Thursday Recipe - Jello Cookies

Or whatever you call them. These fun cookies use flavored gelatin, so go wild. Make them any flavor/color you want. I've run across several different versions of these, but this one has worked best for me. I made strawberry and lime for this Christmas picture. Ignore the sorry tree, it's my son's personal one he got from a Cub Scout leader years ago. It's a tradition for us to have hokey/dorky Christmas decorations. You should see the real tree. Wait, no you shouldn't. I'd be embarrassed.

Jello Cookies

3/4 c. butter, softened
1/3 c. shortening
1 c. sugar
1 3 oz. pkg. flavored gelatin
1 t. vanilla
1 egg
1 t. baking powder
3 to 3.5 c. flour

Heat oven to 400°. Cream butter, shortening, sugar, and gelatin until well blended and fluffy. Add vanilla, egg, and baking powder. Beat well. Stir in flour. If the dough is really sticky, add that extra half cup. It should be a soft dough, but not a really sticky one. If you're concerned, go ahead and bake one cookie. If it spreads too much, then add the extra flour. Scoop by Tablespoonfuls onto a greased cookie sheet. Bake at 400° (you preheated the oven, right?) for 8 minutes, until very lightly browned. Let the cookies set up for 3-5 minutes before removing from the cookie sheet.

Hint: Don't mix gelatin flavors in the same batch. Do separate batches.

I pulled out about 1/3 c. of the mix before I added flour and used 2/3 c. rice flour to make cookies for my wheat-allergic daughter. It worked quite well. That's why I'm not quite sure how much real flour it takes. So if you're gluten-intolerant, you can substitute rice flour (a little gritty but not bad) or your favorite flour blend.

Optional stuff to make them fancy: Dip the tops of the cookies into colored sugar, extra jello, or colored sprinkles (the ball kind) before baking. Talk about festive!

Enjoy the cookies. I think I'm going to find some grape and berry blue jello to try next...

Thursday Recipe - Candy Cane Cookies

Here's my December cheer moment. These cookies are not those time-consuming, delectable butter cookie creations shaped like candy canes. These are my answer to all those candy canes lying around your house that no one will eat. It is also a great recipe for relieving stress and anger. And it tastes really good when you're done. Because they are chocolate chip cookies, nobody cares if they are lumpy and misshapen. So, don't stress. Not everything has to look perfect and tidy this month. You should see the way I'm wrapping presents this year. I'm letting the 7yo do it for me. I just need a lot more tape than normal...

Candy Cane Cookies

12-20 candy canes, any size but please don't mix the peppermint with the fruit. That's just plain nasty. Use one or the other.
1/2 c. butter
1/2 c. shortening
1 c. brown sugar
1 c. white sugar
3 eggs
1 t. vanilla
1 t. baking soda
1 t. salt
3 c. flour
1 c. chocolate chips, milk preferred this time

Unwrap all the candy canes and stuff them into a plastic bag. Don't use a ziploc or anything that seals tightly. Clean bread bags are great. Triple bag the bag with candy canes in it. Twist the top loosely to keep them from exploding out the top. Take a rolling pin and beat them into smithereens. Work out all that built-up aggression. You want nothing bigger than a chocolate chip when you're through. Set the candy cane remnants aside.

Heat oven to 375° F. Cream butter, shortening, and sugars together. Add eggs, soda, salt, and vanilla. Beat until smooth and creamy. Stir in flour, chocolate chips, and candy cane bits. Scoop dough by tablespoonfuls onto well greased cookie sheet. Bake 8 - 10 minutes, until lightly browned. Let cool 1 - 2 minutes, then move to a cooling rack. Don't let them cool on the pan or you'll be sorry. Melted candy canes are not only VERY HOT but sticky and messy. They stick to cookie sheets when they set back up. Let the cookies cool at least 10 minutes before you eat them. Did I mention the candy cane bits will melt and get VERY HOT?

Have a great holiday. I'll have to post other traditional Christmas recipes as I remember them or my kids ask for them.