Swedish Raspberry and Almond Bars

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...Those of us who love to cook amass recipes the way Midas did gold. Despite efforts to contain them, our collections grow at an alarming rate. Tucked in among them, however, you'll usually find a handful of well-worn treasures that, having stood the test of time and taste, have been granted best of class status and become family favorites. The bar cookies I'm featuring today are in that category. They were originally the creation of an unknown Swedish housewife who, using a bit of butter and sugar, managed to produce a buttery cookie so memorable that its reputation crossed an ocean and entered the kitchens of the new world where they are still enjoyed today. I first had these cookies as a child when war time rationing forced them to be made with margarine. Margarine back then was an interesting affair. It came in a block that looked like lard. Each block contained a packet of coloring that was worked into it until it was uniformly yellow. Believe it or not, the job of mixing often fell to children who vied for the task. These cookies are so good that even margarine could not spoil them, but when they are made with butter they become an unforgettable treat. The base of the cookies is a shortbread that is covered with a layer of raspberry or apricot jam. The jam is covered with a meringue and is finished with a topping of sliced almonds. The recipe for the cookies, which appears below, comes from Taste of Home magazine. I add almond extract and a bit of salt to the shortbread, but other than that I stick with the recipe, which is foolproof. These bars are a personal favorite of mine and I highly recommend them to you. I know you'll enjoy them. Here is how they are made.

Swedish Raspberry and Almond Bars...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite courtesy of Taste of Home magazine

Ingredients:
3/4 cup butter, softened
3/4 cup confectioners' sugar
1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup seedless raspberry jam
3 egg whites
6 tablespoons granulated sugar
1/2 cup flaked coconut
1 cup sliced almonds, divided
Additional confectioners' sugar

Directions:
1) Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a large bowl, cream butter and confectioners' sugar until light and fluffy. Gradually add flour and mix well. Press onto the bottom of a greased 13 x 9-inch baking pan.
2) Bake 18-20 minutes or until lightly browned.
3) Spread jam over crust. In a large bowl, beat egg whites until soft peaks form. Gradually beat in sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time, on high until stiff peaks form. Fold in coconut and 1/2 cup almonds. Spread over jam. Sprinkle with remaining almonds.
4) Bake 18-22 minutes or until golden brown. Cool completely on a wire rack. Dust with confectioners' sugar. Yield: 2 dozen.

Cook's Note: I add 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon almond extract to the cookie base.

One Year Ago Today: Strawberry and Pineapple Freezer Jam

Two Years Ago Today: Pasta Picnic Salad

Three Years Ago Today: Limeade Concentrate

Four Years Ago Today: Buttermilk Jewel-Toned Tarts

Anise Butter Cutouts

My Thought for the Day can be found, here. If you like it, give us a thumbs up.

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...This lovely cookie is a riff on the bizcochitos that are served during Cinco de Mayo celebrations in the Southwestern United States. I have several recipes for cookies of this type. Authentic versions are made with lard and the cutters used to shape them are more elaborate than the 2-1/2 inch molds that I use. Fortunately, this cookie is about flavor rather than appearance, and I know those of you who enjoy barely sweet treats will love these anise flavored gems. They are perfect with afternoon coffee or tea and they transport reasonably well. That makes them a great candidate for bake sales or morning meetings. The recipe is straight forward and easy to follow, but be sure to work on a well-floured board in order to prevent the dough from sticking to the surface on which it is rolled. I hope you'll give this recipe a try. It makes a nice cookie. Here is how to make the anise butter cutouts.

Anise Butter Cutouts...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite inspired by Taste of Home Baking cookbook

Ingredients:
1 cup butter, softened
3/4 cup + 2 tablespoons granulated sugar, divided use
1 egg
2 tablespoons thawed orange juice concentrate
2 teaspoons aniseed, crushed
3 cups all-purpose flour
1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Directions:
1) Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2) In a large bowl, cream butter and 1-1/2 cups sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in orange juice concentrate and aniseed.
3) Combine flour, baking powder and salt. Gradually add to creamed mixture and mix well.
4) On a lightly floured surface, roll out dough to 1/4-inch thickness. Cut with a floured 2-1/2-inch round cookie cutter. Place 1 inch apart on ungreased baking sheets.
5) Combine cinnamon and remaining sugar; sprinkle over cookies. Bake for 12-15 minutes or until golden brown. Remove to wire racks. Yield: 2-1/2 dozen.










One Year Ago Today: Moroccan Spiced Carrots














Two Years Ago Today: Cream of Tomato Soup with Fresh Basil













Three Years Ago Today: Blueberry Glace Pie

Rösti - Swiss Hash Brown Potatoes

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...It takes a while to work your way through ten pounds of potatoes. Despite all the potatoes I used last week, there was still a couple of pounds left in the sack that I wanted to finish up. I didn't want to repeat any of the dishes I had already made, so I skimmed through my files looking for a specific recipe for the Swiss version of hash brown potatoes that's called rösti. The recipe comes from Saveur magazine and I have had and used it for over a decade now. I love these potatoes, but I don't make them as often as I'd like because of the time required to get them on the table. There is nothing hard about the recipe, but the potatoes cook twice and must be chilled before they are finally browned. I usually boil and chill the potatoes the day before I plan to serve them, but, even with advanced planning, you still need the better part of an hour to complete their cooking. That being said, they are worth waiting for. The Silver Fox and I first had them years ago in a ski resort where we spent a completely unplanned day. Bad weather had forced us off the road and this was the only place to stay. We refer to the interlude as our introduction to après skiing and rösti and the meaning of the word fleeced. Rösti is a Swiss dish that consists mainly of potatoes. It is a common breakfast dish and many consider it to be the national dish of Switzerland. It was originally considered to be a complete breakfast, but over time it became an accompaniment to other dishes and was served with meals throughout the day. The dish is made with coarsely grated potatoes which can be cooked or raw. They are shaped into rounds or cooked as a large cake in a frying pan. While some add additional ingredients, the dish traditionally is seasoned only with salt and pepper before it is slowly fried in lard or butter. The process produces a wonderful crust and creamy interior that distinguishes it from standard hash browns. If you are a breakfast lover and have never tasted these potatoes, I hope you'll give this recipe a try. You will be wowed. I promise. Here's how rösti are made.

Rösti - Swiss Hash Brown Potatoes...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite courtesy of Saveur magazine

Ingredients:
2-1/4 pounds russet potatoes
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons canola oil
1 tablespoon kosher salt + more to taste if needed

Directions:
1) Place potatoes in a large saucepan, cover with cold water, and bring to a boil over medium-high heat and cook until tender, about 30 minutes. Drain potatoes and set aside to cool for about10 minutes. Peel potatoes, then refrigerate until chilled, at least 1 hour. Grate potatoes using large holes on a cheese grater. Set aside.
2) Heat butter and oil in an 9 to 10-inch nonstick skillet over medium-low heat. When butter is melted, add potatoes, sprinkle with salt, and mix well, coating potatoes with fat. Using a metal spatula, gently press potatoes, molding them to fit the skillet. Cook, shaking skillet occasionally, until edges are golden brown, about 20 minutes.
3) Cover skillet with a large inverted plate, invert rösti over onto plate, then slide it back into skillet, cooked side up. Cook until golden brown on bottom, about 20 minutes longer. Transfer to a cutting board, sprinkle with salt if desired, and cut into wedges to serve. Yield: 4 to 6 servings.

One Year Ago Today: Cream of Garlic Soup

Two Years Ago Today: Moroccan Lamb Stuffed Peppers

Cinnamon-Pecan Wafers

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...I've been experimenting with recipes that use whole-wheat pastry flour for a while now, so I was delighted when I found this contest winner on the Eating Well website. I was looking for cookie recipes that might be healthier than some I have in my holiday collection and I liked the way these looked. They are refrigerator cookies of the slice and bake variety and they are truly simple to make. While the dough, which lends itself to freezer storage, can be prepared days before it's needed, I think the flavor of this cookie improves with age. If you decide to bake them, I suggest you make them a day or two before you plan to serve them. It takes a while for the pecan flavor to ripen and without it this is just another sugar cookie. These crisp butter cookies will neither make nor break your reputation as a baker, but it's nice to have such a simple recipe on hand for the holidays. Here's how the cookies are made.

Cinnamon-Pecan Wafers...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite courtesy of Eating Well magazine

Ingredients:
1/2 cup unsalted butter
3/4 cup granulated sugar, divided
1/4 cup packed light brown sugar
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1-1/4 cup whole-wheat pastry flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup finely chopped pecans
1-1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

Directions:
1) Beat butter, 1/2 cup granulated sugar and brown sugar in a mixing bowl with an electric mixer on medium-high until creamy. Add egg and vanilla and beat well. Combine flour, baking powder and salt in a medium bowl and add to butter mixture. Beat on low speed until combined. Stir in pecans.
2) Divide the dough in half and use lightly floured hands to shape each portion into a 6-inch round log. Wrap each log in wax paper and freeze until firm, at least 1 hour.
3) Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
4) Unwrap dough and let stand at room temperature for 5 minutes. Combine remaining 1/4 cup granulated sugar and cinnamon on a shallow plate. Roll logs in sugar mixture, then slice each log into 24 (1/4-inch thick) cookies. Place cookies about 2-1/2 inches apart on ungreased baking sheets. Bake, one batch at a time, until lightly browned, 10 to 12 minutes. Transfer to wire racks to cool. Yield: 48 cookies.

Cook's Note: Dough wrapped in wax paper and plastic wrap can be frozen for up to 3 months. Once baked, cookies can be stored in an airtight container for 5 days or frozen for 3 months.

One Year Ago Today: Yiaourtopita - Greek Lemon and Yogurt Pound Cake

Two Years Ago Today: Christmas Cookie Round-Up

Three Years Ago Today: Budapest Coffee Cake

Corn with Bacon and Miso Butter

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...Yellow was definitely the color of my day today, and while it had a golden ending, I must admit there were moments that I thought I'd died and gone to heaven, or, at the very least, stumbled into a Kafka novel. Part of our October adventure will be spent on the Amazon and in the jungles of Peru. That, of course, means we need certain vaccinations, among them, the one for yellow fever. Sounds straight forward, huh? We had an appointment for the inoculations and I really thought it would be an easy in, easy out affair. Ten years ago that would have been the case, but my guy and I now fall into a group that is encouraged to forego the vaccination because of potential problems with immune system response. Normally, the wise decision would be to refuse the vaccine and use liberal applications of an insect repellent in its stead. There is, however, a Catch-22. Peru is one of the few places left on earth that still require a certificate of vaccination as a condition for entry into the country. If you want to see the Amazon you have to get the shot. Suffice it to say, the injections came with a lot of counseling, and what I thought would be a 10 minute affair came in closer to three hours. We are, however, now set for the adventure and God help any mosquito that tries to mess with me.

Since the theme of this post seems to be yellow, I thought this would be a great time to share a spectacular dish with you. The recipe, a mix of fresh sweet corn, bacon and a miso butter sauce, was developed by David Chang of Momofuku fame, and, I promise, it will make your socks go up and down. The dish is best made with corn fresh off the cob, but a top quality frozen shoepeg corn can be used if time is a problem. The recipe is straight forward and easy to make. The good news is corn prepared in this manner is truly delicious. The bad news is it does not keep well. So, try to make this when you have a quorum at your table. I suspect this recipe will weave its way into at least one of our holiday meals. I really like this dish and I think those of you who try it will share my enthusiasm. Here's the recipe.

Corn with Bacon and Miso Butter...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite courtesy of David Chang

Instructions:
1/4 pound thick-sliced bacon (about 3 slices)
1 tablespoon unsalted butter, softened
1 tablespoon white miso (fermented soy bean paste)
1 small onion, halved lengthwise and thinly sliced crosswise
10 ears corn, kernels cut from cobs (6 to 7 cups)
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup thinly sliced scallions (2 to 3)

Directions:
1) Cut bacon crosswise into 1/8-inch strips. Cook bacon in a 12-inch heavy skillet over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until browned and crisp, about 8 minutes. Transfer bacon with a slotted spoon to paper towels to drain, leaving fat in skillet.
2) While bacon cooks, stir together butter and miso in a small bowl.
3) Cook onion in bacon fat over moderate heat, stirring, until golden, 5 to 8 minutes. Add corn and pepper and increase heat to moderately high, then cook, stirring constantly, until some of kernels are pale golden, 3 to 4 minutes. Add water and butter mixture and cook, stirring, until corn is tender and coated with miso butter, about 4 minutes. Stir in bacon, 1/4 cup scallions, and salt and pepper to taste. Serve sprinkled with remaining 1/4 cup scallions. Yield: 4 to 6 servings.

One Year Ago Today: Roasted Fennel and Peppers

Two Years Ago Today: Chiang Mai Curry Noodles with Chicken

Dark Chocolate Shortbread

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...I first made this shortbread for a friend who enjoyed afternoon tea. She also loved chocolate and challenged friends who baked to make a chocolate shortbread that would be good enough to serve at a tea she was planning as a fundraiser. Now, I must admit, the only reason I agreed to participate in the challenge was that I already had a recipe that I knew worked and I was more than happy to share it with others. The recipe originally came from Gourmet magazine and it can now be found on Epicurious, which seems to have become the repository for all of Gourmet's published recipes. If you decide to make these cookies you might want to review the comments about the recipe which you can find here. I've made this shortbread at least ten times without incident, so I thought I'd share a few things I've learned with you. Some folks have problems with the cookies spreading as they cook. I chill my dough in the freezer on thin baking sheets for 30 minutes before baking. I let it sit, for 5 minutes or so, at room temperature before docking the formed cookie dough and baking the discs. I've never had a problem with the dough spreading as it bakes. As silly as it may seem, I also make sure that the disks I bake are exactly 6 inches in diameter and religiously follow baking and cooling instructions that are given in the recipe. Again, I've had no problems. This is a lovely shortbread and I know you'll really enjoy it if I can get you to try it. It is very easy to make. Here's the recipe.

Dark Chocolate Shortbread...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite courtesy of Gourmet magazine

Ingredients
1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, softened
1/4 cup superfine granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/8 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder

Directions
1) Blend butter, sugar, vanilla, and salt in a bowl with a fork until combined well. Sift flour and cocoa into butter mixture and blend with fork just until mixture forms a soft dough.
2) Divide dough in half and pat out with floured fingertips into 2 (6- to 6 1/2-inch) rounds on an ungreased large baking sheet. Chill dough, uncovered, until firm, about 30 minutes.
3) Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. while dough chills.
4) Prick dough all over with fork and bake shortbread disks in middle of oven until centers are dry when touched and edges are slightly darker, about 15 minutes. Cool on baking sheet on a rack 10 minutes, then cut each shortbread into 8 wedges with a large heavy knife. Transfer to rack to cool. Yield: 16 coookies.

You might also enjoy these recipes:
Chocolate Toffee Shortbread Bars - Annie's Eats
Shortbread Berry Tarts - Sydney's Kitchen
Shortbread Toffee Bars - Karista's Kitchen
Shortbread Lemon Tart - Sweet Sensations
Buttery Lavender Shortbread - The Purple Foodie
Millionaires Shortbread - Delicious Dishings

Lemon Pound Cake

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...This is a lovely cake, but to my great surprise, I haven't been able to find it on other blogs or recipe sites. It was developed for Gourmet magazine ages ago, and, while this gorgeous pound cake should be manna for lemon lovers, it seems to have fallen into obscurity. Pound cakes were traditionally made with a pound of each of flour, butter, eggs and sugar. Nowadays, ratio, rather than weight, defines this classic, and any cake made with ingredients in a 1:1:1:1 ratio is considered to be a pound cake, regardless of its component weight. If you are interested, more detailed information about this type of cake can be found here. Pound or butter cakes get their lift from a combination of butter, eggs and baking powder. They are heavier and richer than sponge cakes and they are also easier to make. They are not foolproof, but if you measure your ingredients carefully you should have a lovely cake to serve your family. We'd all have better and more consistent luck with our baked goods if we weighed our ingredients. Unfortunately, most of us do not yet do that. When I prepare dry ingredients for baking, I spoon rather than scoop them into a measuring cup. I also level the content of the cup with the back of a knife rather than my fingers. When you look at the ingredient list for this cake, you will undoubtedly notice that it calls for 1/4 cup lemon zest. That is not a mistake. Five large lemons will yield that amount of zest, but a caution must be issued here. Make sure you avoid the white pith when you zest the lemons. The pith will make the cake bitter and its after taste can be downright unpleasant. Your cake will probably need more time in the oven than the recipe suggests. Mine required an hour to bake. This is a wonderful cake for lemon lovers and it makes a perfect base for macerated fruit. When the recipe was published, it was suggested that the cake be served with strawberries. While it's delicious served that way, I actually prefer to serve it with a blueberry or blackberry compote. Perhaps that's an unconscious homage to the state of Oregon. I hope you'll try this recipe. I love this intensely lemon-flavored cake. I think you will, too. Here's the recipe.

Lemon Pound Cake...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite, adapted from Gourmet Magazine

Ingredients:
Cake
2 cups cake flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 sticks (1/2 pound) unsalted butter, softened
2 cups granulated sugar
1/4 cup finely grated lemon zest
6 large eggs
1-1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/4 cup whole milk
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
Glaze
1 cup + 1 tablespoon confectioners' sugar
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

Directions:
1) Move a rack to the middle of oven. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Butter and flour a kugelhopf or other 2-quart bundt plan. Set aside.
2) Whisk together flour, baking powder and salt in a bowl. Set aside.
3) Using paddle attachment, beat butter, granulated sugar and lemon zest in the bowl of an electric stand mixer at medium speed, until pale and fluffy, about 2 to 3 minutes. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each additin. Beat in vanilla. Reduce mixer speed to low. In three batches beginning and ending with flour, add flour, alternately with milk and lemon juice, and beat just until combined.
4) Spoon batter into pan and smooth top. Bake unil cake is golden brown and a cake tester inserted in several placed comes out clean, about 45 to 55 minutes.
Cool cake in pan on a rack for 15 minutes, then invert onto a rack to cool completely.
5) While cake cools, whisk confectioners' sugar into lemon juice in a small bowl until smooth and thick.
6) When cake is cool, set rack over a baking sheet or waxed paper. Drizzle glaze over cake, letting it drip down sides. Serve cake with fruit if desired. Yield: 10 to 12 servings.

You might also enjoy these recipes:
Meyer Lemon Bars - Tasty Easy Healthy Green
Lemon Cakes - Pastry Studio
Lemon Tart Brulee - Sticky Gooey Creamy Chewy
Cookie Carnival: Lemon Ricotta Cookies - How to Eat a Cupcake
Lemon Swiss Roll - The English Kitchen
Lemon Cream Filled Cake - Cookie Madness
Lemon Poppyseed Muffins - Sweet Bites
Old-Fashioned Lemon Pudding - One Perfect Bite
Lemon Cloud: A Creamy Tofu Dessert - One Perfect Bite
Lemon Buttermilk Ice Cream - One Perfect Bite

Lavender Sugar, Butter and Salad Dressing - Blue Monday

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...While folks more sensible than Bob and I were enjoying their air conditioned homes or breezy decks, we were traipsing through fields of lavender doing our part to make the Oregon Lavender Festival a success. Our intent was to tour several operations and find a good local source for culinary lavender. I was easy to spot. Fair skin demands full sun protection on these hot sunny days. I was the gal who looked liked a bee keeper. High temperatures and blazing sun aside, we had a glorious day, met some kindred spirits and even picked up a few recipes that I can share with you today. The recipes are very easy to make and use less lavender than many of the recipes floating in cyberspace. Lavender has a distinctive taste that borders on bitter if too much of it is used. If you like its flavor, you might want to increase the amounts I have suggested in each of the recipes below. The first recipe is for lavender sugar. I've also included recipes for lavender butter and a salad dressing. I use dried flower buds in all these dishes because of the seasonal nature of fresh lavender. If you'd like to dry your own lavender, instructions can be found here. English lavender is the best to use for culinary purposes. Here are the recipes.

Lavender Sugar
1 cup granulated sugar
2 tablespoons coarsely ground dried lavender buds

Combine lavender and sugar. Store in an airtight container for at least 3 days. Strain before using. Yield: 1 cup.

Lavender Butter
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 tablespoon honey
1-1/2 teaspoons dried lavender buds, whole or lightly ground

Combine butter, honey and lavender in a small bowl. Mix well. Shape as desired. Refrigerate until firm. Serve with sweet bread. Yield: 1/2 cup.

Lavender Salad Dressing
3/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 teaspoons minced garlic
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
1/4 cup honey
1-1/2 tablespoons dried lavender buds, ground
Salt and Pepper to taste

Combine oil, vinegar, lemon juice, garlic, mustard, honey, lavender, salt and pepper in the jar of an electric blender. Pulse to combine. Transfer to a serving container. Chill for at least 1 hour before serving. Yield: 1 cup.

You might also enjoy these recipes:
Peach-Lavender Cobbler - Delish
Apricot Clafouti with Lavender and Pecans - Cooking with Corey
Lavender White Chocolate Cookies - Life Lightly Salted
Brandy Tuiles with Lavender Cream - My Easy Kitchen
Bouquet Cupcakes: Lilac and Lavender - The Conscious Kitchen
Raspberry Lavender Lemonade - Kahakai Kitchen

This post is being linked to:
Smiling Sally - Blue Monday

Po Cha and Clues to Our Destination

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...The suspense is over. Our holiday plans have been finalized. Selection of a location was really difficult this year. Bob and I had different adventures in mind and the final decision was made in the only fair way possible. We quite literally pulled a photo from a stack spread like playing cards of the table. There was a randomness to it that made the whole thing seem more fair than might otherwise have been the case. I'm happy to report we are both happy with the decision the gods of chance made on our behalf. It will be an adventure and I'll be counting the days until it actually begins. October is a ways off but that gives us time to get visas and study more about the places we'll be visiting. I'm going to keep you in the dark for a while longer. I've put together some photos of people and places we'll be visiting to see if you can identify the three countries we'll be touring. I'm also including one recipe associated with the most remote of the places on our itinerary. We have promised the children, who don't like the words trek or safari used in the same breath as their parent's names, that this is absolutely, positively our last visit to remote locales with sometimes fragile political systems. They are dubious. Seems I said that last year as well. I really meant it, but the back and legs and brain have held up well and this seems like the right thing for us to do. At any rate, here is the recipe for a drink that really should be made with yak milk and butter. I must say it is a real challenge to the palate even when made with cows milk and butter from a local creamery. I don't always do well with foods that fall into the acquired taste category. It took me years to enjoy a martini. I comfort myself with the knowledge I tried it, and who knows, it may taste better in country. Here's the scoop for other brave and kindred souls.

Po Cha......from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite

Ingredients:
5 -6 cups water
3 black tea bags or 2 tablespoons loose black tea
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup milk, half-and-half or 1 teaspoon milk powder

Directions:
1) Bring five to six cups of water to a boil. Reduce heat. Add tea bags or loose tea and simmer for several minutes more. Remove tea bags or strain loose tea.
2) Pour steeped tea, salt, butter and milk or milk powder into a blender or chandong, a type of churn. You can also shake the tea in a thermos bottle. Churn, blend or shake the mixture for 3 to 5 minutes. Our into cuos and serve piping hot: Yield: 4 servings.

















You might also enjoy these recipes:
Ginger Tea - One Perfect Bite
Blueberry Tea - One Perfect Bite
Himalayan Salted Butter Tea - Not Quite Nigella
Yak Butter Tea - The Greedy Glutton

This recipe is being linked to:
Designs By Gollum - Foodie Friday

Linzer Cookies

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...I love Linzertorte when it's made by someone other than myself. It's a lot of work to assemble and I have trouble with the lattice that typically covers it. I make up for it's absence on our dessert table by making Linzer cookies for the holiday. The cookies are very easy to do and the ingredients used to make them are the same as those used in the torte. While the cookies are far simpler to assemble than the torte, they need to be chilled before being rolled. That means you'll need to build wait time into your plans should you decide to make these luscious morsels. These are basically a butter rich sandwich cookie. It can be a trick to get the top and bottom layers to line up with so soft a dough. I recently read the problem can be overcome by rolling the cookies on parchment paper and transferring the paper to a cookie sheet, rather than attempting to move the cookies. Makes sense. I still haven't tried it, but I've put it on my must try list for the coming year. Linzer cookies are traditionally filled with black currant jam. That can be hard to come by, so feel free to use whatever jam you have available. Raspberry and apricot are always safe alternatives. If the dough becomes too soft as you are working with it, return it to the refrigerator to chill again. All scraps can be saved and reused if they are chilled before an attempt is made to roll them. If you keep the dough cold and use a cookie cutter no more than 2 inches in diameter, you'll have no problem making this classic cookie. Here's the recipe.

Linzer Cookies...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite

Ingredients:
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup ( 2 sticks) sliced butter at room temperature
1/2 cup + 3 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 large egg, separated
2/3 cup finely chopped almonds, divided use
1/3 to 1/2 cup good jam or jelly

Directions:
1) Combine flour, butter, 1/2 cup sugar, 1 egg yolk and 1/3 cup almonds in bowl of a food processor. Blend until a smooth dough is formed. Wrap in plastic wrap and chill for at least 30 minutes. I chill my dough for 3 to 4 hours before rolling.
2) Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line several cookie sheets with parchment paper. Set aside.
3) Roll dough on a well-floured board until it is 1/8-inch thick. Use a cookie cutter or thimble to cut centers from half of cookies. Brush cookies with centers removed with egg white. Sprinkle with reserved 1/3 cup almonds and 3 tablespoons sugar. Plain rounds should be left without topping. Transfer cookies to prepared cookie sheets.
4) Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, until edges just begin to brown and center of cookie is set. Transfer to wire racks to cool.
5) Top each plain cookie with 1/2 teaspoon jam. Cover with a cut out cookie making sure to keep almond-sugar side up. Yield: about 50 sandwich cookies.

Lemon Tea Cookies

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...Want to make a good cookie great? Use Artisanal or European butter. The difference between European-style and American-style butters is butterfat content. It has nothing to do with the place where the butter was made or the cows that made the milk that went into it. There are people who make European-style butters right here in America. Regular butter is 80% butterfat and 20% water. European-style butters are about 83% butterfat. That small difference makes for a creamier, richer taste. These lemon tea cookies are delicious. They are simple to make and nearly foolproof. They are also a wonderful way to test the difference between American and European-style butters. Make two batches, one with American and one with European-style butter. It will be the easiest test you ever take. If you are looking for a simple cookie with great flavor and also happen to fancy lemon, you're going to like this cookie. Here's the recipe.

Lemon Tea Cookies...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite

Ingredients:
2/3 cup butter, at room temperature
2 tablespoons finely grated lemon zest
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
2-1/4 cups all-purpose flour
Confectioners' sugar for dusting

Directions:
1) Place butter in the bowl of an electric mixer; cream until smooth. Add lemon zest and continue mixing until blended. Add granulated sugar and mix until smooth, about 2 minutes longer. Add egg and continue to beat until a lemon colored batter forms. Blend in vanilla extract. Slowly add 2 cups of flour, mixing until dough pulls away from sides of bowl and a ball forms. Remove dough, flatten into a disk, wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 15 minutes.
2) Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
3) Flour work surface and rolling pin with some reserved flour. Roll dough into a 1/4-inch sheet. Using a 2-inch cookie cutter, cut cookies and transfer to an ungreased cookie sheet, spacing them 3/4-inch apart. Gather up unused scraps and reroll until no dough remains.
4) Bake cookies until edges are a pale golden brown, about 8 minutes. Remove from oven and transfer to a rack to cool. Let stand for 30 minutes. Dust with confectioners' sugar. Store in airtight containers for up to a week. Yield: 48 cookies.

Potatoes Anna and Japanese-Style Potatoes with Butter and Soy

Years ago Potatoes Anna were often a component of dinner parties and special family meals in our home. I stopped making them because they were so rich. Granted they were delicious, but anything made with that much butter should be be good! One of my daughters told me that Cooking Light had a recipe for Pommes Anna and suggested that I give it a try. I did, but I've found my tastes have changed. There's no denying the potatoes are delicious and beautiful to look at, but after such a long absence on our table I thought they looked a bit contrived and a bit too perfect for a table that has relaxed - considerably - with the march of time. Earlier this year, I had the good fortune to stumble on a recipe for Japanese-style potatoes with butter and soy on the blog Just Hungry. These potatoes are simple to make and they are really flavorful. As it happened we sampled the potatoes back to back and that made it easy to compare them. Both are delicious, but unless the pope or the president come for dinner the Japanese-style potatoes are a hands down winner.

Potatoes Anna

Ingredients:
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
3 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided
3 pounds baking potatoes, peeled and cut into thin slices
1 tablespoon parsley, chopped

Directions:
1) Preheat oven to 450 F.
2) Combine salt and pepper in a small bowl. Melt 2 1/2 tablespoons of butter in an oven-proof skillet or Dutch oven over medium heat.
3) Arrange a single layer of potato slices, slightly overlapping, in a circular pattern in pan. Sprinkle with 1/4 teaspoon salt and pepper mixture.
4) Melt remaining 1 tablespoon of butter in a small, microwave-safe bowl. Drizzle 1/2 teaspoon of melted butter over potatoes in pan.
5) Repeat the layers 5 times, ending with butter and pressing down firmly after each layer to "pack" them together. Cover and bake for 20 minutes. Uncover and bake an additional 25 minutes, or until potatoes are golden.
6) Remove from oven and loosen the edges with a spatula. Place a plate upside-down on top of the pan; invert the potatoes onto the plate. Sprinkle with parsley. Yield: 6 servings.

Cook's Note: For best color pat potato slices dry before layering. This recipe first appeared in Cooking Light magazine.




Japanese-Style Potatoes with Butter and Soy

Ingredients:
1 pound tiny Yukon Gold potatoes, washed and unpeeled
Salt
2 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon soy sauce
Black pepper

Directions:
1) Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
2) Put the potatoes in a pan and cover with heavily salted water. Bring to a boil and cook until just fork tender, about 10 minutes. Drain. Alternatively, potatoes may be placed in a single layer in a microwavable container to which 3 tablespoons of water is added; cook on HIGH power for 10 minutes, or until tender.
3) Melt butter in pan; add soy sauce. Return potatoes to pan; lightly toss to coat. Transfer to a baking sheet. Roast for 25 to 30 minutes, or until potatoes are brown and cooked through. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Garnish with chopped parsley. Yield: 4 servings.

This recipe was developed by Maki and can be found on her blog Just Hungry.

Im sending this entry to Christie at Fig and Cherry who is hosting this month's Potato Ho Down. The Potato Ho Down event is the brainchild of Cathy who can be found at Noble Pig.