Cranberry Cherry Icebox Ribbon Cookies Food

RIBBON COOKIES

Steps:

• Cream butter until light and fluffy. Add sugar gradually. Add egg and vanilla, mixing well after each addition.
• In another bowl, mix together the flour, salt, and baking powder. Slowly add to the butter mixture, making sure all ingredients are incorporated.
• Divide dough into three equal parts. Add a few drops of red food coloring to one third, mixing until the color is even. Add cocoa and pecans to one third, mixing well. Leave the other third plain.
• Line a loaf pan with wax paper or foil. Press the chocolate layer into the bottom of the pan, pressing firmly to make the dough as flat and even as possible on top. Add the plain dough to the pan, again making an even layer on top of the chocolate. On top of the plain dough, add the red, pressing down flat on top. Wrap the dough completely, leave it in the loaf pan, and chill over night, or until firm enough to slice.
• Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Remove dough from loaf pan and place on cutting board. Cut the dough lenghth-wise, down the middle, so you have two long "bars" of dough. Put one bar back in the refrigerator, to keep chilled while you work with the other.
• Slice into about 1/8" slices, or thicker if you like them a little softer. The thinner they are sliced, the crispier they will be.
• Bake for about 10 minutes at 325 degrees. Take them out when the bottoms are just browned. Try not to overbake, or they will lose their pretty color.
• Cool on wire rack.

CRANBERRY ICEBOX COOKIES

Steps:

• In a bowl, cream butter and sugars, 5-7 minutes. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in extracts. Combine the flour, baking powder, salt and baking soda; gradually add to the creamed mixture. Stir in walnuts. Carefully stir in cranberries. Shape into three 7-in. rolls; wrap each roll in waxed paper and refrigerate for 4 hours or overnight. , Unwrap dough and cut into 1/4-in. slices. Place 1 in. apart on ungreased baking sheets. Bake at 375° for 10-12 minutes or until golden brown. Cool on wire racks.

CRANBERRY CHERRY ICEBOX RIBBON COOKIES

Steps:

• In a food processor, process the cranberries, jam or preserves, and sugar until coarsely pureed.
• Transfer the mixture to a small, heavy saucepan.
• Cook over medium high heat, stirring occasionally, until it just comes to a boil, immediately remove from the heat.
• Let stand until cooled slightly. Stir in the almond extract.
• Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour, or until well chilled, or freeze for 30 minutes, to speed chilling.(the filling may be refrigerated for up to 4 days, return to room temperature before using.
• DOUGH:.
• In a medium bowl, thoroughly stir together the flour, baking powder and salt; set aside. In a large bowl, with an electric mixer on medium speed, beat together the sugar and butter until well blended and smooth. Add the egg, vanilla and almond extract and beat till well blended. Beat or stir in flour mixture just until evenly incorporated. Let the dough stand for 10 minutes, or until firmed up slightly.
• Line a 4 1/2"x8 1/2" loaf pan with aluminum foil, letting the foil overhang the long sides by about 3", this will keep the plastic wrap surrounding the dough from sticking to the pan. On top of the foil, line the pan with two long sheets of plastic wrap laid crosswise, overlapping the middle and overhanging the longer sides by almost 4". Divide the dough into 4 portions. Working on a large sheet of wax paper, roughly pat each portion into the shape of the loaf pan. Pat one dough portion firmly into the pan bottom, forming a smooth, even layer. Using a rubber spatula, spread one third of the filling over the dough in the pan, the filling may seem stiff, but spread it as evenly as possible. Repeat the layers, using all four dough portions and all the fruit filling. Fold the plastic wrap over the dough. Freeze until the loaf is cold and very firm, at least 1 1/2 hours and preferably longer.The dough can then be transferred to a plastic bag and frozen for up to one month.
• Preheat the oven to 350*. Greaze several baking sheets or use nonstick spray.
• Carefully peel the plastic wrap from the loaf. .using a large, sharp knife, trim off and discard the excess dough so the sides of the loaf are straight up and down, rather than flared; wipe the knife clean between cuts (if the loaf is too hard to cut easily, let stand for a few minutes, don't let it thaw too much, or it will be more difficult to slice cleanly. Carefully cut the loaf crosswise into thirds, forming three 2 3/4x4" blocks. Working with one block at a time, keep others refrigerated, cut each third into 1/4" slices to produce 2 3/4" long ribbons, wipe the knife clean between cuts. Using a spatula, carefully transfer the slices to the baking sheets, placing them cut side up about 2" apart. Bake the cookies, one sheet at a time in the upper third of the oven, reversing sheets halfway through baking from front to back to ensure even browning for 9-14 minutes or just until slightly darker at the edges. Using a spatula, immediately transfer the cookies to wire racks to cool completely. Store in an airtight container for up to 1 week or freeze for up to one month.

CHERRY ICEBOX COOKIES

Steps:

• In a large bowl, cream butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Beat in the egg, cherry and lemon juices and vanilla. Combine dry ingredients; gradually add to creamed mixture and mix well. Stir in nuts and cherries. , Shape into four 12-in. rolls; wrap each in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for 4 hours or until firm. , Unwrap and cut into 1/4-in. slices. Place 2 in. apart on ungreased baking sheets. Bake at 375° for 8-10 minutes or until the edges begin to brown. Remove to wire racks to cool.

RIBBON ICEBOX COOKIES

Steps:

• Line a 5-in. x 3-in. x 2-in. loaf pan with waxed paper; set aside. In a small bowl, cream shortening and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in egg and vanilla. Combine the flour, baking powder and salt; gradually add to creamed mixture and mix well. , Divide dough into thirds. Add cherries to one portion; spread evenly into prepared pan. Add melted chocolate to second portion; spread evenly over first layer. Add poppy seeds to third portion; spread over second layer. Cover with waxed paper; refrigerate overnight., Unwrap and cut into 1/4-in. slices. Place 1 in. apart on ungreased baking sheets. Bake at 375° for 8-9 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool for 1 minute before removing to wire racks.

CHERRY ICEBOX COOKIES

Steps:

• Beat butter at medium speed of an electric mixer until creamy. Gradually add 1 cup sugar, beating well. Add egg and vanilla, beating well.
• Combine flour, baking powder, and salt; add to butter mixture, beating well. Pat cherries between paper towels to remove excess moisture. Stir cherries and pecans into dough; cover and chill 2 hours.
• Shape dough into two 1 1/2"-diameter, 8"-long rolls. Roll in colored sugar, if desired. Wrap rolls in wax paper and freeze until firm.
• Unwrap frozen dough and slice into 1/4"-thick slices, using a sharp knife. Place on lightly greased cookie sheets.
• Bake at 400° for 8 to 10 minutes or until golden. Let cool 1 minute on cookie sheets. Transfer to wire racks to cool completely.

CRANBERRY ICEBOX COOKIES

Steps:

• Cream together butter and sugars.
• Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.
• Beat in vanilla and almond extracts; set aside.
• In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
• Gradually add flour mixture to butter mixture.
• Carefully stir in walnuts and cranberries.
• Form dough into 3 logs, 7 inches long.
• Wrap in plastic wrap and chill at least four hours.
• Preheat oven to 375°F.
• Cut dough into 1/4 inch slices and arrange them one inch apart on nonstick cookie sheets.
• Bake for 10-12 minutes or until golden.
• Cool on wire racks.

SHAPED ICEBOX COOKIES

Steps:

• Once the flour is incorporated according to dough recipe, beat in the desired mix-in. Divide dough into 2 pieces. Shape each into a 10-inch log (or a 10-inch-long triangular, rectangular, or square-shaped log). Coat each in ground nuts or sanding sugar, if using. Wrap in parchment. Refrigerate until very firm, about 2 hours.
• Slice dough crosswise slightly thicker than 1/8 inch. Reshape if needed. Bake at 350 degrees on parchment-lined baking sheets until firm, 12 to 14 minutes.

PISTACHIO CRANBERRY ICEBOX COOKIES

Steps:

• Make dough:
• Stir together flour, cinnamon, and salt in a bowl.
• Beat together butter, granulated sugar, and zest in a large bowl with an electric mixer at medium-high speed until pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Reduce speed to low and add flour mixture in 3 batches, mixing until dough just comes together in clumps, then mix in pistachios and cranberries. Gather and press dough together, then divide into 2 equal pieces. Using a sheet of plastic wrap or wax paper as an aid, form each piece of dough into a log about 1 1/2 inches in diameter. Square off long sides of each log to form a bar, then chill, wrapped in plastic wrap, until very firm, at least 2 hours.
• Slice and bake cookies:
• Put oven racks in upper and lower thirds of oven and preheat oven to 350°F. Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper.
• Brush egg over all 4 long sides of bars (but not ends). Sprinkle decorative sugar on a separate sheet of parchment or wax paper and press bars into sugar, coating well.
• Cut each bar crosswise into 1/4-inch-thick slices, rotating bar after cutting each slice to help keep square shape. (If dough gets too soft to slice, freeze bars briefly until firm.) Arrange cookies about 1/2 inch apart on lined baking sheets.
• Bake cookies, switching position of sheets halfway through baking, until edges are pale golden, 15 to 18 minutes total. Transfer cookies from parchment to racks using a slotted spatula and cool completely.

ITALIAN RIBBON COOKIES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 F and grease three (13" x 9") metal baking pans.
• Line bottom of each with wax paper - letting it extend at two opposite ends - and grease paper.
• Break marzipan paste into small pieces and grind with sugar in food processor until no lumps remain.
• Transfer to a large bowl and add butter.
• Beat with an electric mixer until light and fluffy, then add yolks and almond extract and beat well.
• Beat in flour and salt on low speed.
• Beat egg whites in another bowl with cleaned beaters until they just hold stiff peaks and stir one third into batter to lighten slightly (batter will still be stiff).
• Fold in remaining whites thoroughly.
• Cook's note: Do not make this dough ahead of time.
• Divide dough into thirds (about 1 1/2 cups each).
• Stir green food coloring into one third and red food coloring into another, leaving one third plain.
• Spread each dough separately into a pan.
• (Layers will be thin.) Bake layers in batches in middle of oven until just set and beginning to turn golden along edges, 7 to 10 minutes total.
• Run knife along edges to loosen from pan, then while still hot, invert a large rack over pan and invert layer onto rack, pulling gently on wax paper overhangs to release if necessary.
• Peel off wax paper and cool completely.
• Line a large shallow baking pan with wax paper and slide green layer into it.
• Spread half of jam evenly over green layer and carefully top with plain layer.
• Spread remaining jam evenly over uncolored layer and carefully top with pink layer (trim edges if necessary).
• Cover with plastic wrap and weigh down with a large cutting board or baking pan.
• Chill at least three hours.
• Melt chocolate in a double boiler or a metal bowl set over a pan of barely simmering water.
• Remove weight and plastic wrap and spread chocolate evenly over top, but not sides, of pink layer.
• Let stand at room temperature until set, about 1 hour, and cut into small diamonds or rectangles (12 rows crosswise and 12 diagonal rows).