cookies

• Preheat oven at 350-degrees. Line baking sheet with parchment.
• Combine fruit and nuts with 1 cup of flour, coating everything. This will prevent the fruit from sinking as the cookies bake.
• Cream together the butter, shortening, and sugars. Add the eggs with the vanilla and almond extract. Stir in the remaining flour with the baking soda and salt.
• Stir in the fruit/nut/flour mixture until just combined.
• Drop dough by tablespoons onto the prepared baking sheet. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes.

OM NOM NOM!

• Preheat oven at 375-degrees.
• Zest then juice the orange. Place dried cranberries in bowl and pour orange juice over them, stir, then set aside to soak
• In a large bowl, beat together butter and sugars. Add the egg. Stir in orange zest.
• In a separate bowl, stir together the flour, baking soda, and salt. Gradually blend with butter mixture. Measure 2 tablespoons of orange juice from the bowl, and add to the dough. Drain off the rest of the orange juice (discard it or save it to drink) and add the dried cranberries and white chocolate chips to the dough. Combine.
• Use a tablespoon scoop or spoon to space out dollops of dough on baking sheet; cookies will spread. Bake for 12 to 14 minutes, until cookies are golden and set. Let set on sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer to a rack to completely cool. Repeat with the next batch(es).
• Store in a sealed container.

OM NOM NOM!

• Preheat oven at 375-degrees. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
• In a large bowl, stir together oil, sugar, eggs, and molasses. In a separate bowl, sift together the two flours, baking powder, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, and salt. Gradually stir the dry ingredients into the wet until it is the same consistent brown.
• Divide the dough in half on the prepared baking sheet. Form each into a log about 4 inches wide and 10 inches long; make sure there is space between the two logs, as they'll grow in the oven.
• Bake for 20 minutes, until tops are set when tapped. Remove the baking sheet from oven, but leave the oven on.
• Let the biscotti cool for 10 minutes. Use a large knife, such as a bread knife, to diagonally slice the logs 1/2-inch apart. Use a straight-down motion to cut; don't saw.
• Arrange the biscotti spaced out on the baking sheet. Stand them up if possible, or lay them on their sides. Bake for another 15 minutes, flipping them over halfway if necessary, to equally crisp both sides.
• Cool completely on the baking sheet.
• Zap white chocolate chips with shortening in microwave for 20 seconds, stir, then continue to repeat until it stirs smooth; keep a close eye on it, as the chocolate can burn fast! Use a fork to drizzle white chocolate over biscotti, or dip an end of each biscotti into chocolate.
• Store in an airtight container at room temperature as long as a few weeks. Can also be frozen.

OM NOM NOM!

• In a large bowl, beat the butter until creamy. Add the sugar, pumpkin, vanilla, baking powder, pumpkin pie spice, and salt. Thoroughly combine. Beat in the flour, then fold in the golden raisins. Cover with plastic wrap and chill for at least two hours; this is necessary, as the dough is very sticky, and it's even stickier when warm
• Preheat oven at 350-degrees. In a small bowl, combine the two topping ingredients. Use a tablespoon (a scoop doesn't work well with such sticky dough) to form 1-inch balls; roll them in the topping mix, and place spaced out in a cookie sheet,
• Bake for about 10 to 12 minutes, until cookies are set. Let cool on pan for 10 minutes before moving to a rack. Store in a sealed container.

OM NOM NOM!

• Preheat oven at 350-degrees. Line a large cookie sheet with parchment paper.
• In a large bowl, beat the butter until creamy. Mix in the white sugar, baking powder, baking soda, pumpkin pie spice, and salt. Beat until fluffy, scraping bowl as needed. Add the eggs and vanilla, followed by the pumpkin. Mix in the flour until just combined.
• Use a tablespoon scoop to dole out dough onto the cookie sheet, spacing out to allow for expansion. Bake for 12 to 15 minutes, until tops are set and edges golden. Cool on wire rack.
• Once cookies are completely cool, make the icing. In a small saucepan, cook the butter and brown sugar, stirring constantly until sugar is dissolved. Stir in the milk and vanilla. Mix in the confectioners' sugar until smooth, adding more if necessary to reach a spreadable consistency. Use the back of a spoon to spread the icing onto the cookies. If the icing in the pot begins to harden, stir in a few drops of hot water to make it pliable again.
• Store cookies in a sealed container, with waxed paper or parchment between the layers.
• OM NOM NOM!

• Preheat oven at 350-degrees.Line a 9x13 pan with foil and apply nonstick spray.
• Place flour, sugar, and salt in a large bowl. Add the butter, and use a knife and fork to chop it into crumbles. Measure out 1 cup of this crumb mixture; set aside.
• Place the rest of the crust mix into the baking dish. Distribute evenly, then compress into a thin layer; a piece of wax paper and a heavy glass work well for this.
• Bake for 15 minutes. In the meantime, make the filling.
• Beat eggs, then add in the sugar, flour, salt, sour cream/yogurt, and vanilla. Gently fold in the blueberries.
• Pour the filling over the prebaked crust. Spread out evenly. Sprinkle the reserved crust mixture over the top.
• Bake 55 to 60 minutes, until top is golden brown and passes the toothpick test.
• Cool at room temperature, then chill in fridge to set more firmly. Use foil to lift onto a cutting board to slice into bars. Store in sealed container in fridge with waxed paper or parchment paper between layers. Keeps for at least 3 days.
• OM NOM NOM!