Some Christmas Favorites

[Exodia]

Wild Turkey Fruit Cake

1 pound whole red cherries
1 pound white seedless raisins
2 cups Wild Turkey bourbon
1 pound butter at room temperature
2 cups granulated sugar
1 pound dark brown sugar
5 cups all-purpose flour
8 eggs, separated
1 pound pecan halves
1 ½ tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
2 tsp ground nutmeg

Combine cherries, raisins, and bourbon, cover and let stand in refrigerator overnight. Drain fruit and reserve bourbon. Place butter in a large bowl and beat until light and fluffy, add sugar gradually, beating well until blended. Add egg yolks and beat well. Stir ½ cup flour into the pecans, sift remaining flour with baking powder, salt and nutmeg. Add 2 cups flour mixture to creamed mixture and mix well. Add reserved bourbon and the rest of the flower mixture alternately, beating well. Add fruits and nuts to batter, mix well.
Grease and flour 5 loaf pans and fill to 1 inch from the top. Bake at 275°F for about 2 hours.

[Exodia]

A bit time consuming, but worth it.

Tea Time Tassies

1 - 3 oz. pkg. cream cheese
½ cup butter
1 cup flour

Filling
1 egg
¾ cup brown sugar
1 Tbsp butter, soft
1 tsp vanilla
dash salt (less than ¼ tsp)
2/3 cup broken pecans or walnuts

Let cream cheese and butter soften to room temperature. Blend. Stir in flour. Chill slightly (about 1 hour). Shape into 2 dozen balls, approximately 1 inch in diameter. Place in tiny ungreased muffin pans. Press dough on bottom and sides of cups.

Filling: Beat together egg, sugar, butter, vanilla and salt until smooth. Divide ½ of nuts amongst pastry lined cups, add egg mixture and top with remaining nuts.

Bake at 325°F for 25 minutes or until filling is set. Cool, remove from pans.

[Exodia]

Chocolate Peppermint Cookies

½ cup shortening
½ cup sugar
1 egg
3 Tbsp milk
2 sq. unsweetened chocolate (2 oz.), melted
1 ¾ cup all-purpose flour
1 tsp salt
½ tsp baking powder

Peppermint filling
3 Tbsp heavy cream
¼ tsp peppermint extract
2 cup 10X sugar
green or red food coloring

Mix shortening, egg, and sugar thoroughly. Blend in milk and cooled chocolate. Blend flour, salt, and baking powder, stir in. Mold in smooth roll, about 2 inches in diameter (1 make slightly smaller). Wrap in wax paper, chill overnight. Heat oven to 400°F. With a thin, sharp knife, slice dough about 1/8 inch thick. Bake on lightly greased cookie sheet for 8 – 10 minutes. Put colored nonpareils on top before baking. Cool. Place 2 cookies together with filling in between.

Filling
Blend cream, extract, and sugar. Tint with food coloring.

[Exodia]

Peanut Butter Cookies

2 ½ cup all-purpose flour
½ tsp baking soda
½ tsp baking powder
½ tsp salt
½ lb (2 sticks) salted butter, softened
1 cup brown sugar, packed
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup extra-crunch peanut butter, preferably Jif, at room temperature
2 large eggs
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup roasted, salted peanuts, ground in food processor to resemble bread crumbs, about 14 pulses

Adjust oven racks to upper and lower middle positions and heat oven to 350°F. line two cookie trays with parchment paper.

Whisk flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt together in a medium bowl, set aside.
Beat butter until creamy. Add sugars, beat until fluffy, about 3 minutes, stopping to scrape down sides as necessary. Beat in peanut butter until fully incorporated, then eggs, one at a time, then vanilla. Gently stir dry ingredients into peanut butter mixture. Add ground peanuts, stir gently until incorporated.

Roll dough into 2 inch balls. Place balls onto parchments lined cookie trays, about 2 ½ inches apart. Press each dough ball twice with a dinner fork dipped in cold water to make crisscross design.

Bake until cookies are puffed and slightly brown along edges but not in top, about 10 – 12 minutes. Cookies will not look fully baked. Cool cookies on sheet until set, about 4 minutes, then transfer to wire rack to cool completely.