Cookie Gift Baskets Tip & Recipe Blog

• 3 cups pitted sour red cherries or blueberries
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 2 teaspoons lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch
• 1 tablespoon cold water
• Homemade noodles dough, one recipe
• 1 cup sour cream

Save any juice that oozes from the cherries (if cherries are used). Combine the fruit and juice, sugar and lemon juice in a saucepan. Mix cornstarch and water and add. Cook over low heat for 10 minutes, stirring frequently. Drain, reserving the syrup.Make the noodle dough and roll it out but do not let it dry. Cut into 3 inch circles. Place a tablespoon of the fruit on each. Fold over into half-moons and press edges together with a little water.

Cook in rapidly boiling water for 10 minutes or until verenikas rise to the top. Drain. Serve with sour cream. Make about 24.

Pastry:

• 2 cups flour
• 1 egg
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 1/4  lb. butter
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 2 tbs. sherry

Sift together flour, sugar, and salt. Beat egg lightly. Blend all ingredients with butter in deep bowl. Gradually add enough sherry to form firm pastry. Roll in circular piece about 1/8 inches thick to fit 9 or 10 inch pie plate. Butter plate before placing pastry in it. For an even fluted standing rim, pinch edges of pastry. Cut balance of pastry in strips ½ inch wide to use as a crisscross (lattice) top.

Pistachio Filling:

• 1 pt. sweet milk
• 2 eggs
• 4 oz. pistachio nuts
• 2 oz. granulated sugar
• 3/4 cup whole wheat flour
• 1/4 tsp. nutmeg
• 1 tbs. powdered sugar
• Pinch of salt

Chop nuts medium fine. Place flour in flour in deep saucepan. Gradually blend in milk until mixture is very smooth. Add granulated sugar, beaten eggs, salt, and nutmeg. Blend thoroughly. Place over medium flame; stir constantly to prevent lumping and sticking; bring to a boil. Lower flame; cook for 10 minutes; continue stirring. Gradually add nuts. Continue stirring vigorously until all is well blended, very smooth custard. Remove from fire; cool. Pour filling into prepared pastry; place lattice strips over top. Pinch edges lightly. Bake in moderately hot oven for 45 minutes or until mixture is firm but not dry and pastry is golden brown. Remove from oven; cool.

Sprinkle with powdered sugar just before serving.

Serves 10.

• 1/2 cup butter
• 2 cups of granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup milk

Put butter, sugar and milk into the saucepan. Heat on medium stirring often, until it comes to a boil. Remove pan from burner. Add to the saucepan:

• 6 tablespoons cocoa
• 3 cups rolled oats (quick but instant)
• 1/2 cup coconut
• Pinch of salt
• 1 teaspoon vanilla

Stir well together. Drop by rounded spoon onto waxed paper. Cool completely. Store in container with lid and waxed paper between layers. Makes about 40 cookies.

• 1 cup sugar

• 2 tbs. water

• 8 firm bananas

• 1 1/2 cups coconut cream

• 1/8 tsp. salt

Cook the sugar and water over low heat until syrupy. Peel the bananas and arrange in a deep skillet. Pour the syrup over them; bring to a boil. Add the coconut cream mixed with the salt; cook over medium heat until cream is absorbed, turning the bananas frequently.

• 3 lb. plain flour

• 1 oz. yeast (1 ½ cakes)

• 1 tbsp. sugar

• 3 cups warm water

• 1 tbsp. salt

• 2 tbsp. butter or lard

If using dry yeast, follow the directions on the package. If fresh yeast, cream the yeast and sugar together and add the liquid. Mix the flour and salt together. Add the yeast with its liquid and mix to firm dough. Soften the butter and add it to the mixture. Knead, adding more flour if required until the dough is smooth and elastic. Put the dough into a warm bowl, cover with a cloth and leave about 1 hour or until it has doubled its bulk. Take it from the bowl, punch it down and knead until all the air is expelled. Return the dough to the bowl, again cover and let it rise a second time until it has almost doubled its bulk. When the bread has risen, divide the dough into half. Mould the dough into shapes which are higher and rounder in the centers. Put these into well greased loaf pans. Cover and leave until the dough has risen to the top of the pan. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Mark 8. Put the bread on the lowest shelf and bake for 15 minutes. Lower the heat to 400 degrees. Mark 6. Continue baking another 35-40 minutes. When the loaves are brown and shrinking slightly at the sides, tumble them out of the pans on a rack to cool. Tap the bread on the bottom and if it sounds hollow it is a sign that the bread is done.

• 3/4 cup brown sugar
• 3 cups water
• 1 1/2 cups rice flour
• 1/8 tsp. baking soda
• 1/8 tsp. salt
• 3/4 cup flaked coconut
• 2 cups corn oil

Cook the sugar and water until syrupy. Cool. Sift the rice flour, baking soda, and salt into a bowl; stir in the syrup and coconut. Let stand 2 hours.

Heat the oil in a deep skillet; drop the batter by the tablespoon into it. Fry until browned on both sides.

• 1 cup rice flour

• 1/8 tsp. salt

• 1/2 cup coconut milk

• 1 tbs. oil

• 2 egg yolks

• 2 egg whites. Beaten stiff

• 1/2 cup flaked coconut

• 5 bananas, peeled and sliced in 1-inch lengths

Fat for deep frying sift the flour and salt into a bowl; beat in the coconut milk, oil, and egg yolks until smooth. Fold in the egg whites and coconut. Dip the bananas into the batter.

Heat the fat to 380 degrees. Fry a few pieces at a time until delicately browned. Drain and serve hot. 

• 3/4 cup butter, at room temperature

• 3/4 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar

• 1/2 cup dark molasses

• 1 tbsp. fresh lemon juice

• 4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

• 1 1/2 tsp. baking soda

• 1/2 tsp. ground cloves

• 1 tsp. ground cinnamon

• 2 1/2 tsp. ground gingers

• 1/4 tsp. cardamom

• 1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg

• 1 tsp. salt

• 3 tbsp. cold water

Cream the butter and brown sugar together until fluffy. Add the molasses and lemon juice and beat again. Combine all dry ingredients in a separate bowl. Add the dry to the butter mixture and blend until crumbly. Add the cold water and mix until dough is formed. Knead a minute by hand so that the dough holds together. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 ½ hours.

Roll the dough out to a ¼ inch thickness on a lightly floured surface. Cut the figurines out of the dough with a gingerbread man or women cookie cutter. Arrange the figures on a non-stick cookie sheet. Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the edges of the cookies begin to turn brown.

• 1 can (8 oz.) dark sweet pitted cherries

• 1 package cherry jello flavour gelatine

• 1 1/2 cups crushed ice

• 2 packages (3 oz. each) cream cheese softened and cut up.

Drain cherries, reserving syrup. Add water to syrup to make 3/4 cup. Pour into small saucepan. Bring to a boil over high heat. Pour the boiling liquid into blender. Add gelatine. Cover and blend at low speed until gelatine is completely dissolved, about 30 seconds. Add crushed ice and cream cheese. Blend at high speed for 1 minute. Pour into 4-cup mold or bowl or individual dessert dishes. Drop cherries into gelatine mixture, one at a time. Chill until firm, about 1 hour. Unmold.

• 2 1/2  lbs. beef stew meat

• 5 lbs. Granny Smith apples, cored and chopped but not peeled

• 3/4 lb. beef suet, coarsely ground

• 1 1/2 lbs. dark raisin

• 1/2 lb. mixed candied peel, chopped

• 1 lb. brown sugar

• 1 cup distilled white vinegar

• 1/2 cup molasses

• 1 lb. currants

• 1 cup apple juice

• 1 1/2 tsp. ground cloves

• 1 1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg

• 1 1/2 tsp. ground allspice

• 1 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon

Place the stew meat in a 4-quart pot and add just enough water to cover. Bring to a boil, cover, and simmer for 1 hour. Drain the meat and grind coarse.

Place the ground meat in an 8-quart pot along with the remaining ingredients. Stir together and bring to a simmer. Cover and simmer gently for 1 hour, stirring the mixture occasionally. Allow to cool. The filling is ready to use, or pack it into 1-quart canning jars and freeze for later use.