Three-Dimensional Holiday Decorated Gingerbread Cookies

My kitchen is starting to look (and smell) a lot like Christmas! Saturday’s winter storm was the perfect excuse to stay inside and bake these festive three-dimensional gingerbread cookies.

Not only will these spicy cookies warm you up on a cold day, but once pieced together and decorated, they’ll also warm your home with holiday spirit – and are a perfect afternoon activity while the kids are on winter break.

P.S. These cookie cutters made by Williams-Sonoma make a great holiday gift! They are no longer available in stores, but you can find them on Ebay. 

Holiday Gingerbread Cookies

8 ounces (2 sticks) butter, softened

1 cup dark brown sugar

1 large egg

½ cup molasses

4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour

2 ½ teaspoons ground cinnamon

2 teaspoons ground ginger

1 teaspoon ground allspice or nutmeg

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 ¼ teaspoon salt

Directions

Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees. Line a sheet tray with parchment paper.

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and brown sugar together until smooth. Add the egg and molasses, mixing until combined.

On the lowest speed of the mixer, add the dry ingredients and mix until combined. Scrape the sides of the bowl as needed, but do not over mix.

Remove the dough from the mixer, divide the dough in half, and flatten each piece into a 1-inch thick disk. Roll each piece of dough between two pieces of parchment paper to 1/8^-inch thickness.  Score the dough with the cookie cutters and transfer to the freezer to harden, about 20 minutes. Carefully, pop scored cookies out from the sheet of dough and transfer to parchment-lined sheet tray.

 

Bake cookies until set and golden brown. Test the cookies by touch, they should bounce back a bit. Smaller cookies will take anywhere from 6-8 minutes, while the larger ones will bake in about 8 -10. Let cool completely before decorating.

Oh and this dough is exceptional for gingerbread houses, too! It is sturdy and retains its shape while baking. Happy baking!

Cinnamon Roll Muffins

These gooey cinnamon roll muffins are a great substitute for more traditional and time consuming yeast-based cinnamon roll. Once you combine wet and dry ingredients for these muffins, do not over mix the dough (overworking the dough will result in dense muffins). And the hint of cardamom and the freshness of the orange zest make these muffins distinguishable--the perfect addition to a wintery Sunday morning breakfast. 

Cinnamon Roll Muffins
Makes 12 muffins

For the Dough:
½ cup light brown sugar

1 teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon fine sea salt
Seeds from ½ vanilla bean
1 large egg

1 cup buttermilk
3 cups unbleached all purpose flour, plus flour for rolling

For the Filling:
1 cup light brown sugar

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 tablespoon ground cardamom
Finely grated zest of 1 orange
pinch of fine sea salt
½ cup (about 2 ounces) pecans, finely chopped
4 ounces (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened

For the Icing:
1 cup powdered sugar, sifted
3 tablespoons milk
½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract  

Directions:
Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 375 degrees. Lightly coat a muffin tin with nonstick cooking spray and set aside.

Spread the pecans on another baking sheet and toast until golden brown, about 8 minutes. Let the nuts cool to room temperature and finely chop. Set aside until ready to make the cinnamon roll filling


In a medium bowl, mix together the brown sugar, baking soda, salt, vanilla and egg. Add the buttermilk, then the flour. Stir until thoroughly combined. 


For the filling: In a small bowl, combine brown sugar, cinnamon, cardamom, orange zest, salt and pecans.

Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface and lightly knead. Roll the dough into a 12-inch by 24-inch rectangle. Spread the rectangle with butter, leaving a ¼ inch margin at the long side of dough. Sprinkle with the cardamom and orange zest mixture. Roll the dough into log beginning with the wide side. Using a sharp knife cut the log into 12 muffin rolls. 


Place rolls in the prepared muffin tin and bake until golden brown, about 15 minutes. Allow the muffins to cool for 5 minutes before removing to a wire rack. 


For the Icing: In a small bowl, whisk powdered sugar, milk and vanilla until smooth. Drizzle the icing over the top of the muffins and serve warm. 

Spicy Pumpkin Seed Brittle

I'm using a lot of fresh pumpkin in my baking this time of year, and am finding myself with an abundance of pumpkin seeds. Instead of just throwing these little gems away, I like to quickly roast them in the oven and swap them for the peanuts in my favorite sweet and spicy brittle recipe.

When stored in an airtight jar, Spicy Pumpkin Seed Brittle makes a thoughtful and seasonal gift.

Makes about 16 pieces

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups roasted pumpkin seeds

1/2 stick unsalted butter

1 cup granulated sugar

1 tablespoon honey

¼ cup water

1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt

3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon ground cayenne

Directions:

1. Line a baking sheet with a piece of aluminum foil. Lightly coat a heatproof spatula with non-stick cooking spray and set on aluminum foil lined tray.

2. In a medium saucepot, cook butter, sugar, honey, water, spices, and salt until a deep amber caramel color or 330°F, gently swirling caramel in pan every few minutes. As soon as caramel reaches temperature, immediately remove from heat, add pumpkin seeds and quickly stir once or twice to coat with caramel. Pour brittle over prepared baking sheet and, using greased spatula, spread into a thin even layer. Let cool to room temperature and break into small shards. Store in an airtight container until ready to serve.

Pumpkin Pound Cake with a Maple-Pecan Glaze

This month I’ll be featuring all sorts of pumpkin desserts to help celebrate the season! To kick it off, I baked my favorite pumpkin pound cake with a maple-pecan glaze.

I like to combine equal parts roasted sugar pumpkin and kabocha squash puree for my pumpkin recipes. The kabocha squash is a bit more starch than sugar pumpkin and has a gorgeous bright orange flesh. Once pureed, kabocha makes a thicker puree and has an extra intense squash flavor that pumpkin lovers will really enjoy. And roasting gives the squash and pumpkin, a yummy caramel flavor that add to the warm spices used in the batter.

If y’all love pumpkin as much as I do, don’t forget: There’s much more to come this month!

Pumpkin Pound Cake with a Maple-Pecan Glaze

Makes 12-16 servings

Ingredients:

3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

1/4 teaspoon ground allspice

2 sticks unsalted butter, softened

3/4 cup granulated sugar

3/4 cup dark brown sugar

5 large eggs

2 cups Roasted Sugar Pumpkin and Kabocha Squash Puree  (recipe follows)

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Directions:

1.     Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 325°F. Lightly coat a 12-cup Bundt cake pan with non-stick cooking spray. Sift the flour, baking powder, soda, salt, and spices and set aside.

2.     In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter, granulated sugar, and dark brown sugar until light and fluffy. Slowly add the eggs, pumpkin puree, and vanilla extract and mix until combined. Slowly add the sifted dry ingredients and mix until just smooth. Evenly spoon the batter into the prepared Bundt pan and bake for 55 to 60 minutes, or until a wooden toothpick or cake tester comes out clean when inserted in center.

3.     Cool for 15 minutes in the pan on a rack; invert onto a cooling rack and let cool until room temperature. Glaze with the Maple-Pecan Glaze just before serving.

Maple-Pecan Glaze

Makes about 1 1/2 cups

Ingredients:

4 tablespoons unsalted butter

1/4 cup maple syrup

2 tablespoons heavy cream

1/2 cup confectioners' sugar, sifted

1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt

1/4 to 1/2 cup pecans, finely chopped

Directions:

1.     In a small saucepan, bring the butter, maple syrup, and cream to a boil and let cook for 2 minutes. Remove from heat and slowly whisk in the confectioner’s sugar and salt into the hot mixture until smooth. Let cool for about 15 to 20 minutes, until slightly thickened. Stir in the pecans, and pour over the cooled cake.

To make your own pumpkin-kabocha squash puree at home:

Roasted Sugar Pumpkin and Kabocha Squash Puree

Makes about 8 cups

Ingredients:

1 4-pound sugar pumpkin

1 4-pound kabocha squash

Directions:

1.     Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 350°F.

2.     Cut pumpkin and squash into eighths. Place in large baking dish, fill with about 1/4-inch of water, and cover with foil. Roast for about 1 hour to 1 hour and 15 minutes, or until flesh is fork tender. Remove foil and continue to bake until just caramelized, 15 to 30 minutes.

3.     Remove from oven and once cooled enough to handle, use a large spoon to scrape flesh from skin. Puree the pumpkin and squash flesh in a food processor until smooth. Let cool to room temperature before refrigerating or using.

Hand-Pulled Strudel

Making strudel for the first time is an incredibly eye-opening experience. It is a feat one simply cannot imagine when looking at a small circle of dough. To believe it will stretch it into a sheet several feet squared takes a lot of faith.
 
While it really isn't as hard as it may seem, it is a bit time consuming and labor intensive. You simply can't rush the process; and it requires at least a few cooks to stretch the dough tissue thin and roll into its classic long shape. This is why in most professional pastry kitchens, a chef will rarely make strudel dough from scratch. Instead many of us use frozen phyllo dough as a perfectly acceptable substitute. Just like strudel dough it is light, crisp, and extremely flaky.  

But lucky for the pastry arts students at ICE...they have the opportunity to experience the process from start to finish! And lucky for you, I had the opportunity to snap shots of Pastry Chef-Instructor, Chad Pagano, demonstrating each step of the process. 

So if you can muster the courage, give it a shot. It will make for a great afternoon project to tackle with friends, with a seriously sweet reward for your effort.


Hand-Pulled Apple Strudel
Makes about 16 servings
(Recipe courtesy of The Institute of Culinary Education)

For the dough:
397 grams high gluten or bread flour, plus extra for rolling
7 grams salt
100 grams (2 large) whole eggs
14 grams canola oil, plus extra for coating
Warm water

To assemble:
60 grams finely-ground bread crumbs
170 grams melted butter, cooled to room temperature

In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour and salt. In a small bowl, whisk the the eggs and canola oil together and slowly add enough warm water to the eggs and oil to bring the entire mixture of liquids to a total of 300 grams by weight. 

Stir the liquid into the flour with a rubber spatula, making sure no flour sticks to the sides of the bowl. 

Turn the dough out on to a lightly floured surface, then pick it up and, from a couple of feet above the surface, slam it against the surface with a fair bit of force. Fold the dough in half, scoop it up, and repeat the slamming of the dough 100 more times until the dough is smooth and elastic. Use additional flour as need to prevent the dough from sticking to the surface. 

Very lightly oil a small bowl and place the dough in the bowl, turning the dough over once to oil the entire surface of the dough. Press a sheet of plastic wrap against the dough and allow it to rest at room temperature for about an hour. Meanwhile, make the apple filling.

Cover a large rectangular table with a clean cloth and generously flour the surface of the cloth.

Place the dough in the center of the cloth and roll the dough as thinly as possible. Lightly brush the surface of the dough with oil, and proceed with the dough stretching and strudel assembly process outlined in the slideshow. 

Dust with a confectioner's sugar, serve with a dollop of whipped cream, and enjoy!

Apple Strudel Filling
Makes enough for 1 large strudel

For the filling:
115 grams unsalted butter
2230 grams (about 10) Golden Delicious apples 
170 grams granulated sugar
Finely-grated zest of 1 lemon 
3 grams ground cinnamon
85 grams raisins (optional)
85 grams chopped walnuts (optional)

Peel, core, and cut the apples into about 12 slices per apple. 

In a large sauté pan, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the remaining ingredients, cover and cook until the apples are just tender, about 8 minutes. Lower the heat, remove the cover, and continue to cook the apples until the juices have evaporated, about 10 minutes. 

Using a slotted spoon, transfer the filling to a baking sheet or shallow dish. Refrigerate until cool before using.