Easy Moist Chocolate Cake ... with chocolate ganache.

Easy Moist Chocolate Cake ... with chocolate ganache. I know this isn't something new... it's just chocolate cake. BUT... it's a moist cake with deep chocolate flavor. Ok, maybe most chocolate cakes can vouch for that. However, I like this cake for it's simplicity... and well, for the fact that it doesn't use 2 cups of sugar... nor does it use lots of eggs, because sometimes you only have a single egg in the fridge. I like it because it reminds me of those box cake mixes... and yet it's made from scratch. The cake is light, tender and fluffy, but with enough structure to take on a chocolate ganache.... and somehow, a slice doesn't feel too heavy when eaten with a cup of coffee.

You can make this cake using simple ingredients, but the outcome can be anything but simple... depending on how you adapt it. It's super delicious with the addition of a chocolate ganache. While I posted the basic recipe, feel free to add all sorts of flavorings to the cake or ganache (orange peel, mint, Irish cream, etc.)... a sprinkle of chopped nuts would be good too. For Christmas, crushed mint candies would be nice on top of the ganache. For Thanksgiving, you could add some warm spices to the cake batter and top the ganache with some chopped dried cranberries and maybe some crushed nuts.  The cake is simple to make and can be "stretched" to feed quite a few people....

I made this cake awhile back... a few times... and found the cake adaptable to many uses. This cake is great as a simple snack cake with powdered sugar(no ganache), also good crumbled to make cake pops... or served elegantly with ganache along with a scoop of ice cream, whipped cream or even a drizzle of raspberry coulis. However it's served, I found it worthy to post:). Hope you enjoy...

You will need: adapted from Food and Wine

Chocolate Cake

2 oz chopped chocolate, or chips

3/4 cup oil, I used extra light olive oil

1 cup sugar

1 large egg

1 TBS vanilla extract

2 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 cup Dutch-process cocoa powder, I used Hershey's dark

1 tablespoon baking soda

3/4 teaspoon salt

1 cup strong-brewed coffee, cooled

1 1/3 cup sour cream, original recipe uses 1 cup buttermilk

Ganache

1/3 cup heavy cream

3 ounces bittersweet chopped chocolate/ or chips

Optional, 

mini chocolate chips for topping

Directions:

• Preheat the oven to 350° F. 
• Oil a 12-cup Bundt pan.... I oiled and floured mine

1. In a small saucepan, melt 2 ounces of the chopped chocolate over low heat, stirring constantly. 

2. Scrape the chocolate into a medium bowl and let cool slightly. 

3. Whisk in the oil and sugar until smooth, then whisk in the egg and the vanilla extract.

4. In a small bowl, whisk the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt. 

5. Add half of the dry ingredients to the chocolate mixture along with 1/2 cup of the coffee and 1/2  of the sour cream(or buttermilk, if using); whisk until smooth. 

6. Add the remaining dry ingredients, coffee and sour cream(or buttermilk, if using)  and whisk until smooth.

7. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake in the lower third of the oven for about 45 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out with a few moist crumbs attached. 

8. Let the cake cool on a rack for 10 minutes, then turn it out and let cool completely.

9. In a small saucepan, bring the cream to a boil. Remove from heat and add the 3 ounces of chopped chocolate.  Let stand until melted, about 5 minutes. Whisk until smooth. Let the ganache glaze cool until thick but still pourable, about 5 minutes.

10. Pour the ganache over the cooled cake... sprinkle mini chips, if desired. Let the cake stand until the glaze is set, at least 30 minutes, before serving.

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Gluten-Free Beet Brownies

Gluten-Free Beetroot Brownies... I am always intrigued with different sorts of recipes... recipes that have something out of the ordinary included... such as an ingredient or a technique that's not usually expected. So when I picked up the mail the other day, I noticed our local natural food store flyer advertising the weekly sales... inside the flyer, there were also a couple of recipes. 

As you can guess, one of the recipes in the flyer was for beet brownies. I just had to make it. Why, the recipe was gluten-free as well... requiring minimal ingredients... not to mention that it looked super simple to make. Oh, and I love beets:). Just never used them in a dessert.

These brownies are real chocolaty... and while they are called brownies, they have more of a cake-like texture... but still maintaining a very moist and fudgy interior  I can easily see them doubling up as cupcakes, frosted with a natural whipped coconut frosting.  However, I think my husband wouldn't mind them with a scoop or 2 of ice cream. But since we have no ice cream in the house, he has been enjoying them straight out of the freezer:). Hope you enjoy...

Note: While the pictures show 2 beets, recipe uses only 1 beet... I was boiling another to make a savory beet salad :) ... therefore, the 2 beets in the pictures. However, you can easily double the recipe and bake in a 13x9 pan.

Tip: Feel free to top brownies with additional chunks of chocolate, chopped nuts... or adding other flavors to the batter, coffee, orange peel, etc. 

You will need: adapted from Natural Grocers

1 medium beet, cooked till soft, (about 1 cup pureed)

1⁄2 cup honey

2 TBS coconut oil

1 TBS vanilla extract

2 eggs

1 cup almond flour

1⁄2 cup cacao powder ( I used Hersheys' dark)

1 tsp baking powder

pinch of sea salt

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. 
• Line an 8x8 inch pan with parchment paper- can lightly grease paper.

1. Boil beet until easily pierced with a fork. ( I pressured cooked mine  for about 25 minutes or so).

2. Allow beet to cool before roughly chopping it and transferring it to a blender.

3. To the chopped beet, add the honey, coconut oil, and vanilla extract. Blend well until mixture is pureed finely... about a minute or so.

4. Stop blender and add the eggs and blend again until smooth... another 30 seconds or so.

5. In a large bowl, sift together the almond flour, cacao powder, baking powder and salt. 

6. Pour the beet mixture into the dry ingredients and mix well. 

7. Pour batter in prepared into 8x8 pan and level it out.

8. Bake for 35-45 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out free of crumbs. Mine baked for 35 minutes.

9. Let cool completely before cutting. I especially like to cut and serve them after they have chilled in the fridge... somehow the flavors get better in the chilling process.

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Lemon Crinkle Cookies

Lemon Crinkle Cookies... Moving on with posting more cookies in the cookie series. These lemon crinkle cookies were an absolute favorite. Such a unique and lemony cookie. Chewy and soft... and totally worth having the recipe in my recipe index. 

As much as my husband doesn't care for lemony desserts, this lemon crinkle cookie managed to be one of his very favorites... actually, it was on top of the list from all the cookies I made. So I'm excited to share the recipe... especially for all you lemony dessert fans. I think you'll enjoy this cookie... or at least I hope so:)

While the normal crinkle cookie will have you dip the cookie dough in icing sugar before baking, I felt the icing sugar could easily be omitted... it's just a thought I had as the icing sugar sort of disappears as it bakes and there's little of it left on the surface, so I think next time I'll just skip that step. Or maybe the cookie needs the dunk in the powdered sugar... I don't know:). I'll leave that up to to you.

However, what I thought went really well... was a drizzle of lemony icing sugar glaze I topped the cookies with after they had cooled. I'm sorry I didn't have the chance to photograph them with the glaze, but hopefully mentioning the glaze will be enough to give you the main idea... The thing was that the cookies not only looked pretty with the drizzle, but the glaze added yet another dimension of lemony goodness. Sort of pumped up the lemon flavor one extra notch.

The original recipe has you add some yellow food coloring as an option. If you don't mind adding food coloring  to your baked goods, then feel free to add a few drops as it will help the cookies to have that lemony look. I was tempted to add a touch of turmeric for color, but backed out of the idea as the cookies were going to be given away. Maybe next time I'll try the turmeric idea:). So here's another cookie recipe that's considered a winner. Hope you enjoy...

Wishing you all a most blessed Christmas... 

Remembering Christ's birth was for a reason... 

That we might have eternal life. 

" But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honour; that He by the grace of God should taste death for every man. " Hebrews 2:9

You will need: adapted from Cooking Classy

2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsps baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
10 TBS unsalted butter, softened
1 cup + 2 TBS granulated sugar
1 TBS lemon zest
1 large egg
1 large egg yolk
1 1/2 TBS fresh lemon juice
3/4 tsp lemon extract ( I used 1 tsp)
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup powdered sugar (optional)
lemon icing glaze optional, not pictured  (icing sugar+lemon juice to drizzling consistency)

Directions

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. 
• Line baking sheets with parchment paper

1. Whisk together flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside.
2. Using an electric mixer with paddle attachment, whip together butter, sugar and lemon zest until pale and fluffy ... scraping bowl occasionally.
3. Mix in egg then blend in egg yolk.
4. Add lemon juice, lemon extract and vanilla extract; mix until combined.
5. On low speed, slowly add in dry ingredients and mix just until combined.
6. Pour powdered sugar into a small bowl.
7. Scoop 1 1/2 tablespoon of dough and shape into a ball.
8 Drop ball in powdered sugar and roll to evenly coat.
9. Transfer cookies to prepared baking sheet and repeat with remaining dough making sure to space cookies 2-inches apart.
10 Bake in preheated oven for about 10 - 13 minutes. Cool on baking sheet several minutes then transfer to a wire rack to cool.

Note: If desired, opt to make a lemon icing sugar glaze to drizzle cookies by mixing lemon juice with icing sugar till drizzling consistency. Drizzle over cookies and allow icing to set.

Store cookies in an airtight container or freeze.

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Strawberry-Pecan Rugelach

Strawberry-Pecan Rugelach... Ok, so we've probably all heard about rugelach cookies... they've been around for a long time. Originally dating back to Jewish origin, the rugelach is a crescent type of cookie that's filled with a myriad of fillings. Rugelach cookies may be known in different countries by different names... and in Romania, rugelach are simply known as "cornulte". Romanians like to fill them with bits of Turkish delights and cover them in plenty of powdered sugar. 

The rugelach dough is a tender type of dough... normally made with plenty of butter (or lard/shortening) along with the addition of either sour cream or cream cheese. The dough usually doesn't have any type of leavening, however, there are older recipes that do use yeast to make the cookies super light and tender. The non-leavening version is a bit less complicated and has more of a crumbly texture...

What I really like about making rugelach is that you can use up those jams you may have sitting in the fridge, or those  small amounts of nuts or dried fruits you may have hanging in the freezer. And if you don't have any nuts or fruits on hand, you can simply use  a bit of jam... any flavor you prefer. In all honesty, even if you don't have any jam on hand, you can get away with a generous dusting of cinnamon-sugar filling. That's what's nice about the rugelach, you can make as many different filling variations as you like. You can even go a bit fancy and use chocolate, marzipan, or even a poppy seed filling. Lots of variations...

Because I had some strawberry jam on hand... and some pecans, my variation was simply a strawberry-pecan rugelach:). But you can make the rugelach your own. Be creative and use ingredients you have on hand. Hope you enjoy....

Tip: Dough needs to be chilled for a couple of hours or more... so plan ahead.

Ingredients: adapted from Family Baking Book (ATK)... makes about 32 cookies, recipe can easily be doubled.

For the dough:

1 stick unsalted butter, softened

4 ounces cream cheese, softened

1 tablespoon sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup (5 ounces) flour

1/8 tsp rum extract, optional

couple drops of almond extract, optional

1 tsp freshly grated orange peel

For the Filling:

1/3 cup (2 1/2 ounces) of sugar

1 tablespoon of ground cinnamon, or to taste

1/2 cup strawberry jam, can use jam of choice

1 cup (four ounces) pecans, chopped fine, can use walnuts even mini-chocolate chips

1/2 cup dried fruit of choice, cranberries, apricots golden raisins, can be omitted

2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

Topping, optional

icing sugar

Directions:

Make Dough:

1. Beat the butter, cream cheese, sugar, vanilla,  rum and almond extracts(if using), orange peel and salt together until light and fluffy.... about 3-6 minutes. 

2. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed. 

3. Reduce speed and add flour. Mix until just combined.... about 30 seconds or so.

4. Remove dough from mixer bowl and place onto a floured counter.

5. Divide dough into two equal pieces. Wrap in plastic wrap, and refrigerate until firm, about 2 hours or so. I left mine overnight in the fridge, and then took it out  to soften a bit on the counter before rolling.

• Pre-heat the oven to 375 F. 
• Line two large baking sheets with parchment.

Assemble Cookies:

1. Roll each piece of dough into an 11 inch circle, about 1/4 inch thick. I ended up using a large dinner plate to cut a nice circle, but it isn't needed.

2. Spread about 1/4 cup of the jam on top of each round. 

3. Sprinkle each with 1/2 cup of pecans. 1/4 cup dried fruit of choice, if using and 1 tablespoon of the cinnamon sugar. You could use less of the cinnamon sugar, if you like.... I did.

4. Using a pizza cutter(or knife), cut each dough round evenly into 16 wedges. 

5. Roll up each wedge(starting at the wide end) into a crescent. Place the cookies on the prepared baking sheets, with the pointed end underneath. 

6. With the pointed end of cookie on the bottom, place each cookie about two inches apart unto the prepared cookie sheet.

7. Brush the melted butter over the cookies and sprinkle with a tiny amount of the remaining cinnamon sugar.  If you use too much sugar it will eventually burn as it bakes... so use minimal amount and place it only on top of the cookie... use about a pinch.

8. Bake cookies until pale gold and slightly puffy, about 20 min. 

9. Immediately transfer the hot cookies to a wire rack... removing any burnt sugar/filling that may have leaked out around the cookie... and cool completely before serving. Don't allow the cookies to cool on the cookie sheet as it will be hard to remove the baked on sugary filling around the cookies.... and they won't look pretty.

10. Dust with icing sugar if desired.

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Oatmeal Cream Pies... and Homemade Marshmallow Fluff(no corn syrup).

Oatmeal Cream Pies... and Homemade Marshmallow Fluff(no corn syrup). Ok, so this was one of those recipes I made for the youth group this year that needed the step-by-step photos. So I've included them... and therefore the long post:).

I made the cookies totally from scratch... even the marshmallow fluff:)! And since I was going to make my own marshmallow filling, I opted to skip the corn syrup and used honey instead. If you want to use corn syrup, feel free to do so. Or if you are in a real hurry, you can just buy the marshmallow fluff. 

The nice part about this recipe is that you can skip the filling completely.... and you'll still have some wonderful cookies! The cookies are quite soft and yet chewy... and loaded with flavor. They're a treat! 

I'll admit, they aren't the healthiest of cookies when you include the filling... they 're actually a bit sweet... but ... once in a while... they are worth it:). Interestingly, I ended up cutting the cookies in half... felt better about it:). 

A fun little project that makes some delicious cookies. Hope you enjoy...

"What shall I render unto the Lord for all His benefits toward me?

I will offer to Thee the sacrifice of Thanksgiving, 

And will call upon the name of the Lord." 

Psalm 116: 12,17

Wishing all my readers a most blessed Thanksgiving!

You will need: adapted from Cooking Classy

Tip: I found it easier to freeze the cookies before filling. The cookies are quite soft and can break easily, so if they are frozen it makes it easy to spread the filling without having the cookies crack. 

1 3/4 cups + 2 TBS all-purpose flour

1 cup quick oats, slightly ground in a food processor to about half their size

2 tsps cocoa powder

2 tsps cornstarch

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

3/4 tsp salt

3/4 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp ground nutmeg

1/4 tsp ground ginger

1/2 cup butter, softened

1/2 cup coconut oil, not melted

1 cup + 1TBS granulated sugar

2 1/2 TBS molasses

2 large eggs

2 tsp vanilla extract

Marshmallow Fluff/Creme: adapted from CHOW

¾ cup granulated sugar

½ cup honey 

¼ cup water

Pinch of salt

2 egg whites, at room temperature

¼ teaspoon cream of tartar

1-2 teaspoons vanilla extract, or use vanilla beans from 1/2 vanilla pod

Marshmallow Buttercream Filling: adapted from Cooking Classy

1/2 cup butter,  at room temperature, maybe a little bit colder

1- 1 1/2 cup powdered sugar (I used only 1 cup)

1/2 vanilla bean pod, seeds only (or use extract to taste)

8 oz. marshmallow fluff/creme(homemade or bought)

DIRECTIONS:

Make Marshmallow Fluff/Creme 

Note:You can also whip the eggs ahead to soft peaks and then make the syrup... this way you don't have 2 things going on at the same time.

1. Combine the sugar, honey, water and salt in a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Boil, stirring occasionally, until the mixture reaches 240 degrees F on a candy thermometer.

While the sugar mixture is boiling: 

2. Add  egg whites and cream of tartar to a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment. 

3. Whip on medium-high speed till  soft peaks. Turn off mixer. 

4. When the sugar mixture reaches 240 degrees F. remove from heat and turn the mixer speed to low .

5. With mixer running, slowly drizzle the syrup down the side of the mixer bowl. Once all of the syrup has been added, increase the speed to medium-high and beat until stiff, glossy peaks form... and the mixture has cooled substantially. This should take about about 7- 9 minutes. 

6. During the last minute or two of beating, add vanilla extract or beans, if using

7. Use immediately, or store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.

Make and Bake Oatmeal Cookies

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. 
• Line baking sheets with parchment paper

1. In a mixing bowl, whisk together flour, oats, cocoa powder, cornstarch, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger. Set set aside.

2. Using a  paddle attachment of an electric mixer, whip together butter, coconut oil, sugar and molasses on medium-high speed until pale and fluffy, about 2 minutes. 

3. Mix in eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition. 

4. Stir in vanilla extract. 

5. Slowly add in dry ingredients and mix until well combined. Refrigerate dough while you clean up. 

6. Using a 1 1/2 TBS ice cream scoop, form and shape dough into balls. You can slightly flatten balls a bit.

7. Bake in preheated oven 10 - 12 minutes ... I baked mine for exactly 10 minutes, you don't want to overbake cookies, as they should still be a bit soft. 

8. Allow cookies to cool for a few minutes on the cookie sheet before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely. Cookies are quite fragile so be careful when spreading filling. You might want to refrigerate or even freeze them for a  bit so that they don't break on you. 

9. Spread marshmallow buttercream filling along bottom side of one cookie and place another cookie to make a sandwich. 

10. Store cookies in an airtight container at room temperature. 

Note: I stored my unfilled cookies in the freezer... and then defrosted them slightly before filling them 

Make Marshmallow Buttercream Filling: You know, if you want, you can totally skip the butter and additional sugar and simply use the marshmallow fluff alone... it will be a bit softer but it works:) 

1. Using the paddle attachment of an electric mixer, whip butter on medium-high speed, until pale and fluffy, about 3 - 4 minutes. 

2. Add powdered sugar and blend on low speed until combined, then increase speed to medium-high and whip for an extra minute. 

3. Mix in marshmallow fluff and thoroughly combine.

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Pecan Sandies... with chocolate and caramel topping

Pecan Sandies... with chocolate and caramel topping. Here's another cookie in the cookie series I've been posting lately.

This cookie was actually considered as a finalist in a Christmas Cookie recipe contest. Of course I had to make them:). I loved the look of the cookies... and knew I could not go wrong with chocolate, nuts and caramel. That combination is always a winner.

While you don't need to top the cookies with the pecan half, I chose to do so because I needed to pack them. I found the caramel stuck to everything(!)... so I needed to come up with something on the spur of the moment... therefore the pecan half:). But you can easily skip it if you are serving them on a platter and don't need to stack them.

So here's another idea for a cookie that's sure to please. Sorry about the blueish photos... some of them were taken at odd hours in the midst of the baking frenzy:). Hope you enjoy...

You will need: adapted from Cook's Country Dec/Jan 2012 issue

1 cup pecans, toasted
2 cups(10 oz) all purpose flour
1/4 tsp salt
12 TBS butter, softened
4 TBS coconut oil, not melted
2/3 cup(4 2/3 oz) light brown sugar
1 large egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
25 soft caramel candies
4 TBS heavy cream
1/2 cup(3 oz) bittersweet chocolate chips
extra half pecans for topping, if desired

Directions:

1. Process pecans in food processor until finely ground.
2. Combine flour, pecans, and salt. Sets aside.
3. Beat butter, coconut oil and sugar on med/high until pale and fluffy... about 2 min.
4. Add egg and vanilla and beat till combined.
5.  Add flour mixture and mix until just combined... scraping bowl as needed.
6. Refrigerate dough for for 1 hour... I left mine overnight and allowed dough to soften a bit.

• Preheat oven to 350 deg F
• Line baking sheet with parchment paper

7. Roll heaping tablespoonfuls of dough into balls and place 2 inches apart on prepared baking sheets.
8. Using the back of a floured 1/2 measuring teaspoon, make indentation in center of each ball.
9. Bake cookies till edges are lightly browned...be careful not to burn... about 12-14 minutes.
10. Remove cookies from oven and reinforce indentation with teaspoon.
11. Let cookies cool for about 5 minutes before removing from baking sheets. Allow to cool completely. Can freeze cookies at this point and assemble later as needed.
12. Combine caramels and cream in a saucepan and cook on low stirring until smooth.
13. Melt chocolate(in double boiler or microwave).
14. Fill each cookie dimple with a bit of melted chocolate(about 1/2 tsp) and spread up the sides. I like to place in fridge and allow chocolate to set before adding caramel.
15. Top each chocolate covered cookie with about 1/2 tsp caramel. Allow to set completely. I place mine in the fridge to speed up the process. 
You can top caramel with a half piece of pecan, if desired.

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Cranberry Bliss Cookies... a recent FAVORITE cookie.

Cranberry Bliss Cookies... When I first saw this recipe on Cookie and Cups' website, I instantly loved the look of the cookie.... and well, the name too:). Of course, I filed it in my " to do list of cookies"...  and am SO glad I made them! 

Funny thing is, I always add my own spin to most recipes, and I chose to do so with this one as well. But I am sure staying true to the original will yield a fantastic cookie as well... but I'll post my version because I loved the changes and plan on making them this way in the future.

I ended up subbing in a bit of coconut oil for some of the butter, just because I like the flavor coconut oil imparts to cookies. And because I love to play around with flavors, I added a bit of "everything"... enough to make the cookie unique, but not too much as to overpower the cookies. A little bit of spice always works:).

While the original cookie had a frosting and topping added to the cookies... similar to the Cranberry Bliss Bars from Starbucks, I chose to omit them for these cookies. It's kind of interesting I did that, because the topping and frosting is what originally attracted me to the cookies in the first place. However, I just felt the cookies were amazing as is... maybe it was because I made them smaller and loved how pillowy soft they looked. 

If you are interested in making the topping and frosting as well, do feel free to check the original recipe in the link below. I suppose if I would have made my cookies bigger and flatter I might have been tempted to add the frosting and topping... Actually,  I might do that next time, as they sure look pretty all frosted up:). 

These cookies are quite ideal for a Christmas cookie exchange.... especially if you frost them with tiny bits of chopped cranberries....they'll be quite festive looking. Hope you enjoy...   

You will need: adapted from Cookies and Cups

1/2 cup butter, room temperature

1/4 cup coconut oil, not melted
2 oz cream cheese, room temperature
1 1/4 cup light brown sugar
2 eggs
2-3 drops almond extract*
2 tsps vanilla extract
2-3 drops rum extract*
1 tsp baking soda
pinch salt
pinch nutmeg*
pinch ginger*
pinch cinnamon*
2 1/4 cups flour
1 cup white chocolate chips(I used Toll House)
3/4 cup coarsely chopped dried cranberries
* can be optional

Directions:

1. Using an electric mixer, cream butter, coconut oil and cream cheese together until smooth.
2. Add brown sugar and beat for and additional 1-2 minutes...  or until fluffy.
3. Add eggs, vanilla (and optional extracts, if desired), baking soda, salt and optional nutmeg, ginger, cinnamon, if desired. Beat until thoroughly combined.
4. Add flour and combine on low speed.
5. Stir in white chocolate chips and chopped cranberries.
6. Remove and chill dough for at least 2 hours ... or overnight.. can even freeze dough.

• Preheat oven to 375° F. 
• Line baking sheets with parchment paper.

7. Remove dough from fridge and form dough in 1 inch balls( or whatever size you prefer). Place dough on baking sheet, about 2 inches apart  and flatten slightly if you prefer your cookies flatter or do not flatten if you prefer your cookies rounder and more mound-like with a softer cookie dough interior .
8. Bake for 7-11 minutes,  depending on size... or until edges are golden and centers are just set.
9. Remove and cool completely.

Note: I made another variation using the basic dough... with dried strawberries chocolate chips and all butter, omitting coconut oil then drizzled with white chocolate.... the cookies were still good, but somehow I much preferred the coconut oil version and white chocolate chips with cranberries. 

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Nutella Pocket Cookies... Nutella "Dreams"

Nutella Pocket Cookies...  or Nutella "Dreams".  It's been quite some time since my last post. I've been quite busy... but I thought to stop by a bit and post a few new recipes. 

Every year about this time, I bake cookies for our annual church youth weekend retreat. And I've made it a habit to post some of the recipes I bake here on my blog. Normally in my baking frenzy, I don't take step-by-step pictures... so the recipes I'll be posting will most likely just have the directions without the usual step-by-step photos. Maybe one or two will have  a few photos for clarification, but for the most part, the directions should suffice. 

It's a bit awkward for me as well not to include the step-by-step photos:)... as I'm so used to a ton of photos attached to a single recipe... but bear with me while I post these cookie recipes in the near future. Hopefully you'll be inspired to make one or two... why, with Christmas around the corner the cookie recipes might come in handy:). 

In any case, here is the first... in a series of cookies. This particular cookie was a  personal favorite of my husband... who tends to sample the cookies...just to make sure they are all right:). Hope you enjoy...

You will need: adapted from Mrs. Fields Cookie Book

Cookie:

3/4 cup butter, softened

1/2 cup icing sugar

1/4 cup light brown sugar, packed

2 large egg yolks

1 tsp vanilla extract, or a bit more:)

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour

pinch of salt

Filling:  

Note: You can use a chocolate ganache filling instead if you like

Nutella, as needed ... about 1 slightly rounded teaspoon per cookie

Topping :

icing sugar

Directions: 

1. In a bowl of an electric mixer cream butter on medium speed about a minute or so.

2. Add icing sugar, brown sugar and pinch of salt; beat till smooth.

3. Add yolks and vanilla and mix till light and fluffy using medium speed. Scrape bowl as needed

4. Add flour and and blend until thoroughly combined. 

5. Remove dough, form into a ball and flatten into a disc.

6. Refrigerate for 1+ hours. I left mine overnight.

Prepare Filling:

1. If making chocolate ganache, prepare while dough is chilling. Scald 1/2 cup cream and add 1 cup chocolate chips, combine and set aside to thicken and cool) 

2. If using nutella, place in fridge to harden a bit so that it will be a bit easier to scoop teaspoons unto the cookie.  

Bake Cookies:

• Preheat oven to 325 deg F
• Line cookie sheet with parchment paper.

1. Remove cookie dough from fridge... if dough has been sitting in fridge overnight or longer than an hour allow to soften a bit before proceeding with recipe. Otherwise, the dough will crack.

2. Flour counter top and rolling pin. Using the floured rolling pin, roll dough to about 1/4 inch  thick. 

3. Cut circles with a 2 inch round cookie cutter(you can also make them a bit larger or smaller depending on preference, just adjust baking time).

4. Place cookie circles onto parchment lined cookie sheet. Continue with rest of dough, using all scraps, until dough is used up.

5. Place 1 teaspoon of nutella(or ganache) in center of cookie circle and top with another circle. 

6. Completely seal the edges of the cookie with the tines of a fork. 

7. Bake until cookies are lightly golden brown around the edges, being careful not to burn... this can take anywhere from 10-15 minutes, depending on the thickness and size of the cookies. Just keep an eye on them...

8. Remove from oven and allow to cool. Sprinkle with icing sugar, if desired... or you can be creative and drizzle chocolate over the top. 

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Romanian Cozonac... using the tangzhong method.

Romanian Cozonac... using the tangzhong method. I know this is not the time to share a recipe for a sweet bread. Summer isn't for using your oven. But I've been playing with a favorite recipe of mine for some time now. It's interesting, but I find much relaxation when it comes to working with bread doughs. 

In all honesty, I haven't been cooking and baking very much... have kept our meals very uncomplicated with the usual salads, eggs, grilled veggies and sometimes sandwiches. However, I have, at times pulled up old favorites to make... only because necessity required it.... like having guests over:). But it was fun going back to my recipe index and pulling out a few favorites to make again... favorites like the Best Ever Bagels, King Arthur Flour Brownies, Chicken Cordon Bleu, Romanian Mititei, and a few others. 

But several weeks ago, we went to visit a friend and I decided to make some cozonac. Thought it would be nice to bring something sweet to share with a cup of coffee. We all enjoyed it, so I decided to share my new tweaking of the old classic Romanian dessert that's also found in my recipe index.   

Ever since I tried the tangzhong method I've applied it to many yeast doughs because I rather liked the end result. This time I used it again to make my Romanian cozonac. Loved  how soft and fluffy the cozonac came out. Pictures don't do justice, because I sliced it after I had frozen the loaves. But you can see a bit of the fluffy texture in the last photo up on top... 

Now, I need to say that while I've included amounts for the flavorings used in the cozonac, you can easily adjust the flavorings to taste. Don't be put off by not making the cozonac because you may not like the rum flavor... opt to use vanilla instead... or you can even add some almond flavoring. And as for the citrus flavorings, you can stick with just using lemon and omit the orange. My husband loves the orange flavor so I add it, but you can choose to omit or even combine the 2 citrus flavors, which is what I often do. The thing about cozonac, is that you want it to have plenty of flavor, otherwise it just becomes a sweet brioche bread... which isn't necessarily bad:).

In any case, for now, here is another variation to the Romanian cozonac.  I have to say that I am still working on another tweaking that I am excited to try... am hoping to make it again but maybe I'll wait the summer out:). Hope you enjoy...       

Note: The dough is on the sticky side... so don't feel too tempted to add extra flour. If need be, you can add about 1/4 cup extra flour... only if you feel it really needs it.... otherwise, just use oiled hands to work with the dough. 

You will need:

Nut Filling:

10 oz (or about 2 1/2 cups) finely ground walnuts

1 cup whole milk

3/4 cup sugar

1/4 cup cocoa

rum extract to taste(I use .5 oz extract) *

1 tsp orange or lemon extract

2 tsp orange or lemon peel

*don't like rum, use vanilla extract

Tangzhong:

1/3 cup bread flour (I use King Arthur Flour)

1 cup water

Sweet Dough:

1 cup milk

3/4 cup unsalted butter

3/4 cup sugar

1/2-3/4 tsp kosher salt, or to taste

3 eggs, beaten

3 tsps orange or lemon peel

1 TBS rum extract, or to taste*

1 tsp lemon extract

285 grams + 550 grams bread flour, divided

2 1/4 tsp instant yeast

all of the cooked tangzhong

4 TBS softened butter

*don't like rum, use vanilla extract

Extra:

beaten egg for brushing loaves

Directions:

Make Nut Filling: (I like to do this a day ahead, refrigerate and then bring back to room temperature the day of baking.)

1. Place milk and sugar in a medium saucepan.  Heat pan on medium-low heat and whisk mixture until sugar dissolves.. 

2. Add walnuts and keep stirring every so often... until mixture thickens somewhat (about 10-12 minutes).

3. Add cocoa and continue to cook further until filling thickens even more and becomes paste-like. Add flavorings and stir to combine.

4. Remove from heat and set filling aside to cool....it should thicken even further as it sits.

Make Tangzhong:

1. In a medium saucepan, whisk flour and water well so you don't have any lumps. Cook over medium-low heat, stirring consistently with a wooden spoon, whisk or spatula to prevent burning and sticking while you cook it.

2. The mixture becomes thicker and thicker.... similar to a creme patisserie (thin pudding-like ). You will notice some “lines” appear in the mixture every time you stir and the roux should fall slowly off a whisk ... the temperature should be at 150 deg F.   Remove from heat.

3. Transfer the tangzhong into a clean bowl. Cover with a cling wrap. Let cool to room temperature.  

Make Sweet Dough:

1. In a saucepan, heat milk, butter and sugar. Remove from heat and let cool till just warm.

2. Add beaten eggs and blend to incorporate, then whisk in the flavorings... lemon/orange peel, rum/vanilla. 

3. In mixer bowl, add 285 grams flour, tangzhong, instant yeast and warm milk mixture. Using the paddle attachment mix the batter for 3 minutes on medium speed.

4. Remove paddle and attach the dough hook.

5. Add 550 grams of bread flour and knead for an additional 7 minutes.... speed 2/3 on Kitchenaid mixer. After 7 minutes, with mixer running, begin adding small pieces of softened butter, waiting until each piece is fully incorporated into the dough before adding the next. Continue adding the rest of the butter pieces, one at a time, until all 4 tablespoons of butter is fully incorporated into the dough... this should take another 5-7 more minutes of kneading. Total mixing/kneading from start to finish should be about 15-18 minutes.

6. Form dough into a ball... (dough is on the sticky/tacky side)... and cover with plastic wrap.

7. Place bowl in a warm place(I place mine in a slightly warm oven, free from draft) and let rise till doubled. This usually takes about 1 1/2- 2 hours, or so.

Prepare 2 (9x5) loaf pans by buttering/oiling pan and lining with buttered parchment paper. This will ensure the loaf will not stick in the final baking stage.

8. Lightly oil your counter space and using lightly oiled hands punch dough down and remove from bowl and place on countertop.

9. Divide dough in 4 equal pieces. 

10. Lightly oil a rolling pin and working with one piece at a time(cover the rest), begin rolling the dough into a rectangle(roughly 13x7 inches) and about 1/2-3/4 inch thick.

11. Spread 1/4 of the nut filling evenly over the surface and roll short side of the dough in jelly roll style.  Set aside.

  

12. Take second piece of dough and repeat process until you have 2 filled and rolled dough logs.

13. Twist the 2 logs together and compact the dough from both ends so the length is as close to the length of the baking pan as possible. Quickly lift up the twisted dough and place in a parchment lined baking pan.

14. Repeat the process with the next 2 pieces of dough and fill the second pan. 

Note: Sometimes I like to form the twisted dough in the form of an oval before placing in pan... see photo in collage.

15. Brush loaves with beaten egg and cover with oiled plastic wrap. 

16. Allow to rise for about 40 minutes or until nicely puffed(maybe an inch above the lip of pan... you don't want it to be over-proofed) in a warm environment... 

Preheat oven to 350 deg F... 

17. Place pans on bottom third rack in preheated oven. 

18. Bake for about 25 minutes, and lightly place a sheet of aluminum foil over top of cozonac.

19. Bake for another 20-25 minutes... for a total of 45-50 minutes. Remove foil if not completely browned all the way around the last 10 minutes or so. The foil is there to prevent the dough from burning... use your judgement as when and how long to keep it covered as all ovens are different.

20. Remove from oven and allow cozonac to cool in pan for about 15 minutes or so. Remove from pan and cool completely. 

I love to freeze the cozonac then defrost as needed... and rewarm slightly. Find the flavor is best after it sits awhile.

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Apple Pie Cookies... and a gluten-free version.

Apple Pie Cookies... and a gluten-free version. I'm sorry I don't intend on posting too many dessert recipes one after another... but I've had a few sitting in my draft that I should post. So bear with me as I "clean" my draft folder.

If you remember I posted a make-ahead pie crust recipe some time ago... a pie crust you could store in the freezer for future use. Well, I wanted to show you what I ended up doing with half the batch. I made these apple pie cookies last year, for a church Christmas hymn sing, but I'm finally getting around to posting the recipe.

The idea of making apple pie cookies might not be so new, as I'm sure many of you have seen apple pie cookie recipes floating all over the internet. Personally, I've always wanted to make them. I thought they were the cutest of things:).

Since I always make my own pie crust, I ended up using my homemade version, but this recipe can easily made with any pie crust really. You can use a ready-made store bought pie crust, or even use your own pie crust recipe that's special to you... maybe handed down from your mother or grandmother. The recipe I use is an all-butter crust...  which makes for a tender and flaky pastry-like crust.

I love adding a nut filling to my apple pies, as it gives it extra flavor and a bit of texture. It also holds the bottom of the pie crust from getting too soggy. I applied the same idea when making these pie cookies, but you can certainly skip the nut filling if you want... or you can add a bit of caramel.

While you can make simple, round, double-crusted apple pie cookies, I rather like the lattice look. It makes the cookies look a bit more elegant... more pastry-like, rather than cookies. But feel free to make the cookies without the lattice top.

And since I also made a gluten-free version, I thought to post that as well. The lattice for the GF apple pie cookies was quite a bit harder to make. I'd recommend crisscrossing the lattice part, without interweaving them, or even skipping the lattice part completely and using just round pie circles(double-crust). The GF crust is much more fragile... prone to breaking, and giving you a headache:).

Hopefully, the apple pie cookie idea is seen in this post, my intention was not to make it look too complicated:).... because it really isn't.  They're just mini apple pies... flatter... to take on the form of cookies. You'll  have a few scraps from the cutouts, but you can bake them as is, or place the scraps in x-small muffin tins.... makes really good mini "tarts". Of course, you can skip the cutouts and  make one large lattice apple pie cookie. Actually, I thought of  making one large cookie myself... but I'd probably call it an apple pie tart:).... especially if you cut it in wedges. Maybe next time. Hope you enjoy...    

You will need: makes about 20 ( 2-3 inch) apple pie cookies

Ingredients For Making Pie Cookies:

2 pie crusts
apple pie filling
nut filling, or can use a caramel filling
cinnamon, nutmeg sugar
raw sugar crystals
icing, optional
beaten egg for brushing top of pie cookies

Nut Filling: For one regular apple pie cookies recipe. Will need to make another 1/2 of the recipe for a GF version 

1/2 cup ground walnuts
1 TBS brown sugar, or to taste
1 TBS beaten egg
1/8 tsp vanilla

Apple Filling: will need only 1/2 of the filling to make the regular apple pie cookies recipe... can freeze the rest or use the rest to make the GF version below

2 large apples*
1 TBS cornstarch
4- 5 TBS sugar
2-3 TBS lemon meyer juice
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp cinnamon
* I used 1 large fuji apple + 1 large pink lady apple= 4 1/2- 5 cups sm. dice apples

Directions:

Make Nut Filling:
1. Beat egg, and remove 1 TBS beaten egg and place in a bowl. Reserve the rest of the egg for brushing the top of the cookies.
2. To the 1 TBS beaten egg, add the ground walnuts, brown sugar and vanilla. Combine all ingredients. Set aside. This nut filling makes enough for just the regular pie  cookies, but if you would like to make a gluten-free version, then you will need to make another 1/2 a batch. Set aside.

Make Apple Filling: 
1. Peel and cut apples in small dice pieces( 1/4 inch or so)... you should have about 5 cups.
2. In a medium saucepan, add diced apples, cornstarch, sugar, and cinnamon. Heat on med-low and mix ingredients until combined. Cook, stirring often... till apples slightly soften and thicken. This will take about 10 -12 minutes or so. Taste filling, adjust for sweetness and add the lemon juice. Stir in the vanilla. Set aside.


Make Cinnamon Sugar + Icing:
1 TBS sugar+ 1/4 tsp cinnamon+ a few gratings of nutmeg
Powdered sugar+ a bit of water + lemon/vanilla extract to drizzling consistency

Assemble Apple Pie Cookies:

• Preheat oven to 375 deg F
• Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.

1. Roll out one pie crust to about 12 inches in diameter... or so. 

2. Spread nut filling on bottom of crust... all the way to the edge.

3. Place about 1 cup of the diced apple filling and spread on top of the nut filling. You will have some apple filling leftover. You may freeze the rest for another use,  or use it to make another small batch of GF pie cookies , as I did.

4. Roll out second pie crust to about 12 inches and cut 1/2 inch strips. Place strips in lattice design on top of the apple filling. 

5. Brush lattice top with beaten egg, sprinkle with cinnamon sugar, can add a bit of raw coarse sugar as well, if desired.

6. Using a 2 1/2- 3 inch sharp round cookie cutter, cut out cookies... making sure to leave as little a space between cutouts to maximize the number of cookies you get.

7. Place cookies on parchment lined cookie sheet. With scraps, I like to use a mini muffin tin and bake them... this way I don't waste the scraps and turn them into mini muffin pie scraps.  You can see this in the GF version photos below.

8. Bake in preheated 375 deg F oven for 20-25 minutes or until golden.

9. If you like, you can drizzle some cookies with a powdered sugar icing. 

Gluten- Free Apple Pie Cookies

Note: It is best to keep pie crust cold, as it is difficult to work with if dough is soft. And use a bit of GF flour to dust work surface as you roll out dough.

You will need:

1 GF pie crust recipe, 4 pieces, rolled in 6 inch circles

1 cup diced apple pie filling

1/2 nut filling(recipe above)

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 375 deg F
• Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper

1. Cut pie crust in 4 pieces. You will need to work with smaller pieces, as the crust is quite fragile. Roll out one piece of the dough to about 6 inch or so.

2. Spread about 2 tablespoons or so of nut filling on crust, then add about 1/2 cup of apple pie filling and spread it to the edge.

3. Roll out another 6 inch pie crust, cut in strips and form lattice top.... 

Now, I must admit this was quite challenging as the dough breaks easily. I used a knife to lift up the strips and had many broken pieces. In the end it turned out ok. It's doable, but if you want to make it easier, you can opt to cut out small shapes and use those instead or even placing another rolled out crust on top as you would when making regular pies(w/out any lattice work). 

4. Brush top with beaten egg, sprinkle with cinnamon sugar, can add a bit of raw coarse sugar as well, if desired.

5. Using a 2 1/2- 3 inch sharp round cookie cutter, cut out cookies... 

6. Place cookies on parchment lined cookie sheet.

7. Repeat the process with the other 2 pieces. 

8. With scraps, I like to use a mini muffin tin and bake them... this way I don't waste the scraps and turn them into mini muffin pies. 

9. Bake in preheated 375 deg F oven for 15 minutes or so... or until golden.

10. If you like, you can drizzle some cookies with a powdered sugar icing.

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