Ridiculously Simple Cookies

Janet here: I had planned to kick off the week with a Meatless Monday casserole as part of my fixation with Faith Durand's new cookbook, Not Your Mother's Casseroles. But then I saw a recipe for cookies without flour or butter, and I thought...Really? Is this possible? Will they be even remotely edible?

Yes. And yes.

I guess it makes sense on some level since flourless tortes have been around for a while. But cookies?

Yes. And yes.

These take about 2 minutes to whip up and 10 minutes to bake and then you can be stuffing your face with deliciousness. I'm not kidding.

I also think they just might be less caloric sans the flour and butter. I haven't studied that in depth of course, but that's my story and I'm sticking with it.

Flourless/Butterless Chocolate Chunk Peanut Butter Cookies
makes about 16

ingredients
1 cup peanut butter (I used creamy but I suspect chunky would work too)
1 cup brown sugar, lightly packed
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 egg
1/2 cup or so chocolate chunks

THAT IS IT.

method
Heat oven to 400 degrees. Whip the first four ingredients together. Add the chocolate chunks. Place dollops on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake 10 minutes. Let cool on the sheet. Try not to eat more than one.

The Best Cookie Cookbook EVER!

Janet here:

Rachel and I are going to take a week off while we actually visit each in person — and the Divine Miss M!!! — instead of virtually through this blog. We'll come back July 18 with new recipes, new ideas for the blog (lots of good things coming folks), and plenty of M squeezes and hugs for me.

But before we sign off, I leave you with this note. I have got my cookie baking mojo back and I can entirely thank Tina Casaceli from Milk + Cookies Bakery and her fabulous new cookie cookbook called Milk + Cookies, published by Chronicle Books.

I originally reviewed it here and included a recipe for chocolate chip macadamia nut cookies.

Since then I've made four different recipes from the book (including the fabulous scotchies pictured here) and they have all taken my cookie baking to a meteoric level. If you only buy one cookbook for cookies, this should be the one. And in the meantime, Rachel, consider yourself warned: I'm back in the cookie baking business and I'm taking no prisoners. Your day in the sun is over.

The Secret to the Best Cookies Ever

Janet here: Yup, I'm still obsessed with making better cookies. (You can read my rantings on the topic here and here.) I am happy to report that I think I'm on to something thanks to Tina Casaceli.

Tina Casaceli is the chef/owner of Milk & Cookies Bakery in Greenwich Village, a reason in and of itself for me to make going to NYC a top priority. She is also the author of a new book called, obviously, Milk & Cookies by Chronicle Books. She is also clearly a cookie goddess.

Her cookbook will have you drooling at the cover. She cleverly divides her cookies — she also has some bar and brownie recipes — into dough chapters, i.e. those with vanilla dough, those with chocolate dough, those with sugar dough, those with oatmeal dough, and those with peanut butter dough. Then she just tells you what to add to make the cookies of your choice — or in my case a cookie of my own based on her inspiration.

Now we get to the secret: she kneads her cookie dough. That's right, with her hands. While she starts out with a mixer, Tina ends her basic cookie dough creating with kneading. This is a little messy but boy the results are unbelievable.

Her vanilla dough also includes ground-up rolled oats, which adds a lovely texture and allows those of us who like to eat more than a few homemade cookies feel as if we're eating something more nutritional. (Don't pop my bubble!)

Anyway I'm sharing her basic vanilla dough recipe and my inclusion of white macadamia nuts and semi-sweet chocolate chips. For the rest you're going to have to buy the book...which you should. No joke. (And Rachel, I am so ready to take you on in a cookie bake-off!)



Basic Vanilla Dough
makes about 2 dozen cookies

ingredients
2 1/2 cups (7 1/2 ounces) old-fashioned rolled oats
2 cups (8 ounces) all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups (12 ounces) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup (7 ounces) sugar
1 cup (7 ounces) light brown sugar
2 large eggs, room temperature
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

method
Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Line two baking sheets with silicone baking mats or parchment paper.

Put the oats in the bowl of a food processor and process until finely ground. Transfer to a mixing bowl. Stir in the flour, baking powder,baking soda and salt. Set aside.

Put the butter in the bowl of a standing mixer with a paddle. Beat on low speed to soften. Increase the speed to medium and beat for about 3 minutes until light and creamy. With the motor running, gradually add the sugar and then the brown sugar, beating until very light and creamy.

Add the eggs one at a time and beat to incorporate. Beat in the vanilla and when blended, slowly beat in the reserved dry mixture. While the dough is still streaky, remove the bowl from the mixer and scrape the paddle clean.

Lightly flour a clean work surface. Scrape the dough onto the floured surface. Lightly flour your hands and finish mixing the dough by a gentle kenading motion, working until the dough is just blended. Do not overwork the dough; you want to be certain all of the ingredients are blended together.

Now you add whatever ingredients you are using. I added 2 cups chopped macadamia nuts and 2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips. Mix them in with a large wooden spoon. I put mine back in the bowl to do this.

Using a small ice-cream scoop or tablespoon, make mounds of dough and roll them into balls about 1 1/2 inches around. Place the balls on the sheet and then gently flatten with your palm.

Bake for about 15 minutes or until lightly browned around the edges. Transfer to a wire rack to cool....and then try to just eat one.

Peanut Butter + Snickers Bars = Heavenly

Regular readers may see a pattern evolving here. Rachel posts some incredibly healthy concoction like the hummus she made recently, and I counter it with some decidedly not-healthy but oh-so-tasty and good-for-the-soul sugarfest.

Hence today's post on peanut butter Snickers bar cookies. I remain inspired by the stuffing cookie concept first started by Picky Palate (at least for me) and then continued by every creative, candy crunching chocoholic in the culinary world. If Oreos work, why not Heath bars? Why not Butterfingers?

And why not peanut butter cookies with some chopped up Snickers bars thrown in?

So I took it upon myself to give these a whirl. Peter proclaimed them a little on the dry side. I took them to a baking event thrown by the orchestra I play in and while they did not win, a number of people voted for them and proclaimed them tasty. I, meanwhile, have eaten most of what's left over so there it is. I will say this as a further inducement: the caramel in the Snickers melts into this divine gooey mess while hot and into a more toffee delight after the cookie cools.

Let us know what you think.



Peanut Butter Snickers Bar Cookies

ingredients
1 1/4 cups flour
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 cup softened butter, unsalted
pinch of salt
1 cup cream peanut butter
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1 egg
2 tablespoons milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
about 1 1/2 cups chopped up Snickers bars
3/4 cup milk chocolate chips

method
Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Cream together the butter and sugars. Add the peanut butter and beat until smooth. Add the eggs. Beat again. Add the dry ingredients and beat until creamy. Add in the milk and stir. Then add the Snickers pieces and milk chocolate chips. Stir until blended.

Drop in large spoonfuls on a cookie sheet. Bake for 10-11 minutes. Don't overcook. Cool on the sheet for a minute before adding to a cookie rack to cool further.

Did Someone Say Brownies?

As soon as Sandi sent this recipe and I saw the pictures, I wanted to make them immediately. The only reason I haven't made them yet is because of the holidays. I can guarantee, however, that they will be on the baking radar this coming weekend.

I've eaten Sandi's food and a few of her baked goods, and I can attest that this is a woman who knows her way around the kitchen. So, folks, trust this recipe and get baking! But you don't have to take my word for it: Here's what Sandi has to say about these scrumptious delights...

I’m not sure how long I have been baking these brownies, but I know that they are the consensus favorite among our sons, their families and friends. Then there’s my brother, who started the tradition of eating them frozen — and who still checks the freezer immediately on his arrival. Don’t block his path to the kitchen!

It’s an easy recipe, especially if you have a kitchen scale and use the weight measure for the peanut butter instead of trying to pile it into a measuring cup. Don’t use the “all natural” kind of peanut butter or the brownies will be unattractively oily. It’s worth the effort to have mini chips on hand, since they do distribute more evenly, but you can use any size chip you like.

The only trick is to watch the baking time, since they overbake quite easily. I also try to remember to rotate the pan halfway through so that they brown evenly.

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Brownies

ingredients
2/3 cup unsalted butter
1 cup smooth peanut butter—9.25 oz. by weight.
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup packed light brown sugar
4 eggs
2 teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
2 cups unbleached white flour
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
12 ounces chocolate mini-chips

method
Heat oven to 350 degrees.

Cream the butter and peanut butter together with the sugar until it lightens. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each one. Add vanilla. Gradually add flour, then the chips.

Spread in a greased 12x17 inch (half-sheet, jellyroll) pan and bake on the center rack for 30-35 minutes. Let cool in pan and then cut.

And one more photo to get you salivating.....

Ode to Banana Bread

Janet here: I was feeling a little verklempt about everyone having flown the coop (see my post here) and generally wanting to bake, which is what I often want to do when I'm feeling a little blue but also feeling as if there was no one to bake for (sorry Peter but you can only eat so much), and then I had one of those AHA moments and remembered we have a freezer. Duh!

So, inspired by making zucchini bread (which was seriously fantastic thanks to the molasses and applesauce; I strongly encourage you to try it out), I looked at the very ripe bananas on the table and decided to make banana bread. Not just any banana bread, mind you, but one with chocolate chips adapted from Anna Getty's Easy Green Organic, one of my new favorite cookbooks.

While I generally feel as if just about every baked good can benefit from the addition of chocolate chips, I did worry a bit these might be overkill. I mean chocolate chips in a typically breakfast bread? Really?

The answer is a definitive yes — even from Peter, who is not someone who indulges in chocolate in the morning the way some of us do — okay I do — but who does eat this for breakfast ... happily.

Rachel here: I love banana bread, like love it love it. I found what I've figured is a completely perfect banana bread recipe and haven't looked back since. It's what I make for people I love when they hit a rough run and I've been known to overnight it across the country. Anyway, the recipe I usually use can be found here. Next time (and I have two brown bananas in my freezer...one more and I'm baking...I wasn't kidding that I love banana bread), though, I'm giving my mom's recipe a shot (oh, and hey Ma-I really like your tablecloth).

Banana Bread with Chocolate Chips
Anna got this from her good friend, Julie, who adapted it by adding chocolate chips. I adapted further by using butter instead of soy margarine

ingredients
2 cups flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 stick butter
2 teaspoons vanilla
1/4 cup buttermilk
2 eggs, beaten
3 very ripe bananas, mashed (about 1 1/2 cups)
1/2 cup dark chocolate chips
1/2 cup chopped walnuts

walnut topping
1/4 cup ground walnuts
1 tablespoon brown sugar

method
Heat oven to 350 degrees

Mix together the flour, salt and baking soda. In another bowl cream together the sugar and butter. Stir in the vanilla and buttermilk. Add the eggs and bananas and mix well. Add the dry ingredients, stirring until just combined. Fold in chocolate chips and walnuts.

Pour batter into a loaf pan. To make topping, mix ground walnuts and brown sugar. Sprinkle over batter.

Bake 1 hour and 15 minutes. Let cool in pan before serving.

Cookies for All

Janet here: Yes, it's true, we're kicking off this holiday week with a posting about cookies. Regular readers realize that we believe strongly that a day without cookies is a questionable day indeed. I always feel better after baking cookies, and I feel pretty darn good after eating one warm from the oven. It's the proverbial win-win.

You can feel particularly good about making and eating these cookies. They're oatmeal after all. It's fiber for God's sake! Yes, there are milk chocolate chips too, but fiber!

Anyway, I put in chocolate chips and pecans this time, but one of the things I like about these cookies if you really can add anything you want. Hope you enjoy them.

Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Pecan Cookies

Ingredients
2 sticks of butter, softened
1 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugard
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 cups old-fashioned oats
1 cup chocolate chips
1 cup pecan pieces

Method
Heat oven to 350 degrees. Beat together butter and sugars until creamy. Add eggs and vanilla and beat well. Add combined flour, baking soda and salt. Mix well. Stir in chips and pecans or whatever else you're adding.

Drop by rounded tablespoonfuls onto cookie sheet. Bake 10-12 minutes or until golden brown.

Cool one minute on cookie sheet; then remove to wire rack.

Feeling lazy? Put the whole shebang into a 13X9-inch baking pan and bake 30-35 minutes to make bars instead.


Rachel here: Oh, cookies. This weekend I made glazed molasses-spice cookies (from "The Best Recipe" by Cook's Illustrated...of course), mostly because I'd never made them before. I sort of figured I'd have to send John off to work with a bunch of them because I didn't think we'd be all that into them. Don't get me wrong--I thought we'd like them--just not in that eat-a-dozen-each kind of way. I was seriously, seriously wrong. The flavor and texture to these cookies was perfect.

You know when you really love someone and you unwittingly make them really happy? It is one of the great little surprises in life, I think, and such a good feeling. Anyway, while I have definitely enjoyed my fair share of these cookies, John unexpectedly went gaga for them. I think even he was surprised by how much he liked these cookies. It was a simple and happy little development in our weekend and I made a little note in my cookbook for some future rainy day when my man could use a little pick-me-up or when I just want to make something to show him I'm thinking about him and I love him.


Glazed Molasses-Spice Cookies
makes 15-20 large cookies

Ingredients
2 1/4 c. all-purpose flour
2 tspn. baking soda
1/2 tspn. salt
1 1/2 tspn. cinnamon
1 tspn. ginger
3/4 tspn. cloves
1/4 tspn. allspice
12 T. unsalted butter, softened
1/2 c. dark brown sugar, packed
1/2 c. granulated sugar, plus 1/3 c. for rolling cookies
1 large egg
1 tspn. vanilla extract
1/3 c. unsulphured molasses
1 1/4 c. confectioners' sugar
2 T. milk


Method
Preheat your oven to 375 degrees. Whisk together flour, baking soda, salt and spices and set aside. Cream together the butter, brown sugar and white granulated sugar until fluffy. Add egg, vanilla and molasses, beating until combined. Add dry ingredients and stir until just combined. Place remaining 1/3 c. of granulated sugar in a shallow bowl. Roll dough into balls, using approximately 2 T. of dough per ball. Roll each ball in the bowl of sugar before placing on baking sheet. Bake, rotating halfway through, until the centers are soft and puffy and the edges are just beginning to set. These cookies will not look as done as you're probably used to and you don't want them to; this is key for establishing their super soft texture. If your cookies get hard as they cool or by the next day, then next time try cooking them less.
Cool cookies. Once completely cooled, sift confectioners sugar and stir in milk until smooth. Using a spoon, drizzle the glaze over your cookies (I suggest doing this over a piece of wax paper for easy clean up). Let set and enjoy.