Archive for the ‘Cookies’ Category
I was always a fan of the Caramel Macciato Biscotti from Starbucks. They were inexpensive (less than $1) and made a great snack with a cup of coffee. I also really liked their unusual two-tone look. These cookies were recently discontinued by the coffee company in favor of some more traditional looking biscotti, so I decided make up a batch of two tone biscotti myself as a nod to them – and so I could have some freshly baked biscotti with my coffee at home!
These biscotti have two layers, one coffee flavored and one vanilla flavored. To get the two layered effect in my biscotti, I made up one big batch of dough and added a homemade coffee extract to a portion of the dough. The coffee extract is made by dissolving a generous amount of instant coffee/espresso powder in hot water, to make a very concentrated and flavorful brew that is strong enough to flavor the dough. I layered the vanilla dough on top of the coffee layer and the two baked together beautifully.
You can really taste both the vanilla and the coffee layers in the finished biscotti. These biscotti are very crunchy and are perfect for dipping in coffee, as they don’t break up too fast when they hit the hot liquid. I like a slightly thicker cookie that will soak up a lot of coffee, but you can cut these into thinner cookie crisps when slicing your dough if you prefer a more delicate cookie. The biscotti from Starbucks that inspired these have a caramel flavored coating that they are dipped in. I opted to leave these cookies plain, but they could easily be dipped in chocolate to add yet another layer of flavor to these already layered treats.
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Peanut butter cookies are usually a great candidate for using whole wheat flour, even if you’re not usually a big fan of using whole wheat flours in baking. Whole wheat flour has a stronger flavor than regular all purpose flour does, and in some types of cookies, that flavor can sort of take over the cookie and hide the more delicate flavors of butter and sugar. In the case of peanut butter cookies, the peanut butter is strongly flavored enough that the flavor of whole wheat comes through as an extra nuttiness in the finished cookies that can make them even tastier – as well as making them a little bit better for you.
These Whole Wheat Peanut Butter Cookies are made using only whole grain flour. You can use white whole wheat flour or regular whole wheat flour to make these cookies. I prefer to use white whole wheat, which has a slightly milder flavor to it, but both will give you good results. The cookies are tender, but still chewy, and they have a great peanut butter flavor. They also keep very well, so one batch can last quite a while when stored in an airtight container.
You can use either plain or crunchy peanut butter in these, based on your personal preference. It’s good both ways, but it is nice to have those little chunks of peanut in there to add a little extra texture. I typically use a national brand of peanut butter – such as Jif – when making these cookies, but all natural peanut butter will also work if that is what you have on hand. Natural peanut butter cookies may spread slightly more than these, so give your cookies a little more space on the baking sheet so that they don’t run together in the oven.
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Madeleines are small sponge cakes with a distinctive shell-like shape. They’re baked in a specially shaped pan and there is something special about them that seems to put a smile on peoples’ faces when they see them. Traditionally, madeleines are made with a genoise batter, which is a type of cake where melted butter is folded in to a sponge cake batter just before baking in order to tenderize it and no leavening agents apart from beaten eggs are added. These very classic cakes are tasty, but I find that adding a small amount of baking powder lightens the cookies up a bit and makes them a little bit more consistent.
My Vanilla Madeleines are light, tender and golden, with a soft and slightly spongy texture to them. I flavored them with a generous splash of vanilla extract, and will sometimes use vanilla sugar (when I have some on hand) to further boost the vanilla flavor. The vanilla blends well with the buttery sponge cake, and also helps the madeleines go well with coffee and tea. I recommend using metal pans, as opposed to silicone, for the best results.
Madeleines keep very well when stored in an airtight container, as their flavor only seems to improve over the course of a few days following baking. They are best when served with coffee or tea, and their spongey texture makes them perfect for soaking up a bit of the liquid when dipped. You can also dip a corner of each cookie in chocolate to dress them up a bit, though you can’t go wrong when serving them plain, either.
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These Cocoa Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies are some of the easiest peanut butter cookies that you’ll ever make. They’re based on my Flourless Peanut Butter Cookies and use no flour or butter in them, unlike regular peanut butter cookies, and are primarily made with peanut butter, eggs and sugar. The first time you try them, you might be a bit skeptical about how they’ll work, but I can assure you that this is an easy recipe that you’ll find yourself returning to again and again.
This variation on the basic flourless peanut butter cookies adds a little bit of chocolate into the mix. I used unsweetened cocoa powder to lend some chocolate flavor to the peanut butter, giving them a peanut butter cup-like flavor – and the addition of a generous amount of chocolate chips doesn’t hurt either! The cookies are more tender than a regular peanut butter cookie but still have a nice chewiness to them. Under baking them slightly will give you a chewier finished product, and letting them go an extra minute or two will produce a crisper cookie.
I like to use smooth peanut butter in these cookies, but crunchy peanut butter can be used instead if that is what you have on hand. The little pieces of peanut add nice crispy elements to the cookies, and work well with the chocolate chips. The cookies keep very well and can be stored in an airtight container for several days after baking.
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While I do like a classic chocolate chip cookie, I find it very hard to say no to a good oatmeal cookie. Oatmeal adds a great flavor and texture to cookies, making them tender and adding a slight nuttiness that goes well with any mix-in you might want to include. I often make oatmeal chocolate chip cookies, and oatmeal raisin cookies are a family favorite, but I took these Tropical Oatmeal Cookies in a different direction and used pineapple, coconut and macadamia nuts in them for a summery, tropical flavor.
The cookies are buttery and slightly chewy, but not too sweet. This allows the other flavors in the cookie to really shine. I used sweetened, shredded coconut and dried pineapple, which I coarsely chopped into small pieces. Dried pineapple is definitely the way to go in this recipe because fresh pineapple really just has too much moisture and will take these from cookies to small, moist cakes. Macadamia nuts add a nice crunch, and I included some dried tart cherries for a pop of color and a little contrast to the very sweet pineapple (although they’re not exactly tropical fruits).
This flavor combination is addictive and these are sure to be a favorite variation on some of my staple recipes in my house. The pineapple and coconut work well with other fruits and nuts, too. Candied ginger could be used in place of the cherries, and walnuts or cashews could stand in for the macadamia nuts. Even better, you could add a splash of rum extract to take these from a tropical fruit taste to a tropical cocktail taste for a snack that delivers a mini vacation!
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