Cookie Swap Wreath
Serves: 5
Kirstin Bosco
1 January 1970
Based on User reviews:
51
Spice
34
Sweetness
55
Sourness
38
mins
Prep time (avg)
4.2
Difficulty
Ingredients:
1 cup
Granulated Sugar1 tsp
Kosher Salt1 large
Egg (at room temperature)1 tsp
Vanilla Extract1 tbsp
Baking Powder1 tsp
Ground Cardamom1 tsp
Ground Cinnamon1 tsp
Ground Cloves3 large
Egg White6 tbsps
Unsweetened Shredded Coconut3 tbsps
Meringue Powder6 tbsps
Water (room-temperature)Directions:
1
Special equipment: a kitchen torch, optional; a stand mixer; piping bags fitted with a number 3 or 4 tip (large round) and a number 0 round tip; a 1-ounce cookie scoop; a Silpat or silicone baking mat For the spiced sugar cookie: Preheat the oven to 350 F
2
Paddle the butter in a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment at medium speed until soft and the consistency of mayonnaise, about 3 minutes
3
Use a kitchen torch to gently warm the bowl if necessary
4
Add the granulated sugar and salt and continue to paddle at medium speed, scraping down the sides of the bowl as necessary, until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes
5
Add the egg and vanilla and paddle at medium speed until well incorporated, about 3 minutes (see Cook's Note)
6
Reduce the speed of the mixer to the lowest setting, add the flour, baking powder, cardamom, cinnamon, cloves and allspice and mix until well combined
7
Scoop the cookie dough into a rough ball on a piece of parchment paper
8
Place another piece of parchment paper on top and roll out the dough to 1/4 inch thick
9
Keep the dough between the 2 sheets of parchment, place on a baking sheet and chill until firm, about 10 minutes in the freezer
10
Peel off the top piece of parchment and then place it back on top
11
Flip the dough over and peel the bottom parchment off
12
Cut the dough to the desired shape: For this wreath, cut an 8-inch circle and then a 5-inch circle in the interior to make a ring
13
Reserve, re-roll and bake off scraps for another use
14
Transfer the baking sheet to the oven and bake the cookie ring until set, 7 to 10 minutes
15
Allow to cool completely
16
For the langues de chats: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F
17
Paddle the butter in a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment at medium speed until soft and the consistency of mayonnaise, about 3 minutes
18
Use a kitchen torch to gently warm the bowl if necessary
19
Add the granulated sugar and salt and continue to paddle at medium speed, scraping down the sides of the bowl as necessary, until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes
20
Gradually add the egg whites and vanilla bean paste and paddle at medium speed until incorporated completely
21
Reduce the speed of the mixer to the lowest setting, add the cake flour and orange zest and mix until well combined
22
Your batter should resemble a thick cake batter
23
Fill a piping bag fitted with a number 3 or 4 tip (large round) with the cookie batter
24
Pipe cookies onto 3 parchment paper-lined baking sheets
25
The cookies should be 1 inch long and spaced about 1 inch apart; you should be able to fit 3 rows of 9 to 10 cookies on each baking sheet (see Cook's Note)
26
Bake 2 baking sheets at a time, rotating the sheets halfway through, until the cookies have just started to brown on the edges, 5 to 7 minutes
27
Let cool
28
Cookies will crisp as they cool
29
Repeat with the remaining baking sheet of cookies
30
(Makes 60 to 70 cookies) For the coconut lime Russian tea cakes: Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F
31
Paddle the butter in a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment at medium speed until soft and the consistency of mayonnaise, about 3 minutes
32
Use a kitchen torch to gently warm the bowl if necessary
33
Add the granulated sugar and salt and continue to paddle at medium speed, scraping down the sides of the bowl as necessary, until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes
34
Add the vanilla extract and lime juice and paddle at medium speed until well incorporated
35
Reduce the speed of the mixer to the lowest setting and add the lime zest, flour and coconut and mix until well combined, scraping as often as necessary Using a 1-ounce cookie scoop, scoop the dough about 1 1/2 inches apart onto a parchment paper-lined baking sheet
36
Bake until set, about 15 minutes
37
You should be able to pick up a cookie off the baking sheet
38
The cookies will be very lightly browned on the edges, and should feel soft, yet solid
39
Allow to cool for 2 minutes on the baking sheet, and then dredge the warm cookies one by one in confectioners' sugar, ensuring complete coverage
40
Place back on the baking sheet to cool
41
(Makes 24 to 30 cookies) For the hippen tuile: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F
42
Paddle the butter in a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment at medium speed until smooth and creamy, about 3 minutes
43
Add the sugar and paddle at medium speed until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes, scraping down the sides of the bowl often
44
Slowly add the egg whites and continue to paddle at medium speed until completely combined
45
Reduce the speed of the mixer to the lowest setting, add the flour and lemon zest and mix until combined
46
Your batter should resemble cake batter
47
Scoop the tuile batter into a pastry bag fitted with number 0 tip
48
Chill the batter until firm, about 20 minutes
49
Pipe the chilled batter into desired shapes (holly leaves for the wreath) on a baking sheet lined with a Silpat or silicone baking mat
50
The batter will be stiff; loosen it slightly by kneading the pasty bag with your hands
51
Chill the piped tuile cookies until the batter is firm, about 10 minutes
52
This is a very important step so that the cookies maintain their shapes
53
Bake the tuiles until golden brown, about 5 minutes
54
Let cool completely before taking the cookies off the baking sheet
55
The tuiles will crisp as they cool
56
For the royal icing: Whisk together the confectioners' sugar and meringue powder in the bowl of a stand mixer until combined
57
Using a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, slowly add the water 1 tablespoon at a time and beat on low speed until the frosting is glossy and smooth
58
Fill a pastry bag with about 1/2 cup of the royal icing and cut off the tip to pipe fine lines
59
Reserve the remaining royal icing in the bowl
60
To assemble: Lay the spiced sugar cookie wreath on a flat surface
61
Dip one end of a langues des chats in the royal icing and lay it lengthwise on the wreath; repeat twice more so there are 3 across
62
Continue attaching the cookies, overlapping the ends to shingle all the way around the wreath; the royal icing should only touch the part of the cookies attached to the wreath base and should not be visible
63
Pipe along the edges and down the center of the hippen tuile holly leaves to accent them
64
Allow to dry
65
Attach the leaves and the Russian tea cookies to the wreath with the royal icing to make decorative holly and berry arrangements
66
Once complete, dust all over with confectioners' sugar to look like snow