Sampler Paks—an assortment of four mixes in one package—continue to be our hottest selling items. Nearly every order contains some Samplers and many orders contain only Samplers. We have Samplers in bread machine mixes, in E-Z Bake Mixes, and in Traditional Breads. Most are under $10. The Heritage Collection (shown in the picture above) is normally $12.95 and is now on sale for $9.49. We suspect that most are being purchased for gifts although this is a great way to sample different breads. Click here to see our Samplers.
Most of our products sell for less than $10. We have packages of bread mixes to make four loaves from $6.95.
Refer a Friend
If you have friend or family member that you think would appreciate these newsletters, you can share with them in three ways. (1) Send us an email and we will contact your friend with subscription information. (2) Click here to sign up your friend or (3) forward this email to friend with the suggestion that they subscribe. Every subscriber will have a chance to win 1000 cookies (mixes to make 1,000 cookies to be exact) on Christmas Eve.
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A Primer for the Perfect Cookie
Kids think that cookies are one of the four basic foods (the others being cakes, pies, and pastries). Cookies almost take on that importance with adults during the Christmas season. If cookies are so important, we ought to know how to make superlative cookies, not just good ones. (Shown to the right are Old-Fashioned Oatmeal Raisin Cookies and Snickerdoodles. These cookies are combined in Grandma’s Country Cookie Pak.)
The following constitutes a primer for those much better than average cookies.
1. Most cookies (and most cakes) call for butter or shortening, a critical ingredient that provides flavor, affects spread, and controls texture. In most cookie and cake recipes we beat the butter or shortening to entrain air in the product. It becomes a leavener, like baking powder and baking soda. The trapped air makes the cookie lighter. Always beat butter until is light and fluffy. (This is difficult to do without an electric mixer.)
2. Sugar is usually added next. Continue beating until there are no lumps.
3. The eggs and flavoring are next. To avoid getting eggshells in the mixture, break the eggs in a cup and then add to the bowl and beat well.
4. Combine the dry ingredients in a separate bowl. Mix them well with either a sifter or a wire whisk.
5. Add the dry ingredients to the creamed ingredients. If the recipe calls for a liquid, alternate the liquid with the dry ingredients. Stir or beat until combined but do not over mix. Over mixing will develop the gluten in the flour and create a tough cookie and will drive the air from the mixture making the cookie denser.
6. Add the chocolate pieces or nuts if called for. Mix with a spoon instead of the electric mixer as the electric mixer may break the chocolate pieces or nuts.
7. If you are making drop cookies, use a scoop to make uniform sized and shaped cookies. Use quality baking sheets. (We don’t like the insulated sheets for most cookies. We want the cookies to cook from the bottom as well as the top.)
8. Most cookies can be tested for doneness by look and feel. Light colored cookies should begin to brown around the edges. Dark cookies will lose their gloss. If you touch them with your finger, there should barely remain an imprint.
9. Most cookies should be removed and cooled on a rack. If left on the rack, they will continue to cook from the heat in the metal and the cookies will sweat and become soggy on the bottom.
Will hope these suggestions will help you bake perfect cookies this holiday season.
The Improved Yo-yos—Faster, Bigger, Better
Yoyos—the cookie—originated in Australia. The recipes that we have seen call for lemon frosting sandwiched between two vanilla cookies. Since we’re chocoholics, we converted the Australian yo-yo to a chocolate yo-yo. We used chocolate shortbread cookies and a vanilla buttercream frosting—like commercial Oreo cookies but much better. It became one of our best selling cookies.
Lately, we have been tinkering with the yo-yo recipe. The resulting formula makes an even better cookie. The new cookie is more tender, it’s a larger mix so it yields more cookies, and it can be made immediately without refrigeration. (Though you can still refrigerate the dough if you like.) To make these yo-yos, just mix, roll the dough into a log, slice it, and bake it. They can be ready for the oven in just few minutes. The yo-yos pictured were embossed with a cookie die to make fancy holiday cookies. You can emboss yours with a medallion, a lid, a toy, or a coin—or just leave them plain. To learn more about the new yo-yos, click here.
To make these new yo-yos easier to try, we are offering them in single mix packages (the mixes are double-sized) for $5.95.
A Gift Suggestion (and Baking Suggestion) for the Aspiring Baker
We always weigh flour and other dry ingredients—even when we are doing Saturday afternoon baking for the family. It is astounding how much the weight of one cup of flour can vary—anywhere from four to seven ounces depending on humidity and how the flour is packed. It’s no wonder that many recipes don’t turn out as well as they should.
Determine a standard for your favorite recipes—say five ounces of flour per cup—and then always weigh your flour rather than measure it. A baker’s scale uses weights and a balance beam but we prefer an electronic scale with a digital readout. Our favorite is a Tanita Model KD-200. It measures from zero to 35 ounces in .05 ounce increments. Whatever scale you purchase, make sure that it has a tare function that will quickly subtract the weight of the container to give you a zero reading before adding the ingredients to be weighed. A good scale should cost from $50 to $100.
Your friends at,
The Prepared Pantry
www.preparedpantry.com