Cheddar Pennies

I tried some cheddar pennies at a winery in Prince Edward County and was impressed by their potential.  The ones I bought were actually overcooked and tasted almost burnt, but two or three were not overcooked and those were yummy.  Hence, search for a good recipe for Cheddar Pennies, which taste like shortbread - perhaps because they are shortbread...

Spicy Cheddar Shortbread
makes about 30 cookies  (as pub. in Eat In Eat Out, with correction and no pecans)
oven: 350
cream together
1/2 cup (1 stick) of unsalted butter, room temperature, (or use salted and skip the salt)
1/2 tsp salt
15 grinds black pepper (twee!!  I'm thinking that's about 1/4 - 1/2 tsp)
2 tbls smoked paprika
1 tsp cayenne

then mix in with a wooden spoon:200 grams finely grated sharp cheddar
1 cup unbleached flour
once mixed, use hands to work the dough until it sticks together.  Roll dough into two logs, wrap in parchment paper and stick in fridge for 20 minutes or freeze for later.

Slice rounds 1/4" thick, arrange on cookie sheet, brush with 1 egg white and 1 tsp water mix, salt wth fleur de sel or coursely ground kosher, then bake for 15 minutes (until slightly golden, and don't overbake).

Mark Bittman's version

• 8 tablespoons (1 stick) cold butter, plus more for greasing the pan

• 2 cups grated cheddar cheese

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

• 1 egg, lightly beaten

• 1/2 teaspoon salt

• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne

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• Directions

• Heat the oven to 400°F. Cut the stick of butter into chunks. Grease a baking sheet with more butter. Put all the ingredients in a food processor and pulse several times; as soon as the mixture resembles coarse meal, stop. Turn the dough onto a sheet of plastic, wrap it, and press it gently into a ball. Refrigerate the dough for at least 20 minutes or up to several hours.   (Mixing Shortbread Pulse all the ingredients until the dough is evenly colored and textured; there should be no big lumps. The dough may crumble, but use the plastic wrap to press it into shape. If you pulse to the point where the dough starts to come together, you’ve gone too far.)

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• Pinch off heaping tablespoon-sized pieces of the dough and roll them into 1-inch balls with your hands. (Rotate your hands in opposite directions, using gentle pressure to roll pinches of dough into a ball shape.) Put the balls on the prepared pan, leaving 2 inches between them. Press down on each ball with your fingers to flatten it to 3/4 inch thick. (For a more uniform look, grease the bottom of a drinking or shot glass and use that.) If there is dough left over when the sheet is filled, wait and cook a second batch.

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• Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, until the shortbreads are puffed and golden brown. When they’re cool enough to handle, transfer them to a wire rack and bake the remaining dough. Serve right away or store covered at room temperature for up to 1 day.

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Bon Appetit version

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature

• 1/2 teaspoon salt

• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

• Pinch of cayenne pepper

• 8 ounces extra-sharp white Cheddar cheese, finely shredded

• 1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour

Using electric mixer fitted with whisk attachment, beat together butter, salt, black pepper, and cayenne at low speed just until blended. Add Cheddar and flour and mix at low speed just until smooth (do not overmix). Shape dough into disk, wrap in plastic wrap or waxed paper, and chill 30 minutes.

Arrange racks in upper and lower thirds of oven and preheat to 350°F. Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper.

On lightly floured surface, roll out dough to 1/4- to 1/8-inch-thick round. Using 1 1/2- to 2-inch round cutter, cut out rounds and arrange 1 1/2 inches apart on baking sheets. Reroll scraps if desired (rerolled scraps will be tougher).

Bake shortbread until lightly golden and beginning to brown on edges, about 13 to 15 minutes. Cool on sheets 5 minutes, then transfer to racks to cool completely.