Tag Archive for cookies

FFF | February 22, 2010
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Nutella Chocolate Pizzelle Sandwiches

If your diet starts every Monday like mine, then I’m sorry to tempt you today with these delicious Nutella filled Italian cookies, but my foodie friend Natalie from Natalie’s Killer Cuisine issued a recipe challenge and I just had to enter.  She is hosting this week’s BSI Secrect Ingredient Challenge and selected Cocoa Powder as her weapon of choice.  As soon as I saw this I knew I had to enter as it would force me to finally make these special cookies that I’ve been meaning to get to since the holidays.

For those of you unfamiliar with a Pizzelle (pronounced Pit-zel) they are an Italian wafer cookie made using a specialty iron or press to create their unique pattern which resembles a snowflake.  The consistency of the cookies is like that of a waffle cone, and depending on the flavors added can certainly be made to taste like one.  My boyfriend’s grandmother is a wonderful little Italian woman and she is famous for making Pizzelles and i’ve been saying for a while now how much I enjoyed them and would like to be able to make them.  Well for Christmas this year she was kind enough to send me my very own Pizzelle maker and ever since I have been itching to experiment making my own.

Traditional Pizzelles are made using anise extract that gives them a slightly licorice taste, but the base recipe is so simple there is a lot of room for experimentation.  Keeping in line with the recipe challenge I concocted a little piece of heaven by making them with Cocoa Powder and spreading the chocolate-hazelnut drug that is Nutella in between to make a cookie sandwich.  The end result is a perfectly crispy cookie that is rich in flavor but light and airy with just the right amount of chocolate.

Don’t have a Pizzelle maker?  Order one from the Fun Fearless Foodie Store! Perfect for making cookies and ice cream cones.

Nutella Chocolate Pizzelle Sandwiches

Makes 12 Sandwiches
Ingredients

3 large eggs
1 cup sugar
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 stick unsalted butter
1 3/4 cup flour
3 tbsp cocoa powder
2 tsp baking powder
1 cup Nutella (approx. use as much as you like)

Directions
Melt butter and set aside.  Beat eggs and sugar until blended, 2-3 minutes.  Add in melted butter and vanilla and beat until blended.
In a separate bowl sift together the dry ingredients.  Fold the dry ingredients into the egg mixture and mix until incorporated.
Heat pizzelle iron and brush with vegetable oil.  When iron is hot, place 1 tbsp batter on each grid just behind the center of the pattern.  Bake for 30-40 seconds.  Remove and cool on a wire rack.
Continue process above until all the batter is used up.
When pizzelles are almost cool, spread some of the Nutella on one side and sandwich another pizzelle on top.  Repeat until all pizzelles are used.
Enjoy immediately or wrap in parchment and place in a plastic bag and cool in the refrigerator.
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FFF | January 10, 2010
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Ad Hoc Chocolate Chip Cookies

Fresh baked chocolate chip cookies are one of those sinful treats that no matter where you are, if you’re hungry or not, you have to have one (or at least I do)!

I admit, I am not an expert in cookie making and when it comes to baking i’m still clumsy in the kitchen.  Baking is so much more exact than cooking so I shy away from it, not because I can’t do it, but it’s just so much work!  Thankfully the fabulous, world renowned chef Thomas Keller has provided me with a simple and incredibly scrumptious recipe for chocolate chip cookies from his new cookbook, Ad Hoc at Home, and it is has taken the title of “best cookie I’ve ever made”.

If you haven’t seen a copy or heard of Ad Hoc at Home, it is an incredible cookbook with some of the most captivating food photography I have ever seen, it is a must have for sure. (click the following link to purchase a discounted copy from the Fun Fearless Foodie store Ad Hoc at Home).

These cookies are so buttery and have the perfect balance of salt and sugar.  Keller calls for a 50/50 blend of dark chocolate but I had Ghirardelli milk chocolate chips in my pantry and they give the cookies and even creamier consistency.  Warning, these cookies will go fast.

Ad Hoc Chocolate Chip Cookies

Courtesy Thomas Keller

Makes 32 cookies

Ingredients

  • 2 1/3 cups plus 1 tablespoon all purpose flour
  • 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 5 ounces 55% chocolate (about 1 1/4 cups) cut into chip-sized pieces
  • 5 ounces 72% chocolate, cut into chip-sized pieces
  • OR 10 ounces chocolate chips of your choice
  • 1/2 pound (2 sticks) cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
  • 1 cup packed dark brown sugar
  • 3/4 cup granulated sugar
  • 2 large eggs

Directions

  1. Position the oven racks in the lower and upper thirds of the oven and pre heat to 350 degrees.
  2. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
  3. In a medium mixing bowl sift the flour and baking soda, then stir in the salt.
  4. If using chocolate bars: put the chips in a fine mesh basket strainer and shake to remove any chocolate dust.
  5. In the bowl of a stand mixer (or large bowl if using a hand mixer) fitted with the paddle attachment, beat half the butter on medium speed until smooth.
  6. Add both sugars and remaining butter and continue mixing until well combined, then a minute more to create a light and creamy consistency.
  7. Scrape down the sides of the bowl then add the eggs one at a time, beating until the first one is fully incorporated before adding the next.
  8. Add the flour mixture and mix on low speed to combine.
  9. Fold in the chocolate using a rubber spatula.
  10. Place 2 tablespoon size dollops of dough onto the parchment lined baking sheet, leaving about 2 inches between each cookie as they will expand.
  11. Bake for 13-14 minutes, or until the tops are no longer shiny and have a golden color.
  12. Cool the cookies completely on the sheets on top of cooling racks for about two minutes to firm up, then transfer to the racks to cool completely.
  13. Repeat to bake remaining cookies.

The dough or shaped cookies can be refrigerated, well wrapped, for up to 5 days, or frozen for 2 weeks.  Freeze shaped cookies on a baking sheet until hardened, then transfer to freezer safe containers.  To use again, defrost the cookies in the fridge overnight before baking.

Enjoy these little bits of heaven and share with someone you love!

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FFF | December 16, 2009
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Love and a Snickerdoodle

Ah the Snickerdoodle, it’s so much more than just a cookie with a fun name, to me, they are a transport to a memory I will cherish forever.  Growing up, both my Mom and Dad worked so during the day I was taken care of by one of the most wonderful women that ever lived, my Margie.

MargieI had the fortune and blessing to be carefully watched from infancy to grade school by Margie, who at the time she started taking care of me was a 65 year old, 4 foot 11 widow with beauty and sass.  You would have never known her age as she kept up with me running around and continued to do so with the other kids in our family for years to come. Margie was originally from Astoria, New York and the picture of an Italian grandmother.  From the day we met she just knew, and I later learned, that we would be the best of friends.

Growing up with Margie meant we spent a lot of time in the kitchen.  A grand Italian cook, Margie was famous for everything from red sauce and meatballs to pasta, but most special to my heart were her Snickerdoodles.  As a kid I would light up when it was time to make these, my job was to roll the dough in between the palms of my hands and roll them in the cinnamon and sugar.  There was something about these crunchy yet chewy cookies that made me smile.  To this day they hold such a sweet spot in my heart, i’m not sure if it’s because they taste that good or I just love the memories, but either way, if you’ve ever tried one you know they are special.

It’s been almost a year since Margie passed away, but even in her nineties Margie was a pistol and kept on cooking. Looking back I know it was her who inspired my passion for cooking and I will continue to cook to keep her memory alive.  I sincerely regret never writing down her recipe for Snickerdoodles, but I believe I found one that comes in a close second. My girlfriend’s and I are doing a cookie exchange tomorrow and I knew these would be the perfect addition.

So at eleven o’clock on this Wednesday night I am finally finished baking and just sat down to enjoy my first Snickerdoodle and a cold glass of milk and I must say, I think Margie would be proud :)

A gift for Santa

Snickerdoodles

(adapted from Mrs. Sigg’s Snickerdoodles found on allrecipes.com)

Makes 4 dozen 2 bite cookies, or 3 dozen regular size cookies

Snickerdoodles

Ingredients

  • 2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
  • 2 teaspoons cream of tartar
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 cup butter, softened
  • 1/2 cup shortening
  • 1 1/2 cups white sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 4 tablespoons white sugar
  • 4 teaspoons ground cinnamon

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Prepare 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
  2. Sift together the flour, cream of tartar, baking soda and salt.
  3. Using a hand mixer (or stand mixer if you have one) cream together butter and shortening in a mixing bowl until they become light and fluffy.
  4. Add in 1 1/2 cups sugar, the eggs, and the vanilla and blend together.
  5. Slowly add in the flour mixture and mix until well combined.Snickerdoodle Batter
  6. In a small bowl mix together the remaining sugar and cinnamon, set aside.
  7. Shape dough by rounded spoonfuls into balls and roll in the palm of your hand.
  8. Roll balls of dough in sugar mixture. Place 2 inches apart on baking sheets lined with parchment paper.Before they go in the oven
  9. Bake 8 minutes exactly, rotating the baking tray once at 4 minutes. Remove immediately from baking sheets and let cool on wire rack.

Important things to keep in mind when making Snickerdoodles:

  • Make sure your baking soda and cream of tartar are fresh and not expired.  If they are old you will end up with flat cookies.
  • Spray a little cooking spray on your hands to roll the dough into balls, it prevents it from getting sticky.
  • If you are making the full 4 dozen cookies, pop the dough in the fridge as you wait in between batches to ensure it doesn’t get too soft.  If it gets soft it will become hard to roll and will clump together in the cinnamon sugar mixture.
  • Mine cooked perfectly at 8 minutes on the nose, don’t let them sit in there any longer or they will get hard.
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