Gingerbread Treats

Gingerbread Treats

Christmas Gingerbread

The Gingerbread Man is:
The Perfect Man!
He's quiet. He's sweet.
And if he gives you any crap
You can bite his head off!

Ginger bread man

1 1/2 sticks margarine
1 c. sugar
1 egg
1/4 c. molasses
2 1/2 c. self-rising flour
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. ginger
Raisins

Cream margarine and sugar. Beat egg. Add egg and molasses and mix well. Sift flour, ginger, and cinnamon and add to mixture. Grease cookie sheet. Form 1 large or 2 small gingerbread men. Add raisins for eyes, nose, mouth and buttons. Bake at 350 degrees for 10-12 minutes.

Ginger Bread Cookies

Yule Log

1/2 cup cake flour, sifted
3/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
4 Eggs, room temperature
3/4 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla
3 1-oz squares unsweetened chocolate, melted
2 Tbsp very strong black coffee
sifted cocoa

1 recipe chocolate butter cream frosting
4 meringue mushrooms

12-oz. tub Cool Whip
1/3 cup Cocoa, sifted

Mix thawed Cool Whip and cocoa thoroughly. Return to freezer.

Preheat oven to 400F.

Line the bottom of a jelly-roll pan with wax paper.

Sift flour with baking powder and salt and set aside. With electric
or rotary beater, beat eggs at high speed until foamy; slowly add
sugar, a little at a time, and beat until very thick and cream
colored. Mix in vanilla, blend chocolate with coffee and mix into
batter. Fold in dry ingredients just until blended. Spoon into
jelly-roll pan, spreading batter evenly. Bake 12-14 minutes until
springy to the touch. While still hot, loosen edges of cake and
invert onto a clean dish towel heavily sprinkled with sifted cocoa.
Peel off paper and cut off crisp edges with a sharp knife. Beginning
at the short side, roll cake and towel up; cool completely on a
wire rack. Unroll, remove towel, and spread with Cool Whip (freezing
makes it easier to spread and roll) to within 1/2" of edges and
carefully re-roll. Wrap loosely with foil and chill 1 hour.

With a sharp knife, cut a small piece from one end of the cake,
roll tightly, and reserve to make a "branch." Place roll seam side
down on serving plate and tuck a strip of wax paper under each
side. Spread with frosting, then draw fork tines in a wavy pattern
the length of the log to resemble bark. Lay trimmed-off end of
roll cut side down at an angle, off center. Press into frosting
lightly, then frost edges.

Remove wax paper from around roll. Tint some coconut green and
sprinkle some on the log itself and then scatter remainder around
the log. Place several cinnamon-dusted meringue mushrooms on cake.
Serves 8-10

Christmas Coffee

1/2 cup powdered non dairy creamer
1 cup mini chocolate chips
2 Tbsp vanilla powder
1/4 cup sifted powdered sugar
2 cups nonfat dry milk powder
2/3 cup instant coffee crystals
Chocolate Stir Spoons

Combine nondairy creamer, powdered sugar, powdered vanilla, and
milk powder. Layer with coffee and chips into two cup jars. Tap
between layers to settle before adding next layer.

GIFT TAG DIRECTIONS:

For each mug, place 1/4 cup of mix in a mug, and add 2/3 cup boiling
water. Stir until dissolved.

Easy Christmas Surprise Cake

1 box Duncan Hines yellow pudding cake mix
1 pkg. instant vanilla pudding
1 pound cream cheese
1 1/2 - 2 cups milk
1 can crushed pineapple, drained

Prepare cake mix as to directions on the box, taking out enough
batter for 3 - 4 cupcakes. Bake in an oblong pan and bake the
cupcakes as well at the same time. Cool cake. Beat the instant
pudding, 1 1/2 cups milk, and cream cheese. Add 1/2 cup of milk
here if it is too thick. Frost the top of the cake with this
mixture. Top with the crushed pineapple and chill. Serve with
Cool Whip Topping.

Oatmeal Raisin Cookies in a Jar

3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
3/4 cup raisins
2 cups rolled oats
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt

Mix together flour, ground cinnamon, ground nutmeg, baking soda and salt.
Set aside.

Layer ingredients in order given in a 1 quart wide mouth'' canning jar.
It will be a tight fit, make sure you firmly pack down each layer in place
before adding the flour mixture.

Instructions to attach to jar:

Oatmeal Raisin Spice Cookies

Empty jar of cookie mix into large mixing bowl. Use your hands to
thoroughly blend mix. Add 3/4 cup butter or margarine softened,
and 1 teaspoon vanilla. Mix until completely blended. Shape into
balls the size of walnuts. Place on a parchment lined cookie sheets
2 inches apart. Bake at 350F for 11 to 13 minutes until edges are
lightly browned. Cool 5 minutes on baking sheet. Remove cookies
to baking racks to finish cooling. Makes 3 dozen cookies.

Christmas Chocolate Pistachio Thumbprints

1/3 cup powdered sugar
1 cup butter or margarine
1 tsp. vanilla
3/4 tsp. almond extract
1 3.4 oz pkg. instant pistachio pudding mix
1 egg
2 cup flour
1/2 cup mini chocolate chips
3/4 to 1 1/4 cup nuts, finely chopped

Red food coloring
1 1/2 cup powdered sugar
2 tbsp. butter
1 tsp. vanilla
1 to 3 tbsp. milk

1/2 cup chocolate chips
2 tsp. shortening

Beat powdered sugar, butter, vanilla, almond extract, pudding mix
and egg. Add flour and chocolate chips. Mix well. Shape into 1-inch
balls. Roll in nuts. With thumb, make imprint in center. Bake at
350 degrees, 10 minutes or until light golden brown. Cool completely.
Combine all filling ingredients. Melt butter and mix into powdered
sugar. Add milk and food coloring to make a thick red filling.
Spoon scant teaspoon in the center of each cookie. Melt chocolate
chips and shortening. Drizzle over cookies. Let set until icing
is hard. Yields 2 to 3 dozen.

Chocolate Chip Cookies in a Jar

1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
1 1/2 cups semisweet chocolate chips
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda

Mix the salt and baking soda in with the flour, then layer the
ingredients into the jar. Use scissors to cut a 9 inch-diameter
circle from calico. Place over lid and secure with rubber band.
Tie on a raffia or ribbon bow to cover rubber band.

Enclose a card with the following mixing and baking directions:

Chocolate Chip Cookies

Preheat oven to 375. Sift dry ingredients through a colander to
separate the chocolate chips from other ingredients. Beat 1 cup
of butter or margarine in a medium bowl. Beat sifted ingredients
into butter until blended. In a small bowl, beat 1 egg with 1
teaspoon of vanilla. Mix beaten egg mixture into butter mixture
until blended. Stir in chocolate chips. Drop teaspoonfuls of
batter, spaced well apart, onto a greased cookie sheet. Bake 8
minutes or until lightly browned. Makes 4 dozen

Christmas Cherry Cake

1 cup sugar
4 eggs
1 cup flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 lb cherries, candied
1 lb pitted dates
1 lb pecans, chopped
2 slices candied pineapple
1/2 lb coconut

Mix sugar, eggs, flour, baking powder, salt and vanilla. Put
cherries, dates and pineapple through food grinder on coarse. Add
ground fruit to sugar mixture; also add pecans and coconut. You
will have to use your hands to mix. Grease and flour angel food
cake pan. Place mixture evenly in bottom and cover with waxed paper,
then brown paper. Tie with string to close. Bake at 350 degrees
for one hour. An alternative To Fruitcake

Red Candy Apples

12 med apples skewers or ice cream sticks
2 cups sugar
1 2/3 cup light corn syrup
2/3 cup water
red food coloring

Wash apples, remove stems, insert sticks. Lightly grease cookie
sheet.

Mix sugar, corn syrup and water in saucepan. Law heat and stir till
sugar dissolves. Continue cooking over med heat, stir as little as
possible to prevent sticking. When reaches 300 degrees, remove from
heat and add food coloring. Carefully dip apples into hot syrup;
let excess drip and set on cookie sheet.

Variation: Hot Cinnamon Apples: Follow above. Add 1/2 tsp cinnamon
oil flavoring after removing from heat. Continue as recipe directs.

SPICE BREAD IN A JAR

2/3 c. shortening
2 2/3 c. sugar
2 c. sugar applesauce
2/3 c. water
4 eggs
2/3 c. nuts (opt.)
3 1/3 c. flour
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. cloves
1 tsp. cinnamon
2 tsp. baking soda

Cream shortening and sugar; add applesauce, water and eggs and mix well. Mix dry ingredients in another bowl and add to first mixture. Add nuts (or raisins) if desired. Spray wide mouth pint jars with Pam, spray and fill about 1/2 full. This will fill 6 to 8 jars. Bake at 325 degrees, exactly 45 minutes. Remove jars one at a time and quickly screw the lid on each one. Let set until ready to eat. When you use the canning jars/lids, this cake has a shelf life of about a year. Great gift idea

RULES OF CHOCOLATE

If you’ve got melted chocolate all over your hands, you’re eating it too slowly.
Chocolate covered raisins, cherries, orange slices & strawberries all count as fruit, so eat as many as you want.
The problem: How to get 2 pounds of chocolate home from the store in a hot car. The Solution: eat it in the parking lot.
Diet tip: Eat a chocolate bar before each meal. It’ll take the edge off your appetite and you’ll eat less. ;-)
A nice box of chocolates can provide your total daily intake of calories in one place. Isn't that handy?
If you can’t eat all your chocolate, it will keep in the freezer.
But if you can’t eat all your chocolate, what’s wrong with you?
If I eat equal amounts of dark chocolate and white chocolate, is that a balanced diet? Don’t they actually counteract each other?
Money talks. Chocolate sings.
Chocolate has many preservatives. Preservatives make you look younger.
Q. Why is there no such organization as Chocoholics Anonymous?
A. Because no one wants to quit.
If not for chocolate, there would be no need for control top pantyhose. An entire garment industry would be devastated.
Put "eat chocolate" at the top of your list of things to do today.
That way, at least you’ll get one thing done
Author unknown.

Home-made Gingerbread

Ingredients:

2 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1 cup molasses
3/4 cup hot water
1/2 cup butter, room temperature
1 large egg
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Preparation:
Grease and flour a 9-inch square baking pan or spray with a baking spray with flour. Heat oven to 325°.
Combine all ingredients in a mixing bowl; beat on low speed of electric mixer until ingredients are combined. Scrape the sides of the bowl and increase mixer speed to medium; beat for about 3 minutes longer. Pour the batter into the prepared baking pan.

Bake for 45 to 55 minutes, or until a cake tester or toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.

Cut into squares and serve with freshly whipped cream. To serve leftover gingerbread, warm slightly in the microwave for about 15 to 20 seconds.

This gingerbread freezes well: cut into squares and wrap individually. Thaw and warm in the microwave just before serving.

Apple-Ginger Scones

2 cup Bisquick
1/2 cup Apple, chopped, peeled
3 tbl Brown sugar
1/4 tsp Ginger
1/3 cup Milk
1 lg Egg
Milk
Sugar
Heat oven to 425F. Grease cookie sheet. Mix bisquick, apple, brown sugar, ginger, milk and egg until dough forms. Knead 10 times.
Pat dough into 8 inch wide circle on cookie sheet. Brush with milk.
Sprinkle with sugar. Cut into 8 wedges.
Bake about 14 minutes or untl golden brown. Serve warm.

Gingerbread Muffins

1 cup butter
1/2 cup brown sugar
4 lg. eggs
2 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup molasses
2 tsp cinnamon
2 tsp baking soda
1 cup buttermilk
2 tsp ground ginger
2 cup whole-wheat flour
1 cup seedless raisins optional

Cream butter and sugar. Add eggs, one at a time, beating after each. Add molasses. Sift flours, baking soda. and spices. Add alternately with buttermilk. Stir in raisins. Fill greased muffin pans 2/3 full and bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes

Maple Gingerbread

1 tsp dried ginger or - 1 Tb. fresh grated
ginger ,preferably
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
2 cup flour
1 Lg. egg beaten
1 cup sour cream
1 cup maple syrup

Method :
I have accumulated quite a collection of gingerbread recipes, and this is one of my favorites. It's golden and delicious and the flavor of the ginger really comes through without molasses and a lot of other spices obscuring it.
I highly recommend using fresh grated ginger or the minced/crushed ginger you can get in a jar in the produce section, rather than dried. Needless to say, you want to use real maple syrup in this, too, rather than pancake/imitation syrup, but I'm sure that as a maple-lover you'd do that. :-)
Mix wet ingredients together in one bowl and dry ingredients in a larger bowl. Combine the two and stir only until mixed. Turn into a greased 9 X 9 inch pan and bake at 350 degrees for 35-40 minutes.

Gingerbread Waffles

1 1/2 tsp Ginger
1/2 tsp Cinnamon
1/2 tsp Salt
1 Lg. Egg, well beaten
1 cup Molasses
1/2 cup Buttermilk
1/3 cup Butter, melted
Whipped cream

Sift dry ingredients together. Beat egg until light. Add molasses and buttermilk and blend well. Make a hole in dry ingredients. Add egg mixture and melted butter. Mix just to moisten all. Bake in well-greased waffle iron. Serve with whipped cream.
Yield: 4 large waffles.

Orange Ginger Yogurt Cheese Spread

1 qt nonfat vanilla yogurt
1 tsp grated ginger root
1 tbl grated orange rind

Use Non-fat Vanilla Yogurt (the old fashioned kind with no gelatin that will "cheese up"), I like the quart size. Add one teaspoon (or less depending on your love of ginger) of grated ginger, and about one tablespoon of finely grated orange rind. Stir all of this together, fill your colander with paper towels, and plop the yogurt mix into it, set it over a bowl and refrigerate it for about 24 hours. It will turn into a fragrant and delicious orange/ginger flavored spreadable cheese that is wonderful on whole wheat toast or ww crackers. If you use a smaller size yogurt, just reduce the orange and ginger according to your own guesses! - From -Food Down Under

Merry Christmas To All!

We welcome your comments:

Back BACK TO RECIPES HOME