Pomegranate & Orange Linzer Cookies

Who doesn't love a good sandwich cookie?  Truth be told, ice cream sandwich cookies from The Coolhaus are my favorite variety (hmm, maybe I should make some).  But when I can't have ice cream "sammies," a Linzer cookie (or two) makes for an excellent treat.

How do you make pomegranate and orange cookies, you ask?  You could do it a lot of ways, but my recipe involves pomegranate jelly-filled orange shortbread.  I've modified my vanilla rum shortbread recipe to add some sweet citrus flavor.

Since Linzer cookies require more steps than your typical cookie recipe, I'll keep this post short and sweet.  Here's R.E.M.'s "Orange Crush."

Ingredients:
--2 sticks + 6 tbsp. chilled and chopped unsalted butter
--zest of one orange (approximately 1 tbsp.)
--2 tbsp. freshly squeezed orange juice
--1 c. turbinado sugar
--1 c. cornstarch
--2 c. all-purpose flour, + extra for rolling
--1 tsp. salt
--pomegranate jelly (I used one from Kozlowski Farms in Sonoma, CA)
--about 1/2 c. confectioners' sugar for dusting

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.

In a large bowl, sift the flour, cornstarch, and salt.  In a food processor, combine flour mixture, butter, orange zest, and sugar.  Pulse for about 1-2 minutes.  Slowly drizzle in the freshly squeezed orange juice and continue to pulse until a dough forms.

On a floured surface, separate your dough into quarters.  Roll each piece of dough until it's about 1/4" thick (you can make thicker cookies if you'd like, but since these are going to be sandwich cookies, I like them on the thinner side).  Use a floured Linzer cookie cutter and cut enough cookies for both the bottom layer and the top layer (the one with the decorative cutout).  Repeat with remaining dough, incorporating the scraps until you've used all the dough.

Place cookies on a parchment-lined sheet and bake for 8-9 minutes (no more!).  If the cookies become golden on top, they're a bit overdone.  Remember, they'll be *really* soft when you take them out of the oven--it'll seem like they're not done, but they are.  Place on a cooling rack using a thin spatula and allow cookies to cool completely.  

Once they've cooled, place about 1 tsp. pomegranate jelly on a "bottom layer" cookie and put a "top layer" cookie on top, making a cookie sandwich.  The jelly should poke through the decorative cutout.  Repeat until all the cookies have become delicious little sandwiches.

Using a sifter, dust all the cookies with confectioners' sugar before serving.

Millionaire's Shortbread ("Billionaire" Style)

Have you had the most delicious shortbread in the world?  Here's the recipe!  Millionaire's shortbread is a popular British treat, and this recipe is adapted from Jennifer Yee's "Billionaire's Shortbread" featured in Food and Wine.  In short, it's more decadent than the classic millionaire's shortbread with amber caramel, a rich dark chocolate ganache, and a sea salt topping.

This recipe is more than a little time intensive, so make sure you have several hours to spare if you're going to make it.  No doubt, it's worth it.  You'll end up with one of the most deliciously rich shortbread confections you've ever tasted.  Since it's topped with a thick layer of ganache, it's gotta be served chilled and stored in the refrigerator (don't take it to a picnic).

Do you know the Cleveland bank Rocket from the Tombs?  I discovered them on CD in college and found the same collection on vinyl at Normal's in Baltimore a year or two ago.  (Rocket from the Tombs was a very short-lived but amazing punk band.)  If you don't know them, you should.  Here's "So Cold" from a "posthumous," if you will, collection of live and demo recordings from 1974-75 on The Day the Earth Met the Rocket from the Tombs.

Ingredients:
*Adapted from Jennifer Yee's Billionaire's Shortbread
Shortbread:
--1 stick unsalted butter, chilled and cubed
--3/4 c. all-purpose flour
--1/4 c. corn flour
--1/3 c. granulated sugar
--pinch of salt

Caramel:
--1 1/2 c. granulated sugar
--2 tbsp. unsalted butter
--1/2 c. heavy cream
--pinch of salt

Chocolate Ganache:
--16 ounces dark chocolate, chopped
--3/4 c. heavy cream
--1 tsp. vanilla
--coarsely ground sea salt (for topping)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Make the shortbread first.  Combine butter, flour, corn flour, sugar, and salt in a food processor.  Pulse until a dough forms.  Now line an 8" square baking pan with aluminum foil so that the foil comes up over the edges (take two sheets of foil and cross them in the pan).  Then line the bottom with a square of parchment paper.  Press the shortbread dough into the pan with the palm of your hand and smooth it until it's even.  Bake for 20-25 minutes, or just until the edges are slightly golden.  The dough will still be slightly soft when it's done.  Don't overcook it!  Remove from the oven and allow to cool.

Now make the caramel.  Jennifer Yee makes a wet caramel, but I prefer to make a dry one.  Dry caramels (or those made with *just* sugar and no water) are a darker amber color, and I think they go really nicely with dark chocolate and sea salt.

In a medium saucepan, add 1 1/2 c. sugar over medium heat (on the lower side of medium).  Let the sugar sit until it begins to caramelize.  Don't mix it.  Instead, using a spatula, just continue pushing the edges of the sugar down into the pan.  You'll see the sugar begin to caramelize and turn an amber color.  Fight the urge to mix it!  The rest of the sugar will incorporate and caramelize, too.  But watch it very closely--once all he sugar has incorporated, it's done--don't let it burn.  Turn the heat to low and add 2 tbsp. unsalted butter.  Swirl in the butter until it has melted.  Now add the heavy cream (be careful when doing this--it splashes) and mix continuously for about 3-4 minutes, or just until you've have a beautifully textured caramel.  Swirl in the pinch of salt and remove from heat.

Immediately pour over the chilled shortbread and place in the refrigerator to cool down for about an hour.

Finally, make the chocolate ganache!  Place 16 oz. chopped dark chocolate in a medium-sized bowl.  In a small saucepan, heat 3/4 c. heavy cream over low-medium heat until it reaches a simmer.  Pour over the chocolate and add 1 tsp. vanilla.  Let it sit until the chocolate melts almost completely.  Then stir until you have a smooth, creamy ganache.  Pour over the shortbread/caramel and smooth with a spatula.  Top with some coarsely ground sea salt.  Cover and chill in the refrigerator for at least 1-2 hours.

Once the ganache has chilled, remove the shortbread from the pan (the foil and parchment should allow you to just lift it up) and cut into squares.

Serve chilled, and store any extra squares covered in the refrigerator.

Snickerdoodles

When we'd travel to my grandmother's house for the holidays, she'd always have snickerdoodles waiting for us (along with extras to take on the drive home).  So, while these aren't holiday cookies per se, they'll always be Christmas cookies to me.

Snickerdoodles are fluffy and sweet.  I love soft cookies, so not much can beat a cinnamon-and-sugar snickerdoodle hot out of the oven.  I've adapted the recipe from Smitten Kitchen, but there are a lot of great recipes out there for these cookies.

I have to admit, in addition to sweets, I love Christmas music.  Here is John Fahey's "Auld Lang Syne," from his 1968 Christmas album, The New Possibility.

Ingredients:
--2 3/4 c. all-purpose flour
--2 tsp. cream of tartar
--1 tsp. baking soda
--2 sticks salted butter, softened
--3 eggs
--1 1/2 c. granulated sugar, + 1/2 c. granulated sugar for rolling
--2 tbsp. ground cinnamon

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

In a large bowl, combine butter, 1 1/2 c. sugar, and eggs on medium speed until fluffy (about 3 minutes).  In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, cream of tartar, and baking soda.  Slowly add to the wet mixture until combined.  Scrape dough into wax paper and chill for about an hour.

In a small bowl, combine remaining sugar and cinnamon.  Once dough has chilled, shape into 1" balls and roll thoroughly in the mixture of cinnamon and sugar.  Place at least 2" apart on a parchment-lined baking sheet (these will seriously expand in the oven).  Bake for about 8-10 minutes, or just until the cookies are cracking.  If they're golden-colored on top, they're overcooked.

Vanilla Rum Shortbread Cookies

If you read this blog with any regularity, you might have noticed that I have an incurable sweet tooth.  The holiday season gives me a marvelous excuse to make (and devour) a new dessert almost every day.  I love shortbread, and I've been trying to find a recipe that I'm really crazy about.  While I've made some shortbread recipes that are yummy (like my winter white amaretto shortbread), lately I've been craving a shortbread that's especially flaky and crisp.  This recipe is exactly that.

You can make this into any shape you'd like, of course.  I selected some snowflake cookie cutters to accompany the wintry weather.  I tried to introduce you to the Durutti Column's music in previous posts, but it turns out that some of their cold-weather tracks are even more beautiful than I could imagine.  Here is their haunting "Snowflakes," to match the aesthetics of these shortbread cookies.

Ingredients:
--2 sticks + 6 tbsp. unsalted butter (keep this very cold like you would for a pie crust)
--2 tbsp. dark rum
--1 tbsp. vanilla
--1 c. turbinado sugar
--1 c. cornstarch
--2 c. all-purpose flour, + extra for rolling
--1 tsp. salt
--decorative sugar crystals

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.

In a large bowl, sift flour, cornstarch, and salt.  Using a food processor or using a pastry cutter, add butter, sugar, vanilla, and rum.  If you're using a food processor, pulse the ingredients until they begin to form a ball, just like a pie crust.  (If you're using a pastry cutter, it'll take a little more time, but cut the ingredients until a dry, crumbly dough begins to form.)

Separate the dough into quarters.  On a large floured surface, shape the first dough quarter into a ball and roll out until it's about 1/4 to 1/2" thick.  Using a floured cookie cutter, cut any shapes you like.  Repeat with remaining dough, incorporating the scraps as you go.  (You'll end up with about 3 dozen cookies or so, depending on the size of your cookie cutter, when all is said and done.)

Arrange the cookies about 1/2" apart on a parchment-lined baking sheet.  Sprinkle with decorative sugar crystals (I used silver and gold).  

Bake at 325 degrees F for approximately 12-14 minutes, or just until the cookie edges are ever so slightly golden.  If the tops become golden, they're overdone.  Remove from oven and allow to cool.  And these look great in holiday gift bags!

Alfajores de Maizena

Have you eaten alfajores de maizena in Argentina?  They're delicious cornflour shortbread cookies, filled (in some cases, sky high) with dulce de leche and rolled in toasted coconut flakes.  Until I had encountered the pastelerias in Buenos Aires, I thought I had already sampled the best sweets the world had to offer (baklava in Istanbul, of course).  And just when I thought Argentinian sweets couldn't get any better, I tried the most amazingly delightful alfajores de maizena at the Mataderos Sunday market.  Crumbly, melt-in-your mouth, dulce de leche delights.

These cookies are a labor of love: first you have to make the shortbread cookies, then you'll have to fill them with dulce de leche before rolling them in coconut.  But it's worth every extra minute.  They're not easy to come by in the U.S., and they're really good.  We brought some delicious and fresh dulce de leche home from Green Eat on Buenos Aires' Reconquista for some authentic alfajores at home in Virginia.  But don't worry: you can buy dulce de leche at almost any specialty foods store.

When I think of "paradise," I rarely see beaches or impossibly sunny days.  Instead, with more than one hundred used bookstores (I visited fifty-eight of them!) and dulce de leche-infused sweets on every corner, Buenos Aires was for me, in many ways, a paradise.  Here's the Atlantics' "Adventures in Paradise" from this Australian band's 1963 album, Bombora.

Ingredients:
--1/2 c. corn flour (no, not cornstarch--this is a specialty corn flour I bought at Whole Foods)
--1/2 c. all-purpose flour, + extra for rolling
--3 1/3 c. cornstarch
--1/2 tsp. baking powder
--3/4 c. unsalted butter, softened
--1 1/3 c. granulated sugar
--3 egg yolks
--1 tsp. vanilla
--2 tsp. dark rum
--16 oz. dulce de leche
--1 c. very finely shredded toasted coconut (you can grind already shredded coconut even further in a food processor)

Preheat oven to 300 degrees F.

In a large bowl, combine wet ingredients.  Mix until fully combined and a fluffy light yellow color.  In a separate bowl, sift the dry ingredients.  Slowly add them to the wet ingredients, about 1/4 of the dry mixture at a time.  Don't overmix!  Once the dry mixture is incorporated (and it should be very dry and crumbly at this point), separate the dough into quarters.

On a floured surface, roll one of the dough quarters until it's about 1/2" thick.  Using a 3" biscuit cutter, cut dough circles.  Place about 1/2" apart on a parchment-lined baking sheet.  Bake for 7-8 minutes.  Do not let these cookies turn golden-colored on top--if they have any golden tone, they're overcooked.  Allow the cookies to cool on a cooling rack and repeat instructions until you have about 75 shortbread cookies.

Once the cookies have all cooled, liberally apply dulce de leche to the flat side (bottom side) of one of the cookies.  Be very careful--the cookies are very fragile and will crumble easily with too much pressure.  Once you've smothered the bottom of the cookie in what most Argentinian menus translate as "milk caramel," add another cookie on top, flat side down (bottom side), making a cookie sandwich.  Repeat until all cookies have become cookie sandwiches.  Each sandwich should have about 1/4" of dulce de leche in the middle (of course, if you like a lot of dulce de leche, add more).

Place your shredded coconut in a shallow bowl.  Roll each cookie like a wheel until the exposed dulce de leche has been coated with coconut.  Repeat until you've finished all cookies.  Makes about 3 dozen alfajores de maizena.  You won't regret it.

Kourabiedes (the Most Delicious Butter Cookies)

This is another recipe of my great grandmother's that made its way from a Greek holiday cookie to a Sicilian anytime cookie.  The spelling and pronunciation of these remained a wonderful mystery throughout my childhood.  In fact, for years as a kid, I assumed these must be spelled "could-a-be-eddie."  We usually make them at Christmastime, but they're too easy and delicious to eat only once a year.  Rich butter cookies with pecans: mmmmmmmm.  This time around, I made a Valentine's Day batch.  

Here's a secret: I actually have this recipe memorized.  (It's that easy, and, well, I've made it more times than I can count.)  There are a lot of cookies that are similar in texture and ingredient profile, e..g, Russian Tea Cakes and Mexican Wedding Cakes, but for me, this recipe is special because it's also infused with a lot of happy memories.

For Valentine's Day, here's the inimitable Frank Sinatra singing "My Funny Valentine."

Ingredients:
--1/2 lb. unsalted butter
--1/2 c. confectioner's sugar
--1 tsp. lemon extract
--1 tsp. vanilla extract
--2 c. flour
--1/2 c. finely chopped pecans 
[icing recipe to follow]

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. 

In a large bowl, cream butter and confectioner's sugar.  Add lemon and vanilla extracts, then blend in flour.  With a wooden spoon, fold in pecans.  Roll into 1" ball and place on a parchment-lined baking sheet.  Flatten balls with the palm of your hand, and bake for 7-9 minutes, or *just* until the edges begin to look slightly colored.  If they're golden on top, they're overcooked!  Allow to cool.

Icing:
--1 tbsp. unsalted butter
--3 tbsp. whole milk
--2 tsp. vanilla extract
--1/2 to 1 c. confectioner's sugar
--sugar sprinkles (optional)

In a small bowl, melt butter, and whisk in milk and vanilla.  Add confectioner's sugar, whisking well, until icing is desired consistency (add more confectioner's sugar for a thicker icing).  Spread over cooled cookies.  If so desired, top with sugar sprinkles in the color of your choice (as you can see, I used red).  Eat 'em up!

Chocolate Peppermint "Oreos"

I love chocolate and peppermint.  Whether it's Ghirardelli Peppermint Bark, Trader Joe's Peppermint Hot Chocolate, or a creation of my own, the flavors lovingly ring in the holidays.

These cookies take a little more prep time than some others, but they're still a super easy and festive treat.  Two chocolate sugar cookies filled with a peppermint buttercream icing.  Cool and delicious, and they also make a snappy little gift:

Here's a sweet musical goody to match.  Joey Dee & The Starliters' "Peppermint Twist."

Chocolate Sugar Cookies: 
*Recipe adapted from Joy of Baking
--2 3/4 c. flour
--3/4 c. cocoa powder
--pinch of salt
--1 tsp. baking powder
--1 c. unsalted butter, softened but not melted
--1 3/4 c. granulated sugar
--2 eggs
--2 tsp. vanilla

In a large bowl, beat together eggs, sugar, and vanilla until light yellow.  Beat in softened butter.  In a separate medium-sized bowl, sift together flour, cocoa powder, and salt.  Alternately add the flour mixture to the egg mixture, beating on low after each addition until both mixtures are completely combined.

Separate the dough into two roughly equal parts.  On two sheets of wax paper, shape the dough into log rolls and refrigerate for approx. 4 hours, or until firm.  Once chilled, remove from refrigerator and preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Slice the dough log into even slices approx. 1/4" thick (you don't want to make them too thick since they'll be 'sandwiches') and place on parchment lined baking sheet.  Bake for 10-12 minutes, or just until firm on bottom (and can be lifted with a spatula).  Allow to cool.  Repeat until all dough logs have been transformed into chocolate cookie disks.  Set aside until you've made the filling, below:

Peppermint Buttercream Icing:
--1/4 stick unsalted butter, softened but not melted
--2 c. confectioner's sugar
--1/4 to 1/2 c. whole milk, depending on desired consistency (begin with 1/4 cup, and if the icing is too thick, add more milk until desired consistency is obtained)
--2 1/2 tsp. peppermint extract
--4-5 drops red food dye (for the red-pink peppermint color)

Blend ingredients on low speed until you have a delicious and pepperminty buttercream icing.  Spread on half of the chocolate cookies, and then top with a remaining cookie (creating a 'sandwich').  Allow icing to dry and set.  Serve!

Mexican Wedding Cakes

I just got back from Texas, and the tastes of San Antonio are inspirational for both dinners and desserts.  This "snowball" cookie is straight out of "Flavors," a 1970s San Antonio Junior League cookbook that I excavated from an antique store near the Alamo.  I love finding vintage cookbooks from places I visit.  Best souvenirs?  Just maybe. 

My favorite line from "Flavors" is its opening description of the distinctly San Antonio taste, yet multifaceted collection, of the cookbook: "The only thread of similarity you will find making all these dishes typically San Antonio is the inevitable dash of picante or Mexican spice."  If you've never been, El Mercado is delightfully saturated in color and spice.  In fact, I picked up a bottle of Mexican-imported vanilla from one of the shops.  It's hard at work in this recipe.

These cookies are easy and delicious.  And with the ample amounts of cinnamon and cloves, the Mexican spice of "Flavors" comes through.  Since most of my driving around Texas included repeat listens to Sir Douglas Quintet's 1983 "Border Wave," it only seems right to pair these cookies with a song from this Chrysalis album.  Here's "Sheila Tequila," from this original San Antonio band.  

Preheat oven to 275 degrees F.  

Ingredients:
--2 sticks butter
--1/2 c. confectioner's sugar
--2 c. flour
--1/2 c. chopped pecans
--2 tsp. vanilla (I used Mexican-imported vanilla, but any pure vanilla will do)
--1/4 c. confectioner's sugar (for dusting)
--2 tsp. cinnamon
--2 tsp. cloves

Cream butter and 1/2 c. confectioner's sugar.  Add flour, pecans, and vanilla.  Shape into small balls and place on a parchment-lined baking sheet.  Bake at 275 degrees for 45 minutes. 

While the cookies are baking, sift 1/4 c. confectioner's sugar, cinnamon, and cloves.  When warm, roll cookies in confectioner's sugar mixture.  Once cool, roll again.

Pear & Almond Pie Pillows

I've been terribly late in my blog postings lately.  And now Thanksgiving is just around the corner.  My apologies.  Let me make it up to you with a delicious cookie recipe and a great song.

A love a good "pillow" cookie, and almost any dessert is better with almonds.  These cookies feature a pie crust exterior, an almond paste and pear filling, and a sprinkling of turbinado sugar for a sweet crunch.  I have to admit: these cookies were a bit time consuming to create, but the end result was delicious.  We even ate a few of them warmed with a scoop of vanilla ice cream: cookies a la mode.

Pillow cookies typically feature a sugar-cookie dough, filled with an almond or chocolate filling.  I really think the flaky, buttery pie crust makes these ones extra special.  (And, you could fill them with almost any pie filling!  Mini pies, mini cookies . . . .)  In fall, grocery markets begin stocking Bartlett pears, and they're perfect for this pastry treat. 

For a song, here's Joanna Newsom's fun and quirky "Peach Plum Pear."

And now for the dessert.  First, you've gotta make a pie crust, and here's my trusty recipe (doubled):

--2 1/2 c. flour

--1 c. butter, cold

--1/2 c. ice water

--pinch of salt

Pour flour into a large bowl.  Then, cut in the butter, either by hand or by placing ingredients in a food processor.  Next, pour in ice water and mix together.  Continue kneading until all dry flour has been absorbed.  Finally, form the dough into two balls, and rolls each into a large circle.  Using a 3" biscuit cutter, cut circles out of the pie crust (just like you would cut-out cookies).  Continue rolling dough and cutting circles until all the dough has been used.  Stack your dough circles and set aside.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

The Filling, etc:

--4 Bartlett pears, peeled, sliced, and cut into rough 1" pieces

--1 6 oz can almond paste

--1 tbsp. granulated sugar

--2 tsp. all-purpose flour

--2 tbsp. unsalted butter

--2 whole eggs, + 1 egg white

--2 tbsp. turbinado sugar (for dusting)

In a small food processor, pulse the almond paste (it may be quite hard coming out of the can--don't worry: it'll soften with the other ingredients), sugar, flour, and butter.  Once that has pulsed, add one egg and one egg white (the second egg is for an egg wash over the pie crusts).  

On a parchment or foil-lined baking sheet, spread pie crust circles approximately one inch apart.  Spread a thin layer of the almond paste filling onto each, and then top with a few pieces of pear.  Place another pie crust circle on top, gently pressing the edges down to seal.  Next, taking a fork, press the tines all along the edges, fully sealing these cookies/mini pies.  

In a small bowl, whisk the remaining egg.  Using a pastry brush, lightly brush the egg wash over each "pillow."  Sprinkle turbinado sugar on top, cut a small slit in the top of each, and bake for approximately 20-25 minutes, or until edges are golden.  Repeat with remaining pie crust circles and filling ingredients.  

Serve hot out of the oven with ice cream, or after they've cooled.  They'll also store well for a few days in an airtight container. 

Sugar Cookie Strawberry Shortcake

Growing up, one of my mom's dessert specialties was strawberry shortcake with an angel food base.  "It's such a healthy dessert," she'd tell us.  Years later, I've made this treat a little bit sweeter with a sugar cookie sheet-cake base (a tongue twister and a palate pleaser).  Lately I've heard rumors about my stepdad placing takeout orders for strawberry shortcake from a brick-oven pizza place in southwest Florida . . . .  I bet I make a better one!

Using a jelly roll pan, I took an old sugar cookie recipe, added more eggs, baked it, and glazed it with a simple syrup once it had cooled.  (On a side note: I've been really into turning cookies into sheet cakes lately.  Perhaps some autumn petit fours are in order.)

I know what you're thinking: I must be pairing this dessert with a famous Beatles track.  But I already gave you their addictive "Strawberry Fields Forever" in my Amaretti Chocolate Pie with Strawberry Whipped Cream.  So what goes with a sugar cookie shortcake?  Here's X's "Sugarlight."  This song comes from the super cool American punk band's first studio album, Los Angeles. 

Sugar Cookie Cake ingredients:
--1/2 c. unsalted butter, softened
--1 c. granulated sugar, plus 1/2 c. for simple syrup
--3 eggs
--1 tsp. vanilla extract
--1/2 c. whole milk
--2 1/2 c. all-purpose flour
--1 tsp. baking powder
--1/2 tsp. baking soda
--1 c. water (for simple syru)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

In a large bowl, cream together the butter, sugar, eggs, and vanilla extract.  Set aside.  In a separate bowl, sift the flour, baking powder, and baking soda.  Slowly add the flour mixture and milk, in alternating additions, to the egg and sugar mixture until combined.  

In a buttered and floured jelly roll pan, spread the batter evenly and bake for approximately 15 minutes, or just until a toothpick or cake tester comes out clean.  (*You don't want this to turn golden on top--if it does, it's slightly overdone).  Allow to cool.  

In a small saucepan, bring 1 c. water and 1/2 c. granulated sugar to a boil.  Reduce heat to low and allow to simmer until the sugar has completely dissolved.  With a pastry brush, generously glaze the sugar cookie cake (the simple syrup will seep into the cake, so give it a few layers of this sugary glaze).  Once the glaze has dried, cut into squares.

Strawberry Topping ingredients:
--2 c. fresh strawberries, coarsely chopped
--1/4 c. brown sugar
--1 tsp. vanilla
--1 tsp. cinnamon

Mix all ingredients until combined.  Take two squares of the sugar cookie cake and add a few heaping spoonfuls of the strawberry topping.  I topped mine with a dollop of cool whip, but you could just as easily (and deliciously) use whipped cream or crème fraîche.  Enjoy!

Everybody's All-American Italian Wine Biscuits

Almost 100 years ago, my great-grandparents immigrated to America from Sicily, across the ocean and through Ellis Island.  My great-grandmother brought cookie recipes with her that, over three generations now, my family has baked and loved during holiday seasons.  For the 4th of July, I made her recipe for Italian wine biscuits: a soft, almond-flavored cookie, glazed in sugar and adorned in red, white, and blue.  

While July 4th often conjures images of baseball and apple pie, this recipe and its story aren't too far removed.  My great-grandfather loved watching baseball, a true-blue Pittsburgh Pirates fan.  And although America's history of immigration is much too fraught a discussion for a cooking blog, I still like to dream of an America defined amelioratively by comings, goings, and all of the traditions sowed in between.

The only song I could possibly pair with a 4th-of-July treat is Simon & Garfunkel's "America," one of my all-time favorite songs to listen to as I drive north on the New Jersey Turnpike, with signs for New York City coming into view.

Cookie dough:

**This recipe makes a LOT of cookies!  Sometimes I'll try to reduce it to a third, but for my great-grandmother, I'm keeping it in its original form here.  But be warned--you'll need a lot of counter and/or table space!

--12 c. flour

--1 1/4 c. vegetable shortening

--1 pint whole milk (you really need the richness of the whole milk!)

--4 1/2 c. granulated sugar

--3 eggs

--3 tsp. baking powder

--2 tsp. vanilla extract

--2 tsp. almond extract

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.  

In a (very large) bowl, cream together sugar and shortening.  Add eggs, milk, vanilla, and almond extract.  In a separate (very large) bowl, sift flour and baking powder.  Slowly add, a bit at a time, to wet mixture until combined and a pliable dough has formed.

*If you're dying any of the dough, separate it and knead in your food dye color of choice.  At Christmastime, my family makes both red and green batches, for "candy cane"-style braids.

Now, you're going to braid the cookie dough.  You'll need three small balls of dough for each braid, approximate one large ice cream scoop of dough.  Roll into a long and thin dough log, and repeat with the two other balls.  Lay them next to one another horizontally and press together at the top.  Now carefully braid them together and press together at the bottom of the braid to attach them.  Using a small knife, cut the braid into 2" pieces and arrange on a parchment-lined baking sheet.  Repeat until all dough has been used.  (Instead of braiding, you could also form the dough logs into shapes or designs of your choice.)

Bake for 10 minutes and remove promptly.  (*Note: If these have any golden coloring on top, they're overcooked!)  I usually place mine on sheets of foil when they're cool in preparation for the sugar glazing.  

Sugar glaze:

--1/2 c. water

--1 c. granulated sugar

--1/4 c. confectioner's sugar

In a small saucepan, boil the water and granulated sugar until thready (approximately 5-7 minutes).  Remove from heat and rapidly whisk in the confectioner's sugar until completely dissolved.  Using a pastry brush, lightly glaze each cookie.  If so desired, add sprinkles immediately after glazing.

Pineapple Pistachio Cookies

 

I can't seem to get my mind off pistachios since visiting Istanbul.  Thanks to a Bon Appétit recipe (for grilled pineapple with a honey-orange glaze and toasted pistachios), I was inspired to make Pineapple Pistachio Cake Cookies.  No, no, I didn't use a box cake mix in the recipe!  I call these cake cookies because they're thick, soft, and dense (much like a slice of cake but in cookie form, akin to Baltimore's famous Berger Cookie).  They feature a pineapple-pistachio cookie batter, a honey buttercream icing, and a dusting of ground pistachios. 

Plus, with the weather warming up, I'm inspired to use more tropical flavors in my baking.  (Pineapples on the grill in the summer = a true sensory delight.)  For me, the Beach Boys have always conjured the feeling of the cold seasons changing over to spring and summer.  One of my all-time, best-loved Beach Boys songs?  Without a doubt, "Feel Flows," from the 1971 album "Surf's Up" (the album is no "Pet Sounds," but this song is amazing and moving).

Cookie dough:

--2 large eggs

--1 c. granulated sugar

--1 stick unsalted butter, at room temperature

--1/2 c. pineapple juice

--1 1/2 c. all-purpose flour

--1 c. confectioner's sugar

--1/4 tsp. baking powder

--dash of salt

--1 tsp. vanilla extract

--1/2 c. chopped pistachios

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

In a large bowl, use a hand mixer to beat together the eggs, granulated sugar, butter, vanilla, and pineapple juice until frothy, approx. 3-4 minutes.  In a separate bowl, mix the flour, confectioner's sugar, baking powder, and salt.  Fold this dry mixture slowly into the egg batter until combined.  Then fold in the pistachios.  Chill in refrigerator for approx. 6 hours, or until slightly firm and easy enough to roll with your hand without the dough sticking.

Roll dough into 1-inch balls.  Place them on baking sheets line with parchment paper, and flatten them with the palm of your hand.  Bake for 15 minutes, or just until the edges are golden (if the tops are golden, they're overcooked).

Remove from oven and allow to cool.

Honey Buttercream Icing:

--1/2 stick unsalted butter, at room temperature

--1/4 c. pineapple juice

--1 c. confectioner's sugar, plus additional 1/2 c. for thickening

--1/4 c. heavy whipping cream

--2-3 tbsp. honey (depending on your taste for it!)

Using a hand mixer, beat together all ingredients.  Slowly add confectioner's sugar to thicken the icing until it has reached the desired consistency (I usually end up adding about another 1/8 to 1/4 cup, but you may like it even thicker).

Ice the cookies and dust with ground pistachios.  Allow the icing to set before serving.

Macadamia Macaroons

When daydreaming, my mind sometimes drifts to coconut desserts paired with nuts and chocolates.   I first made these cookies last year and brought some of the extras into the English department.  A professor tried one and sweetly described these as the non-fiction version of Marcel Proust's madeleine.  Needless to say, my heart was warmed.  

I wish I knew whether this dessert could magically spark memories of both time and loves (lost), but in lieu of promising you such an edible entity, I can supply such a song.  One of my own "madeleines," so to speak, has forever been Leonard Cohen's "Lady Midnight".  And while it can't kindle an olfactory memory, on a winter night, I love a pretty song paired with a whimsically warm coconut treat.   

Ingredients:

--1 can (14 oz.) sweetened condensed milk

--1 bag (14 oz.) sweetened shredded coconut

--1/2 c. white chocolate pieces (yes, I love white chocolate)

--1/2 c. chopped macadamia nuts

--2 eggs whites, at room temperature

--pinch of salt

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.  

In a medium bowl, combine egg whites and pinch of salt.  Beat the egg whites on high speed until they form medium-stiff peaks.  In a separate large bowl, combine coconut, sweetened condensed milk, white chocolate, and macadamia nuts.  Slowly fold in the stiffened egg whites (do not mix!).  

Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.  Using a 2-inch ice-cream scoop, place macaroon "scoops" approx. 1/2 inch apart on the parchment-lined baking sheets (I usually place 8 scoops per sheet--the recipe makes 16 macaroons).  Bake for 30 minutes, or until the tops are toasted. 

Allow to cool.  Enjoy warm or chilled (I recommend sampling both!). 

Winter White Amaretto Shortbread

I have always loved shortbread, and its ever-presence in bakery cases from the East to West coasts suggests I'm not alone.  (In fact, it seems there's an ongoing debate as to whether it's the greatest British biscuit of all time.)  

Although I've claimed to bake to the tunes of American rock 'n roll, I'm going to cheat (just a little!).  I've created some American-Italian Amaretto shortbread (edged in almond and white chocolate), traditionalized with a dash of England: A live version of the Clash's "London Calling", featuring some rad close-ups of the ever-cool Joe Strummer.

Dough:

--3 c. flour

--1 1/2 c. butter, softened

--1 1/2 c. confectioner's sugar

--1 egg yolk

--4 tbsp. amaretto liqueur (if you want this flavor to be especially strong, you can add another tbsp)

--1 tsp. vanilla

--dash of salt

Blend butter and confectioner's sugar until smooth.  Mix in 1 egg yolk.  Add amaretto and vanilla.  To this blended mixture, add flour and salt.  Mix until dough forms, then wrap in plastic and refrigerate for approximately 1 hour.  (You can refrigerate the dough for longer if you'd like--up to a few days.)

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.  Remove the dough from the refrigerator and cut it in half.  On a lightly floured surface, lightly roll each block of dough into an approx. 1/4" rectangular shape and place on a parchment-lined baking sheet (don't over-roll it!).  Bake at 325 degrees for approx. 30 minutes, or until your giant cookie rectangles are lightly browned.  Remove from oven.  While the shortbread is still warm, cut into whatever shape(s) you'd like--you can use a cookie cutter, a circular biscuit cutter, or you can cut by hand (which I did, to make pie-like cookie slices). 

White chocolate almond dip:

--1/2 bag white chocolate chips (I always use Ghirardelli)

--1/2 cup almonds, chopped

--2 tbsp. vegetable oil

In a small saucepan, heat--on low!--white chocolate chips and 2 tbsp. vegetable oil.  (The vegetable oil makes this mixture smooth and creamy, but you could also substitute the vegetable oil for cocoa butter, if you'd prefer it.)  Once chocolate is melted and smooth, mix in chopped almonds.  Individually dip the edges of your cookies into the white chocolate mixture and allow to cool in the refrigerator for about 20 minutes, or until chocolate has hardened.  Store in an airtight container.