Pepparkakor Cookies

It's nearly December, and that means I will be spending lots more time here in my Christmas kitchen. One thing I will be doing is to share a few recipes which I have neglected to post here, although they may very well be on my other blog, "Across My Kitchen Table" which I started a couple of years before this special Christmas one. I thought I would start with this wonderful cookie recipe. Bake these soon, and see if these cookies don't get you and your family in the Christmas spirit!

PEPPARKAKOR

1 cup butter
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 Tblsp. dark molasses
1 egg
3 1/4 cups flour
2 tsp. baking soda
1 Tblsp. cinnamon
1 Tblsp. ginger
1 Tblsp. cloves
Juice and grated rind of 1 orange
Red or green colored sugar if desired

Cream butter with sugar until light and fluffy; add molasses and egg. Mix until blended.

Sift flour, soda and spices into creamed mixture. Add orange juice and rind; mix until well blended.

Roll dough on lightly floured surface to 1/8-inch thickness. Cut into heart or reindeer shapes. Transfer to cookie sheets. Sprinkle with red or green sugar, if you like. I usually do.

Bake at 350° for 10-12 minutes, until brown. Cool on rack and store in a covered tin.

Makes at least 3 to 4 dozen cookies.

I found this recipe many years ago in an old Country Woman magazine. The lady who submitted it said that these were the first cookies she baked each year to make her house really smell like Christmas. It works!

Of course, you need not limit yourself to hearts and reindeer; those are just the shapes I most often use. Some years I cut some pine trees and moose as well!

Cookie mystery solved!

(At least in part...)

I've mentioned before how one of my mother's traditional cookie recipes for Christmas was called Chocolate Spritz. These were not made with a cookie press but instead were small molded cookies, shaped into balls and dipped in colored candy sprinkles before baking. We kids adored these cookies. They are very chocolatey and delicious. My mother used to store her bowls of cookie dough in our cold front entry or back porch to save room in the refrigerator. It seemed that at Christmastime there were always several bowls of dough, covered with plates, stacked up in these cold storage areas. We enjoyed all manner of raw cookie dough (and we all lived to grow up, too! Could the eggs have been safer back then?) but the Chocolate Spritz dough was our favorite. It tasted like chocolate ice cream.

One year I remember helping my mother prepare for Christmas by copying some of her most-used recipes onto lined paper, to be placed in her special Christmas notebook. Chocolate Spritz was, of course, one of them. I don't know if I thought, back then, to ask where she found the recipe. I certainly didn't know at that time (I was probably 9 or 10) that the term "spritz" usually referred to a pressed cookie.

Years later, though, I got to wondering about that. I believe I did ask her where she had ever found the recipe, and she said she had found it in a magazine. I don't recall if I ever asked why it was not a pressed cookie. I guess I thought maybe she had never had a cookie press (they were kind of a specialty item back in the 1950s) and so she had probably adapted the recipe to make molded cookies.

Well, the mystery of the recipe's provenance has been solved! Recently I was looking over some very old Christmas magazines which my mother had given me a few years back. She had been saving them for years. One of the oldest was a supermarket magazine called Better Living, from December 1952. This particular magazine was pretty much in tatters, so I decided to just go through it and see if there was anything worth salvaging -- for instance, some vintage ads or pics which I could turn into graphics, or a recipe or gift idea. Not far into the magazine I came upon an article titled "Our Christmas Cooky Swap". Who knew the cookie swap idea was that old? I certainly didn't!

And then, on the next pages, an article titled "20 Great Swap Cookies" with the subtitle "Over one hundred wonderful cookies were exchanged at the two Swaps. We selected and tested these for you." As I glanced over the picture of the cookies, lined up on glass trays, I spied something that resembled my mother's Chocolate Spritz. And sure enough, that particular cookie did indeed bear the name "Chocolate Spritz"! Eagerly, I turned to the recipes to see if it was the same. And guess what? Well, you've probably already guessed it. That recipe had been neatly clipped out of the article, leaving a small rectangular hole in the middle of the page. I will wonder no more where my mother ever found that recipe.

But I will probably never know why this molded cookie is called "spritz"!

Would you like the recipe? I thought you might.

CHOCOLATE SPRITZ

3/4 cup butter
1 cup sugar
1 egg, well beaten
1/4 tsp. salt
2 squares unsweetened chocolate, melted*
1/2 tsp. vanilla
2 Tblsp. milk
2 cups sifted cake flour*
Multicolored candy sprinkles

Heat oven to 375°.
Work shortening until creamy. Stir in sugar gradually, then beat until
fluffy. Add egg, salt, chocolate, milk, and vanilla, and mix well.
Stir in flour gradually.

Shape dough into balls; roll or dip in candy sprinkles. Place on
ungreased baking sheet and bake 8 to 10 minutes.

Makes about 4 dozen.

I've given the recipe here as I got it from my mother, but when I make them I change a few things. *I use 6 Tblsp. baking cocoa instead of melted chocolate, and *I use 2 cups regular flour instead of cake flour. Easier and cheaper, and they don’t taste any different.

Enjoy these vintage cookies!!

Chocolate Mint Crisps -- a favorite Christmas cookie!

I've mentioned before how much I love Christmas magazines. Only with great strength of character can I prevent myself from buying some new ones each year! Over time I have noticed that some of them are starting to repeat their recipes and ideas, so I've been better able to resist.

Often, though, I can't resist the Country Woman Christmas special magazines, and this recipe is from one of those, from 2006, I think. Often, when I visit my daughter Joanna in the fall, she will have one of these special issues waiting for me as a sweet welcome gift.

I love chocolate and mint together, and especially at Christmas time. Over the years I've tried quite a few recipes that feature those two flavors together. I can definitely say that this one -- Chocolate Mint Crisps -- is the best of the best I've tried.

They mix up so easily in a saucepan, and the swirled mint topping is so pretty. The cookies freeze well -- always important, to me -- and they are absolutely delicious. I think I would describe them as chewy, rather than crispy, and the topping/frosting helps to keep them that way.

If you're looking for something new and different for your cookie trays, I highly recommend these!

Oh, and by the way, the graphic at the top is one that I made from a very old --1952 -- Christmas magazine!

Simple paper ornaments

Here are some paper ornaments I recently tried making with the help of my granddaughters. They turned out okay, but I guess I will use them for gift tags or package tie-ons rather than enclosing them in Christmas cards as I had thought of doing.

I found these some years ago in a small Mary Engelbreit book -- I forget which one. The instructions were quite sketchy. Basically, one draws a heart on manila file folder or card stock and draws a little design in the center of the heart and decorates the edges of the heart. I used stickers for the center design because my drawing skills are not that great, and used markers for the decorating part.

Then you cut out the heart and trace a second, larger heart with ruffly edges from newsprint, and glue the smaller heart to the ruffly one. Then the entire thing gets glued to another, larger heart cut from red construction paper, and a hanger is added.

I don't have any of the fancy die-cutting machines, which would certainly make this project easier and more precise. I think, in retrospect, that red card stock would be a better choice than construction paper for the largest heart. (These already look pink in the scan, although the construction paper I used was most definitely red.) If I ever acquire one of those wonderful paper-crafting machines, I might give these another try. In the meantime, they will be cute on Christmas packages!

Clearing the decks for Christmas preparations

I've been doing a lot of thinking lately about preparing for Christmas. I want to simplify these last weeks before Christmas, freeing me up to enjoy crafting, baking, and decorating for this most meaningful of all holidays.

• It's always helpful to have some main-dish type meals in the freezer, ready for company or family. I plan to make 2 pans of vegetable lasagna, which freezes beautifully and goes over well with everyone I know. I'll freeze it in foil 13X9 pans so there'll be less cleanup as well. You can find the recipe :here.

Earlier this week, I made and froze five containers of meatballs, using this recipe:Make-Ahead Meatballs. These are a good basic meatball which can be used in a variety of ways -- spaghetti and meatballs, Swedish meatballs, sweet and sour meatballs, meatball subs, soup, or anywhere you would use the purchased frozen meatballs.

Even if you don't have a lot of freezer space, you can do something similar. Each week you could do something like roast a small turkey, bake a ham, or make a large meat loaf. For easy, almost-instant sides, you could fix a large pasta salad or a large potato salad, bake a pot of beans or make a large casserole of macaroni & cheese. Along with things like frozen vegetable blends, bagged salad or baby carrots, you could coast along for a week's worth of simple meals. You can then use the time you saved to do some Christmas baking, crafting, or decorating. This type of meal will also get you out the door quicker (with less cleanup, too) for all of those family Christmas activities you're likely to be involved in.

• Some people take time to clean and organize their craft room or even their whole house in preparation for Christmas. I admire them, and I like the idea in principle, even if I can never seem to make it work. What I've done instead is to sort of clear the decks in my crafting areas, clearing the flat surfaces, getting the ironing caught up so the iron and ironing board are freed up for ready use, and put away any materials that won't be needed for my Christmas projects. As far as the whole house goes, I'll be doing my FlyLady routines to keep it under control and even improve things a little.

* As mentioned in the previous post, I've also taken some time to go through my Christmas notebook and do a reality check concerning my crafting. I've redone my list and, though it is still long, I think it's doable.

I also rewrote my Christmas list -- which includes both crafted and purchased gifts -- as the former one was just a jumble of ideas for various people.

I noted down what gifts need to be ordered online and where I will order them from.

I revised my list of what craft materials I still need to purchase for projects -- it's quite a short list at this point -- and also bought some of these this week.

I located all of the recipes I hope to use for Christmas and also noted down some new ones I want to try.

So there are a few notes on how I'm trying to prepare for the wonderful, busy season ahead. Maybe they will give someone else a few ideas. What are some ways you prepare for the season?

Reality check ...

... for Christmas crafting


Today Mr. T had to run a work-related errand in a city about an hour from here. He asked if I would like to go along. It's a rainy, rainy day. Rain was steadily falling here when we left and it got much heavier as we neared the city. Now that I'm back home, the rain is falling heavily here too. I took along an embroidery project, but what I really wanted to do was work on something toward Christmas. So I settled on taking along my Christmas notebook and revising my Christmas crafting list.

I had reached the conclusion while we were out West that there was no way I would accomplish that long list I had written out earlier. Major revisions were in order. This little car trip with my hubby today gave me the quiet time I needed to sit and think things through with regard to my crafting list.

I tabled a couple of the big projects that simply weren't going to get done. My list now includes a few more simple sewing projects than it did. Can't share the list here as some of the recipients read my blog. But it is a great feeling to have revised that list. It looks much more doable now.

Tentative Christmas baking list for 2010

Last night I spent a few minutes working in my Christmas notebook. I made up a tentative baking list for this Christmas. Here's the list so far:

Pepparkakor
Whipped Shortbread
Eggnog Logs
Sacher Tortes
Peppermint Cookie Wands*
Almond Raspberry Thumbprints
Chocolate-Dipped Maple Logs*
Double Drizzle Pecan Cookies
Dipped Cherry Cookies
Cashew Crescents*
Mini Cinnamon Roll Cookies*
Golden Apricot Cakes
Paula Deen's Chocolate Chip Zucchini Bread

Plus other things -- candy making, homemade mixes, etc.
Hot Chocolate Mix
Pink Hot Chocolate Mix*
Bran muffin batter
Lemon Ice Candy
Heavenly Delight

* Denotes a new-to-me recipe.

Pillowcase grocery totes as a gift

I seemed to be in a real pillowcase mode with my Christmas gifts for 2009... I made vintage style ones and also embroidered and cross-stitched ones. But it went beyond that. I saw a tutorial for making pillowcase grocery totes from existing pillowcases. You can find it here:

Pillowcase Grocery Totes

I had so much fun making these. I wanted to make a set for each of my daughters for Christmas. I think I ended up with a set of eight for each girl, plus I made a few for myself. Mostly, I just used pillowcases I had on hand. We love flannel sheets, but we don't love flannel pillowcases (not to sleep on, anyway; I've occasionally used some as sort of slipcovers for pillows). And every set of flannel sheets comes with two of them. They turned out to make gorgeous, sturdy grocery totes. I also purchased several pillowcases at the thrift store for 50¢ each to use for this project. Each tote took an hour or less to make. It was so much fun to see how the different prints turned out!
A snowflake tote.

This was a king-size pillowcase from the thrift store.

A blue toile in flannel

This flannel sheep pillowcase made a smaller tote, so I kept it for myself.

More snowflakes.

A western design.

Most importantly, I managed to devise a way to present the pillowcase grocery totes as a gift! That had been on my mind for some time. Of course I could have just stuffed them in a gift bag or a large box, but then the recipients would have to think of a way to store them. My idea was to make the gift packaging something that would be usable for storing the bags.

As I observed shoppers at my local supermarket, I noticed that most of them who use fabric bags just bring them all stuffed into one bag, and then just send that bag along on the conveyor ahead of their groceries. I also envisioned that they probably store the fabric bags in just the same way -- stuffed into one bag and hung on a peg or nail or whatever.

So it made sense to package the bags within one of the totes. But I wanted/needed some sort of label -- something to make it look a bit gift-y and to identify it. So I came up with the idea to make a clear plastic pocket for the container tote and to attach it with bias tape. I then made up a label to slip into the clear pocket.
For the plastic pocket, I utilized a clear plastic pocket that had come on a package of pillowcases -- a set that I had bought to embroider. I cut the pocket off, then edged it with bias tape and sewed it to the tote, then slipped the label in.
The pocket without the label in place.


I designed the label to be the right size to fit the pocket and printed it out on card stock.

I figured that when the recipient starts using the bags, she can put anything she'd like in the clear pocket -- coupons, shopping list, a picture of the kids, whatever. I am quite pleased with how this idea worked out.

The pocket with label in place ↓

So there you have it. Hope someone else can use this idea!

Some crafting from last Christmas

Okay, I guess I posted these on my regular blog back in January, but I really should have put them here, too. First, here is a train quilt I made for one grandson (age 1 1/2):

This is just a panel, but it came out so cute. It was free, too... the panel and matching fabric came from a thrift store.

This shows the back.

And this, taken a few months later, shows the quilt in use:

From matching fabric I was able to make 2 vintage-style pillowcases for the little guy's siblings.

Two more pillowcases -- one for a girl and one for a boy.


Two more... the pink fabric on one, and the kitten fabric on the other are both vintage fabrics handed down from my grandmother. She would be pleased to see how I've used them. I'm not completely satisfied with the border print on the kitten one, but it was the best I could find to coordinate with the kittens.

Lastly, a snowman pillowcase for a little boy who wanted to build a big snowman. I do apologize for the blurry photo. The fabric is really cute.


This inspires me to get crafting for this Christmas. How about you?

Adding labels...

Quite some time ago my daughter suggested I label the posts here on my Christmas blog so that people could find recipes and crafts more easily. So, I am finally getting around to doing so, and am adding labels to both my blogs. It's going to take some time, but I think in the end it will be helpful to my readers -- and to me as well. Stay tuned...

Most recent crocheted stocking

I neglected to post this picture before Christmas 2009. I have been making these for my grandchildren for several years now as the new babies come along. This is the most recent one. I make some in the dark green and some in the dark red and put a little embroidered banner on each one with their name. (As you can see, I did this one in both red and green. Sometimes I add touches of cream as well.)

These stockings may be a little small to be the ones the kids will eventually hang on Christmas Eve, but they do stretch, and they make nice wall decor anyway. I think one of my daughters does use these as the ones to hang on Christmas Eve. When I give these, I have been filling them full of baby socks -- pastels for girls and mini athletic socks for boys.

Some Christmas gift ideas

Over at the crafters' corner on my favorite Christmas forum, we were brainstorming some ideas that would make use of the items we were currently crafting. I thought our ideas for gifts might give someone else some inspiration. So here are some of our thoughts:

* Maybe pair handmade tortilla cozies with matching fabric napkins and add some homemade taco seasoning or fajita seasoning mix.

* The fabric trimmed dish towels with a knitted or crocheted dishcloth (like this one, for example: seed stitch dishcloth)and a bottle of especially nice dishwashing liquid or hand soap.

* Or, the fabric trimmed dish towels with some pot holders made from matching or coordinating fabric.

* A set of pillowcases with some sachets for the linen closet, or scented shelf liner or a nice linen spray. (The Gooseberry Patch Gifts for Giving books even have some ideas for making these things yourself!)

* A set of pillowcase grocery totes with a handmade coupon wallet.

* A batch of homemade laundry soap, cleverly packaged and paired with a clothespin bag filled with nice new clothespins. The first Gooseberry Patch Gifts for Giving book has a recipe for lemon-fresh laundry rinse which is a possibility, too.

* For a family, one of the felt puzzle mats combined with a nice jigsaw puzzle and some homemade hot cocoa mix and maybe some homemade snack mixes, popcorn balls or candy.

Another idea I have had for a family is to make some special Christmas items (advent calendars, table runner, napkins, rag garlands, etc. etc.) and give to them before Christmas so they can all have the fun of using the items as part of their family's Christmas preparations.

I have tons more ideas here on my Christmas blog, so be sure to go over there and check out the archives for more inspiration!

Christmas shopping trip ... in late June

A couple of weeks ago, Mr. T got out of work early on a Friday. It just so happened that earlier that week I had received an email announcing a Porch Sale at Cracker Barrel restaurants on that Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. If you have never been to one of their porch sales, you have missed some great deals. The items are all 70% off and include everything from toys and Christmas ornaments to clothing and dinnerware. I have found the porch sales to be terrific sources for Christmas gifts to stash away. But Mr. T had plans for Saturday, and Sunday would have been out of the question, so I had figured we wouldn't get to the sale. The nearest Cracker Barrel is nearly an hour and a half south of here.

So, when he arrived home early on Friday, he suggested we hit that sale -- and, of course, plan to eat a late lunch at the restaurant while we were at it. We were both in the mood for breakfast (served all day at Cracker Barrel) and even had a couple of ideas as to what we wanted to order. All that changed when our server started telling us about a summer breakfast special -- the Blueberry Streusel French Toast Breakfast.


Here's how they describe it: "Three slices of our blueberry streusel bread, dipped in eggs and then grilled to a golden brown. Topped with real butter and served with a warm bottle of Dickinson’s® blueberry syrup. Comes with two eggs, cooked to order, and our own hickory-smoked bacon or sausage patties. $7.29/French Toast Only $5.99".

Well, we just had to try this breakfast special! And were we glad we did! It was simply delicious. We both had it with scrambled eggs. Mr. T had bacon and I had sausage patties, which I love at Cracker Barrel.

As we were eating, another server came by and saw what we had ordered. She commented that she had just tried the meal the preceding day and found it delicious. We agreed. I think Cracker Barrel has outdone themselves with this one! Our server told us to spread the word about how good it is, so I am doing so!

I did find some great buys at the porch sale, too, but cannot describe them here because the recipient reads my blogs. Suffice it to say I found a wonderful gift at an incredible price!

If you get to a Cracker Barrel this summer, be sure and try the blueberry streusel French toast...

Another pretty, practical gift

Here's a second handmade gift which my daughter Carrie gave me this past Christmas. Again, I am not sure where she found the pattern, but I expect she found it online somewhere. What a great resource the internet is for crafters!

This is a holder for my crochet hooks. Here's a look at the inside.

You can, of course, tuck the hooks under the flap to protect them. I left some of them out just to show the hooks.

Here's the outside.

What a super cute fabric she used! And I love the leather button that holds it closed. It's a great, secure way to store crochet hooks, and I love the fact that something so useful can also be so pretty.

A lovely, useful Christmas gift

Thought I would show, rather belatedly, one of my handmade Christmas gifts from my daughter Carrie. I really need to get the link from her for this super cute project. It's a little wallet to hold tea bags and whatever else one might like that would fit. She put tea bags in one side and index cards in the other.

Here's the inside of the wallet. Isn't it so beautifully done? This year is the first time she has done much embroidery; she has pretty much taught herself. I am envious of the perfect look of this blanket stitch!

And here's the outside (I saved the best for last! Love this cute bluebird!)

I think I will use this next time we go to the cabin up north. The index cards will come in handy for devotions and list-making, and the wallet will be a neat way to take along an assortment of tea bags.

Repurposing a small cross stitch sampler

Here is sort of an unusual gift I just made. This stitchery piece, originally intended to be a birth sampler, had been languishing in my stack of UFOs for more years than I even want to think about. I think I didn't finish this until the baby in question was around 6 or 7 years old. I kept thinking I would frame this for her wall anyway, but it didn't fit a standard frame. So I thought this year (as she is graduating from high school) that I would frame it in fabric. Then that seemed not a great idea, since she will be heading off to college and it would just be something to leave behind at home. I thought a tote bag might work, but then it would have to be a very small tote bag in order not to overwhelm the size of the stitchery. Looking through Amy Karol's Bend-the-Rules Sewing, I came across a pattern called an Artsy Clutch. So I decided to try making one, using this stitchery for one side.

The project was easy and fun to make. I used a vintage green floral slipcover fabric for the lining.

The closure is a stitched-in elastic loop and a vintage green button.

I'm still not sure how much I like the result, but the recipient seemed pleased. I thought she could use it to hold jewelry, or socks, or even a Bible or other book.

I would definitely make more of these clutches, though, from regular fabric rather than a cross stitch sampler. They are easy, and would be cute in many variations of color and fabrics.

A pretty Christmas pin

This beautiful pin (sorry the photo is slightly blurry) was cross-stitched by my friend Ruth. I don't know what size Aida she used, but it is tiny. I placed it on a white background for the picture so it would show up better. I love the detail in the snow scene on this pin!

Fresh-cut pine

Here is one of my newer Christmas decorations, and one of my favorites. I found it for a bargain price a few years ago at Jo-Ann Fabrics after Christmas. What fun!

A dish towel gift idea

Recently I made another set of those fabric-trimmed dish towels for a gift. I decided to post about it here, because of the "gift packaging" I did with these.

If you wish to see other sets of them, check my regular blog, Across My Kitchen Table . I have made several different sets of these towels, which are so quick and easy!

I found the pattern at Sew4Home , which is a new favorite site of mine. Sign up for their emails and see what's new each week. They have some fabulous projects with very clear instructions.

For the towel part I used Bistro Towels, which have a sort of birds-eye weave on one side and terry on the other. I found these towels on clearance (a set of 3 for $3) at Wal Mart.

This gift was for a dear friend of mine. With her youngest child graduating from high school this year, she has completed over 2 decades of home schooling. I thought it deserved a little remembrance, but wanted it to be a useful gift. I remembered I had in my stash a scrap of school-themed fabric. As it turned out, there was plenty to make 2 of these dish towels. For the narrow trim I used some scraps of Mary Engelbreit cherry fabric from my stash.

I decided to add a seed stitch dishcloth to the gift, since I had one on hand. (Incidentally, the pattern didn't call for an edging, but I decided to add one by simply single crocheting around all four edges.)

I packaged the items for gift giving by tying some pretty sheer ribbon around the stack of towels and dishcloth.

I think my friend enjoyed the packaging as much as she did the gift!

Vintage paper bell

Years ago, my grandmother, who has now passed on, gave me a box of vintage paper goods -- place mats, table cloths, centerpieces, cardboard cutouts of Pilgrims and Easter bunnies, etc. In the box was a green honeycomb paper bell. I remember seeing bells like this at my grandmother's home in the 1950s. I didn't use the bell, though, because it was missing the little clips that hold it in position. Finally I realized, a year or two ago, that green paper clips would work just fine for the purpose. And they do!

My granddaughters made the red paper chain this past Christmas, and I thought it made a great addition to the green bell.