First week back at work after any times off guarantees to be a drag no matter what. I started the week kind of slow, and I think I’m coming down with something, probably a cold. I have been relying on my freezer (full of goodies!) to get through this past week. I also found a log of this cookie dough in the freezer (to my excitement), that I just realized that I haven’t posted! I made this back in December when I was looking for a new cookie recipe and stumbled upon this one. This cookie was crispy and not too sweet, makes a ton, and can be made ahead and frozen (ideal for holidays!). The dough needs to thaw for a little bit before before slicing and rolling onto the chopped nuts. Some other ideas that I thought would be good, if you have extra time and wants to add extra oomph to these cookies would be to dip them in melted chocolate. These cookies actually remind me of these shortbread cookies, but crispier and nuttier. This cookie is great with a cup of steaming hot tea (which I have been drinking all week), and maybe black coffee. I hope everyone is having an awesome weekend!
Ingredients
4 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/4 teaspoons coarse salt
2 cups (4 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
6 ounces cream cheese (not whipped), room temperature
1 1/4 cups sugar
2 tablespoons plus 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 1/2 cups walnut halves (1 1/2 cups toasted and coarsely chopped and 1 cup finely chopped)
Directions
Whisk together flour and salt in a large bowl; set aside. Put butter and cream cheese in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Mix on medium speed until pale and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Mix in sugar and vanilla. Reduce speed to low. Add flour mixture, and mix until just combined (do not overmix). Mix in toasted walnuts.
Transfer dough to a work surface. Divide in half; shape each half into an 8 1/2-inch long log about 2 inches in diameter. Wrap each log in parchment paper; freeze until firm, about 30 minutes or up to 2 weeks.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees with racks in upper and lower thirds. Unwrap 1 log, and roll in 1/2 cup chopped walnuts, coating completely. Cut into 1/4-inch-thick rounds. Space 1 inch apart on baking sheets lined with parchment paper.
Bake cookies, rotating halfway through, until golden around edges, 18 to 20 minutes. Let cool on sheets on wire racks. Repeat with remaining log and remaining 1/2 cup chopped walnuts.
Adapted from Martha Stewart Cookies
The back to school season made me crave for cookie jar cookies. You know… the kinds that you like to have as an after-school snack with a glass of cold milk. We don’t have anyone going back to school at my house. Well not yet, but my husband and I are in the process of relocating, which means that our daughter will be enrolled in a new “daycare” (or “school”, I suppose). So I thought that I deserve some cookies, right? 
And to my defense, I also need a little pick me up, the “after work” kind of snacks or “before going home snacks”. And these cookies were perfect for those times of desperation. These Cashew Caramel Cookies were my absolute fave peanut-y cookies; so I thought about making these instead. But I was also wanting to try a new recipe that is just plain peanut butter cookies; and I really didn’t feel like making a cashew paste or melting some caramel cubes. These cookies were sooo GOOOD. Deliciously, peanuty good. Nothing that I have changed (or would change) in this recipe. Happy back to school days!
Adapted from Baking: From My Home to Yours by Dorie Greenspan
Ingredients
2½ cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. baking powder
¼ tsp. salt
pinch of grated nutmeg
2 sticks (8 oz.) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup peanut butter (crunchy or smooth) (I used crunchy Jif, that’s all we ever have in the house!)
1 cup packed light brown sugar
¾ cup sugar
2 large eggs
1 ½ cups chopped salted peanuts
about ½ cup sugar, for rolling
Directions
Position the racks to divide the oven into thirds and preheat the oven to 350°. Line two baking sheets with parchment or silicone mats.
Whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt and nutmeg.
Working with a stand mixer, fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter on medium speed for a minute or two, until smooth and creamy. Add the peanut butter and beat for another minute. Add the sugars and beat for 3 minutes more. Add the eggs one at a time, beating for 1 minute after each addition. Scrape down the sides and the bottom of the bowl and, on low speed, add the dry ingredients, mixing only until they just disappear. Mix in the chopped peanuts. You’ll have a soft, pliable (mushable, actually) dough.
Pour the ½ cup of sugar into a small bowl. Working with a level tablespoonful of dough for each cookie, roll the dough between your palms into balls and drop the balls, a couple at a time, into the sugar. Roll the balls around in the sugar to coat them, then place on the baking sheets, leaving 2 inches between them. Dip the tines of a fork in sugar and press the tines against each ball first in one direction and then in a perpendicular direction – you should have a flattened round of dough with crisscross indentations.
Bake for about 12 minutes, rotating the sheets from top to bottom and front to back at the midway point. When done, the cookies will be lightly colored and still a little soft. Let the cookies sit on the sheets for a minute before transferring them to cooling racks with a wide metal spatula. Cool to room temperature.
Repeat with the remaining dough, making sure to cool the baking sheets between batches.
Storage:
The cookies will keep for at least 5 days in the cookie jar. Wrapped airtight, they can be frozen for up to 2 months.
Playing Around:
For a chocolate version, reduce the flour to 2 cups and sift 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder into the dry ingredients. Use 1 cup chopped salted peanuts and add 1/3 cup finely chopped bittersweet chocolate (or chocolate chips, preferably minis) along with the nuts.
I actually made these scrumptious cookie bars a couple of months ago when I was craving a cookie that is just a little bit special. These chunky bar cookies has everything that you would want when you feel like indulging… big chunk of chocolate, melted marshmallows, chewy caramel, toffee chips… oh, and white chocolate chips to add even another layer of sweetness. If there is such thing; I almost wanted to say that it was so rich that I had to cut them in smaller pieces than what the recipe called for. But whichever way you like your cookie, this was excellent pairing with a glass of cold milk or black coffee–take your pick. Happy Baking!
Adapted from Martha Stewart Cookies
Ingredients
8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature, plus more for buttering baking pan
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups dark-brown sugar, firmly packed
3 large eggs
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup mini marshmallows
1 cup semisweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
1 cup white chocolate, coarsely chopped
18 squares individually wrapped caramels, coarsely chopped
1 cup toffee chips
Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly butter a 9-by-13-inch baking pan. Cut a piece of parchment paper large enough to cover the bottom of the pan and to overhang the longer sides. Place the parchment in the pan, butter the parchment, and set aside. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt; set aside.
In a medium bowl using a wooden spoon, beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add eggs and vanilla; beat until well combined. Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture; mix just until combined. Fold in half of the marshmallows, chocolates, caramels, and toffee chips.
Using an offset spatula, spread the batter in the prepared pan. Scatter the remaining marshmallows, chocolates, caramels, and toffee chips over the surface of the batter. Bake until golden brown and a cake tester inserted into the center comes out almost clean, about 35 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack until completely cooled. Using the overhanging parchment paper, remove from pan. Place on a baking sheet, and chill in the refrigerator until set, about 30 minutes.
Remove from refrigerator, and peel off the parchment paper. Using a serrated knife, cut into 15 irregular-shaped bars. Stack bars vertically. Store in an airtight container for up to 1 week.
Yield: 16 cookies
Recently, I hosted a dessert theme baby shower for a friend and co-worker. After a lot of discussions on theme and menu, we agreed on having a dessert and drink shower for a small group of her co-workers. There were only two desserts that she requested: carrot cake or cupcakes and lemon bars; and I was basically left to go with the rest of the menu. I wanted to take more pictures of the party; but really ran out of time but here are a few pictures of the desserts I made. I thought that this was really a fun idea for a baby shower.
In addition to the desserts I listed below, her family made dessert crostini with ricotta spread, sliced strawberries and balsamic vinegar glaze and baked brie with apricot jelly, sugar cookies and Italian fried cookies (I have no recipes for those). For drinks, we had coffee, iced tea, cold soft drinks, and bottled water.
Here are the desserts I made:
Carrot Cupcakes and Cream Cheese Frosting with Royal Icing Yellow and Purple Pansies
S’mores Pops (recipe coming up soon, I promise–these were divine!)
Lemon Bars (No pictures)
Chunky Peanut Butter and Oatmeal Chocolate Chipster (No pictures)
Old Fashioned Sugar Cookies (No pictures)
I have amazing co-workers, and I really mean it. A few weeks ago, our group had to cover some super early morning meetings, like 5 and 6 o’clock meetings *blah* and we couldn’t really get away from them. There are three of us who were responsible to do these, and between the two of them, they volunteered to cover those early slots for me so I didn’t have to disrupt my daughter’s morning routine. Isn’t that amazing? One of them actually took all three of my morning slots three days in a row. When I asked him what was his favorite treat, he said chocolate scotcheroos. I was glad to bake these for him and brought them to work. He was kind enough to share with the rest of the people in the office, but happy to have four big pieces himself. I really don’t think I need to “review” this recipe… if you have had them, you know how addictive they are! Happy baking!
Adapted from Mrs. Sullivan
Ingredients
1 cup light corn syrup
1 cup sugar
1 cup peanut butter
6 cup rice krispies cereal
1 cup semisweet chocolate morsels
1 cup butterscotch hips
Directions
Place corn syrup and sugar into 3-quart saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring frequently until sugar dissolves and mixture begins to boil.
Remove from heat, stir in peanut butter. Mix well. Add cereal, stir until everything is well coated.
Spray a 13x9x2 baking pan with cooking spray. Press mixture into the pan. Set aside.
Melt chocolate and butterscotch chips together in large 1-quart saucepan over low heat, stirring constantly. Spread evenly over cereal mixture. Let stand until firm. Cut into 2×2 inch bars when cool.
Yield: ~24 bars
In honor of Mardi Gras, Red’s office sponsored a food day with a Mardi-Gras theme. First of all, I have never met a group of folks who love to eat as much as they do. They have awesome food days, especially around Christmas time. I used to wander around and sample all of the goodies especially since I also contributed to it . I especially love it since I get to unload all of my baked goods with them. It really came in handy when I took my Wilton classes last year; all of those cakes didn’t go to waste! I wanted something portable that Red can take to work and Red, the self-proclaimed cookie monster, wanted “some sort of cookies” that can fit into the theme. I thought these praline cookies while may not be the official Mardi Gras dessert, still sort of fit into the Southern team.
The cookie base is what I would call a perfect cookie dough; it is not sticky, or too crumbly or too wet. It just has the right consistency to be scooped into small balls, and baked beautifully into rounds of cookies. They spread just enough (not too much, not too little that you have to press them down with a fork!) into these perfect little brown cookies. I actually love them without the praline topping, although the topping really heightened the flavor. I caught myself munching on the un-frosted cookies–and told myself to stop. They were delicious. This may be my new favorite cookie. I also decided to make pecan pralines using the leftover topping, and yum… they were delicious. Happy Baking!
Adapted from From Martha Stewart Living, February 2000
Ingredients
1 -2/3 cups all-purpose flour
1 -1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter
2 1/2 cups light-brown sugar, firmly packed
1 large egg
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 cup heavy cream, plus more if necessary
1 cup sifted confectioners’ sugar
1 cup pecan halves, toasted and broken into large pieces
Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Sift together flour, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl. Set aside.
In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream butter and 1 1/2 cups light-brown sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add egg and vanilla. Beat until fully combined. Add dry ingredients, and beat on low speed until combined.
Drop batter in rounded teaspoons onto ungreased baking sheets about 2 inches apart. Bake until firm and barely golden, 10 to 12 minutes. Transfer pan to a wire rack to cool for 5 minutes, then transfer cookies from pan to wire rack.
In a small saucepan, combine remaining 1 cup light-brown sugar and cream. Bring to a boil over medium heat. Cook, stirring constantly, for 2 minutes. Remove from heat. Add confectioners’ sugar, and whisk until smooth. (If frosting thickens, thin with cream.) Add pecan pieces. Place cookies on a cooling rack over a lined baking pan. Spoon about 1/2 teaspoon praline mixture onto each cookie.
Yield: 3 dozens of cookies
Red has been talking about these “peanut cookies” for as long as I have known him. He keeps on talking on how he grew up eating them at his grammy’s house and how he would love to be able to enjoy them again. We have been looking for a peanut cookie recipe for a while, and then we ran into this recipe that seems pretty close to it. I was excited to no end to finally be able to try this. These cookies turned out to be as delicious as Red remembers it.
I decided to cut them into bars instead of breaking them; and ended up about a couple of dozens of bars. One thing that I wish I would have done was using salted peanuts instead of “lightly salted” peanuts–I think the contrast between the saltiness and the sweetness of the dough would be a dramatic combo, which would win any peanuts’ lovers in your audience. They were great with coffee; and made for a very addictive snack. They were also best enjoyed within a few days after making them. If you love sweet and salty dessert combo–this one is a must try! Happy eating!
Adapted from Maida Heatter’s Book of Great Cookies via Piece of Cake
Ingredients
1/ 2 pound (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened but still cool
1 cup granulated sugar
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour, spooned into the cup and leveled
4 ounces (1 cup) roasted, salted peanuts, roughly chopped
Directions
Position a rack to the center of the oven and preheat it to 375 degrees.
In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream the butter with the sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Scrape down the bottom and sides of the bowl and beat in the salt and vanilla, about 30 seconds more. Reduce the speed to low and gradually stir in the flour, stopping to scrape the bowl as necessary. Stir in half the peanuts.
Turn the dough out onto a rimmed sheet pan, about 15 1/2 by 10 1/2 inches. Lightly flour your hands and pat the dough in a thin layer (don’t worry about making it perfectly even). Sprinkle the rest of the peanuts evenly over the dough. Cover the dough with a sheet of waxed or parchment paper and using a rolling pin or a tall, smooth glass, roll over the paper to smooth the dough and press the peanuts firmly into the dough.
Bake for 23 to 25 minutes, until golden brown, rotating the sheet halfway through baking time. Cool in the pan for five minutes before cutting the warm slab into bars, or wait for it too cool completely and break into pieces like brittle candy. Store in an airtight container for up to a week.
Yield: Approximately 2 dozens
I looooove….. food days at work. It gives me an excuse to try a new recipe for a sinful treat like this one. I have tagged so many recipes from Dorie’s book Baking: From my Home to Yours that I knew that this one was next in line. It starts with a layer of cookie with delicious espresso hint, then covered with a layer of melted bittersweet chocolate. To top it off; add chopped Heath toffee bits which adds a contrast of crunchy, salty, and sweetness all into one. Do I need to say more? If you are a caramel or chocolate lover, give these a try. They were so addictive that you may need to cut them up into smaller pieces that the book recommended. Happy eating!
Adapted from Baking: From my Home to Yours
Ingredients
For the base:
1-½ cup all-purpose flour
1 tsp. instant espresso powder or finely ground instant coffee
½ tsp salt
¼ tsp ground cinnamon
2 sticks (8oz) unsalted butter, at room temperature
½ cup light brown sugar
¼ cup sugar
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
3 oz. bittersweet or premium milk chocolate, finely chopped
For the topping:
6 oz. bittersweet or premium milk chocolate, finely chopped
¾ cup Heath toffee bits
Directions
Getting Ready:
Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Lightly butter a 9×13 inch baking pan, line the pan with foil and butter the foil. Put the pan on a baking sheet.
To make the base:
Whisk together the flour, coffee, salt and cinnamon.
Working with a stand mixer, preferably fitted with a paddle attachment, or a hand mixer in a large bowl, beat the butter at medium speed until smooth, about 3 minutes. Add the sugars and beat for another three minutes or until the mixture is light and creamy. Beat in the vanilla and turn off the mixer.
Add all the dry ingredients, cover the stand mixer with a kitchen towel (so you and your kitchen don’t get showered in flour) and pulse the mixer on and off at low speed about 5 times- at which point a peek at the bowl should reveal that it’s safe to turn the mixer to low and mix, uncovered, just until the dry ingredients are almost incorporated.
Add the chopped chocolate and mix only until the dry ingredients disappear. If the chocolate isn’t evenly mixed, finish the job by hand with a spatula. You’ll have a very heavy, very sticky dough. Scrape the dough into the buttered pan and, with the spatula and your fingertips, cajole it into a thin, even layer.
Bake for 20 to 22 minutes, or until the base is bubbly – so bubbly that you can almost hear it percolating – and puckery. It will look as though it is struggling to pull away from the side of the pan. Transfer the pan to a rack and turn off the oven.
To make the topping:
Scatter the chocolate evenly over the top of the hot base and pop the pan back into the oven for 2 to 3 minutes, until the chocolate is soft.. Remove from oven and immediately spread chocolate over bars, using offset spatula or the back of a spoon. Sprinkle the toffee bits over the chocolate and press them down lightly with your fingertips. Place the baking pan on a rack to cool to room temperature.
If, by the time the bars are cool, the chocolate has not set, refrigerate them briefly to firm the chocolate.
Carefully lift out of the pan, using foil edges as handles, and transfer to a cutting board. Trim the edges if they seem a bit thick. Cut about 54 bars, each about 2 inches by 1 inch, taking care not to cut through the foil.
My sister loves plain old sugar cookies. She actually prefers them without icing (… she also prefers the cone instead of the ice cream; which is fine by me, I will take her ice-cream!). I decided to try these old fashioned sugar cookies for her. I eliminated the lemon zest and juice, and replaced it with vanilla because I was really looking for plain sugar cookies without any lemony flavor. And I think I really found it! These cookies were thinner–and really spread during baking. They were crisp in the outside and chewy in the center. I used a 2-inch ice-cream scoop but made sure that I had generous scoops; and ended up about 26 cookies that had diameter of about 4-5 inches.
I was pretty happy with the result; and this recipe is definitely a keeper in my recipe box. This is great not just for the holidays- but all through the year. Happy eating!
Slightly Adapted from Martha Stewart Cookies
Ingredients
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 3/4 cups granulated sugar
1/4 cup packed light-brown sugar
1 tablespoon finely grated lemon zest, plus 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 cup unsalted butter, (2 sticks), softened
2 large eggs
1 tsp vanilla (my add)
Sanding sugar, for sprinkling
Have you ever had one of those days… when you’re faced with decisions on which type of cookie you’d like to eat? Should you have a peanut butter cookie? Or oatmeal raisin? What about the classic chocolate chip cookies? If you have, just like me –this is the cookie for you, because it has the components of all of these three great cookies into one! With the holiday baking in motion, I decided to give this recipe a try. Dorie’s recipes have yet to fail me, and this one was another winner. Unlike some of the other cookie recipes I have made, this one requires chilling prior to baking. So you need to be planning ahead if you are going to need something quick. I refrigerated mine overnight per the recommendation and they were delicious! The only thing that I may do differently next time was the baking time. I pulled these out at 13 minutes and let them sit on the baking sheet for an extra one or two minutes–because they were too soft to be removed onto the cooling racks. I think these extra two minutes made the cookies crispier than I would like to. Maybe next time, I would pull these out at 12 minutes and leave them out for an extra minute on the hot baking sheet, to make these cookies softer.
Finally, I went an extra step with this one and decided to do a cookie-ice-cream sandwich using these cookies. I figured, we’ll get the weight gain started early for the holiday, and they did not disappoint! While the outside temperature may be in the negative range, ice-cream is a permanent resident of my freezer, and these cookies were wonderful with them. Happy eating!
Adapted from Baking: From my Home to Yours
Ingredients
3 cups old fashioned oats
1 cup all purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp freshly ground nutmeg
1/4 tsp salt
2 sticks (8 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup peanut butter–chunky (my choice) or smooth (but not natural)
1 cup sugar
1 cup (packed) light brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
9 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped into chunks, or 1 -1/2 cups store-bought chocolate chips or chunks
Directions:
Position the racks to divide the oven into thirds and preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line two baking sheets with parchment or silicone mats.
Whisk together the oats, flour, baking soda, spices and salt.
Working with a stand mixer, preferably fitted with a paddle attachment, or with a hand mixer in a large bowl, beat the butter, peanut butter, sugar and brown sugar on medium speed until smooth and creamy. Add the eggs one at a time, beating for 1 minute after each addition, then beat in the vanilla. Reduce the mixer speed to low and slowly add the dry ingredients, beating only until blended. Mix in the chips. If you have the time, cover and chill the dough for about 2 hours or for up to one day. (Chilling the dough will give you more evenly shaped cookies.)
If the dough is not chilled, drop rounded tablespoonfuls 2 inches apart onto the baking sheets. If the dough is chilled, scoop up rounded tablespoons, roll the balls between your palms and place them 2 inches apart on the sheets. Press the chilled balls gently with the heel of your hand until they are about 1/2 inch thick.
Bake for 13 to 15 minutes, rotating the sheets from top to bottom and front to back after 7 minutes. The cookies should be golden and just firm around the edges. Lift the cookies onto cooling racks with a wide metal spatula – they’ll firm as they cool.
Repeat with the remaining dough, cooling the baking sheets between batches.
Storing: Wrapped airtight or piled into a cookie jar, the cookies will keep at room temperature for about 4 days. Wrapped and frozen, they’ll be good for 2 months.
Playing Around: You can substitute soft, moist raisins for the chocolate chunks or just stir in some raisins along with them. If you’re really looking for crunch, toss in chopped peanuts too (salted or not). With or without the chocolate chunks, raisins, and nuts, these cookies are great with ice cream or around ice cream – think about them the next time you want a chipwich-ish ice cream sandwich.
