Cookie Calendar: Rosemary-Cheese Spritz Cookies

Though these are called cookies, Rosemary-Cheese Spritz are probably best served alongside your appetizers rather than your desserts. They are savory as well as being as typically tender and buttery as the usual spritz cookies. And you get to use the cookie press!

As they are so tender, don’t put these cookies out with your crackers next to the cheese ball. They can’t handle the abuse. Instead, place them on their own festive plate or alongside other dry items not meant to be dipped or spread.

If you’re not up to speed on the varieties of cheeses available in the marketplace, know that pecorino generally refers to pecorino romano, also often just called romano cheese. As in, that stuff that many restaurants cut the more expensive grated parmesan with.

Personally, I like it even better than parm (possibly because it’s saltier) and I buy huge wedges at Costco that I grind up in the food processor for sprinkling on pasta.

By the way, if you’re the sort of person who sees “parmesan” and thinks not “Parmigiano Reggiano” but rather “Kraft,” you could always use 1-1/4 cups of their Parmesan-Romano blend here in place of measuring out two separate cheeses. We all know in our deepest souls which of us will be working the Microplane come Christmas and which will be scooping from the plastic bottle, but our guests will likely have consumed too much eggnog to judge what camp the cookies fall in.

Cookie Tip # 19: Before you start baking, make sure to clear ample space around the kitchen to set up cooling racks. There’s nothing worse than running around the house with a rocket-hot pan in one hand, a rack under your chin, and your other arm shoving the wrapping paper and gifts on the floor as you make some landing space. Your cookie bottoms could burn along with your hands if you wait to set up the racks, as cookies will continue to bake while sitting on a hot sheet.

Rosemary-Cheese Spritz Cookies
Source: Food Network
Yield: About 4 dozen

• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter
• 1 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
• 1 large egg yolk
• 6 tablespoons heavy cream
• 1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
• ¾ cup finely grated Pecorino cheese
• ½ cup finely grated Parmesan cheese
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 2 teaspoons minced fresh rosemary leaves
• 1 teaspoons fine salt
• Pinch freshly ground nutmeg
• Special Equipment: Cookie Press

Bring all ingredients to room temperature.

Beat the butter and lemon zest with an electric mixer at medium speed until smooth, about 30 seconds. Slowly beat in the egg yolk and cream.

Whisk the flour, pecorino, 1/4 cup of the Parmesan, sugar, rosemary, salt, and nutmeg together in a bowl. Gradually add the flour mixture into the butter mixture while mixing slowly. Scrape down the sides of the bowl, then beat on medium speed to make a slightly sticky dough.

Fill the cookie press with the dough. Assemble the press with the desired disk shape (see cook’s note), and press cookies onto ungreased baking sheets. Leave about one inch between cookies. Sprinkle with the remaining 1/4 cup Parmesan and refrigerate cookies for 20 minutes.

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.

Bake cookies, rotating pan halfway through, until golden, the cheese browns a bit, and the cookies smell nutty, about 20 to 25 minutes. Briefly cool the cookies on the baking sheets, then transfer to racks to cool. Serve or store in a tightly sealed container for up to 1 month.

Cook’s Notes: These freeze beautifully. Press the cookies out into desired shapes on cookie sheets and freeze. Transfer frozen cookies to a plastic bag, seal, and keep frozen for up to 1 month. When ready to bake, lay out frozen cookies on cookie trays and bake from frozen for 25 minutes.

Some disk shapes work better than others. Since this is savory cookie, we liked the cutters that result in a cracker shape cookie, like the ribbon, clover. Stars and and snowflakes work, too.

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Recipe of the Day: Zesty Hot Holiday Broccoli Dip

Love It: I already love artichoke dip, and broccoli’s pretty good, too. Nice to vary the traditions up a bit to keep things interesting. Oh, and there’s melty cheese involved. Enough said.

Fear It: Miracle Whip. Despite this being a relatively healthy take on dip, there’s no call for replacing real mayo with that sweet slop. I would totally be substituting some reduced-fat mayonnaise.

Teach It: Hey, use the variation as inspiration. Why not try other veggies in that creamy, cheesy base?

Eat It: This sort of appetizer seems best suited to a midcentury-traditional sort of Thanksgiving, where the turkey is accompanied by old standards such as green-bean casserole and Stove Top.

Zesty Hot Holiday Broccoli Dip
Source: Kraft Foods
Yield: 3 cups dip

• 1 cup MIRACLE WHIP Light Dressing
• 1 pkg. (10 oz.) frozen chopped broccoli, thawed, well drained
• 1 jar (2 oz.) diced pimientos, drained
• ½ cup KRAFT 100% Grated Parmesan Cheese
• 1 cup KRAFT 2% Milk Shredded Reduced Fat Mozzarella Cheese, divided
• WHEAT THINS Reduced Fat Baked Snack Crackers

PREHEAT oven to 350°F. Combine dressing, broccoli, pimientos, Parmesan cheese and 1/2 cup of the mozzarella cheese.
SPREAD into 1-quart baking dish or 9-inch pie plate.
BAKE 20 to 25 min. or until heated through. Sprinkle with remaining 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese. Continue baking 5 min. or until mozzarella cheese is melted. Serve with the crackers.

Notes:

Nutrition Bonus:

Help your friends and family eat right this holiday season. Serve this festive dip at your next party. As a bonus, the cheese provides a good source of calcium.

Diet Exchange:

1-1/2 Starch,1 Fat

Nutritional notes:
Nutrition (per serving) 2 Tbsp. dip and 16 crackers
Calories 170
Total fat 6g
Saturated fat 1.5g
Cholesterol 5mg
Sodium 420mg
Carbohydrate 23g
Dietary fiber 1g
Sugars 4g
Protein 5g
Vitamin A 4%DV
Vitamin C 15%DV
Calcium 15%DV
Iron 8%DV

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Recipe of the Day: Caprese Antipasticks

Love It: I can close my eyes and picture those creamy, firm balls of fresh mozzarella — I can practically taste them. To me, eating fresh mozzarella is closer to drinking an icy cold glass of milk than to eating a typical cheese. But I digress. Here we have an adorable little appetizer spin on that summertime classic, caprese salad. Aww.

Fear It: It’s so easy to eat a ton of these since they look so tiny! But those bocconcini and that olive oil mean moderation is necessary.

Teach It: Rachael Ray also makes a version of this appetizer with salami, provolone, and pepperoncini. There’s no reason to stop there! Almost any appetizer you might put out in a bowl could be made into a mini-kabob. Think olives, various cheeses and cured meats, dried fruits, cooked meats, fresh fruits like grapes . . .

Eat It: With cocktails and friends or “the game” and family. One helpful hint — unless you’re planning to stick these into some craft styrofoam to make some sort of kabob bouquet, there’s no reason to go to the trouble of skewers. Pretty toothpicks are plenty big enough and look less intimidating to guests. But make sure to only skewer one serving per stick if you do go the larger route!

Caprese Antipasticks
Source: Rachael Ray
Yield: 8 servings . . . assuming your guests eat no other hors d’oeurves

• 1 package 8-inch bamboo skewers
• 1 pint cherry or grape tomatoes
• 2 (1-pound) tubs bocconcini (small balls of fresh mozzarella), drained
• 24 leaves fresh basil
• Extra-virgin olive oil, for drizzling
• Salt and pepper

For caprese sticks, skewer tomatoes and bocconcini bites, placing basil leaves between them. Drizzle these sticks with extra-virgin oil and season with salt and pepper, to your taste.

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Banana Coconut Muffins

Note: This recipe was originally posted on June 23, 2004, on my very first attempt at a cooking blog over at Blogger. Amazing, how time has passed. My dear boyfriend posted a recipe to that site on the same day, and precisely three years later, we were married.

 

This recipe incorporates two of my favorite things: using up bananas too mushy for other uses and using coconut!

 

Banana Coconut Muffins
Makes 8
Active time: 10 minutes
Start to finish: 45 minutes

 

Ingredients:

• 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 2 very ripe bananas, mashed (3/4 cup)
• 1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, melted
• 2/3 cup sugar
• 1 large egg
• 1/2 tsp. vanilla
• 3/4 cup sweetened flaked coconut

 

Special equipment: a muffin tin with 8 (1/2 cup) muffin cups; paper liners

 

1. Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line muffin cups with liners.

 

2. Whisk together flour, baking powder and salt in a bowl. Whisk together bananas, butter, sugar, egg, vanilla and 1/2 cup of the coconut in a large bowl until combined well, then fold in flour mixture until flour is just moistened (don’t worry about lumps).

 

3. Divide batter among lined muffin cups and sprinkle with remaining 1/4 cup coconut. Bake until muffis are puffed and golden, about 25 minutes. Transfer muffins to a rack and cool slightly.

 

From the May 2004 Gourmet magazine.

 

Note the Second: What the heck, I’ll post Scott’s recipe from June 23, too. Two for the page of one!

Artichoke Dip

• 1 can artichoke hearts
  
• 1 cup grated parmesan cheese
  
• 1 cup mayonnaise (approximate)
  
• 2 teaspoons garlic powder
  

Drain and chop artichoke hearts. Add parmesan and enough mayonnaise to keep the artichoke and parmesan together. Sprinkle on garlic powder. Mix and spread in an 8 by 8 pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes (or until cheese melts). Serve with water crackers, Italian bread, French bread or similar. Enjoy!

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Recipe of the Day: Cocktail Dates

Love It: I adore the combo of salty and sweet, and I know I’m not alone — look at all the sweet and salty granola bars and snack mixes arriving at the market. Plus, honestly, how can you not love anything with bacon?

Fear It: Sure, maybe this recipe is fattening with the cheese and bacon, but I’d fear much more the fight bound to break out over the last morsel.

Teach It: Notice that the recipe calls for Medjool dates. A date is not just a date; the cheaper ones just labeled “dates” are not the same as premium Medjool dates. There’s a definite difference in quality, so look for the proper name for the best results. Look in the produce department.

Eat It: We like to order a similar dish at our favorite tapas restaurant, so why not throw your own tapas party? Stuffed dates, Spanish tortilla, sangria . . . oh boy, here it comes . . . it’s a date!

Cocktail Dates
Source: Bob Blumer
Yield: 12 bites

• 12 large dried Medjool dates
  
• 6 slices bacon, cut in half widthwise
  
• 1 4-oz chunk Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
  

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Make a pit-deep incision in each date from top to bottom. Remove pits and reserve dates.

Using your sharpest knife, cut Parmigiano-Reggiano into 1/4-inch slices. Cut those slices into 1/4-inch x 1-inch pieces (the resulting 1-inch pieces should be approximately the same diameter as a pencil).

Stuff a stick of Parmigiano-Reggiano in each date and close date back around it.

Wrap each date with a slice of bacon. Set dates on a backing sheet, seam-side down, and skewer with a toothpick to hold bacon in place.

Back for approximately 20 minutes, or until bacon is crispy. Caution: These flavor bombs are like molten lava when they come out of the oven. Let cool for a few minutes before serving.

Notes:

Uncommon goods: Medjool dates, or any other dried date (usually available in Mediterranean stores, and specialty food stores); ungrated Parmigiano-Reggiano

The adventure club: Use a cob-smoked, or other specialty bacon.

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Recipe of the Day: Baked Potato Bites

Love It: Potatoes are eminently satisfying comfort food. This dish is a clever, more sophisticated spin on tater skins, with all the goodness of a baked potato in one bitty bite.

Fear It: Unless you substitute low-fat sour cream and cream cheese and cut back a bit on the fatty bacon. Rachael Ray may always choose the full-fat variety, but she’s also go – go – go all day, unlike most of us. Plus, a decent spritz of nonstick olive-oil spray would probably be a decent substitute for the olive oil. A generous hand with the olive oil always seems to turn my roasted potatoes soggy.

Teach It: Hmm, sour cream and cream cheese, united at last! I usually only see sour cream married with mayo (a product which Rachael Ray hates; bit of trivia for you there). I could imagine many applications for this — such as extra-creamy mac and cheese.

Eat It: I’m seeing these on a tray alongside a spread of other made-over bar food items, such as kielbasa pigs in a blanket with spicy brown mustard and fancy tortilla chips topped with homemade salsa and some variety of real, crumbly Mexican queso.

 

Baked Potato Bites
Source: Every Day with Rachael Ray
Yield: 2 dozen

 

• 4 red potatoes, sliced into 1/4-inch-thick rounds and patted dry
• ⅓ cup extra-virgin olive oil
• Salt
• ½ lb. bacon
• ⅓ cup sour cream
• ⅓ cup cream cheese
• 1 tablespoon finely chopped chives

 

1. Preheat the oven to 375°. Place the potato rounds on a rimmed baking sheet. Toss with the olive oil, season with salt and arrange in a single layer. Bake for 25 minutes, flip and bake for another 10 minutes. Transfer to a paper-towel-lined plate to drain.
2. Meanwhile, cook the bacon until crisp; crumble and set aside. In a medium bowl, stir together the sour cream and cream cheese until smooth.
3. Arrange the potato slices on a platter in a single layer and top each round with a dollop of the sour cream mixture, some bacon bits and the chives. Serve warm.

 

 

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