Chocolate Dipped Mushrooms Food

MUSHROOM COOKIES

Steps:

• Cookies: Preheat oven to 350°F. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, salt, baking soda, and spices. In a stand mixer bowl fitted with paddle attachment, beat butter with granulated sugar on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add egg; beat to combine. Add sour cream and molasses; beat to combine. Reduce speed to low; beat in flour mixture until fully combined.
• Divide dough into 2 different-sized pieces: one piece being two-thirds of the dough, the other being one-third. From larger piece, make "caps": Scoop level tablespoons of dough and roll into balls. Cup each in the palm of your hand and use a finger to make a deep indentation. Place indent-side down on a parchment-lined baking sheet, spaced 1 1/2 inches apart.
• From smaller piece, make "stems": Scoop rounded teaspoons of dough; roll each into a cylinder that's slightly pointed at one end, like a teardrop. Place on parchment-lined baking sheet, spaced 1 inch apart. Refrigerate 20 minutes. Bake until firm, 10 to 12 minutes. (If necessary, use a chopstick or similar-size dowel to reshape indents in caps after baking, so you can insert pointed ends of stems.) Transfer on sheets to wire racks; let cool completely.
• Chocolate Glaze: Combine chocolate, confectioners' sugar, cocoa, salt, and butter in a heat-proof bowl. Heat cream in a small pot over medium-high until bubbling around edges, 1 to 2 minutes. Pour hot cream over chocolate mixture; let stand 1 minute. Add vanilla; whisk until mixture is smooth and has the consistency of hot-fudge sauce. (If too thick, whisk in more cream, 1 tablespoon at a time.)
• Vanilla Glaze: Whisk together egg white and confectioners' sugar until smooth. Whisk in vanilla; texture should be like thick honey. (If too thin, add more sugar; if too thick, add a tiny bit of water.)
• Dip cooled caps in either chocolate or vanilla glaze. Place, glazed-sides up, on wire rack. Sprinkle with pistachios or raspberries. Dip wider ends of stems in vanilla glaze to come about halfway up stems; dip bottoms in poppy seeds. Place, rounded-sides up, on rack; let stand until completely set, about 1 hour for vanilla, 2 hours for chocolate.
• Dip pointed ends of stems in vanilla glaze and insert into indents in caps. (If glaze has thickened too much, loosen with a little water.) Return to rack; let stand until completely set. Cookies can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature up to 3 days.

CHOCOLATE-DIPPED MUSHROOMS

Steps:

• 1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees F (150 C or Gas Mark 2) Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Set aside. Place the egg whites in a medium mixing bowl and let stand at room temperature for 30 minutes.
• 2. Add vanilla and cream of tartar to egg whites. Beat with an electric mixer on medium speed until soft peaks form and the sugar is almost disolved. Spoon mixture int a piping bag fitted with a large round nozzel. (1/2 inch opening) Pipe about two thirds of meringue mixture into 1 1/2 diameter mounds about 1 inch apart on the prepared baking sheets. With the remaining meringue, pipe 1-inch tall bases about 1/2 inch apart on baking sheets.
• 3. Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until meringues just begin to brown. Turn off the oven. Let meringues dry in the oven with the door closed for 30 minutes. Remove meringues from pans and transfer to wire rack to cool.
• 4. In a small, heavy saucepan over low heat, melt the chocolate. Spread a scant 1/2 teaspoon of melted chocolon the underside of each mushroom cap. Attach stems inserting top ends in the center of chocolate mixture, pressing gently into the mushroom cap. Let mushrooms dry upside down on racks until chocolate is set. To serve, sift combined confectioners' sugar and cocoa powder over tops of mushrooms.

CHOCOLATE-DIPPED COOKIES

Steps:

• Position racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Whisk the flour, baking powder and salt in a medium bowl. Beat the butter and sugar in a large bowl with a mixer on medium-high speed until fluffy, about 3 minutes. Beat in the egg and vanilla. Reduce the mixer speed to medium low; beat in the flour mixture in 2 batches until combined.
• Transfer the batter to a resealable plastic bag and snip the corner to create a 1/2-inch opening. Pipe the batter into 1/2-by-3-inch strips, about 2 inches apart, on the prepared baking sheets. Bake, switching the pans halfway through, until the cookies are golden around the edges, about 15 minutes. Let cool 5 minutes on the baking sheets, then transfer to racks to cool completely.
• Line a baking sheet with parchment. Put the chocolate in a microwave-safe bowl and microwave in 30-second intervals, stirring, until smooth. Dip the cookies halfway in the chocolate, letting the excess drip off, then place on the prepared baking sheet. Refrigerate until the chocolate just sets, 10 to 15 minutes.