holiday baking & gift ideas

If you are like me, you probably haven't started your holiday baking yet. I'm making plans but I just need a nice chunk of time to immerse myself in butter, chocolate and flour. To get myself started, I took a look at some tried and true favorites from my archives, along with a few links to other food blogs.

I also wanted to give a little something more than a bunch of links. So this year I made up a bunch of gift tags that I can package up with whatever I'm making this year. And I'm passing them along to you. All you will need is a PDF reader and a printer. Just download the pdf, print onto card stock or sticker paper and cut along the dotted lines. Attach it to your hand crafted gift. It's easy and I'm sure it will make your gift giving a little sweeter. Looking for another quick & affordable gift idea? Check out my etsy printables shop where you can print out my own original art prints on your home printer for only five bucks. Instant happiness.

When sending your gifts, package things into re-usable glass jars (I love old mason jars and even glass peanut butter or jam jars), vintage cookie tins or baker's boxes lined with wax paper and pretty tissue.

Candy
Fleur de sel caramels
Really easy chocolate fudge with toasted walnuts
Candy cane chocolate bark
Rum balls
Salted honey caramels
Chocolate covered caramel crunch
Peanut butter buckeyes & chocolate snowballs (vegan)
Sponge toffee (vegan)
Merengue mint melties

I've also really had much success with Heidi's espresso caramel. It's delicious and perfect for gift giving.


Bars + Squares
Chocolate chip walnut squares
Date & raisin squares (vegan)
Peanut butter raisin bars
Butter tart squares
Cherry oat bars
Coffee Crunch bars (vegan)
Oatmeal coconut pecan squares with chocolate chips

I've lusted after these Dutch almond bars from Whipped. Buttery goodness!

Cookies
Buttery raisin biscuit
Chocolate chip maple walnut cookies
Chocolate mint cookies
Chocolate shortbread cookies
Chocolate thumbprint jam cookies (vegan)
Crispy salted oatmeal white chocolate cookies
Double chocolate oatmeal cookies (vegan)
Flourless peanut butter cookies
Ginger gems (vegan)
Lemon cookies
Lemon cornmeal shortbread cookies
Pfeffernusse cookies

I've been looking for the perfect gingerbread cookie. I think these from David Lebovitz might be the one.

Loaf Cakes
Willie Nelson's famous banana bread (aka UBC cake)
Chocolate chip banana bread with ginger
Cranberry & blood orange loaf
Jacked up banana bread
Bill's coconut bread

While this Almond butter cake with cherries from Seven Spoons isn't a loaf cake per say, it looks beautiful and festive.

Unique Gifts
Ginger syrup for homemade gingerale (vegan)
World's best peanut butter fudge sauce
Spicy sweet glazed pretzels & nuts (vegan)
Better than bakery granola

I haven't made Joe's Gingerbread popcorn yet, but I plan on making it this year. Seriously, who wouldn't want a giant tub of this?

Cookbooks & other food books
These are just a few of my most favorite cookbooks (& food related books) and I'm sure they'd be a welcome addition to anyone who loves food and cooking.

Rebar: Modern Food Cookbook
I Like You: Hospitality Under the Influence
The Gourmet Cookbook: More than 1000 recipes
Vegan with a Vengeance : Over 150 Delicious, Cheap, Animal-Free Recipes That Rock
A Homemade Life: Stories and Recipes from My Kitchen Table
Vegetarian Comfort Food: Meals Like Mom Makes, Without the Meat
Comfort Me with Apples: A True Story of Love, Adventure and a Passion for Cooking

Looking for something other than books? I love Tea & Cookie's cheap & useful kitchen gift guide.

happy new years: glazed chocolate cake with sprinkles

Oh, the holidays...so much going on, lots of parties, and way too many sweets! But c'mon, this rich chocolate cake is way too pretty to ignore. I spied this recipe on the Gourmet website and fell in love with the photo immediately. This cake screamed holidays and glamour and it's nice to end a holiday meal with a bit of a spectacle. I made this as our dessert on Christmas day and the cake was moist but it was the bittersweet ganache that stole the show. Be sure to use a good chocolate for the frosting...I used a dark bittersweet chocolate from Callebault and it was amazing.

A chocolate cake shouldn't be fussy and this one is simple as it is stunning. The red dotty sprinkles helps to make this cake festive and gives everyone a reason to celebrate. And have I got a reason to whoop it up a little. The CBC has listed me as one of the "best of the food blogs". Huzzah!

glazed chocolate cake with sprinkles
(adapted from Gourmet)
1 c all-purpose flour
1/3 c unsweetened cocoa powder
1 t baking soda
1/2 tn baking powder
1/4 t salt
1/2 c unsalted butter, softened
1 c packed light brown sugar
2 large eggs at room temperature
1 t pure vanilla extract
1/2 c yogurt
1/2 c skim milk

for ganache:
1/4 c half & half cream (+ additional)
3 1/2 oz bittersweet chocolate (not more than 60% cacao if marked), finely chopped
2 ts light corn syrup
sprinkles

1. Preheat oven to 350. Butter and flour a round 9x2 cake tin or bundt pan and set aside. In a large small bowl, sift together dry ingredients (flour to salt). In a large bowl, mix together the butter and sugar until fluffy. Add in eggs, one at a time, and vanilla. Combine the milk and yogurt in a small bowl. Add flour and milk mixture alternating in batches, beginning and ending with the flour.

2. Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake until the cake pulls away from the sides of the pan, about 35 minutes. Remove from oven and cool slightly. Remove from pan and cool on wire rack.

3. While cake cools, bring the cream to a simmer in a small saucepan over medium heat. Add in chocolate and whisk until smooth. If the chocolate is too thick, add in a touch of extra cream. Stir in corn syrup and set aside to cool. Using a spatula, spread glaze over cake and decorate with sprinkles.

let's call them rustic: brown butter cookies & other holiday goodies

I was super excited when I saw Gourmet's favorite cookie guide. Cookie recipes from 1941 to 2008...amazing!!! The first cookies that really caught my eye were the brown butter cookies from 1961 and when Cornelius needed to make some cookies for a work party on Friday, I suggested those. Now, I don't want to blame my husband for the outcome of these cookies. True, cooking let alone baking are not his strong suits, but there were factors against his control. Mainly, we were out of white sugar. I figured brown would be an easy substitute. Uh, maybe not. Somehow these cookies didn't come together like I thought they would. They are super fragile and sandy and they're not very sweet at all. Whatever. I stuck them in the freezer because I'm sure (like all shortbreads), they'll taste better when frozen and eaten at midnight as a snack. Try the recipe out if you like, otherwise, just dig into some tried & true holiday goodies from my archives below.

Fleur de Sel Caramels

Rum Balls

Chocolate-Covered Caramel Crunch

Mint Melties

Sponge Toffee

Spicy-Sweet Glazed Pretzels & Nuts

Chocolate Mint Cookies

Ginger Gems

Ginger Syrup for homemade ginger ale

Snowballs & Buckeyes

Candy Cane Chocolate Bark

Really Easy Chocolate Walnut Fudge

Cherry Oat Bars

Chocolate Shortbread

Salted Honey Caramel

Icebox Peppermint Yule Log Cake

for papa: pfeffernusse cookies

When I was little, there was one cookie that signified the start of the holidays: the pfeffernusse. Translated, they mean peppernuts which is because they have ground pepper in them (spicy!) and they look like walnut shells (I'm guessing). My dad would bring home a small bag or two of these round and frosted cookies from the German market and I'd immediately dig in. These cookies were slightly soft, a little bit dry and not as sweet as the cookies I was used to. And oh boy, they were spicy! I loved them.

For my dad, they were cookies that I'm sure reminded him of the cookies of his youth in Eastern Europe. Cookies that tasted like his mother's own baking. For me, they were slightly exotic. They came from a deli that had dried sausages hanging from the ceiling, jars upon jars of sauerkraut, and my dad only brought them home at Christmas. This cookie was definitely something special for the both of us.

I've never tried making these cookies before. In fact, I blindly assumed that these cookies could only be purchased at ethnic markets. How wrong on so many counts! These cookies are alive and well in the same old crinkly plastic bags at a neighbourhood Italian market and then I last night I spotted a recipe in Martha Stewart's Cookies. Instead of being labour-intensive as I had assumed, they're so easy to whip up! And of course, they taste better coming from your oven than ones shipped over seas. I've packed up a container and am shipping them to my dad for Christmas. They're not only delicious, crisp on the outside and soft on the inside, but they pack a whole wallop of good memories. I know he'll love them.

pfeffernusse cookies
(adapted from Martha Stewart's Cookies)
2 1/4 c all-purpose flour
1/4 t freshly ground pepper
1 t ground cinnamon
1/2 t ground allspice
1/4 t ground nutmeg
1/4 t ground cloves
1/4 t baking soda
1/2 c unsalted butter, room temperature
3/4 c brown sugar
1/4 c molasses
1 large egg
1/2 t vanilla
1 1/4 c confectioners' sugar

1. Preheat oven to 350. Line sheets with silpat or parchment.

2. In a medium sized bowl, combine the flour, spices and baking soda. In a large bowl, beat molasses, brown sugar and butter until fluffy. Beat in egg and vanilla. Slowly mix in the flour mixture and beat until just combined.

3. Roll about a tablespoon of dough into balls and arrange on prepared baking sheet about an inch apart. Bake for 14 minutes or until the tops of the dough are firm to the touch and have cracked slightly. Place cookies on wire rack to cool for 10 minutes.

4. Working in batches, add a few cookies into a high-sided bowl (or paper bag) filled with confectioners' sugar. Roll about or shake until cookies are well coated. Place back on wire rack to cool completely. Store cookies at room temperature in an airtight container.

jingle bells and chocolate shortbread cookies

I think I'm all ready for Christmas. Phew! The only thing I have left to do is our dessert for tomorrow's family dinner and making tonight's cozy supper for two. Every Christmas Eve, Cornelius and I relax, drink boozy cocktails, watch movies and play games. Our bar is stocked, we've got my favorite Christmas movie ever, The Shop Around the Corner, and a bunch of board games all lined up. I was thinking I might make up some moules et frites for this evening, but decided to try another Flemish specialty, a Belgium-beer braised beef stew instead. I'll let you know how things turn out.

But if you are still in the last minute throes of a baking frenzy, I did make a very simple and super delicious holiday cookie this past week that I'm eager to share. These shortbread cookies are chocolately, buttery and easy to make vegan (if that's what you're into). For me, these cookies are pretty hard to resist and I keep sneaking into the cookie tin to try just one more. Even snacking on them straight from the freezer makes them doubly enjoyable!


Enjoy and happy holidays!!

chocolate shortbread cookies
1 c unsalted butter, softened (or use Earth Balance margarine for a vegan version)
2/3 c icing sugar
1 t vanilla
1 1/2 c all purpose flour
1/4 c cocoa
1/2 t kosher salt

1. Blend together the butter, sugar and vanilla in a large mixing bowl.

2. In a separate bowl, sift together the flour and cocoa. Mix in the salt. Add this mixture to the butter and sugar and combine until blended. Wrap dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour.

3. Preheat oven to 275. Roll out dough to 1/8" thickness and cut out with small circle-shaped cookie cutter. Bake for 17-20 minutes and cool on a wire rack.

delicious confections: mint melties

I'm in the throes of Christmas baking and homemade gift making. We're heading to Ontario first thing tomorrow morning to visit family and won't be back until a week before the holidays really kick in. I'm making/baking most of my presents this year because who doesn't love receiving homemade treats? Tiny, mini loves of UBC cake have been baked, my totally addictive crack-like snack mix has been bottled up, an uber-fancy version of my standard granola has been packed into glass jars and I've got some potent limoncello waiting to be bottled and corked.


I did mix in some new players in the holiday baking mix this year. After seeing this delicious post on the 64 sq ft kitchen blog, I had to make those snowy white merengue cookies. I've made merengue to top key lime and lemon pies and I've also made a few showy pavlovas in my recent past, but I've never made a merengue cookie like this. Unfortunately, I don't have a piping bag so mine didn't have the kiss-like disposition, but despite their rustic outsides, their insides were delicious! I added a drop of peppermint extract to the egg whites and it flavoured these cookies beautifully. I also decided to dip the bottoms in white chocolate and Christmas sprinkles to make them more holiday-like.


I made these late at night and turned off the oven to let them sit overnight. In the morning, these white delicious blobs were still too gooey, so I turned the oven on low and checked on them every 15 mintues or so until they had the perfect consistency. You really want them crisp on the outside with a bit of gooey softness inside. Or if you like them dry, they will melt immedately on your tongue! Delicious confections, indeed.

merengue mint melties
3 egg whites, room temperature
dash of salt
3/4 c sugar
drop of peppermint extract
white chocolate buttons
holiday sprinkles

1. Using a stand mixer with the whip attachment, pour the egg whites along with a dash or salt into the bowl. Whip on med-high speed and when the egg whites begin to double in volume, slowly add in the sugar. Keep beating mixture until it becomes glossy and the texture begins to feel like melted marshmallows. Add in a drop of peppermint and whip until you can make peaks in the egg white.

2. Flour and butter a cookie sheet (or 2) and drop or pipe small mounds of batter. Don't worry, these cookies won't spread. Bake them in a preheated 190 degree oven or preheat the oven to 375 degrees and then turn off the oven and let the cookies sit over night. If you do the latter, you may have to rebake them at low heat if they aren't as dry as they should be. Store in an air-tight tin.

3. If you choose to dip these in chocolate, melt a small amount of white chocolate in the microwave. I pop open the microwave every 30 seconds or so to see if it's melted. Dip the bottoms of each cookie in the white chocolate and then sprinkle with the decorations. Leave them chocolate side up to cool for 30 minutes at room temperature, then pack up in an air-tight tin.