Christmas Cookies
Recipe by Catherine Pla
Makes about 24
Pecan Tassies
Crust
4 oz cream cheese, room temperature
1⁄2 c (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
1 c all-purpose flour
Pinch of kosher salt
Filling
3⁄4 c packed light brown sugar
1 egg, room temperature
1 T unsalted butter, softened
Pinch salt
1 t vanilla bean paste or extract
2 t bourbon (optional)
1⁄2 c chopped pecans
24 pecan halves
Spray or butter a 24-count mini muffin tin (or two 12-count mini muffin tins).
In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat cream cheese and butter until smooth, about 3 minutes. Slowly add in the flour and salt, mix for another minute, until dough comes together. Turn dough out onto a piece of plastic wrap. With floured hands, flatten dough into a rectangle and wrap. Refrigerate at least 1 hour (can be made 2 days ahead and kept refrigerated).
Preheat the oven to 350. Remove dough from the refrigerator and using a sharp knife, divide the rectangle into 24 cubes of dough. Roll each into a ball and press into the bottom and up the sides of each mini muffin cup (a mini tart tamper works wonders here, but your fingers will work too). Transfer pan to the freezer (or refrigerator) while you make the filling.
Make the pecan pie filling by combining brown sugar, egg, butter, salt, vanilla, and bourbon and mix with a whisk until blended and smooth. Remove muffin pan from the freezer. Spoon 1 teaspoon chopped pecans into each tartlet shell. Pour filling over pecans until it comes almost to the top of the shell. Place a pecan half on top of each tartlet.
Transfer the pan to the oven. Bake 15-20 minutes until crusts are lightly browned and filling in the center is just set. Transfer to a wire rack to cool to room temperature. Carefully remove tassies from the muffin tin with an offset spatula.
Recipe by Catherine Pla
Makes 24 large cookies
Chocolate Chip Cookies
The original recipe that I’ve adapted is from Jacques Torres and it’s widely regarded to be one of the best chocolate chip cookie recipes around. Over the years, I’ve modified it and here’s the latest iteration. The best, of course!
3 2⁄3 c (16 oz) all-purpose flour
1 1⁄4 t baking soda
1 1⁄2 t baking powder
1 t kosher salt
2 1⁄2 sticks (10 oz) unsalted butter, at room temperature
10 oz (1 1⁄4 c) light brown sugar
8 oz (1 c + 2 T) granulated sugar
2 eggs
2 t vanilla extract
1 1⁄4 lb bittersweet or semisweet chocolate disks, fèves, or chips (sometimes, I only use 1 lb and a combination of disks and chips, or a combination of milk chocolate and semisweet chocolate)
Flaky sea salt
Combine flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl and stir to combine. Set aside.
Using a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, cream butter and sugars together until light, but not fluffy, about 2 minutes. Don’t over mix. Add eggs one at a time, and vanilla, beating well between additions and scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. Reduce speed to low and add dry ingredients. Mix lightly until just combined. Add chocolate and incorporate, mixing a little as possible.
Immediately scoop scant 1⁄4-cup dough balls (about 60g each if you're weighing, I use a 2” diameter cookie/ice cream scoop). Place the dough balls in a bowl, cover with plastic and refrigerate at least 2 hours, up to 2 days (or freeze dough balls for up to 2 weeks). They may stick together a bit and that’s ok, you’ll be able to easily separate them once they’re cold.
Preheat the oven to 350. Line sheet pans with parchment.
Evenly space dough balls on the sheet pans, I find about 8 cookies per 1⁄4 sheet pan works.
Sprinkle cookies with flaky sea salt if you wish. Bake until golden brown at the edges but still a little soft in the middle, 14-16 minutes (if baking from frozen, add 2-3 minutes to bake time).
Transfer sheet pan to a wire rack to cool for about 10 minutes, then remove cookies to a cooling rack to further cool.
To make cake flour substitute:
Measure 1 cup of all-purpose flour. Remove 2 tablespoons of flour and replace with 2 tablespoons of cornstarch. Sift together to aerate and mix well the flour and cornstarch. Measure 1 cup and use (you may end up with more than a cup due to aeration).
Recipe by Sue Li, from NYTCooking
Makes 48 cookies
Orange, Pistachio and Chocolate Shortbread
3 c all-purpose flour
1 t kosher salt
11⁄4 c unsalted butter at room temperature
3⁄4 c granulated sugar
1 egg yolk
1⁄2 c rough chopped candied orange peel
1⁄2 c shelled unsalted pistachios, rough chopped
4 oz bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
Whisk together flour and salt in a medium bowl. Combine butter and sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Beat at medium-high speed until pale , about 2 minutes, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. Add egg yolk and blend until combined.
Add flour mixture and mix on low until just combined. Add orange peel, pistachios, and chopped chocolate and fold in with a spatula. The dough will be crumbly. Use your hands to squeeze it together and work in the mix-ins.
Line an 8x8” baking pan with plastic wrap and leave a generous amount of overhang on all sides. Transfer the dough to the prepared pan and pat to flatten in an even layer. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 6 hours or overnight.
To bake cookies, preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line 2 sheet pans with parchment.
Using the plastic wrap overhang, remove the dough from the pan and cut the square into three equal rectangles. Cut each rectangle crosswise into roughly 1⁄3” thick slices (about 48 cookies total) and lay them flat on the prepared baking sheets, about 3⁄4-inch apart. If dough crumbles when slicing simply push the mixture together to reform the cookie. Bake until lightly lightly golden on the bottom but still blonde on the edges,15-17 minutes.
Remove from the oven, allow cookies to cool on the sheet pans. The cookies will keep in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 1 week.