thecookieblogger.com

what can i say about a cookie that has the tang of lemony goodness in both the cookie and the filling? with an infusion of pure lemon oil in the cookie dough and a rich, creamy lemon curd as the filling, these cookies are as tasty as they are pretty to look at! be sure to either use your own homemade lemon curd, or a top of the line curd such as DIckinson’s for the best flavor as well as superior spreading ease!

lemon thumbprint cookies
ingredients:
1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
2/3 cup cornstarch
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 sticks unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
1/2 cup confectioners sugar
2 teaspoons pure lemon oil
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
coarse white sugar

instructions:
1. preheat oven to 350 degrees. line baking sheets with parchment paper.
2. in a small bowl, whisk together flour, cornstarch and salt.
3. with your mixer, beat the butter and confectioners sugar together until pale yellow and fluffy.
4. add lemon oil and vanilla, beating until well incorporated.
5. slowly add flour mixture into butter mixture, just until the dry ingredients have been incorporated. this create a soft dough.
6. with your #50 scoop (approximately 1 tablespoon), take a scoop of dough and roll into a ball. dip into the coarse white sugar, completely covering the dough ball. re-roll and repeat dipping into the sugar.
7. place on your prepared pan, leaving approximately 1 1/2 inches between each mound of dough.
8. press a thumbprint into the center of each cookie. (i use the handle end of my largest wooden spoon and it works very well!)
9. bake at 350 degrees for 13 minutes, turning the pan 1/2 rotation at 7 minutes, so cookies will bake evenly.
10. remove from oven and re-press thumbprints in center before cookies set. let cool on baking sheet for 10 minutes. after 10 minutes, remove cookies to wire rack to cool completely.
11. when cookies are completely cooled, use a small spoon or offset spatula to fill the cookie holes with lemon curd. the curd should lie flat against the top surface of the cookie, not mounded out of the thumbprint.
enjoy!
yield: approximately 40 cookies.

it’s true, i am straying from cookies today, only because i got such a strong reaction to this delicious zucchini bread, and the requests for the recipe have been pouring in from all angles – family, friends, co-workers. so, to keep everyone happy, and to help you get rid of the last of your summer zucchini (just how many zucchini casseroles can one make?!), i pass along this recipe.

it’s truly one of the most flavorful recipes for zucchini bread i’ve ever tried – and it’s moist even a few days after baking, if it lasts that long! the orange oil adds a special kick, and the scents in your kitchen while baking are truly intoxicating! just be sure to wait to eat it until it has cooled down and been chilled a bit in the fridge – this step really makes a difference!

orange-y zucchini bread with chocolate chips and walnuts
ingredients:
3 eggs
2 cups baker’s sugar
1 cup vegetable oil
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon orange oil
2 cups grated zucchini (squeezed of some of it’s moisture)
1 teaspoon finely grated orange zest
3 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground vietnamese cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 cup chopped walnuts
1 1/2 cups 60% cocoa chocolate chips (or any dark chocolate chips)

instructions:
1. preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease 2 9×5 pans.
2. sift together your dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg)
3. in your mixer, beat the eggs until light and fluffy, approximately 3 minutes.
4. add baker’s sugar and beat until well combined with eggs.
5. add vegetable oil, orange oil, zucchini, vanilla extract and orange zest. mix until just combined.
6. stir in walnuts and chocolate chips.
7. divide dough evenly between your two prepared pans.
8. bake at 350 degrees for 50-55 minutes until metal skewer inserted in middle of loaf comes out clean.
9. remove from oven and let loaves sit in their pans cooling for approximately 15 minutes.
10. remove to wire racks and cool completely.
11. wrap in foil and chill in refrigerator for not less than 4 hours.

yield: 2 loaves

serving suggestion: slice and heat briefly in microwave, then spread with cream cheese! yummy!!

i had a discussion last week with a friend about bar cookies. bars are the true workhorses of mid-america baking. because you can make a large batch in next to no time, bars are the perfect solution to pot luck dinners, church suppers and bake sales. back in the 50’s, everyone had their ‘signature’ bar cookie recipe, and it wouldn’t be a successful church supper unless mrs. h brought their lemon bars, and mrs. t brought fruit bars. well, one of my neighbors from long ago gave me this recipe, and though i grew up in the bronx, far away from the midwest, i know that these bars would have held a place of honor at most any church supper throughout the country.

these bars have a truly ‘old-fashioned’ taste and texture to them – definitely a great ‘after-school with a tall glass of milk’ bar. and oh-so-quick and easy to bake!

brown sugar bars
ingredients:
1/2 cup and 2 additional tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup firmly packed brown sugar (i use light brown sugar)
1 large egg
1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups chopped walnuts

instructions:
1. preheat oven to 35o degrees.
2. spray 9×9 baking pan with non-stick canola spray oil
3. cream together brown sugar, egg and vanilla extract until light and smooth.
4. add flour, salt and baking soda to the wet ingredients, stirring until well combined.
5. stir in 1 cup walnuts.
6. place cookie batter into pan, then add remaining 1/2 cup of walnuts, sprinkling them evenly over the top of the unbaked batter,
7. place in oven and bake for 23 minutes – outer edges will look firm and baked, center may look soft. remove from oven.
8. let cool on wire rack. when completely cool, cover with foil and let sit for 24 hours.
9. slice and serve! enjoy!

i’ve been baking and shipping cookies to cornell for the past few weeks, and i’ve been trying to mix up the cookie types i send so that laura and her friends don’t get bored to tears with my cookies! i have found that the bar cookies ship the best (read: get there intact!) and they also seem to stay fresher longer, so i thought i’d start dusting off some of my older recipes that fit the bill.

these chocolate cookie bars certainly meet the criteria. bar cookies, so they are quick and easy to bake, and they’ll get there still looking like bar cookies! and they look terrific with their speckled white chips throughout. kinda like brownies with dots!

i use deep dark baking cocoa for these, but you can use any type of baking cocoa that you like.

chocolate cookie bars with white chips
ingredients:
1 cup unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup bakers sugar
3/4 packed brown sugar
2 eggs
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/3 cup dark baking cocoa
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 package white chips (i used ghiradelli – approximately 16 ounces)

instructions:
1. preheat oven to 375 degrees. lightly grease bottom and sides of 13 x 9 x 2 pan.
2. cream together the butter and the sugars until they are light and fluffy.
3. add eggs, one at a time, mixing well.
4. add almond extract. mix well.
5. add flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt to the creamed butter mixture. beat on very low speed until combined
6. stir in 11 ounces (1 package) of white chips to the combined ingredients.
7. spread into your prepared pan.
8. sprinkle with remaining white chips.
9. bake for approximately 20 minutes, until toothpick inserted in center of tray comes out clean.
10, remove from oven. completely cool on wire rack.
11. cut (be sure to wait until they are completely cool!), eat and enjoy!

shipping cookies cross country to my niece at cornell poses some challenges. a lot of my cookies are too fragile to travel. and i always worry about the freshness factor, especially if i opt for ups versus u.s.p.s. priority mail. well, these individual brownie bites travel well and are bite-sized which make them the perfect snack to pass out among dorm friends!

ingredients:
2 cup unsalted butter
6 ozs. chopped unsweetened chocolate
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups baker’s sugar
4 eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup all-purpose flour

instructions
1. preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. in a heavy duty pan atop the stove, melt the butter, chocolate and salt, stirring constantly. when melted, remove from heat and cool to room temperature.
3. in a mixer, combine the sugar and eggs until light and fluffy.
4. add vanilla and the cooled butter/chocolate mixture just until blended.
5. gently fold in flour.
6. line your mini cupcake tins with mini cupcake papers. fill each cup approximately 2/3 full, then add chopped nuts or mini bits to the top of each cup. (nuts work very well with these mini cupcakes!)
7. bake the mini muffins or 20 minutes for a chewy brownie. brownie bites will be set and top will look a bit dry. remove from oven.
8. remove from muffin tin, allowing mini cupcakes to cool before storing.
enjoy!

if you are one of those folks who love to get a bite full of jam in every cookie, well, these cookies are just for you! i use seedless raspberry jam in this recipe, but any sturdy jam or jelly will work just fine! the possibilities are unlimited! and, if i may suggest, these cookies go perfect alongside a piping hot cup of cocoa!

ingredients
8 ounces cream cheese, softened to room temperature
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
1/3 cup baker’s sugar
2 cups unbleached, all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1 egg yolk
1/2 teaspoon lukewarm water
1 1/2 cups seedless raspberry jam

instructions
1. in a large bowl, beat the cream cheese, butter and baker’s sugar until fluffy and pale in color.
2. incorporate flour and salt, beating on low speed, just until combined. (do not overmix)
3. divide dough in 1/2, flattening each into a disk. roll out to 1/8″ thickness, placing on parchment, then refrigerating for about 30 minutes.
4. mix egg yolk and 1/2 teaspoon lukewarm water until well combined.
5. remove one disk of dough from refrigerator, and place on cutting board. with round cookie cutter (i use a 2 1/2″ round, but you can also you a star shaped or square cutter), cut out cookies.
6. spoon raspberry jam into center of cut out cookie. lightly brush exposed portions of cookie dough with yolk/water mixture.
7. with your circular cookie cutouts, gently pinch edge to form 4 corners (jam will still be visible), and place on parchment-lined cookie sheet.
8. refrigerate for 30 minutes.
9. preheat oven to 375 degrees.
10. place cookie sheet in oven, baking until cookies are light golden brown, approximately 14-16 minutes.
11. remove from oven, transferring baking sheets to wire racks for complete cooling. when cookies are cool, remove from baking sheet and transfer to airtight container.
12. enjoy
yield: 40 cookies

so, to some italian children, nutella is their equivalent of american children’s peanut butter. it’s rich and creamy with a chocolatey/hazelnut taste that is indescribable. and did i mention delicious? nutella, slathered on some bread is the best treat in the world. but why stop there? chocolate sandwich cookies with a creamy nutella filling are simply heavenly. i bet you can’t just eat one!

chocolate nutella sandwich cookies
ingredients:
10 ozs. bittersweet chocolate, chopped (for this recipe, i use the good stuff – scharffen berger
2 ozs unsweetened chocolate, chopped
1/4 cup unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
3 eggs, at room temperature
1 cup baker’s sugar
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 tsp. baking powder
1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
1 cup finely chopped hazelnuts
enough Nutella to spread between cookies (with a bit to spare for spreading on a slice of bread while you wait for the cookies to set!)

instructions:
1. over a double boiler on your stovetop, over low heat, melt chocolates and butter, stirring occasionally. remove from heat and let cool slightly.
2. whisk in eggs and sugar until well combined.
3. whisk in flour, baking powder and salt, just until combined.
4. gently stir in chopped hazelnuts, just until incorporated.
5. cover dough and refrigerate for approximately 2.5 hours until firm and well chilled.
6. remove dough from refrigerator and let sit at room temperature for approximately 15 minutes.
7. preheat oven to 350 degrees.
8. line baking sheet with parchment paper. using your #30 scoop (approximately 1 heaping tablespoon), scoop dough, roll between your hands into a ball and place onto baking sheet 1″ apart. flatten slightly with your palm, or the bottom of a flat glass.
9. bake for about 8 minutes. the dough will be set, and no longer look wet.
10. remove from oven and let cool completely on baking sheet.
11. after the cookies are completely cooled, remove from baking sheet and pair with similar sized/shaped cookie.
12. spread the flat side of one cookie with 1 tablespoon nutella and sandwich with another cookie.
enjoy!
yield: approximately 20 sandwich cookies

“i wish we could put up some of the christmas spirit in jars and open a jar of it every month.” (harlan miller)

it may be impossible to ‘jar’ that christmas spirit, but I think the christmas spirit can indeed be captured in one easy word — cookies! now, of course you knew i was going to say that! but it’s completely true! baking throughout the year carries the christmas spirit all the way through the dreary days of winter, the damp days of spring, the dog days of summer and the delicious days of autumn, leading up to the delightful days of the winter holidays… baking cookies and passing them around throughout the year – to friends, to family, to co-workers, to local food shelters — sharing your bounty, sharing the goodness, sharing your kindness through the simple act of baking is a wonderful way to keep the christmas spirit alive the whole year through.

happy christmas and may the spirit live within you all the days of the year.

it’s that time of year again, and if your kitchen looks anything like mine, you’ve got stacks of containers filled with your cookie treasures! piles of almond snowballs and eggnog cookies and pizzelles and brownies are waiting their turn as i layer cookie upon cookie onto each individual tray. and shortly, each tray will be wrapped up tightly and ready for ‘operation: cookie drop’!

the smiles on cookie recipient’s faces are worth the pounds of butter, the hours of oven time, the endless whirls of the kitchenaid mixer, and yes, even the tinge of lower back pain. (yes, i am getting a bit older, aren’t i?!) because there’s nothing quite like giving cookies to our friends, our co-workers, our family – the people that make up the quilt of our lives! so, happy ‘operation: cookie drop day’, from my overstuffed cookie kitchen to yours! enjoy!

these brownies are delicious yet very rich, so beware the temptation to cut huge squares of these! a small square goes a very long way! and these can only be made more delicious by adding either a ganache or mascarpone frosting! today, i’ve frosted these with a simple ganache frosting and sprinkled them with mini semi-sweet chocolate chips! absolutely delicious!

yum yum yummy brownies
ingredients:
8 tablespoons unsweetened butter, softened to room temperature
4 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped
1 cup baker’s sugar
2 eggs
3/4 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
pinch of salt

instructions:
1. preheat oven to 350 degrees. grease 9 x 9 baking pan and set aside.
2. create a double boiler in a saucepan over low heat. combine butter and chocolate, stirring constantly until melted.
3. add the sugar and eggs, stirring until well-combined.
4. stir in vanilla extract.
5. stir in flour.
6. when all ingredients are well-combined, pour into prepared baking pan.
7. bake brownies for 18-20 minutes until brownies are set. be careful not to overbake these — a toothpick inserted into the center of these brownies will come out clean at about 18 minutes.
8. remove from oven and completely cool before frosting or cutting into small squares.
enjoy!
yield:24 small brownies