Recipe - 1995 3rd Place Christmas Rocks

1 One fourth cup Unsalted butter
1 cup Confectioners' sugar
2 teaspoon Pure vanilla extract
1 One fourth teaspoon Salt
1 Egg
2 Egg yolks
2 One fourth cup Unsifted allpurpose flour
One half cup Pure maple syrup
Milk or whipping cream,
if necessary

1. To brown the butter, melt butter in a small, heavy saucepan over low
heat. When fully melted, increase heat to medium and cook, stirring
constantly, until the butter turns a medium brown and smells nutty. Measure
out 1 cup to use for cookies and reserve the rest for the filling.
Refrigerate until firm but not solid, about 30 minutes.

2. For cookies, heat oven to 325 degrees. Have ready a cookie press and
ungreased baking sheet(s).

3. Beat the 1 cup brown butter, One half cup of the confectioners' sugar,
vanilla and salt in large bowl of electric mixer until creamy. Add egg and
egg yolks and mix to combine. Stop mixer and add flour; mix on low speed
just until flour disappears.

4. Transfer dough to a cookie press and press onto baking sheet in desired
shapes, spacing them 1 One half inches apart. Bake until set, 16 to 18 minutes.
Transfer to a wire rack to cool.

5. For filling, cook maple syrup in a heavy 2quart saucepan over high
heat for 5 minutes. Cool to lukewarm then stir in remaining One half cup
confectioners' sugar. Beat the reserved brown butter in a food processor or
a small bowl of electric mixer until light. Add the syrup mixture and beat
until smooth. If mixture is too thick, add a small amount of milk or cream
until it is spreadable.

6. Assemble cookies by spreading about One half teaspoon filling on the flat
side of half the cookies. Sandwich with another cookie.

Secondplace winner in the 1995 Chicago Tribune Holiday Cookie Contest: by
Sarah Frudden of Chicago
Posted to MMRecipes Digest V3 #338

From: Linda Place placel@worldnet.att.net

Date: Tue, 10 Dec 1996 12:22:52 +0000