Buchanan's Favorite Hazelnut Cookies - Makes about 3 dozen 2-inch cookies.
FOODday October 25, 2005
1 cup butter (2 sticks)
1 cup granulated sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1 1/2 cups toasted, skinned and ground hazelnuts (see note)
2 cups cake flour
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cream butter and sugar. Add the vanilla and hazelnuts. Stir in the flour. Pat or roll the dough out on a lightly floured surface until it is about 1/8 inch thick. Cut into rounds or rectangles or squares of desired size. With metal spatula, gently place cookies on an ungreased cookie sheet and bake for about 10 minutes. Remove from oven and let cookies cool completely before removing from the sheet or they'll break. These cookies improve in flavor after a few days. They freeze beautifully. too.
In a microwave or the top half of a double boiler, melt the chocolate chips. Dip up to a half of each cookie into the chocolate. Let the excess drip off and then place on wax paper to dry the chocolate. Store in covered containers.
Note: To toast hazelnuts, spread the shelled nuts in a shallow pan and roast in a 350 degree oven for 7 to 8 minutes, or until golden and skins crack. To remove skins, rub nuts while warm with a rough cloth. Grind n a food processor until very fine, but don't overprocess or it will turn into butter.
Old-Fashioned Oatmeal Cookies
FoodDay October 5, 2005
3/4 cup vegetable oil
1 cup firmly packed light-brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 egg
1/4 cup water
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 tsp salt
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp baking soda
3 cups old-fashioned oatmeal, uncooked
1 1/2 cups raisons
1 cup chopped walnuts or pecans
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Beat the oil, sugars, egg, water and vanilla together until creamy. Sift the flour, salt, cinnamon and baking soda together.
Beat the flour mixture into the creamed mixture. Stir in oatmeal, raisons and chopped nuts. Drop teaspoonfuls of the dough onto greased cookie sheets. Bake 12 to 15 minutes.