Gingerbread Men

Gingerbread Man from http://bakingbites.com/2007/11/gingerbread-men/

Gingerbread Men
2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp salt
1 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1/4 tsp (freshly) ground nutmeg
pinch ground black pepper (optional)
1/2 cup butter, room temperature
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup molasses
1/4 cup coffee or water
1 tsp vanilla extract

In a medium bowl, sift together flour, salt, baking soda, nutmeg, ginger, cloves, cinnamon and black pepper, if using.
In a large bowl, cream together butter and sugar until smooth. Beat in molasses, water and vanilla, then gradually add in flour mixture until a smooth dough forms. Divide dough into two or three pieces (dough will be quite soft), cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours, until firm.

Preheat oven to 375F.
For softer cookies:
On a lightly floured surface, roll out dough to just under 1/4 inch thickness. Use cookie cutters of your choice (2-3″ gingerbread men are ideal!) to cut dough. Place cookies on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Bake for 9-12 minutes, depending on size of cookie cutter. Cookies should be slightly firm to the touch at the edges. Let cookies cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

For crispier cookies:
On a lightly floured surface, roll out dough to just under 1/8 inch thickness. Use cookie cutters of your choice (2-3″ gingerbread men are ideal!) to cut dough. Place cookies on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Bake for 9-12 minutes, depending on size of cookie cutter. Cookies should be slightly firm to the touch at the edges and will be lightly browned. Let cookies cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

When cool, decorate with lemon icing (recipe below).

Makes about 30-40 gingerbread men, depending on size of cookie cutters used and whether you make them thick or thin.

Lemon Icing
2 cups confectioners’ sugar
2-3 tbsp tsp lemon juice

In a small bowl combine powdered sugar and lemon juice. Substitute milk or cream plus 1 tsp lemon extract, if no fresh lemon juice is available. Add enough lemon juice to make the icing thick and pourable, but not runny (start with 1-2 tbsp and add more if necessary. You can always add a bit of extra sugar to thicken it if you add too much) and stir until very smooth. Scrape into piping bag with a fine tip or a ziploc bag with a corner cut off and pipe onto cooled cookies. Allow to set for at least 30 minutes, until firm, before storing cookies in an airtight container.

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Mushroom Soup

Mushroom Soup (serves 6)

4 tbsp unsalted butter
2 shallots, finely diced
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
2 tbsp celery, finely diced
600 g White mushroom, Swiss brown mushroom & oyster mushroom
1/4 fine salt
1/4 tsp ground pepper
1/4 cup dry white wine
500ml chicken stock
1 bouquet garni (1 stalk parlet, 1 bayleaf, 4 sprig thyme, tied together)
a pinch of freshly grated nutmeg
1/4 cup thickened cream


Method
1) Heat butter, sweat shallots, garlic and celery till soft but not browned for 5 mins
2) Add mushrooms, season with salt and pepper and cover the pan.
3) Add wine and let it bubble for a min before adding the stock. Bring the boil and skim surface. Add bouquet of garin and simmer gently for 20 min, covered.
4) remove bouquet garni and puree the soup in a blender. Dun puree too smooth.
5) Return to pot, add nutmeg and cream and cook till it just comes to the boil, then taste. Add more salt and pepper if needed. Remove from heat and serve.

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