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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.



    SPICED CARROT AND ORANGE CAKE



      Had some friends coming over last week for tea and that’s enough reason for you to whip up something so decadent and delicious. Made Spiced Orange and Carrot Walnut Cake with zesty cream cheese frosting... I make this often as carrot cake is a family favorite. Its zesty fluffy dreamy cream cheese frosting pairs just right to cut through the sweetness of carrot cake.


      It certainly is a crowd pleaser dessert which goes so well whether you serve it for tea or as a dessert...it’s super delicious!! I topped it up with basil shoot and leaves which are blooming beautifully in my garden.


      The cake plate I used is a mystery...I must admit, I bought it few years back, but somehow I wasn’t very convinced with my purchase and it was hiding behind in my crockery cupboard, pulled it out and thought of using it the other day...and to my surprise it just looked an absolute stunner. So so happy that I chose this to present my cake...what do you say??

      SERVES: 16-20 servings

      PREP TIME: 20 minutes

      BAKING TIME: 30 minutes



      INGREDIENTS

      • 175g unsalted butter, room temperature

      • 1 cup soft brown sugar, firmly packed

      • 3 eggs

      • 1 naval orange, zested and juiced (1/3 cup)

      • 2 medium carrots, washed peeled and grated

      • 2 cups self-raising flour

      • 1/2 tsp baking soda

      • 1/2 tsp baking powder

      • 1/2 tsp salt

      • 1/2 tsp cinnamon powder

      • 1/4 tsp nutmeg, freshly grated

      • 1 cup walnuts, chopped

      Cream Cheese Frosting:

      • 4 oz/125g cream cheese (full fat), room temperature

      • 95g butter salted, room temperature

      • 1/2 cup icing sugar

      • 1/2 tsp vanilla essence

      • Zest of 1 orange

      For Garnish:

      • 6-8 Dehydrated orange circles

      • 6-8 walnut halves

      • 5-6 Fresh basil leaves



      MET

      1. Preheat oven to 180°C, grease and prepare the 9” ring pan with butter.

      2. In an electric mixer bowl, beat butter, sugar and zest together with paddle attachment until it’s light and creamy in texture, add eggs one at a time and beat them for 2 minutes.

      3. Add orange juice and mix for another minute, don’t worry if the mixture curdles.

      4. Remove bowl from machine.In a separate bowl, sift together flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon powder and nutmeg; now add these dry ingredients to the butter mixture in two batches and fold with spatula to combine well and make lump-free batter.

      5. Fold carrots and walnuts in batter until well combined, and take care not to over mix it.

      6. Pour the batter in greased and prepared pan, bake it in pre-heated oven for 25-30 minutes or until the the skewer comes out clean. Leave it in pan for 10 minutes, remove on cooling rack to cool cpmpletely.

      To Make Frosting:

      1. In an electric mixer bowl, whisk the cream cheese for a minute till it’s smooth and creamy; add butter and whisk for 2-3 minutes until the butter and cream cheese are smooth and fluffy in texture.

      2. Add sugar, vanilla and zest, blend for another 1-2 minutes until well combined and has thick spreadable consistency.

      3. Spread the frosting on the cooled cake and decorate with extra chopped walnuts, dried orange slices and basil leaves.

      4. Let it set in the fridge for 20-30 minutes and serve.


      COOK'S NOTES:

      • Remove the cake out of the mould or baking pan after leaving it to cool for 10 minutes in the pan. If you remove immediately, it will break and if you leave it too long in pan, the cake will sweat and will have a soggy crust.

      • The cake should be completely cooled before frosting it.


      GLUTEN-FREE SPICED SWEET POTATO AND CANDIED GINGER COOKIES



        Who doesn’t like to indulge in cookies? These are Gluten-free Spiced Sweet potato cookies, it’s a winter weather healthy sweet treat, that benefits your body and brain as a whole, and are just perfect as a grab and go breakfast. It's also an adequate nutritional lunch box snack.


        Classical versions of cookies would mostly be made with refined flour and I tried replacing it with oats flour and gluten-free flour. Removing the gluten from cookie makes it slightly guilt free, though I used butter in the recipe

        YIELDS: 20-24 pieces

        PREP TIME: 20 minutes

        BAKING TIME: 18 minutes

        TOTAL TIME: 38 minutes



        INGREDIENTS

        • 1 medium sweet potato kumara, peeled and chopped (it should be 1 cup quantity of cooked and mashed potatoes)

        • 185g butter, room temperature

        • 200g or 1 cup soft light brown sugar

        • 1 egg

        • Zest of 1 orange

        • 180g gluten-free flour

        • 100g oats flour

        • 1/4 tsp salt

        • 1 tsp baking powder

        • 1 tsp cinnamon powder

        • 1/2 tsp nutmeg, freshly grated

        • 1/4 cup candied ginger, chopped

        • 50g macadamia nuts, roughly chopped

        • 50g dark chocolate buttons (I used Hershey’s semi-sweet)



        METHOD

        1. Preheat the oven at 180°C. Grease and line the baking sheet/tray with baking paper. Set aside.

        2. Steam the chopped potatoes in a double boiler, for 10-12 minutes, until soft and cooked. Remove from boiler and spread on a plate and let them cool completely. Once cooled, place them on paper towel and let the excess moisture absorb on it. Mash them to a smooth purée.

        3. Beat butter and sugar together until pale and creamy, add egg and zest and beat for a minute. Stir in the mashed potatoes until well combined.

        4. Sift together the flours, baking powder, cinnamon powder, nutmeg and salt. Tip in the chopped macadamia nuts and ginger, then gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet and combine well.

        5. Drop tablespoon full of the mixture on to the prepared baking tray keeping a distance of at least 2 inch in each cookie dollop. Press lightly and bake them for 15-18 minutes or until golden. Cool completely on wire rack.

        6. Put chocolate in a heatproof bowl, melt chocolate in a double boiler over a pan of barely simmering water. Pour it in a piping bag and drizzle over cooled cookies. Set aside for 30 minutes to set.


        COOK'S NOTES:

        • You can always use store bought pumpkin purée. It’s generally quiet soft as the water content is more, soak that extra moisture on the absorbent paper or kitchen paper roll and use it as written in recipe.

        • Preserve the cookies in airtight box for up to 2 weeks.


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