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Friday, December 17, 2010

Cranberry, Pepita, & Almond Cookies

So.  Who's sick of cookies?  Besides me.  I was okay until just about...yesterday.  A furious week of creaming, gradually adding, and rounded-teaspoons-full has me all cookied out.  Not to mention there was homemade candy, cake, and even a pie created in my kitchen this week.  My mouth is now furiously rejecting any sweet that tries to make its way near it.  You know what the sad thing about that is?  I'm all cookied out on cookies that won't even make an appearance at our holiday table this year.  Bus drivers...teachers...neighbors...enjoy.  Sadly, I still have so many cookies and bars and candy "marked" and eagerly anticipating an appearance.  We'll see how I feel after a sugar free weekend.  These cookies came about after I saw Kim make some Apricot & Nut cookies w/ Amaretto icing. Tasty! She thought they'd be good using cranberries, and well...so did I!  So, I changed them up a bit, also going with pepitas instead of pinenuts...red and green, you see.  And I left off the icing.  I loved them.  Chewy and studded with sweet tart fruit and toasty, nutty things. Even if the thought of them now is making my mouth all metallic and watery.  They were totally awesome before I was cookied out.
Cranberry, Pepita, & Almond Cookies
adapted from Apricot & Nut Cookies from Giada at Home
yield ~2 dozen

½ c. unsalted butter, room temp.
½ c. + 2 Tbs. sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
good grating nutmeg
big pinch fine sea salt
1 large egg
1¼ c. ap flour
½ c. dried cranberries
¼ c. sliced almonds, toasted
2 Tbs. pepitas, toasted

Beat butter and sugar until light and creamy, ~2 mins.  Beat in the egg and vanilla.  Combine flour and salt.  Toss a tablespoon or so in with the fruit and nuts and toss around.  Gradually add the rest of the mixture to the wet mixture.  Fold in the cranberries, pepitas, and almonds.

Turn mixture out onto a sheet of parchment paper and form into a log.  Twist ends together and refrigerate for at least 3 hours, but up to a couple of days.
Preheat oven to 350° F.  Line baking sheets w/ parchment (or foil or a silpat), cut the dough into ¼" slices and place at least an inch and a half or so apart on the lined sheets.  Bake for ~15 minutes, or until they just start to turn golden around the edges.
If you wanted to, you could ice these...but I really loved the beautiful simplicity of them just as they were.


*This post is linked to:
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Would you like to comment?

  1. So pretty! Great idea to use the pepitos!

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  2. LOVE the use of pepitos! These look gorgeous!

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  3. Fantastica la idea me encanta.

    Saludos

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  4. Hey Heather~
    These look festive and different from the usual Christmas cookies I've seen on line! I love Giada's recipes!

    Have a great weekend! :)

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  5. wow, those look sooooo cute, beautiful and delicious,

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  6. those look simply droolworthy,so delicious darling...

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  7. Goodness, this looks like such a wonderful combination!

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  8. what, no lemon zest?;) these look delicious and so beautiful for the holidays. i am ready to put my mixer up for the season, but have about 3 more days of baking left. if i could just get as sick of eating them as i do of baking them!
    merry, merry!
    christy

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  9. Festive! I love slice & bake cookies. I'm a little sick of cookies, too, and I still have a ton to make...

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  10. hey they look sooooo awesome--- lovely !

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  11. I have not even started! Man o mano, yours are sure pretty.

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  12. Oh yum! I love cranberries in anything! Except sauce. Ick. Definitely want to try these!

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  13. I love the peppering of red and green in these cookies, they are prefect for Christmas!

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  14. I THOUGHT about starting my cookie baking this week...but then my waistline and some sense got the best of me. Because in reality I would have eaten all of them before the big day anyway. I love this flavor combo and the pretty colors!

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  15. NEVER sick of cookies and these look great!! Happy holidays doll!!!

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  16. I love how you changed these up with the cranberries and pepitas! I would totally grub on some of these, even though I'm all cookied out too.

    Thanks for the shout out!

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  17. looks awesome! no wonder u wanted this even after being cookied out with cookies..

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  18. Love how these look with the red and green--so festive and pretty. ;-)

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  19. These sure are a fantastic treat for this festive season!!

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  20. These cookies look gorgeous. I've not even started any holiday baking so at this point would cram one of these in my mouth quicker than you could say pepita.

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  21. What a lovely combination of flavors. I think I may have to work out a gluten-free version of these for the family that isn't yet sick of sweetness this holiday season.

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  23. Hi Heather, Thanks for joining in at Vegetarian Foodie Fridays this week! Your cookies look great - what sets them apart from all the other regular cookies is their uniqueness. Great flavour combination!

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  24. Very pretty........I love the colors and cranberries...but I am getting tired of cookies. Wonder if I'm losing my sweet tooth. Now that could be a mixed blessing.

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  25. Oh how pretty! I love cookies that you slice off a roll. So much easier than rolling out a sheet and cutting them.

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  26. OMG Heather, if I even look at another cookie around my house I'm going to scream, lol! I'm with you. Totally cookied (and candied, etc.) out. I'm done! Having said that your cookies look delicious - not too sweet. And they're so colourful, perfect for Christmas!

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  27. I haven't baked a single cookie for the holidays this year. I thought I might make some chocolate salami or some shortbread but decided against those too. I know I will not be deproved over the holidays.

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  28. What a fabulous combination, so festive! I'm cookied out and haven't even cookied yet :) bad sign, I know!

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  29. Red and green, how clever. And the tastes here are interesting without going overboard. I've seen too many everything-but-the-kitchen-sink with frosting and sprinkles on top cookie recipes lately.

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  30. Serendipity! I just bought some pepitos and now I know how I will use them. So festive and easy!

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  31. These look and sound fantastic. We love pepitas so I'm sure these are a winner!

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  32. Such a great blend of dried fruit and nuts.

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