Maple Meltaways Food

MAPLE MELTAWAYS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• In large bowl, measure all but pecans. Mix on low until blended. Increase speed to medium, beat until light and fluffy.
• Drop by rounded teaspoons 1 inch apart on ungreased cookie sheet.
• Gently press 1 pecan half on each. Bake 12 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool.
• slightly. Remove to wire rack. Store in tightly covered container for up to.
• 2 weeks. Makes 36 cookies.

MAPLE-BACON MELTAWAYS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a 13x9 inch baking pan with parchment paper or lightly spray with cooking spray.
• To prepare the shortbread mix, the flour, 1/4 cup of brown sugar, baking powder, 1 tablespoon maple syrup and salt in a large bowl. Add 1/2 cup of the butter and using a pastry blender or fork, combine the mixture well until it resembles coarse meal. Press the mixture evenly into the bottom of the prepared baking dish. Bake in the preheated oven until lightly browned about 15-20 minutes. Sprinkle the crumbled bacon in an even layer over the shortbread crust.
• To prepare the maple glaze, melt the remaining 1/2 cup of butter over medium heat in a medium sized saucepan. Whisk in the remaining 2 tablespoons of maple syrup, the confectioner's sugar, the remaining brown sugar and the vanilla until smooth. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Let boil for one minute.
• Pour the glaze over the bacon and shortbread crust, spreading with a spatula or knife. Allow to cool to room temperature before cutting into squares.

LIME MELTAWAYS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°F.
• Line baking sheets with parchment.
• Cream butter and 1/3 cup sugar until fluffy.
• Add the lime juice, zest and vanilla and beat until fluffy.
• In another bowl, combine together flour, cornstarch and salt.
• Add to butter mixture and beat until combined.
• Roll into a log and chill for 1 hour.
• Slice logs into 1/8-inch rounds.
• Place rounds on sheets and bake until golden, 11-15 minutes.
• While still warm, place cookies in bag with the rest of the powdered sugar and toss gently to coat.
• They are tender and may break apart.

PECAN MELTAWAYS

Steps:

• In a large bowl, cream butter and confectioners' sugar until light and fluffy, 5-7 minutes. Beat in vanilla. Combine flour and salt; gradually add to creamed mixture and mix well. Stir in pecans. Refrigerate until chilled., Preheat oven to 350°. Roll into 1-in. balls and place on ungreased baking sheets. Bake 10-12 minutes or until set. Roll warm cookies in additional confectioners' sugar; cool completely on wire racks. Roll cooled cookies again in confectioners' sugar.

ALMOND MELTAWAYS

Steps:

• Beat together butter and 1/2 cup of the confectioners' sugar in bowl until smooth and creamy. Beat in almond extract.
• On low speed, beat in flour and nuts.
• Wrap dough in plastic wrap; refrigerate until firm, 2 hours.
• Heat oven to 325 degrees F. Pinch off pieces of dough in heaping teaspoonfuls.
• Roll into logs and taper ends; bending into crescents.
• Place on ungreased baking sheets. Bake in 325 degree oven for 16 to 18 minutes, until lightly browned.
• Remove cookies to wire rack. While warm, dust with a generous layer of remaining confectioners' sugar.
• Cool completely then sprinkle again with any remaining confectioners' sugar.

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.