Pistachio Melbas

This recipe was developed by the Food Network. Two years ago they did a special on Christmas cookies from around the world. I LOVE these recipes. They are different and delicious and make your baking stand out from all of the jam thumb prints, iced sugar cookies and peanut butter flowers that everyone else makes. You can see the original recipe here is a thin twice-baked cookie from Australia. It is named a Melba for its crunchy texture similar to the Melba toasts so popular there.

Pistachio Melbas

From Food Network Kitchens

This biscotti-like cookie is derived from the Eastern European/Jewish cookie Mandelbrot. Australians adopted it, and renamed it Mandel-Melba, due to its textural similarity with the Australian favorite Melba toast (named, of course, for the opera singer Dame Melba). We've used pistachios here, with lemon and orange zests to brighten the flavor. They're not super-sweet; they're more of a cookie to have with your tea or coffee. The key to this is to slice it super-thin so it crumbles in the mouth.

Ingredients

Unsalted butter, softened, for greasing pan
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for the pan
1/4 teaspoon fine salt
1 cup sugar
Finely grated zest of 2 lemons (about 1 tablespoon, packed)
Finely grated zest of 1 orange (about 2 teaspoons, packed)
4 large eggs
1 cup whole raw peeled pistachios

Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees F. Brush a 9 by 5-inch loaf pan with butter and dust it with flour.

Whisk the flour and salt together in a bowl.

In another medium bowl, rub the citrus zests into the sugar with your fingers until the sugar is fragrant and takes on a bit of the fruit color. Beat the eggs into the sugar with a wooden spoon until blended. Stir in the flour mixture to make a smooth, sticky but pourable batter. Stir in the pistachios. Pour the batter into the prepared pan, and smooth the surface lightly with a spatula.

Bake until the loaf is lightly browned and pulling away from the sides of the pan, about 40 to 45 minutes. A skewer inserted into the center should come out clean, and the loaf will look like a not so great pound cake. Let stand for 10 minutes, then remove from the pan and cool on a rack for 1 hour.

Wrap the loaf in plastic and freeze until firm, about 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F.

Slice the chilled loaf as thin as you can -- 6 to 8 slices to the inch. (It helps to mark the loaf lightly with a serrated knife every half-inch and use that as a guide.) Lay the slices flat on 2 baking sheets and bake until brown, 10 to 15 minutes. (Take care -- the cookies can go from pale to dark brown quickly.)

Let stand overnight or for at least 12 hours on a rack to cool and crisp up. Serve. Store in a well-sealed jar or other container. Makes 4 1/2 dozen cookies.

Holiday Baking

Although Christmas is more than a month away, I always seem to get into the holiday spirit around this time. October through December really becomes one big holiday to me. I also like to have something of a game plan going into the holidays. This helps me remain stress-free while also helping me save money and time. I pick menus way in advance so that I am able to order cuts of meat or stock up when something goes on sale. I research my recipes if I am using new ones and sometimes do a test run on the simpler ones. Finally, I try to make as much at home as possible. For my family, that homemade touch really makes the holidays and I feel like it shows our friends how important they are to us too.

Since I love to cook and bake anyway, I often end up giving baskets of homemade goodies to friends. I aim for the 10th of December for drop-off. That way they have time to enjoy them throughout the holidays or at least before they leave to visit their family. However, since cookies exchanges and homemade gift giving has increased, I try my best to find different and interesting recipes. I also try to have varied treats, like something lemony, something cinnamon, something chocolate, etc.

For those of you looking for interesting cookies, here are some ones to think about. I have gathered them over the years from various places and have tweaked some while leaving others alone. I will be adding the recipes over the next week. Beside each cookie is the texture and flavors of each so you can mix and match a balanced basket of your own! Happy Holidays.

Cookies

Bizcochitos
Chocolate Hazelnut Biscotti (crunchy, chocolate, hazelnut)
Cranberry Orange Melbas (crunchy, orange, cranberry)
Double Chocolate Sable Cookies (sandy, chocolate)
Florentines (crisp, almond, sugar)
Golden Rugalach (crumbly, fruit, nuts)
Kourabiedes (crumbly, walnut, sugar)
Linzers (crumbly, rasperberry)
Lusikkaleivat (crunchy, plum)
Ma'amouls (sticky/chewy, orange)
Mazurkas (sticky/chewy, fruit)
Mexican Chocolate Chip (chewy, chocolate, spicy)
Moravian Spice Cookie Wafers (crisp, molasses/spices)
Pistachio Melbas (crunchy, pistachios)
Zimtsterne (sticky/chewy, almond)

Bars

Dulce De Leche (melty/creamy, caramel)
Grasshopper (melty/creamy, mint, chocolate)
Lemon/Lilikoi (melty/creamy, lemon)
Nanimo (melty/creamy, dark chocolate)