Mexican Spice Cookies & Mexican Hot Chocolate

It was taco night and I claimed dessert. Of course I did. It's much more fun to make dessert than to chop tomatoes or grate cheese. Not that each ingredient doesn't play a crucial part, I'm simply focusing on the fun aspect. Okay, and the 'mmmm' factor. Yes, people miss the cheese when it's not available for their taco, but no one (usually) puts a pile of grated cheese on their plate and eats it with a fork. They will, however, give dessert such honored attention. Maybe that's another reason I like making desserts - it doesn't get lost in the shuffle of dinner.

Back to taco night. After quickly claiming dessert (trust me, margaritas did cross my mind first) I started to think about what to bring. I knew I didn't want to bring the usual Mexican dessert that people would expect (whatever that is?). It didn't take long to land on Mexican hot chocolate. I have a recipe from a former co-worker, Bob, that I just can't get enough of (the hot chocolate, not Bob - although he's a pretty great guy, too!) So that was part one. But that wasn't enough; a drink needs something to go with it. A little cookie would be perfect. The only Mexican cookie recipes I found all had nuts and that just wouldn't do, so the following recipe is an improvisation I made to Mexican wedding cookies - no nuts, add spices for flavor. They are delectable. So is the chocolate. Thanks, Bob!


Mexican Spice Cookies
1 c. salted butter, room temperature
1/2 c. powdered sugar, plus more for dusting
1 tsp. Mexican vanilla
1 3/4 c. flour, plus more for dusting hands
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. nutmeg

1.  Preheat oven to 350. In an electric mixer, blend butter and 1/2 cup powdered sugar until well blended. Add Mexican vanilla and mix well. (Regular vanilla will work here if you don't have Mexican vanilla. But I'd highly recommend trying Mexican vanilla sometime - it has great flavor!)

2. In a separate bowl, mix flour and spices. Add dry ingredients to the butter mixture and blend until just well incorporated. Dough will be very soft.

3. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper (don't worry about being exactly edge to edge, cookies don't spread a lot). Dust hands with flour and roll dough in tablespoon size balls, using hands to form the balls. Dust hands as often as necessary to prevent dough from sticking. The dough will spread a little, but cookies are small.

4. Bake for 18 min until bottoms are golden and tops are just barely starting to turn gold. Leave on the sheet until just cool enough to handle.

5. When cool enough to handle, dip cookies in a bowl of powdered sugar to coat, let cool on a wire rack. Sprinkle powdered sugar through a small sifter for a finishing coat for looks.

Makes about 3 dozen.

Mexican Hot Chocolate
6 oz. dark chocolate (pref. chili chocolate)
1 cup dry milk powder
1 1/2 T corn starch
2 T unsweetened cocoa powder
2 T ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. red chili powder
1/8 tsp. ground cloves
1/4 c. sugar

1. Break chocolate into pieces and process in a food processor or blender until it resembles coarse powder. Pour chocolate into a medium-size bowl.

2. Add remaining ingredients and mix. That is now your Mexican Hot Chocolate mix.

3. To make a single serving, combine 4 tablespoons of mix 1/2 cup water and 1/2 cup milk in a saucepan and heat until it just starts to bubble, stirring constantly. Whisk until blended smooth. Serve hot. Feel free to change the water/milk ratio to create your desired consistency. The fat content in your milk (and in the powdered milk) will also affect the consistency of the final product.

Notes: This recipe was originally designed to be one of those layered jar gifts. Because I use it for personal consumption, I throw all the ingredients together, mix, and store - ready for use. But feel free to mix various ingredients, layer into a pint jar, tie a bow around the top and share the love! Also, as is, the drink is not spicy hot, so don't be afraid to try it because of the chili powder!

Enjoy!

Tzaziki

This recipe comes by way of Aunt Efthalia, my sister's husband's aunt. I hear she's Greek, so it's apparently the real deal. My brother-in-law looks like he could be part Greek, so I have no reason to doubt the recipe's authenticity!

Tzaziki works great as a dip with pita chips or veggie sticks or as a healthy, flavorful spread on deli sandwiches. I like to keep some on hand for a quick, healthy afternoon snack with some carrots and celery; the fiber and protein combo makes it a satisfying and filling (and tasty!) snack to tide me over until dinner!

Like a recipe you can make ahead of time so you have less to do the day your company is coming? This recipe is more flavorful if you are able to make it the day before as it allows the flavors to meld!

Tzaziki
2 c. Greek yogurt
1 medium cucumber (or 1/2 English cucumber)
3 garlic cloves, crushed/minced
1 tsp. vinegar
2 T. olive oil

1. Grate the cucumber (I use a small grater) and squeeze out the water. A cheesecloth works great; paper towels tend to tear. Get as much water out as possible as it will make the dip runny otherwise.

2. Add all ingredients together and stir to combine.  If it appears there is extra moisture, you may add a heal of bread to soak up the extra moisture (also, liquid will rise to the top after sitting - drain this off when you open the container for a thicker dip.)

Enjoy!

Grilled Brie & Cranberry Sandwich

Like any good student, when it's time to write a paper or do some serious studying, I am able to come up with a handful other things I simply must do. My favorite distraction is, of course, cooking. After all, you do have to eat! A recipe that I've been wanting to try usually pops into my mind and I just have to have it; no focusing can be done on school work until I've had sustenance to get me through.

It's finals week. You can imagine my list of recipes I've just got to make!

Today's (first) distraction was inspired by a recipe for a brie grilled cheese sandwich with cranberry sauce I saw on Pinterest (another great distraction). And wouldn't you know it, I have some Cranberry Sauce in my refrigerator right now. Simple and delicious combo. But I warn you, it's also a little bit addictive...


Grilled Brie and Cranberry Sandwich
Brie (enough slices to cover the bread)
Cranberry Sauce (enough to spread a thin layer over cheese)
Bread (I used whole wheat pita pockets, sides separated
Butter

1. Spread a thin layer of butter on the outside of each slice of bread.

2. Place a layer of Brie on half of sandwhich. Top with a thin layer of cranberry sauce.

3. In a skilled over low heat, place the sandwhich, in a frying pan, buttered side down. Cook until golden brown, then flip.

4. When both sides are golden brown and cheese is melted though, it's done!

One whole pita pocket is likely enough for 2 people; they are kinda big - and messy.

Enjoy!

Orange Anise Sweet Bread

Okay, so it's really Pan de Muertos (Day of the Dead Bread), but I made it a little late, so now it's just a tasty sweet bread. And if you don't put the traditional skull and cross-bones on it, it's just an unassuming little loaf of bread, tantalizing you with its orange and sugar glaze... Perfect for a cold fall evening, especially if served with a mug of Mexican hot chocolate!

I got the original recipe from allrecipes.com but after reading through the reviews, made a few tweaks that I thought would improve the final product. Oh, it sure is tasty, especially if you dig in while it's still warm. And the great thing is, you can make two loafs, one for eating right away, and one for serving a little later, so no one will know you already had some!

Note: I found the beginning was slightly quick-moving, so it helped to have the ingredients pre-measured so I could just tip them in as needed.

Orange Anise Sweet Bread
1/4 c. butter
1/4 c. milk
1/4 c. warm water
------
3 c. all-purpose flour, 1 c. separated out
1-1/4 tsp. active dry yeast
1/2 tsp. kosher salt
2 tsp. anise seeds
1/4 c. white sugar
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2 eggs + 1 egg yolk, beaten
2 tsp. orange zest

Orange Glaze
1/4 cup white sugar
1/4 c. fresh orange juice
1 T. orange zest
2 T. white sugar - for sprinkling

1. Heat milk and butter in a sauce pan over low heat on the stove, until the butter melts. Add the warm milk. Remove from heat and add the warm water. Mixture should be around 110 degrees. If it's too hot, just let it sit a minute while you prep the next 5 ingredients.

2. In a stand mixer, combine 1 cup of flour, yeast, salt, anise and sugar. To these, add the milk and butter mixture. Add the eggs and orange zest, combining well. Slowly tip in the rest of the flour; dough will be soft.

3. At this point, I'm hoping you have a stand mixer with a kneading attachment (it looks like a hook). One of the ways I hoped to eliminate the second-day dryness people complained about was using the mixer to knead the bread rather than kneading it by hand (which I'll admit, I do find fun). Less flour should equal a more moist bread. Switch to the kneading attachment and let the machine do the kneading for 5 minutes, until the dough is smooth and elastic.

4. Place the dough in a lightly greased bowl, cover with plastic wrap (to prevent the top from drying) and set in a warm place to rise. (I placed mine in front of a space heater - worked great!) You want it to double in size; this should take 1-2 hours.

5. After it has doubled in size, punch the dough down. This means pulling the plastic wrap back and punching the center of the dough with your fist once. (I had to call my mom to find out how you 'punch' the dough.) Place the wrap back on and let the dough sit for five minutes while it relaxes - it should have immediately sunk down when you punched it.

6. Shape the dough into one giant round loaf, or two equally portioned loafs (I did two loafs myself), and place on a baking sheet, covering loosely with plastic wrap. For this rise, I lightly sprayed the 'dough' side of the plastic wrap to prevent it from sticking to the buns when I pulled it off - worked great! Let rise for about an hour in the warm spot, until almost double in size.

7. Bake as is on sheet at 325 degrees for 25-30 minutes. Don't open the oven during baking or pull pan out as large temperature changes will cause yeast dough to go flat! (I learned that the hard way a few weeks ago.) When golden brown, remove pan from oven and let cool slightly before brushing with glaze. Sprinkle with 2 T of sugar.

To make glaze: in a small saucepan, combine 1/4 c. sugar, orange juice and orange zest. Bring to a boil over medium heat and boil for 2 minutes. Brush over top of bread while still warm. Sprinkle glazed bread with sugar. Leftover glaze is great for dipping the bread into as well :)

Enjoy!