~George Washington~
I don't know if it's true that George Washington chopped down a cherry tree, but I do know that his birthday is as good a reason as any to enjoy these cherry cookies.
Cherry Bars
2 1/4 C. flour
1/2 C. sugar
1 C. butter, softened
2 eggs
1 C. brown sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. vanilla
2/3 C. chopped maraschino cherries (reserve liquid)
1/2 c. chopped pecans
1/2 C. coconut
In medium bowl, beat together flour, sugar and butter. Press mixture 10 X 13 pan. Bake 20 minutes at 350 degrees.
In a large bowl blend together eggs, brown sugar, salt, baking powder and vanilla. Stir in cherries, nuts and coconut. Pour over crust. Bake for an additional 25 minutes. Cool.
Frost with this icing:
2 Tbsp. butter
2 C. confectioners' sugar
enough cherry juice to make a smooth frosting.
Frost. Refrigerate and cut into squares.
It's the little things in life, like including one of these cookies in your children's lunchpails that make memories. When my grown sons reminisce about their childhood, they never mention expensive vacations or things that were purchased. It's always about the people or the common ordinary days that were made special by the little gestures, such as a cherry cookie on Washington's birthday or sandwiches made with green bread on Saint Patrick's day. Little gestures, I might add, that only cost a few pennies. Never miss an opportunity to make a memory.
I have tea going; bring a plate, won't you?? Yummers...
ReplyDeleteMatty, I wish I could! I took out those quilt blocks from the Farmer's Wife book that we were working on last year. I need someone to motivate me to start working on them again!
ReplyDeleteI love cookies and bars!! I think they are my favorite treat. I don't think I've made any like these cherry bars but they sure sound good. I like the idea of coconut in them.
ReplyDeleteHope you'll share photos of your quilt blocks!
Sandy I always have such problems with the sashing on quilts. I have lots of blocks done, but when it comes time to actually assemble them and quilt the quilt, it never quite works out for me. That's why I have a lot of patchwork pillows!
ReplyDeleteToo bad we can't all form a quilting bee! One way that works for me to keep things square and precise is to hand sew everything - even my sashings and borders. I know the trend today is to do things by machine for the time it saves, but I really enjoy sewing by hand. I hand baste and hand sew most of my quilts. I find I rip out less and stay much more relaxed. (-: (However, I should mention that I do NOT hand sew the little lap quilts I make. They are machine sewn and just tied. I need to be faster with them.)
ReplyDeleteHi Jane, those cookies sound so good. I love maraschino cherries. I still order Shirley Temples when I go out to a nice restuarant! :) Have you ever tried Betty Crocker's Cherry Chip cake mix? It was my family favorite when we were growing up. I know what you mean about the little things meaning the most. That is what I remember now too. Have a nice evening! Delisa :)
ReplyDeleteSeems George is right as always. I remember when we were down to our last dollars and still had a week before payday and the fridge was empty. Not sure who decided, but we went to Mc Donald's to get 2 burgers with the last of the cash. When we got to the pick up window, the person handed us our bag and just before we pulled away, he said hey, wait, here's the rest. I know I shouldn't have but I took it anyway. We ended up with enough food for the week. No worries that week and we were so happy! Thank God!
ReplyDeleteSandy, thanks for the tips. I just have to except the fact that my quilts will not be perfect and I won't be the one taking home the blue ribbon at the fair! I can still enjoy making them, even if I do have to fudge a bit on the sashings!
ReplyDeleteDelisa, we had a cherry chip cake for our wedding! A couple of years ago my husband and son went to a good deal of trouble to find a bakery that made cherry chip cake and have it made for my birthday.