Polar Express Cookies and Holiday Movie Night

Well hello, friends.  What a lovely day it is outside here in San Antonio--60*F and sunny.  It didn't freeze last night, but came close.  It was a perfect Saturday night to watch my favorite Christmas movie with Matt and the girls: The Polar Express.

If you didn't know already, my oldest daughter is 8 and has autism.  She has only, in the past two years, been able to sit through even a 30 minute show...and every year, we make popcorn or some other snack, have cocoa/drinks, turn off all the lights with just the glow of the Christmas tree in the background, snuggle in sleeping bags, and watch this wonderful movie...

 Sorry about the terrible photo quality here. 

...And every year, she gets up after about 15-20 minutes and goes and does something else for a while, kind of coming and going throughout.

Not this year.  This was apparently the magic year for Feebs and attention span records.  She watched the entire movie, save for the last 7-10 minutes when she fell asleep.  It brought tears to Matt's and my own eyes, as we realized the significance of just watching a movie all the way through. Such a big step.  Little Sister adored the movie as well--she is 5, almost 6, and was really diggin' the part with Santa.

I've made these wonderful little cookies every year--"The Polar Express" Cookies.

 Matt found them on the back of a Sun-Maid raisin box, and they're quite delicious.  The cornstarch in the powdered sugar does something to the outside--it creates a sort of crisp shell that gives way to a chewy chocolatey center.  We did change just one thing--we add 1/2 cup of semi-sweet chocolate chips.  Next year, we're going to change one more thing, and that is to replace the raisins with dried cherries and see how that is.  Matt is very excited about that (cherry lover!).

Two tips for these cookies: do not overbake or they will be too crispy and that doesn't work well.  The second tip is roll them LIBERALLY in the powdered sugar. They will get that snowy look.

Here's Little Sister, ready to help.  Yes, she has drawn tiger stripes on her face.  Frankly, I'm just glad she limited them to her face...

Creaming the butter/sugar...like watching paint dry. The end product is so delicious, though!  

 the dough is ready to scoop!

rolling in powdered sugar...

...and the finished product!

Yummy POLAR EXPRESS COOKIES!  Chocolatey, sweet goodness. 

I highly recommend for those awesome special occasions with your family.  Here's the recipe so you can make them, too!

POLAR EXPRESS COOKIES

1/2 cup of butter, softened

1 2/3 c. sugar

1 T. vanilla

2 oz unsweetened chocolate, melted

2 c. flour

2 t. baking powder

1/4 t. salt

1/3 c. milk

1 c. raisins

optional: 1/2 c. semi-sweet chocolate chips

powdered sugar, about 1/2 cup in a bowl for rolling/dipping

Combine butter, sugar, and vanilla; beat until light and fluffy (about 5 min).  Blend in the melted chocolate.  Combine flour, baking soda, and salt; add to chocolate mixture alternately with milk,  Stir in raisins and chocolate chips. Refrigerate dough for an hour.  Preheat oven to 350*F.  Grease cookie sheets (I use parchment paper).  Shape dough into balls and dip/roll liberally in powdered sugar.  Place on cookie sheets.  Bake in upper 1/3 of oven for 12 to 15 minutes.  Do not overbake.  Makes 3 1/2 2-inch cookies. 

Enjoy!

Thanksgiving Transgressions and A Swerve Sweetener Review

Happy Monday, Happy December!  Back to the grindstone until the 20th (for me, anyway!).  Enjoy the latest update and as always, feel free to share the link.  If you don't know about Swerve, you can find them online.

They're a sweetener that uses erythritol.  Fantastic for use in chocolates since it doesn't cause the usual tummy trouble that other chocolates do using mannitol, maltitol, sorbitol, etc...!

Went to my Doc's Office...and Weight Loss!

Here's a little about my appointment today, my weight loss this week, and my plans for Thanksgiving.  Thanks for watching!

Problems With My Band...Again

Despite my bummer situation right now, I'm down 4 lbs from Monday...so yay for that...but hopefully, I'll get my band issue worked out.  It is getting tiring, though...

Update for Nov 21...

Howdy, friends.  Just posting my video update from yesterday!

Starting Over...After Weight Loss and Slight Regain

Well, kiddies...here I am, in all my glory.  Remember that it was 7:45AM, I was working on my second cup of coffee, in pjs, and no makeup.  Might as well start with low expectations and work our way up, no?

Are you excited to start Induction again?

No, because it means I've screwed up somewhere.  But also--yes, because I know it works and I know I can do it.

Lowest weight: 186.  Current weight: 212.  Goal weight: 175.

So here we are at Day 1.  See you in a few days.

My Grandma's Old-Fashioned Custard

Let me tell you some things about my fantastic Grandma Byrd (aka the Ole Biddy).

(Audrey Mae James Byrd in 1916)

#1: She was born 5 months after the Titanic sank.

#2: She was hilarious and had a great laugh.

#3: She was an independent woman who knew how to spend money.

#4: She could COOK.  Like you cannot believe!

#5: She could do all sorts of handiwork--embroidery, knitting, crochet, you name it.

#6: She taught me how to whistle.  She was the BEST whistler!

We really want to focus today on #2 and #4.  My favorite memories of my Grandma are her getting so tickled at stuff and just cackling away.  This was usually done when she was in the kitchen, and everyone usually migrated toward that area if she was there.  She was a great conversationalist and had a story for almost everything she ever cooked or baked.

Which leads me to one of the Hubby's favorite desserts: her blissfully simple custard.

One other man springs to mind that loved her custard--my Dad.

Grandma's custard recipe is old but it is very simple.  Custard, or to purists, crème moulée, is any type of sweetened custard thickened with eggs only.  There are variations of custards, from pastry cream used to fill éclairs, all the way to savory custards found in quiche.  We are sticking with the basics.

For this custard, you will need the following:

5 eggs (I use organic, grade AA, large or extra-large)
1 tsp vanilla
2/3 c sugar
1/4 tsp salt
4 cups of whole milk

(If you have almond extract, I highly recommend adding about 1/8 tsp.  If you don't have it, don't sweat it.  It just makes the vanilla a bit more pronounced.)

You do need a little (or big, whatever!) strainer like the one in the pic, or a piece of cheesecloth.

Preheat your oven to 325*F.

In a mixing bowl, whisk eggs, sugar, salt, and extract(s).  Set aside.

In a medium sized saucepan over low-med heat, scald 4 c. of milk, stirring often.  Scalding means to bring it to just under a boil.  If it is steaming, you know it is ready.  Do not bring it to a boil!   You can use a thermometer if you want--let it get to 180*F.

Whisk milk into egg/sugar/salt mixture, quickly.  Stir all together.

Pour over strainer into individual custard cups, corningware ramekins, or similar ovenproof bakeware that have been placed in a bain marie (water bath--hot water about half-way up the outside of the cups or dish).  You can also go the easy route, and just put it in a 2 quart casserole.  Keep in mind the individual cups will cool faster.

I sprinkled cinnamon on some and fresh grated nutmeg on others. You can then place the entire dish, uncovered, in a preheated 325*F oven for 40-45 minutes.

How do I know when it's ready?

You will take a sharp knife and just stick it right down in the middle of the custard, as if you were testing a cake.  It should come out clean, like this:

This may not look clean to you, but it is.  If the custard was not set, the knife would be covered in pudding.

Take them out of the water bath immediately to cool on a rack. Let cool completely.

You can serve them at room temperature, or you can chill them.  If you go the fridge route, be sure to take saran wrap to the top of them, be sure to press the saran down directly on top of the custard to prevent the top from being too thick.

mmmmm....eggy creamy goodness. 

See?  I told you it was simple!  And, there's so many ways you can go with this basic custard.  You can turn it into a brulée by firing up a little sugar on top with your kitchen welding equipment; if you don't have a torch you can put them on a cookie sheet and stick 'em under a broiler (be sure to watch them carefully).  You can also drizzle caramel over the top and call it a flan.  Something else that is really outstanding is Smuckers Boysenberry Syrup with just a couple of fresh blackberries. 

I hope you enjoyed this step-by-step; but I really hope you enjoy the custard.  I am happy to share it with you!