Tracy Tappan

Holiday Recipe Exchange

 

CHRISTMAS MORNING:

I make this coffee cake all the time, it's super easy

1. Coffee Cake

1 ½ cups less 2 Tablespoons flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

½ teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon mace

½ cup sugar

1 egg, well beaten

½ cup milk

3 Tablespoons melted butter

Butter and sugar for topping

Sift dry ingredients together. Combine with egg, milk, and melted butter. Beat until smooth. Pour into a buttered 8-by-8 pan. Dot with butter that has been rolled in sugar, and sprinkle additional sugar over the top. Dust with mace or cinnamon. Bake at 400 degrees F for 25 minutes or until brown and puffy. Serve hot.

Deborah from Sugar Grove, Illinois

 

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The currants give this a holiday flair. Since this is a low-sugar option to Christmas morning pastries, serving these scones warm with butter is a must.

2. Currant Scones with Orange Glaze

Scones:

1 ½ cups all-purpose flour

¼ cup sugar

3 teaspoons baking powder

½ teaspoon cardamom

¼ teaspoon salt

¼ cup butter

1/3 cup dried currants

2 teaspoons grated orange peel

½ cup buttermilk

1 egg

1 teaspoon sugar

Orange glaze:

½ cup orange juice

2 Tablespoons brown sugar

2 teaspoons cornstarch

½ to 1 teaspoon grated orange peel

Heat over to 400 degrees F.

Combine flour, sugar, baking powder, cardamom, and salt; mix well. Using pastry blender or fork, cut in butter until mixture is crumbly. Stir in currants and orange peel.

In small bowl, combine buttermilk and egg. Add to flour mixture all at once, stirring until just combined. Mixture will be sticky.

Turn out on a greased cookie sheet and using the back of a wet spatula (or wet hands), shape into 8-inch circle about 1-inch thick. Cut into 8 edges; do not separate. Sprinkle with 1 teaspoon sugar.

Bake at 400 degrees F for 15-20 minutes or until light golden brown.

Meanwhile in small saucepan combine orange juice, brown sugar, and cornstarch. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring constantly. Boil 1 minute or until thickened. Stir in ½ to 1 teaspoon of orange peel. Set aside.

Cut warm scones into wedges. Let cool completely and brush tops with orange glaze.  


Susan from Austin, Texas  

 

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APPETIZERS:

I have included several recipes because the last several years my kids and I decided to just serve hors d'oeuvres because they have so many places they need to stop when they come home for the weekend (or whatever days they are here for the holiday). These are the most often requested by them and their spouses.

3. Farmhouse BBQ Muffins

1 tube (10 ounce) refrigerated buttermilk biscuits

1 pound ground beef

1 Tablespoon vinegar

½ cup Ketchup

½ teaspoon chili powder

3 Tablespoons brown sugar

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Separate dough into 10 biscuits. Flatten into 5 inch circles. Press into bottom and up sides of greased muffin pans. Set aside. In a skillet, brown hamburger and drain. In a small mixing bowl, combine ketchup, brown sugar, vinegar, and chili powder. Stir until smooth. Add to meat and mix well. Divide meat mixture among biscuit-lined cups. Sprinkle with cheese. Bake at 375 degrees for 18-20 minutes or until golden brown. Cool for 5 minutes before removing from pan.  Makes 10.

You can use frozen bread dough or frozen dinner rolls (I used the Rhode's brand) instead of biscuits and these are good too.

Teresa from Fargo, North Dakota

 

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4. Hot Cheese Dip

1 ½ pounds hamburger

1 pound Velveta cheese (cut into cubes)

1 can Hormel Chili without beans

Brown hamburger and drain grease. Add cheese and chili. Stir until cheese melts.

Serve hot with chips.

You can also put everything in a crock pot after you brown and drain the hamburger.

Teresa from Fargo, North Dakota

 

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5. Sausage Cheese Balls

2 pounds Jimmy Dean Sausage

1 ½ cups baking/biscuit mix

16 ounces Sharp Cheddar Cheese (4 cups shredded)

½ cup finely chopped onion

½ cup finely chopped celery

½ teaspoon garlic powder

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Mix all ingredients. Form into one inch balls. Bake 15 minutes on ungreased cookie sheet until golden brown.

Makes about 6 dozen

These can be frozen uncooked, and then just thaw and reheat when needed.

Teresa from Fargo, North Dakota

 

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You probably think I'm nuts (haha!) for sending you a recipe on how to make nuts, but I set out a bowl of these before Christmas Eve dinner every year and my family gobbles them up in minutes.

6. Spicy Glazed Nuts

¼ cup corn syrup

2 Tablespoons butter

2 Tablespoons orange juice

1 teaspoon coriander

¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper

½ teaspoon salt

2 cups hazelnuts

Heat over to 350 degrees F. Grease 15x10x1-inch baking pan. In a med saucepan, combine corn syrup, butter, and orange juice. Cook over medium heat until butter is melted, stirring constantly. Stir in coriander, cayenne, and salt. Blend well. Add hazelnuts. Stir to coat evenly. Spread hazelnuts on greased pan.

Bake for 15-20 minutes or until golden brown and glazed, stirring occasionally. Transfer mixture to foil. Cool completely, stirring occasionally. Store in tightly covered container.

Nancy from Harrington, Delaware

 

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7. Mushroom-Garlic Cream Tartlets

2 Tablespoons butter

1 (8 oz.) package fresh mushrooms, finely chopped

1 Tablespoon all-purpose flour

1 Tablespoon finely chopped onion

2 garlic cloves, minced

½ cup whipping cream

¼ cup grated parmesan cheese

1 (8 oz.) can Pillsbury refrigerated crescent rolls

2 Tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

Heat over to 350 degrees F. Melt butter in large skillet over medium heat. Add mushrooms, flour, onion, and garlic. Mix well. Cook 5 minutes or until vegetables are tender, stirring frequently. Add cream and cheese. Mix well. Cook 2 to 3 minutes or until most of liquid has evaporated, stirring frequently.

Unroll dough into 2 long rectangles. Firmly press perforations to seal. Cut each rectangle into 12 squares. Place 1 square in each of 24 ungreased miniature muffin cups. Firmly press in bottom and up sides, leaving corners of dough extended over edges of each cup (this creates a pretty design). Spoon 1 heaping teaspoon of mushroom mixture into each cup.

Back at 350 degrees F for 9 to 12 minutes or until golden brown. Sprinkle with parsley. Cool 5 minutes. Remove tartlets from pan. Serve warm. Store in refrigerator.  

Laurel from Albuquerque, New Mexico

 

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SIDE DISHES:

Simple, Savory and Delicious! Came from my husband's side of the family.

8. Brown Rice

1 cup of rice

1 can of Fr Onion Soup

1 can of Beef Consommé

Mix all together, cover and bake for 45 mins to an hour at 350

Cheryl from Lawrenceville, Georgia

** Winner of an autographed print copy of MOON-RIDERS!

 

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An easy and colorful side dish

 

9. Bright Peppers Salad

5 bell peppers of many colors, cut into thin slices

½ medium red onion, cut into thin half moons

2 Tbsp champagne vinegar, rice vinegar or other mild white vinegar

5 Tbsp olive oil

Combine the pepper strips and onion in large bowl and toss with the vinegar. Set aside for 10 minutes or up to ½ hour.

Add the olive oil and salt and pepper to taste. Toss well

Tabitha from New Orleans

 

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10. Pineapple Berry Relish

1 (20 oz) can crushed pineapple, drained

2 (16 oz) cans whole berry cranberry sauce

1 (16 oz) pkg frozen strawberries (unsweetened), thawed & drained

½ cup chopped walnuts
Mix ingredients in bowl & chill. Serve with turkey or ham.


Cathy from Tallahassee, Florida

 

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DESSERTS:

The salty sweet combo of this is a huge hit in my house.

11. Holiday Bark

16 oz. vanilla-flavored candy coating, chopped

2 cups small pretzel twists

½ cup red and green M&Ms candies

Line a cookie sheet with waxed paper.

Melt candy coating in a medium saucepan over low heat, stirring constantly. Add remaining ingredients. Toss to coat. Spread mixture thinly on waxed paper-lined cookie sheet. Let stand until set. Break into pieces.

June from Seattle

 

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I'm famous for my Sweet Potato pie. I always serve up this pie instead of pumpkin and no one ever gripes about it at all. :o)

12. Sweet Potato Pie

Makes 2 pies

2 (9-inch) store-bought frozen deep-dish pie crusts, partially thawed, in foil pans or homemade crusts

6 large sweet potatoes, baked or boiled until soft (see note)

7 Tablespoons butter, softened

1 1/3 cups sugar

1/3 cup self-rising flour

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon ground nutmeg

2 large eggs, beaten with a fork

½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract

½ teaspoon pure lemon extract

2 Tablespoons evaporated milk Sweetened whipped cream

1.      Set the oven to 350 degrees. If using homemade piecrusts, put them in to the pie pans. Poke holes all over the store-bought or homemade crusts with a fork, even going up the sides—maybe 30 pokes with a fork for each crust. Crimp the edges by hand or with the fork tines. If using store-bought piecrusts, bake them for 5 minutes to set the dough.

2.      If you baked the sweet potatoes, split them lengthwise in half and scoop the flesh into a bowl. If you boiled them, cut off the ends of the sweet potatoes and split the skin lengthwise down the top of each potato. Using a fork, gently peel back the skin, remove, and discard. Transfer the potatoes to a bowl.

3.      Add the butter to the sweet potatoes and mix on low speed with an electric mixer until the sweet potatoes are well broken up and the butter is incorporated. It's okay if the mixture is a little chunky and don't worry about the stringy parts—they'll be left on the beater. Add the remaining ingredients (except the whipped cream) to the sweet potatoes and mix well.

4.      Smooth the filling into the crusts—you'll want to fill them right up to the top. Put the pies in the oven and start checking after 30 minutes. The pies will be starting to set when the tops are no longer shiny. After they've been in the oven another 30 minutes or even longer, they'll puff up a bit and then deflate—this means they're done. Remove from the oven and let the pies cool on racks.

5.      The pies are very good just the way they are, but some people like them with a little sweetened whipped cream served on the side.

Notes:

**To bake the sweet potatoes, scrub them and place them on the middle oven rack with a baking sheet on the rack below to catch any drips. Set the oven to 350 degrees and bake until you can easily pierce the sweet potatoes with a fork, about 50 minutes. You can bake them several days ahead of time.

**To boil the sweet potatoes, scrub them and drop into a large pot of water at a rolling boil. Boil for about 50 minutes, or until they can be easily pierce with a fork.

Alexis from Savannah

 

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My kids request these every year, so I finally gave them the recipe so they can make them whenever they want.  

Make plenty because they disappear fast. (In my house they disappear from the freezer LOL).  I usually triple the batch and end up making them a couple times before I actually need them.

13. Peanut Butter Logs

1 cup powdered sugar                                    

2 Tablespoons melted butter

1 cup Peanut Butter (I use chunky)                

1 ½ cups Rice Krispies

Chocolate Almond bark  

Mix thoroughly powdered sugar, peanut butter, and melted butter. Add Rice Krispies. Form into finger size rolls and place on cookie sheet. Freeze for several hours. Melt almond bark and dip frozen logs. Let them sit on wax paper until chocolate sets.  

These can be stored in the freezer.

Teresa from Fargo, North Dakota

 

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My children love doing this recipe with me during any holiday or just family baking time.

 

14. Sugar Cookies

Level: Easy

Yield: about 3 dozen

Total: 2 hr 24 min

Prep: 15 min

Inactive: 2 hr

Cook: 9 min

Ingredients:

3 cups all-purpose flour

3/4 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 cup unsalted butter, softened

1 cup sugar

1 egg, beaten

1 Tablespoon milk

Powdered sugar, for rolling out dough

Directions:

1 - Sift together flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside. Place butter and sugar in large bowl of electric stand mixer and beat until light in color. Add egg and milk and beat to combine. Put mixer on low speed, gradually add flour, and beat until mixture pulls away from the side of the bowl. Divide the dough in half, wrap in waxed paper, and refrigerate for 2 hours.

2 - Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

3 - Sprinkle surface where you will roll out dough with powdered sugar.

4 - Remove 1 wrapped pack of dough from refrigerator at a time, sprinkle rolling pin with powdered sugar, and roll out dough to 1/4-inch thick. Move the dough around and check underneath frequently to make sure it is not sticking. If dough has warmed during rolling, place cold cookie sheet on top for 10 minutes to chill.

5 - Cut into desired shape, place at least 1-inch apart on greased baking sheet, parchment, or silicone baking mat, and bake for 7 to 9 minutes or until cookies are just beginning to turn brown around the edges, rotating cookie sheet halfway through baking time.

6 - Let sit on baking sheet for 2 minutes after removal from oven and then move to complete cooling on wire rack.

7 - Serve as is or ice as desired. Store in airtight container for up to 1 week

Kristeena Koonce from North Carolina

 

Note from Tracy:

A lot of people like to use buttercream frosting for their sugar cookies, but I frosted Kristeena's cookies using the "fluffy icing" recipe below:

Frosting:

2 egg whites

¼ teaspoon cream of tartar

¼ teaspoon vanilla

2 ½ cups powdered sugar, sifted

Beat egg whites with cream of tartar and vanilla until foamy. Gradually beat in powdered sugar until frosting stands in firm peaks. Divide into cups and add food coloring.

 

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I'm always on the lookout for "the best" cookie recipe. These oatmeal cookies are so chock full of goodies, they are so delicious!

15. Deluxe Butterscotch Oatmeal Cookies:

1 ½ cups all-purpose flour, unsifted

¼ teaspoon cream of tartar

1 teaspoon salt

1 ¼ teaspoon nutmeg (freshly grated preferred)

1 teaspoon cinnamon

¼ teaspoon allspice

¼ teaspoon cloves

2 sticks unsalted butter, softened

5 Tablespoons shortening

1 ¼ cups plus

1 Tablespoon sugar

1 cup firmly packed light brown sugar

2 extra-large eggs

1 Tablespoon pure vanilla extract

2 ½ cups quick-cooking (not instant) rolled oats

1 ¼ cups butterscotch chips

1 cup walnuts, coarsely chopped

1 cup dried cherries

1 cup dried cranberries

Preheat over to 325 degrees F. Line baking sheets with parchment.

In a large bowl, combine flour, cream of tartar, salt, nutmeg, cinnamon, allspice, and cloves.

In large bowl of an electric mixer, cream the butter and shortening on low speed for 5 minutes. Blend in ½ of the sugar and beat for 1 minute on moderate speed. Add the remaining sugar and beat for 1 minutes longer. Add the brown sugar and beat for 1 ½ minutes. Add the eggs one at a time, blending well after each. Add the vanilla. On low speed add the flour mixture in 2 additions, beating just until the flour is absorbed. Blend in the oats. Stir in the butterscotch chips, walnuts, cherries, and cranberries.

Drop rounded 2-Tablespoon-size mounds of dough onto the prepared baking sheets, about 3 inches apart. Bake the cookies for 16 to 18 minutes, or until they are just set and light golden and their surfaces no longer look like wet, unbaked dough. Let the cookies stand on the sheets for 4 to 5 minutes (they are fragile at this stage), then remove to cooling racks.

Store in an airtight container with wax paper between the layers.

Tracy, transplanted from San Diego, California, to Rome, Italy.  

  1.      Coffee Cake
  2.      Currant Scones with Orange Glaze
  3.      Farmhouse BBQ Muffins
  4.      Hot Cheese Dip
  5.      Sausage Cheese Balls
  6.      Spicy Glazed Nuts
  7.      Mushroom-Garlic Cream Tartlets
  8.      Brown Rice
  9.      Bright Peppers Salad
  10.      Pineapple Berry Relish
  11.      Holiday Bark
  12.      Sweet Potato Pie
  13.      Peanut Butter Logs
  14.      Sugar Cookies
  15.      Deluxe Butterscotch Oatmeal Cookies