LADY FINGERS

Ingredients:

1 16-ounce box powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 lb (2 sticks) butter
3/4 cup granulated sugar
2 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup chopped pecans

Directions:

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Combine all ingredients except for powdered sugar. Roll into small fingers or balls. Bake for 20 to 30 minutes. Roll immediately in powdered sugar.

Servings: about 100
Prep Time: 30 min
Cook Time: 20 min
Difficulty: Easy

Old Fashioned Tea Cakes *

My grandmother made these for my mom when she was growing up and in turn my mother baked these for me. Some of my favorite memories are of coming home from school and having aplate of freshly baked tea cakes waiting for me.

Ingredients

1 cup shortening
2 cups sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
4 cups flour

Directions

1. Cream shortening, sugar, and eggs in a mixer bowl until light and fluffy.
2. Stir in the baking powder Dissolve the baking soda in the buttermilk.
3. Stir into the creamed mixture.
4. Add the salt and vanilla.
5. Stir in the flour gradually until a soft dough forms.
6. Drop by spoonfuls onto a greased cookie sheet.
7. Press with a damp cloth wrapped around the bottom of a glass.
8. Bake at 350*F for 10 to 15 minutes or until golden brown.
9. Cool on wire racks.

Makes: 6 Dozen

* A Flabbergasting Post (FP) Recipe.

Granny's Tea Cakes *

Ingredients

1 cup shortening
1 1/2 cups sugar
3 eggs
4 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup buttermilk
1-1 1/4 teaspoon almond extract or vanilla extract
sugar

Directions

1. Cream shortening in a large bowl; gradually add 1 1/2 cups sugar, beating well at medium speed of an electric mixer.
2. Add eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition.
3. Combine flour and next 3 ingredients; add to creamed mixture alternately with buttermilk.
4. Mix well.
5. Stir in extract.
6. Cover and chill 1 hour.
7. Roll dough to 1/4 inch thickness on a floured surface.
8. Cut with a 2 3/4 inch round cookie cutter; place on greased cookie sheets.
9. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes or until edges begin to brown.
10. Sprinkle with sugar, if desired.

Makes: 48 Cakes

Editor's Note: Bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes for a softer cake.

Variation 1: Use 1 egg and 2 1/2 cups self-rising flour, sifted (approximate measure, use enough to make stiff dough). 1 1/2 cups sugar, 1 cup butter or margarine, softened, 2 tablespoons milk, 1 teaspoon vanilla. Mix sugar, butter and egg and blend well. Add milk, vanilla and sifted flour. Follow directions 6-10. Makes: 3 dozen.

Variation 2: If using Variation 1, use 3/4 cup sugar, 1/2 cup butter, omit the milk and substitute 1 1/2 teaspoons vinegar.

* A Flabbergasting Post (FP) Recipe.

Tea Cakes I *

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
1 1/2 granulated sugar
1 cup margarine
1 cup vegetable oil
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon cream of tartar

Directions

1 Combine the powdered sugar, granulated sugar, margarine, oil, eggs and vanilla.
2 Cream well.
3 Add in the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and cream of tartar.
4 Mix well.
5 Chill the dough in the refrigerator for 1 hour.
6 Pinch off pieces of the dough and roll in small walnut-sized balls.
7 Place on a cookie sheet.
8 Bake at 300-325 degrees for 10-15 minutes, depending on your oven and how crisp you like them.
9 Baking for approx.
10 10 minutes will yield a softer cookie, as they get crisper the longer they bake.

Makes: 36 to 40 Cookies

Editor's Note: Very easy recipe, especially using my mixer and I loved that they don't have to be rolled out.

I have been trying for years to duplicate a tea cake recipe from a local restaurant and THIS is the recipe. DELICIOUS!

* Flabbergasting Post (FP) Recipe

This recipe is posted in honor of my mother.
She made Tea Cakes at least once a week. She was the most wonderful cook I've ever known.

Russian Tea Cakes II *

Ingredients

1 cup butter or margarine, softened
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup finely chopped nuts
powdered sugar

Directions

1 Heat oven to 400 degrees F.
2 Beat butter, 1/2 cup powdered sugar and the vanilla in large bowl with electric mixer on medium speed, or mix with spoon.
3 Stir in flour and salt.
4 Stir in nuts.
5 Shape dough into 1-inch balls.
6 Place about 2 inches apart on ungreased cookie sheet.
7 Bake 8 to 9 minutes or until set but not brown.
8 Immediately remove from cookie sheet; roll in powdered sugar.
9 Cool completely on wire rack.
10 Roll in powdered sugar again.

Makes: 48

Editor's Note: In order to make the cookies easier to shape into balls, I used my Pampered Chef cookie dough scoop (pressing the dough in tightly, and using the thumb spring to release the dough onto the cookie sheet) and left them flat on the bottom. When they were done, I used a metal pancake turner to take them off of the pan (about 5 at a time) and put them into a bowl of powdered sugar and gently rolled around to do the first coat. I put them on a wire rack to cool as the directions stated, and then dropped them back in the bowl with powdered sugar to coat the second time. I followed the directions for the ingredients exactly and the 9 minute baking time is perfect. I have been looking for this recipe in the past and I am so glad I found it.

As these are the same as in the 1950's Betty Crocker cookbook, I grew up with these. It is just not the holidays without them - lovely and tasty!

* Flabbergasting Post Recipe

Russian Tea Cakes *

Ingredients

1 cup butter
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 cups flour
2 tablespoons water
2 cups pecans, chopped
1/2 cup sugar
powdered sugar, for rolling

Directions
1 Cream butter and sugar, add remaining ingredients, except for powdered sugar.
2 Roll into balls, small, about a"quarter" in diameter.
3 Bake for 5 minutes on 275F, then 20 minutes at 350F degrees.
4 Roll in powdered sugar while still hot, we usually do 2-3 coatings of sugar.

Makes: 6 Dozen

Editor's Note: They ARE really good. I chill them for just a few minutes to make sure they don't spread --SOFTEN the butter--don't melt it, that's why they spread !! Also, if you don't have 2 full cups of nuts they will still taste great. This last batch I made had only 1 cup and I couldn't tell the difference. Lastly, mine crumble if I try to roll while hot, they really need to cool, so I sift the powdered sugar on while they sit on the cookie sheet. Less or more of that is another thing that doesn't seem to ruin them or make them better, just prettier.... GREAT RECIPE! A keeper!!!

* Flabbergasting Post Recipe