Coconut Cookies with Lemon Curd & Raspberries
Prepare the cookies and the lemon curd up to 2 days ahead of time, then assemble themat the picnic.


3/4 cup shredded sweetened coconut
2/3 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
3/4 cup sugar
1 large egg
1 tablespoon milk
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
Lemon curd (recipe follows)
1 pint raspberries


1. Preheat oven to 325°. Spread the coconut evenly on a baking sheet and bake until golden brown, 3 to 5 minutes. Set aside.
2. Raise oven heat to 350°. In a bowl, with an electric mixer on high speed, beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in egg, coconut, and milk until well blended, scraping down sides of bowl as necessary.
3. In another bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt. Beat into butter mixture until well blended.Wrap dough in plastic wrap and chill until firm, at least 1 hour and up to 3 days.
4. Unwrap dough and place on a lightly floured surface. Roll dough out to a 1/8-inch thickness. Cut with a 3- or 4-inch flower-shaped or round cookie cutter and place cookies slightly apart on buttered or parchment-lined baking sheets.
5. Bake cookies until edges are golden, 10 to 14 minutes; if baking more than one pan at a time, switch pan positions halfway through baking. Transfer cookies to wire racks to cool completely. Store the cookies in an airtight container at room temperature.
6. Top each cookie with a dollop of lemon curd and several raspberries.


Lemon curd.
In a heatproof bowl, whisk together 3 eggs, 1/2 cup fresh lemon juice, and 3/4 cup sugar until well blended. Set over a pan of gently simmering water and cook, whisking constantly, until mixture begins to thicken noticeably, 5 to 8 minutes. Remove from heat immediately and stir in 3 tablespoons butter, 1 tablespoon at a time, until mixture is smooth and glossy. Cover bowl with a sheet of plastic wrap pressed against the curds surface and refrigerate until cool, about 30 minutes.

Cranberry-White Chocolate Cookies


2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 1/3 cups sugar
2 large eggs
1 1/2 cups white chocolate morsels
1 (6-ounce) package sweetened
dried cranberries


Combine flour and next 3 ingredients; set aside.
Beat butter atmediumspeed with an electricmixer until creamy; gradually add sugar, beating well. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating until blended after each addition.
Add flourmixture to buttermixture gradually, beating at low speed until blended. Stir in white chocolatemorsels and cranberries.
Drop cookie dough by heaping tablespoonfuls onto lightly greased baking sheets.
Bake at 350° for 10 to 12minutes or until lightly browned on bottom. Remove to wire racks to cool completely.
Note: For testing purposes only, we used Craisins for sweetened dried cranberries.

Double Chocolate-Chip Cookies


1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 large egg
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup milk-chocolate chips
1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips


Heat oven to 350° F.
Cream the butter and sugars in a large bowl with an electric mixer on high speed. Lower to medium speed and add the egg and vanilla. Sift together the flour, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. On low speed, add the dry mixture to the butter mixture. Beat until fully incorporated. Fold in the chocolate chips.
Form the dough into approximately 1 1/2-inch balls. Place on parchment- or foil-lined baking sheets, 2 inches apart. Bake until centers are just set, about 12 minutes. Let cool on sheets for 5 minutes, then transfer to wire racks.

Double-Chocolate Meringue Cookies
These cookies have a slightly fudgy texture. They are baked, then cooled for 1 1/2 hours in the oven (don’t forget to turn it off).


1/2 cup powdered sugar
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa
5 large egg whites
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
2/3 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 cup semisweet chocolate minichips


Preheat oven to 300º.
Cover 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper; secure with masking tape. Sift together 1/2 cup powdered sugar and cocoa.
Place egg whites and cream of tartar in a large bowl; beat with a mixer at high speed until soft peaks form. Gradually add granulated sugar and then cocoa mixture, 1 tablespoon at a time, beating until stiff peaks form. Add vanilla; beat until combined. Fold in chocolate chips.
Drop dough by rounded tablespoons onto prepared baking sheets to form 36 mounds. Bake at 300º for 30 minutes, rotating racks after 15 minutes.
Turn oven off; cool meringues in closed oven 1 1/2 hours or until dry. Sprinkle evenly with 1 tablespoon powdered sugar. Carefully remove cookies from paper.
Note: Store cooled cookies in an airtight container for up to two weeks.

Dulce de Leche-Filled Cookies
Alfajores, these crisp wafer cookies, are filled with caramelized sweetened condensed milk. Although you
often can find a full-fat version of this product at Hispanic markets, we’ve made our own lower-fat version.


1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 large egg yolk
5 tablespoons Caramelized Condensed Milk
3 tablespoons powdered sugar


Sift flour and 3/4 cup sugar together twice. Place flour mixture, butter, and egg yolk in a large bowl; beat with a mixer at low speed 3 minutes (dough will be crumbly). Turn dough out, and knead until combined. Divide dough in half; gently press each portion into a 4-inch circle on plastic wrap.
Cover and chill 30 minutes or until firm.
Preheat oven to 350°.
Working with 1 dough portion at a time, unwrap dough and place on 2 sheets of overlapping plastic wrap. Cover dough with 2 additional sheets of overlapping plastic wrap. Roll dough, still covered, into a 10-inch circle. Freeze dough 5 minutes or until plastic wrap can be easily removed. Remove plastic wrap; cut dough into 15 circles with a 2-inch biscuit cutter. Repeat procedure with remaining dough. Place dough circles 1 inch apart on baking sheets lined with parchment paper. Bake at 350° for 7 minutes (should not brown). Cool on a wire rack.
Gently spread 1 teaspoon of Caramelized Condensed Milk onto each of 15 cookies, and reserve the remaining caramel for another use. Gently top with remaining cookies. Sprinkle the cookies with 3 tablespoons powdered sugar.