Frankfurter Brenten / White Marzipan Cookies - Molded Cookie Series

Christmas time is upon us again...... And nothing says "Fröhliche Weihnachten!" quite like Frankfurter Brenten (aka: FrankFurter Printen or White Marzipan cookies).  

Though not quite as well known as Springerle or Speculaas, they are still quite delicious and make a lovely addition to any cookie plate assemblage.   The dough is also SUPER easy to throw together and the drying time is much shorter than for Springerle.  You could almost say they are "healthy" with their almond paste-y goodness.  But the best part will always be the texture.... crispy on the edges like cookie, but chewy in the center like candy - all at the same time.  Genius!

Rose water is the conventional flavoring, which is delicious, but I am more partial to Orange Flower water, or Cointreau, or Grand Marnier or even Bourbon.... It's only a hint of a flavor (for it's only 1 teaspoon) but the possibilities are endless.  A word of caution, use small mold to make small cookies.  They are very rich, so this is a serious case of "less is more"; though I will admit that when preparing these at the shop, I make them almost twice this size.

Frankfurter Brenten

- 8 oz Almond Paste
- 2.5 oz All-Purpose Flour (71g)
- 7.1 oz Confectioner's sugar ( 201g)
- 1 Large Egg White
- 1 tsp Rose water or Orange flower water gives an authentic European aroma and flavor.
            (or you can substitute vanilla or Bourbon, or Grand Marnier or Rum or Brandy)

I use SOLO almond paste, because it comes in a convenient 8oz box.....  Odense comes in a 7oz tube which is significantly less convenient.  I'm just sayin'.

These are the tools I have chosen to use today...  A rolling pin, of course, a pastry brush, individual round molds made of resin and a corresponding cutter as well as a square multi-image wooden mold and a pizza wheel to cut them apart.

Here is a close-up of the Resin molds.  The 3 darker brown molds are from Anis Paradies in Switzerland while the pale mold is from "The Springerle Baker" in North Carolina.

Here is a close up of the wooden mold (I just realized, as I am adding the photo, that it's upside down)  I don't have any history on this mold, other than that I found it on eBay and it came from Tennessee.

The flat sticks that keep showing up in the photos are my dough guides....  3, 5 & 10 mm, which can also be stacked to make other thicknesses like 8mm, 13mm and 15mm.  Dough guides take all the guesswork out of whether or not your dough is the proper thickness for pressing cookies and whether your dough is rolled evenly or not.

You can also use round dowels from the hardware store (which is what I use to use when I made Gingerbread houses back in the day) But enough about equipment and such; let's begin, cause even though these cookies are easy to mix up, they still don't mix themselves...

Grate the almond past into the bowl of your mixer.

Add the AP Flour, Confectioners' Sugar and Egg white.

Turn the mixer on low and let the ingredients all blend together until you have a lumpy meal texture.

With the mixer running, add the Rose Water, Orange Blossom Water or Liquor...

the dough should come together almost immediately.

Remove the dough from the mixing bowl and knead into a firm, smooth dough.

You may need to knead in an extra ½ teaspoon of water if the dough still seems too crumbly.
Gather dough into a flattened round, wrap tightly with plastic wrap and let the dough rest for one hour on the counter.  (You can also rest the dough up to 24 hours in the refrigerator)

Working on a dry surface dusted with confectioner's sugar, roll out the dough to 8mm thickness.

Using a pastry brush, brush the desired cookie mold with confectioner's sugar

and press firmly into the dough.

Lift the mold straight up, to keep from blurring the design.

Cut the cookie out with your chosen cutter.

and transfer to a parchment lined cookie sheet.

Repeat, brushing the cookie mold for every pressing.

When you have filled a pan, set them aside to dry, uncovered, for 3-4 hours.

You can re-roll the scraps twice.

Here is a close up of that Peach Mold from "The Springerle Baker".

Using a multi mold is the same process, you just need a different type of cutter to separate the cookies from each other.

Just dust the mold with confectioners' sugar, press the mold into the dough, lift straight up to preserve the impression,

then use a pastry wheel to separate the cookies......

Move to a parchment lines baking sheet for drying.

Bake at 300 degrees F for 15-20 minutes.

The peaks on the cookies will turn slightly brown, as will the bottoms, while the remainder stays cream colored.

If you want to prevent browning, place an empty cookie sheet on the top shelf of the ovens you bake the cookies on the center shelf.

Let the cookies cool for a few minutes before you place them on a cooling rack.

Cool completely and then store in tins. These cookies are best if eaten within 3 or 4 days.

~~Mangia!!

Decadent Deflated Dessert - Fallen Chocolate Soufflé Cake

I was watching Laura Calder the other day and she made this decadent looking chocolate cake for one of her friends, along with these delicious looking Aubergine Charlottes which I REALLY want to try.  She has become one of my favorite chefs on the Cooking Channel.  I love her no-fuss approach to "French" cooking.  After all, not everyone in France eats "haute cuisine" all the time.   I mean let's get real here.

I was intrigued by her interpretation of "flourless chocolate cake".  I have tried several recipes in the past and attempted to choke them down in multiple restaurants as well.  Each time I have been terribly disappointed. Darn good thing I am not gluten intolerant, or I would forever be denied a decent chocolate cake.

Well, I tried her "Craggy Chocolate Cake" recipe and I am forever in love.  It's like a soufflé, yet like a brownie, yet like the most rich an decadent chocolate cake you ever tasted.  Completely and totally divine.  My only suggestion, for those wishing to try this recipe, is to forgo the Whipped Cream and invest in a little Crème Fraîche;  SO much more luscious, especially with a little orange zest.  YUM!

Though she calls it a "Craggy Chocolate Cake", I really like to think of this as an intentionally failed soufflé, for it is, at it's basic level, a soufflé recipe; minus an egg white or two.  Collapsed though it may be, I find this to be genius, for if I had known that a fallen chocolate soufflé would be this awesome, I would have been practicing purposeful deflation a long time ago.  I mean, talk about making a purse out of a sows ear!  Utterly Brilliant!

The recipe is SO simple too, especially due to the lack of a couple egg whites.  All you have to remember is 200.  200 grams of this and 200 grams of that.  I know, I know, we don't normally measure eggs by grams, especially when you have to separate them.  But 4 large whole eggs averages 200 grams, without the shells of course, cause that would add a decidedly unpleasant "crunch" to the soufflé.

Laura Calder's Craggy Chocolate Cake

(Fallen Soufflé Cake)

200 g 70% Bitter Chocolate, chopped (about 7 oz)
4 eggs Large Eggs, separated
200 g Cultured Butter
200 g Granulated Sugar, divided (this is about 1 cup minus 1 tsp)
Pinch of Kosher Salt (my own addition)

For Serving:

8 oz Crème Fraîche
3 TB Confectioners' Sugar
Zest of 1/2 Orange
1 tsp Cointreau or Gran Marnier
Orange Zest Strips

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees (on my oven 350 degrees worked better); line an 8-inch springform pan with parchment then grease and flour the pan.

Chop the chocolate,

and separate the eggs.

Place chopped chocolate in a saute pan, over low heat and allow to melt.

Once melted, add the butter and stir until smooth, then remove from the heat and set aside.

 Combine Egg Yolks and 1/2 cup (100 g) of the sugar in a small bowl.

Beat the Yolks and Sugar until they reach the ribbon stage (when the beaters are lifted, a wide ribbon of yoll falls into the bowl)

Add a spoon of the warm chocolate mixture to the yolks and whisk it in (this will help to condition the yolks and prevent scrambled eggs)

Once the yolk mixture has been warmed, go ahead and add the remaining melted chocolate and whisk until thick and delicious looking. ;)

In a large bowl (I prefer copper) whisk the egg whites with a pinch of salt (cause it helps denature the proteins and provides balance to the flavor)

Once you reach soft peaks, begin sprinkling in the remaining 1/2 cup (100g) of sugar and whip until a lovely glossy French Meringue is formed. (this is stiff peaks)

Add about 1/2 cup of the Meringue to the chocolate mixture and stir it in, this will lighten it a little and make the remaining folding a little easier.

Add the now lightened chocolate mixture to the remaining Meringue and fold until well blended.

Pour the batter into the prepared spring-form pan.

Bake for 50-55 minutes.

Remove from the oven and set on a cooling rack.

Use a small icing spatula or a knife to release the edge of the cake from the pan, allowing it to contract and crack.

Allow to cool and enjoy the show as the souffle sinks and cracks like a volcanic landscape.

As far as serving goes, you can serve with whipped cream if you like, but I decided that since I always talk about how wonderful Crème Fraîche is, I should probably blog a little about it.

Ya see, Crème Fraîchee, unlike American Sour Cream or Mexican Crema, will actually whip, just like heavy cream.  Granted, it won't be quite as light as whipped cream, but it's just SO delicious! Sooooooooo....

Place Crème Fraîche, Orange Zest, Confectioners' Sugar and Cointreau in a small bowl.

Put the spurs to it!  (whisk or beat until it becomes fluffy)

It's that easy....

Now add a healthy spoonful to the top of a slice of this delicious cake....  YUM!

Mangia!!
~~

P.S.  Please note the new "Print Friendly" button at the bottom of this post.  This will allow you to print just the text of this post alleviating the need for me to create a "site" link to a separate location for a print friendly recipe.