Community Cookbook: Homemade holiday treats perfect for sharing or snacking

Christmas is the most magical time of year for many in the world. The music, decorations, family gatherings and special events all add to the joyfulness and splendor of the season. What other time of the year are we able to watch the Charlie Brown and Dr. Seuss Christmas specials ? “Robin and the Seven Hoods” is my favorite, although it’s much harder to find.

Special foods, led by cookies, candies, desserts and baked goods, abound at Christmastime.

We all have our favorites to make and to eat. Here are recipes for several of my favorite homemade holiday treats.

As I prepared the recipes for today, I noticed that they’re a mix of old and new. Mom’s peanut clusters and Aunt Eunice’s banana bread date back to a time when cookbooks and television cooking shows were few.

Mom and Aunt Eunice didn’t have any cookbooks back then. Their recipe sources consisted of clipped newspaper and magazine recipes and handwritten 3-by-5-inch index cards, bolstered by their own creativity and cooking skills. The ubiquitous index cards were the home cook’s primary means of recipe sharing back then, an activity they cherished. Mom, Aunt Eunice and many others must have spent countless hours writing recipes out on them. The closest thing to a photocopier in those days was a monk packing a quill pen and they were scarce.

Unlike a few quick breads and those fruitcakes rumored to have been on the regift circuit for years, Aunt Eunice’s banana bread was never around long enough to get stale. Fortunately, she wrote her recipe out on an index card and gave it to Mom, who made her bread several times through the years. That card is how I’m able to present her recipe today.

Good n’ Nutty Spice Cakes is an upstart. They’re good, they’re nutty, and they are spice cakes. They’re also delicious.

Mom usually made her peanut clusters during the holiday season. She always included them in her Christmas tins, packed with homemade cookies and candies. Everyone looked forward to receiving her gift tins and the goodies they contained.

Peanut Crispies are delightful marshmallow-peanut cookies inspired by Aunt Eunice’s original Rice Krispies Treats. Our family first tasted her treats when she made a batch during a tractor-pulled sledding party one winter. They were an instant hit.

Aunt Eunice’s Banana Bread

Aunt Eunice was known to be an excellent cook. She prepared many delicious dishes, including her always-popular banana bread. To my family’s delight, she gave Mom a copy of her recipe decades ago, and Mom continued to make the bread periodically. Here’s a somewhat updated version of Aunt Eunice’s original recipe. The deliciousness remains the same.

1 cup granulated sugar

½ cup room temperature shortening

2 large whole eggs, beaten with a fork

2 tablespoons milk

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 large or 3 medium very ripe bananas, peeled and mashed

1¾ cup flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon baking powder

¾-1 teaspoon ground cinnamon (optional)

⅛ teaspoon salt

½-¾ cup chopped walnuts or pecans (optional)

Nonstick cooking spray, baking spray, or vegetable oil

Beat the sugar and shortening in a medium bowl until fluffy (this is called creaming). Add the eggs, milk and vanilla extract. Stir until well-blended. Add the bananas; stir until well-blended and smooth. In a separate bowl, combine the next 4-5 ingredients (through salt). Add the dry ingredients to the banana mixture. Stir until blended and moistened through (don’t over-mix). Fold in the optional nuts, if used. Lightly oil the bottoms and sides of two 8-by-4- or 9-by-5-inch loaf pans with the spray or oil. Fill the pans with equal amounts of batter. Place on a rack in the middle-low position of an oven preheated to 325 degrees. Bake until a toothpick inserted into the centers comes out clean (the centers should spring back when pressed), 50-65 minutes. Loosely cover the pans with aluminum foil if the tops of the loaves brown too quickly. Remove from the oven and let cool for 10 minutes. Loosen the sides of the loaves from the pans with a butter knife. Invert the pans and tap the bottoms until the loaves come out. Cool completely on a cooling rack before slicing. Tightly wrap the loaves with plastic wrap or foil and store at room temperature for up to four days, or refrigerate for up to 10 days. They can also be tightly wrapped with foil and frozen for longer storage.

Notes: The banana peels should have some dark spots and patches, with the bananas not yet turning black. For a healthier version, substitute ¼ cup of unsweetened applesauce for an equal amount of shortening and reduce the sugar by 1-2 tablespoons. Add the applesauce with the eggs and milk. Aunt Eunice’s daughter, Karen, likes to add chocolate chips to the mix.

Yield: Two loaves

Good n’ Nutty Spice Cakes

Fruitcake may be the ultimate holiday regift. There are rumors that hundred-year-old fruitcakes are still making the rounds on the regift circuit. Fruit cakes are often dry and dense, and overloaded with candied fruit. Not so with these scrumptious little spice cakes. I’ve added more of my favorite ingredient: nuts. You can even add some candied fruit to these miniature cakes, if you must.

1 (18.25-ounce) box spice cake mix

½ cup chopped nuts, such as pecans, walnuts, almonds, or filberts

Maple syrup

16 whole pecan halves

Prepare the cake batter according to package directions. Stir in the chopped nuts. Prepare an eight-compartment mini-loaf baking pan (I use a silicon version) or medium-sized muffin pan by lightly oiling the compartments. Fill the compartments half-full with batter (bake any leftover batter in an additional pan). Lightly press a couple of pecan halves into the tops of each cake along the centerline. Bake according to package directions until a toothpick inserted into the centers comes out clean. Remove from the oven and let cool. While the cakes are cooling, heat the maple syrup in a small saucepan over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally (a small measuring cup and microwave oven will do nicely). Transfer the cakes to a cooling rack and brush the tops with maple syrup. After a couple of minutes, brush the tops with additional syrup.

Notes: Gingerbread or pumpkin cake mix can be substituted.

Yield: Eight loaves

Mom’s Peanut Clusters

Mom often included peanut clusters in her always-popular Christmas gift tins. Peanut clusters are near the top of my list of all-time favorite chocolate candies.

1 pound chocolate almond bark

¼-⅓ pound vanilla or white almond bark

3 cups shelled roasted peanuts (other nuts can substitute)

Break the bark into large chunks and place them in a medium-sized microwavable container (a glass measuring cup or bowl is ideal). Carefully warm the bark on high power until just melted, stirring as needed (be careful not to burn it). Stir in the nuts and drop the mixture by heaping tablespoonfuls onto a baking pan or sheet lined with wax paper, leaving a little space between each. Chill in the refrigerator until firm, about 30 minutes, or longer at room temperature.

Notes: Melt the bark in a double boiler on the stove, if preferred. If the bark cools and hardens before use, reheat it until melted. All chocolate or all white bark can be used.

Yield: About 3 dozen clusters

Peanut Crispies

I was preparing snacks for Community Living’s annual fundraising event at Indian John Hill, a freeway rest area situated on Interstate 90 near Ellensburg. I reworked a traditional Rice Krispies Treats recipe by adding more marshmallows for a spongier texture and peanuts for a unique flavor. I was pleasantly surprised when the peanuts’ flavor infused throughout the marshmallows. Peanut Crispies were well-received at Indian John Hill. For variety, try substituting other nuts for peanuts.

Cooking oil or spray

4-5 tablespoons butter or margarine

3/4-1¼ cup oil-roasted, salted peanut halves

1 (10- or 10½-ounce) package miniature marshmallows (about 6 cups)

6 cups Rice Krispies or equivalent rice cereal

Lightly coat the inside of a 13-by-9-by-2-inch baking pan with cooking oil or spray. Melt the butter or margarine in a large saucepan over medium heat; stir in the peanuts. Add the marshmallows and reduce the heat to low-medium. Stir constantly until the marshmallows melt. Cook an additional minute or two, stirring constantly. Remove from the heat. Add the cereal quickly and stir with a large, rigid spoon until well mixed. Spoon the mixture into the baking pan while still hot. Lightly oil a spatula or several fingers of a hand and lightly press the mixture until level. Refrigerate until cooled, then cut into approximately 2-inch squares with a butter knife.

Notes: For thicker crispies, use an 11-by-7-by-2-inch pan. To serve warm, let stand 15 minutes before slicing. Store in an airtight container at room temperature for a couple of days. Longer in the refrigerator. Wrapped tightly and layers separated by wax paper, you can freeze them for 6-8 weeks. Bring to room temperature before serving.

Yields: 24 servings

Contact Dick Sellers at dickskitchencorner@outlook.com