Cherry Orange White Chocolate 7-Layer Bars

These holiday bars are one of my favorites. Like most layered bar cookies, they come together quickly. They freeze well, they look festive and the buttery citrus flavor will brighten any gloomy winter day.

They also make me think of my grandparents. They still are the only people I know who regularly used or talked about citron, a kind of citrus fruit whose candied rind is used in the Italian fruit-studded cake called panettone.

I recommend making at least two batches of these bars at a time. My family can easily polish off a pan if I don't store them in my secret cookie hiding spot. (Yes, I actually have a site — but only one — in my house that has yet to be discovered.)

If you have children, this is a great recipe for letting kids help out in the kitchen. Once most of the ingredients are measured, all you need to do is sprinkle them on top.

Enjoy your holiday cookie baking this year! If you need more recipes, check out Amy's Ginger Cookies.

Mangia! Mangia!
Andrea

Cherry Orange White Chocolate 7-Layer Bars

1 1/2 cups graham cracker or vanilla wafer crumbs
1 teaspoon grated orange peel
1/2 cup melted butter
1 can (14 ounces) sweetened condensed milk
1 3/4 cups white chocolate chips
1 cup chopped walnuts
1 cup dried cherries
1 cup flaked or shredded coconut (sweetened or unsweetened)
1/2 cup candied orange peel (you can also use citron or lemon peel)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a 13x9x2 inch baking pan with a large piece of foil that extends over the edges of the pan. Lightly coat foil with cooking spray.

In a large mixing bowl, stir graham cracker crumbs, orange peel and melted butter until all crumbs are combined. Press mixture into bottom of baking pan.

Pour condensed milk over the entire crust. Then evenly sprinkle the rest of the ingredients on top: the white chocolate chips, walnuts, cherries, coconut and candied orange peel.

Coat a large flat spatula with cooking spray and use it to gently press the layers into the condensed milk.

Bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until the edges of the bars are light brown.

Let pan completely cool on a wire rack. To cut, use foil edges to lift bars out of pan and transfer to a cutting board. Slice into squares.

Ginger Cookies

We're kicking off a week of holiday baked goods today, dear readers.

Actually, my daughters and I got the baking party started last week by appearing Friday on Fox 46's Good Day Charlotte to show off our Sugar Cookies. (Click here to watch the "What's Your Dish?" segment featuring Lucy, Penny and me. Click here to read the blog post all about it.)

Anyhow, ginger cookies are my favorite cookies of all time. Always have been, always will be. And now my two little gingers love baking and eating them, too!

My mom made ginger cookies for me throughout my childhood. Sometimes I'd ask for these cookies -- like ginger snaps but soft -- instead of birthday cake. I still would -- no matter that my birthday is in June.

I say make ginger cookies this holiday season and all year round!

XOXO,
Amy

PS: The key to ginger cookies is to find unsulphured blackstrap molasses. Molasses comes from sugar cane and is the byproduct in the production of sugar. Juice extracted from sugar cane is boiled up to three times to become three different kinds of molasses -- light molasses from the first boiling, dark molasses from the second boiling and blackstrap molasses from the third boiling. In these ginger cookies, blackstrap molasses brings out the flavor of the cloves, ginger and cinnamon, whereas light molasses makes some disappoing, bland cookies. Blackstrap molasses is super healthy too, so pass me another cookie. Kidding. No, seriously, for real, pass me another cookie.

PPS: I never bake a single batch of cookies. If I'm getting out all my baking supplies, I'm going to make it worth the effort and double the recipe. This recipe doubles nicely and the cookies freeze well after they are baked, too.

Ginger Cookies
Yields about five dozen cookies

2 1/3 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/4 teaspoon cloves
1 teaspoon ginger
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 cup sugar, plus more for rolling cookie dough
1 egg, beaten
4 tablespoons unsulphured blackstrap molasses
1 cup unsalted butter, softened to slightly runny

Combine all  dry ingredients, except sugar, and set aside. Mix together sugar and all other ingredients. Gradually add the dry mix to the egg and butter mixture. Refrigerate cookie dough for a few hours or overnight -- or place in freezer for a shorter amount of time. Basically, you want to dough to harden a bit so that  you can roll it into balls.

When ready to bake, preheat oven to 350 degrees. Roll dough into small balls and then roll in sugar. Bake on ungreased or lightly greased cookie sheets for about 9 minutes. You will see the bottoms of the cookies turn very slightly brown. Be careful not to overbake!

Good Day Charlotte Features George Girls and Sugar Cookies

Dear readers, you know how I like to be in the kitchen with my daughters, right? Well, we spent some special time cooking this morning. On live TV. OK, it wasn't actually cooking. But it was live TV. Lucy, 8, Penny, 6, and I went on Fox 46's Good Day Charlotte to show how we make holiday Sugar Cookies in a "What's Your Dish?" segment.

Pretty sweet time! Or, as Lucy said, "They're delicious!"

(VIDEO): What's Your Dish? Amy George and her daughters Lucy and Penny show us how to make Christmas  Sugar Cookies

In case you missed it, earlier this month, I appeared on "What's Your Dish?," which features area food bloggers, to demonstrate roasted chicken, chicken stock and chicken noodle soup. Lucy and Penny tagged along for moral support and got a taste for broadcast stardom and just had to return.

(BLOG POST): Cooking Chicken 3 Ways on Fox 46's Good Day Charlotte

(VIDEO): What's Your Dish? Amy George Makes Roasted Chicken

Anyhow, today was even sweeter, because my sous chefs got to go on air with me! And who doesn't like an excuse to eat sugar cookies before 9 a.m.?

Stay tuned to this blog next week when we will post three more holiday baking recipes. On Monday, I'll bring you Ginger Cookies. On Wednesday, Andrea will treat you to Cherry Orange White Chocolate 7-Layer Bars. And on Friday, Erin will feature her mom's Kris Kringles.

Happy holidays, readers and fellow bringers of hot dinner! We hope they are the sweetest.

XOXO,

Amy

Fried Matzah

My husband spent many years working in restaurants, but he rarely cooks. When he does, he makes Fried Matzah.

This Thanksgiving weekend, as I'm prepping the turkey and sides, he'll whip up this tasty breakfast for our house full of guests.

It's a meal he learned from his father. Also called Matzah (or Matzo) Brei, this is a traditional Passover dish, but we eat it whenever the husband feels like making it.

When I shared the news of the husband's meal-making with my mom, she reminded me that my Uncle Rick used to make us Matzo Brei, too. It's a comforting, homey, simple meal that satisfies and fills you up. And it's easy to vary the recipe to suit your particular tastes, like adding fresh herbs or topping the finished fried matzah with shredded cheese or apple sauce.

So, as you prepare for your Turkey Day feast, invite someone else into the kitchen to do the breakfast honors so that you can enjoy a little down time.

Mangia! Mangia!
Andrea

Fried Matzah
This recipe serves 4-5 people.

10 full matzo crackers (the husband prefers Manischewitz)
2 tablespoons vegetable or olive oil, divided
5 green onions or 1 red onion, finely diced
1 or 2 cloves of garlic, minced
8 eggs
1 tablespoon butter
Salt and pepper to taste
1/4 cup chopped fresh herbs, optional

Break up the matzo into smaller pieces and put them into a strainer. Run the strainer and crackers under hot water, tossing the crackers a few times until they are dampened but not softened. Set aside.

Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a small skillet. Add onions and garlic and cook until fragrant and onions starts to soften. Remove pan from heat and set aside.

Crack eggs into large bowl and whisk to combine. Place pieces of matzo into eggs, ensuring pieces do not stick together.

Let the matzo soak in the eggs for 5 to 10 minutes. Meanwhile, heat remaining 1 tablespoon oil in a large skillet. Add butter and let it melt. Then pour matzo and egg mixture into pan. Add salt and pepper.

Using a large spatula, flip pieces of the matzo so that it cooks evenly. After eggs begin to firm up, add the cooked onions and garlic and any herbs. Continue to turn sections of the matzo-egg mixture, breaking up large pieces.

Cook until the eggs are no longer runny and the matzo is lightly browned. Divide among 4 or 5 plates and serve. If you like, top with some shredded cheese, apple sauce or sour cream.

Spiced Cranberry Sauce

Growing up I always liked cranberry sauce at Thanksgiving, even though all my family ever did was open up a can of Ocean Spray. Imagine my surprise when many years later, I discovered the awesomeness of homemade cranberry sauce.

At Thanksgiving 2006, I found my forever cranberry sauce -- the kind I have been making every year since and will contine to make for ... well forever. That year, my editor Mike and his wife Alison invited us to celebrate the holiday at their house. I was three weeks away from having my first baby, so you can imagine how relieved I was not to be cooking. I had nothing else to do but stuff my face. What I remember the most: the cranberry sauce, spiced with cloves. I liked the cranberry sauce so much that Alison kindly shared the recipe, which she'd gotten from Mike's mom.

I've shared my forever cranberry sauce recipe with so many friends and  now with you, dear readers. Enjoy and have a very happy Thanksgiving!

XOXO,
Amy

PS: Check out Erin's Thanksgiving Round-Up, in which she offers up Citrus and Ginger Cranberry Sauce a la her mother-in-law.

Spiced Cranberry Sauce
1 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon allspice
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon cloves
1 pound fresh cranberries
1 cup pineapple juice

Combine all items in a sauce pan and bring to a boil. Adjust heat down to medium or medium high and cook for 10-15 minutes. Serve hot or cold. This cranberry sauce can be kept in the refrigerator for several weeks or frozen, too.

One final thing: I always double this recipe so that there's enough for Thanksgiving leftovers and even some for Christmas. It's easy to do since the recipe calls for a pound of cranberries but Ocean Spray packages berries in 12 ounce bags; just buy three bags of berries to double.

Thanksgiving Round-Up

The Thanksgiving countdown is on. Today I'm sharing my perfect Thanksgiving menu.

Let's get cooking!
Erin

Spiked Cider: Get the party started right with a holiday cocktail. Make a giant batch of Spiked Cider and keep it warm in your slow cooker so guests can help themselves.

Roast Turkey Breast with Gravy: I like to brine the bird to ensure it's moist and delicious. Roasting just the breast is easier and faster than roasting the whole, plus it takes up less room in your fridge and oven.

Mashed Potatoes: Prepare these babies the day before Thanksgiving and then bake them just before dinner.

Stuffing with Sausage & Cranberries: Stuffing is totally my favorite part of Thanksgiving. Salty sausage, crunchy pecans, sweet cranberries...this recipe has it all.

Maple-Glazed Brussels Sprouts with Bacon: Maple syrup! Bacon!! I think that's all I need to say about this one.

Cranberry Sauce: I put this Cranberry Sauce on everything. And it's the perfect condiment for a leftover turkey sandwich the day after Thanksgiving.

Apple Pie: C'mon now. It's a classic.

Gooey Pumpkin Bars: Because one dessert is never enough on Thanksgiving.

Apple, Lemon & Tomato Chicken

When I was growing up, my mom would leave notes on the kitchen table for my brother, sister and I to find when we got home from school. Usually there were instructions on what to start getting ready for dinner. The dish we made most often was baked chicken with paprika and garlic.

When I got my first job, I wanted to expand the chicken recipes I knew how to cook. I came across 365 Ways to Cook Chicken in a local bookstore and have been using it ever since. (I got my Mom a copy, too.)

This one-pot meal is full of fall flavors and is easy to make. Be sure to thinly slice the lemon so that the rind softens and you can eat it along with everything else in the dish. Now that I have kids, I serve this with egg noodles, but it tastes just delicious on its own, too.

Mangia! Mangia!
Andrea

Apple, Lemon & Tomato Chicken
Adapted from the 365 Ways to Cook Chicken cookbook

1 can (15 ounces) diced tomatoes
1/4 teaspoon thyme
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon vegetable or olive oil
4 thin, skinless, boneless chicken breasts (you can pound out thicker breasts to make them thinner)
1 medium white or yellow onion, thinly sliced
1 large lemon, thinly sliced
2 apples, cored and sliced
1/2 teaspoon cornstarch, dissolved in 1 tablespoon water
8 ounces egg noodles cooked to package directions (optional)

In a bowl combine tomatoes, thyme, garlic, salt, pepper and Worcestershire sauce. Set aside.

Heat oil in a non-stick skillet over medium heat. Add chicken and cook for about 4 minutes on each side, until lightly browned. Toss onion slices over chicken. Pour tomato sauce on top. Lay lemon slices over everything.

Bring to a boil. Then cover pan with a lid and lower the heat. Simmer for 10 minutes, then add apple slices. Cover and cook for another 10 minutes, until chicken is tender.  Remove chicken and apples to a platter and keep warm.

Add dissolved corn starch to sauce in pan and turn heat up to high. Cook about 5 minutes, stirring until sauce thickens. Spoon sauce over chicken and apples.

Serve with egg noodles if you like.

You can find the 365 Ways to Cook Chicken cookbook on Amazon.