Holiday Date Nut Cookies Food

DATE AND NUT COOKIES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees, with racks in upper third and middle. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour and baking powder. Add dates, pecans, and raisins, and stir with a wooden spoon until fruit and nuts are coated. In a small bowl, whisk together eggs, 1/2 cup sugar, oil, lemon juice, vanilla, and salt. Add to flour mixture and stir until combined.
• In another small bowl, stir together 2 tablespoons sugar and cinnamon. Drop dough by rounded tablespoons, 1 inch apart, onto parchment-lined baking sheets. Sprinkle with cinnamon sugar. Bake until cookies are golden at edges, about 15 minutes, rotating sheets halfway through. Transfer cookies to wire racks and let cool completely.

DATE AND WALNUT COOKIES

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350 degrees. Line one or more baking sheets with parchment. Place flour in a bowl and whisk in the salt, cinnamon and cloves. Set aside.
• Cream butter and brown sugar together by hand or in an electric mixer. Beat in eggs. The mixture will not be smooth. Dissolve the baking soda in 1 tablespoon hot water and stir it in. Stir in the dates and nuts. The batter will be heavy and not easy to mix. Work in the flour mixture, about a third at a time. If your electric mixer has a dough hook, use it for working in the flour.
• Scoop heaping teaspoons of batter onto prepared baking sheet or sheets, making craggy mounds about 1 1/2 inches in diameter. Space them about 1 1/2 inches apart; the cookies will not spread very much. (Alternatively, for neater cookies, you can roll the batter into balls between your palms, then lightly press them down with the back of a spoon or the tines of a fork.) Allow to sit at room temperature 30 minutes to 1 hour before baking. Depending on the size of your oven and your baking sheets, you can form the cookies ready to bake on sheets of parchment paper on your countertop, then transfer them to baking sheets in shifts.
• Bake 15 to 20 minutes, until nicely browned. Let cool, then dust with sifted confectioners' sugar. If you plan to freeze some of the cookies, do not dust them with confectioners' sugar; wait until after they thaw.

DATE NUT BARS

Steps:

• In a large bowl, combine the sugar, flour, baking powder, salt, dates and nuts. Add the eggs, butter and vanilla; stir just until dry ingredients are moistened (batter will be very stiff). , Spread in a greased 15x10x1-in. baking pan. Bake at 350° for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown. Cool bars on a wire rack. Dust with confectioners' sugar. ,

CHRISTMAS DATE-NUT COOKIES

Steps:

• Set oven to 375°.
• Line cookie sheets with parchment paper.
• In a bowl combine the fruit and nuts.
• Add in 1/2 cup flour and mix to separate the pieces.
• In a small bowl combine remaining 2 cups flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt.
• In a large bowl beat the butter for about 2 minutes, then add in sugar; beat until light and fluffy (about 3-4 minutes).
• Beat in eggs until well combined.
• Add in the flour mixture on low speed just until combined.
• Add in the fruit and nut mixture by hand.
• Drop the dough by tablespoonfuls onto prepared cookie sheets spacing 1-inch apart.
• Bake until cookies are golden brown (about 10 minutes).
• Cool 2 minutes on baking sheets.
• Transfer to rack to cool.

MOM'S DATE-NUT COOKIES

Steps:

• Melt butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add sugar, dates, walnuts, and beaten egg. Bring to a boil, stirring occasionally. Boil until dates have softened and melted into the mixture, 3 to 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in rice cereal.
• Place coconut in a shallow bowl.
• Scoop rounded teaspoonfuls of dough and drop them into the coconut, rolling and pressing until coated.

HOLIDAY DATE-NUT COOKIES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400°F. Line cookie sheets with parchment. Combine fruit and nuts in bowl. Add 1/2 cup flour and mix to separate pieces. Combine remaining 2 cups flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt in small bowl. Beat butter in large bowl until light. Gradually add sugar, beating until fluffy. Beat in eggs 1 at a time. Fold dry ingredients into butter mixture. Mix in fruits and nuts.
• Drop dough by rounded tablespoonfuls onto prepared cookie sheets, spacing 1 inch apart. Bake until cookies are golden brown, about 10 minutes. Cool 2 minutes on cookie sheets. Transfer to rack and cool. (Can be prepared 1 week ahead. Store in airtight container.)

DATE NUT FILLED COOKIES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375°F.
• To prepare Filling:.
• Combine dates, water and sugar in a small saucepan. Cook over low heat until thick. Cool; add nuts.
• To prepare Cookie Dough:.
• Cream butter, add sugar and beat until light.
• Beat in eggs one at a time; add vanilla.
• Sift together flour, salt, soda and cinnamon. Add to creamed mixture alternately with buttermilk.
• Drop dough by rounded tablespoons onto buttered baking sheet 2" apart. Make a shallow indent in each cookie. Place a scant teaspoon of filling in indent. Cover with 1/2 teaspoon of dough.
• Bake 10 to 15 minutes or until lightly browned.
• Remove to wire rack to cool.
• Store between layers of wax paper in tightly covered container.

CHEWY DATE COOKIES

Steps:

• In a bowl, cream butter and brown sugar. Add egg; mix well. Combine the flours, lemon zest, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt; add to creamed mixture alternately with milk, beating well after each addition. Stir in dates., Drop by rounded tablespoonfuls 2 in. apart onto ungreased baking sheets. Bake at 325° for 13-15 minutes or until golden brown. Remove to wire racks to cool. Store in an airtight container.

DATE-NUT BALLS

Steps:

• Melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat; cook and stir dates and white sugar in the melted butter until thick and golden brown, 10 to 15 minutes. Remove saucepan from heat and stir in crispy rice cereal and pecans. Let mixture cool until easily handled, 5 to 10 minutes.
• Form mixture into small balls using your hands.
• Pour confectioners' sugar into a resealable bag; add date-nut balls and lightly shake bag until balls are coated.

NOEL NUT BALLS

Steps:

• Whisk together flour, pecans, confectioners' sugar, and salt in a medium bowl. With an electric mixer on medium-high speed, beat butter and honey until fluffy, about 3 minutes. Mix in bourbon or orange juice just to combine. Add flour mixture, and beat just to combine. Turn out dough onto a piece of plastic, wrap tightly, and chill 3 hours.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Roll dough, 2 teaspoons at a time, into balls. Place 2 inches apart on parchment-lined baking sheets. Bake until brown around edges, about 12 minutes. Transfer cookies to wire racks; let cool completely. Roll in confectioners' sugar to coat. Cookies can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature up to 1 week.

DATE NUT PINWHEEL COOKIES II

Steps:

• Cream the butter and brown sugar together in a mixing bowl until smooth. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Stir in the vanilla. Sift the cinnamon, salt, baking soda, and flour together in a second mixing bowl. Slowly stir the flour mixture into the egg mixture until evenly blended.
• Divide the dough evenly into three portions and place each on a square of waxed paper. Wrap and refrigerate until firm, about 1 hour.
• Meanwhile, make the filling by combine the dates, pecans, water and white sugar in a saucepan set over low heat. Cook and stir until the filling has a paste-like consistency. Cool slightly.
• Working with one portion at a time, roll out the dough on a lightly floured surface to make a rectangle about 1/4 inch thick. Spread 1/3 of the filling evenly over the dough; roll up to make a log. Repeat the process with the remaining dough. Refrigerate until firm, about 1 hour.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (180 degrees C). Lightly grease two baking sheets.
• Using a sharp, serrated knife, cut the rolls into 1/4 inch slices. Place the slices on prepared baking sheets.
• Bake in preheated oven until set and lightly browned, about 15 minutes. Cool on racks.