back to cookies

It's no secret I love baking, but I feel like I don't often get the chance to do it. Or more accurately, I don't make the time to do it. I decided to go for it this afternoon and try an experimental butterscotch pecan oatmeal cookie inspired by one I tried at Saint Cupcake (Butterscotch Galore Cookie) this weekend. I went out and bought the butterscotch chips that night in preparation.

Things didn't start off so well when I ended up accidentally measuring out the sugars for a full batch of cookies (I normally make a half batch, doing the math in my head). The logical thing to do would be to start over, but I went with it! Between the butter, sugars, oatmeal, and add-ins, this made about 5 pounds of dough. More cookies to take to work, more dough to freeze, and more to eat now :)

Cooling the butterscotch cookies...

These should make for a very happy Friday!

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Cookie Troubleshooting

Homemade cookies can be challenging. Sometimes your standby favorite cookie recipe(s) can be finicky, who's ever baked a batch and been disappointed when they were too flat or browned too much? Not to mention when trying out a new recipe, it's difficult to know whether the results will be worth it.

I stumbled upon this website which troubleshoots 10 cookie problems and how to correct the issue! (Scroll down to the "Problems" section.) Of course, by the time you've reached many of these results, it's too late to salvage that batch of dough, but at least you'll know for next time. Time to make a batch of cookies!

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monster cookies!

Monster cookies are perhaps my favorite type of cookie. Where else can you get delicious peanut butter, chocolate, and oatmeal bound together by sugar and fat? These things have been on my cooking bucket list for quite some time now; last year I had dreams of turning the momofuku compost cookies into monster cookies, but I never got around to it. Maybe my next batch? Anyway, thekitchn posted this brilliant flourless monster cookie recipe that I finally whipped up with some slight tweaks:

Peanut butter: Maranatha No-Stir Crunchy PB

Mix-ins: 1C M&Ms + 1/2C white chocolate chunks + 1/2C dark chocolate chips

I use a medium sized cookie scoop to form my cookies, then press them down slightly on the pan into fat disks. This method yielded me about 2.5 dozen cookies, plus several big gobs of cookie dough ;)

My other trick with all cookie dough is to freeze the dough into premade disks flat on a cookie sheet, then store them in a big ziploc bag in the freezer. This way I don't bake more cookies than I can eat at a time, plus I have easy access to fresh baked cookies anytime! Throw em on a cookie sheet when ready (still frozen) and cook for a few minutes longer than the original recipe.

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Momofuku's Compost Cookies

I was intrigued when I saw David Lebovitz post about them...really, Bugels in cookies?! But honestly, the picture for Momofuku's Compost Cookies had me at "hello"; slightly puffy, golden brown, and crackly on top, one look and you know they've got to be incredible. Or a master of disguise. Luckily, my rendition is quite fabulous if you ask me. For my add-in ingredients I used the following:

Baking ingredients:
chocolate chips
white chocolate chunks

Snack ingedients:
chocolate covered Pocky
chocolate/goo filled Easter eggs
cheddar sesame sticks
salt and pepper potato chips (thown in just to say "I did it!")

I also made the full sized, 6oz cookies which bake up to the size of a salad plate and are HUGE. Will I be making these cookies again? Probably, but with a different twist. I'm thinking Midwest style monster cookies :)

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an unintentional hiatus

I've been meaning to post something in the past two months, I promise. I'd like to think that things got crazy, but really I got lazy. I've got a growing stack of recipes, but my latest cooking expedition is what really got me on here. If you read the 101 Cookbooks blog, no doubt you saw these chocolate puddle cookies inspired by Nuvrei bakery in Portland's Pearl District.

I just made a half batch of them...and wow. I can't tell if the cookies are overly sweet or not. It's honestly hard to tell. The outside has a slight crunch and inside is a delicious, chocolatey cookie studded with walnuts. A bit rich on their own, pair them with a glass of milk and you'll go back for at least one more. I know I did.

The cookies are really easy to make, though you might not have all the ingredients on hand (who has three cups of walnuts or a pound of powdered sugar laying around?), but I think its worth planning for. And the best part? This is the first cookie recipe I've made in a while that came out perfectly in the first batch! I'll definitely be making these again :)

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The Key to Good Cookies...

I've inadvertently "tested" it myself dozens of times. It's a hard lesson to learn and adapt to, and it'll vary depending on the recipe--the texture/moisture, recommended oven temperature, baking sheet used, etc.

What am I talking about? Not over-baking your cookies!

Someone brought in cookies to work this morning and of course I grabbed one. I'm partial to my own cookies above a lot of others, but these were delicious. The secret? They were perfectly baked, still nice and moist in the middle.

My advice is to watch those cookies closely, as there is a very fine line between perfect and overcooked. Martha Stewart advises to cook until golden around the edges but still soft in the middle, leave on the sheet for a couple minutes, then remove to a rack to cool completely.

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Semolina-Citrus Turbinados

The best way to spend a Sunday? In the kitchen of course! A friend and I made these wonderful cupcakes, along with citrus turbinado sugar cookies and chicken stock of all things. Sadly I don't have the recipe for the cupcakes myself. But the general idea is steeping the milk in earl grey tea. We whipped up a quick lemon cream cheese frosting to finish.


I recently spotted a natural sweetener cookbook--Sweet!--at the library on the new arrivals wall and instantly grabbed it. The gorgeous cover photograph really sealed the deal. When I did take a look inside, I had to buy it. The Semolina-Citrus Turbinados are the second recipe I've tried from it and I haven't been disappointed.

Semolina-Citrus Turbinados from Sweet!

1 C turbinado sugar (Sugar in the Raw brand is everywhere)
zest of 1 orange
1 C flour
3/4 C semolina flour
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter, cold and cubed
2 tbsp lemon juice
1 egg

In a food processor, pulse the sugar and orange zest. Add flours, baking powder, and salt and pulse until blended. Add the cold butter and pulse until you have a bread crumb like texture. In a separate bowl, whisk the egg and lemon juice; add to the food processor, running the machine until the dough forms a ball.

Knead the dough a bit, divide, and form into two 1 1/2" logs. Refrigerate for 2 hours.

Preheat the oven to 350. Slice the dough into 1/4" rounds and place onto a nonstick cookie sheet. Be sure to leave enough room for the cookies to spread a bit. Bake for 12-14 minutes. Keep an eye on them because the sugar may burn quickly. Transfer to a rack to cool. After cooling, spread icing on top of cookies, if desired.

To make the icing:

2 oz cream cheese at room temp
2 tbsp orange juice
1 1/2 C powdered sugar
orange zest, if desired

Whisk the cream cheese and orange juice (and orange zest, if using) until smooth. Add in the powdered sugar and mix well.

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Double Chocolate Espresso Cookies

I can't resist cookies. And these ones are pretty fantastic.

Espresso Cookies

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david lebovitz--revisited

Winter is almost here--


It's been perfect hot chocolate drinking weather...I was out taking pictures this afternoon and needed to warm up. Enter David Lebovitz and his fantastic chocolate recipes. I enjoyed a nice hot cup of hot chocolate (made with soymilk and Ghiradelli's) with marshmallows, and later in the afternoon, fresh baked chocolate chip cookies.


I recently read some new information (new to me anyway) about the proper care of butter in making cookies, from using it at the right temperature to creaming it properly. I was curious and anxious to bake cookies with my new found knowledge.

The cookies ended up pretty flat which I'm not used to, but the flavor is great. I especially love the chocolate chip to dough ratio. The outside is slightly crisp, but the inside is nice and chewy. I will probably make them again just to see if the flatness is due to the recipe or execution. Looking at the ones Heidi made, though, I'm thinking it's on my end...perhaps that butter article wasn't so good after all.

Don't they look tasty?

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bacon cookies!

You either love the idea of pairing bacon with anything and everything, or you think that's the worst idea ever. I personally fall into the latter category--I love perfectly crisp bacon, however, this is the limit of my culinary imagination. Until recently.


I made bacon chocolate chip cookies over a week ago...not too bad. I scoured the internet for more bacon cookie recipes and found a couple that sounded really tasty, including these, originally found here.


The recipe seems to be a basic shortbread style cookie with some crisp chopped bacon thrown in for good measure. The sweetness of the cookie comes exclusively from the maple glaze and the optional (but oh so necessary), caramelized bacon placed on the top.


The caramelized bacon (pictured above) adds extra crunch and bacon flavor. Surprisingly, the bacon within the cookie itself doesn't add much flavor, so this "garnish" is essential.

In the end, I suppose you're a bacon with everything type person or you're not...

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Pumpkin Cookies

I originally tried these at work when a coworker brought some in. I've never eaten anything like them before--soft like a biscuit or muffin, but with the sweetness of a cookie. I had to ask for the recipe. When I got it, I modified it a bit, using a different icing, subbing half the sugar for brown, and adding a bit of salt and vanilla. But in the end, I'm not sure those changes made that much of a difference because these are so good as is.

I did a search for other pumpkin cookie recipes and found a ton of them, each very similar. So apparently I've been out of the loop on this one.



Pumpkin Cookies

1 stick butter, softened
1 cup sugar
1 cup canned pumpkin
1 egg
2 cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp nutmeg
1 tsp baking powder

3 tbsp butter, softened
3 cups powdered sugar
3 tbsp milk
2 tsp vanilla (or try 2-3 tsp maple syrup for variety)

1. Cream the butter and sugar. Add the pumpkin and egg and beat until well combined.
2. Add all the dry ingredients and blend, careful not to overmix.
3. Drop the cookies onto a baking sheet and bake for 10-15 minutes, depending on size. I take mine out when they are a bit firm to the touch on the top, but soft underneath.
4. To make the frosting, combine the last 4 ingredients and whisk until all lumps are gone. Frost the cookies after cooled.
   

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applesauce cookies

This recipe is from the Bob's Red Mill Baking Book. And because I am feeling particularly lazy with this recipe (I made it over a week ago and had every intention of posting it, just hadn't gotten around to doing it), I'll provide a link to the recipe online.

Bob's Red Mill actually has quite an extensive recipe catalog on their website which is great.


Applesauce Cookies: http://www.bobsredmill.com/recipes_detail.php?rid=819

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