Christmas in Denver

Wow Steph your Christmas Dinner sounded and looked Incredible, but those Kolaches look downright professional! We had a good Christmas as well and even though the Snow didn't stick around we had a white Christmas Morning for the Girls. Can't wait for you guys to see the new Landry Home it's great - so much space and the backyard will be awesome in the summer. We tried a couple of things and most were a success (homemade twinkies not so much). On Christmas Day we made the Pioneer Women's Braised Short Ribs with Creamy Goat Cheese Polenta, Roasted Artichokes with Garlic, and Eggnog Pie.

EGG NOG CREAM PIE (pinterest Lauren's Latest)

Use your own Favorite Pie Crust Recipe or Store Bought

FILLING

3/4 cup cold heavy cream
1 cup egg nog
1/2 cup milk
1 box instant vanilla pudding

Directions:

When ready to make the pie crust, remove one disk of dough from refrigerator and sit out for 10-15 minutes to make it easier to roll. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Flour board and rolling pin and roll out dough to large circle. Place in pie pan, cut off extra dough and scallop the top edges of crust. Prick bottom of crust with fork. Bake for 10-12 minutes or until crust looks dry and top edges are barely golden. Set aside to cool.

For the filling: whip cream until stiff peaks form. Set in refrigerator until ready to use. Whisk egg nog, milk and instant vanilla pudding together until smooth. Let it thicken 3-5 minutes. Fold half the whipped cream into egg nog pudding and pour into cooled pie shell. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate 2+ hours. Make sure whipped cream makes it back into the fridge too.

I wish I would have had a 2nd slice of pie. Got Back to Tulsa and like I thought they DO NOT SELL Eggnog after Christmas ;-( until next year I suppose.

Christmas kolaches

I had a great Christmas and I hope you ladies did too. I cant wait to hear how the eggnog pie was.

Here was our Christmas dinner rundown

Prime rib with horseradish cream and au jus with popovers made from the drippings, Dijon honey glazed ham, roasted asparagus, mushrooms, parsnips, and fingerling potatoes, mac and cheese and buttermilk pie with cranberry sauce. I have to say it was one of the best meals i have made in awhile.

Breakfast was a fresh baked batch of kolaches I had prepped the day before. These made me really happy, the dough was easy to put together, very rich and a dream to work with. I think it would be a good cinnamon roll dough too. I have been though West, TX a couple of times where there is a Czech population and known for their kolaches and I would dare to say they are a good as any of those I have tried there.

I substituted a cup of buttermilk for the sour cream and no water and added a bit more flour. I filled mine with some extra cranberry sauce, and a quick cream cheese filling. (Any jam or fruit filling would work) And for the sausage kolaches I pick up a package of cheddarwurst and jalapeno chedderwurst.

I got the dough recipe from King Arthur flour website

DOUGH
1 cup sour cream
1/2 cup sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter or margarine*, melted
2 teaspoons instant yeast OR 1 packet active dry yeast
1/2 cup lukewarm water
2 large eggs
4 cups King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour

DOUGH: Warm the sour cream gently, and combine it with the sugar, salt, and butter or margarine in a large mixing bowl. Cool the mixture to lukewarm (if it isn’t already that temperature), and add the yeast (if you’re using active dry yeast, dissolve it in the water first), warm water, eggs, and flour. Mix and knead the dough, using your hands, a mixer, or a bread machine, till it’s soft and smooth. Transfer the dough to a lightly greased bowl, cover the bowl with plastic wrap, and refrigerate the dough overnight. Note: This dough won’t rise much, so don’t worry about having to put it in a huge bowl.

Cream cheese filling
1/2 block cream cheese -soft
1/2 c. powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp citrus zest -I had a combo of oranges and limes
Combine everything until smooth. Set aside for next day

Next day, remove the dough from the fridge, and divide it into about 20 pieces, each 1 3/4 ounces, about the size of a golf ball. Place the pieces on lightly greased or parchment-lined baking sheets, leaving about an inch between them. Flatten the balls till they’re about 1/2-inch thick, cover them with a proof cover or lightly greased plastic wrap, and allow them to rest for 30 minutes.

For the sausage varieties -I just rolled the dough out about a 1/2 inch thick into a large rectangle and then cut those into strips about the same width of the sausage. Then roll around the sausage and pinch the seam close

STREUSEL TOPPING: In a small bowl, mix together 3/4 c. flour, 1/2c. sugar, then add 1/2 stick soft butter, stirring till crumbs form.

ASSEMBLY: Using your fingers, make a wide, deep indentation in the center of each flattened dough ball. Don’t be afraid of being decisive here; you want to make a deep enough indentation that it doesn’t just disappear as the buns rise and bake. Place about 2 tablespoon of the filling into each bun; crumble a little of the streusel on top. Cover the kolaches, and allow them to rise for about an hour; they won’t necessarily double in bulk.

Bake the kolaches in a preheated 350°F oven for 15 to 20 minutes, till they’re golden brown. Remove them from the oven, and serve warm, or at room temperature. Yield: about 20 kolaches.

The 4 P's...

It's Sunday and "the weather gods" say it going to turn cold and snow. While I'm "not holding my breath" on the forecast, I am making Pot Roast and Pumpkin Pie Pockets. The Pot Roast is simple crock pot style - I seasoned and browned the meat, cut up some potatoes, onions, and carrots; then placed the roast on top and covered the roast with cream of mushroom soup. We shall see around 8:00 how that turns out. In the meantime, I really didn't get my Pumpkin Pie fix this year so keep trying new recipes with Pumpkin Puree. I've done bread pudding, mixed it with cake box mix, and today made the Pie Pockets that I had earmarked on Pinterest awhile ago. Pretty good but better with whip cream and I think I should have stuffed them a little bit more. Also wished I had Joy the Baker's Hot Buttered Rum to go along with...have a good week and Post Dammit!!

Pumpkin Pie Pockets via cookies and cups/pinterest

• 4 oz cream cheese, room temp.
• 1 cup canned pumpkin
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 egg yolk
• 1/2 cup half and half
• 4 tbsp melted butter
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
• 2 store bought rolled pie crusts
• egg wash 
• Filling:

1. Preheat oven to 350
2. Spray an 8×8 pan with cooking spray, set aside.
3. In your mixing bowl beat cream cheese and pumpkin until combined and smooth. Add in your sugar and salt and mix until incorporated. On low add in your butter, half and half vanilla, pumpkin pie spice and egg yolk.
4. Turn mixer up to medium and mix until combined.
5. Pour mixture into prepared pan and bake for 20-25 minutes until set.
6. Let cool before filling your pie pockets.
Assembly:
7. Flatten your crust on a floured work surface. Roll the crust out a little thinner.
8. Cut your crust into rounds, approx 3" in diameter.
9. Place 1 tbsp of pumpkin pie filling in the center of each.
10. Brush the edges with egg wash and place a top crust over filling and pinch edges.
11. Bake at 350° on a parchment lined baking sheet for 15-20 minutes until golden brown.
12. When done, remove from oven and sprinkle with cinnamon sugar.
13. Serve warm or room temperature