Oatmeal Cranberry Cookies

At this time of year, I’m usually excited about moving on to light spring flavors, but the constant snow has me firmly stuck in my winter repertoire. When the snow falls, I crave baking, so I recently made a batch of my favorite oatmeal cookies for a friend who was under the weather. Cranberries are a tasty substitute for the usual raisins, although any dried fruit could be substituted.

Oatmeal Cranberry Cookies
From Martha Stewart

Makes 3 dozen

2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon table salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
3 tablespoons milk
2 large eggs
1/2 pound (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup packed light-brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
3 cups old-fashioned oats
1 cup dried cranberries

In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, salt, cinnamon, baking powder, and baking soda. Set aside. In a small bowl, whisk together the vanilla, milk, and eggs. Set aside. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the butter with both sugars, and beat on medium speed until light and fluffy. Reduce speed to low, gradually add milk mixture, and beat well. Add the flour mixture, and beat until just combined. Remove bowl from the electric mixer, and stir in the oats and cranberries. Place dough in the refrigerator until firm, at least 2 hours or overnight.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line several baking sheets with parchment paper, and set aside. Shape 2 tablespoons of dough into a ball; place on one of the prepared sheets. Repeat with the remaining dough, placing 3 inches apart. Press with the bottom of a glass to flatten dough into 2-inch-diameter rounds.

Bake until golden but still soft in center, 16 to 18 minutes, rotating halfway through. Remove from oven; transfer with parchment to a wire rack to cool. Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 1 week.

This post also appears in my blog on FlavorsOfRochester.com.

Brownie batter dip: so wrong but so yummy.

On Super Bowl Sunday, I was busy running errands and got a text from my 15-year-old son:
"What should I make for the party? Dessert or dip?"
My delighted response:
"Whatever you want!"

This is what he made to take to our friends' Super Bowl party. I never would have thought this list of ingredients would end up tasting as yummy as it did. Throughout the party, I saw kids scooping from the bowl, but there was still a bit left at the end of the evening. It's not something I'd make on a regular basis -- it's not exactly light and healthy -- but it's something different and easy for a party with kids in attendance.

Brownie Batter Dip
Adapted from Chef in Training

8 oz cream cheese
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter
2-3 cups powdered sugar
5 Tbsp. all-purpose flour
5 Tbsp. unsweetened cocoa
2 Tbsp. brown sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
3 Tbsp. milk
Mini chocolate chips, for garnish
Dippers: Nilla wafers, graham crackers, pretzels

In a stand mixer, whisk together the cream cheese and the butter. Add 2 cups of the powdered sugar, 1 cup at a time, and 1 Tablespoon milk. Add the flour, cocoa powder, vanilla, brown sugar, and 1 more Tablespoon of milk if needed. Whisk until all smooth. Add remaining powdered sugar and milk alternately until dip reaches your desired consistency.

Serve with dippers of your choice, such as Nilla wafers, graham crackers and pretzels. Feeds a lot of hungry party goers!  

A version of this post also appears in my blog on Flavors of Rochester.

Strawberry Footballs for Super Bowl

It’s almost Super Bowl Sunday and — I’ll be honest — I’m looking forward to the food and the company at my friends’ annual Super Bowl party more than I’m looking forward to the actual game. (I like football, but I’m a born and bred Bears fan.)
Everyone takes a dish to the party. Some people have their specialties — one of the guys makes a tasty pepperoni stuffed bread — but I tend to make something different each year. Last year I took these cutesy strawberries dipped to look like footballs. They were a bit fussy to make, but I enjoy doing this kind of thing. Here’s how I made them.  

Chocolate-Dipped Strawberry Footballs
Fresh strawberries, green leaves still attached

Chocolate candy making wafers — milk or dark (You can use real chocolate, but the wafers tend to be more forgiving.) You’ll about 6 ounces of chocolate for every pound of strawberries.
A bit of Crisco shortening (oil will do if you don’t have Crisco)
A few white candy making wafers

Wash your strawberries and dry them off with paper towels. They must be dry for the chocolate coating to stick well.

Melt the chocolate wafers in the microwave with a bit of shortening. (The shortening makes the coating easier to work with. I use a couple of teaspoons for a bowl of chocolate wafers.) Melt the chocolate 30 seconds at a time, stirring after each 30-second interval.

Line a cookie sheet with wax paper. Holding onto the green leaves, dip the strawberries in the chocolate, leaving a bit of red strawberry showing near the leaves. Lightly scrape one side of the strawberry against the side of the bowl — the scraped side will be the bottom when you put the strawberries on the wax paper. This will keep the chocolate from pooling on the wax paper. Once you’ve dipped all of your strawberries, put them in the fridge until they are dry to the touch.

Melt your white candy making wafers with a bit of shortening as above. You won’t need much of the white.

Pipe the white laces as shown in the picture. The easiest way to do this is to use a small squeeze bottle that you find in the candy making supplies. If you don’t have one, just put the melted mixture in a plastic baggie and snip off a little corner. I found it easiest to pipe the vertical lines and pop the strawberries in the fridge for a few minutes until it dried before piping the shorter horizontal lines. (If the chocolate mixture gets too thick or hardens during this process, you can remelt it in the microwave.)

You can make these a few hours in advance, but it’s best to serve them the day they are made.

I'll miss Elegant Expressions.

Today I met some old friends for lunch. They asked me to pick a spot in Penfield, and I chose Elegant Expressions.

The pretty purple building on Five Mile Line Road is a great place to go to with the girls, because it serves things like quiche and chicken salad on croissant -- not to mention wonderful desserts.

Much to my dismay, when we arrived we saw that Elegant Expressions has closed. A sweetly worded note hung on the window.

"I would like to thank everyone for all of your support over the years," it said. "I tried my best to run Elegant Expressions without Sue. I gave it my best shot and now it is time to close."

The answering machine message says that the bakery is up for sale.

An Opportunity to Give Back to First Responders

Penfield Ambulance will be opening up their base from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday and providing food and drink for first responders, honor guard and military attending calling hours and the funeral in Webster. They will be accepting food donations Friday from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. -- no monetary donations will be handled. Penfield Base is located at 1585 Jackson Rd, Penfield, NY, 14626.

Any food/beverage item will be appreciated. All donations will be accepted and distributed to various locations hosting out of town responders.

I think this is a great way to show our support for these people who do so much for our community.

Volunteer Opportunities at Receptions for Fire Fighters

So four firefighters get up in the middle of the night before Christmas Eve to battle a fire in the next town over from me. A psycho opens fire. Two firefighters dead, two wounded. And then the fire fighters can't fight the fire until they know it's safe, so seven houses burn to the ground.

Since I heard the news, I have wanted to “do something” and I know that others feel the same way. My usual impulse in sorrowful times is to feed people, and I found an opportunity to do so.

The Hampton Inn at 878 Hard Road in Webster will be hosting a number of receptions for visitors in town as well as any family members that may want to gather. They will be held 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. Friday; 10 a.m. to noon Saturday; 10 a.m. to noon Sunday; and 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. Monday. These dates and times came from a great Facebook Page called Prayer and Support for Webster Firefighters, and I also called the hotel to confirm. The hotel welcomes volunteers to help serve, as well as donations of food or beverages. The phone number to call to volunteer and/or donate is (585) 671-2050.