Favorite Christmas Breads

Well, it's been a while since I posted here - here are some recipes that I love making this time of year.

Cranberry Orange Bread

3 cups fresh or frozen cranberries
1 2/3 cups sugar
2/3 cup vegetable oil
½ cup milk
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 teaspoons grated orange or lemon peel
4 eggs
3 cups all-purpose flour
½ cup coarsely chopped nuts
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon baking powder

1. Move oven rack to low position so that tops of pans will be in center of oven. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease bottoms only of 2 loaf pans, 8 1/2x1/2x2 or 1 loaf pan, 9x5x3.
2. Stir together cranberries, sugar, oil, milk, vanilla, orange peel, and beaten eggs in large bowl. Stir in remaining ingredients.
3. Pour into pans. Bake 50-60 minutes.


Pumpkin Bread

3 cups sugar
1 cup cooking oil
4 eggs
3 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 ½ teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon nutmeg
2/3 cup water
1 15-oz can pumpkin

1. Grease the bottom and ½ inch up sides of two 9x5x3-inch, three 8x4x2-inch, or four 71/2x31/2x2-inch loaf pans; set aside.
2. In a very large bowl, beat sugar and oil with an electric mixer on medium speed. Add eggs and beat well. Set aside.
3. In a large bowl combine flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Add flour mixture and water alternately to sugar mixture, beating on low speed after each addition, just until combined. Beat in pumpkin. Spoon batter into prepared pans.
4. Bake in a 350-degree oven for 55-65 minutes or until a wooden toothpick inserted near center comes out clean.

Makes 2 loaves (although it usually makes closer to 2 ½ when I make it)

Death by Chocolate

Here's a recipe that will thrill your tastebuds and clog your arteries. I made it recently for my co-workers....they went back and forth between thanking me for making them and scolding me for bringing them in and making them feel like the "had" to eat them.

Black and White Brownies

12 ounces semi-sweet chocolate
1/2 cup butter

Cream Cheese Batter:
6 Tablespoons butter, softened
9 ounces cream cheese, softened
3/4 cup sugar
3 eggs
3 Tablespoons flour
1 Tablespoon vanilla

Chocolate batter:
6 eggs
2 1/4 cups sugar
1 1/2 cups flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 Tablespoon vanilla

Preheat oven to 350.

Melt chocolate and 1/2 cup butter and set aside to cool. You can melt it in the microwave or over a double boiler.

To make the cream cheese batter: with a whip attachment, cream 6 tablespoons butter then add the cream cheese and continue mixing. Add the sugar, beat until fluffy, then beat in the eggs, flour, and vanilla. Set aside.

For the chocolate batter: in a separate bowl whip the eggs and sugar until fluffy. Stir together the flour, baking powder, salt and mix into egg mixture. Mix in the melted chocolate and butter and vanilla.

In a rectangular pan, lined with parchment, spread half the chocolate mixture. Spread the cream cheese layer over that to cover. Then drop remaining chocolate batter by spoonfuls on top then swirl with a knife. Bake for 40 minutes. Cool and cut into bars.

Mom's birthday...and Hummingbird Cake

Hummingbird Cake

3 C. flour
2 C. sugar (preferably white)
1/2 t. salt
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 t. ground cinnamon
3 eggs, beaten
1 1/2 C. vegetable oil
1 1/2 t. vanilla extract
1 can (8 oz.) crushed pineapple, well drained
1 C. chopped pecans
2 C. chopped firm ripe banana

Cream Cheese Frosting:
16 oz. cream cheese, softened
1 C. butter, room temperature
2 lb. confectioners' sugar
2 t. vanilla extract
1/2 to 1 C. chopped pecans

Preheat oven to 350. Sift flour, sugar, salt, baking soda and cinnamon into mixing bowl several times. Add eggs and salad oil to the dry ingredients. Stir with a wooden spoon until ingredients are moistened. Stir in vanilla, pineapple and 1 C. pecans. Stir in the bananas. Spoon the batter into 3 well-greased and floured 9-inch round cake pans. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until wooden toothpick or cake tester inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pan for 10 minutes, then turn onto cooling rack. Cool completely before frosting.

Cream Cheese Frosting:
Combine cream cheese and butter; cream until smooth. Add powdered sugar, beating with an electric mixer until light and fluffy. Stir in vanilla.


We make this cake every year for Mom's birthday. It is delicious, and especially moist. It's really moist if you forget to read the lable on the pineapple, and add twice as much as it calls for. Needless to say, no one could figure out my secret ingredient.

This is a little late, as our internet had been down. Happy birthday to the world's greatest Mom!
I love you and thank God continually for you. Thank you for helping me continue to grow into a godly, virtuous woman. Especially, for helping me to keep my eyes on Christ, and for learning to trust Him for everything. Your example is the greatest blessing you can give me. You are such a dear Mother, I love you so much.
Thank you for helping me to continue falling in love with Jesus. That is truly the greatest truth you could teach me.

Sweet Potato Pie

2 C. sweet poatoes-cooked and mashed
2 C. sugar
1 can evaporated milk
4 eggs
1/2 t. lemon juice
1/2 t. vanilla

Cook pie shells about halfway before filling is placed in them. Bake pies at 325 for 45-50 minutes or until knife comes out clean.

I made pumpkin pies yesterday, and I remembered this recipe from aunt Joyce. It's very similar to pumpkin pies, but with a little variation. Enjoy!

A Great Remedy for Sore Throats

As you may assume, I have a cold currently so this is obviously on my mind a good bit of the time.

I discovered this a few years ago and it really works. Simply use a combination of lemon juice (fresh is best), honey, and ginger, heat until boiling, then sip (believe me, you won't want to gulp it!). As far as amounts...I'd say use the juice from one lemon (3 Tablespoons?), one Tablespoon honey, and a dash or two of ginger. The ginger is kind of on the spicy side, so don't overdo it.

~Janessa

Yummy Soups

This week I've made two different soups. Both are really tasty and really good for you!

Black Bean Soup
1 1/2 cups black turtle beans
1 1/2 quarts water or vegetable stock
2 tablespoons oil
1 carrot
1 onion
1 potato
2 stalks celery
1 bay leaf
1 teaspoon oregano
1/4 teaspoon savory
2 teaspoons salt
1/8 teaspon pepper
juice of 1 lemon
1/2 lemon, thinly sliced

Optional: pinch garlic powder

Wash the turtle beans and put them in a saucepan along with the stock and 1 tablespoon of oil. Cover tightly, bring to a boil, and simmer for 2 1/2 hours or so, until beans are quite tender.

Chop the opnion and saute' in the remaining iol until soft. Chop the celery, including the leaves. Grate potato and carrot on large grater. Add celery, potato, and carrot to onion and cook over medium heat for several minutes, stirring occasionally.

Add the vegetable to the beans, along with the seasnonings, in the las hour of their cooking. Include garlic if desired. Bring the soup to a boil and lower the heat to simmer until the beans and vegetables are done.

Add the lemon juice and lemon slices when the soup has finished cooking.

Makes about 9 cups.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Tuscan Tomato Soup
1/4 cup olive oil
4 tablespoons butter
4 carrots, peeled and finely diced
4 stalks celery, finely diced
3 medium onions, finely minced
3 quarts canned tomatoes with juice or 14 large, ripe fresh tomatoes, peeled, seeded, and coarsely chopped
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley (you can substitute with 1 tablespoon dried)
6 leaves fresh basil (you can substitute with 2 teaspons dried)
Salt and freshly ground pepper

Heat the oil and butter in a heavy kettle. Cook the carrots, celery, and onions for about 20 minutes, or until very tender. Add the tomatoes and continue cooking over moderate heat for 25 to 30 minutes longer. Stir in the parsley and basil, season with salt and pepper, cook a minute or so longer and serve hot.

Jeanette's hints: To make the tomato soup even healthier, omit butter and increase olive oil to 1/2 cup.

WARNING: Contents Under Pressure

Today I have been canning - all day long. I started out with potatoes. We're canning potatoes because we have way too many to eat (without becoming human potato chips) and no really good place to store them. Potatoes require pressure canning, which I've always found a bit tedious. Who wants to spend all day keeping the little dial at exactly 10 lbs. pressure when there are more exciting things to do? Anyway - I got the canner going and sat down to read instructions for canning peaches (my next project for the day) and completely forgot about watching the canner. Well...the phone rang and I got up to answer it. As I did, I happened to glance over at the canner and it was over 20 lbs. pressure! It was in the DANGER zone (I've always wondered what would happen when a canner gets into the danger zone...would it blow up or what?) Well, I got it off the heat and thankfully the pressure dropped quickly back into the safe zone and my potatoes (and the house) were safe!

I am now processing peaches, which is a much more interesting project that does not require use of the pressure canner. Besides, peaches are much prettier in the jar than potatoes.

There is a moral to the story though - make sure when using a pressure canner to actually check the pressure and not assume it will regulate itself. It won't.

Gotta run - the peaches are just about done.

Monster Cookies

1 lb butter - softened
2 lbs brown sugar
4 cups white sugar
12 eggs
¼ cup vanilla extract
3 lbs crunchy peanut butter
8 tsp baking soda
18 cups quick oats
1 lb chocolate chips
1 lb M&M’s

Preheat oven to 350. In a large bowl, cream together sugars, butter, and peanut butter. Add eggs and vanilla and whip until light and fluffy. (At this point I have to take it out of my large Kitchen Aid and finish mixing remaining ingredients in a very large bowl.) Add remaining ingredients and mix well. Drop by teaspoon-fulls onto an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake for about 10 minutes.

Yield – an enormous number of cookies.

I first made these cookies when I was visiting my Aunt Sheryle a while back. I've never seen so much cookie-dough! They were fun though, even if I did spend an entire afternoon baking cookies. The best part was when Uncle Dale got home....he was very happy that I'd been baking cookies....and he said mine were better than Sheryle's. Of course that could be because she discovered that every time she made them, she hadn't been putting in enough oats so hers didn't turn out as well. Guess that's what happens when you've made the recipe 1000 times...it takes someone else to look at it to figure out what the problem is.

And now let the work begin.....

Since they're officially engaged, thought I'd post this photo. It was taken by our special friend, Mrs. Harrison, when the whole family was back for a cousin's wedding in June.

As someone who has planned/coordinated several weddings, I have to admit that I find it extremely entertaining to have my little brother calling me saying things like, "How do we make the PHC dining hall look different from all the other wedding receptions that have been there?" and "Will you do the rehearsal dinner?" Ahh...yes....a wedding planner's life is never dull. And for the question of making the PHC dining hall look different, may I suggest, for starters, no white tulle with white lights? Just a thought. :)

This should be an interesting few months.

New Addition

Just a quick post to say that the Cole girls will be welcoming a new addition in a few months. Jeremy has proposed to Jessica - and she said yes! (that's the real miracle - brave woman!)

So, congratulations to Jeremy and Jessica and hopefully we'll be hearing from Jessica now and then as a contributor to the Cole-inary artists.

For our 31st Anniversary

I was excited when Jeanette told me she was going to start the Cole-inary Artist blog.

I plan on posting recipes that have been a part of Brad’s and my family’s menus, and also some poems and writings that Brad has written through the years.

My first entry came to me on July 13, 2005 during the celebration of our 31^st wedding anniversary.

These are the words in the card Brad gave to me:

I never thought that having my world turned upside down

Could be such a wonderful thing,

Until you came into my life and showed me

What I was missing.

Sweetheart, you are and always will be,

The answer to my every prayer.

This is the poem Brad wrote for me:

For thirty-one years a privilege I’ve had

Of knowing you better in the good and the bad,

How often I’ve enjoyed you laugh, smile (and frown)

As you helped God turn my world upside down.

Oh, it’s not a really bad thing to

Have someone your life “undo,”

At least when they from the start

Are helping God remake a heart.

So if our journey in life has been

Less than perfect since way back when

Know it’s all part of a turn-around

To get us turned right from upside-down.

Two of my cute sisters

They may shoot me for this, but I think this is a cute photo. That's Janessa on the left and Julie on the right.

And what to do with all those leftover egg whites

These are very delicate and really good. They're a great option when you have leftover egg whites and don't know what to do with them.

Macaroons

2 egg whites
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
2/3 cup sugar

Lightly grease a cookie sheet; set aside. In a medium mixing bowl beat egg whites and vanilla with an electric mixer on high speed till soft peaks form (tips curl). Gradually add sugar, about 1 tablespoon at a time; beating till stiff peaks form (tips stand straight).

Drop mixture by rounded teaspoons 2 inches apart on the prepared cookie sheet. Bake in 325 degree oven about 20 minutes or till edges are lightly browned. Transfer cookies to a wire rack and let cool. Makes about 30 cookies.

*Janessa's notes*

This recipe can also be easily changed to 3 egg whites, 3/4 tsp. vanilla and 1 cup sugar (for use with the ice cream recipe, etc).

Also, coconut macaroons can be made by folding 1 1/3 cups flaked coconut (or 2 cups if using 3 egg whites) into beaten egg whites.

The egg whites should be stiffer than when beaten for meringue. It should be somewhat glossy in appearance and the sugar should be mostly dissolved.

One more. :)

When greasing the cookie sheet I have found that it works best to only grease the areas where you will put the cookies. My reason in saying this is that the cookies have a tendency to slide to the middle and create one big cookie if too much grease is used.

Enjoy!

July...the perfect month for ice cream

I just tried this recipe for the first time today. It was actually on the side of our rock salt box. I have ignored recipes on boxes for years and have only recently discovered that most of them are REALLY good!

In some homemade ice cream the egg flavor is way too strong, but this one is much better (I think it's because the eggs are cooked).

French Vanilla Ice Cream

3 egg yolks (slightly beaten)
1/2 cup sugar
1/8 teaspoon salt
2 cups milk
1 cup cream
2 teaspoons vanilla

Mix sugar, salt and egg yolks. Pour on milk and mix thoroughly. Cook mixture in double broiler until it coats a spoon. Cool, strain, add cream, vanilla and freeze (according to directions on rock salt box...or bag, depending on which you get :-). Makes 1-1/4 quarts or 6-8 servings.

Oh, and just one quick note from my personal embarrassing experience.

Make sure that you use ROCK SALT and not regular salt. My first attempt at making ice cream I didn't realize there was much difference between the two. Needless to say, after my brother and a friend cranked it for two hours and there was not an ice crystal in sight, I had to admit that I must have done something wrong. Ah...you live and learn, right?

Rehearsal Dinners, Weddings, and Pasta Salad

Well, my cousin's wedding is over. All went well. I was hoping to have some photos of the cake to post, but forgot to take the digital camera so when I get a few photos scanned in I'll try to post some here. The cake was gorgeous. My Aunt Sheryle did a fabulous job.

Dean's family did all the food prep for the rehearsal dinner. Sheryle asked me to put together this pasta salad. It's really yummy.

Pasta Salad

For the dressing combine:
1 can sweetened condensed milk
2 cups Hellman's Mayo (must be Hellman's)
1/4 cup white vinegar
1/4 cup sugar

Set aside.

For the salad combine:
16 ounces cooked, drained and cooled pasta
3 carrots, finely diced
1 small onion, finely diced
1 green pepper, finely chopped
3 stalks celery, finely chopped
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
10 ounces frozen peas
1 cup crumbled bacon
1 can black olives, sliced

Pour dressing over salad. Season with salt and pepper.

Just before serving, add 2 cups halved grape or cherry tomatoes.

Best if refrigerated overnight prior to serving.

A Fun Casserole

I love finding casseroles that are a little unique. Casseroles can get boring and it's nice to find one that's a little more interesting.

Sausage Pie

1 lb. sausage (or turkey sausage)
1/2 medium green pepper, chopped
1/2 medium sweet red pepper, chopped
1 tablespoon cooking oil
3 cups cooked long grain rice (we use brown rice)
4 to 5 medium tomaties, peeled and chopped (you can substitute canned)
1 package (10 ounces) frozen forn, thawed
1 cup (4 ounces) shredded cheddar cheese
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley (you can substitute with 1 tablespoon dried)
1 teaspon dried basil
1 cup soft bread crumbs
2 tablespoons butter, melted

1. Cook sausage in skillet until fully cooked. Add peppers and cooking oil and cook until peppers are soft.
2. Combine all ingredients except bread crumbs and butter. Place in a 3-qt casserole.
3. Combine the bread crumbs and butter, and sprinkle on top of casserole.
Bake, uncovered, at 350 for 30-40 minutes or until heated through.

Yield: 6-8 servings.

Cream Cheese Wedding Mints

I spent the last couple days at my aunt Sheryle's house making mints for my cousin's upcoming wedding. I found this recipe on allrecipes.com. It's technically a Christmas recipe, but we're using it as one of the mint options for the reception. The one thing that I learned is that these won't come out of the molds unless you dust the molds with edible glitter before pressing the candy into the mold.

1 (3 oz) package cream cheese, softened
1 tablespoon butter, softened
3 cups confectioners' sugar
2 drops peppermint oil*
any food coloring paste or powder (I used powder - available at cake decorating shops)

Directions:
1. In a large bowl, combine cream cheese, butter, and confectioner's sugar. Mix in peppermint oil. Color as desired with food coloring paste or powder, or leave white.
2. Roll mixture into small balls, then roll in granulated sugar.
3. Dust desired mold with edible glitter (available at cake decorating shops) and press ball into mold. Scrape excess and drop out of mold onto wax paper.
4. Allow to dry for about 2 hours, then freeze or refrigerate.

* You can substitute other flavors if you want. For instance, we did mint flavor for some, butter flavor for some, and cherry flavor for some.

Next week we'll be starting on the wedding cakes. Hopefully I'll post some pictures and some cool wedding cake tips.

Coconut-Raspberry Layer Cake

My friend Brenda loves this cake....except for the raspberry part. So, I only put the raspberry preserves on one half of the cake. The recipe is a bit complex, but it's a fun one to make when you have time to relax and enjoy the process. You can also bake the layers ahead of time and freeze until you're ready to frost the cake. Just make sure to seal the layers in tons of plastic so they won't take on the flavor of your freezer and be sure to protect the layers so they don't get smashed. This recipe comes from a cookbook called "Perfect Cakes," by Nick Malgieri.

For the Batter:
2 1/4 cups cake four (spoon flour into dry-measure cup and level off)
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 teaspoons finely grated lemon zest
1/2 teaspoon lemon extract
1 1/4 cups milk
1/2 cup egg whites (from about 3-4 large eggs)

1. Position a rack in the middle of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees.
2. Sift the cake flour, baking powder, and salt onto a piece of parchment or wax paper.
3. In the bowl of a heavy-duty mixer, beat the butter and sugar with the paddle attachment at medium speed until light, about 3 minutes. Beat in the lemon zest and extract.
4. In a bowl, whisk together the milk and egg whites. Add one-third of the flour mixture and beat until smooth. Scrape down the bowl and beaters. Beat in half the egg white mixture until incorporated, then beat in another third of the flour mixture. Scrape down the bowl and beaters. Beat in the remaining liquid until absorbed, followed by the remaining flour mixture; scrape well after each addition.
5. Divide the batter between 2 9-inch cake pans, greased, and lined with parchment, and smooth the tops. Bake for about 30 to 35 minutes, until well risen and a toothpick inserted in the center emerges clean. Cool the layers in pans for 5 minutes, then invert onto racks to cool. Peel off the parchment paper.

Lemon Buttercream:
1/2 cup egg whites (from about 4 large eggs)
1 cup sugar
20 tablespoons (2 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
1/4 cup strained fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1. To make the buttercream, whisk together the egg whites and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer. Whisk over a pan of simmering water until the egg whites are hot and the sugar is dissolved.
2. Attach the bowl to the mixer and whip with the whisk until cool and increased in volume.
3. Switch to the paddle attachment and beat in the butter until smooth. Beat in the lemon juice and vanilla.

For the Finish:
1/2 cup seedless raspberry preserves
One 7-oz bag sweetened shredded coconut
Fresh raspberries and mint leaves for garnish if desired

1. To assemble the cake, slice each layer horizontally in half.
2. Place one layer on a cardboard round or platter and spread with one-third of the jam and one-quarter of the buttercream. Top with another layer and reapeat. Repeat with the third layer.
3. Place the last layer on top and spread the top and sides of the cake with the remaining buttercream. Press the coconut all over the outside of the cake.
4. Add some sprigs of mint leaves and some fresh raspberries to the top and around the sides of the cake if desired.

Serve at cool room temperature.

Summer makes me think of garden-ripe tomatoes

I'm baking a Coconut-Lemon layer cake today for a friend's birthday...if it turns out I'll post the recipe.

Thought I'd share a recipe I came across two summers ago on Paula Deen's cooking show. The Food Network is just the best! I was a little weirded out by the thought of baking something with mayonnaise, but it was absolutely wonderful! I've made this several times now and it's becoming one of my favorites. It is high in fat, so it's not necessarilly something you'd want to make every night. I save it for company or a special treat.


Tomato Pie
4 tomatoes, peeled and sliced *
10 fresh basil leaves chopped **
1/2 c. chopped green onions
1 (9-inch) pre-baked deep dish pie shell
1 c. shredded mozzarella cheese
1 c. shredded cheddar cheese
1 c. mayonnaise
salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Place the tomatoes in a colander in the sink in one layer. sprinkle with salt and allow to drain for 10 minutes.
Layer the tomato slices, basil, and onion in the pie shell. season with salt and pepper. Combine the cheeses and mayonnaise. Spread the mixture on top of the tomatoes and bake for 30 minutes or until lightly brown. Serve warm. Makes 6 servings.

* A hint for peeling tomatoes: dip tomatoes in a pan of boiling water for about 1 minute. Immediately transfer to a bowl of ice water. Peelings will come off easily.

** You can use 1 teaspoon dried basil if you don't have fresh.

Another Incredible Dessert

While we're in the dessert mode, here's one of my favorites.

Creamy Banana Pudding

1 14 oz can sweetened, condensed milk
1 1/2 cups cold water
1 pkg instant vanilla pudding (I usually use the larger package)
1 pint (2 cups) whipping cream, whipped
24 (approx) vanilla wafers
4 bananas, sliced and dipped in lemon juice

1. Combine sweetened, condensed milk and water. Add pudding mix and stir well. Chill for 5 minutes.
2. Fold in whipping cream.
3. Pour 2 cups pidding into bottom of bowl. Layer bananas and wafers and pudding (3 layers) ending with pudding. Chill.

This is definitely the best banana pudding I've ever had. Though, who knows, I've heard that time changes things...

Enjoy!

Jeanette's Nutmeg Feather Cake

This recipe is always a hit. I got it out of an old Better Homes and Gardens Cookbook. It's unique in that the feature of the cake is nutmeg.

1/4 c butter
1/4 c shortening
1 1/2 c sugar
1/2 t vanilla
3 eggs
2 c flour
1 t baking soda
1 t baking powder
2 t nutmeg
1/4 t salt
1 c. buttermilk or sour milk

Ok - I don't have any instructions written down. What I usually do is cream
the butter/shortening/and sugar. Then I add the vanilla and eggs and whip
until it's fluffy. Then I alternate between the dry ingredients and the
buttermilk/sour milk.

Oh, and don't overbeat - when I do this it tends to fall in the middle.

Bake in a greased pan at 350 for 30 minutes.

I usually frost with a buttercream frosting and dust with nutmeg. I’d post the recipe for the frosting but I usually just make it up. You should be able to find a good recipe in a cookbook or online. Or, in a pinch you can use a pre-made frosting too. Enjoy!

Welcome to Cole-inary Artists!

In an effort to share recipes and other homekeeping ideas, experiences, and tips, we have started this blog. Our goal is to use this as a tool to keep in touch with our family and to share some of our family secrets with others. Please check back for our first post.