Italian Christmas Cookies

As most of you know, I'm Not A Baker!

Anytime I see a recipe for cookies or

Cake - that looks good - I'll post

It here - on my blog

Happy 😊🍪 Baking!

(click ↓ here)

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Coconut Macaroons

3 lg. egg whites at room temperature

1/8t salt

1/4t cream of tartar

3/4t almond or vanilla extract

3/4c superfine sugar

14oz shredded sweetened coconut

Beat in large, clean, dry mixing bowl. Add salt and cream of tartar. Beat egg whites until they form soft peaks. Add vanilla and gradually sprinkle in sugar while continuing to beat egg whites until they form stiff peaks. Fold in the coconut being careful not to over mix and deflate the egg whites.

Drop by tablespoons onto cookie sheets lined with parchment paper Bake 18-22 minutes, in a preheated 325° oven. Cookies will be lightly browned and set on the outside, soft and chewy inside. Cool completely. Store in an airtight container. Makes about 30, 1-1/2” cookies. . .Lin

Almond Butter - Raisin Bars

When I cook, I just have a 'feel' for what goes together. That doesn't work for me with baking. When I get an idea, I Google all the main ingredients I want to use and spend a lot of time noticing the proportions of the leavening agents of several recipes. Salt, baking powder and baking soda are still very mysterious to me. When using them I feel a bit like an Alchemist! Eventually I decide on the correct amounts of everything and then – I proceed with caution. Things have to turn out well before I'll post anything I've baked – it's all just a wild ride until I try the finished product. This turned out very well as bars. I'm thinking I wouldn't change any of it, but next time will bake it as cookies.

1½c flour – for this recipe I used ½c each of these
organic flours: sprouted whole grain wheat flour,
unbleached white flour & oat flour)

¾t baking soda

¾t baking powder

1t sea salt

2t pumpkin pie spice

¾c golden raisins

2T water

1c sugar: all brown or half & half white & brown

½c (1 stick) butter at room temperature

¾c almond butter

1T good quality vanilla

1 lg or jumbo egg

Check and separate the raisins, picking off any stems you find. Put these in a ceramic bowl and drizzle the water on top. Cover and microwave on 70% power for about a minute and a half – or just use 2T boiling water. Cover to keep the steam and heat in. Let stand a while to rehydrate the raisins.

Stir dry ingredients together. In a medium size mixing bowl, beat butter, sugar(s), almond butter, egg and vanilla until smooth and a little bit fluffy. Add the dry ingredients, mixing well after each addition. Stir in the raisins.

Bake in a greased 9”x13” pan at 325° for 25 minutes±, then let baking pan cool before cutting. - OR - drop balls of dough on cookie sheets, flatten a little with a fork and bake at 325° until the edges dry and brown a little. Let cool on a platter. . .Lin