One recipe. Numerous sources of inspiration. 4 cookies.
Take a basic shortbread recipe, make some dough and share it into 4 parts. Then flavour each part differently….roll out and cut into shapes.
Bake in the oven and then….done….for 3 of them. The 4th still needs a bit of work- some caramel, chocolate and a sprinkling of salt flakes. Refrigerate and the end is nigh! Fantastic…..
Eat some, wrap some….gift away and enjoy the rest of your holidays…..Merry Christmas (again, in arrears).
Shortbread recipe
Ingredients
Makes about 40
Variations
Variation #1: Zest of 1 medium orange and 20g (hand-crushed) almond flakes Variation #2: 15g Cranberries (about 1 tablespoon) and 15g Macadamias (about 6 whole nuts). White chocolate’s missing,inspired by Diva of the Sugar Bar Variation #3: 10g Milk chocolate chips and 10g chopped pecansVariation #4: 25g Milk/Dark chocolate, melted and 2 tablespoons Dulche de Leche or homemade caramel curd; sea salt to garnish – I used Maldon Salt flakes but any nice sea salt would do.
How to
Preheat the oven to 160 deg Centigrade (325 deg Fahrenheit)
Prepare the baking tray/sheet
Grease and ‘flour’ (with the ground almonds) a baking tray/sheet.
Make and roll biscuit dough
Mix the butter and sugar in a bowl till soft; and then slowly add the flour, 100g at a time.
If the dough becomes too stiff to stir, gently knead in the rest of the flour with your hands. You don’t want to overwork the dough.
Form a ball and divide it into 4 parts.
Leave one part plain; add almond and orange mix to one part; chocolate chips and pecans to another and macadamias and cranberries to the fourth.
Place soft dough on floured surface and using floured rolling pin, roll out.
Cut/shape/roll as you will and place on the baking tray. I made regular shapes with cookie cutters, but I also made some snow balls, inspired by Jessica of Demetermade. Prick cookie tops with a fork.
Bake
For 10 – 12 minutes in the centre of the preheated oven until light brown in colour.
Remove from oven and let cool on a rack.
For the variations
Variation #1, 2 and 3 are ready.
Of these, I sprinkled some icing sugar over the snowballs before I wrapped them up! Ideally, you roll the snowballs in icing sugar twice. The 1st time is when they’re cool enough to handle, fresh out of the oven. This coats the cookies with a nice outer layer of sweetness. However, the sugar is absorbed and so the 2nd sprinkling of icing sugar is for aesthetics, giving the cookies a beautiful snowy white look.
For Variation #4
Using a teaspoon, put some caramel on each cookie and spread that over with a small spatula.
Then top with melted chocolate and layer that over caramel.
At this stage refrigerate for an hour or overnight so the chocolate can harden.
Then before serving, sprinkle some sea salt on the top of the cookies.
Of course…tasting and checking that it is worthy to be served up!
If gifting, wrap them up in transparent wrap,…
…or box up!
Also to be enjoyed with tea or coffee.
The next few days are fraught with excitement, especially in the Netherlands:
31st of December,2009 (and days before), loads of Olieballen will be eaten(#4 on the list of Top Dutch traditions). Hopefully, I should have my New Year’s resolutions all done….and shared…with YOU! Olieballen are almost the same as we make in Nigeria only we eat them all year round and they’re called Puff-puff! I’ll be making some for you!
1st of January, 2010 aka New Year’s day, Scheveningen beach will be packed out at noon and I’ll be there! Yes I’ll be at the beach…and not in a bikini unlike some others, about 10,000 others will be scantily clad, ready to take the ‘Nieuwjaar’s duik’ – The New Years dive, and all in sub-zero temperatures! Imagine that? They do get rewarded though with bright woolen hat and gloves from Unox. the sponsors as well as bowls of hot pea soup. What are some people like ?
Expect full reports!
So what festivities are happening in your neck of the woods?[wpurp-searchable-recipe]The Cookies of Christmas past – – – [/wpurp-searchable-recipe]
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[…] Last week, there was a blood orange, feta cheese and mint contest on food52. I can tell you that I made everything from blood orange ice-cream and gelee to a brioche…and even shortbread! […]
[…] The Cookies of Christmas past « » Muhammara…How do I love thee? December 29th, 2009 […]
I think this is brilliant and it makes me wonder why I’ve never thought of doing this? Yours are also super pretty! Happy New Year, Oz, and why not go for that dunk?
It seems that i’m not only reading the beautiful details of your post but also seeing your passions keep flowing over the foods and photos.
By the way, thanks for your kind words, blessed season to you too.
Thanks for showing all the endless variations that are possible with just one basic cookie recipe. It just reinforces that you just need to use your imagination to come up with something all your own. Beautiful cookies!
Such lovely, lovely bites of yummyness!
They all look so delicious and so very pretty.
In a way, I am grateful that I live where Christmas is during the hotter months of the year – it definitely helps to ward off cravings for such rich and wonderfully comforting food such as shortbread!
Look very festive and delicious!
They look soft and yummy. Mmmmm
I am definitely going for the cranberries and macadamia – looks fab!
Velva, Rebecca, Ash,Taga_Luto,Heavenly Housewife, Zurin – Thanks.
Kate…promise you’ll get the Puff Puff, at least virtually 🙂
Jessica @ Demeter Made – the snowballs were one of my faves….next to the salted choc caramel ones, so thanks!
Jennifer @ Unplanned Cooking – I won’t be swimming…. :-), I too am not close to getting the courage to freeze my butt off this New Year but on a happy note I will be posting photos of those who can, about 10,000 of them!. I have some photos from last year when we watched, see them here!
what a wonderful, fun and beautiful recipe for cookies…I love the variety u can have with it! m bookmarking !:)))
Lovely cookies — will you be posting pictures from your swim? They do that here in Minnesota too, just dig a hole in the ice, but I’m not brave enough to participate.
Looks like you had a fun Cookie Day! Thanks for the link, much appreciated!
Fantastic selection, and very versatile!
Hope you had a very happy christmas.
*kisses* HH
Hi, Merry Christmas and A Happy New Year! We love shortbread cookies. I love your pictures too=;) I like those cookies packaged in the spode mug.
These are all so great!!! I love shortbread! Especially in all sorts of flavors!
So I’ll be waiting for my puff-puff! These look wonderful, Oz. I love the variations you made on the basic theme of shortbread. I think my favorite would have to be the caramel and chocolate. YUM!
oh wow great recipe and lovely simple cookies love it
Shortbread cookies are divine. A good hot cup of coffee and few of these delicious cookies and all would be well. 🙂