This month's 'Is My Blog Burning?' food blogging event number 10 is themed holiday cookies. A virtual cookie swap hosted by Jennifer the Domestic Goddess. I decided to make two cookies, well one is a real cookie while the other is "sort of" a cookie, a micro muffin actually.
The one in the foreground in the picture above is a recipe I adapted from Epicurious. I wanted something chock-a-block with nuts and fruits. Something that would be on a theme with the hedonistic indulgence we go through every year during the Christmas season. This one is really packed with them no doubt about it. Almost like a fruit cake or Christmas pudding except in a cookie form. It's got so much nuts and fruits that was soooo hard to stir it at the end stage. Actually I was not stirring, more like pushing the fillings into the batter. But the result is a rich, crunchy at the edges, a little moist in the middle cookie (or biscuit as they call it around here in UK). I just found it a tiny bit sweet, maybe I should reduce the sugar next time or maybe it's the pineapple? Also, I will reduce the temperature next time 'coz I find it a bit too brown at the edges (I actually burned some of them) or maybe it's my oven? Yeah right, blame the oven!
Holiday Date-Nut Cookies
500 g pitted dates - chopped
1 2/3 cups [250 g] chopped candied pineapples
1 1/2 cups [200 g] coarsely chopped Brazil nuts
2 cups [250 g] slivered almonds - lightly toasted
2 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp salt
1 cup [250 g] unsalted butter - room temperature
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 large eggs
- Preheat oven to 400°F/200°C/fan 180°C/gas mark 6. Grease cookie sheets if they are not non-stick.
- Combine fruit and nuts in a bowl. Add 1/2 cup flour and mix to separate pieces.
- Combine remaining 2 cups flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt in a small bowl. Mix well.
- Beat butter in a large bowl until light. Gradually add sugar, beating until fluffy.
- Beat in eggs 1 at a time.
- Fold in dry ingredients into the butter mixture.
- Mix in fruits and nuts.
- Form into balls about 1 1/4-inch in diameter, flatten a little bit and put in the prepare cookie sheets spacing 1 inch apart.
- Bake until cookies are golden brown, about 10 minutes.
- Cool 2 minutes in the cookies sheets. Transfer to rack and cool. (Can be prepared 1 week ahead. Store in airtight container.)
This next one is very easy peasy lemon squeezy. I added chopped glace cherries to give a 'holiday' look and feel. This recipe is from my sister-in-law in Toronto, Canada who very kindly give me lots of recipes and pointers in cooking and baking.
I was supposed to bake this as a cookie but I found the batter too runny very much suited to a muffin pan which was the intention of the recipe. I do not want to fiddle with the recipe because I know the proportion has been well tested by my SIL. Good thing I found 2 micro muffin pans in my cupboard. It is indeed micro because the diameter of the top is only 1 inch. I didn't have any muffin liners (at these sizes I don't know where I can get them). So I greased them and floured well. The resulting macaroons were absolutely cute! And most of all really scrumptious.
Coconut Macaroons
1/4 cup melted butter
1/2 cup [100 g] granulated sugar
2 eggs - beaten
1 tsp baking powder
2 cups [200 g] dessicated coconut
1 can condensed milk (400 gm)
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup [70 g] flour
1/2 cup chopped glace cherries (optional)
glace cherries - sliced into four lengthwise (optional)
- Preheat oven to 350°F/180°C/fan 160°C/gas mark 4.
- Mix melted butter, vanilla, eggs and condensed milk.
- Add in sugar, dessicated coconut, flour, and baking powder.
- Pour into lined or greased and floured muffin pans. Top with a quartered glace cherry.
- Bake for 12-15 minutes for micro muffins or 20 minutes for normal sized muffins.
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