Giving Thanks

As I've said in here before, Our Cookie Journal turns out to be about more than cookies. Right now, I'm waiting for a care package from Mom that contains the Chex cereals I need to make Chex Party Mix (or my holiday is not complete!). And I made a lovely Pumpkin Pie the day before Thanksgiving and used an oak-leaf cookie cutter to make cutouts to line the pie crust. 

But it's not just because we've always loved cakes and pies and other holiday treats. Our Cookie Journal is about our friends and family, who become as much a part of these entries as they are a part of our lives. I shared photos of my pie online with my cousins, who had pictures of their pies: cherry, lemon and pumpkin. I didn't see any "nasty" Sugar Pies though. My dad's Buckeye relatives usually have those for Thanksgiving and Christmas and I've never liked them: to me, they're like Pecan Pies without the pecans!

Naturally, I thought of Dad too when I baked Pumpkin Bread because I always consult the journal to double-check the recipe and to fondly recall how much he loved to bake it (and share it) when he was alive. And my sister Lisa, co-founder of Our Cookie Journal, always makes me laugh and cry because I miss her as I bake my way through every season, and I'll never forget her Un-Pumpkin Bread. It's not that I don't think of them throughout the year — I always do — but it seems more keen at the holidays because family is so much a part of the festivities.

Heather, Aunt Mary and Dew

This year, as I look forward to Christmas cookie baking (and sharing) and as I've celebrated Thanksgiving with my son and prepared our feast, I've been enveloped in an aching sadness for my cousin, Heather Brion, who died this week.  Even though she lived in Virginia (where my aunt — her mother — also moved), I always think of her as one of my Buckeye cousins. 

We connected again on FaceBook (it really is good for some things) and I got to see her again at a Baker Bash a few years ago in Gibsonburg, Ohio. I take great pleasure in that. And I find comfort in my memories, particularly at holidays, when my father would pile us into the car and "head up home" to visit his family in Ohio, especially at Thanksgiving or Christmas. There was always a Sugar Pie and I know that Heather loved them as much as my dad did (and she'd tease me about not liking them). And it tasted of love and home and family for each of them.

The "Buckeye" cousins

So despite feeling thankful for my health, my family and all that we have, I couldn't help but feeling guilty for celebrating when poor Heather was gone and my Aunt Mary and Uncle Terry would be missing her particularly sorely. I found some solace in the fact that Heather is no longer in pain, from which she was suffering before her death as a young adult. And my aunt and uncle (and Heather's boyfriend, Dew) have the support of family and friends to help them through this difficult time. 

I find it poignant as we raised our glasses to toast her sense of humor, her fondness for animals, her strong political views and activism, and her love for her family — that she was giving of herself, even after her death. As an organ donor, Heather helped four other people in a massive way that will significantly alter some other lives forever. And those people and their families will remember this Thanksgiving as the best one ever because of the generous heart of someone they'd never met: Heather Brion, my cousin. As another Buckeye cousin, Jeanette (now living in North Carolina), put it: "What a legacy to leave."

Aunt Mary said she was going to a Thanksgiving dinner but she would not be making a Sugar Pie this year like she always has for Heather. I understand that: Mom shoved a tray of Christmas cookies onto  the floor shortly after Lisa died because the grief was just too raw to make merry, or cookies. 

But I know that one day, Aunt Mary will be able to bake a Sugar Pie again — and she'll savor the taste of love and home and family. 

2006 - Good Things Come in Care Packages

Last week, Charlie and I made a batch of Pumpkin Bread and came up with eight fragrant loaves. As usual, he could hardly wait for them to cool so he could have a slice or three! We nearly ate one loaf in one day. We wrapped up two loaves to give to his teacher and her assistant (Mrs. Jones and Mrs. Hunt). And we gave a loaf to our neighbor, Linda. As of today, Nov. 16, we're down to one frozen loaf! We'll have to do another batch this weekend.

Fortunately, I have 10 cans of Libby's pumpkin to tide me over through next year. I usually get it at Waitrose but they've discontinued it this year! However, when I questioned them, I discovered they had a case in the warehouse! So, I snatched up what I needed for bread and pie through next year. Maybe by then Skyco will carry pumpkin and not just pumpkin pie filling (the two are not interchangeable, and I prefer pumpkin, so I can add my own spices). Otherwise, I'll have to get Mom to send a few cans over.

Goodies from a typical care package from Mom.

The curse of the Chex Party Mix continues this year! Aaarrgghh! Since Skyco had only Corn Chex this year, I asked Mom to mail the cereals, Bugles and pretzels about three weeks ago (plus about $75 worth of other goodies). But so far, it hasn't turned up and Parcel Force is saying it's lost. I was SO unhappy and disappointed over it! And since I really must have Chex Mix before Thanksgiving, I asked Mom to resend the cereals and pretzels, and a few other things in the lost box. She mailed it this morning, so maybe I'll have it by Monday or Tuesday. But it won't contain my box of chocolates, or my new jammies, or Charlie's T-shirt, or the treats Mom added to the first one.

WAIT A MINUTE!! Unbelievable! It's HERE!! Mark's here with my package! I gotta call Mom! (And lay out the paper towels for the Chex Mix to cool on). Yay!

2005 - Do You Have the Recipe for Pumpkin Bread?

We ran out of Hedgehog Cookies this week, so it's time to make more. And since it's that time of year, we made a double batch. I filled up the Pumpkin cookie jar (it's Nov. 18), then put the rest in a freezer bag. Neil and Charlie have already eaten a few each too. I'm sure we'll wind up making more - we always do. I saved an oatmeal box too, so I can send some to Lisa again. I didn't count the Hedgies because we make them so often. They're our go-to cookies.

Lisa's battered recipe for Pumpkin Bread.

I have to laugh because Lisa asks me for the Pumpkin Bread recipe around this time every year. I always tease her about losing it too. Then, last week, when I was making Pumpkin Bread, I found her recipe in my recipe box! Along with three other copies! I had no idea.

Another one of the copies was so old, it just said, "Pumpkin Bread," and didn't have Mom's tweaks. Another was my copy, which I call Mom & Dad's Pumpkin Bread, complete with Mom's adjustments in the spices. That's the one to use, so I got rid of the other one.

The last one was on a piece of paper in Mom's handwriting — with an ingredient missing! She has done this — unwittingly — in the past, and I've jokingly accused her of leaving out information so that mine will never be quite as good as hers.  But she would never do that — she shares all her secrets and techniques. In fact, she's made things just so I can watch and write down amounts as she goes. I mean, what is it with these moms who have no idea how much of something they use in a recipe? "I don't know," she'll say, "I just keep adding it till it looks right." OK, Mom, but there's no marking for that on my measuring jug!

My card to Lisa, confessing I had her recipe.

So I sent Lisa her copy in a get-well card (she's pulled a muscle in her tummy and she's not well). But I didn't realize till we talked later, that her copy is the old version too, without Mom's tweaks. So, I'm just as bad as I accuse Mom of being, keeping the "secret" recipe to myself!  Now she has both. The important thing is not to leave out the pumpkin.

2003 - Ten Years and Counting

We have kept a record of our recipes, observations and
memories over the years in "Our Cookie Journal."

Here we are in our 10th year of "Our Cookie Journal," although we've been baking cookies (and other delights) longer than that. Still, it's quite a record we have kept and I aways laugh and cry whenever I read through "Our Journal" again. I try to read it once before I begin baking, so I can benefit from any notes we may have made in the past about our favorites. Some years are harder to read, though — like our first Christmas without Dad, or my first year in England, without my family.

The reason I have it out as early as Nov. 8 this year is that I made Pumpkin Bread today. I used Mom and Dad's tried-and-true recipe and wound up with eight aromatic mini loaves. I've already had two yummy slices (topped with cream cheese). I'll have to make another batch so I have plenty to share! I emailed the recipe to Lisa again - let's hope she remembers the  pumpkin this year! (See UnPumpkin Bread!)

We can't help including Pumpkin Bread in "Our Cookie Journal" - especially since Dad always loved baking it and giving it away at Christmas time. A few batches of Pumpkin Bread are the standard prelude to all my cookie baking too. (I feel the same way about Chex Party Mix too. Mom mailed a package containing Chex cereals and Bugles to me last Wednesday, so I've already made two batches of Party Mix too. I did it within an hour of receiving the package! It's all part of Christmas to me.)

Anyway, since I'll be "Home for the Holidays," or at least for Thanksgiving, I'm going to start baking next week. I'll need to take cookies with me and I'll want cookies in the freezer for when we return. Now, to peruse "Our Journal" and decide what to make this year!

2002 - Fill Your Boots!

I started early yesterday morning (Nov. 17) on Pumpkin Bread. I whipped up a batch and got seven mini loaves. I only bake three or four loaves at a time and I rotate them halfway through, turning the pans and moving the pans around on the oven rack. They turned out beautifully! I'm working on the next seven lovelies now. Mom sent the aluminum loaf pans in a care package. I had canned pumpkin left over from last year (thank goodness it has such a good shelf life!). 

The kitchen smelled so good and the loaves look so tempting. Even Charlie said, "Bread!" So we had a slice each and put the rest of the loaves (enrobed in foil) in the freezer. They'll make great presents in December and I love having it on hand, to have with tea.

That's mine on the right!

After all the Pumpkin Bread was baked and packed away, I went into town to shop for stocking stuffers for Lisa. It's another one of our traditions. I think we started soon after she got married in  1980. We decided that boyfriends and husbands (particularly ours) aren't much interested in Christmas stockings. Especially filling them with goodies. So, we decided to do stockings for each other! Mostly it's just Christmas paraphernalia - earrings, pens, playing cards, CDs, videos, coasters, candies, note pads, etc. Sometimes, there will be a surprise or something lavish. It's the idea of taking care of each other that we love, though. We both have the most fun filling the socks! 

We talked on the phone about whether we should continue after I moved to England and, as usual, we both had the same wish - to carry on as normal! So, we have to get it done early and mail them to each other. Because each recipient has to stuff her own stocking hastily before bed on Christmas Eve, the stuffers have to be individually wrapped. It may be a corny tradition, but by still filling each other's socks, we fill our distant living rooms and hearts with the love and spirit of a sister. The cookies are the same way - only it all happens in the kitchen.

2002- Horn of Plenty

*For future reference, 1 stick of butter = 1/2 cup = 113 grams.

After talking to Lisa long-distance on the phone last night, we agreed that I had better get baking - TODAY! Nov. 15, 2002! A week before Thanksgiving! Since Charlie and I are going "home for the holidays" from Dec. 2 to 18, I probably won't get another chance to bake if I don't do it before we leave. And since he's 21 months old, I'll be lucky to get much done at all!

Our Cookie Journal is a good read.

After leafing through "Our Cookie Journal" last night (crying and laughing), I had an intense urge to make Dunkable Brownies. I can't get the unsweetened chocolate I need on this side of the Atlantic, though, so those will have to wait until I get back "home from home". Not to be daunted, I popped "Kevin's Christmas Favorites" into the boom box and started with a batch of Nestle's Toll House Chocolate Chip Cookies. Charlie happily napped through each ding of the timer.

~ May I just pause between batches to say: Perfect! ~

Ahhhh! Four hours later and I have 13 dozen Chocolate Chip lovelies in the freezer and one dozen on a plate on the table for immediate consumption and enjoyment. This oven is a bit flaky, so I had to be careful: turn the trays midway through baking; checking them, starting at 10 minutes to make sure they don't over bake. 

I set out to make one batch but quickly realized it wouldn't be enough to sustain me - I mean, us - through Thanksgiving AND Christmas. So I made two batches. Charlie woke up at the halfway point, so we opened our Thanksgiving care package from Grandma! Talk about your "horns of plenty". Cocktail rye bread, egg nog mix, Chex Mix supplies, aluminum loaf pans for Pumpkin Bread (to be made this weekend), Hidden Valley Ranch dip mix, a Thanksgiving kitchen towel, a turkey-shaped oven mitt, and an actual cornucopia. Loads more, including a few treats for Charlie (like freeze-dried strawberries)! Let the holiday season officially begin!

2001 - Cookies for Santa

I know for a fact that Kriss Kringle loves
Nestle's Toll House Chocolate Chip Cookies.

Dec. 23, 2001

Since I'd given away or devoured all my Pumpkin Bread, I made another batch and yielded another seven mini loaves. Mmmmm! Great for breakfast on Christmas morning - and so easy too.

We also had zero Chocolate Chip Cookies left! It didn't matter to me; no, I could have done without them. But we had to have something to leave out for Santa Claus! So I made another batch: some for Charlie with no nuts; and the rest in their glorious, nutty, natural state.

Pumpkin Loaves at the Ready

I like to keep loaves of Mom & Dad's Pumpkin Bread wrapped festively at the door
and ready to share! They make great gifts and these loaves are loved by all recipients.
Happy Holidays!

2001 - Ghost Writer

2001 was the first year I lived in England, away from my family. When I came home for a visit, I brought The Cookie Diary with me. Lisa made this entry from her side of the pond:

This was a year of firsts for the Carr bake shop. First, the week before Thanksgiving, I made Chex Mix for the girls. Personally, I can do without it! I have never done Chex solo but I believe Kevin would have approved. 

Lisa bought one of these for each of us.

I went right on to People Chow, from the cookbooks I bought for us at Cracker Barrel (Gooseberry Patch: Magic of Christmas, 2001). It's made with Rice Chex, peanut butter, chocolate chips and powdered sugar. It was good while warm, but once it got cold, nobody wanted to eat it. 

Then I did a test batch of Snicker Doodles. They were yummy with a great texture. 

On Dec. 3, with the kids' help, I made about 6 dozen Nestle's Toll House Chocolate Chip Cookies and four dozen Snicker Doodles. I also made my first ever Pumpkin Bread (this may explain why I left the pumpkin out of the first batch!). So I made six loaves with pumpkin and three without - but all loaves were equally delicious.

I made four batches of Snicker Doodles - eight dozen - on Dec. 15. They turned out beautifully. They were difficult to mix - someone lost the paddle attachment to my KitchenAid. So, I tried to make do with the dough hook.

Danielle, Rachel and April were present for all sessions. They were all helpful - getting cookie sheets ready, measuring ingredients, and cracking eggs. They also are quite adept at rolling and sugaring the Doodles. I have plans and ingredients for fudge, Poor Man's Cake and more Pumpkin Bread.

Snicker Doodles

1/2 c butter, softened

1 c sugar

1/4 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp cream of tartar

1 egg

1/2 tsp vanilla

1 1/2 c flour

2 Tbsp sugar

1 tsp cinnamon

Beat butter on high for 30 seconds. Add sugar, soda and tartar; beat till combined. Beat in egg and vanilla. Beat in flour. Cover with plastic wrap and chill for at least one hour.

Combine cinnamon and 2 Tbsp sugar in a shallow bowl. Roll balls in sugar mixture and place on baking sheet, about 2 inches apart.

Bake 10 minutes at 375 degrees Fahrenheit.

*Keep dough chilled while waiting for batches to bake. If dough gets warm, it wont spread right, leaving fat cookies. I got better results flattening the balls with the bottom of a glass for more even baking.

People Chow

1/2 c butter

1 c creamy peanut butter

2 c milk chocolate chips

17 1/2 oz pkg corn or rice cereal (Chex)

1 lb. powdered sugar

Combine butter, peanut butter and chocolate chips in saucepan. Melt over medium heat, stirring often. Pour over cereal and mix until thoroughly coated. Place cereal in a paper sack, sprinkle in powdered sugar. Fold down the top of the paper sack and shake well. Makes 3 pounds or about 12 servings.

2001 - A Team Effort

A fistful of recipes. Thanks, Mom!

Lisa's work schedule was manic again, so Mom and Lisa's three youngest daughters kicked off the baking bonanza this year. They worked at Mom's house and she had a bit of an assembly line going. She set up a card table in the living room too, so they could work in teams on different jobs. Very productive! 

One weekend, they made Butterscotch Refrigerator Cookies. I don't know whose idea they were because I've never been a big fan of butterscotch. The recipe calls for melted chips, but they decided the cookies would be better with whole chips left intact. (I think they would be better if Lisa made them like she made Un-Pumpkin Bread and leave the butterscotch out completely!) They also made Grandma Baker's Peanut Butter Cookies; Rachel and April were in charge of rolling the balls in the sugar before criss-crossing them with a fork.

While Lisa and I seem to focus on chocolate and peanut butter as our favorite cookie ingredients, Mom gets tired of all the chocolate year after year, and tends to deviate toward the fruitier alternatives. After starting solo with a batch of Pumpkin Cookies on another weekend session, she whipped up a batch of Glazed Pina Colada Bars - a new entry for her from Land O' Lakes. She made two 8-inch versions and a third, smaller one, in disposable aluminum pans, so I get to take a whole batch back with me.

Tropical Orange Coconut Drops, another new entry, were up next. However, Mom opted for Tropical Lemon Coconut Drops this time around. She and Danielle baked them while Rachel drizzled icing on the Pina Colada Bars. She recommends placing waxed paper beneath the cookies and drizzling the icing with a fork.

Danielle was in charge of the Citrus Slice 'N' Bake Cookies. They're refrigerator cookies that get formed into logs, brushed with melted butter, rolled in orange or lemon sugar, and then sliced. Very bright in flavor and appearance. I think lime would be good too. 

Raspberry Strippers, from last year, made a repeat appearance. They're neat log cookies that are filled with jam, baked, drizzled with icing, and then cut diagonally into little cookies. 

I guess to prevent an all-out revolt, she ended with Fudge Revel Bars, another newbie - but at least they're chocolate! "These smelled delicious while they were baking," she said. After she melted the chocolate, she swirled it into the batter with a wooden spoon for a marbleized effect. 

"This is my last year," she declared - again. (She says that every year!) Aside from making all these cookies, Mom also kindly copied each recipe onto a card for me. So, thanks to her, I'm going back with a suitcase full of cookies and a fistful of recipes! Thanks, Mom!

Tropical Orange Coconut Drops
2 c sugar
1 c butter
3 eggs
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1 tsp lemon extract
3 1/2 c flour
1/2 c coconut

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

Combine all ingredients except flour and coconut. Beat at low-speed until creamy. Stir in flour and coconut by hand until well mixed. Drop by teaspoonfuls onto baking sheets, about 2 inches apart. Bake until edges are lightly browned, 8-12 minutes. 

2001 - Un-pumpkin Bread

I'm home again! It's been great to see Mom and Lisa and her girls again. Soon I'll be seeing my brothers and their kids too. I love my family and miss them so much. And shopping in familiar territory! I bought a cake decorating kit - they're expensive in England - and vanilla - PURE! And lots of sprinkles, dragees and colored sugars. I also got two more bags of chocolate chips - I'm still not finished making Toll House cookies. And I'll make Sugar Cookies when I go back too. I need an offset spatula too (for icing cookies). Since pecans are cheaper here, I picked up a big bag of them for Chocolate Chip Cookies and Pumpkin Bread.

Pumpkin Bread tastes best
with Pumpkin.

That reminds me - Lisa made Pumpkin Bread - or should I say "Un-pumpkin Bread" - this year! She didn't realize till her loaves were already baking away in the oven that she'd left out the pumpkin! She made some regular pumpkin-flavored loaves later but she didn't toss out the first batch. They were deemed edible and even delicious and they were gobbled up despite missing their key ingredient (see photo).
She also spent time at Mom's this year and they made loads of cookies together. She'll have to tell me which kinds and what her yields were. I need Danielle, Lisa, Mom and Rachel to tell me more for this year's "home front" entry.
I managed to bake about six dozen Moravian Spice Cookies before I had to call it quits in Blighty. I still have half the dough in the freezer because there simply wasn't enough time to finish and get my bags packed.

2001- Separated by a Common Language

Charlie and I are going home to America for a visit soon, so I need to get my baking done before we leave. It's not always easy converting my recipe ingredients, supplies and measurements to "English". The first time I went grocery shopping in Waitrose, I cried. I didn't know where anything was, all the packaging was different, the labels weren't the same and some of the generic names weren't the same.

Let's start with Reynold's Wrap. Both Americans and Brits have a habit of calling things by their brand name, instead of their common name. Companies don't like that, of course, because their brand can become generic. That's what happened to Hoover in England and Aspirin in many countries. There is no Reynold's Wrap in Britain and I even struggled with the generic name of "aluminum foil". Store clerks (one says "clarks" here) gave me a bewildered look when I didn't say "alumin-EE-um". They would laugh at me, I would laugh at them. "There's no extra I in aluminum," I would insist. It seems there is in the UK, though.

And the list goes on. Seran Wrap (or plastic wrap), is cling film. Baking soda is bicarbonate of soda (reminds me of Bette Davis mixing up a remedy for Max in "All About Eve"). Finding molasses can be tricky (or treacly). Golden syrup and treacle are common in grocery stores, but I have to go to a health food store to find molasses. Vegetable shortening does not exist. Someone suggested "ghee", which is akin to clarified butter, but I don't think they are interchangeable. 

I brought my own measuring cups and spoons, so I'm OK there but I have to do conversions every time I bake because my oven temperature is measured in degrees Centigrade (or is it Celsius?) and Marks (as in Gas Mark 4=350 degrees Fahrenheit or 180 degrees Celsius). I also have to do conversions whenever I use butter, which does not come in sticks here! And so, many recipes call for butter in stick-quantities that I had to write the conversion (1 stick=1/2 cup) in the front of "Our Cookie Journal" for easy reference. Fortunately, I found a cheat-sheet in a notepad at a lighting shop, of all places, that I keep in my kitchen utensil drawer. 

There is no canned (or tinned) pumpkin either. Or chocolate chips. Or unsweetened cooking chocolate. My baking sheets are way too massive for the tiny ovens here. Peanut butter is not common. Christmas sprinkles and other decorations are scarce. Decorations seem to be of the Christmas-cake variety. Marzipan is plentiful; but not tubs of frosting. Coconut is referred to as "desiccated", and is unsweetened. Sigh!

Still, none of these hardships stayed me from my baking course. My "official" start this year was Nov. 25, when I made 7 1/2 dozen Nestle's Toll House Chocolate Chip Cookies. The chips, of course, aren't available in Blighty, but Lisa sent me two packs and I brought two back from my Halloween visit home. I had made one batch last week, to test the oven, but they're already gone! I also brought back some Libby's pumpkin, so I made Mom & Dad's Pumpkin Bread, which produced six lovely mini-loaves - but they were for Thanksgiving.

I've decided to make, in addition to the CCCs, Lime Meltaways, Moravian Spice Cookies, Grammy's Chocolate Cookies (new) and Checkerboard Cookies (new). I'm also going to bake Sugar Cookies but this year I'm going to use Martha's recipe with Royal Icing.

The trick will be finding everything I need over here. It's also been tougher with Charlie around! I'll be able to manage only a batch a day. The hardest part, though, has been being so far away from Lisa and Mom. True, we weren't able to bake together the past two years, but this is worse. So I'm separated from everyone here by a common language and I'm separated from my loved ones by an ocean.

1999 - Short and Sweet

I had to go it alone this year because our work schedules weren't compatible. So, on Saturday and Sunday, Dec. 4 and 5, I made eight dozen Peanut Butter Cookies and 12 dozen Nestle's Toll House Chocolate Chip Cookies. Then I made seven dozen Dunkable Brownies (they smelled too good not to sample immediately) and 11 dozen Lime Meltaways.

The Lime Meltaways are easy slice and bake cookies that are so light and fragrant, they became a quick favorite. It's nice to have a citrus cookie to offset all the chocolate too. They're covered in powdered sugar but the discs themselves aren't very sweet, so it's a winning combo. Just be careful when you shake them in the powdered sugar or you'll have to eat many, many casualties! Michelle was with me for these and she loved mixing the leftover lime juice with sugar for a refreshing limeade.

I gave Lisa half of everything and packed up some of mine to send to Neil in England. (I met him at the Breeders' Cup in Miami in November.) I also sent him some of Mom's Pumpkin Bread.

I wore my Christmas apron and played music but I missed Lisa, especially for the music and the pizza! I cried when Johnny Mathis came on singing "Sleigh Bells" because it reminded me of Dad. He always made fun of Mathis and sang, "Sleighb'lls." I miss him and his sense of humor so much.

Lisa made Magic Cookie Bars, a new entry that layers a mere five ingredients, including Eagle Brand Sweetened Condensed Milk into a luscious, but easy-to-make, bar. She also made fudge - chocolate and chocolate-peanut butter - which she shared, of course. I missed baking with her this year and I hope we can find time to get together next Christmas.

1998 - Cookie Nation

On Thursday, Dec. 3, we made Peanut Butter Cookies and Brownies Cockaigne. Again, we got off to a late start, but we finished with 20 dozen cookies and four pans of brownies. We used “Joy’s” recipe for both. The margarine might have softened too long for the second double batch of PeeBees but the golden disks were dee-lish! We packed the brownes in nice foil trays with plastic lids. “It’s a good thing.”

We took Friday “off” to go shopping for the girls. I spent a fortune! We resumed Tuesday with Sugar Cookies, for which we found gold and silver dragees and a frosting tip. We were going to do them Monday but i forgot the cutters, so we made 13 dozen Pumpkin Cookies (from “Joy” - hold the nuts and raisins). This time we drizzled them with frosting thinned with milk. Last year, they got stuck to the waxed paper. It was better this way, but it’s still not the answer.

We made two batches of Chex Party Mix for Lisa (I started making it before Thanksgiving!). I made a copy of my compilation tape, “Kevin’s Christmas Favorites,” for Lisa. She made 74 cupcakes for the girls’ various parties at school. Whew!

So Tuesday, we made 10 dozen Sugar Cookies. We baked and frosted on the same day. I argued for more but Lisa said, “NO!” I’m sure I turned out being right. They baked to a lovely golden color. We made wreaths, candy canes, stars, trees, bells and snowmen.

We took Wednesday off so I could go see the KISS concert in Lexington with my friend Angela. “I wanna rock and roll all night, and party every day!” More like bake every day!

KISS video

Angela doing her best Gene Simmons.

One more time!

1997 - Marathon Day

I arrived at Lisa's house at 8 this morning - before the kids went off to school! We needed an early start for Sugar Cookies and it turned out to be our marathon day. 

I was trying to get ahead by measuring out all the ingredients for our second double batch - we were waiting on the butter to soften. (Remember to set out the butter early!) Anyway, I had 2 teaspoons too much of salt and then I added 2 tablespoons of pumpkin pie spice instead of nutmeg. Sigh! It was VERY early for measuring and reading spice labels.

I soon recovered and we started on the Sugar Cookies. We used 2 tablespoons of nutmeg in each double batch instead of the other spices called for in the "Joy of Cooking" cookbook. We used pre-selected cutters: holly leaves, wreaths, trees, stars and snowmen (whose scarves kept breaking off again!). 

We finished at 11 a.m., saving the frosting and decorating for tomorrow. We cranked out three double batches for a huge yield of 15 dozen! That's three dozen of each type. I still have to get food coloring on the way over to Lisa's tomorrow.

We went on to Pumpkin Cookies next. They take so long to bake in cookie time - 15 minutes - but they're so delicious and fragrant that they're worth it. We finished these by 2:30 and decided to frost them as we got them out. We'll have to see how that works. They're hard to pack with the frosting we use. (Maybe we should pack them plain for freezing and frost them as we break them out to thaw.) We wound up with a whopping 14 1/2 dozen.

We steamrolled ahead with Peanut Butter Cookies. We rolled the dough into little balls and coated them all in granulated sugar. We made two double batches for a mega yield of 19 1/2 dozen! We also made a baker's dozen of Thumbprint PBs for Mom. We filled them with strawberry jam and they looked really pretty.

Unbelievably, we went on to make our favorite discover from last year: Dunkable Brownies (Chocolate Brownie Cookies). They smell so good! They bake for 12 minutes and don't look quite done when you bring them out of the oven but that's how it is with brownies. So we yank them out, let them rest on the pan and set up for a minute, then cool on wire racks. We made two double batches and came up with 14 dozen lovelies. We finished the day at 10:05 p.m. totally exhausted.

Sugar Cookies

Pumpkin Cookies

Peanut Butter Cookies

Dunkable Brownies

1995 - Mom & Dad's Pumpkin Bread

Michelle helps Dad make a giant batch 

of Pumpkin Bread.

We didn't make Pumpkin Bread this year because Dad has been baking mega batches for the last few Christmases. He really enjoys it and he loves giving it away as presents to friends, family, co-workers and neighbors at this time of year (and they love getting it too!).

Even though he technically makes it, he gets lots of help in the kitchen. Of course, various children and grandchildren in the vicinity are called on as assistants to mix and measure. Mom used to combine most of the ingredients for him (probably saved her numerous trips into the kitchen to find ingredients hiding in the fridge and cupboards!). She would measure out all the spices and dry ingredients, so all he had to do was grab a few eggs and a can of pumpkin, and measure out some oil and water. But he would make so many wonderful loaves that she couldn't keep up. So, she wrote the recipe out and taped it to the inside of the spice cabinet for him. 

Whenever I open my own spice cabinet, I think of Mom. Mine is just as full and unorganized as hers always was. When I was a girl at home, I would have to drag a chair over to see and reach inside to find the spice or herb I was after. She had the stalwarts and standbys — cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, oregano, thyme and dill. But there were exotic mysteries too — mace, cumin, saffron and turmeric. And what in the world was cream of tartar?  Those unfamiliar titles tended to stay near the back, in smaller jars; while the giant tin of cinnamon was always up front to make cinnamon-sugar for our toast.

We used to use Grandma Baker's recipe but Mom made changes to it over the years and we now call it Mom & Dad's Pumpkin Bread. They've always baked it in coffee cans ever since I can remember (and the lines from the cans — much like the lines on tinned cranberry sauce — serve as a guide for slicing). A loaf pan will do as well but tends to result in hunks without the trusty guidelines but metal coffee cans are a rarity these days.

Lisa, like most people, eats it as is, which is delicious. Mom and Dad almost always put butter on it. I like it that way too but I sometimes have it with a smear of cream cheese. Any way you slice it or top it, it's delicious and, in our family, it's Christmas.

Mom & Dad's Pumpkin Bread
Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. 

Me "helping" Dad pour batter into coffee cans.

Whisk together in a large bowl:

3 1/2 c flour

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp cloves

1/2 tsp allspice

1/2 tsp nutmeg

1/2 tsp ginger

1 Tbsp cinnamon

2 tsp soda

1 1/2 tsp salt

3 c sugar

Stir in:

2/3 c chopped pecans

2/3 c raisins

Make a well in the center and add:

2/3 c vegetable oil

2/3 c water

4 eggs

15-ounce can of pumpkin

Mix well until all ingredients are combined.

Pour mixture into greased loaf pans (or coffee cans, if you can find them), or muffin tins, filling 2/3 of the way.

Bake 50-60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Yields vary, depending on size of pans.

NOTE: If you want to make Lisa's Un-pumpkin Bread, just leave out the pumpkin! It's still delicious, according to her family.

Pumpkin muffins keep very well in the freezer.

This recipe was shared with the blog hop, Frugal Food Thursdays. 

1993 - Use Your Gourd

We haven't made Pumpkin Cookies in a few years — I don't know why either because they were soft, flavorful and smelled heavenly when we pulled them from the oven. We use the recipe from "Joy of Cooking" by Irma S. Rombauer and Marion Rombauer Becker (1975, The Bobbs-Merrill Co., Inc.) but we alter it. We don't use nuts or raisins, and we substitute 1/4 tsp of pumpkin pie spice and 1/4 tsp of nutmeg for the 1/2 tsp of allspice. Also, we use butter, not shortening. So, we really just use "Joy" as a jumping-off point!

We frosted them with Betty Crocker Creamy Deluxe cream cheese frosting, with 1/2 tsp nutmeg stirred in. These babies were perfect. We needed two sessions for these too and wound up with 15 dozen.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.

Cream together:

1 c butter or shortening

1 c granulated sugar

Add and mix well:

1 c cooked pumpkin (1 15-ounce can)

1 egg

1 tsp vanilla

Sift together and add to above mixture:

2 c sifted all-purpose flour

1 tsp double-acting baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp allspice

Stir in:

1 c chopped nuts

1 c raisins

Drop cookies onto a well-greased cookie sheet and bake about 15 minutes.

Yield: about 5 dozen