Buttery Jam Cookies

Or the cookies that weren’t…cookies.  I should have read the description better instead of skipping the intro and jumping straight to the recipe details!  These were like…fluffy biscuits, with the ginger flavor overpowering the last of my beloved raspberry-lemon jam.  I honestly thought these were gross, but fortunately Tyler likes them, so they are not going to waste.  However I will not make them again, sorry hun.  I will however post pics and the recipe, for those that are curious.

Buttery Jam Cookies (from Baking: From My Home to Yours by Dorie Greenspan)

Ingredients:

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. ground ginger
1/4 tsp. salt
8 tbsp. (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
2/3 cup sugar
1 large egg
2 tbsp. milk
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/4 cup jam

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F and place two racks in the oven, one in the upper third of the oven and one in the lower third of the oven. Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper and set aside.

Sift together the flour, baking powder, ginger, cinnamon and salt. Set aside.

In the bowl of an electric mixer, with the paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugar (on high speed) for 2 to 3 minutes until light and fluffy. Add the egg and beat on high speed for an additional minute. Add the milk and the vanilla extract and beat on high speed for 30 seconds. Add the jam and beat on low speed for 1 minute. Add the dry ingredients, with the mixer on low speed, just until they’re mixed in. The dough will be extremely thick and stiff.

With a an ice cream scoop or a teaspoon, drop spoonfuls of the dough onto baking sheets, forming cookies that are about 1 inch to 1-1/2 inches in size.

Bake the cookies for 10 minutes, rotating the trays from top rack to bottom rack halfway through.

Once baked, let the cookies sit on the pan for a minute or two and then remove to a wire rack and let cool completely.

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peanut butter, oatmeal, and chocolate!

What a great combo!  I bookmarked this recipe a couple of weeks ago and was just waiting for some free time to make them.  They were quick and easy to whip up and a fabulous cookie to share or keep all to yourself!

Peanut Butter-Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies (from Brown Eyed Baker)

Makes about 24 cookies

1 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
¼ teaspoon salt
1 stick (½ cup) unsalted butter, at room temperature
½ cup creamy peanut butter
½ cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup light brown sugar
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
1 egg
½ cup rolled oats
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips (I used mini chips)

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.

2. Whisk together the flour, baking soda and salt; set aside.

3. On medium speed, cream together the butter, peanut butter, granulated sugar, brown sugar and vanilla extract, about 3 minutes. Add the egg and beat to combine. On low speed, gradually add the flour until just combined. Stir in the oats, and then the chocolate chips.

4. Use a large cookie scoop (3 tablespoons) and drop dough onto prepared baking sheets about 2 inches apart. Bake for 10 minutes, or until the cookies are lightly golden. Cool completely on the baking sheet and then store in an airtight container at room temperature.

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Happy Valentine’s Day

I baked up a batch of these sugar cookies, but since I didn’t have time to frost them, I dipped half of them in pink candy melt (with a vanilla flavor).  They turned  out super cute!  I shared them with my classmates and the nursing staff at my internship and they were a hit.  I am hoping to scrounge up some more time to bake another batch and try royal icing for the first time but I am short on time so we shall see!

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Macaroons

I grew up eating chocolate macaroons, and until last month had never tried a regular macaroon.  I tried one in San Francisco and WOW, it was fantastic!  I do love coconut after all!  So for a quick and easy dessert to take to Thanksgiving dinner at my aunt’s, I decided to whip up a batch.  These are so easy to make and they taste yummy, although next time I will cut back on the almond extract as it seemed to be very potent.  I wasn’t sure how well received they would be but many of my aunts and uncles seemed to like them, so it seems they are a winner!  I drizzled a few with chocolate (leftover mini Hersheys bars from Halloween!)

Macaroons (from allrecipes.com)

Ingredients:

5 1/2 cups flaked coconut

1 (14 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 1/2 teaspoons almond extract

Directions:

-Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (180 degrees C).
-In large mixing bowl, combine coconut, sweetened condensed milk and extracts; mix well.

-Drop by rounded teaspoonfuls onto aluminum foil-lined and generously greased baking sheets. Bake 8 to 10 minutes or until lightly browned around the edges. Immediately remove from baking sheets. Store loosely covered at room temperature.

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Sugar Cookie Frosting

I absolutely love this sugar cookie recipe, made it for the first time last Christmas and it’s a keeper.  However I’ve been having trouble finding a frosting recipe that

1) contains no shortening or margarine or corn syrup, ingredients I hate using.
2) dries well enough that you can stack the cookies after they are frosted
and
3) tastes good!

So I explored allrecipes.com, which I love because you can sort by highest rating, and found this recipe, with lots of positive reviews and none of the dreaded “bad” ingredients.  Just butter, sugar, milk, and vanilla.  This frosting takes minutes to whip up (as long as the butter has softened) and tastes fabulous.  Perfect for these fun fall cookies I took to class tonight!  I’ll be using this recipe again on Christmas cookies.

Decorator Frosting (from allrecipes.com)

Ingredients:

2/3 cup butter
4 cups confectioners sugar
2 tablespoons milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions:

In a medium bowl, cream together the butter, confectioners’ sugar, and milk until light and fluffy, about 3 to 4 minutes. Beat in the vanilla and food coloring. Spread on or between cookies.

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Sugar Cookies

Last year the sugar cookies I made turned out wonderfully, but when I used the recipe again at Halloween this year the cookies and the frosting didn’t turn out well at all, probably due to human error.  I decided to try new recipes this year since there are so many out there and I’d been bookmarking them left and right in my Google Reader.  I went with Katie’s sugar cookies that have a bit of lemon zest in them, and Bridget’s frosting, which was so sugary sweet!  I was REALLY happy with the cookie recipe, they rolled out so easily and only took 5 minutes to bake, such a time saver!  The lemon zest added a great flavor and everyone commented on it.  The frosting was also good, tasted great on the cookies, but not the best for decorating since it never really dried.  Still, I would use it again.  My niece helped decorate these cookies but all the pictures of that are on my dad’s camera.  We had so much fun and I just finished the last cookie today and now I’m craving more.

Fabulous Sugar Cookies (from Good Things Catered)

Ingredients:
1 1/2 c. butter
1 1/2 c. granulated sugar
1/2 c. powdered sugar
4 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp almond extract
1 Tbsp lemon zest
5 c. flour
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
Powdered sugar, for rolling

Directions:
-Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
-Cream butter and sugars in a mixer for 5 minutes.
-Add eggs one at a time, mixing thoroughly.
-Add vanilla, almond, and lemon zest.
-Sift in flour, baking powder, and salt a little at a time.
-Do not over mix, this process should take about one minute.
-Chill dough for up to a week in the fridge, or roll out and cut right away.
-Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper and bake cookies for 7-8 minutes.
-Wait until cookies are cooled before icing.

Easy Vanilla Buttercream (from Cooks Illustrated April 2007) as seen on That’s the Way the Cookie Crumbles

The buttercream frosting can be made ahead and refrigerated; if refrigerated, however, it must stand at room temperature to soften before use. If using a hand-held mixer, increase mixing times significantly (at least 50 percent). This recipe can be doubled to make enough for a two-layer cake.

Makes 3 cups

20 tablespoons (2½ sticks) unsalted butter, softened
2½ cups Confectioners’ sugar (10 ounces)
1/8 tablespoons table salt
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 tablespoons heavy cream

In standing mixer fitted with whisk attachment, beat butter at medium-high speed until smooth, about 20 seconds. Add confectioners’ sugar and salt; beat at medium-low speed until most of the sugar is moistened, about 45 seconds. Scrape down bowl and beat at medium speed until mixture is fully combined, about 15 seconds; scrape bowl, add vanilla and heavy cream, and beat at medium speed until incorporated, about 10 seconds, then increase speed to medium-high and beat until light and fluffy, about 4 minutes, scraping down bowl once or twice.

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Chocolate Macaroons

Last year I made a batch of chocolate macaroons but didn’t use my mom’s recipe, just one I found online that I thought looked the same.  They weren’t the same and I really didn’t like the melted chocolate.  Cocoa is just way better in this recipe in my opinion!  So this year I used my mom’s recipe and we were all quite pleased.  The recipe yields about 18 cookies with my medium cookie scoop, make sure you make a couple of batches because this will go fast!

Chocolate Macaroons (family recipe)

Ingredients:

1 can sweetened condensed milk
3 cups unsweetened coconut (I only had sweetened and that was fine)
3 T cocoa powder, more if you want them to be more chocolatey!

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Mix milk, coconut, and cocoa powder in a double boiler until well blended and warm.  Scoop onto cookie sheet lined with parchment paper (if you want to be able to remove them after baking!)  Bake for 10-12 minutes.  Let cool, then eat with a tall glass of milk!

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peanut butter chocolate chip cookies

I’ve had this recipe bookmarked for quite some time now and they did not disappoint!  I forgot to squish the first batch with a fork so they came out dense and not so good, but I remembered from then on out and the rest were perfect!

The Best Peanut Butter Cookies (as seen on Baking Blonde’s blog)

1 cup + 2 TBS peanut butter (I used extra crunchy)
1/2 cup butter, softened
1/4 cup white sugar
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 egg
2 TBS milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup Peanut Butter chips (did not have so I left these out)
1/2 cup Chocolate Chips (I used a full cup)
3/4 cup Sugar (for rolling dough balls, may need more or less)

Preheat oven to 350.
Line baking sheets with parchment paper.
In a large mixing bowl, cream together the peanut butter, butter. Once combined beat in the white sugar, and brown sugar until well blended. Beat in the egg, milk, and vanilla.
In a large bowl whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Gently add to creamed mixture and mix until almost combined. Fold in chocolate and peanut butter chips. Chill dough for at least 15 minutes.
Roll tablespoonfuls of dough into balls. Gently roll the dough balls into sugar and place dough balls on parchment lined baking sheets. Carefully press each ball with fork tines to create a criss-cross pattern.
Bake for 8 to 10 minutes in the preheated oven, or until edges are lightly browned. Remove from oven and cool on baking sheets for 5-10 minutes until sturdy enough to be transfered to a wire rack to cool completely.

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The Welcome Wagon

In the last 3 weeks we’ve had two new neighbors move into our apartment building. We were SO HAPPY that the old upstairs neighbor moved out since he frequently kept us up late at night with his drunken arguments and *ahem* other noisy activities. We were home and able to promptly greet our new neighbors and they all seem really nice. Toby is attempting to befriend his new dog neighbor but Pounce hasn’t shown much interest in him. We will probably be in this apartment for at least 2 more years so in an effort to build a good relationship with the new neighbors I decided to bake them something. I’d bookmarked this recipe a few weeks ago since my former favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe has failed me ever since we moved back to Kansas (seriously they come out as hard rocks now, not the wonderful chewy cookies I grew to love when we lived in D.C.!) These cookies were great and the neighbors all had good things to say about them!

Thick and Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies (from Baking Illustrated, as seen on Brown Eyed Baker’s blog)

Makes about 18 large cookies (I got 3 dozen medium sized cookies)

Ingredients:

2 cups plus 2 tablespoons (10 5/8 ounces) unbleached all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted and cooled until warm
1 cup packed (7 ounces) light or dark brown sugar
1/2 cup (3 1/2 ounces) granulated sugar
1 large egg plus 1 egg yolk
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1-1 1/2 cups semisweet chocolate chips

Directions:

1. Adjust the oven racks to the upper- and lower-middle positions and heat the oven to 325 degrees. Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper or spray them with nonstick cooking spray.

2. Whisk the flour, baking soda, and salt together in a medium bowl; set aside.

3. Either by hand or with an electric mixer, mix the butter and sugars until thoroughly blended. Beat in the egg, yolk, and vanilla until combined. Add the dry ingredients and beat at low speed just until combined. Stir in the chips to taste.

4. Roll a scant 1/4 cup of the dough into a ball. Hold the dough ball with the fingertips of both hands and pull into 2 equal halves. Rotate the halves 90 degrees and, with jagged surfaces facing up, join the halves together at their base, again forming a single ball, being careful not to smooth the dough’s uneven surface. Place the formed dough balls on the prepared baking sheets, jagged surface up, spacing them 2 1/2 inches apart.

5. Bake until the cookies are light golden grown and the outer edges start to harden yet the centers are still soft and puffy, 15 to 18 minutes, rotating the baking sheets front to back and top to bottom halfway through the baking time. Cool the cookies on the sheets. Remove the cooled cookies from the baking sheets with a side metal spatula.

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Snickerdoodles

I’ve been in the mood to make cookies recently and even though I have several partial bags of chocolate chips and nuts begging to be plucked from their shelf in the pantry, I opted for a simpler recipe that I knew Tyler would go nutso over.  I’ve never really seen the appeal in a cookie with no chips, no nuts, no NOTHING but wow these were AMAZING.  Best part is the recipe doesn’t call for shortening, which many snickerdoodle recipes do.  The last time I tried to make snickerdoodles with no shortening they came out hard as rocks.  This recipe produced soft and chewy cookies and Tyler raved over them.  So glad I opted to try it!  I know Tyler will be asking for these cookies again in the near future!

Snickerdoodles (from the Sweet Melissa Baking Book as seen on Made by Melissa’s blog! )

Ingredients:
For the Dough:
1/2 pound (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 large eggs
2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons cream of tarter
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

For the Cinnamon Sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 cup sugar

Directions:
In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar until smooth, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the eggs and mix until combined.

In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, cream of tartar, baking soda, and salt. Add to the butter mixture and mix on low speed until combined. The dough will be soft and too sticky to roll. Refrigerate until firm, about 1 hour.

Position a rack in the top and bottom thirds of your oven. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper or aluminum foil.

For the cinnamon sugar: Combine the cinnamon and sugar in a small bowl.

Using a 1-ounce cookie scoop, or a tablespoon, shape the dough into balls and then roll them in the cinnamon sugar.

Place the cookies 2 inches apart on the prepared cookie sheets. Flatten them slightly with your fingertips so that they stay put. Bake for about 12 to 13 minutes, or until the bottoms are slightly golden in color. These cookies are supposed to be chewy, so do not overbake. Remove to a wire rack to cool.

Snickerdoodles keep in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 4 days. For longer storage, freeze well wrapped in plastic wrap and then aluminum foil for up to 3 weeks. Do not uncover before defrosting.

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