Gastroanthropology

Holiday Cookie Time - Recipes from bloggers all around the world!

A few months ago, Lori from Fake Food Free and I got to talking about how great it would be to do a cookie exchange come holiday time with fellow bloggers. We wanted to exchange real cookies from bloggers all around the world, but as we got to thinking about the logistics of it all we settled for an exchange of recipes. We had bloggers send recipes to each other to recreate holiday cookie favorites. Many of the recipes mean something special to the blogger, whether it reminds of Mom or the holidays in general.

In the end, we had 19 participants from all around the world and here's a bit of what's on our holiday cookie plates this year...

These gorgeous Chocolate Cashew Shortbreads come from Valentina who lives in London, but is originally from Brazil. Valentina and I met a few months back in London and often reminisce of the gorgeous fruits from our respective home countries. She blogs in both English at A Wee Bit of Sugar and in Portuguese at Trem Bom.

Shortbreads were a popular theme, and Aoife, of the The Daily Spud, posted on these Butterscotch-Glazed Coffee Shortbreads. The Daily Spud is from Ireland and has a great blog that is not just about the delicious ways in which to morph the spud, but all sorts of food indigenous, or not, to Ireland.

Providing The Daily Spud with that awesome recipe was Lisa from Lisa is Cooking. Lisa posted on these perfect Pecan Crescents.

Some of the other additions to the International Cookie Recipe Exchange this year included:

Cranberry and Pistacho Blondies from 5am Foodie

Beijos de Dama (Lady's Kisses) from eat.live.travel.write

Almond, Honey and Orange Shortbreads from Dinner du Jour

Sand Tarts from Accro

Light as Air Vanilla Shortbread from Kitchen Gadget Girl Cooks

and, Cinnamon Mexican Wedding Cakes from Gastroanthropology (moi!)

Please visit Lori at Fake Food Free for even more cookie ideas from our participants. Hope a few of these recipes inpsire your cookie plates this year!

 

Cinnamon Mexican Wedding Cakes

When Christmas time comes around, I could really care less about the presents (my husband and I don't exchange gifts anymore) or trimming the tree, or caroling, but I do absolutely love being with family and of course, the exchange of holiday cookies. 

I love giving and getting the cheap holiday paper plate loaded with all sorts of delicious baked cookies, fudges, nut clusters - whatever. With all the friends Lori from Fake Food Free and I have made over our food blogging lifetimes we thought that we'd love to exchange holiday cookies with whomever wanted to. But, shipping cookies all over the world isn't the most practical, so we decided to exchange recipes instead.

Every participant received a cookie recipe to try, photograph, and post. Later this week, after everyone has posted on their given recipes, Lori and I will do a round up off all the cookies to inspire you for your holiday cookie plate this year.

I had the wonderful fortune of receiving a recipe from Kristin of Dinner du Jour. Dinner du Jour is written by best friends Kristin and Kelly. They are separated by the vast Atlantic Ocean, with Kristin in the Irish countryside and Kelly in Milwaukee. They share their recipes with each other and the rest of us by through their blog and often post a series of recipes so you have inspiration for an entire meal, rather than just a side or main dish.

I was especially excited to receive this Mexican Wedding Cake recipe, because it has the addition of cinnamon, which is not included in the Mexican Wedding Cake recipes I have made in the past. My love for cinnamon is grand and undying - so much so that I recently calculated my consumption of the spice.

Turns out I consume nearly a pound of the spice yearly. I stir a spoonful of it in the oats I eat for breakfast, and sprinkle it over the rice pudding I have after dinner, not to mention the hundreds of teaspoons I put it in to countless baked goods coming out of my kitchen.

So without further ado, here is the Cinnamon Mexican Wedding Cake Recipe, also known as the Russian Tea Cake, and most affectionately known to Kristin as Butterballs! 

CINNAMON MEXICAN WEDDING CAKE from Bon Appetit via Kristin of Dinner du Jour

• 1 cup butter, room temp (225 grams)
• 2 cups powdered sugar (240 grams icing sugar)
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 2 cups flour (240 grams)
• 1 cup walnuts or pecans (100 grams)
• 1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Using an electric mixer, beat the butter in a large bowl until light and fluffy. Add 1/2 cup (60 grams) of the powered sugar and the vanilla and beat until well blended. Beat in the flour, then nuts. Divide the dough in half and form each half into ball. Wrap separately in cling film and chill until cold, about 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Whisk the remaining icing sugar and cinnamon in a shallow bowl or pie dish to blend. Set the cinnamon sugar aside.

Working with half of chilled dough, roll 1 scant tablespoon of dough between your palms into balls (I used a small ice cream scoop). Arrange the balls on a large baking sheet, spacing them 1/2 inch apart. Bake for about 18 minutes, until the cookies are golden brown on the bottom and just pale golden on top. Cool the cookies for 5 minutes on the baking sheet, then gently toss or roll the warm cookies in cinnamon sugar to coat them completely. Transfer the coated cookies to a wire rack and allow to cool completely. Repeat this procedure with the remaining half of the dough. Sift any remaining cinnamon sugar over the cookies and serve.

The cinnamon gives these cookies a warm brown coating, a little bit different than the snow white coating these types of cookies usually get, adding another dimension of color to the cookie plate! 

Happy Baking! Hope everyone has a wonderful holiday season and enjoys loads of cookies of all different sorts...