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Posts Tagged 'cookie'

Culinary Canvas: Lavender Cookies

Published June 22, 2016 Culinary Canvas Closed
Tags: cafe, cookie, France, recipe

Lavender is a plant prized for its healing properties, pleasant fragrance, and–particularly in France–its unique flavor. Fragrant purple fields of these flowers can be found across the south of France, especially in the Provence region. Van Gogh moved from Paris to this area in 1888, to the ancient city of Arles. One September evening, he set up his easel on the square and painted the cafe, which he later translated into this reed pen drawing from the Museum’s Reves Collection. I think these delicate lavender cookies would be the perfect treat to enjoy while sipping a café au lait at this charming spot.

Vincent Van Gogh, Café Terrace on the Place du Forum, 1888, Dallas Museum of Art, The Wendy and Emery Reves Collection.

Lavender Cookies

Yields about 60 cookies
Level: Easy

2 teaspoons dried lavender, chopped or ground
1 cup sugar
2½ cups flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
½ cup shortening
½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
½ teaspoon almond extract
1 egg plus 2 egg yolks, room temperature

Preheat oven to 375° F. Line rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper.

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment, stir together lavender and sugar. Set aside for a few minutes, allowing lavender to infuse. In a separate bowl, stir together flour, baking powder and salt.

Add shortening and butter to lavender sugar and beat at medium speed until light. Add almond extract, then slowly incorporate eggs, mixing well until combined. Slowly add dry ingredients to mixer, stirring on low speed and scraping down sides of bowl until fully incorporated.

Using a tablespoon scoop, drop dough onto prepared baking sheets. Bake 9-11 minutes until tops begin to crinkle.

When removed from oven, cookies will look soft and should remain so at room temperature. Allow to cool slightly on baking sheet then transfer to metal rack to cool completely.

Note: Dried lavender can usually be found in the bulk area of specialty grocery stores.

Lavender Cookies

Recipe adapted from Taste of Home.

Sarah Coffey
Education Coordinator

Culinary Canvas: Almond Cookies (Nan-e Badami)

Published May 27, 2014 Culinary Canvas 1 Comment
Tags: cookie, Islamic Art, Nur: Light in Art and Science from the Islamic World, Persia, recipe

This month’s recipe is inspired by our current exhibition Nur: Light in Art and Science from the Islamic World, which explores Islamic art and science throughout the centuries and around the world. Several beautifully decorated pieces of pottery can be found in the exhibition, including this striking bowl from Kashan, located in modern Iran. The Persian Empire spanned this area during ancient times and its cultural thread has continued, influencing food in the region today. In fact, Persians were one of the first to produce sugar and create recipes for cookies–some dating back to the 12th century–and sweets remain an important part of Persian celebrations today. Try this simple Persian recipe to add an interesting new flavor to your cookie repertoire and then be sure to stop by the Museum before Nur closes next month!

Blue and White Bowl with Radial Design, 13th Century , Iran, Kashan, fritware, painted in cobalt blue under transparent glaze, Brooklyn Museum, Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Thomas S. Brush, Brooklyn, USA

Almond Cookies

Yields about 60 cookies
Level: Very Easy

5 egg yolks
1 ½ cups sugar
3 tablespoons rosewater (optional, can be purchased at Middle Eastern markets)
2 cups finely ground almonds or almond flour
2 teaspoons cardamom
½ teaspoon baking powder

Preheat oven to 250° F. Line rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment, beat yolks and sugar at medium speed until light. Add rosewater if desired.

In a separate bowl, stir together almond flour, cardamom, and baking powder. Slowly add almond mixture to mixer, stirring on low speed and scraping down sides of bowl until fully incorporated. Resulting dough should be slightly sticky.

To form cookies, scoop off about a teaspoon of dough then roll between hands to shape into a ball. Flatten ball between palms and place on baking sheet. Bake about 25 minutes, watching closely to ensure cookies do not brown.

When removed from oven, cookies will look very soft and should remain so at room temperature. Allow to cool on baking sheet then transfer to metal rack to cool completely.

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Recipe adapted from Food of Life: A Book of Ancient Persian and Modern Iranian Cooking and Ceremonies.

Sarah Coffey
Assistant to the Chair of Learning Initiatives

Culinary Canvas: Cornflake Cookies

Published May 30, 2013 Culinary Canvas Closed
Tags: cereal, cookie, recipe, the Twenties

The Roaring Twenties continue to hold a certain allure in pop culture today, with movies like The Great Gatsby providing just one recent example. The era was not only one of glamour and excess, but also one of innovation and modernization, characterized by new inventions, new music, and the “New Woman,” who had greater freedom than ever before. The booming economy provided the average consumer with extra money to spend, and the advent of mass advertising ensured that name brands were in high demand. Razor, the DMA’s iconic 1924 painting by Gerald Murphy, perfectly embodies this period: the matches, pen, and razor would have been easily recognizable and understood as the necessary accoutrement of the modern man. As part of this burgeoning commercial era, newly available food products like boxed cereal and marshmallows became a favorite addition to recipes of the time, which focused on quick yet dainty dishes that could be easily whipped up by the busy working girl. Try out this month’s vintage recipe and and see if you find it just as nifty as the decade itself.

Gerald Murphy, Razor, 1924, Dallas Museum of Art, Foundation for the Arts Collection, gift of the artist

Cornflake Cookies

Yields about 24 cookies
Level: Easy

¾ cup packed brown sugar
¼ cup white sugar
4 egg whites, room temperature
pinch of salt
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup toasted walnuts, finely chopped
1 cup cornflake cereal, crushed
1 cup marshmallows
½ cup chocolate chips (optional, for additional sweetness)

Preheat oven to 325° F. Line rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.

In small bowl, stir together brown sugar and white sugar. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with whisk attachment, beat egg whites on low until frothy, about 30 seconds. Add salt and vanilla. Continue beating on medium-high, slowly adding sugar, until stiff peaks form. Watch closely to ensure whites are not over-beaten.

In separate bowl, mix together chopped walnuts, cereal, marshmallows, and chocolate chips if desired. Gently fold nut mixture into batter with a rubber spatula until evenly incorporated. Batter will be thick and sticky.

Drop batter by large spoonfuls onto prepared baking sheet. Bake 11-13 minutes until tops are crinkled and golden, watching closely to ensure cookies do not brown. Allow to cool slightly on baking sheet then transfer to metal rack to cool completely.

Finished batter

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Recipe adapted from Fashionable Food: Seven Decades of Food Fads.

Sarah Coffey
Assistant to the Chair of Learning Initiatives

Culinary Canvas: Cake Batter Sprinkle Cookies

Published January 31, 2013 Culinary Canvas 4 Comments
Tags: cookie, cooking with kids, recipe, sprinkles

This month, I wanted to solve one of my cooking conundrums: What to do with leftover egg yolks? After only using the whites in a recipe or for breakfast, the poor yolks might end up wastefully tossed in the trash. In the spirit of reducing waste and making something out of materials on hand, the inspiration for this month’s recipe is Family Portrait 1963, currently on view in C3. Martin Delabano created this unique sculpture of his family out of recycled and reused objects, like a coffee can and a guitar. These tasty cookies will undoubtedly bring your family together, all while making use of something you might have thrown away.

Martin Delabano, Family Portrait 1963, 2001, Dallas Museum of Art, gift of Mr. and Mrs. Bryant M. Hanley, Jr., Lorine and David H. Gibson, and Sonny Burt and Bob Butler

Cake Batter Sprinkle Cookies

Yields about 50 cookies
Level: Very Easy

½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon almond extract
3 egg yolks
1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
½ cup colorful sprinkles, preferably jimmies

Preheat oven to 350° F. Line rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment, cream butter and sugar, beating at medium speed until light. Add almond extract and egg yolks and continue mixing until fully combined.

Sift together flour, baking powder, and salt onto wax paper. Slowly add flour mixture to mixer, mixing on low speed and scraping down sides of bowl until just incorporated. Remove bowl from mixer and stir in sprinkles by hand with rubber spatula.

To form cookies, scoop off about a teaspoon of dough then roll between hands to shape a ball slightly taller than it is wide. Bake until just crinkled on top, about 11-12 minutes, watching closely to ensure cookies do not brown.

When removed from oven, cookies will look very soft and should remain so at room temperature. Allow to cool slightly on baking sheet then transfer to metal rack to cool completely.

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Recipe adapted from Sally’s Baking Addiction.

Sarah Coffey
Assistant to the Chair of Learning Initiatives

Culinary Canvas: Almond Crescents

Published December 21, 2012 Culinary Canvas 3 Comments
Tags: chocolate, cookie, Friday Photos, Indonesia, recipe

The inspiration for this month’s recipe is a crescent-shaped tobelo, a sacred object from Indonesia used to connect with ancestral spirits. In my family, baking serves as a connector between generations, and at no time is this more true than the holiday season. In that spirit, be sure to bake this crescent-shaped cookie with your family and let everyone explore their artistic side with the decorations!

Crescent-shaped ornament (tobelo), 19th Century, Dallas Museum of Art, gift of The Nasher Foundation in honor of Patsy R. and Raymond D. Nasher

Almond Crescents

Yields about 60 cookies
Level: Easy

Cookies:

1 cup blanched slivered almonds, lightly toasted
2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
¾ cup sugar
1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract

Topping:

2 ounces good quality dark chocolate, coarsely chopped
2 ounces good quality white chocolate, coarsely chopped
Decorations: crushed candy cane, chopped toasted almonds, coarse sugar, sprinkles

Preheat oven to 350° F. Line rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.

Cookies: Place almonds in food processor and process into a fine crumb. In a medium bowl, stir together processed almonds with flour. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment, cream butter, sugar, and vanilla, beating at medium speed until light and fluffy, about 2-3 minutes. Add flour mixture to mixer in three batches, mixing on low speed until just combined.

To form cookies, scoop off about a tablespoon of dough then roll between hands to shape into a log about 3 inches long. Place on baking sheet, then pull ends down and pinch to form a crescent shape, leaving about 1 inch between each cookie. When sheet is full, gently press down each cookie to flatten slightly. Bake until golden on bottom, about 13-15 minutes. Allow to cool slightly on baking sheet then transfer to metal rack to cool completely.

Topping: Whisk dark chocolate in a glass bowl set over a small pot of simmering water until mostly melted, then remove from heat and whisk until smooth. Once cookies have cooled, dip one end of each into chocolate then sprinkle with desired decoration. Place on wax paper to dry. Repeat process with white chocolate.

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Recipe adapted from Very Merry Cookie Party.

Sarah Coffey
Assistant to the Chair of Learning Initiatives

Culinary Canvas: Sarah Bernhardt Cookies

Published October 19, 2012 Culinary Canvas 3 Comments
Tags: chocolate, cookie, Friday Photos, Posters of Paris, recipe

For this month’s recipe, we’re taking a trip through Paris with our new exhibition, Posters of Paris: Toulouse-Lautrec and His Contemporaries. Alphonse Mucha created this poster for Sarah Bernhardt, one of the most renowned actresses of the 19th century. She was so loved, in fact, that a Scandinavian baker named a cookie for her. Though somewhat complex, these multilayered confections are sure to dazzle, much like their namesake and her posters.

Alphonse Mucha, Gismonda, 1894-1895, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Kurt J. Wagner, M.D., and C. Kathleen Wagner Collection, M.87.294.1

Sarah Bernhardt Cookies

Yields about 60 cookies
Level: Advanced

Filling:

6 ounces good quality dark chocolate, coarsely chopped
Scant ½ cup sugar
Scant ½ cup water
3 large egg yolks, room temperature
¼ cup heavy cream, room temperature
½ teaspoon vanilla extract

Cookies:

3 cups blanched slivered almonds
1 ½ cups sugar
3 large egg whites, room temperature
1 ½ teaspoons almond extract
Splash of water

Coating:

12 ounces good quality dark chocolate, coarsely chopped
2 tablespoons vegetable shortening

Filling: Whisk chocolate in a glass bowl set over a small pot of simmering water until smooth and melted. Remove chocolate from heat and set aside to cool. Combine sugar and water in small saucepan and simmer until syrup becomes clear, about 5 minutes, then set aside. In the bowl of a stand mixer set over a small pot of simmering water, whisk egg yolks until warm, about 2 minutes.

Transfer bowl to stand mixer fitted with whisk attachment. Add cream and beat mixture on medium until combined. Reduce speed and slowly pour in hot syrup. Return speed to medium and continue beating until cool and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add melted chocolate, scraping down sides of bowl as needed until fully incorporated. Refrigerate filling until firm, about 1 hour (or up to 1 week).

Cookies: Preheat oven to 325° F. Line rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. Place almonds in food processor and process for 1 minute. Add sugar and process into a fine crumb, about 3 minutes. Add egg whites and almond extract and process until mixture wads around blade. Scrape bowl with spatula and add splash of water. Process a few more seconds until paste is firm yet smooth enough to pipe.

Transfer paste to pastry bag fitted with coupler only (no tip). Pipe small rounds onto prepared baking sheet, applying pressure to bag for about 4 seconds per cookie and leaving 1 inch between each. Bake until golden around the edges, about 20 minutes, rotating sheet halfway through. Allow to cool slightly on baking sheet then transfer to metal rack to cool completely.

Once cookies are completely cool, transfer filling to pastry bag fitted with coupler only or with #11 tip. Pipe a peaked mound of filling on top of each cookie. Transfer cookies to freezer until filling is very firm, about 1 hour.

Coating: Whisk chocolate in a glass bowl set over a small pot of simmering water until smooth and melted. Remove from heat and stir in shortening. Cool until barely warm.

Remove cookies from freezer and place on cooling rack. Working quickly so filling doesn’t melt, spoon melted chocolate over cookies until filling is completely covered. Refrigerate finished cookies and serve chilled.

Sarah with a finished Sarah, dusted in gold like her beautiful posters.

Almond macaroon recipe adapted from Baking Illustrated and used with Sarah Bernhardt cookie recipe, adapted from Martha Stewart’s Cookies.

Sarah Coffey
Assistant to the Chair of Learning Initiatives

Posts Tagged 'cookie'

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