A Look Back at 2009

I do not think I have ever had a more emotionally exhausting year.

We went from a three person household to a four, with my youngest stepdaughter finally moving in with us.

I completed my administrative internship and graduated with my MAEd in Educational Leadership.

We moved out of our apartment and into our first house.

We rescued Ozzie and he has swiftly become a part of our family.

We began TTC and have since realized that it is not as easy for us as it has been for our friends.

I am slowly regaining a sense of who I am and the kind of wife and mother I want to be. I have realized how much I enjoy keeping house and cooking and experimenting with baking as well. I wish I could be a SAHM, but I know it will never happen. I have found a love of scrapbooking, cake decorating, and have found out who my true friends are. And I love them for it.

Hopefully this year will bring more positive changes in our lives, and we continue to remain hopeful that we will expand our family.

To you and yours, from the Control Freak household, we wish you a blessed and Happy New Year.

Flavor of the Month: Cookies!

This is the first time I am participating in Bake at 350's FOTM. Because I posted my Christmas cookies already, I wanted to link you to my new favorite recipe: Italian Lemon Knots. The best thing about these cookies? Mom said they tasted exactly like my grandmother's!

For more cookie postings and for more information on Flavor of the Month, visit Bake at 350!

New Year's Pajama Party

We are hosting New Year's Eve this year for a few of our friends and their children. We are not getting the party started until 8, so we are doing a selection of appetizers. Our kids are actually with their mother this year, but we will have a few kids under the age of 4 here. So, here is our menu which is hopefully kid-friendly (and adult-approved!):

Hot chocolate bar with all the toppings (including peppermint schnapps for the adults)

Assorted drinks, beer and wine

Mini twice-baked potatoes

Mini Crescent dogs

Baked reuben dip with rye toasts

Taco dip with tortilla chips

Beer cheese dip (brought by a friend)

Sweet and sour kielbasa bites (brought by a friend)

What are your New Year's Eve plans? What about your menu for New Year's Day? Stay tuned for our New Year's Day menu, focusing on traditional "good luck" foods to ring in the 2010!

Lightening McQueen

Light and Simple Lunch-on-the-Go

A good friend of mine recently had surgery after moving into a new townhouse. I took this opportunity over break to not only see her new house but to bring her a yummy and light lunch!

I packed up and brought over to her house:

Cranberry-Orange scones

Chicken Salad on Honey Wheat Sandwich Buns

Mandarin Orange and Cranberry Salad with poppyseed dressing

It was a great way to spend the afternoon and her house is lovely! I also brought her a Home Depot giftcard; as new homeowners ourselves, we know how much that will come in handy!

Chicken Salad with Grapes and Pecans

(I did not measure anything, so I am taking my best guess for the mayo and mustard.)

3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, poached in chicken broth and cubed

Small bunch grapes (I used black because they were on sale), cut into thirds

2 stalks celery, thinly sliced

1/2 C chopped pecans

2 tbsp Dijon mustard

1/2-1 C light mayo

Salt and Pepper to taste

Mix all ingredients together and serve on Honey Wheat Sandwich Buns. Add more mayo and mustard to your liking!

Honey Wheat Sandwich Buns

I have had these bookmarked for awhile now, and when preparing my light and simple lunch for a friend, I knew they would be perfect. And you know what? They are. My husband even loves them and kept snagging them and slathering them with butter!

Honey Wheat Sandwich Buns

from Good Things Catered

Ingredients:
1 1/4 c. milk, warmed to 110-115 degrees
1 packet active yeast
2 c. bread flour, plus 1/4 c. more for adjusting
1 c. whole wheat flour
1/2 tsp salt
1 egg, room temp
1/4 c. honey
2 Tbsp butter, at room temp, plus more for melting

Directions:
-In small bowl, add yeast to milk and let stand until beginning to foam, about 15 mins
-In bowl of stand mixer combine flours and salt and stir to combine.
-With mixer fitted with paddle attachment add yeast mixture to flour and stir on low.
-Slowly add egg, honey and butter and stir to combine well.
-Change to bread hook and knead bread until not sticky and gives back when pinched(adding more flour as needed to adjust).
-Grease a large bowl, knead dough into a ball and place in bowl at room temp to rise until doubled in bulk, about 1 1/2 - 2 hours.
-Remove dough from bowl, roll out to 1 inch thick and cut out using 4 inch cutter, placing rounds onto prepared baking sheets
-Cover rounds with a clean flour sack towel and let rise until doubled in bulk, about one hour.
-Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
-Place baking sheets into oven and bake until baked through, about 12-14 minutes.
-Remove from oven, brush lightly with melted butter and let cool before serving.

Cranberry Orange Scones

One of my favorite combinations is cranberry and orange. I always order the cranberry-orange scone from Starbucks and when I stumbled across this recipe, I had to give it a whirl. And you know what? They are perfect. Tart and slightly sweet at the same time, and delightfully flaky.

Cranberry Orange Scones

(adapted from Gourmet via Smitten Kitchen via The Way the Cookie Crumbles)

Makes 8 scones (but mine were HUGE so they can be made smaller)

1½ tablespoons freshly grated orange zest

2½ cups (12 ounces) all-purpose flour

½ cup (3.5 ounces) sugar plus 3 tablespoons

1 tablespoon baking powder

½ teaspoon salt

¾ stick (6 tablespoons) cold unsalted butter, cut into bits

1½ cups fresh cranberries, chopped coarse

1 large egg

1 large egg yolk

1 cup heavy cream

Directions

1. Adjust an oven rack to the middle position and heat the oven to 400°F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.

2. In a small bowl, toss together fresh cranberries and 3 tablespoons sugar. In another small bowl, lightly beat the egg and yolk, then stir in cream.

3. In a food processor, pulse the flour, ½ cup sugar, baking powder, salt, and zest until combined. Add the butter and process until the mixture resembles coarse meal. Transfer to a large bowl. (You can also just smoosh the butter into the dry ingredients with your fingers instead of using a food processor.) Stir the cranberries into the flour mixture. Then gently fold the egg mixture into the flour until just combined.

4. On a well-floured surface with floured hands, pat the dough into a 1-inch-thick round (about 8 inches in diameter). With a 2-inch round cutter or the rim of a glass dipped in flour, cut out as many rounds as possible, rerolling the scraps as necessary. (Or cut the circle into wedges, which is my standard method.) Arrange the scones about 1 inch apart on the prepared baking sheet and bake 15 to 20 minutes, or until pale golden. Cool about 10 minutes, then serve.

Menu Planning Monday!

Well, another Christmas has come and gone, and the new year is swiftly approaching. And of course, with that comes the resolution to eat healthier. We shall see!

Monday: Shepherd's Pie

Tuesday: Homemade spaghetti with Italian sausage and meatballs; homemade foccacia bread

Wednesday: Birthday party

Thursday: New Year's Eve tradition of Chinese food, and then a small party at our house. Stay tuned for that menu!

Friday: Not sure yet. Retrieving the girls from their mother and hopefully some sort of celebration

Saturday: Pretzel chicken with spicy mustard sauce, cous cous, corn

Sunday: Baked ziti (one to eat, one to freeze)

What is on your menu this week?? Visit Org Junkie's website for all kinds of ideas!

Italian Lemon Knots

Day 9 in the Control Freak's 12 Days of Treats

A staple in many Italian households, I was searching for a recipe and stumbled upon this blog and decided to give it a whirl. Although they are not exactly like Grandma's cookies, they are still delicious. Added to the slightly cakey, slightly crumbly cookie is a lemon glaze made with fresh lemon juice and powdered sugar.

Italian Knot Cookies

Adapted from Proud Italian Cook

Ingredients:

5 cups unbleached flour

3 eggs

1 cup milk

1 bottle of pure lemon extract or,( 1 oz.)

Grated lemon rind

5 teaspoons of baking powder

1 Cup of sugar

1 3/4 cup of shortening

Directions:
Mix together flour, eggs, milk, lemon extract and rind, sugar, and baking powder, in large bowl. Add shortening till it forms a dough. You might need to add some more milk or more flour to get the right consistency (I added an entire additional cup), but after doing so, take golf ball size pieces and shape them into balls or roll them like a log and tie them in a bow, or make a horseshoe shape and twist them over like I did. Bake at 350 degrees for exactly 15 minutes.

When they cool dip them in the icing and place them on wax paper untill they set.

Candy Cane Cookies

Day 8 of the 12 Days of Treats from the Control Freak

I make a version of this cookie every year, but did not have one ingredient (mine uses the sugar cookie packets) so decided to go with Katie's recipe and I am so glad I did! The girls had a blast making these, and even though they were not very uniform in size, they were great!

Candy Cane Cookies

From Good Things Catered

Ingredients:
1 1/4 c. sugar
1 c. butter
1 egg
1/2 c. milk
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp peppermint extract
3 ½ c. all purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
¼ tsp salt
½ tsp red food color (plus more to the color you desire)

Directions:
- Cream together sugar and butter
- Add egg, then milk, vanilla, and peppermint extract.
- Stir in flour, baking powder and salt.
- Divide dough in half.
- Stir food color into one half.
- Cover and refrigerate at least 4 hours.
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
- For each candy cane, shape one rounded tsp dough from each half into 4-inch rope by rolling back and forth on clean surface. (don’t use flour or it won’t stick to the other half)
- Place one red and white rope side by side; press together lightly and twist.
- Place on prepared cookie sheet; curve top of cookie down to form handle of cane.
- Bake 9 to 12 minutes or until set and very light brown.
- Remove from cookie sheet to wire rack and cool completely.

Cookie Mania

In the last five days, I have baked:

Gingerbread snowflakes

Holiday spice biscotti

Orange almond biscotti

Cranberry pistachio biscotti

Do-do's

White chocolate cherry shortbreads

Snickerdoodle croissant rolls

Mint chocolate thumbprints

Thumbprints with strawberry jelly

Orange cranberry cookies

Italian wedding knots

Homemade marshmallows

TOmorrow the girls and I finish up with the peanut butter blossoms and then we can deliver the baskets to our neighbors. Unfortunately, the box to Idaho is going out late, but it was just not possible to get it out in time. Oh well. They will understand!

New Arrival

From this (taken relatively soon after we moved in):

To this!
I feel like such a grown-up, with matching furniture and everything now!!
Better pictures tomorrow, but I was so excited I had to show it off! It is the Cameron Place table and six chairs from JC Penney!

Orange Almond Biscotti

REALLY LATE Day 7 of 12 Days of Treats from the Control Freak

Orange Almond Biscotti

America's Test Kitchen

Ingredients:
2 c. unbleached all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
4 Tbsp unsalted butter, softened but still cool
1 c. sugar
2 large eggs
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp almond extract
3/4 c. almonds, toasted, cooled and chopped coarse
2 Tbsp minced zest from an orange

Directions:
-Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
-Whisk flour, baking powder, and salt together in medium bowl and set aside.
-Cream the butter and sugar until light and smooth, about 2 min.
-Beat in eggs then the extracts.
-Stir in almonds and zest.
-Fold dry ingredients into wet until dough is just mixed.
-Halve the dough and turn portions onto prepared baking sheet.
-Stretch each portion into a rough 13 by 2 in. loaf and pat smooth.
-Bake about 35 minutes or until the loaves are golden and just beginning to crack on top.
-Remove baking sheet from oven and let cool for 10 minutes.
-Lower oven temp to 325 degrees and cut each loaf diagonally into 3/4 in. slices.
-Lay each slice cut-side up on baking sheet and return to oven.
-Bake, turning each cookie half way through baking for about 15 minutes, or until crisp and golden brown on both sides.
-Transfer to a wire rack and cool completely.

(Optional - dip one side in melted chocolate!)

Christmas Brunch: The Morning Of!

Let me give you a rundown on the last few days, because I have literally been baking and cooking non-stop.

Friday: Arrived home from work. Made 3 types of biscotti, gingerbread cookies, do-do's, and white chocolate cherry shortbreads. Realized the wonder that is my convection oven. Wrapped the rest of the girls' Christmas presents. In bed at 2 AM.

Saturday: Table delivery day! Up at 7:45 to wait for them. Made dough for Pioneer Woman's cinnamon rolls, which I then cut and put in to eight pans. Decorated snowflakes with royal icing. Showered. Grocery store to pick up perishables for salad and other odds and ends for Sunday. Ate Subway. Took a short nap because I was getting a migraine. Went to a lame Christmas party where the hosts did not have enough food. We left early and REALLY irritated about it. Came home from said party, set tables (had to wait, because the kids needed a place to eat dinner!) and rearranged furniture in living room (you will see what I mean when I post pictures tomorrow!). Made breakfast casseroles and went to bed!

So what is the tip and/or trick, you may ask?? I created a timeline for myself for Sunday morning, so I knew what had to go in the oven and when. It looked a little something like this:

• Up at 8 AM
• 9 AM: Shower and dress
• 9:30: Cut apples, pears and cheese for salad
• 10 AM: Make frosting for cinnamon rolls
• 10:15: Start coffee
• 10:30: Preheat oven, take out cinnamon rolls to rise
• 10:45: Orange juice out, champagne opened
• 11:00: Breakfast casseroles in oven
• 11:45: Casseroles out and in warming drawer; cinnamon rolls in
• Noon: Salad mixed and tossed
• 12:15: Rest of sides on table, breakfast casseroles cut
• Eating by 12:30

Be sure that if you are hosting an event that requires extended times for things to bake, that you are able to create a schedule where things are ready to eat at the same time. I was able to use my warming drawer for the first time and it was a LIFESAVER! Any other great tips or tricks for hosting a holiday brunch? Share them with us!

Holiday Spice Biscotti

Day 8 or...Another REALLY delayed installment of

12 Days of Treats from The Control Freak

These were a REALLY interesting combination and thoroughly enjoyed by all! I did not have brandy, so soaked my raisins in some freshly squeezed OJ, and it seemed to work out great!

Spiced Holiday Biscotti
adapted from ATK recipe, as seen on Good Things Catered

Ingredients:
2 1/4 c. unbleached flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp ground cloves
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground white or black pepper
1/4 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp sat
1 c. sugar
2 large eggs, plus 2 large egg yolks
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
3/4 c. mixed raisins (golden and regular) soaked in 1/4 c. brandy for 1 hour
1/4 c. pecans, chopped

Directions:
-Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line a baking sheet with parchment.
-In medium bowl, whisk flour, baking powder, baking soda, spices and salt to combine thoroughly; set aside.
-In large bowl, whisk eggs, yolks, and sugar until light in color.
-Whisk in vanilla.
-Sprinkle dry ingredients over wet and fold in, add raisins and pecans and fold until just combined.
-Halve the mixture, pat into a ball and turn onto baking sheet.
-Pat and stretch into about 13x3 inch loaf and repeat with remaining mixture, placing loaves about 3 inches apart.
-Place baking sheet in oven and cook until beginning to crack on top, about 35 minutes.
-Remove from oven and let cool for about 10 minutes.
-Reduce oven temperature to 325 degrees.
-Using wide spatula to transfer to cutting board, with a serrated knife, carefully slice laves diagonally into 1/2 inch slices.
-Lay slices about 1/2 inch apart on baking sheets (you will need a second to fit them all), cut side up.
-Return to oven and bake for an additional 15 minutes, flipping biscotti half way through cooking time.
-Remove from oven and let cool completely on wire racks.

Weekend Planning: Christmas Brunch weekend!

Tonight marks the beginning of 16 days free of work! One of the few perks of being a teacher is Christmas vacation. Let me tell you, this year, it is much needed. It has been a rough one! This weekend begins my Christmas baking as well as the Christmas brunch we are hosting. So here is the breakdown of what we have going on this weekend!

Friday:

-Baking! The biscotti must be done for Sunday and I am going to attempt to get a few of my cookies done, especially my grandma's Italian cookies, the gingerbread snowflakes, and the white chocolate cherry shortbreads. Everything else can wait until Sunday night so I can finish and send everything to my family in Idaho and package up the baskets for our neighbors.

-Finish wrapping presents

-Complete Christmas cards

-Clean master bedroom, hallway and sweep stairs

Saturday:

-Table arrives between 8 and noon! I am psyched!
-Baking, if time

-Grocery shopping for ingredients for Sunday

-Clean bathrooms

-Set up buffet and set tables

-Make winter salad and dressing

-Prep breakfast casseroles

-Dust and vacuum living areas

Sunday:

-Bake egg casserole and cinnamon rolls

-Celebrate with my family!

-Clean and relax for the rest of the day!

What do you have planned for this weekend?? Any Christmas celebrations? Baking? Tell us!

Christmas Brunch Grocery List

I will be going to the store early on Saturday morning, so that I am able to pick up all of the fresh produce that I need. So, here it goes! I will be going through my finalized menu and stating what I need:

Ham (Mom is bringing)

Rolls for ham sandwiches (my aunt is bringing)

Fruit salad (sister-in-law)

Winter green salad:

-Red onion

-Poppyseeds

-Romain lettuce

-Shredded swiss cheese

-2 apples

-2 pears

Cinnamon rolls (already have ingredients)

Bacon-Cheddar Pinwheels:

-2 cans crescent rolls

-real bacon pieces

-green onion

Random pick-ups for baking and drinks:

Half and half

Orange Juice

Champagne (for mimosas)

Molasses

I think that about covers it, but I will go through my list one last time tomorrow night to be sure I have everything I need! Let the baking frenzy begin!

Planning a Christmas Brunch

The first half of this week have kind of escaped from me! We have been busy with mini-projects around the house (C built my pantry!) and I have been wrapping and trying to pick up some last minute odds and ends for Christmas, considering we are celebrating with my side of the family on Sunday!

Normally I have my menu planned and ready to go way in advance, but we changed the time from a 2 PM dinner to a noon brunch, so our menu has changed a bit! Here is a link to last year's Christmas brunch menu

This year, we plan on making:

• Sliced ham with rolls (for sandwiches)
• Apple and potato gratin
• Fruit salad
• Winter green salad
• Cinnamon Rolls
• Assorted biscotti and whatever Christmas cookies I have made by Sunday
• Bacon cheddar pinwheels
• And a type of scone I have yet to decide on.

Next: the cleaning list! Luckily, we are still pretty much in-tact because we did a huge cleaning last week before the cookie exchange. Here is what needs to be done between now and Sunday morning:

• Both bathrooms (Saturday, with a quick wipedown on Sunday after showers)
• Dust and vacuum family room, living room, dining room (Saturday)
• Kitchen floors mopped and swept (Saturday)
• Dust and vacuum master bedroom, hallway, stairs (Saturday)
• Dust and vacuum girls' room (Saturday)
• Set table (Saturday, after my new table gets here!)
• Make centerpiece (Saturday)

Whew! That is quite a lot to try and get done in a few days!! Good thing I have six extra hands!!

Peanut Butter Blossoms

Day 6 of The Control Freak's 12 Days of Treats

• Peanut Butter Blossoms

Ingredients:

• 48 Hershey's Kisses
• 1/2 cup shortening
• 3/4 cup creamy Peanut Butter
• 1/3 cup granulated sugar
• 1/3 cup packed light brown sugar
• 1 egg
• 2 tablespoons milk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• Granulated sugar

Directions:

1. Heat oven to 375°F. Remove wrappers from chocolates.

2. Beat shortening and peanut butter in large bowl until well blended. Add 1/3 cup granulated sugar and brown sugar; beat until fluffy. Add egg, milk and vanilla; beat well. Stir together flour, baking soda and salt; gradually beat into peanut butter mixture.

3. Shape dough into 1-inch balls. Roll in granulated sugar; place on ungreased cookie sheet.

4. Bake 8 to 10 minutes or until lightly browned. Immediately press a chocolate into center of each cookie; cookie will crack around edges. Remove from cookie sheet to wire rack. Cool completely. About 4 dozen cookies.

Thumbprints

Day 5 of the Control Freak's 12 Days of Treats

You can't go wrong with this classic! After trying several recipes, this was my favorite! Plus, I love the sides rolled in nuts!

Thumbprints

Adapted from Betty Crocker

Ingredients:

1/4 C packed brown sugar

1/4 C shortening

1/4 C butter or margarine, softened

1/2 tsp vanilla

1 egg, separated

1 C flour

1/4 tsp salt

3/4 C finely chopped nuts

Jelly

Directions

-Heat oven to 350

-Mix brown sugar, shortening, butter, vanilla, and egg yolk in medium bowl. Stir in flour and salt until dough holds together

-Shape dough into 1-inch balls. Beat egg white slightly. Dip each ball into egg white. Roll in nuts. Place about 1 inch apart on ungreased cookie sheet. Press thumb deeply in center of each.

-Bake about 10 minutes or until light brown. Immediately remove from cookie sheet to wire rack. Cool completely, about 30 minutes. Fill thumbprints with jelly.

Cookie Exchange Recap!

My first cookie exchange was a huge success and I can not be happier! Everyone left with full bellies and at LEAST one box of a generous assortment of cookies. Here is the breakdown and a few things I am going to change/tweak for next year.

My entryway table

First, I was able to prepare almost all of my appetizers, or at least part of them, the night before. My menu changed slightly, but here is what we ended up with:

• Bacon cheese dip served with crackers
• Crudite with ranch dip
• Sausage cups
• Cucumber pumpernickle squares
• Tomato bruschetta (which I could have left out)
• Mini twice-baked potatoes

My goal was to have everything out by the time guests arrived, but since EVERYONE seemed to arrive exactly at 7 (which NEVER happens), a few things were late getting out. So, I have learned that I need to have everything out and ready to go 10 minutes before the scheduled arrive time! It was no biggie. People were getting their cookies set up and were chatting with one another. Here is a shot of my living room, waiting for guests to arrive:

And speaking of tables...check out our table PACKED with platters! If ONLY my new table would have arrived, but alas, it has not been delivered yet.

Anyway, I had appetizers set up on the buffet, with the crudite platter and bruschetta in the living room on the coffee table, and drinks (sodas, coffee, and wine) were in the kitchen. I had a smaller table set up for the samplers of the cookies and people just kind of hung out and wandered around and mingled.

After everyone was settled in and had a chance to get some appetizers and sample the cookies, we did a secret ballot for best cookie. I had made up a prize for the winner, which included a gingerbread man potholder and spatula, as well as snowmen measuring spoons, a set of cookie cutters and two Christmas cupcake liner packages in a cute basket, and was very excited to award it to my friend Angela for her White Chocolate Cherry Chip cookies!! She won by a landslide!

I had purchased 10x10 cardboard pie boxes for everyone, and after I distributed them, everyone went around the table taking about 4 of each kind of cookie, then we had so many that some of my guests were able to fill up a second box!

Overall, it was a very successful night. I did not make too much food, and everyone seemed to enjoy how the cookies were set up, so I think I am going to keep this system. I am very much looking forward to hosting another exchange next Christmas season!!

Grandma's Do-Do's

Day 4 of The Control Freak's 12 Days of Treats

A story: When I first started baking Christmas cookies several years ago, I asked my mom for Grandma's do-do recipe. I have no idea if this is what they are really called, or if it is the wrong name, but it is always what Grandma called them. My mom dug up the recipe and I got to work. As soon as they were finished baking, before even glazing them, I tried one and was transported instantly back to my childhood and Christmas at Grandma's. She passed away when I was a freshman in college, so this was almost like she was actually with us. It was amazing.

I have made them every year since, and it is always the first cookie that my mom goes for, and in this family, the first to be completely gone.

I halved the original recipe because it was completely overwhelming the first year I made them. So I am bringing you the recipe I follow.

Grandma's Do-Do's

Ingredients:

4 C flour

1 C Crisco

1/2 C cocoa

1 C sugar

1/2 teaspoon cloves

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

Mix ingredients like a pie crust. Then add:

3 eggs

1/4 C cold water

2 tablespoons baking powder

1/2 C chopped walnuts

Mix all ingredients and form a giant ball. Refrigerate overnight.

Remove from fridge and kneed like bread. Form into walnut-sized balls.

Bake at 400 for 10-12 minutes-be sure to watch the bottoms so they don't burn!

When cookies are cool, coat with a powdered sugar-water glaze. It may take a few coats of the glaze until it looks thick enough.

Do you have a family recipe that takes you back in time to your childhood? Post it for us!

Chocolate Mint Cookies

Day 3 of 12 Days of Treats

Chocolate Mint Cookies

from allrecipes.com

Ingredients:

3/4 C butter

1 1/2 C packed brown sugar

2 C semisweet chocolate chips

2 eggs

2 1/2 C all-purpose flour

1 1/4 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

36 chocolate mint wafer candies (which means Andes mints)

Directions:

-In a large pan over low heat, cook butter, sugar and water until butter is melted. Add chocolate chips and stir until partially melted. Remove from heat and continue to stir until chocolate is completely melted. Pour into a large bowl and let stand 10 minutes to cool off slightly.

-At high speed, beat in eggs, one at a time into chocolate mixture. Reduce speed to low and add dry ingredients, beating until blended. Chill dough about 1 hour.

-Preheat oven to 350.

-Roll dough into balls and place on an ungreased cookie sheet about 2 inches apart. Bake 8-10 minutes. While cookies are baking unwrap mints and divide each in half. When cookies are brought out of the oven, put half a mint on top of each cookie. Let the mint sit for up to 5 minutes until melted, then swirl it using the back of a spoon to spread the mint on the cookie.

Weekend Planning: Cookie Exchange Weekend!

Another weekend is upon us! And it is the first of two large parties I will be hosting: tomorrow is the cookie exchange! Much of my preparation is done and tonight and tomorrow will be spent getting the table set and house ready!

Friday:

• Assemble dips and rest of appetizers
• Set table after we eat dinner
• Clean master bedroom and vacuum second floor

Saturday:

• Vacuum and dust living areas
• Wipe down bathrooms and scrub toilets
• Wash kitchen floor
• Plate my cookies and set table with appetizers
• Enjoy party!

Sunday:

• Any remaining party clean-up
• Quick stop for a gift for a gift exchange
• Head to aforementioned gift exchange with a group of ladies I used to work with
• Make some soup and enjoy the evening!

What is on YOUR agenda this weekend?

Baked Ziti

This is a super easy meatless meal for a weeknight! And the kids love it so much they both had three servings AND a salad!

Baked Ziti

Ingredients

1 lb ziti or penne pasta (you could also use rotini; basically whatever you have on hand)

8 oz. low fat/fat free ricotta

1/4 C egg substitute (equivalent of 1 egg)

3 C tomato sauce

2 C shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese

Directions:

-Preheat oven to 350

-Boil pasta until al dente; drain

-Mix half of the ricotta and egg substitute in a small bowl. Add remaining ricotta to warm pasta and mix. Then add egg/ricotta mixture to pasta and combine well.

-Add about 1/2-1 C sauce on bottom of 9x13 baking dish and spread to cover bottom. Mix 2 C sauce with pasta mixture and pour pasta in baking dish; pour rest of sauce on top of pasta. Top with mozzarella cheese.

-Bake until cheese is melted, slightly brown and bubbly.

Sugar Cookie Cutouts

After several failed attempts at sugar cookie cutouts, it was not until I came across Ashlee's recipe that I could claim success! It is the PERFECT sugar cookie: soft and delicious, with a hint of lemon. I have found that the trick is to not skimp while rolling them out, and the thicker the cookie the better!

Day 2 of 12 Days of Treats

Ashlee's Famous Sugar Cookies

as seen on A Year in the Kitchen

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups butter
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1/2 cup powdered sugar
4 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
1/2 tsp. almond extract
1 tbsp. lemon zest
5 cups flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
Powdered sugar, for rolling

Directions

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Cream butter and sugars in a mixer for 5 minutes. Add in eggs one at a time, mixing thoroughly. Add in vanilla, almond, and lemon zest. Sift in flour, baking powder, and salt a little at a time. Do not over mix, this process should take about one minute.
Chill dough for up to a week in the fridge, or roll out and cut right away.
Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper and bake for approx. 11 minutes (usually 9 in my new oven). Let cool and decorate!

Soft and Spicy Gingerbread Cookies

Like many of us who consider ourselves "food bloggers," I will be doing a 12 Days of Treats, and including some of my favorite holiday sweets! I will be doing lots of cookies, but will try and squeeze in a few other surprises!

Day 1 of 12 Days of Treats from The Control Freak

Soft and Spicy GingerbreadCookies

adapted from allrecipes, as seen on Good Things Catered

Ingredients:
1 c. butter 1 c. sugar
1 c. molasses
1 egg
4 c. sifted all-purpose flour
1 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp ground cinnamon 2 tsp ground cloves
2 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp ground nutmeg

Directions:
-In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream together the butter and sugar until smooth.
-Stir in molasses and egg.
-Combine the flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, cloves, ginger, and nutmeg; blend into the molasses mixture until smooth. -Cover, and chill for at least one hour.
-Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and line with parchment.
-On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough out to 1/4 inch thickness.
-Cut into desired shapes with cookie cutters.
-Place cookies 2 inches apart on cookie sheets.
-Bake for about 10 minutes in the preheated oven, until firm.
-Let cool for 10 minutes on pan.
-Remove from cookie sheets to cool on wire racks.
-Frost or decorate when cool.

Hosting a Cookie Exchange: Timeline

We have sent the invitations and created our menu. Now it is time to make our shopping list, check it twice, and prepare the house for the party by settling on some decor and cleaning!

In order to simplify the next few days, I will be doing a thorough cleaning of the house during the week and doing only the necessary touch-ups on Saturday morning.

Three-Four Days Before Exchange:

• Bake cookies and store in an airtight container
• Make sure your house is Christmas-y and festive by making sure your Christmas decorations are up.
• Gather table linens and serving pieces that you will need. I instructed everyone to bring their cookies arranged on a platter for the exchange, but I also had everyone bring an additional dozen to share, so I plan on having a few platters ready to go in case someone did not tray up their cookies. I have several serving platters as well as a few metal Christmas trays that I use when I make my Christmas cookies! And, don't forget to pull out your cake stands; using different heights on your table adds drama to your buffet.
  
• Make ahead any appetizers that will freeze or store well: Unfortunately, none of my apps fall into this category, so the earliest I will be making anything ahead of time is a day or two.
• Create your day-of timeline, as well as lists of any last minute cleaning that needs to be done. Be sure to schedule in time to run to the grocery in the morning for perishables if needed; I will need a fresh baguette and vegetables, so I will be making a quick run first thing in the morning.
• Prepare centerpiece/table decorations.
  

Day Before Party:

• Set your appetizer buffet and cookie table. For the cookie table, make sure that more than one person can get to it at a time!
  
• Arrange furniture and pull out additional chairs if needed.
• Prepare the rest of your appetizers that can be made ahead.

Day Of the Cookie Exchange:

• Buy perishable items at store
• IF you have done your major cleaning, wipe down bathrooms (including the toilets) and prepare the bathroom for guests. Run the vacuum and dust, and make sure your kitchen is clean.
• Put out appetizers, start the Christmas music softly, light the candles, brew the coffee!
• Enjoy the time with your friends and family!
  

Are you hosting a cookie exchange this year? Remember, Sundays with Santa's Helpers have challenged you to host some sort of gathering, so I hope you are planning away and preparing your details!

Menu Planning Monday: The I Am Fat Edition

As of today, I am back on Weight Watchers and back to tracking points, so my menus are going to be more focused on healthy choices and dinner menus. I am going to include WW points whenever possible!

Sunday: Potato and leak soup with sourdough bread

Monday: Leftover potato soup

Tuesday: Baked ziti with salad

Wednesday: Unstuffed pepper soup (crock pot recipe)

Thursday:Chicken nuggets/patties (kids) and Boca patties (C and me) with homemade oven fries

Friday: homemade pizza night

Saturday: Cookie exchange party!

What is on YOUR menu this week?? For menu ideas, visit OrgJunkie's Menu Planning Monday

Sundays with Santa's Little Helpers: Week 4

So, did you accomplish your holiday decorating last week? Unfortunately, our tree is not up yet. We had a choir concert and several evening commitments this week, so were unable to put it up last week and we did not have the girls this weekend. We are hopefully going to purchase it tomorrow and put it in the LR so we can decorate it Tuesday. But, I digress...

The holidays are a time for families and friends to gather together, and often we are bogged down with invitations and weekend commitments. What holiday gatherings are you attending this year? Are you hosting any? Well, if not, here is our challenge to you!

Host a holiday celebration.

This can be any number of things.

• A cookie exchange
• A formal Christmas dinner
• A Christmas brunch
• A casual dinner with friends
• A gingerbread house decorating evening with the kids
• A holiday open house
• A New Year's Eve party

Whatever event you choose, the challenge is to PLAN and POST.

Create a timeline, tablescape, decor, menu, all nine yards, and link us to it throughout the next two weeks (Santa's Helpers are taking next Sunday off to prepare for Christmas), and tell us how you did it!

I have two big events coming up: my first cookie exchange next Saturday and a brunch for my side of the family on Sunday, December 20th. I have already posted my invitations and menu for my cookie exchange, and this week you will see posts and pictures of my decor and timeline, as well as all those last minute touches!

There is LOTS coming in the Control Freak household this week, so stay tuned!

Weekend Planning

I felt like this was the longest. week.ever. Add this to the fact that our Thanksgiving weekend was RIDICULOUSLY busy and you have one exhausted Control Freak. And because of this, I plan on spending quite a bit of time relaxing and enjoying the weekend. Here is what I have planned:

Friday:

-Take girls to their mom's (3 hour round trip)

-PetSmart

Saturday:

-Sleep in!

-Clean bathrooms

-Manicure, pedicure

-Dinner and Christmas shopping with a friend

Sunday:

-Laundry

-LOTS of grading

-Make potato and leek soup

-Grocery shopping for the week

-Week 4 of Holiday Challenge!

What is on YOUR AGENDA this weekend? Any holiday plans?? Share with us your to-do list!