Cookie Gift Baskets Tip & Recipe Blog

Archive for January, 2008

If you love mini chocolate chip cookies then you definitely will like mini chip butter crisps. These light, cookie-like desserts are great for any season.

• 2 1/4 cups all purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/4 cups butter, soften
• 1 cup icing sugar
• 2 teaspoons vanilla
• 1 1/2 cups mini chocolate chips

Sift together flour and salt. Cream butter: blend until smoothly combined. Stir in chocolate chips. Form dough into 1 inch balls. Place 1 dozen at a time on a cookie sheet: flatten to rounds approximately 2 inches in diameter with bottom of glass dipped in flour. Bake at 325 degrees F. Bake for 10 to 11 minutes. Cool.

• 2 envelopes yeast
• 3 eggs
• 1/4 cup warm water
• 1 package semi-sweet chocolate morsels, melted
• 3/4 cup milk, scalded and cooled
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 3 cups sifted flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 cups sugar

Sprinkle the yeast into the water and stir until dissolved. Beat in the milk and 1/2 cups flour until smooth. Cover and let rise in a warm place until light and spongy, about 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, cream together the butter and sugar. Add 1 egg at a time, beating well after each addition. Add yeast mixture, remaining flour, melted chocolate, baking soda, salt and vanilla. Beat until well-blended. Turn into a well-greased 10-inch tube pan. Cover and let rise in a warm place, free from draft, until light and bubbly, about 1 hour. Bake in a preheated 350° F oven for 50 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted in center comes out clean. Cool on a cake rack 15 minutes then turn out onto the rack. Let stand until cold.

If after this, you'll want to make something more typical like cookies, try one of these recipes for the top ten most popular cookies. They're sure to please.

• 1/2 cup butter
• 1 1/2 cup graham cracker crumbs
• 1 can sweetened condensed milk
• 1 package semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 1 package butterscotch chips
• 1 package flaked coconut
• 1 cup finely chopped nuts

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a 13 inch by 9 inch baking pan, melt margarine on the stove top. When melted, pour melted butter in your baking pan. Sprinkle graham cracker crumbs over melted butter. Top with remaining ingredients in layers. Press down firmly. Bake 25 to 30 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool. Chill thoroughly and cut into bars. Store loosely covered at room temperature.

If you're tired of baking, try these heavenly cookies instead.

• 2 lb. chestnuts
• 1/2 cup honey
• 3/4 cup confectioners’ sugar
• 1 tsp. cinnamon

Cut a cross in the top of each chestnut; cook until boiling water until shells burst. Drain, cool, and shell. Force through a food mill and blend in the honey. Shape in mixed with the cinnamon.

These are great additions for care packages or holiday gift baskets.

This chow is intended for human consumption only. It should not be fed to dogs as chocolate can be harmful to dogs. Puppy chow is a great chocolate dessert to snack on for any age.

• 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
• 1/3 cup peanut butter
• 2 cups semisweet chocolate morsels
• 9 cups crispy corn or rice cereal squares
• 4 cups confectioners' sugar

1. In a medium saucepan, stir the butter, peanut butter, and chocolate morsels over low heat until all the ingredients are melted and well mixed. Cool slightly.
2. Place the cereal in a large bowl. Pour the warm mixture over cereal and gently fold until the cereal is completely covered by the mixture.
3. Pour the confectioners' sugar into a large paper bag. Place the coated cereal in bag with the sugar and shake completely covered with sugar. Add more sugar as needed.
4. Spread the mixture in a single layer on a sheet of wax paper and allow cooling completely. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

The cookies should be slightly bigger than the opening of the cone. Use the pointy sugar ice cream cones.

Frosting

• Sugar ice-cream cones, one for each person
• Chocolate coated candies, such as M&M's, in red, green, blue, and yellow, sorted by color (approximately 30-40 candies will fill one 13-gram cone)
• Sugar or chocolate chip cookies

1. Place the frosting in a small plastic bag, and cut off one of the bottom corners of the bag. Pipe an even layer of frosting around the rim of a cone.
2. Fill the cone with one color of the candies. Center the flat side of the cookie over the opening of the cone and press it on. Carefully turn over. Repeat with each cone and arrange the cone hats on a tray.

Baba

• 3 egg yolks
• ¼ cup granulated sugar
• 1 tbsp. 2 % milk
• 1/3 cup all purpose flour
• 2 tsp. baking powder
• 1 package yeast
• 3 egg whites, beaten until stiff

Preheat oven to 350 5 F. In a bowl, beat egg yolks with a mixer, gradually add milk, flour, baking powder, yeast and egg whites. Pour into a greased crown mold. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes. Let cool and turn out Baba on serving dish; set aside.

“William Pear” Syrup:

• 1 cup water
• ½ cup granulated sugar
• !/4 cup “ William Pear “ liqueur

In a small saucepan, bring water to a boil, add sugar and “William Pear” liqueur. Simmer for 2 minutes stirring constantly.

Pour syrup over Baba, let cool in refrigerator.

“William Pear” Light Cream:

• 2 egg yolks
• 1/3 cup granulated sugar
• 1 cup warm milk
• 1 tbsp. cornstarch mixed with a little water
• 2 tbsp. “ William Pear “ liqueur
• 1 cup 35 % cream, whipped

In a double boiler or saucepan at low heat, add egg yolks and sugar. Stir until mixture whitens. Add warm milk, cornstarch and “William Pear” liqueur. Heat until mixture thickens. Let cool and add cream; mix well. Pour light cream in the middle of Baba and garnish with 1 can [28oz] fruit cocktail. [6 to 8 servings]

Prefer to stick to cookies? Check out the list of the top ten homemade cookies.

• 2 eggs
• 2 cups flour
• 2 cups peanut oil
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 1/2 cup honey
• 2 tbs. pine nuts
• 1 tbs. colored candied confetti
• 1/2 cup sugar

Place 1 cup of flour on board; break in eggs; add salt; knead together gently. Gradually add enough flour to make medium soft, easily molded dough. Texture becomes soft with kneading. When very smooth, cut in half.

Roll out dough in circular piece about ¼ inches thick on lightly floured board. Cut into strips about ¼ inches wide. Mold each strip gently to resemble a small rope about ¼ inches. Each bit of dough resembles a grape or small marble. Distribute on lightly floured board to prevent sticking.

Heat oil in deep saucepan. When very hot, gradually add small pieces (about 6 tablespoons at a time), stirring constantly with wooden spoon. Brown lightly for 1 or 2 minutes; remove with perforated spoon. Drain on absorbent paper.

Blend sugar and honey in a deep skillet; stir constantly. Heat about 5 minutes over low flame. When very smooth, add all browned pieces, stirring constantly with wooden spoon. When covered with the honey mixture, remove quickly; place on 2 large platters. Mold with spoon into desired forms (as bunches of grapes or small clusters). Top each form with pine nuts; sprinkle with colored confetti. Allow your gourmet cookies to cool.

Serve by breaking off individual pieces with cake fork. Pignolata-strufloi keeps fresh for 2 weeks when placed in a cake box. Serves 8 to 10.

• 4 eggs
• 4 tbs. sugar
• 4 cups milk
• 4 tbs. cornstarch
• Rind of one lemon cut in one piece
• 2 lbs. plain pound cake
• 1 oz. bittersweet chocolate, chopped
• 1 tsp. almond extract
• 1 maraschino cherry
• 2 tbs. diced citron

Blend cornstarch in 1/2 cup milk. Combine with rest of milk, eggs, sugar, and lemon rind. Blend thoroughly in saucepan.

Cook over slow fire about 10 minutes; stir constantly until it comes to a boil. Remove from fire immediately; take out lemon rind; add almond extract. Cool.

Slice pound cake in ¼ inch thick slices. Arrange 1 layer of cake on bottom of 10 inch pie plate; pour some of mixture (about ½ inch thick) over this. Alternate until all cake and mixture is used. The top layer should be cream. Place in refrigerator 4 to5 hours or until ready to serve. Then sprinkle chopped chocolate and citron over top with a cherry in the center for color.

It makes for great chocolate treats and is a wonderful dessert for chocolate-fans.

Serves 10 to 12.

• 1 cup sifted flour
• 2 tablespoons melted butter or margarine
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts or pecans
• 2 tablespoons baking powder
• 1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar
• 1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
• 1 cup water
• 7 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa
• 3/4 cup milk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350°. Grease an 8-inch square baking pan. Sift the flour, salt, baking powder, 3/4 cup granulated sugar and 2 tablespoons cocoa into a bowl. Mix in the milk and vanilla until smooth. Stir in the melted butter and nuts lightly. Spread evenly in the prepared pan. In a saucepan mix the brown sugar, water, remaining granulated sugar and cocoa. Bring to a boil, stirring until sugars dissolve. Pour over the batter in the pan. Bake 40 minutes, or until a cake tester comes out clean. Cool on a cake rack 20 minutes, then turn out, bottom up. The fudge will now be on top. Cool and cut into 2-inch squares.

This recipe may be better than big cookie cakes, but you can never be too sure.

If you enjoy this recipe, try your hand at making Pineapple upside down cupcakes!