remaining butter and sugar mixture all over the turkey.
Loosely stuff the turkey with the cooled chestnut stuffing. If there is extra stuffing bake it in a buttered baking dish next to the turkey in the oven.
Roast the stuffed turkey about 3 to 3 1/2 hours, basting often during the last hour of cooking with the buttered rum glaze, or until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the turkey leg registers 155 degrees F; it will continue cooking for another 20 minutes or so out of the oven. If the turkey skin starts to get too dark, tent it with foil while it roasts.
While turkey is cooking, in a small saucepan combine remaining 8 tablespoons of the butter with 1 cup of the brown sugar, ground cinnamon, freshly ground nutmeg, dark rum and a little salt and pepper. Bring to a boil then lower and simmer for 10 minutes until slightly thickened and syrup-like, stirring often.
Transfer the turkey to a carving board to rest and loosely tent with foil and allow to cool. Brush the outside of the turkey with syrup mixture to get a glazed look.
