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Recipe: cranberry pistachio orange lärabars

Did everyone have or is still having a nice holiday? I gave myself last week off after the rush of baking, gifting the baking, standing in long lines at the post office, packing up for Crested Butte, hosting a friend, and finishing our year end photo card. It’s been a nice week of more or less keeping off the interwebs to catch up on sleep, spend a lot of time on snow, give Kaweah lots of belly rubs, and become addicted to Downton Abbey.

fresh falling snow on the mountain

looking through a lovely ice sculpture in mountaineer square

cross country skiing on the crested butte nordic trails

ranch boundary

Not long after I had made the baked brie with cranberries and pistachios, I began to think what a lovely combination cranberries and pistachios make. Forget the brie – I’m all about the fruits and nuts! And one of my favorite places to enjoy fruits and nuts is outside in the backcountry, on the slopes, on the trails. Why not a cranberry pistachio Lärabar?

dates, pistachios, orange (zest), cranberries

put the pistachios in a food processor

coarse chop (coarser for a crunchier texture)

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Recipe: candied citron

At last, the cookie baking is done! Now we are in overdrive tidying up around here and doing a little upgrading in the process. There has been no new snow and it was downright HOT in Boulder on Wednesday. 65°F is a heat wave for me and especially so when trying on alpine mountaineering jackets. Hot and shopping do not go well together. Gah! But it was warm enough for someone to get a bath in the driveway… not us, the dog.

she was none too thrilled about it

replacing my 15-year old track skis with these lovelies

We have a fluffy, clean, lavender-scented puppy and a semi-clean house (we’re getting there). It feels so good to have all of the baking done and most of the deliveries made. It stresses the hell out of me. But to see the smile on someone’s face or the joy in their voice when they are handed a bag of homemade goodies – a bag of love – it’s all worth it. Totally worth it. One of the seasonal favorites year after year is this lemon ginger cookie. A few years ago, I nearly panicked because I couldn’t find candied lemon peel (or candied citron) anywhere in town. I discovered that one specific Safeway location carries it for a short period before the holidays. But that year, they were cleaned out. Well, that’s no good. So I set about making my own.

enter the buddha’s hand

It’s a funky looking fruit that most people make weird faces at when they see it in the produce display. Every time I see Buddha’s hand, I hold one to my nose and inhale deeply. The scent is heavenly. I am obsessed with it. Todd and Diane introduced me to it because it grows in their paradise of a garden. Once, Diane posted a photo of a large green Buddha’s hand on the tree and wrote, “Jen, this one is yours.” Sure enough, a few weeks later I got a package in the mail with two huge and gorgeous Buddha’s hands from their garden. It’s one of the best care packages ever (second only to a box full of fresh passion fruits).

dice the citron

blanch in water for 30-40 minutes, then drain

add sugar and fresh water to the citron

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Recipe: baked brie with cranberries and pistachios

The time has come for folks to don their elastic waistband clothing. I know this because I’ve been working ’round the clock for several days stirring, mixing, cooking, caramelizing, tempering, dipping, rolling, slicing, and baking goodies for distribution. I completed phase 1 of my cookie schedule on Friday morning. I’ve been working phase 2 all weekend (with some time taken out for Kaweah’s birthday celebration).

phase 1 cookies plus jams and homemade spice rubs

But full on debauchery should not be limited to desserts and sweet bites this time of year. I am a card-carrying member of the savory clan – those of us who opt for potato chips over chocolate chip cookies any day. Appetizers and salty snacks forevah!! When I last had my parents over for dinner, I tried a baked brie appetizer with cranberries and pistachios that was a sort of compromise between salty and sweet. It’s the perfect thing for holiday parties because it’s quick, easy, and the results are lovely.

a wheel of brie, an orange, water, cranberries, pistachios, and sugar

grate orange zest into the cranberries

add water to the cranberries, sugar, and orange zest

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