Welcome
to the 2nd issue of the 2004 season for the Christmas-Cookies.com
newsletter. Keep reading for exclusive recipes, helpful articles,
cookbooks reviews, and more! If
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| I N T H I S I S S U E |
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| G E T W H A T Y O U N E E D I N T I M E F O R T H E H O L I D A Y S |
| A R T I C L E : C H R I S T M A S C O O K I E S A N D T H E 2 0 0 4 E L E C T I O N |
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Christmas Cookies and the 2004 Election - All in Good Fun! by Kristin Johnson Election season is over and the major players of the 2004 election can concentrate on their Christmas baking and gift-giving. Everyone loves and agrees on Christmas cookies. Well, not everyone. The country is so divided and no one can agree, even on Christmas cookies… Here's what the faces of the 2004 election had to say about cookies. John Kerry: "The UN needs to approve the cookies. I have a plan. I voted for chocolate. I voted against chocolate. I voted for chocolate before I voted against it. These are the wrong cookies at the wrong place at the wrong time. Our intelligence on the cookies is faulty. This president has made the cookies more dangerous for America. Chocolate or hazelnut? I can't decide! But I have a plan." George Bush: "We are baking the cookies now whether Europe likes it or not. Tony Blair likes cookies. These cookies are going in the oven NOW. Don't let the cookies win! Mission accomplished!" Ralph Nader: "I support cookies because they're environmentally friendly. And I bake all my own too. What else do I have to do in this election?" Hillary Rodham Clinton: "The cookies are part of a vast right-wing conspiracy." Bill Clinton: "Honey babe, could you pass me the cookies?" Dan Rather: "I swear the Christmas cookie recipe was not forged." Michael Moore: "I swear too. These are the facts. The cookies being ruined is all Bush's fault. Americans are too fat and stupid and lazy to make cookies anyway. Dude, where's my cookies? Stupid white men messed up the cookies. By the way, let me have another cookie. Or a dozen. The left ruined the cookies too. I'm the only expert on cookies." The New York Times: "George W. Bush jeopardized the safety of the cookies. He caused the cookies to be moved." Bill O'Reilly: "I'm baking these cookies in the no-spin zone. I'm looking out for your cookies. And for all you secularists, they're called CHRISTMAS cookies." Teresa Heinz Kerry: "Shut up about cookies!" Dick Cheney: "Cookies give me heart attacks." John Edwards: "John Kerry is the best man to bake cookies. And if they make you fat, I'll sue the cookie makers. No cookies for the rich!" John McCain: "I go both ways on the cookies." Laura Bush: "I support my husband on the cookies." Osama bin Laden: "The cookies will decide your future. There will be more attacks because of the cookies. Cookies are for Western infidels." Arnold Schwarzenegger: "Cookies are not for girlie men!" Forget all the conflicting opinions. Vote cookies! About the
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| C O O K B O O K S P O T L I G H T |
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| E X C L U S I V E R E C I P E S |
Mocha Macaroons makes about 30 2 ounces semi-sweet
chocolate Pre-heat oven to 325 F and grease baking sheets. Grate 1/2 ounce of the chocolate and set aside. Beat the egg whites and vanilla in a large bowl until soft peaks form. Combine sugar and coffee; gradually add to egg whites, beating till stiff peaks form. Fold in coconut, almonds, and grated chocolate. Drop dough from a rounded teaspoon 2 inches apart onto prepared baking sheets. Bake about 20 minutes or until set and lightly browned on the edges. Allow to cool for one minute on baking sheet, then remove to a wire rack to cool completely. Melt the remaining chocolate and the shortening in the top of a double boiler over hot (not boiling) water, stirring frequently. Drizzle over cookies. Let stand until chocolate sets. Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.
makes about 30 1/2 cup butter, at
room temperature Pre-heat oven to 375 F. In a large mixing bowl beat butter until creamy. Add 1 cup sugar, baking soda, and cream of tartar, beating until combined. Add egg and vanilla, beat until well combined. In a separate mixing bowl, stir together flour and cocoa powder. Stir flour mixture into butter mixture. Drop by rounded teaspoons 2 inches apart onto ungreased baking sheets. Stir together remaining sugar and cinnamon. Sprinkle dough with the cinnamon-sugar mixture. Bake for 9 to 11 minutes or until edges are firm. Allow to cool for 1 minute on baking sheet then remove to wire racks to cool completely.
makes about 40 1 cup solid vegetable shortening Pre-heat oven to 325 F and grease baking sheets. Beat shortening in a mixing bowl until creamy. Add sugar and salt; beat until combined. Add egg and lemon juice; combine well. Stir in flour and citrus zests; mix well. Shape dough into 1-inch balls. Dip in egg white then roll lightly in nuts. Place 2 inches apart on prepared baking sheets, then top each cookie with candied cherry pieces. Bake about 20 minutes or until bottoms are lightly browned. Allow to cool for 1 minute on baking sheet then remove to wire racks to cool completely.
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| T H E P E R F E C T C H R I S T M A S L E T T E R |
| Writing the Perfect Christmas Letter by Rachel Paxton I don't know about you, but I always look forward to receiving Christmas letters from family and friends during the holiday season. Often it is the only news you receive from some of them throughout the year. I started sending out our family Christmas letter the year after I got married. Some adult children are content to share their family news in a letter from their parents, but I wanted to start our own family tradition with our own annual Christmas letter. Sitting down to write a letter can be an intimidating task. It's easy to put off until the last minute if you're overwhelmed with the idea of trying to figure out what to say. There are several things to take into consideration when writing your own family Christmas letter. Some people get very creative with their Christmas letters. There are a variety of formats to choose from. You can buy holiday printer paper at any office supply store. Just print out your letter on the decorated paper, and you're all set to go. If you're printing out a lot of letters and don't want to spend as much on the paper, you can also just choose colored paper with no design...red or green paper look festive all on their own with your letter printed on them. You can also copy your letter on to the paper with a copy machine instead of printing each one on your printer. If you are into rubber stamping, you could also hand-decorate your letters after you print them. Or, you can go paper-less! You can email your letter to family and friends if they have Internet access. This would allow you to insert pictures into your letter and not worry about having to print them. Some families have web sites set up to post family pictures and happenings. This would also be a great place to post your Christmas letter for all to see. So what should you write in your letter? Keeping things short and to the point is definitely a fine art. I try to keep my letters to a page, if possible, a page and a half at the most. It also depends on how large your family is. The point is not to lose the reader's interest with too many pages to read. I start my letters out with a greeting, and then a paragraph or two of major family happenings, like births, deaths, weddings, etc. This is also a good place to briefly describe any favorite family vacations for the year. I then write a short paragraph about each family member to get everyone up to date about who just got their driver's license, braces on or off, started their first job, etc. I just try to hit on the major milestones that people would be interested in knowing about. You'll find that once you sit down to start your letter
that the words will just start flowing and you'll be done with it in no
time. Who knows better what happened in your family this year than you?
It's also a good idea to let someone else read it before you send it out
to make sure you got your facts straight. Try to send your letters and cards out during the first week of December. I love getting letters and cards at the beginning of the season. Hearing from family and friends is a great way to get into the holiday spirit, and once you have those letters out the door your time is freed up for other important tasks. Make sure you keep a copy of your Christmas letter for yourself. I place a copy of mine in a binder I keep of all the holiday letters I receive. Someday this will be a wonderful keepsake for my children and grandchildren. About the
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