During the 12 days until Christmas break, the King Street Chronicle again presents staff favorites from the holiday season.  This fifth edition will not include five golden rings, but beloved Christmas songs, memories, recipes, movies, and crafts.

Song: “Frosty the Snowman” performed by Mr. Bing Crosby

Recipe: Peppermint Biscotti

Total Time: One hour and 30 minutes 

Quantity: 30 biscotti

Ingredients for biscotti: 

• Three-fourths cup unsalted butter (room temperature)
• Three-fourths cup granulated sugar
• Three large eggs
• Two teaspoons peppermint extract
• Three one-fourth cups all-purpose flour
• One-half cup crushed peppermint candies
• One teaspoon baking powder
• One-fourth teaspoon kosher salt

Ingredients for decoration: 

• One-third cup semisweet chocolate chips
• One-half cup crushed peppermint candies

Steps for biscotti:

• For the biscotti, preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.  Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
• In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together butter and sugar.  Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition and scraping down the sides.  Then, beat in peppermint extract.
• In a medium mixing bowl, combine the flour, peppermint candy, baking powder, and salt.  Gradually add to the creamed mixture, beating until blended (dough will be sticky).
• Divide dough in half.  Shape each portion into a 12 inch by two one-half inch rectangular slab arranged side by side lengthwise on the prepared baking sheet, leaving space in between to allow for expansion.  Straighten and smooth out the tops and edges. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until light golden brown.
• Carefully remove the baked slabs to wire racks (use a spatula on each end to carefully lift and move).  Cool for 15 minutes.  Transfer to a cutting board and cut diagonally into one-half inch-thick slices with a sharp knife perpendicular to the board.
• Place cut side down on parchment-lined baking sheets (you will need two baking sheets for this step, or bake one sheet at a time reusing the same sheet pan).  Bake for 12 to 15 minutes or until firm.  Remove to wire racks to cool.

Steps for decoration:

• Make a double-boiler by placing a metal or glass mixing bowl over the top of a small saucepan filled about one inch full with water.  Make sure the bottom of the bowl does not touch the water’s surface.  Add the chocolate chips to the bowl on top.  Heat the double-boiler over medium-high heat, and then lower the heat once it comes to a boil.  Melt chocolate chips, stirring occasionally until smooth.
• Dip one end of each biscotti into melted chocolate, allowing excess to drip off.  Sprinkle candy over the top and sides of where you coated it with chocolate.  Place on parchment or waxed paper and cool until firm.  Store in an airtight container for up to one month.

Movie: The Polar Express

“On Christmas Eve, a young boy embarks on a magical adventure to the North Pole on the Polar Express, while learning about friendship, bravery, and the spirit of Christmas,” courtesy of imdb.com.

Craft: Paper Gingerbread Man Chain

Supplies: 

• Any brown-colored paper
• Scissors
• White glue
• Paper clips or masking tape
• Colored pencils, crayons or colored markers
• Glitter glue, puffy paint, ribbon, lace, small buttons, beads, sequins, stickers, small pompoms, and other fun notions

Instructions: 

• This craft can be done by either using a gingerbread man template or drawing your own gingerbread man.  If you prefer to work with a template, print this one out on A4 or Letter size paper.  If you would rather draw your own, fold any brown-colored paper accordion-style (back-and-forth folding) as shown in steps four and five.  Draw half of a gingerbread man along the paper’s folded edge then cut along the outline as shown in step six.
• The printed page consists of three sets of gingerbread man templates.  You only need one.  Cut out one template following the rectangular frame or outline.
• Align the template along the left edge of any brown-colored paper.  Secure the top and bottom sides of the template onto the paper using paper clips or masking tape.
• Using the template’s width as a guide, fold your paper accordion-style (back and forth folding).  A sheet of A4 or Letter size paper can be folded into six equal sections while a larger sheet can be folded into eight or more sections.
• If there is an excess section of paper after your last fold, you can either trim it off or fold that small section of paper.
• Cut the folded paper following the outlines of the gingerbread man.  Note that the thicker the paper you use and the more folds you make, the harder it will be to cut.  Younger children may need adult help in cutting.  Brown craft paper or paper lunch bags are excellent options for easy cutting.
• Carefully unfold the paper to reveal a chain of gingerbread people.
• Trim off any excess paper after the last gingerbread man.  You may also round out the corners of the first and last gingerbread man.
• Draw details on the gingerbread people using colored markers, crayons or colored pencils.  You can also draw lines with glitter glue or puffy paint.  Glue fun accents like small pompoms, beads, buttons, tiny bows, rickrack, strings and even paper or fabric cut-outs.  You can also cut a length of ribbon to tie as a scarf around the gingerbread man’s neck.

Memory: Mrs. Ana Nystedt

“One of my favorite Christmas memories is attending the Swedish St. Lucia celebration, which usually takes place in a church and features a beautiful choir singing Swedish Christmas songs.  It begins in the dark, with a procession of choir members dressed in white and carrying candles.  The choir is led by a young woman wearing a crown of candles, and sometimes her attendants are joined by gingerbread men and tomtar (Swedish gnomes).  As it turns out, this celebration takes place in many cities around the world.”

Featured Image by Lilia Newman ’27