Sunday, December 16, 2007

Bake-a-palooza 2007

I've made a big mistake in my holiday baking this year...

I've saved the baking and decorating of the sugar cookies for last.

NOT SMART!

Must remember to do those FIRST next year!

So far I've made:
  • a double batch of sugar cookie dough - not yet baked
  • a double batch of chocolate crinkles - baked
  • a single batch of snickerdoodles - baked
  • a single batch of Peter's mum's oh-so-frickin'-good ginger cookies - baked
  • lemon bars
  • regular (semi-sweet) fudge with marshmallows
  • dark chocolate fudge with walnuts
  • milk chocolate fudge that, at Brett's suggestion, I turned into a Take 5-candy-bar-inspired fudge, stirring in pieces of pretzel, peanuts, peanut butter and caramel ice cream topping (pretty darn good!)
  • two batches of peanut brittle
I think I might leave work at lunch time tomorrow to finish the baking and decorating, so everything can either go in to our jobs or get packed up for mailing out on Tuesday. I'm seriously tempted to also make some biscotti (Farm Girl's chocolate chocolate chip biscotti went over great last year, and the biscotti with pistachios from Peter this year have really inspired me to try something similar... Plus I picked up slivered almonds and think that'd go great with cranberries and orange zest...so that's, what, three batches of biscotti I'm considering!?)

Dammit - I seriously was considering NOT doing all this crazy stuff this year. I blame Peter!

12 comments:

Peter said...

I blame Peter, too. But I'll be very grateful to him when your baking arrives at our place.

:-)

Stunned Donor said...

I made sixteen pounds of cashew brittle yesterday, I never want to make it again.

Jeph said...

I'm still contemplating making some cashew brittle myself. Did you use a microwave recipe?

FinnyKnits said...

Who WHO is getting all of this delicious baking?? I made chocolate crinkles last year (year before) and all I remember was that they were a pain in my ass.

You're a hero and should remind people of that when you bestow the cookie bounty upon them.

Joe said...

Cashew brittle sounds so good! But, I'm too exhausted to even think about it after we got all our holiday baking done and shipped out this morning! Whew!

Stunned Donor said...

Martha Stewart's Microwave recipe !!!

Peter said...

You people and your candy-making! I won't go near it, I have to admit.

the ginger tabby said...

Is everyone and their brother baking Christmas treats and mailing them to friends?? I must get in on this trend!!

Jeph said...

Tabby - Everyone and their GAY brother maybe!

Jeph said...

Steven - Damn I wish I would've remember it was Martha Stewart's recipe that was so good....

Jeph said...

Finny -
I already sent you email on this subject, but I found a little trick on the rolled-and-coated cookies. Instead of painstakingly hand rolling all those damn little balls, lightly pat/roll the dough out into a thick "sheet", use a pizza cutter to slice into small cubes, and give 'em a light squish in your palm as you toss 'em into the sugar-coating bag. Heck, I did some without the squish - it looked like sugar-coated fudge cubes pre-baking, and after the bake they looked just fine!

Jeph said...

Joe -

You ARE known for going overboard on the holiday baking! (Like I can talk!)