Category Archives: Cookies

Rocky Road Cookies

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And now it’s January. How did that happen? Time is starting to go by way too quickly.  The new year reminds me of what I have not done in my life yet. It frustrates me. I’m starting to feel old. It’s 2012! That means that I’m going to be 25 this year. Remember on newlyweds when Jessica Simpson had a break down because she was turning 23 and that’s half way to 25, which is half way to 30. I’m starting to feel like that. Except I’m going to be 25! And I haven’t made my millions and bought a mansion in the hollywood hills with a ruggedly handsome man yet. What was she freaking out about?

Regardless of feeling old and not where I thought I would be by now, I know one thing… I make a mean cookie. I found a recipe that worked for me about 5 years ago and I adjust it depending on what I have on hand or what I feel like.This time I decided to make rocky road cookies…  And then I decided that I wanted a more brownies like chocolate cookie that has a shiny exterior instead of a cocoa based chocolate cookie that my standard recipe would produce. I kept looking for recipes and they all had white chocolate chips instead of marshmallows and I was really disappointed. I wanted the gooey marshmallows in mine!  In the back of my head I knew there was a reason for not baking marshmallows… they dissolve into a puddle of sugary goop in the oven. I know this. But still… I wanted them in there and maybe if my cookies weren’t in the oven too long they would survive. And if they don’t I’ll use some white chocolate too so at least they have the white chunks to visually look like rocky road.

I ended up finding a recipe for “outrageous chocolate cookies” by Martha Stewart and just changed what I added into the cookies to make them rocky road.  The marshmallows melted as expected. But these still tasted delicious! And the marshmallow that spilled out while baking caramelized and became crunchy and a sliver lining to the melting. Totally on my make again list.

Recipe (adapted from Martha Stewart)

8 ounces semisweet chocolate, roughly chopped

4 tablespoons unsalted butter

2/3 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 large eggs

3/4 cup packed light-brown sugar

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1 cup walnuts

1/2 cup white chocolate chips

1/2 cup mini marshmallows

Directions

  1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
  2. Heat chopped chocolate and butter in a microwave-safe bowl in 20-second increments, stirring between each, until almost melted; do not overheat. Let cool
  3.  In another bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt.
  4. Add beat eggs, brown sugar, and vanilla into the melted chocolate.
  5.  Mix in flour mixture until just combined.
  6. Stir in white chocolate, marshmallows and nuts.
  7. Drop heaping tablespoons of dough 2 to 3 inches apart onto baking sheets. 
  8. Bake, rotating sheets halfway through, until cookies are shiny and crackly yet soft in centers, 12 to 15 minutes. 

Cool on baking sheets 10 minutes; transfer to a wire rack to cool completely… or eat them hot and burn your mouth like me!

P.S I’m going to be a better blogger starting now! Football season is over and I can no longer use my excuse of being in Hawaii for the holidays as an excuse. Get ready to see a lot more of me!

check these out on http://sweet-as-sugar-cookies.blogspot.com/

Caramel Brownies

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The last few weeks have been very stressful. Things are moving a mile a minute and I’m juggling more things than ever and it’s somewhat overwhelming at times. Maybe it’s just the time of year, or maybe it’s this whole being an adult thing. Either way… life is really getting in the way of baking. When Friday night rolled around, I was excited to bake. While everyone else my age was getting ready to head out to the bars I threw on sweat pants preheated my oven and turned on the embarrassing teen dramas I secretly DVR.

I was going to make brownies. Not just any brownies, but caramel filled brownies for my boyfriend’s sister. She was recovering from surgery, and let’s me honest, how can brownies not make someone feel better? Just making them makes me feel better. I think it’s the smell of chocolate melting, or licking the bowl, or the smell of them baking, or all of the above that I love so much about making brownies.

While I’m usually quite modest, I have to say… my brownies are beyond awesome. I haven’t made them in a few months and I was surprised when I was eating them that I forgot how good they are! I found a recipe a few years back that was very successful for me and played around it with it many times to come up with a recipe of my own. I basically upped the amount of chocolate in the recipe, added a tiny bit of instant espresso and played around with different types of chocolate until I found what I think tastes best. I like to use a combination of milk and semisweet chocolate instead of only semi sweet or unsweetened. I think it makes a better tasting, more universally liked treat. I also like to add different things to the center, not mixed in.

I tried something different this time and put some Ghirardelli caramel filled squares in the center. These were amazing. The caramel oozes out of the brownies as you eat them, even when they are no longer warm. And when they are warm they are extra gooey. I’m thinking of trying this with the raspberry filled squares next or peppermint patties. And it will not be a few months before I make another batch.

Recipe

3/4 cup butter

1 1/3 cup (8oz) chocolate (half milk, half semi sweet)

1/2 teaspoon instant espresso

3 eggs, room temperature

1 3/4 cups sugar

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 1/4 cup flour

9 Ghirardelli caramel filled squares

Directions

  • Preheat the oven to 350°F and grease a 8 x 8 inch pan and line with parchment paper. The parchment paper will let you lift the brownies up out of the pan so you can easily cut them
  • Melt the butter and chocolate together in a glass bowl over boiling water
  • Stir in the espresso
  • as the chocolate mixture cools, In a separate large bowl whisk the eggs and sugar.You want the eggs to get light and fluffy and increase in volume a bit. 
  • add the vanilla.
  • Make sure the chocolate is about body temperature (yes by sticking your finger in it – and licking clean) and add to the eggs. mix well
  • Next add the flour and salt. Mix until everything is barely incorporated. Do not over mix your brownies. 
  • pour half of the batter into the pan
  • next place the 9 caramel filled squares on top
  • cover with the remaining batter and place in oven to bake for about 45 minutes. 
  • let the brownies cool for about 30 minutes before lifting them out of the pan and cutting them.

 

Oatmeal Dark Chocolate Cookies

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I have tried and failed enough times over the years to say I know what I’m doing when it comes to the cookie. A few years back I stumbled across a recipe for chocolate chip, I don’t remember where, but it was perfect. It was chewy in the center, a crunchy edge and a nice buttery flavor.  I stopped looking for a better recipe once I found this one. I have tinkered with the types of chocolate, method and cooking time to fit my preferences, but never strayed far from the foundation of the recipe.

I love this recipe because I know I can whip out a batch of scratch made, love filled cookies in under an hour. The secret is getting your ingredients room temperature without sacrificing the integrity of them. #1 butter – when it is in the wrapper, you can microwave it for about 7 seconds at a time flipping it to get it soft without completely melting one side. #2 eggs – to get them luke warm right out of the fridge, put them in a bowl with hot water for about 5 minutes. Works like a charm every time. I use the tricks all the time with cookies, cakes, anything I’m making without the forethought to take things out of the fridge hours before.

Anyways, my mom really wanted cookies. But lately I’ve wanted to make things that I can work on making better. So I stepped out of the chocolate chip box and went for oatmeal – Oatmeal dark chocolate currant to be exact. I used my basic chocolate chip recipe with some tweaks. The results were pretty good, but I feel like there is room for improvement. Next time, I will use another egg – the dough seemed to dry, and I feel like the finished product could have been fluffier with the addition of an extra egg.

Recipe (my own)

½ cup (1 stick) butter

½ cup sugar

½ cup molasses

1 egg

1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract

1 cup flour

1 cup oats

½ teaspoon baking powder

½ teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon cinnamon

½ teaspoon salt

6 oz (1 cup) dark chocolate chunks

1 cup currants (or raisins)

Directions

  • Preheat oven to 350° F, line 2 cookie sheets with parchment or silpats and take all cold ingredients out of the fridge to bring to room temperature.
  • In a small bowl mix flour, oats, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. Set aside
  • Beat butter sugar and molasses together with a hand mixer until light and very fluffy (about 5 minutes) 
  • Add egg and vanilla extract and beat for another 5 minutes. You want the mixture to look like a butter cream.
  • Add the dry ingredients, and mix until almost everything is incorporated
  • add the chocolate and dried fruit
  • beat until everything comes together, but do not over mix (makes for a tough cookie)
  • using an ice cream scoop that is between 1½ and 2 inches large, scoop cookies into the prepared baking sheets.  The cookies will come out of the scoop easiest, if you wet the scoop first. 
  • gently flatten the cookies with wet hands (once again, this prevents the dough from sticking)
  • Bake cookies for 10-12 minutes (depending on your oven) rotating about halfway through
  • When taking the cookies out of the oven slide the parchment or silpat off the sheet right away, this will help the cookies stop cooking.
  • Let cool… or not