Chocolate Macadamia Meltaways Food

MACADAMIA MELTAWAYS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325 degrees. In food processor, pulse nuts until they are finely chopped, or chop by hand. With a mixer, combine butter and vanilla, and mix until smooth, occasionally scraping the sides with a rubber spatula. Add the confectioners' sugar and mix for 2 more minutes. Then add the flour and mix just until combined and the dough holds together. Fold in the macadamia nuts.
• Shape dough by measuring teaspoons into 3/4-inch balls. Place balls, 1 inch apart, on ungreased large cookie sheet. Bake cookies 20 to 22 minutes or until bottoms are lightly browned. Transfer cookies to wire rack and cool 5 minutes.
• Sift remaining 1 cup confectioners' sugar into a pie plate. While cookies are still warm, roll in sugar to coat; return to wire rack to cool completely. When cool, gently roll cookies in sugar and then tap very lightly to remove any excess sugar.
• Repeat with remaining dough and sugar. Store cookies in tightly-covered container at room temperature up to 1 week, or in the freezer up to 3 months.

CHOCOLATE MACADAMIA MELTAWAYS

Steps:

• 1. In a small bowl, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in vanilla. Gradually add flour and mix well. Stir in the one jar of finely chopped nuts (dough will be stiff); set aside.
• 2. For filling, in a microwave-safe bowl, melt chocolate chips; stir until smooth. Stir in the 1/2 cup coarsely chopped nuts; cool slightly. Drop by 1/2 teaspoonfuls onto a waxed paper-lined baking sheet; cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
• 3. Shape teaspoonfuls of dough around each piece of chocolate-nut mixture so it is completely covered. Place 2 inches apart on ungreased baking sheets.
• 4. Bake at 375 for 12-14 minutes or until lightly browned. Roll warm cookies in confectioner's sugar; cool on wire racks.

FRUITY MELTAWAYS

Steps:

• In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, or in a large bowl with a stiff spatula, mix butter, confectioners' sugar, salt, lemon juice and vanilla until creamy and combined. Add ground freeze-dried fruit and mix until distributed. Add flour, and mix until it all comes together into a soft dough.
• Divide the dough into two (250-gram) portions. On pieces of parchment paper, wax paper or plastic wrap, roll each portion of dough into a 10-inch-long log. Chill for at least 2 hours in the refrigerator or up to 3 months tightly wrapped in the freezer.
• Set oven racks in the lower and upper thirds of the oven, and heat oven to 350 degrees. Line two sheet trays with parchment paper.
• Using a sharp knife, trim about ⅛-inch off each side of the chilled dough logs, just so that you have flat ends. Slice the logs into scant ¼-inch-thick cookies. Roll the log a quarter turn after each slice to keep it round. (If the dough cracks while slicing, let it warm up at room temperature for 10 minutes.) Arrange on sheet trays ½-inch apart and bake, rotating the trays once during baking, until set and barely golden underneath, 10 to 12 minutes.
• While the cookies bake, make the sugar coating: Sift together the powdered sugar with the ground freeze-dried fruit. While still warm, gently toss the cookies in the powdered sugar mixture and return to the sheet tray to fully cool. The cookies will keep for 2 weeks stored at room temperature in an airtight container.