Tuesdays with Dorie DC: Pink Peppercorn Thumbprints
February 4, 2020 at 1:40 pm | Posted in cookies & bars, DC, groups, sweet things, tuesdays with dorie | 5 CommentsTags: baking, cookies
These sweet and dainty little Pink Peppercorn Thumbprints are a perfect teatime treat. Pink peppercorns and white chocolate are two surprise twists in the dough, which comes together quickly in the food processor. The peppercorns didn’t break down as much in the food processor as they would have in a spice grinder, and I think the little unground bits and pieces were where I noticed their pop of flavor the most. You wouldn’t really know these cookies have white chocolate in the dough because that did get fully incorporated, but it gives them a richness that they wouldn’t have otherwise. Dorie uses strawberry jam in her recipe to fill the thumbprints, but I had some plum in the fridge and used that instead. I think most any jam would do nicely here. In keeping with the pretty in pink theme, I dusted them with pink powdered sugar (sugar sieved along with a crushed freeze dried raspberry).
For the recipe, see Dorie’s Cookies by Dorie Greenspan. Don’t forget to check out the rest of the TWD Blogroll.
Tuesdays with Dorie DC: Meringue Snowballs
January 21, 2020 at 1:00 am | Posted in cookies & bars, DC, groups, sweet things, tuesdays with dorie | 3 CommentsTags: baking, cookies, meringue
Meringues aren’t something I make on the regular and they don’t really call to me in a bakery display either. It’s not that I don’t like them— I do. Their sweet crispness basically evaporates on the tongue, and that lightness is what I like about them but it’s also what keeps them from being a truly satisfying sweet. These Meringue Snowballs look so cute in the book, though, that I was game to give them a go. Dorie lists several fun ways to color and flavor them beyond the basic white sugar puff….I saw the words “mint chip” and there was pretty much no other option for me (although I kept them au naturel in color).
I whipped up a third of the recipe with a hand mixer, scooped them with a cookie scoop and gave them a few swirlies with an offset. After the necessary baking time, I let them hang out in a turned off oven for several hours while I did the day’s errands. When I finally bit into one, it did have that crisp, shattery exterior, but the center was a delicious pocket of chocolate chipped chewiness. I really enjoyed these, I must say, and a scoop of chocolate ice cream turned them into a “proper” dessert quite easily.
For the recipe, see Dorie’s Cookies by Dorie Greenspan. Don’t forget to check out the rest of the TWD Blogroll and please join us if you haven’t already!
Tuesdays with Dorie DC: Puffed Grain and Miso Cookies
January 7, 2020 at 8:26 am | Posted in cookies & bars, DC, groups, savory things, snacks, sweet things, tuesdays with dorie | 3 CommentsTags: baking, cookies, savory
I buy rice cakes on the regular and usually use them as a vehicle for hummus, nut butter or smashed avo, but it had never really occurred to me that I could make my own version, with add-ins so tasty I could enjoy them just on their own. To be fair, these are Puffed Grain and Miso Cookies, not merely rice cakes, and they have a lot going on, even though they come together in a snap once you have all the ingredients. I was sort of hemming and hawing about having to buy both a bag of puffed rice and a bag of puffed barley, as the recipe calls for…then I spotted a box of Kashi 7 Whole Grain Puffs, decided seven grains would be even better than two, and went with that instead. I stirred in sesame seeds, cashews (instead of peanuts) and a mix of dries berries and raisins, along with the miso, brown rice syrup and sesame and olive oils. They bake in muffin cups into light, crispy-chewy, sweet-salty little rounds. No bland or stale rice cakes here!
For the recipe, see Dorie’s Cookies by Dorie Greenspan. Don’t forget to check out the rest of the TWD Blogroll!
TWD DC Rewind: Cocoa-Almond Uglies
December 31, 2019 at 3:21 pm | Posted in cookies & bars, DC, groups, sweet things, tuesdays with dorie | 1 CommentTags: chocoate, cookies, nuts
Cocoa-Almond Uglies– such an unfortunate name for something so tasty! I’d say don’t judge a book by it’s cover but I really don’t think these chocolate-almond meringue blobs are that bad looking. Knobbly with chopped nuts and chocolate, they do kind of do what they want to in the oven. But they’re unique, not ugly, and they’re very, very good. They also happen to be gluten- and dairy-free. The cookies stay chewy inside but have a crispy crust and they have great chocolate flavor. They’re like the cookie version of a Ferrero Rocher. Need I say more? I’ll have one with a glass of bubbles tonight. Happy New Year!!
For the recipe, see Dorie’s Cookies by Dorie Greenspan (it’s also here). Don’t forget to check out the rest of this week’s rewind on the TWD Blogroll!
Tuesdays with Dorie DC: Snowy-Topped Brownie Drops
December 17, 2019 at 12:01 am | Posted in cookies & bars, DC, groups, sweet things, tuesdays with dorie | 4 CommentsTags: baking, cookies, holiday
What happens when you take brownie batter and treat it like a crinkle cookie? You get Snowy-Topped Brownie Drops! So cute! So tasty! OMG!
Just like making brownies, this is a hand-mixed dough, so it’s easy to put together. I flavored mine with a bit of mint extract instead of vanilla, because ’tis the season for peppermint treats. The dough does need some time in the fridge to firm up before scooping, since it really more of a loose batter when just made. After you scoop and roll the dough into cookie balls, dredge it in a ton of powdered sugar. And I mean coat them well, or else the sugar will sort of absorb into the dough as the cookies bake and it won’t look like a snowy day on Mount Brownie. I baked mine for exactly the time stated in the recipe and they came out fudgy and chewy and with enough powdered sugar still clinging to the crackles to make me cough just a little. Perfect.
For the recipe, see Dorie’s Cookies by Dorie Greenspan (it’s also here). Don’t forget to check out the rest of the TWD Blogroll.
Tuesdays with Dorie DC: Double-Ginger Molasses Cookies
December 3, 2019 at 12:01 am | Posted in cookies & bars, DC, groups, sweet things, tuesdays with dorie | 6 CommentsTags: baking, cookies, holiday
I love these Double-Ginger Molasses Cookies. I love them so much. Not only do these molasses-spice cookies have double ginger (ground and crystalized), they also have double chocolate (cocoa and bits)! I want to share them with everyone I know, but I also want to eat them all myself. That, my friends, is the sign of a fabulous cookie.
Once you have your dough mixed and portioned into balls, you can bake the cookies free-form, but I went with Dorie’s muffin tin option, which keeps them chubby and chewy and perfectly shaped (especially if you weigh each dough ball…I used 26-28 grams per). The dough is rolled in sugar before baking…I do suggest flattening the balls into pucks before dredging them in sugar, instead of after. You can flatten them gently in your hand and then toss them in the sugar before laying them into the muffin tin. If the sugar gets pressed all the way into the dough, you might lose the sparkly, crunchy effect.
These are definitely worthy of your cookie box, your cookie swap or your secret hidden alone-time cookie tin (I know you have one!). For the recipe, see Dorie’s Cookies by Dorie Greenspan (it’s also here). Don’t forget to check out the rest of the TWD Blogroll.
Tuesdays with Dorie BCM: Croquets
November 12, 2019 at 12:01 am | Posted in BCM, cookies & bars, groups, sweet things, tuesdays with dorie | 8 CommentsTags: baking, cookies
If you are like me and need a little treat to go with your coffee, then you’ll appreciate what these Croquets have to offer. Crisp and sugary, with lotsa nuts (I used macadamias, and also a pinch of cinnamon), they are a perfect saucer sidekick.
They are not flourless, but the base of the dough is a meringue. Therefore, the dough is sticky but it bakes up sweet and with a crackly crust. The dough is formed into logs, which are cut after baking, biscotti-style. The croquets don’t need a second bake, though– they are very crunchy. In fact I think croquet must be a play on the word croquant, which means “crunchy” in French (unless it has to do with the lawn game, in which case I’m baffled!). This crunchiness makes them excellent coffee dunkers, but they’re also good smashed up a bit and sprinkled on an ice cream sundae.
For the recipe, see Baking Chez Moi by Dorie Greenspan (it’s also here). Don’t forget to check out the rest of the TWD Blogroll!
Tuesdays with Dorie DC: Chocolate-Pecan Pie Cookie Bars
November 5, 2019 at 8:36 am | Posted in cookies & bars, DC, groups, pies & tarts, sweet things, tuesdays with dorie | 4 CommentsTags: baking, cookies, pie
Dare I say that I like these Chocolate-Pecan Pie Cookie Bars even more than I like pecan pie? These have heaps of pecan and chocolate pieces, with just enough goo to hold them together. And the base is Dorie’s Sweet Tart Dough, which is so easy to work with. I didn’t even need to roll it out or to chill it before baking it here…I whizzed the dough up in the food processor, pressed it into the pan, weighed it down and it was ready to blind bake right away. The cookie bars are easier and faster to make than pie, and they cool faster, too. (That means you can be eating them faster!)
I made a half recipe in a loaf pan, but if you have a big crowd to serve, go for the full 9-inch square because they’ll be gone fast. If you need to make them in advance, they seem to keep just fine for a few days in the fridge.
For the recipe, see Dorie’s Cookies by Dorie Greenspan. Don’t forget to check out the rest of the TWD Blogroll and please join us if you haven’t already.
Tuesdays with Dorie DC: White Chocolate and Poppy Seed Cookies
October 15, 2019 at 8:04 am | Posted in cookies & bars, DC, groups, sweet things, tuesdays with dorie | 3 CommentsTags: baking, cookies
White Chocolate and Poppy Seed Cookies are another riff on Dorie’s Do-Almost-Anything Vanilla Cookie Dough. This time the tasty sugar cookie dough contains, you guessed it, chopped white chocolate and poppy seeds. These bake up nice and crisp and the little bits of white chocolate in the dough kind of caramelize with the heat of the baking sheet. Do watch them in the oven at the end though…the edges can go from blonde to brown quite quickly. After the cookies have cooled, you can ice them with a bit more melted white chocolate, or just leave them be if you want something a tad less sweet.
For the recipe, see Dorie’s Cookies by Dorie Greenspan (it’s also here). Don’t forget to check out the rest of the TWD Blogroll!
Everyday Dorie: Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies
September 27, 2019 at 10:13 am | Posted in cook the book fridays, cookies & bars, everyday dorie, groups, sweet things | 8 CommentsTags: baking, cookies, everyday dorie
Sometimes I feel like my kitchen is just a cookie factory, but I really do love making them and they’re certainly easy to share. I know I’ll have no problem finding takers for these Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies, Dorie’s latest take on the CCC (I guess this one is the CCCC). Dorie’s tricky tweak for these is to add a small amount of oats to the dough…not enough to turn them into an oatmeal cookie, but enough to make them a bit chewy. Also there is so much chocolate, and that makes them nice and gooey, too!
The cookies use a combo of regular granulated and light brown sugars. I don’t have any light brown in the cupboard right now, but I do have plenty of dark muscovado, so I swapped that in, and it definitely made my dough darker in color. I had these in the fridge for a few days before I baked them off, so they stayed chubby and didn’t spread out too much. There are a few in the freezer, too, waiting for the next time a chocolate chip cookie craving strikes. Likely this weekend. Hahaha.
For the recipe, see Everyday Dorie by Dorie Greenspan (it’s also here), and head over to Cook the Book Fridays to see how the group liked this one.
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