Cookies Day 7 - NoBake Peanut Butter Balls

Today in NOTL:  A beautiful day, with a high of 52F/12C and rainy.  Lovely!

Here in Canada, happiness is in the news, as on Friday the Canadian Centre for the Study of Living Standards released their findings regarding, among other things, the happiness level of Canadians.  They discussed the various factors determining happiness and decided that one town had more happy people than another, ranking them according to their scale.

We regard happiness as elusive, hard to find and hard to keep.  I don't believe that.  I know that I am a happy person nearly all the time; others, with some frequency, indicate their surprise that I am or regard it as extraordinary that I am happy despite challenges that include restricted mobility and pain as a constant companion.

In the news, too, has been the story of Rachel Friedman who has responded with courage and optimism to a life challenge that would have me raining curses on life, others and probably God as well.

Happiness is easy.  All you have to do is look at the love in your life.  What is it you love?  Focus on it - whether it is another person, a beloved pet, a good book, a treasured collection, a favourite hobby, whatever. When we focus on the people, things, and activities that fill us with love, happiness follows.  It is that simple.

Art for today is a happy little bird that made me very happy when it came out as well as it did.  I hope the recipes that follow will make you happy: they need no mixer, no flour, and no baking!  Even better, they are truly delicious and make great gifts, packaged in decorative tins or jars.

NoBake Peanut Butter Balls
1/4 cup honey
1/3 cup peanut butter
1/2 cup powdered milk
Add ins:
 1/3 cup coconut, nuts, raisins, chips, etc.

Optional:
Roll balls in cocoanut, icing/confectioner's sugar, cocoa powder, sprinkles, etc.  You can take a tip from the recipe below, you can also dip 'em in melted chocolate!

Stir together well.  Form into balls.  Store in covered tin.
Recipe can be doubled.

If you don't like honey, you can try this recipe instead:
Chocolate Covered Peanut Butter Balls
1 16-oz. jar peanut butter
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened
1 1-lb. box powdered sugar
1 to 2 bags chocolate chips  (Tip: these candies, dipped in melted peanut butter flavoured chips, are to-die-for!)


1.  Prepare a cookie sheet by lining it with parchment, waxed paper, or foil. 
2.  In large bowl, combine peanut butter, butter, and powdered sugar together in a large bowl.
3.  Roll into small balls.
4.  Melt chocolate chips.
5.  Dip candy balls into chocolate and place on prepared cookie sheet.  Place in fridge or cool spot to harden.
Yield:  5 dozen or more, depending on size of candies.

Cookies Day 6 - Oatmeal Lace Cookies

Today in NOTL:  Chilly, with today's high looking to hit 45F7C under sunny skies with a cloud or two.

Yesterday Deb was installed as Archbishop of the Community Catholic Church.  It was a lovely ceremony, very small, as the church is quite small.  Lots of fellowship, lots of laughter, lots of love in the room!  I have very confidence that Deborah will do a wonderful job leading the church.  Go, Deb!

For Day 6 of the Cookie fest, I thought I'd share one of my own recipes, a favourite b/c it's so bloomin' easy!  I suppose this one belongs in the family of lace cookies, as they spread a LOT and have that lacy edge.  Even better, they don't call for any special ingredients, so you won't have to make a trip to the store for buttermilk or macadamia nuts or sanding sugar.

Now, these cookies are extremely delicious, so they don't last long.  IF there are any leftovers, they must be stored in a tin with a very tight lid, layered on waxed paper.  They are not kidding when they say 'store i a cool, dry place' as humidity makes the cookies stick together, so you might want to set that tin in the dining room instead of the warm kitchen.  If the cookies begin to stick, though, just separate them onto a cookie sheet and pop into the oven for a minute or two to recrisp.


Then again, having any left over to store is an iffy proposition!  And since these are soo easy to make - no mixer necessary, no bowls, no sifting and combining wets and drys and yadda yadda - you'll be able to get a batch from urge to splurge in a flash!  Trust me on this:  one taste and you will be a believer.

P.S.  No flour, so a great cookie for those with wheat sensitivities!

Oatmeal Lace Cookies

½ c. butter
1 ½ quick-cooking oats
1 c. packed light brown sugar
1/8 tsp salt
1 egg, beaten well.

1.  Preheat oven 350*F.  Grease and flour cookie sheet.
2.  Melt butter in pan.
3.  Stir in other ingredients till blended.
4.  Remove from heat.
5.  Drop by teaspoonfuls 3 inches apart (these babies spread!)
6.  Bake 8 min or till well-browned at edges.
7.  Cool slightly, loosen, and remove.

Keeps 3 weeks in airtight container; separate layers by wax paper.
Humidity will result in sticky cookies.  Separate and rebake one or two minutes to recrisp..

When you remove them from the cookies sheet or parchment, you may find the edges crumble slightly.  Those crumbs are yummy on top of ice cream, yogurt, pudding, hot oatmeal, etc.  Or just toss the crumbs out for the birds!

Card of the day is a snow-covered evergreen, a little Christmas-y, but I got my first Christmas gift yesterday so I will call Christmastime officially begun...YES!  (And, yes, it is hand drawn and watercoloured.)

Cookie Day 5 - Plain Tea Cookies

Today in NOTL:  Cold, with 11:30 temps not tooo bad at37F/3C - but with winds at 24mph/39kph it feels more like 27F/-3C out there.  Hefty gusts, howling round the house and blowing the snow just about sideways at times.  No snow to speak of expected, just flurries.

Brr!  A cold day like today has me thinking of my Grandma's kitchen.  It was just a postage stamp of a room, just large enough for her tiny sink and a few cupboards, the eeeny fridge and stove, a  wee dinette set, and a rocking chair beside the stove.  That rocker was the best seat in her tiny house!

I remember visiting on chilly, grey days like today (minus the snow, of course!).  Her kitchen would be so warm and cozy and golden, lit by the one shaded light overhead.  Dad would say, 'How about some coffee, Mom?' and Grandma would say, 'Well, of course, cher!'

She'd put a pan of water on to boil and take her red and white French coffeepot and put a few teaspoonsful of coffee into the holder.  Then she'd set the coffeepot on the stove with a small ladle beside it and begin to rock.  As the adults spoke and the water sizzled in the pan, every now and then she'd ladle a tablespoon or two into the coffeepot and it would begin to drip ever so slowly through the ground coffee. Finally, when the coffee was done, she'd pour it out.

On cold days, I remember her kitchen and recall the smell of that strong coffee.  Art today is a cold-looking card from last year, appropriate b/c I'm feeling chilly as I listen to the wind and watch the flakes blow past my window.

This is a recipe for tea cookies, which went so nicely with the coffee.  They aren't terribly sweet, but they adapt to changes well.  Variations below.

Plain Tea Cookies

1/2 cup butter, softened
3/4 cup white sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
2 cups plain flour (All-Purpose)
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt


Oven 400F.

1.  In large bowl, cream softened butter, sugar, eggs, and vanilla.
2.  In second bowl, stir together dry ingredients.
3.  Add dry mixture to creamed mixture in portions.
4.  Note: dough is best refrigerated for 30 minutes or so.
5.  Roll dough on floured surface to about 1/4 inch and cut cookies with small glass.
6.  Place on ungreased cookie sheet and bake 10- 12 minutes or till golden brown.

Variations:
Orange or lemon cookies:  Add 1 tablespoon orange zest and 1/4 tsp orange extract to mixture.
Cherry cookies:  Add 1/2 cup diced marachino cherries, juice included to mixture.
Chocolate Pecan cookies:  Add 1/2 cup finely chopped pecans to mixture; drizzle with melted chocolate.
You can also frost these cookies and add sprinkles, coconut, etc.

Day 4 of Cookies - and what a cookie I have for you, dahling! Date Filled Cookies

Today in NOTL:  Cold!  Temps at noon are right around 32F/0C, with winds of 17mph/28kph making it feel a lot colder.  Sun and cloud mix, but thoroughly gorgeous outside!  In the forecast:  Snow!  They're calling for 25cm of snow tonight...which would be 9 inches, I suspect, doing a linear conversion.  That's a lotta snow!

Well, today is slated as a newsletter day, so I'll be busy writing.  If you haven't subscribed to the newsletter, I urge you to do so, as we're expanding it starting with the next issue.  You'll still get the angel messages which are exclusive to newsletter subscribers ONLY and not uploaded to the website, but you'll also have access to more articles, more information, and more helpful news you can use.  Subscribing is as easy as a click right here!  We never share emails with others and you can unsubscribe at any time, naturally.

Today's cookie is a filled date cookie.  Filled cookies can be time consuming - rolling the dough, dropping the filling, then pinching the cookie shut.  These are quickies, though.  Instead of all that rolling, these are drop cookies.  You simply put a dab of cookie dough onto the sheet, put the filling in the center, then add a bit more dough on top of the filling.  As the cookie bakes, the dough spreads and covers the filling.  And where the filling peeps out, it gets all nice and crispy!  What a yum!

This recipe calls for a cooked date filling, but don't let that scare you off.  Save time by using a quality fruit preserve you buy from your local grocer or gourmet shop!  Or, if you prefer, pick up some pie filling instead;  pop it into the blender or use a hand chopper to break up too-large pieces of fruit.  Mini-pies without the fuss!

This cookie has tons of possibilities.  Vary the filling, of course (chocolate bits and nuts!  mmm!), but consider topping the cookies with nuts, cocoa, icing/confectioner's sugar, drizzled choclate or streusel-like crumb coatings.  This one recipe can yield platters of different cookies, and it's so much easier than those super-mix recipes that start from a common base.  Enjoy!

Filled Cookies

FILLING:
2 cups dates, finely cut or ground
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup water
1/2 cup chopped nuts

COOKIE DOUGH:
1 cup shortening
2 cups brown sugar, firmly packed
2 eggs
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 tsp. vanilla
3 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. cinnamon

Oven at 400.  Ungreased cookie sheets.

FILLING:
Cook ingredients for filling slowly, stirring constantly until thickened. Set aside.

DOUGH:
1.  Mix shortening, brown sugar and eggs well. Add buttermilk and vanilla, stirring to combine.
2.  Sift flour, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon, and add to shortening mixture in portions.
3.  Drop dough onto sheet, about 2 inches apart, and drop 1/2 tsp filling on each, covering the filling ith 1/2 teaspoon dough.
4.  Bake 400 degrees 10-12 minutes or till lightly browned.
Yield:  4-5 dozen cookies, depending on size.

Today's art is a card I did last year for a swap.  I'm thinking this might be what we awaken to see tomorrow morning, if the weathercasters are right!

Cookies Day 3 - Choco-Cherry Bites

Today in NOTL:  Cold out there, with 2 p.m. temps of 37F/3C under cloudy skies with rain off and on today.  A gorgeous day!

At the end of this post will be the 3rd cookie recipe...yummy chococherry bites!

Today I am working on uploading some pear ACEOs to the Etsy shop, or trying to, lol.  It ought to be easy, but it is time-consuming and I keep making silly mistakes and having to start over.  Argh!

Still on my pear kick - I tend to get into ruts.  I do a card on beaches, and then here come a bunch of beach cards.  Or sunsets or poodles or whatever.  I try not to, but I pick up the brush and the next thing you know, I'm back into a rut.

Today's card is one I did a year ago.  I kept it for myself, actually, just because.  I thought the snow looked pretty good.

It's Thanksgiving in the US, and I watched the Macy's parade this morning.  It's so ingrained in my experience of Thanksgiving that as soon as I saw the first band, I could feel my holiday spirit perking up.  Hope you're getting ready for a great holiday.  Here is the cookie recipe I promised you, a lovely chocolate and cherry flavoured cookie that is great with the frosting but still yummy without.

Choco-Cherry Bites

2 1/4 cups flour
3/4 cup powdered sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
1 cup butter, softened
1 tsp. vanilla
1 tsp. almond extract
1/2 cup chopped maraschino cherries, drained
1/4 cup chopped pecans or walnuts

Frosting:
2 cups powdered sugar
3 tbsp. butter, softened
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa
1/2 tsp. vanilla
2 to 4 tbsp. half and half

Oven at 350 degrees.
1.  Mix together all cookie ingredients EXCEPT the cherries and nuts, mixing well.
2.  Add in cherries and nuts, stirring to blend.
3.  Roll into small balls (my round tablespoon measure works great for making equal sized balls).
4.  Place 2 inches apart on ungreased cookie sheets.
5.  Bake 10-15 minutes or till golden brown.

TO PREPARE THE FROSTING:
Combine all frosting ingredients until smooth.

Generously frost cooled cookies.  Yield: about 4 dozen.

24 Days of Cookies: Day 2 - Flourless Peanut Butter Cookies

You thought I forgot, didn't you!  I didn't; I just wasn't on the computer with the cookie recipes on it!  So, for Day 2, an eeeeeasy one bowl, no mixing version of a favourite cookie:

Flourless Peanut Butter Cookies

1 cup peanut butter
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon baking soda

Basic Directions:
1.  Mix together.
2.  Drop by teaspoonfuls (or whatever spoon you use for cookie dropping) onto cookie sheet sprayed with nonstick coating (or covered with baking parchment).
3. Bake about 10 minutes, till golden brown on edges.


Notes: 
- Peanut butter varies.  I find cheap peanut butter works really well in this recipe, but that's me.
- You may want to press with a fork and sprinkle sugar on the top of these, a la Mama's pb cookies of old.  Or you may just roll 'em in plain old sugar and press with a fork.  Or you can leave 'em lumpy.  Your call.
- Using all plain granulated sugar makes a nice cookie, but a mix of brown and white granulated sugars is also nice.  I like 50-50, others like a quarter-cup brown to three-quarters cup white. Again, your call.
- You can use chunky peanut butter for this recipe.  Yum!
- Or you can add chocolate chips, a la the pb cup we all love.
- I find it easier to make this recipe if you first stir up the peanut butter (I like stiff peanut butter for this recipe, remember) to loosen it up, then add the egg and sugar.  You want to mix it well, but even if you just throw it all together and mix at once, it comes out well.  Just takes a bit longer, is all.

These cookies are delicious and very peanutty, as you might expect.  If you want to make them for gifts, try rolling teaspoon or larger balls to a uniform size, press down with a fork or your fingers, and sprinkle sugar on them.  When they are cool, drizzle with melted chocolate and take a bow!

New New New - White Chocolate Pear Cookies

Today in NOTL:  Cold front coming!  Temp is dropping, and at 3:30sih we've passed our high with temps at 48F/9C and dropping.  Great Thanksgiving weather!

Big things brewing...Deb becomes an Archbishop this Sunday, presiding bishop of the Community Catholic Church here in Ontario, actually.  A great responsibility for her, and your prayers and support are appreciated. We're also planning changes to the newsletter, which will give us more scope for articles without making the emails so very loooong.  And...surprise!  I'm starting my 24 Days of Cookies EARLY!  This will give you time to try a couple out before the Christmas season is upon us.

Cookie of the Day:  White Chocolate Pear Cookies!!!!
I must confess to you:  I did not have a pear cookie in my recipe collection and I wanted to use a pear recipe since I have pear artwork to upload, lolol.  So I did a yahoo search and found this recipe on about.com.  You can find it here on the About.com network.

For convenience sake, though, I'm including it here:
They say it takes under a half hour to prepare.  You'll need to preheat the oven to 375*F and get out your cookie sheets, leaving them ungreased.
1-1/2 cups peeled, finely chopped fresh pears
1/2 cup butter
1/4 cup vegetable shortening
1 cup brown sugar
1 egg
1 tsp. vanilla
1-1/2 cups flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
2 cups granola
1 cup vanilla milk chips OR white chocolate chips

1. Cream butter, shortening, and sugar until light, using large bowl of mixer. 

2.  Add egg and vanilla, mixing till smooth. Add pears and stir to combine.

3.  Stir together flour, soda, salt, and cinnamon in a separate bowl.  Add in portions to creamed mixture, beating until mixture is smooth. 

4.  Stir in granola and 1/2 cup chips. 

5.  Drop mixture onto ungreased cookie sheets using a teaspoon.
6.  Bake 10-12 minutes till brown.  Cool 2-3 minutes, then place cookies onto racks to finish cooling.
7.  Using microwave or small pan and low heat, melt the other 1/2 cup chips and drizzle over the cookies when they are conmpletely cool.
Yield: about 36 cookies

I think regular chocolate chips would be nice, too, or perhaps a butterscotch chip?