Cookie Carnival - Raisin Heart Pockets

Boy, talk about coming in under the wire ....  I just made these raisin hearts this morning so I guess technically I didn't even make the deadline. lol

These cookies were pretty easy to mix up but there were several steps for putting it all together. Nice looking cookies but in the end, the verdict from my family was "they're ok...nothing great".

My husband said that they were sort of dry due to the lack of filling. My son and daughter thought that they were bland. My daughter said that they would taste much better filled with chocolate chips. I laughed at that but then I thought of filling the dough with Nutella or something similar.  HHHHmmmm......

(Can you picture a creamy chocolate filling spilling out as you take your first bite?)

In my opinion, I think that the cookies are too big. I think that they would taste much better if you were to use a small circle cutter -- something that's no bigger than 2 bites -- that way you could fill the cookie much easier and with the round shape, you would taste more of the filling in each little bite. Granted, this would take a lot more time to cut, assemble and bake. In the end, I think that it would be worth it.


Raisin Heart Pockets
from Martha Stewart

Makes about 30 cookies

    * 2 2/3 cups all-purpose flour
    * 1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
    * 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
    * 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
    * 1/2 teaspoon salt
    * 1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
    * 1 cup granulated sugar
    * 3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
    * 1 large egg
    * 2 tablespoons whole milk yogurt
    * 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
    * 1/2 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest, or more to taste
    * Raisin Filling for Heart Pockets, or 1 1/2 cups lekvar (prune paste)
    * Confectioners' sugar, for dusting

Directions

   1. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, salt, and nutmeg; set aside.
  
2. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat together the granulated sugar and butter on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add the egg, yogurt, vanilla, and lemon zest, and beat to incorporate. Reduce speed to low, and gradually add flour mixture, beating until combined.
  
3. Divide dough into quarters. Place each quarter between 2 sheets of parchment paper. Roll out dough 1/8-inch-thick. Stack packages of dough on a baking sheet and refrigerate until chilled about 1 hour (or freeze for 30 minutes).
  
4. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Line baking sheets with Silpats.
  
5. Remove one package of dough from refrigerator. Remove top piece of parchment, and then gently pat back into place. Flip entire package over, and peel off and discard second piece of parchment. Using a 3 1/2-inch heart cutter, cut out 15 cookies and place half of them on a prepared baking sheet, leaving 1 inch between cookies.
  
6. Place a generous tablespoon of filling in the center of the hearts on the baking sheet. Spread filling leaving a 1/4-inch border. Top with remaining hearts. Use the tines of a fork, to decoratively press the pocket edges together. Re-roll and chill any remaining dough scraps. Repeat process until all the dough and filling is used. If at any time dough becomes too soft to work with, return to refrigerator until chilled.
  
7. Bake until golden around the edges, 12 to 14 minutes. Rotate pans once after 7 minutes to ensure even baking. Let cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring to wire rack to cool completely. Dust with confectioners' sugar. Store in an airtight container for up to 1 week.

** The only change that I made was to switch out the yogurt for sour cream that I had on hand. **


Raisin Filling 

Makes about 1 1/2 cups

    * 1 2/3 cups raisins
    * 1/2 cup water
    * 1/3 cup packed dark-brown sugar
    * 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
    * 1 1/2 teaspoons finely grated lemon zest
    * 3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Directions

1. Combine the raisins, water, sugar, flour, lemon zest, and cinnamon in a small saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a simmer. Cook, stirring frequently, until most of the liquid is absorbed, 3 to 5 minutes. Transfer to a food processor. Process until smooth. Refrigerate filling until cool and thickened slightly, about 1 hour.

If you're a cookie dunker, you might just be ok with this one.


If you like to bake, why not join in on the fun at the Cookie Carnival? Click here to find out how to join today!

I would love to meet you!

Menu Plan Monday

I ran out of energy this week and gave into frozen foods and take out to get us by at the end of the week. At least we are through that. Time to move on.  :-)

This week's menu is simple home cookin'. Got some family favs in there to keep everyone happy.


Family Menu

M - Greek chicken burgers and mac 'n' cheese

T - meatloaf, mashed potatoes and corn

W- chicken 'n' dumplings

H - penne w/ red sauce

F - taco braid and Spanish rice* - new recipe - didn't make it the last time

A - southwestern macaroni


My Low Carb Menu

M - Greek chicken burger and broccoli salad

T - cabbage and kielbasa

W - chicken minestrone soup

H - pizza gondolas* and side salad - new recipe

F - taco burger and sauteed brussel sprouts

A - omelet


Check out some other great menus at Menu Plan Monday!

Mexican Pasta Skillet + Low Carb Fish Taco Salad

I love it when our nightly dinner recipe turns out to be something that my family really likes, plus I'm able to make it low carb for me with just a few adjustments.

The original recipe for this Mexican Pasta Skillet comes from Betty Crocker. I left out the corn, used ground turkey instead of ground beef and added a low carb taco spice blend to my recipe makeover. I reserved 1/4 C. of the sauce mixture for my fish taco salad. Then I added cooked elbow macaroni to the remaining sauce for my family.

My recipe makeover looks like this:

Tami's Mexican Pasta Skillet

1 lb ground turkey
16 oz salsa - I used "hot"
16 oz tomato sauce
1 1/2 C. water
1 lb. cooked elbow macaroni
1/2 C. shredded mexi blend cheese
low carb taco seasoning blend* - recipe below

Brown turkey; drain off grease, if necessary. Return turkey to skillet.

Stir in low carb taco seasoning blend, salsa, tomato sauce and water.

Reduce heat and cook for 10 minutes. Stir in cooked elbow macaroni and heat through.

Sprinkle the shredded cheese on top of the pasta. Cover with a lid to allow the cheese time to melt - 2 minutes.

Serve with warm bread and a side salad.

Low Carb Taco Seasoning

1 t. chili powder
3/4 t. paprika
3/4 t. cumin
1/2 t. onion powder
1/2 t. salt
3/8 t. garlic powder
pinch cayenne

I doubled this amount for the recipe above.

I cannot take credit for creating this great spice blend. You can see the original recipe here.


Now for my low carb fish taco salad........

Last night we had Red Pepper & Parmesan Talapia. If you are fond of fish - and even if you are not - you should try this recipe. It's delicious. I also sprinkled a little cajun spice on the fish to give it a little "kick".

There was one piece of fish left over from last night so I decided to add it to my salad. Win-Win-Win! It's low carb...it's delicious....I used up the leftovers instead of throwing them out.

Tami's Low Carb Fish Taco Salad

1 - 1 1/2 C. Italian salad mixed greens
1 piece of leftover red pepper & parmesan talapia
1/3 piece of an English cucumber, roughly chopped
1/4 C. taco meat sauce from mexican pasta skillet recipe (above)
2 TBSP sour cream
2 TBSP shredded mexi blend cheese

Layer in order:

greens
cucumber
fish
taco meat sauce
sour cream
cheese

This new twist on salad will be added to my list of favorites! The recipe makes a big salad that could easily have been divided into 2 salads if you wanted to serve another vegetable with it. I couldn't finish the whole thing by myself.

Menu Plan Monday

Not a good weekend for us....  my daughter's class is still passing around strep throat, my son is sick and today I woke up with a stomach virus. UGH  None the less, life goes on.....

I wasn't really motivated when I put this menu together. I'm going to rely on some family favorites and a couple of easy new recipes to get us through the week. 

I hope that everyone's week has started on a better note than mine. Happy Cooking!


My Low Carb Menu

M - beef soup

T- red pepper & parmesan talapia, turnip greens & cucumber salad

W - taco salad

H - pork soulvaki (frozen in marinade in freezer), broccoli & cauliflower & salad

F - roasted chicken, brussel sprouts & veggie stix w/ dip

A - Greek turkey burger & a Greek salad

S - sloppy joe stuffed pepper


Family Menu

M - beef noodle soup - elbow mac instead of tortellini

T - red pepper & parmesan talapia, jasmine rice, green beans & cucumber salad

W - Mexican taco skillet* - new recipe

H - pork soulvaki (frozen in marinade in freezer), Greek potatoes, broccoli & salad

F - roasted chicken, egg noodles & gravy, southwest egg rolls* - new recipe

A - Greek turkey burgers, fries & Greek salad

S - spaghetti & meatballs


Check out Menu Plan Monday for lots of great menu ideas from all over the world.

Shamrock Ice Cream Sandwiches

A perfect way to end your St. Patrick's Day meal is with these scrumptious ice cream sandwiches. These Shamrock shaped treats are sure to please all of the little Lads and Lassies at your St. Patrick's Day table!

What You Need
Sugar cookie
dough - either store bought or your own recipe*
Medium to Large Shamrock cookie cutter
Green paste food coloring
Toothpick
A Pair of Latex gloves (protects from getting green hands!)
Flour
Rolling pin
Cookie sheets
Mint Chocolate Chip, Pistachio or Vanilla ice cream (tinted green), softened slightly


What You Do

**My favorite sugar cookie recipe is below

If making homemade cookies, mix and leave finished dough in a non-porous bowl. If using store bought dough, unwrap and add to a non-porous bowl.

Put on your gloves. This next step can get a little bit messy.

Using a toothpick, dip it into the green food coloring, removing a tiny bit of food coloring. Add it to the cookie dough.

NOTE: A very little bit of this food coloring goes A LONG way to adding color to the dough. To be safe, start out using just a little and continue adding a little bit at a time until you reach the desired color.

Use your hands to mix the color into the dough. This process might take a few minutes but with continued mixing, the color will evenly spread throughout dough.

If the dough becomes too sticky, add a small amount of flour (approx. 1/4 cup) to the dough and mix together thoroughly.

Continue these steps until the desired color and consistency is reached.

Next, lightly flour the table where you are going to be rolling out the dough, to prevent the dough from sticking. Roll out the dough to 1/4 - 1/2 inch thickness.

Cut out the Shamrocks (2 for each sandwich) and place on an ungreased cookie sheet, making sure to leave enough room between the cookies so they don't bake together. Bake at 350 degrees F for 10 - 12 minutes or until the edges of the cookies are light golden brown. Cool completely before making ice cream sandwiches.

TO ASSEMBLE ICE CREAM SANDWICHES

Holding the bottom side of one cookie, spread the softened ice cream, nice and thick, onto the cookie. Top with second cookie. Fill in any uneven spots around the cookie. Smooth out rough edges with your finger to give a nice, smooth look.

Place onto a cookie sheet or plate, then back into the freezer. Freeze until solid.

Once frozen, you can serve as dessert or each sandwich can be individually wrapped in plastic wrap and kept in the freezer.

Tami's Old Fashioned Sour Cream Cookies

1/2 cup shortening (part butter or margarine)
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1 tsp. vanilla
2 2/3 cup flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. nutmeg (optional) I leave it out for white cookies
1/2 cup sour cream

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.

Mix shortening, sugar, egg, & vanilla thoroughly. Blend dry ingredients. Add to sugar mixture alternately with sour cream.

Divide dough, roll out on a well-floured board. Cut with cookie cutters (metal cookie cutters w/ open tops are the easiest) You can make these as thick as you want... the thicker, the chewier.

Place cookies on lightly greased baking sheets. Sprinkle with sugar unless you are going to ice them. Bake 7-8 minutes or until very lightly browned around the edges. Makes 3-4 dozen but I never get this many because I make mine thicker.

If you use the nutmeg in them, you don't even need the icing but it will give your cookies a slight off-white appearance if they are left un-iced.

If you like chewy cookies, roll them out a little thicker. If you like thin crispy cookies, roll a kind of thin but not real thin or you wont be able to remove to them from cookie pan.

This dough is very easy to work with too! I always double it because I like the thicker cookies.