Festive Flashback I: Reindeer Cookies

I meant to write this post ages ago, as in last month, when it was still Christmastime, but like everything else I plan to do in my life, I forgot. Better late than never, I suppose!

I was very proud of these reindeer cookies that I made for a Christmas party and for work. I initially saw the idea in an article in Parents magazine. I decided to make them for Daddio's work Christmas party. There were going to be a lot of kids there, so it seemed like a cute idea. I made them using a cinnamon sugar cookie recipe that received rave reviews. I'm not going to even share a link to the recipe because they were awful! To me, sugar cookies are supposed to be soft and moist. These were anything but. I suppose that if you don't mind hard sugar cookies, they actually didn't taste awful, (considering that I mistakenly put in nutmeg instead of cinnamon; the similar containers were right next to each other and obviously I wasn't paying attention). But I could not get past the hardness of them.  The kids at the party, however, gobbled up most of them.

Coincidentally, the Princess of Sarcasm created her own reindeer cookies right before I had baked mine. She, intelligently, used a gingerbread cookie mix to make hers, and I loved the idea and how they looked. Now, even though I have previously expressed my thoughts on cookie mixes, I decided to use one for round two of the reindeer cookies. I made them again for a "food party" at work, this time with a gingerbread cookie mix. I think that, although both were cute, the gingerbread ones look much better (both shown below).

What do you think?

Culturally diverse cookie platter?

Gingerbread all the way!

Tasty Tuesday: Blueberry "Cowboy"

The boys and I were able to go blueberry picking recently, leaving me with a plethora of blueberries to bake with. In addition to some delectable muffins, I also baked a blueberry cobbler, or blueberry "cowboy" as Owen calls it. I came across the recipe on my favorite recipe site, Taste of Home, while looking for ideas as to what I could make with the berries. I had all of the ingredients on hand and it looked simple enough, so this recipe won out. Please be forewarned, that if you are on a diet, or in any way watching what you eat, this may not be the cobbler for you.

Blueberry "Cowboy"

T

If only mine looked this good!*

  

2 cups fresh or frozen blueberries

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1-1/2 cups sugar, divided 

1/2 cup butter, cubed

1 cup all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup milk

1 egg, lightly beaten

Whipped cream or whipped topping**

In a saucepan, combine the berries, lemon juice and 1/2 cup sugar. Bring to a boil; remove from the heat. Set aside. Place butter in a 11-in. x 7-in. baking dish; melt butter in a 350° oven.

In a small bowl, combine the remaining sugar with flour, baking powder, salt, milk and egg. Pour over melted butter. Do not stir. Spoon reserved berry mixture over batter. Do not stir.***

Bake at 350° for 40-45 minutes or until golden brown. Serve at room temperature with whipped cream or whipped topping. Yield: about 10-12 servings.

Nutrition Facts: 1 serving (1 each) equals 231 calories, 9 g fat (5 g saturated fat), 40 mg cholesterol, 256 mg sodium, 37 g carbohydrate, 1 g fiber, 2 g protein. 

*This photo is from the Taste of Home website. My camera battery died before I could get a picture of my own. 

**I did not use the whipped cream on mine.

***This sounds a little upside down/backward, but the blueberries actually sink and the crust part rises to the top. Another incentive for me to want to try out this recipe.