Use Your Words

It's not like I'm an award winning author for goodness sake!  It seems impossible that I'm suffering from writer's block with my little ol' blog.  But, I am, sigh.  I baked these little gems for the holidays - twice.  They were that good.  I've been wanting to share them with you, but I just couldn't find the words.  

The first time I tasted these cookies I was utterly giddy, ridiculously happy, and quite anxious to write about them.  They were awesome.  When baked, the result becomes a buttery tender cookie that pops with the taste and the color of cranberry.  If you're not a cranberry fan, I imagine that you could substitute the cranberries for another fruit, though I couldn't do it.  Not after I tasted them.  The cranberries add the music to the dull dinner party.  

So, I can't explain why I had such writer's block.  Sometimes, I suppose, you just need to curl up in a comfy chair, close your eyes as you remember the aroma of fresh baked cookies, and then use your words.


Cranberry Walnut Cookies

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon of coarse salt

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

1 cup packed light brown sugar

1/2 cup granulated sugar

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 1/2 cups dried cranberries

1 1/2 cups chopped walnuts

1 1/2 cups sweetened shredded coconut

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt in a bowl. Set aside.

Cream butter and sugars in a mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time and mix until just combined.  Reduce speed to low and slowly add the flour mixture. Mix until just combined. Don't over mix. Stir in cranberries, walnuts, and coconut.

Drop batter by heaping tablespoons onto baking sheets lined with a silicone mat or parchment paper, spacing 2 inches apart. Flatten slightly. Bake cookies until golden brown, 12 to 15 minutes. Transfer to a wire wrack to cool.

Snap, Crackle, Pop

There are so many wonderful things to say about a roaring fire. When there is a chill in the air, the warmth soothes your soul. Mesmerizing - watching the constant flicker of the flames brings calm.   The smell of a well-built fire brings memories of  childhood camping trips with roasted hot dogs and s'mores.  

The sound.  The snap, crackle, and pop of fresh logs on a fire becomes music to the audience intently watching the flickering flames.  

So, as I was sitting by the fire sipping my hot chocolate, the snap, crackle and pop of the fire reminded me of a favorite childhood cookie.  Chocolate Crackles.  I have it on personal authority that these little gems are Santa's favorite.  When I was a child, these cookies were my gift to Santa on Christmas Eve.  He always managed to leave a powdered sugar trail next to his empty glass of milk.   So as you contemplate your holiday baking, make sure you include a batch of these little wonders.  Once you taste these decadent treats, you'll never hear a fire the same way again.

Chocolate Crackles

adapted from Martha Stewart's Cookies

8 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 teaspoon of salt

1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature

1/2 cups packed light brown sugar

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/3 cup milk

1 cup granulated sugar

1 cup confectioners' sugar

Melt chocolate over a double boiler, taking care not to get any water in the chocolate.  You can also microwave the chocolate in 15 second increments, stirring in between until melted.  Once melted, set aside and cool.

Meanwhile, sift together flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, and salt.  

With an electric mixer with a paddle attachment, cream butter and brown sugar until pale and fluffy.  Add eggs and vanilla, beating until incorporated. Add melted chocolate and mix well.

With the mixer on low speed add 1/2 flour, then the milk, then the remaining flour.  Take care to mix well between each addition.   Divide dough into four equal pieces and wrap each one in plastic.  Refrigerate until firm, about 2 hours. 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Pinch off enough dough to roll into a 1-inch ball.  Roll it to completely cover it in granulated sugar.  Then roll it into confectioner's sugar to coat generously.

Space each cookie about 2 inches apart on a silicone baking mat.  Bake until the surfaces crack like the picture.  They take about 14 minutes.  Let cookies cool on wire wracks.  

A Spoonful of Sugar

Baking with a child can be magical. Not in the enchanted forest way, but in a "fill your heart" happy way. Every little detail of the recipe occurs with presence. Whether it is cracking an egg or sifting the flour, a million questions are asked and hopefully patiently answered. There is total awareness of each step accompanied by thoughtful explanation. I am training another baker, after all!

So, when I found myself curled up on the couch with MaryJo, I was delighted when she wanted to bake. She really loves baking with her Aunt Nay Nay! I am so lucky. Our ritual is the same, she grabs a cookbook from my shelf and begins searching for the perfect recipe. She narrows it down to a few choices, and once we read the instructions, the pantry and timing help us make a decision. On this particular day, Molasses Spiced Cookies took the honor.


Baking is very therapeutic for me. When I am baking solo, there are times when I drift into the zone. It's more of a zen-like state, but nevertheless, I am baking and thinking - but not about each other. When you add a child to the mix, it's all about the baking. You are thinking about the ingredients, the techniques, and the "whys". And, at the end of the day, when it's time to sprinkle the cookies with sugar, the sugar becomes the pixie dust ending for this magical day.

This is the time of year when holiday baking goes into full gear. There are many cookies, cakes, pies, and confections to mix, stir, and bake. With Christmas parties and family gatherings, many goodies are expected, if not required.

So for the next few weeks, I will be posting more frequently. I have so much to share with you! Enjoy! And remember, when you need a little pixie dust, grab a child and get baking!





Molasses Cookies
adapted from Baking From My Home to Yours by Dorie Greenspan

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 1/2 teaspoons ground ginger

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon all-spice

Pinch of black pepper

1 1/2 sticks of unsalted butter, room temperature

1 cup of packed light brown sugar

1/2 cup of molasses

1 egg

about 3/4 cup sugar for rolling and sprinkling

Whisk together the dry ingredients: flour, baking soda, salt, ginger, cinnamon, allspice and pepper. This ensures they are well distributed. With a mixer, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. And the brown sugar and molasses and beat until incorporated. Add the egg and beat until combined. Slowly add the flour, beating until just incorporated. Take care not to over mix once you add the flour. The last few turns of the spatula are best done by hand. You will have a creamy, soft dough. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for a least one hour.

When you are ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line your cookie sheets with parchment silicone mats. Put the sugar in a small bowl. Pinch off enough dough to form a 1-inch ball. Roll the dough between your palms to form a ball. Then roll the ball in the sugar to coat evenly. Place on the cookie sheet - two inches apart. Using a flat object, slightly press on the cookie dough to flatten. You are aiming for a thickness between 1/4 and 1/2 inch.

Bake the cookies for 12-14 minutes. When done, sprinkle the tops with sugar and transfer to a cooling rack.

Vanilla Shortbread Cookies - Take Two

I have to thank Mandy from Fresh Out of the Oven.  I was reading her blog about Vanilla shortbread and knew that I had to make it.  I was hooked after reading the words, "Chef Thomas Keller".  He is the famed chef from the award winning restaurant, The French Laundry. I had the pleasure of dining in this most special restaurant - once.  I will never forget the morsels of food that graced my lips.  I was especially fond of the vanilla shortbread cookies that were given as a gift at the end of the meal.   As soon as I saw this recipe, I knew I had to bake these buttery wonders.  

I promptly went out and bought Claire Clark's Indulge: 100 Perfect Desserts.  Clair Clark happens to be Thomas Keller's pastry chef at The French Laundry.  Well, the recipes are written in the metric system.  So, my first try was a bit off.  Let's just say I didn't do a good job in the translation of the measurements.  The recipe is quite simple with only a few ingredients: butter, flour, caster sugar, and vanilla bean.  Because I didn't have caster sugar, I sifted granulated sugar.  I also don't think my flour to butter ratio was right.  As I was mixing the dough, it felt too sticky - almost as if there was too much butter.  I had a difficult time cutting out rounds.  I was hoping to use a small biscuit cutter to bake small little cookies.  It was just too sticky.  So, I began to shape them in long biscuits.  As they baked, they ignored all of my hopes and dreams.  They decided to flatten out and meld together. 

So, I did what any good friend would do - I scooped them up in a baggy and game them to my girlfriend Fran. She served them at tea, and said they were a hit.  She is such a good friend, always trying to salvage my ego.   At least they tasted yummy. 

Well,  I wasn't satisfied.  This bugged me for two days.  So, I went back to the drawing board - or back to my rolling pin. I surfed through cyberspace back to Fresh From the Oven and again gazed at how Mandy's shortbread came out so beautifully.  I was a little jealous.  So, I did what I should have done in the first place - I followed her adapted recipe.  Take a look at that beautiful cookie!  I was so happy.

Not only was the dough not sticky, I was able to roll it out perfectly.  It was a breeze to cut out my rounds.   You can see the tiny specks of vanilla throughout.  They smelled heavenly.  I decided to package them in little gift bags to give to a few girlfriends.  And yes, they tasted great.  Thank you, Mandy!

Vanilla Shortbread

originally by Indulge: 100 Perfect Desserts

Adapted by Fresh from the Oven

225g/8 oz all purpose flour

75g/2 3/4 oz caster sugar

1 vanilla pod

150g/ 5 1/2 oz unsalted butter, at room temperature

50g/ 1 3/4 oz granulated sugar, for dusting

(Mandy's conversions)

1 3/4 cup + 1 tablespoon all purpose flour

1/3 cup confectioners' sugar

1 vanilla pod

11 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature

granulated sugar, for dusting

Preheat the oven to 350F.  Sift the flour and confectioners' sugar into a large mixing bowl. Using a sharp knife, slit the vanilla pod open lengthways and scrape out the seeds with the tip of the knife.  Add the seeds to the bowl, along with the butter.  Using your fingertips, rub the butter into the dry ingredients.  As the mixture begins to come together, use your hands to help it form a dough.  Shape the dough into a ball and flatten it slightly.  Roll out on a lightly floured surface to about 1/2 inch thick.  Cut into your desired shape and place them on a baking sheet lined with a silpat or parchment paper.  Bake for 15 minutes, then turn the baking sheet around and continue baking for 10 minutes, until the shortbread is golden brown. Remove from the oven and dust with an even coating of granulated sugar.  Leave on baking sheet to cool.