Saturday, December 15, 2007

A Childhood Basic, and Throwin' in Fusion

Well, as the days left for chipping in to FoodBlogga's round up of the Eat Christmas Cookies event are dwindling down (she suggests sending them in by no later than December 17, so get in on the action!! You can even win a cookbook!), I've continued to play around in my kitchen. Now that Andrew's home (yay!!! My baby's back from college all grown-up and gorgeous!) he's going to be able to give me a wonderful hand when I get a little whacked from all the festivities. By the way, he did absolutely amazing in his Police Foundations program, so any criminally minded people out there, beware!!! Anyways, I've come together with a few not-so-usual cookies for anyone daring to differ from the "norm" this Christmas, or for those just looking for some tasty nibbles all for themselves!

This first cookie is a fusion-inspired, whole-grain creation, blending together the traditional Western taste of dried apples and cherries with the more Asian ingredients of tahini and toasted sesame seeds. Kinda chewy, kinda crunchy, totally yummy!

Fusion Cookies
Makes 20
¼ cup shortening
¾ cup tahini
½ cup packed brown sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
2/3 cup flour
½ cup whole-wheat flour
½ teaspoon baking powder
¾ teaspoon baking soda
4 tbsp toasted sesame seeds
¼ cup diced, dried apple
2 tbsp dried cherries
  1. Preheat oven to 350F. Lightly grease two baking sheets.
  2. Cream shortening, tahini, and sugar.
  3. Add egg and vanilla, beat well.
  4. Stir together flours, baking powder, baking soda and sesame seeds.
  5. Fold in the apple and cherries to the creamed mixture until well blended.
  6. Drop by spoonfuls on prepared baking sheets.
  7. Bake 11 minutes. Cool 2 minutes on sheets, then remove to wire rack and cool completely.
Amount Per Serving
Calories: 142.9
Total Fat: 8.7 g
Cholesterol: 12.2 mg
Sodium: 17.3 mg
Total Carbs: 14.5 g
Dietary Fiber: 1.7 g
Protein: 3.1 g

Okay, so how many times have you pondered the dilemma of your favorite way to eat an Oreo cookie? Okay, probably not too many. We all take it for granted... twist, lick, dunk (and yeah, that sounded kind of wrong... but blame the marketing, not me!). However, people who are allergic to wheat, or have celiac disease (like Shauna, Karina, Karen, and all of these wonderful people), don't really have that option. These wheat-free, egg free and completely vegan cookies taste exactly like the real Oreo cookies, and can give that classic, childhood taste to everyone.

The Perfect Cream – Filled Chocolate Cookies
45 servings
¾ cup rice flour
¾ cup tapioca flour
¾ cup cornstarch
1 teaspoon xanthan gum
2 teaspoons egg replacer, dry
2/3 cup cocoa
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
¾ cup margarine
2/3 cup sugar
1 egg replacer, prepared
1 teaspoon vanilla
1-2 teaspoons water
2 cups confectioners' sugar
3 tablespoons shortening
¼ teaspoon vanilla
2 tablespoons hot water
  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour mix, xanthan gum, egg replacer, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
  3. In the bowl of the mixer, cream the margarine and sugar until light. Add the egg replacer and vanilla and beat well.
  4. Add the dry ingredients in 3 additions. If the dough becomes too stiff, add the water as needed.
  5. Shape the dough into two logs. Wrap and chill about 20 minutes.
  6. Cut into 1/8" slices (if you have a cookie press, you can at this point press in onto the sliced cookies before baking).
  7. Bake these cookies on an UNGREASED cookie sheet for 10 minutes.
  8. Let cool for only a few minutes before removing from the cookie sheet. Cool thoroughly on a rack.
  9. For the filling, combine confectioners' sugar, shortening, vanilla and hot water (use enough to create a good spreading texture).

Amount Per Serving
Calories: 92.0
Total Fat: 3.7 g
Cholesterol: 0.5 mg
Sodium: 28.5 mg
Total Carbs: 14.9 g
Dietary Fiber: 0.5 g
Protein: 0.4 g

2 comments :

  1. I really want to try those Fusion Cookies. I adore tahini and dried fruit, but never thought to put them in cookies!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Yep, those fusion cookies sound REALLY GOOD!

    ReplyDelete

Thanks for the feedback!