Homemade, delicious and wholesome cookies like this should not be thought of during the holiday season only. If you adore pistachios and fresh cranberries, you can make these any time of year, and I’m sure that they will be well received no matter if it’s a blizzard or a heatwave! They’re just plain that good! Soft and tender, moist and packed with wonderful flavors, and the cranberries that provide so many healthy benefits, give you the excuse to eat more than one! 😉 Ok….maybe three….
Oh, who’s kidding who. ENJOY them. Life is short and precious. LIVE it. Taste it. Experience it. Wear it out to the last thread! It’s the only one you have, the “secret to life”, and sadly, it’s short. Don’t let it slip by. I don’t want to be on my deathbed with a head full of regrets and thoughts full of “I wish I would-of’s”. I’m going to go out kicking and screaming, with a big smile on my face, saying, “WOW!!! What a ride!!!”
Sorry if I sound a bit “mama said” and kind of “preachy”. That’s not me at ALL. But. It’s been a year. Oh boy has it ever. So I’m fixing on making 2017 much, much better. Going to spend more time doing the things that I used to love to do, that have somehow gotten lost. I used to LIVE to draw. I miss doing artwork. So, I’m going to “take my life back”, and spend less time on the ole computer, and spend my time more wisely. I’ve already been trying to do that more and more, and when I stay off….I seem to have much better days! You, too? Be honest with yourself. 😉
Maybe we should all remember the fun things that we used to love to do, that have gotten left behind and collecting dust. When someone asked you when you were a kid, you could answer in a split second…. “What do you enjoy doing?” Hiking? Take a walk around the block. Visit a beautiful park, walk some trails, pack a picnic basket and explore again! Maybe you enjoyed knitting, sewing, crocheting, biking, canoeing, camping, fishing, swimming, singing, dancing? Just do it! You’ll feel better!! It’s what you used to love for a reason. It’s who you are.
And don’t forget the culinary arts. Seems everyone wants a “quick fix” these days. Dump 4 cans of crap and a packet into a crockpot and call it “supper”. Ugh. God forbid make a pot of real soup from scratch. (Which, BTW, takes less than half the time). I know. Crazy, huh!
We really need to get back to those days. You CAN do it!!!! Think of all the time wasted each and every day. On, seriously, things that do not matter. Replace that time wasted and squandered, that you’ll never ever get back, doing something that you’re proud of.
May sound silly. But I suppose I am. And I’m fine with that.
But I do so much enjoy spending hours, not “minutes”, HOURS, in the kitchen. Good food, pots of soup, slow roasted ribs and chicken, and homemade cookies, sorry, don’t take “minutes”. They take time. But time well spent. 😉
2017 is right around the corner. Don’t make a silly, “one thing I won’t do any more”, resolution. Who needs that disappointment when you go back to that “one” old habit.
Get back what you loved to do when you were a kid. Or go bold, and go back to school! Yes, school. Get that degree you always wanted. Or take a class in something you’ve wanted to learn. Why not, right? How many times have we all been on the computer, and “suddenly”, 3 hours have passed by.
Yep. And what was so interesting? 😉 I know. Nothing. Really. Nothing. Nothing we couldn’t have done without.
Those 3 hours could’ve been spent taking that “silly class” you always wanted to. 😉
So let’s ALL maybe put a little more life back into our lives. Our world seems to be going in a very wrong and sad direction. But we can all change that. We really can. Never give up! “Take time to smell the flowers”. Literally. And let’s take OUR world back. 😉
Oh, and you might want to make these cookies, too. Stop buying “cookies” that the multibillionaires are selling you, convincing you that you just cannot live without. Make them yourself. You’ll be so glad you did!!
Let’s all make a better life for ourselves and the generations to come. The rich only get richer if we buy what they’re peddling. 😉 Give gifts made with love by your own hands. And not just for the holidays. Year round.
Make each and every moment count…..starting…. now! 🙂
And don’t worry, I’m no quitter at what I love to do,
I’ll still continue with providing, what I hope,
are helpful recipes and put them all on my blog and social media for you.
It’s one of the things that I do, that I feel that’s important.
Teaching people how to cook and bake.
A lifeskill that should always be taught, shared,
and passed down from generation to generation.
Let’s make 2017 the best year we possibly can!
Cranberry Pistachio Pudding Cookies with Milk Chocolate Chips & White Chocolate Drizzle
Ingredients
- 2 sticks butter, softened
- 1 cup sugar
- 2 drops liquid green food coloring
- 1 (3.4 oz.) box instant pistachio pudding mix
- 2 extra-large eggs
- 1 tsp. Amaretto
- 1/2 tsp. almond extract
- 2⅛ cups flour
- 1 tsp. baking soda
- 1 cup quality milk chocolate chips such as Ghirardelli
- 1 cup frozen cranberries, chopped, I used Cape Cod Select Premium Cranberries, and I was very pleased with them. But you can use whatever brand you prefer
- 1/4 cup roasted and salted pistachios, coarsely chopped
- Kosher or sea salt to sprinkle on top
- 1 square white chocolate almond bark, melted, (white chocolate chips work fine, too)
Instructions
Preheat oven to 350º F.
In large mixing bowl, beat butter and sugar until creamy. Beat in green food coloring.
Beat in pudding mix until blended.
Stir in eggs, Amaretto, and almond extract, but do not beat eggs, and stir or mix on low until blended.
In medium bowl, whisk together well the flour and soda to mix. Add to butter mixture in mixing bowl, mix in on low. Then mix in cranberries that have been finely chopped and pressed between paper towels to absorb juice.
Lastly, mix in on low, just a few turns, the milk chocolate chips and pistachios until combined. Fold in by hand with a spatula if needed. You don't want the cranberries to turn the dough pinkish in color.
Place large, walnut-sized balls of dough onto ungreased baking sheets. Flatten each a little with the palm of your hand.
Sprinkle each with Kosher or sea salt. I prefer the size of Kosher salt for these.
Bake in preheated oven for 11-12 minutes until edges are golden browned. Cookies will be soft. Remove to cooling rack to firm up.
When cool, melt white chocolate and drizzle over each cookie. Let chocolate harden.
Store in an airtight container on the counter, preferably under lock and key, or they will magically disappear!
Notes
Disclaimer: For this recipe I used Cape Cod Select Premium Cranberries, and could not be happier with them! I have used more of this product for this recipe that they sent me for the previous "Holiday Blogger Recipe Challenge" (2016), but my opinion of this product is solely my own.
You can of course choose to use your own favorite brand, just make sure that they are top quality.
