Oak Park's Mary DiSomma shares some family recipes featured in her new cookbook

CHICAGO (WLS) -- A baker from Oak Park is spreading cheer through Christmas cookies.

Mary DiSomma put together a book of family recipes and she is donating the proceeds to charity.

All proceeds from sales of the book are being donated to Hephzibah Children's Association and the Oak Park River Forest Infant Welfare Society, DiSomma said.

DiSomma talked about her book, "A Gift of Cookies: Recipes to Share with Family and Friends" with ABC7 Saturday morning.

Chocolate Espresso Hazelnut Biscotti

From Mary DiSomma Cookbook: A Gift of Cookies - Page 68

Makes 3 dozen biscotti

Ingredients:

Dough:

cup (4 ounces) unsalted butter, softened

cup granulated sugar

cup packed light brown sugar

1 tablespoon instant espresso powder

2 large eggs

1 tablespoon cognac (optional)

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoons cinnamon

teaspoon ground nutmeg

teaspoon salt

1 cup dark chocolate chips

1 cup whole skinned hazelnuts or coarsely chopped walnuts

Preparation:

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream together butter, sugar, brown sugar, and espresso powder. With mixer on low, add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. If using, beat in 1 tablespoon cognac.

Beat until light and fluffy.

2. In a separate bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt. Slowly add

dry ingredients to butter mixture. Mix until just combined. Add chocolate chips and hazelnuts,

mixing until just incorporated.

3. Form dough into two logs that are 2-inches wide by 12-inches long. Place logs on a parchment lined sheet pan 3 inches apart.

4. Bake logs for about 25 minutes or until firm and bottoms are golden brown. Remove from oven.

Let cool on pan for 5 minutes. Transfer logs to a cutting board. Using a serrated knife, slice

on a 45-degree angle into inch slices. Place slices cut side down on the sheet pan. Bake

for 10 minutes. Turn biscotti over and bake for an additional 10 minutes. Transfer biscotti to a

cooling rack. Once completely cool, transfer to an airtight container.

Nutty Peanut Butter Cookies

From Mary DiSomma's Cookbook: A Gift of Cookies - Page 85

Makes 36 cookies

Dough:

2 cups all-purpose flour

teaspoon baking soda

teaspoon baking powder

teaspoon salt

1 cup (8 ounces) salted butter, softened

1 cup packed dark brown sugar

1 cup granulated sugar

1 cup extra-crunchy peanut butter

2 large eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 cups roasted salted peanuts, ground in a food processor to resemble breadcrumbs, or 1 cup of the packed ground peanuts.

Preparation:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream together butter with the two sugars until fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the peanut butter and beat until combined. Add the eggs, one at a time, followed by the vanilla. Gently fold in the dry ingredients. Add the ground peanuts and stir gently until just incorporated.

2. Using a medium cookie scoop or 1 tablespoons of dough, form dough into large balls. Place them 2 inches apart on a parchment-lined sheet pan. Press each ball of dough with a fork dipped in cold water to create a crosshatch pattern.

3. Bake until cookies are puffy and slightly browned along the edges, about 10 to 12 minutes. The cookies will not look fully baked. Let cookies cool on the sheet pans for 5 minutes before transferring to cooling racks. Once cooled, place cookies in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 7 days.

Grandma Papaleo's Lemon Knot

From Mary DiSomma Cookbook: A Gift of Cookies - page 201

Ingredients:

Dough Makes 6 dozen cookies

1 cup (8 ounces) unsalted butter

1 cup granulated sugar

5 large eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

cup fresh lemon juice

cup fresh orange juice

Zest of 2 lemons

Zest of 1 orange

6 cups all-purpose flour

1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon baking powder

teaspoon salt

Glaze

5 cups confectioners' sugar

3 tablespoons water

3 tablespoons lemon juice

Preparation:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream together butter, and sugar

until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.

Beat in the vanilla, juices, and zests.

2. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt. Gradually add the flour

mixture to the butter mixture. Mix until just incorporated. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap

and let dough rest for 30 minutes.

3. Portion out a large tablespoon of dough. With lightly floured hands, roll it into a 4-inch rope.

Take one side of dough and spiral it into a circle.

Tuck the other end up or down. Place formed cookies on parchment-lined sheet pan. Bake for

12 minutes or until bottoms are lightly browned.

Let cookies set on sheet pans for 5 minutes, then transfer cookies to cooling racks.

4. Prepare the glaze. In a bowl, combine sifted confectioners' sugar, water and fresh lemon

juice. Stir until smooth. Add more confectioners' sugar or water to get the desired consistency.

Dip cookie top side down into icing. Turn cookies and place back on wire rack to dry. Let

dry completely. Store in an airtight container.