Family Food Fight
Name: Dawn Albrecht
Kids: daughter, age 10; son, age 8; son, age 8 (yep, twins!)
Works: writer, contributor to "The Morning Blend," Metroparent Columnist, foodie mom
Favorite part about being a mom: Watching my kids play nicely together, learn new things and have giggle fits!
Least favorite part about being a mom: Answering the same question 20 times. Letting go and allowing my kids to make mistakes I can see coming. I know they will learn from the mistake, but it's still hard.
Famous for: Having kids who will eat everything -- sushi and Brussels sprouts included!
Holiday Cookies
By Dawn Albrecht
Tuesday, Nov 4 2008, 09:59 AM
I’m not a Christmas Cookie kinda girl. I’ve never been into the cookie cutters (ok, there were those two Christmas’s I made cookies with my girl friend) and frosting. This year may be different…still no cookie cutters thought!
For a segment on Fox 6 I made Halloween ghost meringue cookies. I LOVE meringue cookies and had never realized how easy they were to make with a mixer. For a segment on the Morning Blend, I made pumpkin cookies… they were yummy! So now I’m thinking I may have to make Christmas cookies. Granted, this will not help me loose the five pounds I want to loose by Christmas, but I’ve found baking to be a great stress reliever for me recently.
All of the shiny magazine covers have drawn me in! I get a fair number of cooking/home magazines and decided to try making some of the cookies they’ve suggested. The first one I’ve made was a homerun! Actually, it was more like a grand slam at the bottom of the ninth to win the World Series. I picked the recipe thinking it might be a nice stocking stuffer for my father-in-law who loves coffee and biscotti.
Why not try it this weekend when we’re supposed to have *snow*? I'll try the other cookies in the picture and let you know how it goes. If you've got a great holiday cookie that doesn't involve cookie cutters, let me know! I'm looking for more recipes!
Cherry-Pistachio Biscotti
Family Circle Magazine
Makes: 2-1/2 dozen
Chill: 2 hours
Bake: 43 minutes total
Prep: 15 minutes
Ingredients
2-1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
Pinch salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup light-brown sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup dried cherries, chopped
1/2 cup pistachios, chopped
3 ounces milk chocolate, melted
Directions
1. Heat oven to 375°F. Mix flour, baking powder and salt in a bowl. Beat butter, sugar in second bowl until creamy. Beat in eggs, one at a time. Add vanilla. Stir in flour mixture. Add cherries and nuts. Gather dough in a ball; divide in 2 halves.
2. With floured hands, roll dough into two 12-inch logs. Place on a large ungreased baking sheet. Flatten logs slightly so each is 2 to 3 inches wide.
3. Bake at 375°F for 23 minutes or until lightly browned. Remove to rack to cool.
4. Lower oven temperature to 325°F. Cut loaves into 3/4-inch-thick slices (about 16 per log). Place, cut-side down, on sheet. Bake 10 minutes. Turn over; bake an additional 10 minutes. Cool on rack. Dip one end in melted chocolate; let dry on waxed paper.
