Spritz Cookies
makes about 3 dozen bite sized cookies
1 C flour
1/2 C corn starch
1/2 C powdered sugar
1/2 t salt
3/4 C unsalted butter, softened
1 t vanilla
Whisk or sift together the flour, corn starch, sugar and salt.
In a mixing bowl, cream the butter and vanilla until light and fluffy. Add the flour mixture until blended.
Fill a cookie press and form cookies in an ungreased cookie sheet. Add sprinkles or decorative sugar if desired.
Bake cookies at 350 degrees for 10 - 12 minutes. Cookies should just be golden on the bottom.
Cool cookies on wire rack.
enjoy!
- - marcella
Cranberry Shortbread Cake
Adapted from Baking From My Home to Yours by Dorie Greenspan
For the Jam Filling:
1 12-ounce bag cranberries
1 C sugar
1 C water
For the Cake:
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 t salt
1 stick plus 5 tablespoons (13 tablespoons) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup plus 2 teaspoons sugar
1 large egg plus 1 large egg yolk
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
To Make the Jam Filling:
Put the cranberries in the pan, stir in the sugar and water; set the pan over medium heat and bring to a boil, stirring frequently. Cook, stirring almost constantly, until the cranberries pop and your spoon leaves tracks, about 5 minutes. Cool to room temperature.
To Make the Cake:
Whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt.
In a mixer, beat the butter on medium speed until soft and smooth. Add 1 cup of sugar and continue to beat until it dissolves into the butter. Reduce the mixer speed to low and add the egg, egg yolk and vanilla, beating until they too are absorbed. Add the flour mixture, mixing only until it is incorporated, or finish mixing in the flour by hand using a sturdy spatula.
Divide the dough in half and pat each half into a disk. Wrap the disks in plastic and refrigerate them for 15 to 30 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly butter a 9-inch spring form pan.
Work with one piece of dough at a time. For the bottom layer, roll out the dough slightly larger than the pan between two pieces of plastic wrap and lay it in the pan. It should cover the pan and about 1" up the side. Spread the cranberry filling over the dough.
Unwrap the second piece of dough and roll it until it is just the diameter of the pan. Carefully lift the dough and invert it on the filling. Roll the bottom dough over the top crust to seal. Brush the top of the cake very lightly with water and sprinkle with the remaining 2 teaspoons of sugar.
Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, or until the top of the cake is lightly golden. Transfer the pan to a cooling rack and cool for about 20 minutes, then run a blunt knife around the cake, remove the sides of the pan and let cool to room temperature.
printable version - cranberry_shortbread.pdf
- - marcella
