cookslovak

It’s time to use the last batch of walnuts from last year’s harvest. I still have a good supply of the apricot jam I made last summer. A jar of that will come in handy, too. And at long last, I can keep the promise I gave to a reader from Canada a few months ago. I’m sorry to have taken so long, dear Helen; I have been testing different variations on the recipe to give Cookslovak followers a simpler, less time-consuming version.

Helen has Slovak roots with both her parents and grandparents coming from what is Slovakia today, but was part of Hungary back then. She and her siblings were raised on Halushki, Opekantze and other Slovak specialities. Helen keeps a collection of her family recipes, most of which, she says, are from her mother’s side.

Helen sent me her recipe for Slovak Birds Nests back in January. She described them as

“Delicate butter cookies (Eastern European) with jam centres. Pretty and delicious. The dough is easy, but they will still take a while to make because of having to chill the dough twice and also having to ‘coat’ them. They seem nicer if allowed to sit for a day before serving.”

While Helen’s mother uses walnuts in the original recipe, Helen suggests a mix of filberts and walnuts. I went for walnuts, as they are widely grown in Slovakia, and are of very good quality. In fact, walnuts are No. 1 nuts used in Slovak baking.

Here is a brief description of the overall method for Slovak Birds Nests from Helen:

Soften butter – mix dough – chill dough
Roll into balls – coat – make indentations – chill
Bake – deepen indentations and add jam – finish baking – cool

Then follows 16 steps on how to bake the cookies. I have reduced the number of steps by omitting the coating and making indentations. Instead, I used round cutters to make the base for the nests from the chilled dough, piped the egg whites mixture around the edges, and placed a dollop of jam in the middle.

Bird’s Nests (Adapted from Helen Gazo’s recipe for Slovak Birds Nests)

Makes about 40

Ingredients:

• 160 g butter or quality margarine
• 2 eggs, whites and yolks separated
• 1½ cup plain flour (all-purpose in US)
• ¼ cup light brown sugar
• ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
• ½ cup white granulated sugar
• 100 g ground walnuts
• a jar of quality jam or jelly

Instructions:

1. Take the butter out of the fridge and let it come to room temperature. Make sure the eggs and the nuts are also at room temperature.
2. Mix the flour and the brown sugar in a medium bowl. Cut the softened butter in the dry ingredients, add the egg yolks and the vanilla extract. Work together until well-combined. Cover with a lid or clingfilm and place in the fridge for 30 minutes.

   

3. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Dust the rolling board with flour. When chilled enough, take the dough out of the fridge and transfer onto the board. Roll the dough out evenly, until it is 4mm (0.15in) thick. Use the round cutter to cut out cookies. Put some flour in the corner of the rolling board and dip the cutter in the flour whenever it gets sticky.

   

4. Whisk the egg whites in a bowl until soft peaks form. Add the white sugar and continue whisking until the whites are slurpy. Finally, fold in the ground nuts.
5. Fold the top half of the piping bag outwards and screw on a large open star piping tip. Spoon the whites mixture into the bag, only filling it halfway. Close the bag and gently push the mixture down towards the tip to release any air pockets. Twist the top of the bag to secure the filling and start piping the mixture around the cookie borders. Refill the bag and repeat the process until you have used all the mixture.
6. Spoon a dollop of the jam in the middle of each cookie and transfer onto the baking sheet. Bake the cookies in the oven preheated to 160°C (325°F) for 7 – 10 minutes or until they are light golden on the edges.