Makes about 4 dozen 3-inch cookies.
This is a cookie and candy all in one. The cookie itself is a crisp sugar-butter cookie, and the candy panes add a sweet fruity flavor and crunch. It was these cookies, hanging on a Christmas tree, with light shining through their transparent candy panes, that inspired me to create a gingerbread cathedral with a stained glass rose window. For greater ease of preparation, the cookies can be made with one larger cutout in the center, but with their many cutouts, they are so breathtaking to behold that they are worth the effort.
Equipment: Cookie sheets lined with aluminum foil, then sprayed with nonstick vegetable cooking spray or greased, rolling pin, 3-inch round cookie cutters and small canape cutters.
First, in a small bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. In a food processor with the metal blade, process with the sugar until it is very fine. Cut the butter into a few pieces and add it with the motor running. Process until smooth and creamy. Add the egg and extracts and process until incorporated, scraping the sides of the bowl. Add the flour mixture and pulse in, just until the dough begins to clump together.
Soften the butter. In a mixing bowl, cream together the sugar and butter until fluffy. Add the egg and extracts and beat until blended. In a small bowl, whisk together the remaining dry ingredients. On low speed, gradually add them to the butter mixture and mix just until the dough can be gathered into a ball.
Scrape the dough onto a sheet of plastic wrap and use the wrap, not your fingers, to press the dough together to form a thick flat disc. Wrap it well and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes, preferably no longer than 3 hours.
Place 2 oven racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven.
Preheat oven to 350F.
Separate the sour balls into individual colors and pulverize them separately in a blender or food processor. Place each color in a small container and set aside.
Using about a quarter of the dough at a time, roll out the dough to 1/8-inch thickness between 2 sheets of plastic wrap or on a lightly floured counter. Cut out cookies with a 3-inch cookie cutter, spraying or greasing the cutter as needed to prevent sticking. With a small, angled metal spatula or pancake turner, transfer the cookies to the prepared cookie sheets. If you are planning to hang the cookies, make small holes with the blunt end of a wooden skewer.
Cut out shapes for the stained glass in each cookie with small cutters or with a small sharp knife. Use the tip of a small sharp knife to fill the holes with candy pieces, filling just to the top of the dough.
Bake for 10 to 12 minutes or until the cookies are lightly browned and the candy has melted completely. For even baking, rotate the cookie sheets from top to bottom and front to back halfway through the baking period. Watch carefully toward the end of baking to see that the candy does not start to caramelize and turn brown.
Allow the cookies to cool completely on the sheets. Carefully peel off the aluminum foil.
- 2-3/4 cups (dip and sweep method), 13.75 ounces, 390 grams bleached all-purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 2/3 cup, 4.75 ounces, 132 grams sugar
- 1 cup, 8 ounces, 227 grams unsalted butter
- 2 teaspoons about half a large egg, lightly beaten
- 1-1/2 teaspoons, 6 grams pure vanilla extract
- 1/8 teaspoon lemon extract
- 1 package (1 cup), 6.5 ounces, 184 grams sour balls
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