It is this time of the year again. Halloween! This is an old recipe of mine and I made this every year for Halloween. This recipe is about 7 to 8 years old and it is nostalgic each time I am making these fingers. Kinda like walking down memory lane. My kids' friends will come over and have a smashing Halloween party and I would serve them goodies like this. Fond memories indeed.
And years went by, they are already grown up and Halloween party is probably a thing of the past. Well, at least for them, but not for me. Haha! Anyway, you can add green coloring to the cookies by combining 5g matcha powder with the dry ingredients. If you are lazy to make a strawberry compote, you can use strawberry jam. You are after all the tinker of your witch fingers.
I have left all the pointers and tips in the directions down below, cos there are lots of ways to screw everything up, especially during the shaping process. Please read and understand before proceeding. In closing, here I wish all you lovely people a very Happy Halloween!
Ingredients:
(Make 20 fingers)
Cookies:
Unsalted Butter Softened, 113g
Icing Sugar, 63g
Egg Lightly Beaten, 25g
Pure Vanilla Extract, 1/2 TSP
Amaretto, 1 TBSP
Unbleached All Purpose Flour, 135g
Wholemeal Flour, 40g
Baking Powder, 1/2 TSP
Sea Salt, 1/2 TSP
Almonds, 20g
Strawberry Compote:
Cornstarch, 5g
Water, 23g
Strawberries Frozen or Fresh, 225g
Demerara Sugar, 25g
Spiced Rum, 1 TBSP
Fresh Lemon Zest, 1/2 Lemon
Fresh Lemon Juice, 1/2 Lemon
Equipment:
Oven
Stand Mixer / Hand Mixer
Sauce Pot
Directions:
Prepare the cookies.
In a large mixing bowl, cream butter with a hand or stand mixer until light and fluffy.
Add in sugar and continue creaming until well combined.
Add in egg, vanilla extract and amaretto.
Whip until everything is well combined.
In another bowl, add flour, wholemeal flour, baking powder and salt.
Mix to combine well.
Gradually add the flour mixture into the butter mixture, 1/3 portion at a time while still mixing.
Continue mixing until everything is fully incorporated.
Scrape down the sides and knead until it comes together as a dough, for about 1 min.
Cover with cling film and chill in the fridge for at least 30 mins.
While the cookie dough is chilling, prepare the strawberry compote.
In a sauce pot, mix cornstarch and water until smooth.
Add in strawberries and sugar.
Turn the heat up to medium and saute until the sugar has completely dissolved.
Add in the spiced rum and deglaze.
*Careful as it might flambé.*
Remove from heat and mash the strawberries.
Add in lemon zest and juice.
Give it a final stir and set aside.
*Taste and adjust for sweetness.*
Assemble.
Preheat oven to 160 degrees celsius or 320 fahrenheit.
Scoop 1 TBSP of the dough onto a working surface and leave the remaining dough chilled in the fridge.
Roll into a log, roughly the same size as a finger.
Transfer onto a baking tray lined with parchment paper.
Make 2 indentations gently with your 2 fingers.
Using a sharp knife, gently slit lines to resemble knuckles. A total of 9 lines.
Plug an almond on the tip of the finger to resemble a fingernail.
*You can see the photos for the process.*
Repeat the process for the remaining fingers.
*If your kitchen is hot and humid like mine, it is best to chill the fingers while working on 1.*
Wack into the oven and bake for about 20 to 25 mins or until the bottom is crispy browned. Rotate the tray half way thru'. If the cookies start to spread too much during the baking process, reduce the temperature to 150 degree celsius or 300 fahrenheit.
Remove from oven and as careful as you can, remove the almonds while it is still hot.
Scoop a bit of that strawberry compote onto each fingertip.
Return the almonds to the fingertips.
Serve with strawberry compote as a dipping sauce.
It tastes better while it is still warm.
The process...
Before bake...
After baked...
Let's dip on some blood and feast...