Gingersnap Sandwich Cookies With Lemon Buttercream Frosting Recipes

GINGERSNAP SANDWICH COOKIES WITH LEMON BUTTERCREAM FROSTING

Steps:

• In large bowl, beat 1/2 cup butter and sugars with electric mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy. Beat in molasses and water until blended (mixture may look curdled). On low speed, beat in flour, ginger, cinnamon, baking soda, cloves and salt. Divide dough in half; wrap each half in plastic wrap. Refrigerate about 2 hours or until chilled.
• Heat oven to 350°F. Line cookie sheets with cooking parchment paper. On well-floured surface, roll half of dough at a time to 1/8-inch thickness (keep remaining dough refrigerated). Cut with 2-inch round cookie cutter. Using large end of a piping tip or 1/2-inch round canapé cutter, cut a hole in center of half of the cutouts. Carefully transfer to cookie sheets, placing 1/2 inch apart. Reroll scraps.
• Bake 9 to 12 minutes or until set in center. Cool 2 minutes; remove from cookie sheets to cooling racks. Cool completely, about 30 minutes.
• In large bowl, beat frosting ingredients on medium speed until light and fluffy. Spread about 1 heaping teaspoon frosting on each whole cookie; top with cutout cookie. If desired, sprinkle additional grated lemon peel on frosting in center.

LEMON SANDWICH COOKIES

Steps:

• Food Processor Method Process the lemon zest with the sugar and salt until the zest is very fine. Cut the butter into several pieces and add it with the motor running. Process until smooth and creamy, Add the egg and vanilla and process until incorporated, scraping the sides of the bowl as needed. Add the flour and pulse in just until incorporated. The mixture will hold together if pinched.
• Electric Mixer Method For the best texture use superfine granulated sugar. Soften the butter and chop the lemon zest until very fine. In a mixing bowl cream together the sugar and butter until fluffy. Add the lemon zest, egg, and vanilla extract and beat until blended. In a small bowl, whisk together the flour and salt. On low speed, gradually add it to the butter mixture and mix until incorporated and the dough just begins to come away from the sides of the bowl.
• For Both Methods Scrape the mixture onto a large sheet of plastic wrap and use the wrap to press down on the dough, kneading it until it is smooth. Divide the dough into four pieces, wrap each one with plastic wrap, and press to form flat discs. Refrigerate for 2 hours up to 2 days placed in a zip-seal bag, to firm and give the dough a chance to absorb the moisture evenly to make rolling easier.
• Place 2 oven racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
• Remove the dough from the refrigerator and set it on a lightly floured surface. Lightly flour the dough and cover it with plastic wrap. (I like to use Wondra® flour for dusting.) Allow the dough to soften for about 10 minutes or until supple enough to roll. Roll the dough to 1/8 inch thick, moving it from time to time and adding more flour if necessary to keep it from sticking.
• Cut out 2-1/4 inch cookies. preferably using a scalloped cutter. Use a 3/4 inch round cutter or pastry tube to cut out the centers of half of them. (If using a plastic cutter, or parchment-lined cookied sheet, it's best to do this after placing the cookies on the cookie sheet.) Set the cookies, about 1/2 inch apart, on the cookie sheets. Knead together the scraps and reroll them, chilling them first if necessary.
• Bake the cookies for 8 to 12 minutes or just until they begin to brown lightly. For even baking, rotate the cookie sheets from top to bottom and front to back halfway through baking.
• Use a small offset spatula or pancake turner to transfer the cookies to cooling racks. When cool, spread the bottom sides of the cookie halves without the cutouts with 1 teaspoon of lemon buttercream or your favorite jam or jelly, and set the second set of cookies with the cutouts on top, bottom side down to create the sandwiches.
• Lemon Neoclassic Buttercream Makes: 1 cup/about 8 ounces 2 large egg yolks 1/4 cup superfine sugar 2 tablespoons light corn syrup 8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened-65 to 75°F 1 tablespoon lemon zest, finely chopped, loosely packed 2 tablespoons lemon juice, freshly squeezed 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• In a medium bowl, with a handheld mixer, beat the yolks on high speed until light in color.
• Have ready a 1-cup heatproof glass measure, coated lightly with nonstick cooking spray.
• In a small saucepan, preferably nonstick, using a silicone spatula, stir together the sugar and corn syrup until all the sugar is moistened. Heat over medium-high, stirring constantly, until the sugar dissolves and the syrup begins to bubble around the edges. Stop stirring completely and continue cooking for a few minutes until the syrup comes to a rolling boil. (The entire surface will be covered with large bubbles.) Immediately transfer the syrup to the glass measure to stop the cooking.
• Beat the syrup into the yolks in a steady stream. Don't allow the syrup to fall on the beaters or they will spin it onto the sides of the bowl. Continue beating on high speed for 5 minutes. Allow it to cool completely. To speed cooling, place the buttercream in an ice water bath or the refrigerator, stirring occasionally. When the outside of the bowl feels cool, on high speed, beat in the butter by the tablespoon. The buttercream will not thicken until almost all of the butter has been added. On low speed, add the lemon zest, lemon juice, and vanilla. Raise the speed to high and beat until smooth and creamy. It may separate at first but come together on beating.
• Place the buttercream in an airtight bowl. Use it at once or set it aside for up to 4 hours. If keeping it longer than 4 hours, refrigerate it. Bring it to room temperature and rebeat to restore the texture.

GINGERSNAP AND LEMON ICE CREAM SANDWICHES

Steps:

• Make the gingersnaps:
• Preheat the oven to 350°F. In a bowl with an electric mixer cream together the butter, 1/2 cup of the granulated sugar, and the brown sugar until the mixture is light and fluffy, add the molasses, and beat the mixture until it is smooth. In another bowl whisk together the flour, the ginger, the cinnamon, the allspice, the baking soda, and the salt, add the flour mixture to the butter mixture, and stir the mixture until it forms a soft dough. Form the dough into 24 balls (each about 1 1/2 inches in diameter), roll the balls in the additional granulated sugar, coating them, and arrange them 2 inches apart on buttered baking sheets. Bake the gingersnaps in batches in the middle of the oven for 13 to 15 minutes, until they are crisp and cracked but still soft inside, and let them cool on the sheets for 5 minutes. Transfer the gingersnaps with a metal spatula to racks and let them cool completely.
• Sandwich a scoop of the ice cream between 2 of the gingersnaps, pressing the cookies together, form 11 more sandwiches in the same manner, and roll the edges in the pistachios. Freeze the sandwiches on a tray, covered, until they are hard. The sandwiches may be made 2 days in advance and kept covered and frozen.

BUTTERCREAM-FROSTED LEMON SUGAR COOKIES

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Line a baking tray with a silicone baking mat (such as Silpat®) or parchment paper.
• Cream sugar and 1 cup butter together in a bowl with an electric mixer on high until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add in egg yolks, 1 at a time, until well incorporated and fluffy; don't overmix. Blend in all of the zest from the lemon and 3 tablespoons of lemon juice (if you have extra juice, reserve it for the frosting).
• Combine flour, baking soda, and cream of tartar in a bowl and whisk to blend. Slowly add the dry ingredients to the mixing bowl with the butter-sugar mixture and mix in on low speed until just combined. Scrape down the sides and bottom with a spatula until cookie dough is evenly blended.
• Use a 1 1/2-tablespoon cookie scoop to scoop out 12 dough balls and set, evenly spaced, onto the prepared baking sheet. Don't flatten them, you can leave them just as they come out of the scoop. If you don't have a scoop, just shape walnut-sized balls by hand.
• Bake in the preheated oven until bottoms are very lightly browned and tops begin to appear crackled, 10 to 11 minutes. Cool on the baking sheet for 2 to 3 minutes and then very carefully move to a cooling rack to complete cooling (they will be very soft still).
• Repeat with remaining dough until all cookies are baked and cooled.
• When cookies are cooled, make the buttercream frosting by whipping 3 cups of confectioners' sugar with 1/2 cup butter; start on low speed until butter and sugar begin to combine, then turn up the speed slowly. When sugar and butter are mostly combined, add in lemon juice and whip until creamy and smooth. Check consistency and flavor; you can add a little extra lemon juice or milk if you want a creamier consistency. But if you want the texture fairly stiff you may not need extra liquid at this point.
• Frost the cooled cookies as desired and allow the buttercream to set before stacking or storing the cookies.

GINGERBREAD COOKIES WITH LEMON FROSTING

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°. Cream butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy, 5-7 minutes. Beat in eggs and molasses. In another bowl, whisk the next 8 ingredients; gradually beat into creamed mixture., Shape into 1-in. balls; place 2 in. apart on ungreased baking sheets. Bake until tops are cracked, 8-10 minutes. Cool 2 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks to cool completely., For frosting, beat cream cheese until fluffy. Add remaining ingredients; beat until smooth. Frost cookies. Refrigerate in an airtight container.