Great Lakes Foodie » Holidays

Christmas Cookie #3 – Mexican Wedding Cakes

Great Lakes Foodie — Sun, 13 Dec 2009 01:32:03 +0000

This cookie always reminds me of my grandmother (Grammie). At Christmas time, she'd make these cookies (though she called them crescent cookies) for our Christmas Eve. This kind was my favorite as it was the kind of cookie I got to make with my hands. Pecans, butter, powdered sugar….What more could one want. It's been just over a year since Grammie passed on. Every time I make these cookies, I'll think of those days at the table in that bright yellow kitchen.

The two buddies together in 1977.

Mexican Wedding Cakes

Recipe By     : The Cookie Book, Wisconsin Electric Company
Serving Size : 42
Categories    : Dessert

Amount Measure       Ingredient
——– ———— ——————————–
   1             c             butter
   1/2         c             powdered sugar
   1            tsp           vanilla extract
   2            c             all-purpose flour
                               powdered sugar

1. Beat butter until fluffy in medium bowl; beat in sugar and vanilla. Mix
in flour. Refrigerate, covered, until dough is firm enough to shape, about
2 hours.

2. Shape dough into 1 1/2 inch balls; place on ungreased cookie sheets.
Bake at 350 degrees until beginning to brown at the edges, about 10 minutes.
Let cool 10 minutes.

3. Roll warm cookies in powdered sugar; cool on wire racks.

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Christmas Cookie Update

Great Lakes Foodie — Sat, 12 Dec 2009 21:43:23 +0000

Cookies are on their way. Are you excited? Are you sitting at the edge of your seat? If so….sit back and relax…It's not THAT exciting. One kind baked, three in the fridge chilling…and one quick trip to the store to get something I forgot, buttermilk!!! It isn't a NY Black & White without buttermilk!!!

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Prepping for more cookies this weekend…

Great Lakes Foodie — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 01:19:29 +0000

Can't wait to continue working on cookies. I think we're going to do the following this weekend…

Mexican Wedding Cake Cookies – Wisconsin Electric Cookie Cookbook
Mini Black and White Cookies – Gourmet Magazine
Moravian Crisps with Royal Icing – Gourmet Magazine
Orange Cardamom Cookies – Gourmet Magazine
Pecan Sables – Gourmet Magazine

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Christmas Cookie #2 – Peppermint Patties

Great Lakes Foodie — Sun, 06 Dec 2009 23:24:27 +0000

This recipe technically isn't a cookie. I like to mix up types of cookies…drop, rolled, sugar, nut, fruit, etc. Another thing I think makes a good cookie plate is having a candy or two. What better than a homemade peppermint patty. I've made other candies but never the peppermint patty. I have to say, this was pretty easy. Even tempering the chocolate worked out well. Thanks to the years of watching tempering being done on cooking shows and a handy thermometer, the patties are a complete success. I have included the recipe below as well as a few pictures of the patties in progress.

Peppermint Patties

2 1/2 cups confectioners sugar (less than 1 pound), divided
1 1/2 Tbs light corn syrup
1 1/2 Tbs water
1/2 tsp pure peppermint extract
1 Tbs vegetable shortening (preferably trans-fat-free)
10 oz 70%-cacao bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped

Preparation:

Make filling:

1. Beat 2 1/4 cups confectioners sugar with corn syrup, water, peppermint extract, shortening, and a pinch of salt using an electric mixer (with paddle attachment if using a stand mixer) at medium speed until just combined. Knead on a work surface dusted with remaining 1/4 cup confectioners sugar until smooth. Roll out between sheets of parchment paper on a large baking sheet into a 7- to 8-inch round (less than 1/4 inch thick). Freeze until firm, about 15 minutes. Remove top sheet of paper and sprinkle round with confectioners sugar. Replace top sheet, then flip round over and repeat sprinkling on other side.

2. Cut out as many rounds as possible with cutter, transferring to a parchment-lined baking sheet. Freeze until firm, at least 10 minutes. Meanwhile, gather scraps, reroll, and freeze, then cut out more rounds, freezing them.

Temper chocolate and coat filling:

1. Melt three fourths of chocolate in a metal bowl set over a saucepan of barely simmering water. Remove bowl from pan and add remaining chocolate, stirring until smooth. Cool until thermometer inserted at least 1/2 inch into chocolate registers 80°F.

2. Return water in pan to a boil and remove from heat. Set bowl with cooled chocolate over pan and reheat, stirring, until thermometer registers 88 to 91°F. Remove bowl from pan.

3. Balance 1 peppermint round on a fork and submerge in melted chocolate, letting excess drip off and scraping back of fork against rim of bowl if necessary, then return patty to sheet (to make decorative ridges on patty, immediately set bottom of fork briefly on top of patty, then lift fork straight up). Coat remaining rounds, rewarming chocolate to 88 to 91°F as necessary. Let patties stand until chocolate is set, about 1 hour.

Servings: 48

Total Time: 2 hours

Source: Gina Marie Miraglia Eriquez and Lillian Chou, printed in Gourmet Magazine

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Christmas Cookie #1 – Chocolate Chunk Oatmeal Coconut

Great Lakes Foodie — Sun, 06 Dec 2009 19:30:29 +0000

This cookie is more of an everyday cookie. I like to have a few of these out there to sort of balance out the super sweet, traditional Christmas cookie. This recipe is a bit more wholesome than just a plain sugar cookie. With coconut, walnuts, and oatmeal, it's sure to do some good. A little good? Okay, who am I kidding!!! Here's the recipe.

Recipe: Chocolate Chunk Oatmeal Coconut Cookies

Ingredients

2 sticks (1 cup) unsalted butter, softened
1 cup packed brown sugar
6 Tbs granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1 1/2 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 1/4 cups old-fashioned oats
1 1/2 cups packaged finely shredded unsweetened coconut
12 oz semisweet or bittersweet chocolate (not unsweetened), cut into 1/2-inch chunks (about 2 cups)
3/4 cup almonds with skins (4 oz), toasted, cooled, and chopped

Instructions

Preheat oven to 375°F.
Beat together butter and sugars in a bowl with an electric mixer at high speed until fluffy. Add eggs and beat until just blended, then beat in vanilla, baking soda, and salt. Add flour and mix at low speed until just blended. Stir in oats, coconut, chocolate, and almonds.
Arrange 1/4-cup mounds of cookie dough about 3 inches apart on 2 lightly buttered large baking sheets (about 8 cookies per sheet), then gently pat down each mound to about 1/2 inch thick. Bake in upper and lower thirds of oven, switching position and rotating pans halfway through baking, until golden, 15 to 18 minutes total.
Cool cookies on sheets 1 minute, then transfer with a spatula to racks to cool completely. Make more cookies in same manner.

Quick Notes

Variation: I used walnuts today in the recipe in lieu of almonds. Chop 3/4 cup of walnuts, toast in a skillet until fragrant.

Source: Gourmet Magazine Cookbook

Cooking time (duration): 60

Meal type: dessert

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