Maida Heatters Chocolate Cookies With Gin Soaked Raisins Recipes

MAIDA HEATTER'S CHOCOLATE MOUSSE TORTE

Steps:

• Set a rack in the center of the oven. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Butter a 9-inch glass pie plate. Dust it with bread crumbs or cocoa powder. Set aside.
• Place the chopped chocolate in the top of a small double boiler over water over low heat. Bring it to a low simmer. Meanwhile, in a cup or small bowl, dissolve the coffee in the 1/4 cup boiling water and pour it over the chocolate. Cover and cook over low heat, whisking occasionally, until the chocolate is almost melted. Remove from heat and continue to stir until smooth. Let cool slightly. (Alternatively, place chocolate in a medium microwave-safe bowl. Dissolve the coffee in the boiling water and pour it over the chocolate. Cover with a plate or kitchen towel and let stand for 5 minutes. Vigorously whisk until the chocolate is melted and smooth. If there are still bits of unmelted chocolate, microwave in 15-second bursts, whisking between, until smooth and fully melted.)
• In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat the yolks at high speed until they are pale, thick and lemon-colored, about 5 minutes. Gradually add the granulated sugar and continue to beat at high speed for 5 minutes more until very thick. Reduce speed to low, and add the vanilla and cooled chocolate, scraping the sides of the mixing bowl as necessary. Transfer mixture to a medium bowl. Wash the whisk attachment and mixing bowl.
• In the mixing bowl of the electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat the egg whites with the salt until stiff but not dry. Gradually, in two or three small additions, gently fold half the egg whites into the chocolate, then fold the chocolate mixture into the remaining whites just until no whites show. Handling as little as possible, gently reserve about 4 cups of the mousse in a separate medium bowl; cover and refrigerate.
• Transfer the rest of the mousse into the pie plate; it will barely reach the top. Gently level and bake for 25 minutes. Turn off the heat, then leave it in the oven for 5 minutes more. Remove from oven and cool on a rack. (The mousse will rise during baking and then, while cooling, it will sink in the middle, leaving a high rim.) Wash the mixing bowl and whisk attachment and place in the refrigerator or freezer to chill.
• When the baked mousse is completely cool, remove reserved mousse from refrigerator. Handling as little as possible, transfer the chilled mousse to the center of the baked mousse. Mound it slightly higher in the center, but be careful to handle as little as possible or it will lose the air beaten into it. Refrigerate for at least 2 to 3 hours.
• Make the whipped cream: In the chilled mixing bowl with the chilled whisk attachment, whip the cream, confectioners' sugar and vanilla on high speed until it holds a defined shape. Spread over the unbaked part of the mousse, excluding the rim; refrigerate. (Another way of applying the whipped cream: Use a pastry bag fitted with a medium star tube and pipe a lattice pattern over the top of the pie and a border around the edge.) Coarsely grate some semisweet chocolate over the top before serving, if desired. The torte is best eaten the day it's made, but it's not bad the next day.

MAIDA HEATTER'S CHOCOLATE COOKIES WITH GIN-SOAKED RAISINS

Steps:

• Combine raisins and gin in a cup and let stand at least 8 hours to macerate.
• Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter and flour 2 large baking sheets, shaking off excess flour.
• Mix confectioners sugar, cocoa, espresso powder, flour, and salt with an electric mixer at low speed. Add egg whites and vanilla and continue mixing until smooth.
• Drain raisins in a sieve, without pressing, then add raisins to dough with pecans. Stir until thoroughly mixed. (Dough will be thick and sticky.)
• Working quickly, drop 1/4 cup dough for each cookie onto a baking sheet, spacing cookies at least 3 inches apart, and gently pat down each mound to about 1/2 inch thick.
• Bake cookies, 1 sheet at a time, in middle of oven, rotating sheet halfway through baking, 15 to 17 minutes total, or until cookies appear cracked and centers are just set. Cool cookies on sheet 1 minute, then transfer carefully to a rack to cool completely.

MAIDA HEATTER'S CHOCOLATE SPRITZ COOKIES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Fit your cookie press with a favorite plate. You'll need unbuttered, unlined cookie sheets.
• Melt chocolate in the top of a double boiler over hot, not simmering water, or melt in the microwave following manufacturer's directions. Allow to cool slightly.
• In the large bowl of an electric mixer, cream the butter. Add the salt, vanilla and sugar and beat to mix well. Add the egg yolks and beat to mix, then add the chocolate, mixing well to blend. On low speed, gradually add the flour. Beat only to mix after each addition.
• Fill your cookie press with a portion of the dough. Press out the cookies 1-inch apart on cookie sheets. Bake 8-10 minutes in preheated oven. Using a spatula, transfer cookies to a rack to cool. Store in airtight containers.
• NOTE: Cookies may be decorated with chopped nuts or candied cherries before baking, if desired.

MAIDA HEATTER'S CHOCOLATE COOKIES WITH GIN-SOAKED RAISINS

Steps:

• Combine raisins and gin in a cup and let stand at least 8 hours to macerate.
• Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter and flour 2 large baking sheets, shaking off excess flour.
• Mix confectioners sugar, cocoa, espresso powder, flour, and salt with an electric mixer at low speed. Add egg whites and vanilla and continue mixing until smooth.
• Drain raisins in a sieve, without pressing, then add raisins to dough with pecans. Stir until thoroughly mixed. (Dough will be thick and sticky.)
• Working quickly, drop 1/4 cup dough for each cookie onto a baking sheet, spacing cookies at least 3 inches apart, and gently pat down each mound to about 1/2 inch thick.
• Bake cookies, 1 sheet at a time, in middle of oven, rotating sheet halfway through baking, 15 to 17 minutes total, or until cookies appear cracked and centers are just set. Cool cookies on sheet 1 minute, then transfer carefully to a rack to cool completely.

RUM-RAISIN SHORTBREAD

Steps:

• Bring the raisins and rum to a boil in a small saucepan over moderate heat. Remove from the heat, cover, and let stand for several hours or overnight. When ready to bake the cookies drain the raisins in a strainer set over a small bowl; use any leftover rum for something else.
• Sift together the sifted flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside.
• In the large bowl of an electric mixer cream the butter until it is very soft. Add the sugar and beat well until completely smooth. On low speed gradually add the sifted dry ingredients, scraping the bowl with a rubber spatula and beating until smooth.
• Stir in the prepared raisins. Transfer the dough to a large piece of wax paper or aluminum foil, wrap, flatten slightly, and refrigerate for about 1 1/2 to 2 hours. Do not freeze the dough or it will become too firm to roll.
• When ready to bake the cookies adjust two racks to divide the oven into thirds and preheat to 375 degrees F.
• Place the dough on lightly floured pastry cloth and turn it over to flour all sides lightly. With a floured rolling pin roll the dough gently only until it is 1/2-inch thick, no thinner!
• Use a plain round cookie cutter about 2 1/2-inches in diameter. Dip the cutter in flour before cutting each cookie and cut them as close to each other as possible. When cutting a cookie press the cutter very firmly into the dough and rotate it slightly in order to cut through the raisins. Press the scraps together, chill them, and reroll. Place the cookies 1 to 2 inches apart on unbuttered cookie sheets.
• Bake the cookies for 20 minutes, or until cookies are golden brown. Reverse the sheets top to bottom and front to back to insure even browning. With a wide metal spatula transfer the cookies to racks to cool.
• Since these are fragile the author likes to wrap them individually in clear cellophane. However you store them-handle with care.