Goldy's Kitchen Cookbook (25 page)

The first time I tasted true Scottish shortbread, I fell in love with it. I tried numerous different ways of making this buttery, crumbly cookie that satisfied my picky taste-testers, and this one was their favorite. The key with this recipe is beating the dry ingredients into the wet ones only until they are combined, and handling the dough as little as possible. If you cannot find rice flour, all-purpose flour works fine.

1.
Preheat the oven to 350˚F. Have two 8-inch round cake pans at the ready.

2.
In a large bowl, with an electric mixer, beat the butter until it is very creamy. Add the powdered sugar and beat well, about 5 minutes. Beat in the vanilla. Sift the flours with the baking powder and salt, then add them to the butter mixture, beating only until well combined.

3.
With floured fingers, gently pat the dough into the ungreased pans. Using the floured tines of a fork, score (i.e., make superficial cuts into but not through) the shortbreads so that they are marked in eight equal wedges. Press the tines around the edges of each shortbread to resemble fluting, and prick the shortbread with a decorative design, if desired.

4.
Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, or until the edge of the shortbread is just beginning to brown. Allow to cool for 10 minutes in the pan on a rack. While the shortbread is still warm, gently cut through the marked-off wedges. Using a pointed metal spatula or pie server, carefully lever out the shortbread wedges and allow them to cool completely on a rack.

Makes 16 wedge-shaped cookies

I had tried to make the chocolate cookies that you roll in powdered sugar so that after baking, they come out looking like a resort with various crooked ski runs . . . but nothing ever tasted chocolatey enough. Thanks to Marty O'Leary and the staff at Sur La Table in Sarasota, Florida, I found the perfect answer: adding chocolate extract to the batter. Voilà! This is the cookie I took out on the road for
The Whole Enchilada.

1.
In the top of a double boiler, over simmering water, melt the chocolate and butter. When the mixture is just melted, set aside to cool.

2.
In a large bowl, with an electric mixer, beat the eggs until well combined. Add the brown sugar and beat until very well combined.

3.
Sift together the flour, cocoa, baking powder, salt, and baking soda.

4.
When the chocolate mixture is no more than lukewarm, stir it into the egg mixture. Using a wooden spoon, gently stir in the extracts and the flour mixture.

5.
Cover the bowl tightly with plastic wrap and chill overnight. (The dough must be very well chilled.)

6.
When you are ready to bake the cookies, preheat the oven to 350˚F. Line 2 baking sheets with silicone baking mats.

7.
Place the powdered sugar in a large bowl. Remove the bowl of dough from the refrigerator. Using a 1-tablespoon scoop, measure out a dozen level scoops of chilled dough. (Put the plastic wrap back over the bowl of dough and return to the refrigerator, to keep the rest well chilled. As the dough warms up, it becomes too sticky to work with.)

8.
Roll the first dozen scoops into balls, then drop them one at a time into the bowl of sugar, rolling them around until they are white. Place the cookies in even rows on the first baking sheet, 2 inches apart. Bake for about 10 minutes, or until the “cracks” in the dough no longer appear wet. Watch carefully, as you do not want the cookies to overbake and dry out. Remove the sheet from the oven.

9.
Let the cookies set up for 5 minutes on the baking sheet. Carefully transfer the cookies to racks to cool completely.

10.
Remove the bowl of dough from the refrigerator and repeat with the other baking sheet. Repeat this process until all the dough is used up.

11.
These cookies can be messy to eat, because of the powdered sugar. Serve them on plates.

Makes 3½ to 4 dozen cookies

I had a lot of fun testing this recipe on young relatives, who were equally divided over using ice cream or buttercream frosting as a filling. (One queried, “If I say I like both, does that mean I get more cookies?”)

1.
Preheat the oven to 350˚F. Line 2 baking sheets with silicone baking mats.

2.
In a large heavy-bottomed saucepan, melt the butter over low heat. Add the brown sugar and increase the heat to medium. Using a wooden spoon, stir until the mixture bubbles, 3 to 5 minutes. Remove from the heat, pour into a heatproof bowl, and set aside to cool while you prepare the rest of the ingredients.

3.
In a large bowl, stir together the cocoa, oats, flour, baking powder, and salt until well combined.

4.
In another bowl, beat together the egg and vanilla. Stir into the oat mixture until well combined. Add the cooled butter-sugar mixture and stir well.

5.
Using a 1-tablespoon scoop, measure out the dough and place the cookies at least 2 inches apart on the baking sheets (they spread and you need all the cookies to be a uniform size).

6.
Bake the cookies, one sheet at a time, for 10 to 12 minutes, or until the cookies are completely cooked. Allow to cool on the sheets for 5 minutes. Then, using a wide, nonstick spatula, carefully transfer the cookies to cooling racks. Allow to cool completely.

7.
When you are ready to serve, spread 2 tablespoons of buttercream on the flat side of one cookie, then top with the flat side of a second cookie. Serve immediately.

Makes about 12 sandwich cookies

8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature

2 cups powdered sugar, sifted

Heavy (whipping) cream or milk, preferably whole

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

In a large bowl, with an electric mixer, beat the butter on medium speed until it is very creamy. Slowly add the powdered sugar, ¼ cup at a time, beating each time until the sugar is completely blended into the butter. If the frosting begins to get too stiff, add a tablespoon of cream or milk. Beat in the vanilla, and if the frosting is still too stiff, add another tablespoon of cream or milk. You want the frosting to be fairly stiff so the sandwich cookies stay together. Cover and refrigerate any unused frosting.

It was a great day for yours truly when a Godiva store opened in the Cherry Creek Mall in Denver. I loved going there to buy bittersweet chocolate, although Lindt and other premium brands like Valrhona also work well. For this recipe, I wanted to try adding oats to a chocolate chip cookie. My sister Lucy was remodeling her house at that point, and I needed to test the recipe at sea level. Lucy invited me to Baltimore to do my testing, so off I went. Lucy's construction workers were eager taste-testers, although they kept saying they just needed me to make
one more batch
to tell if the recipe was right.

1.
In a nonstick skillet, toast the almonds over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, until they have
just
begun to turn brown and give off a nutty aroma, 5 to 10 minutes. Turn out onto a plate to cool.

2.
In a large bowl, combine the cherries, chocolate chips, and oats and set aside.

3.
Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt and set aside.

4.
In a large bowl, with an electric mixer, beat the butter until creamy. Add the sugars and beat until light and fluffy, about 4 minutes. Add the eggs and vanilla. Beat the mixture until well combined, about 1 minute. Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture and beat at low speed until well combined, less than a minute. Add the chocolate chips, cherries, nuts, oats,
and chopped chocolate. Using a sturdy wooden spoon, mix well by hand, until all the ingredients are thoroughly incorporated.

5.
Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight. When you are ready to make the cookies, let the dough come to room temperature.

6.
Preheat the oven to 350˚F. Butter 2 baking sheets or line them with silicone baking mats.

7.
Using a 1-tablespoon scoop, measure out dough and place the cookies 2 inches apart on the baking sheets (about a dozen per sheet). Bake each sheet, one at a time, for 12 to 14 minutes, or until the cookies have set and are slightly flattened and light brown. Cool the cookies on the sheets for 2 minutes, then transfer to racks to cool completely.

Makes 6 dozen cookies

I worked on this recipe to see if using cream cheese in a chocolate cookie would give it a bit of tartness. It did. Once again, the flavor is enhanced by allowing the dough to chill overnight in the refrigerator.

1.
Preheat the oven to 325˚F.

2.
Spread the hazelnuts on an ungreased baking sheet and roast for 7 to 12 minutes, or until they are lightly browned. Set aside to cool. (Turn off the oven, as you will not be making the cookies until the next day.) Once the nuts are cool, chop them.

3.
In a large bowl, combine the chocolate chips, cranberries, and cooled nuts and set aside.

4.
In the top of a double boiler, over simmering water, melt the chocolate.

5.
In a large bowl, beat together the butter, sugar, cream cheese, and egg until very creamy and smooth. Beat in the melted chocolate, milk, and vanilla. Sift together the flour, cocoa, baking powder, and salt. Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture. Blend in the marshmallow crème, stirring until thoroughly combined. Add the chips, cranberries, and nuts. Stir until well mixed. The dough will be thick.

6.
Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight. When you are ready to make the cookies, let the dough come to room temperature.

7.
Preheat the oven to 325˚F. Butter 2 baking sheets or line them with silicone baking mats.

8.
Using a ¼-cup measure or a 4-tablespoon ice-cream scoop, place the dough 2 inches apart on baking sheets, placing no more than 6 cookies per sheet. Bake, 1 sheet at a time, for 13 to 17 minutes, or until puffed and cooked through. Cool on the sheet for 1 minute, then transfer to racks to cool completely.

Makes 2 dozen cookies