A Beckermann Family Christmas

I spent a few days at home for Christmas without Tony, regretfully and got to spend some time with my favorite ladies and of course my dear old dad.

I made Bacon and Eggs with my niece, Jordan:

Emily and Jordan played in (I mean shoveled) the snow one afternoon:

While mom and I stayed inside and made my dad’s favorite, bruschetta:

After eating a big dinner, we piled into the car and took a drive to look at lights so Santa could come to our house while we were gone. When we returned, he had eaten the cookies we had left him and wrote us a note:

We ran downstairs and under the tree were presents from Santa:

Nothing but clothes and socks for dad:

Jordan’s favorite gift was a Barbie scooter/ skateboard from her mom:

I was sad to leave, but looked forward to my first Christmas with the Breidenbachs on Christmas Day.

Scenes from Christmas

BLOGGER:  TONY

First, a shot of our Christmas Cookie plate:

We also had a couple of new additions to C hristmas this year:  California Rolls and Wontons.  Surprisingly enough, my Mom liked the California Rolls:

Of course, there were some very attractive grandchildren:

Finally, with 17 adults and 19 grandchildren in the house, there was quite a bit of commotion.  This last picture should give you a taste of the pandemonium:

More pictures from Christmas can be found here.

Reubens

BLOGGER: KATELYN

My Grandma Rena sent tons of canned goodies with my mom when she came to visit for our Christmas cookie baking weekend.  Something I wanted to dip into immediately was the sauerkraut!  Now since I don’t do any kind of meat I had mine without the traditional corned beef or turkey, it was just as satisfying!

Here is a picture of one with a pickled beet (also a Grandma Rena specialty):

TONY says the sauerkraut was quite delicious. He was also very excited to dig into it because he had never had homemade sauerkraut before. He though it was much less salty than commercial sauerkraut and the caraway seed added a really nice touch. Needless to say, he wasn’t disappointed. He thinks it is more evidence that food really tastes better when you make it yourself. He thinks you should read these posts on the same subject: Make your own hot sauce? and More sorry cooks?

Tortellini Soup

BLOGGER: KATELYN

Tortellini Soup

1 pkg frozen pasta

1 cup chopped fresh spinach

3 cups chopped fresh mixed vegetables (zucchini, yellow squash, carrots, mushrooms, onion, garlic)

1 box vegetable broth

1 jar pasta sauce

Saute vegetables in olive oil 3 to 5 minutes.Cover and sweat 5 minutes to a large soup pot, add vegetable broth, pasta sauce, vegetables and pasta. Cook 6-8 minutes over low heat. Add spinach right before serving.

I must say this soup is awesome, and probably not too bad for you either. Despite the chopping of the vegetables, it’s quite easy to make as well. What I love is that it doesn’t take long to prepare, it can be made in just one pot and clean-up is a breeze. The soup doesn’t take anytime to set up either, so you can eat it immediately. It’s perfect with a bit of parmesan grated on top if you have it and feel free to use any kind of fresh vegetables you like, but I wouldn’t advise skipping the mushrooms, they’re the best part!

Chocolate Candy Cane Cookies

BLOGGER:  TONY

I think these sandwich cookies will be a bigger hit with the kids than with adults.  They’re a little whimsical with the crushed peppermint candies dusted on the edge of the cookies and very sweet due to the decent amount of frosting in the middle.  I am looking forward to sharing them with some of my little nieces and nephews.  And yes, that is Katleyn’s hand.  Here’s the recipe:

Chocolate Candy Cane Cookies, from this recipe at Epicurious

 1 3/4 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 cup unsweetened cocoal powder (preferably Dutch-process)

1/4 tsp salt

1 cup sugar

3/4 cup unsalted butter, room temperature

1 large egg

1 cup plus 2 T powdered sugar

3/4 cup unsalted butter, room temperature

3/4 tsp peppermint extract

3 drops red food coloring

1/2 cup crushed hard red or green peppermint candies

Whisk flour, cocoa, and salt in medium bowl to blend. Using electric mixer, beat sugar and butter in large bowl until well blended. Beat in egg. Add dry ingredients; beat until blended. Refrigerate dough 1 hour.

Preheat oven to 350°F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Scoop out dough by level tablespoonfuls, then roll into smooth balls. Place balls on prepared baking sheets, spacing about 2 inches apart. Using bottom of glass or hands, flatten each ball to 2-inch round (edges will crack). Bake until cookies no longer look wet and small indentation appears when tops of cookies are lightly touched with fingers, about 11 minutes (do not overbake or cookies will become too crisp). Cool on sheet 5 minutes. Transfer chocolate cookies to racks and cool completely.

Using electric mixer, beat powdered sugar and butter in medium bowl until well blended. Add peppermint extract and 2 drops food coloring. Beat until light pink and well blended, adding more food coloring by dropfuls if darker pink color is desired. Spread 2 generous teaspoons filling evenly over flat side of 1 cookie to edges; top with another cookie, flat side down, pressing gently to adhere. Repeat with remaining cookies and peppermint filling.

Place crushed candy canes on plate. Roll edges of cookie sandwiches in crushed candies (candies will adhere to filling). (Cookie sandwiches can be made ahead. Store in single layer in airtight container at room temperature up to 3 days or freeze up to 2 weeks.)

Chocolate Hazelnut Crinkles

BLOGGER:  TONY

This cookie is something new I’ve tried in 2008.  I like to keep Christmas baking a little bit fresh by adding to my repertoire of treats.  I will definitely be making these for years to come.  Not only are they stunningly beautiful, they are rich, dense, and just a little bit crisp.  Here’s the recipe:

Chocolate Hazelnut Crinkles, from this recipe at Epicurious

2/3 cup hazelntus

2 T granulated sugar

6 oz bittersweet chcolate, finely chopped

2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder

2 teaspoons baking powder

3/4 teaspoon salt

1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, softened

1 1/2 cups packed light brown sugar

2 large eggs

1/4 cup milk

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

confectioners sugar, for dusting

Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 350°F.

Toast hazelnuts in a shallow baking pan in oven until skins split and nuts are pale golden, about 10 minutes. Remove from oven (turn oven off), then wrap hazelnuts in a kitchen towel and rub to remove any loose skins. Cool nuts completely. Pulse nuts with granulated sugar in a food processor until finely chopped.

Melt chocolate in a metal bowl set over a saucepan of barely simmering water or in top of a double boiler, stirring until smooth. Remove bowl from heat and set aside.

Whisk together flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, and salt in a bowl.

Beat together butter and brown sugar in another bowl with an electric mixer at medium-high speed until creamy, about 3 minutes. Add eggs 1 at a time, beating well after each addition, then beat in melted chocolate until combined. Add milk and vanilla, beating to incorporate. Reduce speed to low and add flour mixture, mixing until just combined. Stir in nut mixture. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and chill dough until firm, 2 to 3 hours.

Put oven racks in upper and lower thirds of oven and preheat oven to 350°F. Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper.

Sift confectioners sugar into a bowl. Halve dough and chill 1 half, wrapped in plastic wrap. Roll remaining half into 1-inch balls (about 2 T of dough), placing them on a sheet of wax paper as rolled. Roll balls, 3 or 4 at a time, in confectioners sugar to coat generously and arrange 2 inches apart on lined baking sheets.

Bake, switching position of sheets halfway through baking, until cookies are puffed and cracked and edges feel dry (but centers are still slightly soft), 12 to 18 minutes total. Transfer cookies (still on parchment) to racks to cool completely.

Ugliest Breidenbach Dog Poll

Which one do you think?

Willy:

Pepper:

Or Aku:

Craisin Buttermilk Scones

BLOGGER:  TONY

I’m pretty picky about my scones.  I like them a little crusty without being too dry, moist enough to eat alone but dry enough to soak up coffee nicely, sweet but not too sweet and substantial without being tough.  It’s a tough line to tread and this recipe isn’t quite there.  But that doesn’t mean that they aren’t pretty good anyway.  They’re a little too much like biscuits to be perfect but they taste awfully good.  This is a light scone with a pretty tender crumb.  Here’s the recipe: 

Craisin Buttermilk Scones

2 cups all-purpose flour

4 tsp baking powder

3/4 tsp salt

1/3 cup sugar

4 T butter

2 T shortening

3/4 cup buttermilk

1 egg, beaten

Handful of craisins

Heavy cream

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Combine flour, baking powder, salt and sugar in a bowl.  Mix buttermilk and egg  in a separate bowl.  Cut the butter and shortening into the flour mixture using your fingertips.  Stir in the buttermilk and egg inot the flour mixture.  Add craisins.  Turn out the dough onto a floured surface.  Knead a few times.  Roll or pat into a round about an inch in thickness.  Cut into 8 slices (like a pie) and place on a parchment paper lined baking sheet.  Brush the top of the scones with heavy cream.  Bake for 15 minutes or until golden brown.

Here’s a couple of pictures:

Holiday Baking with the Beckermann Girls

Katelyn’s mother, sister, and niece came to town this past weekend for some holiday baking at our home.  They brought some good, old-school type Christmas cookie recipes and I taught them how to use a digital scale to measure flour and other hard to measure ingredients.  I think we both learned a lot.  Here’s some pictures:

Jordan, Katelyn’s 3 year old niece was a big help.

Katelyn tasted the wine and egg nog:

And so did I:

The four Beckermann girls. . . (maybe 5?):

Carmalito Bars

BLOGGER: KATELYN

Carmalito Bars, recipe courtesy of Pat Boyer

1 1/4 cups flour

1 1/4 cups oatmeal

1 cup brown sugar

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp salt

3/4 cup butter, melted

1 cup chocolate chips

1/4 cup nuts, toasted

1 pkg. (42 each) Kraft caramels

1/2 cup cream or milk

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine flour, salt, oatmeal, brown sugar, and baking soda. Mix in butter until crumbly. Press 3/4 of the mixture in the bottom of a 9X13 pan. Bake for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, melt caramels and cream (or milk) over a double boiler (or low heat) till smooth.

Take the crust out of the oven and sprinkle with nuts and chips. Spread the caramel mixture carefully over nuts and chips. Take the remaining crumbs and sprinkle on top. Bake 20 minutes longer at 350 degrees.

Carmalito bars are a ridiculously good Christmas treat, but I would advocate eating them all year round. The bars are my mom’s very favorite to make during the holidays and even more of a favorite to eat. The recipe is actually one of my Grandma Rena’s – something they made together when she was growing up. I asked my mom and she said her favorite thing about carmalito bars is the way they crumble when you take them out of the pan and all the tasty crumbly bits that stick to the edges and have to be eaten because they are “too ugly to present.” Ahh my mother and I have so much in common.