Those Dutch sure know how to Cocoa (Chocolate Sugar Cookies)

These oversized cookies are an easy to make treat on a Friday afternoon so the hubby has something fun to come home to after a long work week while I go out & celebrate a dear friend's "last night as a 'single' lady" :) I owed him these cookies anyway. Every once in awhile, I toss him a cookbook and ask him to pick something so that I have an excuse to bake. Quite some time ago, he selected this recipe from Martha's Cookie Book (One of his favorite books to catch ;) and I wouldn't make it because I didn't have any Dutch Process Cocoa Powder.

Dutch Process Cocoa makes these chocolate sugar cookies- the Dutching process removes the acidic/bitter tones in the chocolate and the results are purely magical. The GIANT size of the cookie makes the edges slightly crispy and the middles soft and chewy. Even I could not resist these, and I do not really care for chocolate. Maybe it is just that I don't care for NATURAL chocolate! (Can't find Dutch Process? Penzey's Spices carries it, and more recently our Costco has picked it up as a regular item...and it is amazing. buy lots.)

GIANT Chocolate Sugar Cookies
Martha Stewart's Cookie Book

She says it makes 8, I say it makes 10 (Using HEAPING Large Pampered Chef Scoop)

Ingredients:
1 1/2 Cups All Purpose Flour
1/2 Cup Unsweetened Dutch Process Cocoa Powder
1 tsp Baking Powder
1/2 tsp Salt
1/2 Cup (1 Stick) Unsalted Butter, softened
1 1/2 Cups Sugar
1/2 Cup Vegetable Shortening, or substitute 1/2 cup Unsalted Butter (This is what I did), melted & cooled
1 Large Egg
1 1/2 tsp Pure Vanilla Exract

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 375º. Whisk together flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl; set aside
• Put butter & sugar into the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Mix on medium-high speed until pale and fluffy. Mix in shortening (Or additional butter). Add egg & vanilla; mix until creamy. Reduce speed to low. Gradually add flour mixture, and mix until just combined.
• Using a 2 1/2 inch ice cream scoop, drop dough onto baking sheets lined with parchment paper, spacing about 4 inches apart. They really spread out. I fit 5 on each sheet.
• Bake until edges are firm, 18 - 20 minutes. I rotated the pans front to back and top to bottom after 9 minutes, then cooked another 9 minutes and promptly removed them. Let cool on sheets on wire racks. Cookies can be stored in an airtight container for up to 2 days. (This is a lie. I have two cookies left one week after I made them, and I just broke a piece off. It is Delicious.)

This is fairly large orange. These are abnormally large cookies.

Galactic Confections (aka Moon Pies)

I finally have my Fridays back, Truman can hold it for more than 30 minutes at a time, and hubs is doing P90X+, which means his appetite for sweets is through the roof. (Don't tell Tony Horton, please.)

One of my favorite bloggers posted this recipe a few days ago and I was eager to try it. Between obtaining & playing with the new iPad, making 100 wedding thank you notes with my BFF, and enjoying the pretty weather with Truman, I finally finished these delectable desserts over the course of three days. It was worth it, and I'd do it again - the hardest part was that there were so many components! A little planning ahead makes these so easy to do, and they keep in an airtight container at room temp, so no need to sacrifice fridge space that you *probably* don't have! :) Happy Baking!

Homemade Moon Pies

Found at Brown Eyed Baker

Makes: approximately 16-18 triple decker cookies :)

Prep Time: 1hr 15 minutes (Bake Time 30 minutes)

Cookie Ingredients:

8 ounces (1 cup) unsalted butter, at room temperature

¾ cup light brown sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2¼ cups all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon salt

 Marshmallow Filling Ingredients:

2 egg whites

Pinch cream of tartar
Pinch salt
2/3 cup light corn syrup
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup powdered sugar, sifted

Chocolate Coating Ingredients:

12 ounces semisweet chocolate

¼ cup vegetable oil

1. First make the cookies: With a mixer on medium speed, beat the butter until creamy, about 3 minutes. Add the brown sugar and beat at medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Reduce the speed to medium, add the egg and the vanilla extract, and beat to combine. Reduce the speed to low, add the flour and the salt, and mix just until a soft dough forms. Divide the dough in two, shape into disks, wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes. I made the dough one or two days before I baked it - 30 minutes in the fridge was not enough, but 30 minutes in the freezer probably would have done the trick.
2. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line at least two baking sheets with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat; set aside. Working with one disk at a time, roll out the dough to about 1/8-inch thickness. Using a 2½-inch diameter round cutter, cut out the rounds and place them on the prepared baking sheets, about ½ an inch apart. Refrigerate the cookies (on the baking sheets) for 10 minutes.
3. Bake the cookies for 10 to 12 minutes, or until lightly browned. Cool on the pans for a couple of minutes, and then move to a cooling rack to cool completely. I made the cookies one day and assembled the next, so I stored the cooled cookies between layers of parchment in an airtight container until I was ready.
4. Making the Marshmallow Filling: Using a mixer with the whisk attachment, beat the the egg whites with the cream of tartar and the salt until firm peaks form, gradually increasing from medium-low speed to medium-high speed as the egg whites gain volume. Meanwhile, in a small saucepan, boil the corn syrup over high heat without stirring until it registers 230 to 235 degrees F on a candy thermometer (thread ball stage). Slowly drizzle the hot corn syrup into the egg whites and beat at high speed until glossy, about 2 minutes. Reduce the speed to medium-low, beat in the vanilla extract and the powdered sugar. The beauty of not having to stir the corn syrup is that you can literally have both of these steps happening at the same time. You just have to keep your eye on both, without having to actually DO much to either.
5. Using either a pastry bag or a spoon, mound about 1½ tablespoons of marshmallow filling into the center of a cookie. I used my Pampered Chef Easy Accent Decorator, which worked very well since I had to fill it twice :) Top with another cookie and press lightly to spread the marshmallow to the edges. Add another mound on top of the second cookie, and top with another cookie, again pressing slightly to spread the filling to the edges. I used my fingers to hold the layers apart a bit - you want to be gentle so all the guts don't come spilling out the sides! Repeat with the rest of the cookies. If you have extra marshmallow filling it makes a great Fluffernutter!
6. Last step! Chocolate Coating: Using a double boiler or in the microwave on 50% power and in 30 second increments, melt the chocolate and vegetable oil together until completely smooth. This takes quite a few minutes, but that is good because it gives the marshmallow a little time to set. Place the assembled cookies on a wire rack set over a sheet of wax paper. Spoon the melted chocolate over each cookie so that it runs down the sides and covers most of the cookie. Allow to set at room temperature for about 2 hours (or refrigerate to speed up the process) - I had to do both. Store in an airtight container at room temperature.

Amiecakes!

I wanted to do something special for my dear dear friend for her bridal shower (back in November...that is how behind this post is) and so I decided, with her mother and her sister, that I would do the bulk of the baking for the evening. It was great fun. We planned that there should be a fall-ey type dish (Cranberry Pumpkin Muffins), something nice and bite sized (Cream puffs), and cupcakes. We figured chocolate cupcakes would be perfect, but I didn't have a "tried-and-true" recipe...so i started testing out my good ol' Martha Stewart Cupcake book and lo and behold, I found the most wondrous, delicious, easy, (how many more adjectives can I think of?) SUPERMEGAFOXYAWESOMEHOT (Harry Potter Musical reference) Chocolate Cupcakes. The whole mixing event happens in one bowl. You don't even need to dirty your stand mixer (so you don't have to clean it again before you make the best frosting ever) - a hand mixer will do fine.
I have made these multiple times since her shower (Please excuse the invisible wrapper - I used awesome wrappers for the shower, which really were the inspiration for the design...will try to find pic somewhere...)

Enjoy...

One Bowl Chocolate Cupcakes

slightly adapted from Martha Stewart
(Makes 18 to 24)

Ingredients:
3/4 cup dutch process cocoa powder
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs
3/4 cup warm water
3/4 cup buttermilk
3 tablespoons canola oil
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line standard muffin tins with paper liners; set aside.
2. Whisk together cocoa powder, flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, and salt into a large bowl. Add eggs, warm water, buttermilk, oil, and vanilla, and mix until smooth, about 3 minutes. Scrape down the sides and bottom of bowl to assure batter is well mixed.
3. Divide batter evenly among muffin cups, filling each 2/3 full. Bake until tops spring back when touched, about 20 minutes, rotating pan once if needed. Transfer to a wire rack; let cool completely.

Cream Cheese Frosting

Martha Stewart

8 ounces (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
12 ounces cream cheese, room temperature (Use full fat here if you are making these for a function, I used reduced fat for a different batch and it wasn't stiff enough)
1 pound (4 cups) confectioners' sugar, sifted
3/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1. Beat butter and cream cheese with a mixer on medium-high speed until fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes.
2. Reduce speed to low. Add sugar, 1 cup at a time, and then vanilla; mix until smooth.
3. Frosting can be refrigerated for up to 3 days; before using, bring to room temperature, and beat until smooth.

Cranberry Pumpkin Muffins

Back when I was trying to get in the fall mood, I wanted to make something pumpkin-ey...AND cranberry-ish...fall is basically not happening anymore but...this is still an appropriate holiday season style post, I guess.
I am typically not an allrecipes dot com kind of gal...but I decided to give this recipe a shot because it got a high rating... I didn't change a thing, and it got a high rating at my house, too! :)

(sorry...it was Halloween time...the picture is old...but the muffins were good!)

Cranberry Pumpkin Muffins
by Sue Ross
2 1/4c. All Purpose Flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
2 cups sugar
1 cup canned pumpkin
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 cup fresh or frozen cranberries, chopped

1. Combine the flour, baking soda, pumpkin pie spice and salt, and whisk to sift.
2. In another bowl, beat the eggs and sugar
3. Add the pumpkin and oil and mix well.
4. Stir into the dry ingredients until just moistened.
5. Fold in the cranberries (The first time I made these I chopped them by hand, the second time I pulsed them in the food processor...both ways were fine. :)
6. Fill foil or paper-lined muffin cups three-fourths full. Bake at 400ºF for 18-22 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
7. Cool for 5 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks.
MMMMMM! Enjoy!

Hello Fall, Hello Apple Crisp

Right now we are enjoying "Indian Summer"...but it IS fall. I have to embrace it. A couple weeks ago, while seeing the leaves start to change on one of my multiple trips outdoors with Truman, I decided to use some dead-looking apples to make a fabulous dessert. And I wanted to use butter. So I consulted the Baking Illustrated again, and it went SO well :) Enjoy!

Apple Crisp

from Baking Illustrated

Topping:

6 Tablespoons (1 7/8 oz) unbleached all-purpose flour

1/4 cup packed (1 3/4 oz) light brown sugar

1/4 cup (1 3/4 oz) granulated sugar

1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon salt

5 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces

3/4 cup coarsely chopped nuts, such as almonds, pecans or walnuts (the pecans were AWESOME)

Filling:

3 Medium Granny Smith Apples (approx. 1 1/4 lbs)

3 Medium McIntosh Apples (approx. 1 1/4 lbs) (honestly, I just used whatever apples I had, and I made sure that I had about 2.5lbs)

1/2 teaspoon grated zest and 1 1/2 tablespoons juice from 1 lemon (I just used lemon juice from a bottle, and didn't add the zest.)

1/4 cup (1 3/4 oz) granulated sugar

1. For the topping: Place the four, sugars, spices, and salt in a food processor and process briefly to combine. Add the butter and pulse 10 times, about 4 seconds for each pulse. The mixture will first look like dry sand, with large lumps of butter, then like coarse cornmeal. Add the nuts, then process again, four or five 1-second pulses. The topping should look like slightly clumpy wet sand. Be sure not to overmix or the mixture will become too wet and homogenous. Refrigerate the topping while preparing the fruit, at least 15 minutes.

2. Adjust an oven rack to the lower-middle position and heat the oven to 375º

3. For the filling: Peel, core and cut the apples into 1-inch chunks (I used an apple corer slicer and then just cut the slices into the 1" chunks. Done. Easy. :) This should give you approximately 6 cups. Toss the apples, zest, juice, and sugar in a medium bowl. Scrape the fruit mixture with a rubber spatula into an 8-inch square baking pan, 9-inch deep-dish pie plate, or whatever you think will fit it ;)

4. To assemble and bake the crisp: Distribute the chilled topping evenly over the fruit. Bake for 40 minutes. Increase the oven temperature to 400º and continue baking until the fruit is bubbling and the topping turns deep golden brown, about 5 minutes more. Serve warm. (The crisp can be set aside at room temperature for a few hours and then reheated in a warm oven just before serving.)

Dorie's Best Chocolate Chip Cookies

This is why I haven't been baking:

His name is Truman and he was born the day after our 1st wedding anniversary so it was kismet, obviously. ;) Sometimes he is sweet...sometimes he is a terror. But he is ALWAYS adorable. People can't get enough of the pup! And he is currently confined to the kitchen until he earns privileges in other rooms...but he likes to sniff the oven when the door opens, lick the seam of the dishwasher door when it is down, and sit on my feet while I do dishes. So needless to say...we aren't spending much productive time in the kitchen.

That said, his first full day at our house was exciting, and my in-laws wanted to come over to meet the new addition to the family. They brought pizza, and I decided we'd need dessert. Having been obsessed with finding a recipe that would make me happy in the Baker's Illustrated for so long, I decided I should give my other birthday present a try - knowing that Dorie Greenspan was too cool to let me down. I needed something fast, though, and something that would be whipped up between pee-runs outside with the new baby (and I spent a good 65% of my day outside, believe me). So I tried the chocolate chip cookies. Not only were they a hit with everyone at our house, I sent some home to hub's grandfather...who ate all 8 or so in one sitting. This is a skinny 92 year old, people. So they are a recipe we'll be revisiting. And it made a lot of cookies! Which was awesome. They are thin, slightly crispy cookies, and they have an awesome saltiness to them - I found it unnecessary to add the additional salt. I also was unable to add nuts because we have nut allergies in the family. You can decide for yourself on the nuts and the extra salt, but you should definitely make the cookies!  :)

My Best Chocolate Chip Cookies
from Dorie Greenspan's Baking - From My Home to Yours

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt (1 1/4 teaspoon if you really like salt)
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
2 sticks (8 oz.) unsalted butter (room temp)
1 cup sugar
2/3 cup (packed) light brown sugar
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
2 large eggs
12 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped into chips, or 2 cups store-bought chocolate chips or chunks
 1 cup finely chopped walnuts or pecans

1. Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 375º F. Line two baking sheets with parchment.
2.  Whisk together the flour, salt & baking soda.
3.  In a stand mixer with paddle attachment (or with a hand mixer in a large bowl) beat the butter on medium speed for about 1 minute, until smooth. Add the sugars and beat for another 2 minutes or so, until well blended. Beat in the vanilla.
4. Add the eggs one at a time, beating for 1 minute after each egg goes in.
5. Reduce the mixer speed to low and add the dry ingredients in 3 portions, mixing only until each addition is incorporated.
6. On low speed, or by hand with a rubber spatula, mix in the chocolate and nuts. Now you can cover the dough and refrigerate for up to 3 days, or you can freeze it - either all together or in rounded tablespoons so you can bake homemade cookies anytime! You don't have to defrost it, just add an extra minute or so to baking time)
7. Spoon the dough by slightly rounded tablespoonfuls onto the baking sheets, leaving about 2 inches between spoonfuls.
8. Bake the cookies - one sheet at a time and rotating the sheet at the midway point - for 10 to 12 minutes, or until they are brown at the edges and golden in the center; they may still be a little soft in the middle, (Dorie says that's fine, I say it is AWESOME)
9. Pull the sheet from the oven and allow the cookies to rest for 1 minute, then carefully, using a wide metal spatula, transfer them to racks to cool to room temperature.
10. Repeat with the remaining dough, cooling the baking sheets between batches. Enjoy with a big, cold glass of milk - that is the way hubby likes them :)

Snickerdoodle Blondies

Unfortunately, it is getting chilly around here. My favorite season is ending. Fall is rapidly approaching, which is bothering me less and less, as I just bought a sweeeet floor lamp for next to my chaise so I can knit when the mood strikes, and the temperature will be cool enough to do so. PLUS: Apple, Pumpkin, Big E & Comfort Food season...and it is time to bust out the wool...I think I'm starting to like fall more and more!

Here is the first recipe of the comfort food season, straight from my fave blogger, Brown Eyed Baker. I was browsing the usual blogs during my lunch break, and today these looked particularly appealing...Hope hubby's coworkers are in the mood for some blondies, because I can't keep them around my house - I'll eat them all :-/

Snickerdoodle Blondies

from Brown Eyed Baker

Yield: 24 blondies

Prep Time: 15 minutes | Bake Time: 25 to 30 minutes

2-2/3 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
2 cups packed brown sugar
1 cup (8 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature
2 eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
2 teaspoons cinnamon

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease a 9×13-inch baking pan; set aside. (Here I lined a 9x13 with aluminum foil and sprayed that with Pam)

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

3. Beat together the butter and brown sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time, and then the vanilla. Beat, scraping the bowl, until thoroughly combined. On low speed, gradually add the flour mixture until just combined. Give the dough a final stir with a spatula or wooden spoon to make sure the flour is incorporated.

4. Spread the dough evenly into the pan (an offset spatula was the best tool for the job, as it’s a thick batter). Combine the granulated sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl and sprinkle evenly over the top of the batter.

5. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until the surface springs back when gently pressed. (this took 30 minutes for me) Cool completely before cutting. Store in an airtight container at room temperature.

These were delicious and I'd definitely make them again! I hope everyone at Hubby's work enjoys them when I ship them off tomorrow...I will be sad to see them go, but happy that they'll be someone else's problem! ;)

P.S. Sorry the formatting is all over the place. I don't know HTML all that well and I am having a hard time getting everything to cooperate behind-the-scenes... :)