Making Gingerbread Men Tonight

Storybook Gingerbread Men

Ingredients

* 1/2 cup shortening
* 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
* 3 1/4 cups sifted all-purpose flour
* 1 teaspoon salt
* 1 teaspoon baking soda
* 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
* 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
* 3/4 cup molasses
* 1/4 cup water

Directions

1. Cream shortening and sugar. Sift flour with salt, soda and spices. Blend flour mixture into creamed mixture alternately with molasses and water. Chill at least 1 hour.
2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (180 degrees C).
3. Roll dough to 1/4 inch thick. Cut with large 6-8 inch gingerbreadmen cookie cutters. Lift onto lightly greased cookie sheet with broad spatula.
4. Bake above oven center for about 12 minutes or until cookies spring back lightly in center. Do not overcook, they won’t stay soft. Remove from sheets. Cool on wire racks. Makes 10 men 6-8 inches tall.

The batter seemed too dry so I added water. Might be too much now. They are in the fridge, will see how they look in the morning when I get set to roll them out. I have a cookie cutter for gingerbreadmen and a Xmas tree. I plan to use a knife to cut out a pattern for a couple of gingerbread house cookies too.

Flower Blossom Cookies


These will cheer you up for Spring. Still more snow here in Barrie today. But I did find these in a flyer at the grocery store yesterday.

Flower Blossom Cookies
Ingredients

1 cup [250 mL] butter, softened
1/2 cup [125 mL] sugar
1 egg
1 can [300 mL] Low Fat Sweetened Condensed Milk
2 tsp [10 mL] vanilla
4 1/2 cups [1.1 L] All Purpose Flour
1/2 tsp [2 mL] baking powder
50 lollipop sticks

GLAZE
3 cups [750 mL] icing sugar
4-6 tbsp [60-90 mL] water

food colouring (optional)

Preheat oven to 375°F (190°C). Grease or line baking sheets with parchment paper.

COOKIES:

Cream butter and sugar until well combined. Add egg, condensed milk and vanilla and mix until smooth. Mix in remaining dry ingredients.

Divide dough into 4 pieces. On a lightly floured surface roll each piece to a ¼” (5 mm) thickness. Cut out flower shapes with 2”- 3” (5 cm-7.6 cm) floured cookie cutters and place on prepared baking sheets. Place lollipop stick underneath cookie, lightly pressing dough onto the stick. Gather up scraps and repeat with remaining dough.

Bake for 8-10 minutes, or until beginning to colour. Cool on racks.

GLAZE:

Combine icing sugar with water. Brush a thin coating of glaze over cookies. Allow to dry for 10 minutes. Divide remaining glaze into small containers. If you run out just make a bit more. Add different food colouring to each container. Using a small paint brush, paint each cookie any way you like.

TIPS:
• Sprinkle on decorations such as coloured sugar or sprinkles while the glaze is still wet. They will dry and stick to the cookies.
• Wrap stems of cookies with tissue and ribbon to make a bouquet.

Makes 50 cookies

Thursday Thirteen #8 – Queen of the Cookies


Today for the Thursday Thirteen

Thirteen things I put in the cookies I made today:

red and green candied cherries
vanilla
light brown sugar
cinnamon
freshly ground black pepper
ginger
4 eggs
white sugar
unsalted peanuts
flour
salt
canola oil
baking soda

I don’t count the hair that tried to make it’s way in there too. I pulled it out while it was still on the side of the mixing bowl.