Holiday Baking by Shade

[Dept of PMM Artists & things]

Its that time of year, one of my favorite seasons, for holiday baking fun. I love to bake, and do so when i get the chance. Every year around this time I spend a lot of time in the kitchen, usually baking stuff for family gifts for yule. Plus, it keeps the house smelling great:) So, here in this discussion i would like to share some of my favorite recipes that I use for baked goodies. Please feel free to share yours as well, as I am always looking for new things to try. Blessed Be all!

Pumpkin Pecan Crunch
1 can (15 ounces) pumpkin
1 can (12 ounces) evaporated milk
3 eggs
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar
6 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 package (18 1/4 ounces) yellow cake mix
1 cup chopped pecans
1 cup (2 sticks) butter, melted
Whipped cream (optional)

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Mix pumpkin, milk, eggs, sugars, 5 teaspoons of the pumpkin pie spice, vanilla and salt in large bowl until well blended. Pour into 13x9-inch baking pan which has been sprayed with no stick cooking spray.

2. Mix cake mix and remaining 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice in medium bowl with wire whisk. Sprinkle dry cake mix evenly over pumpkin mixture. Sprinkle with pecans. Drizzle evenly with melted butter.

3. Bake 50 minutes or until golden brown. Serve warm or at room temperature. Serve with whipped cream and Spiced Pecans, if desired. Store leftover dessert in refrigerator.

Spiced Holiday Sugar Cookies
2 1/3 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
1 egg
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Colorful Cookie Icing:
1 cup confectioners' sugar
3 to 4 teaspoons milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 to 4 drops assorted food colorings
1. Mix flour, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt in medium bowl. Set aside. Beat granulated sugar and butter in large bowl with electric mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy. Add egg and vanilla; mix well. Gradually beat in flour mixture on low speed until well mixed. Refrigerate dough 2 hours or overnight until firm.

2. Preheat oven to 375°F. Roll out dough on lightly floured surface* to 1/8-inch thickness. Cut into shapes with favorite cookie cutters. Place on greased baking sheets.

3. Bake 8 to 10 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool on baking sheets 1 minute. Remove to wire racks; cool completely.

4. For the Icing, mix all ingredients except food colors. (Stir in additional milk as needed to thin icing or more confectioners' sugar to thicken, if needed.) Place small amount of icing into small shallow bowls, using one bowl for each color desired. Stir drops of food color into icing until desired shade is reached.

5. To ice cookies, hold cookie by its edge and dip top of cookie into icing. (Or spoon the icing onto cookie using a teaspoon.) Place iced cookies on wire rack set over foil-covered baking sheet to dry. (The foil-covered baking sheet will catch drips.) To add decorative details to cookies, spoon tinted icing into resealable plastic bag. Snip off a tiny piece of the corner. Squeeze icing through hole in plastic bag to decorate cookies. If desired, Colored Sugar may be sprinkled onto freshly iced cookies.

Egg Nog Cookies

2 ½ cups flour
1 tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. ground cinnamon
½ tsp. ground nutmeg
1 ½ cups sugar
½ cups salted butter, softened
½ cup eggnog
1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
2 large egg yolks
1 tbsp. ground nutmeg

Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Combine flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and ½ tsp. nutmeg. Mix with wire whisk and set aside. Cream sugar and butter with electric mixer. Add eggnog, vanilla, and egg yolks; beat at medium speed until smooth. Add flour mixture and bat at low speed until combined; do not over mix. Drop by rounded teaspoonfuls onto un-greased baking sheet 1 inch apart. Sprinkle lightly with 1 tbsp. nutmeg. Bake for 23/25 minutes or until bottoms turn light
brown. Transfer cookies to a cool, flat surface. Makes about 3 dozen

Spiced Holiday Tea

Ingredients:
2 cups water
3 tea bags (unflavored black tea)
4 star anise
1 3-inch-long cinnamon stick
1 cup passion fruit nectar
3 tablespoons honey
2 tablespoons lemon juice

Directions

1. In a medium saucepan bring water to boiling. Add tea bags, anise, and cinnamon stick. Reduce heat. simmer, uncovered, for 3 to 5 minutes. Discard tea bags and cinnamon stick. Stir in nectar, honey, and lemon juice. Heat through.
2. Pour tea mixture into four heat-proof cups, floating a star anise on top of each. Makes 4 servings.