I love to bake during Christmastime! I don’t bake sweets any other time of the year because my sweet-toothed daughter and husband don’t need any encouragement, but I indulge them during the holiday season. Usually my daughter helps, so we get to spend time together and the results are delicious.

We like to leave cookies for Santa Claus that we have decorated ourselves. Sometimes we make gingerbread men and sometimes we make butter cookies. I know your temptation is to buy the roll of cookie dough at the grocery store, because you’re thinking, “The fun is in decorating, who cares about the taste. Besides, those refrigerator cookies taste pretty good!” Those refrigerator cookies don’t taste too bad, but quality matters. Do you really know what’s in that cookie dough? This recipe is not hard at all and the cookies are delicious. Make the dough a day ahead and then when it’s time to bake and decorate, it’s just as easy as store-bought dough. I’m sure Santa will appreciate the extra effort.

The Best Christmas Cookie Cutter Recipe

These Gingerbread and Lemon Sandwich Cookies are fancier than the butter cookies and they make perfect gifts. I made these cookies last year for my daughter’s teachers. I think these are the best cookies that I have ever made; they are divine! I’m making them again this year for sure.

Gingerbread and Lemon Sandwich Cookies

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© 2011, Funkidivagirl.com. All rights reserved. Republished only with permission.

In my family, every holiday meal has to have sweet potatoes.   I like sweet potatoes as much as anybody else, but they have to made right.   Some people make them too sweet (adding too much sugar) and some people don’t give them any flavor (so they taste like baby food).  When I started making holiday dinners for my family, I didn’t want to be either of those people.    I found this recipe in Martha Stewart Living many years ago and it’s been my signature holiday sweet potato dish ever since.  It’s different and delicious.  While it is similar to a traditional sweet potato casserole, the caramelized apples, orange juice and brandy adds depth and complexity.   It’s my favorite holiday dish and it tastes even better the next day.

This recipe serves 8-10 people.  The recipe looks complicated, but really it’s not.  The only tricky part is caramelizing the apples–just be patient and stay at the stove; they burn easily.  You can make this dish and refrigerate a day in advance, but let it come to room temperature before baking.

Recipe from Marthastewart.com

Sweet Potatoes With Caramelized Apples

INGREDIENTS

• 6 (about 4 pounds) sweet potatoes
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 3 Granny Smith apples, peeled and cored
• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
• 9 tablespoons unsalted butter, plus more for pan
• 6 tablespoons heavy cream
• 1/4 cup Calvados, or brandy
• 1/4 cup fresh orange juice

DIRECTIONS

1. Heat oven to 425 degrees. Bake potatoes until soft, 40 to 45 minutes. When cool enough to handle, peel and place flesh in a medium bowl; add salt, and mash with a fork.
2. Meanwhile, slice apples into 1/8-inch-thick wedges and place in a medium bowl. Add lemon juice and toss to combine.
3. In a medium skillet, melt 3 tablespoons butter over medium-high heat. Add 2 tablespoons brown sugar and cook, stirring, until sugar dissolves. Cook apple slices in the butter and sugar in 3 or 4 batches, until golden and caramelized, about 1 minute on each side. As they finish cooking, transfer to a plate and set aside.
4. In a medium skillet, melt 3 tablespoons butter over high heat. Add 2 tablespoons brown sugar and cook until sugar dissolves. Stir in 4 tablespoons cream and the Calvados and cook until slightly thickened, about 1 minute. Remove from heat and add to sweet potatoes, mixing well to combine. Transfer potato mixture to a buttered 3-quart ovenproof casserole. Arrange apple slices over potatoes; set aside.
5. In a medium skillet, melt remaining 3 tablespoons butter over medium heat. Add remaining 2 tablespoons brown sugar and cook until dissolved. Add remaining 2 tablespoons of cream and cook, stirring, for 30 seconds. Stir in orange juice and cook for 1 to 2 minutes, until thickened and dark brown. Pour over the apples and cover with aluminum foil.
6. Bake until heated through, about 30 minutes. Remove from oven and serve immediately, or let stand at room temperature for up to 30 minutes before serving.

I’m linking up with Mama Kat by answering the prompt: Share a Thanksgiving Recipe.

© 2011, Funkidivagirl.com. All rights reserved. Republished only with permission.

Okay, yes, this post is six months late, but Mama Kat’s Writer’s Workshop Prompt (Watcha’ cookin? Share a recipe.) inspired me to finally finish the blog post that I began this summer.

The last time I ate at Umami Burger in Santa Monica, California was in July 2010, so while preparing to write this post I went to the restaurant’s website to link up the Jurkey Burger, the best restaurant turkey burger that I ever ate.  It wasn’t on the menu, so I called the restaurant and found out that–noooooo!–they replaced the Jurkey Burger with the Greenbird.  Described as “shelton farms turkey, crushed avocado, green cheese, butter lettuce, spouts, green goddess,” the Greenbird sounds good, I guess, but not as good as jerk-spiced turkey topped with a plantain.   I took this photo of the Jurkey Burger back in July; doesn’t it look simply divine?  (Hang tight.  I’m getting to the “cookin’” and “sharing a recipe” part.)

Sadly, I will never taste that again.   BUT!–the recipe below for Jerk Turkey Burgers With Mango Slow is just as good as Umami’s Jurkey Burger.  Spicy from the jerk seasoning and juicy from the apples, this turkey burger is delicious; my family gobbles it up and asks for more.  I use whole wheat buns and low-fat mayonnaise to make it healthier and grill the patties on my panini maker.   Using a pre-packaged mix of shredded cabbage and carrots make this easy recipe even easier.

I serve some Alexia Spicy Sweet Potato Julienne Fries on the side and you can’t tell me that aren’t in some hip Los Angeles eatery.  Except we aren’t.  Did I mention that we sat next to Tom Hanks at Umami Burger?

Jerk Turkey Burgers With Mango Slaw

Recipe from Foodnetwork.com

(yields 4)

Ingredients:

• 1 pound ground turkey (*organic of course!)
• 1 tablespoon jerk seasoning, plus more for sprinkling
• 1 small green apple, peeled and grated
• 1/2 cup finely chopped scallions
• 1/4 cup panko
• Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
• 1/4 cup mayonnaise, plus more for brushing
• 1/4 cup mango chutney, roughly chopped
• 3 cups shredded green cabbage
• 1 carrot, shredded
• Canola oil, for the grill
• 4 hamburger buns or challah rolls, split

Directions:

Preheat a grill or grill pan to medium high. Mix the turkey, jerk seasoning, apple, 1/4 cup scallions and the panko in a bowl; season with salt and pepper. Form into four 1-inch-thick patties and make a small indentation in the middle of each with your thumb to prevent it from puffing up on the grill. Refrigerate.

Whisk the mayonnaise and chutney in a large bowl. Add the cabbage, carrot and the remaining 1/4 cup scallions, season with salt and pepper and toss to coat.

Brush the grill with canola oil. Grill the turkey patties until browned and cooked through, 4 to 5 minutes per side.

Brush the cut sides of the buns with mayonnaise and sprinkle with jerk seasoning; toast on the grill, about 30 seconds. Serve the burgers and slaw on the buns.

Per serving: Calories 504; Fat 20 g (Saturated 3 g); Cholesterol 51 mg; Sodium 894 mg; Carbohydrate 51 g; Fiber 4 g; Protein 36 g

photo credit: foodnetwork.com, Antonis Achilleos

See Umami Burger; I don’t need your Jurkey Burger!  I can make my own delicious turkey burger at home!  See; I’m just fine.  See….

*Please Umani Burger, please bring back the Jurkey Burger.  Please.  Pretty Please.  For me?

Visit Mama Kat’s Losin It to write a prompt of your own.

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Other Cooking Groovy posts that you may like:

Whole-What Spaghetti With Lemon, Basil And Salmon

Lemony Shrimp With White Beans and Couscous

© 2011, Funkidivagirl.com. All rights reserved. Republished only with permission.

Giada De Laurentiis is one of my favorite Food Network stars; she has such a big smile and cooks food that is fresh and satisfying, but easy to prepare.  Besides, I love the way she says “spaghetti.”

I saw her make this dish on her show Everyday Italian and it’s been in my dinner rotation ever since.  In under 30 minutes I can have a fresh, healthy dinner on the table that my family will eat.  I served this to my kids this week when my husband was out of town and it would have been so easy for me to just order take-out.  But this meal was just as easy and healthier.  Even my picky “I don’t like that” daughter will eat this meal, although she doesn’t like the capers.  Don’t include them if you don’t like capers either.    I love basil so I add plenty to the recipe and I was really geeked to use my new zester for the lemon.  Why did it take me so long to buy one?  It has changed my cooking.  (Add that to my list of Small Things That Make Me Happy–a zester.)

photo credit: foodnetwork.com

Whole-Wheat Spaghetti with Lemon, Basil, and Salmon

Recipe by Giada De Laurentiis

Ingredients

• 1/2 pound whole-wheat spaghetti pasta
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil  *plus more for cooking salmon–my addition
• 1/2 teaspoon salt, plus more for seasoning
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus more for seasoning
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 4 (4-ounce) pieces salmon
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh basil leaves
• 3 tablespoons capers
• 1 lemon, zested
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 2 cups fresh baby spinach leaves

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and cook until tender but still firm to the bite, stirring occasionally, about 8 to 10 minutes. Drain pasta and transfer to a large bowl. Add the garlic, extra-virgin olive oil, salt, and pepper. Toss to combine.

Meanwhile, warm the olive oil in a medium skillet over medium-high heat. Season the salmon with salt and pepper. Add the fish to the pan and cook until medium-rare, about 2 minutes per side, depending on the thickness of the fish. Remove the salmon from the pan.

Add the basil, capers, lemon zest, and lemon juice to the spaghetti mixture and toss to combine. Set out 4 serving plates or shallow bowls. Place 1/2 cup spinach in each bowl. Top with 1/4 of the pasta. Top each mound of pasta with a piece of salmon. Serve immediately.

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Other posts about What’s For Dinner that you may like:

What’s For Dinner: Lemony Shrimp withWhite Beans & Couscous

© 2011, Funkidivagirl.com. All rights reserved. Republished only with permission.

My daughter wanted to make cookies for all of her teachers (her 2 primary teachers as well as art, music, P.E. and science teachers).  A daunting task, but I wanted to foster her giving spirit, so last night that’s just what we did.   I was going to share this recipe next week, during the week of Christmas, but I made the mistake of posting this photo on my personal Facebook page last night:

All my friends made the same comment: “Share the recipe!”

I don’t blame them; I took that photo with my iPhone and the cookies still look incredible.    And let me tell you, the cookies taste as incredible as they look.  Crunchy on the outside, chewy on the inside and full of flavor, dare I say this is one of the best cookies that I have EVER tasted.   It only revivals the Key Lime cookie over at The Cookie Studio in Atlanta.

So, if I want my friends to speak to me again, I figured that I had better post the recipe sooner rather than later.

I found this recipe in the December issue of O, The Oprah Magazine and wanted to make these cookies because they looked unusual and gift-worthy.   The magazine recipe didn’t have large-batch instructions like this online version (I wish it did, but it was a good math lesson for my daughter), so we just doubled the recipe.    I was able to make 41 fairly large sandwiches and had just enough filling, spreading it not too thin or thick.    I could have made a few more sandwiches if I had shaped the log better; there were cookie casualties that didn’t make it as sandwiches, but made it into our mouth.   I was nervous about the shape of the cookies because my log of dough was a misshapen mess, but the shape evened out while baking and as you see in the photo above, the cookies look beautiful.

We made the dough–the hardest part of the recipe–the night before, so slicing, sugaring and baking the cookies was easy and fun.  The frosting filling was easy to make (except zesting-oh, how I hate to zest); just be sure to beat the ingredients until it’s nice and thick.   Read through the recipe first and see that the butter is divided; some of it is used for the dough and some of it is used for the frosting.   Don’t soften it all at once if you are making the dough on another day (I made that mistake).  I used about 3 drops of yellow food coloring, just enough to give the frosting a very soft lemon tint.

Gingerbread and Lemon Sandwich Cookies

from O, The Oprah Magazine

Servings: Makes about 30 (large batch: 90)

Ingredients

• 2 cups and 2 Tbsp. all-purpose flour (large batch: 6 cups plus 6 Tbsp.)
• 2 tsp. baking soda (large batch: 6 tsp.)
• 2 tsp. ground cinnamon (large batch: 6 tsp.)
• 2 tsp. ground ginger (large batch: 6 tsp.)
• 1 tsp. ground allspice (large batch: 3 tsp.)
• 1 tsp. ground cloves (large batch: 3 tsp.)
• 1/2 tsp. fine salt (large batch: 1 1/2 tsp.)
• 18 Tbsp. (2 1/4 sticks) butter , divided, at room temperature (large batch: 54 Tbsp. or 6 sticks plus 6 Tbsp.)
• 1 cup granulated sugar , divided (large batch: 3 cups)
• 1 egg (large batch: 3 eggs)
• 1 Tbsp. vanilla extract (large batch: 3 Tbsp.)
• 1/4 cup unsulphured molasses (large batch: 3/4 cup)
• 2 cups confectioners’ sugar , sifted (large batch: 6 cups)
• 2 Tbsp. lemon juice (large batch: 6 Tbsp.)
• 2 tsp. zest from 1 lemon (use same lemon as for juice; large batch: use two lemons to extract 6 tsp. of zest)
• 6 to 8 drops yellow food coloring (optional; large batch: 18 to 24 drops)

Directions

Active time: 1 hour

Total time: 3 hours

In a large bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, allspice, cloves, and salt; set aside. In a second large bowl, beat 12 tablespoons butter and 3/4 cup granulated sugar with an electric mixer on low speed until pale and fluffy, 1 to 2 minutes. Add egg, vanilla, and molasses, beating well after each addition. Add flour mixture and beat until smooth. Divide dough between 2 large sheets of parchment paper and roll up snugly, twisting the ends like a candy wrapper, to make two 8-inch logs. Refrigerate until firm, about 2 hours.

Preheat oven to 350°. Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper; set aside. Place remaining 1/4 cup granulated sugar in a shallow dish. Cut dough logs into 1/4-inch-thick slices. Dip the top of each in sugar and transfer to prepared baking sheets, spacing about 1 inch apart. Bake until just firm around the edges, about 10 minutes; let cool completely on a rack.

In a large bowl, beat remaining 6 tablespoons butter, confectioners’ sugar, lemon juice and zest, and food coloring (if using) with an electric mixer until fluffy, about 2 minutes. To assemble sandwiches, spread frosting onto half the cookies, then top with remaining cookies.

Note: Make the dough a day or two ahead when it suits your schedule, then cut and bake the cookies later when you have a free moment.

slicing the dough

Girly sugars the cookies before baking

they were delicious even without the lemon filling

Girly spreading the lemon frosting

In the Oprah magazine, the cookies were tied up with parchment paper and string.  I wanted something a bit more sturdy since my daughter would be distributing the cookies herself.   The Container Store was a treasure trove of cookie containers.    I bought small blue boxes (non-holiday specific and also my daughter’s favorite color), some decorative waxed paper and snowball trim.  My daughter made personalized cards for all the teachers.  We were able to fit about 4 cookies in each box, which left us with a few for ourselves and a friend’s birthday present.    Already the kids are asking if we are going to make more this holiday season.

Other posts about Christmas cookies that you may enjoy reading:

The Best Christmas Cookie Cutter Recipe

© 2010, Funkidivagirl.com. All rights reserved. Republished only with permission.