pecan tassies

this is my mom’s recipe. I am not usually a pecan pie fan, but these bite-size goodies are really worth the effort! if you have silicone mini-muffin tins, they make these a lot easier to get out.

1 stick butter, softened
3 ounces cream cheese, softened
1 cup flour
1 egg
¾ cup packed dark brown sugar
1 tablespoon dark rum
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup finely chopped pecans

1. mix butter, cream cheese, and flour until thoroughly blended and chill while preparing the filling.
2. beat egg, brown sugar, rum, lemon juice, and vanilla until well combined, stir in pecans.
3. preheat oven to 350.
4. lightly grease mini-muffin tin and divide chilled dough between the 24 mini-muffin cups (about 1 teaspoon of dough a piece).
5. press the dough into the mini-muffin cups and add 1 teaspoon of filling into each cup.
6. bake at 350 degrees for 25 to 30 minutes. allow to cool in the tin for 5 minutes before removing to cool completely on wire racks. makes 2 dozen.

divinity

this is one of my favorite recipes from my mom. the candy will dry quickly once it begins to cool, so have someone help you drop it onto the waxed paper.  you need to make this on a dry day, since it will not set up good if it is too humid.

2 2/3 cup granulated sugar
2/3 cup light corn syrup
1/2 cup water
2 egg whites
1 teaspoon vanilla
2/3 cup chopped pecans

1. combine sugar, corn syrup and water in a saucepan, stirring over low heat until sugar dissolves.
2. cook until candy thermometer registers 260 or until it reaches the hard ball stage.
3. remove from heat and cool slightly.
4. beat egg whites until stiff.
5. pour hot mixture very slowly over egg whites, beating constantly on low speed.
6. continue beating until mixture becomes very stiff and loses its glossy appearance. this will happen, but it may take 10 minutes or longer.
7. add vanilla and pecans and beat a few strokes by hand to improve texture.
8. drop by large spoonfuls onto buttered wax paper. let dry on waxed paper overnight.

coconut sables*

this was a new recipe this year and when I was making it up, I could not stop eating the dough (that’s always the sign of a good cookie right?).  no matter how many times you reroll the scraps, these cookies always come out tender and delicate, which is another reason I liked this recipe. you can roll out sheets of dough and freeze them, well-wrapped, for several weeks. stamping frozen dough won’t affect baking time because it’s rolled out so thinly. unsweetened coconut can be found at health-food stores.

2-1/2 oz. (2/3 cup) finely ground almonds
2-1/2 oz. (1 cup) unsweetened shredded coconut
10 oz. (2-1/4 cups) all-purpose flour
10 oz. (20 tbs.) unsalted butter, softened at room temperature
1/2 tsp. salt
5 oz. (1-1/3 cups) confectioners’ sugar
1 large egg, at room temperature

1. blend the ground almonds, coconut, and flour; set aside.  with the paddle of an electric mixer, cream the butter on medium speed until soft and creamy but not melted. add the salt and confectioners’ sugar; mix on medium-low speed until thoroughly combined, about 5 min., scraping down the bowl as needed. reduce the speed to low and add the egg; mix until incorporated. add the flour mixture; as soon as the dough comes together, stop the mixer.

2. divide the dough into three parts. roll each part between two sheets of parchment to about 1/8 inch thick. transfer the dough, still between the parchment, to baking sheets and chill in the freezer for about 30 min.

3. heat the oven to 375°f. line a baking sheet with parchment. when the dough is quite firm, peel off the top sheet of parchment and stamp out shapes with a 2-inch round scalloped cookie cutter (or whatever shape you like, though shapes with skinny parts will brown unevenly). lay the cookies 1/2 inch apart on the baking sheet. reroll the scraps, chilling first if necessary.

4. bake until the cookies are light golden around the edges, 8 to 10 min., rotating the sheet halfway through. cool on the baking sheet until cool enough to handle (about 10 min.) and then transfer the cookies to a rack. makes about 6 dozen.

honey cardamom snowflakes *

I really love the flavor of cardamom, so when I saw these cookies, I knew I had to try them. I added the orange juice because I think oranges and cardamom taste great together.

3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour; more for rolling
1 tsp. ground cardamom
1/2 tsp. table salt
1/4 tsp. baking soda
1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, at room temperature
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup orange juice
1/4 cup honey
1 large egg
1 tsp. pure vanilla extract

1. sift together the flour, cardamom, salt, and baking soda.
2. in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or in a large mixing bowl with a hand mixer), beat the butter and sugar on medium speed until well blended and slightly fluffy, about 3 minutes.
3. scrape down the bowl and the beater. add the orange juice, honey, egg, and vanilla. continue mixing on medium speed until well blended, about 1 minute. add in the flour mixture and mix on low speed until the dough is well blended and comes together in moist clumps, 30 to 60 seconds.
4. divide the dough roughly in half. on a piece of plastic wrap, shape each dough half into a smooth 5-inch disk. wrap well in the plastic. refrigerate until chilled and firm enough to roll out, 1 to 1-1/2 hours.
5. position a rack in the center of the oven and heat the oven to 350ºf. line two or more cookie sheets with parchment or nonstick baking liners.
6. working with one disk at a time, roll the dough on a floured work surface to about 3/16 inch thick. dust with additional flour as needed. choose one or more snowflake (or any other shape) cookie cutters that are about 2-1/2 inches wide and cut out shapes.
7. arrange the cookies about 1 inch apart on the lined cookie sheets. gather the scraps and gently press together. re-roll and cut. repeat with the remaining dough.
8. bake one sheet at a time until the cookies’ edges develop a 1/4-inchwide light-brown rim, 11 to 13 minutes (rotate the sheet halfway through baking for even browning). let the cookies cool on the sheet for about 10 minutes and then transfer them to a rack to cool completely. makes six dozen

the plastic-wrapped dough may be refrigerated for up to 3 days or frozen for 1 month. thaw overnight in the refrigerator before proceeding with the recipe.

holiday biscotti

this is a great biscotti recipe that you can use any time of the year. you can substitute any other nuts or dried fruit for the pistachios and cranberries or use chocolate chips.

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

3/4 cup sugar

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature

1 teaspoon grated lemon zest

1/4 teaspoon salt

2 large eggs

3/4 cup pistachios, coarsely chopped

2/3 cup dried cranberries

12 ounces good-quality white chocolate, chopped

1. preheat the oven to 350 degrees f.
   
2. line a heavy large baking sheet with parchment paper. whisk the flour and baking powder in a medium bowl to blend. using an electric mixer, beat the sugar, butter, lemon zest, and salt in a large bowl to blend. beat in the eggs 1 at a time. add the flour mixture and beat just until blended. stir in the pistachios and cranberries.
3. form the dough into a 13-inch long, 3-inch wide log on the prepared baking sheet. bake until light golden, about 40 minutes. cool for 30 minutes.
   
4. place the log on the cutting board. using a sharp serrated knife, cut the log on a diagonal into 1/2 to 3/4-inch-thick slices. arrange the biscotti, cut side down, on the baking sheet. bake the biscotti until they are pale golden, about 15 minutes. transfer the biscotti to a rack and cool completely.
   
5. stir the chocolate in a bowl set over a saucepan of simmering water until the chocolate melts. dip half of the biscotti into the melted chocolate. gently shake off the excess chocolate. place the biscotti on the baking sheet and refrigerate until the chocolate is firm, about 35 minutes.
6. the biscotti can be made ahead. store them in an airtight container up to 4 days, or wrap them in foil and freeze in resealable plastic bags up to 3 weeks.