Basic Spritz Cookie

Basic Spritz Cookie

1/2 cup Crisco

1/2 cup butter

3/4 cup sugar

1 egg

1 tsp vanilla

2 1/4 cup flour, sifted

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp baking powder

Sift dry ingredients together, set aside. Cream Crisco, butter, and sugar well.

Beat in egg and vanilla.

Gradually blend in dry ingredients.

Fill cookie press and form cookies on ungreased cookie sheets.

Bake at 375^oF for 10-12 minutes. 

Do not overcook - edges should be just barely turning light brown at the most. 

(I don't like mine brown)

Yields 60-72 cookies (depending on the size of the cookie press)

Dough can be colored after it is all mixed together - I just add drops into the mixing bowl and mix it in.

Egg Nog

Evelyn's Christmas Egg Nog

1 pt heavy whipping cream

1 qt milk

1 tsp vanilla

1/4 tsp salt

2 eggs

1 can sweet and condensed milk

nutmeg to taste

Whip cream and then chill.

Beat eggs until fluffy. 

Mix all ingredients together.

Keep cool in refrigerator until served.

Perfect Pie Crust

Perfect Pie Crust

(from The Essential Mormon Cookbook)

Ingredients:

1 1/4 cups Crisco shortening

3 cups flour

1 Tb vinegar or lemon juice

5 Tb ice cold water

1 egg, beaten

In a medium bowl, cut shortening into flour, making 1/4 inch bits.
Make a well in the center. Pour in the vinegar or lemon juice, ice cold water, and beaten egg. Mix from the bottom to the top with a fork until the dough barely sticks together. 

Divide into two balls. Place one ball between two pieces of waxed paper. Place pie plate on top of dough so that the pie plate is upside down. Flip the pie plate and dough over. Remove last piece of waxed paper. 

Fill and bake according to individual recipe or bake at 350^oF for 10 minutes (until golden) for a single-crust, baked pie shell. Makes two 9-inch pie crusts.

Turkey Brine

For two 21 pound turkeys I did the following:

In a large stock pot, place:

6 qts. vegetable broth

4 cups sea salt (you could get away with 3 cups)

4 T crushed dried rosemary

4 T dried sage

4 T dried thyme

3 T dried savory

1 cup brown sugar

Boil until salt and sugar dissolve.

Let cool to room temperature.

After removing innards and giblets, wash turkeys thoroughly.

Place each turkey in separate large Williams-Sonoma Brining Bag.

Ladle boiled broth over turkey in bags dividing evenly between the two turkeys.

Add 2 qts. vegetable broth (room temp) and 1 gallon ice water to each bag, seal bags and

mix broth by kneading the bags.

Make sure the turkeys are covered and the brine has filled each turkey cavity.

If the turkey isn't completely covered, you will need to flip the turkey 1/2 way through

the brining process.  This amount covered my turkeys just fine.

Put bags in roasting pan for stabilization and put in the fridge for 12-24 hours.  I did 18 and

it was fine.

Cooking:

Remove turkeys from brine and rinse thoroughly inside and out.  Pat dry with paper towels.

Stuff each bird with 1 onion cut up, 4 stalks of celery cut up, salt, pepper, thyme, rosemary, and sage.

Use a skewer to hold flap of skin closed on neck end and tie/bind legs together at the other end.

Rub entire turkey with thick coat of butter.

Place on roasting rack in a roasting pan and cover with a foil tent allowing space in between

turkey and foil.

Pre-heat oven to 325^oF.  Insert thermometer in thickest part of thigh without touching the bone.

Place in oven.

Notes:

We put our turkeys in the oven at 7:30a.m. for a 1:00p.m. luncheon.  I had to raise the temperature to 350 a few times to speed cooking.  The turkeys weren't done until 1:15.  We should have put them in at 6:30 - 7:00a.m.  Let them cook until the temperature reads 170 (not 165 like everyone says) degrees.

Let turkey rest for 20 minutes before carving.

Valentine projects

This year the kids gave an easy Valentine cut from thin

craft foam.  I found patterns online and the boys

got a mustache and the girls got lips.

A new wreath- so easy to make!

2" squares of red fabric, wrap center around

a pencil, dip in glue and shove into a styrofoam

heart.  It took about 3 yards of 

fabric and about 3 hours.  

Play Dough Valentines

Play Dough Valentines

For a class of 30, I quadruple this recipe and have some

leftover to keep at home.

In a saucepan place:

1 cup flour

1/2 cup salt

2 tsp. Cream of Tartar

1 cup water

1 Tbsp. vegetable oil

Cook on medium heat for about 3 minutes 

stirring constantly.

 (your arm WILL scream in pain!).

It is done when it is thick and pulls cleanly 

from the side of the pan.

Dump on counter and knead until smooth.

Add food coloring and knead until marbling 

is gone and color is consistent.

Roll out to about 1/2 inch thick.

Cut with a heart shaped cookie cutter.

Place in a sandwich bag and seal so play 

dough stays fresh.

Create labels on the computer and you have 

a cute valentine.

Sometimes I say on the label, 

"My heart is soft for you, Valentine!".

(Pictures lovingly taken by Makenna the Awesome)

Valentine's Day Decorations

I don't have any Valentine's Day decorations.

New Beginnings just happened to be a red with white polka dot theme

and so the girls and I took an afternoon to do double duty - 

Valentine's decor that we could use for New Beginnings.

First, the one and only decoration - a heart wreath.

I added a new black and white ribbon and hung

it off-centered on the front door.  Love it!  

Love off-centered hearts!

Next....

Tall topiaries.

I bought white hydrangea balls, 2 dowels, 

and 4 white pots on clearance for $2 each.

I cut the dowels into 4 equal pieces, stuck 

each in styrofoam in the pot, painted them red,

stuck a hydrangea ball on top.

I then took apart a red rose ball.  I pulled each rose off and stuck it

into the hydrangea ball to create polka dots.  

I added a bow under the ball and bright green moss around the base 

and wahlah....

Next....

A low daisy topiary that sits on a glass vase.

I bought an 8" styrofoam ball, 30 silk gerber

daisies, about 10 small white silk flowers,

and I used more red roses from the red rose ball

and pieces of white hydrangea from a leftover

hydrangea ball.

I sat the ball on top of my vase, knowing that I wouldn't

 be covering any part of the ball that was inside 

the vase.  I cut the daisies leaving only one inch of 

stem under the flower and poked them into the 

ball covering it evenly.  

I filled in any gaps with the white flowers

 and white hydrangea creating a polka dot 

look and then filled in any leftover gaps 

with the small red roses.

To cover the uncovered ball in the vase, 

I wrapped the top of the vase with wide 

ribbon and tied a big bow.

Next....

Framed I Love You cards.

I bought an 8 x 10 frame, wrapped the glass in burlap,

and hot-glued I Love You notes on top of them.

The notes come from "Paper Source", one of my favorite

stores and say, "I love you" in about 40 languages.

I chose Chinese, English, Jordanian, Morse Code and

Text.

I <3 burlap!

       

Next....

Two easy things.

4 rose covered hearts in a glass jar.

Vinyl word "love" on a glass block with

a ribbon around it.

Here they are.

I have Valentine's decorations now

and New Beginnings was super cute!