My Crafty Adventure: Christmas Fruit Tree

Hooray!! It's happened...I have been bitten by the crafty bug all thanks to Pinterest! I'm fairly new to this cool bulletin board like site. -- Thanks to my sister in law for her pressuring me to join and lose hours of my life thumbing through other peoples creative talents.

Ah, but if it wasn't for my time well spent on Pinterest then I wouldn't have made this healthy treat to take to school for my oldest gal's teacher. The original picture and post can be found here.

Step by step:

This took about 30-40 minutes for me to make. The most time consuming part was cutting up the fresh pineapple and cantaloupe. I would advise you to use citrus, or more acidic fruits to prevent browning from occurring. Apples could be used if first soaked in a little lemon or orange juice- just no bananas. I used about $15.00 worth of fruit from the grocery- all fresh. Grapes, pineapple, kiwi, mango, strawberries and clementines. Use cookie cutters or melon scoops to help form the shape of the ornaments. I used a small 1 1/2 inch round biscuit cutter for most of the fruit and a star for the top.

I started with a Styrofoam tree that I found for $3.00 at a local craft store. Some stores have green which I would have preferred but white was what the only one I could find.

Then you will need a box of round toothpicks to use to hold the fruit in place. TIP: Insert the toothpicks first row at a time and then place the fruit on the stick when ready. This prevents the sticks from pushing through the fruit. And- helps decrease the amount of sticks you will have puncturing your delicate fingers.

Next work your way up from the bottom scattering the fruit from row to row. Don't worry about the gaps- you can go back in and fill with grapes at the end. You'll even see if you look closely that I had some white spaces. I found that this is almost impossible to prevent. (In other words--- DON'T stress over this! Lesson learned.)

This would also be a wonderful party favor or centerpiece! My oldest is already asking for a fun shape for her birthday party in March! Hmm... might have to shop around for a creative Styrofoam shape.

Happy Holidays to you all!

Cookie Cookie Cookie- Virtual Cookie Exchange: Biscotti Regina

Oh cookies how I love thee! Especially this time of year when I get to pull out favorite recipes and try new ones too... one of the many reasons I have enjoyed participating in the Annual International Bloggers Virtual Cookie Exchange. This year it's hosted by Lori at Fake Food Free - a fellow Kentucky Food Blogger, and her new co-host, Andrea of Food Embrace. See, instead of actually sending the cookies we send each other a recipe and make them at home to enjoy with family and friends.

I have to say I have been impressed with the uniqueness and creativity involved in the recipes I have been given. Last year I made a Triple Ginger Cookie and this year I did a Biscotti Regina that was passed down to me from Chris at Mele Cotte. It is one of her favorites from the  Sopranos Family Cookbook. Oh how I love a good chunky biscotti to dunk in my coffee! These turned out to be just the perfect fit for me.

Biscotti Regina
(adapted from  Sopranos Family Cookbook via Mele Cotte)

½ cup milk ( I used 1/2 and 1/2 since I was running low on milk and wanted to save some for tasting)
2 cups unhulled sesame seeds (not toasted)
1 cup whole wheat pastry flour (I couldn't resist adding some whole grains)
3 cups all purpose flour
1 cup sugar (I used turinado and found it worked perfectly)
3 ½ tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. salt
½ pound (two sticks) unsalted butter, cut into pieces and softened.
2 large eggs, room temperature
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 tsp. almond extract
1 tsp. grated orange zest

Directions

Preheat oven to 375◦ F. Place parchment paper on two baking sheets.
Pour the milk into a shallow bowl. Spread the sesame seeds on a piece of wax paper and set aside.In a large bowl of an electric mixer, stir together the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. On low speed, beat in the butter a little at a time.
In a medium bowl, whisk eggs, vanilla, and orange zest. Stir the egg mixture into the dry ingredients until well blended.
Pinch off a piece of dough the size of a golf ball and shape into a log 2½ inches long and ¾ inch thick.Dip the log in the milk, then roll it in the sesame seeds. Place on a prepared baking sheet. Continue with the remaining dough, placing the cookies 1 inch apart.
Bake 25-30 minutes, or until well browned. Let cool on the baking sheets for ten minutes, and then transfer the cookies to a rack to cool completely. Store in an airtight container.

If you're curious what recipe I sent off to be enjoyed then check out my Crunchy Peanut Butter Date Balls! Ironically Lori at Fake Food Free received mine and seemed to like my version. Bet you would too!