Bon Appetit Desserts (162 page)

1 cup unbleached all purpose flour

4 ounces chilled Philadelphia-brand cream cheese, cut into

½-inch cubes

½ cup (1 stick) chilled unsalted butter, cut into ½-inch cubes

½ cup apricot preserves, divided

1 cup sweetened flaked coconut, divided

1 cup dried tart or Bing cherries, divided

Combine flour, cream cheese, and butter in processor; blend until moist clumps form. Gather dough into ball; flatten into square. Wrap in plastic; freeze until cold enough to roll, about 15 minutes.

DO AHEAD
:
Can be made 1 day ahead. Keep chilled.

Preheat oven to 375°F. Butter heavy large rimmed baking sheet. Cut dough crosswise in half. Roll out each half on floured surface to 12×8-inch rectangle. Spread each with ¼ cup preserves. Top each with ½ cup coconut and ½ cup cherries. Starting at 1 long side, roll dough up jelly-roll style; pinch long seam together to seal. Cut each roll crosswise into 12 pieces. Arrange pieces, cut side up, on prepared sheet. Flatten each to ½-inch thickness.

Bake cookies until golden brown, about 25 minutes. Transfer to rack and cool completely.

DO AHEAD
:
Cookies can be made 1 day ahead. Store in airtight container at room temperature.

Cottage Cheese Rugelach with Walnuts

Rugelach are classic cookies from the Jewish culinary repertoire. The surprise ingredient in this version is cottage cheese (most rugelach is made with cream cheese). The cottage cheese makes for extra-tender, rich cookies.
Makes 32

⅔ cup small-curd cottage cheese

⅔ cup plus 3 tablespoons non-hydrogenated stick margarine, room temperature

1⅓ cups unbleached all purpose flour

½ cup (packed) golden brown sugar

½ cup chopped walnuts

½ teaspoon ground cinnamon

½ teaspoon vanilla extract

1 egg, beaten to blend with 2 tablespoons milk

Mix cottage cheese and ⅔ cup margarine in medium bowl. Stir in flour. Knead in bowl until dough is smooth, about 1 minute. Divide dough in half. Flatten each half into disk. Wrap each in plastic and freeze until firm enough to roll out, about 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, combine remaining 3 tablespoons margarine, brown sugar, walnuts, cinnamon, and vanilla in processor. Blend until almost smooth paste forms.

Preheat oven to 350°F. Line heavy large rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. Roll out 1 dough disk on lightly floured surface to 10-inchdiameter round. Spread half of brown sugar mixture evenly over. Cut round into 16 wedges. Starting at wide ends, roll up wedges to point to form cylinders. Bend ends in, forming crescents. Transfer to prepared baking sheet. Repeat with remaining dough disk and brown sugar mixture.

Brush egg mixture over crescents. Bake until light brown and baked through, about 25 minutes. Cool 5 minutes on baking sheet. Transfer cookies to racks and cool completely.

DO AHEAD
:
Cookies can be made 2 days ahead. Store in airtight containers at room temperature.

Chocolate-Candy Cane Cookies

These festive chocolate sandwich cookies are first filled with peppermint buttercream, then the edges are rolled in crushed candy canes for a festive look. The cookies freeze well for up to two weeks.
Makes about 1½ dozen

1¾ cups unbleached all purpose flour

½ cup unsweetened cocoa powder (preferably Dutch-process)

¼ teaspoon salt

1 cup sugar

¾ cup (1½ sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature

1 large egg

1 cup plus 2 tablespoons powdered sugar

¾ cup (1½ sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature

¾ teaspoon peppermint extract

2 drops (or more) red food coloring

½ cup crushed red-and-white-striped candy canes or hard peppermint candies (about 4 ounces)

COOKIES
: Whisk flour, cocoa, and salt in medium bowl to blend. Using electric mixer, beat sugar and butter in large bowl until well blended. Beat in egg. Add flour mixture and beat until blended. Chill dough 1 hour.

Position rack in center of oven and preheat to 350°F. Line 2 heavy large rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper. Scoop out dough by level tablespoonfuls, then roll into smooth balls. Place balls on prepared baking sheets, spacing about 2 inches apart. Using bottom of glass or hands, flatten each ball to 2-inch-diameter round (edges will crack). Bake 1 sheet at a time until cookies no longer look wet and small indentation appears when tops of cookies are touched lightly with fingers, about 11 minutes (do not overbake or cookies will become too crisp). Cool on baking sheet 5 minutes. Transfer cookies to racks and cool completely.

FILLING
: Using electric mixer, beat powdered sugar and butter in medium bowl until well blended. Add peppermint extract and 2 drops food coloring. Beat until light pink and well blended, adding more food coloring by dropfuls if darker pink color is desired.

Spread 2 generous teaspoons filling evenly over bottom side of 1 cookie, spreading to edges. Top with another cookie, bottom side down, pressing gently to adhere. Repeat with remaining cookies and filling.

Place crushed candy canes on plate. Roll edges of cookie sandwiches in crushed candies (candies will adhere to filling).

DO AHEAD
:
Can be made ahead. Store in single layer in airtight container at room temperature up to 3 days, or freeze up to 2 weeks.

Glazed Raisin-Nut Spice Cookies

These diamond-shaped cookies, called
papassinos
in Italy, are especially good with a cup of coffee. Spoon the glaze over the cookies while they are hot; when the glaze melts slightly from the heat, it will be easier to spread. The flavor of these cookies gets even better after a few days.
Makes about 2½ dozen

Nonstick vegetable oil spray

1 cup powdered sugar

8 teaspoons (about) whole milk, divided

1 cup whole almonds, toasted, cooled

½ cup walnut pieces, toasted, cooled

1¾ cups all purpose flour

¾ cup (1½ sticks) unsalted butter, cut into ½-inch cubes, room temperature

⅔ cup sugar

1 teaspoon finely grated lemon peel

1 teaspoon finely grated orange peel

1 teaspoon aniseed

¾ teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon ground cinnamon

¼ teaspoon ground cloves

¼ teaspoon baking soda

2 large egg yolks

1 cup golden raisins

Position rack in center of oven and preheat to 350°F. Spray 2 heavy large rimmed baking sheets with nonstick spray.

Place powdered sugar in small bowl. Mix in enough milk by teaspoonfuls (about 5) to form thick, smooth glaze. Cover glaze; set aside. Combine almonds and walnuts in processor. Using on/off turns, blend until most nuts are reduced to ¼-inch pieces (some will be very finely ground).

Combine flour, butter, sugar, lemon peel, orange peel, aniseed, salt, cinnamon, cloves, and baking soda in large bowl. Using electric mixer, beat at low speed until fine meal forms. Add egg yolks and beat until clumps form. Add ground nuts and raisins. Beat until dough holds together, adding milk by teaspoonfuls (about 3) if dough is dry. Knead dough briefly in bowl to compact. Divide dough into 3 equal pieces.

Roll out 1 dough piece on lightly floured surface to ¼- to ⅓-inch-thick rectangle. Cut lengthwise into 2-inch-wide strips. Cut each strip on diagonal into 1½- to 2-inch diamonds. Transfer diamonds to prepared baking sheet. Gather dough scraps and reserve. Repeat with remaining dough. Reroll scraps, cutting out more cookies, until all dough is used.

Bake cookies, 1 sheet at a time, until golden, about 17 minutes. Spoon generous ½ teaspoon glaze over each hot cookie and spread with back of spoon to coat. Let cookies stand on baking sheets until completely cool and glaze is set.

DO AHEAD
:
Can be made 1 week ahead. Store in airtight container between sheets of waxed paper at room temperature.

Classic Christmas Cutout Cookies

If you prefer thick cookies, roll the dough out to 3
/
8-inch thickness and bake the cookies a little longer. The number of cookies produced here depends on the thickness of the dough and the size of the cookie cutters.
Makes about 3 dozen

2⅔ cups unbleached all purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

½ teaspoon salt

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature

¾ cup sugar

3 large egg yolks

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Assorted colored sugar crystals or sprinkles

Whisk flour, baking powder, and salt in medium bowl to blend. Using electric mixer, beat butter and sugar in large bowl until light and fluffy. Mix in egg yolks and vanilla. Stir in flour mixture. Divide dough into 4 equal portions; flatten into disks. Wrap each disk in plastic and chill until firm, about 2 hours.

DO AHEAD
:
Can be made 2 days ahead. Keep chilled. Let soften slightly at room temperature, if necessary, before rolling out.