Raspberry Linzer cookies /Fursecuri Linzer cu Zmeura

Raspberry Linzer Cookies

Last week a friend asked me if I could bake some cookies for an open house .I am not a cookie person, but I could not say no. I didn’t know why people say that baking cookies is fun for kids, until I started baking them while my children were at school. But to me it’s kind of boring to have only one kind of cookies on the table (even if they are shaped and colored differently) so I decided to make 4 different types of cookies: Lemon Sugar cookies, Raspberry Linter cookies, Stained Window Honey Cookies, and Chocolate Almond Spritz Cookies.  

Saptamina trecuta,o prietena m-a rugat sa-i fac citeva fursecuri pentru un evenimet la servici.Eu nu prea ma omor cu fursecurile, dar nu puteam sa o refuz. Si cum mi se pare plictisitor sa ai o masa plina cu fursecuri in diferite forme si culori dar cu acelasi gust ,am decis sa fac 4 feluri diferite de fursecuri :  Sugar Cookies cu aroma de Lamiie , Fursecuri Linzer cu Zmeura, Fursecuri cu Miere "Vitraliu" ,si Fursecuri de Ciocolata si Migdale 

Raspberry Linzer is my children’s’ favorite

Ingredients

1.    1 cup ( 2 sticks )unsalted butter (softened)

2.    2/3 cup sugar (next time I will use just ½ cup)

3.    1 egg

4.    2 cups all-purpose  flour

5.    1 cup finely ground almonds

6.    ¼ tsp. cinnamon

7.    ½ vanilla extract

8.    1 pinch of salt

9.    1 cup raspberry jam

10. Powdered sugar

You will also need 2 different sizes cookie cutters.

Fusecurile Linzer sunt insa preferatele copiilor.

Ingrediente

1. 220g unt la temperatura camerei
2. 2/3 cana zahar (data viiroare voi reduce la 1/2 cana -1cana -240ml)
3. 1 ou
4. 2 cani faina
5. 1 cana migdare macinate fin
6. 1/4 lingurita scotisoara
7. 1 vf cutit sare
8. 1 cana gem de zmeura
9. zahar pudra

Mai aveti nevoie de forme pentru taiat prajiturile diferite forme si marimi

Beat sugar and butter (with an electric mixer) until light and fluffy. Add egg, vanilla and cinnamon and mix well. Mix in salt, almonds, and flour until incorporated. Divide dough in 2 pieces about 1 in thick, wrap each in plastic or wax paper and refrigerate for at least 2 hrs or overnight.

Bateti spuma untul cu zaharul, adaugati oul, vanilia si scortisoara,amestecati bine. Adaugati sarea,migdalele si faina si amestecati pina ce toate sunt bine incorporate .Impartiti aluatul in 2 ,inveliti fiecare jumatate(aprox 2 cm grosime) in hirtie cearata sau folie de plastic si puneti in in frigider pentru cel putin 2 ore ,sau chiar peste noapte.

Preheat oven to 350°F. Flour work surface and the rolling pin (and resist temptation to substitute powdered sugar for flour, it works well on sugar cookies, but not for this) and roll dough about 1/8 in thick. Cut out cookies, then using a smaller cookie cutter cut out the center of half of the cookies. Line baking sheets with parchment paper, place cookies on the parchment paper and bake for 10-12 min or until slightly golden brown on the edges. Remove from the sheet and when completely cool, invert a cookie bottom and spread 1 tsp. jam. Dust top cookies with powdered sugar and place them on top of the whole cookies pressing gently.

Incalziti cuptorul la 180° C .Pudrati suprafata de lucru si sucitorul cu faina (rezistati tentatiei de a folosi zahar pudra in loc de faina,Sugar cookies se ruleaza bine cu zahar pudra dar nu si aceste fursecuri   -   credeti-ma am incercat :)   ) Intindeti aluatul cu o grosime de aprox 1/4 cm . Folositi forma mai mare sa taiati fursecurile ,apoi folosind o forma mai mica taiati mijlocul la jumatate din ele . Asezati prajiturile in tava tapeteta cu hirtie de copt ,si dati-le la cuptor pentru 10 -12 minute sau pina ce marginile devin aurii. Scoateti fursecurile din tava ,lasati sa se raceasca bine,apoi, daca doriti, pudrati cu zahar  suprafata fursecurilor cu mijlocul decupat . Luati apoi un fursec intreg il intoarceti cu fata in jos,ungeti cu o lingurita de gem de zmeura si puneti deasupra un fursec cu mijlocul decupat apasind usor .

Enjoy!

                                  Pofta buna!

Chocolate almond spritz cookies

1.     2 ½  sticks(275g)  butter   

2.     2/3  cup sugar

3.     2/3  cups (dark) brown sugar
4.     1  tbsp. vanilla extract

5.     2  eggs

6.     2/3 cup cocoa

7.     2  cup all-purpose flour

8.     ½  cup almond meal(ground up almonds)

9.     ¼  tsp. baking soda(use ½ tsp. if you don’t have baker’s ammonia)

10.  ½  tsp.  baker’s ammonia

11.  2  tbsp (apple cider)vinegar or lemon juice

12.   ¼  tsp. salt

I know you have a question about baker’s ammonia. This is an ancestor of modern baking powder. It is still used in Europe to make cookies very light and crisp. It may leave an unpleasant ammonia flavor especially if used in baked goods with high moisture. We used it a lot back home, and I was thrilled when I found it here! Some cookies just taste better with BA than with baking powder /soda, which makes them kind of hard.  Do not confuse this with your ordinary household ammonia, which is poisonous.

Now lets get back to our cookies

Preheat oven to 375 °F. In a bowl, cream butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Add eggs one at the time, incorporate well. Add vanilla, cocoa, almond meal ,salt and ½ of the flour. Beat well. Mix bakers ammonia with vinegar and quickly add it to the dough, mix well. Then add the baking powder and the other tsp. of vinegar and mix .I find that mixing the baking soda, ammonia with vinegar reduces that after taste in the baked goods .Add the rest of the flour, fill your cookie press, choose your template and press cookies onto cool ungreased cookie sheet. Bake for 10-12 min (or less in convection ovens). Remove, cool on rack, and decorate as desired.

ENJOY!                             

Dipped in Milk Chocolate

Meatles taco soup

It’s a nice fall day  but a little windy. Well ,today I  wanted to make a taco soup again ,but since it  was a last minute decision I didn’t  have any meat ,so I decided to make it meatless. After all I grew up eating meatless beans, because my mom would say that beans have enough protein so there was no need to add meat. My son ,on the other hand, told me that  there is no such thing as meatless taco soup, but I proved him wrong. Love you baby!

I used

1.       1 lb beans 1 onion

2.       1 tsp baking soda(optional)

3.       2-3 tbsp oil

4.       2-3 tbsp taco seasoning

5.       1 cup mixed vegetables

6.       ½  cup corn

7.       ¼ cup tomato paste

8.       Salt to taste

9.       1 cup diced bell peppers

I soaked the beans for a few hours, then I drained them, placed them in a large pot covered them with about 2-3 times their volume of fresh water. Boiled them for about 5-10 min, reduced the heath, added 1 tsp. baking soda. Now be ready to stir so all that foam from the baking soda won’t end up on your stove. Don’t turn your back like I did lol.In the meantime fill another pot with about same amount of water and heat it up .Let beans  cook for another  5 min or so ,then drain ,  add the other water that you have  warmed up, place back on stove ,or if you like, in the slow cooker. Add oil ,finely diced onion, and let it cook for another 30 min to 1 hour ,depending on the beans. I set my slow cooker on low and in about  3 hours they are done ,but this time I cooked them in my cast iron pot. Bad idea when nobody’s home to help you drain :( When beans are almost cooked, add the other vegetables, tomato paste, and taco seasoning. Adjust salt and taco seasoning to taste. Cook for another 15-20 min. 

 

 Serve hot with tortilla chips (and pickles). Delicious! Even my son liked it!