Recipe - Chocolate Candy-Cane Rings

1 One half cup All purpose flour
2 tablespoon Unsweetened cocoa powder
1/8 teaspoon Baking powder
6 ounce Unsweetened chocolate; (not
bittersweet)
1 Stick unsalted butter
1 cup Sugar
2 lg Eggs
1 teaspoon Vanilla
Parchment paper for lining
baking sheets
8 small Candy canes; (about 2 1/2
ounces total)

Into a bowl sift together flour, cocoa powder, and baking powder. Chop
chocolate and in a small heavy saucepan melt with butter over very low
heat, stirring until smooth. Remove pan from heat and stir in sugar.
Transfer chocolate mixture to a large bowl and cool 10 minutes. Stir in
eggs and vanilla until just combined. Stir in flour mixture until just
combined.

Halve dough and roll out each half between sheets of waxed paper into an 11
1/2inch round (about 3/16inch thick). Remove top sheet of waxed paper
from each round and with a 1 1/2inch round cutter cut rounds, leaving all
of dough on waxed paper. Cut a 3/4inch diameter hole in center of half of
rounds (use wide end of a pastry tip). Do not remove any of cut outs from
dough; keep rounds intact on waxed paper. Replace sheets of waxed paper and
stack dough on a baking sheet. Chill dough until firm, at least 4 hours,
and up to 3 days.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line 2 large baking sheets with parchment
paper.

Finely chop candy canes. Transfer dough rounds, still between sheets of
waxed paper, to a work surface. Remove top sheet of waxed paper from each
dough round. Replace waxed paper loosely and flip over each waxed paper
enclosed dough round. From each dough round remove and discard sheet of
waxed paper now on top (this process prevents cookies form sticking to
waxed paper). Lift cut out centers and scraps from waxed paper and reroll
them to make more 1 1/2inch solid rounds and rings in same manner,
chilling until firm. Center rings on top of solid rounds and fill each
center with about One fourth teaspoon chopped candy cane.

Arrange cookies about 1/2inch apart on baking sheets. Bake cookies in
batches in lower third of oven 8 minutes, or just until candy begins to
melt (not liquefy). With a spatula transfer cookies to racks to cool
completely. Cookies keep, layered between sheets of waxed paper in airtight
containers at room temperature, 1 week.

Yield: About 60 cookies

NOTES : Recipe courtesy of Gourmet Magazine

Recipe by: Cooking Live Show #CL9032

Posted to MCRecipe Digest by "Angele and Jon Freeman"
jfreeman@comteck.com on Feb 7, 1998