Sweet Stuff

No spread is complete without dessert, right? And nothing quite says it’s the holidays like scrumptious baked goods and other confections that satiate our desire for something sweet to eat. Here, in our second round of recipes, TCD staffers give up the goods and generously share their time-honored recipes for sweet treats.

Norwegian Sweet Soup
By TCD Photo Editor Brian Jacobson

Norwegian Sweet Soup, otherwise known to some Wisconsin folk as Sot Suppe, was never an aesthetically pleasing holiday dish. That is to say, whenever my mother would make the fruit-based dish during the Christmas season, it was a brackish, stew-like creation that had pitted plums (prunes) as the base. Still, it would appear warm at breakfast and soon four hungry kids would finish off a batch before suiting up to play in the snow.

I learned to make this dish from my mom’s version, who adapted the recipe from Grandma Jacobson’s little brown notebook. I’ve never made it myself until today, where I took the best of numerous online recipes and old Lutheran cookbooks from my hometown. Then I went off and refined it to my own tastes.

What you see here are my ingredients and procedure (closer to the original pioneer spirit, but with modern touches). Feel free to add your own fruit ingredients. My mother’s recipe involved pineapple and Maraschino cherries, while others involve orange slices, grape juice and even cloves. My version involved fewer prunes and more variety, which results in a more liquid creation as the fruits soften and break up.

INGREDIENTS
4 cups water
2 cups apple juice
¼ cup sugar
¼ cup Blue Agave sweetening syrup
2 tablespoons minute tapioca
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 cups dried plums (packaged prunes)
1 cup each of golden and dark raisins
1 cup dried fruits (apricots, apples, others to taste)
½ cup currants
Squeeze of lemon, shaved lemon rind curls

Soak the dried fruits in warm water to cover until softened, and then drain. Separately, boil the water, apple juice, sugar, agave syrup and tapioca until clear. Lower temperature to simmer. Add cinnamon, fruits and lemon elements to the liquid. Alternate temperature between hot and warm until it’s reduced to desired thickness. Serve warm or cold.

Wacky Cake
By TCD co-Founder, Editor in Chief Jon Anne Willow

The easiest, tastiest chocolate cake ever also happens to be vegan unless you choose a frosting that’s actually delicious. Some of you may remember it as the only good dessert in your elementary school’s hot lunch program. It’s also an easy and impressive party take along. To fancy it up, top with chocolate shavings. Enjoy!

INGREDIENTS
1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
1 cup sugar
3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon vinegar
5 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 cup cold water

PREPARATION:
In a large mixing bowl, mix flour, sugar, cocoa, soda and salt. Make three wells in the dry mixture. In one put the vanilla, in another the vinegar and in the third the oil. Pour the cold water over all and stir until moistened. Pour into greased and floured 8-by-8-inch pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 25 to 30 minutes or until center springs back when touched lightly.

Greatest White Icing Ever

INGREDIENTS
2 cups confectioners’ sugar
½ cup shortening
4 tablespoons water
½ teaspoon vanilla extract (clear is nice if you have it)

PREPARATION:
In a large bowl, combine sugar, shortening, water and vanilla. Beat on low speed to combine, then on medium speed for a full five minutes. It won’t look like icing at first, but don’t be discouraged. Keep the mixer going for a full five minutes, and you won’t be disappointed.

Note: If you’re using this for decorating instead of just icing the cake, decrease water to 1 tablespoon.

Vegan White Frosting
INGREDIENTS
12-ounce block, extra firm silken tofu
½ cup dehydrated, granulated cane juice or dehydrated, granulated fruit juice
Pinch of salt or 1 tablespoon mellow white miso
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract (optional)
¼ cup unsweetened grated coconut (optional)

Blend ingredients in a blender until very smooth. Refrigerate.

Oatmeal, Chocolate & Peach Cookies
By TCD Sports Editor Rob Vosters

INGREDIENTS
2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup brown sugar, firmly packed
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1- 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 heaping teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 cups oats
1 cup chocolate chips
2-3 average-sized peaches, peeled and cut into bite-sized cubes

PREPARATIONS:
1. Heat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Combine flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt; mix well.  Set aside.
3. Beat together butter and sugars until creamy.
4. Add eggs and vanilla, continue beating.
5. Add flour mixture to butter mixture; mix well.
6. Stir in oats, chocolate chips and peaches gradually. Mix well.
7. Line cookie sheet with parchment paper or reusable baking sheet.
8. Scoop and place tablespoons of batter onto cookie sheet.
9. Bake 10-12 minutes or until golden brown.
10. Cool at least 1 minute on cookie sheet; transfer to wire rack.  Let cool.
Makes 4-5 dozen cookies.

Cranberry Sauce with Dried Cherries
By TCD Contributor Peggy Sue Dunigan

12 ounces fresh cranberries
¾ cup dried cherries
2 tablespoons cherry liqueur or red wine
Zest and juice of one orange (about ½ cup)
2 tablespoons fresh ginger
½ to ¾ cup brown sugar (to taste)

PREPARATION:
Combine all ingredients in medium saucepan. Cook over medium heat until cranberries begin to burst. Stir, and cook about 15 minutes. If too thick, add a little more juice or wine. Cool. Serve at room temperature or refrigerate.

Stella’s Fairytale Nutz to You Pie
By TCD Blogger Stella Cretek

INGREDIENTS
1-2 cups pecans
2 eggs
1 cup dark corn syrup
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup granulated sugar
1 tablespoon butter, melted

The year is 1968 and Stella is dusting with Pledge and dancing around her tri-level green-and-gold living room. In the oven is a pie, not just any pie. No, it’s Stella’s Fairytale Nutz to You Pie.

To say this recipe (from her Good Housekeeping Cookbook) lacks nuts, is akin to saying her recipe for Holiday Molasses Balls lacks balls. Or, something like that. Don’t confuse those balls with Alex Baldwin’s Schwede Balls. Or, something like that.

Gathering the goods to make her annual pie was (and is) no easy trick. Take, for instance, the harvesting of pecans (1 cup broken into bits, but Stella uses 2 cups). They’re found in parts of central Missouri, believe it or not, sold from roadside stands. Don’t put the pecans into the pie until the last shot is fired. And keep them refrigerated, or they’ll turn green and gross.

Okay, two eggs. Get crackin’ and get them beaten. Eggs aren’t exactly eggs anymore in case you haven’t noticed. They come in all sizes. If you buy the XXL giant-sized ones, use only one, or your pie will burst its dam. 1 cup dark corn syrup, 1/8 teaspoon salt, 1 teaspoon vanilla, 1 cup granulated sugar, 1 tablespoon melted butter. Mix and dump in smashed pecans … 2 cups for good measure.

Stella was always so busy dusting and dancing that she hadn’t the time to make a fine French crust, a la Julia C. No way. Unbaked nine-inch frozen pie shells were her thing. Make sure they are AT LEAST nine inches or your pie will burst its dam.

Into a pre-heated, 400-degree oven for 15 minutes. Reduce heat to 350 degrees and bake 30 to 35 minutes more. Note: Stella has observed over the past 40 years that baking this particular pie takes more time than the book sez. But it can be baked a day or two ahead; thus, leaving ample hours for more dusting and dancing.

Cinnamon Raisin Swirl Bread
By TCD Managing Editor Lisa Townsel

The holidays wouldn’t be quite the same without a crusty loaf of cinnamon bread on the table. It’s the perfect treat for guests who tend to stop by more often this time of  year. I confess that this recipe is not original. I first saw it on the back of the Red Star dry yeast label … and my family, friends and I have been hooked ever since. I tend to make it for gifting, too. And, I rarely sway from the original recipe other than to make one loaf with just a smattering of raisins and the other loaf (the recipe makes two loaves) without any at all. While the resulting taste of this pastry is melt-in-your-mouth deliciously, it’s the cinnamony sweet aroma that clings to the air afterward that’s just divine.

INGREDIENTS
½ cup water
¾ cup milk
2 eggs
½ cup butter
5 cups bread flour
1 teaspoon salt
½ cup sugar
4+½ teaspoon active dry yeast

Filling
1 cup sugar
2 tablespoons cinnamon
1 cup raisins (optional)
2 tablespoons butter, melted

DIRECTIONS

Oven 350 degrees.
In large mixer bowl, combine 2 ½ cups flour, yeast, sugar and salt; mix well. Heat milk, water and butter until to 120 to 130 degrees; butter does not need to melt. Add to flour mixture. Add eggs. Blend at low speed until moistened; beat 3 minutes at medium speed. By hand, gradually stir in enough remaining flour to make a firm dough. Knead on floured surface until smooth and elastic, 5 to 8 minutes. Place in greased bowl, turning to grease top. Cover; let rise in warm place until double, about 1 hour.

Prepare filling: Combine sugar and cinnamon; set aside.

Punch down dough. Divide into 2 parts. On lightly floured surface, roll or pat each half to a 14-by-7-inch rectangle. Brush with 1 tablespoon melted butter to within 1 inch of edges; sprinkle half of cinnamon mixture and ½ cup raisins over buttered dough. Starting with shorter side, roll up tightly, pressing dough into roll with each turn. Pinch edges and ends to seal. Place in greased 9-by-5-inch bread pans. Cover; let rise in warm place until indentation remains after lightly touching side of loaf, about 45 minutes. Bake at 350 degrees for 40 to 45 minutes until golden brown. Remove from pans; cool.