Mocha Latte Biscotti

You would think that by this point in my life, the "holy crap I am almost a quarter century old" point, I would make more sense, at least to myself.  But, alas, it is not to be the case.  I am still a confusing mystery, especially to myself.  Here, let me prove it to you:

I am surprised every  month on the 11th that my cable/internet bill is due.  It just doesn't make sense in my head.  Plus, I believe internet should be free.  (But I think that's probably mostly because I am cheap...)

I like roasted potatoes with salt, lots of pepper and olive oil, but I make them very rarely.  They're easy to make and quick, I usually have potatoes on hands, but I just don't do it.  I don't know why.

I like fall and I love Thanksgiving, but am also terrified because it only leads to December.  I do not like the cold.  And I really hate the snow.

I am more excited to vote in the election this year than I was 4 years ago.  I realize that I am in a very small, very strange minority.  I only voted 4 years ago because my mom sent me an absentee ballot.

I did solve one mystery though, in my 287th month of life. I finally know well enough to not even bother taking pictures of chocolate dough in a log shape.  It's just going to look like a giant turd and no amount of plating, special-spoon-using, or lighting tricks will change that.  That's a start, right?

Mocha Latte Biscotti
Adapted from the GE website.  I know it's strange, roll with it.

So, I actually got this recipe from GE's HealthAhead website.  HealthAhead is the GE program in which they promote healthy eating, exercising, etc., in the hopes that we don't notice it's all for ulterior motives.  I'm not cynical, it's truth.  I am the oh-so-lucky HealthAhead champion for my site.  It is as terrible as it sounds.  But at least it will help explain why there may be increased blogging about HealthAhead recipes...

For a "healthy" recipe (read, super duper small portion sizes), these were good, as long as you ignored the portion sizes comment.  I love my biscotti and had high hopes for these.  It was chocolate plus espresso for crying out loud.  My hopes weren't dashed, just pretty firmly let down.  I mean, they were good, just not these.  (Truth time: Ben and I finished the whole batch in less than 3 days with no complaints.  I just doubt I would ever make them again).

2 c. flour
1 c. granulated sugar
1/3 c. chopped pecans
1/4 c. unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. kosher salt
2 tsp. espresso powder
2 tsp. hot water
1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
2 eggs
1 egg white

Preheat oven to 325.  Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or silpat.  Lightly sprinkle with flour.

In large bowl combine all dry ingredients, from flour to salt.

In separate bowl, mix together water and espresso powder until the powder has dissolved completely.  Whisk in vanilla, eggs and egg white.  Slowly add wet ingredients to dry, stirring carefully until dough just comes together.

Turn dough out onto a floured surface.  With floured hands, knead a few times.  Dough will be incredibly sticky.  Transfer dough to prepared baking sheet and using your hands, shape dough as best you can into a long long, about 3 inches wide and an inch tall.  Put dough in oven and bake for 30 minutes.  Dough will be hard and lightly browned.

Remove log from baking sheet and let cool on wire rack 10-15 minutes (maintain oven temp).  Using a serrated knife, slice log into 1 inch slices (portion control be damned!) and place back on cooking sheet, cut side down.  Bake at 325 for 10 minutes, then flip biscotti and bake another 8-12 minutes, until biscotti are hard.  Cool on wire rack.  Enjoy with tea!

Almendrados

Have you ever blanched an almond? It's a quizzically satisfying chore to do. And easy too.  An old ex-boyfriend actually taught me the trick. You bring whole almonds to a rolling boil for a few minutes and then drain them. After they cool for a few minutes, you pick up your first almond victim and simply pinch.

With a wet, gratifying slurp, pffft they come popping out of their skins, naked as a brand new baby. You are left with a wet, empty skin and a freshly peeled almond. Just perfect for making almondrettos with.

If that description alone doesn't send you running to the kitchen to put some almonds on to boil, maybe the deliciousness of these cookies will. They are almond through and through, soft and a little chewy when fresh out of the oven; hard, crunchy and biscotti-esque after just one day. They are beautifully, lightly scented with cinnamon that roasts atop while the cookies below bake to a golden hue. And just a little bit of lemon adds the perfect contrast to an almond screaming cookie.  Maybe I am romanticizing a little bit here, but that's just my mood tonight.  Nothing wrong with a little food love, right? And if it leads to a little bit of almond peeling/popping/blanching, in my opinion, that's just a night of good, clean fun.

Almendrados
Adapted from Cooking Light, Dec. 2011

I had leftover almond flour from previous cooking blog missteps.  That seemed easier than peeling almonds and then trying to get them dry enough for pulsing in a food processor.  Additionally, this was a fly-by-the-seat of my apron kind of recipe, made last minute because I almost had all the needed ingredients on hand.  Lemon zest became lemon oil, a fantastic gift from my mom the last time she was in Amish country.  Zest is probably easier to get than lemon oil, so either the oil or the zest of a small lemon.

2 - 2 1/4 c. almond flour
2/3 c. granulated sugar
1/4 tsp. lemon oil
Pinch of salt
1 large egg
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
24-30 whole blanched almonds

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line 2 baking sheets with either sil-pat mats or parchment paper.

Add 2 c. almond flour to bowl of food processor, along with sugar, lemon oil (or zest), salt and egg.  Pulse several times until dough comes together.  It should be slightly sticky, but should all come together.  Add more almond flour as necessary to get to right consistency (I ended up a little shy of 2 1/4 c.)

Turn dough out of food processor.  Using roughly 1 Tbsp. of fough, roll balls slightly smaller than a ping-pong ball.  Place on prepared baking sheet and light squish into a fat disk.  Repeat with remaining dough until all used.  Place cinnamon into a fine mesh sieve and lightly dust the dough disks.  Firmly press a blanched almond in the center of each cookie.

Bake in 350 degree oven for about 16 minutes, until cookies are a golden brown.  Remove from oven and let cool at least 3-4 minutes on the pan (this will help them come up cleaner).  Remove and let finish cooling on wire racks.

Vanilla Orange Biscotti

On Wednesdays, I have 6 am meetings.  As a frame of reference, I am normally trying to convince myself to roll out of bed only after 6 am on weekday mornings.  Needless to say, Wednesdays are not my favorite day of the week.  I am a little less friendly on Wednesdays.  I tend to drink 3 times as much tea on Wednesday.

I thought these early meetings were the worst.  Until this Wednesday.  Now this Wednesday was the worst.  You see, the 6 am meeting got cancelled and nobody told me.

That's right, I got to work at 6:05 (because I am never on time to 6 am meetings, I just can't do it), rushed to the conference room and it was black.  Dark.  Nobody.  I half considered staying in the dark and curling up under the conference table for a quick nap.  Looking back, I totally should have taken the opportunity.  The rest of the work day was a fog.

And then I got home.  I went into my kitchen, did some stuff, and came out with vanilla orange biscotti.  This is a new phenomenon for me, but there is something about zesting an orange that makes you just perk right up.  Horrible memories of 6 am meetings melted as I poured some good, locally made, incredibly alcoholic, vanilla extract into the dough and mixed.  And shaped.  Baked, Cut.  Baked again.

I thought about drizzling chocolate as a finishing touch, unsure how well the naked biscotti would hold up on its own.  But it was completely unnecessary.  Plus it required more time, more effort, and after these came out of the oven the rest of my night went something like this:  biscotti, tea, a little more biscotti while watching Everybody Loves Raymond, bed.  If only every Wednesday would end so well...

Vanilla Orange Biscotti
Adapted from the smitten kitchen, because of course Deb knows how to rock biscotti

Needless to say, BGCB.  These were fantastic and made a good sized batch.  Ben and I were able to somehow make them last 6 days.  They were just as crisp and crunchy the last day as they were the first.  Just make sure they are tucked away, hidden if you actually want them to last at all, in an air tight container and you'll be good to go.  They aren't making it longer than a week though, that's a guarantee!

1 1/2 c. sugar
10 Tbsp. unsalted butter, melted
3 eggs
1 Tbsp. vanilla extract (use your good stuff!)
1 Tbsp. Triple Sec (or other orange liqueur)
1 Tbsp. orange zest
3 1/4 c. all purpose flour
1 Tbsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1 c.sliced almonds
1 large egg white

Preheat oven to 350.  Line cookie sheet with parchment paper or silpat, lightly dusting with flour.

In large bowl, mix sugar, melted butter, eggs, triple sec and orange zest well.  Sift flour, baking powder and salt into wet mixture.  Mix until well blended.  Add almonds and mix until evenly distributed.

Turn dough onto prepared baking sheet.  Using ample flour on your hands (dough is sticky!), divide dough into two even logs, about 2.5 inches wide and 1 inch tall, as far apart as possible on the sheet.  Whisk egg white until frothy and generously brush over dough logs. Bake in 350 oven until golden, about 30 minutes.

Remove logs from oven and allow to cool at least 15 minutes.  If you try to cut them while still warm, you will not have clean cuts.  Once cool, cut logs diagonally into 1/2 inch slices, using a serrated knife.  Discard parchment paper from baking sheet and lie slices cut side down.  Return to 340 oven and bake until golden brown, about 10-12 minutes.  Flip biscotti and return to oven to brown on remaining side, another 8-10 minutes.  Remove biscotti and cool on sheet a few minutes, before transferring biscotti to a rack to cool.  Enjoy!

PS - totally just realized biscotti is both singular and plural.  Or at least I think it is, and that counts for something, right?? 

World Peace Cookies

And against all odds, I am back from Minnesota alive, in one piece, well rested and a better fisherwoman to boot.  Unknown to me at the beginning, Minnesota turned out to be exactly what a late summer vacation should be:

A cup of tea while watching boats bob by the dock in the morning.  Followed by a few hours fishing with some wonderful, funny conversationalists.  Stuffing myself silly every day at lunch on extremely fresh, fried fish and enough sides and goodies to be on par with Thanksgiving.  Napping or reading in the afternoon sun, in front of the lake, with a breeze.  Then of course, a few cold beers and late evening fishing.

It was a perfect enough vacation to make you actually believe that things like world peace, and cookies that could bring about its existence, actually could exist.  Or in the case of these chocolaty, crispy, melty wonders, that they actually do exist.

World Peace Cookies
Who else?  Via the Smitten Kitchen

I've made these twice now.  These are not the gooey chocolate chip cookie kind of cookies.  They are sandy, like shortbread, but with marvelous little pockets of melted dark chocolate.  They're addicting.  Just cut them a little thicker than you think and you're in business.  Also, doubling this recipe just to have a log or two of dough frozen in your freezer is a very, very wise idea.

1 1/4 c. flour
1/3 c. unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
11 Tbsp. unsalted butter, room temp.
2/3 c. light brown sugar
1/4 c. sugar
1/2 tsp. kosher salt
1 tsp. vanilla extract
5 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped in small chunks

In stand mixer with paddle attachment, cream butter on medium speed until pale and creamy.  With mixer running, add both sugars, salt and vanilla.  Beat until mixture is well incorporated and fluffy, a few minutes.

Sift together flour, cocoa and baking soda.  With mixer running on slow speed, gradually add flour to butter as fast as you can.  It will poof and make somewhat of a mess.  It's cool, you'll soon have cookies to keep you company as you clean.  Mix only until just incorporated.  Add chocolate chips and just stir them in.  Try at this point to work the dough as little as possible.

Turn out the dough onto a sheet of plastic wrap.  Eye ball the dough into 2 equal pieces, each on their own sheet of plastic wrap.  Using your hands, roll dough into log, about 1.5 inches thick.  Wrap well in plastic wrap and refrigerate them at least 3 hours, or freeze.  (Deb's note: you can freeze the dough up to 2 months).

Preheat oven to 325 F.

Once very chilled, using a "sharp thin knife, slice the logs into rounds that are 1/2 inch think".  They're going to crumble apart like crazy on you.  Just do your best and squish them back into rounds.  Bake for 12 minutes at 325 degrees F (13 minutes if dough is frozen through).  "They won'y look done, nor will they be firm, but that's just the way they should be".  Let cool on cooling rack, resist the urge to eat immediately.  One, it'll totally burn your tongue.  Learn from my mistakes kids!  Two, they sort of really do taste better just slightly warm or at room temperature.  Share! Enjoy! Go World Peace!

Blueberry Crumble Meringues

The other day while shopping I came across blueberry crumble bread, just sitting there all nonchalant next to the cinnamon raisin bread, as if it had been there all it’s life.  I admit, I gaped at it a little while.  I couldn’t believe it at first.  Blueberry Crumble Bread?  Where had this been all my life and why was I just finding out about it?

Of course I bought a loaf and of course I had eaten two slices, toasted, with a small smear of butter, before I had even finished unpacking groceries.  And it was good, it really was, but by the time I bite into slice number two, I was thinking “ha.  I could so do this better”.  

Needless to say, since then, I can not get that combination out of my head.  Brown sugar! oats! blueberries!  It will be mine!  But, seeing as I am impatient (as well as unwilling to make bread when it is flirting with triple digits outside), I had to find a more practical way.  And then, well, by golly, then I remembered my love of meringues.  I think it was meant to be.  Gah, sometimes I even surprise myself with ideas of pure perfection.

If we were dating, you totally would realize how often I have these ideas of pure perfection and you might blow this one off too, like some people did...  Because of all of my ideas of pure perfection, this is one of the very, very few I've actually ever acted on.  What?  It's just rare that the stars line up in such a way that I have an idea of pure perfection roughly around the same time that I'm actually motivated to do something besides sit on my butt and read all night.  So, it's pretty exciting when it actually does.  Even if an idea of pure perfection works out to be an actuality of slightly less than perfection, like these did.  These have great potential, they just aren't there yet.  Maybe a crumble isn't supposed to be a meringue... but it is very much supposed to be a bread, coming soon to an oven near me

.Blueberry Crumble Meringues
Based on Deb's Chocolate Chip Meringues

If you're a fan of previous meringues found here, don't expect these to be the exact same.  They are tasty, but are different consistency-wise.  The hollow crunch of the chocolate chip meringues is not present; rather, these guys are much more marshmallow like.  I'm thinking the moisture from the brown sugar is the cause of this, but not sure.  Just a heads up!

2 egg whites, room temp
1/4 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. cream of tartar
1 tsp. vanilla
1/2 c. light brown sugar
1/2 c. dried blueberries, chopped
1/4 c. pecans, chopped
1/4 c. oatmeal

Preheat oven to 300°.  Line baking sheet with parchment paper.

In small pan over medium heat, toast chopped pecans for 2-3 minutes until fragrant.  Remove from pan and set aside.  Toast oatmeal in pan until fragrant, about 1 minute, watching carefully so it doesn't burn.  Remove and set aside.

In clean mixing bowl, whip egg whites till frothy.  Add salt, baking powder and vanilla, continue to whip until egg whites hold soft peaks.  In small additions, start adding in sugar, letting mixture whip a few seconds in between each addition.  Whip until stiff.  Gently fold in blueberries, pecans and oatmeal.  Spoon batter by rounded tablespoon onto a prepared baking sheet.  Bake in over for 25 minutes, till undersides are browned and tops are golden.

Gingersnaps

Ok, I might be scraping the bottom of the barrel here a little bit.  But the important thing to remember here is that not only am I keeping my promise that I will write at least once a week, but also that gingersnaps are fantastic.  And that life has been very busy.  So today you are getting gingersnaps. Not that you could really mind a warm gingersnap straight out of the oven with a cold glass of milk.  

Two weeks ago I moved again for the fourth time in one and an half years.  Important boxes have still yet to be unpacked.  After one week at work, I was whisked off to the warm city of Houston for a week of training.   Maybe learned a couple of things and ate a whole lot of crap.  All I want to eat for the next week is egg drop soup. 

But out of love for you, I am going to get back on that saddle.  And hopefully fill my cooking backlog back up.  So I promise to dive back into my magazines today.  I've gotta put my new kitchen to the test.

Gingersnaps
From mom's gray tin recipe box

Recipe to come soon!  It's at home and I still am not...

Cardamom Macaroons

I really did think that once I had finished this move, I would be able to dive right back into the cooking and the eating and the blogging.  But then my entire silverware drawer got left back in the grand city of Terre Haute, IN and I have no forks, no spoons, no knives of any kind, not even a hot pad to my name right now.  Until I bought a small box of plastic silverware, I was eating my breakfast oatmeal with a large plastic mixing spoon.  I am often the epitome of classy.  So, until my beloved silverware drawer (rolling pins included) arrives, we shall venture further into my cooking backlog, which due to recent events has become quite thin.  Too thin for my liking...

If you are like me you have been hearing the word cardamom being thrown around a lot more often lately and you have no idea what it tastes like or even smells like.  About the 12th time it came up in a recipe, I figured I had to bite the bullet and try it.  And then I realized that one little bottle costed on the high side of $13 at my local grocery store.  I'm cheap and we all know that wasn't going to happen.  Luckily , Whole Foods has a bulk section, including bulk spices.  For under $3 I got a few tablespoons worth, enough to try it out and play with the new taste.  This is a great recipe to try it out with, especially because you only need 1/8th of a teaspoon.  The coconut doesn't kill your taste buds and they are just a tad too sweet and the cardamom hits you and the first thought is "what the heck is that?"  Even now, I can't really point out what it taste likes, but I guess cardamom is what it tastes like.  It's different.  Citrusy? I still can't place it.  I'll have to make another batch and try to figure it out again.  Oh the things I do in the name of food...

So, until my silverware drawer returns to me, please be patient.  And if you have an extra one, maybe send me a cork screw?  Cause I miss mine... At least the wine made it through the move just fine!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY BENJAMIN!!!  I <3 U!

Cardamom Macaroons
Cooking Light December 2011

This is going in the Big Green Cookbook.  It's different, but even without the cardamom (which we tried), these macaroons are fantastic.  These were really my first experience with the cookies, and they're simple to make and so yummy to eat!  And don't get made at me if you're dieting... they're straight from Cooking Light.   Just practice your only 2 cookies will power!  (I did reduce the sugar from 1/4 to 1/3 c.)

2 large egg whites, room temperature
1/3 c. granulated sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/8 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. cardamom
1 1/2 c. flaked, sweetened coconut

Preheat oven to 325.  Line baking sheet with parchment paper.

In very clean glass bowl, beat egg whites with a whisk.  Add all dry ingredients up to cardamom and whisk well, until egg white mixture is foamy.  Fold in coconut.

Using a tablespoon measure, spoon coconut mixture onto prepared baking sheet about an inch apart, packing/squishing gently to get them to stick together.  One batch will make 20-24 macaroons.  Bake at 325  until golden all over, about 22-24 minutes.  Cool in pan a few minutes then transfer to wire rack to cool completely.

If storing, store in air tight container at room temperature.

Lemony Slice-and-Bake

Recently, my problem has not been lack of creativity nor an unwillingness to shop and try new recipes.  Rather, it has been the very fast and very unexplainable disappearance of time.  Well that and a dash of laziness.  I actually have several recipes ready to go, pictures and all, but not the time to type them all out.

Between an international long weekend trip, Christmas with the family, moving apartments yet again (fingers crossed, this is the last time!) and a big New Year's Eve party to go to, blogging unfortunately has taken a back seat.  But at least once a week is what I promised you all back in the beginning, and that is what I am going to do.  Thank God for the holidays, otherwise we could be in real trouble here.  Please just excuse me that I'm a little behind on the times, and you're getting Christmas cookies two days after Christmas.  But what else are New  Year's Eve Parties for??

These cookies are quite wonderful, tart in the most delicious and lemony way.  If you are a fan of lemon, these are definitely for you.  I just drizzled them all over with the lemon glaze that Bon Appetit gave with the recipe, but a sprinkle of some raw sugar or decorative sugar would be just the topping these tart babies need.  They mellow out after a day or two and these didn't last beyond that, so I can't tell you where they go from there.

Lemony Slice-And-Bake
Adapted from December 2011's Bon Appetit

These are of the infamous slice and bake variety, so if you want to leave a log frozen in the freezer, ready to go at a moment's notice, go for it!

2 1/2 c. all purpose flour
1/2 tsp. Kosher salt
1 c. unsalted butter, room temperature
3/4 c. sugar

2 Tbsp. lemon zest (from 2 medium sized lemons)
1 tsp. vanilla extract
4 large egg yolks

Lemon Glaze:
2 c. powdered sugar
2 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice
1 tsp. vanilla extract

Whisk together flour and salt.  In electric mixer, beat butter, sugar, lemon zest and vanilla extract until light and fluffy.  Add egg yolks all at once and beat on medium high speed until just incorporated.  Reduce mixer speed to low and add flour in a few batches, mixing until just blended.

Lay out two sheets of plastic wrap.  Turn dough out onto one sheet and divide into two even balls.  Roll each ball into a log, about 1 1/2-inches in diameter.  Wrap each log well in plastic wrap and chill in fridge until firm.  (Can be done up to 2 days in advance, if longer, freeze).

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.  Remove logs from fridge and unwrap.  Working quickly so logs stay chilled, cut into 1/4-inch rounds.  Space out on prepared baking sheets, about 1 inch apart.  Bake for 16-18 minutes, or until cookies are golden brown around the edges and firm.  Remove from oven and let cool on pan for one minute, move to a wire rack to finish cooling.

For lemon glaze, whisk all three ingredients, adding more powdered sugar or lemon juice as needed for proper consistency.  Drizzle over cooled cookies and let stand until icing sets.

"Do Ahead: Can be made 3 days ahead.  Store airtight at room temperature"

Chocolate Chip Meringues

I went a little crazy on Sunday.  I got in the spirit of Christmas and dived in head first into a day of baking.  I do it every year and in a fit of what I will call holiday cheer, I make cookies.  Lots of cookies.  Usually this results in very happy friends, family and coworkers and one giant mess in my kitchen.  This year held two surprises though.  One, my kitchen was not a mess afterwards.  Flour did not cover my flour, walls and all my counters and somehow dishes only took 20 minutes tops.  I'm still not 100% sure how I managed that, but I chalk that up to me growing up and becoming a mature adult. (ha!)  And secondly, I love meringues.

I don't know what took me so long to come to that realization but by noon on Monday, I had eaten 7.  I'm not proud of this.  I am also, apparently, completely powerless when it comes to meringues.  Or, to put a much less fattening spin on the topic, these meringues are that good.  First off, just look how pretty they are.  All whippy and peaked.  And then you pick one up and they're light as air (which ties into how you can convince yourself that it's ok to eat more than 8 in one day...)  And then you bite into this puff of toasted, stale Peep-like sugary  concoction and I know that doesn't sound delicious, but it is. And the next thing you know, you've put 9 down your gullet and your hankering for number 10.  Damn, I want another one...

They're easy-peasy to make too, which if you're me is the scary part about this.  Now I can have meringues whenever I want.  You just put your KitchenAid on and start whipping the whites, then pour in some salt and vanilla, followed by small additions of sugar.  Once you got your peaks, you get to fold in yummy goodness (aka-mini chocolate chips and chopped cashews) and plop they go onto a cookie sheet, into the oven and 25 minutes later, these come out.  Bam.  One goes into your mouth, followed by two, three and four and then you just resign yourself to the fact that it's officially the holidays and you'll try to be skinny come January... More cookie recipes to come!  I just need to go work out first.  Happy Holidays!

Chocolate Chip Meringues
A la the Smitten Kitchen

The one thing I didn't do was to chop up the mini chocolate chips.  I have already gone back and forth about this in my head.  At the moment, I am liking the fact that they kind of big in there, not just a chocolaty swirl all through.  But that could be a good thing too.  My best solution?  Chop half, leave the other mini chips whole.  Also, if you start thinking about all the other wonderful things you could shove into a meringue, you are not alone.  I want to make batches with peanut chips, toffee bits and that yummy orange stuff inside of Butterfingers, aka Chick-O-Sticks.  If any of it ever happens, I'll let you know.

Also, I did not have any cream of tartar on hand.  You only need 1/8 tsp of it.  Little known fact, baking powder is 1/4 tsp. baking soda and 5/8 cream of tartar.  Tada-  I just subbed in 1/4 tsp. of baking powder and as far as I can tell, it did what it was supposed to.  This will make about 2-3 dozen.

2 egg whites, room temp
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. vanilla
scant 3/4 c. sugar
1/2 c. mini chocolate chips, some chopped if you wish
1/4 c. chopped pecans, or whatever kind of nut you have lying around

Preheat oven to 300°.  Line baking sheet with parchment paper.

In clean mixing bowl, whip egg whites till frothy.  Add salt, baking powder and vanilla, continue to whip until egg whites hold soft peaks.  In small additions, start adding in sugar, letting mixture whip a few seconds in between each addition.  Whip until stiff.  Gently fold in chocolate and nuts.  Spoon batter by rounded tablespoon onto a prepared baking sheet.  Bake in over for 25 minutes, till undersides are lightly tanned and cookies sound hollow.  

Shortbread Cookies

On Sunday afternoons after Ben leaves, I usually try my best to be productive.  I try to workout, clean the mess that has taken over my kitchen, wash laundry, fold laundry, blog, maybe vacuum and just try my best to prepare for the upcoming week.  But today, I got caught up, drawn to the various September 11th tributes on the TV.  It's been 10 years and I felt that somehow I needed to make sure that I properly remembered the date. 

I know that my last entry was sentimental and corny and I apologize for this one seems to be heading in the same direction.  But it doesn't seem right to not acknowledge the day and go right to shortbread cookies.  I could have at least had something patriotic, right?  The truth of the matter is, I don't really know what to say.  I have been rolling it around in my head all afternoon and all that comes out is "wow, ten years".  So I guess I'll just leave it at that, and encourage everyone to hug those they love and know you aren't alone if you find yourself with a few tears rolling down your cheek for those who had to live through, are still living through, the tragedy ten years ago. 

There is no segway into shortbread cookies from there.  So, I'll dive in and be short and sweet.  My first, most eagerly awaited, Bon Appetit magazine finally arrived about a week ago.  My first venture into the cooking magazine world was with Cooking Light, and to be completely truthful, I've been a little disappointed.  There's been a few good finds, but in general, It's just not doing it for me.  Sometimes you need butter, you know?  And my first venture into my first Bon Appetit magazine couldn't prove that point any better.

These cookies are buttery, deliciousness.  And, if you like, you can be like me and try to convince yourself that they are also healthy because they are made with only whole wheat flour.  Well, that and ten and a half tablespoons of butter.  Yes, that is a lot of butter for 16 cookies, but they are fantastically worth it.  My only wish in this butter drenched dream was that I hadn't used the strawberry preserves in my fridge as the filling, but rather something a little more tart to cut through the lovely, buttery cookie.  I could keep going, but there are only so many times one can use the word butter as a descriptor.  Butter just doesn't really have enough synonyms, you know? 

This recipe is already cut and pasted into the big green cookbook, no questions asked, and with any luck will make its reapparence in my kitchen soon.  They are very easy to make and I promise you, as delicious and buttery as I am claiming. 

Shortbread Cookies

From my first (the September 2011 edition) Bon Appetit!

2 c. whole wheat flour

1/2 c. sugar

1 1/2 tsp. baking powder

10 1/2 Tbsp. salted butter, room temp

1 large egg, room temp

1 large egg yolk, room temp

3 Tbsp. (about) raspberry (or other fruit) jam

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.

Whisk flour, sugar and baking powder in large mixing butter.  Cut butter into small pieces and mix into flour mixture with hands.  Cut butter in until to mixture forms a course meal texture.  In smaller bowl, whisk together whole egg and yolk until well combined.  Pour egg mixture into flour and butter mixture and stir until just incorporated.  Don't overmix.

To form cookies, take about 2 tablespoons of dough and roll into a ball.  Place onto prepared baking sheet.  In center of ball, make an indentation for the jam (wider is better than deeper).  Spoon about 1/2 teaspoon of jam into each indentation. 

Bake cookies about 12-15 minutes, until golden, switching trays around once in the middle of baking.  Transfer to a wire rack to cool. 

Makes about 16 cookies.

No Bake Cookies

And now we return to our regular scheduled blogging... well, sort of. 

Here again is a wonderful example of one of my birdwalks as well as another of mom's recipes and childhood favorites.  I think it is more than fair to say that quite a few recipes in my big green cookbook, both now and I'm sure more in the future, are really stolen from my mother's assortment of recipe cards, cookbooks and own pile of random clippings, contained in a large danish butter cookies tin.  I have lots of good memories associated with her well-worn, orange Betty Crocker cookbook and the gray Mead notebook she still has that was once my great grandma Esther's.

This recipe is your run of the mill generic no bake cookie recipe.  There are no frills, nothing special or surprising.  But is the same recipe my grandmother makes every Christmas and the cookies my mom would finally concede to make for us when we begged for cookies in the middle of August in Arizona.  It's good, if for no other reason it reminds me of being 7, during Christmas and eating nothing but no bake cookies and bird's nest for dinner.

Short post, crappy pictures, sorry!  It's been an off week or so.  I hope to come back strong and with vengeance in the very near future.  As in this weekend.  With any luck, we'll have a guest chef in the kitchen too!  I'll get back with you soon.

 No Bake Cookies

½ c milk
½ c butter
2 c sugar
1/3 c cocoa
3 ½ c oatmeal
½ c peanut butter
Coconut (about 1/4-1/2 cup)
Vanilla (about a teaspoon or two)

Boil milk, butter and sugar on slow heat for one minute.  Remove from heat, stir in cocoa and peanut butter.

Mix in remaining ingredients.  Drop by the rounded tablespoon onto wax paper.  Cool.

Island Cookies

I feel as if I should preface this post with this fact: I'm cheap.

I got it in my head to make white chocolate macadamia nut cookies with coconut in them.  The idea came from a cookie I ate at work from the leftover goodies table.  I thought it was just a plain, white chocolate macadamia nut cookie.  I almost didn't eat it because I don't even like white chocolate macadamia nut cookies, but I was hungry.  And then, out of nowhere, there was coconut!  I was immediately mesmerized and jones-ing  to make my own.  It would be perfect to bring to Ben this weekend.  I was going for it.

Now back to the "I'm cheap" factor.  Did you know that that little tin of macadamia nuts on your grocer's shelf cost NINE dollars?  I just wasn't ready to spend $10 plus for a batch of cookies.  Especially one's with white chocolate.  You know, it doesn't even have any cacao in it?  And it calls itself chocolate...

So, there I am I'm standing in the nut aisle at the store, and I devise a new plan.  Keeping the white chocolate, because I already bought those earlier, and the coconut, cause that was the whole inspiration.  I could keep the island tropic thing going, sans macadamia nuts.  I had lime zest left over and frozen in my freezer.  I had a lime I could juice.  I just needed a little bit of crunch.  Hm, turbinado sugar sprinkle over top.  Then bake.  Booyah.

I toasted the coconut last night for a few minutes in a 350 degree oven.  I mostly follow the ever trusted Nestle Tollhouse.  I took out half of the vanilla and added the juice of one tart lime.  I discovered that white chocolate chips photograph beautiful, even when the day is overcast outside. 

Coming out of the oven, they were pretty.  There were so many chips!  Warm, gooey.  And they tasted, well, they tasted like white chocolate chip cookies sans macadamia nuts.  With hints of the island.  I love that you can see the lime zest and it surprised me that the coconut wasn't more present.  But a good surprise.  The turbinado sugar on top doesn't really add anything, doesn't really take anything away.  It's a judgement call.  I would definitely make again, just maybe use double the lime.  You know, a little more lime in the coconut... and eat it all up...

Island Cookies

Adapted from Nestle Tollhouse's Recipe

1 2/3 c. all-purpose flour
3/4 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
3/4 c. butter, softened
3/4 c. brown sugar
1/3 c. granulated sugar
1/2 tsp. vanilla
Juice of 1 lime
Zest of 1 lime
1 large egg
2 c. White Chocolate Chips (could likely get away with less)
1 c. flaked coconut, toasted
turbinado sugar, for garnish
(And if you aren't cheap like me!)
3/4 c. chopped macadamia nuts

Preheat oven to 375.

Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a small bowl.

Cream butter, brown sugar, granulated sugar, vanilla and lime in large mixing bowl.  Beat until creamy, then beat in egg and zest.  Gradually beat in flour mixture.  Add white chips and coconut (and nuts)

Drop by rounded tablespoon onto ungreased baking sheet.  Sprinkle with turbinado sugar and brush excess sugar from pan.  Bake for 7-9 minutes or until edges are lightly browned.  Cool on baking sheet for 2 minutes, then move to wire rack to cool completely.