Ultimate Cook Book_ 900 New Recipes, Thousands of Ideas - Bruce Weinstein [372]
Position the rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 350°F. Unwrap one of the logs and slice off as many ½-inch-thick disks as you desire. Place these on an ungreased baking sheet, spacing them about 2 inches apart. Rewrap the log and return it to the refrigerator.
Bake until firm to the touch and lightly browned, 20 to 25 minutes.
To cool: Leave the cookies on the baking sheet for a couple of minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely.
To store: Keep the wrapped logs in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks; store the baked cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.
Variations: Add 2/3 cup mini-chocolate chips, M&M’s Baking Bits, or Reese’s Pieces with the salt.
Add ¾ cup chopped raisins, dried currants, or chopped dried pitted dates with the salt.
Lemon Poppy Seed Refrigerator Cookies
Lemon extract is available near the vanilla extract in the spice aisle of almost every market. If you prefer lemon oil, use only ¼ teaspoon. Makes about 60 cookies
2¼ cups all-purpose flour, plus additional for dusting
½ cup poppy seeds
¼ teaspoon salt
16 tablespoons (2 sticks) cool unsalted butter, cut into chunks
½ cup granulated sugar
¼ cup packed light brown sugar
1 large egg yolk, at room temperature
1 teaspoon lemon extract
Whisk the flour, poppy seeds, and salt in a medium bowl; set aside.
Soften the butter in a large bowl with an electric mixer at medium speed, working the chunks just until they start to lose their shape and become a mass without turning gooey. Add both sugars and continue beating until creamy and lemony light, about 3 minutes. Beat in the egg yolk and the lemon extract until smooth.
Turn off the beaters, add the prepared flour mixture, and beat at low speed just until a smooth dough forms with no pockets of undissolved flour.
Lightly dust a clean, dry work surface with flour. Turn the dough out onto it, then divide in half. Roll each half under your palms into an 8-inch-long log; wrap each log in plastic. Refrigerate for at least 4 hours (see right, “to store”).
Position the rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 325°F. Unwrap a log and slice it into as many ¼-inch-thick disks as you desire. Lay these out, leaving 2-inch spaces in between, on a large ungreased baking sheet. Rewrap the unused portion of the log and return to the refrigerator.
Bake until lightly browned and fairly dry to the touch, about 22 minutes.
To cool: Keep the cookies on the baking sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer them to a cooling rack with a metal spatula. Cool the baking sheet for an additional 5 minutes before adding more disks, if desired.
To store: Keep the wrapped logs in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks; store the baked cookies in a tightly sealed container for up to 2 days.
Pine Nut Biscotti
These are the ultimate dunking cookies: Italian wedges baked twice to become very hard, just waiting to be dipped into a sweet dessert wine like Vin Santo—although we’ve also seen them dunked in red wine in Italy. The sugar is added to the dry ingredients, not beaten with the wet, to create a drier, crisper cookie. Pine nuts are soft, so a little cornmeal in the dough gives these biscotti extra crunch. Makes about 48 biscotti
2/3 cup pine nuts
2 cups all-purpose flour, plus additional for dusting
¾ cup sugar
¼ cup yellow cornmeal
2 teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
3 large eggs, at room temperature
2 tablespoons brandy
Position the racks in the top and bottom thirds of the oven and preheat the oven to 325°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.
Place the pine nuts in a dry skillet set over medium-low heat; cook, stirring often, until lightly browned and aromatic, about 4 minutes. Set aside while you make the batter.
Whisk the flour, sugar, cornmeal, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl; set aside.
Beat the eggs