Take Back Thursday Gingerbread Delights #TBT

Since Chrismas falls on Thursday this year, I thought it would be fun to re-use my favourite Christmas cookie recipe today and show you how I decorated my gingerbread cookies this Christmas. I'm just posting early since I know I'll be a little busy tomorrow!  

This year I bought a reindeer cookie cutter and created little reindeer and Santa combos to munch with milk, eggnog, or whatever our hearts desire tonight. And, if there are any left, Santa will get some too! 

Enjoy your holiday tomorrow! Best wishes from my home to yours! 

Grinch Cookies!

I love everything about about Christmas, but watching a Christmas movie while munching on homemade cookies would have to be my very favourite holiday activity. And to make this year's favourite activity even more festive, I made a new cookie that's inspired by one of my favourite holiday movies, the Grinch Who Stole Christmas!

I've enjoyed matcha tea, a powdered green tea, in lattes for awhile but adding it to a batch of cookies is the perfect way to naturally dye my cookies a delightfully grinchy green. And simple pink piped hearts, three sizes too small, adds to the Who-ville experience in a way I know every single one of you will agree.

So get out your mixing bowls and cookie sheets to bake up a batch of what I think is going to turn into everyone's new holiday favourite - Grinch Cookies!

Carrot Cupcakes for Easter

I love baking up a storm for Easter but usually choose a carrot cake because it's seems fitting to serve carrots on a day filled with bunny love. This year I wanted to do something different and decided to make something cute for Easter that resembles a carrot cake, but tastes more like what the bunny might hide instead of what he want to nibble on after hiding all of the Easter eggs.

I headed off to my local candy store, came back with a few bags full of fun, and got really excited about my idea. These Chocolate Carrot Cupcakes are inspired by a photo I saw on Pinterest, but I made them my own by using decorations that were easier to find and a tried and true chocolate cake recipe from my recipe box!

Melt My Heart

I might live in one of the warmest areas of Canada, but it's still cold here in December. In fact, I don't even like going outside this time of year, unless I have to. And when I have to, I always like to warm up when I'm back inside with a cup of tea and a delicious treat. 

Today's post is a holiday cookie I made from Canadian Living's November magazine that brings the taste of winter indoors so you don't even have to get outside in order to enjoy a cookie. Instead, just eat one of these Minty Meltaways to feel like you're outside and then eat another cookie to warm yourself up. 

Jack-O-Peppers

Did you know that jack-o-lanterns were originally made out of all sorts of vegetables? It's been said that today's North American jack-o-lanterns could have been derived from how the Irish carved lanterns out of beets, turnips, and other veggies to guide evil spirits away on All Hallow's Eve.

I'd like to say that this is why I made these Jack-O-Peppers for dinner tonight, but I actually just saw a few fun versions on good old Pinterest and had to make up a few myself. Who knew they'd be so easy and fun?!

Boo Cakes

I'm not going to pretend that these are the most beautiful cupcakes I've ever made. I know I should have piled the frosting higher so they looks more like ghosts, but I am more a cake girl than a frosting girl, so they stayed short. But looks aside, these Boo Cakes are really fun for Halloween and tasted great. 

If you want to put extra frosting on your cakes to make them more ghost-like, just double up the frosting recipe and do it! I'd love to see a picture of them looking almost too delicious to eat! 

Read on for my delicious Seven Minute Frosting recipe to top delicious Boo Cakes!

Alien Spaghetti

Today's recipe is absolutely one of the most fun and easy recipes I've ever made. And that's not a sentence I'm saying lightly. These were leftovers I was proud to show off in the lunch room the next day. I was proud to share such a fun recipe with anyone that asked about it and was excited to be able to remember the few short steps it took to make the dish come alive.

The fact that it's perfect for sharing in October is a big bonus. The dish is a healthier version of one from Clotilde Dusoulier's The French Market Cookbook and it's shocking pink colour makes it perfect for remembering that October is breast cancer awareness month. Plus it reminds me of Alien Spaghetti and that makes it perfect for Halloween too! :)

Sweet Turk-tato

Happy Thanksgiving Canada!  I know most of you are enjoying turkey this weekend, but this short and sweet post is a smile for those of you that are choosing to enjoy something other than turkey. It's a sweet turk-tato! Or in other words, a sweet potato shaped like a turkey.

Can you believe my mom actually found this sweet potato for me? I almost couldn't believe it, but I'm happy she did. :)

Now I can't wait to hear what it's like when it's roasted and carved up!

Minted - Christmas Cards and More!

I know many of us are busy focusing on back to school right now, but it's also creeping closer to my favourite holiday season and it will soon be time to think about planning Christmas and holiday cards. It might sound too soon to some of you, but I know I start receiving cards at the beginning of December which means they must have been mailed in mid November, must have been personalized in early November, and in homes ready to go in October. It's going to be September in a just a few short weeks, so it's now time to start planning to stay ahead of the game!

Minted is a new website that I've just discovered and I am loving Minted's beautiful Christmas photo cards. I also love that choosing Minted cards means supporting independent designers and that the cards are reasonably priced. 

One of my favourite of Minted's Christmas photo cards is the template below. You can customize your photo card with five of your own photos and choose from a selection of colours for the background too.  I love this card because I love to include a simple holiday recipe in my Christmas cards and I would love to include a photo of my recipe as one of the photos. 

This year I am thinking about including a recipe for a simple Christmas fruit salad in my Christmas cards. Read on for my recipe and for a few great holiday gift ideas from Minted!

Bun Buns

These buns are too perfect for Easter dinner. They're easy to make, taste like they're from a bakery, and they even look like little bunnies. I think. The only problem with them is that they're almost too cute to eat.

It took me a few tries to get them as close to perfect as I could for the holdiay. The first time they turned out like fat cats. If I had intended to make fats cats they would have been perfect, they tasted great! But I wanted bunnies for Easter.

Another try showed me my mistake was that I rolled round balls instead of longer pear shapes, my dough was too wet and I needed a little flour tossed on at the end, and I also didn't reshape the ears after I snipped them with scissors.

I don't think my Buns Buns are perfect yet, but I know they'll make a few smiles at my Easter dinner table. Read on for a chance to make your own Bun Buns, or Cat Buns if you like!

God Bless Us, Everyone

Merry Christmas everyone!

Instead of sharing a new recipe today, I'm sharing what my holiday dinner with you. These are tried and true recipes I've shared with you before, with the exception of one, and now you get a taste of what my holiday meal is going to be like. 

I hope all of yours taste as good as mine hopefully will!

Turkey with Maple-Pesto Sauce

Maple Balsamic Brussel Sprouts

Crispy Potatoes for Luke and simple mashed potatoes for me

Apple Carrot and Parsley Dressing

And what's new? A Roasted Beet Salad with hazelnuts and cambozola cheese. I know this will be a great salad to make all winter and I'll share it with you soon!

Delight or Fright?

Alright friends, I'm not going to ask you to guess what's in the foil wrapped package below because that's too easy. It's a little too obvious given the title of my post and the shape of my gift. The package contains a moist, dried fruit and nut filled fruitcake - completely drenched in brandy. 

So instead of what's in the package, I'm asking you to guess what making a loaf pan sized fruitcake would cost. I was certainly surprised by the cost, but since I know a few fruitcake fans and I love baking, I'd whip up a dozen more of them!

The person to who guesses closest to the dollar amount will get a New Year's treat named especially after them! Just include your guesses in the comments below or on my Facebook page and thanks for playing!

And don't be scared, there are no gross red and green cherries in this cake. It's just chock full of delicious-ness!

Twelfth Night

On the twelfth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me...

Eleven Peppermint Meringues, ten Yuletide Toffee Squares, nine Date Turnover Cookies, eight Werther's Caramel Peanut Butter Thumbprints, seven Swan Cream Puffs, six Orange Toffee Cookies, five Shortbread Wreaths, four Sesame Seed Shortbreads, three Snow Covered Chocolate Torte Cookies, two Turtle Cookies, and a Partridge in a Pear Tree Thumbprint!

And they're all stored in my freezer in a few big drums!

Ok, I know this is a bit of a cop out. What I wanted to share on the twelfth day of Christmas was my favourite recipe for Gingerbread Cookies again, I wanted to ice some drums on some of the gingerbread man cookies to create 12 drummers drumming. But I'm not quite ready to bake gingerbreads yet. I always bake them on Christmas Eve! So until Christmas Eve I'm going to leave you with a great photo of one of my favourite pups in the world, Olli!

Piped Happiness

I thought long and hard about what kind of cookie to make for the ninth day of Christmas and all that came to mind when I thought about eleven pipers piping was cookies decorated with beautiful piped icing. 

But Christmas should be about creating good memories, not painful memories and I hate piping icing onto cookies - it's just too much work! So I decided that piped icing cookies were definitely out. 

When I sent myself back to the drawing board I thought of a great recipe to share, piped meringues! And these meringues are as easy to make as they are delicious to eat too, so I know you'll want to try them. Read on for the recipe!

Lord's a Leaping

When you think of a lord, which country do you think of? I think of Scotland where there are tons of gorgeous old castles and lords living in them.

And when you think of Scotland, what food do you think of? I think of oatmeal, hearty and strong oatmeal. 

When you see the cookie that that the tenth day of Christmas has brought, along with ten lord's a leaping, you may think that I took a leap in the dark when I selected it. But I think that these cookie bars will more likely leap into your mouth. They aren't my mom and Luke's favourite Christmas treats for nothing. :)

Sweet on Dates

I love dates. They provide a natural sweetness and stickiness to baking and who doesn't love something sweet?

I am not sure how dates got their name, but I do know that when I am invited out dancing by my Sweetheart it's called a date. And that's why the ninth day of Christmas is bringing nine ladies dancing and a few dozen Date Turnover Cookies!

These are not the type of cookie I would suggest making with kids because they're fiddly, but they're the perfect size for a kid to bite into at dessert.

Keep reading for the recipe!

Cream of the Crop

On the eighth day of Christmas my true love gave to me... Eight maids a milking and a prize from Werther's Original! 

Werther's recently had a great contest where everyone was asked to come up with an original recipe for Werther's Caramel Season. I love snacking on Werther's caramels but I haven't baked with them a lot, so I racked my brain for something delicious to enter. 

I finally decided to revamp one of my favourite cookie recipes to use Werther's Soft Caramels and I won! I thought that since these cookies involve whipping cream, it would only be fitting to share on the eighth day of Christmas :)

Bella Swan

To avoid any confusion, let me start by saying this - the seventh day of Christmas did not bring us a glittery vampire. The seventh day of Christmas brings us seven swans a swimming and some delightfully beautiful Swan Cream Puffs.

I did take a few liberties with my cookie of the day for the seventh day of Christmas as today's recipe isn't technically a cookie, but I think you will thank me for it. They're cute, yummy, and creative desserts.

I have seen similar desserts to my Swan Cream Puffs on the Internet for a while and I've been wanting to make them since the first day I saw them. But since they were intricate looking I expected them to be a lot of work and wanted to wait for a special occasion. And what better day to make Swan Cream Puffs than the for the seventh day of Christmas?

Keep reading to find out how I make my version of Swan Cream Puffs. They're pastry bag free and even have a candy topping like a Croquembouche! In fact, this recipe is very similar to my Croquembouche recipe. I just make the pastry balls larger, spoon them onto my tray instead of piping them, and serve them differently.

Golden Goose

A Golden Goose is something that will continue to make someone rich or successful for a long period of time. And a Golden Goose is what I always think of when I hear the the line about the sixth day of Christmas, six geese a-laying. I always think about six geese lining up and laying six beautiful golden eggs.

Anna Olson's cookie, Salted Orange Toffee Slices, are a Golden Goose of a cookie. They're perfect with tea, have golden flecks of orange zest and toffee throughout, and they're perfect for sharing - all points to keep someone happy, rich, and successful for a long period of time. 

I changed a few things from Anna's recipe, mostly because I couldn't get the perfect square shapes she called for, because I didn't like the sound of salt on the tops of my cookies, and because I am too impatient to wait two hours for my cookie dough to cool in the fridge. Keep reading for my version of the recipe. 

Buttery Bites

Life can't get much better than when the fifth day of Christmas brings us five golden rings and at least five delicious golden shortbread wreath bites. I love using my cookie press and I love the memories using it brings me even more than than the treats I create with it. 

My Nana had a cookie press and I will always remember that tins of cookies she'd pull from the freezer during the holidays. Her tins were full of homemade cookies in all shapes and sizes, and she always made Shortbread Wreaths with her cookie press. 

Nana's wreaths were circled with light pink and green dots of icing, but when I tried to recreate her decorations, I fell a little short. I don't use a piping bag of icing very often and I don't have a very steady hand with one. So most of Shortbread Wreaths are dipped in semi-sweet chocolate instead. All I did was melt one cup of semi sweet chocolate chips with 1 tablespoon of shortening in my microwave and dipped away. 

I shared my Nana's cookie press Shortbread recipe last Christmas. For my Shortbread Wreaths, I just use a wreath attachment and savour the time I spend making my cookies. It's almost like baking with my Nana again. :)