Old World Butter Nut Drops Recipes

BUTTER-NUT DROPS

Steps:

• Cream butter and sugar well.
• Add egg yolk, vanilla, orange and lemon zest and salt; beat well.
• Stir in lemon juice and flour.
• Cover and chill 3 or more hours.
• Preheat oven to 350F.
• Roll dough into 40 small balls of about 1/2 rounded teaspoon each.
• Dip balls into the slightly beaten egg white, then roll in the chopped nuts.
• Place 1 inch apart on a greased cookie sheet, and press 1/2 candied cherry on top of each.
• Bake 25 minutes.

SHERRY BUTTER NUT DROPS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
• Cream the butter and sugar together with an electric mixer until fluffy. In a separate bowl, combine the flour and salt. Mix the flour into the butter mixture, alternating with the sherry, making sure to finish with the flour. Stir in the ground pecans.
• Drop by the teaspoonful onto a cookie sheet and roll each portion between your palms to make smooth, even balls. Press each one into the cookie sheet and brush with beaten egg white. Using a fork, knife or another tool, press a design into the top of each cookie, or press a pecan half, right side up, into each ball or dough. Bake in the preheated oven for 25 minutes. Remove from the oven, let cool a few minutes and remove to a wire rack to cool completely.
• Cool and let cookies sit overnight to ripen. Serve or store in an airtight container for up to 1 week.

OLD-FASHIONED BUTTER CRUNCH

Steps:

• To make the butter crunch mixture, melt the butter in a saucepan. Remove from heat and stir in sugar, corn syrup, and water. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the mixture reaches 300 degrees on a candy thermometer. Remove from heat, stir in almonds, and pour out into prepared pan, spreading the mixture with the back of a spoon to fill the pan. Before the butter crunch hardens, but when it is firm enough to handle, turn it out onto a large parchment-covered cutting board and peel away the foil. Allow the butter crunch to cool completely. To finish the butter crunch, wipe the top surface of the candy with a damp paper towel to remove excess butter and allow to dry a few minutes. Have another cutting board or the back of a jelly-roll pan ready to turn the candy over onto. Use a small offset metal icing spatula to spread half the tempered chocolate quickly over the butter crunch. Scatter half the chopped almonds over the chocolate. Cover this finished surface with a piece of parchment paper or foil and place another cutting board or the back of a large jelly-roll pan. Remove top board and paper and quickly spread with remaining tempered chocolate and scatter on remaining almonds (it isn't necessary to wipe the second side because it wasn't against a buttered surface). Refrigerate for 20 minutes to set chocolate. Break the butter crunch into 2-inch pieces. Store candy in a tin or plastic container with a tight-fitting cover and keep at a cool room temperature for up to a week.

SHERRIED BUTTER-NUT DROPS

Steps:

• Cream together butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add salt and continue mixing. Add flour alternately with sherry wine, beating well after each addition. Sit in nuts. Drop from teaspoon onto greased baking sheet. Bake in preheated 350 degree oven for 20 to 25 minutes. Allow to cool on rack.

SHERRY BUTTER NUT DROPS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350ºF.
• Cream the butter and sugar together with an electric mixer until fluffy.
• In a separate bowl, combine the flour and salt.
• Mix the flour into the butter mixture, alternating with the sherry, making sure to finish with the flour.
• Stir in the ground pecans.
• Drop by the teaspoonful onto a cookie sheet, then roll each portion between your palms to make smooth, even balls.
• Press each one onto the cookie sheet and brush with beaten egg white.
• Using a fork, knife or another tool, press a design into the top of each cookie, or press a pecan half, right side up, into each ball or dough.
• Bake in the preheated oven for 25 minutes.
• Remove from the oven, let cool a few minutes.
• Remove to wire rack to cool completely.
• Cool and let cookies sit overnight to ripen.
• Serve, or store in an airtight container for up to 1 week.

OLD WORLD BUTTER HORNS

Steps:

• Add salt to flour and sift if needed.
• Use a food processor to quickly cut chilled butter and cottage cheese into flour as with making any pastry dough (process until dough forms ball). Two dinner knives will also work well, if a food processor is not available.
• Divide dough into 4 equal parts, form into balls, wrap in plastic wrap and chill overnight or for at least 4 hours.
• Remove chilled dough balls from the refrigerator one at a time and sprinkle with flour.
• Roll each ball into a 8-10 inch circle on a well floured surface.
• Cut circles into 8 wedges (pie slice style).
• Place 1 teaspoons of cooled filling near edge of wide end of wedge, roll up towards small end and form each cookie into a crescent (horn).
• Place folded side down on ungreased cookie sheet.
• Bake in preheated oven (400F) for 15-20 minutes.
• Place on rack to cool and sprinkle immediately with powdered sugar.
• FILLING.
• Place all filling ingredients into heavy saucepan (cast iron preferred).
• While stirring continuously, cook until it forms a thick solid sticky mass.
• Set aside to cool thoroughly before use.

GREAT GRANDMA'S NUT BUTTER BALLS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C).
• In a large bowl, cream together the butter, 1 cup confectioners' sugar and vanilla until smooth. Stir in the cake flour, then fold in the pecans. Roll dough into 1 inch balls and place them 1 inch apart onto ungreased cookie sheets.
• Bake for 15 to 19 minutes in the preheated oven, until lightly browned. Cool cookies completely before rolling in additional confectioners' sugar. If you are storing the cookies in a tin, add remaining sugar to the tin.

OLD WORLD BUTTER-NUT DROPS

Steps:

• Cream butter and sugar well. Add egg yolk and vanilla. Beat well.
• Sift the cake flour and add to the butter mixture along with the juice and grated zest. Mix thoroughly and place in covered bowl. Chill several hours or overnight.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• Using 1/2 teaspoon of the dough per ball, roll the dough into tiny balls. Dip the balls into slightly beaten egg white, then roll in the ground nuts.
• Place on a greased cooky sheet one inch apart. Press 1/2 of a candied cherry on top of each.
• Bake in preheated oven for 25 minutes or until very lightly browned.