Showing posts with label cookies. Show all posts
Showing posts with label cookies. Show all posts

1/23/14

Joyous Almond Cookies



Two experiences led me to creating my most favorite cookie in the world.
1. As a kid, one of my top 5 candy bars to collect at Halloween was the mini Almond Joy. When my brother and I spilled our stash on the living room floor after trick or treating, he gladly handed over his Almond Joy bars, in trade for my Snickers. I loved the sticky, sweet, coconut drenched in milk chocolate and topped with a single almond. Forget the Sweetarts!  I wanted nuts, coconut and chocolate.
2. After eating  (well, lets say it was more than one, less than 10)  coconut cookies at two local bakeries- Ruby Snap and Sweet Tooth Fairy,  I became obsessed with creating my own version of the coconut and chocolate cookies they sell.
After a few tries, I came up with my own Almond Joy bar, in a cookie.
If you love the Almond Joy, you'll love this cookie.
Promise.

 Hot out of the oven, before dipping…


Joyous Almond Cookies
A Bountiful Kitchen
print recipe

1 cup butter
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 cup white sugar
1 teaspoon almond flavoring
1 teaspoon coconut emulsion (or coconut flavoring)*
2 large eggs
2 1/2 cup flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup whole almonds, chopped coarse
1 1/2 cups coconut, sweetened, flaked
1 1/2 cups chocolate chips ( I like semi sweet)
2 Almond Joy bars, chopped into 4 pieces each

Dipping chocolate and additional coconut for outside of cookie

Preheat oven to 375. Or if using convection, 350.
Remove butter from refrigerator and softened butter for about 20 seconds in microwave or until slightly soft.  Place butter in mixing bowl and add brown and white sugar. Beat just until smooth. Add almond and coconut emulsion and eggs. Beat again just until smooth.
Add the remaining ingredients to the bowl, mix just until flour disappears and ingredient are incorporated. This takes less than one minute.
Scoop dough onto cookie sheets, I use a 2 inch scoop. Slightly flatten with palm of hand.
Bake at 350 for about 12 minutes, or until cookies are slightly golden. Convection bake for about 8 minutes.
Remove from oven and let cool completely.
Melt chocolate. Dip about 1/3 of the cookie in melted chocolate, set on cookie sheet lined with wax or parchment paper and sprinkle with additional coconut.
Allow cookies to cool completely.
Makes about 16-18 large cookies.

Tips:
-*Coconut emulsion is sold in most craft or cooking stores near the cake decorating supplies. It can also be found at discount stores such as Homegoods or TJMaxx. It can be interchanged in equal amounts 1 tsp of emulsion for 1 tsp of flavoring. Emulsion does not contain alcohol, and therefore does not cook out while baking - resulting in the intensity of flavor staying the same after baking.
-I like to use whole almonds and chop them either by hand with a sharp Butcher knife, or place them in a food processor with the blade setting and pulse until chopped coarse.
-you can interchange the chocolate on the inside and outside of the cookie, using either semi sweet or milk chocolate.


Dipped in milk chocolate...




12/19/13

Simple Coconut Cookies


Coconut cookies. You are either a lover or a hater. I'm a lover. This is one simple and delicious little nugget of coconutty deliciousness. It is moist and chewy. Full of coconut flavor.


Jack wants you to know he loves coconut.

You probably have all of the ingredients in your pantry to make these little gems. It will take you 5 minutes to mix up the dough.  Bake for 30 minutes while you clean up the mess and powder your nose. You don't powder your nose? Neither do I. 
Anyway. You're going to love these. 
Less than a week before Christmas. 
Get Baking. 




















Simple Coconut Cookie
Indigo's Sugar Spectrum, adapted from Martha Stewart

1 package (14 ounces) sweetened shredded coconut (5 1/3 cups)
1 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 cup (1 stick) chilled unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, (spooned and leveled)
splash of milk if needed

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. 
Set aside 2 loosely packed cups of coconut on a plate. 
Place remaining coconut in a food processor along with sugar, salt, and baking powder; process until finely ground. Add butter, and process just until no lumps remain. Add egg and vanilla; process just until smooth. Add flour; pulse until a crumbly dough begins to form, scraping sides of bowl as needed (do not over mix). If the dough is a bit dry, add a splash of milk until the dough comes together. Do not over mix.
Forming 5 or 6 at a time, scoop level tablespoons of dough, and place in reserved coconut. Roll into balls, coating with coconut.
Arrange balls, about 2 inches apart, on baking sheets.  Do not flatten the balls of dough.
Bake until lightly golden, 23 to 25 minutes. Cool on baking sheets 1 to 2 minutes; transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
If desired, sprinkle with a bit more coconut while hot.
This recipe yields about 15-18 cookies if using a 2 1/2 inch cookie scoop. The cookies are very rich, and can be made using a smaller scoop or spoon. 

12/17/13

Linzer Cookies





I first tasted Linzer cookies while on a trip to Austria back in the late 90's. Linzer-type cookies are sold all over Europe.  I'm in love with the combination of butter cookie and jam filling. The recipe for Linzertorte is rumored to come from an Austrian Abbey in 1653. The Linzer cookie is a cousin to the famous Linzertorte, which is made with a buttery dough (often same as the cookie recipe), filled with jam, then topped with a lattice crust.


I love my friend, Jolene's recipe for Linzer cookies. It's the best I've tasted. Trust me, I know a good Linzer cookie when I meet it.  This one has ground almonds in the dough along with a bit of cinnamon, and almond extract. It's remarkably easy to mix up and although they look complicated, they are fairly straightforward and the dough is easy to handle. 
Every Christmas cookie tray needs a jam cookie. I know you'll love these on your holiday table. 
Frohliche Wehnachten.



Linzer Cookies
Jolene Jardine
print recipe

*You will need a cookie cutter that is round or round with scalloped edge, also a small cutout (circle, heart, or any other small shape) for the center of the cookies.

1 1/2 cups butter, softened
1 1/2 cups sugar
4 egg yolks
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 teaspoons almond extract

3 cups flour
1 cup almond flour (or ground almonds)
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon


Filling:
1 cup raspberry jam
2 teaspoons lemon peel (optional)

Preheat oven to 300 degrees
In a large bowl, or bowl of a food processor, cream butter and sugar. Add egg yolks and extracts, beat until light and fluffy.
Add dry ingredients all at once, mix just until all of the wet and dry ingredients are incorporated, do not over mix.
On a floured surface, turn the dough a few times until coated with flour. Roll dough to 1/8 inch thickness. Cut out with round cookie cutter. Continue rolling out dough with a bit of flour until all of the dough is cut and placed on cookie sheets. Cut small shape (circle, heart, etc) in the center of half of the cookies.
Bake in 300-325 degrees oven until golden brown on bottom of cookie. Let cool completely.
In a small bowl combine jam and lemon peel.
Take the top of the cookies and press lightly into powdered sugar. Set aside.
Spread a little jam filling onto the center of each of the cookies that do not have a cutout shape. Do not spread the filling to the edge of the cookie, it will eventually spread to the edge after the cookie is topped. Place the cutout cookie on top of the jam topped cookie.
yields about 6 dozen single cookies, or 3 dozen finished Linzer cookies.

Tips:
-If you want the cookies to be soft, place in an airtight container. If you prefer the cookies to be crisp, instead of soft, store in a single layer until ready to eat.
-I placed all of the scraps in a pile and then re-rolled those a couple of times to prevent re-rolling the dough too many times. I also baked the cut-out center pieces and served those dipped in powdered sugar along with the filled cookies. Also spread a bit of jam on those and made mini-Linzers.






12/16/13

Homemade Oreos and ABK's 4th Annual Christmas Cookie Extravaganza


Fourth year in a row. Christmas cookie week  at ABK.
Day one. Homemade Oreos. I started with this recipe because I wanted to share an easy kid-friendly cookie. Christmas is steeped in tradition. Sometimes, we get into a rut with traditional baking.  We bake certain cookies because they have been handed down through generations. Those "I have to make these every year or it won't be Christmas" recipes. Lots of times they are loaded with nuts and fruits and who knows what else... My kids were never big on the fruit and nut cookies. After making Date Pinwheels (which I loved) for about 15 years, I noticed there were always lots of leftovers which I reluctantly tossed in the trash after January 1st.  I finally stopped making those lovely date cookies, and my kids have never peeped a word about the missing "must have" cookies.
I try to include a chocolate cookie in our Christmas baking each year, this year, it's the humble Homemade Oreo. Out with dates, in with chocolate.
Happy Baking.
Next up: Jolene's Linzer Cookies






















Homemade Oreos
adapted from Sweet Potato Chronicles
print recipe

cookies:
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup unsweet­ened Dutch process cocoa
1 tea­spoon bak­ing soda
1/4 tea­spoon bak­ing pow­der
1/4 tea­spoon salt
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons room-temperature, unsalted but­ter
1 large egg

fill­ing:
1/4 cup room-temperature, unsalted but­ter
1/4 cup veg­etable short­en­ing
2 cups powdered sugar
1 tea­spoon vanilla extract

Pre­heat oven to 375°F.
In a food proces­sor, or bowl of an elec­tric mixer, thor­oughly mix the flour, cocoa, bak­ing soda and pow­der, salt, and sugar. While puls­ing, or on low speed, add the but­ter, and then the egg. Con­tinue pro­cess­ing or mix­ing until dough comes together in a mass.
Take rounded tea­spoons of bat­ter and place on a parch­ment paper-lined bak­ing sheet approx­i­mately two inches apart. I used a mini scooper to form the cookies. Make sure to follow directions here, or you'll end up with cookies that are way too big. With moist­ened hands, slightly flat­ten the dough. Bake for 9 min­utes, rotat­ing once for even bak­ing. Cool completely.
To make the cream filling,  place but­ter and short­en­ing in a mix­ing bowl, and at low speed, grad­u­ally beat in the sugar and vanilla. Turn the mixer on high and beat for 2 to 3 min­utes until fill­ing is light and fluffy.
To assem­ble the cook­ies spread a bit of the filling onto the bottom of the cookie (flat side).  You may use a pas­try bag with a 1/2 inch, round tip, to fill the cookies, but I think spreading the filling on works just as well.  Place another cookie, equal in size to the first, on top of the cream. Con­tinue until all of the cookies have been sand­wiched with cream. Store in a sealed container. 
Makes about 25-30 small (about 3 inch) cookies.

5/30/13

(Almost) Swig Sugar Cookies and one long story behind them...


If you live in St George, Utah, or have visited St. George over the past few months you've heard about the buzz surrounding SWIG. It's a little cookie shack (two locations) rumored to be hauling in thousands of dollars each day. They sell cookies, ice cream, donuts, shaved ice and get this- "Dirty Diet Coke".  The Mormons in St. George are a pretty tame bunch ( I know this, bc they're my peeps). Slap the name "dirty" on a soda and you have a small stampede outside your place of business. This is about as wild as it gets if you're a Mormon :) The "dirty" in the soda, btw is a free add-in flavoring such as coconut, cherry, lime, etc.
Here's a pic of a famous St. George landmark, in case you haven't ever been there. It's a beautiful town located about 2 hours north of Las Vegas.


St George Temple


The skinny :
The big deal at Swig is the sugar cookie (which is actually baked by the folks at Dutchman's Market/Cravings Bakery in Santa Clara). Dutchman's has a FB page, if you scroll down their page, they show a pic of the cookies sold in their store, along with what they call "muddy" sodas. Maybe they call it a muddy soda after mud filled their shop? Dutchman's went under (literally) last year when there was a devastating flood in Santa Clara. They recently re-opened and are selling cookies in their bakery. It looks like they sell their cookies at room temperature, prefrosted. The Swig cookie is served cold and frosted with room temp frosting after you place your order. St George is a hot, dry place, so a cool cookie and Coke are a perfect combo.













My opinion:
I Pinned a recipe posted online that was supposed to be a knock off recipe of the Swig Sugar Cookie. After looking at the recipe, I knew it would not produce a cookie like the Swig cookie. It looks beautiful in the post, but doesn't have the Swig cookie texture. A few years ago, I posted this recipe, which is almost identical to the knock off recipe posted. It has a lighter, more shortbread-like texture than the Swig cookie. I've baked sugar cookies with cream cheese or sour cream in the dough, and thought the sour cream gave the cookie a (heavier) texture, similar to the Swig cookie.  Have I totally lost you yet?  I tried an entirely different recipe, altered a bit to create a heavier cookie. Still not quite right. I pulled up recipes and compared and decided the Swig cookie is so dense, it is likely to not have any egg in the dough. I altered the cookie again, and swapped the baking soda for baking powder. I also tried cream of tarter (see my note below about that experiment).  Yes, I feel like I should be auditioning for a job at America's Test Kitchen.  My final result is a cookie very similar to the Swig cookie. If you strip away the frosting on the Swig cookie, it is a very bland tasting treat. The cookie is so bland, that I added vanilla and sugar to make the cookie more flavorful. I couldn't help myself. 




The End. Almost:
For what it's worth, I've had better sugar cookies. This is coming from a person who has eaten hundreds of sugar cookies in my life, thus far. Not a proud moment. Anyway. I prefer a softer, lighter and more moist sugar cookie than the Swig cookie. After extensive taste testing on several of the Swig Sugar cookies, I've decided the cookie is more like a cross between a shortbread slash flattened out sweet biscuit than a cookie. It is not very flavorful and quite dry- which may be a good thing, since it is often served with a Coke or Dr. Pepper. And don't forget about the flavor shot in the drink. A bland cookie goes well with a sweet drink and/or a flavor-spiked soda. 
I'm standing by my theory that all the fuss is about a cold cookie, served in a hot climate, with a fun drink.
That said, I gave samples to lots of friends, fam, etc. Almost everyone loved this cookie. They all raved about how good it is. Was. Whatever.




Are you still reading? Wow. You get a prize. 
I'm going to bring you some cookies. Yes, some of the one hundred and twelve dozen test cookies I've made over the past few days. I'm not joking. 
Here it is, my version of the Swig Cookie, for your baking pleasure.
Oh, don't forget the Dirty Dr. Pepper. 
You'll need it. 




Update** October 2013
After making dozens of batches of this recipe for the last five months, I've altered the recipe again.
I will enter the updates in RED below. Tricia, a reader suggested (after trying to eat dairy-free for a month) to try substituting shortening instead of butter to get the desired crunch, and crumbly fall apart texture in the original Swig cookie. I tried and she is absolutely right! I still liked the flavor of half butter and half shortening, so I still use part butter in my cookies. Thanks for leaving a comment Tricia!

(Almost) Swig Sugar Cookies
A Bountiful Kitchen
print recipe

dough:
1/2 cup butter or  (1/4 cup butter and 1/4 cup Butter Flavor or Regular Crisco)
1/2 cup sour cream
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla (optional) or 1/2 teaspoon almond extract
2 1/4 cups all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
sugar 

frosting:
1/4 cup butter, room temperature
1 tablespoon sour cream
2 cups powdered sugar
1 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 vanilla, 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 1-2 minutes on very low speed. 
Spray the cookie scoop with a little cooking spray. Scoop the dough onto a  lightly greased cookie sheet. I use either a 1 3/4 inch or a 2 inch scoop. A two 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, 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 or until edges are lightly golden and cookies are slightly firm to the touch. Remove from oven, let cool. 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 milk if the frosting needs to be thinned. 
Frost after the cookies are completely chilled. 
Makes about 14 small or 8-10 large cookies. I almost always double this recipe. 

Tips and (surprise) a few more comments:
-*If you want the cookies to taste more like the Swig cookies make this adjustment to the dough:
 omit the vanilla and reduce the sugar to 1/2 cup. I prefer the cookies to be a bit sweeter, so I liked 3/4 cup of sugar in the dough.
-I like the cookies made with about 1/2 to 1 teaspoon of almond extract in the dough, along with the 1 teaspoon of vanilla.
-**The 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.
 -The bit of crunch on the edge of the Swig cookie could be from the baking method, or from cream of tarter substituted for the baking powder. Cream of tarter adds a bit of a crunch, but also a hint of tang, which I didn't detect in the Swig cookie. In one of my test batches, I tried 1/2 teaspoon cream of tarter along with 1/2 teaspoon of baking powder, and thought the cookie was too tangy, not at all like the Swig cookie. ** See update above recipe on 10/2013
-This cookie stays quite well in the fridge for about a week if kept in an air tight container.

Disclaimer!
I read some of the comments left by readers on another knockoff recipe. Some of the comments left were (to put it mildly) not very nice. What's up with that? People. Relax. It's just a recipe. 
I posted this recipe because several people have asked me about the Swig recipe.
This is not the Swig recipe. It's a recipe similar in texture and flavor. If you want to try another knockoff recipe, which I mention in this post, you can check it out here.



My work is done. On to the dishes...


1/15/13

Cutler's Frosted Peanut Butter Cookies






It's January 15. Are you ready to break your New Years resolution? Read on.
Back in November, Curt Cutler taught a class on one of his best sellers: Frosted Peanut Butter cookies. The class was packed, and everyone left with little tricks and tips on how to make the perfect chocopeanutbutter treat. You've never had one of these delightful goodies? Think of chocolate chip cookie dough, only with peanut butter chips instead of chocolate. Add a thin layer of peanut butter frosting, topped with chocolate butter cream frosting.
Oh my.
Forget the diet.
Get out the mixer.
BTW - If you live in the area and want to learn how to make Cutler's famous Sugar cookies  Curt's teaching a class on Wednesday, January 30.  Two classes:
10 am  and 2 pm  (update-both filled as of 1/24). Ten dollars buys you: instruction, recipes, a sample and lunch. Pre-registration required. Hurry classes are filling up fast.
Where else can you get a deal like that?
Btown.
Love it.






Cutler's Frosted Peanut Butter Cookies
Curt Cutler
print recipe

1 cup butter, room temperature
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup white sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 eggs
3 1/4 cups cake flour ( he uses cake flour in all of Cutler's cookies)
1- 12 oz bag Reese's Peanut Butter chips (no substitutions)

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees and place rack in center of oven.
Cream together butter, sugars, salt, baking soda and powder.  Add vanilla and eggs. Mix well.
Add flour and peanut butter chips. Mix just until flour and chips are blended together.
Using a cookie scoop or ice cream scoop, or just a large spoon, scoop into 2 inch balls and place on a parchment lined cookie sheet about 4 inches apart.  I bake about 8 cookies per sheet.
Bake for about 12 minutes, or until set.

Peanut Butter Frosting

1/2 cup butter, soft-room temperature
3 cups powdered sugar
1/2 cup peanut butter (not natural)
milk to thin to proper consistency (whole milk is best)

Cream together room-temperature butter and powdered sugar. Add peanut butter and beat until smooth. Add milk a tablespoon at time, just until frosting is smooth and creamy. Set aside.

Chocolate Frosting
1 cup butter or 1/2 and 1/2 blend butter/margarine
5-6 cups powdered sugar
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa (or less if you like a lighter cocoa frosting)
1 tablespoon vanilla
1/4 to 1/3 cup milk

Cream butter and 5 cups powdered sugar. Add cocoa and vanilla. Add milk a tablespoon at a time until frosting is smooth. If needed, add more powdered sugar.

After cookies are cooled, frost with peanut butter frosting. Then frost on top of the peanut butter frosting with the chocolate frosting. When spreading the chocolate frosting on top of the peanut butter frosting, be very gentle and leave a small space between the edge of the peanut butter frosting and the chocolate frosting for a layered frosting look (see photos).

12/7/12

Chewy Chocolate Coconut Cookies




Question of the day. What could possibly make a simple Coconut Cookie recipe better?
One word. Chocolate.
I fiddled with Martha's basic cookie recipe (which I found on this site) and came up with this chewy, chocolaty nugget of goodness yesterday afternoon. If you love chocolate and coconut together...
Merry Christmas to you.



























Chewy Chocolate Coconut Cookies
A Bountiful Kitchen
print recipe

1/2 cup butter, softened
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon coconut emulsion
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour (add an additional 1/4 cup if you are high altitude)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon soda
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
11/2 cup sweetened coconut, divided (1/2 for batter, 1 cup for rolling and topping)
1-2 tablespoons milk

Preheat oven to 350 degrees, with rack on center of oven.
Cream butter and sugar together in large bowl or mixing bowl fitted with paddle. Add egg and mix until smooth. Add coconut emulsion and vanilla, mix. Add flour, salt, soda and cocoa powder. Mix just until flour disappears and all ingredients are incorporated. Do not over mix.
Fold in 1/2 cup coconut. Mixture may be dry and not form together well. If this is the case, add one to two tablespoons of milk and gently mix, just until dough comes together. I used one tablespoon.
Scoop the dough out using a 1 1/2 inch cookie scoop or a spoon, form into balls.
Roll balls of dough into coconut on one side. Place on lightly greased cookie sheet or parchment paper.
Slightly flatten the dough. Bake at 350 degrees, for about 10 minutes.
When set, remove from oven and top with additional coconut while cookies are still hot. Lightly press the coconut into the top of the cookie.
Makes about 18 cookies.

Tips:

-Check out Cake Central for questions about emulsion vs extract.






12/5/12

Lemon Crinkle Cookies



Day three of our CCE; this recipe won the LDS Living Best Cookie Recipe Contest in 2011. If you are baking for a lemon lover, they’ll love this treat. Some people say you either are a chocolate or lemon lover.
Really?
It’s like choosing which child is your favorite.
Always a fun discussion to have with your children.
Oh reminder, Christmas is 20 days away!
You’re welcome.
Happy baking :)






Lemon Crinkle Cookies
adapted from LDS Living Magazine
print recipe

Makes 1 dozen cookies ( I recommend doubling this recipe)

Ingredients:
½ cup butter, softened
1 cup granulated sugar
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
1 whole egg
1 tablespoon lemon zest
1-2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon baking powder
⅛ teaspoon baking soda
1 3/4 cup cake flour
1/4 cup powdered sugar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees (I use the convection setting).
Grease light colored baking sheets lightly with non-stick cooking spray and set aside. Or use parchment lined baking sheets.
In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Whip in vanilla, egg, lemon zest, and juice. Scrape sides and mix again.
Stir in all dry ingredients slowly until just combined, excluding the powdered sugar. Scrape sides of bowl and mix again briefly.
Pour powdered sugar into a bowl.
Roll a heaping teaspoon of dough (I use a 1 ½ inch cookie scoop) into a ball and roll in powdered sugar.
Place on baking sheet and repeat with remaining dough.
Bake for 8-9 minutes* or until bottoms begin to barely brown and cookies are set.
Remove from oven and let cookies cool completely.

Tips:
*If using a non-stick darker baking tray, reduce baking time by about 2 minutes.
-The original recipe calls for 1 ½ cups all pupose flour. I baked these several times and found the cookies were not as puffy as I would like. We live at about 4400 ft above sea level and have to add additional flour to achieve a cookie that is not completely flat after baking. I tried adding additional all purpose flour, but found using a total of 1 ¾ cups of cake flour produced the result I wanted- a cookie that was still chewy and moist, but not flat.
-If you are baking in an oven that is a professional model (Wolf, Viking, etc) made for home use, bake at 325 convection, 6-7 minutes.
-My friends Jo, Diane and Nan made a recipe similar to this for a shower in our neighborhood. My other friend Jo (yes two friends named Jo) made lemon sorbet to go with the lemon cookies. YUMMY. Click on their names for links to some truly wonderful recipes :)

12/4/12

ABK's Butterscotch Hello Dolly! Bars



These bars have been around forever. We  baked a variation of these and served them at our wedding reception back in 1982. I know, 1982? Yes, we had ovens back then. 
I believe these were one of Grant's Grandmother's favorites, so we added it to our dessert menu for the reception. We had all kinds of other yummy treats including hundreds of little finger sandwiches that Grandmother Lauder and Great Aunt Mille made the day before the wedding. What a wonderful memory and legacy they left their families of love and service! I still remember those little rolled and layered sandwiches, and the buffet of miniature desserts: Chiffon Nut Bars, Peanut Butter Balls, Shortbread cookies and Hello Dolly Bars.




Most people know this dessert by the name "7 Layer Bars" or Hello Dolly Bars.   I tweaked this recipe over the years to include a thicker layer of the filling, and baked it less to make the treats a little less dry, and a little more chewy.
Every Christmas cookie tray needs a bar cookie.
This is it. Crushed cookies and butter. Two types of chocolate. A little butterscotch. A layer of caramel. Coconut and pecans.  What more could you ask for in a treat?
I've died and gone to heaven.
Not really. Ill be back tomorrow with another Christmas cookie recipe. 


ABK's Butterscotch Hello Dolly!  Bars
A Bountiful Kitchen
print recipe

Cooking Spray
1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs and 1/2 cup Veritable Petit Beurre crackers*,
or crushed shortbread cookies (2 cups total crumbs)
1/2 cup butter, melted
1 tablespoon sugar
2 cups milk chocolate chips
1 (14 oz.) can Sweetened Condensed Milk
2 cup (11 oz.) butterscotch-flavored chips
1 cup (6 oz. pkg.) semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 small package (7-9 oz)  or about 1 1/2 cups, loosely packed coconut, sweetened or unsweetened
1 1/2 cup chopped nuts (pecans are preferred)

Heat oven 350°F. Spray 13 x 9-inch baking pan lightly with non stick cooking spray.
Pulse crackers in a food processor or finely crush in a bag. Combine graham cracker crumbs, melted butter and 1 tablespoon sugar; mix well. Press crumb mixture firmly into bottom of prepared pan. 
Top with 2 cups milk chocolate chips.
Pour sweetened condensed milk evenly over crumb mixture and milk chocolate chips.
Layer evenly with remaining ingredients; press down firmly with fork.
Bake 25 to 30 minutes or until lightly browned. Loosen from sides of pan while still warm; cool on wire rack. Cut into bars or diamonds. Yield: 2 dozen bars.

Tips:
-*Veritable Petit Buerre crackers are a plain slightly sweet biscuit-type cracker sold in Europe. I had some in my pantry and used them in this recipe. Don't feel like you need to use up your stash of imported crackers or cookies to make this recipe. Any type of dry, sweet cracker or cookie will work. Or you may use all graham crackers instead of combining two types of cookie.
-If you want to make a really thick bar, use a 9x9 pan and bake for an additional 8 minutes on the lower third of the oven.

12/2/12

ABK's 3rd Annual Christmas Cookie Extravaganza - Soft Gingersnap Cookies




Back by popular demand, ABK's third annual Christmas Cookie Extravaganza!
I know, you're excited. For the next several days, I'll share some amazing new cookie recipes for you to try this holiday season.
First up: Every Christmas cookie tray needs a ginger cookie. You'll love this cookie. I made about 4 batches in November. They freeze well, so you can start baking today and store them in the freezer to take out later in the month.
Freezing is a good idea.
That or buying the next size up in pants.
You choose.



Soft Ginger Snaps
Pinch of Salt Lake cookbook
print recipe

3/4 cup butter, softened
2 cups white sugar
2 eggs
1/2 cup molasses (light or dark)
4 cups flour
4 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon ginger
2 teaspoons cinnamon
granulated sugar for coating

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
In a large mixing bowl, beat butter and sugar. Add eggs and molasses, mix until smooth.
Add flour, soda, salt, ginger and cinnamon. Mix just until wet and dry ingredients are incorporated.
Refrigerate dough for about 1 hour or until chilled.
Form dough into balls ( I used a 1-inch cookie scoop) and roll each ball of dough in granulated sugar. Bake on ungreased baking sheet for 6-8 minutes or until set. Do not over bake. Cookies will be puffy when removed from oven, but will flatten as they cool. Tops will look cracked.
Makes about 4-5 dozen cookies.

Tips:
-You may make the dough and store in refrigerator up to one week until ready to bake.
-You may use powdered sugar if you like the cookie to have more of a white appearance on top.
-When freezing, lay flat on a jelly roll pan or large plastic container. Place cookies in single layers in pan, separate with wax or parchment paper.


10/13/12

Cutler's Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies


What's on your list of fun ways to spend a morning? How about hanging out at a bakery?
I spent some time last week at Cutler's bakery where Curt, Troy and Shaun were working their magic- mixing, shaping and baking up dozens of cookies.  They were baking up: Oatmeal Chocolate Chip, Brownie Marshmallow and Pumpkin Choco Chip Cookies. I may or may not have had a sample.
Or two.
We had deep conversations about - The perfect bran muffin. The best bread for sandwich making. Chocolate chips, what brand is best (Guittard). And how to properly form and frost a cookie. Curt and Shaun have their own special knives they prefer to use while frosting cookies. They still hand frost every cookie they sell. You have to love a local business that still makes all of their cookies from scratch.
October = pumpkin cookie season. You'll love Cutler's recipe. If you can't bring yourself to whip up a batch, go see Curt, he'll sell you a few.










Cutler's Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies
Cutler's Cookies, Bountiful, Utah
print recipe

1 cup butter, softened
3 cups sugar
2 eggs
2 cups pumpkin
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
5 cups cake flour*
1 teaspoons salt
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
2 cups chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Beat butter and sugar together for about 2 minutes or until smooth. Add eggs, pumpkin, vanilla and spices. Continue beating for about 2  additional minutes.  Add rest of ingredients to bowl and mix just until flour disappears and all ingredients are combined.
Using a large cookie (or ice cream) scoop, place dough onto parchment lined baking sheets or lightly greased cookie sheet.
Bake at 350 degrees for about 10-12 minutes. Let cool completely on baking sheet before transferring to plate.

Tips:
-*Cutler's uses cake flour in all of their cookie recipes. Cake flour will create a lighter texture and a more cake like cookie, compared to cookies baked with all purpose flour. If you do not have cake flour, all purpose flour will work fine. You will have to add up to one additional cup of flour to the recipe (6 total cups of flour).
-Do not flatten the balls of cookie dough after placing on the baking sheet.
-If using a convection oven, you may lower the baking time to 8-10 minutes.


5/2/12

Cutler's Brownie Marshmallow Cookies







It's no secret that brownies are my favorite (and cookies, cake and pie). When I need a chocolate fix, and want to avoid baking, my car steers itself to Cutler's. These cookies are a little bit of choco-marshmallow heaven on earth.
Curt Cutler, the B-town Cookie King, taught a class at a South Fork recently. He's always willing to share tips and tricks to making perfect cookies. Curt's #1 tip? Using cake flour in all of his cookie recipes. When you are baking at a high altitude (we are at about 4,400 ft in Btown), adding additional flour or using cake flour is essential to produce cookies that look like cookies, and not pancakes. Another tip- Curt used to buy marshmallow creme until a little while back, when the supplier wasn't able to deliver- he checked out a few recipes and started making his own. Oh my. So good. Simple too. Forget about that stuff in the tall glass jar at the grocery. Once you whip up Curt's marshmallow creme,  you'll never look back. Trust me, you'll love these cookies.





Cutler's Brownie  Marshmallow Cookies
Cutler's Cookies, Bountiful, Utah
print recipe

1 cup butter
1 2/3 cups white sugar
2 eggs
1 ¼ teaspoon vanilla
¾ cup unsweetened cocoa
¼ teaspoon salt
1 ¼ teaspoon baking powder
2 1/3 cups cake flour*

Cream butter and sugar. Add eggs and vanilla and mix until blended well. Add dry ingredients and mix.  Cookies can be rolled, formed into drop cookies, or pressed into a 9 x 13 pan (double recipe and bake time).  Roll and form cookies and bake at 350 for 10-12 minutes.  Cookies are done when top is slightly cracked and no longer looks wet.

Marshmallow Creme
3 egg whites
2 cups light corn syrup
½ teaspoon salt
2 ½ cups powdered sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla
Combine egg whites, corn syrup, and salt.  Beat on high speed for 10 minutes or until thick.  Add powdered sugar and beat on low speed until blended.  Add vanilla and blend.  May be frozen for later use.

Chocolate Frosting
1 cup butter
4-5 cups powdered sugar
milk
½ cup unsweetened cocoa
1 teaspoon vanilla

Beat soft butter, cocoa, and powdered sugar together until smooth. Add a splash of milk and vanilla, blend well.


Assembly:
Spread cooled cookies with about 1 tablespoon of marshmallow creme. Top the creme with frosting. 
Try not to eat the whole batch before your kids get home from school. 


3/20/12

Super Simple 5 Ingredient Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies






I'm probably the last person on the planet to try this recipe. I saw it the other day on my new found love, Pinterest, and pinned away. My comment was something like "Serious? 5 ingredient cookies?"
I wondered how good they could really be, without flour, and only 5 ingredients. I showed them to Jake and he said, "If these are good, I'm making them every weekend for girls, they'll think I'm a genius".
Hello, Jake, I hate to break it to you but it will take a lot more than this...
So we whipped up a batch. The skeptic in me thought -these will probably be awful.  Guess what? Pleasantly surprised. I followed the directions exactly, and in less than 1/2 hour we were sampling some pretty tasty cookies.
I'm thinking my friends (who will remain nameless)  that have cooking/baking challenges will be able to throw these together in a flash, and succeed in the kitchen! Great for peeps with gluten issues too. And college students. How about those living abroad who have trouble buying ingredients for treats? Everything except the egg can be packaged and sent.
Super simple, pantry-ready, yummy homemade cookies in just a few minutes. Yum.




5 Ingredient Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies
Pinterest
print recipe

1 cup creamy peanut butter
1 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
1 large egg
1 tsp baking soda
½ heaping cup milk chocolate chips ( I like Guittard brand)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Mix all ingredients except chocolate chips. When blended, mix in the chocolate chips. Using a small scoop, form 1 1/2 inch balls (dough will be very wet and sticky) and place onto an un-greased parchment  or Silpat (silicone) lined cookie sheet*. Don't  make them too big because they spread. 
Bake for 9 minutes. Let the cookies cool completely before removing. 

Tips:
-I also baked one pan without a liner of any type, ungreased on the cookie sheet, they did not stick and turned out just like the other pans. 
-I did not pat the scoops of dough down at all before baking. 
-Yield about 24 cookies.