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| Jam cookies |
by Louisa Loring
What makes
Italian cooking so wonderful is its simplicity.
Italian food prizes itself on freshness and simplicity, which makes
cooking a snap for anyone after learning a few tricks. During Christmas, it is hard to stay away
from the luring smells of freshly baked cookies that waft from bakery windows
and cafes so here is a recipe that is sure to satisfy. Whether it is your first time in the kitchen
or you have been baking your whole life, these cookies will have you
experimenting by changing the jam or substituting Nutella. Try adding cocoa powder or flavoring like
almond or lemon for a twist. The sky is the limit!
Recipe
Ingredients:
180 grams
of flour
A pinch of
salt
140 grams
of butter, softened
2 egg yolks
1 small bag
of vanilla
70 grams of
sugar
Jam
Powdered
sugar
In a bowl,
mix the flour and salt until well combined.
In another bowl, beat the butter, egg yolks, vanilla and sugar until
smooth and pale yellow, either by hand or with a mixer. Add the flour mixture in three batches,
stirring well in between each addition.
Form the dough into a ball, wrap in plastic wrap and let rest in the
refrigerator for at least one hour.
When you
are reading to bake, preheat oven to 200° and remove the dough. Roll into a log about 3 cm wide and cut into
pieces 1 1/2-2 cm thick, working quickly as to not warm the dough too
much. Place on a baking sheet leaving
3-4 cm between each cookie. With your
thumb, lightly press in the center of each cookie to create a small indent,
being careful not to break through the dough to the baking sheet. Bake for 15 minutes until golden brown and
the edges are crisp. Transfer to a
cooling wrack and let cool. Once cool,
fill with jam of your choice and lightly dust with powdered sugar.
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| Polenta with creamed mushrooms |
For
something to soak up all the sweets and keep you warm, try this simple recipe
of polenta with creamed mushrooms.
Polenta traditionally comes from Northern Italy but is eaten all over
the country today. Like most Italian
recipes, this can be adapted to your likings.
If you prefer a ragu, top with that or even a hearty tomato sauce.
Recipe
Ingredients:
Peanut oil
or any oil without flavor
200 grams
of frozen mushroom (or dehydrated, reconstituted)
Pinch of
salt
Polenta
flour
500 grams
of prepared polenta
100 ml of
whole milk
Juice of
half a lemon
1 egg white
Chives
In a
skillet over medium heat, sauté the mushrooms in olive oil with salt until
golden. Meanwhile, cut the polenta into
slices about 1 cm thick and coat in the polenta flour. When the mushrooms are cooked, remove from
heat and chop finely. Cover the bottom
of another skillet with peanut oil and over medium heat pan-fry the polenta
slices until crisp, being careful not to burn them. When cooked, transfer to a paper-lined plate
to rest.
While the
polenta is browning, mix milk with the lemon juice to form a thick cream. Add salt and pepper to taste, the chives and
the chopped mushrooms. Beat the egg
whites with an electric mixer until stiff peaks form. Fold the egg whites into the cream being
careful not to deflate them too much.
Top each slice of polenta with a bit of the cream or transfer to a bowl
and serve alongside the polenta crisps.
Adapted
from http://www.imenudibenedetta.it/chips-di-polenta-e-funghi/
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