Christmas Morning Waffles

Original recipe from All Recipes.

Dry Ingredients:
2 cups all purpose flour
4 t. baking powder
1 t. salt
4 T. sugar

Wet Ingredients:
2 cups milk
4 eggs, separated
1 T. vanilla
1 cup melted butter

Instructions:
1. Preheat waffle iron according.
2. Sift flour, baking powder, sugar and salt together in a bowl.
3. Whisk milk, vanilla and egg yolks together in a separate bowl.
4. Beat egg whites in separate bowl using electric mixer until stiff peaks form.
5. Stir egg yolk mixture into flour mixture until batter is moistened.
6. Stir butter into batter and fold in egg whites.
7. Ladle about 1/3 cup better into preheated waffle iron and cook until golden. Repeat until done.
8. Add mix-ins if you want (coconut, coconut extract, mini-chocolate chips, marshmallows, fruit, etc)

Grandma Spencer's Gingerbread Cookies

Ingredients:

1 cup sugar
1 cup shortening or butter
1 egg (optional--mom says not to use)
2/3 cup molasses
2/3 cup hot water or buttermilk
3 t. baking soda
1 t. baking powder
1 t. cinnamon
1 t. ginger
approx 5 cups flour

Instructions:
Mix sugar, butter, add other items until soft.
Chill in fridge.
Roll it with the homies.
Bake at 375 degrees for 5 minutes.

Makes approximately 4 1/2 dozen round cookies.

Icing that hardens:
3 3/4 cups powdered sugar
1/4 cup water
1 1/2 t. light corn syrup
1/2 t. vanilla
Mix all and put in ziplock bag, snip corner and pipe onto cookies.

Hot Chocolate Cookies

Original Recipe click HERE. Got recipe from Kelly Phillips. Left out for Santa Christmas of 2014.

Ingredients:

1 cup butter, room temperature

1 cup granulated sugar

2/3 cups brown sugar

2 eggs

1 t. vanilla extract

3 1/4 cups all purpose flour

4 packages (or 1/2 cup plus 3 T.) Hot Chocolate Mix (store bought or homemade)

1 1/4 t. baking soda

1 t. salt

1 cup mini semi-sweet chocolate chips

2 cups mini marshmallows

Instructions:

Preheat over to 350 degrees. Line baking sheets with parchment paper.

In a large mixing bowl, cream together the butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, then blend in the vanilla.

In a separate medium bowl, whisk together the flour, hot chocolate mix, and baking soda and salt. Slowly add to the wet ingredients and mix until just combined, scraping the sides of the bowl as needed. Fold in the chocolate chips.

Drop dough balls onto the prepared cookie sheets and bake for 7 minutes. Remove the cookies from the oven. Working quickly, carefully add about 5-7 mini marshmallows to the top of each cookie and gently press. Return to the oven and bake an additional 2-3 minutes, or until the marshmallows start to puff. Remove from the oven and let cook on the cookie sheets for 10 minutes before removing. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Cornflake Christmas Wreaths

recipe from Maureen

Ingredients:

6 tablespoons butter
2 bags marshmallows
Green food dye
10 cups cornflakes
Red M&Ms or red cinnamon candies

Instructions:

Melt butter over medium-low heat in a large stock pot. Add marshmallows and stir constantly until melted and smooth. Add several drops of green food dye and stir well until color is even and uniform. Add cornflakes and stir until all flakes are coated.

Rub butter or spray some oil on hands. Once cornflake mixture has slightly cooled, shape into wreathes and place on parchment paper. Press red candies onto wreathes. Cool and serve to the ones you love.

Gingerbread Cookies (Molasses Cookies)

Recipe from my grandmother, Viola Day Spencer

Ingredients:
1 cup sugar
1 cup shortening
1 egg (optional)
2/3 cup molasses
2/3 cup hot water or buttermilk
3 t. Baking soda (3 t. = 1 T.)
1 t. Baking powder
1 t. Cinnamon
1 t. Ginger
Approx. 5 cups flour

Instructions:
Cream butter and super. Combine all other ingredients. Mix soft. Chill and roll it out. Cut into whatever shape you desire. Bake at 375 degrees for 5 minutes.

Makes 4 1/2 dozen, depends on shape and size of cookie cutter.

Candy Cane Kiss Cookies

This recipe from Our Best Bites.

Ingredients:
1/2 c. butter-flavored shortening
1/2 c. real butter
1 c. brown sugar
1 c. white sugar
2 eggs
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla
optional: 1 tsp peppermint extract
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
2 1/2 c. flour, lightly spooned into measuring cups and leveled with a knife
1/4 c. + 2 Tbsp. unsweetened cocoa powder
1 12 ounce bag dark chocolate chips
48 Hershey’s Candy Cane Kisses, unwrapped (one 10 ounce bag)

Instructions:
Preheat oven to 350.
Cream together softened butter, shortening, brown sugar, and white sugar for 1-2 minutes on medium-high speed or until light and fluffy. Add the eggs and vanilla. Meanwhile, combine the baking powder, baking soda, salt, flour, and cocoa powder. Add to the butter/sugar mixture and mix until combined. Mix in the chocolate chips.
To prevent cookies from flattening out, refrigerate dough for 30-60 minutes. Drop the dough by the tablespoonful onto an ungreased baking sheet. Bake until just set, but centers are still soft, about 8 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to cool for 1-2 minutes. Use a metal spatula to transfer cookies to cooling rack. Top each cookie with an unwrapped Candy Cane Kiss. Allow to cool completely, long enough for the Kiss to harden. If necessary, after the cookies have cooled, they can be placed in the refrigerator or freezer to re-solidify the Kiss.

Yield: 4 dozen cookies

My notes:
I put cookies in oven for 8 min, 30 seconds. I made a double match and it ended up making 124 cookies, using small cookie dough scoop. I packaged up the cookies in bins for large groups and in smalled bags for individual people.