cloves

Pumpkin Snickerdoodles

Leah Short — Sun, 24 Dec 2017 14:58:36 +0000

My coworker Katherine made these Pumpkin Snickerdoodles several times this year and from the first bite I knew they’d make the Cookie Baking Day list! People rave about these cookies and I can taste why. It’s the best of the classic snickerdoodle, plus pumpkin and more spice. They are so moist and almost cake-like. Perfect for this time of year with a big glass of milk!

Read more on Pumpkin Snickerdoodles

The post Pumpkin Snickerdoodles appeared first on Leah Claire.

Pumpkin Pecan Spice Cookies

Leah Short — Tue, 15 Dec 2015 20:39:26 +0000

Is it just me or is 2015 flying by? I swear it was just the other day when we wrapped up Cooking Baking Day 2014 and here I am reporting on what we made this year already! Our 2015 Cooking Baking Day was a few weekends ago and we sure had a blast! It’s getting harder for me to pick out which cookies we make because after five years, we’ve gone through a lot of varieties! I try to have something chocolate, something not chocolate, and something colorful. We always make Cream Cheese Spritz Cookies and this year I promoted these Mint Chocolate Chip Cookies to the annual list. They are so freakin’ good! They deserved it!

On my “something not chocolate” list were these Pumpkin Pecan Spice Cookies. I kind of hesitated on them because I feel like by this time of year, everyone is sick of pumpkin spice. I couldn’t resist though. Pecans!

Read more on Pumpkin Pecan Spice Cookies

The post Pumpkin Pecan Spice Cookies appeared first on Leah Claire.

Pumpkin Brownie Swirl Pie

Leah Short — Thu, 11 Dec 2014 16:03:04 +0000

Oh how I love a merging of two obsessions. It’s been a while since I’ve had a combo dessert. What’s not to love about a dessert that let’s you have the best of both worlds? In this case, chocolatey brownies AND pumpkin pie! The second I saw this pie, I knew I’d make it for Thanksgiving. It’s almost a little Halloweenish with it’s black and orange swirls, but oh so perfect for the biggie holidays, too. This Pumpkin Brownie Swirl Pie served warm with a scoop of really good vanilla ice cream is heaven. The brownie is the crust and the top is both swirled together. Sweet and perfectly spiced pumpkin mixed with chocolate brownie is genius.

Read more on Pumpkin Brownie Swirl Pie

The post Pumpkin Brownie Swirl Pie appeared first on Leah Claire.

Gingerbread Cake

Leah Short — Mon, 23 Dec 2013 13:54:40 +0000

Two more days until Christmas! Can you believe it? I have so many recipes I wanted to bake, but ran out of time. I’ll just have to bookmark those goodies for next year. Thankfully I squeezed in this Gingerbread Cake to share with you this year! It’s perfect for the holidays with its traditional flavor and it’s super easy to make. So if you’re looking for a last minute, quick holiday dessert, this is it!

Read more on Gingerbread Cake

The post Gingerbread Cake appeared first on Leah Claire.

Spiced Honey

Leah Short — Mon, 19 Aug 2013 14:09:42 +0000

I’ve had this Ball Blue Book of Preserving on my shelf for several years now. Have I ever canned anything? No. Does this post include something I’ve canned? No. I think you have to be in a “mood” to can, and I certainly wasn’t. I’ll tackle it eventually, but what I really like about this book are all the spreads and dips that are also included. Easy condiments you can whip up without having to deal with the canning process (unless you’re making huge batches). Spiced Honey caught my eye because it was easy, sounded really delicious, and could potentially be something to give as a gift for the holidays or just because.

Read more on Spiced Honey

The post Spiced Honey appeared first on Leah Claire.

Beer Bratwursts

Leah Short — Wed, 10 Jul 2013 12:45:00 +0000

These Beer Bratwursts were our main course for the 4th. Can’t beat grilling on that holiday and thankfully the rain stayed away just enough for us to fire up the grill. They first cook in a bath of beer with tons of spices and savory flavors. Then it’s off to the grill to finish before they get nestled in a bun with fancy condiments.

Read more on Beer Bratwursts

The post Beer Bratwursts appeared first on Leah Claire.

Snickersnaps

Leah Short — Sat, 29 Dec 2012 15:47:14 +0000

I found this fun mashup of two cookie favorites on Pinterest. Snickersnaps are combination of a gingersnap and a snickerdoodle cookie. I would have never thought to mashup cookies and now my mind is churning on all different kinds of cookie mashup possibilities. You could also call these Gingerdoodles, but that sounds like a odd dog breed to me. The two together made a great addition to our cookie baking day!

So, how’s it taste?

I’ll admit I’m not a fan of snickerdoodles. They are such a boring cookie to me, but I couldn’t resist creating this mashup. I love gingersnaps and the combination of the two seem like such a great holiday pairing. They turned out really great. The spice of the gingersnap cookie mixed with a few bites of the cinnamon-sugary snickerdoodle was fantastic. I liked the way each cookie came out a bit different with it’s mix.

Although we really enjoyed these, I think there’s better recipes for both that would really make this cookie outstanding. The gingersnap recipe is a tad bit lacking in the spice department and the snickerdoodles were too soft. The recipes we used weren’t equal, so we were left with a lot more of gingersnap dough than the snickerdoodle dough. I’ll also note that this recipe is time consuming. Rolling each individual cookie dough into its sugar mixture and then rolling both together quickly loses its charm. This was the first cookie we made on cookie baking day and I’m glad we got it over with early. The end result was tasty, but the process was more involved than we would have liked.

Other goodies from Cookie Baking Day 2012:
Cream Cheese Spritz
Cranberry Orange
Butterscotch Spice
Mint Chocolate Pudding
Mexican Wedding

Snickersnaps

by A Year of Cookies via Bakergirl
makes about 5 dozen

Ingredients:

Snickerdoodle Dough
1/2 cup shortening
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 egg
1 tbsp. vanilla
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
1 tsp. cream of tartar
1 tbsp. cinnamon + 3 tbsp. granulated sugar for rolling cookies

Gingersnap Dough
3/4 cup shortening
1 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup molasses
1 egg
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. cloves
1 tsp. ginger
1/4 cup granulated sugar for rolling cookies

Directions:

1. For the snickerdoodles, cream together shortening and sugar. Add egg and vanilla and mix well until creamy. Add flour, baking soda, salt, and cream of tartar and mix until combined. Combine cinnamon and 3 tablespoons of sugar in a small bowl and set aside for rolling dough.

2. For the gingersnaps, cream together shortening and sugar. Add molasses and egg and continue beating. Add flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, cloves, and ginger and mix until combined, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. Put 1/4 cup sugar in a small bowl and set aside for rolling dough.

3. Preheat oven to 350Â°F. Lightly grease baking sheets with non-stick cooking spray (or line with parchment paper) and set aside.

4. Roll a small amount of gingersnap dough into a ball and toss in granulated sugar. Roll a small amount of snickerdoodle dough in a ball and toss in cinnamon sugar.

5. Place both doughs together and gently roll or shape together.

6. Place on baking sheets and bake for 9-11 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to cool on baking sheets for 2 minutes before moving to cooling racks.

The post Snickersnaps appeared first on Leah Claire.

Cranberry Orange Cookies

Leah Short — Fri, 28 Dec 2012 17:20:11 +0000

Cookie Baking Day 2012 was in the books a few weeks ago and boy did we bake up some goodies. Usually there’s one cookie that we don’t love, but this year they were all spectacular. These Cranberry Orange Cookies were a nice surprise at how well they turned out. They were actually best the next day. I was a little apprehensive with the spices, but we pressed on with the recipe and it didn’t disappoint.

So, how’s it taste?

For such tiny bites, they were bursting with cranberry and orange flavor. They were pretty good fresh from the oven, but they were great the next day. The cranberry and orange flavors got stronger and I liked them even more. We made some with red sugar and the lighter ones in the picture above are made with coarse white sugar. The finer, red sugar worked best. The cookies stayed soft and the hint of allspice and cloves was perfect. I was hesitant about adding the spices because I wanted the fruit to shine, but I’m glad we did. The spice doesn’t overpower at all, but brings everything together.

Other goodies from Cookie Baking Day 2012:
Cream Cheese Spritz
Snickersnaps
Butterscotch Spice
Mint Chocolate Pudding
Mexican Wedding

Cranberry Orange Cookies

Food Network Magazine, December 2012
makes about 3 to 4 dozen

Ingredients:

3/4 cup dried cranberries
3/4 cup granulated sugar
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 1/2 tsp. finely grated orange zest
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. ground allspice
Pinch of ground cloves
1 stick cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
1/4 cup cranberry juice cocktail
1/2 tsp. red food coloring
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 large egg, lightly beaten
Red sanding sugar, for rolling

Directions:

1. Pulse the dried cranberries and granulated sugar in a food processor until the cranberries are finely ground and the sugar turns red. Add the flour, baking powder, orange zest, salt, allspice, and cloves and pulse to combine. Add the butter and pulse until the mixture looks like coarse meal.

2. Combine the cranberry juice, food coloring, and vanilla in a small bowl and add to the food processor along with the egg; pulse until a dough forms. Transfer the dough to a bowl, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until firm, about 1 hour.

3. Position racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Roll heaping teaspoonfuls of dough into balls, then roll the balls in sanding sugar and arrange about 1 1/2 inches apart on the prepared baking sheets. Bake, switching the position of the pans halfway through, until the cookies are just set on top and golden on the bottom, 18 to 24 minutes. Let cool 5 minutes on the baking sheets, then transfer to racks to cool completely.

The post Cranberry Orange Cookies appeared first on Leah Claire.