A BETTER Baking Day!

[foodfiend]

Today was not in the least a repeat of Sunday's disastrous baking day. 8 hours in a 90-degree kitchen (maybe I lost some weight in there? Not likely-- I ate a lot of cookies...) and I finished everything for the 100th birthday gift basket. All I have to do tomorrow is add some ribbons, arrange all in the basket, and go to the party!

The spoils of today:



Rum Pound Cakes, Lemon Almond Biscotti, Mini-Cinnamon Walnut Streusel Coffeecakes, Snowballs, Toll House Cookies. The Black & White Banana Loaf is not in the photo.

Seriously, does anything taste better than chocolate-chip cookies straight from the oven????

And here is Maryann's Mom's Pound Cake, made into mini-bundt forms (and I flavored these with vanilla rum):

[pjcooks]

Good for you, Vicci! Everything looks scrumptious!

PJ

[HomeCulinarian]

Beautiful! I can imagine the good smell of freshly baked cookies.

[Roxanne 21]

Yummmm!!!!!!!!!!! I'M HERE!!! I'M HERE!!!!!

Baking is the greatest---well, along with everything else but the aromas----can't beat it!!! IMHO

[Lorraine]

Vicci, everything looks wonderful!!!!

[foodfiend]

Thanks everyone, I hope the entire thing comes together in the way that I'm envisioning...

I'm bad. Very bad. Yes, it will look a bit odd to have only 5 mini-bundts, but I had to slice into one of those. "Yum" seems hardly descriptive enough!!! Maryann, no wonder you are always asked for that recipe! And for not containing that much liquor, the rum taste really added a nice note. At 7am. This could be a habit...

[Lorraine]

Vicci, what are snowballs?

[Ron]

Really nice of you to post the pics when everyone seems to be starting a diet.

Drove to the lake this morning in hopes of getting some fishing in, but the waves were so high that I turned around and came home.

[Lorraine]

Sorry to hear that Ron. Maybe you could spend the day baking!!!!

[Mare749]

Quote:

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Vicci, what are snowballs?

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Just about the tastiest little cookies on the planet, besides chocolate chip, of course.

Snow Balls from Betty Crocker's Best Christmas Cookbook

1 cup butter or margarine, softened
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup finely chopped nuts
Powdered sugar

Heat oven to 400º. Beat butter, 1/2 cup powdered sugar and the vanilla in large bowl with electric mixer on medium speed, or mix with spoon. Stir in flour and salt. Stir in nuts.

Shape dough into 1-inch balls. Place about 2 inches apart on ungreased cookie sheet.

Bake 8 to 9 minutes or until set but not brown. Immediately remove from cookie sheet; roll in powdered sugar. Cool completely on wire rack. Roll in powdered sugar again.

Servings: 48
Yield: 4 dozen cookies
Preparation Time: 25 minutes

Notes: Bake Time: 9 minutes per sheet
Cool Time: 30 minutes
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NEW TWISTS
This is the cookie of many names! Whether you call them Snowballs, Russian Tea Cakes, Swedish Tea Cakes, Mexican Wedding Cakes or Butterballs, these rich and buttery cookies have become a holiday favorite. Try these flavorful variations.

LEMON SNOWBALLS: Substitute lemon extract for the vanilla. For an extra lemon punch, add 1 teaspoon grated lemon peel. Crush 1/2 cup lemon drops in food processor or blender. Stir in 1/4 cup of the crushed lemon drops with the flour; reserve remaining candy. Bake as directed. Immediately roll baked cookies in powdered sugar; wait 10 minutes, then roll in reserved crushed lemon drops. Reroll, if desired.

PEPPERMINT SNOWBALLS: Crush 3/4 cup hard peppermint candies in food processor or blender. Stir in 1/4 cup of the crushed candies with the flour; reserve remaining candy. Bake as directed. Immediately roll baked cookies in powdered sugar; wait 10 minutes, then roll in reserved crushed candy. Reroll, if desired.

I have to make several batches of these at holiday time because they are everyone's favorite.

Maryann