Chocolate Dipped Pistachio Crescents Food

CHOCOLATE-DIPPED PISTACHIO SHORTBREAD

Steps:

• Heat oven to 325ºF.
• Combine flour, baking powder and salt. Beat butter, sugar and vanilla in large bowl with mixer until light and fluffy. Gradually add flour mixture, beating well after each addition. Add 1/3 cup nuts; mix well.
• Press dough into 12x8-inch rectangle on parchment-covered baking sheet. Cut dough into 8 lengthwise strips, then cut each strip crosswise into 6 pieces. (Do not separate dough pieces.)
• Bake 18 to 20 min. or until cookies are lightly browned. Cool on baking sheet 5 min. Remove to wire racks; cool completely. Break apart into 48 cookies.
• Cover additional baking sheet with parchment. Melt chocolate as directed on package. Dip cookies, 1 at a time, halfway into chocolate; place on prepared baking sheet. Sprinkle with remaining nuts. Let stand until chocolate is firm.

CHOCOLATE-DIPPED PISTACHIO BISCOTTI

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Line a large baking sheet with Reynolds® Parchment Paper; set aside.
• Stir together the sugar, butter, vanilla, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl. Add the eggs and whites, beating vigorously with a wooden spoon until evenly incorporated. Fold in the dried apricots, then 11/2 cups pistachios until thoroughly incorporated. Gradually stir in the flour and cornmeal until very well blended (if necessary, work in the last of it with your hands). Let dough stand for 5 minutes to firm up.
• Divide the dough in half. Using greased hands, shape and smooth each half into an 8x4-inch loaf, spacing them 4 inches apart on the prepared baking sheet. Pat each loaf to an even thickness.
• Bake 24 to 28 minutes or until firm and light brown and a toothpick inserted near the center of each comes out clean. Remove from oven. Set aside; cool completely. Transfer to a cutting board. Using a large, serrated knife, cut each loaf into slices about 1/4 inch thick. Place slices, cut side down, on parchment-paper-lined baking sheets.
• Return one baking sheet to the oven. Bake slices 12 to 14 minutes or until toasted and light brown, turning once halfway through baking and watching closely to avoid overbrowning. Slide the parchment paper with baked cookies on it to a wire rack and let cool. Repeat with remaining slices.
• Microwave chocolate and shortening in a medium microwave-safe bowl on 100% power (high) 1 to 2 minutes or until melted and smooth, stirring every 30 seconds.
• Dip one half of each cookie crosswise into melted chocolate. Allow excess chocolate to drip off and place on clean parchment paper. Sprinkle with remaining 1/4 cup chopped pistachios and let stand until set.

CHOCOLATE-PISTACHIO COOKIES

Steps:

• Make filling: Bring 1/4 cup sugar and 1/4 cup water to a simmer in a small saucepan over medium heat, stirring until sugar has dissolved; set aside.
• Put egg yolks in the heatproof bowl of an electric mixer set over a pan of simmering water. Whisk by hand until yolks are warm to the touch, about 2 minutes. Fit mixer with the whisk attachment. Mix yolks on medium speed; pour in sugar syrup. Raise speed to high; mix until mixture is cool and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Reduce speed to medium; drizzle in melted chocolate. Refrigerate until firm, about 45 minutes.
• Make cookies: Put pistachio paste and rest of sugar in the clean bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Mix on medium speed until smooth. Mix in the egg white, vanilla, and salt.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Transfer dough to a pastry bag fitted with a small (about 1/4 inch) plain round tip (such as Ateco #10). Pipe 1-inch rounds onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, spacing about 1 inch apart.
• Bake cookies until firm and golden around edges, about 10 minutes. Transfer on parchment to a wire rack, and let cool completely.
• Place cookies, bottom sides up, on a wire rack set over a baking sheet. Spread 1 to 1 1/2 teaspoons chocolate filling on bottom of half of the cookies. Sandwich with remaining cookies. Freeze 1 hour.
• Make glaze: Melt chocolate in a heatproof bowl set over a pan of simmering water, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat. Add shortening; stir until combined. Let cool, stirring, until mixture is lukewarm.
• Using a chocolate fork or regular fork, hold 1 cookie at a time above bowl of chocolate glaze. Spoon glaze over cookie, letting excess drip back into bowl. Transfer to a wire rack set over a baking sheet. Garnish with slivered pistachios. Refrigerate until set, 5 minutes.

CHOCOLATE ALMOND CRESCENTS

Steps:

• In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy, 5-7 minutes. Beat in almonds and vanilla. In another bowl, whisk flour, cocoa and salt; gradually beat into creamed mixture. Refrigerate, covered, 2 hours or until firm enough to shape., Preheat oven to 350°. Shape 2 teaspoons of dough into 2-in.-long logs; form each log into a crescent. Place 2 in. apart on ungreased baking sheets. Bake 10-12 minutes or until set. Remove from pans to wire racks to cool completely., Dip cookies halfway into melted chocolate, allowing excess to drip off. Place on waxed paper. If desired, sprinkle with coconut. Let stand until set. Cover dipped ends of cookies with waxed paper; dust undipped ends with confectioners' sugar. Store between pieces of waxed paper in airtight containers.

ALMOND CRESCENTS RECIPE

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350°F.
• Mix butter and sugar in large bowl with wooden spoon until blended. Gradually add flour, stirring after each addition until blended. Stir in nuts.
• Shape into 2-inch crescents, using 1 Tbsp. dough for each. Place, 2 inches apart, on parchment- or foil-covered baking sheets.
• Bake 12 to 15 min. or until lightly browned. Cool on baking sheets 2 min. Remove to wire racks; cool completely.
• Melt chocolate as directed on package. Dip one end of each cookie in chocolate; top with nuts. Return to wire racks; let stand until chocolate is firm.

CHOCOLATE-DIPPED PISTACHIO CRESCENTS

Steps:

• 1. Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Line 2 cookie sheets with baker's parchment paper. 2. In a large bowl with an electric mixer, beat together the butter and icing sugar until creamy. Add the flour and the salt in 2 or 3 portions, beating well after each addition until incorporated. Add 1 cup (250 mL) of the chopped pistachios, mixing just until combined into a uniform dough. (Reserve the remaining chopped pistachios for later.) 3. Working with about 1 tbsp (15 mL) of dough at a time, roll the dough between your hands into a 3½ in (8 cm) rope, then bend into a crescent shape and place on the prepared cookie sheet, leaving about 1 in (2 cm) between cookies. Place in the oven and bake for 10 to 12 minutes or until just slightly browned on the bottom (the tops should remain light). Cool on the cookie sheet for about 5 minutes, then remove to a rack to cool completely. Repeat with the remaining dough. 4. When cookies are cool, place the chocolate and the vege-table shortening in a small microwaveable bowl. Microwave in 30-second bursts until the chocolate is smooth and melted (stir after each 30-second zap). Working carefully so these fragile cookies stay intact, dip ends of each crescent in the melted chocolate and place on a waxed-paper-lined tray. (For a tidier appearance, you may want to scrape the excess chocolate off the bottom before setting each cookie on the tray.) Sprinkle with the remaining chopped pistachios while the chocolate is still soft. Let cool until the chocolate has hardened before removing from the tray and storing in a covered container.

CHOCOLATE-DIPPED ALMOND-PISTACHIO MACAROONS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400-degrees, and line 2 baking sheets with parchment.
• Blend sugar and almonds in food processor until nuts are ground to powder, scraping down sides of bowl often, about 4 minutes.
• Add flour and blend 1 minute.
• Transfer to a large bowl and mix in pistachios.
• In a separate bowl, beat egg whites and salt until stiff but not dry.
• Fold nut mixture into whites in 4 additions (batter will be thick).
• Spoon batter by generous tablespoonfuls onto prepared sheets, spacing mounds 1 1/2-inches apart.
• Bake cookies 1 sheet at a a time until dry and cracked on top, about 10 minutes.
• Melt chocolate over double-boiler or in microwave, stirring until melted.
• Dip each cookie halfway into chocolate, shaking off excess.
• Place on foil-lined baking sheets, or on waxed paper- chill for 30 minutes.
• (Can be made 3 days ahead. Store between sheets of waxed paper in airtight container and refrigerate.) Serve at room temperature.