Lifestyle_NovDec2023_Final _Online

2. Melt the chocolate and butter in a metal bowl
placed over a pot of barely simmering water,
stirring constantly until melted. Remove the
bowl from the heat and allow to cool while
preparing the other ingredients.
3. Combine the dry ingredients. Whisk the sugar,
cocoa powder, cornstarch and salt together to
remove any lumps in the cocoa. Using a spatula,
stir this mixture into the melted chocolate followed
by the milk. Add the egg yolks to the chocolate and
stir again. The mixture will be a thick paste.
In a recipe that includes flour, I typically sift the
dry ingredients before adding them to the batter.
Here the coarse granulated sugar easily breaks
down any lumps in the cocoa powder when you
whisk everything together. That means no sifting is
needed—and there’s one less tool to use and wash.
4. Whip the egg whites and fold into the batter.
Using a stand mixer fitted with the whip
attachment, whip the egg whites on high speed
until they hold a medium peak when the beaters
are lifted. Fold the whites into the chocolate in
two additions, folding well after each one. The
Walnut Snowball Cookies
Sometimes called Russian tea cakes or Mexican
wedding cookies, these tender and buttery little
shortbread cookies are made with finely ground
nuts. The cookies are shaped into balls and rolled
in icing sugar, ensuring a snowstorm of powdered
sugar on the front of your shirt with every bite.
MAKES: about 4 dozen cookies
PREP TIME: 20 minutes, plus chilling
COOK TIME: 20 minutes
SIMPLE
BITES OF WISDOM:
Glossary of ingredients—Nuts & seeds (p. 11)
egg whites will deflate a little as you fold them
in. Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and
gently spread to level the batter.
5. Bake the cake for 20 to 25 minutes, until the cake is
set just an inch (2.5 cm) around the edge but is still
very jiggly in the centre. Cool the cake completely
in its pan on a rack; the centre of the cake will
immediately begin to collapse. Chill the cake for at
least 2 hours. Remove from the pan to serve.
This cake collapsing in the centre as it cools is
expected. After 20 minutes of baking, the centre
of the cake will appear very fluid still, but don’t
be tempted to bake it any more than 5 minutes
longer. If you do, the outside of the cake will be
dry and crumbly once cooled. The large quantity
of chocolate in the recipe needs time to cool and
set, which is why the cake will seem underdone
when you pull it from the oven.
The cake will keep, well wrapped, in the fridge
for up to 4 days. Pull the cake from the fridge 30
minutes before you plan to serve it.
INGREDIENTS
12/3 cups (170 g) untoasted walnut halves
12/3 cups (250 g) all-purpose flour, divided
1 cup (225 g) unsalted butter, at room
temperature
½ cup (65 g) icing sugar, plus extra for rolling
the cookies
2 tsp vanilla extract
½ tsp fine salt
1. Pulse the walnuts with 2/3 cup (100 g) flour in a
food processor or mini chopper until the nuts
are finely ground. Set aside.
Pulsing the nuts with flour will prevent the nuts
from turning into a
paste. You can certainly
use the same measure
of pecan halves or
unsalted shelled
pistachios if you wish.
2. Beat the butter and
sugar. Using beaters or
a stand mixer fitted with
the paddle attachment,
beat the butter for a
minute to fluff it up. Add
the icing sugar, beating
well on medium-high
speed until fluffy again,
scraping the bowl often.
Beat in the vanilla.
3. Add the dry ingredients.
Add the nut mixture,
remaining 1 cup (150
g) flour and the salt
and mix on low speed
until the dough comes
together.
4. Portion the cookies.
Turn the dough out onto
a work surface, knead
into a ball and flatten it
slightly. Cut the dough
into four pieces and
then divide each quarter
Anna Olson is the internationally known
host of Food Network Canada’s “Bake
with Anna Olson” and the author of ten
bestselling cookbooks.
into 12 little pieces. Shape each piece of dough
into a ball between your palms and place onto
a plate or tray. Chill the cookies for at least an
hour before baking.
Chilling the cookie dough will help to ensure the
cookies remain round when baked.
5. Preheat the oven to 325°F (160°C) and line
two large baking trays with parchment paper.
Arrange the chilled cookies on the trays, leaving
an inch (2.5 cm) between them.
6. Bake the cookies for about 20 minutes, until
there is just a hint of browning on the bottom of
the cookies. Let the cookies cool on the baking
trays on a wire rack.
7. Roll in icing sugar. Place some icing sugar in
a wide shallow bowl. After the cookies are
completely cooled, roll them in the sugar to coat
them generously.
Make sure the cookies have cooled completely
before rolling them in the icing sugar, otherwise
the sugar will melt and the surface of the cookies
will be sticky. Do not roll the baked cookies in the
sugar if you plan to freeze them. (Roll them in
sugar after you’ve thawed them.)
The cookies will keep in an airtight container at
room temperature for up to 2 weeks.
Recipes excerpted from Anna Olson’s Baking
Wisdom: The Complete Guide: Everything
You Need to Know to Make You a Better
Baker (with 150+ Recipes) by Anna Olson.
Copyright © 2023 Olson Food Concepts Inc.
Photography by Janis Nicolay. Published by
Appetite by Random House®, a division of
Penguin Random House Canada Limited.
Reproduced by arrangement with the
Publisher. All rights reserved.
NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2023 November/December LIFESTYLE FEATURING 2023 EATDRINK LifestyLe 61