Cranberry-Chocolate Scones

I dug up some old Sunset magazines and thumbed through them for some good recipes to try.

This is one that is a definite keeper!

3 cups flour

1/4 cup sugar

1 tbsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 cup cold butter

3/4 cup half & half (I just used regular milk)

1 large egg

1/2 cup milk chocolate chips

1/2 cup dried cranberries

can also add 1/2 cup chopped pecans

-- In a large bowl, mix flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Cut butter into chunks and blend into dry indredients with a pastry blender.

In a small bowl, whisk together the half & half (or milk) and the egg, reserve 2 tbsp for later.

Add remaining egg and milk mixture to the dry ingred. along with chocolate, cranberries and nuts.

Blend with a fork until moistened. Scrape out onto a lightly floured counter and pat into a 7 inch round circle.

Cut into 8 equal wedges.

Place 2 inches apart on greased baking pan.

Brush the tops with the reserved egg and milk.

Bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes or until the tops are golden. Allow to cool for 10 minutes.(If you can wait that long!)

---Sunset magazine January 2004 issue.

Holiday Sweets

I've been baking like crazy today!! I hadn't planned on taking a bunch of goodies to my Mom's for Christmas but my little sister (love ya, Jordan!) specifically requested that I bring "treats".

So here is the line-up:

Sugar & Spice Biscotti

Gingerbread Boys

White Chocolate Peppermint Bark

Chocolate Pretzel Bark

Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Bread

Fudge

I'll share a couple of the recipes.

SUGAR & SPICE BISCOTTI (picture above)

3/4 cup sugar

1/2 cup oil

2 eggs

2 tsp vanilla

2 cup flour

1/4 tsp salt

1 1/2 tsp baking powder

For topping: 1/2 cup sugar, 1/2 tbsp cinnamon

Combine sugar and oil. Stir in eggs and vanilla; set aside. Combine dry ingredients. Gradually add into wet mixture; mix well.

Line baking sheet with foil and spray lightly with no-stick spray. Spoon dough onto prepared baking sheet. Form into a 10" x 3" log.

Combine sugar and cinnamon for topping and sprinkle over the dough log.

Bake at 350 for about 30-35 minutes until the center is firm. Cool for 15 minutes. Cut crosswise into 1/2" slices. Place cut side down on baking sheets. Bake at 325 for about 15 minutes until brown around the edges and dry; flip over halfway through baking time to brown evenly.

Let cool. At this point I melted some white baking chips and added a couple drops of peppermint extract to it. Then drizzled over the cooled biscotti.

CHOCOLATE CHIP PUMPKIN BREAD

2 1/4 cup flour

2 cups sugar

2 tsp ground cinnamon

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp EACH of salt, ground ginger, nutmeg, and cloves

2 eggs

1 cup pumpkin puree

1/2 cup oil

1 cup dried cranberries (optional)

3/4 cup chocolate chips

Combine flour, sugar, cinnamon, baking soda, salt, ginger, nutmeg, and cloves. Combine eggs, pumpkin and oil; stir into dry ingredients until moistened. Fold in cranberries and chocolate chips.

Transfer to 2 greased loaf pans. Bake at 350 for about 1 hour until a knife comes out clean when inserted. Cool for 10 minutes before removing from pans.

Chocolate Banana Bread

This is a very good version of banana bread.

1/2 cup butter, softened

1 cup sugar

2 eggs

1 cup mashed ripe bananas, about 2 or 3

1/4 cup milk

1 tsp vanilla

2 cups flour

1/4 cup baking cocoa

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

chopped nuts, optional

Cream the butter and sugar together. Add eggs, bananas, milk and vanilla. Combine the flour, cocoa, baking soda, and salt; add to the banana mixture. Fold in the nuts if adding them. Spoon into 2 greased loaf pans. Bake at 350 for 50-60 minutes. Check doneness with a knife. Cool for a few minutes before removing from pans.

Spinach Cream Cheese Pinwheels

Here are some tasty little bites. Good for many things: appetizers, snacks, bread with dinner, lunches, etc.

The recipe could be changed and tweeked a bit to suit your taste.

-1 tube refrigerated crescent rolls

-spreadable garlic and herb cream cheese (could also use the garden veggie or onion and chive flavors, or add a little salsa to regular cream cheese)

-sliced deli ham

-fresh baby spinach

Unroll the dough into 4 rectangles; seal perforations. Spread the cream cheese over each rectangle. Top with ham and spinach. Roll up from the short sides and pinch seam to seal. Cut each roll into 6 slices. Place cut side down on greased baking sheets. Bake at 400 for about 8 minutes. Keep an eye on these, they brown quickly. When golden brown remove from oven.

Serve warm.

Makes 2 dozen.

Baking Day

I got in the baking mood today and tried a couple new recipes. They both turned out really good so I'll share them with you.

CHOCOLATE MINT COOKIES

3/4 cup butter

1 1/2 cup brown sugar

2 tbsp water

1 package semisweet chocolate chips

2 eggs

2 1/2 cup flour

1 1/4 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

bag of Andes mints

In a large saucepan over low heat, melt butter, sugar, and water. Add chocolate chips and stir until mostly melted. Pour into a large mixing bowl and let cool for 10-12 minutes. Mix on high speed, beat in eggs. Reduce speed and add dry ingredients. Mix until well blended. Chill for at least 1 hour.

Preheat oven to 350. Spray baking sheets with no-stick spray. Roll dough into teaspoon size balls. (I made mine a little larger). Place on cookie sheets. Bake for 12 minutes, no longer. Immediately place half of an Andes mint on each hot cookie. Allow the mint to soften then swirl with a butter knife.

I had bought these peppermint Andes mints, so I used them instead of the usual green mints. They turned out very yummy! Very festive looking!

HERB CHEESE BREAD

1 1/3 cup warm water

2 tbsp butter,softened

1/2 tsp salt

3 tsp sugar

1 tsp Italian seasoning

3 cups bread flour

1 cup whole wheat flour

1 package active dry yeast

2/3 cup shredded swiss cheese

1/4 cup grated parmesan

In a bread machine, place the first 8 ingredients. Select the dough setting. Just before the final kneading cycle, add the cheeses. I had to add a little bit of water to the dough too.

When the dough cycle is complete, turn out onto lightly floured surface and knead a couple of times. Place in a large greased loaf pan. Or 2 small loaf pans. ( I actually use a small roaster because with 6 people in the family, we need a large loaf!) Allow to rise until doubled. Bake at 375 degrees.

To be honest, I'm not sure how long I baked it for. I just kept an eye on it and when it had browned nicely I removed it from the oven. I always rub butter over the top of my bread when it's hot to make a nice shiny, golden appearance.