small gold sugar pearls
Make the icing with the egg white, lemon juice, and icing sugar according to the instructions on page 188. Put half of the mixture into a piping bag. Add some food coloring to the rest of the icing to make it green, adding a drop or two at a time until it’s the color you want, then fill another piping bag.
Follow the instructions on page 23 to decorate the cookies. Store them in an airtight container.
Variation: Add chopped dried fruit, nuts, or chocolate to the cookie dough.
1. Cut the marshmallows diagonally from one flat end to the other. Each marshmallow will make 2 petals. 2. Pipe a spot of white icing in the middle of the cookie. 3. Place 6 petals, flat side down, in a circle on the icing. Repeat with the rest of the cookies. 4. Pipe a dot of green icing in the middle of the flower. 5. Place gold sugar pearls around the edge of the green dot while it’s still wet. 6. Also place a gold sugar pearl at the base of each petal. It will stick in the marshmallow.
CHOCOLATE ALMOND COOKIE EGGS
makes 25 cookies
The birds are chirping, and you can tell they’re happy spring is here. Siskins lay especially pretty eggs—white or light blue with brown speckles. I make the spots on these egg-shaped cookies with the help of a toothbrush and some cocoa powder. Covered in lemon icing, they’re just right for the season.
Almond cookies
1¾ cups (250 g) almonds
1⅔ cups (200 g) icing sugar
1 Tbsp all-purpose flour
zest of 1 lemon
1 egg white
2 Tbsp lemon juice
Preheat the oven to 350ºF (180ºC). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Grind the almonds in a nut grinder. In a bowl, stir together the ground almonds, icing sugar, flour, and lemon zest. Add the egg white and lemon juice. Using your hands or the dough attachment of a stand mixer, work the dough well until all the ingredients are combined. You’ll find instructions on how to shape the egg cookies on the next page.
Bake the cookies for about 8 minutes on the middle rack of the oven. Transfer them to a wire rack to cool.
Chocolate filling
5 oz (150 g) milk chocolate
When you get to step 5 on the next page, temper the chocolate (see page 187). Transfer to a piping bag.
Lemon icing
2 Tbsp lemon juice
1¼ cups (150 g) icing sugar
blue liquid gel food coloring
For step 6, you’ll need the lemon icing. In a bowl, stir together the lemon juice and icing sugar. Divide the mixture into two parts and add the blue food coloring to one part, using a drop at a time until it’s the color you want.
Spots
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp unsweetened cocoa powder
In a small bowl, stir together the vanilla extract and cocoa for step 7.
These chocolate-filled eggs make perfect Easter gifts. Save an empty egg carton and cover the label with fancy paper. Place a cookie egg in each dimple and tie a ribbon around the carton. Pick a small twig of pussy willows and attach it to the outside along with an Easter card.
1. Copy the egg pattern on page 198 onto a sheet of regular paper. Place a sheet of parchment paper on top. 2. Roll out little balls (around 2 tsp) of the almond dough. Narrow them at one end so the balls form an egg shape in accordance with the template. Flatten the balls onto the parchment paper so they cover the whole template. Transfer to the prepared baking sheet. 3. Bake the cookies as instructed on page 25. 4. Find pairs of cookies that fit together. 5. Pipe out some chocolate onto one of the cookie bottoms and place the other cookie on top. Don’t pipe the chocolate all the way to the edge. When you put on the lid, the chocolate will inevitably be squeezed a little further out. Repeat with the remaining cookies. 6. Dip one side of each cookie in the lemon icing. Shake it well before you turn it over and set it down to dry for half an hour. Use the white icing for half the cookies and blue for the other half. 7. Dip a clean toothbrush in the cocoa mixture. Drag your finger over the brush to spray spots onto the cookies. You can also use any other small brush with stiff bristles. 8. Let the icing harden completely before you put the cookies in an airtight container.
CARDAMOM MACARONS WITH BLUEBERRIES AND CREAM CHEESE
makes 10 large macarons
The bright color of the blue anemone, common in Norway in the spring, is a lovely sight on the otherwise brown forest floor. The petals are usually royal blue or purple, in stark contrast to the chalk-white pistils. Using a potato, you can easily print these pretty blue anemones onto macarons.
Cardamom macarons
¾ cup + 2 Tbsp (85 g) almond flour
¾ cup + 2 Tbsp (110 g) icing sugar
1 tsp ground cardamom
2 medium egg whites (70 g)
pinch of salt
3 Tbsp (35 g) granulated sugar
Sift the almond flour into a bowl and stir in the icing sugar and cardamom. Sift again into another bowl.
In a separate bowl, using a handheld mixer, beat the egg white at medium speed until foamy. Add the salt. Gradually add the sugar, continuing to beat at medium speed. When the sugar has dissolved and you have a thick meringue, add the almond flour mixture and use a rubber spatula to beat it into the meringue. When the mixture is smooth, transfer it to a piping bag.
Pipe out the macarons onto a macaron baking mat or a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, forming 2¼-inch (6 cm) circles (use the template on page 198). Tap the baking sheet with the macarons once against the counter so any big air bubbles rise to the surface and burst. Let the macarons dry for about 40 minutes on the counter.
Preheat the oven to 250ºF (125ºC) on the convection setting, or 275ºF (135ºC) on the regular setting. Bake the macarons for 15 minutes in the middle of the oven (if you’re using a regular oven they may take a few minutes longer). Remove and cool. For more detailed instructions, see page 190.