Make now, Bake later

I like to make things ahead of time, freeze and then bake later. Especially cookies! I try to keep sweet things at a minimum around the house, so this really works well for us. You can bake just one or a dozen. Because you end up with a fresh baked cookie, I prefer doing it this way rather then baking first and then freezing.

I have found that it works well to make a batch or a half batch of cookies, scoop them into balls and place them on a pan or a tray lined with parchment paper. You can place them close to each other without touching. Then they are ready to be placed in the freezer. I keep them in the freezer for an hour or two, and then they are ready to be removed and placed in a freezer bag. They keep well in the freezer for 3 or 4 months. Just place as many as you want to bake on a cookie sheet covered with parchment paper, wait about 20 minutes and pop them in the oven. Bake them according to the recipe.

We recently wanted a little something sweet, so I took these Chocolate Fudge Cookies with Toffee and Dried Cherries out of the freezer and in less than 30 minutes we had a couple of cookies. These cookies are so good! The cherries add a chewy sweetness, the toffee adds a crunchy sweetness and the chocolate, well it needs no explanation!

 

Enjoy!

Lemon Cloud Tea Cookies

Sounds good, doesn't it? Well, it caught my eye and I checked it out over on Joy the Baker. As I was reading about them, it said they were a great light cookie to sit down and have a cup of tea with, and it suggested making them with lemon or orange, and I thought why not lime? I had bought a bottle of lime extract a while back and hadn't really come across a recipe that called for it, so I was really happy at the thought of finally using it. I was sure my hubby would like them too, because he likes anything with lime in it, so, I started in. The recipe called for vanilla extract, the citrus extract and the corresponding citrus zest. The recipe was very easy and they were in the oven very fast. They smelled really good as they were baking and I was convinced that we had found a new favorite cookie.

After the first tray had a chance to cool, I handed my hubby one to try. He said that it was good, lots of lime flavor, etc. Well, I'm glad that I broke a piece off of one and tried it before I started passing them out to my friends and neighbors! That's the problem when your hubby thinks that everything you make is perfect, the best, amazing! I took a bite and tried to spit it out in my hand but it wouldn't, because it was stuck to my tongue, the roof of my mouth and coating my teeth! They were so dry and floury, I have never had anything quite like that before. Something was wrong. I looked back over the recipe and I had not left anything out and had followed the directions to the letter.


I put the second tray in the oven and took five minutes off of the 20 minutes on the recipe, hoping that maybe the first batch was overdone. After that tray had cooled, we split a cookie and it was still exactly the same. It was frustrating, but this recipe has the potential to be a great recipe, so I'm not going to give up on it yet. From the texture, I'm thinking that there was too much flour, powdered sugar and cornstarch for one cube of butter. The original recipe comes from The Modern Baker by Nick Malgieri, so I know it is from a good source. I'm going to give you the recipe in case you want to check it out. Maybe you will have better luck than me. I think it is important to show the failures, because everything doesn't always come out perfect, at least not in this kitchen. Oops! Maybe I better change the name of this blog.

 Lemon Cloud Tea Cookies

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

3/4 cup cornstarch

4 teaspoons baking powder

1/8 teaspoon salt

8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened

1 cup confectioners' sugar

2 large eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/2 teaspoon lemon or orange extract

1 teaspoon finely grated lemon or orange zest

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.

Combine the flour, cornstarch, baking powder and salt. Set aside.

Combine the butter and confectioners sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer. Beat on low speed with the paddle until well mixed. Increase the speed to medium and continue beating until light, about 2 minutes.

Beat in the eggs one at a time. Batter may look broken and curdled. Beat in the extracts and zest.

Decrease the speed to low and beat in the flour. Remove the bowl from the mixer and give the dough a few good turns wit your spatula to bring it all together.

Arrange rounded teaspoons of the dough on a pan lined with parchment paper. Space the balls about 2-inches apart. After all the cookies have been placed on the pan, flour a fork and press a crisscross design into the top of each mound of dough. Bake the cookies until they spread and become golden, about 20 minutes. Cool completely.

Makes 48 tiny cookies.

One last thing I should have noticed at the time, my dear sweet hubby had the milk carton out and was trying to wash that cookie down! I didn't put two and two together!

A Day with Misty

Our beautiful niece, Misty, came for a visit recently. We all love Misty and get really happy when she arrives!!

She is one of the most amazing young ladies that I know. There aren't many 21-year olds that have spent their vacation time at a camp for kids with physical disabilities. She graduated magna cum laude last year, while holding down a full-time job. More than those accomplishments (plus many more), she is a kind, caring and all-around amazing young lady.

Our day started out with a jolt, I mean a real jolt. We had an earthquake and Misty slept right through it. Good for her!

 

We spent the rest of the day having fun!

The boys absolutely adore Misty and they have a great time playing together!

 Wiley trying to take Ivan for a ride in the wagon

Mommy fixing the wagon handle so that it would be easier to pull.

Ivan waving to his fans!

Misty and Wiley took a little time to ponder life and it's complexities.

 Ivan had fun pushing the shopping cart around the yard.

After several hours of playing, running, fixing, laying down, swinging, it was time to cool down a little. We decided to head out to get some frozen yogurt. Tutti Frutti Frozen Yogurt, to be exact! With temps in the mid 80's, we weren't the only ones with that idea. The place was packed.

Misty

Wiley is enjoying his yogurt

 Ivan can't quite reach

 Wiley found one last bite

Before she left town, I baked some of her favorite cookies to take home with her. I know how much she loves them and I try to make them for her just about every time she comes for a visit. It is really fun to bake for such an appreciative and enthusiastic recipient!!

I made plenty so she could freeze them and enjoy them longer.

Here is the recipe for Misty's Favorite Cookies.

Enjoy!

Lytle Family Recipes

My mother-in-law, Dorothy and sister-in-law, Deanna are excellent cooks. Down through the years, they have both shared their recipes with me and given me cookbooks that I still have and treasure very much. Here are a few of their recipes that I have in my recipe box.

Great Grandma Paulsen was in her 70's when I first met her. I know that she was an outstanding cook for many years. She lived with her family on a working farm in North Dakota and she cooked many meals for her family and hired hands. She got up very early everyday to bake fresh bread and everything from scratch, including lighting the fire in the oven. Any time we think we have it hard in the cooking department, we should remember what our grandmothers and great grandmothers went through to get a meal on the table. Great Grandma Paulsen lived to be 99 years old. This is the only recipe I have from her in my recipe box.



I only met Aunt Emma Larson a couple of times. She was Great Grandma Paulsen's younger sister. One thing everyone said about her is that she was such a good cook.
I'm glad that I have this recipe from her.



My mother-in-law, Dorothy is one of my favorite people. I couldn't love her more! We have enjoyed so many wonderful meals around her dining room table. If you asked any of her grandkids about their favorite meal at Gramma's house, they would all say they wanted it to include her amazing hot rolls with butter and strawberry freezer jam. Here are her recipes that I have in my box.











My sister-in-law, Deanna is also one of the nicest people that I know. She is always so happy and kind and my kids have always called her "Auntie Dee." She always brought the best dishes to family gatherings. She probably got tired of me asking for her recipes. I'm glad I have these recipes to share from her.

Vintage Recipes

The first recipe cards I received were from a "Kitchen Shower" that great friends had for us before we got married. About thirty couples were there and every couple brought a recipe card with their favorite recipe, a spice, a can of food, plus many other kitchen type gifts. It was amazing! By the time we were married in November of 1972, we had lots of recipes, spices and our cupboards were filled with lots of food. Good thing, because we were as poor as church mice!! Actually, even poorer than church mice!!

Here are a few of those recipes plus some others that have been given to me during the past 37 years.

The Old Recipe Box

I'm guessing that not many of the new cooks have an old recipe box. It goes way back to the olden days when recipes weren't as available as they are now. Computers are great. We can quickly google and find a recipe we need in a flash. But, sometimes it's just fun to drag out the old recipe box and pull out a recipe written on an old fashioned recipe card. Every time I do, it is a trip down memory lane. Most of my card are stained with drips and specks, after years of use. Now more than ever, I appreciate the time each person took to write out the card specifically for me. It always brings back a good memory about a family member or a special friend and maybe a meal we shared or a baby shower we were at together.

In my recipe box, the majority of my cards have -  Recipe From: Mom.  I learned from my mom, how to cook as I was growing up, so when I got married and started my own family, I basically cooked what and how my mom had cooked for all 9 of us. The first time I made a pot roast with gravy for my new husband back in 1972, he looked in the dutch oven and said "What are we going to do with all that gravy"? It actually took me a while before I was able to cook for only 2 people. I'm posting these recipes in honor of my mom for all the food she cooked for us during the 50's, 60's and 70's. These are also for her kids, grandkids and great-grand kids to enjoy.