Cream Cheese Walnut Cookies

Martha Stewart has been very generous in sending me cookie recipes every day. (Of course, I signed up for the feed!) It's been fun to read about different cookies that I wouldn't ordinarily have made or considered. One recipe, however, that I did try with much success and acclaim were "Cream Cheese Walnut Cookies."

Like the biscotti recipe detailed yesterday, this cookie is not difficult to make, but it is perhaps a bit time-consuming. You mix, then roll into a log, freeze for a while, roll in some nuts, slice and then bake. The ease of the recipe also is that you can freeze for up to (2) weeks, so if you only have a certain amount of time, you can break up the process.

Rolling the dough in the nuts was a bit perplexing to me. When the dough is hard, the walnuts didn't want to stick to it. I simply let the dough thaw a bit and it seemed to work. Looking at the comments on her website for this recipe, someone dipped the cookies into chocolate and then rolled into nuts. Chocolate always sounds good, but to me, it might be a bit overwhelming for this cookies.

When you read the recipe, you'll immediately think of Paula Dean -- what with the (2) cups or (4) sticks of butter to start off the batter. When you eat the finished product, you do taste the butter, however, the cream cheese adds another layer of texture and flavor to the cookie that we found delightful.

Here's the recipe. Pour yourself a relaxing cup of tea with a few of these and you'll be in heaven!


CREAM CHEESE WALNUT COOKIES

Makes about 4 dozen

4 c. all-purpose flour
1-1/4 t. coarse salt
2 c. (4 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
6 oz. cream cheese (not whipped), room temperature
1-1/4 c. sugar
2 T, plus 1/2 t. pure vanilla extract
2-1/2 c. walnut halves (1-1/2 cups toasted and coarsely chopped), 1 c. finely chopped


1. Whisk together flour and salt in a large bowl; set aside. Put butter and cream cheese in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Mix on medium speed until pale and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Mix in sugar and vanilla. Reduce speed to low. Add flour mixture, and mix until just combined (do not overmix). Mix in toasted walnuts.
2. Transfer dough to a work surface. Divide in half; shape each half into an 8-1/2-inch log about 2 inches in diameter. Wrap each log in parchment paper; freeze until firm, about 30 minutes or up to 2 weeks.
3. Preheat oven to 350 with racks in upper and lower thirds. Unwrap 1 log, and roll in 1/2 cup chopped walnuts, coating completely. Cut into 1/4-inch thick rounds. Space 1 inch apart on baking sheets lined with parchment paper.
4. Bake cookies, rotating halfway through, until golden around edges, 18-20 minutes. Let cool on sheets on wire racks. Repeat with remaining log and remaining 1/2 cup of chopped walnuts. Cookies can be stored in airtight containers at room temperature up to 3 days.


NOTE: The dough for these slice-and-bake cookies can be shaped into logs and frozen for up to two weeks.