Chinese New Year Peanut Cookies

Gong Xi Fa Chai! Wishing everyone a prosperous and healthy year! Chinese New Year is just around the corner again. 2013 is the year of the Snake, hubby’s Chinese zodiac sign, hmmm…sneaky snakey!!! Anyway, I have been busy busy busy, but decided to bake at least one thing for CNY this year. This recipe is by far the easiest and quickest to achieve, and the bonus is it’s yummy too! I’ve combined a couple of recipes together to make mine.

Ingredients (this will make about 72 little cookies)

600g raw peanuts (skinned)

1 tbsp sesame seed

400g castor sugar

450g plain flour

50g corn flour

450ml vegetable oil

30g softened butter

1 egg

2 tbsp milk

Method

1.          Roast peanut in 180C oven for about 12 minutes, then add the sesame seeds and roast for a further 2-3 minutes.

2.          Keep the oven on to preheat it for baking.

3.          Blend the peanuts and sesame seeds in a food processor as fine as possible.

4.          Add the castor sugar and sifted flour and pulse a few times to mix.

5.          Add in the ¾ of the oil and all of the butter. Mix well. I usually use my hands to knead at this stage.

6.          Slowly add the rest of the oil as required. You need to be able to roll the mixture into a ball in your palm. If it crumbles you need to add more oil.

7.          Roll the mixture into small balls and place them on a baking sheet.

8.          Beat the egg with a bit of milk and use that as egg wash on the cookies prior to putting them in the oven.

9.          Bake in 180C oven for about 10-15 minutes.

10.      Cool completely before storing in airtight containers.

11.      Don’t leave them on the table unattended as wandering dog or children or husband will gobble them all up.

Chewy Chocolate Chips Cookies

These are Eddy Halmagyi’s recipe from Better Homes and Gardens’ Better Basics magazine. I needed some cookies to share for playgroup today. They turn out flatter than I expected and way too sweet to be honest. I’d reduce the amount of butter and sugar next time. It gets crispier if you leave it in the oven for a few minutes longer.

Ingredients

250g unsalted butter, softened

110g caster sugar

180g dark brown sugar

1 tsp vanilla extract

2 eggs

350g plain flour

1 tsp bicarbonate of soda

100g dark chocolate chips or chocolate broken into chunks

100g white chocolate chips or chocolate broken into chunks

150g roughly chopped nuts

Method:

1.          Preheat oven to 180C. Line oven trays with baking paper.

2.          Cream butter and sugar until light and creamy.

3.          Add vanilla and eggs. Beat until smooth.

4.          Sift flour and bicarb into butter mixture. Do not overmix.

5.          Fold in chocolate and nuts.

6.          Roll tablespoons of dough into balls and put on trays. Press flat.

7.          Bake for 12-14 minutes or until just set. Cool completely on wire racks.

Lactation Cookies

Okay?!!! Don’t be taken aback by the title. Yes these are cookies with special ingredients to boost breast milk production, however, my DH has eaten quite a number of these in the recent week and he hasn’t grown man boobs yet. It’d be nice for him to take over a few of the overnight feeds I tell you. The original recipe I found online came out a bit stodgy, so I decided I’d try a batch using my rock cakes recipe, they taste 100% better.

Ingredients:

75g butter

1/2 cup castor sugar (I used brown sugar this time)

1/2 cup Plain flour

1 tsp baking powder

A pinch of salt

2 cups rolled oats

2 tbsp sesame seeds

2 tbsp flaxseed meals

3 tbsp brewer’s yeasts

1 egg

1 tbsp treacle

1 cup dark chocolate chips

¾ cup chopped macadamia nuts

Method:

1.          Preheat oven to 180C.

2.          Sift flour, baking powder, and salt into a large bowl. Add to it the sugar.

3.          Chopped chilled butter into small cubes and add to the dry mixture.

4.          Used your fingertips to rub the butter into the flour until it resembles breadcrumbs.

5.          Add the flaxseed meal, sesame seeds, oats and brewer’s yeasts.

6.          Add lightly beaten egg and the treacle to the dry mixture and stir with a wooden spoon.

7.          Add the chocolate chips and nuts and mix till even.

8.          Spoon a heap tablespoonful of mixture onto a flat baking tray, pressing the top to flatten it a little, allowing room for the cookie mixture to spread.

9.          Bake in 180C oven for 15 minutes or until golden brown. The cookies will harden once they’re cooled.

Nutty Anzac Biscuits

Not wanting to miss out on the patriotism, and besides I needed something to give my guests this afternoon as DH has just finished the whole packet of the “guests’ biscuits” I have in the pantry. What better day to make Anzac biscuits? I love the sweet oaty crunch, and decided to add some nuts to enhance the flavour and the crunch after reading NQN’s post. I adapted my recipe from Good Taste.

Ingredients

½ cup chopped nuts (I found some almonds and brazil nuts today)

¾ cup plain flour

1 cup rolled oats

½ cup desiccated coconut

¾ cup castor sugar

1 tsp ground ginger (I used ½ ginger ½ all spice)

2 tbsp boiling water

2 tbsp golden syrup/honey/treacle

125g melted butter

1 tsp bicarbonate of soda

Method

1.          Preheat oven to 160C.

2.          Mix all dry ingredients in a large bowl.

3.          Stir the golden syrup into the hot water and the bicarb until foamy.

4.          Add in the butter.

5.          Add the wet ingredients to the dry.

6.          Mix well.

7.          Line cookie trays with greaseproof paper.

8.          Shape the biscuits with spoon or use your hands to make little balls.

9.          Flatten it with the back of a spoon and place them well spaced on the baking tray.

10.      Bake for about 15 minutes in the oven.

Speculaas

Enjoying these Dutch windmill cookies is probably as Dutch as my husband gets. I usually buy them from Aldi, they are quite good, I love them with coffee, love the aroma of the spice blend. I decided to make a batch as Christmas gifts.

Pretty Xmas trees in a row. Cute!

I added some flaked almonds as the base like the ones they sell in Aldi. The problem is the nuts won't stick on the back very well.

Aren't these pretty?

Recipe

Ingredients:

3 cups plain flour

1/8 tsp baking powder

1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1tsp ground cloves

1 tsp ground ginger

1 tsp mace (or use nutmeg if you can't find mace)

1 tsp ground white pepper

A pinch of salt

1 cup butter, softened

1 1/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar

1 egg

1/2 cup flaked almonds

Method:

1. Beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy, beat in the egg.
2. Mix the spices and baking powder into the flour.
3. Stir in half the flour through the butter mixture.
4. Slowly add in the other half and add the almonds.
5. Knead lightly until all even.
6. Wrap dough in cling wrap and chill in fridge for a few hours.
7. Preheat oven to 180C.
8. Flatten the chilled dough on a floured surface to 1/2 cm thick and stamp out dough with a cookie cutter or use a cookie mold if you can get hold of one.
9. Bake in 180C oven for 20-25minutes.