Gingerbread At Moonglow (The Moonglow Christmas Series Book 3)
Page 10
With a rubber spatula, fold in chocolate chunks, raisins, pecans, and oats.
Drop 2-inch balls of dough, spaced 2 inches apart, onto prepared baking sheets. Flatten dough balls slightly. Bake 12 to 16 minutes, or until cookies are lightly browned, rotating sheets halfway through.
Cool 5 minutes on sheets; transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Ginger Orange Cookies (Submitted by Cynthia Blain)
This classic orange sable dough produces cookies with a remarkably delicate texture -- they crumble the minute they're in your mouth.
Ingredients:
Makes about 1 1/2 pounds.
1 1/4 cups whole blanched almonds
1 cup confectioners' sugar
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter
3 tablespoons finely grated (2 to 3 oranges) orange zest
1 large egg
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
6 ounces crystallized ginger, finely chopped (about 1 cup)
Directions:
Place almonds and sugar in the bowl of a food processor. Process until the mixture resembles coarse cornmeal, and set aside.
Place butter and orange zest in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Beat on medium speed until white and fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes.
On low speed, add the almond mixture, and beat until combined, 10 to 15 seconds. Add egg and lemon juice, and combine. Add flour, and beat until combined.
Wrap in plastic; store, refrigerated, up to 1 week, or freeze up to 3 months. Chill this soft dough very well so it holds its shape when rolled in the ginger.
Place two 12-by-16-inch pieces of parchment on a work surface. Divide dough in half and form each half into a rough log on parchment. Fold parchment over dough; using a ruler, roll and press dough into a 1 1/2-inch cylinder. Wrap. Chill at least 3 hours.
Heat oven to 350 degrees.
Line two baking sheets with parchment. Spread crystallized ginger on a work surface. Unwrap logs; roll in ginger to coat. Cut logs into 1/4-inch-thick rounds and place on sheets, spaced 2 inches apart.
Bake until edges turn slightly golden, about 15 minutes. Transfer cookies to a wire rack to cool. Bake or freeze remaining dough. Store in an airtight container up to 2 weeks.
Christmas Swirl Fudge (Submitted by Lenda Burns)
Prep: 10 Min.
Total time: 1 HR 10 Min.
Makes: 64
Ingredients:
1bag (12 oz) white vanilla baking chips (2 cups)
1container vanilla frosting
Green and red gel food colors
Directions:
Line 8-inch square pan with foil, leaving foil overhanging at 2 opposite sides of pan; spray foil with cooking spray.
In large microwavable bowl, microwave white chips uncovered on High 1 minute. Spoon frosting over chips. Microwave on High 30 seconds; stir. If necessary, continue to microwave in 15-second increments until mixture can be stirred smooth.
Place 3/4 cup fudge mixture into each of 2 small bowls, leaving remaining untinted fudge mixture in bowl. Tint 1 bowl green and 1 bowl red by stirring in each food color to desired color.
Drop heaping tablespoons of green, red and white fudge mixture in bottom of pan to create random pattern. Pull table knife through layers for marbled design. Refrigerate uncovered until set, about 1 hour.
Remove from pan by lifting foil; peel foil away. Cut into 8 rows by 8 rows. Store covered in refrigerator.
Grandma's Kringles (Submitted by Mary Brockhoff)
Ingredients:
1 lb. butter
1 egg
1 1/4 cups sugar
1 teaspoon almond extract
3 1/2 cups flour
Directions:
Work butter until creamy. Add beaten egg.
Add sugar, almond extract, and flour.
Mix and drop by spoonful on baking sheet. Bake at 500 degrees for a couple of minutes.
Vegan Sugar Cookies (Submitted by Megan Rivers)
Ingredients:
2 Tablespoons ground flaxseed
1/4 cup non-dairy milk (I used Almond Milk or Cashew Milk)
2 1/2 cup sugar
3/4 cup vegan butter (I use Earth Balance)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 cups + 2 Tablespoons flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
Directions:
Mix the ground flaxseed and milk in a small bowl, set aside.
In a large mixing bowl, mix together the sugar and butter with a hand mixer until fluffy.
Add vanilla extract and the flaxseed/milk mixture to the bowl. Mix until blended.
Sift the flour, baking powder, and salt into the bowl and mix using a hand mixer until blended.
Roll the dough into a log-shape. Use parchment or wax paper to help the dough keep its shape and refrigerate for one hour. NOTE: You do not have to roll the dough into a log shape, but it is easier to work with.
Once refrigerated, cut dough into cookie sheets. Bake in the oven at 400 degrees for 5-7 minutes or until the edges are golden brown.
Mint Chocolate Macarons (Submitted by Lisa Maliga, from her book, Baking French Macarons: A Beginner’s Guide)
Macaron Shells
Ingredients:
100 grams almond flour
200 grams powdered sugar
3 large egg whites
50 grams finely granulated sugar
¼ teaspoon cream of tartar
1/2 teaspoon natural green powdered colorant
Temperature: 300 degrees Fahrenheit/150 Celsius
Directions:
Line 3 baking sheets with parchment paper or silpats. Double the baking sheets to prevent browning. Place a template on a baking sheet and put the silpat or parchment paper over it. You can have 3 different templates or just one, which you’ll remove after piping each tray. Have a pastry/piping bag with a large round tip ready before you begin.
Sift powdered sugar with the almond flour. Whisk to make sure it’s fully blended.
In a stainless steel or glass bowl, beat the egg whites at a low speed until foamy like a bubble bath before adding the cream of tartar. Then add granulated sugar in 3 batches. Increase the speed of your mixer. When finished, the mixture should have stiff peaks.
Add powdered colorant to the flour sugar mixture and then add half the flour/sugar mixture to the meringue. Fold until the mixture comes together, scraping the sides and flip batter over. The batter will be very thick. When the sugar/flour mixture is blended, the batter will be easier to mix and will look shiny. Lift the spatula and note if the batter falls in ribbons from the spatula. Another test is to write the number 8 with the batter.
Scoop batter into piping bag with your spatula. Twist the top of the bag and untwist the bottom, gently pushing the just-poured batter toward the bottom. This removes any excess air.
Pipe batter on the parchment or silpat-lined baking sheets in 1.5-inch circles. Keep the batter just inside circles if using a template.
Rap baking sheet several times on the counter. This will further flatten the macarons, and remove air bubbles. Place a towel on the counter to lessen the noise!
Preheat oven to 300 degrees Fahrenheit/150 Celsius.
Allow macarons to sit for 30-60 minutes until a film forms. Lightly touch a macaron shell and if no batter clings to your finger then it’s dry and ready to be baked.
Bake for approximately 20 minutes. Use either the center rack or the one just below it. After about 10 minutes, rotate the tray. The tops should be firm and glossy and the bottoms of the shells should have formed feet or frills at the bottom. When done, the cookies can easily be removed from the parchment or silpat.
Remove from oven and gently slide the parchment or silpat onto a cooling rack. The shells should be cool enough to remove after 10 minutes.
Place macaron shells on a wax paper covered surface for filling. Match the closest sized shell
s together. For filling your macarons, use a piping bag and the tip size/style is your choice. Don’t overfill the shells.
Chocolate Mint Ganache Filling (Submitted by Lisa Maliga, from her book, Baking French Macarons: A Beginner’s Guide)
Ingredients:
4 ounces heavy cream [120 grams]
4 ounces mint chocolate [120 grams]
1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste
½ teaspoon peppermint extract or a few drops peppermint essential oil
Directions:
Chop up the chocolate and place in a medium glass bowl. Put heavy cream in a glass container and set microwave timer for 50 seconds. It should be on the verge of boiling. Pour hot cream over chocolate chunks that are in a glass bowl. Whisk both ingredients together a few times. Add the vanilla bean paste and peppermint EO. Cover with cling wrap and let sit overnight. The next day, mix once more and spoon into a piping bag.
Easy Cookies (Submitted by Shelia Hall)
Ingredients:
1 box cake mix (any flavor)
1 box instant pudding mix (any flavor)
1 egg
1 cup oil
Directions:
Mix all ingredients together and roll into 1 inch balls.
Place 2" apart on a greased cookie sheet.
Bake at 325 degrees for 10 minutes or until golden brown.
Khrustyky (Submitted by Cynthia Blain)
Also called 'Ears', this Ukranian pastry is light and crunchy. Really easy to prepare, and makes a HUGE batch.
Ingredients:
2 eggs
3 egg yolks
2 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon rich cream
2 tablespoons rum or brandy (Or 1 teaspoon of rum, almond or pure vanilla flavoring)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons sifted flour
Oil or shortening for deep frying
Directions:
Beat the eggs and egg yolks together until light in color. Beat in sugar, rum or brandy (or extract), cream, and salt. Stir in the flour. This dough should be soft. Cover and let rest for 10 minutes.
Roll out small amounts of dough at a time, with LOTS of flour on your rolling surface, put flour on top of the dough and on your rolling pin (this dough is very sticky otherwise). Roll to 1/8-inch or thinner. Keep the un-used dough covered to prevent drying out.
Cut the dough into long strips, about 1 1/4-inches wide. Then further cut the strips into 2 1/2 or 3-inch segments, diagonally (they will look like 2 1/2-inch long and 1 1/4-inch wide diamonds.) Make a slit in the center (about 1/2-inch long in the middle, lengthwise...) Grasp the bottom tail of the Khrustyky, put it through the slit in the middle, and pull it gently back down to the bottom (this will form a twist in the dough). Continue to do this to each piece of dough. (I roll out a small portion, cut and form my Khrustyky, and set them on a plate. Once my small bit of dough that I've rolled out is all used up, I fry these in the deep fryer before moving on to another piece of dough to roll and cut).
Deep-fry a few at a time in oil at 375 degrees F until light brown. These puff up as you fry them, making a delectable treat. Drain on paper towels. Sprinkle with confectioner's sugar.
Peanut Brittle (Submitted by Olivine Kenyon)
*Pre-grease a cookie sheet
Ingredients:
1 cup sugar
1 cup raw peanuts
3/4 cup white Karo syrup
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
Directions:
Put sugar, syrup, and peanuts in pan, mix well and cook to a light golden color. Add salt and stir well.
Turn off burner, put in soda, stir about 15-25 seconds and dump quickly on well-greased cookie sheet.
Tip all corners of sheet and allow candy to spread all on its own. *This last process must be done very quickly!
Cool fast and eat. To break up bang cookie sheet on countertop!
Swedish Coconut Cookies (Submitted by Nettie Moore)
Prep time: 35 mins
Cook time: 10 mins
Total time: 45 mins
Makes: 72 cookies
Ingredients:
3 1/2 cups flour
2 cups sugar
2 cups butter, softened
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup sweetened flaked coconut
Directions:
Combine all ingredients except coconut in large bowl.
Beat at low speed with a hand mixer, scraping bowl often, until well mixed.
Stir in coconut.
Divide dough in half; shape each half into a 12x2-inch log.
Wrap each log in plastic food wrap; refrigerate for at least 2 hours until firm.
Heat oven to 350°F.
Cut logs into 1/4-inch slices.
Place 2 inches apart onto parchment lined cookie sheets.
Bake 10-14 minutes or until edges are lightly browned.
Cool 1 minute on cookie sheet; remove to cooling rack.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The Christmas wishes, hopes, and good cheer in Gingerbread at Moonglow may appear to be a result of Mist's own unique magic, but in reality, many contributed to this story. Much gratitude goes to Elizabeth Christy for her exceptional developmental and editing expertise. Keri Knutson of Alchemy Book Covers deserves credit for cover design, as well as Richard Houston for eBook formatting, and Tim Renfrow of Book Design and More for print formatting. Beta readers Louise Martens, Jay Garner, Karen Putnam, and Carol Anderson are due a round of applause for their plot insight, with additional thanks to Carol for proofreading.
The townsfolk of Timberton always trade a few holiday treats, thanks to Betty's annual cookie exchange. Heartfelt thanks go to Kim Davis and her blog, Cinnamon and Sugar and a Little Bit of Murder, Nettie Moore and her blog, Moore or Less Baking, Cynthia Blain, Lenda Burns, Megan Rivers, Mary Brockhoff, Peggy McAloon, Deb Kenyon Thom, Olivine Kenyon, Lois Tallman, Shelia Hall, Elizabeth Christy, and Lisa Maliga and her book, Baking French Macarons: A Beginner’s Guide, for providing recipes for this year's delicious goodies. Enjoy!