12 Weeks of Christmas Cookies......Lime Meltaways

Happy Friday everyone!  It's week 2 of the 12 Weeks of Christmas Cookies!  I have a lime cookie today that might add a little Florida sunshine to your cookie plates this year.  Citrus always reminds me of Florida and well since I'm from Florida, I thought these would give you a reminder of summer and warmer weather when the cold of December hits. 

I first saw these cookies on Barbara Bakes last year and I've made them several times since.  They are refrigerator cookies which means you make the cookie dough, roll them into logs wrapped in parchment paper, chill in refrigerator for a short time, then slice & bake.  Perfect for making the dough ahead of time and baking them later or baking a few at a time.  You can also freeze the dough logs for up to 2 months.

These lime butter cookies are wonderful.  The lime zest and lime juice give it the right amount of citrus flavor.  They are small, which is good, but you won't be able to stop eating them and that could be bad.  I hope you enjoy these cookies and the sunshine that comes with them.

Check out the links at the end of this post with the other cookie participates.  Keep checking back because the linky list grows daily for the week.

Lime Meltaways

Recipe by Martha Stewart

3 dozen cookies

3/4 cups (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature

1 cup confectioners’ sugar
Grated zest of 2 limes
2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
1 3/4 cups, plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1/4 teaspoon coarse salt


Directions

1. In the bowl of an electric mixer with the whisk attachment (I used my regular paddle attachment), cream butter and 1/3 cup sugar until fluffy. Add lime zest, juice, and vanilla; beat until fluffy.

2. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cornstarch, and salt. Add to butter mixture, and beat on low speed until combined.

3. Divide dough in half.  Place each half on a separate 8 by 12 inch piece of parchment paper, roll dough into 1 1/4-inch diameter logs. Chill at least one hour.

4. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Place remaining 2/3 cup sugar in a resealable plastic bag. (I placed in bowl)  Remove parchment from logs; slice dough into 1/8-inch thick rounds. (I sliced them more like a 1/4 inch) Place rounds on baking sheets, spaced 1 inch apart.

5. Bake cookies until barely golden, about 15 minutes. Transfer cookies to a wire rack to cool slightly 8 to 10 minutes. While still warm, place cookies in the sugar-filled bag; toss to coat. (I put powdered sugar in a bowl and added baked cookies to coat)  Bake or freeze remaining dough. Store baked cookies in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks.

Enjoy!

Mom's Cooking Club Lesson:  Gift/Packaging Idea - Here's a fun gift basket you can put together.....Get a basket or Christmas basket and fill it with shredded gift paper for baskets.  How about Lime Green basket filler?  Put limes (at least 2) in basket along with a Microplane Zester.  You can get one with a red handle for Christmas or I've seen ones with Lime Green handles.  Put some cookies in a holiday treat bag and place in basket along with recipe card.  Give to some favorite people in your life!

Candied Walnut, Pear and Leafy Green Salad.....October's Cooking Light Virtual Supper Club

I've mentioned this before.  I love fruit in salad.  Now I love fruit and Candied Walnuts in salads.  The group of blogger's that showcase the recipes from Cooking Light are back this month with the theme of Vegetarian Potluck.  Alot of people are eating vegetarian these days or at least trying to do a few meatless meals a week.  I'm not a vegetarian but I do try to strike a balance with my meals and eating more meatless meals is a good idea to get that balance.

Salads can get boring which is why I'm always changing up the lettuces, vegetables and dressings that I use.  This is a wonderful salad that I will make again. The candied walnuts are simple to prepare and so addicting.  They are great just as a snack alone.  I used Bartlett pears because that's what my grocery store had in stock.  Any pear that is in-season would work just fine.  I also used mixed spring lettuce.  You will love this salad with the sweetness of the pears, crunch of the walnuts and the dressing which brings it all together.

Click here for recipe on Myrecipes.com

What did the others from the Cooking Light Virtual Supper Club bring?

Jamie (me) from Mom's Cooking Club made Candied Walnut, Pear and Leafy Green Salad.

Val from More than Burnt Toast made Butternut Squash Lasagna

Patsy from Family, Friends and Food brought Fusilli with Roasted Tomatoes

Sandi from Whistlestop Cafe Cooking made Carrot Cake

Note:  Shelby (The Life and Loves of Grumpy's Honeybunch) was not able to join us.  She is in the midst of moving to another city.  Good luck Shelby!

**Patsy was also unable to join in with this month's get-together.  I still added the link to her recipe to share her vegetarian choice.

Enjoy!

Mom's Cooking Club Lesson:   Gift/Packaging Idea -  Make up a large batch of the candied walnuts and put them in a pretty tin or container.  Place some fresh pears in a basket with the container of candied walnuts.  Include a recipe card with this salad recipe.  You can put together this gift basket as a hostess or holiday gift.  Also, for a teacher, a neighbor or for saying thank you to someone.     

The Kids Cook Monday with Oatmeal Pancakes

When I told my girls I was making Oatmeal Pancakes for this week's Kids Cook Monday dish, I got the look.  You know.  The "ewwww, yucky" look.  My daughters don't like cooked oatmeal.  Well, that doesn't stop me from making things they don't like.  I still do because I know how quickly their tastes can change.

These pancakes were a different change from my normal buttermilk pancakes that I make.  But they were a good change.  They were very good, hearty and filling.  Everyone really liked them except Mariah.  She's a textural eater and doesn't like oatmeal but she did eat 1/2 of one.  I give her credit for trying something new.  

I found this recipe on the blog, Smitten Kitchen.   

Oatmeal Pancakes

Slightly adapted from Smitten Kitchen

Ingredients

3/4 cup oat flour (you can buy oat flour but to save money I put 1 cup of old fashioned oats in my mini food processor and pulsed it until finely ground.  I then measured out 3/4 cup)
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon Kosher or coarse salt
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly (plus extra for the pan)
1 1/4 cups milk (I used 1% milk)
1 cup cooked oatmeal (I used Quaker Oats-Old Fashioned and followed instructions on package)
1 tablespoon honey
2 large eggs

Directions

Whisk the dry ingredients (oat flour, flour, sugar, baking powder and salt) together in a large bowl. In a smaller bowl, whisk the butter, milk, cooked oatmeal, honey and eggs until thoroughly combined. Gently fold the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients.

Heat a 10-inch cast-iron pan or griddle over medium heat.  Melt about 1 tablespoon butter in the pan. Scoop about 1/4-cup of batter onto the pan, 2 or 3 at a time. Once bubbles have begun to form on the top side of the pancake, flip the pancake and cook until the bottom is dark golden-brown, about 5 minutes total. Melt a small amount of butter in pan between batches.  Continue making pancakes with the remaining batter.  Serve and enjoy with your favorite syrup!

"The Kids Cook Monday is an initiative of the Monday Campaigns, a nonprofit organization that seeks to make Monday the day to start and sustain healthy behaviors."  Check out their website for a downloadable toolkit that will help you and your family cook and eat together every Monday.  It can be Breakfast, Lunch or Dinner. Enjoy your time cooking together and eating together. 



Marissa helped me in the kitchen today.  

Making these pancakes in my cast iron skillet really gave them crispy edges which was delicious.

Enjoy!

Mom's Cooking Club Lesson:  Oatmeal has many health benefits and doesn't have to be just in a bowl for breakfast.  Have a breakfast night for dinner and try these better for you pancakes.  Add some fruit on the side for even more health benefits.    

Welcome to the 12 weeks of Christmas Cookies!.......Peanut Blossoms

I'm super excited about the next 12 weeks.  I have joined a group of other bloggers who will be posting a Christmas cookie recipe every Friday for the next 12 weeks.  Links to the other bloggers will be at the bottom of this post so be sure to check out their cookies as well.  Thanks to April from Abby Sweets for organizing this group event. 

I will be sharing with you a variety of cookies.  There are so many types to choose from.  Drop, Bar, Rolled, No Bake, Refrigerator, Molded, Pressed.  My challenge will be to not gain any weight during the next 12 weeks.  And that goes for my husband and daughters as well.  They are HUGE cookie eaters!  Especially my home baked ones. : )  Friends, co-workers and neighbors....be prepared for some cookie sharing!  

 I decided to go with a classic, kid-friendly and all-around yummy cookie for my first post.  Peanut Blossom Cookies was a Pillsbury Bake-Off recipe in 1957 by Freda Smith from Ohio.  She wasn't the winner but she's a winner in my book.  I remember these cookies when I was young and how cool that I can pass them on to my daughters. I guess that's what makes a classic, a classic.  How can you go wrong with a peanut butter cookie and a Hershey chocolate kiss on top?  

Click HERE for the original Pillsbury Bake-Off recipe and HERE for the Hershey's recipe.

Both of these recipes use shortening in their recipes.  I didn't have this ingredient in my pantry so I went with the recipe from Joy of Baking which uses all butter instead.  Please click HERE for a printable version of the recipe.

I used Milk Chocolate Kisses and Hugs (milk chocolate and white chocolate swirled together).  There are several flavors that you can choose from now that would change this cookie up a bit.  How about their Special Dark or Caramel Filled Kisses?  Hershey's has a new Kiss out called Meltaway Milk Chocolates with a smooth meltaway center.  Have fun with it and come up with your own flavor combinations. 

So, are you ready to bake up some Christmas Cookies now?  

These cookies are so much fun to look at and fun to eat too!  Your kids will love making these cookies with you.  My daughter, Marissa, unwrapped the chocolate kisses and put them on top of the cookies when they came out of the oven.  The heat from the cookie starts to melt the chocolate kiss which becomes the "glue" to keep the kisses secured to the cookies.  Genius! 

See you next Friday with another cookie recipe.

Enjoy!

Mom's Cooking Club Lesson:  Gift/Packaging Idea:  Pick up some inexpensive, but cute, Christmas plates.  The one above is an acrylic plate I got on clearance at Target last year, only 75 cents.  I picked up a few to use for this year.  Put some Peanut Blossoms on the plate with Hershey Kisses scattered around.  Wrap with some clear or colored plastic wrap or use cellophane to wrap up around the plate and tie with a pretty Christmas ribbon at the top. 

2 More Days......12 Weeks of Christmas Cookies!

Are you ready for some Christmas cookies?  Well, stay tuned, because every Friday, starting October 1st, I'll be posting a Christmas cookie recipe for the next 12 weeks.  I'll be joining a group of bloggers who love baking as much as I do.  Each of us will be linking our blogs together.  So, there will be no shortage of Christmas cookie recipes this holiday season.

See you on Friday!!!!!! 

Roasted Carrots with The Kids Cook Monday!

Today is Monday and it's another recipe for The Kids Cook Monday!  Today is all about Roasted Carrots.  Roasting carrots bring out their natural sweetness and carrot flavor.  Nothing could be simpler than roasting vegetables and it's more of a technique than a recipe.  But the results are wonderful and if your kids won't eat raw vegetables, then try roasting them and you may see your kids gobble them down.  My daughter, Marissa does not like raw carrots but she likes them cooked and couldn't stop eating these. 

The Kids Cook Monday is celebrating the 10 year anniversary of another public initiative, Family Day - A Day to Eat Dinner with Your Children.  This program like The Kids Cook Monday, focuses on the health and social benefits of frequent family dinners. 

To celebrate this Family Day, The Kids Cook Monday has released a toolkit on their website that is free and downloadable.  This toolkit gives tips and ideas to help you plan, cook and eat healthy meals with your family every week.  Go to The Kids Cook Monday website to download your toolkit.

Roasted Carrots

Recipe by several sources from cookbooks & internet

Ingredients

10 - 12 carrots

2-3 tablespoons olive oil

Kosher salt

Freshly ground pepper

Directions

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Peel carrots if desired.  Cut carrots in half lengthwise.  Place carrots in single layer on baking sheet.  Drizzle olive oil over carrots.  Season with 1/2 - 1 teaspoon of kosher salt and some freshly ground pepper.  Toss carrots around to coat with oil and seasonings.  Bake in oven for approximately 30 minutes. 

 

I cut the carrots in half lengthwise.  These type of knife skills are too dangerous for my daughters so I took care of this task.

But, Mariah measured the olive oil and.......

........seasoned the carrots with salt and pepper.  Then she tossed it all together right on the baking sheet.

Marissa put the carrots in the oven.  About 30 minutes later out came these.......

Roasted Carrots!

Enjoy!

Mom's Cooking Club Lesson:  The website Fruit & Veggies More Matters,  lists the nutrition benefits of carrots as:  "Fat free; saturated fat free; low sodium; cholesterol free; excellent source of vitamin A; good source of vitamin C; low calorie."  Well, that sounds good to me.  Add some carrots to your meals this week and give yourself a nutrition boost. 

   

Herbed Parmesan Chicken Tenders with The Kids Cook Monday!

Welcome back to Monday and another segment of The Kids Cook Monday.  This program has been a great way for me to get my girls in the kitchen to help me prepare meals.  It has also been a learning experience as I teach them cooking skills and techniques.  We discuss the ingredients used and they have been asking me alot of questions about nutrition.

This is a fantastic way to make chicken tenders.  We all know how much kids love chicken tenders and nuggets.  We also know how some versions are not that great for you to eat.  These chicken tenders are marinated in buttermilk (I used low-fat) which keeps them tender and moist plus gives them great flavor.  They are breaded with a simple mixture of bread crumbs, Italian seasoning, salt and Parmesan cheese.  They are baked until golden brown and absolutely delicious.  We put ours on top a simple salad.

Another great meal we enjoyed together!  

I got inspiration from this recipe from Simply Recipes.  Click here for the original recipe.

Herbed Parmesan Chicken Tenders

Recipe by Jamie at Mom's Cooking Club

Inspired by Simply Recipes Herbed Chicken Tenders 

Ingredients

2 lbs chicken tenders (I used 2 packages which was 18 tenders)
1 1/2 cups low-fat buttermilk

1 cup dry plain bread crumbs
2 Tbsp Italian seasoning
1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
Canola oil
2 Tbsp butter, melted

Directions

Soak chicken tenders in buttermilk for 15-30 minutes.

Mix together the breadcrumbs, Italian seasoning, salt and Parmesan cheese in a plate or bowl.

Heat oven to 500°F. Line a baking sheet with foil. Brush the top of the foil with canola oil to help prevent sticking.

Remove the chicken tenders one at a time from the buttermilk and place in the bowl with the breadcrumbs, coating all sides with the breadcrumbs. Place on the baking sheet.

Drizzle the melted butter over the chicken tenders. Place in the oven and bake for about 12 - 14 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through, and the pieces are lightly browned.

A simple preparation: chicken tenders marinate in buttermilk for 15-30 minutes, then coated in the bread crumb mixture, placed on a baking sheet and drizzled with a little butter.  In 12-14 minutes, out comes the most moist and tasty chicken tenders. 

A simple salad of mixed iceberg and romaine lettuce, cucumbers, shredded carrots, feta cheese and dried cranberries.

Me (Jamie) and the dogs (MJ & Maximus) are supervising Marissa as she 

grates the Parmesan cheese.

Enjoy!

Mom's Cooking Club Lesson:  We put these chicken tenders on top of a salad with light ranch dressing.  Light blue cheese or honey mustard dressing would be delicious as well.  Or serve the tenders separately with a side of veggies.