Jan D'Atri

Jan D'Atri > Jan’s Recipes > butter, softened

butter, softened

Decorated Stocking Cookie

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I received the cutest cookie bouquet this week, and it got me thinking about making a few of my own arrangements for Valentine’s Day. So what makes the perfect cookie for decorating? How about the icing? How can we make our own decorated cookies look like the pro’s? Well, it takes the right cookie dough recipe, the perfect royal icing and a few tips to get you off and running. After Valentine’s Day, this recipe will be great for Easter, Christmas or just because! For a step by step tutorial, I’ve included the link to my video!

Watch my How to Video for Decorated Cookies here!

S’mores Bars

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Many things will be different this Memorial Day as we celebrate the official launch of summer while honoring those who made the ultimate sacrifice for our country. But some things will always remain the same, namely our obsession with the perfect campout treat—S’Mores! This year, if you’re opting to stay home instead of heading for the campgrounds, I’ve got the perfect solution for your “campfireless” sweet tooth. It’s a delicious recipe for S’mores Bars that can be devoured right out of the oven! To be perfectly honest, I love these even more than the originals. They aren’t as messy and they’re a cinch to make! S’Mores Bars have all of the same ingredients, just assembled a little differently. These bars start with a graham cracker crust which you can make with either store bought graham cracker crumbs, or with ground up graham crackers. (My suggestion is to grind your own crumbs. Much tastier!) Once you bake your cookie base, you’ll add the chocolate bars, then the Marshmallow Fluff and top with more cookie crumbs! You can use melted marshmallows for the filling, but the marshmallow cream is a lot easier to spread. Then, all that’s left is to bake them up and then cut them into beautiful yummy bars! This Memorial Day weekend, make this fun treat that’s easier to eat… without the fire!

Watch my How To Video for S’Mores Bars here!

Momma’s Pumpkin Roll

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After Halloween, when our carved-out pumpkin jack-o-lanterns start to shrivel, we usually toss them into the trash or compost pile and then head to the pantry for the canned pumpkin puree to make our holiday pies, cakes and cookies. But in the Early New England settlements, colonists considered the pumpkin a staple and culinary treasure:

“For pottage and puddings and custards and pies,
 Our pumpkins and parsnips are common supplies
 We have pumpkins at morning and pumpkins at noon;
 If it were not for pumpkins, we should be undoon.”

Now that trick-or-treating is over, all things pumpkin leads the way to Thanksgiving and our holiday baked goodies. Here to kick things off is a deliciously moist and delicate fall favorite, The Pumpkin Roll. This tasty spice cake rolled around a sweet cream cheese filling is a lovely way to not only satisfy our sweet tooth, but to pay tribute to the pumpkin, one of the first wild plants cultivated for human consumption in America.