It is t-minus two days to Christmas and you haven’t baked your cookies yet? What kind of masochist are you? Oh my bad, you’re actually still looking for a parking space at Target. Your commitment is admirable, but now you have previous few hours to get that cookie platter stacked that you promised to bring to the party.
Red’s got your back. Now, depending on your situation, here is what I recommend… Continue reading
In the words of my favorite caffeine pill addicted Saved by The Bell character, Jessie Spano: “NO TIME! NO TIME! There’s never any time!” Well Jessie, we may not be on the swim team, the cheerleading squad, student council, the yearbook committee, science club and in the school play while pulling down the highest grades at Bayside, but I think most of us can related to your caffeine crash rant this time of the year.
Not only is there no time (seriously, is the sun setting at 5PM?) but everything takes more time. The lines at Target are crazy right now, which is great when you decide to swing by after the gym to get some body wash and then as you’re standing in line you realize the sweat has made your mascara run (don’t judge, I go to the gym right after work) so it looks like you’ve been crying. Probably not so shocking to see someone crying at Target during the holidays I guess.
So here we are on Christmas Eve and you’ve run out of time and have no interest in battling the crowds at the grocery store for evaporated milk, caramels, peppermint extract, pecans or what have you, but you’re on the hook to bring cookies to family Christmas. This sounds like a job for cake mix; the secret weapon of a baker’s pantry. Continue reading
Call me old fashioned, but this cookie and me were destiny. I wasn’t looking for the perfect iced oatmeal cookie, but it found me. It stared up at me from Pinterest with a look that said “I may look like just an average oatmeal cookie, but I’m special.” It was the holiday season, so I figured oatmeal cookies would ship well and be enjoyed by anyone with a soul (conveniently, I only ship cookie gifts to those with souls). From the elegant simplicity of the recipe to the first test bite, to the icing droplets, this cookie saw right through me and it won me over.
I already have a go-to oatmeal raisin cookie recipe, but that’s like comparing apples and oranges. Those cookies are thick and chewy and the raisins are pops of sweetness. These iced oatmeal cookies are thin — soft in the middle with crisp edges — and the icing melts in your mouth adding just the right amount of sweetness to the cookie – like a perfectly glazed donut. See, donut, it knew my weakness. Continue reading
I enjoy being one of those people you go to for baking advice. Baking advice is pretty much the only advice I have to offer. Yes, I work in racing, but no, I have no idea why your car is making that noise. Yes, I run, but no, I’ve never used a training program. Yes, I am a woman, but no, I can’t tell you why your girlfriend is crazy. Your cookies didn’t turn out? You must tell me everything you did step-by-step and we will get through this together.
With Adventures of a Hungry Redhead in full swing, I’ve received even more inquiries, which makes me blush. Now it’s the holidays and it seems like every conversation struck is an excuse to quiz me about Christmas cookies, which is fine by me, I was going to change the topic and start talking about food anyway. It’s not you, it’s me. I’m hungry.
So let’s talk Christmas cookies. Every Christmas, these peanut butter cup blossoms are my go-to cookie. In fact, at this very moment, there is a supply of them in the mail en route to one lucky office in the continental U.S.
Why is a peanut butter cup cookie my Christmas staple? They’re cute as a button, they’re easy to make, they have a peanut butter cup in them (Hello! Can’t lose!) and the recipe makes a crap ton of cookies. Continue reading
Let’s go behind the scenes at Adventures of a Hungry Redhead. I am a Type A personality (or an ISFJ if you know the MBTI indicators), so I like to plan and organize. My blog posts for the month are already set. They’re not all written out, but the topics are mapped out.
Monday was supposed to be about Cappuccino and Cream Cookies from my new cookbook The Daily Cookie – the one I recommended in my holiday gift guide – but those did not go according to plan. They were strangely flat and stick to your teeth chewy. The flavor was good, but the texture was not. Little did I know The Daily Cookie comes with tech support. I emailed Anna (The Cookie Madness goddess) and reported the issue. In less than 24 hours, I had a troubleshooting guide in my inbox as Anna attempted to recreate and solve the problem all the way in Austin.
We narrowed it down to two likely suspects: baking powder and parchment paper. Continue reading
Tis the season to buy people stuff! Do you think the three wise men purchased their gifts for Jesus at a Black Friday sale? If they really are wise men, I bet they bought it all online. I did not attend Sunday school —or church for that matter— as a kid, so I’m allowed to say that kind of stuff. You know, like how if you have a friend who’s a minority you can make racist jokes. I don’t know what the wise men actually brought the baby Jesus, thus I can make Jesus jokes. Wait, I got that backwards didn’t I? I need to go to church before I can make Jesus jokes.
Sometimes I fear because you can’t hear my voice and see my face when I say things like the above you think I’m a disrespectful idiot. Hopefully that didn’t just happen. I swear I’m harmless. Just a dark sense of humor, no filter and no gauge for inappropriateness. Good thing my day job is public relations.
Back to the task at hand: you’re Christmas shopping and you’ve got someone on your list who is a butcher or a baker, but definitely not a candlestick maker. You’re in search of a gift for someone who spends a lot of time in the kitchen. Well guess what? I spend a lot of time in the kitchen and I spend almost as much time wandering the isles and websites of King Arthur Flour, Williams & Sonoma, Sur La Table etc.
Here are my top picks for the culinary genius in your life… Continue reading
Adventures of a Hungry Redhead 