(Do I have your attention?)
Welcome to the Seventh Annual
Great Online Cookie Exchange Extravaganza!
(2016)
Once again, our stalwart international crew of superb goodies makers has come together to offer you some pretty amazing holiday recipes, be they for cookies, cakes, pies, candy, beverages, breakfast treat, munchies, side dishes, or what have you.
The point is, they’re all terrific.
But don’t take my word for it. Go ahead...
Scroll down to that list and visit eveyone on it - see for yourself!
Just remember, December 7th takes a full 24 hours to dawn across the globe…
and lasts a full 24 hours, too!
So if someone hasn’t posted yet, don’t fret. Just go stretch your legs and try again later.
Enough talk, more cookies!
Jan Hagel Bars
My mom loved Jan Hagel cookies. I think they must have been a great treat of her childhood because she would get positively giddy when she had some in hand, smirking through crumb-dusted lips as she offered the plate to me.
In my youth and ignorance, however, I would just turn up my nose and say “no, thank you”…
because who wants nuts on their cookies, for goodness sake?!?
Of course, umpity-odd years later, I know exactly who wants nuts on their cookies:
ME!!
If you’re with me on that (or just in need of a darned good cookie,)
then you should really try these Jan Hagel bars.
1/2 C sugar
1 C butter, softened
1/4 t almond extract
1 egg, separated
2 C flour
1/2 t cinnamon
1 T water
1/2 C sliced almonds
1/4 C sugar
Heat oven to 350º
Grease a 15x10x1 inch baking pan.
In a large bowl, cream the butter and sugar, adding in almond extract and egg yolk; blend well. Lightly spoon flour into measuring cup and level off. Add flour and cinnamon; mix well.
Press the mix evenly into the greased pan.
Note: it will seem like there can’t possibly be enough dough.
Ignore what your eyes are trying to tell you and just keep pressing. The dough will cover the pan, but only when pressed very, very thin, and that takes patience.
And on that subject:
Tip: I find the dough sticks to my fingers but the heel of my hand presses easily and cleanly.
just sayin’…
OK, once you’ve got it all pressed out…
In a small bowl, beat the water and egg white together and brush over the dough.
Sprinkle evenly with almonds and the 1/4 C of sugar. (I used turbinado sugar for this part.)
Bake at 350º for 17 to 22 minutes, or until light golden brown.
Immediately cut into 3 x 1 inch bars, and then DON’T TOUCH!
Just let them cool completely in the pan. Do not be tempted to remove them while warm.
Stick them out on the porch to hasten the progress, if you must, but do not remove them from the pan until cool. You will have a pan full of cookie chunks if you don’t trust me on this.
(Or so they tell me. I wouldn’t know from experience, of course…)
Makes 50 cookies, at about 70 calories each
*******************************************
But that’s not all!
I’ve also got a little lagniappe for you this year.
A young family member has been whining because they have to spend this Christmas in a tropical paradise. (You can tell I’m not exactly heartfelt in my commiseration, can’t you?)
However, having spent some time living in tropical paradises myself, I actually do sympathize with not wanting to turn on the oven for hours in what can already be an ungodly heat.
So, for those of you whose holidays are a little on the warm side
 |
| Not my photo but I promise, I've made this and it's yummy! |
(or who just want to be a little healthier)…
Gingerbread Smoothie
(cool, tasty, vegan & gluten-free, too!)
1 large banana, peeled, chunked, and frozen
small piece of fresh ginger
(about the size of a small grape), peeled
1 T blackstrap molasses
3 medjool dates
1/4 t cinnamon
dash of nutmeg
dash of nutmeg
1 1/2 cups cold unsweetened almond milk
Pop everything into your blender and mix at high speed until smooth. (add more almond milk to thin, if needed)
(These recipes always call for medjool dates - and it’s true that those really are your best bet - but if you can’t find them, or don’t want to pay $7 for a container when you only need 3 dates, you can use regular dates. Just put them in a little bowl and cover them with boiling water and soften for a good 10 minutes. Drain the water off and you’re good to go.)
Makes one large smoothie.
(Or two small but really, what’s the point of a small smoothie?)
OK, now go visit the rest of the Bakers Extraordinaire!
19 comments:
Jz thank you so much for hosting this extravaganza. Your recipes sound so good especially the second one. Will definitely give that a go and its a bonus for me being gluten free. On a winner there. thanks for sharing .
Hugs Lindy xx
I do enjoy this day so many wonderful recipes. Thanks for organising it each year JZ.
I love the sounds of both these recipes and yes, nuts on my cookies, yum.
Love,
Ronnie
xx
Thanks for organizing our cookie exchange once again, it is so much fun. I had never heard of your cookies, they do sound delicious, so a must try. Thanks for the added addition of the smoothie, think the grands will love it at Christmas.
hugs abby
The cookies look great - it's funny, isn't it, how much wiser we get with age! The smoothie sounds pretty amazing too.
Thank you so much for doing this - it's definitely one of the highlights of the season - and i love visiting blogs i haven't been to before. You're the best!!
Thank you SO much for hosting this delicious event. Now if I can just resist making every single recipe! Yours BOTH sound amazing.
Thanks for hosting/organizing the cookie exchange again, Jz! Your recipes sound yummy! I'm definitely going to try that smoothie. Yum! :)
First time I have heard of Jan Hagel bars!! Will try them for sure over the holidays! And gingerbread in smoothie form? I'm down with that.
Your story about turning up your nose at your mom's cookies made me grin. We just don't know what we're missing when we're kids!
Thanks for including a warm-weather option. A festive cold smoothie on a hot day would be a real treat!
And thank you for hosting such a fun exchange. I'm enjoying reading everyone's recipes and getting new ideas for celebratory foods. Yay!!! :)
Mmmmm. mmm. I love this every year. What fun. Thank you for hosting!!!!
Thank you for organising! Gingerbread smoothie, never would have thought of it. Not sure where to get molasses, but I'll have a hunt.
Ooh Jz...your recipes look awesome but I do have two questions. First, with the Jan Hagel Bars, do you toast the sliced almonds or used raw ones? Second, with the Gingerbread smoothie...could figs be substituted for dates?
Thank you so much for organizing and hosting this awesome event!
Hugs and blessings...Cat
Hi Jz! :) Thanks so much for organizing this fun holiday event once again! Such great recipes!
I will definitely be trying both of your recipes. I am always up for a great smoothie recipe! YUM! I will share with my daughters when they are here for Christmas.
I love the recipe for the bars that you share. I loved hearing your story about how you used to turn them down from your mom, because of the nuts! thanks for sharing! Many hugs,
<3 Katie
lindy-
I think you’ll like it. :-)
Thanks.
ronnie-
And I really appreciate the fact that you like it enough that you always ask about it ahead of time. :-D
Nuts as a sign of maturity - who knew?
Thank you.
a-
It’s a Dutch cookie, and rumor has it that there were Dutch settlers way back in my mama’s hillbilly ancestry. Between these and stroopwafels, I’m considering sending a note of thanks to the Dutch nation…
Thank you.
o-
I’m not at all convinced that I’m the best but I’m glad you have fun doing this with us!
Thanks.
Hs-
I’m thinking make them all, but give them all away except one small plate…?
Thank you. :-)
Lilli,
You’re welcome. Thanks for participating!
(yes, do try the smoothie, she urges.)
B-
They are tasty.
I’ve definitely grown into the almond thing…
Mrs. Fever,
I know, huh? I didn’t like Brussels sprouts, either!
*Idiot child*
Glad you were able to join us and that you had a good time. :-)
lm-
Thank you for being a stalwart!
Your recipes always make me want to come to your house for dinner… ;-D
D-
If you can’t find it lurking in your grocery store, on shelves you just never thought to check, you might try a health food store…
Thanks for playing!
C-
I just used the sliced almonds right out of the bag. Toasted would undoubtedly taste great, altho’ I do wonder if toasting them before baking might risk scorching… If you experiment, let me know how you make out, I’d be curious.
As to the smoothie, no, I really don’t think figs would work as well - they don’t soften and mush as well… and they’re not as sweet. The dates are only there as a healthy sugar substitute, so if you can’t do dates, you’d probably be better off just using a scosh of your favorite sweetener.
Thanks for joining the party!
K-
Yeah, my poor mom had to put up with a lot from me.
Altho’ in this instance, she did get more cookies out of the deal…
Thank you!
And Of Course your favorite cookie would be Dutch
Well, I figure when a thing works for you...
;-p
JZ, I finally have enough time to visit all the cookie recipes. I know these are Dutch, but they remind me of a German cookie someone made long ago. I love using almond extract. It is one of my favorite smells. Sound yummy!
Thanks for hosting this Event!
Ella
E-
Oh, I get it. I foolishly scheduled this for a day when I had three other commitments...
I've been going back for more leisurely reads now that I have more time. :-)
Almond flavoring is a good thing, yes indeed.
I'm glad you could join us.
Oh jz... you know I adore NUTS! ;) This recipe looks delicious!! Thank you for sharing and for organizing. I wasn't feeling the holiday spirit this year but suddenly I am.
-Sassy
S-
It's funny how sometimes the littlest thing can be what we need to push us over into "festive", isn't it? I'm so pleased to hear that the cookie exchange did that for someone. :-)
Thanks for playing along!
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