Fruit-Filled Virgin Sangria

A few months ago, I attended a food blogger event at the City Creek Harmons. They served a delicious non-alcoholic basil sangria. I loved the drink and thought it would be fun to recreate my own version at home when fresh fruits were in season!

Sangria is traditionally served in Spain and Portugal and made with wine, sweetener, fruit and a bit of brandy. I'm not a drinker, but love drinks made with fresh fruit.






Last week, we watched the fireworks, soaked up the sunset and enjoyed a pitcher of this colorful drink from our patio. The kids and adults loved the fruit-filled pitcher. When it was empty, we just added more of the liquid base, mixed and enjoyed. This is a perfect addition to any summer party. It travels well- just take the cut up fruits, canned juice, soda and ice in a cooler and mix when the party starts.
Hope you're keeping cool this summer!

Fruit Filled Virgin Sangria
A Bountiful Kitchen
print recipe

1 frozen can of Welch's (or other brand) White Grape and Peach concentrate (not mixed up), thawed a bit*
one 2 liter bottle Ginger Ale or Sprite, sugarless is fine as well
ice, about 2-3 cups
a cup of water, if desired
Approximate fruit (for one pitcher)
2 limes, washed, sliced
1 orange, washed, peel on, sliced
1-2 cups strawberries, washed, a few sliced, a few left whole
handful of cherries
1 peach, peeled and sliced
mint leaves

Using a large glass pitcher, pour in half of the can of concentrate. Add half of a 2 liter bottle of Ginger Ale or Sprite. Add ice, about 2-3 cups. Mix a bit. Add chopped fruits and mint and stir lightly with large wood spoon.  If needed add a bit of water. You may leave the spoon in the pitcher if you wish to help scoop out the fruit while serving.
When the liquid is empty from the pitcher, simply add the remaining juice concentrate, ginger ale and more ice to the remaining fruit in pitcher. Stir and enjoy. You may also add more fruit if needed.
Serves 8

Tips:
-I used a white grape and peach blend but you can use any type of juice. I suggest white grape, pineapple, apple, grape, cranberry, peach, mango. The possibilities are endless.
-Most instructions for Sangria will advise to let the mixture to sit in the fridge for at least two hours before serving. Since I was using a carbonated liquid (and I was short on time), I made it right before serving. Either way works fine.
-If you would like the fruit to sit at the bottom of the pitcher, place the fruit in first, then the ice and the juice and carbonated beverage last. The weight of the ice will help the fruit to sit at the bottom instead of float on the top.
-You may use any combo of fresh fruit in season. I liked the look of the orange and green and red together with a splash of dark green.
-This recipe would also work well in a punch bowl.

Tweet

Red, White and Blueberry Tart

Are you planning a 4th of July bash?
This is one of my favorite desserts, reinvented. Remember when fruit pizza was all the rage years ago? Sweet cookie crust, with cream cheese and powdered sugar icing, topped with fruit and glaze. Sometimes the fruit was arranged beautifully, other times it was dumped on top of the crust and cream cheese layer. That was the 80's. Time to update this classic dessert! You'll love my Red, White and Blueberry Tart.

First, I headed to Harmons to buy the sweetest, most plump, fresh berries. If you live in Utah, you're in business!  Harmons consistently has the best produce in the state. With the exception of picking berries yourself, Harmons is as fresh as it gets.

How do you update a classic? I decided switching from a pizza pan to tart pans made a big difference in presentation. Other subtle, but game changing differences- a little lemon flavoring, fresh fruit only (nothing canned) and no sugary glaze.
When you break this dessert down, it's a sugar cookie crust, lemon-cream cheese icing, topped with fresh fruit. So simple, a kid can make it.
I know you're going to love this for your summer gatherings!
Happy Fourth, and happy baking :)

Red, White and Blueberry Tart
A Bountiful Kitchen

1 cup butter, softened
1 cup + 2 tablespoons powdered sugar
2 teaspoons lemon flavoring or lemon emulsion*
1 egg
2 1/2 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
2 teaspoons cream of tartar
Individual tart pans or 9-10 inch tart pans

Cream together butter and powdered sugar in a large bowl. Add the lemon flavoring or emulsion and egg, beat until combined and smooth, about 1 minute.
Add the flour, baking soda and cream of tartar all at once. Mix just until flour disappears and wet and dry ingredients are combined,
Using individual tart pans (14-16  4-inch pans), or
2-3  9-10 inch or equivalent tart pans, lightly grease the pans with cooking spray.
Scoop the dough into the pans, and press into the pans lightly with hands.
If the dough gets too soft, place the dough in the refrigerator for a few minutes to help the dough firm up.
After all of the tart pans are filled, pre-heat oven to 375 and set the racks in the middle of oven.
When oven is pre heated, bake the tarts for about 10-12 minutes or until tarts are golden brown. For a
9-inch tart pan, bake about 15 minutes. Remove and set on rack to cool. Let cool completely. This step may be done up to two days ahead if kept covered after baked and cooled.

Lemon Cream Cheese Filling:
12 oz cream cheese, room temperature (1 1/2  8 oz blocks cream cheese)
1 3/4 cups powdered sugar
2-3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
dash of salt
splash of milk (if needed to thin)

Beat all of the filling ingredients together in a large bowl until smooth and blended well. The filling should be the consistency of  frosting.
Set aside in refrigerator until ready to use. If making ahead, refrigerate and cover.  Remove from refrigerator  about 30 minutes before ready to use.

Fruit topping:
fresh blueberries
fresh strawberries
fresh raspberries

Wash and drain the fruit thoroughly before using on the tarts. If the fruit is still wet from washing, it may bleed onto the cream cheese filling. I usually wash the fruit, let sit in a colander, then place on paper towels and pat lightly.

When ready to assemble:
Spread the cream cheese filling onto the tarts using a small spatula. Spread the filling almost to the edge of the tart. Arrange the fruit on top of the filling. Place tarts in the refrigerator until ready to serve.
May be prepared early in the day and covered until ready to serve.

Tips:
-Lemon emulsion and lemon extract are found in  most bakery supply stores or stores that sell cake decorating supplies.  Do not use lemon juice as a substitute in the tart shell. Fresh lemon juice is called for in the lemon cream cheese filling only.

Tweet

Almost Swig Sugar Cookie Recipe - Volume 2

Hi there. It's me. The unofficial-official expert on everything Swig cookie.
Self appointed.
If you doubt this statement, read my original post and recipe development epistle on Swig Cookies here.

Now that we have our very own (truly official) Swig shop in B-town, and don't have to drive to St. George to get a fix, the hype has come to Davis County, Utah.
If you aren't a Utah resident, or don't regularly drive through our state, you may be wondering - What's a Swig cookie?  Refer back to the original post.  Also, if you can't get to Swig, or just want to make your own at home, you've come to the right place.

Oh. P.S.
The cookies at the  B-town Swig shop are better than the Swig Cookies in St. George.
There. I've said it.
I swear it's true.
Anyone else want to bear testimony of this?

Last thing.
If you're a chocolate or lemon-lime lover, check out my chocolate "Swagg Cookie" recipe and the spring-time favorite, the "Sprig Cookie".
When you just can't get enough of  cookies that start with "S"  and end with  "G"  :)
Happy Baking!

Update June 2015!
Hi there. Guess what? After many trips to the Bountiful location and spending $$ on cookies, I'm cured of the desire to buy cookies at this location. Not sure who is baking their cookies now, but they now taste like an undercooked version of Lofthouse Cookies. Hmmm. Yes, the gas station pre-packaged bright pink frosted cookies. Not a fan. Sorry Swig. I'll still be buying your sodas, but not your cookies.

Lemon Lime Sprig Cookie

Chocolate Swagg Cookie

(Almost) Swig Sugar Cookie Recipe
A Bountiful Kitchen
print recipe

dough:
1/2 cup butter

1/2 cup solid shortening ( I like Butter Flavor Crisco) or also like canola oil
1 cup sour cream
1 1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon almond extract (optional)
4 1/2  cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
sugar for top of cookies

frosting:
1/2 cup butter, room temperature
2 tablespoon sour cream
4 cups powdered sugar
1-2 teaspoons vanilla
dash of salt
1 drop red food coloring
1-2 tablespoons milk**

Preheat oven to 325 convection or 350 regular bake.
Take butter out of refrigerator and microwave for about 15 seconds. Place butter, shortening and cold sour cream in a mixing bowl. Mix for about one minute. Add sugar and almond extract, mix until smooth. Add all dry ingredients at once. Mix just until flour disappears and the mixture comes together in a ball of dough, about 1 minute on very low speed.
Spray the cookie scoop with a little cooking spray. Scoop the dough onto a lightly greased cookie sheet. I use a 2 inch scoop. A 2 inch scoop will produce a cookie similar in size to the Swig cookie. If you don't have a cookie scoop, use an ice cream scoop or roll the dough into a ball about the size of a golf ball. It is best to use a scoop and overfill it a bit to get the desired jagged edge.
Place about 1/4 cup sugar into a small bowl.
Spray the bottom of a flat glass with cooking spray. Flatten one cookie a bit then dip the glass in sugar Press the bottom of the glass against the cookie. Press the cookies so they are flattened a bit ( until the cookie dough just reaches the outside of the edge of the glass) twisting the glass as you press to produce a jagged edge. I bake 8 cookies per tray. Continue until all cookies are flattened.
Bake in oven for about 10-12 minutes on convection or about 12-15 minutes regular bake or until edges are lightly golden and cookies are slightly firm to the touch.
Remove from oven, let cool.  Loosen the cookies from the cookie sheet after cooled a bit, or they will stick to the pan (even though it has been lightly greased).
Place the cookies in the fridge and chill.

Prepare the frosting:
Beat together the butter, sour cream, powdered sugar, vanilla and salt. When all ingredients are incorporated, add the drop of food coloring and a little milk if the frosting needs to be thinned.
Frost after the cookies are completely chilled.
Makes about 18  large cookies.

Tips and (surprise) a few more comments:
-The recipe looks a little long and maybe even complicated, but it's  not. Once you get the hang of the technique for scooping and pressing, it takes less than a half hour to make and bake the entire batch.
-If you want the cookies to taste more like the  original Swig cookies make this adjustment to the dough:  Omit the almond extract and reduce the sugar to a total of 3/4- 1 cup.
I prefer the cookies to be sweeter, so I like 1 1/2 cups of sugar in the dough. 1 1/2 cups of sugar may sound like a lot, but consider traditional chocolate chip cookies have 1 1/2 to 2 cups of sugar to 2 1/4 cups of flour. The ratio here is 1 1/2 cups sugar to 4 1/2 cups flour.
-This cookie measures about 3 3/4 to 4 inches across when finished baking.
-The St. George Swig cookie is frosted with quite a thin layer of frosting. I prefer my frosting to be a bit thicker. If you want to frost the cookie with a thinner frosting, add about 3-4 tablespoons of milk to the frosting.
-This cookie stays quite well in the fridge for about a week if kept in an air tight container. I frost the cooled cookies, then store them in the fridge. Once the frosting is set on the cookie, you may layer the cookies between sheets of parchment or wax paper. This allows you to stack the cookies without taking up too much space in the refrigerator.
-This cookie freezes well frosted or unfrosted.
-If you are making this for a gathering where there will be other desserts, use a smaller cookie scoop and bake for less time.
-The photo below shows two batches of frosting. One with one drop of red food coloring, the other with two drops.

Tweet

Sour Cream Pancakes

Have you ever eaten a pancake made with sour cream? There's a little breakfast/lunch spot in Salt Lake called Penny Ann's Cafe, and they serve the most delicious sour cream cakes! Sometimes, I daydream about those pancakes. They're that good.

This morning, I was thinking about those light, slightly tangy, melt in your mouth cakes. I was getting ready to watch General Conference on TV, and didn't have time to run in to SLC and wait in line for pancakes, so instead, I dug up a recipe in a cookbook I've had for years. A few minutes later, we were flipping cakes and smothering them with butter, syrup and fresh strawberries.
I know you're going to love these too.
Happy cooking!

Sour Cream Pancakes
adapted from the Jr League Centennial Cookbook
print recipe

1 egg
1 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup sour cream
1 tablespoon melted butter
1 1/4 cups all purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon sugar

Combine all wet ingredients in a medium size bowl. Mix with whisk until blended.
Add all of the dry ingredients to the bowl. Mix once with a large spoon or whisk, do not over mix, mix just until the ingredients are incorporated, there should be a few lumps in the batter.
Heat the griddle to about 350 degrees. Melt butter onto griddle.
Using a 1/3 cup measure, scoop out batter and spread a bit with the edge of the cup. The pancake should be approximately 4-5 inches across.
Let the pancake cook until several bubbles appear and then pop. Turn the pancake gently, and let cook for an additional 3 minutes on opposite side. Do not pat down. Do not flip more than once.
The pancake is done when poked gently in the middle and the cake springs back.
Serve immediately with fresh fruit, syrup, butter and (or) powdered sugar.

Tweet

Panera Copycat Broccoli Cheddar Soup

Have you been to Panera Bread? It's a chain, and even though I'm not a fan of chain restaurants, I love a sandwich and soup from Panera. Maybe it's  because we don't have Panera in Utah?  You always want what you can't have.
I'm not a fan of super thick and cheesy soup. That's why I like Panera's Cheddar Broccoli. It's filling, but not the gloppy-overly-salty-processed-cheese type of soup you find in so many restaurants. Doesn't that sound so appetizing? I looked at several recipes online that claim to duplicate Panera's recipe. Many of those recipes left out  (little, but significant) ingredients, like a bit of mustard, hot pepper sauce, or paprika, which are all listed as ingredients in Panera's soup.  So, I made my own version- a one pot, less than 30 minute recipe.
Just like Panera in your own kitchen.
It's always better home made.
Promise.

Panera Copycat Broccoli Cheddar Soup
A Bountiful Kitchen
print recipe

1/2  cup butter
1 cup onion, chopped
1 cup  chopped carrots ( I used baby carrots)
4 cups chopped broccoli
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pepper
1/2 teaspoon paprika
few drops of hot pepper sauce
4 cups chicken or vegetable broth
1 1/2 cups cream or half and half
1 teaspoon yellow mustard
1/4 cup cornstarch, whisked into 1/2 cup cold water or cold broth
2 cups (about 8 oz)  grated sharp cheddar cheese

Melt butter in large stockpot. Add onions and cook until soft, about 4-5 minutes. Add carrots and broccoli cook for additional 3-4 minutes, season with salt, pepper, paprika and hot pepper sauce.  Pour chicken broth and cream into vegetable mixture. Add one teaspoon mustard, whisk until smooth.
Simmer over medium-low heat.
In a small bowl or cup, whisk the cold water or broth together with the cornstarch until smooth. Pour into the stockpot with the vegetable mixture. Whisk until smooth. Add additional salt and pepper to taste. Add cheese and cook just until cheese is melted. Reduce heat until ready to serve.
Serves 4 as a main course

Tips:
-Sharp or extra sharp cheese is best for this recipe.
-If you want to make a heartier soup,  cook a couple of chicken breast halves and shred or chop before adding to the finished soup.

Tweet

Springtime Salad with White Chocolate Pecan Croutons and Harmon's $250 Gift Card Giveaway!

I'm in love.
With a grocery store.

Last week, I was invited to a blogger event at Harmon's City Creek in downtown Salt Lake City. We were treated to a cooking class taught by Aaron, chef and director of the cooking school in the Harmon's City Creek location.

Aaron taught us how to make a creamy asparagus risotto with topped with duck bacon.  Oh my. We were also served a pork tenderloin, cooked using the Sous Vide method.  The tenderloin was served with a balsamic reduction, wilted baby kale, shaved white asparagus and a piece of french cut purple potato.  Absolutely delicious.
Harmon's cooking school  offers a variety of cooking classes at three locations, covering a wide range of classes, individual tailored small group classes and even private parties.

Harmon's is a home grown business, started by Jake and Irene Harmon on the corner of 330 South and Main in SLC.  Harmon's humble beginning in 1932 has grown to 16 stores and over 3,000 associates. Their focus on customer service and fresh, quality products has made Harmon's, in my opinion, the best of the best in Utah.

What started at The Market Spot over 80 years ago has flourished under family ownership. Do you wonder why some businesses fold overnight, while others have long term staying power? After spending the afternoon at Harmon's I can tell you why they have not only survived, but thrived.  Customers are #1 at Harmon's.
Bob Harmon (grandson of Jake and Irene) spent over three hours with us, in the cooking class, and then gave us a department-by-department tour of his store. Bob shared his enthusiasm for everything in the store from the house-made guac to the cookies in the bakery.

It tastes as good as it looks.

I knew Harmon's had the best in-store bakery in the state, but didn't know each and every one of their cookie, cakes and pastries are baked in house.  Everything, right down to the frosting on the cookies are made in-store, with fresh ingredients. That sugar cookie pictured above was one buttery piece of heaven. I may have eaten two of the four I brought home.

Man can live by bread alone. 

The artisan breads are phenomenal. If you love bread like I do, Harmon's is the grocery store for you. Not only do they sell whole loaves, but half loaves and single slices of bread. Oh, happy day!
Sometimes, I sneak in and get a couple of slices of my favorite breads, including sugared challah and a bowl of soup to take home for lunch.  This is the White Chocolate Pecan artisan bread, it's making a guest appearance in my salad today :)

Harmon's famous White Chocolate Pecan Bread

The produce is local when available, and always the highest quality. I recently purchased a 4 lb bag of Harmon's oranges from Brandt Farms in Reedley, CA. The oranges are packed for Harmon's and shipped immediately, which guarantees the freshest product for Harmon's customers.

  I compared a Harmon's orange to one from a warehouse store I had at home, and the Harmon's orange won the sweetness and juiciness test hands down.

Bob's Kabobs

Are you tired of reading about my love affair with Harmon's?  Don't answer that question.
Last chapter.
Meat.
Harmon's is the only grocery in the state to offer only Prime and Choice beef, the two highes grades on the USDA grading scale. Hormones? You won't find them in any of the meats or poultry sold in Harmon's meat cases. A while back I was looking for Italian sausage without additives. Could not find it.
Anywhere.
Except Harmon's.
I purchase a few kabobs for a quick dinner last week. Threw them under the broiler, (because I was too much of a sissy to go outside and grill in the snow). Outstanding.  Even the leftovers were tender, juicy and full of flavor. The quality? = to that of a high end steak house, with a much smaller price tag, $4 for a 8 oz kabob.

Have you worked up an appetite after reading my epistle on Harmon's??
I've got a special dish for you. With Spring approaching I decided to use a few fresh ingredients I found on my most recent trip to  (you guessed it)  Harmon's.  One vegetable in particular, white asparagus, was especially interesting to me. Chef Aaron served it raw and thinly sliced with our lunch.  You can steam it, or serve it raw.  I love it both ways.  It adds a nice white healthy splash to the salad instead of somewhat predictable white grated cheese.

The frosting on the cake (or salad) in this case, are the sugared croutons. They are made from the White Chocolate Pecan Artisan bread found at Harmon's bakery.  They take the place of the commonly used sugared nuts in a sweet and savory salad. I know they're going to be your new favorite. Try this out for your next gathering. It's the perfect salad for your upcoming Easter brunch or the wedding shower you're hosting. Fresh, simple and unique.

If you've been thinking about checking out Harmon's enter this giveaway using the rafflecopter code below. You could win $250 to spend on your next visit to Harmon's!
Good luck :)

http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/b397ef49/" 

you may want to slurp up any leftovers...

Springtime Salad with White Chocolate Pecan Croutons and Fresh Strawberry Dressing
A Bountiful Kitchen
print recipe

croutons:
3 thick slices (3/4 inch thick) White Chocolate Pecan Bread (about 4 cups)*
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 tablespoons sugar, divided
coarse salt

dressing:
1/4 cup cider vinegar
1/2 canola oil
1 cup fresh strawberries, washed and cut in half
3-4 tablespoons honey or sugar, to taste
dash salt
pepper to taste

salad:
8-12 oz mixed greens, spinach, baby kale, etc.
3 green onions, sliced
4-5 asparagus spears, tough ends snapped off, sliced thin* (optional) or green asparagus may be used
16 oz sliced strawberries (1 cup to be used for dressing)
2 cups fresh blackberries or blueberries

prepare croutons:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Place rack on top third of oven . Cut bread into cubes. Use all parts of bread, do not remove crust. Place bread cubes on cookie sheet or jelly roll pan. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with one tablespoon of sugar. Sprinkle with coarse sea salt. Bake for 10-12 minutes or until golden browned. Remove from oven and let cool.

Prepare salad dressing:
Place all ingredients in blender, blend until smooth. Set in refrigerator until ready to serve salad.
May be made a day ahead. Stir before serving.

Prepare salad:
Place all greens on a platter or in a salad bowl. Arrange fruits and vegetables on top of the greens.  Refrigerate until ready to serve. Place the croutons on the salad just before serving.  Serve with fresh strawberry dressing.
Serves 8-10 as a side salad

Tips:
-If this bread is not available, you may substitute any type of bread to make the sweet croutons. i suggest using  raisin bread or other artisan bread.
-The white asparagus may be steamed lightly, then cooled quickly in a ice water bath. Place the asparagus in between paper towels to remove excess water and sprinkle lightly with salt. The asparagus
may also be served raw. Wash well and drain, slice thin on an angle.

Tweet

Swagg Cookie

Another lesson today on Good, Better, Best  :)
Remember the (Almost) Swig Cookie recipe I posted last summer? If you haven't made it yet, you need to get busy. I've had dozens of people tell me they love to make the cookies at home, since they don't live close to the famous Swig cookie shacks. So how do you improve on a good thing?
One word.
Chocolate.

naked, before frosting ;)

I love the simplicity of the (Almost) Swig Cookie. It's easy to throw together, scoop, flatten and bake. Speaking to women here: you and I both know, there are times a sugar cookie won't fill our want  need. We need chocolate.
In the interest of making a good thing better, I played with my original recipe and made a few adjustments. After a couple of test batches, I came up with the (Almost) Chocolate Swig Cookie...but that's a mouthful, so I named it the Swagg Cookie. It's a little bit short-bready (technical ABK term) on the sugar coated edges, soft in the middle, lots of dark chocolate flavor, topped with a bit of creamy chocolate-sour cream frosting. If that's not swagg, I don't know what is.







Here's the deal.
Good:  Cookie from cookie stand :)
Better: (Almost) Swig Cookie, baked in your kitchen
Best:    Chocolate Swagg Cookie
You choose.

*updated 6/2014 to yield 18 large or 30-32 small cookies

Chocolate Swagg Cookies
A Bountiful Kitchen
print recipe

1/2 cup butter, room temperature
1/2 cup shortening, (butter flavor is best)
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 cup sour cream
2 teaspoon almond or vanilla flavoring ( I like almond)
3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa
3 1/2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt

for shaping cookies:
1/4 cup granulated sugar
cooking spray
*glass with flat bottom, see notes below

Preheat oven to 350 or 325 on convection setting.
Cream butter, shortening and sugar together.
Add sour cream and almond flavoring. Mix. Add the cocoa and mix again until smooth. The mixture should be creamy, with no specks of white. Turn the mixer off.
Add the flour, baking powder and salt all at once. Mix just until all of the flour disappears, on the lowest setting. This should take about 20-30 seconds.
Using a 1 3/4 inch to 2 inch scoop, place the dough onto a lightly greased cookie sheet.
Lightly spray the bottom of a glass with cooking spray. First press the glass against a cookie, then dip the bottom of glass in sugar to flatten cookie a bit. Continue dipping the bottom of the glass into the sugar after flattening each cookie.
After all of the cookies are flattened a bit, go back and lightly sprinkle sugar on top of each cookie.
Bake for about 9-10 minutes at 325 convection, or about 10-12 minutes at 350.
The cookies should be barely firm on top. Do not over cook!
Let cool completely on cookie sheet. Frost when cool.
Yield about 18 large cookies or 30-32 small to medium cookies.

Sour Cream Chocolate Swagg Frosting
1/2 cup butter, room temperature
2 tablespoon sour cream
3 1/2  cups powdered sugar
2/3 cup cocoa, unsweetened
1 teaspoon vanilla
dash of salt
milk to thin, about 2-3 tablespoons

Cream butter, sour cream and powdered sugar. Add cocoa and vanilla, beat until smooth. Thin frosting with milk a  tablespoon at a time until desired consistency.

Tips:
-To achieve an edge on the cookie, or "lip" * :
1. Generously fill the cookie scoop, extra dough will help form an outer edge on the cookie.
2. Choose a glass with a flat bottom. Look at the bottom of the glass, if the bottom is not flat, the dough will not press out properly.
3. I use a 2 1/4 inch glass bottom for my smaller 1 3/4 inch cookie scoop; and a 2 3/4 inch glass bottom  when using a 2 inch cookie scoop .
4. Flatten the cookie ball with the bottom of the glass, twisting the glass gently as you flatten the dough ball. The dough should no longer be mounded. The cookie should be about 1/4 inch thick after flattening with glass.
-I use Dutch Process Cocoa, which I highly recommend for this cookie.
-This cookie will keep well refrigerated for a few days. Frost after cool, refrigerate in a single layer until the frosting is set, then stack in layers between parchment or wax paper, cover tightly.
-If you want to mail this cookie, I would add a cup of chocolate chips to the batter and use all butter flavor  shortening. It will stay fresh longer and travel better. Sprinkle generously with sugar on top and leave the frosting off of the cookie. Perfect for missionaries, college students or military care packages!
-Be very careful to not over bake this cookie. It will be slightly firm to the touch when done. Because the cookie is so dark in color, it cannot be judged by color when it is finished baking. See the photos at the top of the page for example of cookie after removing from oven, but before frosting.

Tweet