Monthly Archives: December 2008

As promised, I made Russian Tea Cakes to compare to the Hazelnut Tea Cakes I made earlier in the week.  And yep, I’d have to say I like them a little bit more.  And they are a cinch to throw together – WAY easier than pie!

Justin and I started a tradition on our honeymoon to pick up a Christmas tree ornament when we traveled somewhere new (by plane).  After our wedding, we took a Caribbean cruise to San Juan, St. Thomas and St. Croix and found this funny shrimp ornament.  Since that first trip we have found ornaments in Costa Rica, Panama, Vancouver, Las Vegas, Hawaii and Peru.  It is fun to search for a small, meaningful souvenir while we are on a vacation, and it then reminds us of those fun travels when we hang it on the tree each year.  

So I decided to take Hershey’s prize basket‘s suggestion and just go ahead and make Peanut Blossoms with everything that was sent.  I followed the recipe almost to the tee – I used butter-flavored shortening and doubled the vanilla (as usual).  And just as I was mixing them up, I got a call from Claudia, who was in town – all the way from Peru!  She is working at Cascade Mountain ski hill in Portage over the winter (her “summer” break – poor girl) and had a friend drive her into Stevens Point to visit with some people from Woodlands who she had met in Peru.  The cookies came out of the oven just as she arrived, so we were able to catch up a bit over glasses of milk and warm Peanut Blossoms (that’s when they’re the best – the Kiss is nice and gooey!).  It was fun to laugh and remember moments from Peru, as well as tease her about willingly coming to Wisconsin in the middle of winter!

This evening I drove up to Wausau to make Christmas candy at my Aunt Phyllis’ house.  Ruth, Michelle and Mom were there, as well as Mark, Philip and Joseph (but only because it was their house).  Us girls had a fun time making WheatThin candy (peanut butter sandwiched between 2 WheatThins, dipped in a mixture of semi-sweet & white chocolate), White Clusters  (melted white chocolate mixed with peanut butter, Rice Krispies, mini marshmallows, and peanuts), Peanut Butter Balls (peanut butter, butter, powdered sugar and graham cracker crumbs formed into balls and then dipped in semi-sweet chocolate), Angel Food candy (sugar heated to soft-crack stage, then baking soda is added to “puff” it up, then once it hardens it is dipped in chocolate), and Peppermint Candy (melted white chocolate mixed with crushed peppermint sticks).  Lots of stories shared and plenty of laughing, all the while making fantastic candy to share and take to holiday festivities.  

I couldn’t really decide whether to blog about these cookies or not.  I was leaning away from it, as I thought they were just okay, but other people have given them two thumbs up and so now I feel it is worth it to share.  It really comes down to the hazelnuts.  If  you love hazelnuts, you will flip over these.  If you aren’t the biggest fan of them (which I guess includes me), they’ll just be so-so.  As the hazelnuts are toasted and then finely ground, the flavor is very much in the forefront.  The buttery shortbread-type cookie dough is the secondary player.  My favorite part is the powdered sugar coating.  I like my family’s “Russian Tea Cakes” a bit better, but they are made with walnuts or pecans and that’s the main difference.  I’ll make those in a few days to let you compare.  

When you aren’t feeling the greatest, it seems to make you appreciate the little things a little bit more.  For me, it is a box of Puffs tissues and Clementines that are in season.  These little Cuties are just what us Wisconsinites need mid-December.  Colds are running rampant, it is bitter cold outside, and drier than the Sahara inside.  And along comes a bright, juicy, sweet, easy-to-peel and immune-boosting snack.  Better than any cookie that can be baked (just this once!).

Our friend Doug Allord obviously has too much time on his hands and has made me the “Banana Man in Japan, named Stan who ran for a plan for a bran fan that can ban a tan crayon from the van”. I hope this isn’t a trend of putting me in strange photos (hint hint)

Today was the YMCA’s annual Frostbite Run.  And the weather lived up to the race’s name – it was only about 18 degrees outside.  Aunt Ruth and Cousin Laura ran the 5 mile course in great time, and Justin and I came out to show our support for their craziness.  Lots of runners definitely had spirit and ran with santa hats or jingle bells, but this trio really went all out!  After the race, Justin wanted to pretend that he had just finished running it too.  Which, I guess, means to hold a banana and look, um, exhausted?

So I was feeling pretty crummy yesterday.  And the sick 11-year-old kid in me wanted to curl up on the couch with a blanket and watch movies.  As in, watch movies I watched when I was 11.  So while Justin cued up two that I ADORED when I was younger – The Little Mermaid & The Lion King- I produced a batch of these little darlings.  These browned butter brown sugar shortbread cookies are eye-brow raising good.  They’re cookies that won’t make it as the centerfold of a cookbook – but it will be on the page that is splattered with butter and flour and crusted with sugar.