brown sugar cookies I randomly stumbled upon this recipe last night while poking around on Chow. Apparently the recipe is from Cooks Illustrated. I decided to make them because I had all the ingredients on hand, and people on Chowhound were raving. The only thing I regret about making these, is that I didn't double the recipe. Brown Sugar Cookies Makes 2 Dozen Cookies 14 tablespoons unsalted butter (1 3/4 sticks) 1/4 cup granulated sugar (about 1 3/4 ounces) 2 cups packed dark brown sugar (14 ounces) 2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour plus 2 tablespoons (about 10 1/2 ounces) 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 1/4 teaspoon baking powder 1/2 teaspoon table salt 1 large egg 1 large egg yolk 1 tablespoon vanilla extract Heat 10 tablespoons of the butter in a pan over medium-high heat until melted. Bake sheets one at a time until cookies are puffy and lightly browned, about 12- 14 minutes.
Chocolate thumbprints It’s been a while since I last made ice cream and, even with the cold days here, I sometimes feel like having a scoop or two... :DNext time I make ice cream I know exactly where to go for inspiration: the issue #9 of Desserts Magazine is full of delicious ice cream recipes! And my sweet corn ice cream is there, too. In the winter, I’ll take any excuse to turn the oven on to get the kitchen warm and cozy, and that’s much better when there are cookies involved. Chocolate thumbprints Cookie dough:½ cup (113g/1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature½ cup (70g) confectioners' sugar, sifted¼ teaspoon salt1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract1 ¼ cups (175g) all-purpose flour, sifted Filling:2 tablespoons (28g) unsalted butter, room temperature56g (2oz) semisweet chocolate, chopped1 teaspoon light corn syrup Preheat the oven to 180ºC/350ºF; line two baking sheets with baking paper. * I used this measuring spoon to make the indentations on the hot cookies Makes 2 dozen – I got 30
Snickerdoodles It's actually pretty surprising that snickerdoodles haven't ended up on this blog before now. I love them! I have tried a few recipes and while they are all tasty, my favorite kind is more on the chewy to cakey side. These cookies (recipe from Martha Stewart) are not that. They do taste good, but they are more of the crisp to crumbly type cookie and for snickerdoodles that just isn't my favorite. The snickerdoodles this month were the winning vote for the Cookie Carnival - that monthly celebration of cookie goodness created by darlin' Kate over at The Clean Plate Club. Oh, and you'll also notice that I got a little bit silly and decided to just mix in some M&M's to half of the dough, just for fun. Snickerdoodles(Source: Martha Stewart) IngredientsMakes 4 dozen Directions Preheat the oven to 400 degrees, with one rack in top third and one rack in bottom third of oven. Sift together flour, cream of tartar, baking soda, and salt; set aside.
great cookies So, here's what we're gonna do: I'm changing this whole thing up a bit. Instead of just posting my favorite cookie from the 10 most recent recipes, I'm going to organize them from the BEST to the NOT SO BEST (they're all good--no "worst"). Here we go, let's do this: 1st place: Pecan Bars This was a no-brainer right? I mean, seriously, if you tasted these--or even just read my entry on them, you'd know from the get go that these were winners. 2nd place: Peanut Crisps Okay, maybe not everyone who has tried all of the cookies I've baked so far would agree that these deserve to be the runner-up, but I was hardcore addicted to these cookies! 3rd place: Cakey Chocolate Chip Cookies These were just winners. 4th place: Lemon Squares I would have given these a higher rating if I was solely judging them on flavor, but the recipe itself was a royal pain in the ass. 5th place: Chocolate Thumbprints It's all about the quality of chocolate that you use in these cookies that makes them so delicious.
Dark Chocolate Cookies Dear Girl (that sat next to me on the plane last night), Hi. How are you? This is just a quick note to let you know that you sat on my glasses. I understand that there are two active parties in this tragedy. My favorite part about you sitting on my glasses, was how you showed exactly zero remorse for the damage you caused. Oh well, they’re just glasses, right? Sincerely, Joy And now… dark chocolate cookies. I love big, soft, brownie-like cookies. Dark Chocolate, Walnut and Golden Raisin Cookies adapted from King Arthur somewhere Print this Recipe! 8 ounces good quality bittersweet chocolate , 60%-72%(chopped or in chips) 3 Tablespoons (1 1/2 ounces) butter 1 cup sugar 3 large eggs 1 teaspoon espresso powder 1 teaspoon vanilla 1 cup all-purpose flour 1/4 teaspoon baking powder 1/4 teaspoons salt 1 cup chocolate chips 1 cup chopped walnuts 3/4 cup golden raisins In a double boiler, or in the microwave, gently melt together the chocolate and butter. re using them. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.
Vampire Cookies Every year I see lots of Halloween cupcakes and cakes that are rather boring in their decorations. They may have faces of ghosts or vampires painted on top with colored icing, but that really doesn’t do much to set them apart from non-holiday cupcakes. Halloween is one of my favorite holidays and I think it’s fun to go over-the-top where ever possible and really take decorations as far as they can go. I did this last Halloween by creating Vampire Cupcakes – cupcakes filled with a blood-red cherry pie filling that “bled” when you bit into them. This year, I wanted to start a little collection of vampire Halloween goodies and opted to try my hand at making vampire cookies. Like the cupcakes, I wanted the cookies to be a pale white color and filled with something bright red. I made the bite marks by poking two holes in the dough with a toothpick before baking. The cookies have a light vanilla and butter flavor to them, and are the perfect color to really set off the red of the filling.
XXX cookies The word "adult" is a curious word. Logically, it should mean the opposite of childish. Being an adult should mean that you've put away childish things and are ready to buckle down to tackling the weightier issues of life. Wouldn't you think that an adult bookstore would be one that carries the collected works of Shakespeare, Dostoyevsky, and Thomas Paine? Instead, adult bookstores and theaters are all about porn, smut, and leather. The cookbook Deep Dark Chocolate describes these cookies as adult cookies. XXX Cookies - adapted from Deep Dark Chocolate 3 oz premium dark chocolate, chopped1/4 cup unsalted butter, cut into pieces1 cup all-purpose flour3 Tbsp premium unsweetened cocoa powder1 tsp baking powder2-1/2 tsp chili powder or your favorite pepper blend, divided1/2 tsp ground mace1/4 tsp salt2 large eggs, at room temperature1 cup granulated sugar1 tsp vanilla extract (Mexican is preferable)3 Tbsp premium cacao nibs, chopped into small bits1/2 cup sifted powdered sugar
graham crackers Let’s say I was an alien, or new here or something — er, not entirely impossible, if you consider that I woke up yesterday with small feet fidgeting way further up my rib cage than I thought anatomically possible, leading me to wonder what I actually know about anatomy, leading to an inadvisable, rash amount of Google Image searching, leading to my eyes popping out of my head and whoa, I’ve digressed mightily — and I asked you to explain to me what is this “graham cracker” flavor that you speak of, could you do it? Because I’ve spent a ridiculous amount of time trying to figure out what it was, and seeing the wide range of graham cracker — they’re something like digestive biscuits, for those of you across the pond — recipes out there, it’s not just me. There was the one I tried a couple years ago with rye flour, which I can assure you, was not the answer. Anyway, I stopped searching the first time I made Nancy Silverton’s graham crackers.
sandwich cookies On my way to Target this morning, I remembered I had promised to make some cookies for a little Easter party in my daughter’s kindergarten class. These pastel sandwich cookies are a variation of a Valentine’s cookie I make with strawberry jam and semi-sweet chocolate. Apparently I work well under pressure, because I was able to whip them up in just over an hour. Since I had to rush to get them done for morning kindergarten, I didn’t take any how-to photographs. But you’re all quite smart, so I’m sure you’ll manage without them. I found those little confetti at a health food store, and they’re all natural. white chocolate dipped easter egg sandwich cookies 2 sticks (226g) unsalted butter at room temperature 2/3 cup (125g) sugar 1/2 teaspoon vanilla 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt 2 cups (300g) unbleached all-purpose flour 8 ounces (225g) peach jam, pureed in the food processor 6-8 ounces (170g-225g) white chocolate 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.
Fig Cookies Maybe not so photogenic, these cookies are amazingly good. There are a lot of similar recipes around, and I, myself, have tried about four or five of them. But I’m not in search for the perfect recipe anymore, I’m quite content and happy with this one. I bake exactly the same cookies for three years in a row for Christmas (they are traditional Italian Christmas cookies) and every single recipient always raves. They are a bit time consuming to make, but a prep, broken in stages, makes it relatively easy to put together. Adapted from Gourmet magazine Makes about 6 dozens For the filling: For the dough: 4 cups all-purpose flour1 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar1 tablespoon baking powder1 teaspoon salt2 sticks (1 cup) cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes2 large eggs, lightly beaten1/2 cup whole milk1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla1 teaspoon finely grated fresh orange For the icing: Make the filling: The filling can be made 1 week ahead and chilled, covered. Make the dough: Form the cookies:
Cocoa Wafers Cocoa Wafers These are the cookies I always use for my cheesecake crusts since they are so easy to make and the flavor is nothing comparing to store bought cookies. Crispy throughout, the wafers are also great accompany to a cup of coffee or ice-cream. Use a good quality cocoa for the best result. The recipe is from Alice Medrich. Makes about fifty to sixty cookies Ingredients: 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour¾ cup unsweetened cocoa powder (natural preferred)1 cup plus 2 tbsp sugar¼ tsp salt¼ tsp baking soda14 tbsp (1 ¾ sticks) unsalted butter, slightly softened3 tbsp whole milk1 tsp pure vanilla extract Preparation: Combine the flour, cocoa, sugar, salt, and baking soda in the bowl of food processor and pulse several times to combine. Form the dough into a log about 14 inches long and 1 ¾ inches in diameter. Center an oven rack and preheat the oven to 350 F. The cookies should crisp up as they cool. The cookies may be stored airtight for up to 2 weeks or frozen up to months. You might also like:
Viennese Chocolate Sablés Viennese Chocolate Sablés Recipes from Pierre Hermé guarantee a success. Don’t they? :) These cookies are from his “Chocolate Desserts “. Makes about 4 dozens Ingredients: 1 ¾ cups plus 1 ½ tbsp all-purpose flour5 tbsp Dutch-processed cocoa powder2 sticks plus 1 ½ tbsp unsalted butter, at room temperature¾ cup plus 2 tbsp confectioners’ sugar, siftedPinch of salt3 tbsp lightly beaten egg whites (lightly beat 2 large egg whites, then measure out 3 tbsp)Confectioners’ sugar for dusting (optional) Preparation: Position the racks to divide the oven into thirds and preheat the oven to 350 F. Whisk together the flour and cocoa. It’s easier to work with this dough in batches. Bake the cookies for 10-12 minutes – no more – or until they are set but neither browned nor hard. You might also like: