The Ninja Baker - Creative Cookie Exchange

Valentine Fairy Cookies, #Creative Cookie Exchange

NinjaBaker — Mon, 20 Jan 2014 04:53:45 +0000

Snooping can pay off. I spied a container labeled Fairy Cookies in my cousin-in-law’s kitchen. Turns out the jar held homemade cookie mix that cousin Nancy learned how to make in the third grade! Lucky for me, Nancy had just baked a batch of the fairy cookies.

Valentine Fairy Cookies

Nibbling Nancy’s freshly baked cookies whirled me back to memories of my grandmother Nona’s baking. There is something magical and comforting about the fairy cookies. Maybe it’s the sugar crunch. Perhaps it’s the sweet aroma. Or could it be a fairy dust the fairies sprinkle while the cookies are in the oven?

Pixie dust in fairy cookies?

Thanks to cousin Nancy, I am able to share the Fairy Cookies recipe…Just in time for the Creative Cookie Exchange’s Put on Your Pink and Red February Valentine virtual party. (You are welcome to bring your cookies, too. Please scroll down for details.)

Valentine Fairy Cookies

Nancy Lippisch's recipe for fairy cookies is a family treasure. This Ninja Baker is grateful for Nancy's permission to reprint her recipe here.

Ingredients:

Fairy Cookie Mix:

2 1/3 cups Crisco (vegetable shortening)
5 cups sifted all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon salt

Fairy Cookies:

2 cups fairy cookie mix
¾ cup sugar
½ teaspoon soda
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla

Fairy Cookie Topping Options:

Sugar, Cinnamon, Frosting

Directions:

To make fairy cookie mix:

Cut Crisco into the flour and salt until the mixture is crumbly and resembles a bowl of sweet peas. Store in a sealed container until ready to use.

To bake the cookies:

Line cookie sheets with parchment paper.
Combine 2 cups fairy cookie mix with sugar and baking soda. Add the egg and teaspoon of vanilla. Blend well.
Shape into small balls.
Roll in a mixture of colored sanding sugar OR equal parts sugar and cinnamon.
Flatten with a glass bottom. Chill in the refrigerator for an hour.
Bake for 12 minutes at 375 degrees.
When cooled, pipe pink frosting hearts onto the cookies if desired.

Note: The dough is sticky. Plastic gloves come in handy.

A note from Laura of the Spiced Life, the hostess of the Creative Cookie Exchange:

The theme this month is Put On Your Red and Pink for Valentine’s Day! Creative Cookie Exchange has decided to stop using the linky. What this means is that the only way to join in the fun is to become a host. Just contact Laura at thespicedlife AT gmail DOT com and I will get you added to our Facebook group, where we discuss our cookies and share links.

You can also just use us as a great resource for cookie recipes--be sure to check out our Facebook page, our Pinterest Board, and our monthly posts. You will be able to find them the first Tuesday after the 15th of each month! Also, if you are looking for inspiration for Valentine’s Day, check out what all of the hosting bloggers have made so far:

Big Be Mine Cookie from Food Lust People Love
Glazed Doughnut Cookies from Karen's Kitchen Stories
Iced VoVos from All That's Left Are The Crumbs
Jam Sandwich Cookies from A Baker's House
Pomegranate Cheesecake Cookies from It's Yummi!
Strawberry Rhubarb Meringues from The Spiced Life
Valentine Fairy Cookies from NinjaBaking.com
Valentine Heart Cookies from Noshing With The Nolands

A Fairy Cookie:
Sprinkled with red sugar, frosted with a pink heart and magically baked!

Wishing you Valentine day sweetness every day!

The Ninja Baker

© ™ Watkinson 2012

The Ninja Baker has guest blogged and contributed recipes to numerous food sites. These additional recipes can be found here.

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Valentine's Day

Fairy Cookies

Sugar Cookie Recipe

Creative Cookie Exchange

Fuji Apple Cookies, #Creative Cookie Exchange

NinjaBaker — Sun, 13 Oct 2013 04:37:26 +0000

Do apples conjure up images of Halloween apple bobbing? Remembrances of blushing as deep red as the apple you presented to your first grade teacher? Or does Apple simply signify the name of a computer company? In the comments section, please share your favorite apple associations and memories.

Mine is buying Fuji apples after school in Japan at a mom-and-pop fruit store. As I walked to the train station, that first bite revealed a bright white fruit. Sometimes I'd discover that a thread of golden honey had been injected into the middle of the apple. Even without the delightful surprise inside, the crunchy treat made the thought of homework or a hard day at school disappear.

A Fuji apple cookie decorated with a drizzle of maple syrup glaze.

Apparently I am not the only apple fan in the food blogosphere. Laura of The Spiced Life and Rebecka of At Home with Rebecka, co-captains of the Creative Cookie Exchange announced that apples are the star ingredients this month. (Please scroll down for your invite to join the group.)

Drizzled with maple syrup glaze, Fuji apple cookies are my contribution. Inside the cookie, fresh bits of fruit snuggle with yummy vanilla almond granola. This treat might even be legal for breakfast! But the cookies are also partner very well with buttery Bourbon ice cream. As well as matcha green tea ice cream and s'more ice cream...Well, you decide if the Fuji apple cookies are meant for breakfast, dessert or snacking.

Fuji apple cookies and Bourbon ice cream

Fuji Apple Cookies with Maple Syrup Glaze

Bits of finely chopped Fuji apple snuggle with brown sugar and vanilla almond granola. A drizzle of maple syrup glaze provides the perfect garnish. Breakfast, dessert or snack? You decide.

Ingredients:

For the cookies:

1½ cups brown sugar, packed
½ cup butter, softened
¼ cup coconut milk
1 egg
1½ cups all-purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
¼ teaspoon Kosher salt
1½ cups diced Fuji apples
1 cup vanilla almond granola

For the glaze:

¾ cup powdered sugar
2 teaspoons apple juice
5 teaspoons maple syrup

Directions:

For the cookies:

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Line cookie sheets with parchment paper.
In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the brown sugar and butter for 5 minutes.
Add the milk and egg. Combine well.
In a separate clean bowl, whisk together the flours, baking soda, spice and salt.
Gradually add to the butter, milk, egg mix.
Stir in the apple bits and granola.
When thoroughly combined, with a mini (1 teaspoon) ice cream scooper, drop the dough onto the cookie sheets.
Bake for 12 to 13 minutes to a golden brown.
When the cookies are cooled, drizzle glaze over the yummy treats.

For the glaze:
Whisk together the powdered sugar, apple juice and maple syrup. Drizzle over the cookies with a fork.

Here are a few more creative apple cookie recipes:

Love to have you join the Creative Cookie Exchange! Here's the how-to:

1. Write a blog post with recipe and original photo (please include some language here specific to that month's theme). We would like the recipe to be one you’re making for the first time, and photos must be original.
2. Post the Cookie Exchange badge somewhere on your blog so others can join in the fun:

3. Make a good faith effort to visit and comment on the other cookies in the Linky party. We all love cookies so that should be easy!
4. LIKE the Creative Cookie Exchange Facebook Page
5. FOLLOW the Creative Cookie Exchange Pinterest Board
6. LINK your blog post below using the Linky tool

Promising bites of sweet perfection, a Fuji apple beckons.

Wishing you crisp autumn apple days filled with honey-sweetness.

The Ninja Baker

The Ninja Baker has guest blogged and contributed recipes to numerous food sites. These additional recipes can be found here.

Tags:

Fuji apple cookie

Creative Cookie Exchange

maple syrup glaze

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