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Post by Petro on Nov 18, 2007 14:44:55 GMT -5
Traditional Greek Christmas Cookies
1 1/4 cups light olive oil 1/3 cup granulated sugar 1 cup orange juice 3 to 4 cups flour 2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder 1 1/2 cups semolina 1 grated lemon rind 1 grated orange rind 1 teaspoon cloves 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
Syrup: 1 cup granulated sugar 1 cup honey
Topping: 1 cup walnuts, coarsely ground 2 teaspoons ground cloves
Beat olive oil with sugar. Add orange juice. Mix 2 cups of flower with baking powder and add to oil and orange mixture. Beat in brandy, semolina, orange and lemon peel, cloves, and cinnamon. Knead dough on floured surface, adding more flour as needed for strong elastic dough. Let stand covered for 20 minutes.
Heat oven to 350 degrees.
Shape dough into oval cookies about 2 1/2 inches long. Bake on oiled cookie sheet for 25 minutes. Let cool. In saucepan bring sugar, honey and water to a boil. Simmer 10 minutes and remove from heat. Mix walnuts with cloves and sprinkle over cookies. Cool before serving.
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Post by goodcookin on Nov 23, 2007 18:37:26 GMT -5
Red and Green Holiday Pinwheels Makes: 32 cookies 1 roll (16.5 oz) Pillsbury® Create 'n Bake® refrigerated sugar cookies 1/2 cup all-purpose flour 3 tablespoons red sugar 3 tablespoons green sugar 1. Cut cookie dough in half. Sprinkle 1/4 cup of the flour onto work surface. Roll out half of dough to 12x7-inch rectangle. Repeat with remaining half of dough and 1/4 cup flour. Sprinkle 1 rectangle evenly with red sugar; sprinkle green sugar evenly over second rectangle. 2. Starting with shortest side, roll up each rectangle jelly-roll fashion. Wrap rolls in waxed paper; refrigerate at least 1 hour for easier handling. 3. Heat oven to 350°F. Cut each roll into 16 slices. On ungreased cookie sheets, place slices 1 inch apart. Bake 7 to 9 minutes or until edges are light golden brown. Cool 1 minute. Remove from cookie sheets to cooling racks.
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Post by goodcookin on Nov 23, 2007 18:39:06 GMT -5
Reindeer Cookies Simply shape the Create 'n Bake™ cookie dough into a triangle log, and slice for the cutest reindeer this side of the North Pole. Makes: 32 cookies 1 roll (16.5 oz) Pillsbury® Create 'n Bake® refrigerated holiday gingerbread or peanut butter cookies 64 small pretzel twists 64 semisweet chocolate chips (about 1/4 cup) 16 candied cherries, cut in half 1. Heat oven to 350°F. With hands, shape roll of cookie dough into triangle-shaped log. (If dough is too soft to cut, place in freezer 30 minutes.) 2. With thin sharp knife, cut dough into 32 (1/4-inch-thick) triangular slices; place 2 inches apart on ungreased cookie sheets. Place 2 pretzel twists on each triangle near corners for antlers. 3. Bake 7 to 11 minutes or until set. While warm, lightly press 2 chocolate chips into each cookie for eyes and 1 halved cherry for nose. Remove from cookie sheets. Let stand until chocolate chips are set, about 15 minutes. Store between sheets of waxed paper in tightly covered container.
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Post by goodcookin on Dec 1, 2007 13:37:04 GMT -5
Kourabiedes (Greece) From Food Network Kitchens These are a Greek celebration cookie — while they're most popular at Christmas, you also see them at weddings, Easter and other holidays as well. They're almost always served with a powdered sugar topping; at Christmas, it's traditional to stick a whole clove in the top to represent the gift of spices that the Three Wise Men brought to Mary. 3/4 cup walnuts 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour 1/2 teaspoon baking powder 1/4 teaspoon salt 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened 1/2 cup confectioners' sugar 1 large egg yolk 1 tablespoon brandy 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract 1 to 2 tablespoons orange flower water 3/4 cup confectioners' sugar Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Toast the walnuts until golden brown and fragrant, about 6 minutes. Let cool, then chop about half of the nuts (you should have about 1/2 cup chopped). Pulse the remaining nuts in the food processor until finely ground (about 1/4 cup ground). Stir the flour, baking powder, salt and nuts together in a medium bowl. Set aside. In another medium bowl, beat the butter, sugar, egg yolk, brandy and vanilla extract together with an electric mixer on medium-high speed until the mixture gets light and fluffy, about 10 minutes. At low speed, stir in the nut mixture to make a crumbly dough. Cover the bowl and set dough aside at room temperature for 1 hour. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line two baking sheets with parchment or coat with nonstick spray. With a tablespoon, scoop out 1-inch pieces of dough and roll into balls between the palms of your hands. Pinch the ends of the balls to make a football shape. Place the cookies on the prepared baking sheets. Bake until the cookies set and start to brown, about 18 minutes. Remove cookies from the oven and immediately sprinkle them lightly with the orange water. (If you don't have a brush, simply dip your fingers into the water and flick it over the cookies a few times.) Take care not to douse them, just enough for them to carry the scent of flowers. Put the confectioners' sugar in a bag, and add 5 to 6 of the warm cookies to it. Very gently toss the cookies to coat with sugar. Remove them from the bag and cool cookies on a rack. Repeat with remaining cookies. Serve. Busy baker's tips: Dough can be frozen for up to 2 weeks. Store baked cookies in an airtight container for up to 1 week. Baked cookies can be wrapped in plastic, then aluminum foil, for up to 2 weeks. To serve, let cookies come to room temperature before dusting with confectioners' sugar. Yield: about 2 dozen cookies.
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Post by goodcookin on Dec 6, 2007 16:41:05 GMT -5
Peanut Butter Nanaimo Bars From Food Network Kitchens There are a number of stories as to where this cookie came from. It's thought to be native to Nanaimo, British Columbia (hence the name), and it gained widespread popularity in the 1950s. Whatever its origins, we loved it. We added the twist of peanut butter to make a simple, delicious, no-bake bar cookie that's super kid-friendly and freezes well.
Cookie: 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter 1/4 cup sugar 1/3 cup cocoa 1 large egg, beaten 1 3/4 cups graham cracker crumbs 1 cup shredded sweetened coconut 1/2 cup finely chopped blanched almonds
Peanut Butter Filling: 1/3 cup unsalted butter, softened 1/3 cup peanut butter 1/2 cup confectioners' sugar
Chocolate Glaze: 4 ounces semi-sweet chocolate, chopped 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
Line an 8 by 8-inch baking pan or casserole with aluminum foil, with long flaps hanging over each edge.
For the cookie: Put the butter in a heatproof medium bowl. Bring a saucepan filled with an inch or so of water to a very slow simmer over medium-low heat. Set the bowl over, but not touching, the water. Once the butter is melted, add the sugar and cocoa, and stir to combine. Add the egg and cook, stirring constantly with a whisk, until warm to the touch and slightly thickened (it should be about the consistency of hot fudge), about 6 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in graham crumbs, coconut and nuts. Press the dough firmly into the prepared pan. (Save the pan of water for melting the chocolate.)
For the filling: Beat the butter, peanut butter and confectioners' sugar together in a medium bowl with an electric mixer until light. Spread over the cookie and freeze while you prepare the chocolate glaze.
For the glaze: Put the chocolate and butter in a medium heatproof bowl, and set over the barely simmering water. Stir occasionally until melted and smooth. Remove from the heat and let cool slightly. (Alternatively, put the chocolate and butter in a medium microwave-safe bowl. Melt at 50 percent power in the microwave until soft, about 1 minute. Stir, and continue to heat until completely melted, about 1 minute more.). When cool but still runny, pour the chocolate layer over the chilled peanut butter layer and carefully smooth out with an offset spatula. Freeze 30 minutes.
To serve, remove from the freezer and let sit at room temperature for 5 minutes. Pull out of the pan using the foil flaps and transfer to a cutting board. Cut into 1-inch squares with a sharp knife. Serve cool or at room temperature.
Busy baker's tips: Finished bars can be wrapped in the pan in plastic wrap, then aluminum foil and frozen for up to 1 month.
Yield: 5 dozen bars.
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Post by goodcookin on Dec 8, 2007 13:31:18 GMT -5
Holiday Cookie Ornaments Candy canes are the sweet baked-in hooks for this easy-mix sugar cookie. 1 pouch Betty Crocker® sugar cookie mix 1/3 cup butter or margarine, melted 2 tablespoons Gold Medal® all-purpose flour 1 egg 36 small candy canes 2 containers (1 lb each) Betty Crocker® Rich & Creamy creamy white or vanilla frosting 1. Heat oven to 375°F. Line cookie sheets with cooking parchment paper. In medium bowl, stir cookie mix, butter, flour and egg until soft dough forms. 2. On floured surface, roll dough until about 1/8 inch thick. Cut with 3- to 3 1/2-inch cookie cutters. Place cutouts 1 inch apart on cookie sheets. 3. Bake 5 minutes. Meanwhile, break off top of each candy cane to create loop for hanging cookies. 4. Remove cookies from oven; press 1 candy piece on top of each cookie to make a loop. Bake 1 to 2 minutes longer or until edges are set. Cool on cookie sheets 2 minutes. Remove from cookie sheets to cooling rack. Cool completely, about 20 minutes. 5. Line cookie sheet with parchment paper. Place 1 container of frosting at a time in 2-cup glass measuring cup. Microwave uncovered on High 45 to 60 seconds, stirring every 15 seconds, until melted. Dip each cookie in frosting, allowing excess to drip off. Place cookies on parchment paper. Decorate as desired. Let stand until frosting is set, about 1 hour. Makes about 3 dozen cookies.
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Post by amirah on Dec 13, 2010 23:14:44 GMT -5
Ginger Snap People Course: desserts PointsPlus™ Value: 2 Servings: 60 Preparation Time: 20 min Cooking Time: 10 min Level of Difficulty: Moderate These crisp cookies are great with coffee, tea or ice-cold skim milk. Wrap some in colorful plastic wrap for a tasty holiday gift. 2 cup(s) all-purpose flour 1 cup(s) whole wheat flour 2 tsp baking powder 1/2 tsp baking soda 1/4 tsp table salt 1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon 1/4 tsp ground allspice 1 Tbsp ground ginger, or less to taste 1/4 pound(s) regular butter, softened (1 stick) 1 cup(s) packed brown sugar, dark-variety 1 large egg(s), beaten 1/2 cup(s) Blackstrap molasses 1 tsp vanilla extract 2 spray(s) cooking spray 1 Tbsp all-purpose flour, for rolling out dough 1 1/2 cup(s) powdered sugar 2 Tbsp fresh lemon juice, or less to taste 2 tsp lemon zest
* In a large bowl, combine all-purpose flour, whole wheat flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, allspice and ground ginger; mix well and set aside.
* Using an electric mixer on high speed, in a large bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add egg, molasses and vanilla; beat until thoroughly combined.
* With mixer on low speed, add flour mixture to egg mixture, a little at a time, beating after each addition (dough will be stiff).
* Divide dough into 2 equal-size balls and shape each into a rectangle; wrap each with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 to 2 hours.
* Preheat oven to 375˚F. Coat 2 nonstick cookie sheets with cooking spray.
* Unwrap dough and place on a lightly floured surface; let stand for about 15 to 20 minutes. Roll dough out to 1/4-inch thickness; cut cookies using a 3-inch gingerbread man cookie cutter.
* Place cookies on prepared cookie sheets and bake until crisp, about 7 to 10 minutes. Remove from oven to wire rack and let cool.
* Meanwhile, in a small bowl, to make icing, combine powdered sugar with lemon juice and zest; decorate cookies as desired. Yields 1 cookie per serving.
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