It’s a time for excitement, laughter, getting together with friends and family, and best of all cookie exchanges! It’s kind of sad that in a few days it will all be over.
Does it have to end? Can’t another holiday or event bring about the same feelings?
How about SAS Global Forum!
SAS Global Forum has excitement, laughter, getting together with friends and the SAS family. It’s about learning, sharing and connecting. The only thing missing is the cookie exchange.
In honor of Earth Day (April 22, 2012), SAS Global Forum, and extending the holiday season, I will be bringing some treats: All- Natural Homemade Thin Mints (This recipe is a favorite of mine from Heidi Swanson and 101 Cookbooks.). They have a little holiday flavor combined with all natural ingredients. I will get to share with all the amazing SAS users I didn’t get to see during this holiday season!
ALL NATURAL THIN MINTS
Chocolate Wafers:
8 ounces organic butter, room temperature
1 cup organic powdered sugar
1 teaspoon natural vanilla extract
1 cup cocoa powder
3/4 teaspoon fine grain sea salt
1 1/2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
Chocolate Peppermint Coating:
1 pound good quality semi-sweet chocolate, chopped
natural peppermint oil to taste
Preheat your oven to 350.
Make the cookie dough: In a mixer cream the butter until it is light and fluffy. Add the powdered sugar and cream some more. Stir in the vanilla extract and then the salt and cocoa powder. Mix until the cocoa powder is integrated and the batter is smooth and creamy, sort of like a thick frosting. Add the whole wheat pastry flour and mix just until the batter is no longer dusty looking, it might still be a bit crumbly, and that's OK.
Turn the dough out onto a counter, gather it into a ball, and kneed it just once or twice to bring it together into once nice, smooth mass. Place the ball of dough into a large plastic bag and flatten it into a disk roughly 3/4-inch thick. Place the dough in the freezer for 20 minutes to chill.
Rollout and bake: Remove the dough from the freezer and roll it out really thin. Stamp out cookies using a 1 1/2-inch cutter. Place cookies on a parchment-lined baking sheet and bake for 10 minutes. Remove the cookies from the oven and allow them to cool completely on a baking rack.
Make the peppermint coating:While the cookies are in the oven you can get the coating ready. Slowly melt the chocolate, stirring occasionally until it is glossy and smooth. Stir in the peppermint extract.
Finishing the cookies: Drop one cookie into the chocolate and (using a fork) carefully make sure it gets fully coated. Lift the cookie out of the chocolate with the fork and bang the fork on the side of the pan to drain any extra chocolate off the cookie. Place on the prepared baking sheet, and repeat for the rest of the cookies. Place the cookies in the refrigerator or freezer to set. They will set at room temperature, it just takes much longer.
Make 3 or 4 dozen cookies.
Happy Holiday’s and safe travels, see you in Orlando for the Earth Day Cookie Exchange and SAS Global Forum.
