Wacky Anne's Christmas Kitchen: Squares, Cookies and Candies

Bunuelos (fritters)

Makes about 3 dozen.

2 cups sifted flour
2 tbsp sugar
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp anise seeds, crushed
1 tsp grated lemon rind
1 egg, beaten
2/3 cup honey
1/2 cup oil

Combine flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, anise, and lemon. Stir in , egg, and enough milk to create a doughRoll out to thin rounds 7-8 inches in diameter. Heat oil in a shallow skillet until hot. Quarter each round and drop flat into hot oil, brown lightly about 30 seconds on each side. Remove from skillet and sprinkle to taste with topping mixture of cinnamon and sugar.

Candied Citrus Peel

Makes 12 ounces

3 large oranges
3 large grapefruit
1-1/2 cups water
3 cups granulated sugar
3 tbsp honey
1/8 tsp salt
1 tsp unflavoured gelatin

Cut oranges into fourths and grapefruit into eighths. Remove pulp and scrape away all the white part. Cut peel into 1/2" strips. Place peel in a 2-quart saucepan, cover with water, and simmer 15 minutes; drain and discard the water. Pour over the peel 1-1/4 cups of the measured water, 2 cups of the sugar, the honey and the salt. Cook 45 minutes over low heat, stirring occasionally. Just before removing from heat, soften gelatin in remaining 1/4 cup of water and add to hot mixture. Stir to dissolve. Let cool, and drain well into a colander. Roll the strips of peel in the remaining sugar, and let dry overnight on a baking sheet lined with waxed paper. Store in a tightly covered container and it will keep moist for several weeks.

Fredericton Walnut Toffee

½ cup black walnut pieces
1-1/3 cup lightly packed brown sugar
1 cup butter
3 squares semi-sweet chocolate, grated (or one chocolate bar broken into pieces)

Butter a 9-inch square pan thoroughly. Spread in pan - ½ cup black walnut pieces. Mix together brown sugar and butter in heavy frypan. Cook over medium heat (keep mixture bubbling), stirring constantly, for 12 minutes. Pour toffee mixture quickly over nuts. Sprinkle chocolate over hot toffee. As chocolate melts, spread until smooth. Sprinkle with more chopped black walnuts. Chill and break into pieces.

Gingerbread Cookies
Makes two dozen cookies.

1/3 cup brown sugar, firmly packed
1/3 cup butter, margarine or shortening
2/3 cup molasses
1 egg, unbeaten
3 cup sifted all-purpose flour
1 tbsp baking powder
1-1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp salt

Cream sugar and shortening until light and fluffy. Beat in molasses and egg. Sift in flour, baking powder, ginger and salt; blend well. Chill two or more hours until firm enough to roll. Divide dough into fourths; work with one fourth at a time, refrigerating the remainder. Roll out to desired thickness for various sizes and shapes of cookies. Place on a greased cookie sheet and bake in a preheated 350°F oven until firm, about 5 to 7 minutes. Cool slightly before removing to a wire rack.

Lebkuchen

7 whole large eggs
1 lb ground almonds (made with about 3-1/2 cups whole almonds)
1 lb dark brown sugar
juice and peel from 1 lemon
2 oz (60 g) orange peel
2 oz (60 g) citron peel
1/3oz (10 g) cinnamon
tiny pinch cloves
1/8 tsp ground cardamom
60 g breadcrumbs

Beat eggs till foamy. Add ground nuts and rest of ingredients. Spread this on Oblaten, a German wafer-paper available in specialty shops, and place this on a cookie sheet. Bake at 350°F for 30-40 minutes until they feel solid around the edges. Mix some confectioner's sugar with some lemon juice, about 1/2 cup sugar to 2 teaspoon juice. Spread this on top of Lebkuchen. Sprinkle colored sugar on it immediately. Cool, and cut into small squares.

Marzipan

Makes 18 candies or 36 fillings.

1 can (8oz) almond paste
2 tbsp slightly beaten egg white
1 cup sifted confectioner's sugar

In a medium-sized bowl, break up almond paste with a fork. Add egg white and work in well. Knead in the sugar until the mixture is stiff enough to form into desired shapes.

Fruits and vegetables may be modeled from marzipan and tinted with food colouring (see below). Marzipan can be used to stuff dried apricots, figs, and dates; or it may be rolled into candies, spread with Fondant Frosting and topped with an almond, pecan or walnut. Makes about 1-1/2 dozen candies 1-1/2" by 3/4" by 3/4".

Marzipan Fruits & Vegetables

Pfeffernüsse

4 eggs
1 lb sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp ground nutmeg
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp ground cloves
1 lb flour
3 oz finely chopped candied lemon peel

Beat eggs and sugar. Add baking powder and spices and beat thoroughly. Add flour, and knead into dough. Shape into small cookies and bake slowly in oven on buttered tray.

Popcorn Balls

1 cup sugar
1/3 cup white corn syrup
1/3 cup water
1/4 cup butter
3/4 tsp salt
3/4 tsp vanilla
3-1/2 quarts popped corn

Place all ingredients except vanilla and popcorn into pan and cook. Stir until sugar is dissolved. Continue to cook until the syrup forms a brittle ball when dropped in cold water. Add vanilla and stir enough to mix it through the hot syrup. Poor cooked syrup slowly over the popcorn in a large bowl. Mix throughly. Wet hands and shape into balls.

Pralines

Makes one dozen 2-1/2" pralines

2 cups sugar
3/4 tsp baking soda
1 cup light cream
1-1/2 tbsp butter or margarine
2 cups pecan halves

Combine sugar and soda in a 3-quart saucepan. Add cream and stir to dissolve sugar. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring occasionally. When mixture starts to boil, reduce heat. The mixture will gradually turn golden as it cooks. Boil until syrup forms a soft ball when a small amount is dropped into a cup of cold water, or reaches 234°F on a candy thermometer. Remove pan from heat and add butter. Stir in pecans and beat just until thick enough to drop from a metal spoon. Drop candy on waxed paper placed on a cookie sheet. If necessary, add a tablespoon or so of hot water to keep candy at the right consistency for dropping from spoon. Cool until firm before removing.

Highland Shortbread

1 cup softened butter
1/2 cup sugar
2-1/2 cups sifted all-purpose flour

Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Gradually work the flour into the butter and sugar until the dough is well mixed. Form dough into a ball and divide in half. Press into two 8" greased and floured cake pans or into a wooden Scotch shortbread mold prepared in the same way. Press around the edges with a fork to make the dough fluted, and prick it all over. Bake in a preheated 375°F oven for 10 minutes, reduce heat to 300°F and bake about 30 minutes more, or until golden. Let cool slightly before removing from pans, and cut into 8 wedges. If wooden mold is used, baking time will be somewhat longer.

Snowballs

Makes three dozen (36)

1 cup raisins or currants
1 cup dried pitted prunes
1 cup pitted dates
1/2 cup figs
1 cup chopped walnuts
shredded coconut

Grind or blend the dried fruits, stir in the walnuts, and roll into small balls, coating them with coconut.

Sugar Cookies

Makes four dozen (48)

1-1/2 cup sugar
1 cup shortening
2 eggs, well beaten
1-1/2 tsp vanilla
3-1/2 cups sifted all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
tinted frosting, Fondant Frosting, raisins, coloured sugar (optional)

Cream sugar and shortening until light and fluffy; beat in eggs and vanilla. Sift in flour, baking powder, and salt; blend well. Pat into a ball, wrap in foil, and chill until firm. Divide the dough into fourths; work with one fourth at a time, refrigerating the remainder. Roll out to desired thickness for various sizes and shapes of cookies. Place on a greased cookie sheet and bake in a preheated 375°F oven until the edges are golden, about 5 to 7 minutes. Cool slightly before removing to a wire rack.

Decorate as desired with tinted frosting, raisins, or coloured sugar. Dough may be cut with cookie cutters or with a knife from cardboard patterns. Picture cutouts may be "pasted" on with Fondant Frosting.

My Christmas Kitchen: Christmas Recipes

Christmas Squares, Cookies and Candies