Cranberry Pecan Cheese Wafers

One of my Mom's highly anticipated holiday specialties was cheese "biscuits"!  Also known as cheese wafers and sometimes made into cheese straws, these are a savory wafer with a hint of spiciness and can be addictive!  I just came across this recipe in Southern Living, one of my favorite publications, and had to give this one a try.  It did not disappoint!  The combination of cheese, cranberries, and pecans is awesome... sweet, cheesy, buttery, and crispy!  It makes enough to share!

From Southern Living DECEMBER 2011

• Yield: Makes about 18 dozen

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 1/2 cups chopped pecans
• 1 1/2 cups coarsely chopped sweetened dried cranberries
• 2 cups butter, softened
• 4 cups (16 oz.) freshly shredded extra-sharp Cheddar cheese
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 1 1/2 teaspoons ground red pepper
• 4 cups all-purpose flour
• Parchment paper

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 350°. Bake pecans in a single layer in a shallow pan 8 to 10 minutes or until toasted and fragrant, stirring halfway through. Cool completely (about 15 minutes).
2. Meanwhile, soak cranberries in boiling water to cover 15 minutes; drain and pat dry with paper towels.
3. Beat butter and next 3 ingredients at medium speed with a heavy-duty electric stand mixer until blended. Gradually add flour, beating just until combined. Stir in cranberries and pecans. Shape dough into 4 (12-inch-long) logs; wrap each log in plastic wrap. Chill 8 hours to 3 days.
4. Preheat oven to 350°. Cut each log into 1/4-inch-thick slices; place on parchment paper-lined baking sheets. Bake 13 to 15 minutes or until lightly browned. Remove from baking sheets to wire racks, and cool completely (about 20 minutes).

Party Time Gouda Cheese Ball

 

Who doesn’t love an old fashioned cheese ball?  It’s the perfect party food to serve with crackers, baguette slices, or veggies.  Cheese balls don't have to be boring!  Use whatever cheese or combination of cheeses you like; add cranberries, scallions, chopped green chilis, bacon or such.  I just got back from St. Maarten, where on the Dutch side I enjoyed Gouda cheese almost every day.  So being a Gouda cheese fan, I made a Gouda cheese ball and am happy with the result!  Enjoy!

INGREDIENTS:

2 8-ounce packages low fat cream cheese, softened

2 cups shredded Gouda cheese

1  (1-ounce) package ranch dressing mix

½ teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

1 ½ cups chopped pecans

DIRECTIONS:

Mix together cream cheese, Gouda, ranch dressing mix and Worcestershire sauce until well combined.  Shape into one large or two smaller cheese balls.  Roll in chopped pecans and wrap tightly in plastic wrap.  Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Grandmother Elma's Moravian Sugar Cake

Grandmother Elma, who lived in Winston-Salem, NC and was an active part of the Moravian community there, passed this recipe on to me.  She knew how much I loved this simple & sweet cake.   It’s a rather “plain Jane” of a coffee cake as far as looks go.  But remember that beauty is only skin deep so when you taste the first bite, you’re in love!  Moravians are known for their thin spiced cookies and their sugar cakes.  Sugar cakes, which are tradition at Easter and Christmas, are made with a yeast dough (instant mashed potatoes are a key ingredient), sprinkled with a thick layer of brown sugar & cinnamon, doused with melted butter,  and baked until puffy and golden with a crunchy, sugary topping.  Part of the fun is using your fingers to make the "dimpling" for the brown sugar and butter topping!

INGREDIENTS:

1 pkg. dry yeast

½ t sugar

1 cup warm water

3 ½ cups flour

¼ cup instant non-fat dry milk

1/3 cup mashed potato flakes

1/3 cup white sugar

¾ t salt

2 eggs, room temperature

½ cup butter, softened

1 T milk

1 cup brown sugar

1 t cinnamon

½ cup butter, melted & cooled

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

In large bowl, dissolve yeast in water with white sugar. Add 2 cups of the flour, dry milk, potato flakes, 1/3 cup white sugar, salt, eggs, and ½ cup butter.  Beat 5 minutes with mixer at medium speed.  Mix well. 

Stir in remaining flour to make a soft dough.  Beat well.  Cover & let rise in warm place (85 degrees) until doubled, about 2 hours.  With floured hands, spread dough evenly in a greased 17/11/1 inch pan (I have used two 9 x 9 inch square pans as well).  Cover & let rise until light, about 1 hour.  Brush dough with 1 Tablespoon milk.  Combine brown sugar and cinnamon and sprinkle over dough.  With your fingers, make shallow indentions in dough 1 to 2 inches apart.  Drizzle with ½ cup melted butter.  Bake at 375 degrees for 18 to 20 minutes.

Makes 24-30 servings.

Cranberry Raspberry Jello Salad

 

What could be more beautiful and more tastier than a "vintage" jello salad?  You know that vintage is all the rage, right?  My Mom used to make these all the time!  I grew up on these and somehow they got lost in translation & sort of forgotten.  Fortunately I’ve rediscovered this tasty side dish and this version is soooo good that I’m sure you will smile when you taste it!  It's beautiful red color is perfect for the Holidays!  I used sugar free jello to reduce sugar & calories, but you can easily use "regular" jello.

INGREDIENTS:

2 3-ounce packages raspberry sugar free jello

2 cups boiling water

1 16-ounce can whole berry cranberry sauce

1 20-ounce can crushed pineapple, drained

   (use the juice to make up part of the 2 cups boiling water)

¼ cup sour cream

½ cup chopped pecans

DIRECTIONS:

In a medium mixing bowl, whisk the jello with 2 cups boiling water (or equivalent to 2 cups of the drained pineapple juice and boiling water).

Add the cranberry sauce and drained pineapple and stir to combine.

Stir in sour cream and chopped pecans until combined.

Pour mixture into a lightly greased 6-cup gelatin mold or glass dish.

Chill for at least 6 hours and serve.  Top with whipped cream if desired.

French Pear and Apple Cake (Gateau aux Pommes et Poires)

(slightly adapted from Everepicurious.com)

Serves 12

It's Thanksgiving and how I love to cook for the holidays!  Desserts are top of my list and I always like to try something new.  This recipe is light and less sweet than most and is even healthy with all the fruit that's included!  Bottom line, it's a no guilt dessert recipe!  Another reason for choosing to make this recipe is that I have a giant fruit bowl filled with fresh apples and pears.  The cake smells heavenly while it bakes and the presentation is beautiful!

                                        Here it is right out of the oven!

 

Ingredients:

• 4 medium pears, peeled with stem and core removed, and roughly chopped
• 2 medium apples, peeled with stem and core removed, and roughly chopped
• 1 tsp cinnamon for dusting the apples & pears
• 1 tsp sugar for dusting the apples & pears
• ¼ cup Splenda baking sugar (or ½ cup sugar)
• 2 medium eggs, room temperature
• Pinch of ground sea salt
• ¾ cup all-purpose flour
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/3 cup + 1 tbsp milk
• 3 tbsp vegetable oil
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 tbsp confectioner’s sugar

To make the moist topping, you’ll need…

• 6 tbsp butter
• 1 medium egg, room temperature
• 2 tbsp Splenda (or 3 tbsp sugar)

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F
2. Grease a 10-inch springform round pan with butter and dust with flour, line the bottom with parchment, and set aside
3. Toss the apples and pears with 1 tsp cinnamon and 1 tsp sugar & set aside
4. Beat Splenda (or sugar) and two eggs with a pinch of salt until well combined
5. In a separate bowl, mix flour with baking powder
6. Carefully add the flour mixture to the egg mixture a little at a time, until completely mixed (Do not overmix!)
7. Add the milk and oil and vanilla into the batter, and thoroughly mix
8. Pour half of the batter into the cake pan
9. Place the pears and apples over the batter, then pour the rest of the batter over the fruit
10. Place pan onto a baking tray, and bake in the oven for 30 minutes
11. While the cake is baking, prepare the topping
12. Heat the six tablespoons of butter in a pan over low heat
13. In a separate bowl, beat the egg and three tablespoons of sugar
14. Remove butter from heat and carefully add the butter to the egg and sugar mixture, whisking while adding
15. After 30 minutes have passed, remove the cake from the oven and pour the topping over the cake
16. Return pan to oven and bake for an additional 20 minutes, until set & browned
17. Remove from oven, and let the cake cool on a rack for about 15-30 minutes, or until it is cool to the touch
18. Dust with confectioner’s sugar
19. Serve with whipped cream or ice cream, and enjoy!