Peppermint Bark-- Kelly (Ahlden) Milk Recipe

               There are so many holiday themed recipes to get done this year.  I have a feeling I will be doing Christmas desserts into mid-January.  Since Grams and I are still feeling the holiday cheer, we decided to make peppermint bark.  I have had this many times at family gatherings, but this was the first time I tried to make it.  When I read that there were only three ingredients, I knew that this would be my kind of recipe.  I love that many of my aunts and cousins contributed “easy” recipes for beginners like me. 

               Grams and I got a kick out of going to the garage for our recipe.  Bakers aren’t just armed with spoons and spatulas; they also need a strong hammer from time to time.  In the past, I always used a rolling pin to break up things like nuts and hard candies.  Now I am going to use the tool bench in the garage.  We put the opened peppermints into doubled freezer size baggies and went to town.  This is where the recipe can be tweaked for personal taste.  I like a few larger chunks of peppermint I mine, so we left a few mints slightly bigger.  Grams and I also decided to take the easy route and melt the chocolate in the microwave.  We just put it in for about 30 seconds at a time and then stirred. 

               As usual, Grams told me that this recipe would be perfect for one of our family gatherings.  This is a conversation that we have while baking no matter what the recipe is.  This time, I fully agreed with her though.  Grams suggested that we could change the food coloring to reflect the holiday.  Maybe light blue and yellow at Easter and school colors for a graduation.  She said that this stuff is so good, we shouldn’t save it for just Christmas time.

               My family all agreed.  This was a great munchy to have on hand while we were all lounging around the house.  We decided that we liked it best when it was kept in the fridge.   The bark was a little extra crunchy that way.  This year, my family was blessed to have all five of us home for Christmas.  Peppermint Bark was munched on while opening gifts and playing board games.  I hope you all had a great Xmas!

Mom’s Pink Peppermint Candy—Kelly (Ahlden) Milk

1 bag starlight peppermints

1 pkg white chocolate (break into 4)

Red food coloring

Unwrap mints.  Put them into heavy duty Ziploc bag.  Break into pieces with a small hammer or rolling pin.  Melt white chocolate in microwave or double broiler.  Microwave 60 seconds, stir, then 30 seconds, repeat until melted.  White chocolate burns easily so watch it closely.

When melted, put in a couple drops of red food coloring to make it pink.  Stir in broken peppermints to taste.

Lay out a few sheets of wax paper.  Spread mixture about a quarter of an inch think.  Cool completely and break into pieces.

Note from Kelly:  My mom has made this special pink candy every Christmas for as long as I can remember.  We enjoyed it at home and it would be sent with all of the other Christmas goodies to neighbors, friends, and teachers.  The day we would make the Christmas goodies was very special to all of us.  Christmas music always played in the background and when the refrigerator was full, the treats were put into old special holiday tins on the front and back porch.  Many memories bring a smile to my face when I think of Mom’s Pink Peppermint Candy.

Grandma Ahlden's Sugar Cookies

If you are an Ahlden, Christmas means SUGAR COOKIES!!!  Anyone who has been at an Ahlden family function knows that we take sugar cookies very seriously.  There isn’t just a few store bought frosted cookies.  We bake enough cookies to feed a small army.  This is necessary though since we are quickly multiplying into a small army.  To put it into perspective for you….The process spanned three days (one for mixing, one for baking, and one for frosting/decorating).  The total hours spent on the cookies exceeds eight hours.  Fifteen Ahldens participated in the sugar cookie process.  Grandma Ahlden’s sugar cookies are certainly a labor of love.  It is A LOT of work, but they are a family tradition we couldn’t live without.  Christmas Eve at Uncle Ronnie’s =Sugar Cookies!

               My mom and I mixed all of the dough on the first day.  It is best if it has time to chill in the fridge for several hours.  The dough is much easier to handle if it is cool.  We quadrupled the recipe for the Christmas Eve cookies.  To get them mixed, mom and I used two super large bowls and strong wooden spoons.  Believe it or not, we made so much dough that we used 10 2/3 cups of flour!!  Multiplying all of our ingredients by four definitely challenged our math skills. 

               Grandma Ahlden, mom, and I did all of the baking on the second day.  In my opinion, this is the most difficult and time consuming part of the process.  Since we use cookie cutters, it is a very tedious step.  First we roll out the dough with flour, next press the cutters down, then move them unto the baking sheet, and finally put them into the oven.  This is all going on while there is already a batch baking and trying not to be burned.  It takes a long time to get into a good pattern and figure out what each person’s job is.  Once Grandma, Mom, and I got into the rhythm, it worked better.  Grandma really enjoyed helping out in little ways, but she had trouble remembering not to grab the hot pans after they came out of the oven.  I would not allow mom or grandma to make any angel cookies this year.  Their necks are so fragile, and their heads pop off!

               Frosting and decorating is definitely the most fun.  This year, we had several extra special helpers.  I thought it would be fun to invite all of the great-grand-girls for the decorating part.  I was thrilled to have seven of my cousins there to help.  This was the first time we had invited all the girls to decorate and frost cookies.  It actually went surprisingly well.  The girls probably went home with belly aches because we ate a couple dozen while we frosted.  The girls kept saying, “I decorated this cookie so pretty, I’m gonna have to eat it!” Nothing like sugar cookies for breakfast!

               Ahlden Sugar Cookies are probably not the best sugar cookies ever made.  To be honest, I think the recipe is just so-so tasting.  Their tradition is what makes them special.  When Grams was baking with mom and I she said, “I wonder how big a mountain it would make if we piled up all the cookies we baked over the years?”  It’s in the Ahlden blood to like sugar cookies.  We can’t help it--- It’s Sweet to be an Ahlden!

Old Fashioned Sour Cream Cookies (Grandma’s Sugar Cookies)--- Lorraine AhldenRecipe

½ cup shortening (part butter or margarine)

1 cup sugar                        1 egg

1 t. vanilla                         

2 2/3 cups flour                 1 t. baking powder

½ t. soda                             ½ t. salt

½ cup sour cream

Heat oven to 350.

Mix shortening, sugar, egg, and vanilla thoroughly.

Measure flour, blend dry ingredients.

Add to sugar mixture alternately with sour cream.

Chill dough.  When you are ready to bake and cut out cookies, take only a small amount of dough out at a time.  The dough should stay cold. 

Bake 8 to 10 min at 350.

Note from Grandma Ahlden:  This has been a favorite sugar cookie in our family for year.  We have made them for several school parties, for Kristin’s wedding and our Christmas Eve party.

Lorraine’s Frosting Recipe

Make frosting with powdered sugar and milk.  Add vanilla and mix well.  To a 2 lb box of powdered sugar add 1 tbs of Crisco shortening to frosting.  Be sure to mix until Crisco is blended well into the frosting mixture.