Friday, December 9, 2011

Almond Cookies

3/4 c. butter
1 c. brown sugar
1 egg
1 t. vanilla
1 c. finely chopped blanched almonds
2 c. cake flour
1/4 t. salt
1/2 t. soda

Cream butter and sugar. Add egg and vanilla and beat. Sift dry ingredients together and add with almonds. Make a long roll and chill an hour. Slice very thin and bake in mod. oven (350) for a few minutes.

Drop Cookies

A spice cookie with fruit and nuts. I think these may have been Grandma Toomey's.

2 c. flour
1 t. soda
1/2 t. salt
1 t. cinnamon
1/2 t. nutmeg & cloves
1/2 c. butter
1 1/3 c. brown sugar
1 egg
1/2 c. nuts
1/4 c. milk
1 c. chopped raw apples
1 c. raisins

Bake at 375 - 10-12 min.

Corn Flake Cookies

Another favorite from Great Aunt Minnie:

2/3 c. butter
1 c. sugar
eggs, well-beaten
2 c. flour
1/2 t. baking powder
salt
1/2 t. soda in 2 t. milk
1 c. dates
1/2 c. nuts
1 c. corn flakes
1 t. vanilla*

Cream butter, add sugar and eggs, well beaten.
Sift flour, baking powder, and salt, and add to mixture, with milk and soda.
Add dates and nuts. Roll into balls and pat in slightly crushed corn flakes.

Bake at 375 - 10 minutes

*Vanilla would probably be added with the eggs; she doesn't say

Chocolate No Bakes

In double boiler, melt 1/2 lb milk chocolate, 1 pkg choc chips, 2 sq unsweetened chocolate & 1 T butter. Cool.

Chop 1/1/2 c. cocoanut, mix with cooled chocolate & stir in 4 c. corn flakes.

Drop onto cookie sheet. Put in refrig & set.

Meringues

My sister Kristine's childhood favorite--a perfect no-fat goodie. For the cookie sheet, you cut open a brown paper bag.


2 egg whites (the eggs are, obviously beaten; on another card the words "stiff & dry" are crossed off--perhaps because she stopped when they were stiff and damp?)

1/2 c. sugar

add sugar 6 T one at a time

& after adding 1/2 t. vanilla,
add rest of the sugar

Bake w/br paper, at 250 = 50 minutes

Almond Butter Crunch

One of my all-time favorites of Mom's sweets is her almond butter crunch.

Last Christmas in California, my sister Joanne and I wanted to make it, but couldn't find the recipe. We called Kristine in Michigan and she didn't have it either, but found a recipe in the Better Homes and Garden Cookbook, which Mom used a lot, that sounded similar.

We made it, and it turned out well enough, but didn't seem quite as succulent as Mom's. And it felt harder on the teeth (maybe because of the corn syrup).

Back in New York, I searched the boxes and found it:

Butter Toffee

Combine 1 c. sugar, 1/4 c. water, 1/2 c. butter & cook to 285. Add 1/2 c. ground roasted almonds & cover with melted choc.

2 oz. choc.