Spiced Wafer Cookies

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autumn cookies, cookie recipe, fall cookies, Philadelphia tradition, seasonal cookies, spice and molasses cookie, spiced wafer cookies

This one is for you B!

One of the things my sister misses about being across the pond is Sweetzels (spiced wafer cookies, it’s a Philadelphia tradition). They remind me of munching on them at Halloween with hot apple cider or a with a tall glass of milk on Thanksgiving Eve. I decided to alter a recipe I found and was quite impressed.

Ingredients: 2 c. flour, 1/2 tsp. baking soda, 2 Tbs. butter, 1/2 c. molasses, 1/4 c. dark brown sugar, 2 Tbs. vegetable oil, 1 tsp. ground cinnamon, 1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg, 1/2 tsp. ground cloves, 1/2 tsp allspice

Directions: In a saucepan over low heat, melt together butter, sugar, molasses and oil. Stirring until sugar is dissolved. Let cool five minutes, the mix in spices and baking soda. Slowly mix in flour. Refrigerate over night, this allows the flavors to marry. Bring to room temperature before rolling. Roll out dough as thin as possible on a floured surface. Use a cookie cutter to cut cookies and place on a greased baking sheet. Bake at 350F for 10 minutes. Cookies should be crisp. Allow to cool on wire rack before enjoying.

This is my favorite cookie to eat with a glass of milk. Enjoy!

Flag Day Fruit Pizza

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blueberry, cookie, cream cheese frosting, dessert, food, foodie, fruit, fruit pizza, postaday2011, raspberry, recipe, red raspberry, strawberry, sugar cookie, vegetarian

Happy Flag Day Everyone!

Flag Day Fruit Pizza

Get fruit pizza recipe here.

Happy Easter

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apple tree, blooms, blossoms, Easter, family, flower, postaday2011

Hubster & I always spend Easter with his family. However, with recent events, we’ve spent a lot of time there. So we went the opposite way and decided to surprise my parents with a visit. Spring is one of my favorite times of year and one of the things I miss from my childhood home is the apple tress in bloom…

Alluring Apple Blossom Branches

Happy Easter everyone!

  

Irish Soda Bread with Fresh Whipped Butter

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Baking, bread, butter, buttermilk., dough, food, foodie, postaday2011, recipe, soda bread, St. Patrick's Day. St. Patty's Day, tradition

With St. Patrick’s Day fast approaching, it’s time to make some Irish soda bread. Perfect to serve with a hot bowl of  ham & three bean soup. This recipe is a variation of one from my friend’s (Irish) grandmother. I whipped up some fresh butter serve with along with it.

Irish Soda Bread with Fresh Whipped Butter

 

Ingredients:
4 cups of Irish flour or cake flour, 1 tsp. baking soda, 1 tsp. fresh ground sea salt, 1 3/4 c. buttermilk or stout

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 425°F.  Grease and flour two round cake pans and set aside. In a large bowl combine dry ingredients. Stir in buttermilk to form dough. Place on floured surface and lightly knead dough. Shape into a flattened ball and place in round cake pan. Using a knife, cut across the top. Cover the pan with the remaining pan and bake for 30 minutes. Remove cover and bake for an additional 15 minutes.

Keep bread wrapped in a towel and lightly mist towel with water to keep moist.

What’s on your table tonight?

Fat Tuesday – Doughnuts

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beignets, Carnival, Fat Tuesday, food, foodie, Lent, Mardi Gras, postaday2011, recipe, Shrove Tuesday

Today is Fat Tuesday (Shrove Tuesday), the last day before lent begins. So what am I making? Doughnuts of course! However, these are not your traditional beignets. I made mine a little healthier (okay, so that sort of defies the Fat Tuesday concept) by baking them instead. I made my favorite yellow cake batter and baked it in doughnut pans, careful to only fill halfway with batter. And powdered sugar on top? Nah, I’d rather have dark chocolate ganche and with some sprinkles (some with toasted coconut and some with vanilla crisps).

Fat Tuesday Doughnuts

How do you celebrate Mardi Gras?

Shamrock Brownies

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bake sale, brownie, brownie recipe, dessert, food, foodie, postaday2011, sweets

It’s March! Time to revel in the idea of the forthcoming Spring. What better way to do that than celebrating St. Patrick’s Day for a few weeks! I’ll soon be making cabbage, neeps & tatties, ham & bean soup, and Irish soda bread. So I decided to make shamrock brownies now…

Shamrock Brownies

Directions:
I used my usual brownie recipe and added crème de menthe instead of the vanilla extract. On top I sprinkled it with crushed Andes mints and baked as usual. I allow it to cool and then used a shamrock cookie cutter to create my brownies. Next time I will bake my brownies in a larger rectangular pan, since my 8″x8″ pan makes brownies that are taller than my cookie cutter.

I wanted to split the brownie in two piece and layer green mint frosting between the top and bottom layer, but Hubster quickly vetoed that idea in favor of eating them immediately…

*If serving at a party, try hiding a gold coin in one of the brownies after baking! Whoever find the gold, will have a good fortune.

What St. Patrick’s Day traditions do you have?

Happy New Year

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New Year, New Year's Eve, new year's resolution, New Year's tradition, postaday2011

I’m back from my wonderful Christmas vacation with family and friends. I only wish I got this posted 12 hours ago…

Here’s to a Lucky New Year
There are many traditional foods that are thought to bring good luck in the New Year. My mom & dad make pork & sauerkraut; I don’t eat pork and Hubster doesn’t eat sauerkraut. Or you could eat black-eyed peas… I don’t have any in the cupboard so does listening to them count? We didn’t eat 12 grapes at midnight either. Toasting with champagne at midnight? We finally have one!

Then there are actions which bring good  luck in the year to come. Where I grew up, people run outside at midnight banging on noisemakers and shouting “Happy New Year” to the night sky. My first New Year here, the neighbors and my friends thought I was crazy when no one else followed me out the front door, so that idea put on the back burner. The first visitor should be a tall dark-haired man, check! We actually have two! Kissing your loved one at midnight? Ah, now we’re on a roll!

New Year's Bouquet

 

There are also the things I consider to bring good luck, but I have no idea if there are any roots to any of these beliefs. This list just makes sense for me to do, to start a new year with a bit of good luck.

1) Start with a clean house

2) Start your resolution before Christmas

3) Have fresh-cut flowers in your home

4) Have candles burning in your window sill

5) Celebrate with close friends and family, whether a few or many

6) Eat a sweet for breakfast (today we had grilled pound cake)

Wishing you all a healthy, wealthy and wise New Year! I want to know: What brings you good luck for the New Year?