Meyer lemon shortbread bars with candied kumquats

Meyer lemon shortbread bars with candied kumquats. Lucy Mercer/A Cook and Her Books

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This is an idea from David Tanis' marvelous cookbook, "Heart of the Artichoke and Other Culinary Journeys" (Artisan Books, 2010). Take a shortbread base, cover it with lemon curd, bake and top with candied kumquats. It's a sweet and citrus-y treat in the dead of winter. I used Meyer lemons because they're here (they're finally here!), but any lemon will do.

First, make the candied kumquats:

Candied kumquats

11 ounces kumquats
1 cup water
1 cup sugar

1. Wash kumquats. Slice each fruit in half and flick out seed.

2. In a medium saucepan over medium heat, add water and sugar and stir until dissolved. Add kumquats and cook until the fruit is soft, about 30 minutes, stirring frequently.

3. Let cool. Keep in airtight container in refrigerator.

Then the lemon curd:

  
Meyer lemon curd

2 1/4 cup sugar
5 tbsp cornstarch
2 tsp lemon zest
1 cup cold water
3/4 cup freshly squeezed Meyer lemon juice (from 2-3 lemons)
3 large eggs, lightly beaten
2 tbsp unsalted butter
 

1.  Whisk the sugar with the cornstarch and lemon zest in a saucepan, until well mixed, then gradually whisk in the cold water and the lemon juice. Cook over medium heat, whisking constantly, until thickened. Remove from heat.

2. Lightly beat the eggs in a separate bowl until smooth, then gradually whisk about 1/4 of the hot lemon mixture into the eggs. Whisk constantly to keep the mixture smooth. Add the warmed egg mixture slowly back to the saucepan with the remaining hot lemon mixture, still whisking constantly.

3. Cook mixture, whisking constantly, still over medium heat, until thick and glossy. Remove from heat and whisk in the unsalted butter. Cool, then cover and chill thoroughly. Mixture can be held in the fridge for up to a week.

Then the shortbread base:

  Shortbread

1 cup unsalted butter, slightly softened

 ½ cup powder sugar (10X)  

1 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour  

1/2 cup rice flour  

¼ teaspoon salt  

1 teaspoon vanilla


1. Preheat oven to 325. In a mixer, cream butter and sugar, then add flours gradually. Add salt and vanilla.

2.  Pat dough evenly into a 10-inch square pan, going slightly up the sides of the pan. Spread with a layer of lemon curd. Bake at 325 for 20 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from oven and let cool. Top with candied kumquats.

Text and images copyright 2012, Lucy Mercer.

 

Let the baking begin!

Miss Abbey's fruitcake cookies. Lucy Mercer/A Cook and Her Books

Each December, I pull down my Christmas baking books and decide on which cookies to turn out each year. There are the tried and true, like the 100 cookies and the shortbread with candied cherries. I will make a pan or two of tassies, because I'm a Southern gal, after all. And no Christmas is complete without Christmas cut-out cookies - the ones my girls plead to make and decorate. The fruitcake cookies from my Mom's kitchen are the very best - you can't eat just one!

Christmas cutout cookies. Lucy Mercer/A Cook and Her Books

Here's a round-up of my favorite cookies, with links to the recipes (just click on the name in the caption). In the comments below, tell me what your favorite holiday cookies are.

Ginger cookies with raspberry jam. Lucy Mercer/A Cook and Her Books.

100 Cookies. Lucy Mercer/A Cook and Her Books

Dried cherry biscotti. Lucy Mercer/A Cook and Her Books

Lemon Glazed Cookies. Lucy Mercer/A Cook and Her Books

Tassies with macadamias and rum. Lucy Mercer/A Cook and Her Books

Shortbread with candied cherries. Lucy Mercer/A Cook and Her Books

Shortbread Cookies with Candied Cherries

Shortbread with candied cherries. Lucy Mercer/A Cook and Her Books

Fruitcake is not a tradition in my home, although my mom makes stellar "fruitcake cookies." (That recipe is hers and I hope to share it soon). I buy the candied cherries, however, to top Mom’s sandy, crispy, buttery shortbread. Shortbread is the easiest, most elemental cookie – butter, confectioner’s sugar, flour, salt and vanilla. In the past year, I've begun subbing rice flour for part of the all-purpose. It gives the shortbread a shattery, slightly friable texture.

When I wake up in early December and say “it’s cookie baking time,” I always start with a tray of shortbread. Like Sook and Buddy's fruitcake from only best short story ever written ("A Chrismtas Memory" by Truman Capote), it’s a tradition, and it’s simple – I already have butter, sugar and flour out and the oven’s pre-heating.

Shortbread with candied cherries. Lucy Mercer/A Cook and Her Books

Scottish Shortbread

1 cup unsalted butter, slightly softened

½ cup powder sugar (10X)

1 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour


1/2 cup rice flour

¼ teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon vanilla

Candied cherries or pecan halves for garnish, if desired

1. Preheat oven to 325. In a mixer, cream butter and sugar, then add flours gradually. Add salt and vanilla.

2. Line a rimmed baking sheet with a Silpat or parchment paper. Using a rolling pin, gently roll out the dough to 1/4 –inch thick, in a rough rectangle. Using a sharp knife, cut into 1-inch square pieces. Press cherry or pecan halves onto each square.

3. Bake at 325 for 20 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from oven and let cool. The cuts will have melded back together, but quick work with a sharp knife will take care of that. Store in an airtight container at room temperature.

Green and red candied cherries. Lucy Mercer/A Cook and Her Books

Text and images copyright 2011, Lucy Mercer.

Chef Joe Truex offers milk and cookies, thoughts on Southern cuisine

Chef Joe Truex of Watershed in Decatury by Lucy Mercer/A Cook and Her Books







Joe Truex believes in terroir, as a chef, wine connoisseur and a native Southerner. That’s how Truex, the chef at Watershed in Decatur, Georgia, explains the enduring national appeal of Southern cuisine. The Louisiana native spoke recently at the American Culinary Federation’s Southeastern conference at the Hilton Atlanta. In describing what makes Southern cuisine both elusive and enduring, Truex told the audience of culinary students and professional chefs that geography and provenance make a difference.

“The South is steeped in tradition,” he said. “As a chef, it’s my responsibility to explore that, to find products and techniques that are new and interesting.”

Truex feels strongly about sourcing ingredients that taste great, and also to accommodate customers with special needs, such as those with celiac disease or gluten intolerance. He uses rice flour from Anson Mills to reduce the amount of gluten in sweets like the Charleston Scotch Cake that he served the audience. The buttery cookie, very much like a shortbread, was sandy and crisp, lighter than a typical shortbread. Truex served it with horchata made from Carolina Gold Rice and almonds; a chef’s take on milk and cookies.

Truex called on the professionals and students in the room to creatively explore Southern cuisine. “The South needs to define itself and further, and at the same time, it needs to expand.” By using heritage ingredients, or ingredients from another cuisine, Truex hopes to “take something old and familiar and make it new and exciting.”

Watershed Restaurant is a Decatur institution, and in Truex's words, "an icon of Southern dining." Founded by the Indigo Girls' Emily Saliers and chef Scott Peacock, its loyal following expects fried chicken on Tuesdays and Southern-cooked vegetables every day of the week. Chef Peacock, who wrote the book "The Gift of Southern Cooking" with his friend and collaborator, the legendary Edna Lewis, left the restaurant last year to pursue new projects. The personable Truex brings to the plate the same sourced-from-the-heart mentality as Peacock, and has plans to put his own stamp on the restaurant's menu, even if that means shaking things up a little bit, (and, even if that means taking the vegetable plate off the menu - loyal fans, don't say I didn't warn you.)

Shortbread by Lucy Mercer/A Cook and Her Books

Charleston Scotch Cake (Shortbread)
from Anson Mills
This is the cookie that Truex served at the conference. It is light and crispy and buttery.

1 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour

1/2 cup Anson Mills Carolina Gold Rice Flour

1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon superfine sugar

1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt

5 ounces (10 tablespoons) cold, unsalted European-style butter, cut into pieces


1. Adjust the oven racks to the lower and upper third positions and heat the oven to 325 degrees. Turn the flours, 1/2 cup sugar, and salt into a food processor bowl and pulse to combine.

2. Distribute the butter over the dry ingredients in the food processor and pulse until the mixture resembles coarse meal. Run the processor without pulsing until the dough is very fine, about 10 seconds more. Turn the dough into an ungreased 9-inch cake pan and press down firmly and evenly with a small offset spatula or the back of a spoon. Place the pan on the lower oven rack and bake for 20 minutes.

3. Remove the pan from the oven. Working quickly, score the shortbread into 16 wedges with a sharp, thin knife, then pierce a design into each wedge with a wooden skewer. (Don't cut or pierce the dough completely through.) Return the pan to the oven and bake the shortbread on the lower rack 10 minutes more. Transfer the pan to the upper oven rack and continue baking until the shortbread is toasty brown, 30 to 40 minutes longer. Remove from the oven and place the pan on a wire rack. Sprinkle the shortbread with 1 tablespoon sugar and cut gently through the score marks with a sharp knife while the shortbread is still in the pan. Let cool completely. Remove the wedges from the pan with a small offset spatula. The shortbread will keep well wrapped for up to 2 weeks at room temperature.

My Lighter, Crispier Scottish Shortbread

This is my standard shortbread recipe, with 1/2 cup rice flour subbing for some of the unbleached a-p flour. The fleur de sel doesn't fully melt in the shortbread, giving small dabs of salty goodness throughout - kind of a grown-up taste, so you may want to go with table salt if you're feeding kids.

16 tablespoons unsalted butter, slightly softened

½ cup powder sugar (10X)

1 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour

1/2 cup rice flour (I used Bob's Red Mill)

¼ teaspoon salt, or fleur de sel, if you have it

1 teaspoon vanilla extract


1. Preheat oven to 325. In a mixer, cream butter and sugar. Gradually add flour and rice flour. Add salt and vanilla.

2. Line a rimmed baking sheet with a Silpat or parchment paper. Using a rolling pin, gently roll out the dough to 1/4 –inch thick, into 12-by-6-inch rectangle. Using a sharp knife, cut into 1-by-3-inch rectangles and place on baking sheet. Use a fork to dock the dough in a decorate fashion.

3. Bake at 325 for 20 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from oven and let cool. Store in an airtight container at room temperature. Enjoy with a cup of tea, or horchata, and a good book, like "Gift of Southern Cooking."

Text and images copyright 2011, Lucy Mercer, with the exception of Anson Mills' shortbread recipe and photo of Joe Truex.

Favorite Southern Christmas cookies

“Oh Buddy, I think it’s fruitcake weather,” goes the opening line to one of the best short stories ever written (and certainly a sentimental Southern favorite), “A Christmas Memory” by Truman Capote. Capote based the story on his own memories with his elderly cousin Sook, his eccentric best friend, who baked fruitcakes each Christmas and sent them to acquaintances and people they admired, including Mr. and Mrs. Roosevelt at the White House.

These days, the idea of fruitcake is as stale a joke as some of the cakes that remain on the bottom shelf of the Frigidaire from last Christmas. The main appeal of fruitcake for me is the candied cherries, the red and green chewy bits of sugary former fruit. Although a candied cherry is as similar to a real cherry as plastic-encased American cheese is to aged Manchego, they still hold a visual and sentimental appeal.

Fruitcake is not a tradition in my home, although my mom makes stellar "fruitcake cookies." (That recipe is hers and I hope to share it soon). I buy the candied cherries, however, to top Mom’s sandy, crispy, buttery shortbread. Shortbread is the easiest, most elemental cookie – butter, confectioner’s sugar, flour, salt and vanilla. When I wake up in early December and say “it’s cookie baking time,” I always start with a tray of shortbread. Like Sook and Buddy's fruitcake, it’s a tradition, and it’s simple – I already have butter, sugar and flour out and the oven’s pre-heating.

Scottish Shortbread

1 cup unsalted butter, slightly softened

½ cup powder sugar (10X)

2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour

¼ teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon vanilla

Candied cherries or pecan halves for garnish, if desired

1. Preheat oven to 325. In a mixer, cream butter and sugar, then add flour gradually. Add salt and vanilla.

2. Line a rimmed baking sheet with a Silpat or parchment paper. Using a rolling pin, gently roll out the dough to 1/4 –inch thick, in a rough rectangle. Using a sharp knife, cut into 1-inch square pieces. Press cherry or pecan halves onto each square.

3. Bake at 325 for 20 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from oven and let cool. The cuts will have melded back together, but quick work with a sharp knife will take care of that. Store in an airtight container at room temperature.

There are traditions to keep and traditions to make your own, like pecan tassies. This is a Southern sweet - tassie is a Scots variation of “cup” and a pecan tassie is a small cup of pecan pie filling, a tasty two-biter, rich and sweet. I make tassies each December with Georgia pecans, and they occupy a coveted corner on my cookie plates, but this year, I decided to part with tradition and use macadamias. You know the part of “Christmas Memory” where the fruitcakes are done and Sook gives Buddy and Queenie (the dog) some of Mr. Haha Jones’ whiskey and they dance in the kitchen and feel the Christmas spirit? Well, if I’ve learned anything this year, it’s to take the recipe as a suggestion, drink the whiskey and dance in the kitchen.

Macadamia-Rum Tassies


If you can’t get past the idea of messing with traditional Pecan Tassies, just sub pecans for the macadamias and vanilla for the rum (and tell your friends the recipe came from your cousin Sook.)

Pastry

1 3-oz package cream cheese

½ cup unsalted butter

1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour

Filling

1 egg

¾ cup packed dark brown sugar

1 tablespoon unsalted butter, melted

1 teaspoon rum

2/3 cup chopped macadamia nuts

1. Combine cream cheese, butter and flour in mixing bowl. Form into a ball, wrap in plastic wrap and chill in refrigerator for one hour. After one hour, remove from refrigerator and shape into 22 balls. As much as I want this recipe to make 24, I’ve never managed to get the dough to stretch that far. Press each ball into a cup of a mini-muffin pan.

2. Preheat oven to 325. For filling, beat egg with brown sugar, add melted butter, rum and macadamias. Pour into shells, just a spoonful in each because they puff when they bake. Bake at 325 for 25 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool. Store in a covered container at room temperature.

Text & images copyright 2010, Lucy Mercer.
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