shortbread

Mixed Berries Sorbet with Vanilla Shortbread Cookies

07.06.2011 52 Comments

When I called my mother yesterday I had a burning question to ask her. As soon as we started talking, I completely forgot. I was outside on the deck and heard a plane over my head. Felt a cool breeze through the pecan tree and just sat there. It took me back to our chalet in the Alps on a hot summer day. Gliders brushing the mountain sides, kids biking furiously to the pool. I got pensive. Mostly I had a smile on my face.

I got quiet for a little while and she asked if I was getting sad as we talked about summers, the cousins growing up, their travel plans, etc… I mumbled "I’m fine! I am testing the mixed berries sorbet I just made!" She asked if I could focus on the conversation to which I replied "no can’t do. Do you still have your T-Fal sorbet maker?" I had remembered my, well at least to me, burning question.

Her turn to get quiet for a while "I have no idea. Why do you ask?". I knew I had piqued her curiosity. "No reason. Everytime I make sorbet I think about that darn sorbetiere and how much we’d crank it up in the summers. It was cool. It was special." It was special indeed. I’ll always remember the day my mother brought that sorbet make home. Homemade sorbet anytime we wanted? As kids it was like Christmas in July!

See, in France, desserts eaten at home during the week are not buttery flaky pastries bought at the corner bakery on the way home from work. Those are for Sundays. No, desserts often consist of a dairy product and a fruit. I grew up on homemade yogurt and fruit for dessert. Ice creams and sorbets were not only specials, they were a once a year kind of thing. They spelled Summer.

It was a special thing indeed to have sorbet or ice cream or pastries back home. I do the exact same thing here. The weekends and dinner with friends are meant for special treats. And for good reasons. Time on slower motion is something to be celebrated (I’m always on even when I’m off. Can’t help it). Time spent with friends is celebrated. The generosity of their sharing our table, their time and stories with us. I want to acknowledge that by making them something special.

Enter sorbets, ice cream, tarts, mousses, and all sorts of goodies I enjoy making. I enjoy seeing their shoulders drop and their pupils scintillate as they dig in the first bites. I enjoy that pause as the flavors wraps around their taste buds, the scents and aromas arousing their senses. I am at my happiest when I gather people I love and respect around food. I know that’d make my grandmother smile.

There were so many luscious berry baskets at the farmers market this past week that I got a lot of everything. Blueberries, blackberries (twice), strawberries (again), raspberries (always). Stone fruits and rhubarb also ended up in our basket but that’s for another get together later this week. It’s summer! The house is open to anyone with a good story and a smile.

This sorbet is my go-to recipe as I can change the fruit according to the season and always get the same delicious result. Tart and sweet flavors. You can really taste them all separately and together with every bite. Paired with a simple vanilla shortbread cookies and you have one of our favorite summer treats.

Now…I need to fly home and find that sorbetiere my mom bough when we were kids…!

Mixed Berries Sorbet, adapted from Richard Leach in Sweet Seasons:

Makes 4 cups

Ingredients:
3 cups fresh or frozen mixed berries of your choice
1 cup sugar
2 cups water
zest and juice of one lemon

Directions:
In a medium saucepan set over medium high heat, place the berries and the rest of the ingredients and bring to a quick boil. Reduce the heat to low and simmer 10 minutes. Remove from the heat and let cool completely. Puree until smooth in a blender or food processor and then strain through a fine mesh chinois (strainer). Process in your ice cream machine according to the manufacturer’s instructions.

Vanilla Shortbread Cookies:

Makes about twenty 2-inch round cookies.

Ingredients:
1 stick unsalted butter at room temperature
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 vanilla bean
2 egg yolks
1 cup millet flour
1/2 cup sweet rice flour
2 tablespoons to 1/4 cup milk (optional)

Directions:
In the bowl of stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, whip the butter and egg yolks together on medium speed until creamy looking. Split the vanilla bean in half and scrape the seeds with the back of a knife and add to the butter and sugar mixture. Mix for 10 seconds. Add the millet and sweet rice flour with the mixer still on low speed. If the mixture feels too crumbly add a little bit of milk to obtain a smooth but not too wet dough. Start with one tablespoon at a time.
Gather the dough into a bowl and refrigerate for about 2 hours.
When ready to bake, turn the oven to 350F and position a rack in the middle.
Roll the dough in between 2 sheets of parchment paper and roll to about 1/4 to 1/8-inch thick. Cut cookies out in the dough and place them on a parchment lined baing sheet. Bake for 10-12 minutes or until golden.
Serve with the sorbet.

Honey Yogurt Mousse With Raspberry Coulis & Shortbread Cookies

17.09.2010 62 Comments

Time flies. Let’s face it, the only time when it doesn’t is when we twirl our thumbs. And even then, I have seen people twirl they thumbs long enough to realize how time flew by – along with life – as they were doing so. The only thing I’ve twirled this week were my hair while sitting at the computer to edit pictures and lastly the spoon in my verrine of Honey Yogurt Mousse with Raspberry Coulis. And cookies! I have twirled a cookie around my little finger. My life is now complete…

Ok, you know that’s sarcasm. There is more to life than mousse and cookies… although…Simplicity has been the motus operandi lately around the house and will remain for a little while (more on that later) and as such, these fit the bill perfectly. I could not help but giggle as I was spooning the different layers in the glasses. I kept thinking of my niece Camille who looked at me with wide open eyes one morning I was twirling honey and yogurt for my cereals.

She’s at the age of food discoveries and adventures. Foods that look good touching, separated, stacked. Textures that play well together. Or not. Colors. Foods that fly on spoon to get into your belly. Those especially rock. And I was happy to oblige and fly that spoon for her. I’ll always treasure those moments alone just as much as those spent with her sister or with her sister alone. These two are just beautiful inside-out and I am proud of my brother for that. Awesome parenting.

The little things that are second nature to an adult like mixing honey and yogurt mean a great deal to her right now. Other food related questions were pretty entertaining too. How do you make the air bubble up in a mousse? Why do you turn your spoon in your cup as you eat? Our morning rituals were about the essentials of food. Came four o’clock and we were into Disney Princesses and their lack of fashion sense. Go figure.

All these moments came rushing back in my head as I was making these and taking great care in separating the layers of yogurt mousse and raspberry sauce. Why? No idea since it would all turn into a giant swirly twirly mess once we’d start digging. It reminded me of the day Camille spent 15 minutes separating her steak from her tabouleh salad only to mix it all up in the end. It’s food. It’s fun. And if you don’t mind eating cold, play along.

When I say we have to do simple these days, I am not exaggerating. I don’t usually talk a whole lot about work here (that’s what the "tear sheet" section of my portfolio is here for – needs an update too) but the next few weeks, months, will be trying my energy to come here to post. Right before leaving for France I signed a contract with Gibbs Smith Publisher to do the photography and styling for Holly Herrick's new book on Tarts. Holly is wrapping up the writing and I have started the photography as we speak (Fall/winter 2011 release). I am completely psyched about it!

It’s Holly’s third book as an author, my second as photographer & stylist and our first together. With a blog titled Tartelette, I also think it was kismet…

It is as rewarding as it sounds. It’s a lot of hard work too. I am doing the shopping, cooking, styling, photographing, post processing, etc… Holly is an accomplished recipe writer (and food stylist – team work!) so I do work with the assurance that the recipes will work. I just take extra steps since we only have one shot to tell you a thousand thoughts. So yes, there is necessary tweezer action in pulling that piece of tomato forward to even out colors or tucking that slice of peach sticking out like a cowlick on a baby’s head.

Some of you have emailed wondering about another book. I can tell you that Carrie’s book that I styled and photographed, Deliciously Organic will be released in November. I just got the chance to look at the final manuscript and I got such a strong pinch in my heart. I am so honored to have participated in Carrie’s vision and message and at the same time worked with such a professional team. And the food…ah the food! It will knock your socks off!

Just thinking about the pile of work ahead makes me reach for one of those yogurt mousses. Soft, creamy, tangy from the raspberry and with that soft touch of honey through and through. Exactly what the doctor should prescribe on a Friday night. Make mine a double!! The cookie is a necessary icing on the cake so to speak. Trust me. Makes it even better…

Honey Yogurt Mousse With Raspberry Coulis:

Makes 4 to 6

Notes: the gelatin amount used in the mousse is small enough to help stabilize the whipped cream and prevent the liquids from separating but is not enough to gel it completely so the texture remains soft and silky.
You can use 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour instead of the rice, millet and potato flour used in the gluten free shortbread recipe.

For the coulis:
2 cups (500gr) fresh or frozen raspberries
a few springs of lemon thyme (or lemon verbena, lemon balm, mint, lavender, etc…)
1/4 cup honey

For the mousse:
1 teaspoon powdered gelatin
2 tablespoons water
1 cup (250ml) Greek yogurt
1/4 cup (60gr) honey (I use a lavender honey from the Hautes Alpes)
1 cup (250ml) heavy whipping cream

For the shortbread cookies:
1 stick (115 gr) unsalted butter, at room temperature
3/4 cup (95 gr) powdered sugar (unsifted)
1 large egg yolk
1/2 cup superfine white rice flour
1/2 cup millet flour
1/2 potato flour
(or replace the rice, millet and potato flour with 1 1/2 cups all purpose)
2 tablespoons milk
pinch of salt

Prepare the raspberry coulis:
Place the raspberries, lemon thyme and honey into a heavy saucepan. Cook on medium heat until the raspberries start to break down, about 10 minutes. Remove from the heat, let cool and discard the lemon thyme if using. Set aside until ready to layer with the mousse.

Prepare the mousse:
In a small bowl, sprinkle the gelatin over the water and set aside.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the yogurt and honey. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, whip the cream to medium stiff peaks. Set aside.
Heat the gelatin in the microwave for 12 seconds or melt on top of a double boiler. Working quickly, pour the melted gelatin over the yogurt and whisk thoroughly. Gently fold in the whipped cream until everything is blended.

To assemble: layer about 1/4 to 1/3 cup of mousse and 2-3 tablespoons coulis in glasses and repeat the layers one more time. Serve with shortbread cookies if desired.

Prepare the shortbread cookies:
In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, whip the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy on medium speed, 2-3 minutes. Add the egg and mix until combined. Add the flours, milk and salt and mix briefly to incorporate. Dump the whole mixture onto a lightly floured board and gather the dough into a smooth ball. Do not work the dough while in the mixer or it will toughen up. Flatten the dough into a disk, wrap it in plastic wrap and refrigerate for an hour.
Preheat the oven to 350F and position a rack in the middle. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Set aside.
When the dough is nice and cold, roll it out on a lightly floured board or in between sheets of plastic wrap to about 1/4 – inch thick. Cut out rounds with a pastry ring or cookie cutter of your preferred size. Place them on the prepared baking sheet and bake for 10-12 minutes. Let cool.

Bananas Foster Tartelettes & A Giveaway

17.10.2009 288 Comments

I like to think I am fairly organized. I mean, there is logic to whatever battle is taking place on my desk. Or in my head. Like most of us, I get pretty psyched about being a step ahead and I was darn happy for having posts in drafts right before I left for BlogHer food in San Francisco. David says he has 40 stories or so in drafts at all times. I giggle when I have one ahead of the game. I am however excited when “the” one is these Bananas Foster Tartelettes. Things got busy then and things got busier this week but these were too good to wait any longer to post.

Whenever I travel, I try to leave a few easy things for B. to reheat for dinner knowing too well he’d end up eating at his parents or be invited here and there. He tends to skip meals when there is no one to call him to the table. I know he can boil water for pasta. I’ve seen it. I even happen to know he can make awesome steamed clams.

This time was no different as I labeled containers of food and even took him on a guided tour of the fridge and pantry. It’s just not his thing. I was tempted to post-it the entire house but refrained. However, as previously mentioned, his eyes got stuck on all the desserts left on top shelf from my zealous attempt at getting prepared. This is his thing.

After describing what the tarts were made of, he exclaimed “oh! Kind of like bananas foster without the fire flambéing action!” Precisely. We tend to have a surplus of bananas in the house, and after making banana donuts last month, I still had plenty to use up, hence the tarts (and a few loaves of banana nut bread).

The tarts start with a crispy shortbread base and are filled with a hazelnut and almond frangipane before being topped with fresh banana slices and a (generous) drizzle of salted butter caramel sauce. I am all over banana and nuts and I am all over salted butter anything, so the combination was pretty much a no brainer. However, it all came together out of the necessity to use all the tidbits ingredients in the fridge, pantry and freezer.

I had leftover shortbread dough in the freezer from a previous tart making day as well as a jar of salted butter caramel sauce, a handful each almonds and hazelnuts in the pantry, a knob of butter and a tiny bit of cream in the fridge. And of course a good many banana giving me the sweet eye.

As I have said before, I hate waste. Having worked in a restaurant kitchen for many year, I pretty much nailed down the recycling issue. If you don’t recycle, re-use or force yourself to use items bought on a whim, you are likely to drive your place to the pits. I have the same mentality when it comes to the kitchen. Being on a tight budget, I can’t allow us to waste, even less impulse buy certain items. Everything these days is budgeted, accounted for and used to the max. More than ever before I am aware of what I have. Time, the ability to cook, develop recipes, a wonderful mother- in -law who unexpectedly drops by with supplies, etc…

Some of us are not that lucky. I do my best but some can’t. In that spirit, I really like what Macy is doing in their campaign Come Together to fight hunger to raise awareness and money to feed 10 million of people suffering from hunger, and they will match donation dollar for dollar.
When Macy’s got in touch to spread the word last week, I immediately agreed. There are 3 different ways you can get involved in this great campaign:

1) You can host dinner parties and ask that instead of bringing traditional host gifts, guests make a donation to Feeding America.

2) You can donate $1 directly at any Macy’s register, one dollar provides dinner for seven.

3) You can shop at any Macy’s and get special savings in-store on October 17 (today). A portion of the $5 in-store ticket sales will benefit Feeding America.

Macy’s also provided me with two $25 gift certificates to give to my readers. All you have to do is leave a comment (multiple entry will automatically be deleted) before Tuesday october 20th midnight eastern time, for a chance to win. My better half will select the winners at random from the comments left on this post. Even if Macy’s does not ship internationally nor has stores outside the US, everyone can enter. You can always use the gift certificate to do your Christmas shopping for friends or family here and continue to spread some good spirit.

Good luck!

Bananas Foster Tartelettes:

Serves 8

Sable Dough:
1 stick (113 gr) butter, at room temperature
3/4 cup (95 gr) powdered sugar (unsifted)
1 large egg
1 1 /2 cups (190gr) all purpose flour
2 tablespoons (20 gr) cornstarch
pinch of salt

For the almond-hazelnut frangipane filling:
1 stick (115 gr) butter, softened
½ cup (100 gr) granulated sugar
½ cup (50 gr) ground almonds
½ cup (50gr) ground hazelnuts
seeds from half a vanilla bean or 2 teaspoons vanilla paste or extract
2 eggs
1/4 cup (60gr) heavy cream

Remaining ingredients:
3-4 bananas, thinly sliced
Salted butter Caramel sauce
Vanilla Ice Cream

Prepare the shortbread rounds:
In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, whip the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy on medium speed, 2-3 minutes. Add the egg and mix until combined. Add the flour, cornstarch and salt and mix briefly to incorporate. Dump the whole mixture onto a lightly floured board and gather the dough into a smooth ball. Do not work the dough while in the mixer or it will toughen up. Flatten the dough into a disk, wrap it in plastic wrap and refrigerate for an hour.
You will need half the amount of dough to make the tartelettes. The other half can be kept in the fridge for up to 5 days or frozen, well wrapped for up to 3 months.
Preheat the oven to 350F and position a rack in the middle. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Set aside.
When the dough is nice and cold, roll it out on a lightly floured board or in between sheets of plastic wrap to about ¼ -inch thick. Cut out eight 3-inch rounds with a pastry ring or cookie cutter. Place them on the prepared baking sheet and bake for 8-10 minutes. Let cool.

Prepare the filling:
Place the butter, sugar, ground nuts, vanilla bean seeds and the eggs in a large bowl and whisk until smooth (can also be done in a food processor). Add the cream but stir in it instead of whisking to prevent emulsifying it or it will rise while baking. Refrigerate for 30 minutes. Place 8 baked rounds of dough in 8 pastry rings of the same dimension, divide the cream evenly among the rings and bake 20 minutes at 350F. Let cool. Once cooled, remove the tarts from the rings and arrange the banana slices decoratively on top, drizzle the caramel sauce on top. Serve with vanilla ice cream if desired.

Rosemary And Apricot Shortbread Cookies

05.05.2009 77 Comments

Tada! No strawberries! I can do this. A completely strawberry free post right in the middle of the season. Didn’t hurt either. Ok, maybe a little but the pain was eased by the handful of blakberries gathered today in the yard and having a batch of these Rosemary and Apricot Shortbread Cookies while working through various deadlines. Crumbly shortbread specked with freshly chopped rosemary and filled with homemade apricot jam. Sigh…there is only one left.

I realized that unless I am nicely bribed by friends to make cookies, I don’t usually make or post many on this site, except for macarons but they are in a league of their own. I guess cookies are not in my DNA, I am more a tea cakes, and tarts kind of gal. Bill on the other hand has the reputation among his family and friends to be The Cookie Monster. I guess this was his lucky weekend.

A few weeks ago I was asked to post links back to Better Home and Gardens and specifically to their Spring Dessert and cookie recipes, as did my pal Jen who posted the most lucious lemon cake I have seen in a while. Like her, I did not feel comfortble blindly posting about something I was not familiar with and decided the best way to approach this would be to try one of their recipes myself.

I like BH&G and I did get the chance to read quite many of their magazines while living with my in-laws when we were building our house. Fifteen months can be long without having a real place of your own and I did enjoy day dreaming while reading about their house renovations and decorations. But I admit that I never quite paid attention to the recipe section. No particular reason other than having a pretty big database of my own and many recipes still to get to on my to do list. Until now…

There were so many pop-ups ads that I almost stopped browsing the recipe section after I had found one that I liked. But for the sake of doing this right, I persevered and finally settled on these cookies. Except I had a senior moment while shopping for ingredients and it’s not even my birthday yet! I meant to make the Apricot Sage Cookies but my brain got stuck on rosemary instead. I think it worked out for the better because neither Bill or I are great fans of sage in sweet things. Rosemary, thyme, lemon basil…oh yes!

The cookie recipe is very straightforward and it has just the right amount of herb to play with the buttery flavor of the shortbread. I used homemade apricot and vanilla bean jam that I had in the freezer but any good quality jam will do. I got to tell you though, they are addicting! We had friends over the day I made them and I almost wished I had baked a double batch! To add sweet insult to dessert injury, I served these with homemade goat cheese ice cream and that, as Shuna will agree, was just the right combination.

One year ago: Lemon Rhubarb Mascarpone Mousse Cake.
Two years ago: Vanilla Cardamom Ice Cream.

Rosemary Apricot Shortbread Cookies, from and with permission of Better Homes and Gardens

Notes: I baked these at 350F in a convection oven instead of 375F and I used a smaller cookie cutter which yielded 25 cookies once assembled.

Makes 20

1-3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/3 cup sugar
1/4 cup yellow cornmeal
1/2 cup butter
2 Tbsp. snipped fresh rosemary or 2 tsp. dried rosemary
3 Tbsp. milk
Apricot spreadable fruit

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. In a bowl stir together flour, sugar, and cornmeal. Using pastry blender, cut in butter until mixture resembles fine crumbs. Stir in sage. Add milk. Stir with fork to combine; form into ball. Knead until smooth; divide in half.
On lightly floured surface, roll half the dough at a time to 1/4-inch thickness. Using 2-inch round cookie cutter, cut out dough.
Place cutouts 1 inch apart on ungreased cookie sheet. Bake about 10 minutes or until edges are firm and bottoms are very lightly browned. Transfer cookies to wire rack. Cool.
Spread bottoms of half the cookies with spreadable fruit. Top with remaining cookies. Makes 20 sandwich cookies.
To store: Place in layers separated by waxed paper in an airtight container; cover. Store at room temperature up to 3 days. Or freeze unfilled cookies up to 3 months. Thaw cookies; fill with spreadable fruit.

Strawberry Vanilla Ice Cream & Strawberry Thyme Shortbreads

24.02.2009 105 Comments

We have a winner! Beside the winning combination of Strawberry Ice Cream and Strawberry Thyme Shortbreads Cookies, I am happy to announce that Maryann from Finding La Dolce Vita is the winner of The Baker’s Odyssey! Congrats Maryann! Shoot me an email with your address and the book is on it way!

I realized last evening when someone called to hire B’s band at the last minute for today that it was Mardi Gras! Ah! As a kid it was one of my favorite celebration in the year because I’d get to dress up and I loved to play dress up…ask my mother. I think I just about drove her crazy most years but she knew how much I loved becoming someone completely different even for just a day. So "Bon Mardis Gras" to anybody celebrating!

This past weekend I had the opportunity to play dress up. A different kind though. I played the adult, hardcore. I held the hand of a person in pain and massaged her back. I read her stories and cooked dinner. I did someone else’s laundry and folded someone else’s socks and underwear. For a weekend, I was mother, sister, friend and everything in between. I was the cold cloth girl, the cook, the story teller. We spent the weekend with friends who needed us for one last round of chemo aftermath. Hear that…last one…Hooray! Go life!!

M. was not up to much fun but she was a trooper and when she saw me unpack the groceries for the weekend, she got that little twinkle in her eyes. "Did you bring dessert? I wonder if I’ll have enough of an appetite for it…". Yes, I had brought dessert, a freshly made batch of strawberry and vanilla bean ice cream and planned to bake some cookies at their house. Yes, one more strawberry post but when they are this fresh and this gorgeous in their shiny red coat, I can’t help it…I am weak. What better combination than fresh vanilla, cream and strawberry?

I know how much they like a good cookie with their ice cream and I had planned to make shortbread cookies but the idea was still in progress in my head though. Sometimes, if you leave me too think to long, it ends up in a little frenzy. This time however, everything came together in a very fun way, blending and talking, chopping and talking.

I just did not want they plain and that is when I decided to dry some strawberry slices and add them to the dough along with some fresh chopped thyme. Yep, thyme. If rosemary and plums can be so good together, why not thyme and strawberries? It was perfect with the tart bits of the strawberries and the crumbly, sweet dough and it was delicious with the ice cream. Makes me want to try them with some lemon thyme once I get my herbs growing again. Strawberry heaven….Now I think I am done for a while with them…or am I?

Strawberry Vanilla Ice Cream Recipe:

Kitchen Notes: I made one batch with all the juices and the ice cream turned a very pretty pink but there were virtually no swirl left after trying to get the perfect scoop for a photo op!
I made another batch where I just used diced strawberries thrown in the vanilla ice cream base. Plenty of vanilla color to go around this time! (used in the pics here)

4 egg yolks
1/2 cup (100gr) + 2 tablespoons (25gr) sugar
2 cups half and half
1 vanilla bean, split open
1 cup strawberries, hulled and quartered

In a large bowl, whisk the egg yolks and one cup of sugar until pale and thick. In a saucepan set over medium heat, bring the half and half and vanilla bean to a simmer, without letting it come to a full boil. Slowly pour the hot cream over the egg yolks mixture while whisking to temper the egg yolks. Pour the whole mixture back into the saucepan and cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until the cream coats the back of spoon. It should register 170F on a candy thermometer. At this point you have made a custard sauce, also known as "creme anglaise". Let cool completely, strain and refrigerate until cold.
While the custard cool, prepare the strawberries. Place the quartered strawberries and the remaining measurement of sugar into a small heavy saucepan over medium heat and cook just long enough for the strawberries to soften and to release some juice. Remove from the heat and let cool. Once both the fruit and the custard are cold, process the custard first according to your ice cream maker manufacturer’s instructions and toward the end of the churning period, throw in the strawberries.

Dried Strawberries and Thyme Shortbread Cookies Recipe:

Makes about 2 dozen cookies, depending on the size of your cutters.

1 cup strawberries, hulled and thinly sliced
1 stick butter (113gr) butter at room temperature
1/4 cup (50gr) sugar
2 egg yolks
1 1/2 cups (188gr) all purpose flour
2 teaspoons fresh chopped thyme
pinch of salt
1/2 tablespoon of milk

Preheat your oven to 250F.
Place the strawberry slices in one single layer on a parchment paper line baking sheet and let them dry in the oven for about one hour. Let them cool completely. Chop the dried slices in small pieces and set aside.
Turn the oven to 350F.
In a stand mixer, beat together the butter and sugar until pale and creamy. Add the egg yolks, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add the flour, thyme, dried strawberries, pinch of salt and the milk and beat until the ingredients are just started to come together. Stop the mixer and finish mixing the dough with yout hands on a work surface. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 30 minutes. On a lightly floured surface roll out the dough to about 1/4 inch thick. Cut out cookies with your desired cookie cutter and place them on a parchment lined baking sheet. Refrigerate for 30 minutes before baking the cookies for 8-10 minutes or until just golden brown around the edges.

Prize Winning Shortbread Cookies – A Giveaway

11.07.2008 485 Comments

Before you think that this "book thing" is knocking me silly on zee head that I should post "just" about shortbread cookies, I want to tell you about the little gadget that makes cookies a lot more fun….and your chance to WIN IT !!!

One of my little pleasures is to read French blogs, for the recipes as much as keeping in touch with food trends there and more importantly what is the cool slang to use these days. One late (late) night I was reading away I stumbled on a post (can’t remember where, sorry) about this ubber cool toy: the Brigitte-Keks, to imprint on Petit Beurre like cookies.

Allright I have lost you…all that French, English and German in one. Petit Beurre are the simplest most traditional all butter cookie you will find in France. The Brigitte -Keks is one smart cutter that not only will cut to almost the exact shape as a Petit Beurre but will also imprint words like these: WIN ME !!

So there I was….wishing away I could get my hands on one of those. A couple of days later, I was reading Autour De Ma Table where Cathy was organizing a group order to the manufacturer since they are not everywhere. Light Bulb! Call mom, put my name in the order and ask mom to write up the check in the proper Euro amount and tell her I will pay her back 10 times over in kisses, that was a joke because the gadget is really not expensive. Then it just dawned on me that one of you guys might also want to have fun with one of these, so I called mom again and she was happy to help as it meant that I shall pay her back 20 times over now!

You can imprint anything and everything, you can be silly or serious, creative or to the point. We have been having fun playing with it the other day, leaving love notes, to do lists, grocery lists…Imagine that, walking down the store aisles, munching away on your grocery list. I also added "Happy Anniversary" cookies to the loot as B. and I are celebrating 10 years together today! Woohoo! The cutter and imprint are a breeze to use after you separate the little letters apart from their grid. Maybe I should have done so with butter free hands, eh?!! So long story short…

I have one extra – brand spanking – new Brigitte-Keks cookie cutter/imprint for one lucky reader. All you have to do to take this little toy home is to leave a comment between today Friday July 11th and Sunday July 13th (and why not tell me about your favorite cookie while you are at it). You can enter from anywhere in the world, and I will ship anywhere. No rules, just a couple of requests:
– please, please, please, even if you register your comment under anonymous, leave me an initial, a pseudonym, an X…anything. It’s nicer to announce if you win!
– try not to enter twice, it makes it easier for the random drawing
– Mom: you can’t enter the drawing, I’ll make you some cookies with your name on it.

Before I forget, I have tried many versions of Petits Beurre recipes but none that came close to the original so I am giving you my next favorite cookie recipe for Shortbread Cookies. They are not like the Irish shortbread cookies you might purchase at the grocery store, but more like "sables" from Brittany. Use orage flower water for a Provencal twist!

1 1/3 cup all purpose flour
1 stick butter, at room temperature
1/4 cup sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp baking powder

In a stand mixer or with hand held electric mixers beat together the butter and sugar until pale and creamy. Add the egg yolk and beat until well incorporated. Add the vanilla extract, flour, baking powder and salt and mix until the dough just starts to come together and form a ball. Stop the mixer and gather the dough with your hands. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for a least 2 hours. Flour your work area lightly and start rolling.

To roll dough easily (works with pretty much all pastry dough) : start from the center and roll away from you, then close to you, repeat, lift the dough, flour your area, rotate the dough 1/4 turn and repeat the rolling process. Make sure to sprinkle the flour you work with, not dump it on. A little goes a long way. I usually sprinkle about one teaspoon and brush it away with my fingertips and repeat as a go along. If you try to roll the dough flat in the minimum of moves possible and you keep rolling away, you will warm up the butter too much and the dough will stick and you’ll get mad and you’ll swear off making dough forever…..

So I hope this helps because your homework when the book comes out is to make dough….! Ok, that’s not true but there will be some dough to get rolled!

Anyways…Once your dough is rolled to about 1/2 inch thick, and cut squares or rectangles with a sharp knife or other shapes with the cookie cutter that you like. Transfer to a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and bake at 350 for 10 minutes. Let cool on wire rack.