“Homemade caramel corn?! For me?? I love you!” Caramel corn has to be the best Christmas gift you can make. I’ve baked cookies and breads and they make great gifts but people start asking about my caramel corn in September! “Are you making caramel corn again this year?” Everyone goes crazy over it, probably because there is no place you can buy anything that even comes close. I try to bring it in person when it’s just out of the oven and by the time I get home, I get a phone call saying it’s all gone and asking when I’m going to make more.
If you’re looking for something to bake for Christmas gifts, consider making homemade caramel corn. It’s easier to make than cookies because it uses less ingredients. And it’s pretty quick the way I do it. I pop the corn in a paper lunch bag in the microwave, which takes less than two minutes (see my video). The syrup cooks on the stove in five minutes and the rest is waiting time while the popcorn and nuts get covered with a sweet, delicious caramel coating.
Watch my how-to video (click here) and for the printable recipe (click here). – Jenny Jones
Christmas in Poland isn’t official until someone makes chrusciki. These powdered sugar crullers are actually pretty easy to make but if you don’t have a rolling pin it’s not going to happen because the key is to roll the dough paper thin. Chrusciki are the only things I deep fry because there is no other way to make this light-as-a-cloud cookie – I guess that’s why they also call them angel wings. So I’m sharing my recipe for these Polish Christmas cookies but it turns out they are not just Polish. Here is what they’re called in other countries:
Belarus – хрушчы (chruščy) or фаворкі (favorki) Croatia – krostole Denmark – klejner France – bugnes Germany – raderkuchen Hungary – csöröge Italy – bugie, cenci, chiacchiere, crostoli, frappe, galani, sfrappole Lithuania – žagarėliai Malta – xkunvat Romania – minciunele, regionally: cirighele, scovergi Russia – хворост (khvorost) Sweden – klenäter Ukraine – вергуни (verhuny)
Merry Christmas to all you cooks out there and thank you for all your comments and notes. I do appreciate the feedback. I hope you’ll try this show-stopping, delicious holiday cookie. Click here for the recipe. – Jenny Jones
My less-butter, less-sugar Christmas cookies just got even healthier. I decided to try making them with extra-light olive oil and they turned out great. This time I rolled the dough and cut out the holiday shapes but I will say that a cookie press is a great invention! But when you cut them out, it’s a lot more fun decorating. I like my candy canes the best. This recipe is exactly the same as the one already posted but I used extra-light olive oil instead of canola oil.
There’s no reason to use all butter in these holiday cookies. I bake all my cookies with either half the butter or with some recipes, no butter at all. With these healthier sugar cookies, there’s plenty of butter taste and half the saturated fat. I like to bake them until the edges brown just a little. Click here for the recipe. – Jenny Jones
There are no words to describe the fabulous flavor of this traditional Polish holiday bread we call Makowiec. The filling is a distinctive combination of ground poppy seeds, orange and lemon peel, and ground toasted almonds. I love this bread! I grew up with it! It’s perfect for afternoon tea or as a light dessert.
My recipe is pretty easy to make but you will need to grind the poppy seeds and I found an easy way to do that. I bought a spice & nut grinder (Cuisinart) and it grinds the poppy seeds and the almonds. Until I discovered the grinder, the only way to grind the seeds was to use an old fashioned meat grinder that you clamp to the counter and crank with your hand. I tried a food processor and a blender but neither one did the job. But it’s really easy with the spice grinder.
The bread is sweet and the filling is to die for! After baking, you can drizzle the loaf with a glaze or another option is to brush it before baking with either melted butter or with an eggwash and sprinkle with poppy seeds. My recipe requires only one rise and if your filling seeps out a little when it’s done, that happens a lot so don’t fret over it. It will still taste great. My how-to video for this awesome bread will be up next week. Click here for the recipe. – Jenny Jones
Who wants to make gravy at the last minute? Not me! I love to cook a traditional Thanksgiving turkey dinner with mashed potatoes but I’m starting my gravy today. It’s one less thing to deal with on Thursday. Here’s how I do it: I picked up a package of turkey wings this morning and roasted them in the oven. I just rubbed them with oil, salt & pepper and put them on a baking sheet, roasting for an hour at 375 degrees. Now I’m using them to make stock. I put the wings and every bit of their drippings into a big pot of water along with some onion, carrot, celery, parsnip, parsley, thyme, salt, pepper, and bay leaves. I will cook it down for 2-3 hours, let it cool, and refrigerate. (The meat from the wings makes a terrific sandwich).
Once the stock cools overnight, I skim off and discard the fat off the top and now I have a delicious roasted turkey stock, ready and waiting in the fridge, to use in my stuffing and to make gravy the day before. Any leftover stock… either becomes soup or I freeze it in ice cube trays for other cooking.
Use this with your own gravy recipe or try mine…
2 Tbsp. butter
1/4 cup flour
2 cups turkey stock
1. Melt the butter in a pan and add the flour. Cook and stir for 1-2 minutes.
2. Slowly whisk in the stock, stirring constantly until it’s smooth. Cook for 10-15 minutes.
3. Let it cool and refrigerate.
4. DAY OF: Just heat up your gravy and once your turkey is done, pour the drippings into a glass measuring cup and let them stand until they separate (I use a separating cup). Pour off and discard the fat and add the dark particles left on the bottom to your gravy. Taste for salt.
This makes a delicious, low fat gravy with no last minute stress. And for a lighter dessert, try my Lightened Pumpkin Cheesecake. Happy Thanksgiving!
I’m sharing one of my prized recipes just in time for Thanksgiving. This is one people will talk about long after it’s gone and they’ll probably ask for the recipe. My lightened pumpkin cheesecake is made using all reduced fat ingredients so it’s a healthier dessert, perfect after you’ve stuffed yourself senseless with turkey. This lighter cheesecake won’t weigh you down and the recipe is fairly simple but you will need a springform pan.
The crust is just graham crackers sprinkled on the bottom so there’s no heavy butter-laden crust. And the secret to this light and airy cake is to beat the egg whites separately and fold them in at the end. I get the best results using Daisy Brand light sour cream and Philadelphia brand 1/3 less fat cream cheese. I tried neufchatel but didn’t like the result, and I would never use Knudsen reduced fat sour cream for anything!
So if you try this amazing holiday dessert, make sure you have all your ingredients at room temperature and leave enough time to let it cool for at least two hours on the counter and then refrigerate for at least two hours as well. This is my Thanksgiving gift to all you cooks who will soon be stuffing turkeys and faces! Click here for the recipe. – Jenny Jones
If you’re making a Thanksgiving turkey dinner, try making fresh cranberries this year. This recipe is as simple as it gets and it takes about five minutes. Check the ingredients in the canned stuff – it has high fructose corn syrup and …isn’t it really cranberry flavored jello? Make the real deal and you’ll get all the health benefits too.
It makes an impressive bring-along if you want to impress your mother-in-law. She will love this dish but she’ll still think you’re not good enough for her baby! Oh well…
I’ll be doing what everybody else is doing this weekend – barbeque!
It’s going to be 100 degrees on Sunday so cooking indoors?… not a good idea.
I’m sharing my recipe for this 4th of July weekend and it’s really, really easy. Basically everything in one pot & cook it.
I usually make baby back ribs but my homemade sauce is great on chicken, too. I cook my ribs for 2 1/2 to 3 hours and they fall off the bone.
Have a great 4th of July weekend, everybody. Enjoy my recipe, and some fireworks too.
The only fireworks we will see is after I cook all day and Denis says, “You know we could have gone out and got ribs.”
“What did you just say?!?”
He defends himself by saying he doesn’t want me to work too hard (at something I love!)… He just doesn’t know any better. But I still love him. Happy 4th! And Happy Canada Day!
I love baking! These are the first things I make at Christmas time and… they are the first to disappear! Mine is a healthier version of sugar cookies and if you try them, I promise that everyone will be asking for the recipe.
You don’t have to use pounds of butter to make a delicious sugar cookie – I use part canola oil but nobody has to know. I had planned to make a video but this recipe is so easy, and besides, I would have had to do the hair & makeup thing and who’s got time? I’m too busy looking for parking at the mall! Click here for the recipe.
Oh, and one more day for the Christmas Tree contest (below). Someone is already within ten of the correct number! See who it is on Friday.
Thanksgiving is less than two weeks away so I’m sharing my recipe for fresh cranberries. Comparing fresh cooked cranberries to the canned stuff is like comparing Spago to DerWienerschnitzel. No comparison. None. They may seem very “fru-fru” but fresh cranberries are super easy to make (5 minutes), and you can cook them days before turkey day. Cranberries have more antioxidants than broccoli and they have a fantastic sweet/tart taste. Try it. It’s fun too – they pop while you cook ’em!
“Homemade caramel corn?! For me?? I love you!” Caramel corn has to be the best Christmas gift you can make. I’ve baked cookies and breads and they make great gifts but people start asking about my caramel corn in September! “Are you making caramel corn again this year?” Everyone goes crazy over it, probably because there is no place you can buy anything that even comes close. I try to bring it in person when it’s just out of the oven and by the time I get home, I get a phone call saying it’s all gone and asking when I’m going to make more.
