Å·±¦ÓéÀÖ

Join me for the on the 16th and have a chance at winning a Shirley Jump prize package!


HO HO HO! It's the most wonderful time of the year, and that means it's time for The Knight Agency's annual online holiday party! Join our agents, authors and TKA Santa for an hour of non-stop giveaways. This is our most fun, relaxed chat of the year. No worries about what to ask a guest author or waiting your turn to speak -- it's literally a free for all! This year Gena Showalter, Nalini Singh, Maria Geraci, Keith R.A. DeCandido, Shannon K. Butcher, Linda Gerber, Michelle Celmer, Louisa Edwards, Lydia Dare, Joey W. Hill, Jessica Andersen, Lauren Baratz-Logsted, Chris Marie Green and Shirley Jump are all giving away signed copies of their releases. Plus we're raiding our book closets and giving out titles by Rachel Caine, Marley Gibson and Cecil Murphey, among others. Oh yeah, and there's a Christmas stocking prize stuffed with books and holiday treats.

Don't forget to mark your calendars!

WHAT:
WHEN: Thursday, December 16th @ 12:30pm ET
WHERE: The Knight Agency Chat Room --
HOW TO CHAT: Enter any combination of username and password. Login. Your computer must be Java enabled to chat.

Yes, the name of this recipe cracks me up (and my friend , who was the one to give me the recipe, has many other double entendre names for them ;-) Mel, as a side note, is THE MOST AMAZING pastry chef. It's not her full-time job, but really, it should be. I'm not much of a baker, and if I want an amazing treat (I'm still dreaming about the mini cupcakes she made me this fall), I know I'll find one at her house. Anyway, she made them for my friends and they were amazing. One of those things that are so yummy, it's impossible to eat just one.

The original recipe, Mel told me, comes from . Doesn't the cover of that book alone make you want some cookies? Alas, ours are gone (I froze some for our holiday party, then donated the rest to the school Cookie Walk...lest I eat them all. Now I DO want to eat them all, LOL). Anyway, I know several of these amazing nutty balls are waiting in my freezer for the holiday party. And don't tell my Dad, but I'm bringing him some for Christmas this year :-) Nutty BallsRecipe from 2-1/3 cups strained confectioners' sugar, spooned in and leveled
1 cup fine graham cracker crumbs
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened to room temp
3/4 cup peanut butter (creamy or chunky)
10 ounces semisweet chocolate, coarsely chopped (or morsels)
2 teaspoons vegetable oil
2 cups salted peanuts, finely chopped

In a large bowl, stir together the sugar and crumbs. Add the butter and peanut butter and stir till thoroughly combined. Portion the dough into 1-inch balls and place on parchment-lined jelly roll pans/cookie sheets.

Combine the chocolate and veg. oil in a metal or glass bowl and melt over a pot of boiling water. (This is sometimes called a double boiler.) When chocolate is melted, turn off the heat but don't move the bowl. Place about half the nuts in a wide flat dish such as a pie plate.

Dip one ball at a time in the chocolate (Shirley's note: I used two forks, one to dip, then I transferred back and forth, and tapped the fork lightly on the side of the bowl to remove the excess chocolate), then roll it in the peanuts, coating evenly. Place balls back on the pans/sheets and allow to air dry. (Sometimes I refrigerate them to solidify the chocolate a bit faster.)

Store in an airtight container for up to 3 weeks. These treats freeze well and have a fairly long shelf life, but they are temperature sensitive.
Thanks, Mel!!

Shirley

We got our first real snowfall of the season this weekend. Not a ton of snow--just enough for DH to break in the new snowblower and to dust everything with a pretty coating of white. And just enough to make my the perfect dinner for today :-)
I've run the recipe before , but thought it was a good time to run it again. I added my notes for what tweaks I made today.

White Chicken Chili
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 cup onions, chopped
1 cup green pepper, chopped
2 tablespoons pickled jalapeno (comes in a jar in the Mexican food aisle), chopped (NOTE: I didn't have any of that on hand today, so I used a small can of diced green chilies)
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons chili powder
2 teaspoons cumin
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon kosher salt (or regular; I just prefer to cook with kosher)
2 cups chicken broth (I used the homemade broth I make)2 15-ounce cans Great Northern beans, drained
1 pound cooked chicken, shredded (I didn't have any already cooked, so I poached a couple breasts in some water seasoned with salt and pepper)
1/2 cup whipping cream (I use half and half)

Heat oil in a large pot (like a Dutch oven) over medium-high heat. Add onion, green pepper and jalapeno. Saute about 4 minutes, until soft and onion is translucent. Add garlic and spices. Cook for one minute. Add broth and bring to a boil. Add vegetables, then reduce heat to a simmer and cook until vegetables are tender. Add beans and chicken and cook for 10 minutes. Stir in cream and cook until heated through.

Shirley

For those of you who are on you know the dog (not my dog, but DH's pointer, who does his best to drive me nuts) ATE MY COOKIES yesterday. He ate the ginger cookies, and the thumbprints. ALL of them.

Darn dog. And yes, he's okay. And I have forgiven him.

Mostly.

So I spent today in my kitchen baking some more. (argh). I made Peanut Butter Cookies, more thumbprints, some of these Snow-Capped Macaroons as well as a cake. Didn't make more Ginger cookies because I didn't have any more candied ginger so those will have to wait until next week.

I also tried another recipe for Chocolate Malted Sandwiches. They were a disaster. I don't know if my butter was too soft/warm or what, but the dough refused to cooperate, so I scrapped them halfway in. And they sounded so good, too :-(

Instead, I made these . Quite easy, and very tasty. They don't make very many--I got just under two dozen from this recipe--but they're good. I wished I had some cool white sprinkles for on top, because the sprinkles I did use don't really show very well :-(


Snow-Capped Macaroons (recipe from Food Network Magazine)

2 large egg whites
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup sliced almonds, crushed
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 cups sweetened shredded coconut

For the Glaze:
6 ounces semisweet chocolate, finely chopped
3 tablespoons light corn syrup
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
Coarse sugar crystals, for decorating

Make the cookies: Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Lightly beat the egg whites in a medium bowl until frothy, then stir in the granulated sugar, almonds, vanilla and salt. Fold in the coconut.

Drop tablespoonfuls of the batter 1 inch apart on the prepared baking sheets. Dampen your hands and form into tall pointed mounds. Bake until the edges are golden brown and the macaroons look dry, 16 to 20 minutes. Let cool 10 minutes on the baking sheets, then transfer to a rack to cool completely.

Make the glaze: Put the chocolate, corn syrup, butter and 3 tablespoons hot water in a microwave-safe bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and microwave until melted, about 2 minutes. Whisk until smooth.

Dip the tip of each macaroon about halfway into the glaze, then place on a clean parchment paper-lined baking sheet. Sprinkle with coarse sugar, then refrigerate until the glaze sets, about 1 hour. Store in an airtight container up to 1 week.

Shirley

I love ginger cookies. They're the perfect treat with a cup of coffee in the morning, or a cup of tea in the afternoon (okay, so are the I made yesterday, LOL). The problem with most store bought ones is that they're either too bland in flavor or so hard, you need to sit them in the coffee for a while to soften them ;-)

Ina Garten is my go-to chef for when I want something I know will be awesome. Her Ultimate Ginger Cookies were no exception.

The only thing I changed was making them smaller so I could get more out of the batch (her recipe makes 12-16). They cooked exactly 13 minutes, like her recipe says, and they were, as promised, crisp on the outside and chewy on the inside. Just delicious all around :-)






2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup dark brown sugar, lightly packed
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/3 cup unsulfured molasses
1 extra-large egg, at room temperature
1 1/4 cups chopped crystallized ginger (6 ounces)
Granulated sugar, for rolling the cookies

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line 2 sheet pans with parchment paper.

In a large bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, ginger, and salt and then combine the mixture with your hands. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the brown sugar, oil, and molasses on medium speed for 5 minutes. Turn the mixer to low speed, add the egg, and beat for 1 minute. Scrape the bowl with a rubber spatula and beat for 1 more minute. With the mixer still on low, slowly add the dry ingredients to the bowl and mix on medium speed for 2 minutes. Add the crystallized ginger and mix until combined.

Scoop the dough with 2 spoons or a small ice cream scoop. With your hands, roll each cookie into a 1 3/4-inch ball and then flatten them lightly with your fingers. Press both sides of each cookie in granulated sugar and place them on the sheet pans. Bake for exactly 13 minutes. The cookies will be crackled on the top and soft inside. Let the cookies cool on the sheets for 1 to 2 minutes, then transfer to wire racks to cool completely.

Shirley

Today was a day of baking. I made three different kinds of cookies and twelve loaves of chocolate banana bread (Tyler Florence's recipe).

These cookies in the picture are my White Chocolate Raspberry Thumbprints. Readers will remember them as the featured recipe in Twelve Days, my novella in . I liked them so much, I've made them every year. :-)
They're delicious...just a light sugar cookie base, with raspberry jam filling and then white chocolate drizzle and red sugar sprinkles. A couple things I sometimes do (that aren't in my recipe)....add a teaspoon of vegetable oil to the white chocolate when it's melting to make it more pliable, and keep it from hardening too fast. I also sometimes roll the sugar cookie dough balls in sugar before flattening them and filling them. What's a little extra sweetness at the holidays? ;-)
Shirley's White Chocolate Raspberry Thumbprints
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup shortening
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon vanilla (I always use real vanilla)
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/3 cup seedless raspberry jam
1 cup white chocolate chips Red sugar sprinkles

Trust me, these ones are so good, you won't have any left for guests (and whoever invented that rule about sharing your cookies, anyhow? It's Christmas, indulge yourself a little). In a large mixing bowl, beat the butter and the shortening with an electric mixer (or use a stand mixer and let the machine do the work), then add the sugar, powdered sugar, baking soda, cream of tarter, and the salt. Beat just until combined.

Add the egg and vanilla, then mix in the flour gradually. Cover the dough and refrigerate for three hours. I know, it's a long wait, but it'll be worth it later. Heat the oven to 375 degrees. Roll the dough into 3/4-inch balls and put them on an ungreased cookie sheet. With your thumb or the end of a wooden spoon, press a circular indentation into the center of each cookie. Drop a 1/4 teaspoon of jam into each thumbprint. Bake cookies for 8-10 minutes, then cool on a wire rack for 5 minutes.
Meanwhile, pour yourself a glass of milk and get into serious cookie-eating mode. Skip lunch if you have to-there's no way a tuna on rye can compete.

Put the white chocolate chips in a microwave-safe bowl and microwave on high in 30-second bursts, stirring each time, until the chips are melted. Pour the white chocolate into a resealable plastic bag and snip off a tiny bit of one corner. Drizzle the white chocolate over the cookies. Sprinkle cookies with red sugar to add that festive flair.

Now you're ready to indulge-don't worry about the calories until January 1st. Makes three dozen, just enough for you and a friend!
Shirley

I posted my the other day, and since then have had lots of discussions on and by email about brining (BTW, that's not my turkey in that picture, just one I found on the Internet :-). Friends who haven't brined before wanted to know what the big deal is, and if it's worth the effort. I wholeheartedly say YES. It makes the meat so much moister. Last year, nearly the entire turkey was eaten--leaving me with almost no leftovers, LOL. But it was a huge hit around here, so it's a no-brainer to brine again this year.

I use Alton Brown's brining recipe. He has two of them--one on the that calls for a few ingredients that are hard to find here (allspice berries? Geesh, I have trouble finding shallots in my grocery store), and then , which is in his book. That's the one I'm planning on using (though I have to admit to being tempted to try when I saw it on the other day). I don't stuff my turkey, either. I used to, but have had great success putting aromatics in it--rosemary, garlic, onion, lemon and sage--and then rubbing butter all over it. I always worry about the food poisoning thing with stuffing the bird anyway. And I'm impatient enough not to want to wait for the extra cooking time ;-) So tell me, do you brine your turkey? Are you going to try it this year? Or are you a deep fryer? Or someone who skips the turkey all together? Shirley

Last year, my Thanksgiving dinner was a HUGE success. I'm doing the same thing this year, except making a few swaps. We just had a dinner party and had the carrots I made last year, so I'm doing Ina Garten's AMAZING Roasted Butternut Squash this year instead of carrots. And I'm making pecan bars instead of pecan pie. This year, I have a brining bag, which should take up less room in the fridge (and if it doesn't work, DH will be making a late run to Home Depot for a new bucket, LOL).

Anyway, here's last year's Thanksgiving plan...I HIGHLY recommend brining.

>> Thanksgiving was a HUGE success in my house. Brining the bird was DA BOMB and I highly recommend it. I mean, HIGHLY recommend it. I have never had a juicier, more delicious turkey--it was beyond simple to cook, and twelve people devoured nearly an entire 21-pound bird. Lots of going back for seconds and thirds that day!

Take notes if you want for next year, because here's how I did it (and managed to have a LOT of relaxation time on the big day, too):

Wednesday Night: Brine the Bird (in the fridge by 8pm)
Equipment needed: 5-gallon pail from Lowe's or Home Depot
Alton Brown's recipe for Brining from I'm Just Here for the Food
(which involves essentially cooking some water, brown sugar, peppercorns, bay leaves and kosher salt, then cooling and adding to the bucket).
Plus: 3 gallons ice water and 1 1/2 cups kosher salt

Thursday Timeline:
7:00 a.m.: Remove bird from Brining Liquid
Preheat oven
Dry bird, stuff with an onion, celery sticks. Brush whole bird with melted butter, then tent with foil, stick a meat thermometer in it, then put the bird in the oven.

8:00 a.m.: Cook sausage for stuffing, chop vegetables for stuffing (celery, carrots and onions), then cook when sausage is done. Add dried cranberries, leave to cool and set aside

8:15 a.m.: Peel 8 pounds of potatoes and start boiling them for mashed potatoes

8:45 a.m.: Start simple syrup for kids'
Put Frozen raspberries, pink lemonade and sugar in bowl to thaw for for grownups :-)

9:30 a.m.: Mash potatoes and put in crock-pot (NOTE; the link to my recipe is right on the blog under Most Popular Recipes) --done till 11:15 a.m. (take a nap, read the ads for Black Friday shopping...I do all my house cleaning on Wednesday, so I'm chilling for these two hours)

11:30 a.m.: remove foil tent from turkey, baste with more butter and turn oven temp up to 425 degrees
Start green beans (I made a healthy version, which I can post later)
Start Citrus-Glazed Carrots

12:15 p.m.: Assemble stuffing

12:30 p.m.: Remove turkey from oven and let set
Put rolls in oven
Put stuffing in oven
Make gravy

1:00 p.m.: Serve and eat ;-)

My MIL made the pies, and I had baked cookies on Wednesday night, so all the rest was done ahead of time. I usually make the pies a day or two ahead of time, but this time someone else did them, so I was saved that chore. This turkey was SO SO good, though. I just can't even tell you ;-)

How was your Thanksgiving? Was it a huge success? I do dishes as I go, and run the dishwasher about halfway through so that everyone can eat on real plates. Clean-up is still a lot of work, but it's not AS bad as it could be.

Shirley

Part Two of my is up today! If you're a writer, check it out, or spread the word to other writers. This is one of those building blocks of fiction that can be difficult to master, but once you do, it brings depth and emotion to everything you create! Read it Shirley

I've got a blog post up today, as a guest author, on Show Not Tell. If you're a writer and struggling with this concept, stop on by the ! Also, be sure to stop by the contest on my and enter for a chance to win a $25 gift certificate to that shoe mecca I love...DSW! Shirley