Gingerbread Ice Cream

I saw this cookbook called Gingerbread a couple of months ago and as I was flipping through it, I started to realize that I wanted to make everything in the book. I had no idea how I would ever narrow it down and choose a recipe to actually make. I thumbed through it again and bookmarked a bunch of things and then, last week I had 6 egg yolks hanging out in the fridge and I knew ice cream was the answer.

I saw Tracey's post about this ice cream last week and that just help verify the fact that I was going to make it.

This ice cream tastes and smells exactly like gingerbread! It is loaded with spices and molasses. Fresh ginger is steeped in the milk/cream mixture, so it really has a great ginger flavor. This is the perfect ice cream for the holidays. It tastes like the holidays! It also stays nice and creamy, even after spending time in the freezer. If you have a gingerbread fiend in the house, they will love this!

Here is the recipe for Gingerbread Ice Cream

MSC-Gingerbread Cupcakes

(TWD is posted beneath this MSC post)

This month's MSC Cupcake was chosen by Kayte who blogs over at Grandma's Kitchen Table. We don't post the recipes for this group, but you can read more about her pick by going to this post.
You can find the recipe by turning to page 246 of Martha Stewart's Cupcakes.

This cupcake definitely has the flavor of gingerbread, all the right spices.
It is supposed to be topped with Fluffy Vanilla Frosting, but I made a lemon glaze instead.
My mom used to make gingerbread this time of year when I was growing up and it always was served with a lemon sauce, so I tried to recreate that flavor combination.

These cupcakes were also topped with optional Gingerbread Cutouts. I was a little cookie-d out when I made these last week, so I skipped those and used Chocolate Covered Candy Coated Sunflower Seeds to top my cupcakes instead.

I found these cute little containers of the candy sunflower seeds that looked like Christmas lights at Cracker Barrel and decided they were a fun little prop. Plus, the candy sunflower seeds are really yummy.
After I had just sprinkled them on, I realized I could have made little shapes or wreaths on my cupcakes or whatever I felt like, with the sunflower seeds.

These cupcakes were the perfect pick for December. The perfect flavor and everything for this time of year!

Go to the MSC Blogroll to see what everyone else thought about these cupcakes and to see some great decorating!

Gingersnap Shortbread

Here is a cookie I made a couple of weeks ago and sent in the mail to a couple of people. I found it in a Better Homes and Gardens Holiday Baking Magazine. The recipe was very easy. This cookie has ground ginger and molasses in it, to give it the gingerbread flavor.
I thought this cookie needed more spice. Next time I am going to add more ginger, just to make sure it is a spicy cookie.
This is a super easy cookie to throw together and perfect for sharing. It mails well, so go ahead and make some- it will be easy to share!


Recipe for Gingersnap Shortbread

Spiced Pecans, S'mores Cookie Bars, Chocolate Gingerbread Bars, and Peppermint Brownies, oh & a Birthday Cake

I had so much fun this morning helping one of my best friends with her daughter's 8th birthday party. It was a tea party, very fancy. The cake I made was so cute. I had a great idea and it worked. Can't wait to get photos up of that cake.
I haven't yet, so these delicious treats will have to do.
The first thing here is Spiced Pecans. I made these a couple of weeks ago, along with the Holiday Biscotti as an idea for a Holiday Gift.
They were a big hit. They are coated in a sweet/spicy mixture. Mostly sweet, because of the cinnamon, sugar but also spicy because of the cayenne pepper and ground ginger.
Delicious. We couldn't stop munching on them. I am making a big double batch next week to send out with some cookies in the mail. Yum...
Next, is a treat that I made for one of the Thanksgiving Dinners we went to. I was asked to bring a kid-friendly treat and remembered some S'mores Cookies that I had seen awhile ago.
What is more kid friendly than something covered in marshmallows and chocolate?
I thought I would turn these cookies into bars and just made them in a 9x13-inch pan, instead of making individual cookies. I let the pan of cookies bake for about 23 minutes or so, and then I dumped on an entire bag of mini marshmallows and some chopped Hersheys milk chocolate.
Put them back under the broiler and let the marshmallows get really toasted.
These were very sweet (not like that is a surprise or something) and had to be eaten in small doses. They were good. The graham cracker crumbs in the cookie base made them taste like a real S'more.
Ooey and gooey, which is a great combination for kids, even if parents might not agree!
Next are Chocolate Gingerbread Bars. I threw these together for a potluck over Thanksgiving weekend. They came together really quickly and disappeared just as quickly. I think most people probably thought they were brownies, so they must have had a little surprise when they tasted the molasses/ginger. A great christmas treat.
Then we had some Peppermint Brownies. I saw this idea in a Holiday Baking magazine, but can't remember which one it was. My sister was visiting for Thanksgiving and we had a lot of fun with all these marshmallows.
We just made basic brownies and then covered them with marshmallows, chopped candy canes and drizzled melted milk chocolate over the top.
Gooey and delicious.
The last thing I wanted to share was a picture of the birthday cake my little girl got to share with her great grandpa. They share the same birthday, November 27th and we decided to celebrate with a sheet cake at our Thanksgiving Dinner. My mother-in-law requested the same cake that I made for her birthday back in July, so I just doubled it and tried out a new frosting recipe. The frosting recipe was really great to decorate with. It also had just a hint of cream cheese that was really delicious. I am definitely going to be using the frosting recipe in the future. You can find the frosting recipe at the bottom of this post. My sister helped me come up with the design for the cake. It was fun. The birthday girl and grandpa were very happy to share the cake and their birthdays with everyone.
Recipe for Spiced Pecans

Recipe for S'mores Cookies

Recipe for Chocolate Gingerbread Bars

Recipe for Vanilla Buttercream