Recipe: Danish wreath cookies

Danish wreath cookies

Total time: 1 1/2 hours

Servings: Makes about 8 dozen cookies (yield will vary depending on piping tip used and size of cookies)

Note: Adapted from Henrik Gram of Hygge Bakery in L.A. This recipe works best using a cookie press or spritzer; the dough can be piped by hand, though it can be very firm and difficult to pipe. The bakery pipes these cookies using a half-inch-size star piping tip. The cookies will vary depending on whether margarine or butter is used; the cookies will color a bit more quickly if using butter.

1 cup sugar

1/4 vanilla bean, seeded

1 cup (2 sticks) plus 2 tablespoons margarine or salted butter, at room temperature

2 eggs, at room temperature

3 cups plus 2 tablespoons (13 1/2 ounces) flour

1. Heat the oven to 425 degrees.

2. In a medium bowl, combine the sugar and vanilla seeds. Stir together until the seeds are evenly distributed with the sugar and there are no lumps.

3. In the bowl of a stand mixer, or in a large bowl using a hand mixer, beat together the margarine and vanilla sugar until light and fluffy, 3 to 5 minutes. Beat in the eggs, one at a time. Beat in the flour, a tablespoon at a time, until fully combined to form a dough.

4. Place some of the dough into a piping bag fitted with a one-half-inch-thick star tip. Pipe the dough onto a parchment-lined baking sheet in the shape of a wreath (each wreath will be a scant 2 inches in diameter), spacing the wreaths at least one-half-inch apart. Bake the cookies until lightly colored and set, 8 to 10 minutes. Cool the cookies, still on the sheet pan, until firm, 5 to 10 minutes.

Each of 8 dozen cookies: 43 calories; 1 gram protein; 5 grams carbohydrates; 0 fiber; 2 grams fat; 0 saturated fat; 4 mg. cholesterol; 2 grams sugar; 26 mg. sodium.