Greenburgh Public Library Blog

Winter Recipes: Sweets & Treats

Winter is almost here and the holidays are coming! Why not settle in and bake some sweet treats for your family and friends to enjoy? Here are some fan favorites to make this time of year. 

Hot Chocolate:

https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/hot-chocolate-recipe-1943677 

This is Food Network chef Ina Garten’s recipe for homemade hot chocolate. It is rich and decadent and perfect for cold nights.

Ingredients:

2 ½ cups of whole milk

2 cups half-and-half

4 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped

4 ounces milk chocolate, chopped

1 tablespoon sugar

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract 

     1 teaspoon instant espresso or coffee powder

                                                       4 to 5 vanilla beans or cinnamon sticks, for garnish 

Directions:

Heat the milk and half-and-half in a saucepan on medium heat to just below the simmering point. Remove the pan from the heat and add both chocolates. When the chocolates are melted, add the sugar, vanilla extract and espresso and whisk vigorously. Reheat gently and serve immediately. Use a vanilla bean or cinnamon stick to garnish each serving.

Love this recipe? Checkout Ina Garten's other recipes in her cookbooks on GPL's shelves here!

Gingerbread Cookies
https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alexandra-guarnaschelli/gingerbread-cookies-for-the-holidays-recipe-2012392
This recipe is courtesy of Food Network chef Alex Guarnaschelli.

Ingredients:
1½ sticks of lightly salted butter, softened

1 ⅔ cups of sugar

1 orange, zested

4 cups all purpose flour, plus ½ cup additional for rolling, if needed

1 ½ teaspoons baking powder

                                                       ½ teaspoon baking soda

                                                       1 tablespoon ground dry ginger

                                                       ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg

                                                       ½ teaspoon ground allspice

                                                       2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

                                                       ¼ teaspoon ground cloves

                                                       ½ teaspoon kosher salt

                                                       2 eggs

                                                       ½ cup dark molasses

                                                       1 lemon, juiced

Directions:

1. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle, add the butter, sugar and orange zest and beat until smooth, 5 to 8 minutes.

2. Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, dry ginger, nutmeg, allspice, cinnamon, cloves and salt. Whisk to blend. Set aside.

3. In another bowl, whisk together the eggs, molasses and lemon juice.

4. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

5. When the butter and sugar are integrated, lower speed of the mixer and add the dry ingredients. Add the egg mixture and when blended, remove from the machine. Divide the cookie dough in half. Press the first half of the dough in between 2 sheets of waxed paper or plastic wrap and chill for 15 minutes. Repeat with the second half. This step will make it easier to finish rolling out the dough when it has chilled. It will also mean you only have half of the dough getting warm as you roll it. 

6. Lightly flour a flat surface. Use a floured rolling pin to gently roll the first half of the dough about ½-inch thick, Lightly flour the cookie cutter(s) and cut the shapes, making as few scraps as possible. Use a metal spatula to gently transfer them, cookie by cookie, (the cookies should be a similar size) to a baking sheet. Repeat with the other half of the dough and transfer them to another baking sheet. A note about crowding the trays: These particular cookies can spread a little. Leave room between the cookies. Better to use 3 baking sheets with fewer cookies than to crowd them on 2 trays. Bake until brown around the edges, 8 to 10 minutes.   

Love this recipe? Checkout Alex Guarnaschelli's other recipes in her cookbook on GPL's shelves here!

Rugelach
This recipe is credited to Ruth Teig, whose recipe was in The Journal News a few years back. 

Ingredients:

For the dough:

½ pound sweet butter, at room temperature

2 cups all purpose flour

½ pound cream cheese (not whipped), at room temperature

For the filling:

1 cup sugar

1 cup finely chopped walnuts or pecans
 2 teaspoons cinnamon

Directions:

1. To prepare dough (must be done a day before making Rugelach):   

    Cut butter and cream cheese into small pieces and blend together in the bowl of a mixer or food processor. Slowly add the flour and continue mixing until it is blended into a dough. Do not over-mix.

    Take the dough out of the mixing bowl and shape into 4 balls of equal size. Wrap each ball in plastic wrap, then cover the plastic wrap with aluminum foil. Chill for at least 8 hours.

2. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. To prepare the filling, combine sugar, nuts and cinnamon. 

3. Take balls of dough out of the refrigerator and place them on a floured surface. Pound each ball with a rolling pin until it gets flat and pliable. 

4. Roll out each ball of dough into a circle that’s between ¼ inch and ⅛ inch thick.

5. Take the sugar-nuts-cinnamon mixture and sprinkle evenly over each dough circle. Cut each dough circle into 12 triangles (as if you’re cutting a pizza). The easiest way is to divide each one into quarters, then divide each quarter into thirds.

6. Roll each triangle separately, starting with the wide end. Tuck the tiny end of the triangle underneath and place that side down (so it doesn’t unroll) on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper (no need to grease). Bake for 25 minutes (check after 20 minutes) until golden brown. 

7. Remove from oven, cool, then take off cookie sheet and sprinkle with powdered sugar if desired. 

Jam Thumbprint Cookies
https://barefootcontessa.com/recipes/jam-thumbprint-cookies

This recipe comes from Ina Garten, the Barefoot Contessa. 

Ingredients:

¾ pound (3 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature

1 cup sugar

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

3 ½ cups all purpose flour

     ¼ teaspoon kosher salt

     1 egg beaten with 1 tablespoon of water, for egg wash

     7 ounces of sweetened flaked coconut

     Raspberry and/or apricot jam

Directions:

1. In an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together the butter and sugar until they are just combined and then add the vanilla. Separately, sift together the flour and salt. With the mixer on low speed, add the flour mixture to the creamed butter and sugar. Mix until the dough starts to come together. Dump on a floured board and roll together into a flat disc. Wrap in plastic wrap and chill for 30 minutes. 

2. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

3. Roll the dough into 1 ¼ inch balls, (if you have a scale, they should weigh 1 ounce). Dip each ball into the egg wash and then roll in coconut. Place the balls on an ungreased cookie sheet and press a light indentation into the top of each with your finger. Drop ¼ teaspoon of jam into each indentation. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until the coconut is golden brown. Cool and serve.

Fruit Cake  

https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/food-network-kitchen/the-best-fruitcake-8613689 

I know fruit cake gets a bad rap, but I happen to like it. This recipe is credited to the Food Network Kitchen. 

Ingredients:

1 ½ cups of golden raisins

½ cup dried currants

1 cup dried apricots, halved

1 cup dried figs, halved

½ cup pitted prunes

½ cup whole pitted Medjool dates, halved

     2 cups walnut halves

                                                       1 cup pecan halves

                                                       Finely grated zest of 2 small oranges

                                                       Finely grated zest of 2 small lemons

                                                       2 tablespoons chopped candied ginger

                                                       ¾ tablespoon pumpkin pie spice

                                                       1 pinch ground cloves

                                                       1 cup of brandy, plus 2 tablespoons for brushing 

                                                       ¼ cup orange liqueur 

                                                       ¼ cup unsulfured molasses

                                                       Nonstick cooking spray

                                                       2 cups all purpose flour (see cook’s note)

                                                       1 teaspoon baking powder

                                                       ¼ teaspoon baking soda

                                                       ¾ teaspoons kosher salt

                                                       2 sticks (1 cup) unsalted butter, at room temperature

                                                       1 ½ cups lightly packed dark brown sugar

                                                       4 large eggs, at room temperature

                                                       1 ½ teaspoons pure vanilla extract

Directions:

1. Combine the raisins, currants, apricots, figs, prunes, dates, walnuts, pecans, orange zest, lemon zest, candied ginger, pumpkin pie spice and cloves in a large bowl and toss to combine. Add 1 cup of the brandy, orange liqueur and molasses and stir to coat. Cover and set aside to macerate overnight. (Alternatively, cover the bowl and microwave for 2 minutes, or until very hot. Leave covered and let sit until almost all the liquid has been absorbed into the fruit and nuts, about 2 hours.)

2. Preheat the oven to 275 degrees. Spray two 9-by-5-inch loaf pans with nonstick cooking spray and line each with 2 pieces of parchment, one lengthwise and one crosswise, leaving a 2-inch overhang on each side. Spray the parchment with cooking spray.

3. Sprinkle ½ cup of flour over the soaked fruit mixture and toss to coat. Whisk together the remaining 1 ½  cups flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt in a large bowl.

4. Cream the butter and brown sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment on medium high until light and fluffy, about 1 minute. Add the eggs, one at a time, making sure each is fully incorporated before adding the next and scraping down the slides of the bowl as needed. Beat in the vanilla. Reduce the speed to medium low and beat in the flour mixture until the batter is blended and smooth. Pour the batter over the fruit mixture and fold with a rubber spatula until all the fruit is coated in batter. 

5. Divide the mixture evenly between the two prepared pans, filling each about ¾ full. Bake until the cakes begin to pull away from the sides of the pans, the tops spring back slightly when pressed and a cake tester comes out clean, about 1 ½ hours. Transfer to a wire rack and brush with the remaining  2 tablespoons of brandy. Let the cakes cool in the pans for about 15 minutes. Carefully remove each cake from its pan using the parchment overhang and place on the rack to cool completely. 

6. To store, wrap each loaf tightly in plastic and then foil. The wrapped fruit cakes can be stored in a cool, dry place for up to 3 months.

        Cook’s Note:

        When measuring flour, we spoon it into a dry measuring cup and level off the excess. Scooping directly from the bag compacts the flour, resulting in dry baked goods.

I hope you enjoy making and eating these sweet treats!