Orange Pistachio Crescents Food

ORANGE PISTACHIO CRESCENTS

Steps:

• Make dough:
• Whisk together flour, sugar, and salt in a large bowl (or pulse in a food processor). Blend in butter with your fingertips or a pastry blender (or pulse) until mixture resembles coarse meal with some roughly pea-size butter lumps. Beat together yolks and 3 tablespoon water with a fork and stir into flour (or pulse) until incorporated.
• Gently squeeze a small handful of dough: If it doesn't hold together, stir (or pulse) in 1 tablespoon more water. Do not overwork dough or pastry will be tough.
• Turn out dough onto a lightly floured surface and divide into 8 portions. With heel of your hand, smear each portion once in a forward motion to help distribute fat. Gather dough together and divide in half. Form each half into a 4-inch square. Wrap each in plastic wrap and chill until firm, at least 1 hour.
• Make filling:
• Cut off peel, including white pith, from orange with a sharp knife and finely chop. (Reserve fruit for another use.) Put peel in a 2-quart heavy saucepan, then fill with water. Add salt and bring to a boil, then boil, uncovered, 10 minutes. Drain in a fine-mesh sieve.
• Bring granulated sugar and water (3/4 cup) to a boil in saucepan over medium-high heat, stirring until sugar has dissolved, then wash down any sugar crystals from side of pan with a pastry brush dipped in cold water. Add peel to syrup. Gently simmer, uncovered, until peel begins to turn translucent and syrup is reduced to about 2/3 cup, 20 to 30 minutes.
• Drain peel in fine-mesh sieve set over a bowl, reserving 3 tablespoon syrup. Stir together peel, reserved syrup, and pistachios. Cool to room temperature.
• Makes cookies:
• Preheat oven to 375°F with rack in middle. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
• Roll out 1 piece of dough on a floured surface with a floured rolling pin into a 15- by 12-inch rectangle. Cut out 16 to 20 rounds with cookie cutter.
• Put a scant teaspoon filling on each round, then brush edge lightly with water and fold pastry over filling to form a half-moon. Press edges to seal. Shape each into a crescent by pushing a finger against middle of flat side.
• Bake 1 inch apart on baking sheet until golden, 15 to 20 minutes. Transfer cookies on parchment to a rack to cool 2 minutes. Toss warm cookies, a few at a time, in confectioners sugar to coat generously. Cool completely.
• Repeat with remaining dough (cool baking sheet and line with fresh parchment). Reroll scraps once for extra cookies if desired.

PISTACHIO-CRANBERRY-CANDIED ORANGE BARK

Steps:

• Line a baking sheet with foil, shiny-side up; smooth out the creases. Make sure all your tools are dry.
• Chop the white chocolate into 1/2-inch pieces with a large knife. Place all but 1 cup of the chopped chocolate in a microwave-safe bowl. Microwave 30 seconds, then stir with a rubber spatula. Continue microwaving and stirring at 30-second intervals until melted, 3 to 5 minutes total. Immediately add the reserved chopped chocolate to the bowl; stir vigorously until melted and shiny. Don't worry if there are a few small unmelted pieces.
• Pour the white chocolate onto the prepared baking sheet; use the rubber spatula to spread it into a 10-to-12-inch circle, about 1/4 inch thick.
• Press the pistachios, cranberries and candied orange peel into the chocolate, arranging them so each bite has a mix of flavors and textures. Let the bark harden completely at room temperature, about 1 hour. (If the room is warm, you may need to freeze the bark for a few minutes.) Break into pieces and store in an airtight container at room temperature for 1 to 2 weeks.

HOLIDAY CRANBERRY-ORANGE PISTACHIO BARS

Steps:

• Bright red cranberries and toasted green pistachios stud these tart-and-tangy bar cookies and make them a colorful addition to any cookie platter. They hold well in both the refrigerator and the freezer so they're an excellent make-ahead option.
• To prepare crust: Position rack in center of oven; preheat to 350degreesF. Coat an 8-inch-square baking pan with cooking spray.
• Beat butter, 2 tablespoons granulated sugar and brown sugar in a medium bowl with an electric mixer until creamy. Stir in whole-wheat flour, 1/3 cup all-purpose flour and salt until well combined (the mixture will still be crumbly). Evenly press the mixture into the bottom of the prepared pan. Bake until just barely golden around the edges, 10 to 12 minutes.
• To prepare topping: Combine 3/4 cup granulated sugar, 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour, baking powder and salt in a medium bowl. Add egg, egg white, orange zest and juice; stir until blended and smooth.
• Sprinkle cranberries over the baked crust. Pour the orange mixture over the cranberries and sprinkle with pistachios.
• Bake until golden and set, 40 to 45 minutes. Let cool completely on a wire rack; if possible, chill before cutting into squares.
• Recipe Tips & Notes:
• 1. Note: Whole-wheat pastry flour is milled from soft wheat. It contains less gluten than regular whole-wheat flour and helps ensure a tender result in delicate baked goods while providing the nutritional benefits of whole grains.
• 2. Tips: To make quick work of chopping cranberries, place whole berries in a food processor and pulse a few times until the berries are coarsely chopped.
• 3. To toast chopped pistachios, cook in a small dry skillet over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, until fragrant and lightly browned, 2 to 4 minutes. .
• Recipe Nutrition:
• Per serving: 126 calories; 4 g fat (2 g saturated fat, 1 g mono unsaturated fat); 19 mg cholesterol; 22 g carbohydrates; 2 g protein; 1 g fiber; 44 mg sodium; 58 mg potassium
• 1/2 Carbohydrate Servings
• Exchanges: 1/2 starch, 1 other carbohydrate, 1/2 fat
• To Make Ahead: Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days or in the freezer for up to 1 month

ORANGE-PISTACHIO DIVINITY

Steps:

• Place egg whites in bowl of a stand mixer; let stand at room temperature 30 minutes. Meanwhile, line two 15x10x1-in. pans with waxed paper., In a large heavy saucepan, combine sugar, corn syrup and water; cook and stir until sugar is dissolved and mixture comes to a boil. Cook, without stirring, over medium heat until a thermometer reads 252° (hard-ball stage). Just before that temperature is reached, beat egg whites on medium speed until stiff peaks form., With mixer continuing to run on high speed, slowly add hot sugar mixture in a thin stream over egg whites, beating constantly and scraping sides of bowl occasionally. Add orange zest and vanilla. Beat until candy holds its shape and begins to lose its gloss, 5-6 minutes. (Do not overbeat, or candy will stiffen and crumble.) Immediately fold in pistachios., Quickly drop mixture by tablespoonfuls onto prepared pans. Let stand at room temperature until dry to the touch. Store between layers of waxed paper in an airtight container at room temperature.