One Wilton cookie recipe with eight options shines in McCormick icing

Sugar cookies sparkle in glossy icing from a McCormick recipe

Way back in 2007, Wilton issued a holiday press release with the following recipe. Created to streamline cookie-making for busy bakers, it uses one sweet dough for sugar cookies to cut-out, slice and refrigerate, or squeeze into shapes through a cookie press. 

After testing the recipe to use in a newspaper article that year, it became a personal keeper.  Over the years, I've  learned it can go beyond even what was suggested then, and some of those ideas follow.

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Citrus angel food cake recipe from "The Seasonal Baker"

Citrus Angel Food Cake from "The Seasonal Baker" by John Barricelli /Photo by Ben FinkWhipping up an angel food cake at home can be an intimidating prospect for anyone who is inexperienced with kitchen techniques such as beating egg whites to stiff peaks.

Then there’s the challenge of keeping the the delicate meringue nice and airy by gently “folding” in the flour and other ingredients. But once the egg whites are beaten until they’ve more than quadrupled in volume and can hold a soft, peaked shape at the tip of an upturned mixer blade, the cake isn’t really so complicated. Many angel food recipes also require the whites of a dozen eggs, and that creates a quandary for those who couldn’t bear to pour 12 yolks down the drain, risk the cholesterol consequences of egg-yolk omeletes, or find some other way to save them.

In his new cookbook “The Seasonal Baker” (Clarkson Potter, $35), John Barricelli has some answers. He refreshes the tried and true cake with orange, lemon and lime —  topping the cake with a sweet, zesty glaze. Stand-up whites are easier to accomplish with the addition of cream of tartar and beating over a double boiler, which allows gentle heat to help dissolve sugar so the whites whip higher for the lightest cake.

As for the leftover yolks, all 12 can be blended into Barricelli’s hazelnut semifreddo, a creamy frozen treat that doesn’t require an ice cream maker.  Nutella can be substituted for the high-end hazelnut praline paste Barricelli prefers, but many home bakers also give high marks to the sweetened Brooklyn-made nut butter that sells for about $14 for 11 ounces at kingarthurflour. com. The paste would be a worthwhile splurge for the holidays, as it can be used for hazelnut cakes, cookies, cheesecake, fillings and frostings.

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Nanaimo truffle bar: An easy and decadent no-bake chocolate-hazelnut recipe

Nanaimo Truffle Bars from "Simply Sensational Cookies by Nancy Baggett. Photo by Diane Cu and Todd Porter Chocolate recipes abound, but a ganache-based bar studded with hazelnuts can be a more elegant way to  get in on the present chocolate-hazelnut frenzy that is fueling a Nutella recipe craze.

Nanaimo Truffle Bars are among nearly a dozen no-bake recipes in "Simply Sensational Cookies," (Wiley, $29.99) the latest of fourteen cookbooks by Nancy Baggett, baker, food journalist and -- my favorite: cookie expert.

In the new cookbook, which promises "bright fresh flavors, natural colors and easy, streamlined techniques," recipes are rated for difficulty and range from classics to options with flavors of rose, lavender, rosemary or five-spice powder, among others. Baggett lists all-natural garnishes and uses botanicals to color icings and homemade sprinkles. She includes recipes for gift-jar mixes, and for savories made with nuts, cheeses, olives or spices. The book begins with a Q&A addressing some of the most common cookie-baking challenges. 

Nutella recipes

Those who enjoy baking with Nutella or any other type of chocolate-hazelnut spread will be pleased with this volume. It includes "Nutellos," a three-way chocolate-hazelnut cookie where Nutella is blended into the  cookie dough and also can be sandwiched between the cookies in a variation. In the third version, Nutella is filled thumbprint-style into the center of each cookie. Nutella also is the filling for Hazelnut Fancies. Come to think of it, you could probably make Nutella sandwiches out of just about any cookie...

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Slender-doodles: A reduced-calorie recipe makeover of snickerdoodles

Photo by Sean Robinson Slender-doodles

Makes 4 dozen

6 tablespoons butter, softened

1 cup granulated sugar

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/3 cup fat-free sour cream

1 egg, lightly beaten

1 teaspoon vanilla

2 cups all-purpose flour

Nonstick cooking spray

For dusting

2 tablespoons brown sugar

1 tablespoon granulated sugar

2 teaspoons cinnamon

1. In a large bowl, beat butter with an electric mixer on medium speed for 30 seconds. Add 1 cup of granulated sugar, baking powder, nutmeg and baking soda. Beat until combined, scraping bowl as needed. Beat in sour cream, egg and vanilla. Add flour gradually, beating between additions. Cover and chill dough for 1 to 2 hours, or until easy to handle.

2. Heat oven to 375 degrees. Lightly coat cookie sheets with cooking spray. Into a small bowl, sift the brown sugar, 1 tablespoon granulated sugar and 2 teaspoons cinnamon. Shape dough into 1-inch balls and roll each in the sugar-cinnamon mixture to coat. Place balls about 2 inches apart on prepared cookie sheets.

3. Bake for 10 to 11 minutes, or until edges are light brown. Place cookies on a wire rack to cool completely.

Nutrition information (per cookie): 56 calories, 2g fat (1g saturated), 8mg cholesterol, 18mg sodium, 10g carbs, 0g fiber, 6g sugars, 1g protein

Halloween monster claws cookie recipe uses Nestle candy

Monster Claw Cookies from Nestle's verybestbaking.com are plain sugar cookies with slivered almonds set in a shaped mound of chocolate and peanut butter. The Nestle website verybestbaking.com has lots of great Halloween recipe ideas. In addition to our featured Halloween Monster Claw Cookies, there are several humorous options, including instructions to make "Dracula's Dentures" and a "Voodough Doll" complete with stabbing pins made of toothpicks and wads of taffy.

For those who prefer a harvest or fall theme, there are many pumpkin recipes such as the highly rated soft pumpkin cookies or the Pumpkin Spice Ghost Cake, which is covered in cream cheese frosting,  decorated with Raisinets, black licorice and optional candy corn. The ghost cake is simplified by the use of a spice or carrot cake mix to which a cup of canned pumpkin is added.

Apples are another fall flavor to celebrate, and numerous varieties are starting to appear in markets. To make more fun of sampling the various types, try searching "Halloween" at verybestbaking.com. Tips for the old-fashioned game of bobbing for apples are among the site's articles with Halloween party ideas for kids.

For those who'd rather bake with apples, we suggest our previous recipe for apple muffins from "Sesame Street 'B' is for Baking." 

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