Tag: cookies

Chocolate Hearts

chocolate-heart-cookieI inherited some vintage cookie cutters from my grandma Zella, among them a scallop-edged heart with a red wooden peg handle. With Valentine’s Day right around the corner, it seemed appropriate to make chocolate hearts to send to my nephew Roman, who now lives in North Carolina.

Cookie cutters come in nearly every shape and size, for every occasion and holiday. My cookie cutters, of which there are dozens, live in a wonderful set of stackable drawer containers in one of my kitchen cabinets. I have all the basics, plus cutters for nearly every holiday, with some animals, dinosaurs, and other fun shapes like an umbrella and a teapot mixed in. Zella’s vintage heart is among my favorites, though.

Ingredients

  • 1 1/2 cups flour
  • 3/4 cup cocoa powder
  • 1/8 teaspoon salt
  • 12 tablespoons butter, softened
  • 1 1/3 cup sugar
  • 1 egg
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preparation 

In a medium bowl, combine flour, cocoa powder, and salt; set aside.

In a mixing bowl, cream together butter and sugar until fluffy. Add egg and vanilla extract, beating until well-combined.

Slowly add flour mixture, scraping the sides of the bowl often and beating until a very well-combined, soft dough forms.

Gently knead the dough a few times to make sure it comes together; roll dough into a ball and flatten into a disc. Wrap in plastic and chill for 1 hour.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees; line three baking sheets with parchment or foil.

On a lightly floured surface, roll dough to 1/8 inch thickness. Cut with a heart-shaped cookie cutter; if using different sizes of hearts, be sure to bake all of the same size on one cookie sheet. Baking different-sized or differently-shaped cookies on the same sheet can lead to uneven results; some of your cookies might be underdone while others will be overdone.

Bake for 8-10 minutes, until edges are set. Remove from oven and cool on cookie sheets for 1-2 minutes, then remove to wire racks to cool completely.

Makes about 3 dozen, depending on the size of your cookie cutter.

Valentine Cookies

valentine-cookiesLooking for fun Valentine’s Day cookies for the kids in your life? Look no further. These slice-and-bake treats are a cross between shortbread and a sugar cookie, and can be tinted whatever color you wish. My goddaughter Maureen loves pink, and these are for her and her family.

If you don’t usually do slice-and-bake cookies, I have some suggestions to help with the process. Wrap your dough in plastic wrap, then slide it onto a baking sheet to chill. This will help the log from breaking or getting misshapen as you transfer it in and out of the fridge. Make sure your dough chills for at least two hours so it’s easy to slice; you can let it chill overnight if you like. As you slice, turn the log after every few slices. This keeps a flat edge from developing on one side. And, if you’re coating the cookies in sprinkles or nuts, remember that small sprinkles and finely-chopped nuts will coat the log better and be easier to slice through.

Ingredients

  • 2 cups flour
  • 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/8 teaspoon salt
  • 3/4 cup butter, softened
  • 3/4 cup sugar
  • 1 egg
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • Pink (or red) food coloring
  • About half a 3-ounce bottle Wilton Micro Hearts sprinkles

Preparation

In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder, and salt; set aside.

In a mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add egg and vanilla extract and beat until well-combined, scraping the sides of your bowl frequently.

Add flour in three batches, mixing well after each until a soft dough forms.

Add food coloring and tint to your desired shade.

Turn dough onto a very lightly floured surface and knead it slightly to make sure all of the food coloring is well-distributed and the dough is smooth. Roll into a 12-inch log.

Place sprinkles on a rimmed baking sheet and carefully transfer the log onto the sprinkles, rolling it back and forth to coat.

Wrap log in plastic wrap, slide it onto a baking sheet, and chill for at least 2 hours.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line several baking sheets with foil or parchment.

Remove log from fridge and discard plastic wrap. Slice into 1/2 inch slices and place on baking sheets about 2 inches apart.

Bake for 9-11 minutes, until tops are set. Remove from oven and cool on baking sheet for about 4 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days.

Makes 28

Lady Liberty Cookies

lady-liberty-cookiesMy friend Amanda and I have known each other for 25 years. We met freshman year of high school, and our mutual love of hockey bloomed into one of the most important friendships of my life. The hours we spent on the phone in high school probably funded AT&T throughout the 90s, and not a day goes by that I don’t wish we lived on the same side of the country (I’m in Pennsylvania, while she’s in California) so that we could actually see each other in person. Fortunately, Facebook and texting keep us closely connected, but sometimes I just wish I could sit in her living room with her, drinking tea, talking about everything and nothing.

Amanda is a remarkable woman, raising her son and daughter to be strong, independent thinkers just like she is. She’s also a fierce feminist just like me, so these cookies – named “Lady Liberty Cookies” by my equally feminist husband – are for her. I baked them in solidarity with her and with the millions of other women around the world who are fighting for equal rights, adapting them from The Essential Chewy Sugar Cookie from King Arthur Flour in honor of today’s Women’s March in Washington and various sister marches around the world.

I love you, Amanda! I could not be prouder to have such a strong and fantastic woman as my friend.

Ingredients

  • 12 tablespoons butter, slightly softened
  • 3/4 cup sugar
  • 1/2 cup light brown sugar
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 egg
  • 2 1/2 cups flour
  • 2.25-ounce bottle pink sugar crystals

Preparation

Preheat oven to 375. Line several baking sheets with parchment paper.

Place pink sugar crystals in a small bowl; set aside.

In a mixing bowl, beat butter on medium speed for about 1 minute; add sugar, brown sugar, vanilla extract, nutmeg, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and egg and beat until well-combined.

Add flour and beat to combine.

Using a 2-inch cookie scoop, scoop dough, roll into balls, and dip in sugar to coat completely.

Place cookies at least 2 inches apart on baking sheets; they will spread some when baking. I put 6 cookies per sheet, and that worked well.

Bake for 10 minutes, until edges are barely beginning to brown and centers still look puffy. Cool on baking sheets for 5 minutes, then remove to a wire rack to cool completely.

Store in an airtight container at room temperature (or pack them and mail them to one of your best friends ever).

Makes 22.

Lemon Raspberry Thumbprints

lemonraspthumbprintMost lemon raspberry thumbprints rely on raspberry jam – which is certainly delicious – but for these treats, I wanted a more traditional thumbprint icing. While I adapted a recipe from King Arthur Flour for the cookie itself, the icing is one of my own creation, a simple blend of powdered sugar, raspberry jam, and lemon juice. I hope the icing sets up as well as traditional thumbprint icing, but if not, these cookies will still be delicious.

You can create a perfectly round indentation in your thumbprint cookies by using a teaspoon from your measuring set. I did both the teaspoon method and the literal thumbprint method in this batch of cookies, and have to admit that I prefer the way the teaspoon ones look.

Ingredients

For the cookies

  • 1 cup unsalted butter
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1/2 teaspoon lemon extract
  • 1 teaspoon lemon zest
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 egg
  • 2 3/4 cups flour

For the raspberry icing*

  • 1/3 cup raspberry jam
  • 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
  • 3/4 teaspoon lemon juice

*These measurements are my best guess – I just kept mixing jam and powdered sugar until I got the flavor that I wanted. 

Preparation

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

In a mixing bowl, cream together butter, sugar, vanilla, lemon extract, lemon zest, and salt until light and fluffy, about 2-3 minutes. Add egg and beat well to combine.

Add flour in three batches, beating well to combine between each.

Using a 2-inch cookie scoop, scoop dough and roll into balls. Place about 2 inches apart on baking sheets and use a teaspoon measuring spoon or your thumb to create a deep indentation in the center of each cookie.

Bake for 12-24 minutes, until bottoms are very light golden brown. Remove from oven and cool completely before icing.

To make the icing, combine jam and powdered sugar in a small bowl and mix well to fully combine; add lemon juice about 1/4 teaspoon at a time to thin out slightly. You want a thick drizzle consistency.

Spoon icing into thumbprints and allow to set before serving. Store in an airtight container between sheets of waxed paper for up to 3 days.

Makes 27 cookies.

Almond Pennies

almond-penniesThese amazing cookies remind me of ones I’ve seen (and eaten, of course) in many bakeries and coffee shops: perfectly round, large enough so that one is all you need as a snack, with a crispy-chewy texture and delicious, delicate flavor. This recipe is adapted from the King Arthur Flour Cookie Companion, a book that has forever changed my baking life. I used a 2-inch cookie scoop to scoop my dough, rather than rolling into table tennis-sized balls as the original instructed.

Although they’re called pennies, these cookies are very generously portioned, baking into 4-inch rounds – far larger than any penny I’ve ever seen. I’d like to try them as smaller cookies so they make a larger batch, and intend to use a 1-inch cookie scoop the next time I make these. The cookies spread a lot when baking, so make sure you leave ample room between them on your baking sheets.

Ingredients

  • 8 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 1 cup light brown sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon almond extract
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 large egg
  • 2 1/4 ounces (about 2/3 cup) almond flour
  • 4 1/4 ounces (about 1 cup) flour

Preparation

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

In a mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat butter on medium speed for about 1 minute. Scrape down the bowl and add brown sugar, almond extract, salt, baking soda, and egg, beating very well to combine.

Add almond flour and flour, beating to combine.

Using a 2-inch cookie scoop, scoop dough and roll into balls, placing at least 2-3 inches apart on the baking sheets; I’d recommend no more than 6 cookies per sheet. Dip the bottom of a glass in sugar and press cookies to 1/4 inch thickness.

Bake for 13 to 15 minutes, until cookies are golden brown. Remove from oven and cool on baking sheets for 2-3 minutes, then remove to wire racks to cool completely.

Store in an airtight container for up to 4 days.

Makes 18.

Gingerbread House Cookies

gingerbread-house-cookiesI may have gone slightly overboard with my holiday baking this year. I just couldn’t help myself – there were so many adorable, delicious treats to make, and while I feel completely worn out, I’m glad I made all of it.

These gingerbread house cookies were inspired by a cute cookie cutter I found at the craft store last week – a little house, along with a little gingerbread man. I simply had to make these houses, and decorate them as one would a regular gingerbread house (the three-dimensional kind).

The recipe below made 9 cookies, so you’ll want to double the quantities for a larger batch. I had enough dough left over for about 6 miniature gingerbread men as well.

Gingerbread Cookies

Ingredients

For the cookies

  • 1 1/4 cups flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon ginger
  • 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1/4 teaspoon allspice
  • 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/8 teaspoon salt
  • 1/8 teaspoon pepper
  •  8 tablespoons butter, softened
  • 2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons molasses
  • 2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons sugar

Preparation

In a medium bowl, combine flour, ginger, cinnamon, allspice, baking soda, salt, and pepper; set aside.

In a mixing bowl, beat butter, sugar, and molasses until fluffy, about three minutes.

Add flour in two batches, beating until well-combined.

Flatten dough into a disc, wrap in plastic, and refrigerate about one hour, until easy to handle.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Roll dough to 1/8 inch thickness and cut into house shapes.

Bake for about 12 minutes; you do not want the gingerbread to burn, so keep an eye on it.

Remove from oven and cool on baking sheets for a few minutes, then cool completely on a wire rack.

Zella’s Icing

Ingredients

  • 1 egg white
  • 3 tablespoons shortening
  • 2 cups powdered sugar
  • Dash of salt
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 teaspoon almond extract
  • 1-2 teaspoons water, if necessary
  • Red and green food coloring
  • Flower-shaped sprinkles, if desired

Preparation

Combine egg white, shortening, salt, and one cup powdered sugar in a mixing bowl.  Beat on low speed until combined, then increase speed to medium, then high, and beat for one minute.

Add additional cup powdered sugar and beat on low speed until combined, then on high speed for one minute.

Add vanilla and almond extracts.  Beat on high speed for one or two minutes, until very well combined.

Check the frosting’s texture; it should be like very, very soft peanut butter and very easily spreadable.  If necessary, add one to two teaspoons of water to thin the frosting and beat well to combine.

To decorate your cookies, fit a small piping bag with a small plain tip and pipe on doorways and windows. Replace the tip with a star tip to pipe on snow.

Tint frosting green and add wreaths, trees, and shrubs.

Tint frosting red and add berries to your wreaths and shrubs, as well as other decorative dots or shapes.

Use white frosting as glue to adhere flower shapes, if desired.

Allow frosting to set for about 30 minutes before storing. Store at room temperature in an airtight container between layers of waxed paper for about 3 days.

 

Reindeer Cookies

reindeer-cookiesMy goddaughter Maureen and her little sister Margo went absolutely insane for the chocolate bat cookies I sent them for Halloween. According to their mom, they practically licked the crumbs off the table. So what did I bake them for Christmas? Another batch of chocolate sugar cookies, this time in the shape of trees, stockings…and reindeer.

To make these adorable treats, I used a gingerbread man cookie cutter, then flipped the cookies upside down to make reindeer heads. This is another popular item on Pinterest this year, and I admit that I looked at several cookie designs before settling on this one. You could certainly give them Rudolph-esque red noses if you like, but I went with a standard brown, as well as chocolate chip eyes.

Chocolate Sugar Cookies

Ingredients

  • 1 1/2 cups flour
  • 3/4 cup cocoa powder
  • 1/8 teaspoon salt
  • 12 tablespoons butter, softened
  • 1 1/3 cup sugar
  • 1 egg
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preparation 

In a medium bowl, combine flour, cocoa powder, and salt; set aside.

In a mixing bowl, cream together butter and sugar until fluffy. Add egg and vanilla extract, beating until well-combined.

Slowly add flour mixture, scraping the sides of the bowl often and beating until a very well-combined, soft dough forms.

Gently knead the dough a few times to make sure it comes together; roll dough into a ball and flatten into a disc. Wrap in plastic and chill for 1 hour.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees; line three baking sheets with parchment or foil.

On a lightly floured surface, roll dough to 1/8 inch thickness. Cut with a bat-shaped cookie cutter; if using different shapes, be sure to bake the same shape on one cookie sheet. Baking different-sized or differently-shaped cookies on the same sheet can lead to uneven results; some of your cookies might be underdone while others will be overdone.

Bake for 8-10 minutes, until edges are set. Remove from oven and cool on cookie sheets for 1-2 minutes, then remove to wire racks to cool completely.

Zella’s Icing

Ingredients

  • 1 egg white
  • 3 tablespoons shortening
  • 2 cups powdered sugar
  • Dash of salt
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 teaspoon almond extract
  • 1-2 teaspoons water, if necessary
  • Brown food coloring
  • Miniature chocolate chips, for eyes

Preparation

Combine egg white, shortening, salt, and one cup powdered sugar in a mixing bowl.  Beat on low speed until combined, then increase speed to medium, then high, and beat for one minute.

Add additional cup powdered sugar and beat on low speed until combined, then on high speed for one minute.

Add vanilla and almond extracts.  Beat on high speed for one or two minutes, until very well combined.

Check the frosting’s texture; it should be like very, very soft peanut butter and very easily spreadable.  If necessary, add one to two teaspoons of water to thin the frosting and beat well to combine.

To frost your cookies:

Turn gingerbread men upside down so the feet act as the antlers.

Reserve a small portion of white frosting for the eyes, then tint the remaining frosting light brown for the faces.

Frost the faces using a small offset spatula, then tint the remaining frosting darker brown. Fit a piping bag with a small plain tip and pipe on antlers, the insides of the ears, and the noses.

Use white frosting to pipe two eyes, then place a miniature chocolate chip in the center of each.

Let frosting set for about 30 minutes; store in an airtight container between layers of waxed paper for us to 3 days.

Makes about 3 dozen.

Classic Thumbprints

classic thumbprintsThumbprint cookies are a bakery classic. I’ve had some legendary thumbprints at excellent bakeries, fabulous creations that are both tender and appropriately dry, studded with finely chopped nuts and topped with delicious icing. This cookie, I daresay, could compete with such treats.

Adapted from the King Arthur Flour thumbprint recipe, these cookies were an enormous hit in my office on Monday, when my colleagues and I had a little holiday gathering. Next time, I’m going to try filling them with a blob of buttercream frosting, which I think would be delicious…but you can certainly go with a traditional jam filling if you like. No matter what, you’ll have a delicious cookie.

Ingredients

For the cookies

  • 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 1/2 cup light brown sugar
  • 2 eggs, separated
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 cup almond flour
  • 2 1/2 to 3 cups flour
  • About 1 cup very finely chopped pecans

For the icing

  • 1 cup powdered sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1/2 teaspoon almond extract
  • About 2 tablespoons milk
  • Red food coloring

Preparation

Separate eggs and let whites stand at room temperature while you prepare and chill the dough.

In a mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in egg yolks, vanilla, and salt.

Add the almond flour and 2 1/2 cups flour, beating well to combine. If the dough is too sticky, add additional flour a few tablespoons at a time, adding just enough to make the dough come together. Cover and chill the dough for 1 hour.

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Line several baking sheets with parchment paper.

Place egg whites in a mixer fitted with the whisk attachment and beat until foamy.

Using a 1-inch cookie scoop, scoop dough and roll into balls. Dip in egg whites, then in finely chopped pecans, and place on the cookie sheets about 2 inches apart. Make a deep thumbprint in the center of each cookie.

Bake for 12 to 16 minutes, until they’re golden brown. Remove from oven and place on wire racks to cool completely before filling.

To make the icing, combine powdered sugar, vanilla, and almond extract in a small bowl, stirring well until smooth; add milk about 1 teaspoon at a time to reach a thick drizzling consistency.

Transfer to a sturdy zip-top bag and snip off the corner; fill each thumbprint with icing. Allow icing to set before serving or storing; store cookies between sheets of waxed paper at room temperature for up to 4 days.

Makes about 5 dozen.

Butter Pecan Cookies

butter-pecan-cookiesThis recipe is adapted very slightly from one called “butter pecan fantasies” in the King Arthur Flour Cookie Companion. While the dough might be a bit of a challenge to work with, the end result is absolutely delicious. The toffee bits, butterscotch chips, and chopped pecans might seem like too much at first, but their flavors blend together perfectly, and their different textures add wonderful crunch to an otherwise soft, chewy cookie.

I added more vanilla extract than the original recipe called for to bring my dough together, as it seemed too crumbly with just 2 teaspoons. It’s also important to note that mixing in the toffee bits, butterscotch chips, and chopped pecans takes some time – I used both the paddle attachment on my mixer and my hands to incorporate them as best I could. These cookies would be delicious with chocolate chips instead of butterscotch, but they’d need a different name.

Ingredients

  • 6 tablespoons butter, softened
  • 1 1/4 cups light brown sugar
  • 2 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 egg
  • 2 1/4 cups flour
  • 1 cup toffee bits
  • 1 cup butterscotch chips
  • 1 cup chopped pecans

Preparation

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line several baking sheets with parchment paper.

In a mixing bowl fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together butter, brown sugar, vanilla extract, salt, and baking soda. Add egg and beat until well-combined and fluffy. Add flour mixture in three batches, beating well to combine between each; dough will pull away from the side of the bowl when ready.

Mix in toffee bits, butterscotch chips, and pecans; use your hands if necessary.

Using a 2-inch cookie scoop, drop scoops of dough onto cookie sheets about 2 inches apart. Bake for 10 minutes, until tops are just golden brown.

Cool on cookie sheets for about 5 minutes, then remove to a wire rack to cool completely.

Store in an airtight container at room temperature. Makes about 3 dozen.

Amish Oatmeal Cookies

amish-oatmeal-cookieOatmeal cookies are among my favorite, and these cookies offer a delightful twist on the classic treat. This recipe comes from the King Arthur Flour Cookie Companion and includes some surprising touches; there’s nutmeg in the dough along with cinnamon, and a brown sugar cinnamon mixture for coating. The original recipe includes raisins, but I decided to leave them out. If you’d like to add them, go for 1/2 cup and add them after you stir in the oats.

I didn’t expect these cookies to spread out when baking as much as they did, so I advise you to leave plenty of room on your baking sheets, at least a few inches between each cookie. Also, let them cool on the baking sheets for just a minute or two once they’re done baking; any more time, and they might end up overdone.

Ingredients

  • 8 tablespoons butter, slightly softened
  • 1/2 cup light brown sugar
  • 1/2 cup white sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
  • 1 egg
  • 2 tablespoons milk
  • 1 cup flour
  • 1 cup old-fashioned oats

For the coating

  • 1/2 cup light brown sugar
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon

Preparation

In a mixing bowl, beat butter, sugars, baking powder, salt, baking soda, vanilla, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Add eggs and milk, beating until combined.

Mix in flour on low speed until just incorporated, then stir in oats.

Refrigerate dough for at least 1 hour or until firm.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line three baking sheets with parchment paper.

In a small bowl, combine light brown sugar and cinnamon, mixing with a fork to combine.

Scoop dough using a 1-inch cookie scoop and roll into balls, then dip in brown sugar mixture to coat.

Place on cookie sheets, spacing at least 2 inches apart. If desired, use the tines of a fork to flatten slightly – I omitted this step in my preparation.

Bake for 10-12 minutes, until centers are still puffy but edges are golden brown. Remove from oven and cool on baking sheets for a few minutes, then remove to a wire rack to cool completely.

Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.