ONLINE EXTRA — CHRISTMAS GOODIES: Butterscotch Candy . . . Chocolate-Peppermint Candy Canes . . . Forgotten Kisses, etc.

Butterscotch Candy

2 6-ounce packages butterscotch bits

2 cups chow mein noodles

2 cups peanuts

Melt the butterscotch bits in a double boiler. Add the noodles and peanuts. Stir until well coated.

Drop by rounded teaspoon onto a baking sheet and let harden. Store in covered tin.

Yield: 2 to 3 dozen candies.

Christmas Cream Cheese Mint Dainties

8 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature

2 pounds confectioners’ sugar, sifted

¼ to ½ teaspoon flavoring (wintergreen, peppermint or almond)

Food coloring

Granulated sugar (for rolling)

Candy molds

Cut sifted sugar into cream cheese. Add flavoring oil and coloring. Knead until color and flavoring are spread evenly throughout and mixture is smooth.

Roll into small balls and roll the balls in granulated sugar and press into molds. Let stand in a cool place for at least two hours (do not refrigerate).

Tap gently out of molds and let air dry for at least 30 minutes before packing so they won’t stick together. Refrigeration is not recommend for these mints, so make them for a small gathering where they’ll be appreciated and finished off.

Chocolate-Peppermint Candy Canes

1½ cups unbleached all-purpose flour

2/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1 teaspoon salt

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened

1 cup confectioners’ sugar

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

¾ cup semisweet or bittersweet chocolate chips, melted and slightly cooled

3 ounces peppermint candies, coarsely crushed

Whisk together flour, cocoa powder and salt in a medium bowl. Place the butter and sugar in a large bowl and beat together with an electric mixer on medium until fluffy, about 3 minutes. Beat in vanilla. Mix in flour mixture on low until dough is smooth.

Divide dough into 2 portions. Press each into a 5-inch disk, wrap in plastic and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes and up to 2 days.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

Working with 1 disk at a time, roll dough to ¼ inch thick on a lightly floured countertop. Turn the dough often, loosening it from the countertop with a large, offset spatula to prevent sticking.

Use a candy cane-shaped cookie cutter to cut the dough, rerolling scraps and recutting until all the dough is used. Transfer cookies to prepared baking sheets, spacing them 1 inch apart. Bake until firm, 13 to 15 minutes. Slide cookies, still on parchment, onto wire racks to cool.

Use a small offset spatula to spread a thin layer of melted chocolate over 1 side of each cookie. Sprinkle with peppermint and let stand until chocolate is set, about 30 minutes. Store for up to 3 days between sheets of parchment in an airtight container at room temperature.

Note: To crush the candies, place them in a heavy-duty zipper-lock bag on top of a cutting board and pound with a mallet or rolling pin.

Yield: About 32 3-inch cookies.

Forgotten Kisses

2 egg whites

Few grains of salt

½ teaspoon cream of tartar

¾ cup superfine sugar

½ teaspoon vanilla

Red, green or yellow food coloring

1½ cups chocolate mint chips, chocolate chips or chopped nuts Instructions:

Preheat oven to 375degrees for at least 15minutes.

Beat egg whites until frothy. Add salt and cream of tartar and beat until stiff. Add sugar slowly while continuing to beat and mixture becomes glossy. Add vanilla. Divide mixture into thirds. Tint each with one of the colors. Fold into each one a ½ cup of chocolate mint chips or any combination of chips and nuts. Drop by spoonful onto a greased cookie sheet. Place in oven and turn oven off immediately. Do not open oven for at least 5 hours.

Penuche

1 cup each brown sugar and granulated sugar

1 cup cream

1 cup butter

¼ cup light corn syrup

1 cup nuts

½ teaspoon vanilla

Butter an 8-inch square pan. Place cold tap water in two or three bowls and set aside.

Combine in a heavy-bottomed pan the two sugars, cream, butter and corn syrup. Bring to a rolling boil that cannot be stirred down and cook on a very low boil for 7½ minutes. The mixture will begin to look foamy and appear as if it is pulling away from the sides of the pan. Place a spoonful of mixture in the tap water to see if it has reached the soft-ball stage. Remove from heat, add nuts and vanilla. Allow candy to cool just a bit. Beat until candy begins to thicken. Pour into prepared pan and cut into squares.

Classic Mini-Gingerbread Men

FOR THE COOKIES:

2½ cups unbleached all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon ground ginger

½ teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon ground cinnamon

½ teaspoon ground cloves

½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened

½ cup sugar

½ cup dark (not light or blackstrap) molasses

1 large egg yolk

1 tablespoon white vinegar

Red Hots, sugar hearts, sprinkles and other sugar décors for decorating

FOR THE ICING (optional):

1 tablespoon meringue powder

2½ tablespoons warm water

1 cup confectioners’ sugar

Make cookies: Whisk together flour, baking powder, ginger, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and cloves in a medium bowl. Cream together butter and sugar in a large mixing bowl with an electric mixer until smooth. Add molasses, egg yolk and vinegar and beat until smooth, scraping down side of bowl once or twice as necessary. Stir in flour mixture 1 cup at a time, until incorporated.

Scrape dough onto countertop, shape into a 5-inch disk, wrap in plastic and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes and up to 3 days.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line several baking sheets with parchment paper. Roll dough to ¼-inch thick on a lightly floured countertop. Turn dough often, loosening it from the countertop with a large, offset spatula to prevent sticking. Use a 3-inch gingerbread man cookie cutter to cut dough, rerolling and cutting scraps. Place cut cookies on prepared baking sheets 1 inch apart. Press sugar decorations and candies into cookies to make eyes, mouths, buttons, etc.

Bake until firm, 8 to 10 minutes. Slide cookies, still on parchment, onto wire racks to cool completely.

Make icing, if desired: Whisk together meringue powder and water in a large bowl until frothy. Add confectioners’ sugar, whisk and then beat with an electric mixer on high until smooth and shiny, 3 to 5 minutes.

Scrape icing into a pastry bag fitted with a small, plain tip and pipe additional decorations onto cookies. Let cookies stand until icing is set, about 30 minutes. Store for up to 3 days between sheets of parchment in an airtight container at room temperature.

Yield: About 30 3-inch gingerbread men.

Espresso Snowflakes

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened

¾ cup packed light brown sugar

2 tablespoons instant espresso powder

½ teaspoon salt

2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour

1/3 cup confectioners’ sugar

¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg

Cream together butter, brown sugar, espresso powder and salt in a large bowl with an electric mixer until smooth, 3 to 5 minutes. Add flour, ½ cup at a time, until incorporated, scraping down sides of bowl as necessary. Divide dough into 2 portions. Press each into a 5-inch disk, wrap in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes and up to 2 days.

Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Line several baking sheets with parchment paper. Roll dough to ¼-inch thick on a lightly floured countertop. Turn dough often, loosening it from the countertop with a large, offset spatula to prevent sticking. Use a 3-inch snowflake cookie cutter to cut dough, rerolling and cutting scraps. Place cut cookies on prepared baking sheet, 1 inch apart. Bake until firm, 15 to 18 minutes. Slide cookies, still on parchment, onto wire racks to cool completely. Store cookies in airtight container at room temperature up to 3 days.

Place cookies on rimmed baking sheets (this will contain the mess). Whisk together confectioners’ sugar and nutmeg in a small bowl. Spoon mixture into a fine strainer and shake strainer over cookies to dust heavily just before serving.

Yield: About 36 3-inch cookies.

Pistachio Shortbread Christmas Trees

½ cup unsalted pistachios

1½ cups unbleached all-purpose flour

½ cup plus 2 tablespoons confectioners’ sugar

½ teaspoon salt

¾ cup (1½ sticks) unsalted butter, cut into 12 pieces, chilled

1 large egg yolk

½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1 ounce milk chocolate, melted

½ cup white chocolate chips, melted

Dragees (optional)

Place pistachios in work bowl of a food processor and finely grind. Add flour, confectioners’ sugar and salt and pulse once or twice to combine. Add butter, egg yolk and vanilla and process until dough comes together into a smooth ball. Divide dough into 2 portions. Press each into a 5-inch disk, wrap in plastic and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes and up to 2 days.

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Line several baking sheets with parchment paper. Roll dough to ¼-inch thick on a lightly floured countertop. Turn the dough often, loosening it from the countertop with a large, offset spatula to prevent sticking. Use a 3-inch Christmas tree cutter to cut dough, rerolling and cutting scraps. Place cookies on prepared baking sheets, 1 inch apart. Bake until gold around edges, 13 to 15 minutes. Slide cookies, still on parchment, onto wire racks to cool completely.

Place cookies, still on racks, on top of rimmed baking sheets. Use a small offset spatula to spread milk chocolate over trunks of trees. Dip a fork into white chocolate and wave back and forth over cookies to decorate. If desired, place some of the dragees on the chocolate so they adhere. Let stand until chocolate is set, about 30 minutes. Store between sheets of parchment in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.

Note: Look for dragees at specialty foods stores and baking supply shops, or use small red and green nonpareils instead.

Yield: About 24 3-inch Christmas tree cookies.

Black Pepper-Shortbread Moons with Citrus Glaze

FOR THE COOKIES:

2¼ cups unbleached all-purpose flour

¼ cup cornstarch

2 teaspoons ground black pepper

¼ teaspoon salt

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, cut into pieces and chilled

½ cup sugar

FOR THE GLAZE:

1 cup confectioners’ sugar

2 tablespoons plus

2 teaspoons lemon juice

1 teaspoon grated lemon zest

1 teaspoon grated orange zest

Make the cookies: Whisk together flour, cornstarch, pepper and salt in a medium bowl. Cream together butter and sugar in a large bowl with an electric mixer until smooth, 3 to 5 minutes. Add flour mixture, ½ cup at a time, until incorporated, scraping down sides of bowl as necessary. Divide dough into 2 portions. Press each into a 5-inch disk, wrap in plastic and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes and up to 2 days.

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Line several baking sheets with parchment paper. Roll dough to ¼ inch thick on a lightly floured countertop. Turn dough often, loosening it from countertop with a large, offset spatula to prevent sticking. Use a 2-inch star cookie cutter to cut dough, rerolling and cutting scraps. Place cut cookies on prepared baking sheet, 1 inch apart. Bake until firm, 11 to 13 minutes. Slide cookies, still on parchment, onto wire racks to cool.

Make glaze: Whisk together confectioners’ sugar, lemon juice, lemon and orange zest in a small bowl until smooth. Use a small, offset spatula to spread a thin layer of glaze over each cookie. Let cookies stand until glaze is set, about 30 minutes. Store between sheets of parchment in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.

Yield: About 50 3-inch cookies.

Stained-Glass Star Cookies

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened

¾ cup sugar

1 large egg yolk

1½ teaspoons pure vanilla extract

2½ cups unbleached all-purpose flour

¼ teaspoon salt

3 ounces butterscotch candies, unwrapped and ground fine in a food processor

Coarse white sanding sugar

Place the butter and sugar in a large bowl and beat together until fluffy with an electric mixer on medium, about 3 minutes. Beat in egg yolk and vanilla. Beat in flour and salt on low until dough is smooth.

Divide dough into 2 portions. Press each into a 5-inch disk, wrap in plastic, and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes and up to 2 days.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line several baking sheets with parchment paper.

Place candies in work bowl of a food processor fitted with a metal blade and process until finely ground. Transfer candy to a small bowl.

Working with 1 dough disk at a time, roll dough to 1/8-inch thick on a lightly floured countertop. Turn dough often, loosening it from the countertop with a large, offset spatula to prevent sticking.

Use a 3-inch star-shaped cookie cutter to cut the dough, and then use a 1-inch star-shaped cookie cutter to make a star cut in the center of each cookie. Transfer cookies to prepared baking sheets. Reroll and re-cut scraps until all of the dough is used.

Use a very small spoon to fill each small star cutout with candy, spreading it with your finger or the back of the spoon to fill, but not overfill, cavity. Sprinkle cookies with sanding sugar.

Bake cookies until golden around the edges, about 8 minutes. Let cool completely on baking sheets. Store in an airtight container at room temperature, between sheets of parchment to protect decoration, for up to 3 days.

Note: Be sure to let these cool completely on the baking sheets before moving them to allow the cookies to set up and the candy centers to harden. Red or green hard candies may be substituted for the butterscotch candies, if you’d like. Or skip the stained-glass decoration and use the dough to make cut out sugar cookies to decorate with sprinkles and sanding sugar.

Yield: About 40 3½-inch cookies.

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