Pie Elves

Options to order pre-made pies from Rolla Technical Institute's Culinary Arts Class.

Pie Elves

How I wish this class had been around when I would cook big Thanksgiving dinners!

Our local technical institute has a culinary class offering pre-made pies, from apple crumb and cherry crumb to pumpkin and pecan. I love making pies, especially from traditional recipes, but there were times when it would have been nice to have - well, pie elves, helping out.

We grew up making pumpkin pies for Thanksgiving, rare leftovers a favorite day after breakfast with a cold glass of milk.

Pecan pies were added after I got married, a favorite of family members who were proud of their secret recipe.

These days I like to bake just the pumpkin custard for dessert using skim milk and doubling up on spices, the pie crust left for a discussion topic on how best to make it flaky.

On second thought, I may have to splurge for one of these pies, all I have to do is pick them up!

Charlotte

Pumpkin Sugar Cookies

Sugar cookies are great to celebrate all sorts of holidays besides Christmas, like Thanksgiving!

Pumpkin Sugar Cookies

I don't know about you but I used to think of traditional sugar cookies only for Christmas. Even with a healthy collection of cookie cutters, I tended to dust off that recipe around early December and make batches as gifts for people who had made our lives extra special earlier in the year.

When my office needed cookies for St. Patrick's Day, celebrated in March, I started to venture out past December and now, sugar cookies are a regular option when wanting to mark a special occasion, including Halloween.

Having a nice collection of food dyes and cookie decorating supplies makes the impulse easier. Some of the decorations don't have to be specifically cookie decor, miniature chocolate chips come in handy for a number of reasons.

So quick and easy, and a lot of fun, too!

Charlotte

Wedding Gift Cookies

Wedding Gift Cookies

When I think of gifts for a wedding, my mind almost automatically goes to a double wedding ring quilt like the blue double wedding ring quilt we just finished making. What a delightful surprise to greet guests to a wedding rehearsal dinner with gifts for a wedding in the form of a table full of pre-packaged homemade cookies!

This was the wedding of a dear Navy friend's son July 23, 2016 in Kansas City, Mo. Knowing one side of the family, and getting to know the other one, I was charmed to see the cookie packages so lovingly packaged. It became obvious very quickly that friends and family are very important to both sides.

The bride's favorite color is pink so of course the cookies were tagged with hearts in those colors.

Each package had four handmade cookies. On the front a white icing-covered wedding cake form cookie. 

Homemade cookies packaged for a July 23, 2016 wedding rehearsal dinner.

The back of the cookie package had the peanut butter cookie dipped in chocolate.

The peanut butter chocolate-covered cookie was in the back.

The one I was most intrigued with was the Italian seven layer cookie. Moist and delicious, by the way.

I'm working on getting that recipe from the mother of the groom!

Have you made an Italian seven layer cookie?

Charlotte

Cookie Walks

Early December I start to plan to make cookies for the people who help make my life easier. After going through a number of vintage recipe books to mark the cookies I intend to make, I remember there is a much easier, and quicker option: cookie walks!

Must be a midwestern tradition because I don't remember seeing any on either coast when I was working there. Usually women's groups offer them; the ones I know are associated with churches and their Christmas bazaars.

I picked up a pound of homemade cookies myself today, focusing on a nice variety: sugar cookies, snickerdoodles, oatmeal raisin, pecan rolls and there was a cute little snowman with sugar button eyes that never made it back to the house.

Not sure what the red cookies are but they looked festive. The green ones have chocolate chips and mint flavoring.

One pound of cookies, measured on a very old scale owned by one of the cookie baker's great grandmothers, cost $6.

You don't see any snickerdoodles? 

Oh, wait, I chose those for my quality control testing. They went the way of the snowman sugar cookie. Humm, may need to go back and get more cookies!

Charlotte

So Aptly Named!

Maybe it was because we spent part of our childhood greasing and flouring cooking pans; I can still remember trying to get the yucky sticky stuff off my hands. Not even using dish towels worked!

One of my kitchen must-have's now is Baker's Joy non-stick baking spray. Shake it, then spray cupcake pans.Takes maybe 5 seconds for 6 cupcakes.

Pour in batter. Cupcakes will easily pop out, no papers - or hand-cleaning - required.

Charlotte

Sugar Cookie Sprinkles

There are few things more frustrating than starting to make decorated sugar cookies and not having what you need to finish them. That's why I keep some basics around just in case there's a cookie "emergency."

Sugar sprinkles are a basic. Over the years, my most used colors have been red and green sugar sprinkles, followed by yellow. If you don't have any sprinkles and know what sugar cookie cutters you're going to use, you can better decide what sugar sprinkles to get. I also make sure to keep tiny milk chocolate chips, dark raisins, chopped walnuts and almond slices on hand. These come in handy for eyes, buttons and wings.

If you are short on time,  use sugar sprinkles. They're fast, easily add some color variety, and are a holiday favorite.

I also make sugar cookies with sprinkles for special occasions throughout the year with non-holiday cookie cutters. When using sugar sprinkles, add lemon as flavoring to the cookie dough, or divide between vanilla and lemon. Lemon flavoring will make the cookies less sweet and help balance the extra sugar on top.

Charlotte