Cream Cheese Hummus Pita Bites

Our neighborhood is pretty awesome. It is December 22 and there are people out BBQing together. The other day one neighbor came over with a plate of cookies and a chat by the Christmas tree. The next day another neighbor called to ask if we needed some extra lights as they had leftovers. And last night we all got together to do a Progressive Party up and down the block.

Yup, we are pretty rockin'.

I know there are many neighborhoods like this -- I grew up in one -- but it seems to be less and less common. At least in my adult years. People are busy, schedules are full, lives are different from one house to the next.  But I am grateful that today I get to be a part of a place that celebrates community.

My contribution during the stop at our house? Sparkling cider and this: cream cheese hummus. Everyone else ooh'ed and ahh'ed, and I smiled because I know it took me five minutes. I mean, really, do I have time during the holiday season to make something time consuming? No, I do not. Which is why this is perfect. Perfectly simple, perfectly delicious. And will go perfectly with our Christmas dinner in a few days... one less thing I have to stress over. That's a holiday win.

(This hummus is great for the usual "dip" and also spread on pita crackers topped with green onions. Both taste fabulous, one looks a little more fancy... you choose :) )

CREAM CHEESE HUMMUS PITA BITES

YIELDS 1½ CUP HUMMUS  •  PREP TIME: 5 MINUTES  •  TOTAL TIME: 5 MINUTES PLUS ASSEMBLING PITA BITES

ingredients:

• 2 cans Garbanzo beans, one fully drained, one still with liquid
• 8 oz. cream cheese
• ¼ cup chopped green onion, plus more for garnish
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• 1 package of pita crackers, plus any item for dipping

 directions

1. In a blender or food processor, blend all ingredients together until smooth.  Either spread on pita crackers and top with green onion garnish, or serve as dip.

COST: $7.42

Peppermint Joe-Joe Ice Cream (No ice cream maker required)

I am a lover of peppermint.  Not just at Christmas time, either.  It isn't unusual to hear me order a peppermint hot chocolate at Startbucks in July.  And they comply, albeit with a slight shake of the head. I know -- I am breaking the peppermint rule: it is a Christmas treat, and that's that.

But who says so?  Not me.  I say give me peppermint all year long, and I will show you a happy girl.

My favorite peppermint thing?  Peppermint Joe-Joe's from Trader Joe's.  Crazy goodness, right there. Like an Oreo (but better!) with real pieces of candy cane crushed into the cream.  Um, HELLO.  Could they have created anything better?  No, definitely not.

Except... I did :)

I took my favorite cookie (which we stock up on around Christmas so they can last until about April when they expire -- smart, right?!) and turned it into my favorite type of dessert: ICE CREAM.

Best part is that you don't even need an ice cream maker, just a blender or food processor, and mixer of some sort, and a freezer.  SHEZAM!  Pepperminty deliciousness in a bowl.

Merry Christmas!

PEPPERMINT JOE-JOE’S ICE CREAM

SERVES 6  •  PREP TIME: 10 MINUTES  •  TOTAL TIME: 10 MINUTES + FREEZING

ingredients:

• 1 can sweetened condensed milk
• 5-6 Peppermint Joe-Joe’s cookies from Trader Joe’s
• 1 pint heavy whipping cream
• ¼ teaspoon peppermint extract

directions

1. In a blender or food processor, blend sweetened condensed milk with cookies.
2. Combine whipping cream and peppermint extract in a medium-sized mixing bowl. Beat cream/extract with a mixer on medium-high speed until whipped cream is formed. 
3. Combine sweetened condensed milk mixture with whipped cream and pour into airtight plastic container, such as a larger-sized Ziploc Smart-Snap container.  Freeze eight hours or overnight.

COST: $6.23        COST PER SERVING (6): $1.04

Ice Cream    //    Dessert    //   Peppermint

The Great FB Cookie Swap: Peppermint Sugar Cookies

It's the most wonderful time of the year... COOKIE SWAP TIME!

I know that sounds a little exaggerated, but seriously, this tradition (now three years in the making) has become one of my favorite things about the holiday season.  Not only do I get to look for the best cookie recipe to add to my collection, and not only do we all get to connect with other food bloggers, but by working/baking/shipping together, we raise money for causes that are worth all that effort.

$13,778.40

That beautiful number right there (so pretty, isn't it?) is the amount that was raised for Cookies for Kids' Cancer, a non-profit that works to help fund research that can help children live a full, long, and healthy life.  

This year I chose a simple recipe, straight from Martha: Peppermint sugar cookies.  I must confess, the cookies in these pictures are the old, rejected ones. The weather was so gloomy and I kept saying I would take pictures later, later, later, and this is what I would up with.  But oh!  Oh oh oh.  (Not to be confused with ho ho ho ;) )  I could NOT stop eating these.  Peppermint cookie, peppermint glaze, topped with (you guessed it!) peppermint pieces! The recipe said it made two dozen so I doubled it: 1 dozen for each of my matches, 1 dozen for us... except it made about six dozen.

And I did not share.

Not very Christmassy of me, but if you make these you will understand why.  At least I did share with my cookie recipients.  In the baggies and boxes they went, off to Utah, Arkansas, and another part of California, while I received three batches of delicious cookies from across the map. That is what makes this fun -- bake, raise money, and connect with people you have never met before.  It's a triple win.

A big shout out to the companies that sponsored the cookie swap (by giving in addition to what we bloggers donated): OXO, Pure Cane Dixie Crystals, Gold Medal Flour, and Grandma's Molasses. Their contributions stretched our dollars -- and hopefully bring us one step closer to a cure for cancer!

If you would like to find out about the Great Food Blogger Cookie Swap (and maybe participate next year!), click on their logo below.

PEPPERMINT SUGAR COOKIES

Recipe from Everyday Food, Dec. 2012

YIELDS 2 DOZEN  •  PREP TIME: 15 MINUTES  •  TOTAL TIME: 40 MINUTES

ingredients:

• 2 ½ cups all purpose flour (spooned and leveled)
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• ½ teaspoon fine salt
• 2 sticks unsalted butter, room temperature
• 2 cups granulated sugar
• ½ teaspoon peppermint extract
• ½ cup chocolate chips (optional)
• 1 large egg
• 1 cup confectioners’ sugar, sifted
• 3-5 tablespoons heavy cream
• 2 candy canes, crushed, for decorating

directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees, with racks in upper and lower thirds.  Combine flour, baking powder, and salt.  In a large bowl, use mixer to beat butter, granulated sugar, and ¼ teaspoon peppermint extract on medium-high until pale and fluffy (about 3 minutes).  Beat in egg, then flour mixture on low.  Stir in chocolate chips if you are using them.
2. Roll dough into 1 ½-inch balls and place, 2 inches apart, on parchment-lined baking sheets.  Bake until edges are lightly golden, about 12 minutes, rotating sheets halfway through.  Let cool on sheets on wire racks 5 minutes, then transfer to racks and let cool completely.
3. Stir together confectioners’ sugar and enough cream to make a spreadable glaze (if you like a strong mint flavor, stir in up to ¼ teaspoon extract).  Spread a thin layer of glaze on top of each cookie and sprinkle with candies.  Let dry completely on racks.

Can be stored in an airtight container, three days.

COST: $4.79        COST PER COOKIE (24): 20 cents

Merry Christmas!

To you and yours,

I hope you had

a VERY...

Have yourself a very peary Christmas! (Butternut Squash and Pear Soup)

It's all done.  Christmas shopping that is.  A pile of gifts are to my right and a heap of wrapping paper is to my left.

Is it just me or was Christmas kind sneaky this year?  Seriously, it feels like it came out of nowhere.  Not that I am complaining.  I adore Christmas.  The lights, the music, the laughter, the story of a baby born long ago... it truly is the most wonderful time of the year.

Some other things I love about Christmas:

Peppermint everything
The smell of Christmas trees
Mannheim Steamroller

Wreaths on the door
Rain coming down (yes, rain and not snow... California!)
Giving presents

Fudge
Christmas cookies
Mistletoe

What a minute -- I have never actually been kissed under the mistletoe before!  Guess I better grab that many of mine and make some Christmas magic happen! ;)

And last, but not least, SOUP!  It has always been one of my favorite dishes, and I hope it forever more shall be...

How about you?  What are your favorite things from this season?

BUTTERNUT SQUASH AND PEAR SOUP
Recipe from Everyday Food, Dec. 2012

ingredients

• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for serving
• 1 medium yellow onion, diced large
• 1 small butternut squash (about 2 pounds), peeled, seeded, and diced large
• 2 pears, peeled and diced large
• Salt and pepper
• 1/4 cup low-fat plain Greek yogurt
• Chopped fresh chives, for serving

directions

1. In a medium pot, heat oil over medium-high. Add onion and cook until translucent, 6 minutes. Add squash, pears, and 4 cups water; season with salt and pepper. Bring to a boil; reduce to a rapid simmer and cook until squash is soft, 20 to 25 minutes.
2. In batches, fill a blender halfway with soup and puree with yogurt until smooth (use caution when blending hot liquids), transferring to a clean pot as you work. Season with salt and pepper; serve with chives and a drizzle of olive oil.

COST: $$4.42   COST PER SERVING (6): $0.74

Perfect Hot Chocolate {Sundays with Joy}

'Tis the season.  For lights and jammies.  For peace and joy.  For hot chocolate.

'Tis the season for learning how to make Christmas goodies from scratch, too.

Before tonight, the words "hot chocolate" were synonymous with "Swiss Miss".  Or maybe "Nestle".  But now they sound like "Oh my goodness, there is amazingness in my mug".

Cute Christmas mugs deserve amazingness, I think.  You do only get to use them for a little bit each year, after all.

You probably like marshmallows in your hot chocolate.  Good, go for it!  I am not a marshmallow girl, but that did not stop this from still being the perfect cup of hot cocoa.  As my husband said, "Now THIS is what I call hot chocolate, not that watery stuff!"

Go get a little Joy in your life, and celebrate the season of joy and happiness on Earth with the light twinkling in the background and a warm mug in your hand.

Recipe from the Joy the Baker cookbook.  For a similar recipe, visit her blog HERE.  And enjoy!

Merry Christmas!

** There are a lot of families today in Connecticut who are not going to be able to feel peace and joy for quite some time, if ever again.  My thoughts and prayers are constantly with them as I realize Christmas will never be the same again.  One more example of why we cannot take the people we love for granted, at this time or any time.

(This post is a part of the Sunday with Joy baking group I am a part of.  Since we are going through the entire book, recipe by recipe, we do not post the recipes online unless we have changed them and made them our own.  This one was perfect as is.)

Peppermint Crinkle Cookies {Cookie Swap Recipe}

My poor baking gadgets have been neglected.  There they sat, in the drawer, lonely and wondering what they did that was so bad to make me never take them out to see the light of day or feel the heat of the oven.

Poor babies.

Good thing the Great Food Blogger Cookie Swap came to the rescue!

This was the second year I participated in this cookie swap, and both times I have had so much fun!  I mean, who doesn't like to have boxes of cookies -- freshly baked, I might add -- show up at their door?!  Yeah, that's what I thought.

Last year I sent off some cookies to Tennessee, and later met and became friends with the lady who received my box.  And, completely randomly, I received a box from someone who lives in the same little town in Illinois that my mother and grandmother grew up in.

Cookie swaps make the world just a little bit smaller...

How nice of OXO to send us all spatulas!  You can get one of these
bad boys for yourself HERE, and half of the proceeds go to fight
cancer in kids.  SWEET!

Of course, there is always the task of finding the perfect cookie recipe.  Since it can't be one that is on your blog yet (and if you are like me, you can only cook things that you put/have put on your blog), that means you need to find a new recipe.  One that you will like, one that strangers will like, one that ships well.

Luckily we live in the day and age of Pinterest.  Within five minutes I found it.

Cookies that taste like brownies???

Yes, please!

To celebrate my favorite flavor of Christmas, I added some peppermint extract.  Peppermint + chocolate = a merry Christmas, if you ask me.

And so, Peppermint Crinkle Cookies were born.  They lived a good life, for about five minutes, until my husband gobbled them all up, leaving me with one.

He apparently forgot that sharing was caring.

How nice of him to leave me one... ;)

In the end, these cookies traveled from my home in California to New York, Maryland, and another city not too far away from me, hopefully to arrive in tact and still fresh.  You never know with the busy holiday mail season!

And the best part?  I got cookies, too!  Thank you Natalie at The Sweets Life and Taylor at Greens & Chocolate.  You ladies had me at the peppermint...  As for Beka, your coconutty cookies were a perfect treat for this half-Brazilian home.  You brought a little bit of Natal our way.  Thank you!

Cookies from Taylor @ Green&Chocolate

Another holiday season, another cookie swap in the bag.  Merry Christmas!

Recipe adapted from the Magnolia Bakery in Los Angeles

MAKES 24-30 cookies
INGREDIENTS:  

1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 cups White sugar
½ cup vegetable oil
4 eggs
1 1/2 tsp. Vanilla extract

1/2 tsp. peppermint extract
2 cups all purpose flour
2 teaspoon Baking powder
½ tsp. Salt
½ cup powdered sugar

DIRECTIONS:

1. In a small bowl whisk together 2 cups flour, 2 tsp. baking powder and ½ tsp. salt. Set aside.
2. In a medium size stainless steel bowl whisk together 1 cup cocoa, 2 cups white sugar and ½ cup vegetable oil.
3. Add the eggs one at a time, whisking slightly after each.
4. Stir in the vanilla just until mixed.
5. Stir the flour mixture into the cocoa mixture.
6. Cover dough and chill for at least 30 minutes
7. Preheat oven to 325 degrees
8. Using a scoop, roll dough into a one inch balls.
9. Roll the balls in powdered sugar coating generously.
10. Line a sheet tray with parchment paper and bake  cookies for 10-12 minutes just until set. Watch these cookies carefully. They are like a brownie and are better when the center is just barely set. The cookies will “crack” on top exposing the soft chocolate center.

COST: $3.16    COST PER DOZEN (about 3): $1.06

Christmas in January

Happy New Year!

There.  I feel like I can finally say it.  After waiting for Christmas for so long, it finally came and now I really feel like I am in 2012.

As I mentioned (maybe a million times), my little brother is on leave from his time in Afghanistan.  Although he will be spending most of his time up in Oregon with his wife and her family, they were able to come down for the long weekend to see us.  Which has been WONDERFUL! 

We are not a super sappy and lovey-dovey family, so instead of sitting around crying about the time that has been missed, we headed out the door and did what we really wanted to do: go get food (Applebee's -- yum) and then head on over to Guitar Center.  If you have a music lover in your family you must experience this place.  The boys banged around on the drums while we girls listened, got bored, and then wandered around the store. 

Yesterday, however, was a sappy and lovey-dovey day.  It was full-on Christmas over here.  The last time I was able to spend Christmas with my brother was five Christmasses ago.  He was 18 and on leave from Basic Training, and I was 24 and spending my first Christmas with this new Brazilian boyfriend of mine ;)  The next year I was married to that Brazilian boy (just 10 days of marriage, by the way!) and Tommy was in Iraq.  The following year he was stationed in Kentucky, spending Christmas with a girl he had a crush on named Brittany while we stayed around here.  The year after that Tommy and his WIFE Brittany spent their first Christmas together in Tennessee and we spent Christmas in Brazil with that side of the family.   And this last Christmas found us mailing him packages to Afghanistan, praying for his safety, and me crying on Christmas day because the sun was shining and my brother was no where to be seen, and we decided that Christmas was not going to happen until he came home.  And this weekend he came home :)

Michael Buble crooned out the tunes to us, about Winter Wonderlands, Holy Nights, and things like that, while food was cooked, games were played, and movies were watched.  The house smelled like gingerbread and there was a lot of loved ones around, and it was perfect. 

My favorite picture of the day:

First of all, we all agreed that turkey is kind of a stupid food.  It doesn't have much flavor, costs a lot, and makes you sleepy.  So we opted to have roast chicken for dinner.  Secondly, yes, this apron belongs to me.  But that didn't stop Dan from putting it on and getting work on carving one of our two birds.  You put those two things together and we have a fun Christmas memory :)

Of course, being Christmas, we had all the other stuff.  I know some families eat a ham on Christmas, but that is not the way we roll.  Thanksgiving dinner is so good, so we do it twice.  The holiday season is then sandwiched in between to amazing dinners, my favorite food around.

Of course, we had the tree, the gifts, the cookies, all that.  But the best was having family around.  It may not have been December 25, but it was perfect!

Jingle Bells Keep on Ringing...

THIS is what my living room looks like right now:

Yes, you are seeing that correctly: those are baggies of peppermint (AKA Christmas flavored) candies.  And yes, that is a Merry Christmas bag in the background.  See that light coming from the top right corner?  That is shining down from the white lights on the tree. 

Christmas is almost here.

Before you get all crazy on me and give me a lesson on how to read a calendar, let me explain.  My brother who is currently stationed in Afghanistan (I almost typed Iraq, but that was last time) is home for his mid-tour leave.  Two weeks with loved ones before he picks up and heads back on out.  I am a firm believer that dates on the calendar are merely suggestions, but ultimately having the people you love around you should determine when the holiday-in-question should actually be celebrated.  This could explain why we celebrated Thanksgiving last June (when distant family was in town) as well as three times in November, none of which fell on the actual day, or why my husband and I will be found at home, doing nothing out of the ordinary on Valentine's Day but on Presidents' Day -- when the restaurants are not packed and loud -- we will be out on the town.

Like I said, the dates are merely suggestions. 

Unless, of course, it is my birthday.  That is a date that should be remembered every year, no exceptions.

It may be January 13 today, but Christmas really is two days away.  If you don't believe me, you should have a look under our tree.

Almost English Toffee

Yes, you read that right.  English Toffee  FUDGE.  Except it's not really fudge.  Nor is it really English Toffee.  Actually, it is an accident.

An amazing accident.

Two days I go I was cruising food blogs and I found out that English Toffee is incredibly easy (sounding) to make.  I wanted to make sure if I was going to make some I was going to make the best possible, so I googled recipes for it and compared them.  Finding the one that sounded the best, I set out to make some of my own.  I already had all of the ingredients on hand except almonds, but I don't like almonds, so I grabbed some walnuts down and was set.

There were tons of suggestions how to make it work correctly, and I read them all -- I promise.  I guess I just didn't fully understand them all, because what I wound up with was not English Toffee.  It was softer, melty-in-your-mouth, and oh-so-good.  So I did another google search for undercooked English Toffee.  According to everyone there, it should have been really sticky and get all stuck on your teeth, which mine did not.  So then I googled fudge.  Wouldn't you know it, fudge and English Toffee are almost the same concept, but one main difference (among the smaller ones): the temperature.  I guess my thermometer reading skills need a little improvement.  Oh well.  This was the best kitchen accident I have ever had.  I showed my husband a picture of what I supposed to be making and he told me to keep making this accident again and again, because he has had English toffee, but this is better. 

The best part?  It tastes like English toffee still.  So I have flavor of something delicious with the texture of (slightly grainy) fudge.  Score!

I am going to give you the real recipe for English toffee, but note my mistakes changes in italics.  Follow either version to have something delicious.

Ingredients

(Yields two pounds/ 32 servings)

• 2 cups butter
• 2 cups white sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 2 cups semisweet chocolate chips
• 1 cup finely chopped almonds

Directions

1. In a large heavy bottomed saucepan, combine the butter, sugar and salt. Cook over medium heat, stirring until the butter is melted. Allow to come to a boil, and cook until the mixture becomes a dark amber color, and the temperature has reached 285 degrees F (137 degrees C). Stir occasionally. OR cook until it reaches about 110C or 230F. 
2. While the toffee is cooking, cover a large baking sheet with aluminum foil or parchment paper.
3. As soon as the toffee reaches the proper temperature, pour it out onto the prepared baking sheet. Sprinkle the chocolate over the top, and let it set for a minute or two to soften. Spread the chocolate into a thin even layer once it is melted. Sprinkle the nuts over the chocolate, and press in slightly. Putting a plastic bag over your hand will minimize the mess.
4. Place the toffee in the refrigerator to chill until set. Break into pieces, and store in an airtight container.               

SOME VERY IMPORTANT TIPS I found included stir continuously with a whisk (which I did), use a casserole dish instead of a baking sheet (which you should do if you are making it my way), and keep in an airtight container in the fridge.  Use Bing or Google to find out more, but good luck!  And if you happen to recreate my accident, well, good for you :)

COST: $8.00                     COST PER SERVING (32): $0.25

And from our family to yours, we hope you had a wonderfully beautiful Christmas. 

A Very Peary Christmas (Pear Smoothies)

For the past week I have been drinking a banana smoothie for breakfast everyday.  I found this great, easy recipe and tried it.  A total winner.  But this morning when I went to get my banana to throw in the blender I came to a big block in the road: there were no bananas left.  This wouldn't have been a problem but I already had all the other ingredients in the blender, ready to be whirred together.  So I looked at my fruit basket:  oranges, tangerines, limes, and a tomato.  Nothing that would go well with milk, peanut butter, oats, and honey.  Quite a problem.  Until I remembered that I had a special delivery yesterday: a box of pears.

Not only did I get a box of pears from family, I received this beautiful pear ornament from one of my students.  I don't think I have had more than three pears in my house -- not "at a time" but ever.  I have never really been a pear person, but between that pear h'orderve dish I made up yesterday (I am starting to drool just thinking about it...) and all these pears sitting on my table and hanging on the tree, I guess this was the Christmas that I was destined to become a pear person.  So, I grabbed a pear and dropped it in the blender. 

Want one?  It is simple.  Take two tablespoons of oats (like Quaker Oats) and blend them until they become a powder.  Add one cup milk, one pear (cut up), one and half tablespoons of peanut butter (I do half Skippy/half healthy junk), and a smidgen of honey.  Blend.  Enjoy.  And share with a friend because it makes two servings.

There we have it, another winning pear recipe.  I think I have to blame The Cheesecake Factory for my sudden love of pears.  Have you tried their pear/blue cheese/arugula flat bread?  Oh.My.Word.  To die for.  Last time we went I ordered two of them.  Yes, two of them.  That was it, nothing else.  I could only eat one, but I had a great lunch waiting for me the next day.  You will probably be seeing my attempt to recreate that sometime soon.  After all, I have a lot of pears to get through!

To you and yours, I hope you... well, see for yourself :)  (Yes, I am a corn-dog sometimes.)

COST: $1.30          COST PER SERVING (2): $0.65

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas...

(Decorating with our sister-in-law, Brittany.  My brother/ her husband is spending his Christmas in Afghanistan this year, so there is a face definitely missing from this shot.   Check back next Christmas to see our little family complete.)

Like most of you, I adore this time of year.  The sights are beautiful, the smells are sweet and powerful, and everywhere you go there is a bounce in the step of all those around you.  Unless of course you are in the mall.  Then Christmas kind of sucks.  But step away from the mall and into the house of loved ones and you know this feeling that I am trying to describe... warmth.  We finally put the ornaments on the tree last night and I am eating (another) Christmas cookie while typing this and listening to Winter Wonderland, and I can say that feeling -- that warmth -- has hit.  Long live Christmas!



Cookie Swap 2011: Peppermint Spritz

I went out on a limb and tried something new this year: I participated in a cookie swap.

Deciding to do it was easy.  Getting three packages of cookies at my door sounded like something I definitely wanted.  So I headed on over to the sign-up page, dropped my information off, and went on my merry way.  October finished up and Thanksgiving came and I was sent my matches for who I would be making cookies for.  Curious, of course, I headed off to visit their blogs -- their beautiful blogs.  Blogs full of great cooking and tons of followers.  These were the people who were going to eat my cookies?  I could imagine them in their nice little aprons, shuffling around the kitchen, whipping up cookies for their recipients, singing "Silver Bells" as they went.  Quite different than what my process would look like. 

I am no baker.  Shoot -- I had never even made Christmas cookies before.  And all of the Christmas cookies I knew of contained fancy frosting.  Unfortunately, frosting and I rarely get along.

Suddenly it didn't seem like a good idea anymore, more like an overwhelming idea.

But I had signed up for it, so I had to do it.  I reached up into my cupboard, pulled down good ol' Better Homes and Gardens, and flipped through the pages.  I finally found one that sounded both do-able and delicious (and only required ingredients that I had or knew where I could find them).  Peppermint Spritz. 

All I would need was a cookie press.  

However, I had no idea what that actually was. Thank goodness for Google, which can be a handy tool in times like that, and Crate & Barrel, who so kindly stocks all of your baking needs.  After a quick internet search, a little shopping trip, and careful direction reading, I was set.  It was time to put my nose to the grindstone and make some Christmas cookies.

You know what?  I can now say I am a Christmas cookie maker.  And according to at least two of my recipients, they were delicious.  Score!

Another good thing about this was, of course, coming home and have packages on my doorstep.  I have received two of them so far, one from Kansas and another from Illinois.  Actually, the second was from the same little town my mother/grandmother/grandfather/great-grandparents/etc. grew up in!  What are the odds?  That brought smile to my face. 

Thank you, Erin at Naturally Ella for your scrumptious, healthy-yet-tasty cookies. (Click either picture to be taken to the respective recipes.)

And Carly at CarlyKlock, my husband ate almost all the cookies, but the two I got to try were delicious as well.

Looking forward to having a third package dropped on  my door soon :)

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups butter, softened
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 egg
• 1 teaspoon peppermint extract 
• 3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. In a large mixing bowl beat butter with an electric mixer on medium to high speed for 30 seconds. Add granulated sugar and baking powder. Beat until combined, scraping sides of bowl occasionally. Beat in egg and peppermint extract until combined. Beat in as much of the flour as you can with the mixer. Stir in any remaining flour.

2. Force unchilled dough through a cookie press onto an ungreased cookie sheet. If desired, sprinkle cookies with colored sugar. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes or until edges are firm but not brown. Transfer to a wire rack and let cool.

3. Makes about 84 cookies.