S'more Cookies

What screams summer more than s'mores? I'm not too sure. I don't think a summer has gone by that I haven't had s'mores. More so now in my adult life than when I was a child. I LOVE a fire pit. It's pretty much mandatory for my backyard. Perfect for spring and fall when some nights get too cold. It's also ideal for roasting marshmallows. Who roast marshmallows without going all the way and making s'mores? I'm not too sure about that either. 

I came across this recipe for s'more cookies. What fun! A nice twist on a classic summer treat. The recipe comes from the one and only, Martha. I was a little surprised that the recipe called for semisweet or bittersweet chocolate. Honestly, I only know Hershey's milk chocolate when it comes to s'mores. Since I only had semisweet chocolate on hand, I used that. I was a bit nervous about the outcome but it actually ended up working quite well.

These cookies were a hit, at home & work too. Although I learned that a lot of my coworkers don't like marshmallows. Didn't know that was possible. Aside from tasting so good, they look really cute too...at least I think they do. 

Make these for your next summer barbecue. The 4th of July is right around the corner! I promise you'll be the talk of the barbecue (in a good way for a change...I kid, I kid)!

S'more Cookies

Everyday Food July/August 2009

• 1/2 cup old-fashioned rolled oats
• 1 cup all-purpose flour, (spooned and leveled)
• 1 cup whole-wheat flour (spooned and leveled)
• 3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 3/4 cup light-brown sugar
• 1 large egg
• 8 ounces bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, cut into 30 squares
• 15 large marshmallows, halved horizontally

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a food processor, pulse oats until finely ground. Add flours, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt; pulse to combine. In a large bowl, using an electric mixer, beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in egg, scraping down side of bowl. With mixer on low, beat in flour mixture just until combined.

Drop dough by tablespoons, 1 inch apart, onto two baking sheets. Top each with a chocolate square. Bake just until lightly golden, 11 to 13 minutes, rotating sheets halfway through. Remove sheets from oven; heat broiler. Top each cookie with a marshmallow. One sheet at a time, broil until marshmallows are lightly browned, 1 to 1 1/2 minutes. Transfer cookies to wire racks to cool.

Sour Cream Cookies

I was recently watching an episode of The Martha Stewart Show, she and her guest were making these sour cream cookies that came together really quickly. I know here staff has everything already measured out and whatnot but these really were easy to throw together. I had sour cream on hand and needed to use it up. A perfect excuse to make cookies! 

 

Sour Cream Cookies

The Martha Stewart Show

 

1/3 cup unsalted butter, plus more for baking sheet
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for work surface
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup sugar
1 large egg
1/3 cup sour cream
1/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract (optional)
Sanding sugar, for sprinkling

 

 Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Butter a baking sheet and set aside.
In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt; set aside.
In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together sugar and butter. Add egg, sour cream, and vanilla, and mix until well combined. With the mixer on low, gradually add enough of the flour mixture to form a soft dough. You may have up to 1/2 cup flour mixture remaining. Transfer dough to refrigerator until chilled.
Place heaping teaspoons dough on baking sheet and sprinkle with sanding sugar. Transfer to oven and bake until light golden, 8 to 10 minutes.

Frosted Sugar Cookies

We've all passed these cake-like cookies in the grocery store. Some of us might have a hard time walking by them. They're large, soft, frosted perfectly, & topped with the perfect amount of sprinkles. Nadya stumbled upon a picture of these cookies while browsing the 'nets the other day. Since she saw them, she couldn't stop talking about how badly she wanted soft frosted sugar cookies. She mentioned her craving enough that I finally stepped up and made them! I'm happy I did! I found a winning recipe!

Soft Frosted Sugar Cookies (From Annie Eats)

Yield: about 2 dozen large cookies

Ingredients

Ingredients:
For the cookies:
4½ cups all-purpose flour
4½ tsp. baking powder
¾ tsp. salt
1½ cups (3 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1½ cups sugar
3 large eggs
5 tsp. vanilla extract
For the frosting:
5 cups confectioners’ sugar, sifted
1/3 cup (5 1/3 tbsp.) unsalted butter, melted
1 tbsp. vanilla extract
7-8 tbsp. milk (plus more, as needed)
Food coloring (optional)
Sprinkles (optional)

To make the cookies, preheat the oven to 350˚ F.  Line baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.  In a medium bowl combine the flour, baking powder and salt, and whisk together to blend.  In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine the butter and sugar and beat together on medium-high speed until soft and fluffy, about 2-3 minutes.  Beat in the eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition and scraping down the bowl as needed.  Blend in the vanilla.  With the mixer on low speed, add in the dry ingredients mixing just until incorporated and evenly mixed.  Cover and chill the dough for 1 hour.

When you are ready to bake the cookies, scoop a scant quarter cup of dough and roll into a ball.  Flatten the ball slightly and place on the prepared baking sheet.  Repeat with the remaining dough, spacing the cookies at least 2-3 inches apart.  Bake about 10-12 minutes or just until set.  (Do not overbake!  The edges should be no more than very lightly browned if at all.)  Let cool on the baking sheet for several minutes.  Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

To frost the cookies, place the confectioners’ sugar in a medium bowl.  Add the melted butter, vanilla, and milk to the bowl and whisk until smooth.  Whisk in additional milk as necessary, 1 teaspoon at a time, until you reach your desired consistency.  Tint with food coloring if desired.  Use an offset spatula or spoon to frost the cooled cookies.  (If the frosting begins to thicken as you decorate, just continue to whisk in small amounts of milk to keep it workable.)  Top with sprinkles if desired.  Store in an airtight container.

Blondies with Chocolate Chips

I had full intentions of bringing these blondies to my cousin's graduation party; however, after sampling one they slowly started to disappear. They're dangerous to keep around. 

(Sorry they never made it to your party, Aunt T! )

Believe it or not, this was my first time making blondies. I haven't had a good past with  brownies (I'm determined to change that) so I assumed I wouldn't be good at making blondies. Boy was I wrong!  Martha (yes, we're on a first name basis) sends me daily emails with the cookie of the day recipe. I usually get the email while I'm at work and spend about 2 minutes drooling over whatever the day's recipe is before I file it away in the 'cookies to make' folder in my email. There are a lot of cookie recipes filed away. I better start crossing some off my list, especially if they're all as good as these were. 

Blondies are a cookie cake like goodness. The recipe called for walnuts which surprisingly I didn't have on hand so I omitted them. Walnuts or pecans would add a lovely flavor. I'll be sure to add them next time. If you're planning on bringing these to a party, keep in mind this recipe only yields 16. You might want to make 2 batches.

Blondies with Chocolate Chips

• 8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted, plus more for pan
• 1/2 cup packed light-brown sugar
• 1/3 cup granulated sugar
• 1 large egg
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1 cup all-purpose flour, (spooned and leveled)
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Brush an 8-inch square baking pan with butter; line pan with a piece of parchment paper, leaving a 2-inch overhang on two sides. Butter paper.
   
2. In a large bowl, whisk butter and sugars until smooth. Whisk in egg and vanilla. Add flour and salt; mix just until moistened (do not overmix). Fold in 1/2 cup each chocolate chips and walnuts. Transfer batter to prepared pan; smooth top. Sprinkle with remaining chocolate chips and walnuts.
   
3. Bake until top is golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, 40 to 45 minutes. Set pan on a wire rack, and let cool completely. Using parchment overhang, lift cake from pan and transfer to a cutting board; cut into 16 squares.

Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

two words: snow day! 

Yes, there was 14.9" of snow this morning when I woke up and looked out my window. No, I was not going to deal with SEPTA to make it in to work. So what did I do with my day off?? Lots! One of the things I did today was make these easy (I mean easy) oatmeal chocolate chip cookies. Yum!

I was flipping through the January/February Issue of Food Network Magazine and came across this recipe. The recipe called for raisins since I really don't like raisins I substituted chocolate chips for them! Which makes a great combination!! 

I promise you these cookies are easy! I started to make them at 2pm and had them on the table ready to eat by 2:45! That's quick, right?

Oatmeal Cookies:

1 1/4 cup brown sugar

1 egg 

2 egg white

1/4 cup vegetable oil

1 1/2 cup rolled oats

1 cup whole wheat flour

1/2 cup wheat germ

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup raisin, chocolate chunks, walnuts or a combination of all (I only used chocolate)

Whisk brown sugar and eggs in a bowl. Whisk in vegetable oil. Stir in rolled oats, whole wheat flour, wheat germ, baking soda, salt. Add raisins, chocolate chunks and walnuts. Drop large spoonfuls onto lined baking sheets and gently flatten ( I used the bottom of a glass which worked great). Bake at 350 for 12-15 minutes.

Did I mention they're easy to make? 

Pecan Snowballs

Another recipe to use up those pecans I have on hand (Thx, Melissa!)! 

I get well over 100 emails a days (and that's just to my personal account)...a lot of the emails I receive are daily recipe/food related emails. Trust me I love getting them because it really does give me last minute dinner ideas and a whole lot of inspiration! This recipe came to me from a  Real Simple "Christmas Cookie Count Down" email blast. I thought to myself, "How perfect, a recipe that got great reviews and uses pecans!" I have to admit, I read the recipe over and over because I found it really funny/strange that the recipe calls for no eggs! Perfect for people with an egg allergy, right? These pecan snowballs are really tasty and go great with a cup of coffee or tea! I have a feeling Santa would like them too! If you're not a fan of confectioners' sugar (but really who isn't?), the cookies taste really good without! 

1  cup  pecans 

1  cup  (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature 

1 3/4  cups  confectioners' sugar 

1/2  teaspoon  pure vanilla extract 

1/2  teaspoon  pure almond extract 

1/4  teaspoon  kosher salt 

2  cups  all-purpose flour

Heat oven to 350° F. Spread the pecans on a rimmed baking sheet and toast for 8 minutes. Let cool and roughly chop.

With an electric mixer, beat the butter and 1 cup of the sugar until fluffy. Mix in the vanilla and almond extracts and salt. Gradually add the flour, mixing until just incorporated. Mix in the pecans. Shape the dough into tablespoon-size balls and place on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Transfer half the balls to a second parchment-lined baking sheet, spacing them 1 1/2 inches apart. Bake until lightly golden, 18 to 22 minutes. Let cool on the baking sheets for 10 minutes.
Place 1/2 cup of the sugar in a large bowl. Toss the warm cookies in the sugar and return to the baking sheet. Sift the remaining 1/4 cup of sugar over the cookies before serving.

Pumpkin Cookies...I promise you can't just have one!

I warned you I was getting plenty of use out of that new mixer! (thanks again, mom & dad!) Here is one of the many sweets I made since I got the mixer. Let me just start off by telling you how much I love the fall! I'm sure you've heard it from me before but seriously, it's by far the best season out there. The flavors, the colors, the weather, the clothes....OK you get what I'm saying now back to the cookies. 

These cookies are more like pumpkin cake bites. I've made pumpkin cookies before, yep even blogged about them, but these aren't even comparable to them. I promise if you like pumpkin you'll love these cookies!

I used the following recipe for the cookies but used whole wheat flour instead of all purpose. I used Martha's brown butter icing recipe which is a perfect match for these cookies! 

For the Cookies: 

Ingredients:   

1 cup unsalted butter

1 cup sugar

1 cup cooked, pureed pumpkin (fresh or canned)

1 egg

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

2 cups unbleached all purpose flour ( I used 1 cup all purpose / 1 cup whole wheat)

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg 

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cream butter and sugar until fluffy. Add pumpkin, egg and vanilla and mix well. Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg. Stir into butter mixture until well blended. Drop by teaspoonful onto parchment covered baking sheet, about 2 inches apart. Bake about 15 minutes, or until golden. Cool. 

For the Icing:  

( I cut the recipe in half. This amount is enough for 6 dozen)

Ingredients:

4 cups confectioners' sugar, sifted 

10 tablespoons (1 1/4 sticks) unsalted butter 

1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon evaporated milk

2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

Directions:

Put confectioners' sugar in a large bowl; set aside. Melt butter in a small saucepan over medium heat. Cook, swirling pan occasionally, until golden brown, about 3 minutes. Immediately add butter to confectioners' sugar, scraping any browned bits from sides and bottom of pan. Add evaporated milk and vanilla; stir until smooth. Spread about 1 teaspoon icing onto each cookie. If icing stiffens, stir in more evaporated milk, a little at a time.

Honey Wheat Germ Cookies

Tuesdays with Dorie is a group of food bloggers that bake the same recipe together every Tuesday and blog about what they baked. I'm not a part of the group; however, I follow what they're making just about every week. The recipes come from Dorie Greenspan's book, Baking: From My Home to Yours. The selections from the book all look so good. If I had more time on my hands and wasn't too concerned about my waist size I'd be baking these recipes a lot more often.

I had wheat germ on hand and wasn't too sure what to do with it until I stumbled upon this recipe. For some reason these honey wheat germ cookies don't sound like they're all that bad for you (ignore the fact that there's a stick of butter in them) which is somewhat good because they turned out really well and I can't stop eating them since they came out of the oven an hour ago. The honey flavor and the wheat germ work really well together. These cookies were really easy to make. The hardest part was waiting for the dough to chill. They're a perfect compliment for a cup of tea!

Ingredients: 

 
1 3/4 cups all purpose flour
1 cup wheat germ
1 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 cup sugar
2 tsp. grated lemon zest
1 stick(8 tablespoons)unsalted butter, at room temperature, 1/2 cup honey
1 large egg
 

Whisk together the flour, 1/2 cup of the wheat germ, the baking powder and salt.

Working in the bowl of a stand mixer or in a large bowl,run the sugar and lemon zest together with your fingers until the sugar is moist. Add the butter and, using the paddle or whisk attachment of a hand mixer, beat on medium speed for about 2 minutes, until creamy or smooth. Add the honey and beat for another minute or two. Add the egg and beat for about 2 minutes more, until you have a smooth, light , fluffy mixture. Reduce the mixer speed to low and add the dry ingredients in 2 portions, mixing only until each addition disappears. Scrape the dough out onto a large piece of plastic wrap and wrap well. Chill the dough for at least 2 hours, or for up to 2 days.

Getting ready to Bake: Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line two baking sheets with parchment or silicone mats. Put the remaining 1/2 cup wheat germ into a bowl. Remove the chilled dough from the fridge and, working with a spoonful of it at a time, roll the dough between your palms into 1-inch balls. Drop each ball into the wheat germ and turn to coat, then place the balls on one of the baking sheets, leaving about 1 inch of space between them(these don't spread much). Use your palm or the bottom of a glass to gently flatten each cookie. Bake the cookies one sheet at a time, for 10 to 12 minutes, or until they are just firm to the touch. Transfer the cookies to a rack to cool to room temperature. Repeat with remaining dough. Storing: The cookies will keep at room temperature for about 3 days or wrapped airtight in the freezer for up to 2 months.

Snickerdoodles

It's been a snowy week here in Philadelphia! We had 2 big Nor'easters in the last week. Needless to say I didn't make it into work yesterday so I decided to do some baking while I was "working from home."

As you know from previous posts, I have a Magnolia Bakery cookbook, More From Magnolia: Recipes from the World Famous Bakery and Allysa Torey's Home Kitchen. I really need to bake more from this cookbook because I'm always satisfied with the end product.

Snickerdoodles are one of my favorite cookies and I've try other recipes in the past but this recipe might be my favorite. They're easy to make but they do require 2 hrs of chill time so they're not the right cookie if you're looking to be done quick.

Ingredients:

2 1/2	cups all-purpose flour
2	teaspoons cream of tartar
1	teaspoon baking soda
1/4	teaspoon salt
1	cup unsalted butter
1 1/2	cups sugar
2	large eggs
2	tablespoons milk
1	teaspoon vanilla extract
6	tablespoons sugar
2	teaspoons cinnamon

Directions

1. In a small bowl, combine the flour, cream of tartar, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
   
   
2. In a large bowl, cream the butter and sugar until smooth, about 2 minutes. Add the eggs, milk, and vanilla and beat well. Add the dry ingredients and mix thoroughly. Wrap the dough tightly with plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerator for 2 hours.
   
   
3. Preheat oven to 350?F.
   
   
4. Drop by rounded teaspoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheets, leaving several inches between for expansion. (I recommend leaving extra room between these cookies because they spread more than most.) Sprinkle generously with the cinnamon sugar mixture. Bake for 12-14 minutes.
   
   
5. Cool the cookies on the sheets for 5 minutes, and then remove to a wire rack to cool completely.

Christmas Tree Cookies

An excuse to use my new cookie press! If you don't have a cookie press- I suggest you get one! Baking season is here and the cookie press makes great cookies. I got my recipe from Martha. The cookies turned out great. They're rich and buttery! You can get really creative with these cookies. I dyed the dough to make some green Christmas trees. With plenty of shapes you can make these cookies at any time of the year.

*You can find the recipe here

Iced Pumpkin Cookies

As soon as September hits I start craving fall flavors; especially PUMPKIN!! I got this recipe from allrecipes.com. It got great ratings and after making and eating them I agree! These Cookies are a great taste of fall. They're perfect for the holidays and very easy to make. They have a cake like consistency. The pumpkin puree helps keep them super moist! This recipe makes about 34 cookies.

Ingredients:
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 1/2 cups white sugar
1 cup canned pumpkin puree
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 cups confectioners' sugar
3 tablespoons milk
1 tablespoon melted butter
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, ground cloves, and salt; set aside.

In a medium bowl, cream together the 1/2 cup of butter and white sugar. Add pumpkin, egg, and 1 teaspoon vanilla to butter mixture, and beat until creamy. Mix in dry ingredients. Drop on cookie sheet by tablespoonfuls; flatten slightly.

Bake for 15 to 20 minutes in the preheated oven. Cool cookies, then drizzle glaze with fork.

To Make Glaze:

Combine confectioners' sugar, milk, 1 tablespoon melted butter, and 1 teaspoon vanilla. Add milk as needed, to achieve drizzling consistency.