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Page 14 — Wednesday, December 23, 2009, The Millen News Recipes Trim-the-tree treats By Jenny Harper Test Kitchen Project Manager Nestle Test Kitchens When it’s time to decorate the Christmas tree, I love having little helpers. And to keep all my holi day helpers happy, I like to bake up some treats we can enjoy while decorating. For your tree trimming helpers, try out this delicious twist on gin gerbread cookies - Chocolate Gingerbread Boys and Girls. The chocolate gives them an added sweetness that will bring a smile to everyone’s face. Frosting cookies - use a pastry bag with tips, commercial frost ing in tubes or a plastic bag with corner snipped off. If spreading frosting with a knife, thin frost ing with milk to desired consis tency. Special toppings - use candy sprinkles, cinnamon red hots, chopped nuts, Nestle’ Toll House Morsels, raisins, candy corn, turbinado sugar or colored sugar to adorn cookies. To use as tree decoration, make a hole with a drinking straw at the top of the cookie prior to baking. After baking, tie a look of nylon fishing line or pretty ribbon through the hole for easy hang ing. Chocolate Ginger bread Boys and Girls 2 c. (12 oz. pkg.) Nestle’ Toll House Semi-Sweet Chocolate Morsels, divided 2% c. all-purpose flour 1 tsp. baking soda 1 /2 tsp. salt 1 /2 tsp. ground ginger 1 /2 tsp. ground cinnamon 3 Tbsp. butter or margarine, softened 3 Tbsp. granulated sugar 1 /2 c. molasses 14 c. water 1 container (16 oz.) prepared vanilla frosting, colored as desired or colored icing in tubes Microwave Vi cups morsels in medium, uncovered microwave- safe bowl on high, 100 percent power, for one minute. Stir. The morsels may retain some of their original shape. If necessary, mi crowave at additional 10-15 sec ond intervals, stirring just until melted. Cool to room tempera ture. Combine flour, baking soda, salt, ginger and cinnamon in me dium bowl. Beat butter and sugar in small mixer bowl until creamy; beat in molasses and melted chocolate. Gradually add flour mixture alternately with water, beating until smooth. Cover; re frigerate for one hour or until firm. Preheat over to 350 degrees. Roll half of dough to 14-inch thickness on floured surface with floured rolling pin. Cut dough into gingerbread boy and girl shapes using cookie cutters or a stencil. Place on ungreased bak ing sheets. Repeat with remain ing dough. Bake for 5-6 minutes or until edges are set but centers are still slightly soft. Cool on baking sheets for two minutes; remove to wire racks to cool completely. Place remaining morsels in heavy-duty plastic bag. Micro- wave on high, 100 percent power, for 30-45 seconds; knead. Micro- wave for 10 seconds; knead until smooth. Cut tiny corner from bag; squeeze to pipe chocolate. Deco rate cookies with piped chocolate and prepared frosting or icing. Jim Hite QUIT BEING A SCROOGE In previous Christmas columns I have mentioned how blessed and fortunate Joyce and I are, be ing able to take part in the Au gusta Choral Society’s presenta tion of Handel’s Messiah. The magnificent and soaring solos and choruses that have graced audi toriums and churches for centu ries are ever fresh, ever uplifting, and ever beautiful beyond words. I have loved every Christmas I can remember in my 75 years. No matter how negative or positive the circumstances in which I have found myself as December rolled around, celebrating the birth of Jesus and attempting to deepen my understanding of His coming to live with us as a baby has brought only joy. It is strange to my way of think ing how so many who profess to honor and accept this Baby can find so much negativity at this time of year. Oh, we know that for many, times are tough and that there are many who do not know or even care that God came to live among us. We fret that “they” are trying to do away with Christmas and replace it with holidays. True enough. But can we not all realize that God will do what He will? Can we not realize that God loves each of us far more than we can imagine? Can we not see that this love is also for those we see as His enemies (because they are ours) or as lost (because they are not like us)? A clerk is allowed to say only “Happy Holidays.” So what! You can wish him or her a “Merry Christmas.” Instead of complain ing about “them” killing the Christmas spirit, overcome “them” with a Christmas spirit that shines in the darkest situa tions. Quit the negative, quit find ing fault, quit being a Scrooge in a Christ-follower’s clothing. The Scripture texts selected and put to music by George Friedrich Handel give a picture of a people longing for this Savior and the triumph that was His life, this Savior many of us say we follow. And what a Savior: “He shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, The Mighty God, The Everlast ing Father, The Prince of Peace.” How do we respond? “Arise, arise, and let your light shine!!” “Amen!” “Alleluia!” Wetter, cooler winter headed to Georgia By David Emory Stooksbury University of Georgia There is a high likelihood that Georgia’s winter will be wetter and cooler than normal. The exception is the north Georgia mountain region, which is near the transition from wetter-than-normal conditions to the south and drier-than-normal conditions to the north. Temperatures in the mountains will likely be below normal. With soils already near saturation from September and October rains, the risk of flooding is expected to remain higher than normal through the winter. The ocean-atmosphere system is currently in the El Nino pat tern. This pattern is expected to persist through the winter. Fol lowing an El Nino winter, it is not unusual for a drier-than-normal trend in spring. El Nino's influence is especially strong in the south ern two-thirds of the state. The mountainous region of north Georgia and middle and east Tennessee is a transition zone. Depending on where the transition zone occurs this winter, the mountains will experience drier-than-normal, near-normal or wetter-than-nor- mal conditions. While the outlook is for a cooler winter, this does not mean that cold arctic outbreaks are likely. The coolness is primarily caused by the increase in cloudiness. This means that the daily high tem peratures tend to be cooler than normal. However, the nighttime lows have a tendency to be slightly warmer than normal because of the increase in cloudiness. It is very rare to experience temperatures in the low teens along the coast and coastal plain during an El Nino winter. Across the piedmont, single-digit temperatures are very rare. The mountains rarely experience temperatures around zero during an El Nino winter. Many streams that are usually at their lowest flows during Oc tober are at levels normally seen in March, which is the month that generally has the highest flows. Since the soils are already near saturation and stream flows high, the potential for flooding this winter is higher than normal. It is not unusual for the middle or late sprig following an El Nino winter to be drier than normal. Thus, water managers are going to have a difficult time regulating reservoirs for an expected wet winter, knowing that from the middle of spring onward there is a good chance Georgia will experience drier-than normal con ditions. (David Emory Stooksbury is the state climatologist and a pro fessor of engineering and atmospheric sciences in the University of Georgia College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences.) Is Your Ch Is your child having problems in school? Does he/she have difficulty listening, fol lowing directions or doing homework? He/she may fight frustration every day and may even have been called lazy, unmotivated or a “student at risk...” PACE can identify and successfully treat learning problems that are often reflected in the following behaviors: ■ Is unable to sit still; cannot stay on task for any length of time; is easily distracted ■ Avoids work that seems complicated or hard ■ Has difficulty comprehending and remembering ■ Has problems sounding out words ■ Does written work very slowly; often fails to complete task ■ Has difficulty copying material; constantly looks up and down ■ Often needs instructions repeated ■ Has trouble reading and spelling ■ Makes reversals - for example: confusing the words “was” and “saw” or the letters “b” and “d” ■ Is disorganized and frustrated when studying ■ Makes frequent, “careless” errors Alma Jewell watches as her son, John, works on some of his PACE procedures. Mrs. Jewell says that, “John has felt totally successful in the classroom after starting his PACE training. He is enthusiastic about his work and always reminds me before school when it’s ‘PACE DAY’!” □□PACE E3 bvCE Dfocessing ana cognitive enhancement PACE Develops: • Attention • Comprehension • Memory • Processing Speed • Auditory Processing • Logic & Reasoning •Planning • Visual Processing PACE May Be The Eery Answer You Seek If your child is between the ages of 6 and 21 and exhibits one or more of these behaviors, call today to schedule a screening to evaluate your child’s cognitive proc essing skills. It could he the most important phone call you will make during his or her school years. Learning Enhancement Centers Call Toll Free 1866-2374260 Waynesboro • Millen or visit our website at mchalker.processingskills.com