Homemade cookies are a perfect gift to bring to a holiday party, especially if you can decorate them in a cute and unique way like these Five-Spice Gingersnaps.

You can also use any sugar cookie as well if you’re not a fan of gingersnaps.

Get creative by using colored, decorative icings and swirling them together with toothpicks.  The results, like the cookies pictured above, will truly amaze you!  And the other guests at the party will be very impressed with/jealous of your baking skills.

[Image via Epicurious]

This is a pretty nifty interactive recipe collection from the New York Times. There are all kinds of cookies from all kinds of cultures and for all types of celebrations. Click on each reader-submitted photo of a cookie and a recipe card pops up. You can find all this cookie goodness Here Enjoy and Happy Holidays!

So, I made the annual attempt to bake and decorate some yummy and cute sugar cookies, to help me feel festive and this year, to give to my staff. I still used the same recipe I always do – the Rich Roll Cookies recipe from the Joy of Cooking. This year though, I thought I’d be clever and try chilling the dough for a few hours (as recommended) rather than being my usual impatient self and rolling it right away. It turned into a bit of an epic fail: my fridge is so cold that the dough essentially froze, so I had to take it out and thaw it again, which I tried doing by placing in a warm oven for a few minutes, which just ended up almost cooking the exterior layer, and keeping the inside still frozen. Eventually I just left the dough along until it completely thawed on its own, but learned my lesson and will continue to just roll the dough right away after mixing it in the future.

A few other pointers – the cookies are better when thick, I recommend at least a quarter inch. Store-bought decorative icing works just fine, and it much simpler than embarking on making your own. Lastly, these stay good for quite a while, I would say up to a week, so feel free to make them in advance and then just store them in airtight container. Without further ado, below is the recipe from the Joy of Cooking, along with some pics from this year’s batch.

Rich Roll Cookies

Happy Sugar Cookie People

Cream together:

1 cup butter

2/3 cup whte sugar

Beat in:

1 egg

1 tsp vanilla extract

2 1/2 cups flour

Roll out the dough on a lightly floured surface, and use cookie cutters to make festive shapes. Bake at 350 for about 10 minutes, they remain white when done (if they are starting to get brown, you’ve overdone it).

…are totally delicious, especially when you store them in the fridge, which enhances the mint. Mmm, chilled mint chocolate cookies. Here’s the recipe from Bon Appétit (December 2000):

Mint Chocolate Cookies

16 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature
1-3/4 cups sugar
2 large eggs
3/4 teaspoon peppermint extract
2 cups all purpose flour
1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt

Preheat oven to 350°F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.

Using electric mixer, beat butter and sugar in large bowl until well blended. Beat in eggs and peppermint extract. Add flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder and salt and beat until well blended.

[I added chocolate chips and beat until just mixed in]

Form dough into 1-inch balls. Place 2 inches apart on prepared baking sheets. Flatten balls slightly to 1 1/2-inch rounds.

Bake cookies until edges begin to firm but center still appears soft, about 13 minutes. Cool on baking sheets 5 minutes. Transfer cookies to racks and cool completely.

* * *

I made the mint chocolate cookies for a cookie swap I had with my friends. Just six of us, and look at the variety of cookies we baked! Cookie swaps are awesome. Or as Melanie would say, “Cookie swaps are my fave.”

Nothing says December like a plate of Ginger Snap Cookies.  They look and smell divine.  When they are cooking… your home is filled with the most wonderful smells of cinnamon, cloves and ginger.

Here’s my favorite recipe:

Calli’s Ginger Snaps

• 4 ½ cups sifted flour
• 4 tsp.  baking soda
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1 tsp. ginger
• 1 tsp. cinnamon
• 1 tsp. cloves
• 1 ½ cups butter
• 2 cups brown sugar
• ½ cup molasses
• 2 eggs

Cream butter, sugar, molasses, and eggs.  Sift dry ingredients together.  Add flour mixture slowly into butter mixture until incorporated.  Do not over mix the flour.  Scoop and roll into balls.  Roll in sugar.

Bake at 350 for 10 minutes.

Options:

• Press a red hot on top before baking.
• Dip ½ of each cookie into melted white chocolate (wafers for dipping.)  Take care to only dip the top.
• White chocolate is also pretty when drizzled over the top.

The girls and I made Ginger Snaps today.  Rolled cookies are awesome for kids.

They LOVE to roll and roll.  Then they love to roll some more, this time in sugar.

My husband loves them with a red hot candy pressed in the center.  Aren’t they cute… and festive.

They are also delicious drizzled with white chocolate over the top.  Simply place the cooled cookies on a cooling rack over newspaper and drizzle with a spoon.  Better yet use a bottle used for candy like the one above.  Or you can simply dip the cookies half way in the white chocolate, being careful to only dip the top of the cookie.  Set the cookies on wax or parchment paper while they dry.

I use A’Peels Chocolate for projects like this.  It melts like a dream in the microwave and drizzles and dips beautifully.  You can buy A’Peels from a restaurant supply store or online.   A’Peels is great for dipping pretzels too.

Bag them up for gifts, but be sure to save a few for yourself of course.

The holiday season is upon us and that means delicious and sometimes not so healthy treats. Laurel Hudson, culinary instructor at Wellspring Academies (www.wellspringacademies.com) has created several tasty cookie recipes that the family will love

Gingerbread Cookies
Yield: 3 dozen cookies
 
Ingredients:
½ cup Fiber One original bran cereal
1 package whole wheat gingerbread cake or cookie mix
1 tbsp cinnamon
1 tbsp ginger
1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
¼ tsp baking powder
¼ cup granulated Splenda
Pinch of salt
½ cup canned pure pumpkin
¼ cup warm water
3 tbsp molasses
1 tsp vanilla
6 packets of Truvia no calorie sweetener
Pam spray
 
Directions:
1.        Preheat oven to 350 F.
2.        Line a baking pan with parchment paper and spray lightly with Pam.
3.        In a food processor, grind the cereal until it looks like flour, then pour into a bowl.
4.        Add the gingerbread mix, all the spices, the baking powder, Splenda, and salt and mix well.
5.        In a small bowl, combine the pumpkin with the warm water, molasses, and vanilla and mix well.
6.        Add the pumpkin mixture to the other bowl and stir until blended.
7.        Knead the dough to combine.
8.        Roll the dough into 1/2” balls, making 36 cookies dough balls total, and place them on the cookie sheet.
9.        Flatten balls or scoops with the back of a spoon dipped in the Truvia, so the dough doesn’t stick to the spoon.
10.     Bake in the oven for 10-20 minutes, or until the edges are firm.
11.     Let cool for 5 minutes, then place in the refrigerator to cool completely.
12.     Remove from the pan and enjoy!
 
Approximate Nutritional Information:
54 calories/0.1g per cookie
 
Glazed Cranberry Orange Cookies
Yield: 2 dozen cookies
 
Ingredients:
½ cup unsweetened applesauce
1 cup Splenda, granulated
1 tbsp egg whites
2 tsp orange zest
¼ tsp salt
½ tsp ginger
1 cup chopped cranberries, fresh or frozen
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup white whole wheat flour
¼ tsp baking soda
¼ tsp baking powder
Glaze:
½ cup Splenda, granulated
1 tbsp cornstarch
1 tbsp water
Pinch of salt
½ tsp vanilla
½ tsp orange extract
 
 
Directions:
1.        Preheat oven to 350 F.
2.        Line a baking pan with parchment paper and spray lightly with Pam.
3.        Combine the applesauce, Splenda, egg whites, orange zest, salt, ginger, chopped cranberries, and vanilla in a bowl and stir.
4.        Add the flour, baking powder, and baking soda and stir until just combined, no longer.
5.        Drop by the small spoonful onto the baking pan.
6.        Bake in the oven for 10-15 minutes, or until the edges are firm.
7.        Combine the glaze ingredients and stir until smooth.
8.        Taste the glaze and adjust flavorings if needed.
9.        Let cool for 5 minutes, and then remove from the pan.
10.     Drizzle glaze over cookies.
 
Approximate Nutritional Information:
27 calories/0.1g per cookie
 
Peppermint Meringue Crisps
Yield: 18 cookies
 
Ingredients:
·          Juice of 1 lemon
·          2 egg whites
·          Pinch salt
·          ¼ tsp cream of tartar
·          ½ cup Splenda, granular
·          1 sugar free candy cane
·          ½ tsp vanilla extract
·          2 tbsp sugar
 
Directions:
1.        Preheat the oven to 300 F.
2.        Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil and spray lightly with Pam.
3.        Combine the egg whites, lemon juice, cream of tartar, salt, and sugar in a bowl.
4.        Using an electric mixer, whip the egg whites into a meringue, until the whites are thick and stand up in peaks.
5.        Add the Splenda and vanilla and whip for 30 seconds.
6.        Drop by the spoonful onto pan, making 12 cookies.
7.        Crush the candy cane into small bits.
8.        Sprinkle the candy cane on top of the cookies.
9.        Bake 1 ½ hours, then turn the oven off and let the cookies sit in the oven while it is left partially open until the oven is cool.
10.     Remove the cookies from the tray and enjoy!
 
Approximate Nutritional Information:
12 calories/ 0g fat per cookie

Arvinda's Chai Spice Ladoos (Snowballs)

This recipe is easy and quick as it requires no baking, which is why I like it. If you don’t have the patience to make Gulab Jamun (a popular but intricate Indian dessert) for an Indian feast, try this as a sweet ending to any aromatic Indian meal.

Later today, my brother Paresh and I will be making mass quantities of Arvinda’s curries, Bombay Potatoes and Basmati Rice Pullao to donate to a Toronto soup kitchen. We realize how blessed we are to have good food on the table everyday.

Do you have a special holiday tradition? Please tell us about it!

Listening to: Navidad by The Gypsy Kings.

I found the best green tea cookie recipe ever. Yes, E-V-E-R. After baking these little green heavenly morsels, courtesy of Kelli from Lovescool, it is no surprise that this recipe won the Pastryspoon.com’s Golden Scoop Awards in the “Best Bakery Recipe” category. I have no idea who Pastry Spoon is and how reputable this award truly is in the baking world but these cookies are true champions in the confectionery arena!

On a totally random note, did you know that the term that brings most traffic to my blog is, “calamari”? I don’t remember talking too much about the fried squid at the Time for Dinner blog, but apparently, people searching for either a photo or information on the dish ends up here. So far, this post has received the most traffic at almost 10,000 visits. The second popular search term is “green tea,” and the post I did about the Green Tea Cake has received more than 7,500 views. Compared to other high-quality, high-trafficked blogs, my daily hits are very, very low (at about 200 a day, and 3/4 of them are probably coming from my supportive sister and boyfriend), but I am so thankful for people who ended up at my blog and checked out my stories and photos. And big thanks to those who have decided to return to this humble place and become a regular reader. I am so honored that you’ve decided to share your precious time with me.

Back to the Green Tea Cookies. I am hosting a little Christmas get-together tomorrow afternoon at my place with my sister and two of her wonderful Japanese friends, who I’ve been fortunate enough to also befriend over the years. I don’t have that many Japanese friends around me so it’s always nice to be able to relax and speak in my native tongue. I think we’re going to enjoy each other’s company over holiday cookies and tea (and perhaps some wine, knowing us girls). While I love the idea of baking holiday-themed cookies, I am not too keen on making anything too colorful (I hate food colorings), chocolate-y (too messy), or overly elaborate (too tiring), so I decided to bake simple, everyday cookies, for the gathering. Sure, gingerbread cookies would have been more appropriate, but I’m confident that my go-to Cranberry Biscotti, this Green Tea Cookies, and fool-proof Chocolate Chip Cookies, would satisfy our Christmas sugar cravings!

I’ve already talked about the biscotti and the chocolate chip cookies, so I won’t bore you with the repeats here. Instead, I’m posting the recipe of this Green Tea Cookies. I hope you would try this recipe. If you’re a green tea fan like me, you won’t be disappointed!

Green Tea Sweets
Courtesy of Lovescool

Ingredients (Yield 2” leaf shape, Approx 25)

3/4 cup (2.25 oz) Confectioners sugar
5 oz Unsalted butter, cut into cubes
1 3/4 cup (8.5 oz) All-purpose flour
3 Large egg yolks
1.5 tablespoons Matcha (powdered green tea)
1 cup Granulated sugar (for coating)

(Note: I love green tea so much that I doubled the amount of green tea powder to 3 tablespoons. Although I love how they came out, I don’t recommend it unless you absolutely love the bitterness of the green tea. Doubling the amount will really make the cookies bitter!)

Preheat the oven to 350F. Line a sheet pan with parchment paper. Whisk the confectioner’s sugar and green tea together in a bowl. Add the butter and green tea/sugar mixture to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Mix until smooth and light in color.

Add the flour and mix until well combined.

Add the egg yolks and mix just until the eggs are fully incorporated and a mass forms.

Form the dough into a disk and chill in the refrigerator until firm (about 30 minutes).

Roll the dough out to ½” thickness. Cut the dough with a leaf cookie cutter.

Toss each cut cookie in a bowl of granulated sugar to coat. Place the sugar-coated cookie on a parchment lined pan.

Bake at 350F for 12-15 minutes, or until slightly golden around the edges.

I cannot wait to get the holidays officially started.

Dear Ellen,

I am nearly half way through my annual Christmas cookie baking extravaganza; the point at which the entire process- always enjoyable in theory- becomes tedious.  However, I’ve been doing this for several years now and it’s become an expectation by those who are the usual recipients- coworkers, neighbors, girlfriend’s parents, etc.  I can’t bring it to myself to let them down.  Besides, they are really the best holiday cookies you’ve ever had- if I can give myself a pat on the back for a moment- and so I can’t blame them for waiting eagerly all year long for my little cellophane-wrapped bundle of baked deliciousness.  Sadly, Ellen, none of my go-to recipes are vegan so you’ll have to take my word for this.  Perhaps, over the next year, I’ll do some dairy-free experimenting and have something to present to my favorite vegan talk how host next year…

For this year, I’ve settled on four recipes; an adequate assortment must have at least three different cookies but no more than five.  That’s my own rule;  I just made it up on the spot but I think it’s a damn good one.  I bet Martha [Stewart] will be calling soon in search of more culinary words of wisdom…

1. Oatmeal, white chocolate chips, and cranberries: A good spin on the traditional oatmeal chocolate chip.  It exudes holiday spirit.
2. Chewy molasses with chocolate chunks and fresh, grated ginger: These are to die for…if you were going to die for a cookie, that is.
3. Decorated sugar cookies with royal icing: What’s Christmas without decorated sugar cookies?  That would be like Christmas without Santa Claus [not exaggerating].
4. Nani’s mandelbrod: Nani is my grandmother.  Mandelbrod is a Jewish cookie…think biscotti with less crunch and more temptation.

Throw a couple of Hershey’s kisses and miniature candy canes in the mix, and it’s a sure winner.  And, with any luck…okay, willpower….when it’s all said and done, I’ll have escaped the cookie dough-induced sugar coma that afflicts me year after year…

Sincerely,

Katie

Today’s reason #73: In exchange for Ellen tickets, I’ll be sure to come fully stocked with vegan treats…even in October.

We are still excepting orders for holiday pies and other treats! We have pumpkin pie, homemade apple pie, sweet potato pie that is sweetened with agave nectar and many other special holiday goodies! Give us a call today to special order your holiday desserts!

apple pie

This weekend we will have three cakes by the slice:

Ho Ho Cake

Pistachio Rosewater Cake

Pumpkin Spice Cake

Have you tried our new raw chocolate truffles? They are truly amazing and gluten free! We will have the cooler stocked with them this weekend. We will also be making our delicious raw cheesecake topped with fresh fruit! This is gluten free and sweetened with agave nectar. We will also have the best sticky buns in Columbus hot out of the oven all day! Would you like to bake your own tray of sticky buns on Christmas morning? We have single serving size sticky buns ready to bake at home for pre-order now for only $24.00.

holiday cookies

We will be open from 8 am to 7 pm on December 24 and from 10 am to 6 pm on Christmas and New Years Day.

xo sarah + pattycake

Joe and I were baking fiends last night. We successful made five varieties of holiday cookies plus chocolate and peanutbutter rice krispy treats–all before the clock struck midnight! We like to give our friends, coworkers and clients cute treat bags bursting with homemade goodies around the holidays.  In the bag this year: ginger snaps, sugar cookies, chocolate chip cookies, pumpkin spice cookies and mini chocolate spritz cookies made with my cookie gun.

Tish Boyle's Decorator Cookies

These sugar cookies are a big hit with my family.  The cookies aren’t too sweet.  The icing dries to a thin, glossy hard shell, which means these cookies look very professional and finished – a nice ego boost for you, the baker. 

They also take four days to make.

I spend day one mixing the dough and letting it chill overnight.  Day two is for rolling and baking the cookies.  Days three and four are for decorating, depending on how much decorating you want to do.  It’s a process.

As you’re slowly icing the cookies, slopping it on with your paintbrush and making sure it gets into every corner of the cookie, you may wonder why the hell you decided to make these.  Wouldn’t a chocolate chip cookie be easier? you think.

If this happens, finish icing one cookie and eat it right there.  Don’t wait for the icing to dry.  Don’t worry if it’s 7:00 in the morning or well past dinner time at night.  Just eat it.   See?  These cookies are worth it.

These recipes come from The Good Cookie by Tish Boyle, a indispensable book of recipes for cookie lovers.  I made the cookies in the pictures for my cousin Jackie’s wedding, but these are easily decorated for the holidays. 

Basic Decorative Cookie Dough
from The Good Cookie by Tish Boyle

When cold, this dough isn’t sticky and works really well.  I use the sil-pin silicone rolling pin and a baking mat to roll the dough.

3 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
¼ tsp salt
1 ¼ cups (2 ½ sticks) unsalted butter, softened
1 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg
1 large egg yolk
1 tbsp vanilla extract
1 tsp finely grated orange zest

1)      In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour and salt, set aside.

2)      In the bowl of an electric mixer, using the paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugar at medium-high speed until light and creamy, about 2 minutes.  Add the egg, egg yolk, vanilla extract, and orange zest and mix until well blended.  Reduce the speed to low and add the flour mixture one-third at a time, mixing just until combined.  Turn the dough out onto a work surface and divide it into 4 pieces.  Shape each piece into a disk, wrap well in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes until firm (or up to 2 days).  (I refrigerate overnight)

This is what your dough will look like

3)      Position a rack in the center of the oven (The recipe recommends baking only one sheet of cookies at a time, but I am far too impatient for this.  I bake two sheets at a time and rotate them halfway through cooking) and preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

4)      On a lightly floured work surface (This dough is not extra sensitive flour so don’t worry about using too much), roll one of the dough disks out to a thickness of 1/8 inch.  Using cookie cutters, cut the dough into shapes (save the scraps for rerolling).

Roll the dough; cut the cookies out with cookie cutters

Using a metal spatula, transfer the cookies to a prepared baking sheet, spacing them ½ inch apart.  Bake, one sheet at a time (see my note above) for 10 to 15 minutes, until pale golden brown (baking time will very depending on the size and shape of the cookies).  Transfer the cookies to a cooling rack and cool completely.  Repeat with remaining dough.

The cooked cookies

Decorator’s Icing
This icing recipe calls for meringue powder, an ingredient that makes the icing smooth and helps it dry to a hard coating.  You can buy meringue powder at Michael’s craft store.

3 tbsp meringue powder
6 tbsp warm water
One 1-pound box confectioner’s sugar
(I also mix in some lemon juice)

In the bowl of an electric mixer, using the whisk attachment (or just using a regular whisk), beat the meringue powder, water, and confectioner’s sugar at medium-low speed until the icing forms stiff peaks, about 7 minutes.  Thin the icing to the consistency you want by adding a little warm water, a few drops at a time.

Use a paint brush to scoop icing onto your cookies, and to spread it out to the edges.

Ice the cookies with a paint brush

When finished, you can package the cookies in a bag with a ribbon.  These makes a nice little holiday gift.

The finished product

As I’m writing this, I just finished making yet another batch of Christmas cookies.  Then I had to hurry up and get cracking on this blog or you wouldn’t be reading it right now! For me there’s always a love-loathe relationship with this time of year.

I love the holidays because there are so many fun traditions, time to spend with family, friends, great food and wonderful holiday treats.  The loathe part, or rather the dislike part comes in with the stress of shopping, buying and wrapping presents, plus writing and mailing cards, making of cookies,  and on and on… The good news is my holidays are so much better than they used to be.  I finally got organized and started to automate some of my holiday processes so it is less stressful.

Here are some of my secrets – I try to get as many presents pre-wrapped, and do ALL my shopping online.  Plus, I create my holiday cards online, pre-printed and mailed for me (I use Sendoutcards.com ) .  If I’m running behind or want to do a different kind of card, sometimes I go to Vista Print and have them print and mail to me.  Then all I do is put my envelopes in my printer and voila– my envelopes are pre- addressed legibly!  And I even get my son to put the stamps on them.

The key to relieving holiday stress for me is automate!  I can do this because I have invested my time into creating a plan.  I figure out what I want to do versus what I can have someone else do FOR ME.

You would  be amazed of the results if you took this simple process into your business.  Invest your time wisely by creating a plan. Write a list of what you want to do and how much time it would take you to do it versus if you paid someone else to do it.  I guarantee you, your time is worth a lot more money than if you hired someone from guru.com or elance.com to do it for you.  Check it out for yourself and see what you think.

Let’s all make a vow for the New Year to automate more processes in our personal and work life.  We are all guilty of putting way too many things are our own “to do” lists. We need to be more realistic in what we can actually do versus what we would like to do.

So, let’s save our valuable time and put it to good use, like spending it with family and friends!  I don’t know about you, but time with my family is very important to me because in my book, family and friends are what the holidays are all about.  It’s about having quality time catching up with old friends, colleagues and family. It’s about giving. We give of ourselves by giving our time as well as giving actual gifts to those we love.  And we can’t do this if we are too busy trying to do way more things than we ever have time for. Finally, we must remember to give to ourselves too. Take some time out for yourself and breathe, stop “doing” for a moment and just “be” in the moment, enjoy the here and now, don’t worry about what’s next… Because before you know it, you’ll blink and another year has gone by…

On the first of December, we hosted Arvinda’s Merry Masala Cookie Exchange at Nella Cucina featuring holiday goodies infused with Arvinda’s artisanal spice blends. In attendance was Suresh and Jenny of Spotlight Toronto, who are also a part of Toronto’s FoodieMeet @foodiemeet, an online community of VERY passionate Toronto ‘foodies’.

The FoodieMeet Bake Off is on

A couple of emails later, I was invited as a baker to participate in the FoodieMeet’s Bake-Off in support of The Stop Community Centre on December 13. I read the details and thought the invite should have read, “please bring your sweet tooth”. This was going to be ’sweet tooth’ heaven, plus a good party at Samovar Room (a great place by the way, reminiscent of Russian bar Pravda). An invite not to be turned down!

Amongst the professional and amateur bakers, judges and FoodieMeet attendees, I was most impressed with the hyper-creative, heightened taste buds and sophisticated palettes all under one roof. Everyone there really loves food, which I found very inspiring.

Bakers were to be guided by the theme, “Escape Toronto”. I went with our Arvinda’s Merry Masala Cookie Exchange’s Curry Mango Snow Crescents. Give passionate foodies an “Escape Toronto” theme, and you’re left with an array of heavenly sweets including–Coconut Cupcakes with Kafir Lime Icing; Tandoori Shortbread Tarts with Passionfruit Curd; Chinese Almond-Cookie Cupcakes with a Wonton Wrapper Snowflakes; Sticky Date Cake with Beer-Caramel Sauce with Pomegranate Compote; Sri Lankan Jamaican Patties (savoury); Mayan Spice Mousse Macarons…I could go on.

I’m intrigued by the fact that FoodieMeet members were all strangers living in Toronto and got together entirely through Twitter. According to my FoodieMeet fellow bakers, if you’re ever looking for some good Indian or Peruvian cuisine, or need to find a great restaurant in a certain part of Toronto, shoot @foodiemeet a tweet. There’s a good chance a FoodieMeet-er will tweet you back with a delicious answer…and maybe if you’re lucky, even some company too!

Maybe it’s finally time to get on Twitter…for the second time. A couple of days since the event, my sugar high subsides but my mouth still waters when I look at the pics!

Mayan Spice Macarons

Chinese Almond Cupcakes with Wonton Wrapper Snowflakes

Arvinda's Curry Mango Snow Crescents

St. Lawrence Market White Velvet Cake - very creative!

Tastes just like the holidays!

Listening to: Carefree and Victorious by The Perishers, just how we felt at the Bake-Off party! Thanks everyone for a very sweet night.

A round-up. The season is in full swing and I’m getting more and more excited for my impending trip home to California. My father informed me this morning that he has already stocked up on Peppermint Stick ice cream, my all-time favorite ice cream flavor and a holiday tradition, one, I’ve found to my dismay,  that does not exist in New York I’ve visited countless markets to reach the sad conclusion that the seasonal flavor is not sold here).

And so this week I’ve been thinking about all the yumminess that is the holiday season, namely peppermint stick ice cream, and all the cookies my father and I would turn out year after year, far more cookies than even our massive brood could eat. And so, in honor of our cookie tradition, I thought I’d take a look at some of the Christmas cookie traditions around the world.

I found an extensive  list, and was not surprised to discover that the best cookie of all time, the alfajor of South America (about which, I just discovered, I’m not the only one to write an ode, of sorts), was present on it. I found nine recipes for my favorite cookie, so perhaps I’ll have to attempt  a second go at making them. Some others on the list:

• Pepparkakor (Sweden):  a ginger-flavored cookie, traditionally cut into heart shapes. One recipe calls these Sugar and Spice cookies, and is very similar to a Russo-family recipe of the same name. Ours, however, are sprinkled with confectioner’s sugar, and it was always my happy duty to sprinkle the cooled cookies.
• Kourabiedes (Greece): each of these powdered sugar-covered cookies is garnished with a clove to add a savory element and recall the wise men and their spices.
• Zimtsterne (Germany): You don’t get much prettier than these star-shaped cinnamon-nut meringues, also called erstesternen.
• Nanaimo Bars (Canada): decadent (no bake!) bars with three decadent layers: a crumb base, topped by custard buttercream and finished off with smooth chocolate.
• Galletas Maria (Costa Rica):I’m not a particular fan of coconut, but the peanut butter in these may just be enough to win me over. They’re named, according to the Food Network, for a grand duchess of Russia (how this correlates to their popularity in South America and Spain is not a question I can answer).

More holiday cookie traditions

Christmas cookie hub

This is for all of my fellow students out there!  As a precursor to finishing my last week of classes this semester, I decided to make some delicious cookies for classmates (teammates, y’all!) and professors.   I invited two girlfriends from Denver to assist in my self-proclaimed Cookie Festival.  The menu consisted of the following: sugar cookies from Thomas Keller’s Bouchon cookbook, snowballs, chocolate-covered peanut butter balls, snickerdoodles, and Mimi’s icebox cookies.  Except for Mimi’s cookies,  everything went off smashingly.  I made my grandmother’s cookies not once but twice and botched them both times…down the sink they went!  However, I think I figured out the problem and will give it a third try in the very near future (and of course post the recipe and photos).

In the meantime, here are some photos and recipes for the cookies that managed to stay out of the sink starting with the sugar cookies:

Thomas Keller’s Sugar Cookies (Biscuits Au Sucre)
Makes around 36 small cookies

• 8 tablesppons (4 ounces) unsalted butter, softened
• 1/4 cup plus 1 teaspoon confectioners’ sugar
• 1 vanilla bean, split
• 1/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

The cookie dough can be made in a standard mixer fitted with the paddle attachment or in a large bowl with a handheld mixer.  Combine the butter and confectioners’ sugar and beat until blended.  Scrape the seeds from the vanilla bean with a paring knife, and add the seeds to the bowl, and mix until combined.  Continue to add flour until the dough comes together in a smooth mass and no longer sticks to the sides of the bowl.  Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for about an hour to firm up slightly.

Dust a pastry board with flour.  Halve the dough and roll each piece into a log 6 1/2 to 7 inches long and about 1 inch in diameter.  Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate until firm enough to slice.  (Hint: The dough can be frozen up to a month).

Put a rack in the center of the over and preheat the over to 325 degrees.  Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.  If the logs have been frozen, let them stand at room temperature until soft enough to cut without crumbling.
Mix the granulated sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl.  Cut each log into 16 to 18 slices about 3/8 inch thick.  Coat each slice with the cinnamon sugar and place on the baking sheets.  Bake, in two batches, for about 20 minutes, or until light golden. Transfer to racks to cool.  Store in airtight container.

Next we made some snowballs…

Almond Snowballs
Adapted from the Wilton Cookie Exchange cookbook. Makes around 90 balls

• 1 pound (4 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
• 1 cup granulated sugar, divided
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 cups (about 8 oz) ground almonds
• Some confectioners sugar

Preheat over to 325 degrees.  Line cookie sheets with parchment paper.

In a large bowl, beat butter and granulated sugar with electric mixer until light and fluffy.  Add vanilla and mix well.  Add flour and almonds, mix with electric mixer on low speed until dough forms.  Roll dough into 1 inch balls.  Place them 1 inch apart on cookie sheets.

Bake for 20-25 minutes or until bottoms are golden brown.  Remove to cooling grid, and cool for 5 minutes.  Roll warm cookies in confectioners’ sugar, and cool completely.

Some chocolate-covered peanut butter balls…

Chocolate-Covered Peanut Butter Balls
Adapted from Gourmet Magazine (1991) makes around 36-40 balls

• 3/4 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
• 1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted and cooled, plus 6 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 3/4 cup graham cracker crumbs
• 1 cup creamy peanut butter
• a 12-ounce bag semisweet chocolate chips

In a bowl stir together the brown sugar, 1/2 stick of the butter, the graham cracker crumbs, and the peanut butter until the mixture is smooth and chill the mixture, covered, for 1 hour, or until it is firm enough to form into balls. Form teaspoonfuls of the mixture into balls and transfer the balls as they are formed to a baking sheet lined with wax paper. In a metal bowl set over a pan of barely simmering water melt the chocolate chips with the remaining 3/4 stick butter (BTW, I found I had to add more butter in order to make the chocolate loose enough to cover the balls), stirring until the mixture is smooth, and let the chocolate mixture cool. Dip the balls into the chocolate mixture with a fork, coating them well and letting the excess drip off, transfer them as they are coated to the baking sheet, and chill them, covered loosely, for at least 1 hour or overnight. (The balls may be double-dipped if desired.)

And finally, snickerdoodles (before baking and after)

Snickerdoodles
Adapted from Martha Stewart

Makes three dozen 3 to 4-inch cookies. Your mileage will vary by the size scoop you use.

• 2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons cream of tartar
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 16 tablespoons (2 stick or 8 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1 3/4 cups sugar, plus more if needed
• 2 tablespoons ground cinnamon, plus more if needed
• 2 large eggs

Preheat the oven to 400°, with one rack in top third and one rack in bottom third of oven. Line baking sheets with silicone baking mats or parchment paper; set aside.

Sift together flour, cream of tartar, baking soda, and salt; set aside. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, combine butter and 1 1/2 cups sugar. Beat on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Scrape down sides of bowl. Add eggs, and beat to combine. Add dry ingredients, and beat to combine. At this point, I chilled the dough for an hour (or you can overnight) before scooping it, because I otherwise found it too difficult to scoop into balls and roll but the original recipe doesn’t find this step neccessary.

Once dough has chilled, in a small bowl, combine remaining 1/4 cup sugar and the ground cinnamon. Use a small ice-cream scoop* to form balls of the dough, and roll in cinnamon sugar. Place about two inches apart on the prepared baking sheets. Bake until the cookies are set in center and begin to crack (they will not brown), about 10 minutes, rotating the baking sheets after five minutes. Transfer the sheets to a wire rack to cool about five minutes before transferring the cookies to the rack. In theory, they can be stored in an airtight container up to one week, but I say good luck wtih that.

* Martha recommends a size 30 (1 1/4 ounce) ice cream scoop but I used a size 40 (3/4 ounce) and they came out 3 to 4 inches across, or plenty huge.

In the spirit of sharing, here is one of our family’s easy gluten free holiday cookie recipes. Let us know “how the cookie crumbles.” Do you have any special holiday favorites, if so, please share them below.

Holiday Cookies

Ingredients

2-1/2 sticks (250g) softened butter

1 cup (200g) sucanat

3 eggs

Pinch of salt

Grated rind of one organic lemon

3-3/4 cups (500g) gluten free flour consisting of:

3/4 cup (100g) brown rice flour, 1-1/2 cups (200g) sorghum flour, 1-1/2 cups (200g) tapioca flour, 3 tsp. xanthan gum, or 1-1/2 tsp. guar gum

Decoration Options:

White Frosting: 2 cups (250g) powdered sugar, 2-3 Tbsp. lemon juice

Optional: Gluten free colored sprinkles, gluten free chocolate, or carob frosting of your choice.

Directions

In the bowl of a food processor, or in a standard mixing bowl, whip the softened butter, sucanat and eggs to a creamy consistency.  Add the salt and lemon rind and mix again.  Slowly add the flour, a tablespoon at a time; the dough should be smooth and pliable.  Remove from the food processor, or the mixing bowl, wrap in foil and place in the refrigerator for about one hour. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F/180 degrees C.

Line cookie sheets with parchment paper.  Remove the dough from the refrigerator and divide into five equal portions.  Choose five different cookie cutter shapes of your choice. Roll out the dough to 1/4-inch thickness. Cut out with cookie cutters and place each one on the lined cookie sheets, at least 1/2-inch apart to allow for spreading.

Bake the cookies on the middle rack of the oven, for about 10 minutes, or until golden brown in color. Remove the cookies with a spatula and let cool on a wire cooling rack.  Let the cookies cool completely before decorating.

White Frosting: To 2 cups (250g) powdered sugar add 2-3 Tbsp. lemon juice and mix well. With a pastry brush, spread the frosting evenly on the cookies and let dry.

Chocolate Frosting: Melt any favorite gluten free chocolate bar over low heat, in a heat proof dish placed over a pot of gently simmering water. Using a pastry brush, spread the melted chocolate on the cookies. You can also place the melted chocolate in a pastry bag outfitted with a fine tip, and decorate each cookie with designs of your choice.

Colored sprinkles: Spread a very thin layer of white or chocolate frosting on the cookies, and add the colored sprinkles on top of the frosting.

This weekend we finally got to start hanging up our Paper Snowflakes we’ve been making!

© Owl and Bunny

And, we had our first cookie exchange which was awesome!  Its a really fun way to have people over & celebrate the holidays and sharing the fabulous recipes.  I’ll post our invitations later today too.  In the meantime, here’s some pix of the yummy treats:

© Owl and Bunny

© Owl and Bunny

© Owl and Bunny

© Owl and Bunny

© Owl and Bunny

© Owl and Bunny

You can’t order them in advance- it is a first come first served based on when they prepare them.
Sounds like they are going to make Russian Tea Cakes, Chocolate Crinkles, Raspberry Drops and Pizzelles; just to name a few.

Visit their website for more details by clicking here!

Yesterday I spent 2-1/2 hours or so baking the tri-colored pressed cookies.  I’ve always been curious as to why the recipe calls them vanilla cookies when the nutmeg flavor is far more detectable than the vanilla, but such is the case.

The batter is made three times — red food coloring is added to one batch, green to another and none to the third — hence the tri-coloring.  Last year I really struggled with the batter once I put it in the press – the colors wouldn’t stay put and instead swirled around.  The cookies were pretty but they weren’t right.  It dawned on me this year that the extra liquid from the food coloring threw off the consistency in the colored batters, so this year I added a bit more flour to those to colors. 

I carefully filled the press with the three batters, making sure each stayed within the boundaries of its imaginary triangle, I turned the handle until a cookie popped out, lifted the press to check out my handiwork then smiled.

I so love it when I can solve a problem! 

All 212 cookies behaved themselves wonderfully well — all colors stayed in the correct places, all cookie bottoms are burn-free and none of the cookies broke!

I put the anise scraps in my cookie jar so all that’s above are the cookies that are being used as gifts, both anise and pressed.  Of course there are going to be extras for me this year – last year I ended up with fewer cookies than any recipient!

Voila the pressed cookies!

And a close-up for you so you can see the tri-colored effect!

All cookies have been packed up and are ready to be shipped, brought to the office or handed off as seasonal gifts.  Thank goodness Joann’s still had some cookie tins on their shelves when I stopped by last week — $2 each!

The bakery is officially closed for 2009 — PHEW!

Cookie Cutting and Holiday Swaps Made Easy

So, like many other moms with young kids, the cookie baking is a key part of the holidays. The kids get all excited and jump up and down and want to decorate and make batches and batches. And then they Peter out and have some battle with the nutcrackers and Legoes, and I am cooking and cleaning and nibbling all afternoon. I know if I planned better, I could make the dough ahead of time, and bake in smaller quantities. But for me, it’s not realistic. I need a cookie, the kids need a cookie, their classmates, and my neighbors, and we all need them NOW. Now, I don’t want to buy 6 dozen cookies because a.) they will be loaded with unpronounceable things. Or b) they will be outrageously expensive.

Enter our own Vanilla Sugar Cookies. Now, I haven’t tried this trick with our Gingerbread Spice, but I bet they would work the same. If you give it a try, send me word, and I’ll share it!

OK, so I need 6 dozen cookies. I get 3 packages of Immaculate Baking Vanilla Sugar Dough. I toss two in the refrig, and open the third. I preheat my oven to 325 – not the 350 on the package because I am going to roll them a bit thinner. I flour my kitchen table, grab a rolling pin, and take half the package and roll it into a ball. Then, using flour liberally, I roll the dough out. I like really thin Christmas cookies, so I roll as thin as 1/8 – 1/4 of an inch. Then I use my holiday cookie cutters and place them on my lined cookie sheet (I use a slipat, but parchment paper works just as well). Groovy decorations: sugar, red and green candies, etc. Then, they go into the oven for 12 minutes.

While those are baking, roll out the other half package of dough. Keep an eye on the baking cookies. Since they are thinner, they can jump from perfect to burned FAST. Like I said, I timed it with 12 minutes. Cool and sample. Repeat . . . working one package at a time. By now, the house smells so good, and the kitchen is full of mischievous children who offer to decorate.

So, 6 dozen cookies, I am talking an hour. Including cleanup.

I had a busy weekend, filled with holiday preparations! Mom and I made four batches of fudge (pics and recipes to come!) and 6 pairs of flannel pants (pics to come!)! I’m still not done filling you in on my baking efforts from last weekend, so here are two more recipes for you to try!

Peppermint Meltaways

Ingredients

Cookies

• 1 c butter, softened
• 1/2 cup powdered sugar
• 1/2 tsp peppermint extract
• 1 c flour
• 1/2 c cornstarch
• 1/4 c sugar

Frosting

• 2 tbs butter, softened
• 1 1/2 c powdered sugar
• 2 tbs milk
• 1/4 tbs peppermit extract
• red food coloring
• 1/2 c crushed peppermint candies

Directions

1. The original recipe calls for no sugar and 1 1/4 c of flour instead of just 1 cup. I followed the original recipe and the cookies turned out really bland – way too floury. My dad suggested that they need more sugar, so next time, I’m adding sugar. These cookies turned out OK – I will tweak the recipe and try them again. They were just a little plain the first time!
2. In a small bowl cream butter and sugars until light and fluffy; Beat in extract; Combine flour and cornstarch; gradually add to creamed mixture and mix well.
3. Shape into 1 in balls, place 2 in apart on un-greased baking sheets. My suggestion – take a wooden spoon (or your finger) and push down on the ball, making a small indent. My cookies stayed in the ball shape, so the frosting didn’t have a place to go, it just dribbled off the cookie. Bake at 350 for 10-12 minutes, or until bottoms are lightly browned. Remove to wire racks to cool.
4. In a small bowl, beat butter until fluffy. Add the powdered sugar, milk, extract and food coloring (add til you get the color you want!); beat until smooth. Spread over cooled cookies. Sprinkle with crushed candies. 

Chocolate Macadamia Macaroons

Ingredients

• 2 c flaked coconut
• 1/2 c finely chopped macadamia nuts
• 1/3 c sugar
• 3 tbs baking cocoa
• 2 tbs all-purpose flour
• pinch of salt
• 2 egg whites, beaten (or one egg!)
• 1 tbs light corn syrup
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 4 squares (1 oz ea) semisweet chocolate

Directions

1. In large bowl, combine the coconut, macadamia nuts, sugar, cocoa, flour and salt. Add the egg, corn syrup, vanilla and mix well. 
2. Drop by rounded tablespoonfuls onto baking sheets. Bake at 325 for 15-20 minutes or until set and dry to the touch. Cool for 5 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks to cool completely. 
3. In microwave, melt chocolate; stir until smooth. Dip the bottom of each cookie in chocolate, allow excess to drip off. Place on waxed paper (I prefer tinfoil), let stand until set. 

These are fantastic! My mom and I love them, but we are also a big fan of coconutty desserts. I just melted chocolate chips for the top, but the chocolate squares might work better! I also thought these would be good to really cool the dough and roll into balls, then dip in chocolate bark.

Have a good, fun, not boring cookie or bar recipe?! Send!

Take a moment each day to be still. So what does it mean to ‘be still?’  It means to go into a mental state of trust and calm and to connect to the eternal self who is you.  It means to connect to what we are all connected to at all times…the Universe.  It means for just a few moments keep still, leave your logical mind at the door, relax, be still, and connect.  You are connecting to who you really are within and by connecting there is a sense of clarity, calm, and abundance.  Insights are gained, the physical body balances, and so does the mental body…all things that are important to applying positive thought and the Law of Attraction.

Another wonderful day of writing and baking.   I’m writing articles for different sources that use our information monthly and then off to baking more holiday cookies and desserts for the community.  We have three generations baking in the kitchen this afternoon.  Lots of mess, laughter, and fun.  The results are always a mix of our different kinds of personalities.  Mom likes drop cookies that you don’t have to cut out.  I like labor intensive methods that turn a cookie into edible art, and Peanut loves the cut out cookies that she can decorate so between us all we have a nice array of holiday baking.  Every year we break a few cookies intentionally to taste!