Cooking
Page 94 in the old book / page 137 in the new book
OK, these are the cookies Niki made a month or so ago and my pastry mixture did turn out crumbly, so I stand by my theory that it has something to do with the temperature of the butter. After all, it is nearly summer down under and verging on winter in these parts. As I typically do, I started with cold butter. This is due as much to my failure to plan ahead as any method on my part. My mother taught me to take the butter out ahead to soften, but my mixer has a paddle which I've found is capable of creaming cold butter with little difficulty (but with a considerable racket). Of course, I haven't checked with Niki to see if she did soften her butter, so I could be completely wrong.
Most everyone liked these better than last week's cookies. The cookie base was much more interesting - sweet with a higher proportion of dark brown sugar, and nutty with the addition of oatmeal. The filling was equally good and even more lemony than the cream cheese filling of last week. As Niki mentioned and Maida suggests, these are best served cold.
Suzanne: "The best part of the cookie was the crunchy topping. The cookie was too lemony for my taste. To use Phil's word from last week, it was too "puckerable." Rating - 2.5"
Denny: "Very good, crunchy and lemony, but could have used a touch of cream cheese. Rating - 4.0"
Laura: "Tasty and crunchy... with just the right amount of lemon! Rating - 4.0"
Phil: "Comparable to last week's Florida cream-cheese squares with a slightly thicker crust and tarter filling. As with key lime pie, the tart/sweet contrast really works, although key limes seem to offer the ultimate in pucker. Rating - 4.3"
Overall rating by the panel - 3.7
In two weeks - Palm Beach Pineapple Squares
Nutrition Facts
- Mondays With Maida - Icebox Nut Cookies
Page 144 in the old book / page 178 in the new book I thought these were very good. They are lemony, very crunchy, and loaded with nuts. I used pecans, but walnuts could also be used. The recipe gave several options for shaping the dough for slicing....
- Mondays With Maida - Oatmeal Icebox Cookies
Page 140 in the old book / page 175 in the new book I would classify these cookies as old-fashioned cookie jar cookies. They are sweet and crunchy with a generous helping of walnuts. Though they have an open, crunchy texture, they are quite sturdy and...
- Mondays With Maida - Texas Cowboy Bars
Page 112 in the old book / page 150 in the new book Now we're talking! These cookies have an obscene amount of butter in them, but there were just wonderful... thick, gooey, moist, ... delicious! A crumbly oatmeal mixture, which is used for both...
- Mondays With Maida - Hungarian Walnut Bars
Page 102 in the old book / page 142 in the new book This was entirely different approach to bar cookies for me... both the top and bottom layers are rolled pastry flavored with lemon zest and leavened with baking powder. In between is a sweetened walnut...
- Mondays With Maida - The Farmer's Wife's Pecan Cookies
Page 47 in the old book / page 81 in the new book What a difference a cup or so of flour makes! These cookies have the same ingredients as last week's cookies, but with more flour, less sugar and less butter. While last week's Praline Wafers...
Cooking
Mondays with Maida - Florida Lemon Squares
Page 94 in the old book / page 137 in the new book
OK, these are the cookies Niki made a month or so ago and my pastry mixture did turn out crumbly, so I stand by my theory that it has something to do with the temperature of the butter. After all, it is nearly summer down under and verging on winter in these parts. As I typically do, I started with cold butter. This is due as much to my failure to plan ahead as any method on my part. My mother taught me to take the butter out ahead to soften, but my mixer has a paddle which I've found is capable of creaming cold butter with little difficulty (but with a considerable racket). Of course, I haven't checked with Niki to see if she did soften her butter, so I could be completely wrong.
Most everyone liked these better than last week's cookies. The cookie base was much more interesting - sweet with a higher proportion of dark brown sugar, and nutty with the addition of oatmeal. The filling was equally good and even more lemony than the cream cheese filling of last week. As Niki mentioned and Maida suggests, these are best served cold.
Suzanne: "The best part of the cookie was the crunchy topping. The cookie was too lemony for my taste. To use Phil's word from last week, it was too "puckerable." Rating - 2.5"
Denny: "Very good, crunchy and lemony, but could have used a touch of cream cheese. Rating - 4.0"
Laura: "Tasty and crunchy... with just the right amount of lemon! Rating - 4.0"
Phil: "Comparable to last week's Florida cream-cheese squares with a slightly thicker crust and tarter filling. As with key lime pie, the tart/sweet contrast really works, although key limes seem to offer the ultimate in pucker. Rating - 4.3"
Overall rating by the panel - 3.7
In two weeks - Palm Beach Pineapple Squares
Nutrition Facts
- Mondays With Maida - Icebox Nut Cookies
Page 144 in the old book / page 178 in the new book I thought these were very good. They are lemony, very crunchy, and loaded with nuts. I used pecans, but walnuts could also be used. The recipe gave several options for shaping the dough for slicing....
- Mondays With Maida - Oatmeal Icebox Cookies
Page 140 in the old book / page 175 in the new book I would classify these cookies as old-fashioned cookie jar cookies. They are sweet and crunchy with a generous helping of walnuts. Though they have an open, crunchy texture, they are quite sturdy and...
- Mondays With Maida - Texas Cowboy Bars
Page 112 in the old book / page 150 in the new book Now we're talking! These cookies have an obscene amount of butter in them, but there were just wonderful... thick, gooey, moist, ... delicious! A crumbly oatmeal mixture, which is used for both...
- Mondays With Maida - Hungarian Walnut Bars
Page 102 in the old book / page 142 in the new book This was entirely different approach to bar cookies for me... both the top and bottom layers are rolled pastry flavored with lemon zest and leavened with baking powder. In between is a sweetened walnut...
- Mondays With Maida - The Farmer's Wife's Pecan Cookies
Page 47 in the old book / page 81 in the new book What a difference a cup or so of flour makes! These cookies have the same ingredients as last week's cookies, but with more flour, less sugar and less butter. While last week's Praline Wafers...