White Chocolate-Cherry Shortbread Cookies

Before I get to this amazing recipe, I just wanted to update everyone on happenings in my life. My dad had his surgery two days ago. He had most of his esophagus removed and his stomach is now attached to his throat. They said everything looks good and they got all the cancer. We'll know for sure if it's all gone when we get the pathology report back. He's doing very well and recovering nicely. There might be a problem with his heart rate since his stomach is now behind his heart, but the surgeon didn't seem worried, and he said if it continues, they'll fix it with medication. So he has a minimum of 13 days left in the hospital, but he's doing well!

In other news, I got a call from the theatre in Wisconsin. I have to call them back today, but I think they're going to offer me the job! I hate to move so far away, but it's not for over 4 months yet, and I would only be there for 5 months. I also got an e-mail from a theatre near Philly. They're remodeling the theatre and hope to open this summer, so they'll start hiring staff soon. I'm keeping all of my fingers crossed that they give me an interview! I'd much rather move to Philadelphia than Wisconsin!

So those are the major events going on in my life. It's all very exciting! Now on to this great recipe. I wasn't going to post any Christmas cookie recipes since it's well past Christmas, but I love these! They can be made any time of the year, they're not just for Christmastime, so I thought it would be ok to share.



White Chocolate-Cherry Shortbread Cookies

Ingredients
1/2 C. maraschino cherries - drained and finely chopped
2 1/2 C. flour
1/2 C. sugar
1 C. cold butter
12 oz. white chocolate - finely chopped
1/2 tsp. almond extract
4 drops red food coloring
2 tsp. shortening
sprinkles, edible glitter, colored sugar, etc.

Method
- Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Spread chopped cherries on a paper towel to drain well.
- In a large bowl, combine flour and sugar. Using a pastry blender, cut in the butter until crumbly. Stir in drained cherries and 4 oz. of the chopped white chocolate. Stir in almond extract and food coloring. Knead the mixture until it forms a smooth ball, and the coloring is evenly distributed throughout the dough.
- Shape dough into 3/4-inch balls and place 2" apart on a greased cookie sheet. Using the bottom of a glass dipped in sugar, or your hands, flatten the balls.
- Bake for 10-12 minutes, until centers are set. Cool for a minute on the cookie sheets, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
-In a small saucepan, combine the remaining chocolate and shortening. Stir over low heat until melted and smooth. Dip half of each cookie in the melted chocolate and allow excess to drip off. Roll the dipped edge in sprinkles, edible glitter, sugar, etc., if desired. Place on wax paper to dry. Once dry, store in a cool place in an airtight container.



A few notes from my kitchen:
-To chop the cherries finely, I just ran them through a mini-chopper for a few seconds, then spread them out on the paper towels.
-I also chopped the chocolate in a chopper. I just used white chocolate chips, so there were some bigger chunks. For smaller bits, use bars of chocolate. (Chocolate chips don't chop well in an electric chopper, but I like the bigger bits.)

Enjoy!



*Update*

I just got off the phone with the American Players Theatre in Wisconsin. I got the job! So basically, I'll be living and working in Spring Green, Wisconsin from May 14th-October 11th.

Cookies and Fitness

So I know I've been neglecting my blog a bit. There's not a whole lot to blog about in my life at the moment. I've been officially unemployed for a five weeks now. (I finally swallowed my pride and filed for unemployment. I don't know yet if I've been approved, but I'm keeping my fingers crossed.) I rarely go out, and when I do it's nothing really blog-worthy. I should really start hiking again. I got that PA Waterfalls book, and a new pack, so I think I have to start adventuring.

As much as I'm ready to move on with my life, in a way it's lucky that I'm home for awhile. I've been taking Dad to his appointments so Mom doesn't have to use all of her personal days and family sick days right away. He had his first major surgery - he got a feeding tube and medi-port put in. He's had consults with the chemo and radiation docs, so he should be starting treatments in the next week or two. The doctors seem optimistic for the most part, so we'll see what happens. We're taking it one step at a time.

I've also been keeping busy playing housewife. I sat down with my mom's sewing machine tonight (since mine is in storage), and fixed two shirts with broken seams, and took in seven shirts that were too big. I have to replace a zipper in a sweatshirt yet, but I didn't have one handy. I also made no-bake cookies tonight! We saw some at the store, and I had a request to make some.



Mmmmm. Molten chocolate goo. :-)



They're in the fridge now, setting up. I may have to have one after my yoga session. Which brings us to the fitness portion of "Cookies and Fitness". I've been doing really well with sticking to my work-out schedule. I've basically been going week-to-week and writing down what exercise(s) I'm going to do each day. It's been a month now, and I haven't missed one yet! Well... I've missed one here and there, but I always double up the next day and make it up.

I've mostly been running/jogging/walking about 4 times a week. It's amazing how much endurance I've built up in just a month. I also do a yoga session twice a week. I use the podcasts from YogaDownload. Some of them I love, and some I hate. Like the Detox Yoga #1 is totally my favorite. It's a lot of twisting the spine and organs to wring out the toxins, and they use some of my favorite poses. Core Yoga #1, on the other hand, is horrible and I can't do half of it. :-P

So I'm feeling pretty great, physically. I don't really see many changes yet, but I feel healthier, and I've lost a few pounds. I'm hopefully going to stick with it. It's pretty much part of my routine now, so it's gotten easier to make myself actually work out. By the time I find employment, I'll be smokin'.

I'll leave you with the recipe for No-Bake Cookies... probably the easiest cookie to make ever.


No-Bake Cookies

Ingredients
2 Tbsp. baking cocoa
1 C. sugar
1/4 C. butter or margarine
1/4 C. milk
1/4 C. peanut butter
1/2 tsp. vanilla
1 1/2 C. quick oats

Method
In a saucepan, boil cocoa, sugar, butter, and milk for a couple of minutes. Add vanilla and peanut butter, stirring until smooth. Remove from heat and quickly stir in the oats.
Drop by spoonfuls onto a wax paper-covered cookie sheet. Refrigerate until firm.

**For a little crunch, use chunky p.b.**


Seriously, it takes about 5 minutes from the time you start till they hit the fridge. Give 'em half an hour to harden, and you're golden. Everyone loves No-Bake Cookies!