Have you noticed lately, when passing a coffee shop or tea house, that there is a new trend happening? The cupcake is making a come back, and nowadays they really are coming in all shapes and sizes. Not to mention cookies in their many forms, and these aren’t just everyday cookies. The cookies of today are big, tasty, decadent things which come in a multitude of flavours ranging from chocolate chip through pecan and ginger.
By definition the cookie is a sweet biscuit but in an American kind of way. The cookie tends to be softer and a little more on the doughy side, but this is not a rule by any means. In fact there was once a time when cookie dough would be left chilled, uncooked in a roll in many an icebox waiting cooking. These were called ice-box cookies and this was a trend which was likely to have travelled to America from Germany. Also this was a great way of cooking cookies fresh whenever they were needed.
To make butter cookies try the following recipe
Half a cup butter at room temperature
Half a cup sugar
1 egg
0.25 teaspoon salt
0.5 teaspoon vanilla extract
Zest of one orange
1 cup plain flour sifted
A handful of chopped nuts such as hazelnuts
Heat oven to 180 °C
Cream butter and sugar together then add the salt, vanilla, zest, egg and nuts and mix well.
Add the flour and mix into a dough
Shape dough into a large cylinder and chill, when cold cut into rounds.
Place onto a buttered baking tray and cook until light golden about 12 minutes.
Allow cool and enjoy.
An alternative option to baking your own cookies is to sample some of the rather delicious ones made by the Foods of Athenry and available in shops right around Galway and they make some pretty fine cupcakes as well.
