Christmas cookies are artistic creations. They are prettier, tastier and more inviting for your family and guests than cookies at any other time of the year.
As home cooks pull out family recipes, they take time to create different shapes and decorate them with frosting or candied sprinkles, or nuts, dried fruit or jams. It's the time of year when you use those recipes with more expensive ingredients, including plenty of nuts and dried fruits or frosted or filled cookies.
I'm watching my ingredients a little more closely now. I used to use margarine and butter interchangeably in some of my cookie recipes. But since margarines became trans-fat-free, the cookies made with margarine seemed to bake differently. Maybe it's because of more water or a different type of oil in the margarine than had been the case.
When using certain margarines, my cookies were sometimes flatter and softer. I began using half butter and half margarine. Sometimes there's even a recipe that calls for shortening, which has also been reformulated to be trans-fat-free now.
According to Becky Wahlund, director of Land O'Lakes test kitchens and consumer affairs, there are three categories of butter and margarine:
-- Butter is all dairy, with 80 percent fat from cream.
-- Margarine, as stated on the package, is 80 percent fat. The source of the fat is not designated so it could be a combination of butter and vegetable oil. (That's where the trans-fat-free change ties in.)
-- Spreads, many of which we knew as margarines, have less than 80 percent fat.
When fat is taken out of the margarine, water is added. Some spreads are in stick form. "Consumers assume that in the stick form, the margarine will have the same properties as butter and margarine when making cookies," said Wahlund in a phone interview.
"Some stick products are labeled spreads," she said. "The package lists what percentage is fat. Some are as low as 60 or 50 percent."
When you use a spread that is that low in fat, the dough is softer and stickier, the cookie's texture will be cakier and it will get stale faster. "There will be a difference from a cookie made with butter," said Wahlund.
If you use half butter and half margarine, it will be closer to using all butter with 80 percent fat from cream.
"During the holidays, when you only bake these recipes once a year, I would use butter," she said.
Trans fats, which are formed when vegetable oil is hydrogenated, does affect the texture of cookies. When the trans fats are removed, typically the end product is softer, she says.
Margarine with trans fats is firmer; margarine that is trans-fat-free is softer. "So the cookie dough (made with trans-fat-free margarine) is stickier," she said. "You end up with a softer dough."
To get the best Christmas cookies, "I'm looking for a rich butter flavor," said Wahlund. "Shortening is neutral in flavor."
When making spritz cookies, the Scandinavian cookie formed into a variety of fanciful shapes when the dough is forced through a cookie press, use only butter for the best texture, she advises. "Slightly soften the butter, but don't over-soften. Leave it on the counter 20 minutes or take a rolling pin and beat it. Julia Child did that," she said. "Make the cookies immediately. Don't put spritz dough in the refrigerator or it gets too hard."
Dough for sugar cookies or rolled cookies, on the other hand, requires refrigeration. This cookie requires a rather firm dough that is rolled into an even layer and then cut with a variety of cookie cutters.
"Take the dough in half or quarter portions and flatten each into a disc," said Wahlund. Then wrap each disc and refrigerate. When you do to roll it, it's already flattened out. It's easier to roll and to cut out the shapes."
Drop cookies and bar cookies are the easiest. A recent trend has some bakers cutting bar cookies with cookie cutters to make unique shapes.
Other tips:
-- Use the best-quality ingredients including butter.
-- Read the recipe first and have everything you need -- both equipment and ingredients.
-- If the dough is soft, refrigerate to firm. Cookies won't spread as much when the dough is firm.
Flour power
"Fat brings tenderness, flavor and browning to baking," said Andi Bidwell, senior food editor of Betty Crocker Kitchens. "You need the structure of solid fat to give height and structure in a cookie."
All-purpose bleached or unbleached flour is recommended. "All-purpose with 10 percent protein is ideal for cookies," said Ann Stuart, senior test-kitchen expert for Betty Crocker Kitchens. General Mills includes Betty Crocker Kitchens and Gold Medal brand.
When making cutout cookies, lightly flour the board. She uses a rolling pin with a stocking and cloth. "The flour is absorbed so it doesn't toughen the dough," she said. "Too much flour toughens the dough."
They also note that baking sheets can affect the cookies. They recommend aluminum baking sheets without sides. If you use darker pans, reduce the oven temperature by 25 degrees. Dark pans absorb more heat.
According to "The Betty Crocker Cookie Book," cookies made with shortening are more cakelike and softer and are more crumbly and dry.
PISTACHIO ICEBOX COOKIES
3/4 cup unsalted pistachio nuts
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup 67 percent vegetable oil butter-flavored spread at room temperature
1/4 cup canola oil
1 cup granulated sugar
2 egg yolks
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Cook's note: Keep a roll of these in the freezer. They slice best when frozen. Do not defrost dough.
Place nuts in food processor and process until finely chopped, but not ground. Set aside.
Combine flour, baking soda and salt in a medium bowl and whisk to mix well. Set aside.
Combine butter-flavored spread and oil in a large bowl and beat at medium speed until mixture is smooth. Gradually beat in sugar, beating until mixture is fluffy. Beat in egg yolks one at a time. Beat in the vanilla. Add flour mixture and pistachios and beat at low speed until a stiff dough forms.
Divide dough into 4 portions. Place each portion on a sheet of waxed paper and shape into a 6-inch log 1 inch in diameter. Wrap in plastic wrap and freeze 4 hours or up to 3 months. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside. Slice each log into 24 1/4-inch slices. Place on prepared baking sheets 1 inch apart; bake until edges are lightly browned, 10 to 12 minutes. Cool cookies on baking sheets on wire racks for 2 minutes. Remove from baking sheets and cool completely on wire racks. The cookies can be covered in an airtight container and stored at room temperature for up to 3 days.
Yield: 48 servings of two 1-inch cookies (Exchanges: 1/2 carbohydrate and 1 fat)
-- "The Big Book of Diabetic Desserts" by Jackie Mills
SEA SALTED COFFEE TOFFEE BARS
For the first layer:
1 cup butter, softened
1 cup dark brown sugar, firmly packed
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups all-purpose flour
1-1/2 tablespoons instant coffee crystals
For the second layer:
1 14-ounce can sweetened condensed milk
2 tablespoons butter
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract or dark rum
1-1/2 cups whole pecans
1/2 to 1 tablespoon large crystal sea salt
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a mixing bowl, beat together butter, brown sugar and salt until light and fluffy. Add flour, 1 cup at a time, stirring between additions. Add instant coffee crystals and blend until well incorporated. Put batter into ungreased 9-by-13-by-2-inch baking pan in an even layer. Bake until edges are lightly browned and center is puffy, 12 to 15 minutes.
Meanwhile, in a heavy saucepan, stir in condensed milk and 2 tablespoons butter over low heat until butter melts. The mixture will thicken and become smooth. Stir in vanilla or rum, remove from heat, and let sit until bottom layer is done baking. Sprinkle nuts over baked bottom layer and pour hot condensed-milk mixture evenly over nuts, using a spatula to spread. Return to oven and bake until top is golden and bubbling 10 to 12 minutes.
Immediately sprinkle desired sea salt over bubbling toffee top. Cool slightly in pan and cut into bars. Bars can be kept up to one week in an airtight container.
Yield: 18 bars
-- America's Dairy Farmers
BROWN BUTTER SANDWICH COOKIES WITH ROSEMARY CARAMEL
1 batch sugar-cookie dough
1/2 cup butter
4 sprigs fresh rosemary
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup corn syrup
1 cup sweetened condensed milk
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Pre-heat 350-degree oven. Roll out dough and cut into small (2-inch) scallop rounds. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes on parchment-lined cookie sheet. Cool.
Make rosemary caramel: melt butter over low heat in a heavy saucepan. Place sprigs of rosemary between two sheets of waxed paper and pound until flattened. Place sprigs in butter and cook over low heat 10 minutes. Remove sprigs from butter. Add remaining ingredients; mix well. Increase heat to medium-high and bring mixture to a boil, stirring frequently. Reduce heat to medium and continue boiling, stirring frequently, until caramel reaches 242 degrees (use candy thermometer); remove from heat.
Spread rosemary caramel on a cookie and top with another. Store at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 1 week.
Yield: 3 dozen cookies
-- America's Dairy Farmers
SPRITZ
1 cup butter or margarine, softened
1/2 cup sugar
1 egg
2-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon almond extract or vanilla
Few drops of food color, if desired
Heat oven to 400 degrees. In large bowl, beat butter, sugar and egg with electric mixer on medium speed, or mix with spoon. Stir in remaining ingredients. Place dough in cookie press. On ungreased cookie sheet, form desired shapes.
Bake 5 to 8 minutes or until set but not brown. Immediately remove from cookie sheet to wire rack. Cool completely, about 30 minutes.
Yield: 5 dozen cookies
-- "Betty Crocker Christmas Cookbook"
KEY LIME COCONUT MACAROONS
1 can sweetened condensed milk
1/3 cup freshly squeezed Key lime juice
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
2-2/3 cups sweetened shredded coconut
1 tablespoon grated Key lime zest
1/2 cup melted chocolate
In a large bowl, combine sweetened condensed milk and lime juice, whisking until thoroughly blended. With a wooden spoon, stir in flour, mixing until thoroughly blended. Stir in coconut and zest.
Drop dough by tablespoonfuls about 1 inch apart on prepared cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake in preheated 350-degree oven 20 to 25 minutes until golden around edges. Cool for 15 minutes on sheet, then transfer to a rack and cool completely.
Drizzle melted chocolate over top of cookies for an attractive finish.
Yield: 2-1/2 dozen cookies
-- "Cookies: More Than 200 Recipes," by Jill Snider
(Kathie Smith is The Toledo Blade's food editor. Contact her at food(at)theblade.com.)
(Distributed by Scripps Howard News Service, www.scrippsnews.com.)
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