Mascarpone-Cardamom and Rosemary-Pine Nut Cookies

America's Test Chicken actually consists of two chickens, each with her own take on this cooking thing. Chicken One also publishes related blog, A Travel for Taste, where she shares travel stories and recipes collected whenever she ventures away from home. Not to be outdone, Chicken Two has an also-related blog, Poop from the Coop. There you can find reviews and her personal opinion on gadgets and equipment as she re-experiences the kitchen after many years away. So give these a read to round out the information found here.

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The complete recipes appear at the end of this post.

From Chicken One: Mascarpone-Cardamom Cookies Cookie day was a total SCAFU for me. It seems I went through Plan A, Plan B and Plan C before I was finally able to successfully make a darn thing. That darn thing was this delicious recipe for mascarpone-cardamom cookies. And it was worth the aggravation. As it was, I had to make the dough on bake day but wait until the next day to roll it out and bake the cookies. This was because I'd thought I could grind whole cardamom seeds fine enough to use in this recipe. I was wrong. First, I tried a mortar and pestle. Then I tried a food processor. Then I tried sifting the results through a strainer. Lastly, I gave up, went to the supermarket on the way home, and bought ground cardamom. Then I got a good night's rest, rolled out the cookie spirals, and was handsomely rewarded with wonderfully crisp, tasty cookies. See the recipe at the bottom of this post for details. The cardamom isn't part of the dough. It's mixed with sugar and used to roll the dough in.   At Chicken Two's suggestion, I also tried substituting ginger in place of the cardamom, which also worked. I have to say I like the cardamom better. If I had it to do over, I would use more ginger because the flavor was not strong enough. They tasted like plain sugar cookies. Good, but not ginger. Rolling out the cookies was kinda fun. You sprinkle the counter with the sugar mixture and roll out the dough on top the sugar. Roll up half the dough. Then you turn it over and roll up the other half in the other direction. When you cut the cookies off the roll, they are little double spirals: I plan to put them in gift baskets along with my French sablés, macarons and a few pieces of chocolate. I'll give them as holiday gifts to the postal carrier, trash collector and others who efficiently render their services throughout the year.

From Chicken Two: Rosemary-Pine Nut Cookies When I first heard of these cookies, they didn't appeal to me much. In my mind, if it's a cookie, I want to taste sweetness in some form…sugar, chocolate, gummies….doesn't matter…I want sweet! I admit I'm still learning about savory things and the use of different herbs and spices. What a pleasant surprise! My daughter-in-law, Jessica, made them and gave me the recipe, which I will now share with you (recipe is below the photos). Assemble ingredients Toast the pine nuts (it really brings out the flavor). Butter and granulated sugar into the bowl of an electric mixer and, using a paddle, mix on high speed until pale and fluffy. Mix in oil, flour mixture and add cream, making sure each is mixed in thoroughly. Last, add egg and the rest of the flour. Shape into 3/4-inch balls and space two inches apart on sheets lined with parchment paper. Bake, rotating halfway through.   Yummy!

1. Mascarpone Cardamom Cookie Recipe

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup mascarpone
• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 cup butter, cut into small cubes
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon ground cardamom

Cooking Directions

1. Add the mascarpone to a large bowl and blend until creamy. Pour in the flour and mix until crumbly. With the mixer still running, add the butter and continue mixing until the dough pulls away from the sides of bowl into a soft dough.
2. Form the dough into a ball. Split into four equal pieces. Shape each piece into a rectangle. Wrap in parchment and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes to make the dough easier to roll.
3. Once the cookie dough has chilled, preheat the oven to 375 F.
4. In a small bowl, combine the granulated sugar and the cardamom and stir to mix.
5. On a dry, smooth surface, sprinkle 3 tablespoons of the sugar mixture. Place on rectangle of dough on the surface, turning in the sugar to coat. Roll into a 12×5-inch rectangle. Turn the dough so that both sides are covered in sugar and cardamom.
6. Tightly roll one of the short sides towards the center of the dough. Once you get to the center, turn the entire piece of dough over and roll the opposite end towards the center. Using a piece of floss or other string, cut 1⁄2" slices off the dough to create curled-S shapes.
7. Carefully dredge each S-shaped cookie through some of the remaining cardamom sugar to coat. Place 2" apart on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Sprinkle with a bit of extra sugar. Repeat with the remaining dough.
8. Bake for 15 minutes or until cookies are a light golden brown. Remove from the oven and allow them to cool slightly before transferring to a wire rack. Cool completely and store in an airtight container until ready to serve.

2. Rosemary Pine-Nut Cookie Recipe

Ingredients

• 3 1/2 teaspoons coarsely chopped fresh rosemary
• 1/4 cup pine nuts, toasted, plus more for topping cookies
• 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1/4 teaspoon coarse salt
• 10 tablespoons (1 1/4 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
• 1 cup + 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 3 tablespoons heavy cream
• 1 large egg
• fine sanding sugar for sprinkling

Cooking Directions

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Finely chop rosemary in a food processor. Add pine nuts; pulse until coarsely ground. Transfer to a large bowl. Whisk in 2 cups flour, the baking soda, ginger, and salt; set aside.
2. Put butter and granulated sugar into the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Mix on high speed until pale and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Mix in oil. Reduce speed to low. Mix in flour mixture. Add cream; mix until well combined, about 2 minutes. Mix in egg, then remaining 1/4 cup flour.
3. Shape dough into 3/4-inch balls, and space 2 inches apart on baking sheets lined with parchment paper. Flatten slightly with fingers, and top each with a pine nut. Sprinkle with sanding sugar.
4. Bake cookies, rotating sheets halfway through, until edges are golden, about 13 minutes. Let cool 10 minutes on sheets on wire racks. Transfer cookies to racks to cool completely.