Crispy and aromatic, a great gift for the holidays
Recipe #59: almond shortbread

My mother's shortbread is always really good. For this past Thanksgiving, my mother and I decided to make another of them, to give to different friends. Shortbread is sold everywhere, whether in the supermarket or bakery, or from the Girl Scouts. They all taste pretty good, but they generally contain ingredients that maintain their freshness. In terms of textures, our homemade cookies are all-natural, freshly baked and full of buttery goodness, and have none of those ingredients. Each crispy bite holds the essence of almonds, which the shortbread sold in stores cannot compare to. No wonder everyone who has tasted it have told us that it was fabulous.

In reality, shortbread is easy to make, although the method is slightly difficult. As the dough is very, very sticky, it can be hard to knead into the desired shape. However, this is rewarded with the best shortbread you'll ever taste.

Ingredients

1. 2 sticks (1 c.) butter, at room temperature
2. 1 c. sugar
3. 1 egg
4. 2 c. cake flour
5. 1/2 c. whole roasted almonds

Directions

1. Beat butter until soft.
2. Add sugar, and then flour and almonds. Mix well.
3. Cover the bottom of a small (about 8" x 11") baking pan with parchment.
4. Using your hands, push the dough evenly into the baking pan. You can use a rolling pin at the end if you want to.
5. Put in refrigerator for two hours.
6. Remove from refrigerator, and lift the entire mixture, including the parchment, to the table or board.
7. Using a knife, cut the dough into a rectangular pieces.
8. Put pieces in a larger baking pan, with at least 1 cm between each piece. Put in oven preheated at 350 F on the center level.
9. Bake for about 17 to 20 minutes.

Tips

1. When we make it for ourselves, we sometimes substitute 1/3 of the flour with whole wheat flour.
2. We also reduce the sugar to 1/2 c. Whole wheat has its own natural sweetness, so we don't need so much sugar.
3. The reason for putting the dough in the refrigerator is to let the butter re-solidify; otherwise, the dough will be stick and hard to cut.

A snack that will make you feel good all day...
Recipe #44: coffee cookies

Very few people could resist the temptation of the smell of coffee. Any cakes, bread or cookies that use coffee would smell (and taste) very good, so many people to use it as an ingredient.

Recently, studies have shown that frequently smelling coffee is good for the heart. One of our family friends had a heart surgery and was recommended not to drink coffee, but to smell the vapors. This supposedly makes the heart more active.

Our house is often filled with the aroma of coffee. We don't just brew it; my mother also uses it in many of her desserts.

Coffee cookies are among the aromatic desserts my mother makes. When she bakes them, the aroma passes through the doors, windows, flowers and trees, to the hood. Just one cookie will make you want a second, or even the entire plate.

Ingredients

1. 1 c. (2 sticks) butter, room temperature
2. 1 c. sugar
3. 1 Tbsp. rum
4. 1 1/2 - 2 Tbsp. instant coffee powder
5. 1/4 c. hot water
6. 2/3 c. cake flour
7. 1/4 tsp. baking powder
8. 1/2 c. almonds, sliced

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 F.
2. Dissolve coffee powder in hot water.
3. Mix cake flour with baking powder well, and sift.
4. Using a mixer, beat butter until it has a soft consistency.
5. Add sugar and continue beating.
6. Slowly add the coffee mixture.
7. Continue beating will adding rum.
8. Add flour mixture and sliced almond, and mix well gently with your hands until it becomes a soft dough. Let mixture rest for 15 minutes.
9. Removing a portion at once, roll it into a ball and press into the shape of a cookie.
10. Place on middle rack of oven and bake for about 20 minutes.

Tips

1. We substitute 1/3 of the cake flour with whole wheat flour. This is a healthier option that does not affect the texture.
2. You can change the amount of sugar to your liking.
3. You can add another 1/4 c. of sliced almonds if you like.

A fantastic experience

Recipe #6 chocolate Madeleine cookies

Mom loved chocolate as a kid. She ate mostly chocolate candies while rarely touching the other ones. As she was raising me, my mother would sometimes reward my good behavior with candies, which were all chocolates. Like her, I knew how to enjoy the smooth and rich texture, as well as the happy feelings. Chocolate is like a person's life; there is sweetness within bitterness, and bitterness within sweetness. It may be bitter at first, but the aftertaste would always be sweet.

Since both my mother and I like chocolate, we would often share some right after a meal, "rejuvenating" us for the afternoon. Of course, that's not enough. My mother knows how to make many recipes that use chocolate, and she'd never give up trying them. For desserts she enjoys, she would see how a chocolate version would taste.

Our last recipe covered madeleine cookies, which are delicious in their own right. But my mother thought, "How would chocolate madeleines taste?" Contrary to our expectations, all of my friends and classmates told us that they were in love with the flavor. One of them actually said, "Your mother is my favorite lady. She's just as sweet as the chocolate!"

Ingredients

1. 5 Tbsp. cake flour, sifted
2. 1 Tbsp. unsweetened cocoa powder
3. 2/3 tsp. baking powder
4. 1/4 cup butter
5. 1/2 cup chocklate chips
6. 1/4 cup sugar
7. 2 eggs
8. confectioners' sugar for decoration

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 F
2. Sift the flour, cocoa, baking powder and salt together. Set aside.
3. Beating eggs, one at a time in a bowl, add sugar and continue beating
4. Melt butter; while butter is warm, add egg mixture.
5. Stir in the dry ingredients, folding them in
6. After mixing well, tap mixture on table to release air
7. Place rounded teaspoon of batter into Madeleine molds
8. Bake for 12-15 minutes.
9. Remove from oven and immediately invert onto a wire rack to cool. Once cool, sprinkle with confectioners' sugar, if desired.

Tips

1. If you don't have chocolate chips, the semi-sweet variant will work.
2. This version tastes more like taste; you can use a mixer with the eggs with necessary.
3. If you use a non-stick mold, the cookies will right out the first few times. However, the non-stick property diminishes after some time, in which case you may want to spray some cooking oil first, followed by a thin layer of flour. Only then put in the batter.

The dessert of the kings

Vanilla madeleines

I was in choir during 12th grade. That was one of the highlights of my high school years and gave me fond memories. Due to my newfound love of choral music, I sometimes went back to attend the performances.

One such concert was grand, fervent and a very poignant experience. There was a reception afterwards with desserts and hot cider. The madeleines immediately caught my attention. I don't know whether it was their origin, name or shape that is romantic, but Mom and I each decided to try one. They turned out to be one of the best cookies I've ever had - neither the taste nor texture could be any better. Although I've tried other versions since then, none of them came close.

That inspired us to experiment with different recipes to try to recreate the taste. Mom shared her most recent batch with my graduate class, and much to our surprise, everyone asked us where we bought them. Upon learning they were homemade, several classmates requested the recipe. Although this recipe is more difficult than the others, you can get varying textures through different methods.

Ingredients

• 5 tbsp cake flour
• 1 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
• ⅔ tsp baking powder
• ¼ cups butter
• ½ cups chocolate chips
• ¼ cups sugar
• 2 eggs

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350° F.
2. Sift flour, cocoa, baking powder and salt together. Set aside.
3. Lightly beat eggs.
4. Heat butter until melted. Add sugar and stir.
5. Immediately add eggs to mixture.
6. Stir in dry ingredients, folding in mixture to prevent sticking together.
7. Pour batter into prepared madeleine pan - there should be enough for a dozen.
8. Tap pan to remove air.
9. Bake for 12-15 minutes.
10. Remove from oven and immediately invert onto wire rack to cool.

Tips

1. Our version more closely resembles cookies. This is why so many people wanted the recipe, although it's somewhat harder to make.
2. It may be easier to beat the eggs until they are fluffy before adding sugar. In this case, continue beating the mixture until it is pale before adding melted butter. However, the resulting texture will be between that of cookies and cake.
3. The reason for beating the eggs gently is to prevent air from getting in as air bubbles make the texture rough. These cookies take a lot of skill to prepare and are expensive for this reason. That said, everything gets easier with practice.
4. You can use other molds to create different shapes, such as the heart shown above.
5. Put the cookies in a box if you're giving them to someone. This makes them look very professional.