Busy in Brooklyn

Gingerbread Cookies
reprinted with permission from The Holiday Kosher Baker by Paula Shoyer (©2013 Sterling Publishing Co., Inc.)

Makes 30 three-inch cookies

Ingredients:

For the dough:
¾ cup (1½ sticks) margarine
¾ cup dark brown sugar, packed
1 large egg
½ cup unsulfured blackstrap molasses
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
¼ teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon cinnamon
4 teaspoons ground ginger
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
½ teaspoon ground cloves
¼ teaspoon ground allspice

For the glaze:
½ cup confectioners’ sugar
1 tablespoon boiling water

Directions:

1. Place the margarine and brown sugar in a large bowl. Beat with an electric mixer or by hand with a wooden spoon until creamy. Add the egg, molasses, and vanilla and beat until mixed in.

2. Add 2 cups of the flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, cloves, and allspice and mix with a spatula or wooden spoon; if you are using an electric mixer, mix carefully so the flour does not dust your face. Add the last cup of flour and mix until combined. The dough will be gooey.

3. Place two large pieces of plastic wrap on your counter. Place half of the dough on one piece of plastic and the remaining half on the other. For each half of the dough, fold the plastic over the dough and then flatten it into a pancake, about ½- to 1-inch thick. Freeze overnight.

4. Preheat oven to 350°F.

5. Remove one disc of dough from the freezer and let it sit for 5 minutes; you want to roll it out while it is just barely soft enough to roll. You will need to bake in batches. Take two pieces of parchment and sprinkle a little flour on one, place dough on top and then dust with a little more flour. Place the second piece of parchment on top of the dough and roll on top of the parchment to roll out the dough until it is a little thicker than ¼-inch thick; do not roll too thin. Every few rolls, peel back the top parchment and sprinkle a little more flour on the dough from about 10 inches high, so you do not get big white spots on the dough. Remove the top parchment and use it to line a cookie sheet. Line another cookie sheet with fresh parchment.

6. Use cookie cutters to cut out cookies and then use a metal flat-blade spatula to lift the cookies and place them on the prepared cookie sheets. Use a pastry brush on the cookies to dust off any excess flour. Reroll any scraps and cut more cookies, adding a little flour each time, taking care not to roll the scraps too thin. If the dough becomes too soft and gets stuck to the bottom parchment, put it in the freezer until it hardens slightly. Repeat with the second disc of dough.

7. Bake for 9-11 minutes, or until the cookies are set. When they are done, you should be able to press into them slightly. Slide the parchment off the cookie sheet onto a wire rack and let the cookies cool for 1 minute, and then use a spatula to lift the cookies onto the rack.

Tip: Bake 9 minutes for very chewy cookies, 10 minutes for medium chewy, and 11 minutes for crispy.

To make the glaze:

Put the confectioners’ sugar into a small bowl. Add the boiling water and whisk well. Let the mixture sit for 5 minutes, and then drizzle onto the cookies. Once the glaze has dried, store the cookies in an airtight container for up to six days or freeze for up to three months.

NOTE: The aleph-bet cookie cutters shown here are from thekoshercook.com.

Classic Cheesecake
reprinted with permission from The Holiday Kosher Baker by Paula Shoyer (©2013 Sterling Publishing Co., Inc.)

serves 12-16

Crust:
13 graham crackers
6 tablespoons butter, plus 1 tbsp for greasing pan
1 tablespoon sugar

Filling:
2 pounds cream cheese (not whipped), at room temperature
5 eggs
1 ¼ cups sugar
1 teaspoon lemon zest
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

Topping:
1 cup sour cream
1 tablespoons confectioner’s sugar
sliced or whole fruit and berries, optional, to decorate

Preheat oven to 325°F. Place 6 tablespoons of the butter in a microwave safe bowl and melt. You will need a 9 – 10 inch springform pan. Cover the top of the pan bottom with aluminum foil, and then wrap the foil under the bottom. Attach the pan sides to the bottom and lock and then unwrap the foil and wrap up around the sides of the pan. Take the other tablespoon of butter and rub around the bottom and sides of the pan. Place the pan into a large roasting pan with sides higher than 2 inches.

Process the graham crackers in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a metal blade until finely ground. Add the sugar and mix. Heat the remaining 6 tbsp butter in a microwave-safe bowl for 15-20 seconds, until the butter softens. Add the butter to the food processor bowl and mix it into the crumbs. Spoon clumps of the mixture into the prepared pan and press it into and cover the bottom of the pan. Set the pan aside.

Place the cream cheese into the bowl of a stand mixer or blender and whisk or mix until smooth. Scrape down the bowl. Add the eggs, one at a time, and scrape down the bowl each time to make sure all the cream cheese and eggs are being mixed in and the mixture looks creamy. Add the 1 ¼ cups sugar, lemon zest and vanilla and mix until everything is combined. Pour the batter on top of the graham crackers in the pan.

Place the roasting pan and cake on the middle rack of the oven and pour boiling water into the roasting pan, around the cheesecake pan, until the water reaches one-third to half way up the sides of the pan.

Bake for 1 hour and 10 minutes. Turn off the oven and prop the oven door open with a wooden spoon. Leave the cake in the oven for an hour. Remove the cake from the roasting pan and let cool on a rack until the cake is completely cooled. Place in the fridge 5 hours or overnight.

To serve, combine the sour cream, and confectioner’s sugar in a small bowl. Spoon the mixture on the top of the cake and spread to form a circle almost as large as the cake. Decorate as desired. Store in the fridge for up to five days or freeze (without the fruit on top) for up to three months.