Proud Italian Cook

Rosette Christmas Cookies

December 6, 2015 by Marie 18 Comments

Do you remember rosette cookies? When I was a kid we would have these cookies every year around the holidays and then when I got married I had my very own set of rosette irons they were snowflakes, but somehow they vanished through the years and they’ve been nowhere to be found.

You really don’t see the irons in stores anymore but you can find them online, I ordered my set from Amazon, I thought the tree and snowflake would be perfect for the holidays but there are also so many other shapes available that you could use throughout the year, flowers, butterflies, bunnies, fish, birds, hearts, I could go on and on.

They’re very simple to make, you whip up a batter, sort of like a crepe batter which you can flavor with different extracts, I used vanilla with some added vanilla bean but you can also use, almond, anise, rum, lemon and even orange, whatever you like.

HELPFUL HINTS

Make your batter ahead of time and refrigerate it for a couple of hours or overnight, your cookies will be nice and crispy… Keep your oil at 365 for best results, so you’ll need a candy thermometer… Heat your iron in the oil for about 8 minutes before you start to dip them… They can be stored in an airtight container for months, they can also be frozen and if needed you can re-crisp them in a 300 degree oven.

On the back of the package you’ll find some helpful tips plus a recipe for the batter, but I didn’t care for the recipe they had so I slightly adapted my friend Paula’s recipe which turned out perfectly, not one cookie broke!

Placed on a pretty platter these rosettes would be the perfect addition to your holiday dessert table, don’t you think?

Follow along and see what else I’m cooking up during the week on Instagram, here’s the link.

4.8 from 4 reviews

Rosette Christmas Cookies

Author: Marie

Ingredients

1¼ cup of flour
1 cup whole milk
2 eggs
¼ teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla or other extract or vanilla bean
oil for frying

Instructions

For the batter beat all ingredients together until incorporated then refrigerate for at least 2 hours or overnight to ensure a crispy cookie.
Place 3 inches of oil into a saucepan.
Heat to 365 and keep temperature there.
Attach iron to the handle and submerge in hot oil for at least 8 minutes.
Lift iron out and blot on paper towel.
Dip hot iron into the batter ¾ up the sides, let it coat the iron but do not submerge, it will not release.
Keep it under the oil for a few seconds as you see it turning golden, then gently shake it a little and it will usually release, if it doesn't just take a fork and gently nudge it, then flip it over until golden brown on both sides.
Lift it out gently and let it drain on paper towels.
Sprinkle with powdered sugar.
This recipe makes quite a bit, around 40

18 Comments Filed Under: Cookies, Desserts, Winter Tagged: Christmas cookies, fried dough, holiday cookies, rosettes

Curly Long Spaghetti with Broccolini, Chilli and Homemade Breadcrumbs

December 1, 2015 by Marie 7 Comments

I haven’t posted a pasta dish in a while so I thought it was about time. This is so delicious and easy to make, you can get it on your table in no time at all. It’s a little twist on regular broccoli and pasta because it uses broccolini.

Broccolini is nothing like regular broccoli or broccoli rabe it has a much sweeter taste and when cooked it has a nice tender bite to it, and in this dish I love how the long thin stalks get intertwined with the pasta.

You can use what ever long pasta you like but I happened to have a bag of fusilli lunghi in my pantry better known as long fusilli or curly spaghetti. I also used a nice fresh red chilli instead of flakes, it’s really not that hot if you remove the seeds. The other important ingredient is homemade breadcrumbs, larger in size, filled with flavor that will give the finished dish a nice tasty crunch on top.

You boil your pasta first then at the last five minutes you throw your broccolini in with the pasta, scoop everything out and into a pan with olive oil, lemon zest, garlic and the chilli and cheese, but don’t throw out all of the pasta water, that’s key to creating your creamy sauce!

This would be a great dish to whip up quickly and serve to guests that might be dropping by during the holiday.

And I must admit it looks a little festive with the red and green going on, don’t you think?

Follow Proud Italian Cook on Instagram and you’ll see what I’m cooking up daily!

5.0 from 3 reviews

Curly Long Spaghetti with Broccolini, Chilli and Homemade Breadcrumbs

A quick and delicious pasta dish that showcases broccolini Adapted from Taste.com AU

Author: Marie

Ingredients

1 lb. long spaghetti, preferably curly
5 garlic cloves, chopped and 1 more for breadcrumbs
2 bunches of broccolini, trimmed
1 or 2 long red chilli, deseeded and sliced thin
zest of 2 lemons
1 cup of grated romano or parmesan cheese
olive oil
HOMEMADE BREADCRUMBS
breadcubes from a day old baguette, olive oil, 1 garlic clove smashed and fresh parsley

Instructions

For breadcrumbs, take a small baguette or half of a large one, cut into ¼ inch chunks, drizzle and toss it into olive olive add a small smashed garlic clove and a handful of chopped parsley and place on a rimmed baking sheet in a 375 degree oven until golden and crunchy.
Cook pasta in a large pot with salted water, cook according to directions on package adding the broccolini for the final 1 minute of cooking time.
Meanwhile drizzle olive oil all over the bottom of a large saute pan over medium heat. Add the 5 chopped garlic cloves, chilli and zest, stirring until fragrant, just a few minutes.
I like to use a spider and scoop out the pasta and broccolini leaving the pasta water, but if you don't have a spider and want to drain the pasta and broccolini be sure to save at least two cups of the water.
Toss it into the saute pan mixing everything together, add the grated cheese, maybe some more olive oil, black pepper and little by little add some of the pasta water until it loosens up and creates a little sauce.
You might not use all the water, just add it little by little.
Place on a platter or individual bowls and top with your homemade breadcrumbs and adding more cheese if you wish.

7 Comments Filed Under: Pasta, Vegetables Tagged: broccolini, curly spaghetti, fusilli, fusilli lunghi, long spaghetti, meatless meal

Anginetti, Italian Lemon Knot Cookies

November 18, 2015 by Marie 52 Comments

Iced Italian cookies, lemon drops, lemon knots, wedding knots or anginetti, whatever your family calls them you’ll be sure to find these traditional Italian cookies at many special occasions and holiday cookie trays. Like most Italian cookies the cookie itself is not too sweet, it has a nice moist crumb and by frosting it you’ll get a more intense lemon flavor, which is a good thing!

They’re like little puffs, they look the same color from the raw to baked state except they’ll get puffier and golden brown on the bottom.

Honestly, there are so many variations to this cookie, just do a Google search and you’ll see what I mean, but the general idea remains the same. In the past I’ve made them with Crisco shortening, that’s what they used back in the day, then I tried some Organic non-hydrogenated vegetable shortening, which quite honestly turned out a little drier, I think if I upped the amount they would have been better, but this time I used all butter.

NOTE: Keep that dough cold! I actually made the dough the night before we baked them, then refrigerated it. Then as I started to form the cookies the dough started to warm up so I even threw it in the freezer for 10 minutes or so to get it cold again, it makes it much easier to form the cookies when it’s really cold, because of the butter and the warmth of your hands the colder the better.

You’ll also see other flavorings used such as almond and anise as well as different colored frosting’s and sprinkles, but my family always sticks with lemon.

Instead of colored sprinkles which I normally use, this time I wanted to do a white on white look by using tiny white non-parells and white sparkling sugar and a little lemon zest for garnish, but you can just stir some zest into your frosting instead.

Speaking of frosting, this time I tried a limoncello frosting which was very good but the traditional with extract, lemon juice and zest is just as good!

It’s time to get baking!

5.0 from 3 reviews

Anginetti, Italian Lemon Knot Cookies

A traditional Italian cookie served at holidays and special occasions.

Author: Marie

Ingredients

5 cups of all purpose, unbleached flour
5 teaspoons of baking powder
1 cup sugar
3 eggs
one and one half cups of melted butter that has cooled down, not hot. Or you can use a vegetable shortening of your choice
1 cup of milk
a pinch of salt
zest of 1 lemon for cookie and zest of 1 lemon for icing
1 1oz. bottle of lemon extract
sprinkles of your choice

Instructions

If you prefer, dough can be made the day before which makes it nice and chilled to work with, or you can start scooping them right after you make the dough but probably you will have to chill it for a while as you're making the cookies and the dough stays out. I sometimes stick it in the freezer for a few minutes to get it to firm up again.
In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar together until fluffy, add eggs one at a time, then the extract and zest.
In a smaller bowl whisk the flour, salt and baking powder, then slowly add to the creamed mixture alternately with the milk, you might not have to use all the milk.
When everything is incorporated, let the dough rest for 5 minutes or wrap and chill overnight.
Heat oven to 350 degrees. and place cookies on a parchment lined baking sheet.
To form the knots I like to use a cookie scoop so all will be similar in size, then take the scoop of dough and roll it into a log about 5 or 6 inches, it's the length of a bench scraper, that's how I measure mine.
Then take one side of the log and spiral it into a circle, you can tuck the other end down or up, it doesn't matter.
Bake for 12 to 15 minutes according to your oven, mine took exactly 12 minutes, you want the underneath to be golden brown, not dark brown.
Cool on racks.
LIMONCELLO ICING
One and one half cups of powdered sugar
Five tablespoons of limoncello Liqueur
zest of 1 lemon
TRADITIONAL LEMON ICING
One and one half cups of powdered sugar
zest of 1 lemon
One half teaspoon of lemon extract
and lemon juice to get the right consistency.
I always taste my icing to make sure it has the right amount of lemon, you can always add more, and I also like to brush my icing on instead of dipping., personal preference.
After frosting immediately put your sprinkles on and then let the whole cookie dry for about an hour.
You can keep them in tins with wax paper in between, or you can freeze them in an airtight container right after they bake and cool down, then frost them a day or two ahead before you'll be eating them.