Sorry for the delay, I wanted to confirm with Hershey’s that they would be o.k. with what I wanted to do.  Because my readers are the COOLEST.

This is a Hershey’s Kiss gift basket, check it out..there are all kinds of goodies in here to make Holiday baking your best ever.  And you have four chances to make it yours.

According to Hershey 71 percent of holiday bakers will use Hershey’s Kisses in their baking this year.  I don’t know what the percentage is of people that will use something of Hershey’s but I bet it is close to 100%.

So..you want to win this and you wish I would just be quiet and tell you how? Yeah…o.k.

First of all there will be a gift basket given away every week for the next four weeks.  That takes us right in the the middle of holiday baking.  I will choose a winner, using the random number generator every friday.    You have 3 chances per week to win.

1. Leave a comment on this post this week.  There will be a NEW contest post every week. You must leave comments on the new post each week to be entered for that week. Entries will not carry over from prior weeks.
2. Leave another comment telling what your favorite chocolate recipe is using Hershey products (ie:chocolate thumbprint cookies)
3. Blog this contest and leave a comment with the blog link on this post.
4. Contest is only open to the residents of the United States and Canada.

Each comment will give you one chance to win for a total of three chances per week.  I am really excited about this, and I hope you are too!

For lots of great recipes, cookie exchange ideas and Holiday baking tops check out Hershey Kitchens.

And here is a recipe from Hershey to get you started!

Caramel Thumbprint Cookies

Remove the wrappers from 66 Hershey’s Kisses Brand Milk Chocolates filled with
Caramel, and lightly grease several cookie sheets. In a large bowl, beat together one family size original supreme brownie  mix with Hershey’s Syrup pouch, 1/4 cup Hershey’s Cocoa, two eggs, one tablespoon of vegetable oil and one tablespoon of water. Cover and refrigerate about one hour or until thoroughly chilled (dough will still be sticky).
Heat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit, and shape dough into 48 one-inch balls. (Return dough to refrigerator if necessary).
Roll balls in ground pecans, if desired. Place on prepared cookie sheet and press thumb gently in center of each cookie.
Bake nine-to-11 minutes or until set. Cool completely.
Place 18 Hershey’s Kisses Milk Chocolates filled with Caramel and 2-1/2 teaspoons of milk in a small, microwave-safe bowl. Microwave at medium power for 30 seconds, and stir. If necessary, continue heating on medium power at 10 second intervals, stirring after each heating, until melted. Spoon 1/4 teaspoon, slightly rounded, of the caramel filling in each  cookie’s indentation, and lightly press one Hershey’s Kisses Milk Chocolate filled with Caramel in the center of each cookie.

Images:Courtesy of Hershey , used by permission.

Recipe:Hershey, used by permission.

Post from: Baking Delights

Remember the Chocolate Whoopie Pies I posted the recipe for last summer? Well these are a more festive version made with pumpkin.
I can’t imagine the Holidays without the smells of pumpkin, ginger, cinnamon, clove, and other spices. It just seems like those scents and flavors hold the key to unlock the Christmas Spirit in the Scroogiest of Scrooges. The pumpkin cookie is spicy and tender and the filling is creamy and resplendent with minced candied ginger. I suggest sprinkling the dough with green and red sprinkles before putting in the oven, or totally gilding the lily and topping the cooled cookie with melted white chocolate and THEN sprinkling with the Christmas sprinkles, or even whote edible glitter.. Either way these are a delicious addition to a cookie tray.
To make this ahead you can do one of two things:
1. Drop the cookies by tablespoonfuls on the cookie sheet and set in the freezer to flash freeze. When frozen store in a ziploc in the freezer. Bake according to directions allowing an extra minute or so to get done.
2. Bake the cookies and freeze them without filling. Fill when needed. This can make it a little easier to fill them.
How ever you decide to do it be sure try them. Different and delicious!

3 cups flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp.cinnamon
1 tsp.ginger
1/2 tsp. ground cloves
2 1/2 cups brown sugar
1 cup vegetable oil
2 eggs
2 cups solid pack pumpkin or fresh pumpkin cooked, sieved and drained well.
1 tsp. vanilla

Combine dry ingredients in a mixing bowl. Set aside. In another mixing bowl, cream together sugar, oil, eggs, pumpkin and vanilla. Add dry ingredients and mix well.Drop by rounded tablespoons full onto ungreased non-stick cookie sheets or silpat coated sheets, and bake 350° for 10 to 12 minutes or until the centers of the cookies spring back when lightly pressed. Cool thoroughly before filling.

Filling:
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
4 oz cream cheese
1 c confectioners
pinch salt
1/2 tsp vanilla
2 tbs minced candied ginger (more or less to taste)
Beat the butter and cream cheese together until fluffy. Add the rest of the ingredients and beat until fluffy.
Spread filling on one cookie, top with another one.
Makes about 18-20

Post from: Baking Delights

These are for the more adventurous among you…jalapeno jelly is really only a little spicy and very sweet. It is awesome on cream cheese with crackers. However, everyone around here does that and I like to be a little different.

These are always a beautiful cookie for gift plates or just a cookie assortment on the sideboard during the holiday season. This year I am going to try to use the Wilton edible glitter with them to see how they come out.

In any case, give them a try.

Red & Green Thumbprint Cookies

Almond Jalapeno Jelly Thumbprint Cookies

Almond Raspberry Thumbprint Cookies

2 cup butter, softened
1 1/3 cup white sugar
1 teaspoon almond extract
4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup seedless raspberry jam
1/2 c Jalepeno Jam or Jelly (green, you can also use mint if you wish..) Jam holds up a little better in the oven.

sugar drizzle
1 cup confectioners’ sugar
1 teaspoon almond extract
2 teaspoon cream

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F
In a medium bowl, cream together butter and white sugar until smooth. Mix in 1/2 teaspoon almond extract. Mix in flour until dough comes together. Roll dough into 1 1/2 inch balls, and place on silpat, parchment or ungreased cookie sheets. Make a small hole in the center of each ball, using your thumb and finger, and fill the hole with jelly. Bake for 14 to 18 minutes in preheated oven, or until lightly browned. Let cool 1 minute on the cookie sheet.
In a medium bowl, mix together the confectioners’ sugar, 1 teaspoon almond extract, and cream until smooth. Drizzle over finished cookies .

I like to roll the unbaked cookies in either red or green sugar before I fill them with the OPPOSITE jelly color. For example, red sugar and jalapeno jelly.

Post from: Baking Delights

I told ya something cool was up. Welcome to the Donna Reed Diva’s Contest.

Be honest, you love those old reruns of Donna Reed, Mrs. Cleaver, and the rest. If the truth be known you would stick your feet in some red pumps, tie on a string of pearls and attach an apron to your waist and swish around the kitchen, deftly preparing chocolate layer cakes and large glasses of cold milk.

Yeah you would. Except that your husband would think you had lost your mind. Or, well I don’t think Dharm would, or any of the guys who hang out here.

Anyway.

Starting TODAY, October 13, 2007 Baking Delights is hosting a fantabulous apron contest for my fantabulous readers. It will run for TWO weeks, ending at midnight CST October 29, 2007. (It’s a Monday because I don’t normally post on Sundays)

Intrigued, aren’t you?

This is the prize, and what a cool prize it is. A reversible Christmas apron by Lee Ann of Annie’s Attic . How cool is this?

Can ya picture yourself stirring up those delectable holiday treats, with the recipes you found here of course, wearing this? Mmmhmm.

Contest Rules

Yeah, you knew there would be.

1. For every comment left (starting today, with a valid email) on Baking Delights you get one entry.

2. For every comment left, linking to a blog post you did telling about the contest and linking to it (you can snag the picture, cause it IS cool) you get one entry.

3. For every comment left linking to your blog post that includes a picture of a cookie, cake, bread or pie recipe that you have made from this site you get two entries.

** For the sake of clarity..You can get 2 entries for making a recipe PLUS 2 entries for posting about the contest (if you send me the link in both cases) PLUS an entry EVERY time you leave a relevant comment.

4. At noon cst on Tuesday, October 30, All of the entries will be put in a large antique wooden kneading bowl and Kyrie will draw ONE name. Kyrie is 4 and she can;t read yet so this is a very fair contest.

So, it is as easy to enter as you like, you can pick your own difficulty level. Once the winner is named they have 2 days to contact me, or another winner will be announced. I want to have the apron in your hands by Thanksgiving so you can amaze your friends with your really cool retro-Donna -Reed-Diva ‘tude.

I TOLD you it was going ot be fun!

Post from: Baking Delights