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Cookies

Cookies, Dessert, Lactose Free, Recipes

Red Velvet Crinkle Cookies

December 23, 2019
These gorgeous cookies are perfect for the holidays. The red and white contrast are simply out of this world! Besides being very festive, they are surprisingly easy to make, not to mention delicious.. I adapted this recipe from Eric Kim’s recipe at Food52.
I had two bottles of red food coloring in my cupboard for a long time. I thought I would never use it. After making these cookies a few times, I was off to the market to purchase another bottle. The color of the batter looks very strange at first. But rest assured, once you add the flour and cocoa powder, things improve dramatically.
Scoop balls of dough and freeze for about 10 minutes to firm up. Roll in confectioners sugar (lots of it) covering all areas to ensure you get that dramatic red and white look.
The cookies have the perfect texture. They are a bit chewy on the outside and tender and soft in the center. If you want to make these in advance of a holiday, you may freeze them in a plastic container separating layers of cookies with parchment paper.

Red Velvet Crinkle Cookies

  • 4 tablespoons (1/2 stick or 57 grams) Buttery Sticks at room temperature (or regular butter)
  • 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 tablespoon canola oil
  • 1 cup + 2 tablespoons (225 grams) granulated sugar
  • 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt (1 teaspoon if using unsalted butter)
  • 1 large egg
  • 1 tablespoon rice vinegar (substitute white or apple cider vinegar)
  • 1 tablespoon red food coloring
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 1 3/4 cups (219 grams) all purpose flour
  • 1/4 cup (21 grams) unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 cup confectioners sugar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.

Cream Buttery Sticks, olive oil, canola oil, sugar, salt and egg with a hand mixer until fluffy and pale yellow, about 1 minute. Add the vinegar, red food coloring, and vanilla and mix until well combined.

In a separate bowl, whisk flour, cocoa powder and baking soda together. Add to the butter and sugar mixture stirring gently until just incorporated.

Using a medium cookie scoop (I use Oxo #40, 1 1/2 tablespoons) portion out 20 balls of dough on a plate. Freeze for 8-10 minutes. Remove from the freezer and roll each piece of dough into a round ball. Coat thoroughly with confectioners sugar. Place on a parchment lined baking sheets leaving enough space as cookies will spread as they bake. I use a cookie sheet and a half sheet that fit on one rack so that I can bake all the cookies at one time. You may choose to use 2 cookie sheets and bake one at a time. Bake for about 13-14 minutes. Let cookies rest on the pan for a few minutes before transferring to a rack to cool completely.

Cookies, Dessert, Lactose Free, Recipes, Vegan

Potato Chip Cookies

November 9, 2019

Potato Chip CookiesMaui Style Potato Chips are my favorite chip.  They are very crunchy and unlike some other brands, they are not smashed to smithereens when you open up the bag.  Some of them are curved, some folded over (I like these best), and they are perfectly salty as a chip should be.  With that being said, they are ideal for this recipe.  I can understand the 5 star rating these Fine Cooking magazine cookies receive from those who have made them.  They are delicious.

Maui Style Potato Chips

If you can’t find Maui Style Potato Chips you may substitute with your favorite kettle-style potato chips.

Pecans & Maui Potato Chips

Finely chopped pecans contribute to the cookie’s crisp texture.
Potato Chip Cookie Dough

The cookie dough is shaped into balls then pressed with a buttered cup coated with sugar.  The dough is not overly sweet and the sugar-coating adds a nice finish to the cookies once baked.

Potato Chip Cookies

Potato Chip Cookies
 
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Adapted from Fine Cooking magazine
Author:
Serves: 30 cookies
Ingredients
  • 8 ounces Earth Balance Buttery Sticks (or regular butter), softened at room temperature; more for shaping
  • ½ cup granulated sugar; more for shaping
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 8 ounces (scant 2 cups) all-purpose flour
  • ½ cup finely chopped pecans
  • ¾ cup finely crushed potato chips
Preparation
  1. Position rack in the middle and heat oven to 350 degrees. Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper.
  2. With a hand mixer, beat the Buttery Sticks and sugar on medium speed in a large bowl until creamy and well blended, about 4 minutes, scraping the bowl as needed (or use a stand mixer with the paddle attachment). Add the vanilla and beat again until blended. If using a hand mixer, stir in the flour, pecans and potato chips or mix on low speed with a stand mixer.
  3. Shape dough into 1½-inch balls. Arrange the balls about 2 inches apart on the baking sheets. Put some sugar in a shallow bowl. Lightly grease a flat-bottomed glass or small bowl with soft butter. Dip the glass into the sugar and press the glass down on a dough ball until it's about ¼-inch thick. Repeat dipping and pressing with the remaining balls. You will need to grease the glass now and then with more butter.
  4. Bake 1 sheet at a time until the cookies look dry on top and the edges are light golden, about 12 minutes. Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet on a rack for 5 minutes before transferring them to a rack to cool completely.
  5. If you are not serving the cookies right away, freeze them in an airtight container. This keeps them fresh and crisp. Remove cookies from the freezer 30 - 60 minutes before serving.

 

Cookies, Dessert, Lactose Free, Recipes

Levain Bakery Style Chocolate Chip Cookies

July 29, 2019

Levain Bakery Style Chocolate Chip Cookies

The perfect chocolate cookie probably doesn’t exist.  There are so m any different styles, so why limit yourself to just one? Thin and crispy cookies are one of my favorites, but these thick, chewy cookies packed with chocolate chips are truly delectable. I’ve made them numerous times and always have some stashed in the freezer for that moment when I crave a quick dessert.  I adapted the recipe from Melissa at Modern Honey.  Melissa makes 8 big cookies like the ones they sell at Levain Bakery in Manhattan.  I divided the dough into 12 portions and I can barely finish one of these cookies by myself.

Ghiradelli Grand Chips & Walnuts

The cookie dough has more than a pound of chocolate chips and nuts combined which makes these cookies particularly delicious.

Ghiradelli Grand Chips

What’s so cool about these cookies is that there are no specialty ingredients needed and you can make these on the fly because you use cold butter and not butter that needs to sit out for an hour to soften.  I do like to use the larger baking chips although regular sized chips will work just fine.  I suggest using heaping (rather than level) cups of chocolate chips so that each bite delivers that chocolate experience you would expect in a really good chocolate chip cookie.

Levain Bakery Style Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough

Levain Bakery Style Chocolate Chip Cookies

The cookie tops are golden brown when done.  They smell divine when they come out of the oven.  Do your best to resist eating them until they cool down a bit for the perfect cookie texture.

Levain Bakery Style Chocolate Chip Cookies

Levain Bakery Style Chocolate Chip Cookies

Levain Bakery Style Chocolate Chip Cookies
 
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Author:
Serves: 12
Ingredients
  • 1 cup cold Earth Balance Buttery Sticks (or regular butter) cut into small cubes
  • 1 cup (145g) light brown sugar, lightly packed
  • ½ (99g) cup granulated sugar
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1½ cups (160g) cake flour
  • 1½ cups (190g) all-purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon cornstarch
  • ¾ teaspoon baking soda
  • ½ teaspoon (scant) salt or ¾ teaspoons if using unsalted butter
  • 2 heaping cups (368g) chocolate chips
  • 2 cups (215g) walnuts, roughly chopped
Preparation
  1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
  2. Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper.
  3. With a hand held mixer or stand mixer, cream together the cold butter cubes with the brown and white sugar for about 3 minutes until creamy.
  4. Add eggs one at a time, mixing well between each addition.
  5. Stir in cake and all-purpose flour, cornstarch, baking soda and salt. Mix until just combined. Stir in chocolate chips and walnuts.
  6. Lightly form 12 balls and place 6 on each cookie sheet. Each one should weigh about 4⅛ ounces.
  7. Bake one pan at a time for about 9 minutes, or until the tops of the cookies are light golden brown. Remove from the oven and let cookies rest on the baking sheet for 10 minutes to firm up before transferring to a cooling rack. Repeat with the second batch of cookies.

 

Cookies, Dessert, Lactose Free, Recipes

Peanut Butter Blossoms

March 6, 2019

Peanut Butter Blossoms with Granulated Sugar

These petite, nearly bite-sized cookies will delight children of all ages, from 3 to 93!  They are the perfect treat when you are short on time but want a freshly baked cookie.  No chilling the dough for hours and no fancy ingredients.  It takes a few minutes to unwrap 5 dozen Hershey’s Kisses but if you have kids or willing family members, you will be ready to go in no time at all.  There are thousands of recipes for Peanut Butter Blossoms, also known as Hershey Kiss Cookies.  Some use butter, others use shortening (I tried it, not a fan) and a few use both.  This recipe was adapted from NYT Cooking.  I added a bit more peanut butter, which is never a bad idea.

Cookie Dough Rolled in Sugar

These cookies are quite small.  You will get 5 dozen from this recipe, plenty to share with all of your friends.

Ready to Add Hershey's Kisses

The dough is rolled into 1-inch balls then rolled in sugar. I first used granulated sugar but found that coarser sugar (I used Bob’s Red Mill Decorative Sparkling Sugar) added a lovely crunch to the soft and chewy cookies.  Once the cookies have baked for 6 minutes the pan is removed from the oven and each cookie receives its Hershey’s Kiss.  They go back in the oven for another 2 minutes.  Don’t worry, the chocolate will not melt.

Peanut Butter Blossoms with Bob's Red Mill Sparkling Sugar

I think the cracks around the edges of the cookies make them more attractive.  They look beautiful!

Peanut Butter Blossoms
Peanut Butter Blossoms

Peanut Butter Blossoms
 
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Adapted from New York Times
Author:
Serves: 5 Dozen
Ingredients
  • 1¾ cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • ¼ teaspoon salt (1/2 teaspoon if using unsalted butter)
  • 4 ounces (1 stick) Earth Balance Buttery Sticks at room temperature
  • ⅔ cups smooth peanut butter such as Skippy's
  • ½ cup granulated sugar
  • ½ cup light brown sugar
  • 1 large egg
  • 1 tablespoon lactose free milk (or regular milk)
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 5 dozen (one 11-ounce package) Hershey's Kisses, foil removed
  • sparkling sugar for rolling cookie dough
Preparation
  1. Sift together flour, baking soda and salt; set aside. Using an electric mixer, cream together the Earth Balance Buttery Stick, peanut butter, granulated sugar and light brown sugar. Add egg, milk and vanilla. Beat until well blended. Gradually add flour mixture, mixing thoroughly with a firm spatula. If the dough is very soft, refrigerate for 30 minutes or freeze for 10 minutes.
  2. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper. Divide dough into 5 pieces, and shape each piece into 12 balls.
  3. Roll cookies in sugar and place 2 inches apart on the cookie sheet. Bake until very light brown and puffed, about 6 minutes. Remove cookie sheet from the oven and lightly press a candy kiss into the center of each cookie, allowing it to crack slightly. Return to the oven and bake another 2 minutes until golden brown. Remove from oven, cool for a few minutes on the pan, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
  4. The cookies are best eaten the day you bake them however you may store them in an airtight container for another day or so. You can also freeze the cookies though the chocolate may change color affecting the appearance due to the cocoa butter separating from the cocoa solids, but the taste will not be affected.

 

Cookies, Dessert, Lactose Free, Recipes

Crunchy Gingerbread Cookies

December 19, 2018

Crunchy Gingerbread Cookies

It’s the holiday season again, and there’s still time to whip up some crispy Hawaiian style gingerbread cookies before Christmas.  My original post of this recipe was back in December 2013 and I have been making these cookies many years prior to that date, and every year since.  My mom used to make gingerbread cookies for her students every Christmas.  It was in my Manoa home where I learned to love these guys.  It takes a day to bake and decorate these cookies but I find joy in giving them away to family and friends each holiday season.  Who can resist a gecko, a pineapple, or hula dancing gingerbread cookie?  So if you have a bit of time this week, make a small batch of these cookies.  Here is my original post.  This year I made two-thirds of the recipe because I was short on time.  Make the dough the night before you bake the cookies.  This way, you can start baking as soon as the sun comes up.

Mele Kalikimaka!

Cookies, Dessert, Lactose Free, Recipes

AK Cookies

September 15, 2018

AK Cookies

I’m always looking for new, interesting cookies. I stumbled upon these AK Cookies in the late and lamented Lucky Peach magazine.  The ingredients seemed like ordinary items you might have in your pantry and I loved the idea of adding shredded coconut to the dough.  Turns out these are more than just your ordinary cookies with chocolate, oatmeal and nuts.  The coconut adds the je ne sais quoi that turns on otherwise common cookie into something special.   This is a cookie that is equally appropriate with your morning coffee or served for dessert along with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.

Shredded Coconut, Walnuts, Oatmeal, Chocolate

The curious name of the cookie appears to be a play on the place where Peter Meehan and his wife Hannah Clark first had these cookies while visiting friends in Anchorage, Alaska (hence AK). Whatever the name, these are cookie perfection.  There is an ideal combination of nuts, coconut, oatmeal, and chocolate in each bite.

AK Cookie Dough

If you want to make bigger cookies, by all means go for it.  The recipe calls for using a 2-ounce ice cream scoop to make squash ball sized dough rounds. I used my Oxo Good Grips medium cookie scoop to make 40 smaller cookies. These guys freeze well.

AK Cookies

AK Cookies
 
Save Print
Adapted from Hannah Clark, Lucky Peach Magazine
Author:
Serves: 40
Ingredients
  • 2 sticks Earth Balance Buttery Sticks (or unsalted butter)
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1 cup lightly packed dark brown sugar
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • ½ teaspoon kosher salt (1 teaspoon if using unsalted butter)
  • 1 cup shredded unsweetened coconut
  • 1 12-ounce bag semi-sweet or bittersweet chocolate chips (dark chocolate for lactose free)
  • 2 cups quick cooking oats
  • 1 cup coarsely chopped walnuts or pecans
Preparation
  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  2. Using a mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the Buttery Sticks and sugars on medium-high speed until the mixture is pale tan and smooth, about 2 minutes. Add the eggs and vanilla and mix for another 4 minutes. Add the dry ingredients in order, mixing them in on low speed, just until each is incorporated into the dough.
  3. Use a medium scoop (I use Oxo) or a larger one for bigger cookies, to scoop all the dough onto a cookie pan and chill in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes before baking.
  4. When you are ready to bake the cookies, space them well on a parchment-lined cookie pan (or use a Silpat) and bake for about 10 - 12 minutes. Bigger cookies will take a little longer to bake. Test cookies after 10 minutes of baking. They should be deep golden brown. Let the cookies cool on the pan for a few minutes, then transfer to a cooling rack. The cookies are best when fully cooled.

 

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