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Happy Merry Everything!

Chocolate Cake Shots

• 1/2 shot Stoli Vanil vodka
  1/2 shot Frangelico hazelnut liqueur
  1 lemon wedge
• sugar

Frost the rim of a shot glass with sugar and lemon. Add the vanilla vodka and Frangelico hazelnut liqueur; stir together. Lick the sugar rim, shoot the mixture, and bite a piece of lemon.

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Spiced Cider

 

Ingredients

• 5  cups  apple cider
• 1  (3-inch) cinnamon stick
• 1  whole clove
• 1  (1/2-inch-thick) orange slice
• 1  (1/2-inch-thick) lemon slice
• 1/2  cup  brandy
• 6  (3-inch) cinnamon sticks (optional)

 

Preparation

Combine cider, cinnamon stick, clove, orange slice, and lemon slice in a medium saucepan; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 30 minutes. Strain cider mixture through a sieve into a bowl; discard solids. Stir in brandy. Serve warm. Garnish each serving with 1 cinnamon stick, if desired.

 

Yield

6 servings

Candy Cane Cake

 

Ingredients

• 1  cup  sifted cake or pastry flour
• 1 3/4  cups  sugar
• 12  egg whites, at room temperature
• 1  teaspoon  cream of tartar
• 1/4  teaspoon  salt
• 1  teaspoon  vanilla extract
• 1  teaspoon  almond extract
• 8  ounces  peppermint candy canes
• 2  cups  heavy whipping cream

 

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 325°. Sift together flour and 3/4 cup sugar. Sift again and set aside.

2. In a large bowl or standing mixer, beat egg whites until foamy. Add cream of tartar and salt. Beat until soft peaks form. Add 3/4 cup sugar and the vanilla and almond extracts. Continue beating until egg whites are firm but not dry.

3. Sift one-third of the flour-sugar mixture onto the egg whites and, with a rubber or silicone spatula, gently fold the mixture into the egg whites. Add remaining flour in two batches, folding gently after each addition. Turn batter into an ungreased 10-inch tube pan and bake until browned and firm to the touch, 50 to 60 minutes.

4. Invert cake (in pan) on a cooling rack for at least an hour. When completely cool, run a long, thin, sharp knife between cake and pan to loosen, and remove cake.

5. Put candy canes in a large sealable plastic bag. Crush them into small pieces with a meat pounder, rolling pin, or the bottom of a small frying pan. Sift crushed candy with a fine-mesh strainer and reserve candy dust for another use (see Notes). Set crushed candy aside.

6. In a large bowl, beat cream with remaining 1/4 cup granulated sugar until soft peaks form. Frost cake with whipped cream using a spatula to form swirls and peaks. Sprinkle frosted cake with crushed candy canes. (To get candy on the sides, hold your hand about 1 in. from the cake and gently toss crushed candy at the sides.) Serve immediately, using a serrated knife to cut slices.

 

Yield

Makes 8 to 10 servings

Chocolate-Macadamia Nut Clusters

Ingredients

• 8 ounces bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, chopped
• 1/4 cup (1/8 lb.) butter
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
• 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 1/2 cups unsalted roasted macadamia nuts
• 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
• 1 cup sweetened flaked dried coconut (4 oz.)

Preparation

1. In a heatproof bowl set over a pan of barely simmering water (bottom of bowl should not touch water), stir chopped chocolate and butter often until chocolate is melted and mixture is smooth. Remove from over water and let cool to room temperature, about 15 minutes.

2. In a large bowl, with an electric mixer on high speed, beat sugar, eggs, and vanilla until smooth. Add chocolate mixture and beat until well blended. Stir in flour and baking powder, then beat just until moistened. Stir in macadamia nuts, chocolate chips, and coconut.

3. Drop dough in 1-tablespoon portions, about 2 inches apart, onto buttered or cooking parchment-lined 12- by 15-inch baking sheets.

4. Bake cookies in a 350° oven just until firm on the edges but still soft when pressed in the middle, 8 to 10 minutes (see notes); if baking more than one pan at a time, switch pan positions halfway through baking. Let cookies cool on sheets for 5 minutes, then use a wide spatula to transfer to racks to cool completely.

Yield

Makes about 42 cookies