Holiday Baking

So clearly the holiday spirit has got me to cook more new things. I LOVE to bake around the holidays, however I do not like to eat it. Today was the Winter Tea for my kids. It was a bit bittersweet because this was Blake's last Winter Tea in Elementary school. Maybe he'll be back in 4 years playing with the orchestra.

For the tea, the PTA provides the workers and the beverages (punch, tea & coffee) and parents bake up cookies (or stop by a store and pick up cookies). I have made sugar cookies and other holiday treats, but this year I made Butter Cookies. French Sables. You know, the cheap ones in the blue tin at Walgreens called "Danish Butter Cookies"? Fine. I love those cheap cookies.

A few months ago I was watching America's Test Kitchen (it's by Cooks Illustrated on PBS and it's like Good Eats, but less entertaining). They were making.... french sable butter cookies. The recipe called for one very odd ingredient.

One cooked egg yolk.

Yes, you read that right. Weird, I know. It's kind of hard to explain why, but it had to do with the moisture content that they were trying to achieve in the cookie. But anyway, it works! They tasted almost like the cookies in a tin, but my ingredients were local and organic (yay for Willy St Coop being so close!) and not from a tin baked months and months ago.

Because the recipe was on TV -- and on PBS no less -- I will share it with you. Seriously try it. It's an easy cookie recipe that gives great results.

Oh, and no pictures, sorry. All the cookies went to the tea. They are much better off there.

Makes about 40 cookies.   Published November 1, 2008.   From Cook's Illustrated.

Turbinado sugar is commonly sold as Sugar in the Raw. Demerara sugar, sanding sugar, or another coarse sugar can be substituted. Make sure the cookie dough is well chilled and firm so that it can be uniformly sliced. After the dough has been wrapped in parchment, it can be double-wrapped in plastic and frozen for up to 2 weeks.

Ingredients

1	large egg
10	tablespoons (1 1/4 sticks) unsalted butter , softened
1/3	cup plus 1 tablespoon granulated sugar (2 3/4 ounces)
1/4	teaspoon table salt
1	teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/2	cups unbleached all-purpose flour (7 1/2 ounces)
1	teaspoon large egg white , lightly beaten with 1 teaspoon water
4	teaspoons turbinado sugar (see note)

Instructions

1. 1. Place egg in small saucepan, cover with 1 inch water, and bring to boil over high heat. Remove pan from heat, cover, and let sit 10 minutes. Meanwhile, fill small bowl with ice water. Using slotted spoon, transfer egg to ice water and let stand 5 minutes. Crack egg and peel shell. Separate yolk from white; discard white. Press yolk through fine-mesh strainer into small bowl.
2. 2. In bowl of stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment, beat butter, granulated sugar, salt, and cooked egg yolk on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 4 minutes, scraping down sides of bowl and beater with rubber spatula as needed. Turn mixer to low, add vanilla, and mix until incorporated. Stop mixer; add flour and mix on low speed until just combined, about 30 seconds. Using rubber spatula, press dough into cohesive mass.
3. 3. Divide dough in half; roll each piece into log about 6 inches long and 1 3/4 inches in diameter. Wrap each log in 12-inch square of parchment paper and twist ends to seal and firmly compact dough into tight cylinder (see illustrations below). Chill until firm, about 1 hour.
4. 4. Adjust oven racks to upper-middle and lower-middle positions and heat oven to 350 degrees. Line 2 rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper. Using chef’s knife, slice dough into ¼-inch-thick rounds, rotating dough so that it won’t become misshapen from weight of knife. Place cookies 1 inch apart on baking sheets. Using pastry brush, gently brush cookies with egg white mixture and sprinkle evenly with turbinado sugar.
5. 5. Bake until centers of cookies are pale golden brown with edges slightly darker than centers, about 15 minutes, rotating baking sheets front to back and top to bottom halfway through baking. Cool cookies on baking sheet 5 minutes; using thin metal spatula, transfer cookies to wire rack and cool to room temperature. Store cooled cookies between sheets of parchment paper in airtight container for up to 1 week.