christmas

Spaghetti With Green Olives, Pancetta And Crispy Lemon Breadcrumbs /  by Judy Kim

by Judy Kim

Spaghetti with Green Olives, Pancetta and Crispy Lemon Breadcrumbs

Yield: 4 servings

INGREDIENTS

1/4 cup panko breadcrumbs

Extra-virgin olive oil

Kosher salt

1 lemon, zested and juiced

1 cup diced pancetta

2 garlic cloves, grated

1 teaspoon red pepper flakes

1 cup Manzanilla green olives, pitted and chopped

¼ cup finely chopped parsley, additional for garnish

Freshly ground black pepper

2 tablespoons unsalted butter, chilled

10 ounces spaghetti

Flaky sea salt for garnish

DIRECTIONS

  1. In a small sauce pan add panko and enough olive oil to just barely cover. Turn heat to medium-low and stir occasionally until golden brown. This step can take some time and creates very crispy breadcrumbs, don't increase heat or it will likely burn. Drain and transfer to a small bowl. Mix in ½ teaspoon salt and half of the lemon zest; set aside. When olive oil has cooled, set aside for future use or discard.

  2. In a large pot, bring water to a boil and season with salt. Cook pasta to al dente directions and reserve ¼ cup pasta water.

  3. Meanwhile, in large sauté pan over medium-low heat, render pancetta until most of the fat melts and meat is crispy, about 8 to 10 minutes. Add garlic and red pepper flakes; sauté until softened, about 3 to 4 minutes. Increase heat to medium-high, mix in lemon juice, remaining lemon zest, olives, parsley and season with black pepper; sauté until warmed through, about 2 to 3 minutes. Mix in cold butter until melted, it will create a silky sauce.

  4. Drain pasta directly into sauté pan and add just enough pasta water to create a sauce, toss together until warmed through.

  5. Garnish with crispy lemon breadcrumbs, flaky sea salt and parsley. Serve immediately.

Confetti Christmas Shortbread Cookies /  by Judy Kim

by Judy Kim

Confetti Christmas Shortbread Cookies

Yield: Approximately 50 (2 1/2-inch) cookies

Happy Holidays! This is a tender sweet and salty shortbread cookie that has incredible texture. The toasted walnut and almond topping combined with sparkling sugar adds just the right amount of crunch and glitz. Wishing you a wonderful Holiday Season. But don't limit these cookies to the month of December, try different shapes to enjoy them any time of the year.

INGREDIENTS

1/2 pound (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature

1/4 cup packed light brown sugar

1/4 cup granulated sugar

1 teaspoon flaky sea salt, plus extra for sprinkling, such as Jacobsen Salt Co.

1 egg, room temperature

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, extra for rolling

1/4 cup roughly chopped walnuts

1/4 cup roughly chopped almonds

Assorted sparkling sugar, I used pink and white

Your favorite holiday cookie cutter

DIRECTIONS

  1. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment add butter and beat on high until pale in color, about 30 seconds. Add brown sugar, granulated sugar and sea salt. Start on low and increase speed to high; beat until light and fluffy. Add egg and mix until incorporated. Scrape down sides with a rubber spatula and don't miss the very bottom.

  2. With the mixer on low, add flour in 3 increments; scraping in between in addition. Careful not to overmix or you'll get a tough dough. Cookie mixture will be a bit crumbly. Divide cookie dough in half and wrap each half with plastic wrap and shape into a flat disk. I even like to roll the dough in the plastic to make it even, which will make it easier to roll later. Let dough rest in fridge for 5 to 10 minutes.

  3. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 350°F. Prepare 2 rimmed sheet pans with parchment paper.

  4. In a dry large sized skillet on medium-low heat, toast walnuts and almonds until fragrant. Shake pan to prevent nuts from burning. Transfer to a plate until cool to the touch. Place nuts in a plastic bag and gently crush nuts with a rolling pin into small pieces. To protect your counter, place the bag on a folded kitchen towel. Transfer to a bowl.

  5. Lightly flour your counter and rolling pin. Roll cookie dough into 1/4-inch thickness. Using a bench scraper loosen and lift the dough; lightly flour the counter again. This will make it easier to remove the cookies after cutting them out.

  6. While dipping your cookie cutter in flour, cut out cookies placing them as close together as possible. Dip the cutters in flour as needed. Gather leftover scraps and re-roll to cut out remaining dough. Transfer cookies to sheet pans; top with crushed nuts and sprinkle your color choice of sparkling sugar. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes. Immediately sprinkle with flaky sea salt and transfer to a cooling rack.

NOTES:

You can make this dough in advance and keep in the fridge. Bring dough to room temperature before baking for best results.

Since the dough is crumbly and soft, I suggest to use a simple cookie cutter shape without too many tiny details as the dough may get stuck. I used a Christmas Tree shape, but you can use a cutter for any year round holiday. Originally I tried an oversized detailed tree shape and the size made it difficult to transfer without falling apart. 

When decorating the cookies, I used white sparkling sugar at the top and mixed the pink and white sugar over the nuts to help create texture and sparkle. 

Sea Salt Chocolate Chocolate Chip Cookie /  by Judy Kim

by Judy Kim

Sea Salt Chocolate Chocolate Chip Cookie

Yield: Approximately 25 large (4-inch) cookies or 38 medium (3-inch) cookies

The ultimate chocolate chocolate chip cookie. Thin, crispy yet chewy and completely addicting. 

These cookies were made for Natalie Mortimer and Holly Erickson, The Modern Proper's  #calmandbrightcookienight.  Check out their Coconut Thumbprint Cookie and the full roster of other amazing bakers that participated.

INGREDIENTS

Coconut oil spray

1/2 pound (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature

1 1/2 cups packed light brown sugar

1/4 cup granulated sugar

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1 large egg, at room temperature

1 cup all-purpose flour

½ cup unsweetened cocoa powder, such as Guittard

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon flaky sea salt, such as Jacobsen

1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips or wafers, such as Guittard Akoma semi-sweet chocolate chips or Guittard Bittersweet Chocolate Wafers

DIRECTIONS

  1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Prepare 2, preferably 3 half sheet pans with a light coating of coconut oil, or your favorite cooking spray. Do not use parchment paper or the cookies won't spread properly.

  2. Add butter, brown sugar and granulated sugar to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Start on low, increase speed to high and beat until light in color and creamy, about 3 to 4 minutes. Scrape down sides with a rubber spatula as needed. Add vanilla and egg, one at a time until combined. Place bowl in fridge to chill for 30 minutes or wrap well in plastic and chill overnight.

  3. In a medium bowl whisk together flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and sea salt. Add flour mixture in 4 increments and mix on low; scrape the bowl as needed. After 3rd addition of flour, fold remaining flour mixture by hand until just combined. Do not over mix. Fold chocolate chips in by hand.

  4. For 4-inch cookies, use a small cookie scoop or spoon about 2 tablespoons of dough on to a greased half sheet pan 2-inches apart. Do not use parchment as the cookies will not spread evenly. Place maximum of 6 cookies per half sheet pan, but I prefer 5 to avoid the cookies from crowding each other. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes. For 3-inch cookies, use a 1 tablespoon scoop and place 8 cookies evenly spaced on a half sheet pan. Timing is important for this cookie. Check oven temperature with a thermometer, test a single cookie to determine the right timing and see if your oven requires you to rotate the pan. Center about the size of a quarter should be slightly undercooked and remaining outer edges should spread into rings. This ensures a chewy yet crunchy cookie.

  5. Remove sheet pan from oven and cool for a few minutes before transferring cookies to a cooling rack. Optional to sprinkle cookies with sea salt right after removing from the oven. Repeat steps for additional batches, but cool sheet pans before adding cookie dough.

NOTES:

Cookie dough can be made in advance. Keep in the fridge well wrapped or freeze individual cookie dough balls and place in a plastic bag after frozen; remove as much air from the bag as possible. Bring dough to room temperature before baking for best results. Baking frozen dough will still taste great, but the overall baked cookie appearance may vary slightly.

If you don't have a silicone spatula, try spraying your spatula with oil to make it easier to handle the cookies.

*recipe updated Dec 2018

 

Flaky Cheddar and Scallion Biscuits /  by Judy Kim

by Judy Kim

Flaky Cheddar and Scallion Biscuits

Yield: 8 to 10,  2 1/2-inch biscuits or 24, 1 1/2-inch biscuits

INGREDIENTS

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, extra for rolling

1 tablespoon baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon flaky sea salt, such as Jacobsen

5 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes and chilled

1 cup grated white cheddar

1/2 cup thinly sliced scallions

1 1/3 cups buttermilk

1 egg, beaten with 1 teaspoon water

DIRECTIONS

  1. Preheat oven 425°F. Prepare rimmed half sheet or baking dish with parchment paper, set aside.

  2. In a large mixing bowl whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda and sea salt. Add butter to flour mixture and break it up using your hands or a pastry cutter. I prefer using my hands to create flattened shards of butter. Add cheese and scallions; toss together using your hands until they are all well coated in flour. Make a well in the flour mixture and slowly pour in buttermilk in 2 to 3 batches, mix together using a wooden spoon completely before adding more buttermilk. Switch to your hands when it begins to form a ball of dough; do not overmix. The dough will be slightly sticky. If it's too dry, add a few drops of buttermilk.

  3. Lightly flour a rolling pin and turn dough onto lightly floured surface. Don't add too much flour at once or the dough will dry out, but add flour if the dough becomes too sticky. Roll until dough is about 1-inch thick and fold into thirds. Gently roll dough into rectangular shape. Repeat the folding process 2 to 3 times to create more layers, ending with 1 ½-inch thick dough.

  4. Use biscuit cutter of your choice. Dip biscuit cutter in flour and cut dough with straight down motion; avoid twisting. Cut biscuits as close together as possible to avoid wasting dough. Instead of rolling out remaining scraps together to form one or two last biscuits, try cutting the remaining dough with a smaller biscuit cutter and bake off remaining bits in their odd shapes. They are the perfect snack and will remain tender if they are not re-rolled.

  5. Place biscuits on sheet pan or baking dish. The dough should be touching, it helps ensure even rising. If you have smaller biscuits and scraps, place them on a separate small sheet pan or a mini cast iron pan; the smaller shapes will take less baking time. Lightly brush tops with egg wash, avoid brushing the edges. Optional: skip the egg wash, the cheese will still give it a golden crust.

  6. Bake until golden brown, about 15 minutes. Baking time will vary depending on size of the biscuit. Scraps will take less time, about 10 minutes. Rotate if necessary for even browning, otherwise avoid opening oven during baking.

  7. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Scalloped Potatoes with Chives /  by Judy Kim

DELISH

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Peppermint Bark Skillet Cookie /  by Judy Kim

by Judy Kim

Peppermint Bark Skillet Cookie

Yield: 8 servings

INGREDIENTS

1/2 cup unsalted butter (1 stick), room temperature

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup packed dark brown sugar

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1 large egg, room temperature

1 cup all-purpose flour, sifted

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup chopped Williams Sonoma Peppermint Bark

1/2 cup chopped walnuts

DIRECTIONS

  1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter 12" cast iron pan with 1 tablespoon butter.

  2. Cream balance of butter and sugars with a hand held mixer or stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment 1-2 minutes. Add in vanilla and egg till mixed. In medium bowl, sift together flour and baking soda, then add salt.

  3. With mixer on low, gradually add flour mixture to wet ingredients and blend till just incorporated. Scrape down side of bowl with a rubber spatula. Do not overmix. Fold in peppermint bark and walnuts, mix by hand.

  4. Transfer cookie dough to prepared cast iron pan. Smooth top with spatula.

  5. Bake until golden brown and center is still slightly undone, 18-20 minutes. If you prefer a crisper cookie, add 2-3 minutes. Transfer to cooling rack.

Serving suggestion: If you want an extra layer of chocolate, drizzle chocolate on top of cookie. Heat 1/4 cup of bittersweet chocolate chips in a double boiler. Place cast iron pan on parchment or paper towels for easy clean up. Using a fork, quickly wave over cookie back and forth to create a fine drizzle. •• Cookie dough can be prepared in advance, wrapped in plastic and kept in the fridge for 2-3 days.