Thursday, December 22, 2011

The baking has finally begun here at chez Wood.  Tonight, I made the dough for pfeffernuse (cookies that contain real black pepper, spicy and delicious), Pk made pizzelles and together we made some lace cookies. 


I hear all of you knitterly type individuals saying, "Lace cookies?  Pray tell, what is that?"

Well, I'll tell you.  These are lace cookies.  They are one of Peter Kevin's favorite cookies.   The bakery makes them and they are horribly expensive but so addictively delicious.

We've tried to make them before but never had much success.  This recipe came out of Bon Apetit magazine and it works!



And the only way to make them better is to sandwich two of them together with chocolate.  These are so good.  And they were easy!  Who knew ?

We are taking half a day tomorrow and the baking will continue.  I have to bake the pfeffernuse and make some butter horns and then the sugar cookies.  Elanor is going to make some jam thumbprint cookies and that will be enough.

Saturday, I'll make the torte and the babka and we'll decorate the cookies (I'll post photos of the zombie moose or whatever Peter Kevin comes up with this year). 

There are still a few presents to wrap but it won't take me very  long to take care of them.  Hard to believe tomorrow is Christmas Adam already.  I wore my hat today and while I enjoy the smiles I get when I wear it, I have to leave it on all day because it gives me the most ferocious case of hat head. 

Our weather continues to be odd.  It was almost 60 degrees today (and it was freezing over the weekend).  No wonder the poor trees are confused.  At least it gives me time to work on my mittens.

Lots to do but plenty of time left.  I don't seem to have the energy for marathon sessions of anything this year so I'm taking everything in small increments.  And it's working for me.

Here's the recipe for Lace cookies in case you're interested

Lace Cookies

It's hard to say how many this will yield.  It all depends on how big you make the cookies
Oven at 350 F

½ cup almonds (plain with the skins on)
2 Tablespoons rolled oats
6 Tablespoons sugar
2 Tablespoons brown sugar
1 ½ tablespoons honey
1 Tablespoon flour
½ tsp salt
6 Tablespoons butter

In food processor, grind almonds and oats together until they’re the consistency of coarse meal
Melt the butter and stir in the sugars and honey. Stir until dissolved
Turn off the heat and add the other ingredients.
Place scant ¼ tsp of batter on parchment covered cookie sheet.  Use your fingertips to make them round and flatten them just a bit. 
Bake until golden, about 8-10 mins.

Remove paper from pan and let cool on paper.
If desired, melt some semi sweet chocolate and sandwich cookies together.

(These spread a lot.  Use only the 1/4 tsp of batter for each cookie and give them plenty of room.  They're fragile and pretty when they cool.  I used melted chocolate chips in the middles)  If you use rice flour, I think these could be gluten free (oats don't have gluten do they?)

My first batch of these all melded together on the paper.   They will look impossibly tiny before they're baked.  Think of them as a piece of lace before you block it......

7 comments:

amy said...

Mmm, I used to love those lace cookies too! Standard oats are considered unsafe due to cross-contamination with wheat in growing and processing, but there are certified gluten free oats out there--I have a bag for the kids, although I don't know if they're rolled oats or not. But some people who react to gluten have issues with oats (& quinoa) too, because the protein is similar enough? I think? Anyway, I think both bother me so I stay away from oats too, although I do miss them dearly. More than I miss wheat, I think.

We'll be baking GF chocolate chip cookies tomorrow--I found a recipe that looks good--and at least one other kind of cookie, not sure what yet. I successfully converted my ricotta cookie recipe, so I think it might be that one, once I get more ricotta, since I need what I have for stuffed shells. :-)

Kaye said...

And they're magic too--because if you put chocolate on them they turn into Florentines. And if you are able to wrap them around the handle of a broomstick while they're still warm, they're Swedish broomstick cookies!
I'm bummed about this weather. I'd love a white Christmas!!! Mid 40s is not very wintery.

roxie said...

Doing things in small increments is the way to go. An inch at a time adds up before you know it!

Anonymous said...

hehe, blocking is so amazing that it even sorts out your baking. i can almost smell your house from here. its christmas eve here now, hope you have a great couple of days with your family xx

Rose Red said...

Wow, those lace biscuits look amazing! How cool!

Hope you have a wonderful Christmas.

Saren Johnson said...

Those look yummy!

Amy Lane said...

LOL-- LOVE baking traditions, even ones that aren't mine! And I know what you mean about energy. That's one of the lovely things about having grown children to help:-)

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