Rum Raisin Fudge

One of the main requests in fudge making this year from my husband is his desire for me to make rum raisin fudge. On the west coast, rum raisin isn’t all that common, but I have seen more examples of it on the east coast and especially in the UK. This is a UK fudge recipe, flavored with rum and raisin, and it is quite different from traditional American-style fudge.

This fudge uses brown sugar (and a lot of it) for the base, which changes the overall texture of the fudge. The original recipe calls for muscovado sugar, which is a type of brown sugar. I was in the British shop and couldn’t recall if I needed muscovado sugar or demerara sugar, but I had already stocked up on regular brown sugar so I ended up using that. I do try to make different British recipes, but the best advice is to stay flexible and use what ingredients are available.

This is one of the fudge recipes that I made that does require the use of a candy thermometer. When I started doing that, I was so worried that I wouldn’t get the temperature correct, but it just requires a little patience to watch and make sure the fudge doesn’t get overcooked. You do want this fudge to crystallize somewhat, which is different than most of the fudge I made. This fudge is quite sticky and sweet, and has that grainy texture that is typical of British-style fudge.

Rum Raisin Fudge
100 grams raisins
3 tablespoons rum
14 ounce can sweetened condensed milk
100 grams butter
 500 grams brown sugar

Line an 8” square pan with parchment and spray the parchment with nonstick cooking spray.

Add the raisins and the rum to a small bowl and allow to soak for at least an hour.     

In a heavy-bottomed saucepan, combine the sweetened condensed milk, butter, and brown sugar. Bring to a boil, stirring all the time to dissolve the brown sugar. Continue stirring (while boiling) for about 10 minutes, until the mixture reaches 235-240 degrees (soft ball stage). The constant stirring will help avoid burning the mixture in the pan.

Once the mixture reaches temperature, remove it from the heat and add the rum/raisin mixture. Stir vigorously until the fudge begins to crystallize and thicken. Pour the mixture into the prepared pan and allow to cool in the refrigerator overnight.

When fully set, remove from the pan and cut into 1” squares. Store in the refrigerator.

Recipe from Woman & Home

Slice and Bake Golden Raisin Cookies

I know that coming up I may not have much time for baking so I have been trying to prepare and get some baking done in advance. I do like making refrigerator cookies, as the dough comes together quickly and then I can work with the cookies the next day. I saw these and I love all sorts of raisins, including golden raisins. I looked through my supply and I noticed I was out, so I got some fresh golden raisins for these cookies.

The dough for these cookies comes together in about 5 minutes, and they weren’t too difficult to shape. My biggest worry with slice and bake or refrigerator cookies is that they won’t be round and that they’ll look funny. Thankfully, once the cookies are cut into slices, they are very forgiving and you can reshape them into a round if needed. I had forgotten to coat the dough with sparkling sugar, but that was no problem.

I tend to slice refrigerator cookies a little thicker, probably slightly more than ¼” thick. I like a more substantial cookies, but if you prefer a thinner, crisper cookies then you can slice them smaller. The cookies don’t brown much at all, so you have to sense when the cookies are set, which in my case was about 12 minutes. These cookies are not overly sweet, which is nice, as the natural sweetness of the raisins comes through.

Slice and Bake Golden Raisin Cookies
½ cup butter, room temperature
½ cup powdered sugar
1 egg
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 ⅔ cups flour
¼ teaspoon of salt
1 cup golden raisins
Sparkling sugar, optional

In a large mixer bowl, beat the butter and powdered sugar on medium until light. Add the egg and vanilla and stir to combine. With the mixer running on low, gradually add the flour and salt. Fold in the golden raisins.

Shape the dough into a log about 12 inches long and about 2 inches in diameter. If desired, roll the log in sparkling sugar and then wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least two hours or overnight.

Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Line two baking sheets with silicone baking mats.

Remove the dough from the refrigerator and discard the plastic wrap. Slice the dough into 1/4” slices and place on the prepared baking sheets.

Bake for 10-12 minutes, until golden around the edges. The cookies will not brown significantly. Allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheet for 10 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.

Recipe from The Monday Box

Wilderness Place Lodge Cookies

Although it has been a short week, it’s been very busy. All of a sudden, I realized that I needed to bake some cookies this week! I looked through the recipes that I had pinned, and I decided to make these cookies, Wilderness Place Lodge Cookies. They are the “throw in whatever you have in your cupboard” cookies and that is never bad. These are a cross between a chocolate chip cookie and an oatmeal raisin cookie, with chopped pecans and coconut added in for good measure.

The only variation I made to this recipe was that I used maple pecan crumbles rather than chopped walnuts. I don’t care for walnuts, and we buy beautiful pecans from a farm in Georgia. I had about a cup of their maple pecan crumbles, and I figured that adding maple to these cookies would be ok. Of course, that makes them even more of a fall cookie, but that’s ok with me.

Believe it or not, the ingredients that I list here is half of a full batch. I should have known that would still make a lot of cookies, given that half the recipe still has 4-1/2 cups of flour/oats. My recipe still made five dozen cookies, which is a lot to have in your home! These are such tasty cookies, with the flavors of chocolate and maple, plus the crunch of the oats and coconut. These were quick to make (although maybe I would make a quarter recipe) and such a great cookie.

Wilderness Place Lodge Cookies
1 cup butter, room temperature
1 cup sugar
1 cup packed brown sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1-1/2 cups flour
½ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
3 cups oats
1 cup chocolate chips
1 cup chopped pecans
½ cup raisins
½ cup coconut

Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Line two baking sheets with silicone baking mats.

In a large mixer bowl, combine the butter, sugar, and brown sugar. Beat on medium until light. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition and then stir in the vanilla. Add the flour, salt, and baking soda to the dough and mix on low until the dough starts to come together. Stop the mixer and add the oats, chocolate chips, chopped pecans, raisins, and coconut. Stir until the dough comes together completely. You may need to mix with a spatula at the end, as the dough may be difficult to mix with the mixer.

Drop the dough by tablespoons onto the prepared baking sheet.

Bake for 10-12 minutes, until golden. Allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheet for 10 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.

Recipe from Kim Brittain via All Recipes

Christmas Chocolate Tiffin

What is a tiffin? I have had multiple people ask me what a tiffin is, and the short answer that it is a no-bake bar cookie whose main component is biscuits (or cookies, as we call them in the states). This is a great recipe in that it combines the ease of the tiffin with the flavors of Christmas such as brandy, chocolate, and candied cherries. Now I find all sorts of tiffin recipes that sound good, and I can’t wait to try some once the weather is warmer.

As is often the case with British recipes, I don’t convert grams to ounces or volume measure. In a way, I think this is easier as I have my scale and a single cup to measure. It makes for less washing and right now that is appreciated. I did buy glacé cherries and the Rich Tea biscuits from the UK, and golden syrup is also British in origin. The British cherries looked so much better than the weird, bright red candied cherries that we get here in the states. I also wonder if the topping could be any sort of chocolate, or some sort of semi-sweet chocolate? I’m sure it would work.

I was slightly delayed in making this tiffin as I kept forgetting gallon sized Ziplock bags at the store! After what seemed like the twentieth trip to the store, I finally got them home with me. I had already soaked the candied cherries and raisins in brandy, but I figured that they would be just fine if they were in the brandy a little bit longer. Oh, and as sticky as candied cherries are, don’t forget to cut them in half. That was not fun when they were both sticky and soaked with brandy. This tiffin needs some time to chill in the refrigerator, to make sure it sets properly, so this isn’t the recipe to make at the last minute. These squares are very rich, with chocolate and candied cherries, but I love the bites with little bits of crushed tea biscuits!

Christmas Chocolate Tiffin
200 grams glacé/candied cherries
125 grams raisins
80 ml brandy
300 grams Rich Tea biscuits
150 grams butter
40 grams brown sugar
200 grams golden syrup
25 grams cocoa powder

100 grams dark chocolate
100 grams milk chocolate

Line an 8” square pan with aluminum foil and spray the foil with nonstick cooking spray.

Cut the candied cherries in half and place in a small microwaveable bowl. Add the raisins and the brandy and microwave for 30 seconds. Allow to stand for 5 minutes before proceeding.

Put the biscuits in a large ziplock bag and bash with a rolling pin or similar object until the biscuits are a combination of powdery bits and larger pieces. The powdery pieces help the tiffin stick together, so don’t be concerned with pulverizing the biscuits too much.

In a medium saucepan combine the butter, brown sugar, and golden syrup and heat on medium until smooth. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the crushed biscuits and the cocoa powder, mixing until the tiffin has an even color. Add the fruit/brandy mixture and mix.

Press the mixture into the prepared pan and refrigerate until set.

Make the topping: remove the tiffin from the pan and remove the foil. In a medium bowl, microwave the dark and milk chocolate, stirring frequently, until smooth. Top the tiffin with melted chocolate, spreading evenly to ensure complete coverage. Allow the chocolate to set before cutting the tiffin into squares.

Recipe from Everyday Cooks

Raisin Spice Cookies

A while ago, I was chatting with my friend about raisins. Raisins are a key ingredient in a lot of British baking, especially in the Christmas cake and related items. As we like to buy new ingredients each year, that has left us with a plethora of raisins. We have regular raisins, petite raisins, sultanas, Hunza raisins currents, as well as a raisin medley. It’s a bit ridiculous looking at how many choices there are, just in my cupboard! For this recipe, I used petite raisins as they are a nice size for baking.

I find that raisins are often dry, but you can steep them to plump them up. This is a good step to take, and you’ll always have softer raisins. You can steep them in hot water, but I usually use an alcohol that will complement the recipe. In this case, I used cinnamon whiskey, as the dough also contained cinnamon and other spices. You can steep the raisins for a short while, but I let mine steep overnight, as it enhances the flavor and gives you some extra time. Don’t worry, the alcohol dissipates while the cookies bake, so you can’t taste alcohol at all.

When I was typing up this recipe, I noticed that it said you could refrigerate the dough before baking, for better results. Well, I didn’t see that and baked them as soon as the dough was ready, and they turned out fine. The raisins are soft and lovely, and the cookies have a great spice flavor. When you eat them, it seems like there is oatmeal in these cookies, but there isn’t. These cookies remind me of favorites from the past, and I may try taking this dough and adding white chocolate and cranberries, trying to recreate that favorite I had years ago.

Raisin Spice Cookies
3/4 cup raisins
1 1/3 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon allspice
1/4 teaspoon cloves
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla

In a medium bowl, steep the raisins in hot water or alcohol. Cover the bowl and allow the raisins to plump for at least an hour. Drain the raisins thoroughly before using.

Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Line two baking sheets with silicone baking mats.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, and cloves; set aside. In a large mixer bowl, beat the butter, sugar, and brown sugar on medium until light. Add the egg and vanilla and mix on medium to incorporate.

With the mixer running on low, gradually add the flour mixture. When the flour is barely incorporated, remove the bowl from the mixer and add the raisins. Mix the raisins into the dough with a spatula.

Drop the dough onto the prepared baking sheets, using about 1-1/2 tablespoons per cookie.

Bake for 11-13 minutes, until the cookies begin to brown, and they do not look doughy. Allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheets for 10 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.

Recipe from Rock Recipes

Holiday Fruitcake Bars: 12 Days of Cookies Day 12

Merry Christmas! For Christmas Day, I’ve decided to make Fruitcake Bars. Fruitcake has a terrible reputation here in the States, but in our household, we always make Christmas cake, which is a fruitcake. I think many people dislike the candied fruit, and I don’t disagree. We don’t use candied fruit in our Christmas cake or in these bars; dried fruit is much better. This bar recipe uses quite a few ingredients, some that I had to stock up on. If you are unable to find certain dried fruits, you can certainly substitute for what you can find, just ensure that you use the same total quantity (5 cups).

I hadn’t initially planned on making these bars, but when we were in downtown Seattle at Thanksgiving, we stopped in the Dahlia Lounge Bakery and they had these one for sample. I was distracted and didn’t try them, but Tim did, and he thought they were great. He went online and found the recipe and I knew they would be perfect for Christmas.

The original recipe had you make these in one go, but I wanted to give the fruit some time to soak up the brandy. You barely heat the brandy and the add it to the dried fruits. The recipe had you let this sit until cool, but I waited until the next morning to bake the bars. I think that made the bars even better, but I am a big fan of fruitcake so perhaps I am not the best judge. These take a bit of time and energy, but it really isn’t Christmas in our house without fruitcake.

Holiday Fruitcake Bars

1 cup brandy

1½ cups dried tart cherries

1½ cups prunes, chopped

1 cup golden raisins

½ cup raisins

½ cup dried currants

2 cups flour

¾ teaspoon allspice

¾ teaspoon cinnamon

¼ teaspoon cloves

¼ teaspoon nutmeg

½ teaspoon salt

1 cup butter, room temperature

2 cups packed brown sugar

3 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 cup pecans, toasted and chopped

Powdered sugar

Heat the brandy in a small saucepan over medium-high heat and bring to a simmer; remove from the heat. In a large bowl, combine the dried fruits. Add the brandy and stir to combine. Cover with plastic wrap and allow to steep overnight.

Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a 9” x 13” pan with parchment or foil and spray with nonstick cooking spray.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, allspice, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, and salt. Add 1 cup of the flour mixture to the dried fruits and stir to combine. In a large mixer bowl beat the butter and brown sugar until well combined. Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Add the vanilla and stir to combine. With the mixer running on low, gradually add the remaining flour mixture.

Remove the bowl from the mixer and stir in the dried fruits and pecans with a spatula. Spread the mixture evenly in the prepared pan. The mixture will be thick and heavy.

Bake for 50-55 minutes, rotating once during baking, until a toothpick inserted into the fruitcake comes out nearly clean. Cool in the pan for an hour and then remove from the pan and cool on a wire rack until completely cool, about an hour. Peel off the parchment and cut into bars. Sprinkle with powdered sugar before serving.

Recipe from Tom Douglas, The Dahlia Bakery Cookbook

Bara Brith (Welsh Tea Bread)

Ok, I know that this might look like regular old tea bread, but this bread is fabulous! I came across this recipe in a British food magazine and I was going to make it right away. But then I noticed that it called for a 900 gram loaf pan. I had to do my research to figure out what size this was and it’s a 10” x 5” or a 10-1/2” x 5-1/2” pan. I’ve got many loaf pans, but not that size. I figured I would just make do with what I had, but I open another cookbook that I got last Christmas and it also called for this size pan. I couldn’t find it right away, but luckily I stumbled on one at the store. I was really excited!

You start out by soaking dried fruit in hot tea and sugar overnight. I used raisins, dried cranberries and dried cherries. I made the tea with two tea bags so it would be nice and strong. The next day I mixed it up in a mixer bowl and it was in the oven in a matter of minutes. If you don’t have the right sized pan, you could always use a smaller loaf pan and not use all of the batter, or use two pans. The baking time would be different though.

This smelled lovely while baking. Make sure that you don’t skip the step of lining the pan with parchment paper; this made the removal from the pan easy. Sliced, this loaf is studded with fruit, and it isn’t dry at all, like loaves sometimes are. The bread itself isn’t sweet, but the dried fruit adds little bursts of sweetness. This loaf also keeps fresh longer than traditional home baked loaves, which is a nice bonus!

 Bara Brith (Welsh Tea Bread)

11 ounces (1-3/4 cups) dried fruit (your choice)

7 ounces (1 cup) brown sugar

Zest of 1 lemon

9 fluid ounces hot black tea

12 ounces (2-3/4 cups) self-rising flour*

1 teaspoon cinnamon

¼ teaspoon cloves

¼ teaspoon nutmeg

¼ teaspoon ginger

¼ teaspoon mace

1 egg, beaten

3-1/2 tablespoons butter, softened

In a medium sized bowl, combine the dried fruit, brown sugar, lemon zest and hot tea. Stir and allow to soak overnight.

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Spray a 10” x 5” loaf pan with cooking spray and cut a strip of parchment paper to line the bottom and up and over the narrow sides of the pan. This will make the loaf easier to remove from the pan once baked.

In a large bowl, stir together the self-rising flour and the spices. Add the dried fruit and the soaking mixture and stir to combine. The mixture will be thick. Stir in the beaten egg and then the softened butter. Stir the thick batter until well combined.

Spread evenly in the prepared pan. Bake for 1 hour and 15 minutes, until a thin knife inserted in the bread comes out clean. Cool in the pan for 10 minutes; remove from the pan and cool completely on a wire rack. Cut into slices when completely cool.

Recipe from BBC Good Food

*I make my own self-rising flour by combining 4 cups of flour, 4 teaspoons baking powder, 1 teaspoon baking soda, and 1 teaspoon salt

Gingerbread Streusel Raisin Muffins

I know that you typically think of gingerbread for Christmas, but there’s no reason you can’t have it the rest of the year too. I love anything with cinnamon and ginger, so how could you go wrong? I was looking for some sort of muffin to make and I had found a couple of raisin and oatmeal raisin muffins that sounded good. This one has the cinnamon and ginger that I love, plus molasses. I knew that I wanted to give it a try.

I like muffins and quick breads since they usually mix together quickly and don’t dirty too many dishes. This recipe uses a different method that I am used to for muffins, as you mix this batter more like cookie dough. I don’t even use my mixer to make these; just stir everything together with a spatula and whisk. That’s good in this case as I am adjusting to using a new mixer, and I don’t have all the extra bowls for this mixer that I had with my other one.

My kitchen smelled fantastic while these were baking; all those spices coming together. The muffins don’t rise that much, but you still don’t want to fill the muffin cups too full. With the streusel, if the cups are too full the streusel can melt and make a big mess in the oven. These are fine little muffins, yes they would be great in the fall but they are good for breakfast anytime!

Gingerbread Streusel Raisin Muffins

1 cup raisins

½ cup boiling water

1/3 cup butter, room temperature

¾ cup molasses

1 egg

2 cups flour

1-1/2 teaspoons baking soda

½ teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon ginger

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/3 cup flour

¼ cup brown sugar, packed

1 teaspoon cinnamon

¼ cup chopped nuts

3 tablespoons butter, melted

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Spray 12 muffin cups with cooking spray or line with paper liners.

In small bowl, combine the raisins and boiling water; allow to sit for 5 minutes. In a large bowl, whisk together the butter and molasses until light. Whisk in the egg, mixing until incorporated. Switch to a spatula and stir in the flour, baking soda, salt, ginger, and cinnamon. The batter will be thick. Stir in the raisins and water and stir to combine.

Scoop the batter into the prepared muffin cups, filling about ¾ full.

Make the streusel: in a small bowl, combine the flour, brown sugar, cinnamon and nuts. Add the melted butter and stir until the mixture is crumbly. Top each muffin with streusel.

Bake for 20-25 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool in the pan for 10 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.

Recipe from The Brand Name Book of Baking