Holiday Quiche Lorraine

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F., rack in the middle position.

The Quiche Lorraine Pie Shell:

Prepare your piecrust by separating one egg. Throw away the white and whip up the yolk with a fork. Brush the bottom and inside of your piecrust. Prick it all over with a fork and bake it for 5 minutes. Take it out and let it cool on a wire rack or a cold stovetop while you mix up the custard. If "bubbles" have formed in the crust, immediate prick them with the fork to let out the steam

The Quiche Lorraine Custard:

5 eggs
1 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream

Combine the eggs with the cream and whisk them (or beat them with an electric mixer) until they’re a uniform color. When they’re thoroughly mixed, pour them into a pitcher and set it in the refrigerator until you’re ready to assemble the rest of your quiche. You may notice that you’re not adding any salt. pepper, or other seasoning at this point. You’ll do that when you assemble the quiche.

The Holiday Quiche Filling

1 red bell pepper, washed, seeded and diced into bite-sized pieces
1 green bell pepper, washed, seeded and diced into bite-sized pieces
1 cup herb-seasoned stuffing mix ***
1 cup grated Swiss cheese (I used jarlsberg)
1 cup grated Monterey Jack cheese
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper (freshly ground is best)

***If you use the kind of stuffing mix that's made of croutons, crush them a bit before you measure out one cup. The stuffing mix is necessary because it
soaks up the liquid given off by the bell peppers as they bake.

Spread the red and green pepper pieces out in the bottom of your pastry-lined pie pan. Sprinkle the cup of herb-seasoned stuffing mix over the top of the peppers. Spread the grated swiss cheese and the grated Monterey Jack cheese on top of the stuffing mix. Sprinkle on the onion powder and the salt. Grind the pepper on top.

Put a drip pan under your pie plate. This will catch any spills that might occur when you fill your quiche with the custard mixture.

Take your custard mixture out of the refrigerator and give it a good whisk. Then pour it over the top of your Quiche Lorraine, filling it about half way.

Open your oven, pull out the rack, and set your pie plate and drip pan on it. Pour in more custard mixture, stopping a quarter-inch short of the rim. Carefully push in the rack, and shut the oven door.

Bake your Quiche Lorraine at 350 degrees E, for 60 minutes. or until the top is nicely browned and a knife inserted one-inch from the center comes out clean.

Let your quiche cool for 15 to 30 minutes on a cold stovetop or a wire rack, and then cut and serve.

Quiche Lorraine

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F., rack in the middle position.

The Quiche Lorraine Pie Shell:

Prepare your piecrust by separating one egg. Throw away the white and whip up the yolk with a fork. Brush the bottom and inside of your piecrust. Prick it all over with a fork and bake it for 5 minutes. Take it out and let it cool on a wire rack or a cold stovetop while you mix up the custard. If "bubbles" have formed in the crust, immediate prick them with the fork to let out the steam

The Quiche Lorraine Custard:

5 eggs
1 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream

Combine the eggs with the cream and whisk them (or beat them with an electric mixer) until they’re a uniform color. When they’re thoroughly mixed, pour them into a pitcher and set it in the refrigerator until you’re ready to assemble the rest of your quiche. You may notice that you’re not adding any salt. pepper, or other seasoning at this point. You’ll do that when you assemble the quiche.

The Quiche Lorraine Filling

2 cups grated Gruyere cheese (approximately 7 ounces)***

1 cup diced,weIl-cooked and drained bacon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper (optional-use if you like it a bit spicy)
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg (freshly grated is best, of course)

*** if you can't find gruyere, use really sharp white cheddar and that’ll be fine. And if you can’t find white cheddar, use really sharp yellow cheddar.

Sprinkle the grated cheese in the bottom of your cooled pie shell. Then, spread the cup of diced bacon on top of the cheese. Sprinkle on the salt, and grind the pepper over the top of the bacon. Sprinkle on the cayenne pepper (if you decided to use it). Grate the nutmeg over the top.

Put a drip pan under your pie plate. This will catch any spills that might occur when you fill your quiche with the custard mixture.

Take your custard mixture out of the refrigerator and give it a good whisk. Then pour it over the top of your Quiche Lorraine, filling it about half way.

Open your oven, pull out the rack, and set your pie plate and drip pan on it. Pour in more custard mixture, stopping a quarter-inch short of the rim. Carefully push in the rack, and shut the oven door.

Bake your Quiche Lorraine at 350 degrees E, for 60 minutes. or until the top is nicely browned and a knife inserted one-inch from the center comes out clean.

Let your quiche cool for 15 to 30 minutes on a cold stovetop or a wire rack, and then cut and serve.

Regency Seed Cakes

DO NOT preheat oven-this dough needs to chill.

1 cup (2 sticks, 1/2 pound) butter
2 eggs
2 1/2 cups white (granulated) sugar
6 Tablespoons poppy seeds
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon orange extract
1/2 teaspoon orange zest (optional)
5 cups flour (don’t sift it)
3/4 cup orange juice

You will also need: 1/2 cup white (granulated) sugar in a small bowl for later, when you bake the cookies.

Melt the butter. Let it cool while you mix up the following ingredients:

In a large bowl combine the eggs with the white sugar. Beat them until they’re well blended.

Add the poppy seeds, baking powder, baking soda. and salt. Mix them in thoroughly.

Add the orange extract and then the orange zest, if you decided to use it. (Orange zest is finely grated orange peel-just the orange part and not the white. The white is bitter and leaves a bad aftertaste.) If you can‘t find orange extract in your store, you can use vanilla instead. Mix well.

Cup your hands around the bowl with the melted butter. If it’s not too warm to hold comfortably, start your mixer and pour it slowly into your mixing bowl. (That's so it doesn’t slash over the sides!) If it’s still too hot to add and you think it might cook the eggs in your bowl, let it cool a little longer before mixing it in.

Add two cups of the flour now. Mix it in.

Add the orange juice to your bowl. Mix it in and then add the rest of the flour. (You should have three cups left to add.) Mix thoroughly. This dough will be quite stiff.

Give the bowl a final stir by hand and cover it with plastic wrap. Stash it in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours. Overnight is fine too!

When you're ready to bake, preheat your oven to 375 degrees F., rack in the middle position.

Prepare your baking sheets by lining them with parchment paper and spraying the paper with Pam, or another nonstick cooking spray.

Take the chilled dough out of the refrigerator and make dough balls, about an inch in diameter, with your hands. Drop them in the small bowl with the sugar and roll them around to coat them. Then place them on the cookie sheets, 12 to a standard-size sheet. Press them down slightly when you place them on the sheets so they won’t roll off on the way to the oven.

When you're ready to bake, preheat your oven to 375 degrees F., rack in the middle position.

Prepare your baking sheets by lining them with parchment paper and spraying the paper with Pam, or another nonstick cooking spray.

Take the chilled dough out of the refrigerator and make dough balls, about an inch in diameter, with your hands. Drop them in the small bowl with the sugar and roll them around to coat them. Then place them on the cookie sheets, 12 to a standard-size sheet. Press them down slightly when you place them on the sheets so they won’t roll off on the way to the oven.

Bake the cookies at 375 degrees for 7 to 10 minutes. Let them cool on the pan for a minute and then pull off the parchment paper and transfer the paper and cookies to a wire rack.

If the dough begins to get sticky and you start to have trouble rolling it with your hands, return it to the refrigerator while the cookies are baking and take it out again when you need to make more dough balls.

Lemon Whippersnappers

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F., rack in the middle position;

1 package (approximately 18 ounces) lemon cake mix, the size you can bake in a 9-inch by 13-inch cake pan
2 cups Cool Whip
1 large beaten egg (its okay to just whip it up in a glass with a fork)
1/2 cup powdered (confectioner’s) sugar in a separate small bowl (you don ’t have to sift it unless it’s got big lumps)

Combine dry cake mix, Cool Whip, and beaten egg in a large bowl. Stir until it’s well mixed.

Drop by teaspoon into the bowl of powdered sugar and roll to coat the cookie dough. Place the coated cookie drops on a greased cookie sheet, 12 cookies to each sheet.

Bake the cookies at 350 degrees F. for 10 minutes. Let them cool on the cookie sheets for 2 minutes or so, and then move them to a wire rack to cool completely.

Pepper mint martini

6 ounces pepper vodka

2 ounces white crème d’menthe

One fresh sprig of mint

Crush the mint with the back of a spoon. Combine with the other ingredients in a shaker and shake with ice. Strain into two martini glasses and garnish with miniature candy canes hooked over the rim of the glasses.

Peppermint martini

5 ounces good grade vodka

2 ounces white crème d’menthe

½ ounce peppermint schnapps

Combine in a shaker and shake with ice. Strain into two martini glasses and garnish with miniature candy canes hooked over the rims of the glasses.

Lovely Lemon Cookie Bar

Preheat oven to 350' F, rack in the middle position.

2 cups flour (no need to sift)
1 cup cold butter (2 sticks, 1/2 pound) 1/2 cup powdered sugar (no need to sift, unless it's got big lumps)

4 beaten eggs (just whip them up with a fork)
2 cups white sugar
8 tablespoons lemon juice (1/2 cup)
1 teaspoon or so of zest (optional) (zest is finely grated lemon peel)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
4 tablespoons flour (that’s 1/4 cup-don’t bother to sift)

Cut each stick of butter into eight pieces. Zoop it up with the flour and the powdered sugar in a food processor until it looks like coarse cornmeal (just like the first step in making a piecrust). Spread it out in a greased 9 x13 inch pan (that's a standard sheet cake pan) and pat it down with your hands.

Bake at 350 degrees for 15 to 20 minutes. or until golden around the edges. Remove from oven. (Don’t turn off oven!)

Mix eggs with white sugar. Add lemon juice (and zest, if you want to use it). Add salt and baking powder and mix. Then add flour and mix thoroughly. (This will be runny-it's supposed to be.)

Pour this mixture on top of the pan you just baked and stick it back into the oven. Bake at 350 degrees for another other 30-35 minutes. Then remove from the oven and sprinkle on additional powdered sugar.
Let cool thoroughly and cut into brownie-sized bars.

Old-Fashioned Sugar cookies

Do not preheat oven yet... dough must chill before baking.

2 cups melted butter (4 sticks)
2 cups powdered sugar (not sifted)
1 cup white sugar
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 teaspoon lemon zest (optional)
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon cream of tartar (critical)
1 teaspoon salt
4 1/4 cups flour (not sifted)

1/2 cup white sugar in a small bowl (for later)

Melt butter. Add sugars and mix. Let cool to room temperature and mix in the eggs, one at a time. Then add the vanilla, lemon zest, baking soda, cream of tartar and salt. Mix well. Add flour in increments, mixing after each addition.

Chill dough for at least one hour. (overnight is fine.)

When you‘re ready to bake. preheat oven to 325 degrees and place rack in the middle of the oven

Use hands to roll dough In walnut-sized balls. Roll dough balls in a bowl of white sugar. (Mix white sugar 2 to 1 with colored sugar for holidays-green for St. Pat’s Day, red and green for Christmas, multicolored for birthdays.) Place on a greased cookie sheet, 12 to a standard sheet. Flatten dough balls with a greased spatula.

Bake at 325 degrees for 10-15 minutes. (They should have a tinge of gold on the top) cool on cookie sheet for 2 minutes, then remove to a rack to finish cooling. They can be decorated with frosting piped from a pastry bag for special occasions or left just as they are.

Chocolate Covered Cherry Delight

Preheat oven to 350 F. rack in the middle position.

1 cup melted butter (2 sticks)
2 cups white sugar
2 eggs
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 cup cocoa powder
3 cups flour (not sifted)
2 small, 10-oz. jars of maraschino cherries***
1 pkg. chocolate chips (6 oz. pkg-2 cups)
1/2 cup condensed sweetened milk

Melt butter and mix in sugar. Let mixture cool and add eggs. Mix it thoroughly and then add baking powder, baking soda, salt, vanilla, and cocoa, stirring after each addition. add flour and mix well. (Dough will be stiff and a bit crumbly.)

Drain cherries and remove stems, reserving juice.

Pat dough into walnut-sized balls with your fingers. Place on greased cookie sheet, 12 to a standard sheet. Press down in center with thumb to make a deep indentation. Place one cherry in each indentation.

In a saucepan over simmering water (double boiler) combine the chocolate chips and the condensed milk. Heat on low until the chips are melted. (You can also do this in the microwave,  but you’ll have to keep zapping it to keep it from hardening.)

Add approx. 1/8 cup of the reserved cherry juice and stir to a thick sauce. if sauce is too thick. add more juice in small increments. (Test it with a teaspoon. If it doesn’t glob off, it's too thick.)

Spoon the sauce over the center of each cookie just enough to cover each cherry. Make sure it doesn't drip down the sides.

Bake at 350 degrees for 10-12 minutes. Let cool on cookie sheet for 2 minutes, then remove to rack to finish cooling.

***For those who don’t like cherries. substitute well-drained pineapple tidbits, using the juice to thin the frosting. You can also use pecan halves or macadamia nuts and thin the frosting with cold coffee or water. If you don't have anything so go on tap. just glob the chocolate mixture into the indentations. That's good, too.

Black and Whites

Do not preheat oven yet... dough must chill before baking.

2 cups chocolate chips
3/4 cup butter (1 1/2 sticks)
2 cups brown sugar (or white sugar with a scant 2 tablespoons molasses mixed in)
4 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups flour (not sifted)

approx. 1/2 cup confectioners' sugar (powdered sugar) in a small bowl

melt chocolate chips with butter (microwave on high power for 2 minutes, then stir until smooth)

mix in sugar and let cool. add eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition. mix in vanilla, baking powder, and salt. add flour and mix well

Chill dough for at least 4 hours. (Overnight is even better.)

When you’re ready to bake, preheat oven to 350 degrees, rack in the middle position.

Roll walnut-sized dough balls with your hands. (Messy-wear plastic gloves if you wish.) Drop the dough balls into a bowl with the powdered sugar and roll them around until they’re coated. (If the dough gets too warm, stick it back in the refrigerator until you can handle it again.)

Place the balls on a greased cookie sheet, 12 to a standard sheet. (They will flatten when they bake.) Bake at 350 degrees for 12-14 minutes. let them cool on the cookie sheet for 2 minutes, and then remove to wire rack to finish cooling.