Russian Teacakes

These light and sweet mouthfuls have always been a staple of the Pineo holiday cookie collection.

Screen Shot 2017-12-28 at 3.11.26 PM.png

1 cup butter
1/2 cup powdered sugar
2 1/4 cup flour
1/4 tsp salt
3/4 cup chopped walnuts
1 tsp vanilla
powdered sugar for finishing

  1. Mix butter, vanilla, and half cup sugar.
  2. Work in flour, salt, and nuts until dough holds together. 
  3. Shape into 1" balls. Place 1" apart on uncreased sheet. (Balls will stay the same size.)
  4. Bake 10-12 minutes or until set but not brown.
  5. While warm, roll in powdered sugar. Cool, and then roll in powdered sugar again.

Christmas Beef Wellington

This is a favorite for the Pineo family, served every Christmas, and select Thanksgivings, when we discovered that we preferred it to turkey.  I guess that's because we are turkeys ourselves. 


  • General
    • 4 pounds beef fillet steak, trimmed
    • salt, to taste
    • pepper, to taste
    • 1 egg
  • Butter Pastry
    • 3 3/4 cups sifted flour
    • 1 teaspoon salt
    • 1 cup butter, cold
    • 2 tablespoons shortening
    • 3/4 cup water
    • Duxelles
      • 1 pound mushroom, finely chopped
      • 1/4 cup green onion, chopped
      • 1/2 cup butter
      • 1/2 teaspoon salt
      • 1/2 teaspoon marjoram
      • 2 teaspoons flour
      • dash pepper
      • 1/4 cup beef broth
      • 2 tablespoons parsley, chopped
      • 1/2 cup ham, finely chopped

    Duxelles: Sauté the mushrooms and onion in butter in a frying pan until liquid evaporates.  Stir in salt, marjoram, flour, pepper, and broth. Cook, stirring constantly, until mixture comes to a boil and thickens.  Remove from heat and stir in parsley and ham. Cool.

    Butter Pastry: Combine the flour and salt in a bowl and cut in the butter and the shortening until particles are fine.  Add water, 1 Tbs. at a time, to make a stiff dough.  Cover and chill. 
    Beef: Place beef on rack in a shallow baking pan and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Roast at 425 degrees for 30 minutes. Let stand until cool. 

    Roll butter pastry on a floured surface to rectangle about 3" longer than roast and 12 to 13 inches wide. Press Duxelles into pastry, leaving an inch uncovered on all edges. Place beef on pastry.  Moisten pastry edges and enclose beef, pressing edges together firmly. Trim off excess pastry from ends so single layer covers ends of roast. Place roll, seam side down, in a shallow baking pan.  Cut decorations from pastry trimmings and place on top. Brush pastry with egg beaten with 1 Tbs. water. 

    Bake at 400 degrees for 30-35 minutes or until browned. Let stand for 15-20 minutes before slicing.

    Notes: The crust and duxelles may be prepared the day before.  May use a food processor for both the crust and duxelles.  When searing the beef initially, bake it on a wire rack that can fit into a pan to allow any juices to drain off.  The second time it goes into the oven, bake it on a cookie sheet or a shallow pan.  Use a wide sturdy spatula to lift it onto the serving tray.

    Carol's Apple Pie

    I know I'm biased, but Mom's apple pie really is the best in the entire universe. It's usually warm out of the oven and served with vanilla ice cream. And even when I try to bake pie using the her tried-and-true recipe, it's just not the same. Maybe it takes the Mom Touch, and decades of practice. But I always try, nonetheless... Thanksgiving wouldn't be the same without it.


    Crust Ingredients:

    • 4 cups flour

    • 1 tsp salt

    • 1.5 shortening

    • ice water

    Crust Steps:

    1. In a large bowl, mix flour and salt. Use pastry blender to cut in 1 cup shortening until mix resembles Bisquick...in other words until it seems as if the shortening has just about disappeard. Now mix in the 1/2 cup shortening until it makes very, very small lumps...now as fine as before but definitely not any big lumps.

    2. Use a fork to push all this mix to the side of the bowl. Pour in a little ice water. Use the fork to pull the flour into the water and toss it, adding a little more at a time, until the water is all used up and that bit of dough clumps together. Set that clump aside and keep repeating until all the flour is mixed into dough.

    3. Smooth into one big ball, then cut into 4 smaller balls for 4 crusts. Spread flour lightly on the counter, put one ball on the flour. Lightly flour your rolling pin and roll out.

    4. Notes: Can be made in advance and chilled.

    Yield: four crusts (i.e., enough for two double-crust pies)


    Filling Ingredients:

    • 5 cups apples, sliced (Favorite apples are Cortland or Rome... I will use McIntosh if I have to but I never use Delicious for baking.  Granny Smith also good.)

    • 3 tablespoons tapioca

    • 3/4 cup sugar

    • 1 teaspoon cinnamon

    • 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

    • 1 Tablespoon butter

    Filling Steps:

    1. Combine all filling ingredients except butter in a large bowl.

    2. Roll crust into a circle about an inch larger than the pie pan. I always use glass pans, 9" for most pies, except I use a deep dish glass pan for apple pie.

    3. Put your fruit filling into the pan.

    4. Cut butter into small bits, and drop them onto the top of the filling.

    5. Use some of the ice water to moisten the edge of the bottom crust, where the two crusts will be touching (this helps make a seal so the filling doesn't dry out). Press down on the two crusts to seal them, trim around the pan, about 3/4 to 1" out from the edge of the pan. 

    6. Fold the outer edge under so it rests on the rim of the pie pan and then press down on the folded edge to help seal it even more. Use your fingers to flute the edge; thumb and index finger on left hand on the inside of the crust, index finger of the right hand pushing the dough between those fingers to make that wavy fluted edge. 

    7. Use a sharp knife to cut steam vents in the top. Use a soft pastry brush to brush milk on top, sprinkle lightly with sugar.

    Bake at 425 for about 45 minutes.