Monday, January 01, 2007

Mondays with Maida - Uppakra


Page 186 in the old book / page 216 in the new book

If only these had come up a week earlier in the rotation! These pretty little Swedish cookies are rich and crumbly and would be perfect included in an assortment of Christmas cookies. With their buttery flavor and the crystal sugar sprinkled on top, they reminded me of those ubiquitous "Danish Butter Cookies" you see this time of year under various labels and almost always in blue tins. With a little potato flour in the mix, these cookies were much lighter in texture than their tinned cousins and were also graced with a sprinkle of finely chopped almonds.

The dough chills for just a brief period and didn't stick to the pastry cloth, so rolling was relatively easy. You have to keep the rolling pin floured though, because the dough has a tendancy to stick to the rolling pin, particularly at the edges. The cookies are formed by cutting circles and then cutting about a third of the circle off (I found a bench scraper worked well for this) and placing it atop the remaining two-thirds of the cookie. The cookie is then brushed with a little beaten egg and sprinkled with almonds and crystal sugar.

Here's the panel...

Suzanne: "The cookie is a mix between a shortbread cookie and a sugar cookie. The cookie is a little dry and crumbly. It isn’t as sweet as a sugar cookie, but it did have large sugar granules on top. I also like anything with nuts, so I enjoyed the ground up almonds on top. I do have to admit that the cookie does play tricks with your mind. It looks like a half of a round cookie, so my mind is telling me I need another half. Rating - 3.5"

Denny: "Nicely done, but a tad understated. Maybe I'm just cookied out from Christmas. I'd give them a 3 with the obligatory minus one for no chocolate. Rating - 3.0"

Laura: "These cookies had a delicate flavor, but they were a bit dry for my liking... I was out of the office for several days and Cathy saved some for me in a zippy bag. Because I ate them several days later, that may have contributed to the dryness. Still, they were nice cookies. Rating - 3.5"

Overall rating by the panel - 3.3

Next Week - Ginger Shortbread Cookies

Nutrition Facts

6 comments:

Rowena said...

Just looking at those makes me smack my lips!

I actually feel a bit "lost" now that it's all over. Could it be post-holiday blues? Or am I simply just a sucker for punishment?!?

Hauoli Makahiki Hou!!

Cathy said...

Hi Rowena! It does all go by so fast, doesn't it? You'll just have to plan on making yourself some Valentine's Day gingerbread men!! :) Happy New Year to you too!

Anonymous said...

I have sworn off cookies~ until this recipe. I will have to give them a try!

Cathy said...

Hi Sandi - oh no, never, ever swear off cookies!! :)

Anonymous said...

Hi Cathy, Happy New Year! I was wondering where you had gone and then I realized this morning that I must have accidentally deleted you from my bloglines list. Don't know how that happened. But you're back on it now! Anyway, those cookies look pretty scrumptious. And, oh. I tried a Maida recipe over the holidays - I think it was her "best chocolate chip cookies ever" recipe - yeah, they are THAT good...best, mari

Cathy said...

Hi Mari! Glad you're back (or that I am :))! I haven't tried that recipe, but will have to look for it - a cookie with that name from Maida and with your recommendation sounds like one I shouldn't miss!