Fedtebrød - Danish Coconut Shortbread

Fedtebrød - Danish Coconut Shortbread.

These coconut shortbreads are one of the easiest cookies to make. But it doesn’t mean that they lack flavor or delicacy. They have a short snap, and almost melts in your mouth. The icing is originally with rum (I used rum extract for more flavor), but you can use lemon juice and lemon zest for a more bright flavor.

Makes about 40.

Ingredients:

• 200 g all-purpose flour

• 200 g butter, salted and room temperature

• 100 g shredded coconut, unsweetened

• 100 g sugar

• ¾ teaspoon bakers ammonia (hjortetaksalt)

Icing:

• 150 g confectionary sugar (powdered sugar)

• 1-2 tablespoons rum (or a few drops rum extract)

• Egg white, pasteurized

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 400℉ (200℃).

In a stand mixer, mix all the ingredients together, don’t overwork the dough, you just want it to come together.

Divide the dough into 6 even parts, and roll each part into thumb size logs. Place 3 logs on a parchment paper lined baking sheet, using the palm og your hand pat the dough flat, so it will be about 1.5-inch (4 cm) wide.

Bake for 10-12 minutes until they are light golden. While the cookies are baking make the icing, placing a damp towel over the bowl, to prevent the icing from drying.

Transfer the warm baked cookies to a cutting board, and ice the cookies, in one thick line in the middle of the cookie. With a sharp knife cut the cookie on diagonally, about 1-inch (2½ cm) wide. Let the cookies cool completely before storing in an airtight container.

Enjoy!

Mrs. Hobbs's Italian Rosemary Cookies

Italian Rosemary Cookies

These cookies are to die for!!!

How my friend and the whole world kept this recipe away from me, for so many years, it’s beyond my understanding.

If you only are baking one cookie this year, make it this one!

Makes 60-70.

Ingredients:

• 250 g butter, salted and room temperature

• 400 g sugar

• 2 eggs

• 30 g raw pistachios, finely chopped

• 10 g (3 tablespoons) fresh rosemary leaves, finely chopped

• 450 g all-purpose flour

• ½ teaspoon salt

• 3 teaspoons baking powder

• 1 orange, the zest

Directions:

Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add 1 egg at a time, making sure it’s fully incorporated, before adding the next. Mix in orange zest, rosemary, and pistachios. Sift flour, salt and baking powder and incorporate it in the dough.

Divide the dough into 3 pieces. Roll each part into a log (2 inch in diameter), wrap in Glad wrap, shape the log into a square, by pressing the log onto the kitchen counter. Refrigerate overnight. Try to make a smooth surface to get an even look on the finished cookies. Well, the dough were very soft, so I didn’t get the smooth surface on my logs. 🙃

Cut the logs into thin cookies and put them on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Spacing about 1-inch apart. Bake until golden around the edges, about 5-7 minutes at 350°F. Cool cookies on the pan on wire racks. Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 weeks.

Enjoy!

Dansk Version:

Italienske Rosmarinsmåkager

Ingredienser:

• 250 g smør, saltet og stuetemperatur

• 400 g sukker

• 2 æg

• 30 g usaltede pistacienødder, finthakket

• 10 g (3 spsk) frisk rosmarin, finthakket

• 450 g hvedemel

• ½ tsk salt

• 3 tsk bagepulver

• 1 appelsin, skallen af

Fremgangsmåde:

Pisk sukker og smør hvidt, let og luftigt,. Tilsæt et æg af gangen, så det bliver mikset godt ind inden det næste æg tilsættes. Bland rosmarin, appelsinskal, salt og pistacienødder i. Sigt mel og bagepulveret ned i dejen, og rør det i.

Del dejen i 3 dele, og rul hver del til en stang med ca 5 cm diameter. Kom film (vita Wrap) omkring hver stang, og pres rullerne firkantet, ved at presse stængerne ned mod køkkenbordet. Prøv at gøre overfladen så glat som muligt. Læg nu dejstængerne i køleskabet natten over.

Når du er klar til at bage, opvarm ovnen til 175℃. Skær stængerne i tynde skiver og læg dem på en bageplade med bagepapir, med ca 2-3 cm afstand.

Bag småkagerne indtil de er gyldne i kanterne, ca 5-7 minutter. Afkøl småkagerne på bagepapiret på en bagerist. Opbevar småkagerne i en lufttæt beholder.

Enjoy!

Peppermint Candy Cane Cookies

Peppermint Candy Cane Cookies

December 11.

This is the classic milk and cookies dressed up for christmas.

The peppermint cookies are nice and minty, but still crispy and delicate like real candy canes.

Makes 36 candy cane cookies.

Cooking time: 13-15 minutes.

Temperature: 325℉ (165℃)

Prep. time: 40 minutes

Ingredients:

• 160 g all-purpose flour
• 113 g (1 stick) butter, salted and room temperature
• 75 g sugar + more for springle
• 30 g confectionary sugar /powdered sugar
•  egg yolk
• 1 teaspoon peppermint extract
• ¼ teaspoon vanilla bean paste
• red food coloring, I used 2 pea sized drop red gel food color

Directions:

Cream the butter with both sugars until pale and fluffy. Add the egg yolk, mix well. Add vanilla and peppermint extract. Slowly add the flour and mix until just combined.

Divide the dough into two, add the food coloring to one part, and mix until fully incorporated. Form each half into squares, and let them rest, wrapped in plastic wrap, in the refrigerator for 2 hours.

Preheat the oven to 325℉ (165℃), and line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.

Roll each dough to a 9x9 inch (23x23 cm) square, and stack them on top of each other. Roll to seal them together. Cut the dough down the center and refrigerate both until firm about 15 minutes.Take out one halves and start cutting short strips that are about ¼ inch (¾ cm) thick. Gently twist the strip to lengthen it a bit and even out the edges. Roll the strips in granulated sugar and put them on the baking sheet in the shape of a candy cane. If your kitchen is warm you need to work fast or only take out a quarter of the dough, so the dough won't be to soft.

Bake the cakes for 13-15 minutes until just slightly brown round the edges. Let the cookies cool for about 5 minutes on the baking sheet, before transferring to a wire rack. 

Store in a separate airtight container at room temperature.

Enjoy!

Christmas cookies 2013 a recap

December 10th.

Last year I made some of my family favorite christmas cookies, and I want to revisit them with this recap.

Vanilla wreaths aka valillekranse a crisp, sweet and buttery cookie with a lot of real vanilla.

Almond specier aka Håkonskager s sweet cookie with almond paste.

Chocolate biscotti, spicy chocolate cookie. 

Danish gingerbread cookies aka brunkager. A perfectly crisp cookie containing nuts.

Jødekager, Jewish Cookies

Jødekager, Jewish Cookies

December 7th.

Jødekager, aka Jewish cookies, is another classic Danish christmas cookie. It might seem weird that jødekager is a christmas cookie, but this type of cookies you would find at the jewish bakers in the 1700's in Denmark. 

Jødekager has always been a family favorite, and I can't see that changing.

Makes about 60 cookies

Ingredients:

• 325 g all-purpose flour
• 250 g butter
• 175 g sugar
• 2 egg yolks

Topping:

• 1 egg white
• 3 tablespoons sugar
• 1 tablespoon cinnamon 
• 30-40 blanched almonds

Directions:

Mix flour and butter. I use a pastry cutter to incorporate the butter in the flour mixture. Mix until the butter/flour mixture resembles wet sand. Mix in sugar and egg yolks. Be careful not to overwork the dough. 

Let the dough cool for 30-45 minutes before rolling it out on a floured surface. It needs to be about 0.1-0.2-inch (3-5 mm) thick. Cut out the cookies with a 2-inch cookie cutter, and place them on a parchment lined baking sheet. Brusk each cookie with egg white, and sprinkle with a mixture of sugar and cinnamon. Place a half almond on top.

Bake the cakes for 5-7 minuters until the edges gets light golden in color.

Cool the cookies on a wire rack and store them in an airtight container at room temperature.

Enjoy!