Birthday Chocolate Chip Cookies

I had a chance to take my sister-in-law out for dinner and help her celebrate her birthday this weekend. It was so much fun going out, wandering about the city, and just having a small little celebration. I love celebrating as much as the next person, but it usually involves days upon days of prep work, cleaning, shopping, decorating, and more clean up. We have already had several events here this year and helped celebrate some monumental occasions.

Oh Ted, the ever shameless party animal.

We kicked off January right helping my mom celebrate 72 years with 72 mini cupcake trifles. 

I'd explain how to make these little masterpieces but after delving into three different cake batters, three fillings, and three different buttercreams, I just figure I lost you after three different cake batters.  I won't dare scare you with the amount of dish washing required.

February rolled around and so did the decade ticker for my sister.  Hey, it's not everyday your younger sister turns 40 and you stay 39. It's a complicated algorithm I'm working on the patent for at the moment. 

March stormed in and it was birthday after birthday including helping "Beer" and "Old Spice" (my brother-in-law and dad) whoop it up in grand style. By-the-way, "Beer" said his beer cupcakes were the best cupcakes ever and demands I make them again soon for him, so when that happens I will write down the recipe so I can actually share it.

Today I was supposed to be on vacation (which has been rescheduled for the third time already) but instead I'm in my office working.  Just sitting here daydreaming about when I'll get to take off and lace up my hiking boots up and about why I didn't hold back some of those cookies for myself. Good thing there is still plenty of time left this month to fix both. 

Birthday Chocolate Chip Cookies with Pretzels and Peanuts

1 cup all-purpose flour

3/4 cup bread flour

3/4 teaspoon baking soda

3/4 teaspoon baking powder

3/4 teaspoon Kosher salt

10 tablespoons butter (1 stick + 2 tablespoons) unsalted butter, room temperature

1/2 cup light brown sugar

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1 large egg

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

1 cup roasted and salted peanut halves

3/4 cup sourdough pretzels, crushed into pieces

1. Sift flours, baking soda, baking powder and salt into a bowl. Set aside.

2. Using a mixer fitted with paddle attachment, cream butter and sugars together until very light, about 2-3 minutes. Add egg and mix well. Stir in the vanilla.  Turn mixer off and add dry ingredients and mix until just combined, 5 to 10 seconds. Fold in chocolate chips, peanuts, and pretzel bits. 

3. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a nonstick baking mat and scoop 1 1/4-ounce mounds (small golf-ball size) of dough onto baking sheet a couple inches apart (about 12 per sheet). Bake 13-15 minutes until golden brown but still soft. Transfer cookies to a wire rack to finish cooling. Repeat with remaining dough.

Yield: 25-30 3-inch cookies

Enjoy,

Gina

Chocolate Crinkles for the Grieving

Have you ever found yourself at a loss?  Not believing the news you have just heard or what to do next for that matter.  I received a call the other evening informing me that my Husbands' Uncle was killed in a work accident.

I guess one can never really prepare themselves for those types of phone calls.  Not only was he a valued member of the family, but he was on my Christmas Cookie distribution list.  I looked forward to bringing him those cookies every year and he looked forward to devouring them.  I've never lost anyone from the list; I kept replaying that in my head for some reason.

The unfortunate part of being in a large family is that there are as many funerals as there are weddings.  Saying good-bye though never gets easier.

I wasn't sure if there was much of anything I could do to provide a little comfort to my Mother-in-law, so I made her some of her favorite cookies Chocolate Crinkles. I hope they will help her with her grieving even if it's the tiniest bit.  

Chocolate Crinkles

1/2 cup + 4 tbsp. vegetable oil

12 tbsp. cocoa powder

2 cups granulated sugar

4 large eggs

2 cups flour

1/2 tsp. salt

2 tsp. vanilla

2 tsp. baking powder

1 cup powdered sugar

Mix the oil, cocoa and granulated sugar.  Mix in one egg at a time until well combined.  Add vanilla. Sift the flour.  Add flour, baking powder and salt into mixture, mix until well combined.  Chill the dough at least 3-4 hours.  Oil your hands and take rounded teaspoons full of dough and roll into a ball, and then roll the balls in powdered sugar.  Place balls onto a parchment lined baking sheet, 2 inches apart.

Bake in a 350 degree F oven for 10 minutes.

Makes 36 cookies.

Tip:  If you want the cookies to remain chewier, pull them out right at 10 minutes, if you would like them a little crisper, give them another 2 minutes or so.

I'm always unsure as to what would be an appropriate dish to bring in a situation such as this, what would you think is a good dish to bring?

Gina

Peach and Jalapeno Jam Thumbprint Cookies - Three Ways

I was standing there at the farm stand staring aimlessly at the choices in front of me, when out of nowhere these peaches and jalapenos gleamed my way.  I had to throw my stunner shades on; the intense radiation coming off of them was starting to pierce my skin.

These were not your ordinary peaches and jalapenos; I'm pretty sure these were cast members from Glee or something.  They sure as heck weren't your "Real" Housewives.  I know I've seen these guys before somewhere; maybe it was on that short stint of "Jesus Christ Superstar" I was in.  

Rico Suave in the front there with his jalapeno chapeau on was killing me with his Hola Sexy Señorita, quiero ir tubbing caliente pick-up line.  Oh, I'll give you the hot tubbing time of your life all right.  Hop into my jam pot and I'll crank up the heat for you.

Peach and Jalapeno Jam

2 lbs. yellow peaches

2 jalapenos, seeded and minced

1 cup granulated sugar

Juice of one lemon

1 oz. tequila

1 tbsp. low-sugar powdered pectin 

Peel the peaches with a sharp paring knife, remove pits and cut into 1/2" sized pieces.

In a medium saucepan with a heavy bottom, combine peaches, jalapenos, sugar, lemon juice, tequila, and pectin, stir to combine.

Cook and stir constantly over medium heat for 15 minutes, break the fruit up a bit with your spoon if the chunks are still large. Turn the heat down a little and cook 5 minutes more. Set aside.

Cookie Dough

3 sticks unsalted butter, room temperature

1 cup granulated sugar

1 large egg

3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

¼ tsp. kosher salt

For rolling dough in:

½ cup roasted and salted pepitas, finely chopped

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1 tsp. chili powder

In the bowl of a mixer add butter and sugar and beat until combined. Add egg, flour and salt. Mix until combined.

Use a large cookie scoop or about a rounded tablespoon of dough, roll it into a ball and then roll into the crushed pepitas. For the second flavor, roll them in plain sugar and for a third, combine the 1 teaspoon of chili powder with the leftover sugar and roll remaining dough in it.

Place the balls onto a cookie sheet that is lined with parchment or a silpat mat; press your thumb (or a 1/4-inch round teaspoon works well) in the middle to make an indent.  Place the cookies rather close together and cover the entire sheet with a piece of plastic wrap and place in the fridge until firm, at least 1 hour.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Place 12 cookies on a baking sheet lined with parchment or with a silicone mat a few inches apart and add ½ tsp. or so of the jam to each indent.

Bake for 16-20 minutes. When the cookies are fresh out of the oven feel free to add another ½ tsp. of jam. Let cool and store in an airtight container.

Store any leftover jam in the fridge.

Makes 48 cookies.

You will have to let me know which of the three ways was your favorite flavor, I happened to like the pepitas best I thought the salt and crunch added a nice kick. 

If you like peaches and jalapenos you might also like:

Peach and Jalapeno BBQ Sauce

Enjoy,

Gina

Small-Batch Baking for Chocolate Lovers by Debby Maugans

Wipe the excess saliva off your chin and look into my eyes, or at least try and concentrate whilst trying to read this.  I was asked by Debby Maugans the Author of "Small-Batch Baking for Chocolate Lovers" to review her cookbook.  She was generous enough to give me one for my readers also.

I was honored Debby would entrust me to critique her baby.  I did warn her though that I was used to baking in large quantities since we have a large family. After thinking about it, I do know plenty of people that don't have a need for 4 dozen cookies or a whole cake.  I told my mom about the book and she was really excited about it, it's just her and my dad now and she doesn't always want to have large quantities of baked goods in the house.  I promised I would pass the book on to her after I got done with it.

I love Debby's introduction of the book in which she illustrates her husband slipping a sliver of dark chocolate into her mouth to gently awaken her.  One comment, care to trade husbands with one who awakens me with an elbow to the back and a reminder to go let the dogs out.

After reading the book cover to cover, I decided I would try Simply the Best Small-Batch Chocolate Chip Cookies first; after all I don't call myself SPCookieQueen for nothing.  There were so many choices it was a little hard to choose.  

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1/8 teaspoon baking soda

1/8 teaspoon salt

3 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened

3 tablespoons firmly packed light brown sugar

3 tablespoons granulated sugar

1 tablespoon well-beaten egg or egg substitute

1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips

1/4 cup chopped pecans, optional

Tip from Debby:  Spoon the flour into the measuring cup for the proper amount to ensure chewy cookies.

Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven for 375 degrees F.  Line a baking sheet with parchment and set it aside.

Place the flour, baking soda, and salt in a small bowl; whisk to blend.

Place the butter and sugars in a small, deep mixing bowl; beat with a handheld electric mixer on low speed until blended, about 20 seconds.  Add the egg and vanilla; reduce the speed to medium, and beat until blended, about 10 seconds.  Stir in the flour mixture with a wooden spoon; then stir in the chocolate chips and nuts, if using.

Spoon eight equal-size mounds of dough onto the prepared baking sheet, spacing them 2 1/2 to 3 inches apart.  Bake until the cookies are golden brown 12-13 minutes.

Remove the baking sheet from the oven, place it on a wire rack, and let it cool 5 minutes.  Slide the parchment paper, with the cookies, onto the wire rack and let them cool completely.  Use a metal spatula to lift the cookies from the paper.

Makes 8 cookies.

The cookies came out perfectly, so I decided why not try another recipe.  I made Debby's Salted Chocolate Caramel Tart, with a 72% dark chocolate and sea salt on top, if you want the recipe, you will have to get the book.

Enjoy,

Gina