Chocolate Peanut Butter Cupcake Cookie

From the Website: http://www.christmas-cookies.com/recipes/recipe248.chocolate-peanut-butter-cup-cookies.html

Chocolate Peanut Butter Cup Cookies

Makes about 36

For the cookies:
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
2 squares (2 oz.) unsweetened chocolate
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup butter or shortening
2 eggs
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 1/2 cups plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda

For the garnish:
3/4 cup finely chopped peanuts
36 miniature Peanut Butter Cups, frozen and unwrapped
1 cup peanut butter baking chips
1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 F. Combine chocolate in bowl and microwave at 50% for about 2 minutes, stir and repeat until smooth and melted. Cool slightly. Combine sugar and butter or shortening in large bowl. Beat at medium speed with electric mixer until blended and crumbly. Beat in eggs, one at a time, then salt and vanilla. Reduce speed to low. Add chocolate slowly. Mix until well blended. Stir in flour and soda with spoon until well blended. Shape dough into 1-1/4 inch balls. Roll in chopped peanuts. Place 2 inches apart on ungreased baking sheets. Bake for 8-10 minutes or until set. Press a frozen peanut butter cup into the center of each cookie immediately upon removing them from the oven. Press cookies up against peanut butter cup if
desired for appearance, but do not touch the
peanut butter cup again since it is now melted, it must remain intact. Cool completely. Melt the peanut butter chips and drizzle back and forth over the cookies using a parchment pouch or plastic bag with a little snip off the corner. Repeat with the chocolate, only drizzling at another angle from the peanut drizzle.

Note: Adapted from a Blue Ribbon Winner from the Arizona State Fair. Recipe by Maria Baldwin of Mesa, AZ and adapted by "Richard in Cincy" from Gail's Recipe Swap at Epicurious.com

Then there are the "regular" peanutbutter cup cookies: http://www.chocolatebytes.com/peanut-butter-cup-cookies/

These peanut butter cup cookies are another inclusion in my cookie tins this year and they couldn’t be easier:

~ Your favorite peanut butter cookie recipe or refrigerated peanut butter cookie dough
~ Unwrapped Reese’s mini peanut butter cups

Make your cookie dough and roll into about one inch balls. Either grease a mini muffin tin or line with mini liners (I chose to use liners since these are going into tins, otherwise I leave them bare) and plop each ball of dough in. Gently push in one mini peanut butter cup so the dough rises up around the sides.

Bake at 350 degrees for about 15 minutes or until edges are golden brown. Make sure you leave the cookies in the tin for about five minutes after you pull them out of the oven so they can set up a bit before you remove them, otherwise they’ll crumble on you!

Cream Wafers, Raspberry too

From the website: http://www.christmas-cookies.com/recipes/recipe76.cream-wafers.html

Cream Wafers

Makes about 60

2 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup margarine or butter
1/3 cup heavy cream
sugar
Creamy filling: below

Mix the ingredients to a dough and chill for an hour. Roll out half at a time to 1/8" thick and cut in 1 1/2" rounds. Carefully dip both sides of cookie in sugar and place on ungreased baking sheets lined with parchment paper. Poke with a fork 4 times and bake 7-9 min. at 375 F. When cool fill with filling and sandwich together.

Creamy filling:
3/4 cup powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla (or other flavoring such as almond or peppermint)
1/4 cup margarine or butter
food color if desired

Mix all filling ingredients until smooth, add a few drops of water if needed.

Another website describes the recipe as: http://3littlewhites.blogspot.com/2007/02/happy-valentines-day-little-late.html

They are called Swedish Cream Waferss and they are YUMMY!

They are not very easy to make, but the end result is worth the effort!

*Here is the recipe if you want to try them at your home.

Wafer:
1 Cup butter, softened
1/3 cup heavy whipping cream
2 cups sifted all-purpose flour
*1/3 cup granulated sugar for decoration

Cream:
1/4 cup butter, softened
3/4 cup sifted confectioners sugar
1 egg yolk
1 teaspoon vanilla
food coloring

Directions:

1. Combine the 1 cup butter, cream, and sifted flour. Mix well and chill for at least 1 hour.

2. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

3. On a floured board, roll out 1/3 of the dough to 1/8 inch thick. Cut with 1 1/2 inch round (or heart!) cookie cutter. Transfer rounds to waxed paper heavily covered with sugar. Turn rounds so that both sides are coated with sugar. place rounds on ungreased baking sheets and prick each round with a fork about four times. Repeat with remaining dough.

4. Bake at 375 for 7-9 minutes. Let cookies cool then put together with filling.

5. To make filling: Blend the remaining 1/4 cup of butter, confectioners sugar, egg yolk (I do not use this because Chandler is allergic to eggs), and vanilla together. Tint with food coloring. *You may double the filling for a nicer looking cookie :-)

6. Enjoy!

Raspberry Cream Wafers from the website: http://www.seasonedwithlove.com/raspberry_cream_wafers.htm

Cookie Dough

3/4 cup butter, softened

1 cup granulated sugar

2 large eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar

1 teaspoon salt

Raspberry Cream Filling

1/2 cup butter, softened

2 cups confectioners' sugar

1/2 teaspoon almond extract

2 tablespoons raspberry jam

1 teaspoon whole milk

Party sugar or multi-colored sugar crystals

DIRECTIONS FOR COOKIE DOUGH

1. Cookie dough: In large bowl, use mixer to beat butter and sugar until fluffy;

beat in eggs and vanilla.

2. Sift flour, baking soda, cream of tartar and salt over

creamed butter; beat on low speed just until a dough forms.

3. Place dough in freezer for 15 minutes to firm enough to roll.

4. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

5. Roll 1/2 of the dough at a time out on a well-floured

breadboard. The dough may be between 1/8 and 1/4 of an

inch thick. Cut out shapes with a 1-inch size flower cookie

cutter. Place the bits of cut dough back into the freezer to

cool. Cut a hole in the middle of half the cookies with the

small end of a 807 piping tip. Set on 4 parchment lined

baking trays. Bake each sheet for 7-10 minutes depending on

how thin the dough was rolled. Set cookies on cooling racks.

6. Icing: Using clean beaters, cream butter; add confectioners'

sugar on low speed. Add almond extract, raspberry jam and

milk. Continue to beat until fluffy. Fit a piping bag with a

number 12 piping tip. Fill bag with icing.

7. When cookies are completely cooled, pipe a generous amount

of icing onto the top of cookie without the cutout center.

Then gently top with cookie with cutout center. Press down

slightly. Immediately sprinkle with party sugar. Shake off

excess and set on a silver or doily lined tray.

Hint: For Valentines, cut out heart shapes and then cut a

smaller heart shape in half the cookies so the icing will show

through the top.

Makes 2-3 dozen depending on size of cookie cutter.

Pecan Tarts

From the Website: http://www.cooks.com/rec/view/0,1613,148166-230207,00.html

Pecan Tarts

MINI PECAN TARTS

1 (3 oz.) pkg. cream cheese 1/4 lb. butter 1 c. flour Cream together butter and cheese. Mix in flour and form into 24 balls. Spread 1 ball of dough around the inside of each mini tart cup. Beat 2 eggs slightly and add 1 1/2 cups brown sugar, 2 tablespoons melted butter, pinch of salt and few drops of vanilla. Put some chopped pecans in bottom of each tart cup. Fill 3/4 full of filling and put a few more pecans on top. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

From another website: http://www.christmas-cookies.com/recipes/recipe172.aunt-jackies-pecan-tarts.html

Pecan Tarts

Makes about 24

3 ounces cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup + 1 tablespoon butter, softened
1 cup sifted flour
1 egg
3/4 cup brown sugar, firmly packed
1 teaspoon vanilla
dash salt
2/3 cup chopped pecans

Preheat oven to 325F. Combine cheese, 1/2 cup butter & flour. Mix thoroughly and chill, covered, 1 hour. Divide into 24 small balls and press into sides and bottom of 2 ungreased minature muffin pans. Combine egg, brown sugar, vanilla, salt & remaining 1 tablespoon butter; beat until smooth. Sprinkle 1/3 cup pecans equally into 24 tart shells. Divide egg mixture equally among 24 tarts, pouring on top of pecans. Sprinkle remaining 1/3 cup pecans on top of tarts. Bake 20-25 minutes until pastry is golden brown.

Muddy Buddies (From Chex)

Chex® Muddy Buddies®

Another popular name for this favorite mix is "puppy food". Chow down; it's doggone good!

Prep Time:15 min

Start to Finish:15 min

Makes:18 servings (1/2 cup each)

9	cups Corn Chex®, Rice Chex®, Wheat Chex® or Chocolate Chex® cereal (or combination)
1	cup semisweet chocolate chips
1/2	cup peanut butter
1/4	cup butter or margarine
1	teaspoon vanilla
1 1/2	cups powdered sugar

1.	Into large bowl, measure cereal; set aside.
2.	In 1-quart microwavable bowl, microwave chocolate chips, peanut butter and butter uncovered on High 1 minute; stir. Microwave about 30 seconds longer or until mixture can be stirred smooth. Stir in vanilla. Pour mixture over cereal, stirring until evenly coated. Pour into 2-gallon resealable food-storage plastic bag.
3.	Add powdered sugar. Seal bag; shake until well coated. Spread on waxed paper to cool. Store in airtight container in refrigerator.
High Altitude (3500-6500 ft): No change.

1 Serving: Calories 220 (Calories from Fat 80); Total Fat 9g (Saturated Fat 4g, Trans Fat 0g); Cholesterol 5mg; Sodium 200mg; Total Carbohydrate 30g (Dietary Fiber 1g, Sugars 17g); Protein 3g % Daily Value*: Vitamin A 6%; Vitamin C 2%; Calcium 6%; Iron 25% Exchanges: 1 Starch; 1 Other Carbohydrate; 0 Vegetable; 1 1/2 Fat Carbohydrate Choices: 2 MyPyramid Servings: 1 tsp Fats & Oils
*% Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.

Another Recipe from the Website: http://www.christmas-cookies.com/recipes/recipe87.muddy-buddies.html

Muddy Buddies

Makes about 9

9 cups Chex cereal (any variety)
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter or margarine
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar

Place cereal in large bowl. Place chocolate chips, peanut butter and butter in medium microwave-safe bowl. Microwave in high for 1 1/2 minutes or until mixture is smooth when stirred. Stir in vanilla. Pour chocolage mixture over cereal, stirring until all pieces are evenly coated. Pour mixture into large plastic bag with powdered sugar; shake until all pieces are coated. Spread on waxed paper to cool. Store in airtight container in refrigerator. Makes about 9 cups.

Pumpkin Roll

From the website: http://www.verybestbaking.com/recipes/detail.aspx?ID=32372

Pumpkin Roll

Ingredients:

• CAKE
• 1/4 cup powdered sugar (to sprinkle on towel)
• 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 3 large eggs
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 2/3 cup LIBBY'S® 100% Pure Pumpkin
• 1 cup walnuts, chopped (optional)
• FILLING
• 1 pkg. (8 oz.) cream cheese, at room temperature
• 1 cup powdered sugar, sifted
• 6 tablespoons butter or margarine, softened
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• Powdered sugar (optional for decoration)

Directions:
FOR CAKE:
PREHEAT oven to 375° F. Grease 15 x 10-inch jelly-roll pan; line with wax paper. Grease and flour paper. Sprinkle a thin, cotton kitchen towel with powdered sugar.

COMBINE flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, cloves and salt in small bowl. Beat eggs and granulated sugar in large mixer bowl until thick. Beat in pumpkin. Stir in flour mixture. Spread evenly into prepared pan. Sprinkle with nuts.

BAKE for 13 to 15 minutes or until top of cake springs back when touched. (If using a dark-colored pan, begin checking for doneness at 11 minutes.) Immediately loosen and turn cake onto prepared towel. Carefully peel off paper. Roll up cake and towel together, starting with narrow end. Cool on wire rack.

FOR FILLING:
BEAT cream cheese, 1 cup powdered sugar, butter and vanilla extract in small mixer bowl until smooth. Carefully unroll cake. Spread cream cheese mixture over cake. Reroll cake. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate at least one hour. Sprinkle with powdered sugar before serving, if desired.

COOKING TIP:
Be sure to put enough powdered sugar on the towel when rolling up the cake so it will not stick.

Another Recipe from: http://www.christmas-cookies.com/recipes/recipe272.pumpkin-roll.html

For the cake:
3 eggs
1 cup sugar
2/3 cup pumpkin
1 teaspoon lemon juice
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 cup chopped pecans

For the filling:
1 cup powdered sugar
1 8-ounce package of cream cheese, softened
4 tablespoons margarine
1/2 teaspon vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 375 F. In a large bowl, mix together eggs, sugar, pumpkin, and lemon juice. In a separate bowl, mix flour, baking powder, salt, nutmeg, and cinnamon. Add the flour mixture to the egg mixture and stir until well blended. Line a 10 1/2" by 15" cookie sheet with parchment paper, trimming excess. Pour the batter onto the cookie sheet, spread evenly. Sprinke with pecans. Bake 12-15 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Prepare a linen towel heavily sprinkled with powdered sugar. After baking, turn the cookie sheet onto the towel, parchment paper side up. The cake should slide out onto the towel. Remove paper and roll up the cake into the towel. Cool 30-40 minutes.

For the filling, stir together the powdered sugar, cream cheese, margarine and vanilla. Mix well. After the roll has cooled, unroll it and spread the filling evenly. Re-roll and slice for serving.

Potato Candy

From the Website: http://www.christmas-cookies.com/recipes/recipe171.potato-candy.html

Potato Candy

1/4 cup cooked white potatoes
confectioners sugar
1 tsp vanilla
peanut butter

Mash potaoes, add vanilla, and approximately 1 box of confectioners sugar until soft dough is formed. Divide dough in fourths. Roll between wax paper until 1/8 inch thick. Spread thin layer of peanut butter on each layer. Roll up like jelly roll. Refrigerate overnight. Cut into pieces and serve - may sprinkle with confectioners sugar if desired.

Potato history from website: http://www.josephinesjournal.com/potato.htm

Collette Dishman's Potato Candy

If someone asked you where the potato came from, would you have any idea? I didn't, so I did some research, and here's what I found: "Columbian farmers in the windswept Andes Mountains of South America first discovered and cultivated the potato some 7,000 years ago. They were impressed by its ruggedness, storage quality and its nutritional value. Western man did not come into contact with the potato until as late as 1537 when the Conquistadors tramped through Peru. And it was even later, around 1570, that the first potato made its way across the Atlantic into Europe. In the Spanish Colonies, potatoes were considered food for the under classes. When brought to the Old World, they would be used primarily to feed hospital inmates. About 1780 the people of Ireland adopted the rugged food crop. The primary reason for its acceptance in Ireland was its ability to produce abundant, nutritious food. Unlike any other major crop, potatoes contain most of the vitamins needed for sustenance. Perhaps more important, potatoes can provide this sustenance to nearly 10 people on an acre of land. This would be one of the prime factors causing a population explosion in the early 1800s. Of course, by the mid-1800's the Irish would become so dependent upon this crop that its failure would provoke a famine. In France the potato was imposed upon society by an intellectual. Antoine Augustine Parmentier saw that the nutritional benefits of the crop combined with its productive capacity could be a boon to the French farmer. He was a pharmacist, chemist and employee of Louis XV. Parmentier discovered the benefits of the potato while held a prisoner by the Prussians during the Seven Years War. He was so enamored by the potato that he determined that it should become a staple of the French diet. After failing by conventional means to convince Frenchmen of its advantages, he came up with another means of making his point. Parmentier acquired a miserable and unproductive spot of ground on the outskirts of Paris. There, he planted 50 acres of potatoes. During the day, he set a guard over it. This drew considerable attention in the neighborhood. In the evening the guard left his post and the locals came to see what all the fuss was about. Believing this plant must be valuable, many peasants "acquired" some of the potatoes from the plot, and soon were growing it in their own garden plots. Their resistance was overcome by their curiosity and desire to better their lot with the obviously valuable new produce. Soon the potato would gain wide acceptance across Europe and eventually make its way back over the Atlantic to North America. As time passed, the potato would become one of the major food stuffs of the world, but not without a few bumps in the road. The 1840's saw disastrous potato blight. This terrible disease was caused by a fungus known as Phytophthora infestans. With the devastation of potato crops throughout Europe came the destruction and dislocation of many of the populations that had become dependent upon it. The Potato Famine in Ireland would cut the population by half (through both starvation and emigration). An effective fungicide was not found until 1883 by the French botanist, Alexandre Millardet. Today, the potato is so common, plentiful and pervasive in the Western diet that it is taken for granted."

There are many, many ways the potato is cooked and eaten by people in every country in the world today, and recently I learned about a recipe that some people know about and others have never heard of. This particular recipe was handed down to Collette Dishman when she was only 12 or 13 years old. When Collette growing up, one of the things she enjoyed doing was being in the kitchen while her mother cooked. This particular recipe passed on to Collette from her half-sister is for Potato Candy. If you are among those who have never heard of potato candy, you are probably thinking it couldn’t possibly be any good. But that old saying applies to this situation for sure, "the proof is in the pudding." It is delicious. I had heard about making candy from potatoes, but I must admit it didn’t sound like anything I would care about trying. But after sampling some prepared especially for me by Collette, I was convinced that I needed to add her recipe to a collection of favorites I have for the holidays. I believe even Antoine Augustine Parmentier would enjoy a sample of Collette’s recipe as much as I did. Should there be those who would like to have the recipe, just send a note to Josephine Bundaberry, c/o Overton County News, P. O. Box 479, Livingston, TN 38570, or if you would like, contact me by email at emily@josephinesjournal.com and I’ll be happy to share the recipe.

Seven Layer Magic Bars

From the Website: http://www.christmas-cookies.com/recipes/recipe186.seven-layer-magic-bars.html

Seven Layer Magic Bars

Makes about 36

1/2 cup butter or margarine
1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs
1 14-oz. can sweetened condensed milk
1 cup butterscotch flavored chips
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 1/3 cups flaked coconut
1 cup chopped pecans

Preheat oven to 350°, (325° for glass dish). Line a 13x9-inch baking pan with a sheet of foil, making sure to cover the sites well. Place the butter in the baking pan and melt it in the oven. Sprinkle crumbs over butter; pour condensed milk evenly on top of crumbs. Top with remaining ingredients in order listed; press down firmly with fork. Bake 25 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool. Chill if desired. Cut into bars. Store covered at room temperature.