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Holiday Baking thread.

Lisa

salem ac leporem,
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What is on your list for holiday baking?

I have the dried fruit macerating for a Good Eats fruitcake. I have enough fruit leftover (2 cups) to make a stollen if I can find marzipan.

I made some gingerbread cookies on Wednesday night that are now almost all eaten. I might make sour cream cookies to roll out and decorate. Chocolate mint drop cookies and biscotti are high on the list. If I can find phyllo dough I'll make baklava.
 
I make Molasses cookies; (recipe handed down from the family).
It's my kids' favorite cookie.

I used to make more treats, toffee, fudge, cakes and other cookies when the grandkids were younger. Everyone seems to be eating less sweets or limiting them, so that just leaves hubby and I to overeat and we don't need the sugar/carbs so I don't do it anymore.
Now I just stick to one thing I know is a hit, the molasses cookies. Most of the family is here in CA., but I have two younger grandchildren who live in Portland. I mail them off just before Christmas.
For the grandkids here, I make sure the Christmas cookie jars are loaded...
 
We tried something different for dinner rolls this year - the wife bought frozen yeast rolls, which needed to rise and proof before baking - I did not know this.
She put the frozen rolls in the refrigerator the night before.
As I was preparing the turkey, dressing, and potatoes, I opened the refrigerator door to find this package of what once were frozen rolls that was now a massive package of expanding dough that nearly took out the shelf above.
I managed to extract the package, but the demark between rolls was long gone; I was looking at massive pile of dough. So I oiled a baking sheet and started tearing off pieces, roughly roll size, and put them on the baking sheet.
I covered the sheet with plastic, thinking to put them in the oven in time for dinner, perhaps salvaging our dinner rolls.
Several hours later, the dough had kept rising, and rising... It was all I could do to keep from laughing. Thankfully, we had some regular rolls which I baked for dinner.

I ended up oiling up a large stainless bowl and put the mass of dough in it. I punched it down, covered it with plastic wrap and put it in the other refrigerator for later.
After dinner I checked on the dough and it had doubled yet again in size!

The wife bought some pizza fixings the next day so I'll just work that dough into several pizzas and call it good.
We won't be buying frozen yeast rolls again for Thanksgiving.
 
I've never had much patience for cookies, but when I had a long list of aunts, uncles and others to gift, I cooked up batch after batch of Chex Party Mix, the original slow baked recipe, and stuffed it into coffee cans covered in wrapping paper. After a few years, I tried going to fudge and had disappointed people saying Where's the Party Mix? I ended up making two batches, anyway.
 
Not baking but everyone I know loves Fantasy fudge, Pralines and White Trash. My faves are Molasses cookies and Bourbon balls.
 
is that molassess cookie recipe one you would share with us?
had not thought of those since i was a single-digit child. they were a staple around Christmas-time. now i wonder if they lost favor back then like fruit cakes have today
 
Im terrible at baking or creating any kind of sweets. I'll just buy a pie from the various bakeshops for the Xmas holidays, probably a cheesecake or a pecan pie (If I can get my hands on the latter, but sadly theyre rare in these parts).
 
We make gingerbread - house, trains, cookies - for the kids to decorate.

My friends and I also spend a day together baking perhaps a dozen types of cookies and then divide them up for each of our houses.

I made apple, pumpkin and pecan pies for Thanksgiving. I’ll do apple and mincemeat for Christmas.

I also make raisin bread and cinnamon rolls.
 
On another site I frequented, we used to have a thread about our favorite Christmas cookie recipes every year. We posted the recipes so that we could share them amongst each other, though. (People were not limited to posting only one recipe, and some people posted photos.) This is my favorite Christmas cookie recipe. My mother made several different cookies every Christmas. She made cookie press cookies with colored dough in the shapes the cookie press allowed. My favorite was the Christmas tree. Even better tasting than her cookie press cookies was her Scottish shortbread which turned out very soft and white with only a touch a gold around the edges. She made it in tiny batches, hand pricked with a fork, and it was always perfect. I made it every year for many years. I think she called the recipe, "Mrs Smith's Shortbread".

Scottish Shortbread

(I think my mother originally called this, "Mrs. Smith's Shortbread".)

1/2 lb butter
scant 1/2 cup confectioner's sugar
3 cups flour (My notation says, "use less!" and is heavily underlined; I think you should listen to me. I believe it gets too crumbly with a lot of flour.)

Knead butter and sugar together, then work in flour, a little at a time. Form into two small cakes and prick fork right through to the bottom. Bake in a slow oven until light brown. (About 325 degreesF-20-25minutes-about 1/3 " thick.)
 
I absolutely loved Chex Party mix when I was young but had not had it in many years. When I was made a bartender here on DP someone mentioned the chex mix in the bar being stale in my welcome thread. Ever since then I have been thinking of making real Chex Party Mix, but I don't know when I can use it! We are not getting together for any large family holiday gatherings due to covid in my real life and I cannot depend on my immediate family eating it!
 
justabubba said:
is that molassess cookie recipe one you would share with us?
had not thought of those since i was a single-digit child. they were a staple around Christmas-time. now i wonder if they lost favor back then like fruit cakes have today
Click to expand...

Thank you for your interest and within the next day or so I will post it.
 
At one time I had a gf who made a very good homemade Chexmix, there were other issues and she and I are long since history!
 
Rexedgar said:
At one time I had a gf who made a very good homemade Chexmix, there were other issues and she and I are long since history!
Click to expand...
Ah! But do you recall anything special she did with that Chexmix? This could be of vital importance!
 
NewfieMom said:
Ah! But do you recall anything special she did with that Chexmix? This could be of vital importance!
Click to expand...
All I remember is it was tasty and it was all laid out on a cookie sheet? Each piece not touching the others, I think there were multiple sheets……
 
Rexedgar said:
All I remember is it was tasty and it was all laid out on a cookie sheet? Each piece not touching the others, I think there were multiple sheets……
Click to expand...
Hmmmm. Maybe a culinary art, maybe obsessive compulsive disorder. I wish I could deduce recipe tips from this, but I am not that good. Thank you for the info!
 
NewfieMom said:
Hmmmm. Maybe a culinary art, maybe obsessive compulsive disorder. I wish I could deduce recipe tips from this, but I am not that good. Thank you for the info!
Click to expand...
I do remember ample Worcestershire sauce and soy sauce…..
 

Original Homemade Chex Party Mix

Our classic homemade Chex Mix recipe is time-tested and only takes 15 minutes to make. Win your next gathering with the smash hit party snack: Original Chex Party Mix.
www.chex.com
 
I've been experimenting with white chocolate and lavender scones that are working well, so I'll continue along those lines. I also want to try a cardamom-heavy pastry, possibly with a pecan or date-based filling, but I need to practice and figure out exactly what it will look like.
 
The wheat chex soaked in butter and worcestershire were the best, right? For some reason, they always absorbed the most.

This one is from the 70's and makes less. C'mon, you can eat it all! It lasts a long time in Rubbermaid. (Or share it)

 
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