Mother's Day

Hi Everyone,
This week has been totally insane, and I wanted to acknowledge Mother's Day before it actually gets here. I have been knee deep in class the past three weeks. Yesterday started week four and I am really struggling. My latest class is an ethics class. I really enjoy my professor, but I just hate ethics. I spent from 7:30 this morning until 8:06 p.m. completing this week's classwork. I wanted to get it out of the way because this week is a really busy one. Too much to do and too little time.

My mother always requests our presence the day before Mother's Day so we girls may spend Mother's Day with our families. My sister is preparing a special cake and has requested I not bring anything. I had some berry tarts planned but I will shelve that idea until the 4th of July. They will be a perfect dessert for the 4th.

I always like to get my daughter's in law a little something for Mother's Day to let them know how much I appreciate their care of my sons and grandchildren. Sometime's it is a challenge to come up with an appropriate gift. This year I hit the jackpot. I was taking a break in my favorite store, Tuesday Morning, and found lovely cardboard boxes, in different sizes and shapes. They are charming and were very reasonable. I bought tissue paper in contrasting colors and I am going to fill the boxes with special cookies and give to them. I am sure they will love them. I am going to bake them tomorrow night. I need to deliver two gifts on Friday, and one on Saturday and the remainder on Sunday. I have three special cookie recipes I will share with you that will look lovely nestled in the tissue paper, plus a bonus recipe I always make when I have egg whites left over.

Happy Mother's Day to all of you lovely ladies, who do so much for those around you.

This first recipe is time intensive, but the end result is well worth the effort. They are lovely, dainty, and taste amazing; perfect for Mother's Day.

Cream Wafers
1 cup soft butter
2 cups flour
1/3 cup whipping cream

Frosting:
1/4 cup butter
3/4 cup powdered sugar, sifted
1 tsp. vanilla
1 or 2 drops of food color, just enough for a lovely pastel hue

Mix soft butter, flour, and whipping cream well. Chill dough one hour. Roll dough out very thin (less than 1/4-inch). Cut into rounds or simple shapes (hearts or diamonds for instance). Transfer to waxed paper heavily sprinkled with sugar, coating both sides of dough. Place on ungreased cookie sheet. Prick well with fork. Bake at 375-degrees for 7 to 9 minutes. Do not overbake, cookies will not brown. Remove from oven and place on wire rack to cool. Handle cookies gingerly as they are fragile. Mix butter, powdered sugar, vanilla and food color with mixer until smooth and creamy. Place frosting between two cookies. Makes about 2 to 3 dozen cookies, depending on cut size.
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I have been making this recipe for approximately 34 years, and it is a family favorite. The cookies are pretty, smell heavenly when baking, and taste wonderful. I use the remaining egg white to make Forgotten Cookies.

Jelly-Butter Thumbprints
1/2 cup butter (1 stick)
1/3 cup sugar
2 tsps. orange extract
1 tsp. vanilla
1 egg yolk
1 cup flour
1/8 tsp. salt
raspberry jelly or seedless raspberry jam (my favorite)

Cream butter and sugar. Add egg yolk and extracts, and mix well. Add flour and salt, mix well. Roll 1 tsp. of dough into a ball. Place on cookie sheet. Indent center of ball with thumb. Fill indentation with seedless jam or jelly (plum or raspberry). Bake in a preheated 325-degree oven for 15 minutes. Allow to cool slightly before removing from cookie sheet. Place on wire rack to cool completely. About 3 doz. cookies.
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*If I am going to use the egg white to make Forgotten Cookies I double the above recipe.

Forgotten Cookies
Preheat oven to 350-degrees for at least 20 minutes prior to baking.
Beat 2 egg whites until stiff, gradually add:
2/3 cup sugar
1 cup chocolate chips
2 tsps. vanilla

Drop cookies by teaspoon on foil lined cookie sheet. Place in oven and turn oven off. Do not open oven door until it is cool to the touch, five to six hours, or over night.

Yield: 3 dozen cookies.
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Lemon Crinkles

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter
1 cup packed brown sugar
1 egg
1 Tbsp. grated lemon rind
1 1/2 cups flour
1/2 tsp. soda
1/2 tsp. cream of tartar
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. ginger

Heat oven to 350-degrees. Mix butter, sugar, and egg thoroughly, blend in lemon rind. Measure flour; blend in dry ngredients; stir into sugar mixture. Roll in 1-inch balls; dip tops in granulated sugar. Bake on ungreased baking sheet 10 to 12 minutes. Makes about 3 dozen cookies.
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Below is the recipe for the John Wayne Casserole that was requested. This is a wonderful recipe to serve at brunch or luncheon. I got this recipe from my niece, Liz. Bon Apetite'

John Wayne Casserole

Prepare 1 1/2-to-2-quart casserole dish, by spraying with cooking spray.
Mix: 1 17-oz. can of corn, drained
1 4-oz. can mild green chiles, chopped
2 # Co-Jack cheese, grated
Pour over cheese mixture: 4 eggs
2 Tbsps. flour
1 can evaporated milk
Salt and pepper to taste
Bake at 350-degrees for 45 minutes. Let cool 15 to 20 minutes before serving. Serves 6 to 8.
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Happy Cinco de Mayo! My daughter-in-law, Victoria served us a wonderful treat to celebrate this festive day.

Victoria's Fabulous Cinco de Mayo Empanada's
Serves 4 to 6
4 to 6 flour tortillas
1 can Wilderness apple pie filling
1 container frozen, sweetened strawberries, thawed
1 container whipped topping, thawed
Cinnamon sugar, to taste
Cooking oil, as needed

Pour oil into a cast iron skillet and heat to 345 to 350-degrees. While oil heats, place a heaping Tbsp. of apple pie filling in center of tortilla. Fold left side to right, top down, right side to left, and bottom towards top. This will give you a neat rectangular/square bundle. When oil is completely heated, very carefully place bundle, folded side down into hot oil (tongs is the utensil of choice for this job). Cook on one side until golden brown, carefully turn with tongs and cook remaining side until golden. Remove to paper towel covered platter to absorb excess oil. Sprinkle liberally with cinnamon sugar (both sides). Place on serving dish, ladle 1/4 to 1/2 cup of strawberries over empanada and finish it off with a liberal scoop of whipped topping. If you are feeling really decadent top it off with vanilla ice cream instead.
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The moment a child is born, the mother is also born. She never existed before. The woman existed, but the mother, never. A mother is something absolutely new. ~Rajneesh

'Til next time; Peace Out....