Monday, December 5, 2016

Virtual Cookie Exchange Blog Hop 2016 - My Day

So when my friend Carol announced she was going to host this blog hop again this year, I quickly emailed her and said I'd love to join in!  I can't wait to see everyone's fun creations!  Thanks for a fun idea and for hosting Carol!!!
 Virtual Cookie Exchange
I am known in certain circles as the "One Who Brings Cookies"  and it is fun for me to make them for others to enjoy.  If you would like to see what I posted last year look here.

I still have been scaling back the amounts of baking I do in this last year as my husband continues to be on a very low carb diet.  

I must say I appreciate the opportunity to share with a few like-minded people who might not consider my cookies/baked goods to be a hindrance to their diet :)
 
Treat 1:

Pumpkin Bread
I know, this isn't a cookie BUT IT IS SO GOOD!!  My mom has made this bread at the holidays since I was very small.  As a teen, I would devour half a loaf in a sitting...I still could but I have discovered calories since tiptoeing into middle age so I try to make do with a slice...

Recipe:

1 cup canned pumpkin

3/4 tsp. salt

1 tsp. baking soda
3/4 tsp. nutmeg
2 beaten eggs
1/2 cup nuts, optional
1 1/2 cup sugar
1 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup oil
1/3 cup water

3/4 tsp. cinnamon

Measure dry ingredients, combine and set aside.  Mix eggs, pumpkin, oil, and water.  Combine wet ingredients with dry and stir well.  Fill two loaf pans half full with batter and bake at 350F for 45 minutes to 1 hour, until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. 

Treat 2:

Date Pinwheel Cookies
This is my grandma's best recipe in my opinion although she was a whiz at making her own homemade noodles - so it might be a tie. 

Recipe:

1 cup chopped dates
1/2 cup sugar
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup Crisco butterflow shortening
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 cup water
splash of orange juice
2 large eggs
1/4 tsp. salt
2 cups flour 

Prepare Filling -
Combine dates, water, and sugar and cook together on low heat until thickened, add a splash of orange juice.
Cookie Dough-
Cream together shortening and brown sugar, add well beaten eggs.  In separate bowl, sift together flour, baking soda, and salt.  Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients and chill dough in refrigerator for at least an hour.

Split dough into 3 equal pieces. Return 2 to the refrigerator and roll out the other into a rectangle and spread 1/3 of the filling mixture on top.  Roll into a jelly roll shape and chill in the refrigerator.  Repeat with 2 other pieces of dough.  After chilled slice into 1/4 inch slices and bake at 350F for around 10 minutes.

Makes around 3 dozen cookies.

A note about the appearance on these cookies: nostalgia requires me to take the dough rolls out before well chilled and bake them because I want these cookies to look how they did in my Grandma's later years...you can make them "prettier" by waiting longer for the chill but they taste the same wonderful either way.  I enjoy seeing them look like hers and I can identify with her impatience to get the first taste!!  :)

Hope you have a wonderful December and Merry Christmas!

Here is the schedule with links for today and the rest of the week, please go visit everyone on their special day!!


17 comments:

Carol Swift said...

If it weren't so late I'd be baking some pumpkin bread or date cookies. They look delicious! I really love date cookies so I'll be trying those for sure. Thank, Kris, for baking along with me. You can throw those in a box and mail them to me if the temptation is too much for your hubby. LOL

Little Quiltsong said...

Thank you for your recipes. I used to bake lots and lots and these recipes, seem totally from 'home'. Now it seems I hardly get time to try new recipes, I just have enough time to keep the favorites stocked - (sewing has interrupted) :)! One of our daughters and her friends were just here this past weekend and baked up a storm of Christmas Cookies - this tradition started a few years ago. My husband and I are usually delegated to dish washers :)! I still bake a few traditional cookies and my Christmas Stollen, but the girls are so good at decorating the Christmas cut-out cookies, which I have no patience for - it is a real treat for me. Even with dividing all at the end - I usually have enough to gift to others for Christmas. I need to try your pinwheel cookies!!

Patty said...

Love a good pumpkin bread recipe! Thanks for sharing.

Carol said...

Yum! I love pumpkin bread--makes me drool just to look at the picture!--and the date pinwheels look delicious too. Nobody in our family makes those any more. Thanks for sharing!

LJ said...

Two wonderful cookies that we enjoy, too. It's been awhile since I've made the pinwheels - maybe I'll make those yet this year.

Needled Mom said...

Those date cookies sound delicious. My grandmother's date cookies remain one of my favorite cookies too. Thanks for sharing.

Jeanna said...

We love pumpkin bread and I'm always looking for new recipes. I've never had the date cookies but they sound delish!

DebbieM said...

I love pumpkin bread and I'm going to give yours a try. The date cookies sound interesting too! Thank you for sharing and Merry Christmas!!

Soma @ inkTorrents.com said...

Oooo...cookies!! The pumpkin bread looks delicious. I LOVE dates. Have to give your grandma’s Date Pinwheel Cookies a try. Thanks, Kris!!

-Soma

Tu-Na Quilts said...

Hi, Kris!
My mother makes a date cookies very similar to your recipe. She got it from her mother. I've made them too and love the date flavor. I've got a couple of pumpkins from the garden begging to be used so your pumpkin bread recipe was very timely. Thanks for two recipes. And thanks for stopping by my blog and commenting. Family memories often center around food.

Carla said...

I can't wait to try those date cookies. YUMMY. I'm really craving some pumpkin bread now though. Thank you for the awesome recipes and sharing your Grandma with us.

Createology said...

Thank you very much for hopping and sharing your recipes. I love everything pumpkin and your date cookies sound delicious.

Janarama said...

Your recipes look really good. I never heard of date cookies so I'm going to try your recipe.

Michelle said...

Pumpkin bread is one of my favorites. Everything looks yummy!

GRANNYcanQUILT said...

Wow these sound delicious!

Deonn said...

Mmmm. They look so delicious! I remember my grandmother making date pinwheels. Who buys dates these days?? I haven't thought about them for years, but saw a "Holiday" Salad yesterday that included dates and craisins. Looks like it's time for a trip to the store. Thanks for your recipe!

Siouxzq64@gmail.com said...

Your pumpkin bread looks wonderful, and so do your cookies. Isn't it fun to have something that reminds you of family that are no longer with us?