Book of Days Tales

Today is Global Wind Day, a worldwide event first celebrated on 15 June 2007 (called simply Wind Day at the time). Not coincidentally, this date in 1752 is the traditional date set for Ben Franklin’s kite flying experiment meant to prove that lightning is electricity. The purpose of the celebration is to enjoy and learn about the many uses of wind power. Harnessing the wind is an expanding green technology increasingly used to reduce global dependence on fossil fuels, and to limit the harmful effects of the release of the products of combustion into the atmosphere. But with little effort we can all come up with the many uses of wind power that affect our lives both for practical purposes and for pleasure.

I have long had a fascination with different ways to harness the wind from kite flying to sail boats, but nothing rivals windmills for me.  Windmills of one sort or another have been employed to convert wind power into usable energy since antiquity, the main uses being grinding food materials (as the “mill” part suggests) and pumping water.  The chief problem to overcome in all employment of the wind is its erratic nature, both in terms of force and direction. Every sailor (“user of sails”) knows the frustration of trying to sail a boat when there is no wind. Fossil fuel powered ships replaced sailing ships in the nineteenth century for precisely this reason.

Windmill cookies are a great favorite in the Netherlands. Usually they are made using special wooden molds, which I would guess most of you do not have lying around in that kitchen drawer full of utensils you never use. Admit it – we all have one of those drawers.  But here’s a recipe for windmill cookies that does not require special equipment. They are nice and spicy, and shaped like the sails of a windmill.

Dutch Windmill cookies

Ingredients

¼  cup (.6 dl) sour cream
½ (2.5 gm) teaspoon baking soda
1 ¾ cups (225 g) all-purpose flour
½ (2.5 gm) teaspoon salt
½ (2.5 gm) teaspoon ground cinnamon
½ (2.5 gm) teaspoon ground nutmeg
¼ (1.2 gm) teaspoon ground cloves
1 cup (220 gm) firmly packed brown sugar
½ cup (113 gm) unsalted butter, softened
sliced almonds

Instructions:

Pre-heat oven to 350°F/175°C.

Stir the sour cream and baking soda together in small bowl and set aside.

Combine the flour, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves in medium bowl.

Combine the brown sugar and butter in a large bowl. Beat at medium speed until creamy.

Reduce the speed to low and add the sour cream mixture. Beat until well mixed.

Add the flour and spice mixture. Continue beating to form a smooth dough.

Divide the dough in half. Wrap  half in plastic food wrap and refrigerate.

Roll out the remaining half of dough, on a lightly floured surface, to an 8 ¾ inch (22.25 cm) square.

Cut 7 strips horizontally, and then vertically to create 49 squares. Cut each square diagonally to create 98 triangles.

For each cookie, place 4 triangles on to ungreased cookie sheets in the shape of a toy windmill on a stick.. Place sliced almonds in the center, pressing down lightly to make sure the triangles make one cookie. Repeat with the remaining triangles (you will have one bit left over which you can bake and eat in the kitchen without anyone knowing).

Bake for 7 to 11 minutes or until golden.

Let cool 2 minutes on the cookie sheets, then remove the cookies to a wire cooling rack.

Repeat this process with the second batch of dough.

Yield: 4 dozen cookies