Beth & Dot's Chocolate Drops

*My Mom (Dot) and I used to bake, bake, bake for an entire day each year. She'd drive in from LI the night before, with cookie sheets and recipes with ladies' names (Mrs. Brozac's Stollen). I'd supply the ingredients, from Atlantic Ave. We'd strategize our baking with as much detail as the Invasion of Normandy. One year I noticed that after baking stollen and all sorts of cookies, we had fantastic ingredients left on the table. I couldn't let them go to waste. Here's the result: A moist, fruit-filled cookie redolent of nuts and chocolate.

3 cups flour, sifted
4 Tbs unsweetened cocoa
3 1/2 cups nuts, ground fine (halzelnuts, almonds, pecans, are what I use)
1 1/4 cups white vanilla sugar
1 cup butter
1 1/2 tsp allspice, ground
1 tsp cinnamon, ground
2 Tbs high quality vanilla extract
3 Tbs dark rum, Goslings preferred
1 1/2 cups dried/glazed fruits, chopped into small dice (I use apricots, cherries, citron, raisins)
-white, raw or red sugar, for rolling cookies in

Sift together flour, cocoa, sugar, spices. Add vanilla, rum, butter. Blend with spoon until well combined.Add nuts. Mix well with HANDS - no mixer! Add fruit, mix well with hands again, making sure fruit and nuts are evenly distributed through cookie dough. Roll into small balls, 1 inch in diameter. Roll in white, raw, or red sugar -- green looks icky. Bake for 12 minutes at F350.

Beth Fleisher
Brooklyn

Homestyle Holiday Crunch Cookies

18 Tbsp (2 sticks + 2 Tbsp) butter
1 generous cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 extra large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 cups oatmeal (rolled, toasted oats)
1 cup toasted slivered almonds
1 cup toasted, coarsely chopped walnuts
1 1/2 cups chocolate chips
3/4 cup dried tart cherries
3/4 cup golden raisins
(You can change, substitute or leave out any of the fruits, nuts and chocolate. This particular combination, however, has enjoyed universal popularity with everyone I know, even those who claim to hate one or the other of these elements.)

Heat oven to 350°F. Put the nuts, fruits and chips in a bowl, toss with a tablespoon or two of the flour, and set aside. Place the butter in a saucepan, and melt it over low heat. Continue cooking it, watching carefully, until the liquid butter has turned a rich brown and gives off a nutty smell. If this “beurre noisette” burns, you must throw it away and begin over again, since it will give food an acrid and terrible flavor. Let the butter cool; beat in both sugars. Add eggs and vanilla; beat well. Combined flour, baking soda, and salt, whisk together, and blend into the butter/sugar/egg mixture. Add oats and fruit/nut/chocolate combo; mix thoroughly. It will be difficult to mix – you may need to use your hands, since there are almost more chunks of "stuff" than dough. Don’t worry about this too much in terms of baking, since the dough will rise a little around all of the “add-ins”. Drop dough by rounded tablespoonfuls onto ungreased parchment-lined cookie sheets, and pat down slightly (into a sort of patty rather than a ball). Bake 10 to 12 minutes or until light golden brown, reversing baking sheet position midway through. Longer baking gives a crunchier cookie; shorter baking provides crunchy edges and a somewhat chewier middle. Crunchy works well here, since the dried fruit provides the "chew" factor.

Cool 1 minute on cookie sheets; remove to wire rack. Cool completely. Store tightly covered.

Yield: between 6 and 8 dozen cookies

Cherry Crumb Cookies

Crust:
2 sticks of butter, softened
8 oz. cream cheese
2 cups flour

In a bowl, mix all crust ingredients well. By hand, spread dough out on a jelly roll pan.

Filling:
1 can cherry pie filling

Purée can of cherry pie filling in a blender. Spread out evenly over crust.

Topping:
2 sticks of butter, softened
3 cups flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 cup sugar
2 tsp. cinnamon

In a bowl, mix all topping ingredients well. Crumble over cherry pie filling. Bake at 350 degrees for 35-45 minutes until golden brown. When cooled, sprinkle with powdered sugar and cut into squares.

Butter Cookies
- Always a family favorite during the holidays! One batch makes enough for multiple parties or gifts for friends and co-workers.

1 lb. butter (softened)
1 cup granulated sugar
1 egg
1 tsp. vanilla extract
4.5 cups all-purpose flour
Colorful sugar sprinkles for decorating

Cream butter and sugar. Mix in vanilla and egg. Then mix in flour a little at a time. After fully mixed, Push dough through a cookie press, and press cookie shapes onto a baking sheet. Decorate with sugar sprinkles, then bake at 375 degrees for 10-12 minutes.

Cocktail Cookies

¾ c unsalted butter, room temp.
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
½ c granulated sugar, more for shaping
1 ½ c all-purpose flour
½ c shelled pistachios, chopped
¾ c finely crushed potato chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Cream butter, vanilla, and sugar with a mixer until light and fluffy, for about 3 minutes.

On low speed, add the flour, pistachios and potato chips and mix just until incorporated.

Place some sugar on a plate. Drop tablespoons of dough on the sugared plate and flatten the dough into ¼” thick rounds with a flat-bottom glass. If the glass sticks, sprinkle a little bit of sugar on top of the dough.

Arrange the cookies on parchment paper on a cookie sheet.

Bake the cookies until lightly golden, about 15 minutes.

Cool for 15 minutes and transfer to a wire rack.

Raspberry Chocolate Squares
2 1/2 Cups flour
1 C. sugar
3/4 C. pecans
2 sticks butter (room temperature but can
be right out of the refrigerator
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 jar 12 ounces seedless raspberry jam
1 and 2/3 Cups chocolate chips
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In the bowl of a food processor, combine flour, sugar, pecans, and butter. Process until well mixed. Add egg and process until batter is crumbly. Set aside about 1 1/2 cups of this mixture.
Lightly grease bottom of 9 x 13 Pyrex pan. Press remaining mixture onto bottom of pan. Spread jam over top of mixture. Sprinkle chips and remaining crumb mixture evenly over the jam, Bake 40 minutes or until lightly brown. Cool before cutting into squares.

Elisen Lebkuchen

2 ¼ c. sugar
4 eggs
Grated rind and juice of 1 lemon
1 ¼ t. nutmeg
1 t. cinnamon
½ t. ground cloves
½ t. almond extract
3 ½ c. almonds
2 oz. candied lemon peel
1 c. flour
½ t. baking powder

¼ lb. semisweet or bittersweet chocolate (best quality available)

Multicolored sprinkles

Preheat oven to 325⁰. Line 11” by 17” jelly roll pan with parchment paper and grease it, or grease it and line it with greased brown Kraft paper; an opened grocery bag is fine. The paper must extend beyond the edges of the pan.

With electric mixer, beat 1 ¼ c. sugar, eggs, lemon rind and juice for 10 minutes at medium speed.

In food processor, finely grind almonds with 1 c. sugar; add candied lemon peel, flour and baking powder. The mixture should be flourlike in texture. Work in batches if necessary.

To lemon-egg mixture add nutmeg, cinnamon, cloves, then add almond/lemon peel mixture, then almond extract. Mix well. The dough will be very sticky and soft. Pour dough into prepared pan, distributing it evenly with rubber spatula. Bake 40-45 minutes, or until dough does not stick to a toothpick poked in the center. Do not overbake. Remove from oven and allow to cool on rack for 5-10 minutes.

While still warm, frost with chocolate which has been melted in microwave or in double boiler over hot water. Alternately, you may (carefully) drop chocolate chips over the warm pan of cookies, using its heat to melt them. If you use this method it is important to be very gentle while spreading the melted chocolate, being careful not to tear the surface of the cookies. Decorate top with sprinkles and allow to set, but not to harden completely.

When chocolate is no longer soft, but before it has fully hardened, carefully lift out the paper with the cookie dough, placing it on a cutting surface. Using a pizza cutter or sharp knife, cut into 1 ½” or 2” squares. The cookies are rather sticky, and the knife may require rinsing off from time to time.

Allow chocolate to become firm. With spatula, remove cookies from parchment paper. Store in cool place.

Frosted Maple Cookies)

1 Cup firmly packed brown sugar
3/4 cup butter (room temp)
1 tsp maple extract
1/2 tsp vanilla
1 egg
1 1/2 Cup flour
1 tsp baking powder

Frosting:
2 cups powdered sugar
3 tbsp. milk
2 tbsp. butter (melted)
1 tsp maple extract

Whole pecansfor top of cookie

Cookie:
Heat oven to 350. In large bowl, combine brown sugar, butter, maple extract, vanilla and egg, blend well. Add baking soda to flour and blend well. Drop by teaspoonfuls, 2 inches apart onto cookie sheet. Bake 10-12 minutes. Let rest 1 minute before removing from cookie sheet.

Icing:
Combine all ingredients, except pecans. Spread over cooked cookie top and garnish with pecan half.

Molasses Cookies

2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons ground ginger
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
¼ teaspoon ground allspice
1 pinch cracked or coarsely ground black pepper
¾ cup unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup light brown sugar
½ cup molasses (not blackstrap)
1 large egg
½ cup sugar, for rolling
Whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt, ginger, cinnamon, allspice and pepper.

Beat the butter on medium speed until smooth and creamy. Add the brown sugar and molasses and beat for 2 minutes or so to blend. Add the egg and beat for 1 minute more. Reduce the mixer speed to low and add the dry ingredients, mixing until the flour and spices disappear. You'll have a smooth, very soft dough.

Divide the dough in half and wrap each piece in plastic wrap. Freeze for 30 minutes, or refrigerate for at least 1 hour. (The dough can be kept refrigerated for up to 4 days.)

Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Line two baking sheets with parchment or silicone mats. Put the sugar in a small bowl.

Working with one packet of dough at a time, divide it into 12 pieces, and roll each piece into a smooth ball between your palms. One by one, roll the balls around in the bowl of sugar , then place them on one of the baking sheets. Dip the bottom of a glass into the sugar and use it to press down on the cookies until they are between 1/4 and 1/2 inch thick.

Bake the cookies one sheet at a time for 10 to 14 minutes (depending on the over), or until the tops feel set to the touch.

Nightmare Bars (Devil Bars)
A chocolate-raspberry response to the Joy of Cooking’s Dream Bars (Angel Bars). This recipe has no added salt. My son is on a sodium restricted diet, and this is a dessert which he can eat, but in moderation because of the high caloric content. If you wish, you could add ½ tsp salt each to the crust and filling dry ingredients lists and use regular baking powder.

Ingredients:

FOR THE CRUST
8 tablespoons (I stick) unsalted butter, softened
5 tablespoons sugar
1 large egg yolk (reserve white for filling)
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons cocoa powder

FOR THE FILLING (2 layers)
6 ounces seedless raspberry preserve
2 tablespoon cornstarch

6 ounces chocolate chips
6 ounces finely chopped pecans
1 cup light brown sugar, packed
1 1/2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon baking powder substitute (sodium free- available at health food stores or online)
1 large egg plus white from crust (above), beaten
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla

FOR THE ICING
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 cup powdered sugar
1 1/2 tablespoons raspberry syrup
1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Directions:

Have all ingredients at room temperature. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a 9 x 13 x 1 pan with non-stick aluminum foil, leaving about a 2 inch overhang on the narrow sides. Spray with cooking spray.

Beat together butter, sugar, egg yolk and vanilla until fluffy and well blended. Stir in flour and cocoa powder and knead until blended and smooth. The mixture will be slightly crumbly. Firmly press dough into the pan, creating a smooth and even layer. Bake for 10 minutes, set aside to cool.

Place the nuts on a baking sheet in a thin layer. Bake for about 5-10 minutes, stirring frequently. Let cool.

Place the raspberry preserves in a comfortable bowl and sift the cornstarch over the preseves,stirring constantly to avoid lumps. Set aside.

Food process the chocolate chips until the size of the pecan, add the pecans and process until blended. Scrape into alarge bowl, add the brown sugar, flour,and baking powder substitute and mix well. Stir the vanilla into the beaten eggs and stir into the dry ingredients until well combined.

Spread the raspberry mixture evenly over the baked crust.

Carefully spread the pecan-chocolate mixture evenly over the raspberry mixture and bake for about 20-25 minutes. The top should be firm and golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the middle should come out slightly wet.

In a double boiler on low, melt the butter, sift and add the powdered sugar, whisking constantly until smooth. Whisk in the raspberry syrup and gently simmer for about five minutes, whisking occasionally. Remove from heat and whisk in the vanilla. Fill small ziplock bag with icing, squeeze out excess air and cool in refrigerator.

Let the pan stand until completely cool. Take icing out of refrigerator and cut a tiny hole in one corner of the bag. Pipe squiggly patterns onto the cake. Lift the foil out of the baking dish and carefully peel from sides. Cut bars into squares about 2X2.

Yield: about 24-2X2 bars @ about 1 3/4 ounces each

This was my mother's favorite Christmas cookie!

Pecan Orange Snowballs
1 cup butter (2 sticks)
2 cups flour
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup finely chopped pecans
2 tbsp grated orange rind
1/3 cup sugar

Cream butter and sugar together. Stir in flour, pecans, orange rind and vanilla.
Shape into small balls. Place on ungreased cookie sheet.
Bake at 300’ for 35 minutes. Cool and shake confectioners sugar over while cookies still warm.

Makes approx 3 dozen.

My grandmother's cookies!!!Use 1 pound butter,1 pound cream cheese,about 2+cups of flour,half a cup of sugar and
half a cup of cinnamon-Mix butter and cream cheese, then add enough flour to hold it together into a ball. (or two balls)then, refrigerate 2 hours, then use roller and roll to 1/4 inch on floured board.Use glass to cut into circles. Put on baking tin and cook at 400 degrees until lightly brown. When cooled a little dip into sugar and cinnamon mixture. Place in cookie tin and enjoy!

Shortbread Choco-Chip Cookies
Submitted by Linda Rynd
2 cups butter
2 c. confectioner's sugar
2 t. vanilla
1/2 t. salt
4 1/2 c. four
12 oz semi-sweet chocolate chips

Cream butter and sugar. Add vanilla and salt. Add flour gradually and then chips. Work the dough with your hands, if necessary.Shape into 1" balls and flatten with a fork. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes or till lightly browned.

CHOCOLATE CRINKLE COOKIES

These cookies are addictive! A delicious chocolate cookie loaded with vanilla and chocolate chips, dusted with powdered sugar.

2 cups white sugar
1 stick unsalted butter, softened
4 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoons salt
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 cup white/vanilla chips
½ cup confectioners’ sugar

Cream butter and sugar. Beat in eggs, one at a time then stir in vanilla. Add cocoa slowly making sure to mix well. Combine flour, baking powder and salt and add into the mixture. Stir in chips. Batter will be sticky. Cover dough and chill for at least 4 hours to make handling easier.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line 2 - 3 cookie sheets with parchment paper. Roll dough into balls, coat with powdered sugar and place on cookie sheet. If necessary place dough back in the refrigerator for a few minutes to make handling easier.

Bake for 10 to 12 minutes. Best not to over-bake.

J. Davidson

My favorite recipe during the Holidays when time is running out and you need
Drop Sandtarts a cookie!
1 lb. butter
2 cups sugar
2 eggs
1 Tbls. cream (or half & half)
2 tsp. baking soda
4 cups flour
Drop big tea spoons full Bake @ 400

chocolate ginger sparkles - link to recipe: http://jessiesheehan.com/2014/12/02/chocolate-ginger-sparkles/

yield: makes about two dozen cookies, scooped with a 1 1/2 tbsp cookie scoop

1 3/4 cup bread flour
1/2 cup dutch process cocoa powder
2 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp salt
2 Tbsp ground ginger
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp cloves
1/4 tsp white pepper
4 to 6 oz chocolate chips (i prefer fewer, but a niece of mine insists more is better)
1/4 cup molasses
2 Tbsp dark corn syrup
2 egg whites
1 3/4 stick unsalted butter, melted, cooled ever so slightly
3/4 cup dark brown sugar
granulated sugar for rolling

combine the bread flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, salt, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, and white pepper in a medium sized bowl and whisk thoroughly. add the chocolate chips and whisk again. set aside.

spray a two cup measuring cup (or whatever size you have handy that has a 1/4 cup measurement) with cooking spray, and add the molasses, corn syrup, and egg whites (the cooking spray coats the measuring cup and makes pouring the molasses and corn syrup into the mixing bowl a whole lot easier). whisk until incorporated and set aside.

add the melted butter and sugar to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, and mix on medium to medium high, until the two are fully incorporated and the mixture lightens slightly and is thick and glossy (don’t be afraid to let this go for a while). reduce the speed on the mixer to medium low and add the molasses mixture, scraping the measuring cup with a rubber spatula. stop the mixer and scrape the bowl to insure the molasses mixture and sugar/butter mixture are incorporated.

with the mixer on low, add the dry ingredients and chips, until the dry is about three-quarters of the way incorporated into the wet. remove the bowl from the mixer and using a rubber spatula, incorporate the remaining dry into the wet by hand. place the stand mixer bowl into the refrigerator and let the dough rest for 30 minutes (the dough is super wet and needs to rest in order to be scoopable).

remove the bowl from the refrigerator, and using a 1 1/2 Tbsp cookie scoop (or whatever size you fancy) scoop the cookie dough onto a parchment lined cookie sheet. place in the refrigerator for 24 to 36 hours (this extended rest in the fridge is explained in detail here).

when you are ready to bake off the cookies, preheat the oven to 350 degrees, remove the scooped cookie dough from the fridge. place the granulated sugar in s small bowl, and roll each cookie in the sugar before placing it on a parchment-lined tray. bake the cookies, one tray at a time, for 10 to 11 minutes, rotating the cookies at the half way point. the cookies are done when they are cracking and craggly and dry-ish. after removing the cookies from the oven, press on each cookie lightly with a spatula (i hate a puffy-looking cookie). once cooled, remove from the tray and enjoy.

storage: baked cookies will keep tightly covered on the counter for up to three days, frozen scooped cookie dough will keep up to a month in the freezer. and you can even freeze baked cookies and enjoy those for up to a month as well.

Thimble Cookies
½ cup butter
¼ cup brown sugar
1 egg, separated
½ teaspoon vanilla
1 cup flour
¼ teaspoon salt
½ cup finely chopped walnuts
Raspberry jam
Cream butter, sugar, egg yolk and vanilla. Mix in flour and salt. Chill for several hours or overnight. Form into balls. Drop each ball in egg white then roll in chopped nuts. Place on ungreased cookie sheet and make a depression in the top of each ball. Bake at 375oF for 5 minutes. Remove from oven, deepen depression and fill with raspberry jam. Bake 8-10 minutes longer.

Hazelnut Cookies
1 cup flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter
1/3 cup sugar
1/2 cup finely ground husked, toasted hazelnuts
1 tbsp orange zest
1 tsp vanilla extract
4 ozs milk chocolate
1/2 cup coarsely chopped, husked, toasted hazelnuts

Preheat oven to 350 F. Line cookie sheet with parchment paper.
Whisk flour, baking powder & salt in bowl to blend.
Beat butter and sugar in mixer until smooth. Beat in 1/2 cup ground hazelnuts, orange zest, and vanilla.
Beat in flour mixture until combined.
Shape dough by tablespoonfuls into 3-inch long logs. Place on cookie sheet spacing 1 inch apart.
Bake until golden brown around edges, about 15-20 minutes. Cool cookies completely.
Melt chocolate. Dip one end of cookies into melted chocolate, then into coarsely chopped hazelnuts. Let cool on rack about 1 hour.

Ingredients:
2 sticks of butter
2 cups of finely chopped hazelnuts
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup light brown sugar
2 Tbsps maple syrup
1 egg
3 cups of flour
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt
Raspberry jam

Roast sinned hazelnuts in 400 degree oven until lightly browned.
Finely chop nuts
Beat butter, sugar and maple syrup in electric mister.
Add egg and beat well
Sift flour,cinnamon ,in a bowl.
Add to utter mixture and blend well to form dough
Stir in nuts
Gather dough in a ball. Cover with plastic wrap.
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Roll out dough and use cookie cutter to make shapes.
Iyou may use a cutter or make a whole in the center of half of the cookies.
Bake 10 to 12 minutes until cookies are lightly browned on a tray covered with parchment paper.
Take a cookie and spreadr jam over sandwhich.
Cover with cookie that has a hole in it.
Sprinkle with confectioners sugar.
Enjoy. 0

MY MOTHER’S COCONUT SHORTCAKE COOKIES

One cookie, light as a floating bubble, sets me swinging side to side –
Her side to her side –
Another! I tap on the top of her sternum. Eat another!
But she watches her weight, and besides is not in the least
Self-indulgent.
I have to wait for years to have another,
Until I have teeth, in fact,
And she bakes them for a neighbor who waves one over my head and says,
“Like eating air!”

“I have to tell you they contain half a pound of butter,”
My mother corrects her,
“Not to mention two cups of flour, three tablespoons of sugar,
One cup of shredded coconut, and one teaspoon of vanilla.”
The plate goes around and at last one comes my way.
It is by far the best thing I have ever had in my mouth.
“More!” I hold my hands out.
Her head begins to shake from side to side.
“Enough is enough,” she says.
But her enough is deprivation to me.

--Martha Moffett