Alma, Barb, Jodie and I would like to wish you a Merry Christmas and a special holiday time with your family. We appreciate your letters and comments and look forward to hearing from you in the new year.
When your family starts to gather, making some special sweets together can be fun. May you enjoy your gatherings together wherever you are and whatever you are doing. Merry Christmas.
A tradition that
became a gift
As a child one of my favourite Christmas foods was whipped shortbread cookies that my Uncle Norman Sykes made. They just melted in your mouth. As an adult I have made these cookies every year and they have become one of our family’s favourites.
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Last Christmas, one of the gifts that I received was a cookie tin full of Uncle Norman’s whipped shortbread cookies that our son Mike had made. What a special gift they were. I can still see his smile when I took my first bite. They were a gift from his heart that went straight to mine.
Norman’s whipped shortbread
These are quick and easy to make. Use only butter since margarine is just not the same.
1 pound butter 500 g
1 cup icing sugar 250 mL
3 cups all-purpose flour 750 mL
Whip the butter and icing sugar together with an electric mixer. Beat for three minutes. Add the flour and continue to beat for another 10 minutes.
Use a spoon to drop small amounts on an ungreased cookie sheet or put the dough in a cookie press to make decorative cookies.
Bake at 300 F (150 C) for seven to 10 minutes or just until lightly browned on the bottom. The tops should not be brown. Cool and store in airtight containers in a cool place, or freeze.
They could be decorated before baking with a sliver of red or green candied cherry on top.
Fudge recipe wanted
Dear TEAM: I’m looking for a recipe for fudge that has flour in it. It is an old recipe and it is not so sweet. You can use dark chocolate or white chocolate to make it. My mother found this recipe in a newspaper years ago when I was at home. That was in the 1950s. I hope you can find it for me. – R.C., St. Brides, Alta.
Dear R.C.: I was able to find this recipe in a couple of community cookbooks that I have. This particular recipe is from Cooking With Care, a cookbook put together by nurses at the Regina General Hospital in the 1980s. They said that many of their recipes are handed down from mother to daughter so this would tell me that many people have enjoyed this recipe. You are correct that it is less sweet but still has a nice fudge texture and flavour.
When making fudge, ideally you want a smooth texture. To achieve this, the fudge must have small sugar crystals.
The information about sugar crystals is adapted from The Canadian Cook Book by Helen Wattie and Elinor Donaldson Whyte.
1 cup butter 250 mL
4 cups white sugar 1 L
1/2 cup cocoa 125 mL
1 cup milk 250 mL
1 teaspoon vanilla 5 mL
2 cups flour 500 mL
1 cup walnut or pecan 250 mL
pieces, optional
Lightly grease a nine x 13 inch (22 x 33 cm) pan.
In a deep, heavy saucepan melt butter. Remove from heat and add sugar, cocoa and milk and mix. Return to low heat and stir until the sugar is dissolved. Cover the pan for a minute to allow the steam to wash down any sugar around the sides of the saucepan.
Bring to a rolling boil without stirring, for 10 minutes. At intervals, scrape a spoon gently along bottom of the pan to be sure the candy is not sticking. If it is, lower the heat. If it begins to stick to the bottom it can burn. Try not to splash the sugar onto the sides of the pan.
After 10 minutes, remove from heat. While stirring with a wooden spoon, add vanilla and then slowly add flour and nuts. Beat until the fudge begins to lose its gloss and thickens. Immediately pour evenly over the greased pan. Do not spread with a knife or spoon because this will destroy the gloss that is characteristic of fine fudge.
Mark into squares. Cool and store in a tightly covered container.
Jiffy fudge
Another reader was looking for a quick, never-fail fudge recipe to make with her children. This recipe is from the Saskatchewan 4-H 80th Anniversary Cookbook.
Marshmallow five minute fudge
2 tablespoons butter or 30 mL
margarine
2/3 cup evaporated milk 150 mL
12/3 cups white sugar 400 mL
1/2 teaspoon salt 2 mL
2 cups mini marshmallows 500 mL
11/2 cups chocolate chips 375 mL
1 teaspoon vanilla 5 mL
1/2 cup nuts or raisins, optional 125 mL
1/4-1/2 cup crushed candy 60Ð125 mL
cane pieces, optional
1/2 cup mini marshmallows, 125 mL
optional
Place butter or margarine, milk, sugar and salt in saucepan. Bring to a boil and boil five minutes, stirring constantly. Remove from heat and add two cups (500 mL) marshmallows, chocolate chips, vanilla and nuts or raisins. Stir to blend. Pour into a buttered nine x nine inch (22 x 22 cm) pan.
Top with crushed candy cane pieces, press into the fudge slightly. Or sprinkle extra mini marshmallows on top of hot fudge because they soften and melt and add the crushed candy canes to them. Cool and slice.
Almond bark request
Dear TEAM: We purchased some almond bark at a local craft sale and really enjoyed it. I would like to make some for Christmas. Could you please find a recipe for us.
– G.H., Rosetown, Sask.
Dear G.H.: On the inside of the Kraft
Baker’s white chocolate I discovered a recipe for almond bark.
Double swirl bark
6 squares (6 ounces) 170 g
bittersweet chocolate
6 squares (6 ounces) white 170 g
chocolate
1 cup whole, toasted almonds 250 mL
Place almonds in a baking pan and bake at 350 F (180 C), stirring occasionally, until light golden, about 10 minutes. Watch carefully to prevent burning.
Partially melt bittersweet chocolate in a small microwavable bowl on medium for two minutes. Remove from oven and stir until chocolate is completely melted and smooth.
Repeat with white chocolate.
Stir 1/2 cup (125 mL) toasted almonds into each bowl of melted chocolate. Drop spoonfuls of chocolate, alternating white and bittersweet on a waxed paper lined cookie sheet.
Using the end of a knife, draw the dark and white chocolate together to give a marbled effect. Chill until firm.
Break into about 20 pieces. Store bark between layers of wax paper, in a tightly covered container, for up to three weeks.
Keep in a cool dark place or in the refrigerator. Makes 20 pieces.
Bark variations
- You could replace or reduce the amount of almonds and add any of the following for a different flavour: 1/2 cup (125 mL) dried apricot halves, quartered; two cups (500 mL) slivered, blanched and toasted almonds; one cup (250 mL) chopped pecans, toasted; one cup (250 mL) flaked coconut.
- For chocolate-mint marble bark, prepare as directed, omitting almonds and stirring into the melted white chocolate six drops of green food colouring and one teaspoon
(five mL) of peppermint extract.
- For chocolate-peanut butter marble bark, prepare as directed, omitting almonds and stirring into the melted white chocolate 1/4
cup (60 mL) of creamy peanut butter.
- For chocolate holiday bark, prepare as directed, adding into the melted white chocolate 1/4 cup (60 mL) each of dried cranberries and chopped dried apricots.
- For chocolate-peppermint bark, prepare as directed omitting almonds and adding to both chocolates one cup (250 mL) crushed peppermint candies. It takes about 50 peppermint candies to make one cup. To crush candies, place them in resealable
plastic bag.
Close bag and crush candies with a rolling pin, mallet or hammer. Or process in the food processor using the pulsing action.
Holiday snacks
During the holidays many of us find it hard to stick to our healthy eating routines. The result is that when the holiday season is over, many people complain about having gained weight. Here are some tips to keep in mind during the holiday season:
Extra snacking adds up – Foods like nuts, chocolate and candy canes are common holiday snacks.
A small handful of nuts can contain up to 200 calories, three small assorted chocolates contain 150 calories, and a single candy cane contains 50 calories. To gain a pound of fat, you only need to eat an extra 350 calories a day for 10 days. This could be done by eating a small handful of nuts and three chocolates a day over the holidays.
Watch liquid calories – Calories in the form of beverages add up easily. A half cup (125 mL) serving of eggnog has 118 calories, one cup (250 mL) of cola has 107 calories, and one bottle of regular beer contains 151 calories. Choose “light” or “diet” options as much as possible.
Eat only when you are hungry – Ask
yourself if you are actually hungry before
you fill your plate.
Pick your favourites – Don’t eat just because the food is there. There are few foods that we snack on over the holidays that aren’t available year round.
Don’t forget to be active – It is easy to say that there is no time to be active over the holidays.
It could be as easy as a 30 minute walk with your family after dinner or a brisk walk around the mall while doing your holiday shopping.
Source: The nutrition professionals for the Heartland Health Region of Saskatchewan.
Betty Ann Deobald is a home economist from Rosetown, Sask., and one of four columnists comprising Team Resources. Send correspondence in care of this newspaper, Box 2500, Saskatoon, Sask., S7K 2C4 or contact them at team@producer.com.
