Swedish Peasant Shortbreads

 This should be a crisp cookie with a bit of crunch, very similar to the danish cookie my mother made with brown sugar. This is just another recipe I got from The Nordic Baking Book by Magnus Nilsson

200 grams(1 3/4sticks) of butter at room temperature

200 g (1 cup) sugar

120 g (1/3 cup) golden syrup

250 g (2 cups) all purpose flour

1 tsp baking soda

1 cup almonds with the skin still on, coarselychopped. ( I used blanched slivered almonds but I think the skin on almonds would look better)

Put the butter, sugar and golden syrup into the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment and work until combined.  Add the dry ingredients and work until it is a smooth dough.

Tip the dough out onto a lightly floured work counter and divide it into 4 equal pieces.  Roll the pieces into logs of about 1 1/2 inches in diameter and wrap each one tightly in plastic wrap.  Leave in the refrigerator 3 hours or overnight.  

Preheat oven to 345 F and line several baking sheets with parchment paper.

Cut the logs into 1/4 inch thick slices and pale the slices onto the prepared baking sheets.  Bake for about 10 minutes or until just golden.  Remove from the oven and leave them to cool

Chai Spiced Medjool Date and Almond Tart

 The only drawback to this is that you need some time to prepare it. Don’t skip on letting the crust rest. If  you want to use regular dates go ahead.

Pastry

1/2 cup unsalted butter At room temperature

1/3 cup sugar

1 egg

1 1/4 cups all purpose flour

1 tsp baking powder

Date Filling

1 1/2 cups medjool dates chopped (about 15)

1/2 cup water

1 tsp cardamom

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp nutmeg

1/2 tsp ground ginger

Almond Filling

1/4 cup unsalted butter at room temperature 

1/4 cup sugar

1 egg

1/4 tsp almond extract

1/2 cup ground almonds

1 1/2 tsp all purpose flour 

1.  For the pastry, place the butter and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Beat on medium speed until combined. Add the egg and continue beating until combined.

2.  In a small bowl, whisk together the flour and baking powder, then add to the butter mixture. Beat just until combined. The dough will be very soft. Wrap in plastic wrap. Form into a flat disc. Chill at least 2 hours. The dough can be prepared a day ahead. 

3.  For the date filling, combine all ingredients in a small saucepan and place over low-medium heat. Mash the dates while cooking, about 5 minutes  until liquid is absorbed and the mixture is thick and smooth. Transfer the date mixture to a small bowl to cool completely. The dates can be cooked 2 days in advance.

4.  Line a sheet pan with parchment paper and set aside. Roll dough about 1/8 inch thick. Line a 9 inch tart pan. Place on the parchment lined tray. Chill while preparing the almond filling.

5.  Place the oven rack in the middle position and preheat the oven to 350 F .

6.  For the almond filling, place the butter and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixture fitted with the paddle attachment and cream together on medium speed until light and fluffy. Add the egg and almond extract and beat to combine. 

7.  Combine the ground almonds and flour together and add to the butter mixture. Beat until smooth. 

8.  Spread the date mixture evenly over the chilled dough . Repeat with the almond filling spreading it over the date mixture to cover.

9.  Bake until the top is golden brown, about 30 to 35 minutes. Remove from oven and serve warm with ice cream

Homemade Eggnog

Homemade Eggnog

This is a great drink warm or cold. This can easily be halved.

4 eggs
2/3 cup granulated sugar
4 cups light cream
4 whole cream
2 cinnamon sticks
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp allspice
1/3 cup Vodkow vodka
1 tsp rum extract
Whipping cream

In a large saucepan, whisk together eggs and sugar until well combined. Whisk in cream. Add cloves, cinnamon sticks, nutmeg, and allspice. Place over medium heat and whisk gently for about 10 minutes or until mixture has small bubbles around the edge of the pan and thermometer reaches 160F Remove from heat and pour through sieve into a large bowl. Whisk in Vodkow and rum extract, cover and refrigerate 4 hours. Pour over ice and dollop with whipping cream.

Serves 6