drunken fruit.

After coming down with a severe allergic reaction to fruitcake, theme-nights got tossed out of the window. That makes me sad as I'm one of those weird people who simply *adores* fruitcake. :'( I found it a little odd that i'd get such a reaction though...I've been eating that fruitcake brand for years! Oh welll....

1 So in an effort to make myself feel better, I decided to make myself some cookies that mimicked fruitcake. Rum? Check! Dried fruit? Check! Everything that I wanted was almost all in this recipe. So, I added some walnuts for texture. Also, for New Years, my mother had sent me some biscotti that was laced with the flavor of anise. I thought they had an awesome flavor profile, so I went ahead and added some anise seed to the mix.

True to the author's word, these cookies aren't that sweet. The rum in the cranberries added the boozy flavor i was looking for and the slight crunch from the walnuts gave them a nice texture. The anise is prominent, which was exactly what I was going for. To me, these buttery cookies came out exactly how I wanted them to. :D

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Rum-Soaked Cranberry and Walnut Shortbread Cookies
(adapted from Everybody Likes Sandwiches)

1 cup dried cranberries
1/2 cup rum
1 cup butter, softened
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup powdered sugar
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp baking powder
2 tsp anise seed
1/2 cup walnuts, crushed

In a small saucepan, bring cranberries and rum to a boil. Remove from heat and let stand for 30 minutes until the rum is absorbed into the cranberries. Set aside to cool.

Cream butter, vanilla and sugar together. In another bowl, mix flour, salt, baking powder, anise, and walnuts – add gradually to the creamed mixture. Add the dried cranberries, stirring until just combined.

Shape dough into 2 rolls, about 1 1/2″ each in diameter. Wrap tightly in parchment paper and refrigerate for at least 2 hours or overnight.

When ready to bake, preheat oven to 350F. Slice each log into cookies about 1/4″ thick and place on a prepared cookie sheet lined with ungreased parchment paper. Cookies don’t spread very much, so you can bake more at once if you like. Bake for about 20 to 25 minutes or until the edges are lightly golden. Cool on a wire rack. Sprinkle with powdered sugar if desired.