Some friends and I started having "Wine Nights" a few months back. Fancy name for it, eh? It was an excuse to get together and learn a bit more about a beverage we all love so much. I was encouraged to start this up here after the Women and Wine Nights I went to in Santa Barbara. Given the ridiculous amount of wine glasses we have and the fact that it was an clear excuse to get together with friends new and old I went ahead and sent out an invitation. We've had a couple now and hopefully will have another one soon as the weather gets cooler and some red wine is up for sampling.
At each party there's a specific type of wine we drink and everyone has to bring a bottle under $12. It's fun to find some good table wines that won't break the bank and interesting to see how various wineries and regions can all taste so different.
As an added bonus each wine comes with a suggested attire thanks to this book. Chardonnay for example is the black dress of white wine and Pinot Gris is denim. Girls like excuses to get dressed up. It works for us.
All this to say when I flipped through Food and Wine and saw there were Cocktail Cookies, I knew I had to make them. These involve apricots and tarragon and taste a bit like shortbread too. They're not too sweet though so they pair perfectly with white wine.
The recipe hails from Food and Wine and is a recipe from Dori Greenspan.
In an effort to get you in the spirit of Halloween I had to include this shot I took of the dough which I later realized looks like a brain.
{Ingredients You'll Need}
- 1/2 cup apricots, chopped
- 2 tablespoons chopped tarragon
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1 stick unsalted butter, softened
- 1 egg yolk
- 1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 3/4 teaspoon sea salt
- 2 cups flour
1. In a bowl cover the apricots with hot water and let stand for 10 minutes then drain and allow to cool on a paper towel.
2. In another bowl rub the tarragon with the sugar until fragrant and then add it to your butter in a stand mixer and beat until creamy. Now add the egg yolk and beat until combined then drizzle in the olive oil and beat until smooth. Now add the salt and flour and beat just until combined then stir in the apricots.
3. Place the dough onto a floured work surface and knead until it comes together. Divide the dough in half and place it between two sheets of wax paper. Roll each piece of dough out into discs until it's 1/4 inch thick and place the dough in the freezer for at least 1 hour so that it's firm.
4. Once the dough is firm preheat you oven to 350 and line cookie sheets with parchment. Using a 1 1/2 inch round cookie cutter cut out the cookies and then as you're ready bake them for just 20 minutes, until lightly golden. Allow them to cool for 3 minutes then transfer to a wire wrack.
These are delicious. I just cracked into a bag that I had frozen the other day and they are now all gone. Anderson liked them too. Enjoy!
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