12 Days of Cookies Archives - Page 3 of 6

The Joy of Cookies (Toffee Bars)

By threejamigos | September 20, 2019 | Comments 6 comments

Joy is one of my oldest friends. We went to school together and I mean that literally. We lived a few blocks from each other, every day we would meet on the street corner halfway between our houses to walk and talk the final mile to school. Sometimes, on the walk home, we wouldn’t be done talking so we would walk to one of our houses, turn around and walk back to the meeting point together before parting ways. Silly, huh. Yep, BFFs.

Holiday Highlight

Every Christmas I eagerly awaited her mom’s plate of holiday cookies. Joy’s mom, whom I affectionately called Mrs. S, was an amazing baker (and a marvelous cook too). During the holidays, you could find her holed up in her kitchen busy baking no less than 6-8 different kinds of cookies. Almond Crescents, Spritz Cookies shaped into wreaths decorated with red and green sugar, Chocolate Pecan Thumbprints, Pecan Tartlets, Chocolate Chippers, and Lemon Bars. Her crescents were perfect, her scalloped-edged Pecan Tartlets were the gold standard of bite-sized pies.

In short, she was my muse for holiday cookies. I love all of her cookies, but my favorite? Hands down, her Toffee Bars. A shortbread crust, buttery and sweet, painted with milk chocolate and finished with a sprinkling of chopped almonds. Cookie Nirvana.

Attention to Detail

I have most of Mrs. S’s recipes. Her Pecan Tartlets find their way into every holiday cookie box. The Hubster considers it blasphemous if they are not included. I am religious about following her recipes, I mimic each step. I cut out each tiny pie crust with a flower petal cookie cutter. How else do you get cute scalloped edges? I meticulously shape each ball of almond-infused dough into crescent-shaped moons. Warm from the oven, I roll each cookie in powdered sugar and place it on a cooling rack. Then, sift powdered sugar over the cookies for that snow-capped look. Yep, that little extra step. Her attention to detail was what set her cookies apart and that’s what I learned from her.

It’s been a few years since she left us. Every Christmas since, as I am perusing recipes and pulling out my butter, flour, and sugar- I think of her. I imagine her scurrying around her kitchen churning out tray after tray of her delicious cookies. Then I hear her voice prodding me, it’s time to get busy and bake.

A Fine Understudy

Unfortunately, I don’t have Mrs. S’s recipe for those Toffee Bars that I love so much. (Update: Found it! Mrs. S’s Toffee Squares) But Alice Medrich does. Her Cookies and Brownies book contains toffee bars that are so good, they would make Mrs. S proud. The crust starts with melted butter making these incredibly easy to make. Stir together brown sugar and flour with the butter, press into a pan and bake to a golden brown. For this batch, I scattered a combo of semi-sweet and milk chocolate chips on the warm crust, let them melt, and ice the melted chips over the crust. For the final touch, sprinkle toasted hazelnuts over the chocolate. Next batch? Endless possibilities, limited only by your imagination.

Kid version: Use all milk chocolate and either toasted almonds or pecans. Got milk?

Adult version: Use semi-sweet chocolate or dark chocolate and toasted hazelnuts, finish with Maldon Salt. Serve with some bubbly.

Sporty twist version: Perfect during a ballgame, your choice of chocolate and salted or honey-roasted peanuts. Play ball!

Allow bars to cool on a rack. Use a serrated knife to cut the pan into bars or wedges.

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Toffee Bars

A buttery, brown sugar crust topped with chocolate and hazelnuts. A riff on Alice Medrich's Toffee Bars.

Course cookies, Dessert

Cuisine American

Keyword toffee, toffee bar recipe, Toffee Bars

Prep Time 15

Cook Time 30

Equipment

8x8 inch square pan or 9' tart pan with removable bottom. Any pan with roughly same area I like to use a 12x5 rectangular tart pan and cut the cookies into wedges.

Ingredients

Shortbread base

8 tbsp unsalted butter
1/2 cup light brown sugar packed
1 tsp vanilla
1/8 tsp salt
1 cup all-purpose flour

Topping

6 ounces milk or semisweet chocolate chopped, if bar or block or use chips
1/2 cup toasted nuts your choice!

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Position rack in lower third of oven

Shortbread base

Cut butter into chunks and melt in a saucepan over medium heat or place in heatproof glass bowl, loosely cover and microwave at 40% power for 15 seconds, repeat if necessary.
Remove from heat and stir in brown sugar, salt and vanilla. Add flour and mix just until combined.
Press dough into a lined (parchment or foil) 8x8-inch pan or a tart pan with a removable bottom
Bake for 20-25 minutes or until well browned at the edges and golden brown in the center

Topping

Scatter chocolate evenly on top of warm crust. Let stand to allow the chocolate to melt. If necessary, place in the oven for a minute to help melt the chocolate. Spread chocolate evenly over the crust with an offset spatula or the back of a spoon.
Sprinkle toasted chopped nuts over chocolate. Set on rack to cool.
Lift and transfer bar to cutting board. Use a sharp knife (I like using a serrated knife)and cut into 2x2" squares or wedges. If necessary chill in fridge to set chocolate.
See story above for variations.

Snickerdoodles (Alice in Cookiewonderland)

By threejamigos | September 5, 2019 | Comments 0 Comment

It has been 1610 days since I sat down and penned my inaugural post, Jamigos 2.0 to launch 3jamigos. As I reflect on that number all I can think is WHAT TOOK ME SO LONG TO INCLUDE MY FAVORITE COOKIE? I mean, sheesh, of the 100 cookie recipes I have posted, it doesn’t include my all-time favorite non-shortbread cookie (notice how I slipped in that qualifier, shortbread=cookie perfection). Unbelievable, and how did I discover this faux pas?

I was tasked with making cookies for an End of Summer Party for our political action group (sanity saver). I automatically went to my blog and typed in S N I C K E R D O O D L E S in the search box and waited, NOTHING popped up. A quick search of my cookie index revealed, what the heck, no Snickerdoodles.

Are you kidding?

I’ve never posted Snickerdoodles on my blog? Hellooo, time to fix that. I got busy, made a batch for the meeting, snitched a couple to have with an ice-cold glass of milk, and sat down to write this post.

EVERYONE needs a scrumptious recipe for Snickerdoodles. Buttery, sweet and spicy, crispy edges, soft chewy center, finished with cinnamon sugar. The quintessential cookie. My favorite recipe comes from the cookie maven, Alice Medrich. Unlike other recipes I have seen, hers are made with just butter. Yep, no shortening in these bad-boy bites of sweet cinnamon bliss. The recipe is from her small but mighty book, Cookies and Brownies, long out of print but available on the secondary market. The book is worth getting just for this and her Lemon Bar recipe. Well written with easy-to-follow directions, it’s a keeper. My copy is frayed and tattered, well worn from use.

Cream butter and sugar together to smooth but NOT fluffy. Add eggs, beat until blended.

Add flour and stir just until combined. Don’t overmix. The mixing changes the consistency of the cookie. Fluffy butter-sugar mixture gives a cakier cookie, go for smooth and creamy. After adding the flour mixture do not beat the dough too much or you will end up with a tough cookie.

Gather dough into a disc, shape doesn’t matter. Keep the thickness to about an inch. This will make it easier to scoop and form the cookies after chilling.

After chilling the dough, use a 1 tablespoon ice cream scoop (#70) to form balls. Shape the scoops into smooth balls and roll in cinnamon sugar. Use a good quality cinnamon, like Penzey’s . This is a great cookie to make with the kids or grandkids, never met a kid that didn’t like to roll balls of cookie dough in copious amounts of cinnamon sugar all the while licking their fingers.

The one tablespoon scoop yields a cookie about 2 inch in diameter. All well and good, BUT, the smaller you make the cookie the harder it is to end up with a cookie that has crisp edges and a soft center. If that is what you are looking for, try making bigger cookies. Increase your baking time by a couple of minutes.

Bake cookies 8-10 minutes until the edges are golden brown. I like the centers soft, if you like crunchy cookies, bake them a bit longer. How long? Don’t know, I don’t like them that way.

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Snicker Doodles

Course cookies

Cuisine American

Keyword Snickerdoodles

Prep Time 20

Cook Time 10

Equipment

Cookie sheets, lined with parchment paper or greased

Ingredients

3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour (13.5 ounces)
2 teaspoons cream of tartar
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
½ pound unsalted butter, softened (2 sticks)
1½ cups sugar 10.5 ounces
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
2 tablespoons granulated sugar

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 400° Position rack in the middle of the oven.
Combine the flour, cream of tartar, baking soda, and salt in a bowl and mix thoroughly with a whisk or fork.
In a medium mixing bowl with an electric mixer, beat the butter with the 1½ cups sugar until smooth and creamy, not fluffy. Beat in the eggs just until blended. Add the flour mixture and stir or beat on low speed just until incorporated. Gather the dough into a disc and wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate until firm, at least 30 minutes.
Mix the remaining 2 tablespoons sugar and the cinnamon in a small bowl. Form level tablespoons of dough with an ice cream scoop, into 1-inch balls. Roll the balls in the cinnamon sugar and place 2 inches apart on the lined or ungreased cookie sheets.
Bake for 8 to 11 minutes, until the cookies puff and begin to settle down. To create crevices, when cookies puff, tap cookie sheet on rack. This causes the cookie to sink, creating crinkles. Rotate the cookie sheet from front to back halfway through the baking time to ensure even baking. Bake until the edges are golden. Remove from oven and allow to cool for a couple of minutes. Remove cookies with a spatula to a wire rack. Don't let them cool completely or the cookies will stick to the sheet. I bake on ungreased sheets to minimize spreading.
Cool the cookies completely before stacking or storing. May be kept in an airtight container for several days.

Nutty for Almond Meltaways

By threejamigos | January 15, 2019 | Comments 2 comments

I contemplated using the tiniest font size possible when I typed “cookie #12 of my 12 days of cookies” when I realized I actually can’t change the font size. Damn! It’s the second week in January and here I am finally posting the last holiday cookie.

At least it is a good one, Almond Meltaways.

I would not be surprised if one of the first cookies I ever nibbled on was an almond cookie. Every bakery in Chinatown makes a version of the egg-washed, crinkly cookie with a hallmark whole almond pressed in the center of each. Made with lard or shortening these cookies are crumbly, sandy, crisp, and redolent of almonds. In a nutshell-yummy. While friends pulled out sugar or chocolate chip cookies from their lunch bags, I pulled out almond cookies from mine. Those days are a distant memory but I still love eating almond cookies.

On my last jaunt to Los Angeles, I made a quick pitstop at a family favorite in Chinatown, Phoenix Bakery. When we were kids, my mom, distantly related to the owners, always made it a point to stop there when we were in LA. After catching up with the latest news of our families, they would pack boxes of Almond Cookies and Butterflies for us to bring home. I love their Butterflies, a bow-shaped sheet of dough deep-fried to make them shatteringly crisp and covered with a sweet, sticky, gooey syrup-a dentist’s dream. If you are ever in LA, do yourself a favor and pick up a box. The bakery just celebrated its 80th anniversary, no small feat for a family-run business and a testament to their delicious sweets.

I enjoy almond cookies anytime. But almond cookies are a must during New Year and an integral part of any New Year’s celebration. Symbolizing coins, they represent good fortune and prosperity in the New Year.

Although it would be hard to beat the almond cookie of my youth, I am always trying new recipes for almond cookies. I’m glad I tried this one. They’re delicious. The recipe comes from the blog The Beach House Kitchen and is a wonderful stand-in for Chinese Almond Cookies. The fine grain texture and tenderness come from the use of cornstarch, confectioners’ sugar, and shortening while the butter and almond extract provide the flavor.

The dough comes together in a snap. Use a tablespoon ice cream scoop (#70 scoop) to portion out the dough.

The dough is flattened with a glass dipped in sugar and a whole almond pressed in the center. After baking, a quick dusting of powdered sugar is the final touch before serving these gorgeous cookies.

I can’t wait to bring these to this year’s celebration, Happy Year of the Pig!

Like Almond Cookies? Here are a couple of other favorites, Almond Clouds from King Arthur’s Flour and Almond Cookies from B’s Patisserie in San Francisco.

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Almond Meltaways

Course cookies

Cuisine American

Keyword Almond Cookies

Prep Time 16

Cook Time 14

Total Time 30

Ingredients

1 1/3 cup all purpose flour 167 gm
1/2 cup whole almonds finely ground 75gms
2/3 cup confectioners' sugar 71gm
1/2 cup cornstarch 56gm
1/8 tsp. salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature one stick
1/2 cup shortening room temperature
2 tsp. almond extract
whole almonds for garnish
granulated sugar for dipping
confectioners' sugar for garnish

Instructions

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. Set aside.
In a large bowl, whisk together flour, almonds, confectioners' sugar, corn starch and salt until well combined. Set aside.
Combine butter and shortening in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment, on medium speed beat until fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add almond extract.
Turn the mixer to low and slowly add the flour mixture, beating until the dough begins to clump and form a ball around the paddle.
Shape the dough into balls, about one tablespoon each and place on baking sheet, about 2 inches apart. Flatten each cookie with the bottom of a glass that has been dipped in some granulated sugar and then press a whole almond into the center of each cookie.
Bake for 12-14 minutes, until just lightly browned and firm when gently touched. Let stand on baking sheet for 5 minutes, before transferring to wire rack to cool completely.
Shake confectioners' sugar on tops of cookies

A Crinkle Just In Time: Cookie #11 Lemon Crinkles

By threejamigos | January 1, 2019 | Comments 2 comments

Jamie is home and decided it was time to bake and bail me out, as she always does, on my attempt to post 12 Days of Cookies. I’m soooo close, this is cookie number 11. If it wasn’t for “being under the weather”, I would have posted this yesterday. We definitely needed a citrus cookie so she picked a Lemon Crinkles. The recipe comes from Fresh April Flours by Lynn. I think it was karma that Jamie picked this recipe, Lynn is a scientist by trade and a field hockey player. Imagine that? Fate.

A riff on Chocolate Crinkle Cookies, these gems are bursting with lemon flavor, a delightfully refreshing cookie that’s easy to make and sure to appeal to any citrus lover.

If you are a lemon FREAK. You could up the amount of zest or play with the amount of lemon juice (just a bit since adding liquid can effect the texture). Remember, adding zest ups the lemon flavor while adding lemon juice will increase the tartness. Baking soda also tempers sourness (which is why I add baking soda to my buttermilk biscuits, I don’t want the tang). You could play around with leaving out the baking soda and adding more baking powder…but this is speculation on my part, so you are entering the change at your own risk zone.

Using you handy dandy ice cream/cookie scoops. Use a 1.5 tablespoon scooper for a good size cookie. Roll the scoops into smooth uniform balls before LIBERALLY rolling in the powdered sugar. Some of the sugar will be absorbed by the moisture in the dough. For that nice white jagged snowy cap, keep on rollin’.

Cookies spreading too much? Chill-out and chill the dough well. This means on warm days, chill the dough, scoop out the balls, if they are soft, chill again.

Bake these bad boys off and sit down with a nice cup of tea and enjoy! Or tease your Dog…

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Lemon Crinkle Cookies

A citrus riff on the classic chocolate crinkle cookie. A refreshing change of pace.

Course cookies

Cuisine American

Keyword Crinkles

Prep Time 10

Cook Time 15

Total Time 25

Servings 18 cookies

Author April Fresh Flours

Ingredients

1.5 cups all purpose flour
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon baking powder
⅛ teaspoon baking soda
½ cup unsalted butter, softened to room temperature = 1 stick
1 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 large egg room temperature*
1.5 tablespoons fresh lemon juice 2 T for more tartness
zest of one lemon can increase for more lemon flavor

Instructions

In a medium size bowl, toss together the flour, salt, baking powder, and baking soda. Set aside.
In a large bowl with a hand mixer or the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy (approximately 2-3 minutes). Beat in vanilla, egg, lemon juice, and lemon zest. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula as necessary.
Reduce mixer speed to low and gradually add flour mixture. Mix until just combined. Cover bowl and chill in the refrigerator at least 1 hour and up to 3 days. If chilling longer than 1 hour, allow to sit at room temperature about 15 minutes before rolling into balls.
When you are ready to bake the cookies, preheat the oven to 350ºF. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat. Set aside.
Pour the powdered sugar onto a large plate. Using a large cookie scoop, scoop the dough out of the bowl and roll into a ball with your hands. Dough ball does not need to be perfect. Roll the ball of dough generously in the powdered sugar. Place no more than 8 balls of dough on a baking sheet at one time (4 rows of 2). Chill dough you are not using.
Bake cookies for 13-14 minutes or until cookies look mostly matte (not wet or shiny). Remove from oven and cool on the baking sheet for 3 minutes before transferring to cooling rack to cool completely. Store cookies in an airtight container at room temperature up to 10 days. Baked cookies freeze well, up to 2 months. Rolled cookie dough can be frozen up to 3 months. Roll in powdered sugar before baking and bake frozen. Add another 1-2 minutes to baking time.

Forward Progress…courtesy of Jamie….an Instagram Story on making Lemon Crinkles! It gets a little loss in translation on the blog but it’s a start..onto 2019!

Go Big or Go Home Day 10 of 12 Days of Cookies (CCC Skillet Style)

By threejamigos | December 31, 2018 | Comments 0 Comment

The best thing about cruising the internet right now is the plethora of Top Ten or Best Eats of the Year lists that are popping up everywhere. In between furiously publishing holiday recipes, everyone digs into their 2018 archives and comes up with The Best of 2018.
I scrolled through Favorite Desserts of 2018 on Ktchn and landed on a cookie recipe and I mean A cookie. My stomach grumble meter went into overdrive, a ginormous chocolate chip cookie baked in an iron skillet.

It’s New Year’s Eve. I need a dessert that’s EASY to make, a show stopper, sharable, and has universal appeal.

This pops into my head.

Enter the Skillet Zone. Julia Child in a suit and tie, sans glass of wine, starts to speak, she’s a bit stiffer than normal but hey, this is a mash up…she starts to speak…

Imagine if you will, a Cast Iron Skillet, ebony from years of cooking and love. A warm GIANT Chocolate Chip Cookie cooked in the aforementioned skillet and a quart (or more) of Vanilla Ice Cream.

The Oohs and Aahs as you bring this to the dinner table. Cause who doesn’t succumb to the aroma of a freshly baked chocolate chip cookie?

You cut into the cookie-the chocolate chips are gooey, melted perfection, the cookie is soft, cakey in the middle, you work your way to the edge, the texture changes to that of a cookie with a crisp, caramelized edge. You place the wedge of cookie on a plate.

Everyone is holding their breath in anticipation, mesmerized by the chocolate oozing and the aroma of the cookie and then…

BAM! You hit it with a scoop of vanilla ice cream which immediately begins to melt over the cookie.

Everyone goes crazy.

Yes, you have entered the Skillet Zone.

Unfortunately, I do not have a cast iron skillet. Lost, in one of the many moves we have made. I used an All-Clad skillet. My cookie was relatively even in height. I think that if baked in a cast iron skillet, the additional heat of the black pan would cause the sides to bake quicker, rise a little higher than mine, possibly be a bit crisper. Hmmm, yummy. Feel free to add nuts if you like. I CHEATED, I used chocolate chunks and pistoles instead of chopping chocolate. Definitely try to find chunks and not use regular sized chips.

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Deep-Dish Chocolate Chip Skillet Cookie

Ingredients

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup 2 sticks unsalted butter at room temperature
1 cup packed light brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
12 ounces dark chocolate coarsely chopped, divided
1/2 cup pecans pieces

Instructions

Arrange a rack in the middle of the oven and heat to 375°F.
Place the flour, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl and whisk to combine; set aside.
Place the butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. (Alternatively, use an electric hand mixer and large bowl.) Beat at medium speed until lightened in color and creamy, about 2 minutes. With the mixer on low speed, beat in the eggs and vanilla. Scrape down the side of the bowl. Beat in the flour mixture on low speed until just combined.
Set aside 1/3 cup of the chopped chocolate. Add the remaining chocolate and nuts if using, to the dough and fold to combine. Transfer the dough to a 10-inch cast iron or oven-safe skillet. With damp hands, press the dough in an even layer to the edges of the skillet. Sprinkle the reserved 1/3 cup chocolate over top and gently press into the dough.
Bake until the center is set and the edges are golden-brown and slightly pull back from the skillet, about 25 minutes. Set aside to cool for at least 30 minutes before cutting into wedges and serving.

Notes

Add nuts if you like. I use pecans. Ok, I cheated, I didn't chop chocolate but used chocolate chunks and pistoles I found. I am all about the path of least resistence.

Will keep for up to 4 days in an airtight container at room temperature.

Use only vanilla ice cream. NO bubblegum flavor, peppermint or anything else but Vanilla...just saying.

Thumbprints: Thumbs Up for Day 9 of 12 Days of Cookies

By threejamigos | December 29, 2018 | Comments 0 Comment

Only 3 more cookies to bake for my 12 days of cookies 2018. Cookie no. 9 is a riff on my go-to thumbprint cookie. I decided to use toasted hazelnuts in place of walnuts. Ok, not earth-shattering but enough of a twist that the hubster noticed (he is a thumbprint afficionado) and loved the nuanced change. The hazelnut MO? More assertive than other nuts such as almonds or pecans, buttery and sweet. It’s flavor shines in these thumbprint cookies. I filled the center with a berry-lime jam I had made at the end of summer and added a tease of vanilla to the dough to complement the jam. Yummy!

Measure the amount of nuts needed before grinding them. You want the nuts to be finely ground but not to the point where it starts to get pasty.

Take out your trusty ice cream/cookie scoop. I use a tablespoon scoop and line up the cookie dough balls, assembly line mentality, on a sheet. Place dough balls on a cookie sheet approximately 1.5-2 inches apart. Press each one to flatten to 1/4-3/8 inch thick (thicker if larger). Use the end of a wooden spoon or utensil of similar size, to create a depression in the center of each cookie. I use a hand blender to puree my jam (no fruit lumps!) and a squeeze bottle to squirt the jam into the center of each cookie. How easy is that?

This turned out to be a delish version of thumbprint cookies. Perfect during the holidays and especially nice with a bit of the bubbly to bring in the new year!

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Riff on Thumbprint Cookies

Course cookies

Cuisine American

Keyword thumbprints

Prep Time 10

Cook Time 20

Total Time 30

Ingredients

1 1/2 cup coarsely chopped toasted hazelnuts
1 cup butter at room temperature
3/4 cup granulated sugar
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 cup seedless berry-lime preserves or your choice
Dash of salt
Powdered sugar

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Chop nuts in food processor until very fine. Beat butter, nuts, salt and granulated sugar in mixer bowl until light. Beat in flour into blended.
Shape dough into 1 inch balls.
Place 2 inches apart on ungreased cookie sheets and flatten to 1 1/2 inch circle.
Press into centers with a fingertip.
Fill each indentation with 1/4 teaspoon preserves.
Bake 10-12 minutes, until golden.
Cool.
Sift confectioner's sugar over cookies.

Notes

Substitute your favorite jam, I plan to use a pineapple-orange jam for the next batch.

Crazy 8 Day: It’s Crack Not A Cookie but It Deserves to be on the List

By threejamigos | December 26, 2018 | Comments 0 Comment

This year I joined in on Food52’s Holiday Gift Swap. It was simple, all I had to do was make a donation to their designated charity and promise to send a food-centric gift by Dec. 10th. A couple of days later, I received my “Secret Santa” swapee’s name and address. My swappee lives in Colorado, I already had a list of go to items I wanted to send her like Jule’s granola and my cousin’s spiced pecans.

My box of goodies came from Catherine of Salt Lake City. Like a kid in a candy store, I quickly tore the box open and discovered a treasure trove of gifts, sweet and salty chocolate sprinkles, popcorn seasoning, salad toppings, a too cute kitchen towel and a delicious cereal mix- Ashure Cereal that I started munching on immediately. Luckily, Cathy included the recipe by Saimin Nosrat in the NY Times. It starts with a base of puffed wheat, nuts, and sesame seeds. Then spiced with cinnamon, cardamon and mahaleb, (a middle eastern spice from cherry seeds, think bitter almond) and finally toasted in the oven with brown sugar, honey and oil. It is addictively delicious.

After scarffing down the bag, I knew I had to make my own batch.

This is where the search begins…

I head to my favorite market, International Food Bazaar. I unwittingly thought that the spices would be the hardest to find. Surprisingly not true. Most of the ingredients and spices can also be found online.

With Mahaleb in hand, I head to my neighborhood grocery for the puffed wheat cereal…

4 STORES later, I walk out empty-handed and dejected. Not a bag or box of puffed wheat to be found. Apparently it is really hard to find puffed cereals without sugar added. Who would have “thunk” it?

I took to the internet, and found Vitacost, a supplement/health food site where I not only find Puffed Wheat, but Puffed Kamut (an ancient grain), Puffed Corn and Puffed Rice. You can find Puffed Rice by Quaker Oats in the supermarket, a great alternative for a gluten free version. I like Puffed Kamut. I would definitely cut a bit of the cereal and add more nuts and Mahaleb. Watch carefully when baking as it browns fairly quickly. I love it over yogurt and fresh fruit or straight out of hand.

So be forewarned, the most difficult ingredient to find will be the cereal. But it will be well worth it, Ashure Cereal is absolutely delicious.

Here, for you to drool over, my Food 52 holiday swap gift from Cathy!

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Ashure Cereal

Course Snack

Cuisine Middle Eastern

Keyword cereal

Cook Time 15

Servings 10 servings

Author Adapted from NYT

Ingredients

1/2 cup /85 grams neutral-tasting oil such as canola
6 tablespoons /110 grams honey
1⁄2 cup /110 grams dark brown sugar packed
1 teaspoon fine sea salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1⁄2 teaspoon ground mahaleb increase to 3/4 -1
1⁄2 teaspoon ground cardamom
10 cups /160 grams puffed wheat sub Puffed Kamut or Rice
3/4 Scant cup /85 grams halved pecans increase to 1 cup
1⁄3 cup /50 grams pumpkin seeds
3 tablespoons /30 grams sesame seeds
1⁄2 cup /85 grams almonds very roughly chopped, or left whole with skin

Instructions

Step 1

Adjust oven racks to lower-middle and upper-middle positions. Heat to 350. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper, and set aside.

Step 2

Combine oil, honey and sugar in a medium saucepan, and set over medium-high heat. Whisk well, and bring to a boil, stirring occasionally to prevent scorching.

Step 3

In a large bowl, combine remaining ingredients, and mix well. Once the honey mixture comes to a boil, carefully pour it over the dry ingredients. Working quickly, use a large silicone spatula to stir, turning the contents of the bowl over until everything is coated evenly with the syrup. Transfer mixture to baking sheets, and use spatula to flatten out cereal into an even layer.

Step 4

Place baking sheets on prepared oven racks, and bake for 10 minutes.
Carefully remove 1 tray at a time, and use spatula to stir cereal around. Rotate trays 180 degrees, and switch oven positions to ensure even baking. Bake for 4 to 6 minutes longer, until golden brown and well caramelized. Remove from oven, and allow to cool entirely on the trays before breaking cereal into large clusters.

Step 5

Store in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks.

Happy holidays and happy baking!

Waiting to Bakehale (Salted Butter & Chocolate Chunk Shortbread) Day 7 Holiday Cookies:

By threejamigos | December 22, 2018 | Comments 0 Comment

From the 2018 cookie annals, I give you Salted Butter & Chocolate Chunk Shortbread. Why re-post? How many cookies are the focus of a magazine article? Such is the case in this month’s Atlantic, The Rise of Anxiety Baking. Apparently, since “he who shall not be named” has unwittingly been thrust into “public service”, there has been a corresponding rise in anxiety in Americans, especially Millennials. This heightened feeling of impending doom has apparently caused a significant uptick in cookie baking in an effort to soothe the soul and calm the nerves. The one cookie that has become the poster child for anxiety baking is Alison Roman’s Salted Butter & Chocolate Chunk Shortbread. It definitely helps that this cookie is damn delicious. A buttery, tender shortbread dotted with nuggets of dark chocolate and edged with crunchy Demerara Sugar. Are you salivating? You should be.

Yep, that is me. No, not a millennial, but a no holds barred bake to relieve stress crazy person. I made batches of this cookie. I took them to work, to coffee with the moms, to the Omnivore Books Cookie Contest. (I didn’t win AGAIN). Think of this cookie as a tasty prescription. Bake it, feel better and make other people happy. A pharmacist’s advice for free. You’re welcome.

(Salted Butter & Chocolate Chunk Shortbread) New Year’s Resolution #2 Finish 12 Days of Cookies

Ingredients

1 cup plus 2 tablespoons 2 1/4 sticks salted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup light brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
6 ounces semi- or bittersweet dark chocolate chopped (but not too fine, you want chunks)
1 large egg beaten
Demerara sugar for rolling
Flaky sea salt for sprinkling

Instructions

The cookie dough can be made ahead and stored, tightly wrapped in plastic, up to 1 week in the refrigerator, or 1 month in the freezer. Cookies can be baked and stored in plastic wrap or an airtight container for 5 days.
1. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. Using an electric mixer and a medium bowl or a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter, both sugars, and vanilla on medium-high till it’s super light and fluffy, 3 to 5 minutes. Using a spatula, scrape down the sides of the bowl and, with the mixer on low, slowly add the flour, followed by the chocolate chunks, and beat just to blend.
3. Divide the dough in half, placing each half on a large piece of plastic wrap. Fold the plastic over so that it covers the dough to protect your hands from getting all sticky. Using your hands (just like you’re playing with clay), form the dough into a log shape; rolling it on the counter will help you smooth it out, but don’t worry about getting it totally perfect. You can also do this using parchment paper, if you prefer, but I find using plastic wrap easier when it comes to shaping the log. Each half should form two logs 2 to 2 1/4 inches in diameter. Chill until totally firm, about 2 hours.
4. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
5. Brush the outside of the logs with the beaten egg and roll them in the Demerara sugar (this is for those really delicious crispy edges).
6. Slice each log into 1/2-inch-thick rounds, place them on the prepared baking sheet(s) about 1 inch apart (they won’t spread much), and sprinkle with flaky salt. Bake until the edges are just beginning to brown, 12 to 15 minutes. Let cool slightly before eating them all.

Ladies and Gentlemen, This is Cookie Number 5 (Nibby Buckwheat Butter Cookies)

By threejamigos | December 18, 2018 | Comments 0 Comment

One of my favorite baking goddesses (I have many) is Alice Medrich. Yes, that Alice, Chocolate Maven, Dessert Queen and creator of quite possibly the best damn lemon bars ever. Don’t get me started on her Snickerdoodles, so good. Cookie number 5 is from her book, Pure Desserts, a shortbread cookie with a twist-Nibby Buckwheat Butter Cookies.

If you have been following 3jamigos you know that I fall in the shortbread camp for my favorite type of cookie. Buttery goodness in bite-size morsels with a hint of sweetness, sign me up. Well lucky me, this cookie falls in that camp-buttery, slightly sweet, tender, nice sandy texture, and a cool, slightly bluish brown hue. The cookies get kicked up a notch with the addition of cocoa nibs. This adds a subtle hint of chocolate at the finish. The color and slight earthiness from the buckwheat and the “is it chocolate or isn’t it?” from the nibs, are a cookie mindblower.

So if you are looking for a shortbread that is a little different but still buttery delicious, put this one on your list.

Bonus: Easy to make.

Do not overbeat when creaming the butter and sugar which will incorporate too much air into the dough (I might have done this which accounts for the puffiness and soft edges). The mixture should be smooth and creamy. Add flour and beat until it comes together, don’t overmix.

The dough can be shaped into a log, chilled and finished as slice and bake cookies. The dough can be stored in the fridge or freezer so you have freshly baked cookies when family and friends drop by. Everyone will think you are a badass baking queen.

Or you can get fancy-schmancy and roll out the dough and cut out cookies for a more festive look. Put the dough in a gallon sized Ziploc bag and roll to the edges. This will give you a sheet of dough about 1/4 inch thick, perfect for cutout cookies. I used a fluted metal cutter which may work better than a plastic one as you have to cut through the nibs. To add festive bling, sprinkle the cookies with sanding sugar and a touch of flake salt (like Maldon) before baking. That takes these cookies to the “bend and snap” (Legally Blond-remember?) level of attention.

Chill the dough after cutting out the cookies, the edges won’t spread as much. I was having oven issues so the edges ended up less defined. But still yummy!

Okay, not hooked yet? Still looking for a classic shortbread, try this one, my favorite traditional Scottish Shortbread or Bouchon’s Shortbread.

Print Pin

Nibby Buckwheat Butter Cookie

A delicious riff on shortbread, buckwheat flour and cocoa nibs take these cookies to a new level.

Course cookies

Cuisine American

Keyword NIbby Buckwheat Butter Cookies

Author Adapted from 101 Cookbooks (Alice Medrich)

Ingredients

1 1/4 cups 5.6 ounces all-purpose flour
3/4 cup 3 ounces buckwheat flour
1/2 pound 2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
2/3 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup cacao nibs
1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

Instructions

Whisk the all-purpose and buckwheat flours together in a medium bowl. Set aside. In a medium bowl, with the back of a large spoon or with an electric mixer, beat the butter with the sugar and salt for about 1 minute, until smooth and creamy but not fluffy. Mix in the nibs and vanilla. Add the flours and mix just until incorporated. Scrape the dough into a mass and, if necessary, knead it with your hands a few times, just until smooth.
Form the dough into a 12 by 2 inch log. Wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours, or, preferably overnight. Or place dough in a gallon ziploc and roll to the edges of the bag. Dough will be about 1/4 inch thick. Chill thoroughly before cutting out shapes. These cookies do puff and expand a bit so also chill dough after cutting to ensure crisp edges.
Position the racks in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 350F degrees. Line the baking sheets with parchment paper.
Use a sharp knife to cut the cold dough log into 1/4-inch-thick slices. Place the cookies at least 1 1/2 inches apart on the baking sheets.* Or follow instructions for cut-out cookies.
Optional: Sprinkle cookies with a bit of sanding sugar and an even tinier bit of flake salt like Maldon before baking.
Bake until the cookies are just beginning to color at the edges, 12 to 14 minutes, rotating the baking sheet from front to back halfway through the baking.
Cool the cookies in the pans on a rack, or slide the parchment liners carefully onto the rack to free up the pans. Let cool completely.

Notes

The cookies are delicious fresh but even better the next day. They can be stored in an airtight container for at least one month. My batch made about 30 3-inch cookies. Recipe states approximately 48 2-1/2 inch cookies.