Week 12 Christmas Cookies

The Finale!

for the finale I wanted to make a sweet platter.  so I chose 3 I have been wanting to make.
Caramelised Pecans
Raspberry Marshmellows

Candy Cane truffles

Caramelised Pecans
Ingredients:
125gm Pecan halves
50g ground hazelnuts
50g caster sugar
1 egg white (or 1 reconstituted egg white if you are concerned about salmonella)
225g sugar
65ml water

Method:
mix hazelnuts, caster sugar and egg white to form a paste.
Using a little of the hazelnut paste, sandwich together two pecan halves.
put sugar and water in a pan and heat gently until the sugar has dissolved, increase heat and cook until the syrup turns golden, keep watch of this as I burned my first batch. 
drop pecans into syrup one at a time and lift with fork or candy dipper and put in baking paper to cool and harden. 
Store in airtight container for up to 4 days.

makes 35

Raspberry Marshmallows
Ingredients
600gm frozen raspberries - defrosted
7 gold strength gelatine leaves, softened in water for 5 minutes
375gm caster sugar
150ml water
55gm egg white
snow sugar for dusting (if you can't find snw sugar, use a combination of icing (confectioners) sugar and cornflour.

Method:
strain raspberries to get 150ml of juice, heat till luke warm, squeeze gelatine of water and put in raspberry juice and set aside.
combine caster sugar and water and simmer till it reaches 121degrees C, when its about 110degreesC, whisk egg white until soft peaks form.
add raspberry to sugar mixture and stir.  keep the whisk in the egg whites and pour hot raspberry sugar mixture in a steady stream into egg whites, beat for 15 minutes.
spoon into baking tray lined with baking paper and dusted with snow sugar.  smooth top of marshmallow mix and dust with more snow sugar, set aside at room temperature for 4 hours.

Turn marshmallow onto board and dust with more snow sugar.  (marshmallow could be wet but should hold its shape.  cut with hot knife into preferred sized squares and dust all sides with snow sugar. 
keep in airtight container for up to 5 days.

makes about 30 or more if you cut them smaller!  makes alot though!

Candy Cane truffles
Ingredients:
125ml double cream
150gm white chocolate
25 gm crushed candy canes
40g icing sugar

Method:
Place cream and broken up white chocolate into saucepan over low heat, stir for 4-5 mins till chocolate has melted, set aside to cook
whisk cream mixture till thick and chill for 3-4 hours.
add crushed candy canes, add to chocolate mixture, drop teaspoons onto a place and chill for another hour.
roll truffles in icing sugar and between hands into neat balls.  chill for a further 2 hours before serving.  keeps up to 4 days

makes 20

Week 12 Twelve Weeks of Christmas:

Week 11 Christmas Cookies

Chocolate Coconut Panforte

Ingredients:
•Coconut Oil, to grease
•100g whole macadamias or hazelnuts
•100g whole blanched almonds
•1 Tblsp Cacao Nibs
•4 Tblsp Coconut Flour
•2 Tblsp Tapioca Flour
•2 Tblsp Raw Cacao Powder  (or a good quality cocoa powder)
•1/3 cup sultanas
•½ cup mixed peel or chopped glace apricots
•1/3 cup dried cranberries or cherries
•1/4 cup coconut oil

•1 tsp ground cinamon
•1 tsp ground coriander
•1 tsp mixed spice
•70g Raw Dark Chocolate
•½ cup agave syrup or maple syrup
•1 Tblsp rapadura sugar


Method:
Bake nuts in a pre heated oven (approx 180C) for 5 mins until lightly browned.  Reduce heat to 160C.  Brush a cake pan with coconut oil and line bottom with baking paper.
Place roasted nuts in a large bowl. Add dried fruits, coconut oil and cacao nibs - stir to combine. Sift over the combined flours, cocoa, and spices - stir to combine.

Place chocolate, agave syrup and rapadura in a small saucepan and stir over medium-low heat until sugar dissolves and chocolate melts.

Bring to the boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer, without stirring, for 2 minutes or until a candy thermometer reaches 112°C or ‘soft ball stage’ (If you don’t have a thermometer, drop 1 tsp of syrup into a glass of cold water. If the syrup becomes a soft ball it’s at soft ball stage).

Pour the hot chocolate mixture into the fruit mixture and, working quickly, stir until well combined. Spoon into prepared pan and smooth the surface. Bake in preheated oven for 15-20 minutes or until just firm. Remove from oven and set aside to cool.  Dust with snow sugar or confectioners sugar when cool.

Week 11 Twelve Weeks of Christmas:

Week 10 Christmas Cookies

that means.. yup - that means its just 3 weeks till Christmas!  yay!!!

today.. another gluten free treat, since I'm in the tropics this time of year, something to celebrate this fabulous warm weather! 

Lime coconut cookies

1 cup coconut flour
3/4 cup rice flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup sugar
150gm softened butter
2 eggs
1/2 tablespoon grated lemon  zest
1 tablespoon grated lime zest
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
3 tablespoons fresh lime juice
1 tablespoon water

Method:
Pre-heat oven at 180 degrees C.

Mix coconut flour, rice flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt.
In a large mixing bowl beat the sugar, butter, eggs, lemon and lime zest, lemon and lime juices and water. Mix in flour mixture until well blended.
Shape dough into small balls and place on an un-greased cookie sheet. lightly flatten.
Bake 10-12 minutes. Cool on a wire rack, dust with icing sugar.

Week 10 Twelve Weeks of Christmas: