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Zephyrhills Baker Rises To The Occasion With Requested Dilly Bread

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By JEFF HOUCK, The Tampa Tribune

Published: December 5, 2007

Gertrude McWilliams of Valrico wrote last month in search of a dilly bread recipe. Dolores Fritz in Zephyrhills sent her version along.

"Mine has yeast. It is very easy to make and so good," she says.

Jean Anderson in Tampa heeded Carolyn Vlasic of Riverview's call for cookie-press dough recipes. Anderson sent a Swedish spritz recipe she clipped from a Better Homes and Garden cookbook, as well as a spritz cookies recipe she found in "The Modern Family Cookbook." Barbara Percoskie of Seffner sent in a similar recipe.

Macalyne Fristoe in New Tampa writes, "I have the original Wear-Ever Cookie Gun from the 1960s in its original box with several recipes. The spritz cookie recipe is best known but uses shortening rather than the butter that she Vlasic listed."
Fristoe recommends substituting almond for lemon extract and cooking at a slightly lower temperature.

Looking For Winter Jam

"I saw a recipe for winter jam a while ago," writes Helen Ostrowski of Dade City. "It had dried apricots and crushed pineapple. Forgot to cut the recipe out. I would like to make it for Christmas."

Here you go, Helen. The Winter Marmalade below was submitted last year by a reader who had the recipe for more than 40 decades.

DILLY CASSEROLE BREAD

1 package yeast
1/4 cup warm water

1 tablespoon butter
2 teaspoons dill seed or weed

1 cup creamed cottage cheese

1 teaspoon salt heated to lukewarm

1/4 teaspoon soda
2 tablespoons sugar or 1 tablespoon honey
1 unbeaten egg

1 tablespoon instant onion or chopped

2 1/4 to 2 1/2 cups flour
Soften yeast in warm water. Combine all ingredients except flour; add enough flour to form stiff dough. Cover and let rise in warm place until light and doubled in size, about 50 to 60 minutes.

Stir-down dough and turn into a well-greased 8-inch round casserole dish. Let rise until light, about 30 to 40 minutes.

Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes, or until brown.

SWEDISH SPRITZ

1 1/2 cups butter or margarine
1 cup sugar

1 well-beaten egg

2 teaspoons vanilla

4 cups sifted enriched flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

Colored sugar

Thoroughly cream butter and sugar; add egg and vanilla. Beat well. Sift dry ingredients; add to creamed mixture, then mix to smooth dough.

Force through cookie press, forming various shapes. Decorate with colored sugar. Bake on ungreased cookie sheet at 400 degrees about 8 to 10 minutes. Makes 4 dozen.

SPRITZ COOKIES

1 cup butter

3/4 cup sifted granulated sugar

2 egg yolks

1/4 teaspoon almond extract

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

Cream butter thoroughly. Add sugar gradually. Blend in unbeaten egg yolks. Stir in flavoring, then flour; mix thoroughly. Pack into cookie press by taking up dough in your hands and shaping into cylinder. Drop into tube. Force through cookie press onto cold, ungreased cookie sheets about 1 inch apart. Bake at 425 degrees for 8 minutes, or until a delicate brown. Remove cookies from pans onto cake racks while warm. If difficult to remove from pans, return to oven for a minute. Cool thoroughly. Store in airtight container. Makes 4 1/2 dozen medium cookies.

WEAR-EVER SPRITZ COOKIES

1 cup shortening

3/4 cup sugar

1 egg

1 teaspoon lemon extract (Macalyne Fristoe suggests substituting almond extract)

2 1/4 cups sifted all-purpose flour

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

Cream shortening until soft. Add sugar gradually, continuing to cream until light and fluffy. Add egg and lemon extract (or almond); beat.

Sift flour, salt and baking powder together; add in three additions, beat well after each addition. Chill dough 10 minutes.

Pack into cookie gun; make into desired shapes on ungreased cookie sheet. Bake 8 to 10 minutes in hot oven at 375 degrees.

Makes 7 dozen cookies.

SNOWFLAKES

1 cup shortening

1 (3-ounce) package cream cheese

1 cup sugar

1 egg yolk

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 teaspoon finely grated orange rind

2 1/2 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

Colored sugar, sprinkles, cinnamon sugar or chopped almonds for decoration

Cream well the shortening and cream cheese. Add sugar gradually, and continue creaming.

Beat in egg yolk, vanilla and orange rind. Sift flour with salt and cinnamon. Add to creamed mixture. Fill cookie press with dough. Form cookies on ungreased cookie sheets. Decorate with colored sugar, sprinkles, cinnamon sugar or chopped almonds. Bake 12 to 15 minutes at 350 degrees. Remove at once from sheets.

Makes 6 dozen cookies.

NORWEGIAN CROWNS

1/2 cup butter or margarine
1/4 cup sugar

1 egg

1/2 teaspoon almond extract

1 1/4 cups sifted flour

Cream butter. Gradually add the sugar, then the egg and almond extract. Add the sifted flour until well-blended. Fill cookie press. Form cookies on ungreased cookie sheets. Bake 12 minutes at 375 degrees. Remove cookies from sheets immediately. Makes 3 dozen.

WINTER MARMALADE

1 pound dried apricots

4 cups water

1 large can crushed pineapple, drained

Rind of one orange

7 cups sugar

Small jar of cherries, drained

Cut apricots fine, and soak in the water overnight.

Cook them in the same water until soft. Add pineapple, orange and sugar. Cook 20 to 25 minutes more. Add cherries, and cook 1 minute longer. Put into sterile glasses, and seal with paraffin.

Looking for a recipe? Have one to share? Write to Jeff Houck, The Tampa Tribune, P.O. Box 191, Tampa FL 33601, or jhouck@tampatrib.com. Recipes are not tested.

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