Santas Hat Recipes

SANTA HATS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 200 degrees F (95 degrees C). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
• Beat egg whites in a bowl until they form soft peaks; beat cream of tartar and vanilla extract into egg whites. Gradually beat white sugar into mixture until meringue forms stiff peaks. Transfer 1/4 of the meringue mixture into a separate bowl. Beat red food coloring into remaining 3/4 of meringue.
• Transfer colored meringue into a piping bag fitted with a round tip. Pipe 20 Santa hat shaped triangles, about 1 1/2 inch tall and bending over at the tips, onto the parchment paper-lined baking sheet. Sprinkle the hats with red sugar.
• Transfer remaining 1/4 uncolored meringue into a clean piping bag fitted with a round tip. Pipe little white pom-poms onto each hat tip and a small edging of fluffy white trim onto the bottom of each hat.
• Bake meringue cookies in the preheated oven until hard but not browned, about 1 hour and 20 minutes. Turn off oven and let cookies cool inside oven until crisp, 1 hour.

MERINGUE SANTA HATS

Steps:

• Place egg whites in a small bowl; let stand at room temperature 30 minutes., Preheat oven to 250°. Add cream of tartar and vanilla to egg whites; beat on medium speed until foamy. Gradually add sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time, beating on high after each addition until sugar is dissolved. Continue beating until stiff glossy peaks form., Cut a small hole in the tip of a pastry bag or in a corner of a food-safe plastic bag; insert a #8 round tip. Fill bag with one-fourth of the meringue; set aside. Prepare a second piping bag, using a #12 round tip; fill with remaining meringue., Using bag with the #12 tip, pipe 36 Santa hat triangles (2 in. tall) onto parchment-lined baking sheets. Sprinkle with red sugar. Use first bag to pipe white trim and pompoms on hats., Bake 40-45 minutes or until firm to the touch. Turn off oven (do not open oven door); leave meringues in oven 1 hour., Remove hats from paper. Store in an airtight container at room temperature.

CHEERY CHEESECAKE SANTA HATS

Steps:

• For the red velvet crust: Adjust the oven racks to the middle and bottom of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees F. Spray a 13-by-9-inch metal baking pan with nonstick cooking spray. Place a double layer of parchment into the pan so that it overhangs the long sides; spray the parchment with cooking spray.
• Add half of the cookies to the bowl of a food processor and pulse until the cookies resemble crumbs. Drizzle in half of the butter and half of the red dye, pulsing until it's all incorporated. Remove the first batch to a large bowl and repeat the with the remaining cookies, butter and dye. Combine both batches, then pour the cookie mixture into the prepared baking pan, using your hands to press the crust down to make one even layer. Bake for 10 minutes.
• For the filling: Beat the cream cheese, granulated sugar and vanilla together in a stand mixer using a paddle attachment. Add the eggs one at a time, beating after each addition. Add the sour cream and mix again. Pour the filling over the crust and smooth the top.
• Put a large roasting pan with water on the bottom rack of the oven and put the pan with the cheesecake on the top rack. Bake until the cheesecake is set and no longer jiggly, about 45 minutes.
• Turn off the oven, open the oven door and allow the pan to sit in the open oven for 15 minutes. Remove and allow to cool for at least 2 hours. Once cooled at room temperature, refrigerate to chill for another 2 hours.
• To assemble: Remove the cheesecake from the baking pan. Using a 2-inch round pastry cutter, carefully punch out 15 cheesecake circles. Remove them to a serving platter. Refrigerate while you make the mascarpone cream.
• For the whipped mascarpone cream: Add the cream to the bowl of a mixer fitted with the whisk attachment and whip to stiff peaks. Add the mascarpone and confectioners' sugar and mix until well combined and smooth. Transfer the mixture to a piping bag fitted with a number 12 pastry tip.
• For the Santa hats: Pipe a rim of the mascarpone cream around the top of each cheesecake circle. Put an inverted strawberry into the center of each and top with a tiny blob of the mascarpone cream. Chill to set.
• To assemble the snow scene: Arrange the Santa hats on a cake stand, place the miniature Christmas trees, reindeer and sleigh and cowboy Christmas figurines around and dust with confectioners' sugar snow.