Roasted Asparagus
31 Dec 2011 Leave a Comment
in Sides Tags: Almonds, Asparagus, roasted asparagus, savory side dish, Sides, Vegetables
Wishing you all a Happy New Year! May your 2012 be filled with blessings and joy.
After weeks of posting sweet treats, I thought I’d share something simple yet savory: Roasted Asparagus. I’ve made this with both the thin stalks and the thick ones; the big fat guys work out better, in my opinion–juicier and meatier.
I like to purposely make a lot so I end up with leftovers, then I slice those up and use them to mix with eggs for breakfast. I’ll share a frittata recipe soon and show you how I use the leftovers.
Anyhow, this makes a savory side dish with little effort yet big payoff.
Roasted Asparagus
INGREDIENTS
- 1 1/2 lbs. asparagus
- 2 tbsp. olive oil
- 1/2 tsp. dried oregano
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- 1/4 tsp. pepper
- optional: 1/4 cup sliced almonds
DIRECTIONS
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.
- Trim ends off asparagus. Spread stalks on a jellyroll pan in an even layer.
- Pour olive oil over asparagus, then sprinkle with salt and pepper and oregano. Toss to coat.
- Roast 10 minutes. If using almonds, add them during last 5 minutes.
SOURCE: adapted from food.com
Burned Chocolate Bundt Cake Revamped into Chocolate Berry Trifle
26 Dec 2011 Leave a Comment
in Desserts Tags: Berries, blackberry jam, Bundt Cake, Chocolate, chocolate bundt cake, Desserts, Pudding, Whipped Cream
For once, I decided on simplicity for Christmas dessert, especially since we were journeying about 1 1/2 hours to my sister-in-law’s home for Christmas dinner and the dessert had to sustain travel. A simple chocolate bundt cake dressed up with dark chocolate cinnamon glaze would suffice.
Alas, it wasn’t one of my successful baking days.
When I finally released the cake from the bundt pan, I found the outside had BURNED! Argh!!!
Imagine my frustration even more when I realized the clock read 8:00 pm and it was Christmas Eve.
After I calmed down from several minutes of stress and my mind spinning with thoughts of what I could quickly pull together for dessert, I decided to taste the cake with the hope that it wasn’t too disastrous and the glaze could cover the burn.
Although only a thin layer of the outside was burned and the inside was still moist, the charred taste dominated. Why throw it all away, though–which in my disgust at burning it I sorely wanted to do–when a majority of it was still edible?
I decided to cut off the burned edges and slice it up to make trifles.
Ironically, the first dessert I had contemplated making for the holiday was a Red Berry Trifle made with pound cake and cognac cream (from Ina Garten). So, back to my original plan, then, only now I had to make it work with chocolate cake.
I had to scramble to figure out how to put together a chocolate trifle. I decided to use my triple frozen berries from Costco–choosing the raspberries and blackberries but omitting the blueberries –for the fruit layer. Awhile back I had made blackberry jam (from Giada De Laurentis), so that was ready to spread onto the cake layers. Next was figuring out how to make a chocolate custard, for that seemed like it would coordinate well. Custard required more ingredients and time than pudding, so I opted for a pudding recipe instead. (By the way, custard is the “egg cousin” of pudding because it includes eggs in the recipe; otherwise, the consistency is similar). And finally, I quickly whipped up some sweetened cream to top it all off.
Whew! From disaster comes success.
Chocolate Berry Trifle
INGREDIENTS
- chocolate cake (Bundt cake recipe below)
- berry jam of choice
- berries (fresh is best but frozen works, too–just thaw them first)
- chocolate custard or pudding (recipe below)
- sweetened whipped cream (recipe below)
- chocolate shavings for garnish
DIRECTIONS
- Cut cake into 1/2-inch thick slices. Spread each slice with jam. Layer in bottom of large trifle dish or individual trifle cups.
- Spread a layer of berries on top of cake slice.
- Spread a layer of pudding over berries.
- Repeat as needed.
- Finally, add a dollop of whipped cream. Garnish with sprinkles of chocolate.
Chocolate Espresso Bundt Cake with Dark Chocolate Cinnamon Glaze
INGREDIENTS
Cake
- 8 oz. butter (2 sticks)
- 1/2 cup high quality Dutch Process Cocoa
- 1 tbsp. instant espresso powder dissolved into 3/4 cup water
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 1 cup sour cream
- 1 tbsp. vanilla extract
- 2 large eggs
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp. baking soda
- 1/2 tsp. salt (I used Kosher)
- optional: 1/3 cup mini chocolate chips
Dark Chocolate Cinnamon Glaze
- 4 oz. high-quality bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
- 1/3 cup unsalted butter, softened and cut into 1-inch pieces
- 1 1/2 tsp. light corn syrup
- 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
DIRECTIONS
Cake
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and place oven rack in the middle position.
- Grease and flour a 10-12 cup bundt pan.
- Melt butter in a large saucepan over medium-heat; add cocoa, stirring until smooth (I sifted cocoa first; this makes blending it with butter easier).
- Whisk in espresso and water mixture and remove from heat.
- Add the sugar, whisking until dissolved, about one minute.
- Add sour cream, vanilla, and eggs; whisk until smooth.
- Add baking soda and salt; whisk.
- Add flour (sift it first); whisk until well blended (batter will be thin and bubbly).
- Fold in chocolate chips.
- Pour batter into prepared pan. Tap pan a few times on counter to eliminate bubbles. Bake for 40-45 minutes–until it feels firm to the touch and has slightly pulled away from sides of pan…or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pan on rack for 20 minutes. Carefully loosen the cake with a knife and invert onto a large plate. Cool completely before glazing.
Glaze
- Place chocolate, butter, corn syrup, and cinnamon in a medium heatproof bowl over a pot of simmering water.
- Stir the mixture using a rubber spatula until melted and smooth.
- Pour warm glaze over bundt cake.
- Keep covered in a cake-keeper at room temperature for up to 4 days.
SOURCES: adapted from Sweetapolita (awesome cakes on her site!) and Merry Gourmet
Chocolate Pudding
INGREDIENTS
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 1/3 cup cornstarch
- 1/4 tsp. salt
- 4 cups milk
- 1 tsp. vanilla extract
- 3 oz. unsweetened chocolate, finely chopped
- whipped cream, for garnish when serving
DIRECTIONS
- In a medium bowl, stir together sugar, cornstarch, and salt; set aside.
- Combine milk and vanilla in medium saucepan. Heat over medium-high heat until small bubbles form around the edges.
- Add chopped chocolate to saucepan and stir with spatula until chocolate is melted, 1-2 minutes. (The chocolate may appear slightly specked and not completely melted. It will smooth out later.)
- Ladle about a quarter of the warm milk mixture into the bowl with the sugar mixture; whisk until smooth. Whisk in the remaining milk mixture. Return entire mixture to saucepan over medium heat. Continue to cook, stirring with spatula, until mixture bubbles and thickens. Be sure to scrape bottom and sides of pan so mixture does not burn.
- Continue to cook until mixture is very thick, about 2 minutes. (To test, run a finger through the mixture on the back of a spatula–it should leave a distinct trail.)
- Divide the pudding between 6-8 serving dishes. Cover with plastic wrap directly on the surface of the pudding to prevent a skin from forming. Let cool 30 minutes, then transfer to the refrigerator to chill and set completely, at least 2 hours. Remove plastic wrap, top with whipped cream as desired, and serve.
SOURCE: Annie’s Eats
Sweetened Whipped Cream
INGREDIENTS
- 1 cup cold heavy whipping cream
- 1 tbsp. sugar
- 1/2 tsp. pure vanilla extract
DIRECTIONS
- Place the cream, sugar, and vanilla in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment.
- Whip on medium speed until mixture begins to thicken, then switch to high speed until the cream just forms still peaks.
- Chill and serve cold.
SOURCE: Food Network (Ina Garten, the Barefoot Contessa)
Toffee
23 Dec 2011 2 Comments
in Desserts Tags: Almonds, Candy, Chocolate, Desserts, Toffee
In need of yet another holiday dessert or treat? Perhaps a stocking stuffer? Try this toffee. Surprisingly, it’s quite easy to make. The hardest part is simply waiting for the toffee part of the candy to get to the right color. By the way, I love the little trick I learned from the blogger who posted the recipe: the toffee mixture is ready when it is the same color as the almonds! No candy thermometer needed–use the almond coloring as your guide instead.
I highly recommend checking out The Yummy Life blog for this recipe because the blogger posts step-by-step photos. And she shares some cute packaging ideas for gift-giving.
I’ve made this with a variety of nuts, usually whatever ones we have on hand. I do enjoy the almonds in the brittle best of all, though. Once I used chopped and salted cashews sprinkled on the top; I liked the salty factor balanced with the heavy sweetness of the toffee and chocolate. I’ve even mixed two kinds of chocolate for the top layer. Whatever suits your fancy.
Toffee
INGREDIENTS
- 1 cup unblanched (skin on) whole almonds
- 1 cup butter (2 sticks)
- 1 cup sugar
- 1/4 tsp. salt
- 1/2 tsp. vanilla
- 1 (12 oz.) package milk chocolate chips (2 cups)…or use semisweet or dark chips
- 1/4 cup finely chopped pecans
DIRECTIONS
- Toast almonds by spreading them in a single layer on a baking sheet and toasting them in a 350 degree F oven for 7-10 minutes.
- Line a 9×13-inch baking sheet with foil, bringing foil up and over the sides. Spread toasted almonds on foil. By the way, no need to grease the foil; the hardened toffee will peel off easily without greasing it.
- In a heavy 2-quart saucepan, combine butter (cut it into chunks), sugar, vanilla, and salt. Cook over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally with a clean, dry wooden spoon until the butter is melted. It will begin to get foamy.
- Continue cooking and stirring more frequently for approximately 7-10 minutes (it took me longer…probably closer to 20 minutes) until the candy starts to brown. Keep cooking until it is the color of the brown skin of the almonds; it will start smoking slightly. When the toffee is the color of the almond skin, that is your cue that it is ready.
- Immediately pour candy, without scraping pan, over almonds, covering all nuts. Work quickly because it will continue to cook and can start burning. Use your wooden spoon to spread the toffee to cover all of the almonds. Again, work quickly because it hardens quickly.
- Sprinkle the chocolate chips evenly over the hot toffee. Wait one minute, then spread the melted chocolate until it is smooth.
- Sprinkle with finely chopped pecans.
- Let cool until toffee hardens, up to two hours. If you want to speed up the process, place pan in refrigerator or freezer. When cooled, break into pieces. Store in a tightly covered container in a cool place or in the refrigerator. (I even kept my pan, covered with foil, in the freezer for a week and it was fine.)
SOURCE: The Yummy Life
Cookie Round Up for the Year
22 Dec 2011 Leave a Comment
in Cookies and Brownies, Desserts Tags: cookies, Desserts, Holiday
It has been almost a year since I began this blog, and I thought I would round up the cookie recipes I’ve posted thus far. With the holidays just a few days away, perhaps you can find one or two recipes to try (click the titles and it will take you to that post)…
My absolute favorite…and everyone has LOVED these, too! They freeze extremely well, so they can be on hand in a pinch for hostess gifts or holiday trays.They do take time to roll and spread the filling but overall are not too hard. The recipe makes a ton.
This is my next most favored cookie recipe. It’s nutty and buttery and sugary…mmmmm… It’s also a highly requested recipe and an annual make-ahead cookie because it freezes well. It is easy to mix and easy to roll, only taking time if you triple or quadruple batch because then you have tons to roll.
Sweet and Salty Butterscotch Pecan Cookies ↑
Oh my…these are a hit with everyone and also requested a lot and loved by everyone who makes & shares these…major WOW power…very easy to make drop cookies, but they do require several hours of refrigeration before baking, so leave time for that.
Okay, so these aren’t really cookies; they are more in the candy category. But they are made with cookies! I wanted to include these, though, because they are another hit every time I take them to a party–no exaggeration. Easy to mix and easy to roll…the time-consuming part is dipping them in chocolate–sooooooooo worth the time, though.
Ultra tangy and lemony…fairly easy to make bar cookies.
Sugar Cookies and more sugar cookie links ↑
Light and slightly lemony…these are refrigerate, roll, cut, and bake cookies which you can take time to decorate or simply sprinkle with colored sugars before baking. They freeze well prior to decorating. Although I didn’t make any for Christmas, you can go to foodgawker.com and type in “sugar cookies” and find loads of designs. These are also a popular cookie with friends and family.
Who doesn’t love a good ol’ chocolate chip cookie? This recipe includes quite a few “additions” you can make to the cookies, so find one to tailor for the holidays if you want to dress it up a bit. Easy, quick drop cookies.
Technically not a cookie but who doesn’t love brownies? These are rich and fudge-y and addictive… This is the high-tech version, which means they take a lot of fancy chocolate and high-quality cocoa powder and melting time…but all worth it!
Anise, ginger, cinnamon, and orange zest all work together for layers of flavor to surprise the taste buds in this cookie dough. It requires refrigerating, rolling, cutting, and baking; although it takes a bit of time, it isn’t hard and it makes for an unusual yet delicious cookie.
Chocolate Toffee Shortbread Bars ↑
Buttery shortbread dough, sweet chocolate, and crunchy toffee bits in bar form…easy.
Sweet, tart, and melt-in-your-mouth buttery deliciousness…easy…also freezes well prior to baking (haven’t tried freezing after baking).
Cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, ginger, molasses, brown sugar–what more can you ask for that just screams holiday time? Soft and chewy and easy to make drop cookies.
Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting
21 Dec 2011 Leave a Comment
in Cakes, Desserts Tags: Cakes, carrot cake with cream cheese frosting, Carrots, Cream Cheese Frosting, Desserts
I made my first ever carrot cake for Thanksgiving. It baked up moist, tender, and tasting of fall spices. The cream cheese frosting added a final divine touch. Lots of frosting, too. I increased the original recipe to make sure I had plenty (increase reflected in recipe below).
I loved the cake.
Either most everyone else did not, or there were so many other desserts that their bellies were bursting and didn’t have room for the carrot cake. I like to think it was the bellies-bursting reason. Plus, we had lots of kids as part of the holiday celebration, and as a kid, I wasn’t fond of anything that wasn’t chocolate cake or chocolate chip cookies.
Sometimes cake layers act persnickety and don’t want to fall out of the cake pan in one piece. Never fear, for if that happens, the solution is to turn your layered cake into a layered trifle instead. To see how that looks, head on over to Brown-Eyed Baker to see how she handled a potential baking disaster and turned it into success.
Or, to prevent the cakes from sticking to the pans, grease the pans well (I love Wilton’s Cake Release product, which I buy at Micheals). Even consider lining the bottom with parchment paper cut to fit the pan.
A few other useful tools and sites to check out for frosting layered cakes: a cake spatula and a rotating cake stand and Zoe Bakes for tutorials on how to frost cakes.
Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting
INGREDIENTS
Cake
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 tsp. baking powder
- 2 tsp. baking soda
- 2 tsp. ground cinnamon
- 1 tsp. ground cloves
- 1 tsp. ground nutmeg
- 1 tsp. ground allspice
- 3/4 tsp. salt
- 3 cups grated carrots
- 1 cup coarsely chopped walnuts
- 1 cup shredded coconut, sweetened or unsweetened (I omitted this)
- 1/2 cup raisins (I omitted this)
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 1 cup canola oil
- 4 eggs
Frosting
- 12 oz. cream cheese, at room temperature
- 6 ounces (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 1 1/2 lbs. (5 to 5 1/4 cups) powdered sugar
- 1 1/2 tbsp. vanilla extract
DIRECTIONS
- Position the racks in the oven into thirds and preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Grease and flour three 9×2-inch round cake pans. Put two pans on one baking sheet and one on another.
- Whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, allspice, and salt.
- In another bowl, stir together carrots, chopped nuts, coconut, and raisins.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the sugar and oil together on medium speed until smooth.
- Add the eggs one by one, and continue to beat until the batter is even smoother.
- Reduce speed to low and add flour mixture, mixing only until the dry ingredients disappear.
- Gently mix in the chunky ingredients.
- Divide the batter among the three baking pans. Bake for 40-50 minutes, rotating pans from top to bottom and front to bak at the midway point, until a knife inserted into the center comes out clean (the cakes will have just started to come away from the sides of the pans).
- Transfer the cakes to cooling racks and cool for about 5 minutes, then run a knife around the sides of the cakes and unmold them. Invert and cool to room temperature right side up. (The cakes can be wrapped airtight and kept at room temperature overnight or frozen for up to two months.)
- To make the frosting: Beat the cream cheese and butter together until smooth and creamy.
- Gradually add the powdered sugar and continue to beat until the frosting is velvety smooth.
- Beat in the vanilla extract until well-combined.
- To assemble, stack the layers, spreading a generous amount of frosting between layers, followed by covering the top and sides. Garnish and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before serving. You can garnish with chopped walnuts, or you can save some frosting to color orange and green and pipe carrots on top of the cake.
SOURCE: Brown-Eyed Baker who adapted from Baking: From My Home to Yours by Dorie Greenspan
Holiday Cookie Line Up #6: Chocolate Toffee Shortbread Bars
14 Dec 2011 Leave a Comment
in Cookies and Brownies, Desserts Tags: Chocolate, cookies, Desserts, Shortbread, Toffee
Pan cookies—so easy! Mix, pat, bake, cut. Done. Voila! Beautiful and tasty cookies with little work. What’s not to like about that?
And these sweet treats have loads of goodies in them: buttery shortbread dough, sweet chocolate, and crunchy toffee bits. Yum! And very festive looking if you need a treat for a holiday party.
Chocolate Toffee Shortbread Bars
INGREDIENTS
Shortbread Base
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- 1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
- 2 sticks (1 cup) unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1/2 cup brown sugar, packed
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1 tsp. vanilla extract
- 3 oz. bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, finely chopped
Topping
- 6 oz. bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, finely chopped
- 1 1/2 cups toffee bits
DIRECTIONS
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Line a 9×13-inch baking dish with foil; spray lightly with cooking spray.
- To make shortbread, combine flour, salt, and cinnamon in a small bowl; stir to blend and set aside.
- In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine the butter and sugars; beat on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.
- Blend in vanilla.
- With mixer on low speed, beat in the dry ingredients just until incorporated.
- Stir in the chopped chocolate until evenly distributed.
- Transfer the dough to the prepared baking dish, and press into an even layer covering the bottom of the pan.
- Bake for 18-20 minutes or until the shortbread is bubbling. Remove pan from oven and transfer to a wire rack.
- Sprinkle the 6 ounces of chopped chocolate evenly over the top of the cookie base. Cover the pan with foil and let sit for 5 minutes. Remove foil and use an offset spatula to spread the melted chocolate evenly over the crust in a thin layer. Immediately sprinkle the toffee bits over the melted chocolate and press down gently to adhere.
- Let the bars cool to room temperature. Once the pan has cooled, you may speed chilling by transferring to the refrigerator or freezer. When the topping is set, remove from pan, transfer to cutting board and slice into bars.
SOURCE: Annie’s Eats
Baked Oatmeal
10 Dec 2011 Leave a Comment
in Breakfast Tags: Berries, Breakfast, Oatmeal
How about a change of pace from the dessert recipes? Let me share an easy and healthy breakfast dish: Baked Oatmeal. Yes, it takes awhile to bake in the oven, but it results in thick, creamy oatmeal balanced with the sweetness of bananas and the tartness of berries…oh, and the crunch of nuts, too. Overall delish dish.
I buy bags of frozen mixed berries from Costco and use those in the recipe. I love the variety of blueberries and raspberries and blackberries–lots of tart tastes poppin’ in the mouth. If you don’t have maple syrup, use regular instead. And I buy oats from the bins at Sprouts or Whole Foods.
This would make a fun holiday breakfast in case you want something different. Best part: it’s on the healthier side!
Baked Oatmeal
INGREDIENTS
- 1 cup old-fashioned rolled oats
- 1/4 cup chopped walnuts or pecans, lightly toasted, divided (I use 1/2 cup)
- 1/2 tsp. baking powder
- 3/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
- pinch of salt
- 1/4 cup maple syrup (I have used regular syrup, too)
- 1 cup milk
- 1 large egg, lightly beaten
- 2 tbsp. unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly
- 1 tsp. vanilla extract
- 2-3 ripe bananas, peeled and sliced 1/2-inch thick
- 1 cup blueberries (fresh or frozen), divided (I use up to two cups and I used mixed berries)
DIRECTIONS
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
- In a medium bowl, combine oats, half of the nuts, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt; stir to combine.
- In a liquid measuring cup, combine the syrup, milk, egg, butter, and vanilla.
- Spread the sliced bananas in a single layer over the bottom of the baking dish, followed by half of the berries. (I’ve also made this in individual ramekins instead of one big dish.)
- Sprinkle the dry oat mixture over the fruit in an even layer.
- Pour the liquid ingredients evenly over the oats.
- Sprinkle with remaining nuts and berries.
- Bake for 35-40 minutes, until the top is browned and the oats have set.
- Let cool 10 minutes before serving.
SOURCE: Annie’s Eats via The Curvy Carrot who got recipe from the cookbook Super Natural Every Day
Holiday Cookie Line Up #5: Mexican Sugar Cookies (Bizcochitos)
06 Dec 2011 Leave a Comment
in Cookies and Brownies Tags: cookies, Desserts, Sugar Cookies
Want a cookie full of layers of flavor that will surprise the taste buds? Trust me, this is the recipe. I was a bit skeptical but also intrigued by the ingredients, for who would think that anise, ginger, cinnamon, and orange zest would all work together?
However, the citrus provides a light, fresh fragrance and taste. The anise is barely detectable yet plays off the citrus with its slight hint of licorice. And the ginger gives an ever-so-slight kick. As for the sugar-cinnamon topping–it offers a sweet and spicy touch along with sparkle, color, and crunch.
Let me tell you, though, about a goofy mistake I made. I had never used anise before, and when I looked for it at the store, I came across the actual star anise seeds first. Anise I needed, so stars I bought. Problem, though: I needed ground up anise. Well, that’s not what the original recipe specified, so how was I to know? Instead, I spent forever trying to pound up the seed into powder. I was somewhat successful, at least enough to use my “powder” version in the recipe. Well, powdered anise exists. Buy it. It’s far easier than my method!
this is a googled image
And please don’t laugh too hard at my stupidity. Live and learn! And learn from the mistakes of others.
Even after two hours in the fridge, my dough was somewhat sticky. Hence, roll the dough out on a well-floured surface as well as heavily flour the rolling pin–either that or roll it between layers of parchment paper or plastic wrap.
I highly recommend trying these. They were some of the most flavorful yet light cookies I’ve ever made.
Mexican Sugar Cookies (Bizcochitos)
INGREDIENTS
- 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 3/4 cup + 1/2 cup white sugar, granulated
- 1 cup shortening
- 2 large eggs
- 1 tbsp. orange zest
- 1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
- 1 tsp. vanilla extract
- 1 tsp. ground anise seed (see http://www.theperfectpantry.com/2009/05/anise-seed-recipe-beet-and-fennel-salad.html for info on anise seeds…crush with heavy pan or rolling pin)
- 1 tsp. ground cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- 1/2 tsp. ground ginger
DIRECTIONS
- In a large bowl, cream shortening and 3/4 cup sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time followed by vanilla, beating until blended.
- In another bowl, sift flour, baking powder, ginger, and salt. Slowly add the dry ingredients to the shortening mixture, beating until the ingredients are blended. The dough will be extremely stiff, and as you add the last of the dry ingredients, you may have to knead by hand. However, I didn’t find this to be so with my large stand mixer.
- Once all of the dry ingredients are incorporated, add in the orange zest and anise seed.
- Using your hands, shape the dough into a round disc and wrap in plastic. Refrigerate for 30-60 minutes.
- Once dough is chilled, preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- Roll dough out to a thickness of approximately 1/4 inch and cut out the cookies uisng a lightly-floured cookie cutter.
- Meanwhile, in a small bowl, mix remaining sugar and cinnamon and sprinkle on top of the cookies. Bake in batches on parchment-lined cookie sheets (or silicone mats) for 12-14 minutes or until slightly golden at edges and bottoms. Cool on wire racks.
Yield: 40 cookies (will vary depending on cutter used)
SOURCE: Scarlett Bakes
Holiday Cookie Line Up #4: Walnut Pillows
01 Dec 2011 Leave a Comment
in Cookies and Brownies, Desserts Tags: cookies, Desserts, Walnuts
These cookies are little pillows of nutty goodness enveloped in a flaky crust and topped with snowy white sweetness. They remind me so much of the Croatian cookies my mom and her cronies make for each holiday. And now I have a recipe to rival their awesome creations. Yay!
I actually made these months ago but never got around to posting about them. The holidays offer the perfect timing for sharing these, though.
The recipe makes TONS, so I gave bunches away and froze the rest. The nuts are spread onto the dough and rolled up into a log, then the log is sliced and baked. I didn’t need to bake all the cookies at once, so I opted to freeze half the logs. I gave my aunt a bunch of cookies and she froze most of them.We learned that the cookies taste better baked before freezing vs. freezing them in their unbaked state. Just thought you’d want to know if you decide to make these. By freezing, you can also make them ahead of time and have cookies easily ready for the holidays without stressing the day before—that’s always a plus.
They do take a bit of effort, but they are delish and make a lovely holiday offering.
The pictures below show the dough rolled into 6 inch x 18 inch rectangles. This was a bit long for rolling with ease. Next time, I might half each portion of dough and roll into 6 inch x 9 inch rectangles; I think this will be much easier to handle. I also found the cookies came out a bit thick after rolling, so I might even roll the dough out a bit less than 6 inches…maybe 4 inches or so.
Walnut Pillows
INGREDIENTS
Dough
- 4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 4 tsp. baking powder
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 cup shortening
- 1 egg
- 1 tsp. vanilla
- 1 cup milk
Filling
- 1 1/2 lbs. walnuts, finely chopped (use food processor to speed up chopping)
- 4 oz. (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted
- 1 1/2 cups sugar
- 4 egg whites, lightly beaten
Icing
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 1 tsp. vanilla
- 4 tbsp. milk (approximately)
DIRECTIONS
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Prepare cookie sheets by lining with silicone mats, parchment paper, or greasing.
- In a bowl, mix flour, baking powder, and salt.
- In another bowl, cream shortening and sugar.
- Add egg and vanilla; combine well.
- Add remaining ingredients, alternating between flour mixture and milk, starting and ending with flour mixture and making sure all ingredients are well incorporated. The dough will be soft.
- Divide dough into four even pieces, wrap each in plastic wrap, and refrigerate until ready to use.
- Filling: Combine chopped nuts with sugar, then add melted butter; mix well, making sure there are no large clumps. Add egg whites; mix well.
- On a well-floured surface, roll out a piece of dough into a rectangle measuring about 6 inches x 18 inches. Spread 1/4 of the nut filling onto the dough, leaving a small border around the perimeter of the dough.
- Roll up as you would a jelly roll, with the short ends to the left and right of your, and seal the ends.
- Cut the roll into 1-inch pieces and place on the cookie sheet. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until the tops are just slightly starting to brown. Cool completely.
- Once the cookies are cooled, prepare the icing by mixing powdered sugar, vanilla, and enough milk to achieve the desired consistency. Make icing thick enough to not be runny yet still easily spreadable. Ice the tops of the cookies; let set completely before storing in an airtight container. Baked cookies freeze well, too.
Yield: about 7 dozen cookies
SOURCE: Brown-Eyed Baker
