Cookies Archives - Page 16 of 16

Chili, Brownies & Friends

By threejamigos | June 8, 2015 | Comments 0 Comment

At the risk of losing any credibility I might have earned with previous posts, yes, that is The Friends Cookbook in the photo. I told you, I have a cookbook addiction, this proves it. In my defense I did peruse the book before buying, first I noticed the cast of Friends did not write this cookbook, lol (not even Monica), it was actually written by a senior writer for Cooks Illustrated, the bastion of obsessive recipe testing. Second, it was on sale…so what the heck, I took a chance and bought a copy.

I kid you not, it has been my go to source for a variety of recipes, pancakes, brownies, coffeecake and yes, chili. The recipes are fairly simple, delicious and KID FRIENDLY, a prerequisite for the last 20 years of my life. Here are 2 favorites from the book, Flirting with Firemen Chili and the link to Absolutely Best Brownies, Kid tested and approved.

Adapted from Cooking with Friends

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Firehouse Chili

Kid friendly chili!

Prep Time 1 hour
Cook Time 2 hours

Servings 8 -10 servings

Ingredients
3 T vegetable oil
3 medium yellow onions chopped
1 green bell pepper chopped
3 medium cloves of garlic minced
1.5 pounds ground beef I use a mix of beef and ground turkey or chicken 2:1
2 cups canned crushed tomatoes I use a 15 oz can of fire roasted diced tomatoes
1 15 ounce can of beef broth
3 T chili powder
1.5 t cumin
1/2 t oregano
1 t salt
1 15 ounce can of kidney beans or pinto beans or black beans drained and rinsed

Instructions
Heat oil in large pot. Add the onions and saute over med heat until soft and transparent looking about 8 minutes. Add garlic and bell pepper and saute for additional 2-3 minutes. Stir in ground beef and cook until it loses pink color. Cook for about 4-5 minutes, breaking up the beef with a fork or spoon. Add tomatoes, broth, spices and salt. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for approximately 2 hours until chili thickens a little. Add beans. Ladle into bowls, garnish with shredded cheese and green onions.
I add corn (frozen is fine) 1-2 cups because what kid doesn't like corn and to spice it up I will add hot sauce like Cholula which is a little sweeter than Tabasco.

We’re Back! (Chocolate Chip Cookies)

By threejamigos | June 7, 2015 | Comments 2 comments

Finally, finished transferring my wp blog to self-hosting! This calls for a celebratory post, which means food! If there is one post you should read it is this one. Years ago a friend gave me a recipe for Mrs. Field’s Chocolate Chip cookies with the caveat “You have to promise not to give this recipe to anyone, this is THEE recipe”. So I promised, and I have been true to my word. Well for the most part (2 exceptions). But, I believe the statute of limitations has passed on that promise. So here is the recipe for Mrs. Field’s Chocolate Chip Cookies, the edges are crispy, the center buttery and chewy, full of gooey chocolate chips and the sweetness tempered by pecans. These are absolutely amazing just out of the oven, still warm, with an ice cold glass of milk… just promise not to give the recipe to anyone!

Best Damn Chocolate Chip Cookie

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Mrs Field's Chocolate Chip Cookies

Mrs. Field’s Chocolate Chip Cookies…but better

Course cookies

Cuisine American

Keyword chocolate chip cookie

Prep Time 15

Cook Time 18

Ingredients

Dry Ingredients

2 1/4 cup unsifted flour
1 tsp Baking soda
1 tsp Salt

Wet Ingredients

1 cup butter, unsalted melted and lightly cooled
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup brown sugar firmly packed no lumps
1 tsp overflowing tsp vanilla extract
2 eggs
3 cups chocolate chips I reduce this to 2 cups and add toffee bits. Actually 2 cups even without the toffee. 3 is a lot.
1 cup chopped nuts
1/2 cup toffee bits optional

Instructions

Mix flour, baking soda and salt in small bowl, and set aside. Mix sugars, butter and eggs in bowl, add vanilla. Add flour mixture (add additional flour is dough seems soft, max 2 T) Stir in chocolate chips and nuts.
Cover cookie sheet with parchment to allow for cookies to slide off and prevent cookies from overbaking. Using ice cream scoop (1/4 cup for big cookies, I use a 2 T scoop and bake for approx 13 min) drop dough onto pan.
Bake 325 15-18 min., rotate pan halfway through. Underbake for chewier, moist cookie.
My variations, the original was too sweet for my taste, I decreased the chocolate to 2 cups, increased the nuts to 1 1/2 cups and added 1/4 to 1/3 cup old fashioned oats. Sometimes I throw in toffee bits 1/4-1/2 cup.

Notes

Approximately 3-4 minutes before the cookies are finished baking, open oven and grasp cookie sheet with oven mitt. Bang the sheet on the rack to cause cookie to fall. this creates crevices and folds in the cookies. Optional.

Project 365: Love Apple Farm (Macarons)

By threejamigos | May 9, 2015 | Comments 0 Comment

Spent a day at Love Apple Farms at a macaron class taught by Maggie Catrell. We arrived early and strolled the gardens winding our way through planter boxes filled with beautiful greens and herbs. Nestled in the Santa Cruz Mountains, the farm grows vegetables for Manresa Restaurant in Los Gatos and runs a storefront offering housemade jams (the strawberry peach amaretto is killer), pickled vegetables and seeds for planting. They offer a variety of cooking and gardening classes, well worth the drive, check it out. Back to the Macaron class, though they sound simple, macarons can be tricky. Here is Maggie’s recipe with her hints

Before you even start making macarons, age your egg whites by separating the whites and placing them in a container. Cover the container with plastic wrap and poke a couple of holes in the wrap. Let the egg whites sit for a day.

Macarons

Ingredients:

powdered egg whites 5gms
granulated sugar 28gms (use superfine)
powdered sugar 225gms
almond meal 125gms (finely ground)
aged egg whites 100gms
pinch of salt

Line a baking sheet with parchment. To help with piping macarons, draw 1 inch circles on parchment, spaced a minimum of 1/2 inch apart. Weigh granulated sugar and powdered egg whites and combine in a small bowl. Sift together almond meal, powdered sugar and salt. Using a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment beat your egg whites on low speed until foamy. Gradually sprinkle powdered egg white and sugar mixture into meringue. Increase mixer speed to medium and beat until a firm meringue forms. Goal is firm glossy peaks, not stiff dry peaks or you have gone too far! Add liquid flavoring at this point and coloring if desired. Add 1/3 of sifted flour mixture and gently fold to incorporate. Continue adding a third and folding into flour is incorporated. When the batter becomes firm and drips slowly form your spatula, you’re done. Put batter in a piping bag with a plain round tip (1/2 inch max for tip size). and pipe onto parchment. Once you have filled the sheet. Grab the pan by the ends, hold pan level and firmly tap pan on counter a couple of times. This will bring air bubbles tot he surface, pop them with a toothpick if they don’t break. Rest cookie batter between 30-60 minutes depending on humidity. But definitely let them rest.

Preheat oven to 300 degrees, Bake cookies for approximately 15 minutes, rotate halfway through. Cookies are done when they peel off pan easily. Pull one to check. Ta-da!

Meanwhile back at the farm…..

My Favorite Scottish Shortbread

By threejamigos | May 8, 2015 | Comments 3 comments

I love baking cookies. Every Christmas I bake an assortment of cookies for family and friends, a tradition I started years ago. Last year I made bags of granola instead and realized just how much less stress I had by not baking 10 different kinds of cookies! But (sigh), I’ll go back to baking cookies, its a labor of love and I am a glutton for punishment. There are the tried and true cookies I bake year after year; the few that show up from time to time and then, one or two new cookies each holiday season.

The Perfect Cookie

The cornerstone of my Holiday box of cookies is the traditional Scottish Shortbread. The recipe, from the long-defunct Cuisine magazine, was the bonus to the story, My Father’s Shortbread. The author recounts watching his father making shortbread every Christmas. His father’s only tools were his hands. I cheat a little and use a mixer to combine the flour into the kneaded butter but everyone should make shortbread completely by hand once.

Shortbread is my absolute favorite cookie. It’s probably because I am a butter FREAK. I love butter. People ask, do you want a little toast with that butter? Shortbread cookies are the closest you will get to just popping a little pat of moo-magic in your mouth.

The dough can be rolled and cut into traditional wedges or works beautifully as cutouts. I have in my collection a couple of embossed rolling pins that can be used with shortbread. Roll the dough to approximately 1/4 inch and then use your embossed pin to create the pattern on the cookie. The dough is easy to work with and very forgiving.

_V3A6829 — (left upper corner going clockwise) Nutmeg logs, World Peace cookies, pecan tartlets, mocha macadamia slices, jan hagels, thumbprints, crescents, peanut & bittersweet chocolate cookies, traditional shortbread, corn cookies

My Father’s Shortbread is my favorite, go-to shortbread cookie, but Bouchon’s Shortbread is a close second!

Adapted from My Father’s Shortbread by Sydney Edelson Cuisine Magazine Dec 1983

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Traditional Scottish Shortbread

Butter in cookie form

Course cookies, Dessert

Cuisine European

Keyword Shortbread

Prep Time 30

Cook Time 45

Ingredients

1 pound cold lightly salted butter
1 cup superfine sugar
1/2 tsp salt
4 cups unbleached all purpose flour

Instructions

Work butter until soft but not melting. Easiest thing to do is pound the butter with a rolling pin Fold butter in half and smoosh it with pin (yes smoosh) until malleable but not warm.
Place butter in bowl of a stand mixer, add sugar and salt cream until combined, do not beat until fluffy as this will incorporate too much air into butter.
Add flour to butter mixture and mix on low until particles cling together. Remove from bowl and knead gently until smooth and soft. Pat or roll into a rectangle about 3/8" thick. Mark off pieces 1" x 2-1/2", prick with fork and chill for 1 hour.
Cut apart and place on cold baking sheet 1/2" apart.
Preheat oven to 325 degrees, place shortbread in oven and immediately turn temperature down to 275 degrees. Bake for 30 minutes, rotate pan and leave for additional 10-15 minutes.
Cookies are done when bottoms are golden brown and sand color on top. You can use cookie cutters if you wish. Shortbread retain their shape well.

Notes

Remember to turn your oven down to 275 when you put the cookies in the oven!!!