Category Archives: Cookies

Soft & Chewy Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

February 23, 2015

IMG_6965

So much snow. Unlike Chicago, at least Colorado warms up in between all the white. We’ll have spring-like weather for a few days and then a blizzard, and then it’s sunny again and you almost forget it’s winter. Until this weekend. When we’re stuck inside I spend a lot of time in the kitchen. And make lots of messes (which Dustin kindly helps clean, but not without complaints). During this snowy weekend we had waffles and burritos and buckwheat crepes with bacon/spinach/mushrooms/cheese. And fish with roasted potatoes (recipes up next). And these cookies.

This recipe became an instant favorite when I first made it a few months ago. Oatmeal raisin is just about my favorite cookie, but it has to be soft and chewy and have just the right amount of molasses flavor. And these are exactly that! They need a little time in the refrigerator before baking (to prevent spreading). My only other advice: don’t over-bake them. Take them out as soon as the edges turn golden and they’ll set as they cool.

Soft & Chewy Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

INGREDIENTS

1 cup unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
1 cup light or dark brown sugar
1/4 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
2 tsp. pure vanilla extract
1 Tbsp. molasses
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. salt
3 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
1 cup raisins
1/2 cup chopped toasted walnuts (optional- I omitted)

DIRECTIONS

1. Using a hand mixer or a stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment, cream the softened butter and both sugars together on medium speed until smooth. Add the eggs and mix on high until combined, about 1 minute. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed. Add the vanilla and molasses and mix on high until combined. Set aside.

2. In a separate bowl, toss the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt together. Add to the wet ingredients and mix on low until combined. Beat in the oats, raisins, and walnuts (if using) on low speed. Dough will be thick, yet very sticky. Chill the dough for 30-60 minutes in the refrigerator (do the full hour if you’re afraid of the cookies spreading too much). If chilling for longer (up to 2 days), allow to sit at room temperature for at least 30 minutes before rolling and baking.

3. Preheat oven to 350 F. Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.

4. Roll balls of dough (about 1.5 tablespoons of dough per cookie) and place 2 inches apart on the baking sheets. Bake for 8-10 minutes until very lightly browned on the sides. The centers will look very soft and undone. Remove from the oven and let cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. The cookies will continue to “set” on the baking sheet during this time.

5. Cover cookies and store at room temperature for up to 1 week. Baked cookies and rolled cookie dough freeze well, up to 3 months. Bake frozen cookie dough balls for an extra minute– do not thaw.

Makes about 3 dozen cookies.

(Adapted from Sally’s Baking Addiction)

Sugar Cookie Crust Fruit Pizza

May 30, 2014

IMG_5765

I keep starting to write about our day to day life (job searching, moving, the most annoying masters thesis in the world, toddlers who are this very minute singing while kicking the wall and NOT napping) and then decided I’m boring myself and all you’re really here for is a recipe. So, a recipe it is.

IMG_5775

We bbq’d on Memorial Day and tried three new recipes and loved them all. So I’ll be sharing them. Starting with dessert, naturally. A giant sugar cookie spread with a generous layer of lemony cream cheese frosting and topped with as much fruit as you can fit. Some people call it fruit pizza. I just know it’s delicious and the perfect thing to make when it’s 4pm and your guests are arriving at 5 and you need a dessert STAT. It does cook quickly, just be warned that you must let it cool completely before frosting or you’ll end up with a puddle of fruit on top.

Sugar Cookie Crust Fruit Pizza

INGREDIENTS

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup light brown sugar
1 large egg
1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
1/4 tsp. almond extract
1 1/4 cup all purpose flour
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt

Spread:
1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
3/4 cup powdered sugar
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1/2 tsp. lemon zest

Fresh Fruit:
strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, blackberries, peaches, kiwi, mango, etc.

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 325 F.

2. In a medium bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder, and salt. In a large mixing bowl cream together the butter and sugars until smooth. Add the egg, vanilla, and almond extract and mix until just incorporated. Slowly incorporate the flour mixture into the creamed butter and mix until blended. Remove dough from bowl and press into a greased 10 inch tart pan or pizza pan.

3. Bake in preheated oven for 10 to 12 minutes, or until the edges just start to brown. Remove from oven and let cool on a cooling rack.

4. In a large mixing bowl, beat the cream cheese, sugar, vanilla, and lemon zest until smooth. Spread evenly on the cooled crust. Arrange fresh fruit in desired pattern on top of filling and chill until ready to slice and serve.

Makes a 10-inch round cookie.

(Adapted from Kelsey Nixon via Lahatchita Eats)

Orange Creamsicle Cookies

April 15, 2014

IMG_4640

I’ve shared these cookies with a few friends now and it’s unanimous: they’re awesome. They really do capture that orange-vanilla “creamsicle” flavor. Just as I was writing this I began wondering why I haven’t made a creamsicle flavored ice cream and then I found this recipe which I will for sure be trying shortly. Once it stops snowing.

IMG_4641-001

Orange Creamsicle Cookies

INGREDIENTS

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 large egg
1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
2 Tbsp. orange zest (approx. zest of 2 large oranges)
2 cups white chocolate chips

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 375 F.

2. In a small bowl, combine flour, baking soda, and salt. In a large bowl, cream butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Beat in egg and vanilla until smooth. Gradually add the flour mixture until well combined. Stir in the orange zest and white chocolate chips.

3. Drop rounded spoonfuls onto cookie sheets (do not flatten cookies) and bake in preheated oven for 6-10 minutes (mine took 7 minutes) until golden brown around the edges. Remove from the cookie sheets to a wire rack to cool.

Makes 2-3 dozen cookies.

(Adapted from The Girl Who Ate Everything)

Chewy Coconut Oatmeal Cookies

October 1, 2013

coconut oatmeal cookies

I’ve been dedicating a lot of time here recently (mostly behind the scenes: moving to wordpress, partnering with advertisers, now working on a redesign… so exciting!!) and it has prompted me to think about my purpose in this space. What am I doing here? Not on earth in general- we’ll save that for another day. But why I bother with this blog. Why I put so much of myself into something that maybe just a few (wonderful) people read. Well, this is what I came up with:

I love it. I love food (obviously). I tolerate taking pictures of food (one of my goals is to improve this aspect of things). I love cooking. And I want to inspire you to love it too. That’s it. My big purpose. I hope I can reach at least a few of you out there and inspire you to create in the kitchen. To feed yourselves and your families healthy, whole foods and to enjoy it!

The second purpose is to journal my successes and failures. I post the recipes that are worth repeating, along with what I learned in the process of getting there. This is my love affair with food, chronicled as a reference for us to share.

And last, the most selfish reason of all- I want to write. To write about food and whatever else I please. To write about my little unimportant life, in a way that’s meaningful to me. To write about eating too much and not sleeping nearly enough. About being a wife, a daughter, a mama. Just to say something.

So thank you for listening.

Now cookies. Because we all deserve a treat. I loved my friend’s description of these, “the perfect balance of chewy, and coconut, and sweet”. They’re simple- nothing exotic or unusual. Just a vanilla cookie batter with coconut and oats. Soft and sweet and chewy.

Chewy Coconut Oatmeal Cookies

INGREDIENTS

1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened to room temperature
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
2 tsp. pure vanilla extract
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup shredded sweetened coconut
1 cup quick oats

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 350 F. Lightly grease (or line with parchment paper) a large baking sheet.

2. Cream butter and sugars with an electric mixer on medium until light and fluffy. Add the eggs and vanilla extract and mix well. Add the baking soda, baking powder, salt, flour, coconut, and oats and mix until well combined.

3. Drop by tablespoonfuls onto the prepared sheet. Bake in preheated oven for 8-10 minutes until just golden brown on the edges. Remove cookies to cool on a wire rack.

Makes 2-3 dozen cookies, depending on size.

(Adapted from Mel’s Kitchen Cafe)

Lemon Crinkle Cookies

May 6, 2013

Last week was Clara’s first birthday! And so for the past month or so I’ve been trying out recipes to include on the menu for her party (a late morning brunch). These cookies easily made the cut. They’re not-too-tart, not-too-sweet and completely lemony. I’m not fanatical about lemons, but I could eat a dozen of these. (Oh, and they freeze really well so they can be made ahead of time. Just let them come to room temperature before serving.)

Lemon Crinkle Cookies

INGREDIENTS

1/2 cup butter, softened
1 cup sugar
1/2 tsp. pure vanilla extract
1 egg
1 tsp. lemon zest
1 Tbsp. freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. baking powder
1/8 tsp. baking soda
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup powdered sugar, for rolling

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 350 F. Grease 2 large nonstick cooking sheets with cooking spray or line with parchment paper or a mat.

2. In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar together until light and fluffy.  Whip in vanilla, egg, lemon zest, and juice.  Scrape sides and mix again.  Stir in all dry ingredients slowly until just combined, excluding the powdered sugar.  Scrape sides of bowl and mix again, briefly.

3. Pour powdered sugar onto a large plate.  Roll a heaping teaspoon of dough into a ball and roll in the powdered sugar.  Place on baking sheet and repeat with remaining dough.

4. Bake for 8-10 minutes or until bottoms begin to barely brown and cookies look matte (not melted or shiny).  Remove from oven and cool cookies about 3 minutes before transferring to a rack.

Makes about 18 cookies.

(Adapted from Lauren’s Latest and Lahatchita Eats)