Christmas Mouse Shortbread Food

SHORTBREAD CHRISTMAS MICE

Steps:

• Place some waxed paper on your counter so you have a work area for the chaos about to unfold.
• Dry your cherries with a towel. Honestly people, this takes forever and a day.
• If you have bloody strength or patience left after the cherry incident from hell, you can now pop the candy melts in a microwave safe bowl. It takes about a minute to a minute and a half to melt these but check them every 15 seconds one you hit a minute. You've been warned. They go from cute and melty to hard rocks of lead quickly.
• Now if by some miracle you found cherries with stems you can use the stem to dunk them in the candy melts. If not use a spoon to swirl the cherry around in the bowl, then lift it out and transfer to a fork so most of the excess doesn't come with it. Place the covered cherries on the shortbread cookies. Then hope for the bloody best at this point.
• If you lucked out and your cherries were dry, you can now wait about 30 to 60 seconds, then pop the almonds on in a 45 degree angle so they look like ears. This will drive you to drink so have liquor handy while doing this step.
• Now take your white chocolate chips one at a time, dunk them backside really carefully in the extra melts just enough to get a sliver of melt on it, then stick the nose to the front in the middle of the almonds. Good luck, have that liquor handy once again. You'll need copious amounts of it. Ask the kids to leave the room. I can't be responsible for the words that will come out of your mouth at this stage.
• You can put a little red candy on the front for a nose. Good luck. I expect you want to punch me in the throat right about now. You're welcome.

MELT IN YOUR MOUTH SHORTBREAD COOKIES

Steps:

• Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Position your oven rack in the middle of your oven.

CHRISTMAS MICE SHORTBREAD

Steps:

• 1. Cover work area with pieces of waxed paper about 18 inches long.
• 2. Dry the cherries with paper towels being careful not to pull of the stems and set aside.
• 3. Place 2/3 cup of chips and the oil in a 6 ounce custard bowl and microwave uncovered on High 1 minute to 1 minute 10 seconds or until chips are softened;remove from microwave and stir until smooth.
• 4. Hold 1 cherry by stem (mouse tail) and dip into melted chips, covering completely.
• 5. Immediately place them on shortbread triangles, with tail at 45 degree angle.
• 6. Plave 2 sliced almonds against front of cherry to form mouse ears. Repeat with remaining cherries, shortbread and almonds.
• 7. Using the remaining melted chips as glue and a tooth-pick to spread the melted chips, attach the flat side of a whole chip (flat side back) to the base of the almonds to form the mouse head.
• 8. Using melted chips as glue, attach a few shreds of coconut for whiskers and a cinnamon candy for the nose.
• 9. Let cool without moving 50 to 60 minutes or until melted chip mixture is firm and completely set.
• 10. Store in cool place up to one week. Decorate your cheese platter with them by placing them on shortbread triangles. But you can use other purchased or homemade flat-surfaced cookies for the bace of your mice decorations.

CHRISTMAS MOUSE SHORTBREAD

Steps:

• Cream together the butter and sugar in an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment.
• Add cane sugar syrup and vanilla, mixing well.
• Add salt, cinnamon, flour, and black cocoa then mix into a stiff dough.

SHORTBREAD CHRISTMAS COOKIES

Steps:

• Whisk together flour, sugar, and salt in a large bowl; with a pastry cutter, chop in the butter until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Stir the rum extract and almond extract into the water in a small bowl. Mix into the dry ingredients, a little bit at a time, until the mixture holds together in a ball when you squeeze it.
• Place the dough onto a floured work surface, and sprinkle with flour; roll out into a sheet 1/4 inch thick. Cut into shapes with floured cookie cutters, and place 1 inch apart on ungreased baking sheets. Cover with a layer of plastic wrap, and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C).
• Bake the cookies just until the edges are lightly browned, 15 to 18 minutes. Allow to cool on sheets for 2 minutes before removing to wire racks to finish cooling. Cool completely before decorating.
• For frosting, whisk the confectioners' sugar and milk in a bowl until smooth. If desired, divide frosting into small bowls, and tint each bowl a desired shade with food coloring. Frost fully cooled cookies, and sprinkle with edible glitter before the frosting sets.

LEMON & RASPBERRY MOUSSE WITH PISTACHIO & GINGER SHORTBREAD

Steps:

• Heat the oven to 160C/140C fan/gas 4. For the shortbread, butter a 20cm shallow cake or tart tin. Whisk the butter and sugar together until pale and well-combined, then fold in both gingers, the pistachios and a pinch of salt. Sift in the flour and knead to a soft dough in the bowl. Tip into the tin and press the mixture into the base in an even layer.
• Bake for 25-30 mins until pale golden and dry-looking. Cut the shortbread into slices or wedges while hot, then leave to cool in the tin - it will firm up as it cools. Sprinkle with the ½ tbsp caster sugar.
• To make the mousse, whip the double cream, lemon zest, lemon curd and yogurt in a bowl with an electric whisk until soft peaks form. Spoon into small serving glasses or ramekins and chill.
• Mash half the raspberries with the icing sugar using a fork, or purée in a small blender along with any defrosting juices to make a coulis. Cover and chill until ready to serve.
• To serve, spoon the coulis over the mousses, garnish with the remaining raspberries and serve with the shortbread wedges alongside.