12 Weeks of Christmas Treats: Pumpkin Snickerdoodles

When I think of treats that I want at Christmas, they are things that remind me of home.  Home is what makes Christmas so special in my mind, probably because it is the one time of year that I tend to make it home more than any other.  The things that make desserts seem like home are pumpkin, cinnamon, and spices like allspice.  I think that is why pumpkin pie, apple pie, etc make it to the top of everyone's favorite dessert lists.

I decided to make a dessert for 12 Weeks of Christmas Treats, hosted by Brenda at Meal Planning Magic, that doesn't scream Christmas, but reminds you of home. 

Pumpkin Snickerdoodles
from Recipe Girl
Ingredients
Cookies
1 cup (2 sticks) salted butter, at room temperature
1 cup granulated white sugar
1/2 cup light brown sugar
3/4 cup pure unsweetened pumpkin puree
1 large egg
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
3 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Rolling Sugar
1/2 cup granulated white sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon allspice

Directions

1) In a large bowl, use an electric mixer to cream the butter until fluffy. Add sugars and pumpkin puree and beat well. Mix in egg and vanilla, scraping down sides of the bowl to incorporate all of the ingredients.
2) In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, salt and ground cinnamon. Beat flour mixture into liquid mixture a little at a time just until incorporated.
3) Cover dough with plastic and chill at least an hour, or until dough becomes slightly firm.
4) When ready to bake, preheat oven to 350°F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper (or spray with nonstick spray). Mix rolling sugar ingredients in a small bowl.
5) Remove cookie dough from refrigerator. Use a medium cookie scoop (1 1/2 Tablespoons) or a large spoon to scoop out dough and roll into balls. Use your hands to roll the balls in the cinnamon sugar and make sure they're coated really well. Place 2 inches apart on the prepared baking sheets. Use a glass with a nice, flat bottom dipped in sugar and flatten the balls.
6) Bake at 350°F. for 15 minutes, or until they are slightly firm to the touch. Let cool on baking sheets for 5 minutes or so, then remove them to a wire rack to cool completely.

The only comment that I have about this recipe is that the original cooking time (10 to 14 minutes), listed on the Recipe Girl website didn't work for my cookies.  My oven was still heated from dinner by the time I put the cookies in and they were still underdone in the center.  I think fifteen minutes should be the low end of baking time for these cookies.

I did love these cookies.  Pair them with a glass of milk and you have a perfect dessert, in my opinion.  I love finding delicious pumpkin recipes to try outside of pumpkin pie.  This one hits the spot. 

Cherry Surprise Crinkles

It is time for another 12 Weeks of Christmas Treats.  This great idea is hosted by Brenda at Meal Planning Magic.  I love this recipe get-together because it provides great ideas once Christmas actually rolls around (I don't have enough self restraint to keep all of these good treats in my freezer until Christmas).

One of my guilty pleasures around Christmas is chocolate covered cherries.  There is something about the combination of cherries and chocolate that just seem so Christmas-y to me.  For my first treat, while I would love to make chocolate covered cherries, I know they would never live up to my favorite treat, so I decided to make these Cherry Surprise Crinkles.  They combine the two greats into cookie form that creates a delicious cookie.

Cherry Surprise Crinkles
from Better Homes and Gardens
Ingredients

1/2 cup butter, softened

1 cup granulated sugar

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 egg

1 teaspoon almond extract

2 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 cup chopped maraschino cherries, well drained and patted dry with paper toweling

12 Kisses cherry cordials or Kisses dark chocolates

Powdered sugar

Directions

1) Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a medium mixing bowl beat butter with an electric mixer on medium to high speed for 30 seconds. Add the granulated sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Beat until combined, scraping sides of bowl occasionally. Beat in egg and almond extract until combined. Beat in as much of the flour as you can with the mixer. Stir in any remaining flour and the cherries.

2) Take a tablespoon of dough. Shape each portion into a ball around a Kiss. Place balls 2 inches apart on ungreased cookie sheets.

3. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes or until bottoms are light golden brown. Transfer cookies to a wire rack and let cool. Lightly dust cooled cookies with powdered sugar

I thought for sure that I'd be eating these cookies alone in my house because I'm much more into the cherry and chocolate combination than my husband, but after only 2 days, there were only enough for the picture.  Success in my mind.  I wish that the Maraschino cherries has a better quality to them, but these were fantastic cookies. 

 

Please see all the other treats below.

 

12 Weeks of Christmas Treats: Carrot Cake Whoopie Pies

I can't believe it is the third week of the 12 Weeks of Christmas Treats already.  Please check out Meal Planning Magic for details about the 12 Weeks of Christmas Treats and for awesome recipes.

When I was a little kid, I was OBSESSED with Rudolph.  I saw the movie with Rudolph and Clarice and fell in love with him.  When Christmas Eve came around, I always cared more about leaving treats for Rudolph than I did for Santa even though Santa left the presents and Rudolph didn't.

My parents were always really creative and came up with great answers to my Santa questions when I was a kid, so when I asked questions about Rudolph, they always had answers. How does Rudolph fly? - Much like Peter Pan, he thought happy thoughts and away he went.  How did Rudolph always have enough energy to fly all over the world hauling a giant red Santa and all the presents?- Kids left him carrots which improved his eye sight and were healthy, so he always had energy.

In honor of Rudolph, I decided to make this wonderful Christmas treat.

Carrot Cake Whoopie Pies with Cream Cheese Frosting
slightly adapted from Quick Feet, Good Eats
Ingredients
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter – room temp
3/4 cup packed dark brown sugar
3/4 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs – room temp
1 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1 1/2 cup grated carrots – about 3 large carrots
1 cup raisins
1/2 cup toasted chopped walnuts

Directions
1) Line two baking sheets with parchment paper, silpats, or simply spray with cooking spray.
2) In a mixer, beat butter and sugars on medium speed until light and fluffy (about 3 – 4 minutes in a stand mixer).
3) Add eggs and vanilla and beat on medium until well combined.
4) Sift together flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger; whisk to combine. Gradually add flour mixture to butter mixture; mix on low until just combined. Do not overmix.
5) Mix in carrots, raisins and walnuts. Chill dough for at least 1 hour. (Mine stayed in the fridge almost an entire day covered with plastic wrap)
6) Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
7) Shape tablespoons of dough into balls and place on prepared baking sheets, spacing 2 inches apart. Or press into a whoopie pie pan.
8) Bake until browned and crisp around the edges, 15 to 20. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Cream Cheese Frosting
Ingredients
1 cup of butter, at room temp
8 oz cream cheese, at room temp
3 cups confectioners sugar
1 splash vanilla extract

Directions
1)  Combine butter and cream cheese in mixing bowl and mix on medium speed for 5 minutes.
2) While mixing at a low speed, add sugar. Once combined, add a splash of vanilla extract and mix on a medium to high speed for 3 minutes, or until smooth and fully combined. Frost whoopie pies and enjoy!

Even though these aren't healthy, and wouldn't help me fly around the world carrying Santa and presents, they were amazingly delicious.  I forgot the oats in the original recipe, but in all honesty, they were delicious without them.  They had a lot of holiday flavors with the cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger, so I think these would be perfect on a holiday table.  My husband took a bite and declared "These are a keeper!" 

Check out all the other recipes below!

12 Weeks of Christmas Treats: Salted Caramel Brownies

One of my favorite things during the holiday season is a Starbucks Salted Caramel Hot Chocolate.  When it is cold outside, it warms you up and provides the comfort of chocolate with the great taste of caramel and that hint of salt. 

I ran across a recipe for Salted Caramel Brownies and knew that I had to make these for the 12 Weeks of Christmas Treats.  What is better in the cold than hot chocolate and a salted caramel brownie?  Not much. 


12 Weeks of Christmas Treats is being hosted by Brenda from Meal Planning Magic.  Head to her blog to check out the details and how to join. 

Salted Caramel Brownies
brownie recipe from Food Network
salted caramel recipe from Pip & Ebby
Ingredients
Brownies

1 1/2 cups sugar

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted and cooled

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

3 large eggs

1 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

Salted Caramel
2 cup granulated sugar
1 cup heavy whipping cream
4 tablespoons light corn syrup
2 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 cup sour cream

Directions
1) Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a 9-by-13-inch baking pan with aluminum foil and spray with nonstick cooking spray.
2) Stir together the sugar, butter, vanilla and eggs in a medium bowl. Add the flour, cocoa powder, salt and baking powder all at once and stir until just combined.
3) Bake until the brownies begin to pull away from the edge of the pan and set in the center, 30 to 35 minutes.
4) For caramel, combine sugar, whipping cream, and corn syrup in a large sauce pan.  Set your heat to high and cook, stirring, until the mixture reaches 250 degrees. It took me about 20 minutes to reach this point.
5) When caramel reaches 250 degrees, stir in sea salt and sour cream.
6) Spread the caramel over the brownies and sprinkle with 1 teaspoon of salt.
7) Chill until the caramel sets.

I loved these brownies.  I loved the crunch of the salt on top of the caramel.  Even after chilling mine, the caramel was still difficult (messy to get out of the pan, drooping down the brownie), but it was worth it because these are delicious.  They'd be a great accompaniment to the salted caramel hot chocolate. 

12 Weeks of Christmas Treats: Puppy Chow Cookies

A week ago, someone on my cooking forum posted about the 12 Weeks of Christmas Treats, hosted by Meal Planning Magic.  For the next twelve weeks, the group will be posting all types of different treats.  Anything you might have out on a holiday table for munching on or serving at your holiday parties is game for the blog hop, so check back every week for amazing posts that will be perfect to make for the biggest holiday of the year.

Every year around Christmas, my mom breaks out the puppy chow.  The delicious mix covered in peanut butter and powdered sugar.  Our family is addicted to it, so it disappears VERY quickly.  I think she makes more and more batches every year.

Right before I found out about the 12 Weeks of Christmas Treats, someone pinned these Puppy Chow Cookies on Pinterest, and I pinned them.  I knew they were an absolutely perfect start to this blog hop, so I jumped on making them. 

Puppy Chow Cookies
Peanut Butter Cookies from Jenna's Cooking Journey,
Puppy Chow ingredients from Betty Crocker 
Ingredients  
Cookies 

1/3 cup vegetable shortening

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup packed light brown sugar

1 large egg

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

3/4 cup smooth peanut butter

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

Coating 

1 cup semisweet chocolate chips (6 ounces)

1/4 cup unsalted butter

1/4 cup peanut butter

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 1/2 to 2 cups powdered sugar

Directions
1) Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.  Line two baking sheets with parchment paper or a silicone mat.
2) In a mixing bowl, combine the shortening, sugars, egg, vanilla, and peanut butter until the mixture is smooth.
3) Scrape down the bowl, and add the flour, baking soda, and salt to the wet mixture.  Beat slowly until dough is just combined.  This is a dry dough, so it could take awhile to mix.  If the dough seems too crumbly, add a little water at a time until the dough is no longer crumbly.
4) Using a scoop, drop the cookie dough onto your baking sheet, leaving 2 inches between each cookie. 
5) Take a fork and flatten the cookie to a 1/2 inch thickness, making a cross-hatch type of design.
6) Bake the cookies 12-16 minutes, until they just start to brown around the edges.  The tops will not brown at this point.
7) Allow cookies to cool completely.
8) In small microwaveable bowl, microwave chocolate chips, butter and peanut butter uncovered on High for approximately 1 minute to 1 minute 30 seconds; stir until smooth. Stir in vanilla.
9) Place powdered sugar in a gallon-sized zip-lock bag.  Coat each cookie with a thin layer of chocolate and then coat each cookie with powdered sugar in the zip-lock bag.  Repeat until all cookies are coated.

I made peanut butter cookies from scratch not too long ago, so I decided to use freshly made cookies instead of package ones.  I guess it depends on how much time you have in the Christmas season to do everything from scratch or you decide to do things the "Semi-Homemade" way.  I loved these cookies.  It had the same ideas as puppy chow but in a cookie form.  The powdered sugar isn't as messy (in eating form) as I thought it would be.  The cookie making process is definitely messy, but fun times will be had by all in the kitchen.

Please take the time to read all the other recipes below.  Check back next Thursday for another tasty treat!