Making Memories and Snowflake Sugar Cookies! CT Scans Clear a bonus!

Am I blue? Not me!

Sugar Snowflake Cookies

by Woman's Day Magazine

Recipe Ingredients
3 sticks (1 1/2 cups) unsalted butter, softened

1 cup granulated sugar

1/4 cup packed light-brown sugar

1 large egg

2 tsp vanilla extract

1/4 tsp lemon extract

1/2 tsp salt

4 1/3 cups all-purpose flour

Decorating Icing (see recipe)

You also need: 4-in. tree, snowflake and flying-dove cookie cutters; small ziptop bags; green, blue and yellow paste food colors; candy flower and star decors; and fine white decorating sugar
Recipe Preparation

1. Beat butter and sugars in a large bowl with mixer on low speed until fluffy. Beat in egg, extracts and salt. Beat in flour just until blended.
 2. Divide dough in thirds. Shape each third into a 1-in.-thick disk; wrap separately. Refrigerate 1 hour or until firm.
 3. Heat oven to 375°F.
 4. On floured surface, roll out 1 disk at a time to 1/4 in. thick. Using floured cutters, cut out trees, snowflakes and doves. Place 1 in. apart on ungreased baking sheet(s). Reroll scraps and cut once.
 5. Bake 10 to 12 minutes until golden at edges. Cool slightly on sheet on a wire rack; move to rack to cool completely.
 6. Tint 1 cup icing green, 3 Tbsp icing yellow and 1/4 cup icing blue. Spoon 1/2 cup white icing into a ziptop bag. Put remaining white icing in a bowl.
 7. To thin icing for spreading: Add drops of water to tinted and white icing just until thin enough to spread.
 8. Trees: Spread green icing on cookies. Let dry 3 hours. Cut tip off corner of bag of icing; pipe garland. Add decors.
 9. Doves: Spread thinned white icing on cookies, leaving beaks un-iced. Let dry 3 hours. Dip a fine brush or a toothpick into yellow icing; paint on beaks and eyes. Using icing in bag, pipe wing outlines. Immediately sprinkle with white decorating sugar.
 10. Snowflakes: Spread thinned white icing on cookies. While wet, use a toothpick to drop on dots of thinned blue icing. Drag the pick through both colors to marbleize. Let dry 3 hours. Pipe outlines; sprinkle with white decorating sugar.
 11. Let cookies dry at least 6 hours.Storage tip: Store airtight with wax paper between layers at cool room temperature up to 3 weeks.

DECORATING ICING: Beat 1 lb confectioners’ sugar (3 1/4 cups) and 1/4 cup Just Whites (see Note) in a large bowl with mixer on low speed until combined. Add 1/3 cup water; beat until blended. Increase speed to high; beat 8 minutes or until icing is very thick and white. Makes 2 1/2 cups.

Note: Find Just Whites (powdered egg whites) in your store’s baking section

call a friend and you can double the batch while you chat over Life's ups and downs.....

cherished memories of Mom or Grandma
my kids talk about how much it meant to them...
start a tradition...or just treat someone special

I like to bring containers to people I don't always think of:
the building service people in my school, the security staff,
the next door neighbor that collects my mail when I go away,
the sweetest checkout person at the grocery store, the woman at the pharmacy that always treats me with kindness. Sometimes they look so surprised when I tell them they make a difference in my day, make my life easier - but it's true. Amen.
P.S. 3 month chest scans, ct scans, blood work and tests - clear for cancer! whoopppeee!

Thank You Lord! jennifer
pssst do have have any suggestions for a different direction with my blog - I write about what I like, what I know, how I feel...what are you wanting to hear about?
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tempt your taste buds....

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she's a sweetie!

Pignoli Cookies - One of My Family's Favs!

rocco rocco rocco rocco rocco rocco rocco rocco rocco rocco

PIGNOLI COOKIES2 (8-oz) cans almond paste (not marzipan), coarsely crumbled1 1/2 cups confectioners sugar1/2 teaspoon salt2 large egg whites2 tablespoons mild honey1 cup pine nuts (pignoli; 4 1/2 oz)
Preheat oven to 350°F. Pulse almond paste in a food processor until broken up into small bits, then add confectioners sugar and salt and continue to pulse until finely ground, about 1 minute. Beat together almond mixture, egg whites, and honey in electric mixer at medium-high speed until smooth, about 5 minutes (batter will be very thick). Spoon half of batter into pastry bag if using (keep remaining batter covered with a dampened paper towel) and pipe or spoon 1 1/2-inch rounds about 1 inch apart onto 2 parchment-lined baking sheets. Gently press half of pine nuts into tops of cookies. Bake cookies in upper and lower thirds of oven, switching position of sheets halfway through baking, until golden, 12 to 15 minutes total.
Yield: Serves: 4Published: 02/14/06 Recipe from Rocco DiSpirito cookbook all rights reserved
rocco can cook rocco can cook rocco can cook rocco can cook

pignoli cookies pignoli cookies pignoli cookies pignoli yum cookies pignoli cookies pignoli cookies pignoli cookies yum!!

*** I purchase my Almond Paste by the pound through the Holland American Bakery on my trips to northern NJ but you can order it and have it shipped (very nice to deal with) by calling 1-973-875-5258 or www.hollandamericanbakery.com

Holland American Bakery - Sussex, NJ

If a sweet tooth happens to be part of your life - and you're in northern NJ area - please visit the Holland American Bakery for their Dutch selection of cookies, rolls, breads, candies and decorations. The staff is friendly, the assortments are varied, the shop and exterior very quaint. They also ship. Sundays the store is closed.