The Cookie Queen's English

Good Times, February Edition ...

2012-02-01T20:15:00.001-06:00

The February cookie installment for the angelo:HOME blog features Browned-butter Scotch-glazed Madeleines. Oh, yes, you read that right: They're glazed with powdered sugar and Scotch!

A Cookie Story ...

2012-01-22T13:22:00.012-06:00

I remember churning out a ridiculous number of cookies from the oven of my apartment-sized stove in my little studio on Waveland. Maybe that was the year all this started.

Or maybe it wasn't. But somewhere along the line, cookies became my thing.

One of my editors dubbed me The Cookie Queen. I liked it. CQ, for short. Which is also shorthand, in the world of newspaper editing, for "I checked this. It's correct." Familiarity breeds contentment.

So, I baked. Each year, the holidays would roll around and I'd plot my list of cookies, which grew to somewhat ridiculous proportions. No one needs a selection of 14 varieties, but, well, I may have a bit of a problem with shelving an idea once it worms its way into my brain. And each year, I would make a list of recipients, and that swelled, too.

And I would bake. And somehow, I would manage to stash them all in my freezer, Tetris style, and then I would package them and dole them out as the calendar wended its way toward Christmas, and people were happy.

Really happy.

Which is why I bake.

Baking means never having to say you're jaded.

There have been days over the years when I have been more than a little loathe to begin and there have been days over the years when I am more than happy to wash the last cookie sheet, tuck the KitchenAid back into the corner where it rests, and bid my equipment goodnight.

But the joy they bring, those humble offerings of butter and sugar and flour and love. Amazing. Every time.

And so, over the years, people have told me I should open a bakery, I should sell cookies online, I should do something more.

And I've thought about it. And that was it.

I am very good at talking myself out of many things.

A bakery wouldn't work, I decided, because:

a) I cannot make every cookie myself. There are only so many hours in a day.

b) What makes my cookies special is that I make them.

c) I do not want to hand over a recipe to a commercial baker and say, "I need 10,000 of these today, please."

d) I do not want to bake every day. Some days, I'm inspired. Other days, I'm not. I told myself I didn't want to lose my love for it.

e) (You get the idea.)

But for all the things I've decided not to do in life – become a doctor, persist with online dating, camp – the notion of baking for more than just family and friends hasn't gone away.

Always, there are little nudges, suggestions, hints.

Some, come to think of it, have not been so little. But they all add up.

The encouragement of family and friends is valuable and yet easy to discount. Of course they say those things, I tell myself. They're my family and friends.

But more and bigger pieces are starting to slot into place.

Last year, I started contributing to Angelo's blog, knowing full well that he wasn't asking me to provide content so much as he was challenging me to think more creatively and pursue this path. His blog provides an outlet beyond my own.

And then a few months ago, a friend asked me to bake for him for his clients for the holidays.

And around that same time, someone who has enjoyed my baked goods in the past asked me if I would consider baking for her for events at her home.

And somewhere along the line, I became a more avid reader of Leite's Culinaria and became cyber pals with its namesake. I do not believe David could be more delightful and charming if he tried.

And for Christmas, my brother's family gave me a gift card to Williams-Sonoma (tucked inside a very awesome oven mitt) and I wandered around the store and while I found many things I would like, I settled on Sarabeth's Bakery: From My Hands to Yours. (Which, oddly, doesn't appear in the cookbook offerings on Williams-Sonoma's site, hence the link to Amazon.) I thought I might not need another baking book, but it was beautiful, and Angelo loves Sarabeth's chocolate shortbread (and other treats), so it came home with me. And I sat and read it. Not every word of every recipe – not yet – but all of the text upfront and at least part of every page.

And then, on Thursday, Leite's Culinaria featured a post by Sarabeth and the recipe for her croissants.

And this is where the story gets interesting. Or maybe more interesting. I hope it's been interesting all along.

I commented on the post: "I bought her book recently. I’m in love with it. Easily one of the best baking books I own. I’ve never attempted croissants, but this recipe (along with the scene playing in my head of Meryl Streep making chocolate croissants for Steve Martin in “It’s Complicated”) make me want to try!"

And the next comment to post was from Sarabeth: "I remember it like it was yesterday when Meryl Streeep learned from me to roll the croissant for the movie. She picked up the technique quickly… a natural at everthing. The scenes inside the bakery were shot at Sarabeth’s Bakery. There is a quick moment when you see someone sheeting the dough through our sheeting machine. It’s in slo-mo….that someone is me!"

I had no idea!

Meanwhile, I discovered (via Renee Schettler, if memory serves) that Sarabeth has an account on Twitter. So I followed her. (She's @goddessobakedom, FYI.) And she, much to my delight, followed me back. I tweeted Angelo into the mix, presuming that he would like to follow her, too. And she followed him back. So now we were all connected in a happy Twitter loop.

And then later that day, I saw this:

Um, wait. What?

Sarabeth just plugged my cookies?

Sarabeth, she of the jam-making, café-opening, pastry-empire-building, Meryl-Streep-croissant-tutoring, gorgeous-baking-book-authoring genius, just plugged my cookies?!

Whoa.

The next day, I relayed the story to some friends.

"You have to get on a plane to New York! You have to meet her!"

Well, yes, I do. Someday. That would be lovely.

In the meantime, I sent a note to her. Told her it would be my pleasure to bake for her. Asked if she had a favorite.

She replied with her favorite.

I asked where I might send them.

And she sent me an address.

So, I shall bake for Sarabeth. And I hope she enjoys what I send.

Food people seem to like when other people do the cooking. Or the baking. I know I do.

I love the path she's taken, from cooking jam – well, marmalade first – in her apartment to the success she enjoys today. I can relate to the early part of her story. Perhaps someday I will be able to relate to more.

Last week, I wrote a post about my concern that too much of my life was frivolous. I've long felt like I should be doing something "important." Whatever that means.

And I included a photo of a rock from my friend Patti's site. "Do what you love."

Recently, I asked Angelo about the best part of his day. "Hmmmmm," he mused. "I had a chocolate shortbread cookie from Sarabeth's at Lord & Taylor." He cited other things, too, but I love that he led with a chocolate shortbread cookie from Sarabeth's.

There is a lot of joy to be found in a chocolate shortbread cookie.

There is lot of love that goes into baking for others.

It is a simple act. But it is profound.

It is, most definitely not, frivolous.

Double Chocolate Espresso Cookies ...

2012-01-19T15:28:00.000-06:00

Make these. Just go make these.

Good Times, January Edition ...

2012-01-10T12:30:00.003-06:00

The January cookie installment for the angelo:HOME blog features Coconut Chocolate Almond Biscotti, a biscotti of my own creation, inspired by an Almond Joy.

New Year, New Cookie ...

2012-01-01T16:02:00.005-06:00

These little beauties are Cream Cheese Shortbread with Toasted Walnuts from the forthcoming One Girl Cookies: Recipes for Cakes, Cupcakes, Whoopie Pies, and Cookies from Brooklyn's Beloved Bakery which you should pre-order right now, because, trust me, you're going to want a copy.

I made a batch yesterday and thought they were a smidgen too salty, so I made another batch today and cut the teaspoon of salt back to 3/4 teaspoon, and yup, they're perfect for my palate now.

They're delightful little cookies: crumbly, sandy, nutty goodness, the perfect beginning to baking in the new year. (You'll note that they dressed for the occasion in the sparkly, cut-glass dish and had a flute of Champagne nearby.)

2011-12-23T09:21:00.001-06:00

Peace and love and warmth and calm to you.

Take a few moments to be still and enjoy this beauty from the incomparable Michael Hedges.

(If you need it, the direct URL is here.)

A Funny Thing Happened ...

2011-12-07T18:59:00.001-06:00

Every so often, I write something that makes me laugh.

Mind you, I am not the toughest audience. And sometimes I think I'm pretty clever.

But mostly, I'm awed by folks who can write funny.

David Sedaris sends me into fits.

And today, David Leite did, too.

"David who?", you may be asking if you are not obsessed with all things food. David Leite, kids. Check out his bio. The man collects James Beard awards like I collect, well, I don't really collect anything. Except, these days, too many empty bottles from wine.

But his recounting – his confession – of this Thanksgiving's mishaps and mayhem in rural Connecticut had me in tears each time I read it. And I read it three times.

He and I are friends on Twitter and I wrote to tell him that with his fabulous voice, he really needs to podcast this sucker, because for food lovers, this tale is the Thanksgiving mashup of " 'Twas The Night Before Christmas" and David Sedaris' "Santaland Diaries." (If you haven't read it, do.)

I thought about including an excerpt, but truly, it needs to be experienced from beginning to end.

Take all necessary precautions. Visit the restroom first. Do not read while consuming a beverage. Don't say I didn't warn you.

Thanks, David. You're a gem.

Cookies Away ...

2011-12-06T20:48:00.004-06:00

Tonight, Angelo hosted a chat on Overstock.com's Facebook page, answering all manner of holiday questions. So many questions, so little time.

Julie, one of the chat attendees, posted: "I need to know how to send cookies 600 miles away arriving un-crumbled and fresh."

Well, hello there, idea for a post.

For all I've written about cookies over the years, I haven't written much about shipping them, mostly because I hand-deliver most of the cookies that I give away.

But there are some simple things you can do to get them to their destination at their cookie best. From the outside in, then.

1. Ship overnight or two-day delivery

Yes, I know: Duh. But time is not a baked good's friend. Wine, yes. Baked goods, no. And since the post office or other shippers can sometimes delay a package, the more you pony up to post it, the likelier it'll get there when it should. Also, if it doesn't, you probably warrant a refund.

2. Seal every edge of the box or shipping container

Just as time is not a baked good's friend, neither is air. Use a few extra inches of shipping tape and seal that baby up to the point where the recipient will curse you for the effort it'll take to open it.

3. Cushion, cushion, cushion, tight, tight, tight

Have you ever seen how packages are handled? The more cushion you have in the box, and the more the cookies are surrounded by that cushion so that the contents of the box don't shift, the better your chances that your cookies will arrive intact. Some folks use air-popped popcorn for packing material. That's a nice idea, as it can be tossed outside for critters at the destination. I keep a stash of packing peanuts from past shipments and use those. Most these days are biodegradable. (Really. They dissolve in water.) Fill the box so that it looks a bit too full. You should have to press down slightly to tape it shut. If you shake it and feel the contents shift, add more filler. It should ship as a solid mass.

4. Wrap, stash, and suck

Wrap cookies in waxed paper in pairs, back to back, so that they support each other. Stash them in a zip-top bag in rows. Stand them up along the bottom of the bag, like a roll of pennies. Then stash another row on top of that. Then another. Most gallon-size zip-top bags can accommodate three rows of cookies. Nestle them in next to each other snugly. Don't cram them if they won't fit, but don't leave excess space for them to move around. Then, lay the bag flat on the counter, seal the zip top almost all the way shut, and stick a drinking straw into the bag part of the way. Suck out as much air as you can, and while you're sucking, pull the straw out (yes, with your mouth) while you finish sealing the bag.

5. Bake cookies that will travel well

Not all cookies are made for travel. Delicate cookies that like to crumble are best enjoyed locally. Heartier cookies – oatmeal, sugar, any cookie with a bit of body – will travel well, assuming the steps above.

Don't be daunted. Bake and ship. Nothing heightens a holiday like tastes from our childhood homes or little bits of decadence.

And as corny as it sounds, cookies baked with love taste infinitely better than anything anyone can buy.

Good Times, The Year In Review ...

2011-12-04T16:23:00.001-06:00

In November last year, Angelo asked me if I'd like to contribute to his blog, which was very kind, and we hatched a plan. We'd begin in January, after the holiday hubbub, and I could submit posts as frequently or infrequently as I'd like, about any kind of baked good.

My brain settled on cookies, as they're kind of my thing, and monthly, as that felt like a good frequency.

We did indeed hit the ground running in January, and this morning, he posted December's cookie. A year's worth of cookies, done.

Thirteen cookies, which I love, as 13 is my favorite number. I created two cookies for May, hence why a year's worth of cookies does not add up to 12.

In 2012, the cookies may continue. Or I may take on yeast. Many folks think making bread – and all its yeast-risen friends – are too difficult for them to even attempt. But that's simply not true. I learned how to make bread when I was 8. And here's the big secret to yeast doughs: so long as you don't kill the yeast, you really can't screw anything up.

But I'm getting ahead of myself.

For fun, I thought I'd compile all of the cookies from this year-long escapade into one post.

Angelo is an oh-so-gracious host and I'm happy to bake for someone who has such a deep fondness for the magic that happens when flour and sugar combine. He's my fellow kitchen alchemist.

January

Shortbread Ottomans

February

Componentized Chocolate Chips

March

Liz Lemon Cookies

April

Walnut Cheese Cookies

May

Dark Chocolate Espresso Biscotti and Sablés

June

Sesame Cookies with Roditis Cream Cheese Dip

July

Parmesan Toffee Cookies

August

Drumstick Cookies

September

Peanut Butter and Jelly Sandwich Cookies

October

Pecan Crispies with Pumpkin Bourbon Cream Cheese Dip

November

Bittersweet Baci

December

Almond Spice Drops

Good Times, December Edition ...

2011-12-04T09:09:00.001-06:00

The December cookie installment for the angelo:HOME blog features Almond Spice Drops, a take on windmill cookies, but in softer-cookie form.

Cream Cheese Cookies ...

2011-11-30T16:24:00.004-06:00

I saw this recipe at food52.com and I put it out of my head.

I am a sucker for a simple cookie. Shortbread? Three ingredients. Butter. Flour. Sugar. What more do you need?

A bit of cream cheese, perhaps? A little salt?

Yesterday, Angelo tweeted the link to these cookies. And I clicked. And there was nothing more to be done.

This morning, I put a stick of unsalted butter and three ounces of cream cheese on the counter to soften.

And now I am sitting at the kitchen counter, very aware that I am losing the light outside, but hoping that I can snap a shot of these lovelies in time.

Dangerous. Dangerous, I tell you, this recipe.

Five ingredients. Five minutes of prep. Twelve minutes of baking.

No good can come of this.

I must remember not to keep cream cheese on hand.

A couple of notes: The next time I make these, I'll lessen the amount of sugar by a few tablespoons. These are a bit too sweet for me. I want more of the cream cheese to come through. I'll also cut the salt back to 3/4 t. And I'm baking these at 375 and for a few minutes longer than called for in the recipe, as 12 minutes does nothing to brown the edges in my oven. But they're delicious, dangerously so, and the texture is both crumbly-sandy and chewy.

Good Times, November Edition ...

2011-11-06T13:11:00.000-06:00

The November cookie installment for the angelo:HOME blog features Bittersweet Baci. From an unlikely inspiration, as inspirations for cookies go.

Good Times, October Edition ...

2011-10-15T07:05:00.003-05:00

The October cookie installment for the angelo:HOME blog features Pecan Crispies and Pumpkin Cream Cheese Bourbon Dip. Because Angelo really loves pumpkin and pecans. Which I just found out on Thursday. And the bourbon? Well, why not?

The Latest Crumb ...

2011-09-19T19:14:00.009-05:00

I am building my cookie empire one crumb at a time.

Nearly three years ago, my cousin Patty informed me of a cookie-photography contest at Fine Cooking.

I had taken to taking pictures of my holiday cookies (which was the impetus for this blog), so why not enter, right?

As I wrote then, "And if I don't win, the exposure of my photos (no pun intended) certainly can't hurt. Who knows who might discover my closeted, food-styling self?"

Who, indeed?

The staff of Fine Cooking. But they were more interested in one of the recipes, which ended up in Issue 102 (December 2009/January 2010).

Then, last year, I spied this special issue and flipped to the table of contents to see if my biscotti was included.

Yup.

And then today, I received an email blast from Fine Cooking hawking a cookie cookbook.

And I wondered if my biscotti had found its way into those pages, too.

So I poked around on Google and Amazon to peek inside and see if I could find it.

Yup. There it was, in the table of contents and in the index. And there I was, under Contributors.

That's a lot of mileage out of one cookie, for a journey that began with a photo, not a recipe!

My thanks to Patty for the initial nudge.

Good Times, September Edition ...

2011-09-14T19:09:00.002-05:00

The September cookie installment for the angelo:HOME blog features Peanut Butter and Jelly Sandwich Cookies. And a very good reason why.

Good Times, August Edition ...

2011-08-15T12:18:00.001-05:00

The August cookie installment for the angelo:HOME blog features Drumstick Cookies. Like the chocolate- and peanut-coated ice cream cone, but in cookie form.

Good Times, July Edition ...

2011-07-13T06:49:00.001-05:00

The July cookie installment for the angelo:HOME blog features Parmesan Toffee Cookies. "Wait a minute," you may be saying. "You put Parmesan cheese in a cookie?" Why, yes I did.

Chewy Sugar Cookies ...

2011-07-10T15:02:00.003-05:00

I like sugar. I like cookies. But sugar cookies have never been my go-to sweet. Given the choice between a sugar cookie and an oatmeal cookie, for instance, I will shove people into the street to get to the oatmeal cookie.

A sugar cookie is one of those baked goods that is so basic, it seems foolproof, right? Au contraire. And I should know. I tried this recipe and ended up with cookies that looked like Today sponges, disturbingly so.

And I tried this recipe and while I was happy to have ended up with cookies that did not look like a form of contraception, I wasn't much inspired to eat them. They were just, you know, flat. (Though Dorie Greenspan is such a baking goddess, she may have intended them to look entirely different. I may have done something wrong.)

But yesterday was National Sugar Cookie Day, so I was moved to try the Cook's Illustrated recipe for Chewy Sugar Cookies. I was rarin' to bake, until I read the recipe and realized that I needed ... cream cheese. Yep, cream cheese for a sugar cookie. So I made a plan to go to the store. But as long as I was going to leave the house, I figured I may as well make a master list of errands and knock 'em all out, which is what I did, which I why I didn't get around to baking the Chewy Sugar Cookies until today.

And I am happy to report that this is a sugar cookie, the epitome of a sugar cookie. Crackly on top, barely crispy at the edge, and chewy in the center as promised by the name.

Chewy Sugar Cookies
(From Cook's Illustrated, November & December 2010)

NOTE: The final dough will be slightly softer than most cookie dough. For the best results, handle the dough as briefly and gently as possible when shaping the cookies. Overworking the dough will result in flatter cookies.

2 1/4 cups (11 1/4 ounces * ) unbleached all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon table salt
1 1/2 cups (10 1/2 ounces) sugar, plus 1/3 cup for rolling
2 ounces cream cheese, cut into 8 pieces
6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) unsalted butter **, melted and still warm
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 large egg
1 tablespoon milk
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1. Adjust the oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 350 degrees. Line 2 large *** rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper. Whisk flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt together in medium bowl. Set aside.

2. Place 1 1/2 cups sugar and cream cheese in a large bowl. Place remaining 1/3 cup sugar in shallow baking dish or pie plate and set aside. Pour warm butter over sugar and cream cheese and whisk to combine (some small lumps of cream cheese will remain but will smooth out later). Whisk in oil until incorporated. Add egg, milk, and vanilla; continue to whisk until smooth. Add flour mixture and mix with rubber spatula until soft homogenous dough forms.

3. Divide dough into 24 equal pieces, about 2 tablespoons each (or use #40 portion scoop). Using hands, roll dough into balls. Working in batches, roll balls in reserved sugar to coat and evenly space on prepared baking sheet, 12 dough balls per sheet. Using bottom of drinking glass, flatten dough balls until 2 inches in diameter. Sprinkle tops evenly with 4 teaspoons of sugar remaining in shallow dish (2 teaspoons per tray), discarding any remaining sugar.

4. Bake, 1 tray at a time, until edges are set and just beginning to brown, 11 to 13 minutes, rotating tray after 7 minutes. Cool cookies on baking sheets 5 minutes. Using wide metal spatula, transfer cookies to wire rack and cool to room temperature.

BETH NOTES:

* It really behooves you to weigh ingredients when they're specified by weight. Baking is a precise art, and depending on how you measure flour, for instance, you may end up with more volume or less than called for by the recipe. A digital scale is a good investment for your kitchen if you like to bake. They're not expensive.

** I used salted butter then halved the amount of table salt to 1/4 teaspoon.

*** These cookies spread quite a bit. A half-sheet pan would be ideal on which to bake a dozen. But if you have smaller baking sheets, I'd bake four batches of six cookies each, unless you don't mind your cookies baking into each other.

Good Times, June Edition ...

2011-06-12T21:00:00.001-05:00

The June cookie installment for the angelo:HOME blog features sesame seed rings and Roditis-infused, sweetened cream cheese dip, the cookie interpretation of my travel fantasy.

Snickerdoodles, Revisited ...

2011-05-24T19:59:00.004-05:00

Ah, Snickerdoodles, the cookie that spurred the thought, "I should start a baking blog!"

Regular readers will know that I'm reshooting the cookies I featured when I started to photograph my holiday baking. I didn't have a digital camera then. I have a digital camera now. Just a point-and-shoot camera, not one of those fancy behemoths that make me think that the owners should be wearing flak jackets and press credentials.

Anyhoo, if you like cinnamon – and I can't imagine why you wouldn't (Ahem. Karl.) – whip up a batch of these babies. They're super simple and super delicious.

Snickerdoodles
(From Betty Crocker’s Cooky Book, Published by General Mills, 1963)

1 C. shortening (part butter or margarine; I use a half-cup of shortening and a stick of butter)
1 1/2 C. granulated sugar
2 eggs
2 3/4 C. flour
2 t. cream of tartar
1 t. soda
1/4 t. salt
3 T. sugar
3 t. cinnamon

Heat oven to 400 degrees. Mix shortening, 1 1/2 C. sugar and eggs. Measure flour by dipping method*. Blend flour, cream of tartar, soda and salt. Blend into shortening mixture. Shape dough into 1-inch balls. Roll in combined 3 T. sugar and 3 t. cinnamon. Place 2 inches apart on baking sheets. Bake 8 to 10 minutes.

* Dipping method: Slightly fluff up flour with a spoon or measuring cup. Dip measuring cup into flour and overfill. Level off measuring cup.

And just for kicks, this is the post that featured the original image. Christmas was very near.

Oatmeal Cookies, Revisited ...

2011-05-14T16:35:00.002-05:00

Funny story: When I created The Cookie Queen's English to document that holiday season's baking, I didn't own a digital camera. All the images that accompany those posts were taken with ... the camera built into my laptop.

Yes, taking pictures with a laptop is not the best approach to photography. I had to contort myself into some rather odd positions to both frame the image and be able to look on the screen to see what I was about to photograph. You can laugh at the idea of it. Like I said, it's a funny story.

Now, though, I own a digital camera, just a little point-and-shoot number, nothing fancy. And I enjoy creating the photographs for my baking posts on angelo:HOME. So I've decided to revisit some of the cookies from my initial cookie-blogging season and create some better images.

Mind you, I liked the composition of the shots I did then, and in some cases, I may just recreate the images. But I try to think of the essence of each cookie and style it accordingly. And oatmeal cookies are simple and homey and rustic, so today, their stage was an old cooling rack that belonged to one of my great aunts who loved to bake.

Turns out, oatmeal cookies, for all their simple, homey, rustic-y goodness, are hard to photograph, because they're basically just golden-brown lumps. Not a lot of artistry to an oatmeal cookie. But oh-so-delicious.

As for the recipe, this is the version that used to come under the lid of the Quaker oats box. The recipe has since been altered to cut down on brown sugar. Why would anyone want to do that? I recommend sticking with this version.

Oatmeal Raisin Cookies
(Quaker Oats Co. recipe)

1 C. butter or margarine, softened
1 C. firmly packed brown sugar
1/2 C. granulated sugar
2 eggs
1 t. vanilla
1 1/2 C. all-purpose flour
1 t. baking soda
1 t. cinnamon
1/2 t. salt (optional)
3 C. Quaker Oats (uncooked)
1 C. raisins
(I add chopped toasted walnuts, too.)

Heat oven to 350. Beat together butter and sugars until creamy. Add eggs and vanilla; beat well. Add combined flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt; mix well. Stir in oats and raisins; mix well. Drop by rounded tablespoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheets. Bake 10 to 12 minutes or until golden brown. Cool one minute on cookie sheet; remove to wire rack.

And just for nostalgia's sake, this is the image that accompanied the original post. And considering that it was taken with a laptop computer, it's a decent shot. I like the composition, but cookies in a muffin tin end up looking a bit like, well, muffins.

Your Input, Please ...

2011-05-10T09:17:00.001-05:00

So, say you're walking through a farmers' market, coffee in hand, on a lovely early-summer morning. The sun is low, there's a bit of a breeze, you've just bought the most gorgeous tomatoes and a wildflower bouquet.

And you happen upon a booth, manned by a comely woman, and she's selling cookies, packaged adorably, tied up in cellophane with a ribbon and a handwritten tag.

What would you pay for a dozen? Or, if a dozen is too many for you, how many would you like to buy, and for how much? A package of six? A package of three?

What say you?

Good Times, May Edition ...

2011-05-06T06:44:00.002-05:00

The May cookie installment for the angelo:HOME blog features dark-chocolate biscotti studded with chopped dark-chocolate-covered espresso beans and sandy French sablés, the most perfect of all butter cookies.

But why two cookies, you ask? You'll have to read the post.

Bonjour, Madeleines! ...

2011-05-01T14:20:00.005-05:00

When I was in elementary school, the mother of one of my classmates came to the school one day a week and a few students, including me, met with her in the "media center" for French lessons.

I'm not sure why the mom did it and I'm not sure why I was one of the attendees (perhaps only a handful of us showed any interest), but it was kind of her to do and I learned a wee bit of French.

So, of course, many years later, in high school and college, I studied ... German.

Yeah, don't ask. Because other than knowing that the German teacher, Frau Hodson, was a nice woman (because one of my brothers had taken her class when he was in high school, too), I had no interest in German. Well, no, that's a lie. To this day, I'm a pretty big fan of Haribo gummi bears.

My point is, instead of studying a romance language (I would have taken Italian if my school had offered it), instead of studying a language that contains words like "croissant" and "amour" and "café" (I chose those randomly, but they relate nicely), I instead chose a language whose principal property is that every utterance sounds like someone clearing their throat.

So, here I am, later in life, and my German has all but evaporated out of my mind. (Curiously, whenever I try to recall any of my German, the first word that always pops up is the word for "peas.")

If I were to find myself in France and someone was taking attendance, I could respond in two ways, thankyouverymuch, and I could tell them my name and I could ask them if they speak English, while really hoping that they speak English. But if I were to walk into a patisserie or boulangerie, I would be just fine. Forget love; the international language comprises all the words for all the baked goods in France.

The other day, I got to thinking about madeleines, specifically that I hadn't made madeleines in a very long time, and I don't know why, because they are ridiculously simple and contain nothing but staples, unless you don't usually have a lemon on hand. In which case, start keeping a lemon on hand.

And invest in a madeleine pan – metal, please, not that silicone business – and whip these up some afternoon when you're in the mood for something a little sweet to go with a warm beverage. Cafe au lait, perhaps. Or, if you must, tea.

I made a recipe from Bon Appétit via Epicurious, but most basic madeleine recipes are basically the same.

Madeleines
(Published by Bon Appétit, January 2000)

2 large eggs
2/3 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon grated lemon peel
Pinch of salt
1 cup all purpose flour
10 tablespoons (1 1/4 sticks) unsalted butter, melted, cooled slightly

Powdered sugar

Beth Note: I used a little more than a teaspoon of lemon zest, because that's how much I ended up zesting and because I like lemon. I'd recommend using at least that much. A half-teaspoon wouldn't offer enough lemony oomph, in my opinion.

Preheat oven to 375°F. Generously butter and flour pan for large madeleines (about 3 x 1 1/4 inches). Using electric mixer, beat eggs and 2/3 cup sugar in large bowl just to blend. Beat in vanilla, lemon peel and salt. Add flour; beat just until blended. Gradually add cooled melted butter in steady stream, beating just until blended. Spoon 1 tablespoon batter into each indentation in pan. Bake until puffed and brown, about 16 minutes. Cool 5 minutes. Gently remove from pan. Repeat process, buttering and flouring pan before each batch. (Can be made 1 day ahead.)

Dust cookies with powdered sugar.

Further Beth Note: This recipe makes about 20 madeleines. Do your best not to consume them all in one sitting. It's difficult. They're tres, tres bon.

Classic Cream Scones ...

2011-04-29T12:18:00.003-05:00

I do not have royal-wedding fever, though I did make it a point to see a picture of Kate's dress and it was indeed lovely. And I appreciate that her flowers were so demure.

But I was planning on making scones today anyway, so I'll pretend that they're in honor of the happy couple, scones bein' British 'n' all.

And I did find myself humming British-y music while I made them. So perhaps I have a touch of royal fever. Very mild, though. Like 99.1.

Classic Cream Scones
(From Simply Scones, Published by St. Martin's Press, 1988)

2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup granulated sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup unsalted butter, chilled (I use salted butter)
1/2 cup heavy (whipping) cream
1 large egg
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 cup currants (optional)
1 egg mixed with 1 teaspoon water for glaze (optional)

Preheat oven to 425ºF. Lightly butter a baking sheet.

In a large bowl, stir together flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Cut the butter into 1/2-inch cubes and distribute them over the flour mixture. With a pastry blender or two knives used scissors fashion, cut in the butter until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. In a small bowl, stir together the cream, egg, and vanilla. Add the cream mixture to the flour mixture and stir until combined. Stir in the currants, if desired.

With lightly floured hands, pat the dough into a 1/2-inch thickness on a lightly floured cutting board. Using a floured 2 1/2-inch-diameter round biscuit cutter or a glass, cut out rounds** from the dough and place them on the prepared baking sheet. Gather the scraps together and repeat until all dough is used. Lightly brush the tops of the scones with the egg mixture, if desired. Bake for 13 to 15 minutes, or until lightly browned.

Remove the baking sheet to a wire rack and cool for 5 minutes. Using a spatula, transfer the scones to the wire rack to cool. Serve warm or cool completely and store in an airtight container.

Makes 12 - 14 scones.

** For those who may not know, when cutting the scones, don’t twist the cutter back and forth. Just cut straight down. Twisting “seals” the edges of the dough and impedes them rising in the oven.

Sugar Cookies ...

2011-04-26T12:48:00.005-05:00

Yesterday, upon receiving some sad news, I felt compelled to bake. The sad news wasn't awful news, and I wasn't distraught, just blue. But the weather was like a pile of damp lint, to boot, so baking became the order of the day.

I thought about baking a trial batch of a cookie I want to make for May's angelo:HOME post. Miracle of miracles, I had all of the ingredients on hand. But I wasn't feeling it. I have to feel a recipe.

So I went poking around for another. And I found Grandma's All-Occasion Sugar Cookies in Dorie Greenspan's Baking, which you must own if you don't, if you fancy yourself any kind of baker. The breadth of recipes is stunning, the photography is gorgeous, and Dorie writes with an irreverent touch. It's just a pleasure of a book, all around.

Now, I'm generally not the sugar-cookie type, which is odd because I like really simple flavors. Panna cotta is my favorite dessert. A vanilla milkshake delights me. But sugar cookies, in my experience, have been hit and miss. Some are sugary to the point of being gritty. Others are just ... bland.

But Dorie's recipe calls for 10 tablespoons of butter, and I happened to have two tablespoons hanging out in the fridge from a stick I'd cut into the day before, and anyone who invokes Grandma in a cookie's recipe clearly must know what she's doing. So, I proceeded.

The dough is soft and requires chilling before baking, so I used parchment to shape two logs, twisted the ends, and plopped them in the fridge for a few hours. I baked off a few cookies last night, and baked off more this morning.

And these, I am very happy to report, are sugar cookies. Dorie offers all sorts of suggestions in her book for enhancing this dough, from rubbing citrus zest into the sugar before creaming it with the butter to adding spices to frosting the cookies with a simple glaze.

But I made them as written, no additions, no toppings. A pure sugar-cookie experience. A bit of crispness at the edge, the slightest chew in the center.

Dorie's Grandma? She knew her stuff.

Grandma's All-Occasion Sugar Cookies
(From Baking by Dorie Greenspan, Published by Houghton Mifflin, 2006)

2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 stick plus 2 tablespoons (10 tablespoons) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup sugar
1 large egg
1 large egg yolk
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Sugar or cinnamon sugar, for dusting (optional)

Whisk the flour, salt and baking powder together.

Working with a stand mixer, preferably fitted with a paddle attachment, or with a hand mixer in a large bowl, beat the butter at medium speed for a minute or so, until smooth. Beat in the sugar and continue to beat for about 2 minutes, until the mixture is light and pale. Add the egg and yolk and beat for another minute or two; beat in the vanilla. Reduce the mixer speed to low and steadily add the flour mixture, mixing only until it has been incorporated—because this dough is best when worked least, you might want to stop the mixer before all the flour is thoroughly blended into the dough and finish the job with a rubber spatula. When mixed, the dough will be soft, creamy and malleable.

Turn the dough out onto a counter and divide it in half. If you want to make roll-out cookies, shape each half into a disk and wrap in plastic. If you want to make slice-and-bake cookies, shape each half into a chubby sausage (the diameter is up to you—I usually like cookies that are about 2 inches in diameter) and wrap in plastic. Whether you're going to roll or slice the dough, it must be chilled for at least 2 hours. (Well wrapped, the dough can be refrigerated for up to 3 days or frozen for up to 2 months.)

Getting ready to bake: Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line two baking sheets with parchment or silicone mats.

If you are making roll-out cookies, working with one packet of dough at a time, roll out the dough between sheets of plastic wrap or wax paper to a thickness of 1/4 inch, lifting the plastic or paper and turning the dough over often so that it rolls evenly. Lift off the top sheet of plastic or paper and cut out the cookies—I like a 2-inch round cookie cutter for these. Pull away the excess dough, saving the scraps for rerolling, and carefully lift the rounds onto the baking sheets with a spatula, leaving about 1 1/2 inches between the cookies. (This is a soft dough and you might have trouble peeling away the excess or lifting the cutouts; if so, cover the dough, chill it for about 15 minutes and try again.) After you've rolled and cut the second packet of dough, you can form the scraps into a disk, then chill, roll out and bake.

If you are making slice-and-bake cookies, use a sharp thin knife* to slice the dough into 1/4-inch-thick rounds, and place the rounds on the baking sheets, leaving about 1 1/2 inches of space between the cookies.

Bake the cookies one sheet at a time for 9 to 11 minutes, rotating the sheet at the midpoint. The cookies should feel firm, but they should not color much, if at all. Remove the pan from the oven and dust with sugar or cinnamon sugar, if you'd like. let them rest for 1 minute before carefully lifting them onto a rack to cool to room temperature.

Repeat with the remaining dough, cooking the baking sheets between batches.

* I have a boning knife in my knife set that I never, ever use for boning. It is perfect for this application.

Whisky Business ...

2011-04-21T12:47:00.009-05:00

Despite the fact that he's British, my friend Mike likes to cook. (Oh, I kid. The Brits do a fine job with food. On my last trip to London, I had many tasty "takeaway" [that's British for "to go"] baguettes from a joint named, adorably, EAT. Interesting combinations of flavors and ingredients [rocket = arugula!], not the fast-food dreck that stretches for miles in every town of this great land. Though you can get our fast food over there, too, and yep, a McDonald's cheeseburger in London tastes exactly the same as a McDonald's cheeseburger here. Which I know because I had to try one on my first trip to London, despite a mad-cow scare. I figured either a) the beef was shipped from the States or b) McDonald's had assurances in place that its patties wouldn't cause its patrons' brains to melt. Bad for business, that. Note: I no longer eat fast-food burgers anyway.)

My point, though, many words ago, was that Mike posted a link to this story in The Atlantic about how folks are spending more and more on showcase kitchens even as they spend less and less time in them to cook.

My kitchen is not fancy. It is pretty much the kitchen I inherited when I bought this house. I had to buy a refrigerator and a stove, and yes, I bought stainless steel, but my stove gets a good workout, especially the oven, and the refrigerator was on sale because it had a couple of scratches on the handle. I ended up spending more than I planned on for the stove, but I saved more than I expected on the fridge, so it all worked out pretty well in the end.

I painted the cabinets a few years ago and swapped out the hardware, but I still have the same counters, which could stand to be replaced, and if I had my druthers, I'd have a checkered floor, but I don't. Like everyone else, I think I could use more storage space, or perhaps I should just have less stuff. But some things are more important than others.

In the Atlantic article, these words, in particular, jumped out at me: "... the sort of perfectionist gastronome who wants to choose from 15 kinds of whisk."

Which made me think about my own stash of whisks, and I could call to mind four, and then I remembered a fifth, which is really not so much a utensil as it is a tchotchke. Or maybe a Christmas ornament.

So, technically, I own five whisks. But only four live in the utensil crock on my counter. And I use them all, and they all have different uses.

The average little guy on the left is my go-to whisk for salad dressings. I plop a few ingredients in a little bowl, give a quick whisk and I'm good to go.

The little friend of the average whisk came into my life tied onto a package of scone mix, a gift from someone from somewhere. He lives in a drawer and I employ him from time to time to whisk up a small bit of slurry to thicken a sauce, but mostly, he's just for show.

The wooden-handled number is my all-purpose whisk and he's held up well over the years.

The roux whisk is one of the best inventions in the history of inventions. Every Thanksgiving, it is my job to make gravy and I couldn't do it without this guy.

The balloon whisk doesn't see as much action as the others, because if I'm whipping up egg whites, I turn to my KitchenAid, but every so often I feel inspired to make a particularly fluffy omelette and this guy helps incorporate some air into the eggs.

Thankfully, they do not take up much space, since my utensil crock could stand a sort. I never, ever use that meat-tenderizer mallet. I just buy tender meat. And my wee brownie spatula just tends to get lost, so I should move him to a drawer.

But I like to think that I use most of what I own. My KitchenAid is sounding a little worse for the wear, so it might be time to invest in a new one. (I covet the model with the six-quart bowl.) The Cuisinart isn't in daily rotation but when I need it, I'm grateful that it's there. I'm not sure how I lived for so long without a digital kitchen scale. And parchment paper deserves a Nobel Prize.

I will confess to not having used my pasta machine. And I forget about my double-boiler insert because I always just use a glass bowl.

But for the most part, I use what I own in my kitchen. My cookware isn't pristine. My baking pans are clearly loved. I don't often use the green-glass pitcher my friends gave me for sangria.

But summer is coming. Someday.

Good Times, April Edition ...

2011-04-19T11:12:00.001-05:00

The April cookie installment for the angelo:HOME blog features walnut cheese cookies, inspired by this recipe from food52. They're very subtle, a nice departure from the bombardment of all things sweet that pop up at Easter.

Bread Will Be Bread ...

2011-04-04T11:15:00.001-05:00

The beauty of bread is that it's damn near impossible to screw it up.

People are daunted by the notion of baking bread, but honestly, I don't know why.

I learned how to bake bread when I was 8. Perhaps that's why it seems easy to me. Kids don't know enough to think about all the things that can go wrong in a given situation. They just plow ahead with whatever interests them at the time. I love that about kids. I need to remember that about myself, that there was a time when I just did for the sake of doing.

And such it is with bread. Dough feel a bit too dry? Add a bit more liquid. Dough feel a bit too wet? Add a bit more flour. So long as you don't kill your yeast, odds are you're going to end up with something edible.

Last night, I felt like baking again, so into the kitchen I went to make my usual loaves. But then English Teacher Dave called and it's tricky to knead while holding a phone, and I wasn't inclined to dig my headset out of its drawer and the hour was getting late, besides. I didn't want to stay up long enough to finish the bread, let it rise, bake it, and let it cool enough to slice it before putting it in the freezer.

So I cradled the phone in my shoulder long enough to give the dough a few turns, I plopped it in a bowl in which I had poured a bit of olive oil, covered it, and put it in the fridge to rise overnight.

I settled into my comfy chair to finish my chat with Dave, and later, I headed to bed.

This morning, I pulled the bowl of dough out of the fridge, oiled a pan, pushed the dough into place, letting it rest a bit both to warm up and to relax so I could push it into the corners. I crushed some garlic and mixed it with olive oil and brushed that on the dough. And then I rubbed some dried thyme between my palms and sprinkled that about. And some coarse sea salt. And a few passes with the pepper mill. And I popped the pan into a 400 degree oven for 35 minutes and figured either it would turn out or it wouldn't.

I'm happy to report that it did. I should have oiled the pan a bit more. The loaf was a little fussy about releasing, but I slid my spatula around the perimeter and it acquiesced.

And I let it cool a bit and cut it into squares and handed one to mom, who had stopped by, and took one for myself, and we noshed and declared this particular experiment a success.

So it's kind of focaccia, but without olive oil in the dough because I didn't set out to make focaccia, per se. I just baked it in that style. But it's right tasty, a bit too heavy on the sea salt this time, but it will toast up nicely or make a nice sandwich or be happy to be eaten plain.

And my house smells amazing.

Magic ...

2011-04-02T17:27:00.003-05:00

I will never cease to be amazed by the magic that is the baking of bread. Simple ingredients and time produce such humble yet delightful food. The aroma while it bakes, the comfort of a warm slice spread thickly with soft butter. Heaven.

My Friends Are Weird ...

2011-03-31T17:56:00.003-05:00

Understandably, when I ask folks to name their favorite cookie, most people cite the classic chocolate chip.

Not understandably, when I ask folks if they like their chocolate chip cookies with or without walnuts, most of them eschew nuts.

I've run into the phenomenon with brownies, too.

Toasted walnuts enhance baked goods. I put them in damn near everything. Where's the love, people? Where's the love?

Good Times, March Edition ...

2011-03-14T06:43:00.002-05:00

The March cookie installment for the angelo:HOME blog features Liz Lemon cookies, because Angelo loves Liz Lemon and because he loves cookies and because today is his birthday, so how could I not? Kudos to Doreen for the idea! When she asked, "Something lemon - for his love of Liz Lemon?", there was no turning back.

Mocha Butter Balls ...

2011-02-11T18:17:00.001-06:00

Pop quiz!

I declared today "Try A New Cookie Recipe Friday!" because:

A) It's good to stretch one's culinary boundaries

B) It's nice to mark the arrival of the weekend with a tasty treat

C) It's beyond my baking capabilities to make oatmeal cookies without oatmeal, so I needed a Plan B

D) All of the above (but mostly C)

Yup. D.

I have oatmeal but not enough oatmeal because I've recently eaten oatmeal which has resulted in a depleted supply of oatmeal.

"Beth?", you say, in a somewhat worried tone. "Stores sell oatmeal."

Why yes, yes they do. But going to the store would have required that I make myself somewhat presentable which, today, would have required more effort than I was willing to expend in order to purchase a box of oats.

And The Oat Fairy? MIA.

So I pulled a couple of cookie books down from the shelf and looked for recipes that contained ingredients that I had on hand. Whatever I was going to make needed to contain two sticks of butter, because that's what was sitting on the counter, softened, at the stage at which I either had to bake with it or chuck it in the trash.

But I wasn't finding any recipes that qualified until I remembered the issue of Gourmet that I saved because it featured a gorgeous cookie cover, all variations on butter cookies, all made from a basic butter cookie dough.

If you've ever had Russian Teacakes (aka Mexican Wedding Cakes), these are like those. Except with chocolate. And espresso. Let's hear it for new treats!

Basic Butter Cookie Dough
(From Gourmet, December 1995, p. 214)

4 sticks (1 pound) unsalted butter, softened
1 1/3 C. sugar
3/4 t. salt
3 large egg yolks
2 t. vanilla
4 2/3 C. all-purpose flour

In large bowl of a standing electric mixer beat together butter, sugar, and salt until light and fluffy. Beat in yolks, 1 at a time, and vanilla and beat until smooth. Beat in flour gradually, beating dough until just combined well. Makes about 3 pounds of dough.

Mocha Butter Balls
(From Gourmet, December 1995, p. 217)

1/2 prepared basic butter cookie dough at room temperature
1/4 C. unsweetened cocoa powder (not Dutch process)
2 t. instant espresso powder
1 C. finely chopped walnuts or pecans if desired [I used toasted walnuts]
2 C. confectioners' sugar

Preheat oven to 350º F. In bowl of a standing electric mixer beat together all ingredients except confectioners' sugar until just combined well. [Beth note: The dough will appear crumbly, but will hold together when formed.] Form dough into 1-inch balls and arrange about 3/4 inch apart on baking sheets. Bake cookies in batches in middle of oven until just firm and beginning to brown, about 18 minutes, and cool on baking sheets 5 minutes. Sift confectioners' sugar into a bowl. After the five minutes' cooling, toss balls, a few at a time, in confectioners' sugar, coating them well and transferring them as coated to trays to cool completely. (Before balls are stored or frozen, they can be coated lightly again in confectioners' sugar to keep them from sticking to each other.) Cookies may be store between layers of wax paper in airtight containers up to 6 weeks frozen. Makes about 6 dozen cookies. [Beth note: The batch I made yielded four dozen.]

Good Times, February Edition ...

2011-02-08T10:24:00.002-06:00

The February cookie installment for the angelo:HOME blog features deconstructed chocolate chip cookies, except I don't call them that, because I think people who refer to any food as "deconstructed" are pretentious. So, let's make up a new word: componentized! Componentized chocolate chip cookies!

Good Times ...

2011-01-10T10:56:00.002-06:00

I was really touched when Angelo asked me to start contributing some baking posts to angelo:HOME.

My inaugural post appeared this morning.

Coming up with ideas for these posts has really gotten the creative wheels in my head turning again, and for that, I am very grateful to him.

Double Chocolate Espresso Cookies ...

2010-12-31T19:05:00.003-06:00

I'm very nearly speechless.

Make these.

They're sensational. They're not too sweet. I used Ghirardelli 60% Cacao bittersweet chips instead of semi-sweet chips. I recommend that you do the same. The espresso serves to heighten the taste of the chocolate, though you can detect it, too. I would also recommend that you add chopped, toasted walnuts, which I will do the next time I make these, which will be very, very soon.

And consume them with Champagne, especially if it happens to be New Year's Eve. And oh, look at that! It is!

But good milk will do just fine, too.

I'd steer clear of consuming them with coffee. Unless you don't have any need for sleep.

Any chocolate-and-coffee lover in your life will be forever in your debt.

Did I mention that they're sensational?

They're sensational.

Wake-Up Cocoa Quick Bread ...

2010-12-28T10:01:00.003-06:00

Yesterday, Angelo posted a link to this recipe for Wake-Up Cocoa Quick Bread. I have no idea why I've never subscribed to that food blog. I should do that. Hold on.

OK, that's done.

Anyway, as I was saying, this bread.

I lacked a few ingredients, so yesterday, out and about, I picked them up.

And this morning, I piled everything onto the counter and mixed everything together, and scraped it all into the prepared pan and put it in the oven, and about an hour later, I had this:

Dead simple. As instructed, I let it cool for 10 minutes in the pan before turning it out onto the rack. It came out perfectly:

The aroma as it baked was fabulous, the subtle scent of warm cocoa and cinnamon. The recipe warned to watch it closely, as it's a "dry" bread to begin with so overbaking is a concern. Indeed. Next time, I'll take it out a few minutes earlier.

I was eager for it to cool enough to slice. Which it since has. (A drywall saw would have come in handy to get through the top crust, but a serrated knife did the trick.)

It's delicious. Just a hint of sweetness. I'm eating it plain, to really taste it. (Though I did put a tiny dab of peanut butter on one bite to see if it'd be Reese's-esque. Nope.)

The recipe suggests that this is better on the third day, so I'll keep it around and try it over time. Though, really, what I want to do is toast a slice of it tomorrow and up the chocolate ante with a slathering of Nutella. I live for hazelnut-flavored anything.

It would indeed be lovely to wake up to the bread's aroma. Though given that I live alone, I'd have to rely on an intruder with baking skills, and really, what are the odds of that?

But it's surely worth adding to your repertoire, a lovely bread to whip up when you have guests. A bit of raspberry jam might be nice, just a hint of it. And clearly, this goes really well with coffee. The flavor of the espresso powder in it doesn't come through specifically. It just adds to the overall flavor.

Next time, perhaps I'll try it with dark cocoa. Or some dark chocolate chips. Maybe a smidgen of almond extract. It's lovely as it is, but it also makes a great base from which to experiment.

Update, Wednesday, The Next Day: Cut a slice, broke off a bite. Ate it. Yup, tastier than yesterday. Fuller flavor, but still subtle. Popped the rest of the slice in the toaster. Didn't let it get too toasty. Broke it in half. Put a bit of butter on one piece, a bit of raspberry jam on the other. The butter doesn't do much for it, not like it does on traditional toast, but the raspberry jam. Oh, now that's lovely. Mind you, that piece doesn't have butter and jam. Just jam. No need to consume the calories from the butter. And no, I can't believe I just wrote that.

Sugar Cookies ...

2010-11-17T19:57:00.003-06:00

Such a basic. Such an obvious choice for a go-to cookie. And yet, I hadn't baked sugar cookies in years.

When I want a basic cookie, I go for shortbread. Three ingredients. You can't get more basic than that and still call it a cookie.

But I wasn't in the mood to make any of the usual suspects, so I pulled a couple of cookie books from the cookbook library (which is rather ridiculously extensive, but I like to have them around) and set about finding a proper candidate.

And, inspired by Twitterpal Angelo, who loves him some sugar cookies, I cast my vote.

The dough is simple enough, if gritty from all the sugar. I baked off two sheets and have the other two dozen happy little balls of dough on a cookie sheet in the freezer. Once frozen, I'll pop 'em into a Ziploc bag to have cookies to bake at will.

The recipe stated that I was not to let the edges brown. So I didn't. The cookies look rather golden-hued in the photo, but that's mostly a function of the lighting, not the egg yolks. Trust me, on the cooling rack, these are pale. I could easily name them Pasty White Pudgy Middle-Aged Guys.

But they probably wouldn't sell well. Then again, I'm not selling them.

Melt-In-Your-Mouth Sugar Cookies
(From Better Homes and Gardens The Ultimate Cookie Book, Published Meredith Corporation, 2007)

1/2 C. butter, softened
1/2 C. shortening
2 C. sugar
1 t. baking soda
1 t. cream of tartar
1/8 t. salt
3 egg yolks
1/2 t. vanilla
1 3/4 C. all-purpose flour

Preheat oven to 300. In a large mixing bowl beat butter and shortening on medium to high speed for 30 seconds. Add sugar, baking soda, cream of tartar, and salt. Beat until combined, scraping sides of bowl occasionally. Beat in egg yolks and vanilla until combined. Beat in as much of the flour as you can with the mixer. Stir in any remaining flour. Shape dough into 1-inch balls. Place balls 2 inches apart on an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake for 12 to 14 minutes or until the edges are set. (Do not let edges brown.) Let stand 1 minute on cookie sheet. Transfer to a wire rack and let cool. Yield: about 48 cookies.

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies ...

2010-10-30T15:57:00.002-05:00

What is there to say?

Suzanne, a new Twitterpal, posted this recipe for pumpkin chocolate chip cookies.

I like pumpkin.

I like chocolate.

It's fall.

So I made them.

Typically, I post the recipes for the treats I feature here, but the recipe is hers, so click the link above to see it for yourself. She deserves the blog hits for it.

Because these things are fantastic.

Look at the stunning fall color.

I used Ghirardelli 60% Cacao Chocolate Chips for a bit of dark chocolaty goodness. I would recommend that you do the same.

My yield for this recipe was about six dozen.

And I shaped the first few trays to get "perfect" round cookies. Nuh uh. These cookies look much better in a more rustic form, so just use a couple of spoons to portion the dough out onto cookie sheets.

But do make them.

Thanks, Suzanne!

Update: I always make a recipe as written the first time around. The next time I make these, though, I'll try old-fashioned rolled oats instead of the quick-cook variety. They should add some nice texture. And I'll also throw in some toasted, chopped pecans for a bit of crunch and toasty, nutty flavor. These are great as they are, but I think a little doctoring is in order for the fun of it.

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies ...

2010-01-07T14:08:00.000-06:00

Oh, hello.

Would you look at that? I haven't posted on this blog since December 2007. Slacker, that's me.

I've been baking, of course. I just haven't been photographing said baked goods and writing about them, but a recent series of Tweets by Angelo Surmelis inspired this post.

Angelo bought a new toaster oven and decided to christen it by baking a batch of cookies. A fine, fine idea.

He wrote:

here's the deal kids-the cookies (though a spectacular idea) were an exercise in futility-decided to start New Year with the occasional...

...healthy option. Made "gluten free" choc. chip cookies & after 1 bite, threw them out-All of them-Seriously...

Helloooooo All-Purpose flour! How I've missed you.

Ah, our friend, all-purpose flour. Gluten really is not our friend. Most people have a sensitivity to it, not just those with Celiac Disease. Grains, in general, should be eliminated from our diet. Mark Sisson can tell you all you need to know on that front. (I know. It seems radical, right? But I make it a point never to argue with a man who sports eight-pack abs.)

My point – yes, I have one – is that as I was making this recipe, I thought of Angelo because, hey!, there's no flour in it!

Yes, there are oats. And oats are grains. So they're not cookies of which Mark would approve, but I haven't made them in so many years that I can't remember the last time I made them. It's been at least a decade. And it's snowing outside. And I already shoveled. So baking was the next thing on the list.

Here then is the recipe for Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Oatmeal cookies. They bake up big, about 4 to 5 inches across, crispy around the edges and chewy in the middle. (Angelo, two should fit on your toaster-oven tray, I'm guessing.)

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies
(from my Aunt Stana, years ago; that's all I know)

1/2 C. butter, softened
1 1/2 C. granulated sugar
1 1/2 C. brown sugar
4 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla extract
18 oz. jar smooth peanut butter (I'm a Jif girl ...)
18 oz. canister of quick-cook oats
2 1/2 t. baking soda
1 C. chocolate chips

Blend the butter and sugars together thoroughly. Add eggs, one at a time. Add vanilla and peanut butter. Blend well. Add oats, baking soda, and chocolate chips. Measure out dough in 1/4-cup measuring cup or similar sized cookie scoop. Place two inches apart on an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake at 350 for 12 to 15 minutes, or until golden brown. Let cool on cookie sheets for a few minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

A few notes:

1. I have a Wonder Cup that I use to form the cookies. Push the plunger down to the 1/4-cup mark, pack in enough dough, level the surface if need be, then invert the cup over a cookie sheet, press the plunger, and pop the disc of dough off with the tip of a rubber scraper. You'll end up with what looks like a little hamburger patty of cookie dough. Put six, evenly spaced, on a standard baking sheet.

2. Be sure to use baking soda, not baking powder, as I just realized I did for these cookies. (I was wondering why they weren't spreading enough.) Luckily, baking powder can be used in recipes calling for baking soda, though I should have used more baking powder. Baking soda, however, cannot be used in recipes that call for baking powder.

3. This recipe makes about 24 large cookies from a substantial batch of dough. I strongly recommend using a KitchenAid or similar mixer to make this dough. A hand mixer won't have enough power to combine this volume of heavy dough.

Cookie Elf 2007, Urban Edition ...

2007-12-21T08:10:00.000-06:00

Doreen once referred to where I live as Calico Corner.

Nick once referred to my abode as a Laura Ashley house.

In my home's defense, allow me to say that there is no calico to be seen, and while I do like the occasional floral print, every inch of my house isn't dripping with it like some Shabby Chic experiment gone horribly awry.

But yes, I do tend toward cottage when it comes to my decorating, "cottage" as in an eclectic mix of stuff all peacefully coexisting in one room. If we stood in my living room, I could point to each thing and tell you its story about how I came to own it and I wouldn't mention the same place more than twice. Well, maybe three times. (I just realized two of my lamps are from Marshall Field's.) I don't walk into a furniture store and buy a "living room set." Nope. My loveseat is from Jennifer Convertibles. My chair is from Marshall Field's. My rug is from Pier 1. My coffee table (which is really a steamer trunk) is from an antique store in some Indiana town, the name of which I can't remember, but Gemma and I managed to get it into the back seat of her rental coupe. It was a very little red car. Getting that trunk in there was a feat of genius.

But I digress. The point is, a long time ago, back before I had a place of my own, back when I thought about what it would be like to live in the city, I had visions of black leather furniture and chrome and glass. Apparently, I thought I was a bachelor. But when I moved into my first place and started buying pieces, I never looked at anything modern. Then again, my studio wasn't a white box in a high-rise. It was in an older building with beautiful wood doors and moldings and modern furniture just would have looked weird.

So I have the taste I have, and I like it. It's comfortable. It's mine. And I'm sure I've been heavily influenced by my mom's decorating sense, too. My parents' house isn't matchy-matchy either.

What does all of this have to do with cookies, you ask?

Just this. Today is the Day 1 of playing Cookie Elf, and this year's packaging for the cookies is decidedly sleek. I found very cool matte silver bags at Hallmark with a simple grosgrain ribbon handle (which can be taken out of the way – for filling the bag – by putting the toggled end of the ribbon through a grommet in the bag). A bit of tissue paper went in the bottom of each bag, just for a bit of cushion, but the cellophane bundles (tied with pewter-colored ribbon to match the bags) are the only thing peeking out of the top. No tissue in sight. And the notes are affixed to the bags with binder clips because I love binder clips.

All of which makes for a decidedly urbane presentation of my tasty treats.

No calico in sight.

Double Chocolate Chunk Peanut ...

2007-12-09T22:07:00.000-06:00

I'm back into holiday baking, full swing.

Every year, I try to add at least one new cookie to the assortments that I give away to my family and friends.

This year, in honor of my friend L.A. Dave, I added a chocolate peanut cookie to the mix. He may not like walnuts in brownies, but he's all about peanuts in cookies.

Of course, before I give away a new cookie, I need to try it and see if it's worthy. Not all are. I tried a recipe for a white chocolate-cranberry cookie a few days ago that was 1) printed incorrectly (the recipe needs an extra stick of butter), and 2) yields cookies that are far too sweet. I still have half of the bad dough in the fridge. I thought I might try incorporating more butter and trying again, but I don't like the cookie anyway, so why throw more ingredients after bad?

But these chocolate peanut cookies are fab. The addition of cinnamon adds a complexity to the cookie that could have ended up a bit too much like a Mr. Goodbar.

The recipe as written makes a blonde cookie. I followed the instructions to create Double Chocolate Chunk Peanut Cookies because more chocolate is almost always better.

Chocolate Chunk Peanut Cookies
(From Southern Living; you can find the recipe online here)

1/2 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup shortening
1 cup chunky peanut butter
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup firmly packed brown sugar
2 large eggs
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 cup unsalted dry-roasted peanuts
1 (11.5-ounce) bag chocolate chunks

Beat butter and shortening at medium speed with an electric mixer until creamy; add chunky peanut butter and sugars, beating well. Add eggs, beating until blended. Combine flour and next 4 ingredients. Add to butter mixture, beating well. Stir in peanuts and chocolate chunks. Shape dough into 2-inch balls (about 2 tablespoons for each cookie). Flatten slightly, and place on ungreased baking sheets. Bake at 375° for 12 to 15 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool on pan 1 to 2 minutes; remove to wire rack to cool completely.

Double Chocolate Chunk Peanut Cookies: Reduce flour to 2 cups; add 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa, sifted. Proceed as directed.

Blueberry Muffins ...

2007-09-08T15:25:00.003-05:00

You can tell fall is on its way: I'm inspired to bake again.

It was a lovely, cool morning, so I went for a walk to Starbucks for some coffee and a low-fat blueberry muffin. And then, on the walk home, I strolled through the farmers' market and saw lovely boxes of blueberries. I couldn't pass them up. I bought a box, thinking I'd put them in oatmeal. But then, with the pleasant memory of my blueberry muffin fresh in my mind, I decided to make blueberry muffins and share them with my neighbors. (Hi, Rhonda, William, and Shane!)

Once home, I pulled a couple cookbooks off my shelves. My first instinct was to check Baking with Julia. Surely I'd find a winning recipe in there. Julia baked with the most amazing chefs in that series. Sure enough, there was a recipe for blueberry muffins. But the recipe called for ingredients I didn't have on hand – cake flour, sour cream – and I'd have to haul out my stand mixer. Too much effort. And the picture of the muffin was forlorn. The recipe stated that the muffins, when baked, would be flat-topped. Well, who wants a flat-topped muffin? It didn't even look like a muffin. It looked like a failure of a muffin.

Harumph. No thank you.

I checked some other baking books and was surprised by the dearth of blueberry muffin recipes. And then I remembered Mostly Muffins, a little, unassuming square book, one of a three-book set I bought years ago, along with Completely Cookies and Simply Scones. Surely Mostly Muffins would have a blueberry muffin recipe. Blueberry muffins are the gold standard of muffins. Sure enough. Page 10. The third muffin recipe. (The sections are arranged alphabetically, otherwise I'm sure blueberry would be up front.)

I read through the ingredients list. Yup, I had everything on hand. But walnut pieces? Yeah, I have walnuts in my house. I always have walnuts in my freezer. But who puts walnuts in a blueberry muffin? I don't, and I put walnuts in just about everything. Plenty of recipes don't call for walnuts but I add 'em anyway. But a blueberry muffin should be unsullied by nuts of any stripe. The only thing I want to find inside my blueberry muffin is more blueberries.

So I got down to business. I was shy a few muffin liners, but I spritzed the unlined cups in my muffin tin with some Pam and forged ahead.

One useful tip out of Julia's book is to coat the blueberries with a bit of flour before stirring them into the batter, to help them stay suspended in the muffins. Left alone, they sink to the bottom. So once I measured the flour for the recipe into a bowl, I removed two tablespoons and added that to the bowl of blueberries and tossed them gently. (Note: I washed the blueberries gently in a strainer then turned them out onto a clean kitchen towel to dry them gently. [Yes, "gently" is the key when handling blueberries.] That also gave me the opportunity to check for smooshed berries and discard them.)

If you're not usually a muffin maker, a key to making muffins is not to overmix the batter. Don't beat it vigorously until it's perfectly smooth. Just mix the wet and dry ingredients until they're almost combined, then add the blueberries and gently (see?) fold those in. Then stop! Resist the urge to keep mixing.

Blueberry Muffins
(From Mostly Muffins, Published by St. Martin's Press, 1984)

2 C. all-purpose flour
1 C. plus 1 T. sugar
2 t. baking powder
1/2 t. salt
1/2 C. milk
1/2 C. lightly salted butter, melted and cooled
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 t. vanilla
2 C. fresh blueberries
1/2 C. walnut pieces (optional)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Grease 12 3 x 1 1/4-inch (3 1/2- to 4-ounce) muffin cups. [I used a standard muffin tin.]

In a large bowl, stir together flour, 1 cup sugar, baking powder, and salt. In another bowl, stir together milk, butter, egg, and vanilla until blended. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients; add milk mixture and stir just to combine. [I didn't do the next step, but I'm including it because I'm copying the recipe exactly as written. I didn't want blue muffins.] Mash 1/4 cup blueberries and stir into batter with a few quick strokes. Stir in remaining blueberries and walnuts (if desired). [NOTE: I measure the flour out into the mixing bowl, then remove two tablespoons of flour to another bowl, into which I've placed the washed blueberries. Then I toss the berries gently with the flour to coat. This step helps the berries stay suspended in the muffins, instead of sinking to the bottom.]

Spoon batter into prepared muffin cups and sprinkle with the remaining 1 tablespoon sugar. Bake 20 to 25 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted into the center of one muffin comes out clean.

Remove muffin tin or tins to wire rack. Cool 5 minutes before removing muffins from cups; finish cooling on rack. Serve warm or cool completely and store in an airtight container at room temperature.

These muffins freeze well.

Makes 12 muffins

Update: I figured out why I was short a few muffin liners. I went to the store last night and bought another package of 32 liners. Who's the genius who thought to put 32 muffin liners in a package when most people bake muffins in multiples of 12? Oh, and I should also mention that while these muffins are delightful while still warm, they're right tasty later, once the flavors have a chance to further meld. As I said to my mom last night, "Damn, that's a good muffin!" If you have any baking tendency whatsoever, try these babies. They're easy and delicious and they go together in no time, so you can whip these up for breakfast whenever the mood strikes. And you'll knock the socks off guests if you offer warm blueberry muffins in the morning!

No idea ...

2007-08-25T21:54:00.001-05:00

... why Bloglines reported that this blog had six new and/or updated posts on it. I haven't touched this thing in ages. But now that summer is waning and fall is ahead, I'll be firing up the oven again.

I'm catering the desserts for a baby shower in October. That should be fun.

My First Bread ...

2007-02-14T09:18:00.000-06:00

I learned how to make bread when I was 8.

My Aunt Anne, who always reminded me of Piglet - small and soft-spoken with a sweet, kind face (nevermind the fact that she was a pool shark in her day) - taught me and my cousin Lora. She wrote out the recipe on a piece of my pink stationery. I don't know where it's gone.

Pogacha, it's called, though it's essentially just a white bread that only raises once and is formed into round, flattish loaves instead of the traditional shape. I stopped needing a recipe years ago, but I'd like to find the pink paper and see Aunt Anne's handwriting again. All the aunts had very similiar handwriting. I never understood why.

It makes spectacular toast. Truly. The best toast you'll ever have in your life. The denseness of the bread plays a big part. Slather on some butter and apricot preserves and you're in breakfast heaven.

Similarly, it also grills up well for bruschetta. It soaks up an egg mixture well for French toast. It's very versatile. I don't make sandwiches with it, strangely, but I made a couple loaves for my brother's family around the holidays and my niece wanted to be sure that they saved a couple slices so she could take a sandwich when she returned to school.

People are daunted by the making of bread, but it's really rather simple. And, at the same time, miraculous. A few humble ingredients, some love, and some time, and voila!

The most important thing to know is the proper temperature for any liquids, lest you kill your yeast. You can haul out a kitchen thermometer, if you feel the need to be precise, but my Aunt Chick (one of Anne's sisters) always gauged the temperature of the water on her wrist. "Baby's bath water" is the rule by which we live. Pleasantly warm, not hot.

The second most important thing is to add flour gradually. You can start with a few cups at once (in fact, you want to, and then whip that mixture to form the gluten in the dough), but as the dough becomes more cohesive, flour needs to be added gradually, lest you end up with too heavy of a dough.

Can you use a bread machine? I don't know. Can you? I've never used a bread machine to make dough, much less bake bread.

I believe that we put a part of ourselves into the food we make. I suppose you can dump a bunch of ingredients into a machine and turn it on and walk away and it will churn out something that looks like bread. But if you're going to make bread, commune with it. Get your hands a little doughy.

Little can compare with the satisfaction of making bread by hand from scratch, then inhaling the aroma as it wafts out of the oven, and then slicing the warm loaf and smearing it with butter. That, my friends, is life worth living.

Right, the recipe, then:

(Note: I use my KitchenAid for most of the heavy lifting, and finish kneading it by hand.)

2 t. salt
2 T. sugar
2 T. butter
1 C. hot milk (I use organic 2%)
1 C. hot water
1 package yeast proofed in 1/4 C. warm water
5-6 C. flour

Combine the first five ingredients in a bowl. Let mixture cool until it is warm. (I put mine in the freezer for a few minutes.) Add the yeast mixture and 3 cups of flour. Using the paddle attachment (if using the mixer), beat for a few minutes. Switch to the dough hook and start adding flour until the dough cleans the sides of the bowl. Finish kneading by hand. Separate dough into two pieces. Knead each. Form into flat rounds. Place on greased baking sheet and spray loaves liberally with Pam. Cover with a towel and raise in a warm location until about doubled in bulk. Bake at 450 for 10 minutes, then lower the temp to 350 and bake for 25-30 minutes.

My First Tiramisu ...

2007-01-29T23:15:00.000-06:00

Mom didn't want a cake.

She wanted tiramisu for her 65th birthday instead.

I'd never made tiramisu before, but she had, and she promised it was easy. Not like cake-mix easy, but easy enough for someone who knows their way around a KitchenAid.

So I bought the ingredients and followed the recipe on the back of the package of ladyfingers. Typically, the Serbian Oath by which I live precludes me from buying any prepared ingredients. We're a from-scratch clan, we Serbs. At least the ones in my family. But there was no chance that I was going to attempt to make ladyfingers. Mom buys the packages, too. I don't think our Serb cards are in danger of being revoked.

I assembled all the ingredients on the counter. My local store didn't have mascarpone so I opted for the substitute solution: softened cream cheese blended with sour cream and heavy cream. Which, of course, required a KitchenAid bowl for combining. My second KitchenAid bowl was in the freezer with the whip attachment, chilling in advance of whipping the nearly two cups of heavy cream. But first, I used KitchenAid bowl No. 1 to beat six egg yolks and 1 1/4 cups of sugar until they were thick and lemon-colored, and then cooked that mixture over a double boiler for 10 minutes, stirring constantly with my silicone spatula.

Ten minutes later, I had a thick, grainy bowl of sugary yolk. The sugar wasn't dissolved. Did I do something wrong? Heck if I knew. I decided to proceed. Perhaps the sugar would dissolve at a later stage. If not, I'd make another run to the store to buy more eggs. And cream. And everything else.

As the yolk mixture cooled, I make my makeshift mascarpone. Then I whipped the cream. I combined the cheese with the cooled yolk mixture then folded in the whipped cream. Like magic, it turned into the most gorgeous, silken, heart-stoppingly-delicious mixture.

I placed a layer of ladyfingers in the bottom of a Pyrex dish. The recipe calls for making this in a bowl, but I wanted to serve pieces of it, not spoonfuls of it. I brushed the ladyfingers with Kahlua. I poured half the cream mixture on top. Then more ladyfingers, more Kahlua, and the balance of the cream.

And then I whipped the remaining cream called for in the recipe to spread on top. Except that my decision to make the dessert in a low, wide dish meant I came up short on whipped cream. So I whipped what I had left - what else was I going to do with it? - and spread it over the remainder of the top. It wasn't the prettiest presentation, so I covered my imperfection with a thick dusting of cocoa.

The next day, when we ate it, it was still quite soft. I expected it to have more body. But the taste? Oh. My. God.

Divine.

We had a lot left over. Mom shared some with my neighbors. I kept the plate of misshapen pieces that I extracted from the dish in an effort to dish up pretty pieces for the neighbor folk. Mom took home the balance in the dish.

It is a dangerous thing to have tiramisu in the house.

Well, it was, anyway.

I've since trashed the ladyfinger packaging, so I don't have the recipe to share. And I didn't take a photo of it because anything a Pyrex dish is nothing to look at. And when I dished it up on mom's birthday, the last thing on any of our minds was photostyling and photography. There was tiramisu waiting to be eaten, dammit!

But tiramisu recipes abound. Mom found one in her new Cooking Light cookbook (one of her birthday gifts from me) that boasts a mere 140 calories per serving! Is a serving a one-inch square? I must investigate.

And make the "healthy" version.

I'll report back when I do.

I don't hold out high hopes for "healthy" tiramisu, but tiramisu hopes spring eternal.

Cookie Tips, The Second ...

2006-12-27T23:34:00.000-06:00

My cookie stash is dwindling.

Which is the point. I gave most of them away to friends last week, kept a few for dessert for Christmas Eve, made a cookie plate for my brother and his family, and now have a few stragglers in the freezer, which are being eaten a few at a time, a treat for me who doesn't usually keep cookies in the house.

But as I was baking and wrapping and packing, I jotted down ideas as they came to me. Here, then, is the latest batch.

To bake or not to bake
Some recipes have large yields. Maybe you don't want six dozen cookies lying around the house, waiting to take up residence on your hips. Maybe you want to mete out the fresh-baked goodness a half-dozen at a time. Maybe you're tired and want to stop baking and go to bed. So line a baking sheet with some waxed paper (or parchment), roll the cookie dough into balls (or measure with a cookie scoop), place on the lined baking sheet, pop it into the freezer until the balls are solid, then plop six or 12 each into Ziploc bags and stash in the freezer. Unexpected guests? Bake off a dozen cookies and be a snack-time rock star. Having a crummy day? Bake off a few cookies in your toaster oven. It's hard to be pissed with a warm Toll House cookie in your hand. Bake the cookie dough, right from the freezer, for a few minutes longer than the regular number of minutes.

Don't take it or leavening it
Funny things, ingredients. In the democracy that is cookie baking, every ingredient contributes to the outcome. If a recipe calls for baking soda or baking powder, it's there for a reason. No, you cannot omit them. Nor can you necessarily sub one for the other. And take special note: self-rising flour has leaveners built in. It is not the same as all-purpose flour. You cannot use them interchangably.

Get cracking
If your recipes call for eggs, don't crack them directly into the ingredients already in the bowl, crack them, one at a time, into a small dish, and add to the larger bowl before cracking the next egg. Eggs are relatively cheap. Cheaper, certainly, than the butter your recipe likely starts with. If you crack a crummy egg into a bowl of creamed butter and sugar, the whole mess will need to go into the garbage. Eggs. Separate dish. Always.

More is better
When I'm in a baking zone, I don't want to break my rhythm to wash utensils. Buy several sets of measuring spoons and cups so you can keep on goin'. For that matter, it's a fine idea to have more than one mixer bowl for your KitchenAid (or mixer of choice) and paddle attachment so you don't have to wash them between uses.

Sheet safety
Cookie sheets might not looks like they're in need of washing, but if you're baking cookies with nuts and then cookies without nuts, wash the sheets in between batches. Most people with nut allergies simply steer cleaer of baked goods if they're unsure of the source, but even traces of nut oils can cause reactions to those allergic to nuts. Play it safe.

Packaging productivity
This year, I made seven collections of cookies, so I got into a serious assembly-line mindset. I cut all my cellophane at once, then, in a rare moment of brilliance, created index cards on which I wrote each recipient's name and number of each cookie variety they'd receive. Then I made tape loops for the back of each card and stuck each card to the counter, on top of which I placed a square of cellophane. Like a landing site for the cookies. As I took each variety out of the freezer, I was able to quickly dole out the cookies among all the cellophane, then tie each bundle with a ribbon and tag. I made stations on my dining table for each recipient and grouped the cookies around each person's name until I was ready to fill their boxes.

Rosemary Lemon ...

2006-12-24T08:39:00.000-06:00

This is a cookie conundrum. It's a shaped like a cookie. It's made with butter and sugar and other cookie things. It's lemony to be sure. But rosemary? Yes, rosemary.

I made some as a trial, one of this year's cookie contenders. And I really like them, but not in a cookie kind of way. It's a grown-up cookie, a cookie you'd have with champagne, I'm thinking, not a tall glass of milk. The lemon flavor is very sharp, owing to four tablespoons of lemon juice and the zest of an entire lemon. And the rosemary is unmistakable.

The recipe had a typo in it. When I first read it, I thought, "Ten teaspoons of butter? Huh?" So I tried it with 3 1/3 tablespoons of butter (three teaspoons to a tablespoon, for those scoring at home) and wow, it didn't turn into a workable dough. So I tossed in the rest of the stick and two more tablespoons to boot and voila!, dough that could be chilled then rolled.

I bought fluted oval cutters especially for this cookie. I don't think they're flutey enough, The edge isn't as defined as I'd like it to be. But I like the oval shape in a landscape of round cookies. Always good to get more geometric.

Here, then, the recipe for the oddest cookie on this year's plate.

Rosemary Cookies
(From Complete Baking: Cakes, Puddings, and Pastries, Published by Dempsey Parr, 2000)

10 T. butter, softened
4 T. superfine sugar
Grated rind of 1 lemon
4 T. lemon juice
1 egg, separated
2 T. finely chopped fresh rosemary
1 3/4 C. all-purpose flour, sifted
Superfine sugar, for sprinkling (optional)

Lightly grease two baking sheets. In a large mixing bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until pale and fluffy. Add the lemon rind and juice, then the egg yolk and beat until they are thoroughly combined. Stir in the chopped fresh rosemary. Add the sifted flour, mixing well until a soft dough is formed. Wrap and leave to chill for 30 minutes. On a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough thinly and stamp about 25 circles with a 2 1/2-inch cookie cutter. Arrange the dough circles on the prepared baking sheets. In a bowl, lightly whisk the egg white. Gently brush the egg white over the surface of each biscuit [the cookbook is British], then sprinkle wiht a little superfine sugar. Bake in a preheated oven, 350 for 15 minutes. Transfer the cookies to a wire race and leave to cool before serving.

Beth Kujawski, Cookie Elf ...

2006-12-21T23:10:00.000-06:00

Cookies are packaged! I'm ready to make deliveries! I LOVE this part!

Toffee Squares ...

2006-12-21T22:50:00.000-06:00

Damn if these don't taste an awful lot like toffee. Happily, though, you don't run the risk of cracking a tooth by biting into them. This is the penultimate holiday cookie post, but I have a long running list of cookie tips yet to share, and I'm going to keep baking and photographing whatever I bake, so you can keep reading. If you're so inclined.

These are pretty straightforward as cookies go. None of those pesky cookie-forming chores. Just pat the dough in a pan and bake. When I cut these, I like to trim the edges first so that all the cookies will be uniform. The edges bake up a bit higher than the field, so edge pieces have a raised edge. I don't like the inconsistency, but then, I'm funny that way.

Toffee Squares
(From Betty Crocker’s Cooky Book, Published by General Mills, 1963)

1 C. butter or margarine (You know my feelings about margarine ...)
1 C. brown sugar, packed
1 egg yolk
1 t. vanilla
1 C. flour
1/4 t. salt
3 to 4 chocolate bars (Like Hershey's, eh?)
1/2 C. chopped nuts (I use walnuts, and I grind them; if you chop them, chop them fine)

Heat oven to 350. Mix butter, sugar, yolk, and vanilla. measure flour by dipping method*. Stir in flour and salt until blended. Pat into a 9x13 baking pan. Bake 25-30 minutes. Crust will appear soft. Remove pan from oven and immediately place chocolate on top of crust. When melted, spread with the back of the spoon to cover the crust. Sprinkle with chopped nuts. Cut while warm.

* Dipping method: Slightly fluff up flour with a spoon or measuring cup. Dip measuring cup into flour and overfill. Level off measuring cup.

Shortbread ...

2006-12-20T22:57:00.000-06:00

You can't get any easier than this. Three ingredients and some time in the oven. My friend Gemma once asked, "Can't we just eat a stick of butter dipped in flour?" Yes, these have a lot of butter in them, but they're never greasy. They're delightful. Shortbread - and variations on shortbread, like the Russian Teacakes - are my favorite cookie. I love simple flavors. The Girl Scout shortbread was my favorite when I was a kid, but the recipe's changed and they're not the same, no longer worth eating.

When you make this recipe, you might look in the bowl after you've cut in the butter and think you've done something wrong. Nope, you haven't. It's supposed to look that dusty. Dump it onto a clean counter and start smooshing it together, kneading not like for bread dough but pressing your palm into the dough in a linear movement away from you, smearing it as you go, then gather it back into a ball and start over again. Think of a stone-skipping motion. That's what you're doing. Not the throwing of the stone, but the action of the stone skipping across the water. Keep at it for a few minutes and the next thing you know, you'll have gorgeous, smooth dough.

Shortbread
(From Better Homes and Gardens New Cook Book, Published Meredith Corporation, 1989)

1 1/4 C. all-purpose flour
3 T. sugar
1/2 C. butter

In a mixing bowl, combine flour and sugar. Cut in butter till mixture resembles fine crumbs and starts to cling. Form mixture into a ball and knead till smooth. To make wedges, on an ungreased cookie sheet pat or roll dough into an 8-inch circle. Using your fingers, press to make a scalloped edge. With a knife, cut circle into 16 pie-shape wedges. Leave wedges in the circle shape. Bake in a 325 oven for 25 to 30 minutes or till bottom just starts to brown and center is set. Cut circle into wedges again while warm. Cool on the cookie sheet for five minutes. Remove from cookie sheet; cool on a wire rack.

Mint Surprises ...

2006-12-20T00:50:00.000-06:00

Gee, I wonder what the surprise could be? The name of the cookie kinda gives it away. But this year, I made things slightly more surprising by using both dark mint chocolate and ... white mint chocolate! Ha! So those biting into my cookies won't know which they're getting. Finally, some mystery returns to the cookie experience.

I buy my chocolate for these cookies at a local store that sells candy-making supplies. This chocolate is meant to be melted down and used in molds, but the pieces work perfectly for this application.

Walnut halves may be a little harder to come by for commoners such as ourselves. I went through four bags of mom's Diamond walnuts and pulled out all the halves. There were a lot of them. Sometimes, you just hit a walnut-half mother lode.

Mint Surprises
(Presented as written in my late Aunt Stana's anal-retentively neat recipe notebook - seriously, the pages are typed out and the holes are reinforced)

Sift:
3 1/4 C. sifted flour
1 t. soda
1/2 t. salt

Cream:
1/2 C. butter
1/2 C. shortening

Add:
1 C. sugar
1/2 C. firmly packed brown sugar

MIX WELL

Add:
2 eggs, unbeaten
2 T. water
1 t. vanilla; beat well.

Blend in dry ingredients. Mix well.

Enclose a chocolate wafer (I use the discs you buy at a candy-making-supply store) in about 1 T. of dough. Place on greased baking sheet about 2 inches apart. Top each with a walnut half. Bake at 375 for 10 to 12 minutes.

Cookie Gift ...

2006-12-19T16:20:00.000-06:00

OK, kids:

I just put together my first cookie gift of the season and as I was composing it, I wondered what I'd sell this for if I wasn't giving it away.

This particular collection has 12 varieties of cookies, 6 dozen all together, presented in a fetching tissue-lined, paper-covered hat box. Each variety is wrapped in cellophane (in case you couldn't see it in the pictures!), tied with ribbon, and tagged.

The first shot is of the cookies out of the box, to give you a sense of the volume. The second shot, with its profusion of cellophane, is the box full of cookie bundles.

What price will the holiday cookie market pay? I ask for your input.

Side Note ...

2006-12-18T20:56:00.000-06:00

While it's hard to see because it's black, the base for my biscotti shot is a Fiestaware platter.

I mention it because Judi Noble, the art director for the Homer Laughlin China Company, found my blog and sent a note to me earlier this month, offering to send a piece. She has her Google set to catch any site that mentions Fiestaware (which I mentioned in a story that I wrote for a client a couple years ago and which I posted on the blog) and ran across my blog that way.

When I worked for the Tribune, we had to sign ethics policies every year, and it was stipulated that we were not allowed to accept any gift whose value was greater than that of a keychain. (It was expected that we understood that the keychains weren't from Tiffany.) Graft is a no-no.

So my immediate reaction to her offer was, "Oh, I couldn't." But then I realized that 1) I don't work for a newspaper directly anymore, and 2) She wasn't offering to send something to me in exchange for press. I'd already written the story and made the mention.

I replied to her and thanked her for the offer, suggesting that I'd love to receive a piece of Fiestaware and in exchange for her kindness, I'd use the piece in a photo shoot for the blog. Well, the biscotti shot doesn't show it off to very good effect, but I'll be doing a shot of all the cookies when I compose a cookie plate, and you'll be able to better see it then. Except that it will be covered by cookies.

But it's black and round and shiny and heavier than you'd expect it to be. And it was very kind of her to see to it that I received it.

So thank you, Judi.

Coconut Chocolate Almond Biscotti ...

2006-12-18T20:45:00.000-06:00

So here's the thing: This recipe is actually for coconut pecan biscotti. I could have used pecans, but I like almonds. And then, because I was using almonds with the coconut, I thought it would be fun to add chocolate chips. Plus, I had some mini chips left over from the chocolate raspberry thumbprints.

Coconut, almond, and chocolate. Dig it: They're like Almond Joy biscotti! I rock!

I've made biscotti in the past and have been mostly unhappy with the results. Biscotti advice often conflicts or is incomplete. Here's what I've learned about making biscotti: You have to let the loaves cool before you cut them. Cutting a loaf into slices when it's hot out of the oven will yield misshapen biscotti, especially if there's anything in them. Here's what else I've learned: A serrated knife is the better bet, every time. Some will tell you to use a sharp chef's knife and to make swift, clean cuts. I don't think that's the best advice. You can try both kinds of knives on your biscotti recipe, as the first cut at the very end of the loaf yields a little heal of biscotti loaf that you're just going to eat right then and there anyway. And the second slice will be pretty tiny, too. Decide which knife is best for your recipe. But I think it's hard to go wrong with the serrated. Just hold the sides of the loaf as you cut to minimize messing up the ends of the slices.

To toast almonds, place them in a single layer on a baking sheet and stick 'em in the oven for about 10 minutes at 350. Let cool and then chop.

Coconut Chocolate Almond Biscotti
(No idea of the recipe source; I jotted it down on an index card)

1/2 C. unsalted butter, room temperature
3/4 C. firmly packed brown sugar
2 eggs
1/2 C. + 2 T. sweetened shredded coconut
2 1/4 C. flour
1 1/2 t. baking powder
1/4 t. salt
1 C. chopped toasted almonds
1 C. chocolate mini chips

Cream butter and sugar. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in coconut. Mix flour, baking powder, and salt. Gradually stir dry ingredients into butter. Mix in almonds. Cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes. Heat oven to 350. Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper. Shape half of dough into 2-inch-wide log. (Beth Note: When forming the loaves, they should be about 2 inches wide, about 3/4-inch high, maybe 10 inches long.) Put on sheet. Bake until golden and firm, about 35 minutes. Cool 20 minutes on cookie sheets. Reduce oven to 325. On work surface, cut logs diagonally into 1/2-inch-thick slices. Place cut sides down on cookie sheets and bake until crisp and golden, turning once (about 15 minutes total). Cool completely on racks.

Gingerbread Drops ...

2006-12-17T11:41:00.000-06:00

Every year, I try to add a new cookie or two into the mix. Sometimes, the cookies become perennials. Other times, they're voted off the cookie island.

I like gingerbread. I like the combination of spices and the earthy flavor. What I don't like is molasses. But I've overcome my distaste of it enough to bake with it.

This recipe uses shortening for the fat, and by now, we all know how I feel about the stuff. So this may be a one-off recipe, unless I can figure out another way to make it (maybe part butter and part applesauce; I'll play around).

A few notes about this one: I used golden raisins and walnuts. I used tablespoons of dough, not teaspoons, and I rolled the dough balls in sugar before baking, which adds just a bit of extra sweetness, but also a pretty frosty effect to the baked cookie. Bake them on baking sheets lined with parchment or a Sil-Pat to ensure a stick-free experience. Also, because I made the cookies bigger, I baked them a bit longer, about 11 minutes. And if you've read the recipe and said, "One tablespoon of milk? What the heck?", I have no idea either. I can't imagine it makes that much of a difference to the finished product, but I included it.

Gingerbread Drop Cookies
(From Better Homes and Gardens web site)

1 cup shortening
1 1/2 cups packed brown sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons ground ginger
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/3 cup molasses
2 eggs
1 tablespoon milk
3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup raisins
1/2 cup chopped pecans or walnuts

In a large mixing bowl beat shortening with an electric mixer on medium to high speed for 30 seconds. Add brown sugar, baking soda, ginger, cinnamon, and cloves. Beat until well combined. Beat in molasses, eggs, and milk until combined. Beat in as much flour as you can with the mixer. Stir in any remaining flour with a wooden spoon. Stir in raisins and nuts. Drop dough by rounded teaspoons onto an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake in a 375 oven about 8 minutes or until bottoms are lightly browned. Cool on wire racks. Makes about 90.

Oatmeal Raisin ...

2006-12-15T20:01:00.000-06:00

Ah, the venerable oatmeal raisin, cookie stalwart.

Who among us does not love the oatmeal raisin, full of earthy, whole-grain goodness?

As I mentioned in this post, Bill Kurtis is all about these cookies. I make two recipes of them every year because Bill gets almost a whole batch to himself.

I use Quaker old-fashioned oats, not the quick-cooking variety. Quick-cook oats are just rolled oats that have been chopped up into smaller bits. I like the chewiness of the whole rolled oats. But that's just me. Do whatever floats your oaty boat.

I also use golden raisins instead of the darker variety. Golden raisins seem more plump to me, and they keep people guessing. One day, Bill, munching on a cookie in his office, looked at me and said, "Apple?" No, I told him, golden raisins. "Ah," he said, as only Bill can.

Oatmeal Raisin
(Quaker Oats Co. recipe)

1 C. butter or margarine, softened
1 C. firmly packed brown sugar
1/2 C. granulated sugar
2 eggs
1 t. vanilla
1 1/2 C. all-purpose flour
1 t. baking soda
1 t. cinnamon
1/2 t. salt (optional)
3 C. Quaker Oats (uncooked)
1 C. raisins
(I add chopped toasted walnuts, too)

Heat oven to 350. Beat together butter and sugars until creamy. Add eggs and vanilla; beat well. Add combined flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt; mix well. Stir in oats and raisins; mix well. Drop by rounded tablespoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheets. Bake 10 to 12 minutes or until golden brown. Cool one minute on cookie sheet; remove to wire rack.

Chocolate Raspberry Thumbprints ...

2006-12-14T21:07:00.000-06:00

This is not the sexiest cookie. It doesn't photograph particularly well. But what it lacks in flash, it more than makes up for in flavor. Chocolate and raspberry? Fugghedaboutit. A match made in heaven.

A few tips: 1) Seeded raspberry preserves have more flavor than seedless, it's true, but you really don't want seeds in your cookie, do you? No, you don't. I use Polaner seedless raspberry preserves, but it would be worth trying these with another brand. I've just never gotten around to it. 2) I use a tomato shark to make the indentation. I like the perfect rounded bowl shape of it. I smoosh it into the dough to grease it, then dip it into a little dish of flour, tapping off the excess before indenting each cookie. If you have a set of stainless measuring spoons, the kind with the very round bowls, the 1/4 teaspoon will work nicely, too.

This recipe, you'll note, was given to me by Betty, a cashier at my local Jewel. You never know where a great recipe will come from.

Chocolate Raspberry Thumbprints
(From Betty, the Cashier at Jewel)

1 1/2 C. butter
1 C. sugar
1 egg
1 t. vanilla
3 C. flour
1/4 C. unsweetened cocoa
1 C. semi-sweet mini chocolate chips
2/3 C. raspberry preserves

Heat oven to 350. Beat butter and sugar together. Add other ingredients. Stir in chocolate chips. Roll level tablespoonfuls into balls. Place 2 inches apart on baking sheets. Indent and fill with preserves. Bake 12-15 minutes or until set.

Peanut Butter ...

2006-12-13T22:52:00.000-06:00

No cookie reminds me of my childhood more than a peanut butter cookie. Maybe it's the flavor, maybe it's the tell-tale criss-cross, but these cookies make me happy.

I always double this recipe, so I use one stick of butter and a half-cup of shortening. I'm going to look for a new peanut butter cookie recipe, but I fear the flavor will not be the same. I don't eat Jif peanut butter anymore (trans fats, you know; I'm a Skippy Natural girl now), but I bought Jif for these cookies, because Jif is the peanut butter we always ate as kids, and Jif is the peanut butter with which we made these cookies. So they're the one-two punch of trans fats this Christmas, but I try to tell myself that a few cookies won't do irreparable harm. They're cookies, for God's sake. Who wants to consider their health when eating cookies?!

Oh, and while it's up to you, I use creamy peanut butter in these cookies, not crunchy. These are one of the few cookies in which I don't put nuts. Go figure.

Peanut Butter
(From Betty Crocker’s Cooky Book, Published by General Mills, 1963)

1/2 C. shortening (part butter or margarine)
1/2 C. peanut butter
1/2 C. granulated sugar
1/2 C. brown sugar, packed
1 egg
1 1/4 C. flour
1/2 t. baking powder
3/4 t. baking soda
1/4 t. salt

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Mix shortening, peanut butter, sugars, and egg thoroughly. Blend all dry ingredients. Stir into the shortening mixture. Roll dough into 1-inch balls. Place 3 inches apart on baking sheet. Flatten criss-cross style with fork dipped in flour. Bake 10 to 12 minutes.

Chocolate Crinkles ...

2006-12-13T07:18:00.000-06:00

These are my brother Paul's favorite cookie. These are my friend Dave's favorite cookie. Paul and Dave share the same birthday. Hmm. Maybe I should write an astrology book about cookies!

Some call these Brownie Drops, and with good reason. The cookie itself is very brownie-like, rich and fudgy. Therefore, because I put walnuts in my brownies, I put walnuts in these cookies, even though they're not called for in the recipe. You can certainly make these walnut-free, but I think they lose something without the extra, nutty texture.

These are a bit of a mess to make. Some cookie recipes instruct you to chill the dough, but you can get away with baking them right away. Not these. Chilling is essential. And the next day, when you're forming the cookies, put the bowl of dough back in the fridge between batches. Once this dough gets soft, it's pretty difficult to handle. Keep it chilled.

The recipe says to drop spoonfuls of dough into the powdered sugar and then roll those into balls. I reverse it, rolling the dough into balls and then in the powdered sugar. It's a bit messier that way, but the cookies bake into more perfect rounds. As with the Russian Teacake recipe, I use a Pyrex pie plate for my powdered-sugar rolling, and keep the sugar fluffed up with a fork as I roll the cookies. More sugar adheres to the dough that way, and when you bake these, the contrast is more stark. Contrast is the key to appearance of these cookies.

Chocolate Crinkles
(From Betty Crocker’s Cooky Book, Published by General Mills, 1963)

1/2 C. vegetable oil
4 oz. unsweetened chocolate, melted
2 C. granulated sugar
4 eggs
2 t. vanilla
2 C. flour
2 t. baking powder
1/2 t. salt
Powdered sugar

Mix oil, chocolate, and granulated sugar. Blend in one egg at a time until well mixed. Add vanilla. Measure flour by dipping method* and stir together with baking powder and salt. Add to oil mixture and stir. Chill overnight. Heat oven to 350. Drop teaspoonfuls of dough into powdered sugar. Roll into balls. Place 2 inches apart on greased baking sheets. Bake 10 to 12 minutes. Do not overbake. Cool 1 minute on baking sheet then transfer to wire racks.

* Dipping method: Slightly fluff up flour with a spoon or measuring cup. Dip measuring cup into flour and overfill. Level off measuring cup.

Russian Teacakes ...

2006-12-11T23:45:00.000-06:00

Some might know these as Mexican Wedding Cakes. I like Russian Teacakes better. The name conjures up images of Tsarist Russia, fine clothes, Fabergé eggs. I don't much like tea, but I'd drink it if it was served with these cookies.

They're simple to make, they're not too sweet, and they don't spread, which means you can fit a lot of them on a cookie sheet and get on with your other cookie-baking business.

There are a number of ways you can roll these in powdered sugar right after they come out of the oven. My mom dumps some powdered sugar into a Ziploc bag, tosses in a half dozen cookies, gathers the top closed in her hand and shakes them gently. Me, I dump some powdered sugar into a Pyrex pie plate and roll 'em around. I use one hand for rolling and moving the cookies to a cooling rack, and use the other hand, armed with a fork, to fluff the powdered sugar from time to time. It gets compacted (like snow) when you roll the cookies in it, and then the sugar doesn't stick to them as well. So fluff and roll, people. Fluff and roll.

Russian Teacakes
(From Betty Crocker’s Cooky Book, Published by General Mills, 1963)

1 C. butter or margarine (I copy these recipes exactly, but margarine is Crisco's evil twin; use butter; the flavor's better, anyway)
1/2 C. sifted powdered sugar
1 t. vanilla
2 1/4 C. flour
1/4 t. salt
3/4 C. finely chopped nuts

Mix butter, sugar, and vanilla thoroughly. Stir in flour and salt. Mix in nuts. Chill dough. Heat oven to 400 degrees. Roll dough in 1-inch balls. Place on ungreased baking sheet. Bake 10 to 12 minutes or until set but not brown. (These cookies do not spread.) While still warm, roll in powdered sugar. Cool. Roll in sugar again.

(A note on sifted ingredients: If a recipe calls for, as this one does, an amount of sifted something, you sift, then measure. If a recipe calls for an amount of something, sifted, you measure the ingredient, then sift it.)

Snickerdoodles ...

2006-12-10T19:58:00.001-06:00

This might just be the best cookie name in the history of cookie names. It's just so silly.

And these cookies are a total delight. Simple, simple, simple, but professional-looking as all get out. And while they're baking, the most lovely cinnamon-sugar aroma wafts out of the oven.

The recipe is from Betty Crocker's Cooky Book, a childhood favorite. Thinking back, it was the first cookbook I ever read. Bakers and cooks love to skim cookbooks, but the Cooky Book is chock full of pictures of cookies, and when you're a kid, well, what could be better reading?

Mom's copy is a wreck but clearly well-loved. The covers are torn off. The pages are stained. The book was republished recently, so she could have a brand-spankin'-new copy, but where's the nostalgia in that?

I'm conflicted about making this recipe, because it calls for shortening, evil, evil trans fat. After the holidays, I'll try a batch of these using all butter, but I suspect the texture will markedly change. Frankly, I wonder if the Crisco people will continue to market this stuff, seeing as how it's like Satan in a can. But hey, I bought the stuff today, so I guess they'll keep making it as long as people keep buying it. Next year, though, I plan to eliminate any recipes that call for Crisco, or develop alternative recipes. I'll test 'em in the off-season. I'm sure I'll find willing tasters.

The only thing I do differently than the recipe suggests is to make more cinnamon sugar in which to roll the cookie balls before baking. Today I used a 4-to-4 ratio (tablespoons of sugar to teaspoons of cinnamon).

(Side note: I am totally geeked about creating the photos to go with these blog posts! I have unleashed my inner food stylist and photographer!)

2008 Update: 1) Crisco is now trans fat-free, so I continue to use it and I simply don't question what potentially evil method is being employed now to turn a liquid into a solid; and 2) a 3:3 ratio of tablespoons of sugar to teaspoons of cinnamon is just about perfect. You'll have a little left over, but better to toss a tiny amount than to just eke by with the 2:2 as written in the recipe.

Snickerdoodles
(From Betty Crocker’s Cooky Book, Published by General Mills, 1963)

1 C. shortening (part butter or margarine; I use a half-cup of shortening and a stick of butter)
1 1/2 C. granulated sugar
2 eggs
2 3/4 C. flour
2 t. cream of tartar
1 t. soda
1/4 t. salt
2 T. sugar
2 t. cinnamon

Heat oven to 400 degrees. Mix shortening, 1 1/2 C. sugar and eggs. Measure flour by dipping method*. Blend flour, cream of tartar, soda and salt. Blend into shortening mixture. Shape dough into 1-inch balls. Roll in combined 2 T. sugar and 2 t. cinnamon. Place 2 inches apart on baking sheets. Bake 8 to 10 minutes.

* Dipping method: Slightly fluff up flour with a spoon or measuring cup. Dip measuring cup into flour and overfill. Level off measuring cup.

Presentation Points ...

2006-12-08T08:35:00.000-06:00

Last Christmas, I was dating a guy who lived in a highrise. Someone on his floor decided that it would be nice for all the "neighbors" to leave little gifts for each other. There were only eight tenants on the floor. And so, every day, he would come home and find something by his door: a bottle of champagne, a box of swizzle sticks from Pottery Barn. Sometimes, there was a little bag hanging on his door handle with treats tucked inside.

It was a very sweet gesture. But as someone who takes great pride not only in the cookies she gives as gifts but also in the way those cookies are presented, I couldn't help but think that the giver could have been a bit more creative with her packaging, which was a Ziploc sandwich bag.

Now, granted, the Ziploc was inside a cute little handle bag. But in my world, if you're going to give cookies as gifts, you have to go the extra mile. Or at least an extra few steps.

I use cellophane. I arrange the cookies in the middle of a big piece of cellophane and gather it up around the cookies and tie it with a piece of ribbon. And I tie on a tag with the name of the cookie. Takes a few seconds. Makes a big impression. When you give many kinds of cookies, people like to riffle through their cookie bundles.

For a freelance client a few years ago, I did a story on cookie presentation, both what kinds of cookies make for good presentation, as well as tips on the presentation itself. (My friend Jeff Phillips shot the photo for the story. He is a much better photographer than this shot allows. I didn't give him very optimal conditions in which to shoot.) Here it is:

"Some might debate me, but I believe it truly is better to give than to receive. And I believe it’s even better to give when what you’re giving clearly demonstrates the time and thoughtfulness you put into the gift.

Baking is part of my holiday tradition. I love making cookies to serve throughut the season and to give as gifts. And my friends and neighbors, especially the ones who aren’t very good friends with their ovens, are happy to be the recipients.

Some cookies are perennial, others rotate through the list, still others have made a single appearance never to be repeated again. One key is to select cookies that are easy to make, bake, and store. Also, I try to create my annual cookie list based not only on flavor (unless you’re giving cookies to a lone chocoholic, for example, you probably don’t want to proffer a plate of nothing but chocolate-flavored cookies), but also appearance and shape. A plate of nothing but drop cookies can end up looking lumpy.

With that in mind, a possible cookie offering might contain:

Russian Teacakes: Easy to make, these powdered-sugar covered cookies melt in your mouth and look like tiny snowballs that can fill in spaces in your cookie offering, making them a nice accent cookie.

Toffee Squares: These square cookies look and taste just like real toffee, without all sugary stickiness, and add another shape to the cookie collection.

Shortbread: Perfect for purists. Flour, butter, and sugar. Cookie simplicity at its finest. You can form these cookies into any shape you like. I prefer traditional wedges for yet another geometric shape. But you could use holiday-themed or even leaf cookie cutters to add a bit of drama.

Oatmeal Raisin: It’s always nice to include a comfort cookie. I can’t think of a single person who doesn’t like oatmeal raisin cookies.

Chocolate Crinkles: Deep, rich chocolate color and flavor (every cookie plate needs a solid chocolate offering), with a powdered-sugar, cracked-top contrast. Small brownies, basically.

Lemon Pistachio Biscotti: A not-too-sweet alternative that’s relatively healthy, to boot. The lemon flavor is nice with coffee, but these biscotti don’t require dunking. Lemon zest in the icing lends tang.

Once the cookies are prepared (all of them freeze well – store them in tins or plastic containers, separating layers with waxed paper, and put a piece of plastic wrap across the top of the container before putting on the lid to help them stay even fresher), you get to take your creativity even further in thinking about how to present them, both at home and when giving them as gifts.

At home, consider the event. If you’re entertaining a crowd, a platter overflowing with cookies will look great on your buffet. If you’re just having a few friends over for a quiet dinner, dessert can be individual plates of treats with a plateful of more cookies in the middle of the table for those who’d like a few extra of their favorites. For my birthday last year, my cousin Patty gave me two beautiful antique plates specifically for displaying my baked goods.

You can also send cookies home with your guests. Find fun little holiday gift bags, wrap a selection of cookies in a piece of cellophane, gather it at the top, tie it with a ribbon, tuck it in the bag, and have a tray of bags waiting by the door to hand to your guests as they leave.

If you’re taking cookies to someone’s home as a hostess gift (let’s face it – there are only so many bottles of wine one party needs), you can take cookies on something as simple as a sturdy clear plastic plate covered with a grease-proof doily. Place the plate in the center of two crossed pieces of cellophane, gather up around the cookies, tie with some ribbon and you’re good to go.

If you have a little more time beforehand, you can scour stores for interesting, inexpensive plates (holiday-themed – buy after the holidays this year to give away next year, when prices are slashed; or open-stock from a dish pattern that you like; maybe a Fiestaware plate in a fun, bold color) or antique stores – a pretty, lone china plate can be had for next to nothing.

I try to vary the presentation from year to year when giving cookies to the same people. One of my favorite things to do is to wrap bundles of cookies in cellophane (like the gift-bag idea above) and tie on small tag, identifying the type of cookie (also a good way to identify cookies with nuts, for those who might be allergic), and pile those bundles into a container, which is often another gift in itself. Almost anything will do.

One year, I bought a large hat box and wrapped the entire thing in a beautiful paper, including the lid, which I pleated from the edge to the center all the way around. Having proved to myself that anyone who pleats wrapping paper on a hat-box lid is insane, I’ve reprised the hatbox idea in later years, but opted for pretty, precovered boxes or plain brown boxes made to be decoupaged or painted, but which I simply dressed up with a lining of crisp white tissue paper and some organza ribbon.

Another year, I bought large serving trays with a crackle finish, lined them with pretty, inexpensive placemats and piled cookie bundles on those, then gathered cellophane around the trays and tied with ribbon again.

But you don’t have to buy special plates or containers or trays. I’ve used the cardboard half-boxes that hold four six-packs of soda as cookie trays. I wrap the outside of the box with a nice paper, line the inside with lots of tissue paper, pile in cookie bundles and call it a day. After all, it’s the thought that counts, and your friends and family will be touched by your effort."

Cookie Tips, The First ...

2006-12-06T21:55:00.000-06:00

The story for which I baked these cookies is entitled "Anatomy of a Cookie Plate." But beyond the recipes for the cookies, my editor wanted some tips that bakers could use to get a lot of visual punch out of just a few kinds of cookies. These are the tips I wrote for her.

Get into shapes
Create visual interest on the plate by including cookies of various shapes, like these long-and-lean biscotti and traditional shortbread wedges. Think beyond round, flat cookies to cookie balls that can be rolled in sugars, ground nuts, or crushed candies. And don’t forget cookie cutters.

Double (and triple) duty
When it comes to cookies, basic isn’t boring, it’s adaptable. Start with a simple recipe, then create a signature biscotti with the addition of nuts, dried fruit, or coconut. Or dress up your favorite butter cookie by rolling it in nuts and filling it with jewel-tone jam. Tired of oatmeal raisin? Try ruby-hued dried cranberries instead for a sweet-tart taste and bit of color.

Top this
Melt chocolate chips (or butterscotch chips or white chocolate chips) and drizzle it over cookies off the end of a fork, or use a zip-top plastic bag as a quick and easy pastry bag: cuff the top around a glass to hold it open, fill with melted chocolate, snip off the corner, and decorate! Make a powdered-sugar glaze more fun by using flavored coffee creamer instead of milk. (I really love this idea! I made it up! The oatmeal cookies have a hazelnut glaze on them.)

Break it up
There’s no law that says cookie plates have to flat as a pancake. Gather biscotti in a pretty glass and compose other cookies around it in piles to create levels.

I Am Not Alone ...

2006-12-06T00:17:00.000-06:00

Today, I searched for "cookie queen" on Google and oh, the things I found.

Many women fancy themselves "cookie queens." And why not? Shy of the Kennedys, Americans have no royalty. I also found cookie queens in Canada and Scotland. And I'm sure there are more. (At some point, I had to stop surfing and do some work actually related to my job.)

Interestingly, a search for "cookie king" does not yield appreciably fewer results. Wally Amos seems to be the undisputed Cookie King. Hard to argue with that. If you're worthy of an episode of "Biography," you're on the cookie map. While searching for "cookie" on Google Images, I found this "Cookie King." He's quite a looker. He reminds me of "American Dad." His T-shirt says, "Don't Eat My Food."

My Cookie Queen rendering is certainly less colorful, but she's infinitely cuter. I tried to make her my profile photo here, but Blogger doesn't seem to allow posting different photos on separate blogs, and she doesn't make much sense as the mascot for Finding My Voice. Giving inspiration where it's due, I'll reveal that my little Cookie Queen was inspired by a doodle that my friend Jennifer Kovacs used to draw in high school. Jen had hair much like Cookie Queen, but Jen didn't wear a crown. At least, not to school.

But hands down, the most exciting "cookie queen" discovery of the day was this: Harlequin American Romance No. 992, "The C.E.O. & The Cookie Queen." Aren't you just dying to know the story? I thought you might be. Here's a review (unedited by moi) from booksforabuck.com (though if you want to purchase a copy, you have to link to Amazon, which charges $4.75):

"When his baking company gets into trouble with the nutrition police, C.E.O. Greg Rafferty decides that the best defense is to show that cookies are a critical part of being an American. To do this, though, he needs a spokesperson. Since his company's top brand is that based on recipies by Carole Jacks, it seems that she would be the perfect spokesperson. So Greg heads from Chicago to Ranger Springs, Texas to meet the low profile genius behind the top cookies. He's expecting something between Betty Crocker and Julia Child. Instead, he finds a beautiful blonde single mom who is insistent on her privacy and anything but willing to go along with what he knows is essential to save his company. Worst, Greg's hormones spring into instant action. He wants Carole, and for a lot more than just his corporatre spokesman.

Ten years ago, Carole had run off, gotten married and pregnant, only to find that her husband wanted his career, his drugs, and his alcohol more than he wanted a wife and child. She returned home to Ranger Springs determined to protect her daughter from her mistakes. Although she can't deny the sexual attraction that Greg exudes, becoming corporate spokesman is a nightmare to her, but Greg won't take no for an answer. Without her understanding quite how he is doing it, Greg moves into her life--he even buys her daughter's prize steer when he sees how miserable Jennifer is about the upcoming barbeque where that steer is scheduled to become guest of honor.

Greg is almost happy when Carole turns him down--it gives him a chance to woo her without the complexities of a employee relationship, but he can't understand her determination to keep herself from the public eye. She is exactly what his company needs and Greg can't think of any other alternative to saving the company."

Well, all righty then. Is your oven preheating or is it just hot in here?

Fresh From The Oven ...

2006-12-05T00:21:00.000-06:00

Where have I been all my life?

On the heels of today's post on Finding My Voice, my very good friend Jay sent a comment about doing what you truly love to do and not working a day in your life.

Well, I've done the not-working thing. Trouble was, I truly wasn't working. Which is bad for one's bank account.

No, what Jay was talking about was loving what you do so that it doesn't feel like work, of course.

That, we all know, is the dream.

I replied to his note, and an idea started to build. I was saying how the trouble with my writing is that what I write isn't the kind of writing that people get paid for, but that someday, I'd figure out how to combine the baking and the writing and, and, and I had this idea, see?

The blogs that seem to garner the most attention are well-focused. Blogs on a single topic. Not that I don't love Finding My Voice. I do. I love having a place to prattle on about goings-on.

But I need a single-topic blog, and given that cookie-baking season is upon us, and given that Mary, one of my editors, has dubbed me The Cookie Queen, well, it wasn't a long trip to connect the dots between baking and blogging: blogging about baking. A cookie a day. Cookie tips. Cookie photos. Links to my cookie stories or postings of the stories from my files.

I tried creating The Cookie Queen, but that blog is owned by a woman in Minnesota. Her bio says, "I work in healthcare, but my dream is to open a bakery."

Hey, me too!

Well, it's one of my dreams. It's just good sense to have more than one.

And while I feel rather possessive of my Cookie Queen moniker, the midwest is big enough for two of us, so she can own her Cookie Queen blog, and me, bein' a writer 'n all, am now the owner of The Cookie Queen's English. The cookies pictured above, for those who missed my post about it, were baked by me for a photo shoot for a story I did entitled, "Anatomy of a Cookie Plate." (It was an art-driven feature, hence the stunning photo by William Zbaren, who is brilliant, but in the coming days, I'll post the tips that made up the text of the story.)

Likewise, other cookie postings will commence forthwith.

So, welcome, cookie-loving friends. Stay awhile. I'll make cocoa.