Pumpkin Whoopie Pies

I've seen many versions of whoopie pies over the years and intended to make some eventually, but never really had enough motivation to do so until I saw these ones from Matt Lewis of Baked recently. It sounded like the perfect thing for Thanksgiving this year since it's basically like a pumpkin roulade with cream cheese frosting in a different format and you may know that pumpkin roulade is one of my go-to desserts for Thanksgiving.

Whoopie pies are essentially mini cake sandwiches. I found the cake/cookie part tasted best when it was fresh, so I would recommend making them the day you plan to serve them if possible. You can make the filling a day ahead though. I didn't have any problems with this recipe though I did scale back the cloves. I also reduced the amount of frosting since I prefer a smaller amount, but if you like a generous amount of frosting in your whoopie pies, feel free to make the full amount.

Pumpkin Whoopie Pies
Recipe adapted from Matt Lewis of Baked
Makes about 2 dozen whoopie pies

Whoopie cookies
3 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp coarse salt, half the amount of fine salt
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
2 tbsp. ground cinnamon
1 tbsp. ground ginger
1/3 tbsp. ground cloves
2 cups firmly packed dark brown sugar
1 cup vegetable oil
3 cups pumpkin puree, chilled
2 large eggs
1 tsp pure vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350 deg F. Prepare about 3 baking sheets with silpats or parchment paper.

Sift the flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, and the spices together in a medium bowl. Set aside. In a large bowl, whisk together the brown sugar and oil until well combined. Mix in the pumpkin puree, then the eggs and vanilla, whisking until well combined.

Gradually, fold in the flour mixture until incorporated. With a small tbsp. sized ice cream scoop, scoop mounds of dough onto your prepared baking sheets, spacing them about an inch apart, and place them in the oven. Bake for 15-18 min, depending on the size of your cookies until a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean. Rotate them halfway through for even baking. Bake the cookies in batches if necessary.

Let the cookies cool completely on the pan before filling.

Cream cheese filling
1 1/3 cups powdered sugar
5 oz cream cheese, room temp
5 tbsp. unsalted butter, room temp
pinch of salt
1 tsp pure vanilla extract

Sift the powdered sugar and set aside. In a standing mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, with a hand mixer, or wooden spoon, beat the butter for 1-2 minutes until smooth. Then add the cream cheese and beat for another 1-2 min until well incorporated. Add the sifted powdered sugar, vanilla, and salt and mix until combined. Filling may be made a day ahead.

To fill the whoopie cookies, use an ice cream scoop, spoon, or a piping bag to frost the bottom of one whoopie cookie. Then top with another and press together gently. Store in the fridge, covered, for at least 30 min before serving. Whoopie pies will last in the fridge for up to several days or in the freezer for longer.

Mrs. Sigg's Snickerdoodles

 
This is another one requested by my youngest sister, so don't expect any healthy substitutions for this one. For a while, she's been wanting me to make some snickerdoodles. So, as I usually do, I decided to try a different recipe. I already have a snickerdoodle recipe from Joanne Chang posted on this blog that is very good, but it is a rather crisp snickerdoodle. For a bit more chewiness, I decided to go with a popular recipe on Allrecipes that included some vegetable shortening. Based on the popular snickerdoodle recipes I've seen across the web, they're all pretty much the same recipe with just slightly different proportions.

The texture of this one was spot on, but using some shortening instead of butter does result in a less flavorful cookie, so it's up to you which one you pick. I made little mini snickerdoodles since that's what my sister requested and while that's good for portion control, it can also be dangerous since they're so easy to eat in one bite that you might start to lose count once you taste one. Don't say I didn't warn you.

Mrs. Sigg's Snickerdoodles
Recipe from Young Idealistic Baker who adapted from Allrecipes
Makes about 3-4 dozen mini cookies

1/4 cup unsalted butter, softened at room temp
1/4 cup vegetable shortening
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
1 1/3 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp cream of tartar
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/8 tsp salt
2 tbsp granulated sugar
2 tsp ground cinnamon

Preheat the oven to 400 deg F and line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Sift the flour, cream of tartar, baking soda, and salt together in a medium bowl. Set aside. Combine the 2 tbsp of sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl and set aside.

In a stand mixer with a paddle attachment, with a handheld mixer, or with a wooden spoon, cream the butter, shortening, and 3/4 cup sugar together for 3-5 min until light and fluffy. Add in the egg and vanilla and mix until well incorporated.

Add the flour mixture and mix until just combined. With a small ice cream scoop about the size of a tsp or with your hands, form small balls of dough. Roll the balls of dough in the cinnamon sugar and place on the baking sheet leaving about 2 inches between them. Bake for 7-8 minutes, preferably on the middle rack.

Let the cookies cool for about a minute on the baking sheet so they can set up a bit. Then, remove to a cooling rack to cool completely. Store the cookies in an airtight container for up to several days at room temp.

Obligatory stacked cookie shots, also just cause I love them.

Linzer Cookies

 

 

I won't even bother to tell you when I made these because it was more than a while ago, in fact more than several whiles ago. The motivation to attempt making these cookies stemmed from trying to recreate some delicious cookies from a local bakery that my sister's friend had gifted to us. They turned out to be sable cookies with nuts rather than Linzer cookies, but despite the error, I ended up with some delicious cookies. I decided to sandwich some of these with chocolate ganache rather than the more traditional jam and they made absolutely delicious nutty chocolaty sandwich cookies.

The recipe comes from Sarabeth's Bakery and they're just fantastic. Nutty, crumbly, buttery all in one. The recipe is a bit more involved than other cookies since you need to roll out the dough and cut the cookies out, but not much more. If you didn't want to cut them out with cookie cutters, you could also just cut the dough into squares or rectangles with a knife. I made tiny little sandwich cookies, so it took longer to cut them out, but you can make them however you like. The original recipe calls for hazelnuts, but I've also made them with pecans and they're delicious as well. The cookies stay crisp about a day or two after they've been filled, but will continue to soften as they sit, so don't wait too long to finish them.

Linzer Cookies
Adapted from Sarabeth's Bakery

3/4 cup(3 oz) hazelnuts
2 1/2 cups pastry flour or cake flour, sifted
1 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/8 tsp salt
12 tbsp. unsalted butter, room temp
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg, beaten
Raspberry preserves or ganache, for filling

In a preheated 350 deg F oven, toast the hazelnuts for 10 min and remove the skins by rubbing them together in a kitchen towel. Cool completely, then place the nuts, and 1/2 cup of the flour in a food processor. Process until finely ground.

Mix the nut-flour mixture with the remaining flour, cinnamon, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl. Beat the butter and sugar in a mixer fitted with a paddle attachment or with a handheld mixer on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 5 min. Scrape down the bowl and beat in the egg.

On low speed, add in the flour mixture and mix until just incorporated. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap, flatten into a rectangle about an inch thick, and refrigerate until well chilled, at least 2 hrs.

When ready to make the cookies, working with half the dough at a time, roll the dough out on a lightly floured surface to 1/8 inch thickness. Cut cookies out with cookie cutters of your choice. Transfer cookies to a parchment lined baking sheet with an offset spatula.

Roll out and cut out cookies from the remaining dough. Gather up the dough scraps and repeat rolling and cutting out cookies. Refrigerate the dough before continuing to roll it out if it becomes difficult to work with. Refrigerate the cookies for at least 30 min to let them firm up.

Preheat your oven to 350 deg F. Bake two pans of cookies at a time, one on the top rack and one on the bottom rack, until they are lightly browned on the edges. This will take 15-17 min for larger cookies, 8-10 min for small cookies. Rotate the pans halfway through and switch from top to bottom. Let the cookies cool completely on the pan.

Sandwich the cookies with raspberry preserves or ganache. Let them sit for 8 hrs or overnight to settle and soften slightly. Store cookies in a covered container at room temp. for up to 5 days.

Alton Brown's The Chewy

 

 

Although I feel that I have found my go-to chocolate chip cookie recipe and I made a big deal about it here, I just can't help but want to try new chocolate chip cookie recipes, especially those recipes that so many other people rave about. Many people have referred to this chocolate chip cookie recipe by Alton Brown as one of their favorites, so I just had to give it a try. These chocolate chip cookies are boldly named "The Chewy" and I think the name is appropriate enough although the chewiness does vary depending on the ingredients and how you handle the dough.

The darker the brown sugar you use, the chewier your cookies should be. Letting them refrigerate for a longer period of time also changes the texture. The first time I tried these, I followed the recipe and let the dough refrigerate for an hour. I ended up with a softer chewier cookie than the next time I made them in which I refrigerated the dough overnight. I like the flavor and texture of cookies that have been refrigerated longer, but either way, you don't want to over bake these or they won't be chewy at all.

This recipe won't replace the other one as my go-to chocolate chip cookies, but they are fantastic chocolate chip cookies and I think it really comes down to personal preference. I like that these chocolate chip cookies are a bit less sweet and are a bit chewier overall in texture, but the NY Times' ones taste more well-rounded in flavor and don't lack in chewiness either. If I didn't have any cake flour and wanted a less sweet chocolate chip cookie, I would definitely make these again. It's nice to have more than one chocolate chip cookie recipe that you can rely on in case you want cookies, but don't have all the ingredients for a certain recipe. That being said, I still need to find a recipe using only all purpose flour that is just as good for those times when I simply don't have bread flour.

The Chewy
Recipe slightly adapted from Alton Brown
Makes about 2 dozen cookies

2 sticks (8 ounces) unsalted butter
12 ounces bread flour
1 tsp kosher salt, half the amount if using fine table salt
1 tsp baking soda
2 ounces granulated sugar
8 ounces brown sugar
1 large egg, plus 1 large egg yolk
1 ounce milk
1 tsp vanilla extract
10 ounces semisweet chocolate chips

Melt the butter in a saucepan and set aside to cool slightly. Sift the flour, baking soda, and salt together.

In the bowl of a stand mixer with a paddle attachment, add in the melted butter and sugars. Beat the butter and sugars together on medium for about 2 minutes. Whisk the egg, egg yolk, milk, and vanilla extract together in a small bowl. Add the egg mixture to the butter and sugar and beat until mixed thoroughly.

Add the sifted dry ingredients and beat on low speed until just incorporated. Add the chocolate chips and mix for about 15 seconds until just mixed in. Chill the dough for 1 hour for softer cookies or overnight for crisper-edged cookies.

When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 375 deg F. Scoop mounds of dough with an ice cream scoop and place them at least 2 inches apart on a parchment lined pan. Bake for 12-15 minutes.

Let cool for a few minutes before moving to a wire rack to cool completely. Cookies are best the day they're made, store cookies in an airtight container for up to 2 days.

Double Chocolate Chunk Cookies

 

 

Although it took me a while to find a recipe for the perfect chocolate chip cookie, I was very pleased with these Double Chocolate Chunk Cookies the first time I tried them. I think most people have a specific chocolate chip cookie in mind when comparing them whereas other cookies are judged less critically. This recipe is an old Ina Garten favorite from my recipe binder. I used to make them with dark chocolate because that's what I prefer, but recently I made them with white chocolate chips per my sister's request. You could really add whatever you wanted to the base cookie dough recipe including nuts, chopped up peanut butter cups, coconut, chopped up candy bars, etc. Once, I made peanut butter-double chocolate chunk cookies by squishing peanut butter cookie dough and this cookie dough together and that was really good too. I'll have to look for a good peanut butter cookie dough recipe to recreate that sometime.

Since I've been liking the texture of letting my cookie doughs rest in the refrigerator overnight, I did that with this recipe as well. By doing so, cookies tend to crisp up more on the outside and have a chewier texture on the inside. If you don't do so, the cookies are still delicious, but the texture will be a little softer. It doesn't really matter what type of cocoa you use in these, dutch-processed or not, but the darker your cocoa, the darker and richer your cookies will be. I think next time, I will also add a bit of instant coffee or espresso powder to enhance the chocolaty flavor. As with any other cookie, don't overbake them, they'll continue to cook and harden as they cool.

Double Chocolate Chunk Cookies
Recipe Slightly Adapted from Ina Garten
Makes 20-24 cookies

1 stick (4 oz) unsalted butter, room temp
1/2 cup (80 g) light brown sugar, packed
1/2 cup (90 g) granulated sugar
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
1 tsp instant coffee granules/espresso powder (optional)
1 extra-large egg, room temp
1/3 cup (25 g) unsweetened cocoa powder
1 cup (120 g) all purpose flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp kosher salt, half the amount of fine table salt
10 oz white chocolate/dark chocolate, roughly chopped

In a medium bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.

Cream the butter and sugars together in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment for 3-5 minutes on medium-high until light and fluffy. Dissolve the instant coffee, if using, in the vanilla extract. Add the vanilla mixture to the bowl, followed by the egg, and mix well.

On low speed, add in the cocoa powder slowly to avoid a cocoa powder dust storm. Then add the flour mixture and mix until just combined. Mix in the chopped chocolate. You may bake the cookies now or refrigerate the dough overnight.

When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350 deg F. With an ice cream scoop or a spoon, scoop mounds of cookie dough about a rounded tbsp. in size onto a lined baking sheet. Lightly wet your hands and flatten the tops slightly.

Bake for 12-15 minutes, start checking at about 10 minutes. Let the cookies cool for 5 minutes on the pan before moving them to a wire rack to cool completely. Store cookies in an airtight container at room temp. for up to 2 days.

Snickerdoodles

I noticed that so far, every cookie I've posted on this blog has chocolate in it in some form. Even for recipes that didn't mention it, I added chocolate to it. When I crave a cookie, it's usually one with a bit or a lot of chocolate in it, chocolate just makes a great cookie even better. Give me a piece of chocolate over any other type of candy any day. However, another one of my family's favorite cookies is Snickerdoodles and these are perfect all on their own.

The recipe is another keeper from Joanne Chang's Flour cookbook. I can't recommend this beautiful cookbook enough and this recipe makes wonderful crisp cinnamony Snickerdoodles and sugar cookies if you leave out the cinnamon sugar coating. Like her other cookie recipes, Joanne lets the dough rest overnight which I think is what makes cookies great vs. good. If you're looking for super soft Snickerdoodles, these aren't it, but you should give these a try anyway. They have the perfect amount of cinnamon sweetness and are incredibly easy to make.

Snickerdoodles
Recipe from Flour: Spectacular Recipes from Boston's Flour Bakery + Cafe
Makes about 24 cookies

Cookies:
1 cup (2 sticks/228 g) unsalted butter, room temp
1 1/2 cups (300 g) granulated sugar
2 large eggs
2 1/2 cups (350 g) unbleached all purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp kosher salt or large pinch of fine salt
2 tsp cream of tartar

Coating:
1/4 cup (30 g) ground cinnamon
1/2 cup (100 g) granulated sugar

In a stand mixer with a paddle attachment or with a handheld mixer, cream the butter and sugar together on medium high for 5 minutes until light and fluffy. Stop and scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl and paddle with a spatula as needed. Add in the eggs and beat for a few minutes until well combined.

In a medium bowl, sift the flour, baking soda, salt, and cream of tartar together. On low speed, add in the flour mixture and mix until just incorporated. Cover the dough with plastic wrap or move to an airtight container and refrigerate the dough overnight before baking.

When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350 deg F and position a rack in the center. Prepare the coating by mixing the ground cinnamon and sugar in a small bowl.

Scoop balls of dough, about a rounded tbsp. in size, and roll between your hands to form a smooth ball. Place the balls in the cinnamon sugar and roll to coat. Place the coated balls on a lined baking sheet leaving about 3 inches between them. Flatten each ball slightly.

Bake for 12-15 minutes until the cookies are golden brown on the edges and a bit soft in the center. Let cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes, then move to a wire rack to cool completely. Store cookies in an airtight container at room temp for up to several days. The unbaked dough can be kept in the refrigerator for up to a week.

Chocolate Crackle Cookies

Yes, clearly this post is also way past overdue if these cookies remind you of the holidays, but I don't consider myself a real food blogger anyway, so I just post things whenever I feel like it. Besides, there's no rule that these cookies are only reserved for the holidays. So, make them whenever you want. I've seen versions of chocolate crackle cookies many many times over the years and finally decided to try them out. These cookies are decadent, rich, chewy, and melt-in-your-mouth chocolaty, all good things.

They are quite sweet, not overly so in my opinion, but do keep them on the smaller side. You won't need many to satisfy a sweet craving, but at the same time, you may find yourself unable to stop popping one after another into your mouth. I may try reducing the sugar to see if they're still as good. There's a little bit of a process to forming these cookies but it's not too difficult and worth every bit of the effort.

Chocolate Crackle Cookies
Recipe from Eat the Love
Makes 64 cookies

8 oz (225 g) bittersweet chocolate
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temp
1 1/2 cups (330 g) dark brown sugar
2 tsp baking powder
2 large pinches salt
2 large eggs
1 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
1/2 cup (70 g) Dutch-processed cocoa powder ( I used natural since I didn't have dutch-processed)
1/4 cup milk
1 1/4 cup (175 g) all-purpose flour
granulated sugar, for coating
powdered sugar, for coating

Melt the chocolate in a bowl set over a pot of simmering water or in the microwave in 30 second bursts stirring with a spatula in between. Set aside to cool.

Cream the butter, sugar, baking powder, and salt in a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment for several minutes. Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing until incorporated. Then add the vanilla extract. Add the melted chocolate and mix until incorporated.

Mix in the cocoa powder, then the milk, mixing well between each. Add the flour and mix until the dough comes together. Divide the dough into 4 parts, flatten, wrap with plastic wrap and chill in the fridge for at least one hour.

When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350 deg F. Working with one portion of dough at a time, divide each into 16 pieces. Roll each piece in your hands to form a ball. Roll each ball in granulated sugar, then powdered sugar, and place on a lined baking sheet about 2 inches away from each other. Place the dough back in the fridge to firm up if it becomes too soft.

Repeat with the rest of the dough. Bake cookies about 10-12 minutes, let cool for 10 minutes on the baking sheet before moving them to a rack to cool completely. Store in an airtight container for up to a week.

Spritz Cookies

Based on the pictures, it's clear this post is a bit overdue. What else is new? However, although the holidays are over, I really think these cookies would be perfect at any time of year. I've made Spritz cookies in the past before and didn't find them super exciting, but the crispness and flavor of these ones from Laura Vitale were just fantastic. They're buttery, but not overly so. They're great on their own, but I decided to dip them in some chocolate just because.

Laura mentioned them on her vlogs as a favorite around the holidays, so I looked up the recipe and decided to try them out. This was only the second time I've ever used my cookie press since my aunt gifted it to me many many years ago. But, after this recipe, I'm sure I'll be using it more often. With this simple little gadget, I can make impressive cookies of various shapes in no time at all. These could easily be turned into almond spritz, citrus spritz cookies, coffee spritz cookies, chocolate spritz cookies, etc. I'll include the variations here once I get a chance to try them out.

Spritz Cookies
Recipe slightly adapted from Laura in the Kitchen
Makes about 100 cookies

1 cup (2 sticks) of unsalted butter
3 oz of cream cheese, softened
1 cup of granulated sugar
1 1/2 tsp of pure vanilla extract
1 egg yolk
2 3/4 cups all purpose flour
large pinch of salt
sprinkles, optional

Preheat the oven to 375 deg F. In a standing mixer with a paddle attachment or with a handheld mixer, cream the butter, cream cheese, and sugar on medium high for a minute or two until well incorporated.

Mix in the egg yolk, vanilla extract, and salt. Add in the flour and mix on low speed until just incorporated.

Assemble and fill your cookie press with some of the dough and press cookies onto an ungreased baking sheet. Continue filling your cookie press and pressing the cookies out until the dough is used up. Add sprinkles over the top if using.

Bake cookies on the middle rack for 12-15 min until golden brown on the edges(mine took about 15-18 min). Let cool completely. Store in an airtight container for up to several days.

For Almond Spritz:
Add 2 tsp of pure almond extract, reduce vanilla extract to 1 tsp, sprinkle sliced almonds over the top before baking.

Milk Bar's Cornflake Chocolate Chip Marshmallow Cookies

I've been meaning to make these for a long while now. Although I've never been to Momofuku or Milk Bar, I'm a huge longtime fan of David Chang and Christina Tosi simply because everything they do just seems so dang cool. (I know, very uncool of me to use the word "cool".) Back in one of my earliest posts several years ago, I mentioned that I had wanted to make Christina Tosi's Banana Hazelnut cake and I'm sad to say I haven't done that yet. It's definitely still on my ever-growing list of things to make, but I have to blame the discovery of blogs and my daily blog reading for adding to the list. Sometimes, you just need an occasion to kick start your baking and my sister's holiday office cookie swap was just the kick I needed to try these cookies out.

As I thumbed through the Milk Bar cookbook recently, most of the stuff did seem a bit more time consuming though I'm sure it's all worth it in the end. This recipe in comparison seemed relatively tame and as it might be obvious to you already, I'm always up for a chocolate chip type cookie. This one is thin, crunchy, caramelly in flavor, and chewy. Some of the mini marshmallows melt and caramelize a bit into toffee-like chewy bits while the cornflake crunch adds just that, crunch. It is a sweeter cookie than most with all the awesome add-ins, but I can't imagine it any other way. I'm sure it's the perfect accompaniment to a bottle of Milk Bar's famous cereal milk.

Be sure to follow the instructions closely for these and keep them in the fridge for at least the minimum amount of time, they really do flatten out tremendously.

Cornflake Chocolate Chip Marshmallow Cookies
Recipe adapted from Momofuku Milk Bar
Makes 15 to 20 cookies

Cornflake Crunch - Makes about 4 cups
5 cups (6 oz) cornflakes
1/2 cup milk powder
3 tbsp granulated sugar
1 tsp kosher salt
9 tbsp unsalted butter, melted

Preheat the oven to 275 deg F. Crush the cornflakes to about a quarter of their original size. Mix with the milk powder, salt, and sugar. Mix in the melted butter. Spread mixture on a lined baking sheet, bake for 20 min. Let cool completely before using.

Cookies
2 sticks unsalted butter, room temp
1 cup granulated sugar
2/3 cup packed light brown sugar
1 large egg
1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1 1/4 tsp kosher salt (half the amount of fine salt)
3 cups cornflake crunch
2/3 cup mini chocolate chips
1 1/4 cups mini marshmallows

In a standing mixer with a paddle attachment or with a hand mixer, cream the butter and sugars on medium-high speed for 2-3 minutes. Scrape down the sides with a spatula. Mix in the egg and vanilla. Beat for another 7-8 minutes.

In a small bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. On low speed, mix in the dry ingredients until the dough just comes together. Mix in the cornflake crunch, chocolate chips, and mini marshmallows until just combined.

With a 2 3/4 oz ice cream scoop or a 1/3 cup measure, scoop out mounds of dough onto a lined baking sheet. Pat the tops of the dough to flatten slightly. Wrap the pan in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least an hour, up to a week.

When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 375 deg F. Place the mounds of dough on a baking sheet spaced at least 4 inches apart. Bake for 13-15 min until golden brown on the edges and starting to brown in the center.

Cool cookies on the sheet pan completely. Store in an airtight container at room temp for up to 5 days.

Chocolate Caramel Matzoh Crunch

Pardon the pics as I didn't have the best lighting when I made these. I'm also not a very good photographer, but hopefully that will improve. Anyway, I was introduced to Chocolate Matzoh Crunch at our extended family gatherings that take place about twice a year. There is never a shortage of good food at family gatherings, in my opinion anyway. These are a favorite whenever they make an appearance and though they are delicious and quite impressive I think, they are super simple to make. The recipe comes from David Lebovitz who adapted it from Marcy Goldman and the recipe can easily be scaled up or down. The hardest part here is making a caramel and melting chocolate.

The sweetness level can also be easily adjusted by spreading more or less caramel and chocolate on each matzoh. If you're using less, then you can just make several more sheets of matzoh.You could also use a darker or sweeter chocolate depending on your preference. I normally have to wait until Christmas to have these, but now that I know how easy they are to make, it'll be no problem to have them all year round.

Chocolate Caramel Matzoh Crunch
Recipe adapted from David Lebovitz who adapted it from Marcy Goldman

6-8 sheets unsalted matzoh
1 cup(230 g) unsalted butter
1 cup(215 g) light brown sugar, firmly packed
large pinch of salt
1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
1 cup(160 g) semisweet or bittersweet chocolate chips or finely chopped chocolate
1 cup(80 g) toasted sliced almonds

Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment. Preheat the oven to 375 deg F. Line the baking sheet with your matzoh, breaking it into pieces to fit if necessary.

In a medium heavy duty saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter and brown sugar together. Bring to a boil and boil for 3 minutes, stirring constantly. Remove from the heat and add the salt and vanilla. Pour the sugar mixture over the matzoh spreading it out with a  heatproof spatula.

Reduce the oven to 350 deg F. Bake the matzoh for about 15 minutes. Keep an eye on it to make sure the sugar is not burning. If the sugar is not caramelizing evenly, remove the pan from the oven and reduce the temp to 325 deg F.

Once the matzoh have been removed from the oven. Cover them with the chocolate chips and let it sit for 5 minutes. After 5 minutes, spread out the chocolate chips with an offset spatula. Top with toasted almonds.

Let cool completely, then break into smaller pieces. Store matzoh crunch in an airtight container at room temp for up to a week.

Chunky Lola Cookies

I was trying to think of a creative title to this post, but realized the name itself was unique and interesting enough. The Chunky Lola Cookie, which hails from Flour Bakery + Café in Boston, is basically a kitchen-sink cookie. The base is a chewy and crisp oatmeal cookie mixed with chopped pecans, bittersweet chocolate chunks, and coconut. You could certainly add whatever add-ins you wanted as that's the idea behind this cookie and how it came to be.

As I've mentioned in a previous post, chocolate chip oatmeal cookies are at the top of my cookie list. However, I don't make them very often since I'm always trying new cookie recipes and for a long time, was on a quest for the perfect chocolate chip cookie. I've since found it, but inevitably will continue to try out new recipes. Even when I would make chocolate chip oatmeal cookies in the past, I didn't usually use the same recipe twice. In my years of making my favorite cookie, I haven't yet come across what I would consider a perfect chocolate chip oatmeal cookie. Many of them have been good, but not quite perfect. However, I recently decided to try these Chunky Lola Cookies from Flour by Joanne Chang and they turned out pretty perfect.

The addition of chopped pecans to chocolate and oatmeal sounded like a sure winner and I liked that the recipe called for an overnight resting period before baking. Many of the cookie recipes in Flour are made the same way and it certainly made for fantastic chocolate chip cookies, so I thought I would give these a try. I made the cookies a bit larger than called for which resulted in a larger chewy center. If you want them more crisp, just make smaller mounds on the baking sheet. I didn't have any coconut on hand, so I left it out, but really this recipe would work with any add-ins you wanted.

These cookies turned out perfectly crisp, chewy, and were still delicious several days after. They're best when completely cooled, though they're still perfectly delicious, soft, and warm fresh from the oven. Surprisingly, they weren't too sweet at all which is often the case if you want chewy and crispy cookies. Everyone in my family thought they were great and I'm happy to have found a chocolate chunk oatmeal cookie that I think will be revisited many times in the future.

Chunky Lola Cookies
Recipe from Flour: Spectacular Recipes from Boston's Flour Bakery + Cafe by Joanne Chang
Makes about 18 cookies

1/2 cup plus 3 tbsp.(1 3/8 sticks) unsalted butter, room temp
2/3 cup (140 g) granulated sugar
2/3 cup (150 g) packed light brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
1 1/4 cups (175 g) unbleached all-purpose flour
2/3 cup (70 g) rolled oats
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp kosher salt or 1/4 tsp fine salt
9 ounces (255 g) bittersweet chocolate chunks, 62-70% cacao
1 1/4 cups (125 g) pecan halves, toasted, chopped
1 cup (120 g) sweetened shredded coconut

In a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment or in a bowl with a hand mixer or wooden spoon, cream together the butter and sugars on medium speed for 5 minutes. If done by hand, it will take about 10 minutes. Occasionally scrape down the paddle, sides, and bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula. Beat in the eggs and vanilla for 3 minutes until thoroughly combined.

In a medium bowl, stir together the flour, oats, baking soda, and salt. Add the chocolate, pecans, and coconut and mix until combined. On low speed, add the dry ingredients to the butter-sugar mixture slowly and mix until completely incorporated. Cover the dough and refrigerate overnight.

When ready to bake, preheat oven to 350 deg F and position a rack in the center. Drop dough in 1/4 cup balls (I made 2 oz balls) onto a parchment lined baking sheet. Space them about 2 inch apart and flatten slightly.

Bake for 18-22 minutes until the cookies are golden brown around the edges and slightly soft in the center. Let the sheet of cookies cool on a wire rack for 15-20 minutes until they can be transferred to the wire rack to cool completely. Store cookies in an airtight container at room temp up to 2 days.

Italian Chocolate Kisses

I've had these cookies bookmarked for the longest time and like most of my other bookmarked recipes, never got around to making them. Then I finally made them and never got around to posting them. It's a vicious cycle, but finally they make their appearance here on the blog many months after. Unlike the journey behind these cookies, you should make them immediately because they're fantastic and deserve to be made. Not only that, those you share them with will love them and thank you for it. The recipe originally comes from Gina DePalma's Dolce Italiano, I got the recipe from Chez Pim.

The recipe is just a teeny tiny bit time consuming, what with the rolling of the cookie dough, filling, and all, but I assure you it's worth it. Just get someone to help you and it will go twice as fast, right? Whenever you sandwich a cookie with filling, it automatically becomes great, especially when the filling is rich chocolate ganache. These cookies are nutty, moist, and super chocolaty. They're not too sweet and just perfectly crumbly.

My cookies turned out a bit more dome shaped than I wanted which made them a bit harder to eat. Next time, I might make them a bit smaller. Like Pim, I also didn't have any blanched almonds, so I just used regular whole almonds and they turned out fine. I also didn't have any dutch-processed cocoa powder, so I used natural cocoa powder and they turned out a bit lighter in color. With my leftover ganache, I made sandwiches out of some cutout cookies I happened to be making at the same time. I seriously urge you not to wait as long as I did before trying these cookies. Make them and you won't be disappointed.

Baci de Cioccolato (Chocolate Kisses)
Recipe adapted from Dolce Italiano: Desserts from the Babbo Kitchen by Gina DePalma
Makes about 2 1/2 dozen cookies

Cookies
1/2 cup whole blanched almonds
1 tbsp granulated sugar + about 1/4 cup for rolling cookies
1 1/2 cups + 1 tbsp (190 g) all purpose flour
1/3 cup (35 g) dutch-processed cocoa powder
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp kosher salt, 1/4 tsp fine salt
1 cup (2 sticks) softened unsalted butter
1 cup (125 g) powdered sugar
2 tsp pure vanilla extract
1 tbsp milk (original recipe calls for rum)

Chocolate Ganache Filling
8 oz (225 g) bittersweet chocolate, chopped
1 tbsp softened butter
3/4 cup heavy cream
2 tsp liquor, rum, cognac, etc. (optional)

Preheat the oven to 325 deg F. Toast the almonds on a baking sheet for 15 min until golden brown. Remove the almonds and turn off the oven. When cooled completely, grind the almonds in a food processor with the tbsp of sugar until finely ground.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, and salt. Set aside. In a stand mixer with a paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugar together on medium speed until light and fluffy, a few minutes. Mix in the vanilla extract and milk. Scrape down the bowl with a spatula and on low speed, slowly add in the dry ingredients. Then add in the ground almonds. Continue beating until everything is thoroughly incorporated.

Cover the dough and refrigerate for an hour until it is firm enough to handle.

Preheat the oven to 325 deg F. Line a baking sheet with parchment or a silicone liner. Scoop teaspoonfuls of the dough, roll into a ball, roll in the sugar, and line them on a baking sheet with about 2 inches between them. Bake on the middle rack for 15 minutes, rotating the sheet halfway through. The cookies are done when puffed and slightly cracked. Let cool on the baking sheet for a few minutes, then transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely. While the cookies are cooling, make the ganache.

To make the ganache, place the chocolate and butter in a medium bowl. In a small pot, heat the cream over low heat until it just starts to boil. Pour the hot cream over the chocolate and butter. Let stand a few minutes, then whisk until smooth. Whisk in the liquor, if using. Let the ganache cool, whisking occasionally, until it is firm enough to pipe. Transfer the ganache to a pastry bag with no tip or a round tip. Pipe mounds of ganache onto the cookies and top with another cookie pressing down gently until the ganache spreads to the sides.

Store cookies in an airtight container up to a week.

 

The Preeminent Chocolate Chip Cookie

 

For years, I've been looking for and testing out different chocolate chip cookie recipes and have never found one that I liked. Despite my occasionally snooty preferences for all things homemade, chocolate chip cookies were one of the few things I preferred from bakeries. Like most everyone else, I like my chocolate chip cookies to be crispy on the outside and slightly chewy in the center. While every recipe I've tried has claimed that this is what I can expect, I am inevitably disappointed time and time again. Eventually, I decided to give up making chocolate chip cookies altogether and to just stick with chocolate chip oatmeal cookies or other variations. However, after this recipe, I think I may have to reevaluate my ranking of cookies and move these chocolate chip cookies to the top.

I don't think I have ever been as pleased with a batch of homemade cookies as I was with these, although it is very important that you do not overcook them or else you will not be left with the best chocolate chip cookies ever. I originally saw these cookies on Emily's blog and these cookies have been all over the internet, but the original recipe is a New York Times adaptation of Jacques Torres's famous chocolate chip cookie. Before I did my research, the similarities between Jacques Torres's chocolate chip cookies and this recipe were what drew me in as I had been wanting to try his recipe for a while now. The 36 hour refrigeration period and outstanding reviews also intrigued me as I actually like recipes that seem a bit more complicated, but still doable. I like to challenge, but not torture myself.

Despite the slightly longer list of ingredients, this recipe is actually very easy. I made smaller cookies as opposed to the larger cookies suggested in the recipe and I used chocolate chips *gasp* as opposed to chocolate disks because I didn't have......okay I did have chocolate disks, but just wasn't sure if this cookie would live up to the hype to warrant using my good quality chocolate in it. My younger sister had also requested chocolate chips instead. Regardless, these cookies still turned out amazing and my worries were unfounded. The combination of bread and cake flour really does result in a fantastic crispy/chewy texture.

I highly recommend that you make these cookies very soon, if not immediately following the conclusion of this post if you have not made it before, even if you think you don't like chocolate chip cookies. They are just that good. I have finally found a go-to chocolate chip cookie recipe. The only thing I worry about now is that any other cookie recipe will be mediocre in comparison to these.

Chocolate Chip Cookies
Recipe infinitesimally adapted from The New York Times
Makes about 40 2.5 inch cookies

2 cups minus 2 tablespoons (8.5 ounces) cake flour
1 2/3 cups (8.5 ounces) bread flour
1 1/4 teaspoons baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons coarse salt or 3/4 tsp fine salt
2 1/2 sticks (1 1/4 cups) unsalted butter
1 1/4 cups (10 ounces) light brown sugar
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons (8 ounces) granulated sugar
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
11 ounces chocolate chips or chocolate disks, semisweet or bittersweet
Sea salt, for sprinkling 

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

Using a mixer fitted with a paddle attachment or a handheld mixer, cream butter and sugars together until very light, about 5 minutes. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Mix in the vanilla.

On low speed, add dry ingredients and mix until just combined. Mix in chocolate. Press plastic wrap against dough and refrigerate for 24 to 36 hours. Dough may be refrigerated for up to 72 hours.

When ready to bake, preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a nonstick baking mat. Scoop mounds of dough (whatever size you like) onto the baking sheet.

Sprinkle lightly with sea salt and bake until golden brown but still soft, 12-15 minutes for smaller cookies, 18 to 20 minutes for larger cookies. Let cookies cool on baking sheet for a few minutes, then transfer cookies onto a wire rack to cool completely. Repeat with remaining dough, or reserve dough, refrigerated, for baking the next day.

Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies

Chocolate chip oatmeal cookies are my favorite cookie, for sure. While I like the classic chocolate chip, I love the chewiness and nutty flavor that the oats add. The added health factor of the oats also makes me feel less guilty about the other ingredients in these cookies and if you use dark chocolate, the health benefits practically demand that you make these cookies right now, seriously. These cookies are pretty much perfect. They're chewy and slightly crispy at the edges. I added in a bit more oats to the recipe to amp up the texture and flavor of the oats and I might omit the water next time, but these cookies definitely deserve a place in your cookie repertoire.

That being said, I will continue to try out other chocolate chip oatmeal cookie recipes in the search for the very best. You can never have too many recipes for such an awesome cookie.

Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies
Adapted from Mad Hungry, Lucinda Scala Quinn, Marthastewart.com
About 24 cookies

6 ounces semisweet chocolate chips or dark chocolate chunks
1 stick of unsalted butter(4 oz)
6 tbsp brown sugar
6 tbsp granulated sugar
1 1/8 cups rolled oats
3/4 cup all purpose flour
1 large egg
3/4 tsp coarse salt(1/2 the amount if using fine salt)
1/4 tsp water
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp baking soda

Preheat the oven to 375 deg Fahrenheit. Whisk the flour, baking soda, and salt in a small bowl, set aside.

Cream the butter and sugars together with a handheld mixer or in a mixer with a paddle attachment. Add the egg, vanilla, and water mixing well after each addition. Add in the flour mixture mixing until just combined. Mix in oats and chocolate chips.

Scoop tablespoonfuls or use a small ice cream scoop to drop mounds onto parchment lined rimmed baking sheets spacing an inch apart. Press down slightly for flatter cookies. Bake for 10-12 minutes until lightly golden. Move to cooling racks.

Store in an airtight container for a few days or freeze scooped dough balls for baking another time.