I told you last week that I’d give you the story of Turtleback cookies. Last week, I also promised to get us past the dessert table and start contributing more savory options. Nevertheless, my heart is full of sugar and butter, so that is where I’ll naturally go.
Now, take a trip with me down to Demopolis — The River City, home of Christmas on the River; believe me, I’ve heard plenty about both rivers. Over the years, many a bakery have come and gone from this city. One such bakery was Traeger’s.
The Traeger family moved from Meridian, Mississippi, and opened their bakery to much fanfare. Locally, a spice cookie with a cinnamon glaze that shone like a turtle’s shell became a favorite. Their reign continues long after the original bakery burned down, effectively ending that legendary chapter of Marengo County confectionery.
Personally, I have no memories of Traeger’s. It was just past my frame of memory. I remember a variety of candy shops, ice cream stands, and doughnut joints that, much like other such ventures, came and went.
The Mustard Seed used to carry 12-layer caramel cakes and cheese straws made by the late, great “Chug” Pruitt. In fact, she gave me the recipe for her cheese straws, and for the life of me I can’t find it anywhere!
My cousin Amy made all our birthday cakes growing up and made quite a side hustle for herself off these imaginative designs for children all over Demopolis.
When I was in high school, some family friends went in on a Mennonite bakery that was coming to town. Thus, I got to see the handiwork of women from 15 to 75 as they put out dozens of layer cakes and bags of yeast rolls. It really drove home for me the beauty of our storied baking traditions down here. That includes these spiced delights.
If you’ll recall, I recounted how the version of Turtlebacks I grew up with was made from spiced cake mix, mixed with chopped pecans — a shortcut version, that’s for sure. You also end up with a softer cookie overall. The version I prefer are fully homemade, with a crunchier texture. The homemade ones also tend to slightly crack open as they bake, which makes them look even more like turtle shells.
All hail Carolyn Nelson, who is the source of this recipe that I’ve used time and again over the years. This yields a not-too-sweet end product, more buttery — almost like a shortbread.
Turtleback Twins
5 1/2 sifted all-purpose flour
1 Tablespoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup margarine, not a spread, softened (or butter)
1 cup Crisco shortening
1 cup sugar
1 cup light brown sugar
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 cup pecans, chopped
Extra pecan pieces for bottoms of cookies
Icing:
2 sticks butter
1 cup light brown sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 (1 pound) boxes sifted confectioners sugar (or less)
1 small (5 ounce) can evaporated milk
Cookies: Sift flour, cinnamon, soda, and salt; set aside. At medium speed on mixer, cream together margarine, Crisco, both sugars, eggs and vanilla. Beat until light and creamy, about 2 minutes. On low speed, add flour mixture; stir in pecans. Chill dough several hours or overnight. (Dough will keep in airtight container up to 1 week in the fridge.)
Spread chopped pecans on a piece of either foil or parchment paper and drop cookies onto pecans with a 1 5/8 inch cookie scoop. Slightly press cookies onto pecans. Place on a parchment-lined or lightly greased cookie sheet. Bake at 325 degrees for about 12 minutes. Cookies should be slightly soft, but will firm after sitting on the pan. They should be light brown in color.
Cool on the pan for 2 to 3 minutes. Remove to a wire rack or cooling cloths to cool completely before icing. (“I have four flat bed sheets that are my cooling cloths. I fold them in quarters and cover my table. Just slide the parchment paper with cookies on it onto the cloths to cool.”)
Icing: Bring butter and brown sugar to a boil in large saucepan. Simmer 2 minutes, stirring constantly. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla. Add cinnamon to confectioners sugar as you sift it. Alternately add powdered sugar and milk to brown sugar-butter mixture. Beat with a whisk or fork until it reaches spreading consistency. It should not hold its shape, but be firm enough to stay on cookies. It might not take both boxes of sugar. Yield: 80 cookies or 40 servings.
As you can see, this makes quite a bit. Trust me, you’ll go through them faster than you realize. One note — when you’re pressing the cookies into the pecans prior to baking, make sure you flatten the tops a little. If you keep them rounded, they don’t bake all the way through.
Feel free to add extra spices to the mix here; I often do so myself. A mix of cinnamon, allspice, cloves, and nutmeg makes this cookie a little more complex. This makes them more like the “soft shells” that I had from the boxed cake mix growing up.
Saveur magazine published a piece dedicated to these legendary cookies, which closely resemble German-born gingerbread. As such, these make for a great addition to your holiday cookie rotation. Yet, you can’t stop me from making these just about any time of year when I want to show you that I love you. I mean, I better if I’m doing all that labor for a spice cookie.
Nevertheless, here is the much simpler “soft-shell” version for those of you a little intimidated by the homemade kind.
Turtleback Softshells
1 box Duncan Hines spice cake mix
2 eggs
1/2 cup oil
1/2 cup chopped pecans
Icing:
1 stick butter
1/2 cup light brown sugar
3 cups sifted confectioners sugar
5 Tablespoons cream or evaporated milk
On medium speed, beat together cake mix, eggs, and oil until well blended, about 2 minutes. Stir in pecans. Drop with a 1 5/8 inch cookie scoop onto parchment lined or lightly greased cookie sheet. Bake at 350 degrees for about 12 minutes. Let sit on pan for 2 minutes and then remove to wire rack to cool completely. Ice and allow to set before storing. Place a layer of wax paper between layers of cookies to either freeze or keep out.
Icing: Bring butter and brown sugar to a boil, simmer 2 minutes. Remove from heat and add confectioners sugar and cream. Blend with a whisk until smooth. Adjust to spreading consistency by adding either more confectioners sugar or cream.
Much like caramel cakes, this variation makes a shortcut of the cookie to focus on the icing. This is, needless to say, quite kosher in these parts. Side by side, these two differ quite a bit in texture, but you can tell they’re related. It’s kinda like that rule with eyebrows: sisters, not twins.
Either way you make these, I think you’ll come to appreciate this wholly original Black Belt baking contribution.
