Russian Tea Cake Christmas Cookies

Christmas is coming!  Christmas is coming!  I am unusually excited.  Perhaps it is the new home, maybe it is my deeper faith, or perhaps, it is that I am excited to be back in the swing of life after a hard 18 months. I think I can attribute it to being the happiest, and most content I have ever been in my life.  I have a gracious heart, especially about all of you.

I am late out of the gate but I will be posting as many recipes as I can before Christmas Eve!  I work best under pressure!  I will be filming some of my recipes, as many as I can as well, so make sure you hit up my YouTube Channel and subscribe!  Here is the link: FoodThoughtsOfaChefWannabe YouTube Channel!  If you haven't hit the FOLLOW on this website, I would love for you to do that as well.  I love having you all in my life, everywhere!  You see, and learn, and experience different parts of me on my different social media outlets.  Not sure why, but, it seems to be that way!  I am weird, like so weird, but I am fun!  I mean at least I think I am! HA!

Now, on to the recipe.  These were a staple Christmas cookie as a kid.  My mom never skipped over making these.  I wasn't a huge fan of them as a child.  But, I think, these are more appealing to grown ups.  I love them now.  I of course changed mine up, just a little updating on my moms recipe, but hers were awesome as well.  As you can see in the video, I can't keep anything the same size.  I think you should get 2 doz out of this recipe, but I made a few of mine for the jolly green giant so I didn't get quite as many.

Please feel free to change the type of nuts you use to what you have on hand or love.  I wanted to just go with hazelnuts because I love them, I had some some and it was definitely the right choice.  What if you did almonds, with a WEE bit of almond extract?  Ohhhhhh!

1/2 cup softened butter
1/4 cup powdered sugar
1 cup finely ground hazelnuts
1 cup all purpose flour
1 tsp vanilla extract (maybe a heaping tsp)
pinch of salt
1 cup extra powdered sugar for dipping

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F.  Line your cookie sheet with parchment paper and set aside. 

Combine butter and powdered sugar until combined.  Add in nuts, and let it mix until completely combined.  Add in a pinch of salt, your vanilla extract and again, mix until combined.  Add in flour and mix just until it is all incorporated.  Your mixture will appear to be dry and crumbly, but I promise it will stick together!  

Using a cookie scoop, scoop out your cookies, dump into your hand and roll into a ball.  The warmth of your hands will melt that butter enough to make them roll nicely.  Do this will all of them, place on your parchment lined cookie sheet and then bake for 10 minutes!  Let cool completely and then roll in your additional powdered sugar!  Place on a platter and waaa-laaaa, time to enjoy!

PS Did I mention to just double this recipe from the start?!  DO!
PSS These will be perfect for your #nobrowncookietray Christmas cookie trays!

Easy Chocolate Nut Cookies

Happy Wednesday before Christmas everyone!  I trust you are all prepared for the holidays?!?

I thought I had done all the baking I was going to do.  However, I decided I needed to use up this Jif Chocolate Hazelnut spread I had in the cupboard.  I was sorely bummed that it was terrible, (in my opinion) but wanted to find something to do with it.  So using an easy Nutella Cookie recipe I have as a base, I really changed up this recipe using the Jif and a few half bags of chips, nuts, etc laying around and went for it.  You could literally mix in anything you want from dried fruit to any flavors of chips, or nuts. 

If you follow me on Facebook, you will see the near disaster in which almost yielded my family zero cookies. My furry nephew Gus (aka Gusy Bear) sat by this plate of cookies while I took photos for nearly 15 minutes, like a statue.  I started to get up and decided to take his picture as he sat so nice and bam, LICKED the cookies.  Anyway he smiled so big when I told him "NO".  He could be in the doggy denture commercials.  I grabbed him and smooched his face and told him he wasn't in bad trouble, but it wasn't nice to "wick da tookies" (using a lisp of course)  Yea, that's my dog language, what of it?!?! If you have a dog, you have a language, and don't pretend you don't.

Anyway, we are about 2 hours away from the start of a big snow storm.  I can't wait to post you all some photos later!  SNOW ANGELS!  Wait, BLOODY MARY'S and then SNOW ANGELS.  You think I won't, do ya?  HA!

This is one of the easiest recipes you will find. 

2 cups Nutella or Jif Choco-Hazelnut Spread
1 cup sugar
2 cups flour
2 eggs
1 tbsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup slivered almonds
1 cup white chocolate chips

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.  Combine all ingredients.  Line cookie sheets with silpat or parchment paper.  Roll into approximately 1 inch balls.  Using the palm of your hand flatten them out a bit.  They will hardly spread so no worries about that.  Bake 8 min, or until set.  I did 8 and they are perfect, still soft and SO chewy!  I am afraid 9 will make them cool and be hard.  If you like hard, crunchy cookies, 9 it is my friends!

This made about 4 dozen cookies!  These are almost like a cross between a chewy brownie and a cookies.  My gosh, they are SO good!

Hurry, get this one made up!  It is quick, easy and CHOOOCOOLATTEEEE.  I sang that, in an opera voice. 

Your "bring on the blizzard conditions baby"chefwannabe

PS. If you don't follow me on Face Book, THIS is what happened when my furry nephew was COLD BUSTED licking the cookies....

Pumpkin Hazelnut Bread (Sweetened Brown Butter Glaze)

Happy week after Thanksgiving!  Let the shopping begin!!  Right?  Most importantly, let the BAKING begin!

Why is it, that I find my best recipes are born from the marriage of random leftovers?  I think it is because I refuse to through leftovers away and I am forced to be creative.  I have had these blasted hazelnuts in the freezer for like, oh I dunno, a LONG time I have needed to use up.  I had never made brown butter, or sweetened brown butter but of course eaten it so I wanted to try it.  

My husband is sitting here and we are laughing over all the things people MIGHT make out of leftover pumpkin.   So he just said, " With my leftover pumpkin, I made a reduced fat, pumpkin vichyssoise served with gluten free, whole wheat and non fat, pumpernickel bread croutons.  I topped it with a dollop of non fat, gluten free creme fraiche substitute made from the purist tofu".  Ok so, before you get offended, we are joking, he just had to incorporate all of his own personal worst nightmares! If you could hear how hard he is laughing.  I don't know, I think it is a turkey overdose. 

So here it is, this is SO good, great for breakfast, dessert, brunch, midnight snack.......anytime!  Oh and as usual, you can trade out the hazelnuts for any kind of nuts you like, or just have on hand or need to use up.  Trust me though, when I tell you, the hazelnuts are awesome in this.  That's all I'm sayin'.....

Also, see how all the drizzle is pooled on the sides of the bread?  A good photographer would have picked the bread up after it was set, and put it on a clean plate.  Me?  HECK NO!  That pooled drizzle is the part you use a butter knife to pick up and spread more on your piece of bread!  Shhh, I won't tell if you won't tell!

You will need:
1 1/2 cups flour
1 cup sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
1 cup pumpkin puree
2 eggs
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup water
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1 cup toasted/roasted hazelnuts (or other nut of your choice but trust me on this hazelnut thing)

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.  In a bowl combine flour, sugar, salt and baking soda.  Mix completely and set aside.  In a separate bowl combine the pumpkin, eggs, oil, water, cinnamon, vanilla and nutmeg.  Mix until they are combined.

Now, pour the wet mixture, into the dry mixture and using a spoon, mix until just combined.  At this point you can add in your toasted nuts as well.  Get them totally mixed in. 

Prepare your standard loaf pan with nonstick cooking spray or butter.  I line mine with parchment paper just down the center and leave it long enough that when it is done, I can use the parchment as handles to lift the loaf right out! (see photo below) Just LOOK at the color!

Bake for 50-55 minutes.  When a toothpick or skewer comes out of the center clean, you know it is done.  Cool COMPLETELY before icing!!

For the Sweetened Brown Butter Drizzle you will need:
1/4 cup butter (half of one stick)
3/4 cup powdered sugar (icing sugar, confectioners sugar)
Up to 2 tbsp milk (depending on the consistency you want, mine took 1 tbsp)

In a small saucepan, add in your butter.  Let it go on a medium heat until it turns brown.  Don't walk away, just watch and right when it turns brown, it will be done.  Remove it from the heat and add in powdered sugar.  Add milk as needed until it is the consistency you want.  To be honest if you want it thick to spread on the top that is fine, or if you want it to drizzle add the milk until it is where you want it.  Drizzle over the bread and let sit for 5 minutes.  Serve!!

You could make mini loaves and put them on your cookie trays for Christmas.  Freeze them even!  I will tell you all about how I feel about cookie trays soon...........or did I already?

 

Your "do you say pumpkin or punkin"chefwannabe