A Pinch of Love, A Smidgen of Joy - Easter and Peanut Butter Cookies

Easter is one of those holidays, much like Christmas, where you don't fully understand its importance until you're an adult. When you're a child, you dress up in your best clothes for Easter Sunday and hear the stories of the resurrection of Christ in church. You also see the non-religious side of things, with the Easter bunny, hiding and seeking eggs, and receiving egg-shaped chocolates and candies in your Easter basket. Your brother and you fight over who gets the Cadbury Chocolate Eggs. Your parents take your family on an Easter picnic lunch of fried chicken and the fixings after Sunday church service. You go about the holiday, enjoying nature and the pretty Spring weather. But, especially when you're a child, it's hard to really take to heart the importance of Easter and what it means at its core.

Not to get too terribly deep (this is a food blog after all), but our family found real importance in these things, like the true meaning of Christian holidays. (See Momma's blog post last year on Easter.) I think as kids, we have this innocent idea of what life and celebrating holidays is about. And when we grow up, we realize that the things our parents taught us and by taking us to church at an early age was one of the best things they could ever do for us. I'm thankful for my Momma and Daddy and their strong faith and respect for the Bible and to follow its teachings. The truth of the matter is, Christ died for us and saved us from a life of sinfulness, and then He rose from the dead. Easter both commemorates and celebrates that truth. Of course that's a lot to swallow as a child. So maybe it's appropriate that you're introduced to these things as kids and only really understand it when you're older. It's about the gravity of what God did for us by sending his Son to die for us. It's both heartbreaking and life saving.

I'm so thankful to understand the true meaning of Easter. The chocolate eggs, the picnics and fried chicken, the bunny rabbits - that's all fun to enjoy. It's because of Christ that we can enjoy those things. Because this is my first Easter without my Momma, the truth of Christ's resurrection has held an even more crucial place in my life. I know that Momma is in Heaven with God. I know that because God sent his Son to die for us, we can be saved from an eternity apart from Him. And I know my Momma believed in her Savior and is with Him today. I know I will see God someday too, and I'll see my Momma again. That gives me so much JOY and reason to celebrate! It is with that hope that I hold on to and can fully experience the wonderful truth of Jesus's death and resurrection. That He lives. And she is with Him. And my heart is at peace knowing that truth.

This truth is reason for celebration, and Momma always said our family celebrates best with food - especially sweet desserts! One of our family's all-time favorite desserts is Peanut Butter Cookies. I can't tell you how many times I've eaten Momma's Peanut Butter Cookies over the years. Baked or raw dough, I love it all. And so does the rest of my family. Peanut Butter Cookies remind me of my Momma, and this Easter I am reminded not only of my Momma but also her presence with our risen Lord. I am so thankful for the hope we are given and the JOYful celebration that commences because of this hope!

Happy Easter, y'all!

Pat’s (Momma's) Peanut Butter Cookies

 

Ingredients:

2 ½ cups all-purpose flour

½ teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking powder

2 sticks butter (1 cup) (Momma suggested 1 stick of Blue Bonnet margarine and 1 stick of salted butter, but I use 2 sticks of unsalted butter, both at room temp)

2 tablespoons Crisco solid (plain)

1 cup granulated sugar

1 cup moist brown sugar, packed

2 large eggs, beaten slightly

1 cup smooth peanut butter (basically half of a regular container)

1 teaspoon vanilla flavoring

Optional: 1 cup M&M candies

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In a large bowl, sift flour, soda, salt and baking powder together, and set aside. In another large bowl cream sugars with electric mixer until well-blended. Add softened butter and Crisco and blend well; add eggs, peanut butter and vanilla. Mix thoroughly until smooth and fluffy. Do not use an electric mixer for the remaining steps. Use a spatula to combine flour mixture only long enough to form a smooth dough. (At this point add candies, like M&Ms, if using them) Using a cookie dropper or large tablespoon, dip rounded balls of dough to ungreased cookie sheets. Press cookies in a criss-cross fashion with fork dipped in flour. Bake 10-12 minutes, depending on your oven. You’ll want them to be very lightly golden. Remove and allow to sit on cookie sheet a minute before removing to countertop (aluminum foil or waxed paper lined) to cool completely before storing. Makes about 6-7 dozen, depending on size … “These are so yummy!” Momma says in her cookbook.

(Recipe Courtesy of "A Pinch of This, A Smidgen of That" cookbook by Patricia Rains

Momma's Peanut Butter Cookies, arranged on a lovely Spring platter for Easter.

 

Assemble all of your ingredients for the cookies, making sure your butter is at room temp. (M&Ms are optional and can be added later, after the cookie batter is made.)

Whisk dry ingredients together in one bowl.

 Blend sugars together.

Add butter, and cream sugar and butter together. (Add Crisco now, too, although I added it with the peanut butter, eggs and vanilla)

The mixture should become soft and fluffy.

 

Add the peanut butter, eggs and vanilla to the wet mixture, and blend.

This is what the final wet mixture should look like - basically like peanut butter.

 At this point, stop using the blender, and mix in the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients with a spatula. 

This is what the peanut butter dough will look like once blended thoroughly.

I took part of the batter and added regular M&Ms to give it a fun color.

I scooped out the dough balls using a cookie scoop and placed the cookie dough on a silicone baking sheet.

Using flour and a fork, I made a criss-cross pattern with the cookies. (You can do the criss-cross pattern on the M&M peanut butter cookies, too, but I chose not to on this one.)

 To the regular peanut butter cookies, I also added a sprinkle of sugar on top before baking.

 



The cookies are ready to bake!

 

The finished product - so yummy!

 

EnJOY this Easter!

Celebrating Easter with Chocolate

"They brought the donkey and the colt, placed their cloaks on them, and Jesus sat on them. A very large crowd spread their cloaks on the road, while others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. The crowds that went ahead of him and those that followed shouted, 'Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!'" (Matthew 21:7-9)

 





This coming Sunday is Palm Sunday for Christians around the world. Traditionally, Palm Sunday occurs between March 15 and April 18. This is an important and solemn day that honors Christ's triumphant entrance into Jerusalem. It is the Sunday before Easter, and begins the Christian commemoration of Holy Week.

On Palm Sunday Jesus entered the Holy City of Jerusalem surrounded by a crowd of followers. The palms disbursed by many churches signify the branches that were spread in on the road as Jesus approached. Little did they know the dark road that lay ahead of Him that week. Many who welcomed Him with palm branches would shout, "Crucify Him!" just a few days later.

This last Sunday of Lent is also called Passion Sunday. The Biblical accounts of the last days of Christ's life all agree that as He returned to Jerusalem to celebrate Passover with His followers, the crowds who were eager to proclaim him the Messiah, "Took branches of palm trees, and went forth to meet him, and cried, Hosanna: Blessed is the King of Israel that cometh in the name of the Lord." (John 12:13) 

Today, many Christian churches traditionally hold services on Palm Sunday when leaves of palm, often shaped into crosses to symbolize Jesus' last hours on the cross, are given to the congregation. In many areas there are procession with the palm fronds to commemorate the journey of Christ. In churches that observe Ash Wednesday by giving ashes to their members at the beginning of Lent, these palms are burnt for use in this symbolic ceremony.

Tradition has always played an important part in the observance of Holy Week. In Great Britain, traditional foods served on Palm Sunday include fig pudding, because Jesus is said to have eaten figs on his entry into the city of Jerusalem. (I don't know if He actually ate figs or not, but the Bible says He cursed a fig tree that same week.) In Wales, the day is known as Flowering Sunday because of the association with the flowering of the fig tree. Making split pea soup is another tradition still observed in Northern England and Scotland, derived from the ancient practice of wearing a hard pea in the shoe as penance during Lent. (Ouch! How would you like to wear a pea in your shoe for 40 days?)

In other areas of the UK, pax cakes - along with best wishes for peace and brotherhood - are given out to congregations after Palm Sunday services in a custom said to date back to the 1500's.

In the Greek tradition, Lenten fast is broken with a fish dinner on Palm Sunday featuring bakaliaros or salt cod. In some parts of Italy, homemade fettuccini pasta topped with tomato sauce, bread crumbs and chopped nuts is the customary Palm Sunday dish.

More modern interpretations of appropriate foods to be eaten on Palm Sunday include hearts of palm featured in salads and side dishes to observe the day. (SOURCE: http://www.chiff.com/home_life/holiday/palm-sunday.htm)

As a child, I don't recall any particular "tradition" that my family observed on Palm Sunday, but as I've grown older and been able to study the biblical account of the event, it has been a good reminder to me of Christ's dark week of suffering, leading up to His crucifixion. Both Easter Sunday and Palm Sunday provide times to worship, followed by family dinners and quiet reflection about the price Jesus paid for us.

Growing up, one of the biggest attractions of Easter (besides hunting Easter eggs) was its desserts. I remember Momma baking special buns or hot rolls, and always providing a huge table full of all kinds of great things to eat, but the thing I enJOYed most was her delicious desserts. She always presented us with a homemade cake that never seemed to last very long. Easter desserts have always been an important part of the meal. After the long fasting season of Lent, Easter is the time for feasts and celebrating new life with lavish desserts. Today's Easter baskets would be considered incomplete without sweets, cookies, candies, and chocolate----especially chocolate! Do you know the source of most chocolate products? If you did, would you still want to eat chocolate? Just as we can see a dark side to Passion Week, there is a dark side to chocolate (and I'm not just referring to the color). Let me challenge you to read these articles (links below) concerning child slavery and human trafficing associated with the production and exportation of chocolate. I hope it will be an eye-opener for you (as it has been to me), and that it will make you stop and consider the suffering and sacrifices that still go on today, despite our Savior's defeat of evil that Easter morning over 2000 years ago.  Each time you taste chocolate, let it remind you of Christ's suffering on the cross and the sweetness that we enJOY because of His triumph over the grave on Easter Sunday. This is the most recent article: http://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2013/03/the-dark-side-of-chocolate/ This one contains a video: http://www.filmsforaction.org/watch/the_dark_side_of_chocolate_2010/ This is also a video: http://www.thedarksideofchocolate.org/ You may wonder why I would choose to cook with chocolate after reading and viewing material at these sites. Just as we are not to be "overcome by evil, but we're to overcome evil with good" (Romans 12:21), many manufacturers of chocolate are overcoming the abuses and learning how to make chocolate ethically, and make it really well. As Christians, we bear the responsibility to be lights in the darkness (and to be the sweetness that flavors this world of bitterness). Chocolate is a product that most everyone loves and realizing the dark side of its history doesn’t have to lessen your enJOYment of it. It can actually enhance your appreciation. I think the perfect dessert for Palm Sunday is a rich, fudgy chocolate cake that I want to share with you today. I remember when one of my sisters made this cake and served it at a family dinner. It's always been a favorite. But this year, it will be more than that-- it will remind me to be a light in someone's darkness while bringing sweetness to an otherwise bitter world. Gather the ingredients... and notice that I forgot to include sugar in the supplies photo! Chocolate without sugar tastes very different. For better or for worse, chocolate and sugar go hand in hand. Without sugar to sweeten the bitter chocolate, the cake would be inedible. Without Christ's sacrifice on the cross, life's journey would be bitter indeed. Thank Him, today, for all He's done for you! And have a BLESSED Palm Sunday and Holy Week!  COCA-COLA CAKE (Page 107 in "A Pinch of This ... A Smidgen of That" Cookbook.) Here's what you'll need:  CAKE INGREDIENTS: 2 cups flour 2 cups sugar 2 sticks margarine 1 cup Coca-Cola 1/2 cup buttermilk 2 eggs 1 tsp. baking soda 1 tsp. Vanilla 3 Tbsp. cocoa 1 1/3 cup miniature marshmallows ICING INGREDIENTS: 1/2 cup butter (1 stick) 6 Tbsp. Coca-Cola 3 Tbsp. cocoa 1 lb. box powdered sugar 1 cup pecans, chopped and, don't forget the SUGAR! Preheat your oven to 350 F. Grease and flour an oblong cake pan. Wisk flour and sugar to mix.  Heat margarine and Coca-Cola to boiling; pour over flour mixture. Mix well. (Note that I'm using a spatula to stir this, not a mixer. So easy!)  Add buttermilk, and stir to mix. Add slightly beaten eggs, Stir in baking soda, Add vanilla and cocoa, and gently fold in marshmallows. Pour into greased (and floured, if you prefer) cake pan. Marshmallows will float to the top. Bake at 350 degrees for 35 minutes. It will look something like this when it's done: Now, to make the icing. You can actually begin making it a few minutes before the cake comes out of the oven, because you'll cover the cake with it while it's still hot. First, combine butter, Coca-Cola, and cocoa. Heat to boiling. Pour hot mixture over powdered sugar and chopped pecans (if you choose to mix pecans in the icing, instead of on top as a garnish). I added my pecans to the powdered sugar before I added the hot cocoa mixture. Add more powdered sugar or Coca-Cola to thicken or thin, or as needed. Mix well. This needs to be a medium consistency (not thick, but not too thin, either), so you can pour and spread it evenly over the cake. It will firm up as it cools. Spread icing evenly over hot cake. Sprinkle chopped nuts over cake, (if you didn't include them in the icing mixture, as I did). EnJOY!! Have a BLESSED and JOY-filled Palm Sunday and week ahead! COCA-COLA CAKE   CAKE INGREDIENTS: 2 cups flour 2 cups sugar 2 sticks margarine 1 cup Coca-Cola 1/2 cup buttermilk 2 eggs 1 tsp. baking soda 1 tsp. Vanilla 3 Tbsp. cocoa 1 1/3 cup miniature marshmallows ICING INGREDIENTS: 1/2 cup butter (1 stick) 6 Tbsp. Coca-Cola 3 Tbsp. cocoa 1 lb. box powdered sugar 1 cup pecans, chopped CAKE DIRECTIONS: Combine flour and sugar. Heat margarine and Coca-Cola to boiling; pour over flour mixture. Mix well. Add buttermilk, eggs, baking soda, vanilla, cocoa, and marshmallows. Pour into greased cake pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 35 minutes. ICING DIRECTIONS: Combine butter, Coca-Cola, and cocoa in a small saucepan. Heat mixture to boiling and pour over powdered sugar (you may add pecans at this time or wait and use them as garnish). Use more or less powdered sugar or Coca-Cola, as needed to form medium consistency (should be able to pour and spread the hot mixture over the cake). Blend well. Ice cake while cake is still hot. Sprinkle chopped nuts over cake (if you didn't include them in your icing mixture).

Celebrating Easter (a post from 2012)

Every year in March and April, we gear up for new beginnings with spring cleaning, new ventures, vacations, and new ideas. Our culinary projects are no exception to this rule. Springtime brings with it beautiful colors, textures, and foods that speak to our need for new beginnings. Spring is a great time for us to gather at parks and other outdoor venues where we enJOY sharing family birthdays, school breaks, and just being together.

In mid-March, we enJOYed celebrating our grandson's tenth birthday at a local park, just before taking him on a trip to Savannah, GA during his spring break from school.

After a great week in Savannah, we arrived home and were greeted with a yard full of colorful apple blossoms, dogwood blooms, and an abundance of purple phlox and bird-foot violets.

Dogwoods are just one of the traditional symbols that have been adopted to go along with Easter. Of course, the "Legend of the Dogwood" is just that--a legend, but I like the reminders it provides. Here's how it goes:



"At the time of the crucifixion, the dogwood had reached the size of the mighty oak tree. So strong and firm was the wood that it was chosen as the timber for Jesus' cross. To be used for such a cruel purpose greatly distressed the dogwood. While nailed upon it, Jesus sensed this, and in his compassion said, 'Because of your pity for my suffering, never again shall the dogwood tree grow large enough to be used for a cross. Henceforth, it shall be slender, bent, and twisted, and its blossoms shall be in the form of a cross–two long and two short petals. In the center of the outer edge of each petal will be the print of nails. In the center of the flower, stained with blood, will be a crown of thorns so that all who see it will remember.'" (SOURCE: http://www.appleseeds.org/dogwood.htm and http://www.twoeggfla.com/dogwood.html)

Celebrating Easter with eggs has also become a tradition all over the world.

Some say that Easter eggs have come to symbolize long life and happiness. Also,"... because the use of eggs was forbidden during Lent, they were brought to the table on Easter Day, colored red to symbolize the Easter JOY..." (SOURCE: http://foodtimeline.org/easter.html) For some, the red Easter egg is much more than a celebration of JOY at the end of fasting -- it is an attestation of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ from the grave and of the HOPE we have in Him for eternal life. (SOURCE: http://mybloglovegreece.blogspot.com/2011/04/holy-thursday-tradition-of-red-easter.html)

I hope you will take time to read the trivia concerning the use of eggs (BOTH red and multi-colored) at Easter and share it with your children and grandchildren.

Although I don't recall ever coloring our eggs red, I really like the idea that red was used to symbolize Easter JOY! However, since I'm not a fan of boiled eggs (they smell awful), and I imagine you already know how to boil and color them (just read the instructions on the kit! :-), I decided to share one of my favorite red spring salads ---also guaranteed to bring much JOY to the eater. (NOTE: We're calling it a "salad" because it has less calories that way! But, if you choose, you can also serve this if you're craving a light dessert.:-)

I love it when the grocery stores begin stocking fresh, juicy, crimson red strawberries (and when the prices drop low enough that I can actually afford to buy them :-). Such was the case this past week, so I purchased two quarts. I used one to make my mama's strawberry cake (click on this URL for the recipe: http://www.pinchofthissmidgenofthat.blogspot.com/search/label/strawberry%20cake) and the other to make my "Favorite Strawberry Pretzel Salad" (see page 28 of "A Pinch of This... A Smidgen of That" cookbook). So, let me share a bit of spring with you and get you in the mood to celebrate Easter JOY with your friends and family. Follow me to the kitchen and start gathering ingredients!

Preheat oven to 375°. Mix 2 tbsp .sugar (more if you like a sweeter crust), crushed** pretzels and butter and place in a 9-x-13-inch baking dish. Bake 8 minutes, then cool in refrigerator or freezer. (**Hint: To crush my pretzels, I place an estimated 2 cups of them in a large ziplock freezer bag, seal it, and use my dough roller to beat them---a great way to release pent up tension! :-)

I really should have hit that bag a few more times. I didn't get my pretzels broken up as small as I like them (but I didn't realize that until I sampled the salad... I ate it anyway! :-). You can choose how fine you crush them. I like mine in really small pieces (not quite crumbs).

Since I purchased fresh berries instead of the frozen ones, I washed, sliced, and placed them in the freezer to chill before time to add them to my jello mixture. (You can skip this step if you bought a package of frozen ones :-).
Aren't these pretty? The bright RED juciness really does inspire JOY!

Cream together 1 cup sugar and cream cheese.

Add whipped topping and mix well.

Spread over cooled pretzel mixture;

place in refrigerator until cream cheese mixture is firm.

Mix boiling water with strawberry gelatin; stir until dissolved. (Yes, I know... it wasn't too smart to use a RED bowl when trying to photograph RED Jello! Next time, I'll know better! :-)

Add frozen strawberries. (REMEMBER: Since I used fresh strawberries for this recipe, I washed and sliced them, then put them in the freezer to get cold before I added them to the warm jello water. If you let them freeze, they will speed the jelling process.) The colors in this mixture just get prettier and prettier, don't they? :-) (Are you feelin' the JOY yet? ;-)

Place gelatin mixture in refrigerator until it BEGINS to thicken, then pour and spread over cream cheese mixture ...

and chill until set.

YUMMMM! is all I can say!

Slice and enJOY! Store in the refrigerator.

Don't forget to print or copy/paste the recipe below:

FAVORITE STRAWBERRY PRETZEL SALAD

Ingredients:

2 tbsp. plus 1 cup sugar (powdered or granulated), divided
2 cups crushed pretzels
1/2 cup butter; melted

1 8-oz. package cream cheese, room temperature
1 8-oz. container frozen whipped topping, thawed
2 cups boiling water

1 6-oz. (large) package strawberry gelatin

1 10-oz. package frozen strawberries (or one quart fresh strawberries, sliced)

Preheat oven to 375°. Mix 2 tbsp .sugar, pretzels and butter and place in a 9-x-13-inch baking dish. Bake 8 minutes, then cool in refrigerator or freezer. Cream together 1 cup sugar and cream cheese. Add whipped topping and mix well. Spread over cooled pretzel mixture; place in refrigerator until cream cheese mixture is firm. Mix boiling water with strawberry gelatin; stir until dissolved. Add frozen strawberries. (Since I used fresh strawberries for this recipe, I washed and sliced them, then put them in the freezer to get cold before I added them to the warm jello water. If you let them freeze, they will speed the jelling process.) Place gelatin mixture in refrigerator until it BEGINS to thicken, then pour and spread over cream cheese mixture and chill until set. Slice and enJOY! Store in the refrigerator.

I pray that you and yours enJOY a BLESSED Easter together.

Share some of your favorite Easter traditions by leaving a comment below.

If you don't have any Easter traditions, get together with your family and start some!