Toffee Chocolate Chip Cookies

I love toffee so I am always drawn to the toffee bits on the baking aisle. Needless to say, I now have several packages of toffee bits in my pantry. This seemed like a good way to use some of them up!

TOFFEE CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES
From Hannah's Kitchen

INGREDIENTS
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup butter
1/4 cup shortening
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 eggs
1 bag (8 ounces) toffee bits
1 1/2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

2. In a small bowl, combine flour, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.

3. In a large mixer bowl, cream butter, shortening, sugar, and brown sugar. Beat in vanilla and eggs. Gradually add flour mixture, beating just until combined. Stir in toffee bits and chocolate chips.

4. Drop cookies by tablespoonfuls onto cookie sheets lined with parchment paper. Bake for 10-12 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool on cookie sheet for at least 5 minutes. Remove to wire rack to cool completely.

Apple Cherry Pie Pockets - Pillsbury Bake-Off 2009

These little pies represent my entry into this year's Pillsbury Bake-Off competition. Even my pickiest taste tester (who also happens to be my husband) thought they were really delicious!
APPLE CHERRY PIE POCKETS
From Hannah's Kitchen

YIELD - 6 Pies

INGREDIENTS
1 box (15 ounces) Pillsbury Refrigerated Pie Crust
4 medium Gala apples, peeled, cored, and chopped (about 4 cups)
3/4 cup dried cherries
1/4 cup brown sugar
3/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1 dash salt
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons water
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 egg
1 tablespoon water
3 tablespoons coarse sugar (turbinado works well)
6 tablespoons Smuckers caramel ice cream topping

DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F and line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

2. Peel, core, and chop apples and place in a 2-quart saucepan. Add cherries, brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, salt, butter, flour, lemon juice, 2 tablespoons water, and vanilla extract. Stir and cook over medium heat until apples start to soften and release their juices, about 15 minutes. Remove from heat.

3. Unroll the two pie crusts and cut each crust in half, then cut each half into thirds, resulting in 12 triangle-shaped pieces of pie dough.

4. In a small bowl, combine the eggs and 1 tablespoon water to create an egg wash.

5. Place 6 triangles of dough onto a flat work surface and brush the edges of each piece with the egg wash. Spoon apple mixture into centers of each triangle, being careful not to pile too high (about 1/3 to 1/2 cup of the mixture should fit). Spread mixture evenly to within 1/4 inch of the edge of the dough.

6. Place the remaining 6 triangles of dough on top of each of the 6 triangles on the work surface. Carefully press the edges together to seal each triangle. Then use a fork to crimp the edges all the way around each triangle.

7. Brush each of the 6 filled triangles with egg wash and sprinkle with 1/2 tablespoon of coarse sugar. Carefully place each triangle on the parchment-lined baking sheets. Using a sharp knife, cut a 1-inch slit in the middle of each pie pocket to allow steam to escape when baking.

8. Bake the pie pockets for 15-17 minutes, or until light golden brown. Cool on baking sheets for 5 minutes, then remove to wire racks to cool further. Pies may be served warm or cooled.

9. When pies are ready to be served, place each triangle on a plate and drizzle with about 1 tablespoon of the caramel ice cream topping.

Chocolate Raspberry Crumb Bars

My Mom has been making these bars for years. They are easy to make and oh so decadent! If you don't like nuts, feel free to omit them - the bars are still delicious without them.
CHOCOLATE RASPBERRY CRUMB BARS
From Nestle Toll House

YIELD - 36 bars

INGREDIENTS
1 cup (2 sticks) butter or margarine, softened
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 cups (12 ounces) semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 can (14 ounces) sweetened condensed milk
1/2 cup chopped pecans
1/3 cup seedless raspberry jam

DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 13 x 9-inch baking pan.

2. Beat butter in large mixer bowl until creamy. Beat in flour, sugar, and salt until crumbly. With floured fingers, press 1 3/4 cups crumb mixture onto bottom of prepared baking pan; reserve remaining mixture.

3. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes or until edges are golden brown.

4. Microwave 1 cup chocolate chips and sweetened condensed milk in medium, uncovered, microwave-safe bowl on high power for 1 minute; stir. Chips may retain some of their original shape. If necessary, microwave at additional 10- to 15-second intervals, stirring just until morsels are melted. Spread over hot crust.

5. Stir nuts into reserved crumb mixture; sprinkle over chocolate filling. Drop teaspoonfuls of raspberry jam over crumb mixture. Sprinkle with remaining chocolate chips.

6. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until center is set. Cool completely in pan on wire rack.

Monster Cookies

I was planning on shipping some treats in the mail, and since this cookie is fairly sturdy I thought it would travel well and be a nice addition to my package of goodies. I have made these cookies numerous times and they are always a crowd favorite. The M&M's can be mixed right into the batter, but I think it is more visually appealing to set them on top of the cookies before they bake.

MONSTER COOKIES
Adapted Slightly From The King Arthur Flour Cookie Companion

INGREDIENTS
3 large eggs
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon corn syrup
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted
1 1/2 cups smooth peanut butter
4 1/2 cups rolled oats
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
3/4 cup butterscotch chips
3/4 cup M&M's (mini or regular size)

DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line baking sheets with parchment (or lightly grease).

2. In a large mixing bowl, combine the eggs, sugars, vanilla, corn syrup, baking soda, and salt. Stir in the melted butter, then the peanut butter, oats, and flour, mixing until thoroughly combined. Stir in the chips and candy. Let the dough rest for 30 minutes so the oats can absorb some of the butter.

3. Drop by scant 1/4-cupfuls onto the prepared baking sheets. Use your fingers to flatten cookies slightly, then bake for 12 minutes, until cookies are a light golden brown. Cool on wire racks.

Peach Crumble Bars

These buttery bars can be made with any flavor jam or preserves you choose.
PEACH CRUMBLE BARS

INGREDIENTS
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 cup rolled oats
1/2 cup butter, softened
3/4 cup peach preserves

DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease one 8-inch square pan and line with greased foil.

2. Combine brown sugar, flour, baking soda, salt, and rolled oats. Rub in the butter using your hands or a pastry blender to form a crumbly mixture. Press 2 cups of the mixture into the bottom of the prepared pan. Spread preserves to within 1/4 inch of the edge. Sprinkle the remaining crumb mixture over the top, and lightly press it into the preserves.

3. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes in preheated oven, or until lightly browned. Allow to cool before cutting into bars.

Chocolate Eclairs

Today I made mini eclairs with chocolate ganache glaze. It was my first time attempting to make pate a choux dough so I was ready for an adventure. I used Gale Gand's recipe from Food Network and it turned out pretty well.
First I made the pastry cream and let it chill in the refrigerator.
Then I mixed up the pate a choux, piped the dough onto a baking sheet, and baked up the shells.
After the shells cooled, I filled a pastry bag with pastry cream and filled the shells.
The filled shells were then dipped in the ganache glaze.
Finally, the eclairs were placed on a baking sheet in the refrigerator to set.

Cranberry Oatmeal White Chip Cookies

These are my mom's favorite cookies. I often halve this recipe, but I made a full batch during my visit to Ames so Mom could stock-pile the freezer.

CRANBERRY OATMEAL WHITE CHIP COOKIES
From Hannah's Kitchen

INGREDIENTS
1 cup butter, softened (may substitute shortening)
1 cup sugar
1 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups all-purpose flour
3 cups quick-cooking oats
1 1/2 cups (1-6 ounce package) dried cranberries
1 1/2 cups white chocolate chips

DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

2. In a large bowl cream the butter, sugar, and brown sugar. Beat in eggs and vanilla until combined.

3. In a small bowl combine the cinnamon, baking soda, salt, and flour. Gradually add to sugar mixture until just combined.

4. Stir in the oatmeal, dried cranberries, and white chocolate chips.

5. Drop by tablespoon-size cookie scoop onto cookie sheets lined with parchment and bake for 8-10 minutes, just until the edges are lightly golden. Cool cookies on the sheet for 2-3 minutes and then transfer to cooling rack.

Double Chocolate Walnut Cookies

I got this recipe from an old Toll House cookbook my parents have had on their bookshelf for years. These made a nice chocolate cookie.

DOUBLE CHOCOLATE WALNUT COOKIES
From The Nestle Toll House Cookbook

INGREDIENTS
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup butter, softened
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 packets (1 ounce each) Nestle choco bake pre-melted unsweetened chocolate
1 package (12 ounces) semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 cup chopped walnuts

DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a small bowl combine flour, baking soda, and salt; set aside.

2. In a large bowl cream butter, sugar, and brown sugar. Add egg and vanilla and mix well. Add Choco Bake and mix until completely incorporated. Gradually beat in flour mixture. Stir in chips and nuts.

3. Drop by rounded tablespoons onto ungreased baking sheet. Bake for 9-11 minutes or until edges are set but centers are still soft. Cool on baking sheets for 2-3 minutes and remove to wire racks to cool completely.

Apple Pie Pockets

I am working on a recipe for the Pillsbury Bakeoff, so I can't share the recipe yet, but here are some photos of my apple pie pockets. I tested this recipe on my parents and brother and everyone seemed to enjoy them.
Cooling pies.
I made a small pie with the extra crust and filling and added an oatmeal crumb topping.
There were deer in my parent's backyard keeping an eye on me while I was baking.

Red Velvet Cake Balls

I just returned home after visiting my family in Ames, Iowa for a few days. I gave my Mom a lesson on how to make cake balls, and this is the result of our efforts.
Our process:
Mom crumbled the cake, leaving the crusty edges in the pan to be snacked on later.
We added cream cheese frosting to the cake crumbles and formed them into balls.
We dipped the balls in chocolate and decorated them with melted white chips.
Then we put them in mini paper baking cups and sampled our treats.

Ultimate Brownies

My quest for the best brownie may have ended today. These are awesome! I adapted the recipe from Ina Garten's recipe for Outrageous Brownies. I also learned how important it is to follow this recipe and chill the brownies in the pan in the refrigerator before trying to handle them. After the brownies cooled in the pan for 2 hours I took them out of the pan to try a little piece, thinking I would just pick up the 8" x 8" square on a sheet of wax paper and move it to the fridge. Unfortunately, I tried to stick my hand under the uncut brownies to lift them and a huge chunk (about a third) broke off and fell directly on top of my dog, Zeus, who happened to be standing right under me feet! Needless to say, he hated it, and then I had to scramble around to pick everything up so he couldn't eat any of the mess. The only saving grace in the whole disaster was how delicious the brownies were!
Zeus has fully recovered from being hit with falling brownies. At least they were cool!
ULTIMATE BROWNIES
Adapted From The Barefoot Contessa Cookbook

INGREDIENTS
10 tablespoons butter
1 1/3 cups semisweet chocolate chips, divided
2 ounces unsweetened chocolate
2 eggs
1 teaspoon instant espresso powder
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
3/4 cup sugar
1/3 cup flour, plus 4 teaspoons flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/3 teaspoon kosher salt

DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line an 8-inch square pan with foil and coat with cooking spray.

2. Melt together the butter, 2/3 cup chocolate chips, and unsweetened chocolate on top of a double boiler. Cool slightly. Stir together the eggs, instant espresso, vanilla, and sugar. Stir in the warm chocolate mixture and cool to warm temperature.

3. Stir together 1/3 cup flour, baking powder, and salt. Add to the cooled chocolate mixture. Toss the remaining 2/3 cup chocolate chips with the 4 teaspoons flour to coat, then add to the chocolate batter. Pour into prepared pan.

4. Bake for 22-25 minutes, or until tester just comes out clean. Halfway through the baking, rap the pan against the oven shelf to allow air to escape from between the pan and the brownie dough. Do not over-bake! Cool thoroughly, refrigerate well and cut into squares.

Browned Butter Blondies

The past few days I've been looking at recipes for blondies, and today I put together a winner! The key to rich flavor in these bars is browning the butter used in both the bar and the icing.

BROWNED BUTTER BLONDIES
From Hannah's Kitchen

BLONDIE INGREDIENTS
1/2 cup butter
1 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 eggs
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup chopped pecans

ICING INGREDIENTS
1/4 cup butter
2 cups powdered sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
2-3 tablespoons milk

DIRECTIONS
1. Heat oven to 350 degrees F.

2. Melt 1/2 cup butter in 2-quart heavy saucepan over medium heat. Cook, stirring constantly and watching closely, until butter just begins to turn golden brown (about 6-8 minutes). Immediately remove from heat and cool 5 minutes. Stir in brown sugar and 2 teaspoons vanilla. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Add flour, baking powder, and salt; stir until just combined. Fold in pecans.

3. Spread batter into greased 8-inch square baking pan (it will be thick). Bake for 22-26 minutes, or until bars are lightly browned and begin to pull away from sides of pan. Cool completely in pan on wire rack.

4. Once bars are cooled, melt 1/4 cup butter in 1-quart heavy saucepan over medium heat. Cook, stirring constantly and watching closely, until butter just begins to turn golden brown (about 4-6 minutes). Immediately remove from heat and cool for 5 minutes.

5. Combine cooled browned butter, powdered sugar, and 1/2 teaspoon vanilla in small bowl. Stir in enough milk for desired frosting consistency.

6. Spread frosting over cooled bars. Cut into bars.

Triple Chocolate Brownies

I made a batch of triple chocolate brownies this morning. The "triple" part comes from the semi-sweet chocolate, unsweetened chocolate, and cocoa powder. These were good, but I'm still hunting for something a little more fudgy.

Matthew in the Kitchen

Matt also made a pie for the pie party, and he waited until I was out of the house to get in the kitchen and get creative. It was quite a creative pie. He used a Jello no-bake Oreo pie mix, and then added peanut butter eggs, gummy worms, and the heads of cocoa Peeps (he cut the bodies off and ate those) to the pudding pie mixture. He topped the pie with chunks of Oreos and whole Peeps.

This is the completed pie.
It looks kind of cute from the outside.
Here is the inside of the pie. It may not have been the most conventional (or tasty) creation, but it was definitely the most talked about!

Lemon Cream Cheese Pie

Yesterday I made this lemon cream cheese pie so I can take it to the pie eating party today. The lemon filling is bright and fresh, and is well-balanced by the cream cheese layer below.
First I made the lemon filling and let it cool to room temperature.
While the filling cooled I mixed up the cream cheese layer.
The cream cheese layer is then spread into the cooled pie shell.
Next, the lemon filling is spread on top of the cream cheese layer.
Make sure the lemon filling completely covers the cream cheese layer.
Finally, use the reserved cream cheese mixture to pipe decorations onto the pie.
The inside has two gorgeous layers.
Yum!

LEMON CREAM CHEESE PIE

INGREDIENTS
1 baked 9-inch pie pastry
1 1/2 cups sugar
6 tablespoons cornstarch
Pinch of salt
1 cup water
2-3 drops yellow food coloring (optional)
2 teaspoons lemon zest
2/3 cup fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons butter
12 ounces cream cheese, softened
3/4 cup powdered sugar
3/4 whipped heavy cream (about 6 tablespoons cream, whipped)
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

DIRECTIONS
1. In a saucepan, combine sugar, cornstarch, and pinch of salt.
2. Stir in water, lemon juice, lemon zest, and food coloring (if using) and breing to a boil over medium-high heat. Cook and stir for 2 minutes, or until mixture is smooth and thickened.
3. Remove lemon mixture from heat, stir in butter, and cool to room temperature (about an hour).
4. Meanwhile, in a mixing bowl beat the cream cheese and powdered sugar until smooth. Fold in the whipped cream and 1 tablespoon lemon juice.
5. Reserve 1/2 cup of the cream cheese mixture to be used for garnish.
6. Spread the remaining cream cheese mixture into the baked pastry shell.
7. Top with the cooled lemon filling.
8. Scoop the reserved 1/2 cup cream cheese mixture into a pastry bag with a star tip. Pipe stars onto the pie, or garnish with reserved cream cheese mixture as desired.
9. Chill in the fridge for a minimum of 8 hours, or overnight.
10. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Pie Crust

A bunch of my husband's grad school friends are getting together tomorrow afternoon to eat pie. Everyone is supposed to bring a pie, so I decided to bake mine this afternoon. Since I am making a filled pie with a lot of flavors, I figured I didn't have to do anything special for the crust. While I was at the grocery I grabbed a two-pack of Pillsbury frozen deep dish ready-to-bake crusts. I have used the Pillsbury crusts from the refrigerator section that you unroll, but this seemed even easier (and cheaper). I also wanted the disposable pie plate so I don't have to worry about bringing home my glass pie dish. As the pictures below show, these frozen crusts were a disaster! I only needed one, but after I followed the directions precisely and it came out cracked all over the place, I decided I better try again with the second crust. Horrible! I ended up breaking up those crusts into pieces and putting them in a freezer bag to be used for parfaits or ice cream topping. Then I washed out the disposable pie plates and made a from-scratch crust recipe that was billed as "no roll." It turned out MUCH better. I guess if you want something made right you really have to make it yourself!

Here is the beautiful homemade pie shell, baked and ready to be filled.
Here are the Pillsbury frozen disaster pie shells.
NO ROLL PIE CRUST

YIELD - 1 - 8" or 9" pie crust

INGREDIENTS
1 1/2 cups flour
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons sugar
1/2 cup oil
2 tablespoons milk

DIRECTIONS
1. Mix dry ingredients together with a fork in a pie pan.

2. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and add the oil and milk.

3. Mix with a fork until it is combined and makes a ball.

4. With your hands, flatten and press the dough into the pan and up the sides, fluting the edge.

5. Bake at 375 degrees F for 10-12 minutes until golden.

Big Fat Chocolate Chip Cookies

I may have finally found "the one." These jumbo size chocolate chip cookies are thick without being too cakey, and still soft without being undercooked. Delicious!
Look at the size of that big guy!
The insides are thick and gooey.

BIG FAT CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES

YIELD - 12 large cookies

INGREDIENTS
8 ounces unsalted butter, cold and cut into cubes
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup brown sugar, packed
2 eggs
3 cups bread flour
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/3 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Stir together flour, salt, and baking soda. Set aside.

Beat cold butter and sugars just until they come together. Do not overbeat! Add eggs and mix until combined. Then add flour and mix until blended. Stir in chocolate chips. Dough should not be sticky, nor should it be dry and crumbly.

Divide dough into 12 rough mounds. Do not shape or smooth the mounds, as you will not get the craggy texture on the top of the cookie. Bake cookies, 6 at a time, on an ungreased insulated baking sheet for 20 minutes. Cool cookies on baking sheet for 10 minutes. Remove cookies to wire rack to cool.

Raspberry Cream Sandwiches

I needed to use up some white chocolate that was reaching the end of its life span, so I decided to make these raspberry cream sandwich cookies. The cookie is a basic vanilla sugar cookie, with white chocolate raspberry ganache sandwiched in the middle.
First, I baked and cooled the cookies.
Then I mixed up the ganache, let it chill, and stirred it again.
Ganache is spread on the bottom of one cookie before being topped with another.
The cookies are ready to eat.

"Perfect" Chocolate Chip Cookies

The new issue of Cooks Illustrated came in the mail today and contained a recipe titled "Perfect Chocolate Chip Cookies." In my never ending quest to find the perfect chocolate chip cookie, I had to give these a try. Instead of creaming the butter and sugar until fluffy, the butter is browned and whisked with the sugars. This resulted in a very rich and buttery cookie. Matthew, my official taste tester, thought the cookies might be a little too rich and buttery. I liked them a lot, but there is always room for improvement and the search for my perfect cookie continues.