Christmas Cookies

So it’s December?  Or should I say it’s almost 2013?!  Not like you need me to state the obvious, I’m just reflecting on how much of my “life” seems to be under different categories.  I’m obviously not able to keep up with every thing (this blog included) but I’m not quite willing to let it go.  I really enjoy posting recipes and more times than not, I’m thinking about what I’m making as a blog post (after the fact) but then I never get a chance to catch my breath or write it up.  Ah, but there are such worse things in life.

After a soon-to-never-be-released comic strip on Mommy-Plans-Gone-Wrong marathon of errand running yesterday and bath time, etc, I did manage to not only make the cookie doughs but I rolled out the roll out cookie and gingerbread between pieces of parchment (4 large pieces each) and slid them into the fridge.  That way today I merely had to pull the pre-rolled dough out and put it in front of the kids for them to cut out shapes; decorate and go.  Honest to goodness, it was the best choice ever.  What two or four or forty-three year old has the patience for cookie making?  Not me, I tell ya.  But thanks to my kids, I don’t think all of my Christmas cookies will be naked from here on out.    Today we made three different kinds of Cookies:  roll out cookies, GF Joe’s Gingerbread Cookies and PB Kiss Cookies (the no flour version).

Not too shabby.

Tomorrow, me/myself/I will attempt to gather 3 toddlers and a wonderful 8-year-old around a table for the royal icing to decorate the gingerbread men.  I think I will lose my mind.  Or not.  It could be the messiest fun I’ve had in days! 😀

Hope that life is treating you well.  May you have many messy happy moments this season.

We could all certainly use them. 😀

Merry Christmas, All.

~Kate

It’s not too late yet! Dark Chocolate Mocha Fudge – just in time for Christmas

Christmas is coming!  Santa is near.   The girls can feel it in the air.

This year we’ve donated money to our local food bank on behalf of all of our nieces, nephews and family members.  To be honest, it was the best thing ever.  Each family is taking care of their own little ones with gifts, etc – but we’ve been so happy to teach the girls our reality.  And what is that reality?  Well, we may not have everything, but we have a heck of a lot more than many others in our community.  And there too, but for the Grace of God, ….  in this economy, you never know.

For the last few years, my classes and I have held special food drives for a weekend food program for hungry kids in Pre-K through 6th Grade.  (Other kids can access food programs through their family aid.)  The program (“Backpack for Kids”) sends home a backpack filled with easy-to-serve/make (pop-top cans, etc) and highly nutritious foods for little people.  The meals target little ones who may not have access to food otherwise on the weekends.  As a teacher, I know too well the look of hunger on a student’s face.  This year, the program serves 1,700 kids in our community.  That is up from 1,100 kids just last year.

600 more kids in need.

It’s a number that floored me.

I don’t need to hammer you with statistics, you probably know them.  Let’s just say, I’m happy to know that our donations will serve a purpose.  There are some great places to make a donation on behalf of your loved ones if you are struggling with what to get for someone.  Not only to I recommend your local food bank, but please consider joining us in making donations to these other organizations:

• The Spoon Foundation:  Working to combat hunger and childhood deficiencies in orphanages worldwide.
• Share Our Strength:  No Kid Hungry – working in the US to end childhood hunger.

And then make some great cards to let those you love know how they’ve helped another this holiday season.  😀

And when you sit down to write your Santa letter, you could always ask for chocolates for your neighbors too.

At least that is what Zoe did.  She and I were talking about the food bank (she’s been there with me to drop off donations, etc a few times).  She asked me if the three neighbors near us would be going to the food bank this year.  I told her I didn’t know, but that I didn’t think so.  So then she asked if they had any ‘ersheys (aka “Hersheys”) in their houses.  (Can you tell what we were out of?  No chocolate in the house can be a disturbing thing.)

Since I told her that I wasn’t sure, she then added “chocolate for the neighbors” to her Santa letter.  Personally, I think fudge is better.  Especially at Christmas time.

So have no fear, if a donation doesn’t fit your last-minute gift-giving plan, try making this fudge.  I’ve sent some along with my Love to work for his Christmas party and they were a hit.  Today, I’m making another batch – more for the neighbors and this time, I’m going to make some salted-caramel mocha fudge too.  Yum!

This recipe is based on my mom’s fudge recipe.  Her recipe rocks and was so easy to adapt to add coffee extract, etc to make it a mocha flavor.

Dark Chocolate Mocha Fudge with a Toffee crunch topping

Makes one 8×8″ pan – Printable 2 page recipe here

Toffee topping:  (you can substitute GF toffee bars if you’d prefer)

Ingredients:

• 1 cup sliced almonds
• 1/2 teaspoon olive oil
• 1 Tablespoon water
• 1/4 cup butter
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 2 Tablespoon brown sugar
• 1/8 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• sea salt  (approx. 1 teaspoon +) for sprinkling

Directions:

1. in a shallow pan, place the olive oil and sliced almonds over medium heat.  Swirl to prevent burning, but toast the almond slices.  Remove from the heat and roughly chop.  Set aside.
2. Place a piece of parchment paper on a cutting board.  (Use a piece about as long as a cookie sheet – which will be more than long enough for this small batch of toffee.)  Cover with half of the toasted almond slices.  (Actually, place a pile of sliced almonds on the parchment and spread them out a bit  – about to a 8″ square or so.)
3. In a deep pan, using a candy thermometer, bring the water and sugars (white and brown) together to a boil.  Cook, stirring the middle of the pan but without scraping the sides (you can swirl the pan a bit if needed), until you reach a temperature of 285F.
4. Immediately remove the pan from the heat and add the baking soda and vanilla extract.  Again, stir these ingredients in but do not scrap the pan.
5. Quickly pour the mixture over the almond slices on the parchment paper – but don’t scrap your pan!  (Scraping will actually make your toffee crystallize and not be smooth).  Cover the top of the toffee with the remaining almond slices and sprinkle with sea salt.  Set aside to cool (which won’t take too long).
6. Crush or chop the toffee into bits.  (About 1/2 of this toffee recipe easily tops one fudge recipe.)
7. Make your fudge.

Dark Chocolate Mocha Fudge

Makes one 8 by 8″ pan

Ingredients:

• 2 cups of sugar
• 2/3 cup of milk
• 3 Tablespoons instant coffee
• 12 regular sized marshmallows
• 1 stick of butter (1/2 cup or a quarter pound)
• 1 large package dark chocolate chips (10-12 ounces)
• 1 1/2 teaspoons coffee extract – OR – 1 teaspoon vanilla extract + 1/2 teaspoon coffee extract
• Sea salt for sprinkling

Directions:

1. Butter the bottom of your 8×8″ pan well.
2. Cook together sugar, milk, instant coffee, and marshmallows over a medium heat.  Stirring constantly, bring it to a boil, then turn the temperature down a bit.  You want to keep a low boil – but too high of a temperature will cause the sugar to form large bubbles that pop  and become lava-like burn potential while boiling – be carefully!
3. Stir constantly over this low boil for 5 1/2 to 6 minutes.  (Longer and the fudge will be hard, not long enough and the fudge won’t set.)  (Cook until soft ball stage or between 235-240F)
4. Remove from the heat, add the butter, dark chocolate chips and coffee extract.  Stir until well incorporated.
5. Pour into your prepared pan.
6. Top quickly with the chopped toffee pieces and sprinkle a little sea salt over the top.
7. Allow to cool/set before cutting into pieces to serve or share.

And don’t forget to walk some over to your neighbors as well.

After all, chocolate is for sharing, right?

Merry Christmas, All!

~Kate

PS.  Thanks for the fudge recipe, Mom!  I’ve had it for years in my recipe book from you… and don’t think I’ve ever dared to make it. Not that it’s hard… I just knew that I would eat the whole pan!  Thank goodness for little girls (who love chocolate) and neighbors, right?

Thank you.

Because of you, I know Love.

Because of you, they do too.

thank you.

Happy Valentine’s Day, everyone.

And especially to YOU, My Love.

GF: Fabulous, Quick Brownies

Quick, easy and delicious:  GF Brownies. Photo by Kate Chan.

The holidays are over (but my tree is still up until Saturday).

My parents have left  (leaving my Chicklet at a loss for her beloved Grammy and Grampy).

My work?  Still not done, but at least the pile is neater well… still visible and now sporting a “to-do list” sticky note.

The New Year has begun and I am so very thankful to have had some time with my parents.  My dad is tired (chemo, anemia and a variety of other ailments), my mom is amazingly steady and continues to demonstrate grace, and I am still just figuring it all out as it comes.  Sometimes it’s strange to me to think of all of our ages and that I have KIDS!  What?!?!  Kids?  I’m a mom?  Get out! I still feel like a kid myself!  Who knew that this is the way it really would be.  Certainly makes me appreciate this bizarre phase of life more.

I am realizing all the things my parents did for and with us that I don’t remember.  Raising kids is a bit like raising a future amnesia patient.  😀  I will remember all of our lovely little snuggles, games and conversations, but they won’t.  It’s definitely eye-opening and character building.  It’s sad that we don’t remember these tender moments with our parents as we grow up.  But I’m happy I don’t remember teething, etc!  Blech!  Some things are definitely meant to be forgotten after the experience is over.

Experience is also what makes me able to remove myself from the high school drama that swirls outside my classroom door (and sometimes sneaks through the doorway in whispers, glances and clandestine text messages).  Thank goodness none of us have to relive that again, huh?  But really, the beautiful part about experience is the sincere appreciation of my parents and their gifts to me.

There are too many instances for me to name, but I will just say this:  we are much more like our parents than we will ever know. 😀  (And in my case, that is a great thing! I’m lucky.)

My folks just left on Tuesday.

On Monday night, I decided to whip up some brownies for a lunch meeting on Tuesday.  I started at 9:45.  By 10:20, the brownies were done.  But my mom had already gone upstairs to bed (or so we thought) while my Love and I visited with my Dad at the table.  As my dad excused himself to join my mom, I went up to say goodnight to her.  I didn’t want to miss my chance as I wasn’t sure if she would be up when we left the house early in the morning heading off to daycare/work/school.

I found her at the top of the stairs – holding her laptop and sniffing the air.  “Are the brownies done yet?” she asked.

Oh yea.  You have to love her. 😀

She came downstairs to make the great sacrifice of taste-testing.  I had the brownies cooling on the counter (laying on parchment paper but out of the baking dish).  When she and my dad entered the kitchen, they were both whispering about brownies.  My dad asked her what she was doing and that he thought she had gone to bed.  She laughed and said nope – not when there are fresh brownies in the house.

And then he asked, “Brownies? Where?”

“Yes!” she said, “I can smell them but I don’t see them!”

I chuckled from the other room.  Busted by my giggle, my parents laughed too.  And then we cut into the delicious, fudgy warm brownies and talked about the quality of them.  Oh, chocolate.  If not for love to bind our family, I’m sure chocolate would do.

——————–

And now that there are a few more gluten-free buddies at work (for a few reasons), I have even more taste-testers.  The mistake I made, I guess, was bringing the brownies in from the car before lunch.  Why?  Well, because they never actually made it to lunch.  They were eaten for breakfast.  😀 Oh yes, it was a sacrifice indeed.

My normal breakfast it typically a cup of coffee and a banana.  This time is was a mighty chocolatey banana with a fabulous coffee kicker and a side of brownie.  YUM.

I guess I will just have to make another batch for my meeting on Saturday (8:00AM until 2:00PM, anyone?).  Something tells me they might just end up as a Saturday brunch item during our meeting, but I know my chocolate-loving colleagues.  They will be all-over the idea of that!

And I know some of you are doing the appropriate thing:  avoiding sugar after so many yummy treats during the holidays.  But chocolate is like air sometimes:  you just GOTTA have it!  And besides, my wild rice dish that I am making in the crock pot tomorrow will more than make up for it.  😀

If you get a hangering for some fabulous brownies, try these.  When they are warm, they are rich and fudgey.  When they cool off, they are still fudgy, but get more cake-like.  Either way, they are delicious.  And if you don’t want to make your own, you are more than welcome to come to our curriculum planning meeting on Saturday morning to try some of mine. 😀

Gluten Free Quick Brownies
Makes a 6″ x 10″ oblong or 9 inch square pan.

Ingredients:
2 eggs, beaten together in a small bowl
2/3 c. GF flour mix
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon chili powder (optional – but adds a great layer of flavor)
1/2 cup sugar (use 2/3 cup if using all bittersweet chips)
2 Tablespoons butter
2 Tablespoons water
2 cups chocolate chips (1 cup bittersweet, 1 cup milk or semi-sweet)
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350ºF.  Line your baking pan with parchment paper (or oil tin foil).
2. Beat together eggs in a small bowl.
3. Whisk together flour, baking soda, salt, and chili powder and set aside.
4. In a microwave safe bowl, place the sugar, water and butter.  Melt in your microwave (30 seconds +, depending on your microwave).  Take out and stir.  Then put back into the microwave and bring it to a boil.  (About 2 minutes more – again, depending on your microwave).  (PS.  This step can be done on your stovetop in a small saucepan too, if you would prefer.)
5. Stir the chocolate chips and vanilla extract into the hot sugar/water/butter mixture.  Stir until the chocolate chips have all melted (leaving a few chunks is okay).
6. Add dry ingredients plus eggs to the mixture and stir well.  (Do this quickly so the eggs don’t begin to “cook” in the hot chocolate goodness.)
7. Pour your batter into the parchment lined baking dish.  Bake for 20 – 26 minutes or until the top shines and is dry.
8. Remove from the oven.  Lift the parchment out of your baking dish and set it on a cooling rack to allow the brownies to cool.  Cutting in to warm brownies will give you fudgey dense brownies.  Allow them to cool completely for a less dense-fudgey brownie.  Store in an airtight container or a plastic food bag until all have been devoured.

Happy GF Chocolatey Goodness!
~Kate