Its that time of year again! Every year after Thanksgiving I start planning out my December baking. Between holiday parties, cookie gift boxes and family events, I am usually baking all month long and need to organize and plan my baking so that I do not stress out or go crazy. I've already done some baking (posts to follow), but for me things will really pick up next week. I'm doing my big shop this weekend for baking supplies and I need to make all final decisions on what to make in the next few days to make sure I have all the ingredients. Mr. Apron hates it when I have to send him back to the store to pick up items I missed.
I was not blogging last December, but I did take some photos of my previous holiday desserts and I wanted to share some Christmas baking inspiration and some of my favorite items from Chirstmas baking past.
Red Velvet Cupcakes can be made year round, but they are always fun at the holidays since they already look festive. I also like making red velvet cupcakes around the holidays because they are easy, and sometimes when I have a lot of baking project I need something simple and quick to bring to a party and I can whip these up quickly and they are always a crowd pleaser. Add just add some holiday sprinkles for a little extra holiday cheer!
Sugar Cookies with Royal Icing is a staple item at most holidays in my house and of course Christmas is no exception. Last year I made snow flakes and ornanments. I love picking out new holiday cookie cutters and deciding on what design. My biggest problem is that there are so many options I usually have a hard time deciding.
I have made Linzer Cookies the past few years and they have been a big crowd pleaser. But I want to change things up this year, so I have decided that Linzer Cookies will take this year off. They do contain nuts, so if you are giving them as a gift, make sure that the receiver knows that there are nuts in them.
Linzer Cookies
Linzer Cookies are two cookies sandwiched together with a layer of preserves or jam. Traditionally these cookies are filled with black currant preserves but can be filled with your favorite flavored preserves. The top cookie, dusted with confectioners (powdered or icing) sugar, has a cutout so the preserves are visible. When cut into a round shape with a round cutout they are known as Linzer "Eyes" (Linzer Augen). Variations now exist for this cookie using ground hazelnuts, pecans, or even walnuts in place of the traditional ground almonds.
There are two types of Linzer Cookie dough; White and Brown. For the white Linzer Cookie dough, blanched almonds are used which keeps the dough white in color. For the brown Linzer Cookie dough, the nuts are toasted. To prevent the toasted nuts from turning into a paste when ground, some of the sugar from the recipe is added during processing. The sugar absorbs the oil from the nuts and prevents the nuts from turning into a paste.
1 cup blanched or sliced almonds, toasted and ground
2 cups all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
2/3 cup granulated white sugar, divided
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 large egg yolks
Zest of 1 lemon
Confectioners' (Icing or Powdered) Sugar for dusting
1/2 cup flavored preserves or jam
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and place rack in the center of the oven. Toast the nuts on a baking sheet for about 8-10 minutes (or until lightly browned and fragrant). Remove from oven and place the hot nuts in a dish towel. Roll up the towel and let the nuts sit (steam) for five minutes then rub the nuts in the towel briskly to remove the skins. Once the nuts have cooled, place in a food processor and process with 1/4 cup of the sugar from the recipe until finely ground. Set aside.
In a separate bowl, whisk or sift together the flour, cinnamon, and salt. Set aside. In the bowl of your electric mixer (or with a hand mixer), cream the butter and remaining sugar until light and fluffy (approximately 3 minutes). Beat in the vanilla extract, egg yolks, and lemon zest. Beat in the ground nuts. Add the flour mixture beating just until incorporated. Divide the dough in half and shape into two rectangles about 1/2 inch thick. Wrap the two rectangles of dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate until firm (at least one hour and up to several days). Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and place rack in center of oven. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
Remove one rectangle of dough from the refrigerator. On a lightly floured surface roll out the dough until it is about 1/4 inch thick. Using a 2 to 3 inch cookie cutter (round, square, heart, etc.) cut out the dough. Place the cookies about 1 inch apart on the prepared baking sheet. Use a smaller cookie cutter (3/4 - 1 inch)) to cut out the centers of half of the cookies on the baking sheet. (You will be sandwiching two cookies together and there will be a small 'window or cut out' in the top cookie so you can see the jam underneath.)
Reroll any scraps and cut out the cookies. Remove the other half of the dough from the refrigerator and roll and cut out the rest of the cookies. Bake the cookies for 12-14 minutes or until they are very lightly browned. Remove from oven and place on a wire rack to cool. While the cookies are cooling place the jam in a small saucepan and heat gently until it has thickened slightly. Strain if there are any lumps in the jam. Let cool.
To Assemble Cookies: Place the cookies with the cut-outs on a wire rack and lightly dust the tops with the confectioners' (powdered or icing) sugar. On the bottom surface of the full cookie (top of cookie will face out) spread with about a 1/4 - 1/2 teaspoon of jam. Place the cut-out cookie on top and gently sandwich them together, making sure not to smug the confectioners' sugar. Using a small spoon, fill the cut-out with a little more jam. Note: You can store the unassembled cookies in the refrigerator for several days in an airtight container. It is best, though, to assemble the cookies the same day as serving in order to keep the cookies crisp.. Makes about 20 - 2 inch sandwiched cookies.
I am normally not a big coconut fan, but I love macroons. And when I saw these on the Food Network I knew I had to make them. The combination of macroons, chocolate and macdemia nuts is so good. I normally have to make more of these because my family eats them so quickly.
Paradise Macaroons
2 (7 to 8-ounce) packages sweetened shredded coconut
2 ounces sweetened condensed milk
Pinch kosher salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
4 large egg whites at room temperature
5 ounces granulated sugar
12 ounces semisweet chocolate chips
1 ounce vegetable shortening
2 ounces finely chopped dry-roasted macadamia nuts
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Combine the coconut with the sweetened condensed milk, salt and vanilla in a medium mixing bowl. In the bowl of a stand mixer with a whisk attachment, beat the egg whites on medium speed until foamy. Gradually add the sugar and continue to whip the whites until medium peaks form, 6 to 7 minutes. Gently fold the egg whites into the coconut mixture. Scoop tablespoon-sized mounds onto a parchment-lined half sheet pan and bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until golden brown. Immediately transfer the parchment with the macaroons to a cooling rack. Cool completely before topping. Fill a 4-quart pot with enough water to come 2 inches up the side, set over medium heat and bring to a simmer. Combine the chocolate chips and shortening in a small metal or glass mixing bowl and set over the simmering pot. Stir occasionally until melted, then remove from the heat.
Dip the cooled cookies in the chocolate mixture, sprinkle with the chopped macadamia nuts and place on parchment paper to set, about 30 minutes.
Source: Food Network
