Spicy Cookies for the Holidays

Dear SOS: Now that pumpkin season is here, can you find a recipe for pumpkin cookies? I had one many years ago but have lost it.

--JEANNE

Dear Jeanne: Let’s give this drop cookie recipe a try and see if it isn’t the same.

PUMPKIN DROP COOKIES

1 cup shortening

3/4 cup sugar

1 egg

1/2 teaspoon orange extract

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

1 cup canned pumpkin

1 3/4 cups flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

3/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice

Pecan or walnut halves

Cream shortening and sugar until fluffy. Beat in egg, orange extract and vanilla. Stir in pumpkin. Sift together flour, baking powder, salt and pumpkin pie spice. Add to egg mixture, mixing well.

Drop by rounded teaspoons onto greased baking sheet. Place 1 pecan half on top of each cookie. Bake at 350 degrees 12 to 15 minutes until edges begin to brown. Makes about 4 dozen.

Dear SOS: You published a recipe for Turkey Tetrazzini, which I lost.

--KRISTIN

Dear Kristin: A good idea for making leftover turkey look like a million dollars.

TURKEY TETRAZZINI

1/2 pound mushrooms, sliced

1/2 cup finely chopped onion

1 stalk celery, minced

1/2 cup butter or margarine

1/4 cup flour

1 tablespoon chicken stock base

2 cups chicken broth

1 cup whipping cream

Salt, pepper

2 tablespoons dry Sherry

1/2 pound spaghetti or linguini, cooked

3 cups cubed cooked turkey

3/4 cup soft fine bread crumbs

1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Saute mushrooms, onion and celery in 1/4 cup butter until tender. Remove vegetables and set aside. Melt remaining 1/4 cup butter in saucepan and add flour and stock base. Mix until smooth and stir in chicken broth and cream. Cook, stirring constantly, until smooth and thickened. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Stir in Sherry and vegetables.

Fold in spaghetti and turkey. Turn into buttered 3-quart casserole. Mix crumbs and Parmesan cheese. Sprinkle evenly over casserole. Bake at 350 degrees, uncovered, 30 minutes or until bubbly. Makes 6 to 8 servings.

Dear SOS: I would love a recipe for Apple Candy published in The Times in ’84.

--DORIS

Dear Doris: This gelatin confection makes an ideal holiday gift.

APPLE CANDY

8 medium apples

1/2 cup cold water

2 cups light brown sugar, packed

2 envelopes unflavored gelatin

1 cup chopped walnuts

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1/2 cup powdered sugar

1 tablespoon cornstarch

Core and peel apples. Cut into small pieces. Add 1/4 cup cold water. Cook until tender, then put through food mill or sieve. Add brown sugar. Cook and stir over low heat until thick, about 30 minutes.

Soften gelatin in remaining 1/4 cup cold water, then add to hot apple mixture. Stir until dissolved. Chill until slightly thickened. Stir in walnuts and lemon juice. Pour into 8- or 9-inch square pan to depth of about 1/2 inch. Chill thoroughly. Cut into 3/4- to 1-inch squares. Combine powdered sugar and cornstarch. Dredge squares in sugar mixture.

Dear SOS: In the early spring we took a hydrofoil boat from Hong Kong to Canton, China, and among the snacks available on board were small, meat-filled dumplings, which were dropped in boiling water and served with a thin, brown sauce. Because of the language barrier, I could not even find out what the filling was. Could you possibly help?

--MARY

Dear Mary: Boiled dumplings are filled with a variety of stuffings. Here is one filled typically with a combination of Chinese cabbage and pork or beef. If you want to update them, use them as finger food appetizers during the holiday season.

CHINESE BOILED DUMPLINGS

2 1/2 cups flour

Salt

3/4 pound Chinese cabbage, chopped

3/4 pound pork or beef, minced or ground

2 tablespoons chopped green onion

1 teaspoon chopped ginger root

Soy sauce

2 tablespoons lard

Sesame oil

Vinegar

Bottled chile oil

Mashed garlic, optional

Place flour in bowl. Stir in 1 1/4 teaspoons salt. Gradually add 1 cup cold water and knead to form soft dough. Cover with damp cloth and let stand 15 minutes. Sprinkle chopped cabbage with a little salt, let stand a few minutes, then squeeze dry.

Mix meat, cabbage, green onion, ginger root, 2 tablespoons soy sauce, 1 teaspoon salt, lard and few drops sesame oil. Set aside.

Place dough on lightly floured board and knead again until smooth. Divide into 45 pieces. Flatten each piece and roll into thin circle about 2 1/2 inches in diameter, leaving center thicker than edges. Place 1 1/2 teaspoons filling in center. Fold dough and pinch in center first, then pinch edges to seal.

Bring 8 cups water to boil in large pot. Add dumplings 1 at a time to boiling water, cooking about 20 at once. Stir carefully with large spoon to keep from sticking to bottom of pot. Cover and cook until water boils again. Add 3/4 cup cold water to pot, cover and boil again. Add another 3/4 cup cold water. When water boils again, dumplings are done. Remove to serving plate with slotted spoon. Repeat with remaining dumplings.

Serve with individual dishes of soy sauce, vinegar, chile oil and mashed garlic to combine as desired and use as dip for dumplings. Makes 45 dumplings.

Dear SOS: Last Christmas I had a piece of fruitcake that seemed to have been baked in a candied grapefruit shell. I have searched through all of my cookbooks and at our library. I cannot find a recipe that is even close.

--MARGARET

Dear Margaret: This old-time recipe for candied grapefruit shells, in which any fruitcake batter can be baked, would be in danger of extinction were it not for readers like you. Thanks for the revival.

GRAPEFRUIT CUPS FOR FRUITCAKE

3 grapefruits, halved

Sugar

1 cup light corn syrup

Fruitcake batter

Remove pulp and membrane from grapefruit halves. Cover shells with boiling water and simmer 20 minutes or until tender. Combine 2 cups sugar, corn syrup and 1 cup water in large saucepan. Bring to boil. Add grapefruit shells and simmer, uncovered, about 10 minutes or until candy thermometer registers 230 degrees. Remove shells from syrup, turn upside down on wax paper and drain. Roll in sugar and invert over tumblers to dry.

Place grapefruit shells in shallow baking dish, making sure they stand level. Fill to within 1/2 inch of tops with choice of fruitcake batter. Bake at 250 degrees about 1 1/2 hours or until wood pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool and store in cool, dry place. Makes 6 shells.

Only recipes of general interest will be printed. We are unable to answer all requests. Please include restaurant address when requesting recipes from restaurants. Send your letter with self-addressed, stamped envelope to Culinary SOS, Food Section, The Times, Times Mirror Square, Los Angeles 90053.