Dessert - by Scarlett W

From soufflé to parfait, you'll find my personal selection of yummy dessert recipes here and more!! So for home-made goodness or sweet treats around Sydney, be sure to check here - oh, and bon appétit!! Scarlett :)

Biscuits - Dessert

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Hazelnut Cookies

October 17th 2006 07:51

Hazelnut Cookies

About Hazelnut

The Common Hazel (Corylus avellana) is a shrub native to Europe and Asia. It also is an important component of the hedgerows that were the traditional field boundaries in lowland England. Common Hazel is cultivated for its nuts in commercial orchards in Turkey, Europe, china and Australia. The name “hazelnut” applies to the nuts of any of the species of the genus Corylus. This hazelnut or cobnut, the kernel of the seed, is edible and used raw or roasted, or ground into a paste.

Hazelnuts are extensively used in confectionery to make praline and also used in combination with chocolate for chocolate truffles and products such as Nutella. In Austria and especially in Vienna hazelnut paste is an important ingredient in the world famous ‘torts’ –such as Viennese hazelnut tort – which are made there.
Hazelnuts are rich in protein and unsaturated fat. Moreover, they contain significant amounts of vitamin B1 and B6.

About Hazelnut Cookies

There are not many Hazelnut recipes in the world, but here is a good one. This recipe for hazelnut cookies is a healthy one that is free from dairy products, that is foods that are safe to eat.

Serve these sweet little nut cookies as petits fours with after - dinner coffee – as a healthy bonus, they are rich in calcium.

INGREDIENTS
Makes about 26

115 gm / 8 tablespoons soya margarine
75 gm / ¾ cup icing sugar
115 gm / 1 cup plain flour
75 gm / ¾ cup ground hazelnuts
1 egg yolk
26 blanched hazelnuts, to decorate
Icing sugar, for dusting

1. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius. Line 3-4 baking sheets with non-stick baking paper.

2. Cream the soya margarine and sugar together with an electric mixer until light and fluffy.

3. Beat in the flour, ground hazelnuts and egg yolk until evenly mixed.

4. Take a teaspoonful of mixture at a time and shape it into a smooth round with your fingers. Place the rounds well apart on the baking paper and press a whole hazelnut into the centre of each one.

5. Bake the cookies, one tray at a time, for about 10 minutes or until golden brown, then transfer to a wire rack using a palette knife. Sift icing sugar over each cookie to cover. Leave to cool

Tips:

Hazelnuts unlike other nuts, they tend do go rancid after a while. It might be a good idea to store them in airtight container in your fridge if you are not planning on using them for a while.

**From “The Dairy-Free Cook book” and “Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia”**

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Posted By: Scarlett - Category: Biscuits

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Shortbread

June 13th 2006 02:06

Shortbread

About Shortbread

Shortbread is a classic American dessert. It is made of butter, eggs, caster sugar and flour mixture. When baked, it has a cookie-like and chewy texture with a strong butter flavour.
Traditionally the shortbread dough is pressed into decorative wooden moulds, then turned out for baking.

INGREDIENTS
Makes 6-8 wedges

115 gm / ½ cup unsalted (sweet) butter
50 gm / 4 tablespoons caster (superfine) sugar
115 gm / 1 cup plain flour
50 gm / 4 tablespoons rice flour

1. Preheat the oven to 160 degrees Celsius. Place a 15cm / 6in plain flan ring on a baking (cookie) sheet.

2. Beat the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Stir in the plain flour and the rice flour, then knead lightly until smooth.

3. Press the dough evenly into the flan ring, then lift the flan ring away. Crimp around the edges of the dough using your thumb and first finger. Prick the surface of the round with a fork, then mark into 6 or 8 wedges.

4. Bake the shortbread dough for 40 minutes, until pale biscuit coloured and just firm to the touch.

5. Leave the shortbread to cool for a few minutes, then carefully transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

6. To serve, break the shortbread into wedges along the marked lines.

Tips:

If you haven’t a flan ring, then just roll out the dough until a little larger than a 15-cm / 6-in round, then place a 15-cm / 6-in plate on top and trim the edge neatly with a sharp knife. Remove the plate, crimp the edge of the shortbread and transfer to the baking sheet.

**From “Traditional British Cooking”, “Exquisite Dessert Buffet” and “Refreshing after Dinner Treats” . **

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