Cranberry Shortbread with White Chocolate Drizzle

Well it's kind of fallish out there, and fall reminds me of baking.

This was inspired by something called Cranberry Bark. Starbucks makes it at Christmas. So don't wait for Christmas. Try this now.

• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened

• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup white chocolate chips
• 1/4 cup chopped dried cranberries

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

With an electric mixer, beat the butter, sugar vanilla until light and fluffy. Add the flour and salt. Beat until just combined. .

Divide the dough until two pieces. Press them evenly into 2- 8 inch round cake pans. Then add the cranberries Bake for 11-12 minutes—until golden around the edges.

With a small sharp knife, score the shortbread into 8 wedges per pan.

Allow to cool in the pans another 10 minutes. .

In the bottom of a double boiler bring water to a simmer. In the top of a double boiler slowly melt the white chocolate chips.

When the chocolate is completely melted, stir, the chocolate should look glossy. Drizzle the chocolate over the shortbreads and let them cool.

Then flip out of the pans the gently separate in to wedges

Cherry Pizza

Ingredients


Pizza Dough

(Also available at local pizzerias.)

1 packet dry yeast
1⁄2 teaspoon sugar
2 cups all-purpose flour
Salt
1⁄4 cup canola oil


Cherry Topping

3 pints Bing cherries, halved and pitted
1⁄2 cup light brown sugar
Seeds of 1 vanilla bean
1 teaspoon lemon zest
1⁄8 teaspoon ground white pepper
Canola oil
2 tablespoons white chocolate, shaved into large curls
Fresh mint leaves

Instructions

Pizza Dough

In a small bowl, dissolve the yeast and sugar in 3⁄4 cup warm water. Place the flour in the bowl of a food mixer fitted with a dough hook, add the yeast mixture, and mix on low speed for 1 to 2 minutes. Add a pinch of salt and the canola oil, and continue mixing on low speed until a nice, supple dough forms, about 3 to 5 minutes. If the dough looks too wet, sprinkle in 1 more teaspoon of flour, and continue mixing. Cover the bowl with a damp towel, and allow to rise on the countertop until it has doubled in size, approximately 2 hours.

Cherry Topping

In a medium bowl, toss together the cherries, sugar, vanilla seeds, lemon zest, and white pepper. Make a double-layer tinfoil pouch, and place the cherry mixture inside, folding over the edges to form a seal.

Set the pouch on a grill over medium heat, and cook for 5 to 7 minutes, until the cherries are soft.

Assembly

Cut the dough in half, and roll out each half on a flat, floured surface to form a 12-inch-diameter round about 1⁄4 inch thick. Brush both sides with oil. Move the coals to one side of the grill, and when the fire is medium hot, place the rounds over the coals. When the rounds start to puff up and take on a little color, turn them over, and place on the coolest part of the grill. Ladle half the cherry mixture onto each pizza, and return to medium heat until the underside is cooked but does not burn. Remove from the grill, sprinkle white-chocolate shavings over each pizza, and top with scissor-snipped fresh mint leaves