Ooey-Gooey-Chewy Cookies
Posted: February 19, 2014 Filed under: baked goods, cookies, eggs! | Tags: brownies, chocolate, cookies, desserts, eggs, flourless, food, recipes 11 Comments
score some brownie points
Life can be hard sometimes, amirite? It’s all about choices. And decisions. And compromises. What to wear. What to watch. What to eat. Like, do you go for a cookie or a brownie?
Well, why should you have to choose?
Why not get both?
Boom.
Yep. A cookie. A brownie. You can have it all. And actually, not to blow your mind again, but you can have it all — and less. That’s right. Because these ooey-gooey chocolatey cookies are flourless. Which is hard to believe, I know. But it’s true. Just check out the recipe. But what’s really great is that they’re so chock full of rich, chocolate flavor, you won’t miss the flour one bit.
See, life’s not so hard all the time.
Chocolate Brownie Cookies
3 cups of powdered sugar
3/4 cups of unsweetened cocoa powder
1 teaspoon of salt
2 large egg whites
1 large egg
5 oz of bittersweet chocolate, chopped
Heat your oven to 350º. Make sure your rack is in the upper third of your oven.
In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the powdered sugar, cocoa powder and salt. Next, whisk in the egg whites and egg until it resembles a thick fudgy mixture. Then fold in the bittersweet chocolate.
Drop rounded tablespoons of batter onto a parchment-lined cookie sheet about 2 inches apart. Bake for 14 to 16 minutes, rotating sheet halfway through, until cookies are puffed, cracked and set around the edges. Let them cool completely on the cookie sheet. Then eat.
Christmas Cookie Roundup
Posted: December 23, 2013 Filed under: cookies, desserts | Tags: chocolate, Christmas, classic, cookie bars, cookies, cream cheese, food, Holidays, peanut butter, recipes, spritz 8 Comments
sugar & spice
Even though today is Christmas Eve Eve, it’s not too late to make some Christmas cookies. Here are some of my favorites that I’ve made over the past few years. (Click on the photo for the recipe.)
Hello Dollies (aka Magic Cookie Bars) – so many delicious layers
check out all those layers
Cream Cheese Spritz Cookies – get your (cookie) gun
trim the tree
No-Bake Chocolate Clusters – there’s literally no baking involved; just melt, mix and set
no bake, no fuss
Merry Christmas, everyone!
Christmas Cookie Day: Toffee Bars
Posted: December 16, 2013 Filed under: cookies, desserts, eggs! | Tags: chocolate, Christmas, cookie bars, cookies, eggs, food, Holidays, recipes, sea salt, toffee 7 Comments
toffee time
These aren’t your typical Christmas cookies. But who says you need to be typical? The holidays deserve something special, and there’s something very special about toffee and chocolate and a few well placed flakes of sea salt.
Toffee Bars
1 ½ cups flour
½ teaspoon of baking powder
½ teaspoon of salt
1 ½ sticks of unsalted butter, at room temperature
3/4 cups of brown sugar
1 egg
½ vanilla
1/4 cup toffee bits
1 ½ cups of Heath candy bar bits*
½ teaspoon of flaky sea salt
Heat your oven to 325º.
In a medium bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside.
In a large mixing bowl, cream the butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy, and then add the eggs and vanilla. Add the flour mixture a little at a time until well combined. Stir in the toffee bits.
Lightly grease an 8×8 (or similar) baking dish. Line with parchment paper, leaving extra that hangs over the edge, and lightly grease the parchment. Spread the batter into the dish in an even layer. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Sprinkle the Heath bits over the top and bake a few minutes more until the chocolate is melted. Remove from the oven, sprinkle with the sea salt, and let cool completely in the dish. When cool, use the parchment paper to lift out the bars and then cut into squares. Then eat.
*I used 30 miniature Heath bars, which I unwrapped, placed into a large ziploc bag and then smashed with a rolling pin. It was very therapeutic.
Fudgy Center of Attention
Posted: November 18, 2013 Filed under: cookies, desserts, eggs! | Tags: chocolate, cookies, desserts, eggs, food, fudge, nuts, oatmeal, recipes, walnuts 9 Comments
just go nuts
If you’re a fan of oatmeal cookies, you’ll probably go cuckoo for these. If you’re a fan of walnuts (here, lightly toasted, pulverized and mixed into the dough), you’ll probably go nuts. And if you’re a fan of chocolate fudge, well, these cookies will probably make you flip out from happiness.
Because seriously, what’s not to like about a dollop of gooey fudge on top of a chewy, nutty cookie?
Nothing, that’s what.
Oatmeal Walnut Fudge Cookies
12 oz of shelled walnuts
2 cups of flour
1 teaspoon of baking soda
½ teaspoon of baking powder
1 teaspoon of salt
1 cup (1 stick) of unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup of brown sugar
½ cup of sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon of vanilla
1 teaspoon of maple syrup
3 cup of rolled oats
1 14oz can of sweetened condensed milk
1 12oz bag of semisweet chocolate chips
Heat your oven to 350º.
Spread the walnuts on a rimmed baking sheet, and bake for 10 minutes, turning halfway through, until toasted. Grind them in a food processor until they’re about the size of mini chocolate chips. Remove all but 1/4 cup from the food processor and process until fine.
In a medium bowl, mix together the flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Set aside.
In a large mixing bowl, cream the butter and sugars until light and fluffy, then add the eggs, vanilla and maple syrup. Add the flour mixture a little at a time until well combined. Stir in the oats and larger walnut pieces.
In a small sauce pan, heat the condensed milk and chocolate chips over medium-low heat until chips are completely melted and the mixture is smooth. Keep on a low heat.
Drop small rounds of the dough onto a parchment-lined baking sheet. Flatten the center to form a nest, and then spoon a teaspoonful of the chocolate mixture in the middle. Sprinkle each with the fine ground walnuts. Bake for 12 to 15 minutes, or until lightly golden. Let cool on the baking sheet for a few minutes and then place a cooling rack. Then eat.
What The Fluff?! Cookies
Posted: October 1, 2013 Filed under: baked goods, cookies, eggs! | Tags: chocolate, cookies, cornflakes, dessert, eggs, Fluff, food, peanut butter, recipes 11 Comments
holy $#%&
What the F#@$ is in these?!
Yep. That’s pretty much the response from everyone who’s tried these cookies. I think that’s pretty accurate considering they have some unusual ingredients. Originally based on a Momofuku Milk Bar recipe (that famous bakery in NYC known for putting weird things like breakfast cereal into their cookies), I changed it up by replacing mini marshmallows with Fluff.
What’s Fluff, you ask?
It’s that gooey, marshmallow-y concoction that got it’s start in Union Square, Somerville (just a stone’s throw from where I now live) almost 100 years ago. In fact, the annual Fluff Festival was this past weekend. Nowadays, most people use it to make fudge or frosting or a Fluffernutter sandwich. Unlike regular marshmallows, Fluff is vegetarian friendly. And when mixed into cookie dough, it bakes up all ooey-gooey-wonderful, resulting in cookies that are both crispy and chewy. And 100% irresistible.
WTF Cookies (aka Cornflake & Fluff Cookies)
1 ½ cups of flour
½ teaspoon of baking powder
1/4 teaspoon of baking soda
1 teaspoon of salt
1 cup (2 stick) of unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup of sugar
2/3 cup of packed light brown sugar
1 large egg
½ teaspoon of vanilla
3 cups of cornflakes
½ cup of milk chocolate chips
½ cup of peanut butter chips
3/4 of a 7.5 oz jar of Marshmallow Fluff
In a medium bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Set aside.
In a large mixing bowl, cream the butter and sugars until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the egg and vanilla, and beat for about 4 minutes, scraping down the side as needed. Add the flour mixture a little at a time until well combined. Beat in the cornflakes a little at a time, and then stir in the chips and the Fluff. Cover and chill the dough for at least 3 hours, or overnight. It’s very important you do not skip this step. The dough needs to firm up before baking.
stirring in the magic ingredient
Heat your oven to 375º.
Roll golf ball-sized balls of dough and place on a parchment-lined baking sheet a few inches apart. Pay attention to this too, as these cookies spread a lot. Bake for 12 to 15 minutes, until the cookies have flattened and the edges are browned. Let cool completely on the baking sheet, and then enjoy.
Muffin Topped
Posted: September 12, 2013 Filed under: baked goods, eggs! | Tags: bacon, bananas, breakfast, chocolate, eggs, food, muffins, recipes 11 Comments
a complete breakfast!
Remember those breakfast cereal commercials from the 80s? Anyone who sat around in their pajamas in the wee hours of Saturday morning should know what I’m talking about. The announcer would always say: Part of a complete breakfast! And they they’d cut to a plate of toast and some random fruit next to the bowl of Frosted Flakes or Trix, as if eating bread and real fruit made the cereal better for you.
That story doesn’t really have anything to do with these mini muffins, because they don’t have cereal (although watch out of a future recipe that does). But they could be considered a complete breakfast. You’ve got your bananas, always a morning-time staple. You’ve got everyone’s favorite breakfast meat, bacon. And you’ve got chocolate for good measure. (Also cinnamon for that cozy kick.)
But here’s the real question:
Are these breakfast muffins masquerading as decadent little treats, or decadent little treats pretending to be — and doing a darn good job of it — breakfast food? I’ll let you decide.
Chocolate Banana Bacon Mini Muffins
2 ½ cups of flour
2 teaspoons of baking powder
1/4 teaspoon of baking soda
1 teaspoon of cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon of salt
½ cup (1 stick) of unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup of sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon of vanilla
4 ripe bananas, mashed
1/3 cup of milk chocolate chips
6 slices of bacon, cooked & crumbled
Maple Sugar Camp Mix
Heat your oven to 400º.
In a medium bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. Set aside.
In a large mixing bowl, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs one at a time, and then add the vanilla. Add the flour mixture a little at a time until well combined, scraping down the sides as needed. Beat in the mashed bananas, and then stir in the chocolate chips and crumbled bacon. (Or: If you want non-bacon eaters to enjoy them, divide the batter in half and only put bacon in some of it.)
Lightly grease a mini muffin pan and then spoon batter 3/4 of the way into each cup. Sprinkle each with Maple Sugar Camp Mix, and then bake for 12 to 14 minutes, until puffed and lightly browned. Let them cool completely in the muffin pan. Then remove muffins and enjoy.
Midweek Meltdown: Mint Chocolate Chunk Ice Cream
Posted: May 22, 2013 Filed under: desserts, eggs! | Tags: chocolate, eggs, food, frozen treats, ice cream, mint, recipes, summer food 9 Comments
excite-MINT
Guess what, people? Meltdowns are back! And since the official start of Summer is this weekend, it seems like the right time for it.
Even after making 8 different flavors of ice cream last year (plus 1 sorbet and 1 gelato), I didn’t make one of my favorites: mint chocolate chip. I’m really glad I did now, because the combination of herby mint and rich, dark chocolate is one of the best flavors ever. I wasn’t going to add food coloring, but my brain couldn’t process “mint” without that traditional green hue. But I do like the way the brown chocolate blends with the minty green in the finished product. Tastes pretty good too.
Mint Chocolate Chunk Ice Cream
4 cups (1 quart) of half & half
5 large egg yolks
3/4 cup of sugar
Pinch of salt
1 teaspoon of vanilla
1 ½ teaspoons of mint extract
Green food coloring (optional)
3 oz of dark chocolate mini chunks
In a large saucepan, heat the half & half over medium heat. Bring to a simmer, stirring occasionally.
Whisk the egg yolks in a large bowl until smooth. Gradually add the sugar and salt, and whisk until the mixture is pale yellow and thickened, about 3 minutes. Slowly add a little of the heated half & half into the egg mixture and whisk together. Pour the egg-half & half mixture into the saucepan and continue cooking over low heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture thickens and can coat the back of a wooden spoon, about 5 minutes.
Remove from the heat and pour through a fine mesh strainer into a large bowl. Stir in the vanilla and mint extract, and about 4 drops of green food coloring, if using. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until cold or overnight.
Place the mixture into your ice cream maker and freeze according to the machine’s instructions. Most machines take 20 to 40 minutes to make ice cream. When the ice cream is thick and creamy, add the dark chocolate mini chunks to the machine, or stir them in by hand. Place into a freezer-safe container (with piece of parchment paper between the ice cream and the lid) and let it harden for a few hours. Let it sit at room temperature for a few minutes before scooping, and then eat.
Peanut Butter Somebody Up Today
Posted: February 14, 2013 Filed under: cookies, desserts, eggs! | Tags: chocolate, cookies, eggs, food, peanut butter, recipes, toffee, Valentines 6 Comments
love is peanut butter cookies & milk
It can’t be St. Whatever-tine’s Day without showcasing something everybody loves: peanut butter. Ohhh .. I bet you thought I was going to say chocolate. Gotcha! (There’s some of that in these cookies too, so don’t worry.) Throw in some milk chocolate toffee bits and they’ll really know how much you care.
Peanut Butter Toffee Cookies
¾ cup of flour
¼ teaspoon of baking soda
⅛ teaspoon of salt
4 tablespoons of unsalted butter, at room temperature
½ cup of sugar
½ cup of smooth peanut butter
1 large egg
1 8oz bag of Heath milk chocolate toffee bits
Heat your oven to 350º.
In a medium bowl, mix together the flour, baking soda and salt. Set aside.
In a large mixing bowl, cream the butter and sugar until light and fully. Add the peanut butter and egg and beat until smooth. Add the flour mixture a little a time until well combined, scraping down the sides as needed. Stir in the milk chocolate toffee bits – as little or as much as you like, but save some to sprinkle on top.
Roll the dough into balls and place on a cookie sheet about 2 inches apart. Flatten with the bottom of a glass (or your fingertips) and then sprinkle each with a few chocolate toffee pieces. Bake for 16 to 18 minutes, rotating sheet halfway through. Transfer to a wire rack to cool. Then share with someone you love.
Chocolate Chunk Off the Old Block
Posted: January 29, 2013 Filed under: cookies, desserts, eggs! | Tags: chocolate, cookies, dark chocolate, desserts, eggs, food, recipes, salted, sea salt 9 Comments
it’s chunk! (chocolate chunk)
I’m back to my old tricks this week. Sugar. Eggs. Chocolate. You know, the good stuff. I’m adding flaky sea salt to that list, as you should too.
Salted Chocolate Chunk Cookies
– 1 ½ cups of flour
– 1 teaspoon of baking powder
– ½ teaspoon of fine sea salt (or regular salt)
– ¼ teaspoon of baking soda
– ½ cup (1 stick) of unsalted butter, at room temperature
– ¾ cup of brown sugar
– ½ cup of sugar
– ¼ cup of powdered sugar
– 2 large egg yolks
– 1 large egg
– 1 teaspoon of vanilla
– 6 oz of dark chocolate (72% cacao), roughly chopped
– Maldon (or other) flaky sea salt
Heat your oven to 375º.
In a medium bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder, fine sea salt and baking soda. Set aside.
In a large mixing bowl, cream the butter and sugars until light and fluffy, about 3 to 4 minutes. Add the egg yolks, egg and vanilla, and beat until the mixture is pale and fluffy, about 4 minutes. Add the flour mixture a little at a time until well combined, scraping down the sides as needed. Stir in the chocolate chunks.
Drop rounded tablespoons of dough onto a parchment-lined cookie sheet about 1 inch apart. Sprinkle a little Maldon sea salt on top of each one. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, rotating sheet halfway through. Let them cool a few minutes on the cookie sheet and then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Then eat.
these cookies have been a ‘salted
In the mood for another sweet & salty treat? Check out these blondies.
Let the Chips Melt Where They May
Posted: January 3, 2013 Filed under: cookies, desserts | Tags: butterscotch, chocolate, cookies, desserts, food, peanuts, recipes, treats 10 Commentsno bake, no fuss
So, remember how just yesterday I gave you oven-fried chicken in an effort to be healthier? Well, these chocolate clusters are the exact opposite. However, I made these way back in 2012 so technically they were still part of my holiday binge. What’s cool about these cookies is that there is no baking whatsoever. Just melt, mix and eat. Can’t get any easier than that, right? Change up the ingredient ratio if you like. A friend suggested Raisinets instead of regular ol’ raisins, and I’d like to try something peanut butter in there, because you know, that’s always good.
No-Bake Chocolate Clusters
– 1 bag of butterscotch chips
– ½ bag of semisweet chocolate chips
– ⅓ cup of potato chips, slightly crushed
– 1 ½ cups of dry roasted peanuts
– ¼ cup of raisins
In a microwave safe bowl, melt the butterscotch and chocolate chips. Add the potato chips, peanuts and raisins and stir to combine. Place spoonfuls of the mixture on sheets of wax paper and let set. Then eat.
egg me on 