May Day and and Multi Frolla Cookie Crust

A happy, albeit somewhat soggy. "May Day" to all of you out there. I do hope you are still there. We have had odd weather, like most of the rest of the world, in that we seemed to have had a couple of weeks of summer back in March only to have April with more than it's fair share of showers, bone chilly too. That is normal, although it usually is broken up with more sun with warm and wavering temperatures. Oh well, at least the flowers are still blooming and furry creatures still want to scamper about. 

I wanted to share a recipe I have been working on ever since I stumbled across some multi cereal cookie bars in a bakery we popped our head in to a few weeks back. I'm not sure I have replicated their recipe, as mine seems far darker than their buttery, flavorful bars, but we found these to be quite tasty and thought you might enjoy them as well. My original recipe is in grams, as I have happily adopted what I think we were foolish not to adopt in America, the metric system. In cooking it just makes life, well actually baking,  so much easier, as it is so much easier to get even number to divide in and out and balance a ratio when needs be. I still seem to think in terms of cups as a first basis, as the lifetime of imprinting never seems to completely fade. I don't think I will ever get all that familiar with temperatures in Celsius other than hot or cold, as the temperature subtleties relating to outside temperatures are lost on me. I said all of that to say this... the cups and oz in the recipe may need slight adjusting as they don't always come out exact when adjusting on a conversion chart. The only thing you might need to adjust would be the amount of flour. If it seems like the cookies are spreading too much when baking add a little more flour when rolling out. I think it should be fine though. 

I didn't know what to call this recipe as it is a basic Italian pasta frolla dough, which here is used for making sweet tarts or pies and is in reality a cookie dough and so makes delicious cookies as well with a little adjusting. I didn't want to call it multi cereal as it had seeds also and I made a single crust apple tart with the dough as wel, so the name multi frolla cookie crust was born. Feel free to try other flours.  I really love the buckwheat flour here and am always trying to find more ways to use it. This being polenta country it seemed like a natural mix with the buckwheat. I think they gave it an intriguing flavor with the seeds giving it a nice bite. I think spelt or farro would be another nice addition or change. Give it a whirl and see what you think. The cookies were crispy for a few days and softened as they sat in my cookie tin. The softening is a good thing when used as a tart crust so that your tart doesn't go skittering across the plate when cutting it. The photo at the bottom of the post is a very simple apple tart that I normally add a crumb topping but didn't this time. I just thinly slice apples on to the prepared tart crust drizzle a fair amount of marsala wine over the apples and add a crumb topping. I keep it simple so the flavor of the crust comes through.  Without the crumb topping the tart is only slightly sweet and your apples may get a little brown, but it makes for a flavorful and not so sweet afternoon snack and dessert. i think the cookies would taste great sandwiched together with a dab of apricot jam. The possibilities are endless. So be my guest and enjoy my multi purpose "Multi Frolla Cookie Crust"

Multi Frolla Cookie Crust

Yield: 36 cookies approximately and 1-10” / 25cm crust

Ingredients

¾ c / 125 g Sugar, granulated

14T or 9 oz / 200 g Butter, softened 

2 Eggs

1 tsp vanilla

½ c / 70 g buckwheat flour

½ c / 70 g cornmeal

1 T / 10 g each of sesame seeds, light and dark flax seeds, (3T / 30 g total)

2 tsp baking powder

½ tsp salt

2 ¼ c / 300 g flour, pastry, all purpose, plain

Method:

Place sugar with the butter in a medium to large mixing bowl.

With a whisk or hand mixer, cream until fluffy. Normally, I do this by hand, of course you can use a hand mixer.

Add two eggs along with vanilla and incorporate thoroughly.

Mix your 3 types of flour with your baking powder and salt before adding to you wet ingredients.

Mix until it starts to come together.

Finish by bringing the dough together with some flour on your hands, either in the bowl or on the table with a light dusting of flour.

Gingerly, knead into a smooth dough.

Flatten into a rectangle, divide in half if you want two uses and cover in a bag or your bowl.

Refrigerate for about a half an hour to an hour.

You can let this sit overnight as well if you wan to prepare ahead.

I used half for cookies one day and a couple days later made a tart out of the other refrigerated half.

Roll out on lightly floured table or between parchment paper for ease.  Make sure you keep lightly flouring and lifting the dough so it doesn’t stick to the table or paper.

Work somewhat quickly so you don’t let the dough get too warm as it will become sticky and more difficult to manage.

Roll out to about 1/4” (1/2 cm), thicker if you like.

Cut into shapes or bar lengths. I cut out scalloped rounds and cut out the center. The tiny centers fit perfectly on a small espresso cup and saucer. I also made some bars for dipping in our cappuccinos as well.

Bake at 350*F / 190* C for 8 -10 minutes depending on how thick your dough is and how quickly your oven bakes. Mine is convection and tends to bake quite fast. 

Benvenuta "La Befana" with Lavender Limoncello Stars

Were you naughty or nice? Coal or treats that is the question come the 6th of January in Italy. You just need to see what was left in your stocking to come to some sort of conclusion. I have written a number of posts over the years about the Italian tradition of La Befana, so I thought I might put up some links to blog posts past. Befana is an interesting mixture of what to me seems like Halloween and Christmas. Befana is a kindly old woman or witch on a broomstick who flies everywhere on the night before Epiphany or 12th night as it is also called, and either fills up your stockings, that should have been hung by the chimney with care, with treats or small presents, or you get a lump of coal. Fortunately, for Italian children, the lumps of coal have been transformed into black confections that make for a more more pleasant time taking your lumps of coal in stride.

Here are a few links to previous posts I've posted over the years. some have more of the story of La Befana's origins and others are recipes for dishes designed to serve on a Befana menu.

• "La Befana" has arrived
• "Le Befana" came and went
• Away with la Befana and a Carmelle di pasta per la Befana

Martha over at Go Italy has a great post on the origins of la Befana, that you might enjoy reading.

I also made some cookies this year called La Befana Stars. This version is a departure from the usual anise flavored variety and met with an appreciative round of approval. Unfortunately, I forgot to get a photo of them before they were all given away and eaten right up. Any size star cookie vutter will do. You can make a milk glaze and add sprinkles or just give them a dusting of powdered sugar. This was a great way to use some of my home made limoncello and abundance of lavender from our garden.

Head over to  "The Leftover Queen" to check out Jen's version of the La Befana traditional recipe for what are usually anise flavored cut out star cookies. You'll find the recipe in it's entirety. 

Itty Bitty Almond Amaretto Cookies

Yesterday was Ferragosto here in Italy and if you aren't familiar with that particular holiday, just let me tell you, it is a " the end is nigh" kind of summer holiday that Italians celebrate in some form or fashion without fail. Most picnic or go to the seaside, get together with friends and bar-b-que, or head for the mountains only to find yourself stuck in the traffic with everyone else heading off to do something for this day. Some of our guests had that experience as they trundled off to the higher mountains to walk high up with the wildflowers and others gave up and pulled off to visit with us as they couldn't bear the tedium of being stuck in the traffic. Fortunately I hade some hazelnut cake left over from the night before to offer with coffee, but I worried that if we had many more visitors dropping in due to the holiday, I just might find myself with out something tasty to offer. Horrors of horrors. Just not comfortable for me as a baker, not to have a little something baked up to tempt and delight or just take the edge off around the edges of one's ferragosto holiday traffic jam. so what to make in a short amount of time? Why, itty bitty almond cookies that fit on an espresso cup's saucer, of course. This is such a simple recipe that you will be wondering why you haven't run across it before and what other combinations might work well. I must admit that my hazelnut and hazelnut liquor combo is my favorite, as I am a fool for hazelnuts, but the almond ones are a close second. I had something like these served to me one day on the side of my Cafe Macchiato served up in the cosy coffee nook in Volare, my favorite bookstore in Pinerolo. I immediately went home and started working on reproducing that treat and have been making variations ever since. Give it a go, as I think you'll find it's a fast and tasty treat along side any cup of coffee or tea and stays perfectly fresh for quite a while. I dare say they probably won't last long enough for you to find out exactly how long before they go stale.
Anyway, try this out, stash the cooled cookies in a tin for when you need a little pick me up to go with your afternoon "cup of pick me up". You'll be glad you did.

Itty Bitty Almond Amaretto Cookies 

Yields about 80 mini cookies

115g (1/2c) butter, room temp

100g (½ c) sugar, raw cane is my preferred sugar
1 egg

2 T amaretto 

140g (1c) all purpose flour
100g (1c) almond, lightly toasted and chopped into small pieces

Toast your almonds in the oven on a sheet pan until lightly toasted or in a heavy cast iron type pan shaking occasionally until they are evenly toasted.

Chop into pieces when cooled down

Place your butter in a medium mixing bowl and whisk together with the sugar until smooth and fluffy.

Add the egg and mix till smooth and then the amaretto and mix thoroughly.

Mix in your flour and then almonds making sure all is incorporated.

Drop the mixture by using two teaspoons.

I did rows of 5 across and 6 down or about 30 cookies per sheet tray.

Bake at 180*C/ 325*F for about 8 minutes or till lightly brown. 

Cool thoroughly before storing in an airtight container.

Crumiri Cookies, Not for Wimps

 

Why, you ask are these cookies not for wimps? Because they will build up your muscle trying to squeeze them through the open star tip on your pastry bag and maybe even have you saying a choice explicative or two as well. Yet, they really are a buttery corn meal "stick" and a delicious cappuccino dunker that hails from the Casale Monferrato region of Piedmont and worth the muscle building.

 

Domenico Rossi invented them around 1870 and named them after a popular drink at that time called Khrumiro. According to the Krumiri Rossi web site, when the king of Italy, Vittorio Emanuele II died the biscotti's characteristic bend of the coookie was most likely introduced as a tribute to the king and his famous handlebar moustache. Later they patented the name and cookie. Perhaps the patent is why they are generally referred to as Crumiri by the rest of us. Anyway, what ever the name, they are quite tasty and worth adding to your cookie basket.  You will find them all over Turin in many of the pastry shops and they make their way on to the long line of biscotti on the grocery shelves as well. Making them is a great option if you don't have them readily available to you. I took the liberty to have my way with them and turned them into a small candy cane type shape for getting into the holiday spirit and you can to, but normally they are long sticks and bent mid way for an authentic shape. They are cooked until quite golden brown. I went a tad lighter as I love the contrast of the two colors, but going a bit further when you bake them yourself is quite acceptable and encouraged. Do give them a try and do enjoy them at other times of the year than the holidays as they are really worth the effort.

 

Crumiri Biscotti

Yeilds about 4 dozen small or less larger ones

Ingredients

280 g butter, room temperature ( 1 1/4 cup)

160 g sugar, caster or granulated (3/4 cup)

4 egg yolks

2 tsp vanilla extract

280 g corn meal(1 1/2 cup)

200 g pastry or all purpose flour (2 cup)

Method

Cream the butter and sugar together, with a whisk by hand  or with a paddle on a stand mixer.

Add the 4 egg yolks and blend well.

Mix in the vanilla.

Mix the corn and pastry flour together, blnding well.

Add the mixed flours in to the butter mixture, just to fully incorporate.

Fit a medium/large open star pastry tip into a pastry bag.

Take half of your mixture and place it into your bag.

Pipe out on to a papered sheet tray or greased and floured tray.

Repeat with the other half of the batch.

The dough will be firm so take your time and squeeze it out

with steady pressure.

For traditional shape

Pipe out long 4 inch lengths

Bend the cookies in the middle to look like a <

Or pipe in the shape of a 9 or a cane.

Bake in a moderate oven 325* for about 12-14 minutes.

Cool completely before storing.

 

2013 January update.

Here's another version I found that purports to be close to the secret original recipe.  I need to finish the ones languishing in my Krumiri tin before trying this one out. 

Secret Original Krumiri knock off recipe (allegedly)

Ingredients:
butter 210 g 

sugar 120 g 

vanilla
3 egg yolks
salt 

white flour 150 g corn flour 210 g

Mix the flour corn, flour, butter, sugar, egg yolks, a pinch of salt and vanilla. 

Let stand before piping out.