Cutout Sugar Cookies

Decorated cookies I made for the FRG meeting.

Sugar cookies... these things are one of the reasons I love baking so much, and one of my mortal enemies. I always get to the stage where the cookies are all baked, icing is made, and the table prepped for decorating, and I always get this thought in my head : "I am crazy, I don't want to decorate these cookies, what was I thinking?" And then I sit down, start decorating, a few hours fly by, and I'm done. 

Out of the hundreds of these I do each year, I may eat one or two, but that's it. I've gotten to the point where the sweet smell of sugar makes my nose curl and my stomach starts to do 360's saying, "please don't do this again!" Don't get me wrong, they are amazing cookies, I've just eaten a few too many dozen in my childhood. ;)

These cookies are not for the feint at heart, if done correctly, the dough will not spread during cooking, and you will have some pretty incredible delicacies awaiting decorations. It's taken me months to perfect this dough and figure out exactly what I need to do in this wonderfully humid, Virginia weather. (Not a fan, I'll take dry California summers anyday!)

I have been very hesitant about sharing this recipe, it's been used by my mother for years, and I've even made a few of my own modifications to it. So sharing this special recipe is like giving you a piece of my soul. (OK, maybe not that serious, but you get the point!) Anyways, here's the recipe you have all been looking for, enjoy, and good luck!

I use wooden dowels to get my dough to roll out evenly.

Ingredients:
1/3 C Unsalted Butter

1/3 C Salted Butter

2/3 C shortening

1 1/2 C Sugar

2 eggs

2 T Whole Milk

2 t vanilla extract

2 t baking powder

1/4 t salt

4 C Flour

Cream together butter, shortening, and sugar until well combined. Mix in eggs, milk and vanilla. Blend in the salt, baking powder, and flour. Chill dough in fridge for at least 2 hours before rolling out (for best results, store overnight) or store in freezer for up to 1 month. (If storing in freezer, allow the dough to thaw for at least 30 minutes at room temperature before rolling) Roll dough out to 3/8 of an inch. Cut out with cookie cutters and bake at 375 for 8-10 minutes, or until the edges just start to brown and the center of the cookie is no longer glossy looking.  Let the cookies cool for at least an hour before decorating. 

I use the following royal icing recipe:

Ingredients:

One 2lb bag of good quality powdered sugar

6 tablespoons of meringue powder 

warm water

Put the powdered sugar, meringue powder, and about 1/4 cup of the warm water in a mixer. On the lowest setting possible start combining the ingredients. Add water until until your icing is glossy, but still has stiff peaks.  Beat the mixture on med/high for 2 minutes. Add more water if your icing is too stiff, and beat for 20 more seconds. This makes a good icing for decorating and for piping borders, for a flow-style icing, add more water until it just reaches a pourable consistency. 

Mango Mango Doughnuts

Ok, so I got this new toy at my favorite store ever, Wine and Cake Hobbies... a doughnut pan!! I have been wanting to go out and buy one for what seems like forever and I have just never gotten around to doing so.

Right now I am on day 20 of my 30 day diet plan, which is super restrictive and I am being really OCD with it, so I, personally, have not tried out these doughnuts.  However, my son, Chuckie, and our new puppy, Bay have both tried them (although I would rather not let the puppy eat off the floor, sometimes her and her little nose just find things that my eyes can't.)  They seemed to like them, so hopefully they are winners. I guess it's just one of those recipes you will have to try, and when you do, please let me know, a two-year old and a puppy's opinion can only go so far.

I swear one day these two partners-in-crime are going to be the end of me.

Ingredients:

For the doughnuts:
1 cup Mango Mango Preserves* (see note)
1/2 C vegetable oil
1 stick of butter (softened)
3 eggs
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1 1/2 t salt
1 1/2 t baking powder
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/3 cup shredded coconut (optional)

For the Glaze:
1/4 cup powdered sugar
2 T milk
1/4 cup Mango Mango Preserves
1/4 cup cream cheese softened

*The Mango Mango preserves can be bought at http://amangoparty.com/ or can be substituted for your favorite jam, jelly, or even applesauce.  Get creative!





Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease a standard size doughnut pan.
In a mixer, combine mango preserves, vegetable oil, butter, sugar, salt, and baking powder. Beat until thoroughly combined.  Add eggs one at a time with mixer still running. Add coconut and flour and mix on low until they are just incorpoated into the rest of the batter.  Fill pan to about 2/3 full. Bake for about 15-17 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the doughnut comes out clean.

For the glaze, soften the cream cheese in a microwave for about 15-30 seconds or until it is soft enough to mix smoothly.  Add the rest of the ingredients in with the cream cheese and set aside.

When doughnuts are done baking, let them sit for a minute or two in the pan, and then flip them onto a cooling rack. Pick the tray off the doughnuts and let them cool off for about 5 minutes or until the doughnuts can be handled without falling apart. Carefully pick up a doughnut and one by one dip them into the glaze and place them back on the cooling rack to set up.

They look pretty yummy right? 

Baked Macaroni and Cheese

OK, so I'll have to admit, I'm not a fan of baked macaroni and cheese.  I'll take the stove-top version over baked any day, well almost any day... when it comes to this recipe my heart is truly torn.  The crispy, buttery, garlicky topping spread over a super gooey cheese center. I think this really hits what I like to call Cheese Utopia.  When I made this recipe last night, my dear husband not only cleared his plateful, but went back for more, and then I think more after that as well. (I'm just glad I doubled the recipe for the 4th's festivities!) My poor friend Jessica was left with only one serving by the time I brought some to her at her house.

In this recipe, I use a few fancy cheeses from my local wine and cheese shop that I love so much, but I've tried it with just a few less expensive cheeses from the local supermarket and it tasted just fine. Not as tasty as the original of course, but simply delicious in it's own way.  When picking out cheeses, I recommend finding at least 3 good melting cheeses that you enjoy, because if you don't like it, what's the point?

Who could deny themselves some of this cheesy deliciousness?

Ingredients:

For the pasta:
3 different cheeses of your choice, (make sure there is at least one cheddar for flavor) 1/4 pound of each cheese, grated
1/4 cup heavy cream
2 cups sour cream or Greek yogurt, which works equally as well with a lot less fat!
2 eggs
1/4 t fresh cracked black pepper
Approx 3 cups uncooked elbow noodles

For the topping:
1/2 t garlic powder
1/2 t garlic salt
1 cup panko style breadcrumbs
1 stick of unsalted butter
1/4 cup cheddar cheese
1/4 t fresh cracked black pepper
Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Grease a 2 quart baking dish and set aside.
In a large bowl, combine all the cheeses.  In a separate bowl, mix the cream, sour cream, eggs, and pepper until just combined.
Bring a pot of at least 4 quarts of water to a boil.  Add about 1 tablespoon of salt.  Add uncooked pasta and cook until just done, about 2 minutes before al'dente.   Drain the pasta, and while it is still hot, pour noodles over the cheeses and mix well.  Add the cream mixture to the pasta and transfer to baking dish.
To make the topping: melt the butter and combine all the ingredients in a small bowl until well combined. Sprinkle the topping mixture over the pasta generously.  Bake uncovered in the oven for 30-35 minutes or until the topping is golden brown.

Sweet Whisky BBQ Sauce

There are so many layers of flavors to this sauce, but a few stand out.  Sweet, with a little spice, and notes of whisky playing in the background will have your taste buds singing! Great on chicken, burgers, pulled pork, or whatever your heart desires, this BBQ sauce will have your friends begging for the recipe.

Ingredients:

1 red onion diced
1 cup whisky
1 T sea salt
1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 cup dark brown sugar
1/4 cup honey
3 cans (15oz each) of tomato sauce
1 can tomato paste
1 T paprika
2 t dried oregano
2 t dried basil
1 t fresh cracked black pepper
2 t chili powder
1 1/2 T garlic powder
1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce
1 t steak sauce
1/2 t cayenne pepper
2 t cumin
1 cup beer
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar

Directions:

Sautee the onions, salt, and whiskey over medium-high heat until the onions are translucent. Add the sugars and honey and bring to a boil.  Add the rest of the ingredients and bring to a low boil.  Turn down the heat to low and let simmer for 1 hour. Transfer mixture to a blender and blend until smooth (you may have to do this step in batches so your blender doesn't overflow.) Store in jars or in an airtight container in the refrigerator until ready to serve.

Tropical Kick BBQ Sauce

This BBQ sauce has hints of mango and rum, with a spicy kick!  It will take you to an island luau without ever having to leave the comfort of your home!

Ingredients:

2 cans of tomato sauce
1 can tomato paste
1 yellow onion diced
1/3 cup rum
1 T sea salt
1 t freshly ground pepper
1 t dried oregano
1 T ground cumin
1 T chili powder
1 T paprika
2 T garlic powder
2 T yellow mustard
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
1 t dried basil
3/4 cup mango preserves (I use 'Mango Mango' Mango Preserves for this!)
1/4 cup dark brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce
1 T steak sauce
dash of cayenne pepper (or more or less to taste)
2 T hot sauce (I used a locally made mango hot sauce, but your favorite one will do just fine)
1 1/2 cups of your favorite beer
1 t maple syrup (optional)

Directions:
Over medium-high heat, sautee onions, salt, and rum until the onions are translucent and most of the liquid has evaporated.  Add the rest of the ingredients and bring to a low boil.  Turn the temperature down to low and let simmer, stirring occasionally for 1 hour to let the flavors develop.  You can always play around with the sugar and hot sauce/cayenne pepper to your taste. Move the sauce into a blender and blend the sauce until the sauce has a smooth consistency.  You can either jar your sauce and store in the refrigerator for later use, or use immediately.