This recipe is my baby. It’s the first recipe I ever developed myself and it’s the recipe I’m most often asked for. When I ask people what I should bring to their picnic, bake sale, birthday party, the answer is invariably MEXICAN HOT CHOCOLATE COOKIES. DUH. They are spicy, chewy, chocolatey and just the right size. If you usually just window shop when you look at baking blogs, I encourage you to give these a try. They’re memorable, foolproof and delicious. Continue reading “Chewy Mexican Hot Chocolate Cookies”→
These are the perfect peanut butter cookie. Malted milk powder to deepen the peanut flavor and temper the sweetness, oatmeal for chew, and the perfect texture (slightly crispy edges and a soft chewy center). Looking for a peanut butter cookie with big peanut flavor that’s not too crumbly, doughy, or sweet? You’re in the right place. These Malted Peanut Butter Oatmeal Cookies were the result of a lot of experimentation, five batches worth, and this final batch was so yummy my family ate them all up in one day.
My quest for the perfect Thanksgiving pie is over. This Bourbon Butterscotch Pie with Molasses Whipped Cream is going to make you a dessert table hero. Rich and buttery with deep butterscotch flavor, the brown sugar and molasses help cut the sweetness and a crust sturdy enough to resist sogginess. If you’re looking for a non-pie Thanksgiving dessert check out this Cranberry Curd Tart with White Chocolate Mousse, but if you want pie, this is your new best friend.
I got a little carried away and baked about 2,000 cookies. It was fun, it was for a good cause and I was into it. Until about the last hundred. Around the last 100 I hit a lightly floured wall and just got so sick of my recipes. I was making mostly Chewy Molasses, Mexican Hot Chocolate and Eggnog Snickerdoodles. And Orange-Cardamom Snowflakes. Those are all so good, and so pretty. So I got to dreaming about a way I could put a twist on one of my most dependable recipes. And these Chewy Chocolate Espresso Cookies are the result.
I looooove coconut macaroons. I never really understood the french macaron craze, but I am all over traditional coconut macaroons. These moist cookies are usually made with sweetened shredded coconut, egg whites, vanilla and sometimes sweetened condensed milk. I love the originals but wanted to come up with something a bit richer and more custard-like and less sweet. And more chew while we’re at it! After some tinkering and sampling and tinkering again I’ve managed to make Coconut Custard Macaroons that are crisp and carmelized on the outside and moist and rich on the inside. Not too sweet with just a hint of spice and salt. Great texture and not too dense. Heaven! I passed these out to some school moms at our mother-daughter pajama night last weekend and the baking enthusiasts raved about these.
I know I said that the Mexican Hot Chocolate Cookies were my baby. But now I have a new baby and it’s these Chewy Molasses Cookies. At first I was worried that I wouldn’t love the Mexican Hot Chocolate Cookies as much once I posted these, but it turns out there’s enough love in my heart for both. My heart grew, as did my waistline. Continue reading “Chewy Molasses Cookies”→
I love to forage in my urban neighborhood for yummy things I can bake up into an elegant dessert. I’ve foraged violets, spruce, dandelions, and maple leaves in an area of just a few blocks of my home. My mom, who lives on a wonderful piece of land with oodles of amazing edible plants, had some red currants growing and offered some to me. I made them into this simple jam used it to cover a foolproof chocolate tart. Topped with a just-right layer of stabilized whipped cream and dusted with cocoa, this Chocolate Ganache and Red Currant Tart has lovely visual appeal and tastes incredible. I shared with the neighbors and received several texts that simply said, “Grooooaaannnnn” and “Good Lord!” I think that means they liked it.
Crisp at the edges and chewy orange-gingerbread cookies with orange extract and white pepper. These store and ship well, so they’re perfect for gifting!
Sometimes I really want gingerbread but I don’t feel like roll-out cookies or cake. I was pondering this (super serious) problem and decided to try adapting my classic chewy molasses cookies. After all, they both have ginger, molasses, cinnamon and cloves. In fact the only big difference is the nutmeg. I also use orange extract and white pepper in my gingerbread, so I threw that in there too. The result are these chewy orange gingerbread cookies and they are THE BOMB.
These cookies are chewy, satisfying version of the much beloved Thin Mint girl scout cookies. This thin mint cookie recipe is extra chocolatey with a just-right amount of mint, half-dipped in rich dark chocolate. If you are prone to eating a whole sleeve of the originals, this is the cookie for you. One or two of these and you’re all set. Best of all, this recipe couldn’t be easier. No mixer needed, just a couple of bowls and a fork. I like adding little green sprinkles to give it a St. Paddy’s Day/Girl Scout vibe, but that’s totally optional. Continue reading “Chewy Thin Mint Cookie Recipe”→
I got lucky at a garage sale a few years ago and scored a wonderful table top fryer from the sixties. It’s built like a tank, still has the original cloth cord and had never been used. I had never really done any deep-frying so I was a little nervous. But it turns out that with a bit of practice it’s very easy and super fun. The kids love it when I make frites or chocolate donut holes but I haven’t experimented with it too much. Then I saw a delicious looking, teensy little braided donut from South Africa called a koeksister. Finally, a treat worthy of a Deep-Fried Experimentation Project. New band name, I called it! Read on to learn how to make koeksisters. Continue reading “How to Make Koeksisters-Fried South African Mini Doughnuts”→
