Friday, July 3, 2009

Johnny Appleseed

I found this really great recipe for Johnny Appleseed Cookies that are about the cutest little things you've ever seen...they look like little apple pies!! I found the recipe in an old cookbook from Apple Hill Recipes. This is from the Apple Hill Festival in Placerville, California. Every year they have a Festival and every year I vow to go, but somehow end up missing it! It's ok though, I'm super determined to make it this year :D What is it about festivals that I love so much? Maybe it's the community. Well, not so much the actual community/town, but the gathering of people to share in festivities, food, dancing, music, food-oh yeah, I said that already-lol! Kind of like Christmas season or something.
After deciding Tuesday night what we were going to bake for our Wednesday afternoon baking session a.k.a. "Baking Day" (Tyler loves baking day!), I decided..."why not make it a Johnny Appleseed Day?". We have the book that is shortened for first time readers that went along perfect with my plan. After he woke from his nap, "Mama, it making day!" as he calls it. Bless his heart! We got into a little circle on the floor with the baby (or rather a triangle-lol) and read the story of Johnny Appleseed. Although he may not have gathered much from it, I definitely will keep this as one of our faves. Afterward we sang the good 'ol "Johnny Appleseed Blessing" that I learned when I was a kid in girl scouts. It goes...

The Lord is good to me,
and so I thank the lord...
For giving me the things I need,
the sun, and the rain, and the appleseed.
Yes, he is good to me! (at this point we all would shout "DIG IN!").

Then we baked these little darlings...







Johnny Appleseed's Filled Cookies
-Apple Hill Recipes-
1/2 c. butter 2 1/2 cups sifted flour (make sure you measure after it is sifted!)
1 c. sugar 1/2 tsp. baking soda
2 eggs 1/2 tsp. salt
2 tbsp. cream Thick apple butter
1 tsp. vanilla

Mix shortening, sugar and eggs thoroughly. Stir in cream and vanilla. Stir flour, baking soda and salt together until thoroughly blended. Stir into egg mixture. (If the dough is too flaky, just add a little more cream). Chill at least 1 hr. Heat oven to 400 degrees. Roll dough about 1/8" thick on lightly floured surface. Cut rounds with floured cookie cutter 2 1/2" diameter (or use a child's sized cup or juice glass). Place half the rounds on lightly greased baking sheet (or baking sheet w/parchment paper). Top each with a rounded teaspoon of thick applesauce or apple butter. Make slits in remaining round. Place these remaining rounds over the filled rounds. Press edges together with tines fo a fork. Bake for 8-10 mins.

They sort of taste like shortbread cookies filled with applebutter. So if you like shortbread cookies, you've absolutely got to try this. I think they would be so cute for a children's picnic or tea party!

7 comments:

  1. What a lovely recipe!! I can't wait to try it with my own two girls : ) Thank you for sharing.

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  2. Oh, yummy! What a neat idea. Thank you for the recipe. I haven't heard about that day in Placerville. It's only about 30 min. from where we live, so thanks for posting about it. I'll have to look into going this year. :)

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  3. Rose, these cookies are so sweet!
    I am excited you posted the recipe : )
    I was 'singing' along with the Johnny Appleseed tune in my head!! My kids went through a phase of singing that song it is really cute : )

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  4. umm... ok I can't seem to get that tune out of my head and now my children are singing it too lol!! : )

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  5. Making Day- how cute!
    P.S. I sang along too!

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  6. don't forget you guys and gals (mostly gals)
    who are Iron Deficient, you can add Molasses
    to any recipe, for instance if your recipe calls for 1 Cup of sugar or sweetener,,, you can substitute maybe 1/4 of the cup of it w/molasses, it adds iron to your foods, it adds sweetness AND it adds moisture. When I use molasses (Barbados is my fav, not as strong, but sweet and not barbaric like blackstrap- obviously not my fav) anyway I also use whole wheat flour, not white, and the molasses just makes it so moist and tasty, like in choc chip cookies,, yum w/molasses!! my secret revealed!!! (also when you use whole wheat cook at a lower temp) so many tricks I have learned w/being OLDER THAN DIRT BUT also the proud grandma of these two BEAUTIFUL babies you see here that mamaRose produced for me (with the help of my beautiful son!)

    xxxooo
    proud grandma
    teachersmom1
    suzie
    mom
    (so many titles.....lol)

    ReplyDelete