March ABC challenge: Ukrainian Snowcap Cookies

 

This month's challenge is Ukrainian desserts.  To be honest, I'm not sure this is Ukrainian -- or if it is, I think it's been Americanized.  Whatever, it was yummy!  I thought these were cookies with a meringue "frosting", but they're more like macaroons with a cookie base.  At least that's how mine turned out.  

The recipe called for a "small" cookie cutter.  I used a 1.25" fluted cutter.  That worked fine, but in hindsight I think a 1.75" cutter would be a better size (although it might alter the bake time.)  I think I also rolled them slightly less than 1/4".

To get 4½ dozen small cookies, here's what I used:

1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt (not necessary but recommended)
1/2 cup salted butter
3 egg yolks
1 tablespoon cream

Topping
3 egg whites
1¼ cups confectioners' sugar
1½ cups chopped walnuts
1 cup flaked coconut (see note)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Sift together the flour, baking powder and salt; set aside. In a medium bowl, cream the butter and beat in egg yolks one at a time. Stir in cream, and then mix in the dry ingredients to form a light dough. If necessary, cover dough and chill for 30 minutes for easier handling. On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough out to 1/4-inch thickness and cut into small circles. Place the circles about an inch apart onto baking sheets. 

In a clean glass or metal bowl, whip egg whites to soft peaks. Gradually add confectioners' sugar while continuing to whip to stiff peaks. Fold in walnuts and coconut. Mound a generous spoonful of the meringue mixture onto the top of each cookie. (Any excess meringue can be baked off without the cookie base.) Bake for 12 minutes, or until delicately browned. Remove to a rack to cool.

Note
For mildly sweet cookies, use unsweetened coconut.

These were really tasty! It was hard to stop eating at a reasonable number. The recipe was pretty easy too, except for one hiccough: I can't make meringue. The whites whip up fine at first, but once I start adding sugar they collapse and I end up with a sticky, runny "sauce". (I think the whites aren't stiff enough when I start adding sugar.) This time was no different, but I persevered. It turned out there was enough nuts and coconut to stick everything together pretty solidly, so it worked out.

The cookie base has perhaps a bit too much butter. (They were very rich!) The recipe called for greased baking sheets, which at first I ignored because I knew this sort of cookie didn't require it. But I changed my mind because I was afraid the meringue might contact the pan and stick. As it was, there was so much oil oozing from the cookies that they slid around independently like pucks on an air hockey table!

These were fairly mild flavored, which was fine, although I think a little vanilla in the cookie base would be nice. I had been concerned that the cookies would burn on the bottom because of the high butter content, but they were fine. In fact, they might have been a wee bit too pale, especially in the middles. I recommend pressing the cookies down gently on the sheet to ensure there's good surface contact, which should promote browning.

Conclusion:  I really liked these, perhaps a little too much. Easy enough to make that I'll probably do them again. They went on my "favorites" list!

Recipe:  Ukrainian Snow Cap Cookies via RedCipes

Coconut Custard Pie

 

“Claudia passes me a slice of pie. I’m too full. I politely refuse, she insists I taste. When I come to, having no idea that I am lying on the floor with a huge smile on my face, Claudia is beaming.”

~  Andrew Zimmern

I love coconut custard pie, but I've never made it because I've been afraid nothing will live up to my childhood memories of my mother's pie.  But Andrew Zimmern's comment gave me the encouragement I needed to try this recipe.  Not realizing a crust recipe came with the pie recipe, I used an old standard instead, swapping out the shortening for butter.  (They were pretty similar anyway.)  Then I blended it with the dough remnants from this Sweet Green Tomato Pie (which, of course, left me with remnants of this dough.)

As much as I love pie, I wasn't prepared to be left with a whole one, so I cut the recipe in half.  One reviewer said she always has too much filling, but once again my shell could have used more.  As with this half-sized pumpkin pie, I used an 8¼" x 1¼" Marie Callender's pie pan, but next time I'm going to use a pan that's every so slightly smaller and see if that will fill the shell without overflowing. 

Here's what I used:

Filling
par-baked pie crust (recipe below)
1/2 cup sugar
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
3 large eggs
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
pinch of salt
1 cup shredded sweetened coconut (3 ounces) 

In a medium bowl, whisk the sugar with the butter, then whisk in the eggs. Add the buttermilk, vanilla, and salt and whisk until incorporated. Stir in the coconut.  Pour the filling into the pie crust and bake for 40 to 45 minutes 45 to 50 for a full recipe), until the custard is set and golden brown on top.  

 

Pie crust
1¼ cups flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup unsalted butter
3 - 4 tablespoons ice water

Prepare dough (for a mealy crust) and chill for at least an hour.  Preheat the oven to 375°. Line the crust with parchment paper and fill with pie weights or dried beans. Cover the rim with strips of foil and bake in the lower third of the oven for about 20 minutes, until the crust is barely set. Remove the parchment and pie weights and bake for 5 minutes longer, until the crust is just set but not brown. Poke the bottom of the crust lightly to deflate it if it is puffed. Let cool; leave the foil strips on the rim. Lower the oven temperature to 350°.  Proceed with filling directions.

Well, if nothing else, this pie will fill your house with the heavenly scent of buttery sweetness. It was near impossible waiting for it to cool! But it was worth the wait. This really is a delicious pie. Not the same as my mom's, but in the absence of hers, not a bad substitute. And so easy to make! Just blend everything in a Pyrex and pour it in to the shell. (It's really the crust that's the fussy part -- I'm not sure you could get away with not pre-baking it and having as good of flavor.)

Conclusion: Definitely a keeper! Way too easy and too tasty not to have in your repertoire. If I were to make any improvement, I might reduce the sugar slightly. For most people, and if you're having just a standard slice (and not a quarter pie as I tend to do), it's fine as is. But if you prefer desserts a little less sweet, perhaps cut the sugar back 2 - 4 tablespoons, or use unsweetened coconut. Also, even with par-baking the crust and finishing with a browned bottom, the crust seemed a little doughy on the bottom. Not sure how to remedy that-- perhaps brushing it with egg white to seal it, as I did for Cafe Pasqual's pumpkin pie. (Or making a mealy crust instead of a flaky one, which I've added to the instructions. I should have done that anyway.) Lastly, don't use salted butter -- it makes the flavor too caramelly and intense.

Recipe:  Coconut Custard Pie via Food and Wine, courtesy of  T.W. Graham & Co., McClellanville, SC; pastry for single-crust pie via Better Homes and Gardens New Cook Book, ninth edition, 1985