TWD: Pecan Powder Puffs

There are certain recipes that I've never made that have absolutely nothing to do with difficulty or ingredients.  The Pecan Powder Puffs (aka Mexican Wedding Cookies) for this week's Tuesdays with Dorie, chosen by Tianne of Buttercream Barbie, happen to be one of those recipes.  In fact, I've been ignoring the fact that a really easy recipe for these cookies has been sitting in the book. I was doing a good job of ignoring it up until now too.  

Why?

They are dangerous. Severely dangerous. Sigh.

Years ago, when I first moved to Utah, I was working in a law firm where the secretaries all loved putting treats out on their desks during the holidays. I was working in the firm as a runner (basically a gofer, just like it sounds :) and therefore was exposed to all the various treats hiding around all three floors of the office. These happen to be the only treat I remember.

Anyway, one of the secretaries always brought a huge tub of these cookies and every time I went by I couldn't resist grabbing another one.  When you figure that in an 8-hour shift I went by her desk at least 8 times... well, you can imagine the problem. I fully justified it because working as a runner, on a 3-floor office I figured out that I was walking about 40 miles per week (no joke!) and therefore my 19-year old body could eat whatever the heck I wanted and get away with it (and did).

Fast forward a generous handful of years and that is no longer the case.  I cookie that is cobbled together of pecans, sugar, butter and a bit of flour, then dipped in more sugar before eating and you can imagine that having these babies in my vicinity is a recipe for major weight gain.  Therefore, until today, I had never made them.

Now, my cookies didn't turn out as puffy as the cookies I've usually seen, but I expect is has something to do with oven temperature or high altitude.  Bottom line, they were still incredibly tasty and crumbly and melt-in-your-mouth delightful, so I really didn't care.

And guess what? I was right, they are dangerous, because the batch is already over half gone... and I'm pretty sure I'm the only one who has been eating them.

For more delicious cookies, visit the TWD blog and LYL post.

FFwD: Salted Butter Breakups

The recipe for this week's French Fridays with Dorie was for an intriguing cookie that you bake in one big piece then, as the name suggests, break in pieces.  The dough is extremely similar to some of my favorite tart dough recipes - only with a distinctively saltier (in a good way) taste.  In fact, the cookie dough is chilled thoroughly, rolled, glazed with an egg wash and decorated in the cross-hatch pattern with a fork before baking.  

Once cooled and broken, all I could think with every bite was that it was like eating tart dough... only slightly different.  Seriously, what's not to like about tart dough, so we enjoyed making these. 

Though the overall time commitment to make the cookies takes at least a couple of hours, it is all in the chilling and baking. The dough comes together in the food processor and ridiculously quick to make.  Add to that the fact that you don't have to do much to the dough once it's rolled out and these may be one of the least fussy cookies around. 

For more cookies, be sure to visit the French Fridays with Dorie site.

 

TWD: Citrus Sunshine Muffins

The Citrus Sunshine (Currant) Muffins for this week's TWD were the perfect choice as far as I'm concerned. Especially in light of the fact that it was Daylight Savings on Sunday (thank goodness my phone updates itself because I completely forgot!) and this coming Sunday is the Vernal Equinox - SPRING!

Now, if only the weather decides to cooperate and stops dumping snow on us (like last week - seriously, that was our backyard on the 8th) then I would be thrilled!  I am SO over Winter!

Conversely, I think it is pretty funny that the main season for citrus around here is WINTER! There has to be some really brilliant reasoning behind the Powers That Be deciding that. What better way to get some sunshiney feelings in the midst of the snow and darkness!

These muffins were perfectly delightful in delivering on the promise of the citrus and sunshine double hit of happy.  I was happy while I was making them - I love rubbing the zest and sugar together - I could seriously just smell that all day!

I made a couple of small modifications to the recipe this time which were a big hit around our house. I didn't have any currants, and didn't know if any of us raisin haters would like them anyway, so I didn't bother getting any.  Instead I chopped up some good white chocolate and added some chunks to the muffin batter in place of the currants.  I also didn't have any lemon extract, so I just zested the lemon and rubbed it into the sugar along with the orange zest.  I also added a small splash of vanilla to the batter because I love the combination of citrus and vanilla in a big way.

These muffins were wonderful - tender, citrusy and bright, a little sweet and oh so good!  I'm so glad that Lauryn of Bella Baker chose them for this week's recipe because I have overlooked them for far too long.  Make sure to visit the Tuesdays with Dorie blog and see how the other muffin makers made out!

White and Dark Chocolate Chunk Cookies

I'm not sure what it is, but I've noticed lately that the desserts I gravitate toward are those where I don't have to choose between my favorite flavors - chocolate and vanilla. I don't want to choose. I want both.

These cookies definitely fall under that category. The pictures are deceiving because they look like they might be really big cookies, but they're not. They're actually only about 2 1/2 inches across, which compared to the enormous sizes of most of the cookies I make, these are delightfully diminutive. 

Their small stature not withstanding, they are chock-full of chocolately goodness of both the bittersweet variety and white chocolate. For both chocolates I used Callebaut because the quality of the chocolate will make a difference here.  You could probably still have a good cookie if you use some chocolate chips and white chocolate chips, but you wouldn't end up with the huge pockets and chunks of chocolate, which is really one of the main attractions of this cookie.

The other thing I love about this recipe is actually that it is a make ahead kind of dough. You will end up with two 'logs' of cookie dough, stashed in your refrigerator or freezer, that you can slice as needed and bake up a whole batch, or just a few cookies at a time and prolong the enjoyment. Nothing makes me happier on a hard day than knowing that I can bake up some cookies in a few minutes with no effort on my part. (Especially useful after days spent shuttling sick kids to doctors, hospitals and pharmacies - OY! I am SO over Winter!)

White and Dark Chocolate Chunk Cookies

Adapted from Wolfgang Puck Makes It Easy

Printable Version

Makes about 5 dozen cookies

6 oz bittersweet chocolate, cut into 1/4-inch chunks

4 oz white chocolate, cut into 1/4-inch chunks

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

3/4 teaspoon sea salt

8 tablespoons (1 stick unsalted butter, cold, cut into tablespoons)

1/2 cup sugar

1/3 cup packed dark brown sugar

1 large egg

1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

Note: This dough needs to chill in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours and up to one week, so plan ahead.

In a medium sized bowl whisk together the flour, baking soda and salt. Set aside. In the bowl of a standing mixer with paddle attachment, cream the butter pieces, still a bit cold, until fluffy and pale yellow, about 2 minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and paddle and add the sugars while continuing to beat until smooth, another 2 minutes. Add the egg and vanilla on low till combined. Still on low, gradually add the flour mixture and beat until just incorporated.  Add the chocolate chunks and mix them into the dough.

Place a piece of parchment paper or wax paper on a clean work surface. Use a spatula or scoop to scoop out one half of the dough. Form it into a log about 2-inches in diameter. Roll the log in the paper, then roll that in plastic wrap or foil. Repeat with the second half of the dough on another piece of parchment or wax paper. Wrap the logs tightly and refrigerate for at least 2 hours or up to one week.  You can also stash the dough in your freezer for up to a month (just allow to thaw slightly before trying to slice and bake).

To bake the cookies, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F with a rack in the lower portion of the oven. Line a baking sheet with parchment. Cut the logs, using a serrated knife, into 1/4 to 1/3-inch thick slices. Place the cookies on the prepared baking sheet about 1 inch apart. If the slices come apart a bit when you are slicing them, just press the dough bake into a ‘slice’ shape (not into a ball).  Bake the cookies for 10 to 12 minutes. They are done when they are golden around the edges and bottom. Remove the cookies from the oven and cool on racks. Store airtight. 

Note: To bake more than one sheet at a time, just rotate the sheets, front to back, top to bottom halfway through the baking time. I prefer to only slice a few cookies as needed and bake them fresh when we want a treat.

Babble's Top 100 Food Mom Blogs, 2011 - I made the list!

I can't begin to tell you how excited I was when I received an email a few weeks ago from the editors of Babble that I made their list of the Top 100 Food Mom Blogs for 2011. Honestly, with the company I find myself in I couldn't be more thrilled or flattered. What an honor to be included!

I noticed several who are some of my favorite bloggers (and friends) made the list as well like Rachael, Paula, Amanda, and Lori but I was especially proud of how many fellow Hive members who are here in Utah made the list as well, including Dara, Jaime, Lindsay, and Jen. 

Congratulations to all!! I'm so proud to be in such amazing and inspiring company!

TWD: Catch-Up! Chocolate Pots de Creme & Toasted Almond Scones

Since we have basically all been a bunch of germ magnets for the past two weeks (some longer than that!) I am playing a major game of catch-up around home and in life.  I've actually made the past 3 or 4 Tuesdays with Dorie recipes and never had a chance to photograph and/or post them. Oy!

I am not much of a pudding fan. However, if you put something in front of me that I know used really good ingredients, I won't say no. I also really like the texture of baked custards, which is basically what these Chocolate Pots de Creme seemed like to me. I finagled the recipe to only make a half-batch and ended up with 4 cups total - which was a good thing because I'm pretty sure I would have ended up eating the entire full batch and not sharing. 

There are only three cups pictured because I ate one last night before chilling the pots - I wanted to try both the room temperature texture and the chilled texture. Although it was really good at room temperature, I'm inclined to agree with Dorie that the texture and taste is much better when chilled thoroughly. 

It doesn't hurt if you add some whipped cream and shaved chocolate either. Just sayin'.

Aidan (my 7YO) ate one of these today and I think he summed up what we thought of these the best. 

Direct quote: "If I was wearing socks right now, this would knock them off." 

Ah, kids! ")

As for these bad boys from last week, I've actually made them several times in the past few years. They were one of the first recipes I tried in the book and they are a definite favorite of ours. I accidentally overbaked them just a little this time so they were a tad dryer than normal, but it really didn't matter. We love these Toasted Almond Scones.

The Chocolate Pots de Creme were chosen as this week's recipe by Christine of Black Cat Cooking.

The Toasted Almond Scones finally saw their day in the sun thanks to Mike of LivingOutWest.

My thanks to you both for great choices that really hit the spot!

For many more links to all the other Tuesdays with Dorie bloggers who made these recipes you can visit their respective LYL posts here and here.

Once I get life just a bit more under control and can avoid spending the entire week at hospitals, doctors, InstaCare and assorted pharmacies I will sit down and actually write some posts to go with the plethora of drafts sitting in my files. 

In the mean time, I hope you are all having an absolutely fantabulous start to March!