The older I get, the more I agree with the old adage: "Tis better to give than to receive." But for the past 3 years, I've participated in an event that brings the absolute best of both worlds straight to my mailbox: The Great Food Blogger Cookie Swap!
This event -- the brain {tummy?} child of food bloggers Julie Deily and Lindsay Landis -- celebrated its 5th season of giving this year and I couldn't wait to get in on the cookie clamor.
Not only does FBCS contribute to spreading holiday cheer in the form of a national cookie exchange between food bloggers, but it also serves up a healthy donation to Cookies for Kids Cancer , helping to fund new therapies used to fight pediatric cancer raising over $35,000 in the last for years! I mean, total win-win.
I shipped out 3 dozen homemade cookies this year to three bloggers whose names are randomly selected from the bunch, then waited {im}patiently for my 3 dozen cookies to arrive from those who were matched with my name. Time sure does move slowly when you're waiting for cookie mail...
This year, I received some amazing Chocolate Chunk & Peanut Butter Pretzel Stuffed Cookies from Stark Raving Delicious, fantastic Hot Cocoa and Marshmallow Cookies from Annie One Can Cook, and finally, superb Chocolate Ganache Filled Gingerbread Cups The Suburban Soapbox.
Back in my kitchen, I was a busy little elf baking and packaging cookies to send out to my matches.
The key to choosing a cookie recipe for FBCS is to create something that will survive a trip through the mail. Nothing too gooey or crumbly. You don't want your recipients to end up with a box of cookie dust, after all. After much consideration, I came up with these Hazelnut Bow Tie Cookies.
Made up of a cream cheese-based dough, they're very much like traditional Hungarian Kiffles. I actually used the same dough recipe that I make Rugelach out of, and it worked out perfectly. The dough forms a fantastic base for the addition of a filling {I chose Chocolate Hazelnut Spread, but you can fill them with anything really} -- sturdy enough to hold up during travel, yet tender to bite into.
A sprinkle of chopped hazelnuts emphasized that roasted hazelnut flavor in the filling, and a dusting of powdered sugar over the top gives these pretty bites just the right amount of adornment.
Confession: I made these THREE separate times and forgot to photograph them. Every. Single. Time. On the final batch that I did photograph, I forgot to dust them with powdered sugar, hence my "naked" cookies in these photos. Sigh... welcome to the hectic holidays!
Anyway, enough yammering. If you're planning on baking {or mailing!} Christmas cookies this year, give these bow ties a try. They make a present anyone would love to unwrap and devour!
A great big thank you to my matches, to Julie & Lindsay, and to our wonderful sponsors who sent us goodies -- Dixie Crystals, OXO, and Land O'Lakes! Here's to another year of goodies and giving!
Hazelnut Bow Tie Cookies
1 {8 oz.} block of cream cheese
2 sticks butter {8 oz. total}
3 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 1/4 to 2 1/2 cups flour*
Pinch of salt
1/2 - 3/4 cup Chocolate Hazelnut Spread
1/2 cup roasted hazelnuts, chopped
Powdered Sugar for dusting
1. In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat together cream cheese and butter until smooth. Add sugar and vanilla and mix to incorporate fully.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour and salt. Slowly add the flour to the butter mixture until it forms a dough that begins to pull away from the sides of the bowl. {*I usually add just 2 cups of flour and then sprinkle in an extra 1/4 to 1/2 cup while the mixer goes until the dough is no longer super sticky.} Try not to over mix.
2. Turn out dough onto a lightly floured surface and, with floured hands, gently knead it together to form a ball -- divide it in half. Place each half on a sheet of plastic wrap. Pat dough into 2 square-ish shapes and wrap well. Refrigerate until the dough is firm, several hours or overnight.**
3. When the dough is firm, place one square onto a lightly floured surface and roll out to a rectangle or square, about 1/4 inch thick. Using a pizza cutter or sharp knife, cut as many 2 inch-wide strips across as you are able to, then repeat vertically to end up with 2x2 inch squares of dough. If you have scraps left over, re-roll the scraps and repeat the process.
4. Place the dough squares on a baking pan -- the corners should be facing each other so that you have a tray full of "diamond" shapes. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
5. Fill a zip top plastic bag or small piping bag with chocolate hazelnut spread, then snip the tip. Pipe a straight line down the center of each diamond from tip to tip -- I estimate I used about a teaspoon of spread in each cookie. Sprinkle each cookie with chopped hazelnuts, pressing lightly to adhere to the spread.
6. Wet your fingertips with a little bit of water and lightly swab one side of the cookie dough to moisten -- this will make it slightly sticky so that it adheres to the other side and stays closed. Carefully fold the outer edges of the diamond in toward the center {like its hugging itself}, making sure to fold the sticky side over the non-sticky side so that it helps to seal the cookie. Repeat until all cookies are sealed into bow ties.
5. Bake for about 12 minutes until they're just slightly golden at the edges. They'll be a little soft when you take them out of the oven, but they'll firm up slightly. Remove from baking pan and place on a cooling rack.
When the cookies are completely cooled, dust with powdered sugar to decorate.
The yield depends on the size you cut your squares. Mine were about 2x2 inch squares and I got about 3 dozen cookies out of one batch.
**This dough is best after a rest and some chilling, but I will admit that I've used it without much of a rest and they turn out just fine. Chilling the dough does make it easier to roll out.
