Jerry's Thoughts, Musings, and Rants!

SSB - Week 5 - Lemony Semolina Cookies (Biscotti di Limone e Semolino)

Happy Mother's Day!

Krista came up with the notion that it might be interesting to get a group of folks together to bake and blog each week. A group of us on Slow Travel are going to do just that. Each participant selects a recipe from the cookbook and we all work our way through it. Today is the fifth entry in our baking challenge as we continue to work our way through Dolce Italiano by Gina DePalma (who also happens to be a member of the slowtravel community). This is my last entry before I head to Italy to experience some of these treats in their 'home' country.

This week it was my turn to select the recipe for the slowbakers to make -  Lemon Semolina Cookies (biscotti di limone e semolino). I selected it because I thought that the cookies would go nicely with the dessert I was making for Mother's Day dinner - a Champagne Gelatin with Strawberries. I also selfishly thought it would be a simple thing to put together two days before we leave for Italy (hmmm, I wonder how many different ways I can weave that into the post?).

These cookies are deliciously crunchy, lemony enough to suit any lemonfan and not too sweet. They would go equally with tea or coffee and would probably be very nice along with a glass of limoncello after a heavy dinner in place of a more traditional dolce. I like the way that the light coating of sugar glistens in the light.

Lemony Semolina Cookies

Source: Dolce Italiano by Gina De Palma
Makes 5 dozen cookies

2 cups all-purpose flour
2/3 cup semolina
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 cup granulated sugar, plus extra for rolling
1 large egg
1 large egg yolk
freshly grated zest and juice of one lemon
2 tablespoons limonccello
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Whisk flour, semolina, baking powder, baking soda and salt together in a bowl.

Using KitchenAid (or similar) cream together the butter, oil and 1 cup sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy. Beat in the egg and egg yolk, scraping down the sides of the bowl. Continue to add the lemon zest, juice, limoncello and vanilla, making sure to scrape the sides of the bowl down.

Using low speed beat in the dry ingredients until a very soft dough is formed. Scrape out onto a sheet of plastic wrap, flatten into a disc, wrap and chill for an hour.

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Lightly grease two baking sheets, line with baking parchment or line with a teflon sheet.

Break off teaspoon-sized bits of dough and roll them into balls about an inch in diameter. Roll each in a small bowl of sugar and place on the tray. Make sure to space them an inch apart as they'll spread.

Bake for 14-15 minutes until they've flattened out and are crinkly on top. Cool on the sheet for 2 minute and then use a spatula to transfer to a wire rack.

SSB - Week 2 - Sicilian Pistacio Cookies

Krista came up with an idea that it would be fun to get a group of folks together to bake and blog each week. A group of us on Slow Travel are going to do just that. Today is the second entry in our baking challenge as we continue to work our way through Dolce Italiano. This week was Deborah's turn to select the recipe and she selected these cookies bars which are found on p. 60.

These cookies are quite easy to make and pack a wonderful flavour. The nicest thing about this recipe is there is no rolling or shaping of the cookies - just dump the dough in a pan, bake, and cut into bars. It really does not get any easier than that does it? The ingredients are readily available - just be sure that you use unsalted pistachios or your cookies might taste salty.

Gina's book is beautiful and a wonderful way to introduce yourself to the intricacies of Italian baking.

Sicilian Pistachio Bars

2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1/2 t. kosher salt
1 c. shelled, whole (unsalted) Sicilian pistachios
1 c. (2 sticks/8 ounces) unsalted butter, softened
1 1/4 c. plus 2 t. granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1 t. pure vanilla extract
1 t. amaretto or 1/2 t. pure almond extract
Freshly grated zest of 1 lemon

Preheat oven to 325F (160C). Line a cookie sheet/jelly roll pan with parchment paper and grease the paper. Sift flour and salt. Dump 1/2 cup of the pistachios into the food processor and finely chop. Add the chopped pistachios to the flour mixture. Set aside.

Cream the butter with the sugar with a stand mizer fitted iwth the paddle attachment until fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add the eggs in one at a time, then the vanilla, amaretto/almond, and lemon zest. Be sure to scrap the bowl down after each addition.

Add the flour mixture slowly and mix well. Turn out the dough onto the pan and spread with an offset spatula so that it’s evenly distributed. Sprinkle the remaining pistachios and sugar on the dough.

Bake for 35-45 minutes (note: keep a close eye on them as mine finished before the time). Rotate the pan half way through the baking time to ensure even browning. After taking out the tray, allow to cool slightly on a rack before cutting in to bars.

Next week the Sunday Slow Bakers tackle a savoury recipe: Babbo Breadsticks/grissini .

Warm Chocolate Cake

I was originally going to make this for our Valentine's Dinner but decided not to when I was struck with laziness. Sad really because it was bloody easy to pull together! In fairness, the mousse cake I purchased was light and refreshing - a perfect ending to a full meal.

We whipped these together for dinner with mom on Sunday. This cake is often called a chocolate volcano because of its rich, solid exterior, and oozing, saucy interior. We served them with some fresh raspberries and vanilla gelato. It was a great finish to our dinner.

Individual Warm Chocolate Cakes

6 oz bittersweet chocolate
1/3 cup unsalted butter
3 tablespoons sugar
3 egg yolks
2 egg whites
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F

Butter 5 deep, non-stick muffin cups and set aside (we used ramekins).

Melt chocolate and butter together in a heavy pot over low heat. Cool slightly.

Beat together sugar and egg yolks with an electric mixer until thick and creamy, about 3 minutes.

Pour in the chocolate mixture and beat together for 5 minutes or until the mixture lightens in colour and thickens.

In a separate bowl, beat egg whites until stiff peaks form, about 3 minutes. Fold into the egg yolk mixture along with the flour.

Divide the batter between the prepared cups. Bake for 5 to 7 minutes or until the edges are just cooked and the centre is still jiggily.

Cool for 5 minutes in the cups. Carefully remove to serving dishes.

Ziti with Fennel and Sausage

Lately we have been enamored with fennel. The other day I was searching for a recipe which would use up some ingredients I had on hand (turkey sausage and fennel) and I came across this one at Cooking Light. It seemed perfect - it used up those ingredients AND it was low-fat.

I wondered about the combination though, I know that Italians use fennel a fair bit in their cooking but was curious about how it would taste in a tomato based sauce. I did some more searching and came upon a recipe (remarkably similar - hello . . . copy rite . . .)at the web site of famed celebrity chef Lidia Bastianich. I was sold - if Lidia says it is OK then it was.

By moving ingredients to one side and adding a new ingredient in the open space, each can be sautéed in direct contact with the pan to achieve the right browning, instead of steaming in the mass of ingredients. Keep more than two cups of the pasta cooking water to adjust the sauce. If the pasta appears dry, ladle in more cooking water; if it is soupy, increase the heat to cook it rapidly and thicken the sauce.

Ziti with Fennel, Onion, and Sausage

1 (1 1/4-pound) fennel bulb
6 quarts water
2 1/4 teaspoons salt, divided
1 pound uncooked ziti (short, tube-shaped pasta)
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 pound sweet Italian sausage
2 cups (1/4-inch-thick) onion wedges (about 2 medium)
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1/4 cup tomato paste
1/4 cup (1 ounce) grated fresh pecorino Romano cheese

Trim fennel, reserving fronds and bulb. Cut fennel bulb in half lengthwise; cut each bulb half lengthwise into (1/4-inch-thick) slices. Cut bulb slices into 2-inch-long pieces. Chop fennel fronds to measure 1/3 cup.

Bring 6 quarts water and 2 teaspoons of salt to a boil in a large stockpot. Stir in pasta; partially cover, and return to a boil, stirring frequently. Cook 8 minutes or until the pasta is almost al dente, stirring occasionally. Drain pasta in a colander over a bowl, reserving 2 cups cooking water.

While pasta cooks, heat oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Remove sausage from casings. Add sausage to Dutch oven; cook 2 minutes or until lightly browned, stirring to crumble. Push sausage to one side of pan. Add onion to open space in pan; cook 1 minute or until onion begins to soften. Stir onion into sausage. Push onion mixture to one side of the pan. Add fennel bulb to open space in pan; cook 1 minute or until fennel begins to soften. Stir fennel into onion mixture. Stir in pepper and 1/4 teaspoon salt; cook 1 minute. Move the sausage and fennel mixture to outside edges of pan, leaving an open space in center. Add 1/4 cup tomato paste to open space in pan; cook 1 minute, stirring constantly. Stir tomato paste into fennel mixture.

Add reserved 2 cups cooking water to pan; bring to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer 6 minutes or until fennel is tender. Add fennel fronds and pasta; cook 2 minutes or until pasta is al dente, tossing to combine. Remove from heat; stir in cheese. Serve immediately.

Yield: 8 servings (serving size: about 1 3/4 cups)

CALORIES 352 (21% from fat); FAT 8.3g (sat 2.9g,mono 3.6g,poly 0.5g); PROTEIN 19g; CHOLESTEROL 20mg; CALCIUM 88mg; SODIUM 669mg; FIBER 3.8g; IRON 3.2mg; CARBOHYDRATE 51.7g

Cooking Light, DECEMBER 2004

Savoury Cheddar Thumbprint Cookies

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These appetizer cookies are just liked the thumbprint cookies my grandmother used to make and fill with strawberry jam - only a much more adult version! Those lucky enough to try one of these tasty treats will be surprised to find that these cheesey appetizers, studded with nuts and bejewelled with pepper jelly or other savoury jelly or salsa jam, are not to be saved for dessert. This is one cookie recipe that can be made only in a food processor and should certainly be paired with cocktails.

It is important that you use the best quality cheddar you have for full flavour. We filled our cookies with the 5 pepper jelly we preserved in September.

1-1/2 cups Shredded white old Cheddar cheese
1/2 cup Freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 cup Butter, softened
1 Egg yolk
1/4 tsp Chili powder (I used ancho chili powder)
1 cup All-purpose flour
1 cup Finely chopped pecans or unblanched almonds
1 cup Hot pepper jelly

In food processor, pulse together Cheddar and Parmesan cheeses and butter until smooth. Add egg yolk and chili powder; pulse until blended. Add flour; pulse just until soft dough forms.

Place pecans on plate. Place 1 cup water in bowl. With hands, roll scant tablespoonfuls of dough into 1-inch (2.5 cm) balls. Dip in water; roll in nuts to coat. Place on ungreased baking sheet. With thumb, make indentation in centre of each. Refrigerate for 15 minutes.

Bake in centre of 350°F oven for about 15 minutes or until firm outside and lightly golden. Let cool on baking sheet on rack. (Can be prepared to this point and frozen in layers separated by waxed paper in rigid airtight container for up to 2 weeks; bake in 350°F oven for about 3 minutes to recrisp.) Fill indentations with hot pepper jelly.

Makes about 36 pieces.

Note: For a simpler version just leave off the nuts.

Empire Cookies

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In my family most of our traditions seem to center about food; perhaps that is why we all have weight issues. It would have been better to have had family traditions that centered around hiking, lettuce, and exercise rather than butter and sugar!

Anyways, I don't know when my grandmother first made these cookies but they quickly became a tradition. As a child they were one of my favourites and now as an adult it isn't Christmas until I have whipped up a batch of these cookies. Grandma called them Belgium Cookies but I'm not sure why - apparently they are a traditional British treat better known as Empire Biscuits.

A layer of raspberry jam secreted between two buttery cookies, a splash of icing and a cherry decoration. Yes, to me this is a Christmas tradition!

1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup white sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 cup raspberry jam
1 cup confectioner's sugar
1 tablespoon milk
1/4 cup candied cherries, chopped

Directions:

Cream butter. Add sugar, creaming well. Beat in egg and vanilla. Combine flour and baking powder; gradually add to creamed mixture.

On a lightly floured surface, roll out dough to 1/8 inch thickness. Cut into 2 inch rounds, and place on ungreased baking sheets.

Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 10 minutes, or until very lightly browned at edges. Cool thoroughly.

Spread half of the cookies with jam, and top with remaining cookies.

Combine confectioner's sugar, and enough milk to make a thin icing. Frost tops of cookies. Top each with a small piece of candied cherry.

Dried Cherry and White Chocolate Shortbread

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This is a great modification to the classic recipe. The resulting cookies are a sophisticated adult treat. I generally split the dough in half and add 1/2 a cup of dried cherries to one half and 1/2 a cup of dried blueberries to the other half.

Do not allow the dough to form a ball in the food processor because the cookies will have a better texture if kneaded together by hand. If you do not have a food processor, make them by hand cutting the butter into the flour.

You can cut these into any shape - we use a star. I wouldn't use an intricate cutter though - particularly for the cherry - because the dried fruit and chocolate chunks wreak havoc on a delicate cutter.

Shortbread (basic dough recipe)
¾ cup (175 mL) granulated sugar
2 ½ cups (625 mL) all-purpose flour
¾ cup (175 mL) rice flour
1 tsp (5 mL) salt
1 ½ cups (375 mL) cold unsalted butter, cubed

1 cup (250 mL) dried cherries
1 cup (250 mL) white chocolate, coarsely chopped

1. Preheat oven to 275°F (140°C).

2. Add sugar into food processor. Turn on and off twice to grind sugar a little finer. Add flour, rice flour and salt to food processor. Add cold butter and process until combined. Combine 1 cup (250 mL) dried cherries with 1 cup (250 mL) coarsely chopped white chocolate. Stir into cookie batter before combining into a ball. Do not form into a ball in food processor.

3. Scrape mixture into a bowl and knead together gently to form dough. Divide dough into thirds and roll out each third into circles about ½-inch thick (1-cm) thick.

4. Using a 2-inch (5-cm) cookie cutter, cut dough into rounds. Top each cookie with a chunk of white chocolate. Place on ungreased cookie sheet and prick each round with a fork.

5. Bake in centre of oven for 25 to 35 minutes or until a creamy colour. The shortbread will not be firm. It hardens as it cools.

6. Remove from oven and cool on cookie sheets. Keep in airtight containers for up to a month.

Makes about 40 cookies

Molasses Crinkles

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The Christmas baking continues. One of my favourite treats during the festive season is a soft, slightly molasses cookie that is studded with ginger and coated with a crisp coating of sugar. In my mind this is one thing that screams 'Christmas'!

I made the dough the other night and stored them in the fridge until I was ready (or had time) to bake them. It turned out I was ready this morning at 4:30 am when I was unable to sleep. I had to laugh at Paul's reaction when he woke up to the smell of baking.

I haven't tried these yet but Paul assures me that pass the test; the eight cookies he ate with his lunch tasted great!

9 oz. (2 cups) all-purpose flour
2 tsp. baking soda
1-1/4 tsp. ground ginger
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ground cloves
1/2 tsp. table salt
4 oz. (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, softened
1 cup packed dark brown sugar
2 Tbs. vegetable oil
1/3 cup molasses
1 large egg
Granulated sugar for rolling

In a medium bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, and salt. With an electric mixer, beat the butter and brown sugar until light in color and texture. Beat in the oil until blended. Scrape down the sides of the bowl, add the molasses and the egg, and beat until blended. Stir in the flour mixture until well combined. Wrap the dough in plastic and chill until firm, about 3 hours.

Heat the oven to 375°F. Measure the dough into tablespoon-size pieces and roll each piece between your palms to form 1-inch balls. Roll the balls in granulated sugar to coat. Put the balls 2 inches apart on lightly greased cookie sheets. Sprinkle the tops with more sugar and bake until the center surface of the cookies is barely dry, 9 to 10 minutes (don’t over-bake). Let cool on the sheets for 5 minutes; transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

From Fine Cooking 54, pp. 18

photo: Scott Phillips

Chocolate Crackles

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---

The Christmas baking continues.

Yesterday we made one of my favourite cookies: Chocolate Crackles. These soft cookies are extra chocolaty (from using both bittersweet chocolate and cocoa powder). They have a brilliant white crust of powdered sugar. They are wildly addictive! I defy you to eat only one (unless you are like my friend Palma who doesn't care for chocolate, in that case leave them for the true chocolate lovers in the household).

Ingredients

• 8 ounces bittersweet chocolate, melted and cooled
• 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup Dutch cocoa powder
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1 1/3 cups light-brown sugar, firmly packed
• 2 large eggs
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1/3 cup milk
• 1 cup confectioners' sugar, plus more for rolling

Directions

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Chop bittersweet chocolate into small bits, and melt over medium heat in a heat-proof bowl or the top of a double boiler set over a pan of simmering water. Set aside to cool. Sift together flour, cocoa, baking powder, and salt.
2. In the bowl of a heavy-duty electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat butter and light-brown sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs and vanilla, and beat until well combined. Add melted chocolate. With mixer on low speed, alternate adding dry ingredients and milk until just combined. Divide the dough into quarters, wrap with plastic wrap, and chill in the refrigerator until firm, about 2 hours.
3. On a clean countertop, roll each portion of dough into a log approximately 16 inches long and 1 inch in diameter, using confectioners’ sugar to prevent sticking. Wrap logs in plastic wrap, and transfer to a baking sheet. Chill for 30 minutes. Cut each log into 1-inch pieces, and toss in confectioners’ sugar, a few at a time. Using your hands, roll the pieces into a ball shape. If any of the cocoa-colored dough is visible, roll dough in confectioners’ sugar again to coat completely. Place the cookies 2 inches apart on a Silpat-lined baking sheet. Bake until cookies have flattened and the sugar splits, 12 to15 minutes.
4. Transfer from oven to a wire rack to let cool completely. Store in an airtight container for up to 1 week.

Makes about 4 dozen.

Chocolate Mint Shortbread

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*smile*

---

Today was a good day for Christmas baking. This afternoon we pulled these cookies together. We first made them last year and really enjoyed the shortbread-like chocolate cookie studded with mini chocolate chips and covered with mint icing. This recipe was originally from the Taste of Home magazine.

¾ c	butter	Icing
½ c	confectioners' sugar	2 T	butter, softened
2 squares	(1 ounce each) unsweetened chocolate, melted and cooled	1 c	confectioners' sugar
¼ tsp	peppermint extract	1 T	milk
1½ c	all-purpose flour	¼ tsp	peppermint extract
1 c	miniature semisweet chocolate chips	1 - 2 drops	green food coloring
		Drizzle
		½ c	semisweet chocolate chips

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
• In a large bowl, cream together butter and confectioners' sugar.
• Beat in chocolate and mint extract.
• Gradually add flour.
• Stir in chocolate chips (dough will be soft).
• Drop by tablespoonfuls 2 inches apart on ungreased baking sheets. Bake for 6-8 minutes or until firm.
• Cool for 4 minutes before removing to wire racks to cool completely.

Icing & Drizzle

• Meanwhile, combine icing ingredients; spread over cooled cookies. Let set.
• In a microwave, melt chocolate chips and drizzle over cookies.