Lemon Cranberry Tea Cookies
(A Bev favorite)
Glaze
- 2 lemons
- ¼ cup (50 mL) granulated sugar
Cookie Batter
- 1 cup (250 mL) all-purpose flour
- ¼ cup (50 mL) whole wheat flour
- 1 tsp. (5 mL) ground nutmeg
- ¼ tsp. (1 mL) each salt and baking soda
- 5 tbsp. (75 mL) margarine
- ½ cup (125 mL) granulated sugar
- 1 egg white
- 3 tbsp. (45 mL) plain yogurt
- 1 tsp. (5 mL) vanilla
- 3 tbsp. (45 mL) dried cranberries
Preparation
Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C). Line 1 or 2 baking sheets
with parchment paper. Finely grate peel from 1 lemon and set aside. Squeeze
juice from 2 lemons. You should have about ½ cup (125 mL) of juice. Place juice
in a small saucepan and boil until reduced by half. Stir in ¼ cup (50 mL) sugar
until dissolved.
In a small bowl, stir flours with nutmeg, salt and baking
soda. In a medium bowl, beat margarine with remaining ½ cup (125 mL) sugar and
lemon peel until combined. Beat in egg white, yogurt and vanilla (it may appear
curdled). Stir in flour mixture just until combined.
Roll dough into 1-inch (2.5 cm) balls and set about 2-inches
(5 cm) apart on a baking sheet. Press gently, flattening slightly to form a
cookie. Press a cranberry in the centre of each.
Bake, one baking sheet at a time, in centre of the preheated
oven until the bottom is golden brown for 7-9 minutes. Place cookies on a rack
set over a baking sheet. When cookies are cool enough to handle, dip tops into
lemon glaze. When glaze looks dry, re-dip.
Missing
Clayton – Review by Martha A. Cheves, Author of Stir, Laugh, Repeat; Think With
Your Taste Buds; A Book and A Dish
Clayton awoke to shivers running up
and down his body. The blanket had slipped while he slept, and now, only
partially covered him. The short-sleeved puppy-dog T-shirt he wore left
his arms exposed and goose bumps covered the bare area. He reached out a
hand and grasped an edge of the blanket. It was threadbare; several small
holes scattered across its length. The blanket gave him little warmth in
the dampness of the dirt hole. He pulled the blanket up to his chin and
curled himself into a tight ball. Shivers traveled along his arms and
legs. His body felt like a block of ice, and his forehead felt hot, so
hot.
He wanted
to go home. He wanted to be in his own soft bed with his mother tucking
the blankets around him, blankets that were thick and warm and had no holes in
them. He wanted his mother hugging him. More shivers.
Grabbing the edge of the blanket, he tucked it around his limbs. He shut
his eyes. He wanted to keep them closed. He tried to go back to
sleep. At least then he didn’t have to think about anything. He
didn’t have to think about why he was here.
What did I
do? Did I do something bad? Why won’t Mommy come and get me?
Why is she leaving me here? Why? Mommy, please come. I want
to go home.
Five-year-old
Clayton Kingsley and his mother Jenny have moved to a new home. Jenny
left her abusive husband and obsessive mother and took Clayton to a serene
bedroom community that she thought would be the perfect place to raise her son. At
least that was until the day Clayton came up missing. She had only left
him for 5 minutes to go inside and make peanut butter sandwiches for
lunch. Jenny searched every place a child could hide and still no
Clayton. He neighbor Steve took up the hunt but still had no luck finding
the child. Who could have taken him that quickly and left no trace, no
clues?
Tyrell was
a loner who lived in what could only be described as a shack in the
woods. After high school he had joined the army and served his time but
before he left he had met Patty. They married and had a child and what
Tyrell thought would be a happy marriage. But when he came home after
being wounded everything had changed. Patty had changed. She was no
longer the quiet, mousey girl he had married. She kept her hair bleached
and when she saw the limp from his war injuries, she called him names.
Eventually she took their son and left. Could he be the one who took
Clayton?
Steve the
next door neighbor had a police record. He had helped his friend kidnap
the friend’s newborn child when the mother planned to give it up for
adoption. The child’s mother went to one of the police deputies to report
the missing child and Steve’s friend ended up being beaten pretty badly and
eventually dying. The deputy who came after the baby later accused Steve
of possibly kidnapping another child that came up missing. And now
Clayton is missing. Coincident? Could Steve be the one who took
Clayton? He lived close enough to snatch him quickly and without being
caught.
Missing
Clayton kept me wanting more. The suspense kept me on the edge in hopes
that Jenny would find her child before it was too late. And when she was
taken to the morgue to identify a child's body, it had me holding my
breath. This is an experience that has
to be one of the hardest things a parent can do and go through.
Your recipe sounds delicious. Your book sounds intriguing. Poor Clayton.
ReplyDelete