Tri Cornered Cream Cheese Cookies With Jam Filling Food

JAM-FILLED CREAM-CHEESE COOKIES

Steps:

• In a large bowl, using an electric mixer, beat cream cheese, butter, and sugar until light and fluffy. With mixer on low, add flour and salt; beat until combined (do not overmix).
• Divide dough into 3 portions; flatten each into a disk. Roll each disk to an 1/8-inch thickness between sheets of parchment. Stack dough (still in parchment) on a baking sheet; refrigerate 20 minutes. (To store, wrap in plastic and freeze on sheet, up to 2 weeks. Thaw until pliable before using.)
• Preheat oven to 375 degrees, with racks in upper and lower thirds. Mix egg yolk with 1/2 teaspoon water. Working with 1 dough sheet at a time, peel off parchment (save for baking). With a 2 1/2-inch round or 2-inch star-shaped cookie cutter, cut out cookies. Spoon 1/2 teaspoon jam into center of each and brush exposed dough with egg wash. Shape cookies; arrange, 2 inches apart, on 2 parchment-lined baking sheets and refrigerate 20 minutes (reroll scraps).
• Bake until cookies are light golden brown, about 15 minutes, rotating sheets halfway through. Let cool completely on wire racks. (To store, cover and keep at room temperature, up to 4 days.)

MARTHA'S KOLACHES

Steps:

• Cookies:In a small bowl, stir together yeast and sour cream. Let stand until yeast dissolves, about 10 minutes. Whisk in eggs until smooth.
• In a large bowl, whisk together flour, granulated sugar, and salt. Using a pastry cutter or two knives, cut butter into dry ingredients until mixture resembles coarse meal. Stir in yeast mixture. Knead in bowl a few times until dough is smooth and comes together. Wrap dough in plastic and flatten into a square. Refrigerate at least 30 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 400 degrees. On a lightly floured surface, roll out dough 1/4 inch thick. Using a 3-inch square cutter, cut out squares. Transfer to two parchment-lined baking sheets, spaced about 1 1/2 inches apart.
• Place 1 teaspoon jam in the center of each square. Fold upper-right corner over filling, about two-thirds of the way toward opposite corner; press down to seal. Brush lower-left corner with egg wash, then fold corner up and over first fold, pressing down to adhere. (Be careful not to fold too tightly, or you may force out some of the filling.) Repeat with remaining squares.
• Bake until edges are golden, 12 to 15 minutes. Let cookies cool on sheets on wire racks 5 minutes, then transfer cookies to racks to cool completely.
• Glaze:In a medium bowl, whisk together confectioners' sugar and butter. While whisking, drizzle in milk, a little at a time, until glaze has a runny consistency. Using a spoon, drizzle glaze over cookies. Let stand until set, 1 hour. Glazed cookies can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature up to 2 days.

TRI CORNERED CREAM CHEESE COOKIES WITH JAM FILLING

Steps:

• In a large bowl, combine sugar, butter and cheese. Beat till light and fluffy. Add vanilla and egg; blend well. Add flour and salt. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1-2 hours for easy handling.
• Heat oven to 375°F
• On lightly floured surface, roll out half of dough as a time to 1/8 inch thickness (Keep rest of the dough in the fridge for the mean time).
• Cut with 2 and a 1/2 inch round cookie cutter. Place one inch apart on UNGREASED cookie sheets.
• Spoon 1 tsp jam on center of each round.
• To shape into triangles, fold 3 sides without covering jam; pinch corners to seal.
• Bake at 375°F for 7 - 10 minutes or until edges are light golden brown. Cool for 1 minute and remove from baking sheets. Dust with powdered sugar if desired.

CREAM CHEESE COOKIES

Steps:

• Position an oven rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 325 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment.
• Combine the butter, vanilla, 4 ounces of the room-temperature cream cheese and 1 teaspoon of the salt in a large bowl and beat with an electric mixer on medium speed until creamy, about 1 minute. Add 2 cups of the sugar and beat until pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the egg yolk and beat until smooth, then add the flour and beat on low until the dough just comes together. Remove the frozen cream cheese from the freezer and chop into 1/4-inch cubes. Add the cubes to the dough, quickly stirring with a rubber spatula to evenly incorporate them into the dough. Refrigerate the dough for 1 hour.
• Using a 1-ounce ice cream scoop or 2 tablespoons, scoop 12 portions of dough, roll into balls and transfer to the prepared baking sheet, spacing them evenly apart. Lightly flour the bottom of a 1/2-cup measuring cup and use it to flatten each cookie into a disk about 1/2 inch thick, re-flouring the cup after each cookie.
• Bake, rotating the baking sheet halfway through, until the cookies look set but are still pale and barely brown on the bottom, 20 to 24 minutes. Cool the cookies on the baking sheet for 1 minute, then transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely. Repeat with the remaining cookie dough.
• Meanwhile, combine the remaining 2 ounces room-temperature cream cheese, 2 cups sugar and 1/4 teaspoon salt in a medium bowl and beat with an electric mixer on low speed until the mixture forms a thick paste. Add the milk and stir slowly until a thick glaze forms.
• When the cookies are cool, dip the entire surface of the top of each cookie in the glaze and lift up, letting the excess glaze drip off, then flip the cookie right-side up and onto the cooling rack. If the glaze is too thick, add another teaspoon of milk to loosen it. If using the cranberries or lime zest, sprinkle on top of the cookies while the glaze is still wet. Allow the glaze to set before serving, at least 10 minutes. Store the cookies in a single layer in an airtight container for up to 5 days.

STRAWBERRY CREAM COOKIES

Steps:

• In a large bowl, cream the butter, cream cheese and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in egg yolk and vanilla. Add flour and mix well. Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour or until easy to handle. , Shape dough into 1-in. balls. Place 2 in. apart on ungreased baking sheets. Using the end of a wooden spoon handle, make a 1/2-in.-deep indentation in the center of each ball; fill with about 1/4 teaspoon jam. Bake at 350° for 10-12 minutes or until set. Remove to wire racks to cool.

RUGELACH (FILLED CREAM CHEESE COOKIES)

Steps:

• In a mixing bowl or food processor, cream the butter and cream cheese together.
• Add the pinch of salt and sugar.
• Beat in the flour, a little at a time.
• Knead the dough lightly until all the flour is incorporated.
• Divide the dough into 4 equal portions and refrigerate at least 1 hour.
• Prepare one of the fillings by combining the ingredients (except the 1/4 cup sugar for the topping) and set aside.
• Flour the surface you will be rolling out the pastry on very generously.
• This is a delicate dough and is apt to stick.
• Roll out one of the portions of dough into a 10 inch in diameter circle.
• With a knife or pastry wheel, cut the pastry into 10-12 pie-shaped wedges (depending on how large or small you want the rugelach to be- I go for smaller).
• If the dough is sticky, dust it with a little flour.
• Sprinkle or spread a little of the filling of your choice on each little wedge.
• Beginning at the wide edge, roll the dough up toward the point, as you would make a crescent roll or a croissant, turning the ends in slightly to achieve the crescent.
• Place on an ungreased cookie sheet and brush with melted butter and sprinkle with a tiny bit of the topping sugar (this step can also be done just before baking and ensure that the sugar is not knocked off in the freezer).
• Repeat with the rest of the dough and filling.
• At this point, I pop the cookie sheet directly into my freezer and freeze the rugelach individually.
• When frozen, I pack them into ziploc bags to use at whim over the holidays (and not just) so they can be freshly-baked for any occasion.
• Preheat oven to 350°F and bake for 20-25 minutes, or until golden, brushing with melted butter after 15 minutes if desired.

CREAM CHEESE KOLACKY

Steps:

• Mix cream cheese and butter until smooth. Add flour slowly until well blended. Shape into a ball and chill overnight or for several hours.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (180 degrees C).
• Roll dough out 1/8 inch thick on a floured pastry board. Cut into 2 1/2 inch squares and place about 1/2 teaspoon jam or preserves in the center. Overlap opposite corners and pinch together. Place on ungreased cookie sheets.
• Bake for 10 to 12 minutes in the preheated oven. Cool on wire racks. Sprinkle kolacky lightly with confectioner's sugar.