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CRANBERRY PISTACHIO SHORTBREAD COOKIES



    These super easy to make shortbread cookies are a burst of flavour and colour. A perfect contrast of green and red colour from cranberries and pistachios gives you the festive vibe and are also very inviting to munch with a cuppa.


    These light and buttery shortbreads give the right balance of sweetness and crunch from the fruit and nut used in the cookies. I try to keep a batch ready at the back of my freezer handy to make them for a lunch box snack at times.


    You can also add some dark chocolate chips to add to the crunch and sweetness.


    Make it during festive times and it can be a perfect little gift treat for Christmas, wrapped up in a bag and tagged with fancy ribbon.

    YIELDS: 25-30 cookies

    PREP TIME: 20 minutes

    BAKING TIME: 12-15 minutes

    PASSIVE TIME: 1 hour



    INGREDIENTS

    • 3 cups all purpose flour

    • 1 cup caster sugar

    • 1 1/4cup unsalted butter, cut into cubes

    • 1/2 tsp salt

    • 1/2 tsp almond extract

    • 1 tsp vanilla extract

    • 2 tsp baking powder

    • 1 egg, room temperature

    • 1/2 cup dried cranberries, coarsely chopped

    • 1/2 cup unsalted shelled pistachios, coarsely chopped



    METHOD

    1. In a stand mixer bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy and pale in colour. Add the extracts and egg, and blend for 2 minutes until the egg is well combined.

    2. In a large bowl, sift flour, salt and baking powder. Add cranberries and pistachios to dry mix.

    3. Drop 1/3 of the dry ingredients to the butter mix and blend for 2 minutes until combined.

    4. Add the remaining dry flour mix in two batches to the butter mixture and blend until it is well combined.

    5. Turn out the dough onto a floured surface. Knead lightly to make it smooth. Divide the dough in 2 batches. Shape one batch of the dough into a thick log, about 2 inch thick in diameter. Place the log on large sheet of cling film and wrap it tightly. Twist and knot the sides of the plastic wrap to secure from the ends. Freeze it for 1 hour.

    6. Repeat step 5 for the other batch.

    7. Preheat oven to 160°C fan-forced. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

    8. Remove the cookie dough out from the freezer, unwrap the cling film and cut the log into 1/4 inch thick discs. Place them on cookie sheet 1.5 inch apart and bake for 12-15 minutes until slightly golden brown around the edges.

    9. Transfer on to the cooling rack and cool completely before storing in an airtight jar.



    COOK'S NOTES:

    • These logs can be prepared days ahead and stored in freezer.

    • The wrapped dough logs will stay in freezer for up to 2-3 months. Discard the plastic and cut and bake as per the recipe.

    • If preserving the cookie dough in freezer for later use, make sure these logs are wrapped tightly in the plastic wraps to avoid freeze burning.

    • Baked cookies store well up to a week in an airtight jar.

    • Don't over bake the cookies else your shortbreads will be slightly hard.



    CAMEL MILK PISTACHIO CAKE



      A time for family gatherings and celebrations, November 18th commemorates the 369th anniversary of independence from Portugal.

      This day also represents the National Day since Qaboos bin Said al Said’s rise to the throne of the Sultanate, as well as his birthday. During this trifecta of a holiday, you’ll see the red, white, and green of Oman’s flag waving freely. These colors have come to represent the geography of Oman in green, the Imamate leaders of the past in white, and the Sultanate itself in red.

      Hence raised the toast in celebration of Sultanate’s big day by making a camel milk pistachio cake, keeping the colours of the Omani flag in mind. The cake was absolutely divine with a super soft texture, and drool-worthy, delicious cream cheese frosting.


      SERVES: 10-12 servings

      PREP TIME: 10 minutes

      BAKING TIME: 20 minutes



      INGREDIENTS

      • 1 cup unsalted pistachios, shelled

      • 1 1/3 cup all purpose flour

      • 1 cup granulated sugar

      • 1 1/4 tsp baking powder

      • 1/2 tsp baking soda

      • 3/4 tsp salt

      • 1/2 cup butter, room temperature

      • 3 egg whites, room temperature

      • 2 tbsp full cream labneh, room temperature

      • 1/4 cup full fat Laban (buttermilk), room temperature

      • 3/4 cup whole camel milk, room temperature

      • 1 1/4 tsp pure vanilla extract

      • 3/4 tsp almond extract

      • 1-2 drops of green food colouring (optional)

      For Cream Cheese Frosting:

      • 8 oz cream cheese (Philadelphia slab), room temperature

      • 185g butter, room temperature

      • 1 tsp vanilla extract

      • 1 1/4 cup confectioners sugar



      METHOD

      1. Grease and line two 8” round baking tins with parchment paper.

      2. Using pulse settings on your processor grind pistachios to a fine crumb. If you grind too much it will form into a pistachio spread. So be careful not to over blend.

      3. In a bowl, sift flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt, add ground pistachios reserving a tablespoon for garnishing later. Mix them well and keep aside.

      4. Cream the butter and sugar in a handheld or stand mixer until smooth and creamy, about 3 minutes. Add egg whites and whisk on high speed until combined, about 2 minutes. In a small bowl, using a hand whisk, whisk labneh and laban together to combine well. Add the laban mix, almond extract and vanilla extract to butter mix, and beat them together.

      5. Now add half milk and half of the dry ingredients to the bowl and give a quick blend until combined. Add the rest of milk and dry ingredients and give a quick blend again until just combined altogether.

      6. Pour the batter in the prepared pans and bake in a preheated oven at 180°C for 20 minutes or until the skewer comes out clean. Leave in pan for 10 minutes, take them out on wire rack to cool completely.

      7. For cream cheese frosting, in a stand mixer bowl, cream butter and vanilla extract, until pale and creamy approximately 2 mins; add cream cheese and blend until smooth and combined well with butter. Add confectioners sugar and beat to thick and fluffy consistency, about 2-3 minutes.

      8. Shave-off the bumps of the cakes to level them for layering, place one layer of cake on top of the cake stand or cake board, keeping the cut side up, add big dollops of cream cheese icing and level it with off-set knife, place the second layer of cake on top keeping cut side down and smooth side up. Spread the rest of icing on sides and top of the cake; decorate with reserved pistachio crumbs and fresh flowers if you wish.


      COOK'S NOTES:

      • Cow’s milk can be replaced in the recipe if you can get hold of the camel milk.

      • Please use full fat milk for the soft and spongy texture of the cake.


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