BG's Christmas cookies

[Patty S]

On Sunday, BG (the slave driver) & I went to the store to get sparkling cider for our Christmas Eve family get-together, & she saw some big platters of cookies... priced from $12 - $20. Although they were gorgeous & yummy looking, she commented right away that they cost way more than we could make them for... then she got this wild idea, & started harping about making cookies!    

Well, she got her way, so we looked through my cook books & started making 4 kinds of cookies that evening, after dinner. (I say "4" cuz when I had to go back to the store for brown sugar, I cheated & bought a couple tubes of that Pillsbury sugar cookie dough... just in case we goofed up on the "real" ones!)

By noon on Christmas Eve day, we were done, & had a pretty plate of Snickerdoodles, "Aunt Sally's Cocoa Drops", Crescent Butter cookies & the Sugar Cookies, all ready for company.
     

BUT THEN... No, that wasn't good enough for her! So the platter would look as nice as the ones in the store, she dragged me back to the store for pecans, pine nuts, Christmas candies, chocolate covered peanuts & yogurt pretzels, to sprinkle over the cookies, after they were arranged.
 (OK, just WHO is saving $20 here?!)

AND... she decided that we needed to get some cheese & crackers, to go with the leftover ham that was in our refirgerator, so "we" could make a snack tray!
     

She was a happy girl though, & everyone was impressed with her cullinary art!
     
     

With as much time as I ended up spending in the kitchen, with her project, I may as well have cooked a big dinner for everyone! (I'm OUT of the kitchen for the rest of the year!)

[patches]

Hey, Patty, the cookies look great and B.G. did a fantastic job on making a beautiful presentation.    I sense some real talent there that she evidently didn't get from her grandma!    By the way, it seems you neglected to mention just how much this cost-cutting adventure actually cost you!    

"Aunt Sally's Cocoa Drops" 

Geesh, Sis, Aunt Sally hasn't talked to me in ages, ever I put that rubber spider in her icebox,  but I sure would love to have her recipe for the Cocoa Drops!!!   

[Dianna]

Awwwww, Patty. How could you resist that smiling face? I see why you spent some time in the kitchen. I would have had to do the same....

The cookies look great! Way to go on cracking that whip, BG!

[Patty S]

That "smiling face" you see there, Dianna, looks more like a "Gotcha, Grama" face, to me! (I'm eating cookies for breakfast, till they're all gone... as a return on my energy investment!)

Patti, I can't find the receipt for all the stuff she bought to embellish that cookie plate with, but I do know that it probably came to more than the ingredients would have, if I didn't already have those basics in the cupboard!  I remember that the pecans themselves, were almost $8 per pound! (But I wouldn't let her get any more than she needed to pretty up the plate with!)

Aunt Sally told me that you can't have her recipe... because of that spider incident!

[Patty S]

Just kidding, Patti!   Here it is:

         Aunt Sally's Cocoa Drops

½ C soft shortening
1 C sugar
1 egg
   ¾ C buttermilk or sour cream
   1 tsp vanilla
       1¾ C sifted flour
       ½ tsp baking soda
       ½ tsp salt
       ½ C powdered cocoa
                        1C chopped nuts (optional)

Mix thoroughly, shortening, sugar & egg.
    Stir in buttermilk & vanilla.
        Sift dry ingredients together & stir in.
                       Fold in nuts.

Chill 1 hour

Preheat Oven to 400°.
Drop with teaspoon, 2" apart onto lightly greased cookie sheet.
Bake 8 - 10 minutes.
Cool
Frost with chocolate icing (if they last long enough)

[patches]

Hey, Patty, I bet BG would like my recipe for Sugar-Glazed Pecans and they are so easy to make.    I bet she could even teach her grandma to do it!    I think they would have made a great addition on her cookie tray.   

Thanks a bunch, Patty! I won't tell Aunt Sally you gave it to me.  I've already got it copied and saved in my recipes.  Darn, I've already got everything I need, except for the sour cream.    Guess I must have used it all in the dips I made for Christmas!  Think I'll try them without the frosting to cut down on the sweet taste,  and I really don't care for cookies with frosting anyway.   

[Patty S]

Patti, if you don't have buttermilk or sour cream, you can substitute it by mixing ¾ tsp white vinegar to ¾ C milk & let it sit for about 5 minutes, so it can set up.

Sure!  I'll let her make your Sugar-Glazed Pecans!
... if YOU send her the Pecans!

[patches]

Well, I don't have any white vinegar either!  I usually only buy the apple cider, balsamic, and rice vinegars.  Occasionally, I've bought the red wine vinegar for certain recipes. Actually, this is really not a problem, I can pick up some sour cream at the milk store tomorrrow since it's only two blocks away.   

Patty, I got some awesome pecans on sale for $5.99 a pound last week because I needed them for my bourbon balls.   

 

[Patty S]

OK then, if you don't have vinegar, lemon juice is just as good. (IF you have that!)

Were the Pecans in the shell?  The ones we got were already shelled.  I wasn't about to add one more chore to "her" project... & if we'd have delegated the job to Grampa, there wouldn't have been any nuts for the platter!

[patches]

Sorry, Patty!  It seems that my cupboard is in worse shape than Old Mother Hubbard's  since I don't have any lemon juice either.   I always keep a lot of lemons on hand in the summer for iced tea, but usually don't buy many in the winter unless I need them for a recipe.  Minute Maid makes a frozen lemon juice which I buy when I can find it, but most of the stores around here don't carry it. 

Nope, the pecans were already shelled and that's why it was such a good buy.  I learned many years ago that the pecans in the shells were not really such a bargain.    They may be cheaper, but you're paying for the shells too!  Besides, you're stuck with a lot of work to boot!!