orange-cardamom cookies

I am one of those people who tears recipes out of magazines and let's this enormous pile amass on my desk. Then, a few times a year I go through the pile and I neatly file the recipes into these (totally type-A) binders in my home office...and then I usually forget to go look at the binders, until the next time I am busy filing a stack of recipes. This recipe, however, stuck in my mind and I did go dig it out of the office last night. With cooking I just wing it, and come up with my own recipes. Those of you who bake know you can't wing it. This probably explains why I don't call myself a baker any other time except Christmas...Anyway, I made these last night and they are amazing. Think dense shortbread-like cookie with the flowery, Indian taste of cardamom alongside the zest of orange. Not too sweet. Perfect with a cup of tea. An adult cookie.

Here are the caveats:

• This recipe is a lot more work than I usually like to spend on a recipe (unless it's my go-to gingerbread or a batch of traditional sugar cookie cut-outs around Christmas). If you're looking for a quick cookie, skip this one.
• I love the taste of cardamom, but give the spice a sniff before you make a double batch to make sure you like it too!
• These cookies aren't going to elicit a lot of oohs and ahhs on a cookie exchange table...they're simple: round and white, flecked with a bit of orange zest and a drizzle of royal icing if you add that. That said, they pack a lot of interesting flavor into their demure appearance.

Assuming you are undeterred by my caveats, let's go! I'm reprinting the Gourmet recipe here + giving you a few pictures of the recipe in action, so you have everything in one place:

Orange-Cardamom Cookies

(makes 2 dozen cookies)

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

zest of 2 large oranges

1 1/2 teaspoons cardamom (ground)

1 teaspoon salt

2 sticks unsalted butter, softened

3/4 cup sugar (I used Turbinado)

1 egg yolk

2 Tablespoons heavy cream

parchment paper

Royal Icing (optional):

1 cup powdered sugar

1 Tablespoon powdered egg whites

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

1/4-1/2 cup warm water

To make the dough:

Mix flour, orange zest, cardamom and salt. Beat butter, sugar, yolk and cream with a hand-mixer until well blended and fluffy. At low-speed, mix in the flour until dough forms. It will be very granular. Split the dough into four portions and wrap them in parchment or plastic wrap and store in fridge until firm (about 2 hours).

To bake the cookies:

Preheat oven to 350. Roll out 1 piece of dough, in between 2 pieces of parchment paper until it's about 1/8 inch thick. (You must do it this way. I tried to simply roll the dough on a floured surface and it did not work!! The dough broke apart in a crumbly mess.) Cut dough into circles, using a cookie cutter, and transfer to a parchment lined baking sheet, 1 inch apart. The original recipe says you can only re-roll the scraps once...but I am not much of a baker (or spatial planner apparently), so I definitely did it several more times until all of the dough was cut... Bake for 9-12 minutes, until edges are golden. Cool on baking sheet for a few minutes, then transfer to a rack to cool completely.

If you choose to drizzle with royal icing:

Combine the powdered sugar, egg white powder, vanilla and warm water until desired consistency (should be like thick glue, malleable to drizzle with a spoon or spatula but not runny). Drizzle across cooled cookies. Let icing harden before storing cookies in an airtight container, or freezing a batch.

I did not read that the dough was supposed to be pressed into a disk shape before chilling it in the fridge. I made these balls of dough and wrapped each one in parchment paper...but rolling it out would have certainly been easier if I'd made them disks instead! (P.S. That's a double batch of dough you're seeing here.)

So, when it came time to roll, I had to press down on each one to get it into that disk shape before grabbing the rolling pin...

Rolling each ball of dough out first time was tough...

but eventually each ball of dough became a nice, even disk ready to be cut.

While the cookies tasted amazing: not too sweet, full of flavor...they looked a little too plain for a Christmas cookie...

so I did drizzle each one with a bit of royal icing. And that little additional bit of sweetness made them perfect.

kerry's super simple coconut macaroons

My friend, Kerry, told me about these Real Simple coconut macaroons, which she and her children have been whipping up as holiday gifts. I'd never made macaroons, though I do love a good, chewy macaroon. So, last night, we gave these a test whirl. Not only are they delicious, but they are so simple to make...perfect for little hands that want to help!

Real Simple's Coconut Macaroons

(makes 50 teaspoon-sized macaroons)

14 oz bag of sweetened shredded coconut

4 egg whites

2/3 cup sugar

1/3 cup all-purpose flour

1/4 teaspoon of salt

parchment paper

round measuring spoon: teaspoon

Preheat oven to 325. Combine all ingredients in a medium mixing bowl, using a hand-mixer. The original recipe says to "drop packed tablespoonful onto a parchment lined baking sheet". At Kerry advice, we did teaspoonful and they were plenty big, especially since they're so sweet! Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until golden brown. Will store for 7 days in an airtight container, if they last that long.

For extra decadence, you can make them chocolate dipped, though I thought that seemed unnecessary, since they were so delicious as is...

eggnog bread pudding

I saw this eggnog bread pudding recipe last week and knew I had to give it a try. I happened to have a ginormous panettone on my kitchen counter. One of those impulse purchases, where I knew I wanted a panettone...but somehow I neglected to notice the size of the thing. So anyway, I come across this recipe that promises to turn half of my (huge) sweet bread into an equally decadent dessert-- or in our case, brunch-- and I knew it was fate. OK, fine, I don't need to get all dramatic about it. But seriously, you must try this recipe. Not only because it is so, so easy, but because it's Christmas-y and special and soooo good.

Eggnog Bread Pudding

based on this recipe from Cooking with Trader Joe's

(makes a 9x13" dish of decadence)

750g loaf of panettone*

6 eggs

1 quart of eggnog (4 cups)

1-2 Tablespoons of vanilla

zest of an orange, optional

cooking spray or butter

Preheat your oven to 350. Butter your baking dish, or lightly coat with cooking spray. Cut the panettone into roughly 1" cubes and place the bread in the baking dish. In a mixing bowl, combine the eggs, eggnog, vanilla and orange zest (if you are adding it) and mix until well blended. Pour evenly over bread. Let this sit and continue to soak while the oven is warming up. The original recipe has you making a water bath and baking the bread pudding for about 1 hour. You can go that route, or you can skip the water bath (as I did) and bake it (normally) on the middle oven rack, uncovered for the first 45 minutes. Then, I covered mine with foil because the top was starting to brown quite a bit, and I continued to cook it for another 45 minutes. You'll know it's done when a butter knife inserted in the center comes out clean. As you all know, my ovens are dying a slow death, so you can assume that the whole cook time is somewhere around 1 hour...but it could be as long as 1.5 hours, depending upon how pesky your oven is. (Plan ahead if you're having guests!!)

Speaking of planning ahead, this dish can be made in advance either fully baked (and then warmed in the oven, covered loosely with foil) or you can pour the egg mixture over the top and pop it into the fridge, and bake it the next day if you want to wow your family/friends/house guests with an absolutely amazing smelling kitchen. That said, if it's going straight from the fridge into the oven, count on it taking more like 1.5 hours to bake.

Here are action photos for those who like to see the step by step:







*A little side note: panettone is studded with dried fruit and has quite a distinctive taste. I thought that was what made this bread pudding special...I loved the plump raisins and bits of orange rind in the finished product. But, if you think your family would prefer it with plain bread, you can make the recipe I posted above with about 5 cups of French bread, also cut into 1" chunks.

another homemade gift idea: pumpkin bread

Yesterday's post about the Pumpkin Cannelloni with Sage Cream Sauce inspired a bunch of emails from friends who said they liked the idea of making something for their teachers/friends/neighbors, but wanted a less time-consuming idea. Here's another good one: Jane's Pumpkin Bread. Depending upon when you want to deliver it, it freezes well. So, maybe it would be a perfect recipe to make together this weekend, before launching into your Thanksgiving recipes!

Holiday Baking: Biscotti with Dried Cranberries and Pistachios

Last night, after tucking the boys in, I baked the edible portion of this year's preschool teacher gifts. While I am a fan of assemble and then let do its' cooking/simmering thing, a few of my go-to recipes are worth having to be a little attentive during the preparation. One would be my Farro-Butternut Squash Risotto. The other would be these homemade Biscotti with Dried Cranberries and Pistachios. This is a recipe passed on by my mom, who according to the faxed xerox copy which looks like it has made the rounds, originally came from someone named Carolyn Thacker. Not one to necessarily go right for the biscotti on a cookie tray, this recipe made me a biscotti convert, and fan. The cranberries make them a tad bit chewy and the orange and pitachio flavors compliment the cranberries perfectly. Enjoy!

Biscotti with Dried Cranberries and Pistachios

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

1 cup sugar

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 cup dried cranberries

4 Tablespoons (1/2 a stick) of butter, chilled and chopped

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 teaspoon orange extract (optional)

1 1/2 cups shelled pistachios

2 eggs

1. Preheat oven to 350. Line baking sheets with parchment paper.
2. In a food processor, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Pulse.
3. Add the dried cranberries. Pulse a few times until they are chopped.
4. Add the butter and vanilla. Process until the whole mixture looks like a coarse meal.
5. Add the pistachios and egg. Pulse 10 times to blend. Scrape down sides. Pulse another five to ten times to blend.
6. On a lightly floured counter, divide the dough into 4 equal pieces. Roll each piece into an 8" log.
7. Transfer the logs to a baking sheet and flatten to 2" wide with your hand. Bake 25 minutes.
8. After the first baking, transfer the logs to a cutting board and using a sharp knife and quick single motion, cut on the diagonal into 1/2" slices. Return the biscotti to the baking sheet and bake 4 minutes on one side, then flip them and bake them 4-5 minutes on the second side. Remove from oven when they turn golden brown.
9. Transfer to cooling racks and cool completely.

Biscotti may be stored in an airtight container for 4-5 days, or frozen in an airtight container for up to 2 months.

Here is the recipe in photos, in case this is your first time baking biscotti:

In a food processor, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Pulse.

Add the dried cranberries. Pulse a few times until they are chopped.

Add the butter and vanilla.

Process until the whole mixture looks like a coarse meal.

Add the pistachios and egg.

Pulse 10 times to blend. Scrape down sides. Pulse another five to ten times to blend.

On a lightly floured counter, divide the dough into 4 equal pieces.

Roll each piece into an 8" log. Transfer the logs to a baking sheet and flatten to 2" wide with your hand. Bake 25 minutes.

After the first baking, transfer the logs to a cutting board and using a sharp knife and quick single motion, cut on the diagonal into 1/2" slices.

Return the biscotti to the baking sheet and bake 4 minutes on one side, then flip them and bake them 4-5 minutes on the second side. Remove from oven when they turn golden brown.

Transfer to cooling racks and cool completely. Biscotti may be stored in an airtight container for 4-5 days, or frozen in an airtight container for up to 2 months.

A day of baking in pictures

Tomorrow my little one brings a special birthday snack to preschool. As you can imagine, I have been thinking of the possibilities for a while now. He really isn't too concerned-- or interested for that matter-- as long as it's sweet. With no "rules" in place, we can go wild. I've been pondering all sorts of holiday-themed treats, but really, he was more interested in his Legos than talking about treat ideas. Then last night, he mentioned that he wanted cut-out gingerbread cookies. Super, I'm thinking. I just happen to have a cookie exchange the same day we're bringing "birthday snack". So, I'll bake a giant double or triple batch, and let him go wild with decorating the ones for his classmates.

So, before the school bus pulls up this morning, we've cracked the eggs, poured the molasses...

we've beaten and stirred...

and I have 5 big balls of gingerbread dough chilling in the fridge until after school when we'll busy ourselves with rolling, cutting and baking. The only glitch? On the way to school my little one says, "Mommy? Maybe I like gingerbread but maybe my friends at school don't. Let's not make gingerbread. Let's make pink cookies, since pink is my favorite color!"

Long on butter, flour and sugar this time of year, I humor him and get a batch of sugar cookie dough made when we get home. "Shall we still cut them into shapes?" I ask excitedly, picturing all of the little faces oohing and aahing at the culinary masterpiece we'll bring in tomorrow morning. "No, round is fine mommy, just so long as they are pink, since that is my favorite color."

Knowing full well that my son's (current) favorite color is pink, I just happened to have picked up some India Tree sugars one day on a whim. I am golden. He looks at the cookies approvingly when they come out of the oven, then excitedly goes on to tell me that what would be really special as a birthday snack are the chocolate chip cookies that are regular. Regular? "Yeah, like the ones with the recipe on the bag like other mom's make," my older son tells me, clearly in cahoots with my little one. Really?

Not one to pass up a culinary challenge, even if it is their bedtime, the three of us whip up a batch of Tollhouse cookies. By. The. Book. No wheat flour, no oats, no messing around. Plain chocolate chip cookies. As they cooled on the rack and we went up for bedtime stories, my older son told my younger son, "you're really lucky you're bringing in such a special snack". "I know," I could hear my little one answering and you could tell from his voice that he was just beaming. Worth the extra flour, sugar, butter, eggs and effort this one special day of the year in his young life.

Now I know a few of my friends reading this are wondering whether I am bringing pink sugar cookies to the party tomorrow. Trust me, at that point in the night I had totally run out of steam to roll, cut, bake, decorate. So, I checked our butter and chocolate supply and instead whipped up a double batch of my cinnamon-chocolate brownies with chocolate ganache that are super simple and always a crowd pleaser. If any of my neighbors are reading this would like a ball of my gingerbread dough, just holler. We'll bake and decorate one or two balls this weekend, but we have a few more to share!

Jane's Pumpkin Bread (a.k.a. The Best Pumpkin Bread Ever)

One of my friends mentioned that the day after Thanksgiving is the day she goes from pumpkin to peppermint. I did notice a proliferation of Christmas lights as we drove home from dinner last night. Still, I'm not giving up on pumpkin just yet...particularly because my friend, Jane, shared her recipe for (the best) pumpkin bread (ever). So simple and worth sharing. (If you have already moved on to peppermint, just bookmark this for next fall.)

Jane's Pumpkin Bread

(which is really an adaptation of Vern Bertagna's recipe via a '95 Bon Appetit and then epicurious, but since I got the recipe from Jane, it will forever be known as "Jane's Pumpkin Bread" to me)

Makes 2 full-size loaves or 5 mini loaves

2 1/2 cups sugar
1 cup vegetable oil
3 large eggs
2 cups (or 1 16-ounce can) solid pack pumpkin
2 cups all purpose flour

1 cup whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon ground cloves*
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon*
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg*

* OR 3 teaspoons of "pumpkin pie spice" if you have that kicking around your spice drawer
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder

Turbinado sugar (to sprinkle on top, optional)

Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter and flour two 9x5x3-inch loaf pans (if they aren't non-stick). Beat sugar and oil in large bowl. Mix in eggs and pumpkin. Add the flour, cloves, cinnamon, nutmeg (or the pumpkin pie spice if you're going that route), baking soda, salt and baking powder. Stir until combined. Divide batter equally between baking pans. Sprinkle with Turbinado or other coarse sugar before baking (optional). Bake about 1 hour, or until tester inserted into center comes out clean. Transfer to racks and cool. These loaves freeze beautifully.

(No silly, I do not sift the dry ingredients in a separate bowl...)