lemon craisin cookies

I originally posted this recipe in October 2009.  I called these lemony crowd-pleasers Sunshine Lemon Craisin Cookies.  I’ve altered the recipe a bit this go-round – I halved the ingredients (except for the lemon zest and juice, which I doubled!), and I didn’t roll the dough in sugar before baking.  They’re still wonderful.

It was a gorgeous, sunny weekend in DC last week, and I’d had a great lunch with friends and had played a hockey game.  And yet.  Sadness reached into that otherwise perfect day and squeezed my heart until I wanted to cry.  Does this happen to you too?  I don’t know why it does to me, but I know how I fixed it – I baked Lemon Craisin Cookies.  Not for myself (no, I’m on Weight Watchers and being good!), but for the crowd at work on Monday morning.  And something about mixing ingredients, taking a tiny taste of lemony sweet/tart dough, and inhaling the aroma of baking cookies turned my mood inside out.

Lemon Craisin Cookies

INGREDIENTS

1 1/2 cups flour

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

pinch of salt

3/4 cup white sugar

1/2 cup butter, softened

1 egg

1/2 teaspon vanilla

3/4 cup Craisins (sweetened, dried cranberries with a sweet/tart flavor)

zest of a lemon, plus juice

DIRECTIONS

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.  Line baking sheets with aluminum foil or parchment paper and set aside.

Blend butter, sugar, eggs and vanilla in a medium bowl.  Add in the rest of the ingredients, except Craisins and lemon zest/juice and mix thoroughly.  Fold in the final ingredients.

Drop tablespoon-sized dollops of batter onto the cookie sheets about 2-3 inches apart.  Place in the oven and bake for 12-15 minutes (I switch racks midway to promote even baking, but you don’t have to).  Remove from oven when cookies are just very lightly brown at the edges.  Let cool for 10 minutes, then enjoy!  Or you know, store in an airtight container.  Yields 2 dozen cookies.

Note: I did the math so you don’t have to – these cookies are 2 Weight Watchers points each. 

Intellectually, I know that this recipe is just a variation on the basic sugar cookie.  You add a little citrus and a handful of dried fruit, and it doesn’t turn the result into something magical.  Except… it kind of does.  These cookies are like edible sunshine for me, or a draught of felix felicis. 

Recommended for: a quick, simple cookie that will brighten your day no matter what the season.

Interested in other food-related posts?  Check out Beth Fish Reads' Weekend Cooking!

rosé under fire

When you get a lot of people who are passionate about young adult books together socially, amazing things happen.  My DC Forever Young Adult book club (associated with the ever-hilarious FYA site) usually meets once a month, but this summer we’ve been getting together much more often as part of a YA authors vs. YA readers scavenger hunt.  Last weekend one of our activities was a cocktail mix-off/showdown between the two teams.  My team (the readers. and of the readers, mostly Catie.) came with one YA-related drink recipe in hand, which we called the Rosé Under Fire (after Elizabeth Wein’s Rose Under Fire, obvi).  Friends, it’s pretty AND delicious.  And it won that round!

Rosé Under Fire (adapted slightly from a Creative Culinary recipe)

INGREDIENTS

1 1/2 ounces silver tequila

1 ounce lemon juice

1/2 ounce rich simple syrup (two parts sugar, one part water)

2 ounces rosé sparkling wine (we found a sparkling rosé moscato!)

Lemon twist for garnish

Strawberry for garnish (optional)

DIRECTIONS

Fill a Collins glass with ice (we used Mason jars, because we’re classy like that). 

Put the tequila, lemon juice and simple syrup in a cocktail shaker filled with ice and shake vigorously.  Open the shaker, add the sparkling wine (do not shake!) and strain into the ice filled glass.

Flame a twist of lemon (hold peel between two fingers, light a match and bring close to the peel without touching it, let spark and then blow out the match), and then run it around the lip of the glass.  Drop into drink when done!

Note: Flaming the lemon may seem a little crazy, but it smells great and heats up the oils in the peel, so when you then rub it on the lip of the glass you get tiny taste of fiery lemon.

Making the simple syrup a day or two before will simplify this drink to the point of ‘too easy not to make it.’  I recommend going that route.  The end result is a fun little drink that has lovely notes of berry and citrus, and if you can’t imagine the tequila and wine together, don’t worry – it works!  It’s a tiny bit like sangria, but mostly just refreshing and lightly sweet.

Recommended for: a simple, summery cocktail to make for yourself or share with friends on a warm evening.

Interested in other food-related posts?  Check out Beth Fish Reads’ Weekend Cooking.

chicken, lemon and dill with orzo

I love hosting dinner parties.  It may have something to do with my firm conviction that the best conversation happens over shared a shared meal.  The thing is, many of my friends are booked for the weekends, so we end up having to make it work on random weeknights.  For me (or whoever else is hosting) that means finding no-fuss recipes that will feed several and allow us all to eat, drink, laugh and get home in time for a good night’s sleep.  The following baked chicken and orzo recipe was a huge hit this past Wednesday, and I was able to make Greek salad as an accompaniment while it was in the oven. YUM.

Chicken, Lemon, and Dill with Orzo (modified from an Everyday Food recipe)

INGREDIENTS

4 cups (32 ounces) chicken broth

3/4 cup water

1 tablespoon unsalted butter

1 1/4 teaspoons coarse salt

1/2 teaspoon ground pepper

1 pound chicken tenderloins, cut into 1-inch pieces

1 pound orzo

2 1/2 cups crumbled feta (5 ounces)

1/4 cup coarsely chopped fresh dill

1 tablespoon finely grated lemon zest, plus 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice (juice and zest of one lemon)

1 cup grated parmesan cheese

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. In a saucepan, bring broth, water, butter, salt, and pepper to a boil.

In a 3-quart (9”x13”) baking dish, combine chicken, orzo, feta, dill, lemon zest and juice. Pour hot broth mixture over orzo and stir once to incorporate.

Bake until orzo is tender and cooking liquid is creamy, 40 minutes.  Remove from oven, sprinkle parmesan on top and let stand 15 minutes before serving.  Yields 6 servings.

Note: the feta, lemon and dill give this dish a serious burst of Mediterranean flavor.  If you’d like to serve with Greek salad, I suggest The Pioneer Woman’s recipe.  I also put a Pear and Cranberry Crisp in the oven – they baked at the same temperature.  It was a supremely delicious night.  Serve with white or red wine.

Recommended for: a delicious and stress-free recipe (if you can chop ingredients and zest a lemon, you can do this!) to serve friends or family and a flavorful baked casserole that will make several meals in one.

Interested in other food-related posts? Check out Beth Fish Reads’ Weekend Cooking!

lemon bar cupcakes will win you friends

It is true. I know, because it worked for me. Sort of. I suppose in the interest of full disclosure I should admit that all the taste testers were already my friends. But Lemon Bar Cupcakes totally CEMENTED our pre-existing friendships. And that is kind of true. Or something.

I got this recipe from Party Cupcake Ideas, via a twitter link from the fabulous author Lisa Mantchev. In fact, the lady in question is hosting a Cupcakeathon today in honor of the Perchance to Dream book publication date. Check the event out at her blog. And honestly? Go make some cupcakes! Because they’re perfect for any celebration AND for the everyday, too. Plus, extra friends. You can’t go wrong there (I don’t think, anyway).

Lemon Bar Cupcakes

INGREDIENTS

1 box of your favorite lemon cake mix


1 small package lemon instant pudding

1 cup sour cream


3/4 cup water


3/4 cup oil


4 eggs


DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
 In a large bowl, mix together dry ingredients. Add wet ingredients and mix together for several minutes.
 Batter will be fairly thick in consistency.

Bake for 20 minutes. When you remove the cupcakes to cool, you might notice that they are indented in the middle. This can be smoothed out when you add your lemon bar frosting.

Lemon Bar Frosting

This is where I fudged. If you look at the recipe from Party Cupcake Ideas, you make the frosting from scratch. I…didn’t. Here’s what I did do:

INGREDIENTS

1 large can prepared whipped white frosting

fresh-squeezed juice of two lemons

zest of one lemon

extra powdered sugar (a cup or two?)

DIRECTIONS

Mix ingredients together until you’ve got something that is icing-like consistency. Scoop into a quart- or gallon-sized Ziploc bag. Seal bag. Cut a small corner of bag off. Ice the cupcakes with swirls of lemon bar frosting! Maybe it’s not gourmet, but it works. Oh! And those little yellow balls? Are chewy Lemonheads. LOVE!

sunshine through the clouds

I found/sort-of-made-up the perfect recipe for a cloudy fall or winter day. A cookie prescription to chase away the dark and impress your friends. I cannot speak for desserts at large, but it’s now a family favorite in the cookie category. Plus, it’s easy to make (SCORE!). And of course the recipe is called ‘Sunshine Lemon Craisin Cookies.’ Warning: they sort of DO taste like sunshine. Really. Resist if you want to remain grumpy.

Sunshine Lemon Craisin Cookies

INGREDIENTS

3 cups flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/8 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 cups sugar

1 cup butter (soft)

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 1/2 cup Craisins (sweetened, dried cranberries – sweet/tart flavor)

1 teaspoon lemon extract OR 1/2 squeezed lemon plus zest of 1/2 lemon

DIRECTIONS

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Mix butter, sugar, eggs and vanilla in large bowl. Add rest of ingredients EXCEPT Craisins and lemon extract, and stir until blended. Mix in Craisins and lemon extract. Form dough into 1 1/2 balls, then roll in sugar. Place on cookie sheet, and bake in oven for 9-12 minutes.

Enjoy!